We are in an age of cosmopolitanism. In such a time when the love of whole mankind has become a desirable virtue, the narrow sentiments of patriotism are like a square peg in a round hole—something absolutely out of place. Now, when peoples of the world are drawing closer, bound with the silken ties of universal brotherhood, it would be putting back the clock of history to practice and indulge in patriotic sentiments There was a time when patriotism was an essential virtue, a great necessity for the strength of a nation But now that science has annihilated distance and brought the nations of the world very close, it would be foolish to enjoy the luxury of patriotism. Patriotism is a noble sentiment which has transformed sinners and dacoits into freedom fighters in many lands. But the sentiment tends to be static, out-molded and reactionary in the present day context.
Patriotism is an excellent virtue, and there cannot be two opinions on it. But it is not all. There are other virtues which must be taken into consideration, if we are to judge a man properly. Our life is a bundle of duties. Every man has to do certain duties towards his own self, towards the members of his own family, towards his own country, towards humanity and towards God, the Almighty. On the right performance of these duties depends his real worth in life. It is true that not infrequently conflicts of duty, clashes of desire spring up and puzzle as man, a man at the post of his duty. But on the successful determination of the right duty, at right hour, depends his greatness. The path of duty is seldom strewn with roses; it is a thorny path. But it is the way to glory. Patriotism cannot, therefore, be regarded as the sole test to judge a man. Patriotism only takes into account how far a man loves his own mother country. This love for his mother land is only one of the many determining factors and must be weighed along with his other qualities of head and heart.
Patriotism may not be a complete philosophy of life; it may suffer from various inherent weaknesses. It may not fit us with the current atmosphere of internationalism; but, nevertheless, it is still very useful and essential for the security of a country. The flame of patriotic fervour seems to have extinguished very quickly and selfish interests have overtaken our countrymen. The same set of people that had posed to be much concerned with the Chinese attack and had donated large sums of money for the National Defence Funds, are now practicing hoarding, black-marketing and profiteering and doing great harm to the country. They are great enemies of the country even than the Chinese.
Doctrines like ‘Panch Sheel’ are the direct negation of local, tribal or national patriotism There are other fields of activity, art, social service, science etc., which are equally important if not more-important than mere patriotism. Dante Virgil, Raphael and Michaelangelo (artists) have raised the name of Italy higher than Mazzini and Garibaldi; Pasteur and Madame Curie by their scientific researches have lifted the name of France higher than Napoleon ever did; Shakespeare and Milton are remembered more than Gladstone and Disraeli. Tagore, Raman and Ghalib will outshine any contemporary patriots in India, Look at the rot that has set in the Congress ranks. Once patriots, now most of them have become job-seekers, feathering their own nests.
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Patriotism in its narrow sense curbs and confines the spirit of man; it restricts his loyalties; it delimits his vision. The patriot today only hears one music—a music composed of the booming of the atomic guns, the hum of the spitfires, torpedoes from submarines, depth-charges and explosions from land and sea-mines.
If we are to improve things, we shall have to discourage that aggressive and militant type of patriotism which grew in Germany in the Hitler regime. We will have to root out the Nietzschian Doctrine of the super man and the super nation from the body politic of our education and evoke instead, social sympathy and an international conscience. The slogan: “My country-right or wrong”, is a challenge to be met by international conscience of the world which finds its expression through the form of the United Nations.
Mahatma Gandhi made the love of India a part of his quest for truth, which again is a part of God, the Eternal. Gandhi would have loved to see India die so that the world could live. Only the land of the Buddha, Kabir and Nanak could give such a fine orientation and definition to the word ‘Patriotism’. The cult of patriotism as preached by him is something new after Caesar, Napoleon, Hitler and Mussolini. It does not glorify the gallows or the guillotine; it only stresses tolerance and understanding. All the finer and the nobler things of life, art: architecture, literature, ethics and morality transcend the barriers of race and nationality. Mankind is one; the difference and the division are man-made. Our basic needs of food, housing, cloth, society etc. are the same.
There is a tendency among us to belittle the importance of all other duties in life and magnify patriotism. There are young men among us who often forget that they with their family also form a part of the nation, and their betterment is the improvement of the country. This over emphasis of the virtue of patriotism has caused many hardships in the country. This is said not to disparage patriotism. On the other hand, it is only to give us the true picture of patriotism, which, in the words of American poet Lowell, should be –
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“O Yes, his fatherland must be
As the blue heavens wide and free ”
The days of Pericles —of the Greek city states, where local patriotism ruled everything—have gone—perhaps never to return. In the modern conditions, a small state—cut off from the rest of the world has no meaning whatever. The smaller state can survive only in socio-economic and political collaboration with the other states. When the final one-word patriotism emerges would depend on when the bigger states of the world come to think of forming themselves in a World Federation and start thinking of Ahinsa— rather than the Atom Bomb.