All of us know the speech "Tryst with Destiny" made by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, to the Indian Constituent Assembly in The Parliament, on the eve of India's Independence, towards midnight on 14 August 1947.
But how many of us are aware of the Message given by the great Sage of
Kanchi, Sri Chandrasekarendra Saraswathi Swamigal when India attained Independence. In HIS message, the Mahaswami says that "That state of mind which ensures complete freedom is what we must attempt to achieve". Read on for the full text.
"On
this happy occasion when our country Bharat has attained Independence,
the people of this ancient country must pray whole heartedly and with
one mind to Sri Bhagavan. Let us all pray to God to vouch safe to us
strength of mind and energy to engage ourselves more and more in
attaining spiritual knowledge. It is only by the
grace of Almighty that we can safeguard the freedom that we have
achieved and also help all the living beings on earth to lead a happy
life.
It is worthy to note that luckily the Chakra of Bhagavan,
who is the embodiment of Dharma, has its place in the centre of our
National Flag. This Chakra reminds us of the moral values enjoined by
Emperor Ashoka, who is historically famous as Devanampriyaha. Further,
the Chakra makes us contemplate on the spiritual discipline imparted by
Bhagavan Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita. That Dharma which shines in the
form of a Chakra is clear from Lord Krishna's reference to the Chakra as
"Evam pravartitam chakram" in Verse 16 of the III chapter of the
Bhagavad Gita. Also in Verses 14 and 15 of the same chapter Bhagavan
avers that " The human body originates from food, food grains grow
because of rains, rain showers because of performance of Yajnas(Vedic
Sacrifices), these Yajnas are prescribed in the Veda and that the Veda
has emanated from Brahman who is in the form of Akshara(Sound recorded
as letter of the alphabet)".
Thus, the Dharma Chakra explains to us that
the supreme Brahman is manifest in Vedic sacrifices. May this
Independence, dawning with the rightful remembrance of Emperor Ashoka,
grant us such fruits as Aram(Dharma or Righteousness) Porul(Wealth),
Inbam(Happiness) and Veedu(Moksha - deliverance), by the grace of God.
There are three stripes in our National Flag. They are of dark green,
white and orange colours. These colours seem to indicate to us, that
military strength for protection from enemies and evil, wealth for
welfare and prosperity, and knowledge for the sake of proper
administration are essential for the nation. It may be remembered that
dark green is the colour of Durga - the Parasakti who is the mother
protector, Mahalakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity is of
orange colour(golden hue) and Saraswathi the source divine of all
knowledge is white in colour. It is a happy coincidence that the colour
of the three Shakthis(Goddesses of Power) are seen in the three stripes
of the National Flag.
For long, the Indian Nation has strived
hard for winning freedom. By the grace of God, by the blessings of great
men, and by the unique sacrifice of the people, independence has been
won. Let us all pray to the Omnipresent God to shower his grace so that
with the hard won freedom, our country becomes prosperous, is rid of
famine, and there are no social skirmishes and the entire nation lives
in an atmosphere of amity and kindness.
Now that freedom has
been attained by the nation, all of us must also try to develop
Independence. If we understand ourselves fully we may consider ourselves
as independent. We are not capable of controlling the senses. We are
unable to suppress desire and control anger, which always troubles us.
Whichever thing in whatever measure we obtain does not lead us to
contentment. Worldly sufferings cause worry to us. The mind gets
confused on noticing these sufferings. What is the way out of all these?
we must try to control, albeit gradually the mind which has been
functioning vigorously for such a long time. Once the mind is set at
rest, we will not be in need of anything. That state of mind which
ensures complete freedom is what we must attempt to achieve.
Every day atleast some time should be set apart for practicing the
control of mind and bereft of other thoughts, we must meditate upon God.
Then gradually, the mind will become calm, whereupon we will have the
mental power to subjugate desire and anger. Spiritual knowledge will
accrue fast for him who practices such meditation. Only these who attain
such true spiritual knowledge can truly be independent citizens.
Any woman other than one's wife must be respected as one's own mother.
We must regard other living beings as we would regard ourselves. Even at
the risk of death, truth alone must be spoken. Petty social feuds must
be averted totally, Every one must strive for improving his knowledge
and his spiritual attainments and move with others in an atmosphere of
kindness. We must sincerely wish that all people should live happily and
peacefully.
Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitaha."
