Republic Day Week Special - 3: Fulfilling our fundamental duties

(I request readers to have a breeze past the last two posts to get a better idea on this one)

Ok.. so we come to the last post in the series, i.e. of this festival season.

Now, I will connect once again the quotes from the Gita to the content of the last two posts properly. Well, the point I intended to make was that renunciation, of all kinds is essential for the performance of any kind of duties. For example, in order for you to respect your parents and be able to follow them at all times, you must renounce your ego. In order to effectively learn something with your teacher, you must renounce the urge to belittle your teacher whenever he/she makes a mistake, considering themselves as human as you are. The list of things to renounce thus continues.

The text from the Gita I highlighted opens with Arjuna asking Shri Krishna about the purpose of renunciation by the Sanyasis. As per Shri Krishna, there are two doctrines associated with renunciation. 1) Sanyasa - which is the renunciation of activities that are based on material desire, and 2) Tyaga - which is the renunciation of all activities.

By His opinion, there are some activities, namely charity, sacrifice, and penance must never be given up, but they should be pursued and that should be done without any desire for the goal. (For this doctrine, refer to this post) But infact, they should be pursued as a sense of duty. And that duty has always to be adhered to, without any sense of attachment towards material goals. Only then would we be able to enjoy the true pleasure of renunciation.

Charity, sacrifice and penance,.. these are the qualities that will enable us to fulfill our duties even today. While the world has changed a lot in terms of the sciences, man's baser instincts remain essentially the same. In fact, we have become even more carnal in our desires, but I will leave that for a future post.

Getting back to the fundamental duties enshrined in the constitution, I wish to say that in order for us to fulfill our fundamental duties, we need to renounce:

1) Our petty problems with regard to language, religion, caste and regional issues and come together to forge a unique pan Indian identity. With today's means of education and media, we can make it the most powerful the nation has ever seen in quite a long time.

2) Our greed for money. No other solution comes to mind for the rampant corruption we see in our system. The amount lost in scams just keeps growing every time a new one comes up. This must not be tolerated.

3) Our skills at procrastination. Yes, the bed, the home and the carress of the loved ones are very comfortable indeed. But there is more to life than that. We must develop an attitute of proactivity in life, getting things done on time. We're not to be here forever, we have a limited time to do what we're sent here to do, and we must act with a sense of urgency.

4) Our affinity towards anything foreign. We must learn to respect homegrown or self produced goods and services more than foreign goods. The 'Swadeshi' movement of our freedom struggle needs to be rejuvenated. This will in turn, lead us to respect our composite culture, and as the emphasis is laid on home products, would also lead to in-house scientific research and advancement of science and technology in the country.

5) Our disregard for cleanliness outside our homes, understand the shortcomings of the nation in appointing cleaners for every nook and cranny of the country and take it onto ourselves, to preserve hygiene. Once this is done in the villages, the towns and the cities, the campaign must be taken to the industrial centers and we must have environmental preservation schemes implemented.

6) Our ability to accept anything reported in the Media as satya (truth), all the while forgetting that realizing satya is for us to do ourselves by toil and sweat. Nobody will hand down truth on a platter down to you and if it is happening, then there must be something wrong. Let not psychological/philosophical inclinations delude you into believing something is true. A statement must be accepted only if proof is provided, and even if proof is provided, we must develop a questioning attitude towards it. Nothing should surpass the hammer of our reasoning, and the anvil of truth unscathed.

7) Our affinity for piecemeal measures towards attaining success, and then getting into a state of complacency. We must be resolute in demanding the perfect accomplishment of our goals and only then should we rest. Swami Vivekananda said "Rise and stop not till thy goal is reached!"

It is thus evident that "Tyaga" is not of essence right now, for we still have a lot to do. "Sanyasa" is what is required, an abrogation of material desires, and alligning our minds to our duties, adhering to them till the very last breath.

With this, it is time to depart. Let us make a resolution this Republic day, that we will strive to fulfill our duties to the maximum, and aid India/Bharat/Hindusthan in re-achieving its glorious past.

"JAI HIND!"

Republic Day Week Special: A recap of our fundamental duties -2

This is in continuation from the last post I made on the fundamental duties in the Indian constitution. I have set the background of the post with a few quotes of the Gita describing acts of renounciation, which is very essential for us to achieve our duties. While that is to be discussed in a succeding post, we still have to make a record of our other duties, apart from the three discussed previously.

4. To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so.

If we look at national service narrowly in terms of militarily aiding the nation in times of war, I have no doubt we still have many nationalist minded people who are willing to selfless come to the succor of our nation. But when will people start aiding the government in public service projects? When are we even going to start paying taxes lawfully? (Check this article out for more info). Isn't that also a form a national service? Thus, much needs to be done in the real meaning of 'national service'.

5. To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women.

Apart from sporadic incidents of violence, (although, casualties are indeed large) we should say that there is ample religious, linguistic and regional unity. Few cogs are still rusty though. It remains to be seen if we can stop the rot in time or not. Women too are far well treated these days as compared to some nations.

6. To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture.

Of all the duties, these has been taken the least seriously. The fad for globalization that has spread across the Indian youth has given a serious beating to our culture. Take a simple example of clothing. Just a couple of generations ago, Indian men and women were wearing traditional dresses. Now, even the poorest of the poor have switched to wearing shirts and pants.

Yet there are some good efforts made in this regard. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) activities in this regard are one example. For one, check out their mission statement. Also consider their social activity, this time from a more creditable site that most of you would agree with. That of course would be but a small list of the institution's achievements.

7. To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for living creatures.

Last heard, tiger population in India was dwindling and has reached a mere 1411. We have mixed results for the lion (link) whose population now stands at 359 while in 1907 it was a mere 13. That was when the Nawab of Junagadh stepped in to protect the lion. A rare case of a royal caring for wildlife. As far as people's movements in terms of natural environment are concerned, the Chipko movement comes to mind (a good link on the history of the movement). Yet, much more needs to be done for the cleanliness of our rivers. Perhaps revival of our ancient ethics wherein we regarded all elements of nature as holy is the order of the day over here.

8. To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform.

This has been developed to a certain extent. In post independence India, much progress in space and nuclear field has been made, thanks to scientists Dr. Vikram Sarabhai and Dr. Homi Bhabha respectively. The green revolution in India is another scientific achievement, and the victory of ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research) is a legend. And so was the white revolution in India important for generating milk sufficiency. The flourishing of the spirit of inquiry and reform would be evident from the growing number of engineering and college students in India. It is but normal to assume that with college education spreading, there is a greater chance of this spirit being established in India on a larger scale.

But this has come at a cost about us missing out on rediscovering whatever scientific progress was made in ancient India. Sanskrit education has not been patronised to understand the scriptures, and we have not picked up from where we last departed from science in our scriptures. Our ancestors might have done this only after heavy aggressions from our North-West. We have to pick the stones up again and build the fort afresh. We need to apply our 'scientific temper' in this field.

9. To safeguard public property and to abjure violence.

Public property has been in a state of disrepair since quite some time. Venture out in the world and you will see what is the status of the same abroad. We should feel bad that anything with the epithet of 'public' in India has got an unclean image among Indians. From bus stops, to train stops, lack of hygiene is appalling. In this field, the work of Sulabh Sauchalaya requires special mention. We must start considering hygiene first in the reorganising of our public properties, for it seems it is viewed as a measure of comfort and not as a measure of promoting health.

Other things too need to be considered for public property. Protection from acts of rioting, terrorism, etc. would in turn partly solve the second part of this duty.

10. To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and achievement.

When it comes to striving in excellence in individual activity, we second none. But a lot has to be done in terms of striving towards achieving collective activity. Team spirit lags in India, which could be a reason why fields like Indian sports are stagnating. On the other hand, individual sports like chess, badminton, tennis, golf, etc. have done much better in comparison to team sports in India.

On the whole, while there are some good stories that are worth mentioning, we still need to do a lot to realise our fundamental duties. I sign off this post right now and will return another time, most likely before the 26th of Jan with a few suggestions on how to reform India.

Republic Day Week Special - A recap of our fundamental duties - 1

From the Bhagwada Gita, consider the following conversation at the beginning of Chapter 18.

१

अर्जुन उवाचा
संन्यासस्य महा-बहो
तत्त्वं इच्छामि वेदितुम्
त्यागस्य का हृषीकेशा
पृथक केसी-निसुदाना।

"Arjuna said: O mighty-armed one, I wish to understand the purpose of renunciation [tyaga] and of the renounced order of life [sannyasa], O killer of the Keshi demon, master of the senses."

२

श्री-भगवान उवाचा
कम्यानाम कर्माणं न्यासं
संन्यासं कवयो विदुः
सर्व-करमा-पहला-तयागम
प्रहुस तयागम विकाक्षनाह।

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: The giving up of activities that are based on material desire is what great learned men call the renounced order of life [sannyasa]. And giving up the results of all activities is what the wise call renunciation [tyaga]."

३

त्याज्यम डोसा-वाद इत्य एके
करमा प्रहर मनिसिनाह
यजना-दाना-तपः-करमा
न त्याज्यम इति कपरे।

"Some learned men declare that all kinds of fruitive activities should be given up as faulty, yet other sages maintain that acts of sacrifice, charity and penance should never be abandoned."

४

निस्कायम शृणु में तत्र
त्यागे भरता-सत्तामा
त्यागो ही पुरुष-व्याघ्र
त्रि-विधः संप्रकीर्तितः।

"O best of the Bharatas, now hear My judgment about renunciation. O tiger among men, renunciation is declared in the scriptures to be of three kinds."

५

यजना-दाना-तपः-करमा
न त्याज्यम कार्यम एव तट
यज्नो दानं तापस किव
पवानानी मनिसिनाम।

"Acts of sacrifice, charity and penance are not to be given up; they must be performed. Indeed, sacrifice, charity and penance purify even the great souls."

६

इतनी अपि तू कर्मणि
संगम त्यक्त्वा फलानी च
कर्तव्यानीति में पर्थ
निस्सितम मातम उत्तमं।

"All these activities should be performed without attachment or any expectation of result. They should be performed as a matter of duty, O son of Pritha. That is My final opinion."

७

नियतस्य तू संन्यासः
कर्मानो नोपपद्यते
मोहत तस्य परित्यागास
तमसः परिकीर्तितः।

"Prescribed duties should never be renounced. If one gives up his prescribed duties because of illusion, such renunciation is said to be in the mode of ignorance."

८

दुह्क्हम इत्य एव यात करमा
काया-कलेसा-भायत त्यजेत
सा कृत्वा राजसं तयागम
नैव त्यागा-फलं लभेत।

"Anyone who gives up prescribed duties as troublesome or out of fear of bodily discomfort is said to have renounced in the mode of passion. Such action never leads to the elevation of renunciation."

९

कार्यम इत्य एव यात करमा
नियतं क्रियते ’रजुना
संगम त्यक्त्वा फलं किव
सा त्यागः सात्त्विको मतः।

"O Arjuna, when one performs his prescribed duty only because it ought to be done, and renounces all material association and all attachment to the fruit, his renunciation is said to be in the mode of goodness."

१०

न द्वेस्टी अकुसलम करमा
कुसल नानुसज्जाते
त्यागी सत्त्व-समविस्तो
मेधावी चिन्ना-सम्सयाह।

"The intelligent renouncer situated in the mode of goodness, neither hateful of inauspicious work nor attached to auspicious work, has no doubts about work."

११

न ही देहा-भरता सक्यम
त्याक्तुम कर्मण्य असेसतः
यस् तू करमा-पहला-त्यागी
सा त्यागिटी अभिधीयते।

"It is indeed impossible for an embodied being to give up all activities. But he who renounces the fruits of action is called one who has truly renounced."

The above passage elucidates the virtue of renunciation. Renunciation aids us in the quest of our duties, and in this case, I'm going to talk about the fundamental duties enshrined in our Constitution. Now consider the fundamental duties . These are:

1. To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem;
2. To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;
3. To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India;
4. To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;
5. To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;
6. To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;
7. To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for living creatures;
8. To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform;
9. To safeguard public property and to abjure violence;
10. To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and achievement.

(Reference)

It is now high time that we realize some of these. Just because there is no law guarding our fundamental duties, we have simply left them out of our 'to-do' list for today.

What is our standing on these fundamental duties at the moment? We haven't even been able to put into effect the first fundamental duty of our constitution namely:-

"1. To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem."

When we saw Pakistan flags being raised in Kashmir and Assam, what do we do? Why weren't all the buggers arrested on charges of treason? We do respect the National Anthem, yawning with mouths wide open on national festivals and often overexceeding the time limit. But why is it that only the National Anthem is respected and not the National Song? Why have we not approached the 13% of our population who disregard the Vande Mataram out of sheer paranoia and misjudgement? Do we know why they do this? Is there some genuine reason or is it just because they are told to not sing the National Song? When are we going to... bell the cat?
(An analysis by pioneer journo Kanchan Gupta to be found on this page.)

Let's look at the second duty.

"2. To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom."

As per me, two noble ideals that inspired our national struggle are selflessness of struggle for the motherland. Today, we are hardly selfless. While creation of wealth is but a natural tendency of mankind, we should have been aware that a newborn nation like India would not be able to make everybody rich instantly. Yet, our government servants are all willing to earn money by any means possible (read corruption). And we, to have our work done, are but abetting them in their quest of money. Myself included, bribed some of them to get my work done. This can be nothing but detrimental to the well-being of the nation.

"3. To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India."

This has fallen on the shoulders of none other than - guess who? The common Indian soldier. For I doubt that apart from the Army, there is anything that keeps the fabric of Indian society bound.

Trouble mongers often take refuge in the distorted history taught to us that India has never been one country to deny us the privilege of no internal strife to spread their propaganda. Today, when Naxalites ravage our southern and eastern states, Ulfa in the north east, illegal Bangladeshi immigrants create situations in the east and north east, what has the common Indian done to avoid these problems? On the contrary, I have seen reports stating that these Bangladeshi immigrants being used as cheap labour.

The common Indian has thus by and large done nothing for upholding the national integrity of India. By nothing, I mean in the terms of action, though the sentiment might be there in most of us.

More fundamental duties to be analysed later. The post seems to have gotten too long.

Polytheism is The way.

Many people may draw parallels with other political ideologies (1 and 2) and Hinduism when they read the Gita. Perhaps verses as these may fill them with glee that theirs is the right way of worship.

Chapter 7
७
मत्तः परताराम नान्यत
किन्सिद अस्ति धनञ्जय
मई सर्वं इदम प्रोतं
सूत्र मणि-गाना इव।

"O conqueror of wealth, there is no truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread."

But then, there is this:

२०
कमैस तीस तैर हरता-ज्नानाह
प्रपद्यन्ते ’नया-देवातः
तम तम नियमम अस्थाया
प्रकृत्या नियतः स्वया।

"Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures."

२१
यो यो यम् यम् तनम भक्तः
श्रद्धायार्सितुम इच्चाती
तस्य तस्याकालम श्रद्धाम
तम एव विदाधामी अहम्।

"I am in everyone’s heart as the Supersoul. As soon as one desires to worship some demigod, I make his faith steady so that he can devote himself to that particular deity."

२२
सा तय श्रद्धया युक्तास
तस्याराधानाम इते
लभते का ततः कमान
मयेवा विहितन ही तन।

"Endowed with such a faith, he endeavors to worship a particular demigod and obtains his desires. But in actuality these benefits are bestowed by Me alone."

Thus, while worship onto Shri Krishna/Vishnu is to be the ideal case, the Gita mentions that worship of the demigods is also allowable.

What is wrong if we are polytheistic? In fact, I would say polytheism is the right way. Now consider an atheist person. He has no God to worship. So, he would look onto humans who have lived within recorded history as his heroes. Now does he regard only one human as a hero, and disregards all of them? Quite unlikely, because most people have a pantheon of heroes they derive their inspiration from. This is because we never see all the qualities we desire imbibed in the True human.

Replace heroic humans as Gods (deities to be specific) and we get polytheism. So what is wrong with polytheism? Why is it absurd?

In fact, I find Monotheism absurd to think of. That there is one God, and only one name. Doesn't it smack of dictatorship and autocracy? Humans would never submit to one king, one prime minister or whatever. So, why should he submit to one God? Have monotheists ever thought of, that since they ascribe to God the attributes of ultimate power, what would happen if God, like man would get corrupt? What if absolute power corrupts God absolutely? Don't they smell anything fishy in this construct?

It is thus only feasible that a polytheist/henotheist approach be taken and dictatorship of any kind, even of God should be abhorred.

Epilogue: A post intended to act as a suggestion to pagans to counter the brain washing of the missionaries. Hope you agree.