Importance of Lokmanthan in Bharatiya Sabhyata – Sanskriti

Partha Pratim Mazumder

(parthapratimmazumder1988@gmail.com)

Bharat is a complex mix of feelings and emotions. No one thing can describe this beautiful Rastra. There is no country like Bharat, quite as diverse, multi-lingual and multi-cultural, yet bound together by the ancient bounds of shared traditions, culture and values. Such bonds need to be strengthened through enhanced and continuous mutual interaction between people of varied regions and ways of life so that it encourages reciprocity and secures an enriched value system of unity amongst people of different states in a culturally special country like Bharat. It is also defined by its literature, art, talent, and culture. It is a land of many languages and festivals. Bharat as a feeling lives in its people – who are all different, yet the same. This is not a religious identity – this is a geographical and cultural identity. What kept us together longer than any other nation on the planet is that essentially, we have always been a land of seekers – seekers of truth and liberation. In this seeking, we found oneness. When we look for sameness, we try to become a land of believers. This seeking is not something that we invented. It is the nature of human intelligence to want to know, realize, and liberate itself. Partition was unjustifiably demanded in the name of religion and unreasonably conceded for political convenience. It could and should have been avoided at the cost of a few years' delay in becoming independent. The rulers of the newly created "Islamic republic" chose to sacrifice democracy and human rights at the altar of a misconceived religion-politics mix. Soon, they paid the price in the form of another partition, showing that the bonds of language were stronger than religious affinity. Carved out of the subcontinent unnaturally, both the artificially created nations have faced serious problems of all kinds — military rule, suppression of democracy, communal politics, sectarian violence, increasing crime, and so on. Until recently the philosophy of integrating the world based on the market forces dominated human imagination, but with the latest turn of events, the idea of safeguarding life and exercising international cooperation by promoting unique strengths and assets of each country is an idea that has started to take shape in the global mind.

It is high time we redefined these adages because of the current Bhartiya context and to rebuild paths that will lead us back to our time-tested values and traditions. Indian languages, specifically Sanskrit, Pali and Prakrit, are the base of Indian history. We all know how Bharatiya itihas has been destroyed from 1780 to 1947 during the British raj and post-independent period by pseudo-secular liberals. The East India Company is considered by some to be the most powerful corporation the world has ever known. Professor Huw Bowen, an expert on British colonial history, calls it a "money-making empire" that "stole $45 trillion from India". Anirban Mitra, a lecturer of economics at the University of Kent in the UK, wrote that "historians agree that racist supremacy was, at least since the beginning of the 19th century, a defining feature of the angrez (English) mindset." A candid view! In every institution across South Asian society, structural racism not only exists but continues to thrive, affirming a colonial attitude. However, the essence of our Rashtriyata lay not in religious, political or administrative apparatus but on an immutable culture binding masses across the country. In the present time, Indian thinkers and leaders have invested to ready ourselves as a great nation exuding with confidence and that is "Lokmanthan". It became one of the largest platforms to share, brainstorm and perorate on contemporary issues of the country that not only influences home but also the world. 'Confluence of evolving nationalism, aspirations, social justice and harmony through empathy and sensitization culminating into social mobility using development as an instrument' is the moving Mantra of the national convention. After the first lokmanthan on decolonization of India, the second lokmanthan was held on the theme of nationalism in Ranchi, Jharkhand. Now,

the third lokmanthan to be held on Guwahati, Assam would be on the theme of 'indigenous culture of India' and the event would be conducted over 3 days. Looking towards the north-eastern part of India, it is a region of varied languages and tribes, with each having its tradition and culture. And with these cultural values, our society has been established and moving forward. Even with the developments in technology and science, in our villages and mostly among our indigenous people, cultural values still holds great importance and these values shape our lives. When we say of cultural values, it means the belief system that we've been following traditionally.

For example, if we celebrated Kati Bihu by lighting earthen lamps, that is also a part of our cultural values. Also, these values have been certainly established upon scientific facts. Our civilization has been here for 5-6k years and it is here because some of our great ancestors have left enough precedents of these cultural values for us, which we still follow. For example, earthen lamps in Kati Bihu has scientific evidence. It is on this day that the distance between the Earth and Sun increases and the Winter arrives. We pray to Lord Sun so that the summers arrive again after the winter. Here cultural beliefs play an important role in developing the environment and with these cultural values of India, the country is being developed. And our only aim should be to follow the Indian culture and values, that is, most importantly to gain knowledge...so we shall follow our Sanatana Dharma and keep gaining knowledge to move forward and our culture shows us the right direction. Whether you call it science, spiritual process, inquiry, or quest, essentially, human intelligence wants to transcend its present limitations, wants to liberate itself from the fetters in which we exist right now. We built our nation on this longing, this seeking. Our nationhood cannot be destroyed as long as we keep this seeking alive. If we do not try to transform ourselves towards sameness, we will always be one.