Hindu Nationalism and Hindu Rashtra

Hindu Nationalism and Hindu Rashtra

Nationalism, in today’s world, is a much-maligned concept. Albert Einstein called it “an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind.” If that description alone isn’t enough to inspire countless angry op-eds and PhD dissertations, put Hindu next to it and one can send the entire Left-Liberal world into a tizzy. Similarly, the notion of Rashtra gets maligned in much of the Leftist-Marxist ideology dominated media and academia. Lack of intellectual honesty and a lack of deeper understanding accounts for much of the negativity that has come to define these concepts. 

Einstein, arguably one of the most famous and influential scientists of the modern time, was a product of an extremely tumultuous time in the history of mankind. As such, his idea of Nationalism was shaped by the events of that era. Much of the bad rap to Nationalism, however, is a result of selective cherry-picking. In addition, when it is applied in Indian contexts, it spells disaster, much like the notion of ‘secularism’ does. 

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines nationalism as a consciousness “exalting one nation above all others and placing primary emphasis on promotion of its culture and interest as opposed to those of other nations or supranational groups.” In the West, writes well-known journalist and author Hindol Sengupta, “love for the country has almost gone hand-in-hand with attempting to, by force, expand its borders. Europe’s borders were written and rewritten with blood and the spirit of Nationalism. ” Nationalism is also blamed for large-scale disruptions in the economy.

Nationalism is invariably blamed for unending wars and myriad social strife across the globe. Nationalism is also associated with the names of the despotic rulers, ruthless dictators, tyrants, and expansionist empires. Many political scientists consider nationalists as those who see outsiders as potentially inferior or evil. They are also considered ‘antagonistic’ to others. We are aware, however, that mankind has fought numerous wars and there exists many conflicts without the idea of Nationalism. Tyranny and dictatorship too are not a monopoly of Nationalist societies. Love for one’s own nation does not presuppose hatred toward some other nation. 

The notion of the modern state, or nation, is a relatively nascent one. It is, in fact, only a few centuries old. Eurocentric to be precise, the idea of a modern nation-state is based on the assumption that the aspirations of people that constitute the nation are best served by a common political entity. 

The notion of Rashtra in the Indic Civilization, however, is much older as well as quite different from the eurocentric notion of nation at the same time. Word Rashtra is used in the Vedic literature to describe the national identity of the people of Bharatvarsha, a contiguous landmass between the snow-packed mountain peaks of the Himalayas in the north and the deep sea in the south. It is also a land of the Seven Rivers, the Sapt Sindhu. Rashtra is replete with a sense of spirituality, divinity, sacredness, and motherhood. It’s a land, according to Diana Eck, of sacred geography that “bears traces of gods and footprints of heroes. Every place has its own story, and conversely, every story in the vast storehouse of myths and legends has its place.”

The notion of Rashtra is indigenous to the Indic Civilization, not a Western import. The Rashtra is benevolent, it strives for everybody’s ‘abhyudayam’ (development). Rashtra is not a mere political entity. It transcends its physical attributes. It is rather a creed. Nationalism in India, according to Sri Aurobindo, “is a religion that has come from God… If you are going to be a Nationalist, if you are going to assent to this religion of Nationalism, you must do it in the religious spirit.”

A Rashtra is not closed, selfish, and individualistic. With the mantra of ‘vasudhaiva kutumbakam’, it respects pluralism and considers the entire world as a family. Rashtra considers each animate and inanimate object of this world and each and every element of the entire cosmos to be connected to and part of the divine Consciousness in a quantum way. 

Rashtra of the Indic civilization is the personification of a mother and god. The Atharva Veda declares: ‘mata bhumiputroahamprithvyah’, meaning this earth is my mother and I am his son. “I am the beholder of the Rashtra,” proclaims the Rig Veda, “benefactors of the gods, and first among the worshipped.” 

Rashtra is consciousness and as such is beyond the realm of mundane intellectual inquiry. To quote Sri Aurobindo, “There is a certain section of thought in India which regards Nationalism as ‘madness’. The men who think like that are men of great intellectual ability… and they say Nationalism will ruin the country… They are men who have lived in the pure intellect only and they look at things purely from the intellectual point of view.”

Indic Nationalism is neither theocentric (theocratic) nor anthropocentric (borderless laissez faire). Those who consider Rashtra and Nationalism a mere intellectual conviction and materialistic construct are looking at it from a purely Western point of view. Indic Nationalism is Dharma with freedom of mind, body, and spirit as well as Self realization as its core principle. It is a divine power that does not strive to hurt or subjugate others. Faith and unselfishness, according to Sri Aurobindo, are the two primary defining principles of Indian Rashtra.

This notion of Rashtra and the Rashtra itself is worth preserving at all costs. In the Prithvi Sukta of the Atharva Veda, there is a prayer mantra that says  — “O Mother Earth, destroy those who want to subdue my Rashtra by Shastra (weapon) and/or by Shastra (knowledge).” While sages and rishis like Adi Shankara, Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo, Maharishi Ramana countered the challenge to the Rashtra with Shastra, the Naths, the Nagas, the Sikhs, the Rajputs, the Bhils, the Jats, the Marathas, the Pasis, the Ahir, the Ahomias, etc. did the same with Shastra. It is incumbent upon the modern days’ and future sons and daughters of Bharatvarsh to protect their Rashtra from all evil and at all costs.