Consciousness of Tradition

Tradition-consciousness is indispensable in the life of civilized humanity. This very consciousness makes one self-aware and dignified. However independent and distinctive an individual may be, they must build their life upon the foundation of tradition. Where people remain indifferent to their national characteristics and heritage, there an excess of imitation inevitably appears. But when a crow adorns itself with peacock feathers, its beauty may increase but its dignity never does—eventually, one day, crushed under the weight of dishonor, even its original form is lost, and then both the weaver's lineage and the devotee's lineage are forfeited.

In society, we see a certain type of person who, despite possessing education, intellect, and abundant wealth, displays such inconsistency and discord in their behavior and speech that it pains good taste and wounds the sense of propriety. These can be called eccentric. They can be compared to the blue jackal of moral tales. Unfortunately, the number of such blue jackals in our society keeps increasing. It is the lack of patriotism and reverence for one's own people and faith that causes this attraction to artificial living.

We all freely acknowledge that there is nothing greater than patriotism for the welfare of country and nation. But our understanding of what patriotism actually is remains quite vague. A country is not merely a defined territory. The realization of one's profound connection with the country's people, its history, geography, its literary, artistic and cultural heritage, its past, present and future—this is patriotism. We love our children because we feel ourselves within them. But how much do we really know our country! To know the country requires the country's history, the country's literature.

Our history is fragmented, our literature incomplete. Most of the literature created in the past two hundred years is one-sided; our life is not reflected in it. And the history of the country that we read is the tale of the rise and fall of kings and princes, a truncated history—the pulse of the common people cannot be felt in it. In the present age of democracy, what is needed is the history of ordinary people. Just as memory is to an individual's life, so is history to a nation's life. A person who has lost their memory is insane; and a nation without history is confused and directionless. The great teaching of history is the only sustenance for life's treacherous path.

But history will not simply fall into our hands like ripe fruit from a tree just for the asking. That too requires dedication—the dedication of the knowledge-seeker and true vision. No kind of compromise will work there. Truth must be established with vigor. We are inheritors of thousands of years of ancient civilization and culture. Not only in Mohenjodaro and Harappa, but historical signatures of our past glory are scattered throughout Aryavarta and the Deccan. No Bengali could ever speak such foolish words as sacrificing the country's tradition and merely drifting with the current. Especially since we need not go to others for recognition of tradition's claims; this is our birthright.

When we speak of the Vedas, Brahmanas, Ramayana, Mahabharata as ours, it reveals the paganism of our ancestors. So be it. We feel pride in acknowledging blood ties with the very Quraish who were prepared to kill the Prophet by writing "Qureshi" after our names. Then why this reverse arrangement here? In the end, what is true remains true even if concealed. The distortion of truth brings nothing good.

The real issue is our lack of judgment. There are precedents in the world map of countries' borders changing repeatedly, but no principle of change applies to history. We can deny history, but we cannot reverse it. So today or tomorrow, someday or another, through the penance of truth-seekers, our real history will emerge from the caves of the past. But before that, many valuable days will be exhausted in the performance of falsehood.

Therefore, we must now cultivate the courage to courageously acknowledge the truth of history. The notion that this acknowledgment will diminish our distinct sense of nationality is wrong. The Bhagirathi and Ganga are completely separate rivers, though both are nourished by the melted ice-water of the Himalayas. In the flow of gradual evolution, human history continues creating new chapters, none of which is trivial. The vital connection between ordinary people and this country's history is not of hundreds of years, but of thousands upon thousands of years—the day we acknowledge this truth and become active in historical inquiry, that day our way of life will begin against the backdrop of a far grander tradition.