Picture of Shakespeare 

WRITTEN BY LONDON SWAMINATHAN

Post No. 13,655

Date uploaded in London – 11 September 2024                 

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 Tamil Poet Bharati and Shakespeare on Patriotism (Post No.13,655)

It is true Great Men think alike! Here are some comparative poems on Patriotism.

Shakespeare

Dear earth, I do salute thee with my hand .

Richard II 3-2-6

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Not that I loved Caesar less, but I loved Rome more.

Julius Caesar 3-2-21

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Bleed, bleed, poor country

Macbeth 4-3-31

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Bharati on Patriotism

Let us compare it with the great poet Bharati

Vande Mataram we will sing!

These words throughout our land shall ring!

Vande Mataram we will say! Motherland ,hail!  To you we pray!

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This is the nation  whence wafted  to the  world

The fame of heroes through minstrels matchless!

This is the nation where flourished mighty kings

And saints blemishless, dharma incarnate!

this nation dubbed the ignoble women

who bore not heroes, as nullipara! Ancient is Bharat

and you her children

Forget not Bharat is the tilak of earth

You her children ; forsake this thought .

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Vande Mataram, Vande Mataram

Vande Mataram Vande Mataram Vande Mataram!

In Arya land men and women

Invoke this brave mantra ! Amen

Mother Bharat Mayou Flourish

You are our refuge and our life

Jaya Jaya Bharat! Jaya Jaya Bharat!

Jaya Jaya Bharat! Jaya Jaya ! Jaya Jaya !

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There are scores of patriotic poems in Bharati Songs Book

Vande Mataram! =  Worship Our Motherland.

(Muslims refused to sing these lines giving a severe blow to Mahatma Gandhi)

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Oldest Patriotic Song in the Vedas

One would be wonderstruck to read the world’s oldest and longest patriotic song in the Atharva Veda. Atharva Veda’s date is only conjectural and it was compiled earlier than 1000 BC. It is amazing to find a very long patriotic song in praise of motherland (earth) in the Veda. Greeks have not even started writing their first book then. Tamil’s oldest book came 1000 years after Atharva Veda. Moses started issuing Ten Commandments around that date. In such a remote period Hindu thinking has reached its pinnacle!

“ Sacred is the earth (motherland). It not only nurtures that which is past and all the objects of the present, it bears the seed of the future as well. Such is our great motherland.

“ Our earth (motherland) is populated with learned men. It is populated by those who are inferior, those who are average and those who are superior. But all such people forget their differences and live together in unity and friendship. This is the land where we will perform deeds and attain fame. This is the land where our intelligence prospers.

“ In our motherland can be found enterprising and hard working farmers and artisans. In every direction that one glances, one finds fields of rice, wheat and other grains. Our motherland nourishes different forms of life. It provides us with cows, food grains and other forms of sustenance.

“The famous warriors of yore performed valorous deeds here. In this land the learned and the brave ones conquered the violent demons.

 “Our earth/motherland is the nurturer. In it can be found gold, silver, diamonds, emeralds and other gems. Nuggets of gold and all sorts of objects, all forms of vegetation, and all forms of living beings can be found in our motherland. Our motherland is the best country of all.

“ In the beginning, this land was immersed in the water of the ocean. Vast is the expanse of this land. Its heights reach up to heaven.

“ In this land to be found learned mendicants who roam in every direction.  Just as the water attains same level everywhere, these hermits look upon all with equal favour.

“ The Ashvinis look after this land of ours. Brave warriors have measured the length and breadth of our motherland

“O my earth/ Motheland! May the mountains and the snow clad peaks that can be found here NOT bring you unhappiness.

“You are my mother. I am the son of the earth.  The water which rains down and nourishes is my father. My I be preserved.

“ In this land the Vedas are revered in every direction. The righteous ones are worshiped here and the land is uplifted through the performances of sacrifices. Wonderful are the words of wisdom that have been uttered in this land.

“ O my Motherland! All of us are your subjects. May all of us be gifted with sweet speech. May we live together in harmony. May trees and plants grow on you in abundance.

 “This land is the mother of all trees, shrubs, plants and creepers. It is here that truth, learning, bravery and righteousness flourish. This land will bring us welfare and happiness. May we always serve our motherland.

“O, Motherland! This is the place where we all live in harmony. May you be great and firm. May brave warriors protest you with their valour and intelligence from enemies. May we be enriched. May we prosper.

May we not cause unhappiness to others when we are travelling on this land.

This is the land where the search for the god is made. This is the land that the god has blessed.

May my motherland grant us the riches that we desire. The inhabitants of this land sing and dance. The cities in my motherland have been built by the gods.

“ O  earth (my Motherland)! Grant us wisdom so that we can ensure our welfare. May we be learned all the time. May we prosper in your midst.

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Atharva Veda Kanda 7 also got a hymn on the motherland.

“Heaven is in the motherland. The motherland is our mother. it is our father and son”.

(I have given only half of the verses. It goes on and on about the glory of our holy land. It is full of positive thoughts. It praises nature at length. We must replace our National Anthem “Jana Gana Mana” with the abridged version of this Vedic hymn!!)

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Swami Vivekananda on Patriotism

·         I believe in patriotism, and I also have my own ideal of patriotism. Three things are necessary for great achievements. First, feel from the heart. What is in the intellect or reason? It goes a few steps and there it stops. But through the heart comes inspiration. Love opens the most impossible gates; love is the gate to all the secrets of the universe. Feel, therefore, my would-be reformers, my would-be patriots! Do you feel? Do you feel that millions and millions of the descendants of gods and of sages have become next-door neighbours to brutes? Do you feel that millions are starving today, and millions have been starving for ages? Do you feel that ignorance has come over the land as a dark cloud? Does it make you restless? Does it make you sleepless? Has it gone into your blood, coursing through your veins, becoming consonant with your heartbeats? Has it made you almost mad? Are you seized with that one idea of the misery of ruin, and have you forgotten all about your name, your fame, your wives, your children, your property, even your own bodies? Have you done that? That is the first step to become a patriot, the very first step. I did not go to America, as most of you know, for the Parliament of Religions, but this demon of a feeling was in me and within my soul. I travelled twelve years all over India, finding no way to work for my countrymen, and that is why I went to America. Most of you know that, who knew me then. Who cared about this Parliament of Religions? Here was my own flesh and blood sinking every day, and who cared for them? This was my first step.

·         Our sacred motherland is a land of religion and philosophy — the birthplace of spiritual giants — the land of renunciation, where and where alone, from the most ancient to the most modern times, there has been the highest ideal of life open to man.

·         The only religion that is fashionable is patriotism.

·         The present enthusiasm is only a little patriotism, it means nothing. If it is true and genuine, you will find in a short time hundreds of heroes coming forward and carrying on the work. Therefore, know that you have really done all, and go on.

·         Whether you believe in spirituality or not, for the sake of the national life, you have to get a hold on spirituality and keep to it. Then stretch the other hand out and gain all you can from other races, but everything must be subordinated to that one ideal of life; and out of that a wonderful, glorious, future India will come — I am sure it is coming — a greater India than ever was. Sages will spring up greater than all the ancient sages; and your ancestors will not only be satisfied, but I am sure, they will be proud from their positions in other worlds to look down upon their descendants, so glorious, and so great.

·         You must not depend on any foreign help. Nations, like individuals, must help themselves. This is real patriotism. If a nation cannot do that, its time has not yet come. It must wait.

–Subham—

Tags:- Bharati, Tamil Poet, Patriotism, Shakespeare, Swami Vivekananda, Oldest Patriotic song, Atharva Veda, Bhumi Suktam, Vande Mataram