Patriotism
--> Posted on 2009-08-06 11:25:16 By Kirti GautamPatriotism means the love for our country or native land. It is difficult to imagine a man who does not, love his own country. The love for our country surpasses love for any other thing. A philosopher says that we should sacrifice our individual self for the sake of the family. We should sacrifice the family for the sake of society and sacrifice every thing for the sake of the country.
Patriotism is a noble feeling. If we look at the history of the world, we find that the noblest heroes are those who have tried to do good to their country and even died for it Men who have fought and died for their friends, relatives or religion are soon forgotten. The names of those who die for the country are never forgotten. The greatest heroes are those who have risked their lives in the defence of their country.
India has produced a number of patriots. Maharana Pratap fought bravely against the Mughals. He sacrificed his comfort, money and family, but did not bow before the Mughals. Shivaji too fought against the Mughals without caring for his life. Many Indians gave away their lives in fighting against the British. They died so that we could live. Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev willingly kissed the gallows. Chander Shekhar Azad gave up his life but did not surrender to the British. Leaders like Gandhi. Nehru and Lala Lajpat Rai suffered for the sake of the country. The names of all these persons are written in gold letters in the history the country.
A poet says that one's own native land is like one's mother. Both the mother and the native land are superior to heaven. So, the freedom of one's native land should be considered to be of the foremost importance. In an enslaved country, man is like a bird in a cage. Whether the cage is made of gold or silver makes no difference. Milton says that it is better to rule in Hell than to serve in Heaven. He means to say that a life of difficulties and miseries in a free country is better than a life of luxuries in a country dominated by others.
Patriotism does not mean merely using high sounding expressions about the country. We must be prepared to die for the country or suffer for it when the need arises. Every citizen must work to make the country strong. Thus the love for our country also means love for the people of the country. We must try to remove the sufferings of our fellow beings and to promote their happiness. We should not safeguard our selfish interest at the cost of our country. We must not try to harm our country in any way. If we indulge in corruption, we are cheating our own country. If we do not work hard or do our duty, we are harming our country. These things go against the concept of patriotism.
At present, our country is passing through a difficult phase. There is violence, corruption and laziness everywhere. Nobody seems to think in terms of national unity. Everybody thinks in terms of religion ,caste, race or language. Everyone wants to earn as much as possible even at the cost of the country. So patriotism and patriots are badly needed in India at the present moment.
But patriotism should not lead us to have excessive pride in our country and a feeling of ill-will for other countries. Real patriotism believes in the principle of peaceful co-existence. There should be no desire to exploit other countries for our own good.
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