Wednesday, June 04, 2008

veer savarkar: Remembering an uncommon nation-builder

jun 4th, 2008

of course the court (jester) historians have erased savarkar from all the textbooks. according to them jawaharlal nehru single-handedly won india its independence.

what a guy, that jawahar, he won independence for india in his spare time whenever he could bear to tear himself away from mrs mountbatten!

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Savarkar.org Team <admin@savarkar.org>
Date: Wed, May 28, 2008 at 7:14 PM
Subject: Remembering an uncommon nation-builder
To:


The 125th birth anniversary of Swatantryaveer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar falls on 28 May 2008. It is a fitting occasion to remember the man and his manifold contribution to the Hindu Nation.

Savarkar was born when India was under British yoke. Savarkar was clear that a nation in bondage can never achieve her destiny. He was also clear that freedom cannot be attained through pleas and petitions but by self-sacrifice. Savarkar belongs to a rare breed of Indian patriots who pledged to serve their motherland while still in childhood. What is more, he stood by his pledge till his last breath. Savarkar was among the first to place the case for India's freedom at the international level. He established contacts with revolutionaries from different countries to achieve this goal. At a time when British rule was still widely regarded as a divine blessing and Dominion Status was discussed in hushed tones, Savarkar fearlessly proclaimed absolute freedom as his goal. Savarkar had a clear vision of independent India even as a youth. He put forth the vision of a sovereign republic with Sanskritised Hindi as the national language and Devanagari as the national script.

In Savarkar's time, there was a debate about the relative importance of political struggle and social reform. Savarkar held that freedom won without social reform would not last for three days. Savarkar's thoughts and actions in the field of social reform are radical even by today's standards.

To Savarkar, freedom did not merely mean replacing the colonial masters with their brown-skinned versions. He meditated deeply on India's identity. To him, Hindutva was synonymous with India's nationhood. To a very large extent, the credit for elucidating the philosophy of Hindutva and Hindu Nationalism in modern times goes to Savarkar. To this day, the Hindu Revivalist movement owes its intellectual underpinnings to Savarkar.

Savarkar had to fight on various fronts. His opposition to the British rulers did not waver even after immense personal suffering. His campaign for social reform put him at loggerheads with conservative Hindus. His reasoned stand on ethics, truth, non-violence and Hindu-Muslim relations placed him in conflict with so-called political saints and their bumbling followers. His relentless and almost solitary opposition to Partition meant that he was at war with Islamists. Even decades after his death, Savarkar continues to be reviled by assorted secularists and leftists. Possible loss of power, popularity and prestige never stopped Savarkar from putting forth his views. Welfare of the people and not merely their praise was his guiding principle in these matters.

The Hindu nation can become resurgent once again only if it imbibes Savarkar's thoughts on different aspects of national life. Ours is a humble effort in that direction.

Other Updates:

Savarkar's historic book 'The War of Independence 1857' (Marathi version) and our website www.savarkar.org were inaugurated by the Hon. Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Narendra Modi at a glittering function held on 24 May 2008 (Savarkar's anniversary as per Hindu calender) at the Ganesh Kala Krida Manch, Pune. Noted litterateur Ram Shewalkar and Shivshahir Babasaheb Purandare were also present

Thanks,
Savarkar.org Team
www.savarkar.org
.

1 comment:

Brownian Motion said...

Tear himself away from Mrs. Mountbatten or Mr. Mountbatten? Enquiring minds want to know!

P