Yesterday you referred to Hindu revivalism. You pointedly referred to me in the Cabinet as connected with Somnath. I am glad you did so; for I do not want to keep back any part of my views or activities….I can assure you that the ‘Collective Subconscious’ of India today is happier with the scheme of reconstruction of Somnath sponsored by the Government of India than with many other things that we have done and are doing…..It is my faith in our past which has given me the strength to work in the present and to look forward to our future. I cannot value India’s freedom if it deprives us of the Bhagavad Gita or uproots our millions from the faith with which they look upon our temples and thereby destroys the texture of our lives”. —K M Munshi in his letter to Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru, reproduced in his book Pilgrimage to Freedom
Like August 15, on August 5 2020, Bharat made another tryst with destiny. If August 15 was a culmination of the long struggle for political independence, August 5 was the first sign of regaining our collective consciousness as a nation from civilisation point of view. Why this momentous occasion is so important and how we should view it for the future revitalisation of our ‘self’ should be the real points to ponder as the Ram Mandir Reconstruction has commenced in Ayodhya at the Janma Bhoomi Sthan. The moment, message and meticulous organisation, everything indicates to the quintessence of the movement and the momentous occasion.
The moment was historic as the 492 years old civilisational battle came to an end amicably, with the due Constitutional process. Since the beginning, the struggle for the liberation of Rama Janma Bhoomi was never about just a temple. The symbol of Bharat’s righteousness was attacked and our collective consciousness buried under the debris of the temple which had to be reconstructed. The reconstruction commencement ceremony did precisely that.
The message of the epoch-making ceremony was also critical. The elected Prime Minister of Bharat not just participated in the event but performed the Bhoomi Pujan on behalf of all the people. Unlike the Somnath Temple reconstruction, the ceremony was not decried as the sign of ‘Hindu Revivalism’, nor any censorship was applied to the speeches made in Ayodhya.
The Sarsanghachalak of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Mohan Bhagwat described it as the moment for a renewed resolve to attain Self-reliance, self-confidence and self-awareness. Reconstructing and renovating our inner-Ayodhya for that Ram-Rajya was the central theme of his sage-like sermon. Prime Minister Modi further brought the clarity of purpose when he said that Lord Rama is the foundation of our culture; he is the dignity of India. No wonder, the entire nation celebrated the occasion with controlled enthusiasm, another monumental reverence to the Maryada Purushottam.
Despite restrictions due to the Corona Pandemic, all revered saints associated with the movement got their due place. The entire ceremony was conducted as per the rituals. The sanctity of the Janma Sthan, the Bhoomi which Shri Ram considered as more revered than the heaven was worshipped as Mother Earth. All sects, Mathas and even political parties congratulated the people on this occasion showing the rare sense of unity and purpose.
Some irrelevant voices as usual rant the raga of secularism in danger and so-called minorities feeling insecure. In reality, they expressed their insecurities of losing the plot. It is not the ordinary Muslims but these very secularists and communist distorians who were afraid of the real history and were instrumental in instigating some fundamentalist elements. Despite their all attempts to divide Bharat into groups as the colonialists did and deny the sense of our civilisational heritage, our national consciousness is being reconstructed, is their real pain. Their monopoly over defining ‘India’ got destroyed on August 5. This momentous occasion is another liberation for Bharat. We have symbolically attained intellectual and cultural freedom from distortionists. The culmination of Ram Janma Bhoomi movement has paved the way for the reconstruction of national consciousness, and this is the real essence of this new national monument in the making called Ram Mandir.
@PrafullaKetkar
