The Government of India has rightly celebrated this Independence Day as ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’. In this 75th year of independence, it is worth asking the question, ‘have we done justice to the efforts of our patriotic freedom fighters’? Further, is not true independence a freedom from our own limitations, at the level of the body and mind?
An important verse in the Ayurvedic treatise, Charak Samhita, explains freedom as follows.
Swaadhinam jeevanam yasya saha swatantraha
Meaning
“The one whose life is under his own command, one who has victory over his own limited self, and one who is not dependent on the other, he is independent.”
People may take this superficially to mean that it is fine to behave as per the wishes of the mind i.e. to fulfil all its fancies and ‘enjoy’ life ‘as per one’s wishes’. This type of joy is, alas, temporary and since it is temporary, it inevitably leads to the opposite result i.e. sorrow. What we are looking for is Anand or rather Param-Anand, which is the state of Supreme Bliss. Its most important characteristic is that it is permanent.
The true spirit of ‘Bharatiyatwa’ or Indian-ness is walking on the path towards light. The word Bhaarat is made up of two words ‘bhaa’ or ‘abhaa’ and ‘rata’.
Bhaa means light, radiance, energy. Rata means aspiring towards, longing for or meditating upon i.e. to become one with something. Thus, a bharatiya is one who has the yearning to be enlightened (become light). Long before modern scientists were intrigued by the physical properties of light (its speed or mass, for example), the ancients of Bhaarata were intuitively drawn towards studying the mystic aspects of light.
Light is a form of knowledge. Knowledge is realised through experience. Experience depends on one’s individual potential. True independence can only be enjoyed when people’s character develops the richness of the inner qualities of the soul. Unfortunately, very often, individuals are submissive to, and controlled by, the forces of their instincts, and these end up dominating their actions. Bhaaratiya philosophy enumerates these as the shad ripus or the six main enemies – kaam-lust, krodha-anger, lobha-greed, moha-illusion, mada-arrogance and matsar-jealousy. These enemies lead to bondages that create dependencies. Freedom has to be earned from all these as well.
All our actions in the present are ruled by our past as well any repetitive tendencies we may have too – like laziness, impatience, fear and anxiety. These obstacles continuously hinder us. It is the responsibility of every individual to really become free from these tendencies that keep us in ignorance. We must look forward to celebrating our victory over dependence. This must be done at an individual as well as social level for us to enjoy the results as a nation. Sincerity, hard work and dedication are the key to individual success. The attitude of sharing and caring for others works at the level of society, community and country. This will help us achieve the aim of becoming a one big global family on planet earth, vibrating with positivity and love. This is what we mean by vasudhaiva-kutumbakam – where the whole planet is integrated as one family. That is when we will really celebrate independence in its true ‘bharatiya’ spirit.