Swatantrata

Swatantrata: Freedom with Responsibility

It is a holiday. A group of youngsters set out in a car for a joyride. Music blasts at full volume from the vehicle. Some of them hold bottles of liquor. Riding high on easy excitement, they push the car far beyond any safe speed. A police officer notes the excessive speed and plans to stop them and impose a fine. But they blow through the signal and race ahead. At the second signal, the police manage to flag them down; the young men toss five hundred rupees and speed away. Near the third signal, they strike an elderly woman and injure her. Further along, the reckless speed, the noise, and the intoxication catch up with them — their own car crashes. It rolls off the road. Everyone inside is covered in blood. The young man behind the wheel does not survive.

How often, on the path of life itself, we see such accidents.

On a highway, signboards are placed to show directions. Where needed, warnings are posted about inclines, curves, and speed limits. But if we ignore the rules of the road and drive against traffic, if we set no limits on speed and pay no attention to our surroundings — then it is not our destination we shall reach, but a hospital, or worse. Swatantrata (freedom) must never be confused with Swachhandata (reckless behaviour).

The Guru Within

Kakasaheb Kalelkar writes in Smaran Yatra: "When it comes to conduct, the guidance we need comes from within. A person's first Guru is their own Atma (soul). The experienced guide for life's journey sits inside our own mind. The moment we stumble and begin to wander onto the wrong path, that inner voice cries out. Vivek-buddhi (the wisdom of discernment) draws the map for an honest and happy life."

On the 15th of August 1947, India won her Azadi (independence). On the 26th of January 1950, Bharat became a Republic. The people received political Swatantrata. We the people were granted the universal right to vote much before many other nations had granted it. Bharat means Lokshahi (democracy)... Swatantrata: of thought, of speech, of action

Freedom Needs Regulations

A river flows freely from its source to the sea. But even in that freedom, it must accept the "bondage" of its banks. If nature did not accept this constraint, the surrounding villages would be devastated. And when that same water is collected and a dam is built, it becomes a tremendous source of power. Thus, the willing acceptance of a boundary generates positive Shakti (energy).

In the modern age, science and technology have made great strides. The mobile phone and computer are instruments of empowerment and convenience. Today's children have the freedom to use mobiles, televisions, and computers. Young people receive generous pocket money. But if these, like the speed of a car, remain without Niyantran (regulation), a destructive flood may follow.

In family life today, more joint families are breaking apart. Everyone wants Swatantrata. Yet even after obtaining that freedom, marriages are troubled. Why? Freedom of speech and freedom of expression — these very rights also raise some difficult questions in the world. When M.F. Husain paints nude images of Devtas and Devis in the name of art, what should one call that? When newspapers, television, and films insert sensational content merely to create controversy — that is a misuse of the freedom granted to those platforms. The misuse of freedom brings nothing but harmful consequences. We know well the results of excessive drinking and Latthakand (hooch tragedies from spurious liquor).

"Do something once — it is a mistake. Do it twice — it is an experience. Three times — it is a crime. And if you keep doing it — you must be a politician !?."

The corruption and bribery running through today's political, police, and judicial systems lead society down the path of decline.

The Horse and the Bridle

Every human being cherishes Swatantrata. But the horse of freedom, without the bridle of Vivek (discernment), will throw its rider. Freedom must be exercised within limits, guided by the wisdom of Vivek. Excess, carelessness, and irresponsible behaviour cause Swatantrata to degenerate into Swachhandata.

Father Valles awriter of repute says that the sun is no one's slave. Yet the laws of astronomy, physics, and gravity have fixed the sun's path across the sky. If, like us breaking traffic rules, the sun too was to behave without discipline — the result would be Pralay (cosmic destruction).

The Tanpura's Teaching

Bhagwan Buddha's disciple Anand once complained: "Why must we follow all these rules? I am free in my mind."

Buddha replied: "A tanpura produces beautiful music. But what happens if its strings are slightly loose? Or slightly too tight?"

Anand said: "Then the sound becomes harsh and tuneless — or no music comes at all."

Buddha said: "Just as the strings of a tanpura must accept the 'bondage' of the tuning peg in order to produce beautiful melody, so too the strings of life's instrument need Sanyam (restraint), Niyantran (control), discipline, Vivek (discernment), and rules."

This is why Bhagwan Buddha teaches the Madhyam Marg — the Middle Path. "Ati sarvatra varjayet" — excess is to be avoided in all spheres. Swami Vivekananda says: "Anything in excess is poison."

Freedom and Focus

Every free person dream of Saflata (success). To succeed, one must concentrate the entire power of the mind on a single, unwavering goal. But alongside that, one must also suppress every temptation that would divert one from that goal. If one pan of the scale holds Swatantrata and the other holds Swachhandata, the scale of success will never find its balance.

A Prayer for True Freedom

Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore wrote a beautiful poem called "Heaven of Freedom" in his Gitanjali. Let us close with his prayer:

Where the mind is without fear, and the head is held high. Where knowledge is free. Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls. Where words come out from the depth of truth. Where tireless striving stretches its arms toward perfection. Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit. Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action —

Into that heaven of freedom, O Father, let my country awake.