What India can learn from Portugal about embracing its history
Nani Palkhivala once told me over a late night whisky in his Bombay flat that he feared that a country that had once achieved greatness was doomed forever to oblivion.
The eminent jurist was speaking of India, but Dean Acheson, the American politician, probably had something similar in mind when he delivered his jibe that England had lost an empire without finding a role.
It's here in Portugal that I should be reminded sharply of both comments, but am not. That's because the placid Portuguese have accepted the turn of destiny's wheel with a philosophic calm that should be a Hindu yogi's envy.
Legends
I first encountered this characteristic in a young man in a crowded bus from San Gimignano in Tuscany to a wayside town called Poggibonsi. Having waited a long time for this only conveyance on a lonely road, my wife and I, much older than most other passengers, were rather tired.
The youth, one of a group of students at Florence University, made space for us to sit on the steps. He was Portuguese, he explained in good English, and his grandfather's brother, whom he had never seen, had been a Jesuit priest in Goa and was imprisoned in India for several years. "He died before I was born," the boy said cheerfully, "but he's a family legend." India was a country he hoped to visit.
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There must be many such legends in many Portuguese families for this little country carved out the first global empire in history. Apart from Goa, Daman and Diu, it ruled Angola and Mozambique. Its royal family provided Brazil with an emperor who made Brazil independent of Portugal.
A Portuguese princess brought Bombay as part of her dowry to England's King Charles II. Spanning almost six centuries, Portugal's empire survived the longest among modern European colonial empires. It covered vast territories that are now in 60 different sovereign states. They rank with Nineveh and Tyre, so far as Portugal is concerned.
There's no sign here of the wallowing in imperial glory that surfaces in Britain's nostalgic exhibitions and cloying literature. But there was certainly a flash of pride in 1998 when Lisbon celebrated the 500th anniversary of Vasco da Gama's arrival in India on May 20, 1498. The event didn't go down well in India.
If I remember right, it was a cause of contention and confusion. The Union government was keen on participating in an exposition in Lisbon. It discussed the matter with Portugal's foreign minister, Jamie Gama, who visited India to formalise plans for the year-long celebration and a bilateral committee was set up.
Kerala's CPI(M)-led government was even more enthusiastic about a German tour operator's plan to re-enact Vasco da Gama's landing in Calicut which was expected to draw thousands of Western tourists.
Objection
But rabble-rousing BJP politicians seized the platform. An organisation called the Deshpremi Nagrik Samiti sprouted protests in Goa. Rioters burnt effigies of the long dead Vasco da Gama. Eventually, Inder Kumar Gujral, the United Front prime minister, caved in to populist patriotic pressure.
Ironically, the objection was that by discovering the sea route between Europe and India, Vasco da Gama brought colonialism. Yet, there doesn't appear to be similar opposition to Britain which - unlike Portugal - established colonial rule over the entire country.
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Nor does anyone remember that the Mughals and Lodhis, in whose architecture we take pride, were also alien conquerors. Given the gulf between Indian rhetoric and action, I wouldn't be at all surprised if many of the Goa, Kerala and Maharashtra protesters took advantage of package tourism deals to be among the 11 million visitors to Lisbon for the anniversary. It's no secret either that thousands of Goans are now seeking Portuguese nationality.
Forgotten
I doubt if Indian contortions were ever reported here. If so, they must long ago have been forgotten. But the celebrations 18 years ago have enriched Lisbon with memorable monuments.
The 17km Vasco da Gama bridge over the Tagus river is in constant use; a 145m lattice tower and skyscraper overlook the river; Kerala's vegetation inspired a nearby arcade of concrete and glass palm trees. They further embellish a city already noted for sprawling parks, gushing fountains, wide dual carriageways, ornate tile facades and beautiful intricate statuary.
Lisbon is an attractive and tranquil city. It's also a city that does not resist history. It blends past and present in harmony. Old names remain; old heroes are honoured.
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The contrasting attitude to imperialism recalls the tale of two Zen monks who came upon an old woman waiting on the river's bank to be carried across. The younger of the two monks easily picked her up, took her across, put her down, and he and his companion went their way.
The older monk was troubled and, towards nightfall, could no longer contain himself. He burst out that his friend had broken their vow not to touch women.
Unabashed, the younger monk replied, "I carried her across the river for ten minutes. You have carried her in your mind all day." Portugal has forgotten its imperial exploits. Indians are forever prisoners of imperialism, real or imagined.
(Courtesy of Mail Today.)