Let's Resolve to contribute towards building a Stronger India

#NewYearEveThoughts #2017 #NewYearResolution

As we Indians bid farewell to 2016 today, we are entering a Very Significant 2017. Seven long decades have passed since 1947, when after remaining tied for several centuries under foreign bondage, this Ancient Nation earned its long desired #Freedom to decide own destiny and to make further positive contribution to Humanity and the Modern World. Even as Freedom came at the cost of the lamentable partition of Greater India, our founding fathers though retaining deep scars in their minds of the loss in terms of a shared Historical Heritage, decided not to let narrow-mindedness cloud the future of India, and drafted a Constitution for Modern India based on its long cherished and broad-minded ancient values of Tolerance, Mutual Co-existence and Humanism. These Values constituting the Basic Spirit of India continue to guide our Journey as a Nation and do serve to inspire humanity at large.

Let's Resolve to contribute towards building a Stronger India

The end of a Year is the perfect time for some introspection about the progress of a Nation’s Journey and of our contribution in it as individuals. As only three more decades remain when we would be celebrating a century of our Independence, it is time to be reminded of our special role in the ever changing world scenario as balancing factors and especially as ones hailing from a land which had in the past spread the message of peace and non-violence to regions far and wide, apart from other contributions to Humanity. While one always feels proud to remember the important contributions of India to the growth of scientific knowledge in the Ancient World, the most important part of the Indian contribution was the visualization of the World as a Family, which is now even more visibly realistic with everyone connected together on a Common Virtual Digital Platform. 

While the developments of technology in the modern world have connected humans at an unprecedented level like never before, they have also given rise to sources of dangerous extermination where intolerant thoughts arising in one part of the globe have the capacity to influence stability and peace of humanity across continents and nations. In an age where prevailing conflict, violence, stiff competition, selfishness, and opportunism has become the order of the day, a ray of Hope is the ever tolerant and accomodative spirit of India, which is always forward looking and positive. But as things stand, such core human values are appreciated only if our innate Strength is properly understood and realized. That the Values of the strong are considered worthy of worship and emulation while even the best values of the weak are looked down upon, is the hard truth of existence as well worded by the poet Ramdhari Singh Dinkar in his lines :-

“सहनशीलता, क्षमा, दया को तभी पूजता जग है, 

बल का दर्प चमकता उसके पीछे जब जगमग है”

To cut the long narrative short, I feel that we must collectively resolve for contributing in whatever small ways possible towards building a Stronger, Prosperous and Influential India in the future. As we are planning our #NewYearResolutions, we should try to think of some way in which our Resolutions could be contributing to this larger objective and give some precious moments from our busy lifestyles to think about our roles in this regard. It is time to reflect whether should we be content with just the fulfillment of our personal aims and objectives, or should we resolve to make some contribution to the overall scheme of our combined objectives. Working in different fields, there are different ways in which one can contribute, but one must start contributing in any way deemed fit towards the desired objective, as every small contribution is very important. The maxim about Rome not having been built in a day stands to remind us that only a constant and perseverant effort towards the larger objective would help attaining it. 

We will have to build a national sub-culture of working in unison towards a larger goal of cumulative progress. We will have to work professionally and with a degree of selflessness in whatever works we do. We will have to lend a helping hand to those who have been left behind on the path of development and will have to avoid the convenience of short-cuts in day-to-day affairs. We will have to walk that extra mile to ensure that the functioning systems become standardized and are not subverted due to personal greed and influence, and that they work in the interest of society. We must also remember that even as our shared Indian Heritage gives a lot to learn from, it also has its share of deficiencies some of which we are still grappling with like casteism, gender discrepancies and others. We must resolve to contribute as individuals towards their mitigation as the years proceed. 

Even as one may not be able to change the scheme of overall affairs in an individual capacity, one can surely change oneself. The desired change would start the moment one would modify one’s thoughts and mould one’s activities towards the fulfilment of the larger goal. One changed individual would be an agent of change who would serve as a Role model for others around and gradually contribute in changing the over-all subculture. However pessimistic one may be, let’s start the change from within, since that is in our hands. I am sure that the coming times will see India emerge stronger than ever with its ancient values more well understood than ever in a World which needs it more than it ever did. As technology has closely knit the world digitally, the ancient Indian thought of the world as a family needs to be emphasized, for the betterment of humanity.

On this #NewYearEve, let’s resolve to think about ways in which we can contribute to the larger objective, and further resolve to make all efforts for the same. Let’s work together to build a Stronger India and spread the word around as we interact with our fellow citizens in the long Journey. While our Life Spans are Short, that of our Nation is Immense and has been continuing since times immemorial. Nevertheless, even with short life spans, the contributions that we can make towards the overall National achievement remain invaluable.

Best Wishes for the New Year. 

May it be a Great one for us as a Nation !

Jai Hind !