1857 - Concept of a Nation and Fight for Freedom of Mind

India celebrated the 150th anniversary of its first fight for freedom struggle against the British rule. To commemorate the occasion, numerous functions and meetings were conducted. Number of articles were published both in the electronic and the print media to educate people about the events that took place, 150 years ago, which shook the very foundations of the British Empire, an empire where the sun never used to set.

But then, why we celebrated a revolt which not just failed to drive the Britishers out of the country but in the end was also brutally crushed.
A revolt which was started by the sepoys, not exactly with the intention to free the nation, but to fight for their religious sentiments. A revolt where Rajah and Rani s participated to free their own estate from the Englishmen and the concept to free country never occurred to them. A revolt which was unplanned, mostly around the region of North India(from Delhi to Calcutta), with masses never into it. Was it bound to succeed at all? No! Never! But it was successful in something very subtle, starting a chain reaction to free the Mind of the Indians and build the concept of a Nation.

Let’s understand this concept by looking at the medieval Indian history. Before the British Rule, Indian political map consisted of small provinces and Riyasats, with a lot of infighting. The concept of the nation never existed. Masses had to serve the king and the boundary of their country kept on changing with every battle moreover the population was strongly divided on the basis of caste. This made now India (the then golden bird) very vulnerable to the invasions.

Different invaders came and ruled the nation on their own terms, murdered in masses, plundered the Indian culture and looted and destroyed not just materialistic wealth but also mental wealth. According to some historians, the library of Nalanda University kept on burning continuously for 15 days.

The Indians were under subjugation and slavery for almost thousand years. Whoever was the king the masses were subjected to torture and slavery for generations. So much of oppression over a period of time ultimately lead masses to give up, not just physically, but also robbed them of their thought process and the Indians lost their confidence and identity.

What would have happened, had the revolt succeeded in driving the Englishmen out of the country? Then the people, who were mentally in shackles, would have been enslaved by some other regime or ruler.

This would have gone the same way, had East India Company not come to rule. The first mistake they did was to give one name to a broken Nation and that was INDIA and unknowingly they passed the same concept to the masses.

Then came 1857, when although different faction revolted against the Company and for different reasons, but for the first time people saw a huge Empire, which was till now considered to be immortal, being challenged. Slowly, over a period of time, the thought process started becoming independent. Post 1857, lot of leaders and reformers start coming up in different parts of the nation who were ready to pull up those who were down and instill awareness and self-confidence. This was the time to steadily educate and engage masses to be a part of freedom struggle. It was a very slow process but the only right step towards complete freedom and self reliance.

Even though the Indian freedom struggle, post 1857, was largely non-violent, but it became a mass movement. Non-cooperation, civil disobedience and quit India movement were the perfect examples of mass participation and was an indication enough for the British Raj that it is impossible to slave a nation for long with free minds.

So, Lets get together and celebrate the anniversary of 1857 revolt, because it was not just the first fight for Freedom of India but also the first fight for the Freedom of minds and building of a nation.

"IF YOU THINK YOU CAN, YOU WILL"

"IF YOU THINK YOU CAN’T, YOU WON’T"