Sad, India doesn't have a cultural dharma
India is a country that can benefit from a stronger sense of national unity at both cultural and political levels. India has so much to offer the world that it is sad to see that the country often seems divided against itself.
In India regional, caste, religious or family loyalties can outweigh any national identity, leading to lack of cooperation and eventual conflict. This not only inhibits the country's own development but does not help the rest of the world to benefit from India's great potential either.
A number of groups in the country seem to want their own shares, privileges or dues from the nation, as if the nation was something different from who they are. Indians today should realise that they are no longer under foreign rule, and that the resources that the government has to offer come from all the people and belong to everyone.
The causes for this lack of national unity can also be found in the current political culture. Indian politics often bases elections on promoting divisive vote banks, which naturally serves to weaken any overall sense of social cohesion.
The holdover of dynastic rule from the age of kings is another factor that comes into play here. This is reflected in the existence of many political dynasties, in which family identity seems to be the main factor that determines position, not necessarily competence or intelligence. It can lead to placing the needs of various families above the greater social dharma.
Karma Yoga
Indians should remember their older great traditions of Karma Yoga for the nation and for humanity, which each individual or group can follow according to their own inspiration. Such a positive national spirit was more prominent during the independence movement but declined afterwards, perhaps as a side effect of Partition.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi provides a good example of such a life of Karma Yoga, with his constant and tireless work for the country. He is looking to promote the nation as a whole in the global context. Yet such a policy is not a matter of simply following one particular leader or another, it requires a deeper national spirit and individual commitment beyond any particular personalities, which must come and go with the movement of time.
Bharat Mata
India as a nation was traditionally formulated as Bharat Mata or Mother India, honouring the country like Mother Earth and Mother Nature. Mother India is not an image that intimidates or strikes fear but rather invokes devotion and an attitude of nurturance and caring for all. Her image is rooted in the land, mountains and rivers, not in a particular person, ideology, language or ethnicity. Yet honouring Mother India is not merely a political matter, it requires protecting the country's natural beauties and ecosystems, which are currently being sorely neglected, if not significantly damaged.
Certainly nationalism can pose a great danger to peace, particularly if formulated along aggressive lines, based upon dislike of another country rather than honouring one's own land. But without a good sense of national unity, no country can flourish today, certainly not one as large, old and diverse as India.
India has a vast cultural tradition, history and geography to be proud of. Yet it is not just a matter of being proud of one's country, which most Indians are, but of acting based upon the national interest as a prime consideration.
The solutions to the complex problems of the country require a greater working together of all groups for a common national dharma. Developing a new national dharma for the coming century is crucial for the future of the India and the world, not reinforcing existing social divisions.