Check out this extraordinary video that stuffs senses of patriotism and nation hood among Indians!!!! After that, read my article to see my opinions!
A couple of months back during my summer vacation, there was a very boring day. I had finished studying, eating, playing and relaxing. My friends were all asleep and my sister had gone out somewhere. There was absolutely nothing to do that lazy afternoon.
I went to the attic of my house, where we usually store old newspapers. I could feel my hands pick up a newspaper. It was the previous day’s newspaper. I had just glanced through the titles and read briefly about the topics which I felt were really important. But never did I make an attempt to go through anything, in detail. Even if I had, I would have just read the reports of recent sports happenings. So I decided to inspect the newspaper in detail, understanding what each paragraph said.
It was at this time, that I discovered an article in the editorial page, which referred to the current youth of India.
The article briefly mentioned how the time has flown by and how our country has changed over the years - new trends, new preferences, new lifestyles, new buildings, new occupations, new politicians, new governments and new youth.
Today’s youth of India has been deeply influenced by the western world and the British styles. The way of thinking has taken a completely new shape. The present youth think that traditional customs, beliefs and clothes are boring and uncool. Imported goods and things from foreign brands are the popular trends of today’s youth community. Indian food is slowly becoming extinct from the minds of modern youngsters. KFC, McDonalds, Pizza-Hut, Dominoes, Taco-bell, Baja-Fresh, Krispy-Kreme doughnuts, Dunkin-doughnuts, Burger King, T.G.I.F, Papa Johns, Beijing Bites– these are the restaurants that roam in the mind of a young person of India, when asked to think of a eatery.
No youngster ever greets anyone with a “Namaste” now, “Hello” or “Hi” and “See you” and “Bye” are the replacement words. English is becoming increasingly popular. It is being used in all corners of the nation, and can be understood to some extent even by the illiterates. And the youth are slowly forgetting their mother language, for their linguistic roots are slowly rusting.
This was the principle concept of the article. All these thoughts zoomed into my mind, when at school one day, I was asked to write down what I liked about India and what changes I would bring about in India if I were given supernatural powers.
I wanted to prove today's youth that India is not what they think. India is totally different. It has a completely different history to tell. It was once paradise, filled with immense beauty, expensively valuable riches, millions of intellects and a massive storage of arts, cultures, languages, religions and customs.
In ancient times, students learned various essential qualities that are required to survive in this world. This was because the children were sent to their Guru's, or the teacher's, house to live there until the students complete their childhood. Besides learning, the students had to serve the Guru and his wife. And the Guru was not a mere teacher who just imparted knowledge. He took the role of modern-day parents and nurtured the young children. He would teach them various arts like horse-riding, sword-fighting, archery which were required in those days to live bravely and independently. Apart from these, he would teach them the sacred texts like the Vedas (Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atherva Veda). These Vedas were basically volumes and volumes of hymns composed in the Vedic Sanskrit language. It has many slokas or verses that contained words of wisdom and provided knowledge.
It was during the Vedic era, that a new type of mathematics developed. This came to be called Vedic Mathematics. It consisted of thousands of short-cuts and techniques that helped anyone to calculate faster than a computer. And it was in this era, that the science of medicine, or rather known as 'Ayurveda' in those days (In India), emerged. Ayurveda has an Eco-friendly cure to each and every medical problem to ever come forth. The art of Yoga, that is, the ancient Indian way of exercising, developed in this period. Yoga has the remedy to all sorts of body pains and can help a person to increase his or her lifespan, apart from providing physical and mental strength. Yoga is now world-famous and I am proud to tell everyone that it has native roots in our home soil, India.
The great epic Mahabharata contains numerous verses in Sanskrit that impart uncountable lessons. It is believed that the Mahabharata has the solution to any kind of problem that can arise in this whole wide world.
Ancient Indians were very knowledgeable. Scholars like Aryabhatta and Bhaskara were very wise and had discovered each and every mathematical concept that we know today. It is stated in one of the Vedas (in sloka form) that Indians had discovered the Pythagoras' theorem ages before it was stated by Pythagoras. Another inscription and cave-painting show that ancient Indians were practicing metallurgy (the process of obtaining a metal from its ore) aeons ago. And their science was very well-developed. The iron pillar in Mehrauli, notable for its rust-resistant structure, was erected in Ashoka's period, and carries many old, wise inscriptions.
India was once upon a time the richest country in this world. The Kohinoor Diamond, which was the most sought diamond in those days, and is, even today, the most popular and expensive diamond in the world, was found in Golconda mines of Hyderabad. It seemed that India was so rich, that gold and silvery jewellery and items were sold on the roadside like a hawker selling cheap plastic goods. Such was the status of India.
But it was all messed up. Many invaders discovered the weak points of Indian minds and looted all the richly treasures. Nadir Shah, a Persian ruler, stole the marvelous 'peacock throne'. And they stole all the treasuries of the temples, which mainly consisted of donations from rich millionaires, who were very religious. And the most disturbing fact in the whole Indian History, was the invasion or the brutal slavery practiced by the former, cruel Britishers.
The Britishers first arrived as small tradesmen, but soon, they took over the true residents of India and rose to supremacy. They arrived in need of raw materials to support the rising technology that was developed in their country. And they found what they needed in enormous quantities in our Motherland. They exploited the innocent farmers, and reduced them to ashes by ruthlessly driving them crazy. They made the righteous peasants do the farming and to harvest the crop and to give them what they needed. And what did they give us back for the meaningless labor? Not much! They used the processed raw material to just create a piece of work and sell it many times more than the actual cost. Shrewd people!
They eradicated the existing school systems in those days and devised their schooling techniques. And these new systems yielded only clerks, not ingenious people.
But amongst all this commotion, India is proud to have offered to this world, such artistic and innovative people. Kalpana Chawla created history by becoming the first Indian woman to go to space. Rakesh Sharma amazed India by becoming the first Indian to visit outer-space.
And India has come a really long way in the field of cricket. Right from the person to popularize cricket in India - 1983 Cricket World Cup winning captain 'Kapil Dev' to captain cool Mahendra Singh Dhoni, from Javagal Srinath to famed fast-bowler Zaheer Khan, from gentleman Rahul Dravid to energetic youngster Virat Kohli, there is a tremondous development of Cricket in India. And not to forget super Sachin. With his impressive batting skills, he mesmerized the world by breaking impressive records and creating new mammoth ones. India is credited with being one of the best cricket teams ever to exist.
Badminton, another emerging sport in India, has also yielded some outstanding performers. Pullela Gopichand and Prakash Padukone showed exceptional skills. Now, emerging badminton players like Parupalli Kashyap, Saina Nehwal, Ashwini Ponnappa, Jwala-Gutta and P.V.Sindhu have made our nation very proud by playing supremely well.
Milkha Singh and P.T.Usha gave India many reasons to smile by running really well. Vijender Singh and Mary Kom in boxing; Sushil Kumar and Yograj Bhatt in wrestling and Vijay Kumar, Abhinav Bindra and Gagan Narang in shooting have performed various distinctive acts and have won diverse medals in numerous events.
Not only in the sports field has India prospered, but even in today's youth craze, movies. India's Hindi film industry, Bollywood is the biggest film producer in India and one of the largest in the world. It has been the stage to showcase certain magnificent talents. It was through Bollywood that many exceptional actors got the fame and uncountable payback singers of India were recognized.
India's emerging IT field is also a big pride of India. Bangalore, also known as the 'Silicon Valley of India', is a home to many IT companies and the city is amongst the top 10 preferred entrepreneurial locations in the world. Infosys, a very renowned multinational company headquartered in Bangalore. Bangalore is also famous for the 'Lal-Bagh', an out-of-the-world botanical garden and 'Cubbon Park', a very refreshing and enjoyable park located in the heat of the city.
And India's eduction system is approvingly well, yielding millions of intellects every hour. Indians, in general, are very dedicated in the work they do and most of them give their hundred-percent to give out the best and only best results. This has been proved by the number of students enrolling in varying institutions, many of which are notable and. Barrack Obama once stated that U.S.A is worried where Indians are going to overtake the American in terms of education.
But what I like the most in this rich and lovely country, is the rich treasures of traditions and cultures. India is very illustrious and is acclaimed for its diversity. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Ghuar Mota (in Gujarat) in the west to Kibithu in the east, India is bound to have transforming cultures. For instance, the marriages are held in a pompous manner. The festivities are held for two days continually, which involves various traditions being followed. First, the bride's parents welcome the groom and treat him with immense respect. Then, in the evening, there is a glorious reception, wherein the bride and groom greet guests invited for the marriage and treat them generously with arrays of gorgeous dishes to choose from. The next day, a series of rituals which have a symbolic, spiritual and philosophical meaning that not only strengthen the relation between a bride and a groom, but builds enduring bonds of trust and happiness within two whole families. Marriages are also the best opportunities for families to gather and celebrate merriment. There are many lavish and memorable events that take place before the pair are officially married.
Another example of rich traditions are the festivals celebrated. India treasures a number of prosperous religions that celebrate a variety of festivals with pomp and opulence. 'The Dussera' for example, is a phenomenal festivity celebrated for ten whole days that consists of various ever-enjoyable celebrations and pujas (worships of god)
India's wildlife, flora and scenic beauty is probably the last parameter I am proud of. Nobody can deny that India's hill stations and Kashmir are few parts of Heaven on earth. Its magnificent beauty entrances everyone and pulls effectively, like a strong magnet, millions of tourists from all corners of the world. And the beautiful wildlife makes India a must-visit place for nature/animal lovers and wildlife photographers.
But this very great country is overshadowed by many bad omens. Terrorism, corruption and treachery have bestowed India's goodness. The basic principle of selfishness and jealousy have prevailed over the rulers of India. The current politicians have in mind no intention of administering India and helping it achieve great heights. What they only want to do is acquire more wealth to lead a famed and luxurious life. They are least bothered about the country's current stance and have no mind in helping it out, which is the main reason why poverty and overpopulation becloud the richness of India.
Right from the beginning, Indian rulers were always in want of more land and tried their best to grab more territories. This often resulted in disastrous wars for petty little problems.
It was this main weakness that enhanced the British to take over the administration of India. They discovered the weakness of Indian administrators and implied the policy of 'Divide and Rule' to take over the reins of India's administration. After all, 'United we stand, divided we fall'.
But after all, we are the only ones to be blamed for the poor fate of India, for it is our nature that has lead us to these intentions. And it is our duty to elect rightful leaders who truly deserve to captain the country's affairs.
Even then, I am proud to be an Indian and I will help India realize its true dream by creating awareness of India's integrity amongst the current Indian crowd.
