Open Forum

New Delhi, 15 April 2016

Bharat Mata

OF SYMBOL AND SUBSTANCE

By Dr S Saraswathi

(Former Director, ICSSR, New Delhi)

The latest controversy in the series of unwanted emotionally-charged issues dividing people just for the sake of it has erupted over chanting “Bharat Mata ki Jai” – one of the symbols of national spirit. The spirit exists and has to exist within and beyond the symbols, but reveling in fights over symbolism has become characteristic of Indian politics today.

The storm raked by AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi has had varied reactions. The recent-most being that by Delhi’s Lt Governor Najeeb Jung. During an interview to a TV channel he stated: ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ is worship of a different kind from the worship of a deity. I don’t represent any community. I am not representing any religion here. This is a manufactured controversy.” And added: “Indians have a right to refuse to say ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’, and that refusal is not anti-national.”  The interview hit the headlines.

Recall, the Maharashtra Assembly unanimously suspended a member representing AIMIM for saying he wouldn’t chant “Bharat Mata ki Jai” even at the cost of his life. The remark led to an uproar in which the Congress, BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP joined. Evidently, there is a strong conviction in holding on to symbols that served to unite people during the Independence Movement and got elevated as sacrosanct in course of time.  Indeed, some of these symbols, by sheer repetition, and by spatial spread have acquired national acceptance. These are expressions of emotional attachment to the Motherland. Any nation needs such symbols which have national character beyond parochial attachments to give a sense of unity and brotherhood. 

The emotion is quite strong that provoked Maharashtra Chief Minister Fadnavis to react with a rather strong statement that those who refuse to chant “Bharat Mata ki Jai” have no right to stay in India. Additionally he said those refusing to raise the slogan had “malafide interests and intentions”. The comment, though very short in a long speech while addressing BJP workers in Nasik, has not failed to attract public attention and media boost.

True. Symbols are forms of social interaction and give rise to counter-action. Very often, the substance behind the symbols is forgotten. Until this exchange, there was no heated controversy over chanting “Bharat Mata” meaning “Mother India” – combining two non-controversial words – India and mother – to express one’s allegiance to the nation. Chanting or not chanting remained individual choice.

Amidst this debate, leading Islamic seminary Darul-Uloom Deoband has said that Muslims should not chant Bharat Mata, which signifies worshipping Motherland. It is a clear point of linking the act of chanting with worship and thereby with religion. However, the fatwa issued is said to be merely an opinion and not binding on the Muslims. Recall Owaisi also declared that no one could force him to chant the slogan. Besides, there are other Muslim groups who have no objection to chant “Bharat Mata ki Jai”. 

A legitimate question is, “Who is this Bharat Mata?” A Hindu Goddess or a legendary icon?  Not at all. She is a creation of recent Indian history closely associated with the Freedom Movement. Bharat Mata was born as the title of a play in Bengali by Kiran Chandra Chatterjee which was first performed in 1873. Rabindranath Tagore portrayed Bharat Mata as a four-armed Goddess, wearing saffron coloured robes. It is this portrayal done for capturing public attention and following that has given a religious association to the purely national spirit embedded and sought to be conveyed through Bharat Mata.

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838-94) conceived India as “Mother” in his famous novel “Anand Math” and composed the song “Vande Mataram”. This had the effect of raising nationalism as a spiritual experience for a people for whom religion was a way of life. The song found wide acceptance among nationalists of all religious groups. In Anand Math, Chatterjiee perceives the Motherland as Goddess, and to him, India was Mother India, a living form of the Divine Mother.

To  Aurobindo Ghosh,  a revolutionary nationalist who later founded the Aurobindo Ashram in Puducherry, Mother Country was not just a territory, a  piece of earth, nor a figure of speech, nor a fiction of the mind. It was a “mighty shakti” composed of the shaktis of all the millions of units that make up the nation”. To him, there was no political object of worship, except the divinity in our Motherland.

Ghosh perceived Bharat Mata not as an idol or picture for mechanical worship, but as symbolic of the great India – its cities, mountains, rivers, and forests, the people inhabiting the land, its literature and the spirit of its culture, and the happiness and freedom of her children.  “Behold Bharat as a loving Mother, meditate upon Her, and worship Her in the 9-fold way of bhakti”, he stated.

History apart, all over the world, use of symbols and forms are common to promote and sustain community and national feelings. These are nowhere created intentionally, or by public discussions or parliamentary decisions. Symbols appear and are accepted by usage. They do not raise controversies.

The Pew Research Center, a non-partisan fact tank in Washington, has come out with an extremely interesting piece of information that 64 of the world’s 196 countries currently have national flags that include religious symbols. Out of these, about 48% have Christian symbols and 33% Islamic symbols.  

The UK’s Union Jack, which is incorporated as part of their national flags in some Commonwealth countries, is a composite design representing three different national symbols --St.George’s Cross, the flag of England, St.Andrew’s Cross, the flag of Scotland, and St.Patrick’s Cross, the flag of Ireland. The Cross represents the patron saint of each country. The national flags of Spain, Greece, Norway, and the Dominican Republic have Christian national symbols.

The national flag of the US has no religious symbol. But some States have religious imagery on their flags. The Japanese flag has “Hinomaru” - the Rising Sun -   a representation of spiritual roots of Shintoism. Islamic symbols are incorporated in the national flags of 21 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Islamic Star is depicted in the flags of many countries – Algeria, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Brunei and so on. Israel is showing Jewish symbols on its flag.

Critics of Indian politics lamenting over worthless debates may be reminded of controversies over flag salute and school prayer in the US.  In the first case, the Congress stepped in to expand the definition of religious freedom; and in the second, the Court permitted many forms and discussions of religious expressions by students. Experience has made it clear that neither the Supreme Court nor the Congress could settle these matters as the final say.

Similar is the situation in India. While officially adopted symbols have to be accepted by all, there may be differences over commonly cherished symbols. It may be difficult to accept for many people that there can be objection to chant “Bharat Mata” – a symbol of India’s substantive greatness, but for the sake of our unity and freedom, we have to put a stop from discussing this non-issue. Politics, politician, and political organizations should first refrain from playing divisive games.

Emotions, emotional attachments and expressions are not common among all people. What we cannot allow is disrespect and violations of the Indian Constitution and law, and wanton disregard for cultural diversities.  ---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)