Vasant Sathe

Dear friends:

The year 2000 marks the end of the previous millennium and the beginning also of the 21^st century. It will be worthwhile to take stock at least of the board features of the past century so as to prepare ourselves for the future. Beginning from 1001 AD, we will notice that India (Bharat), had got stabilized under different feudal kingdoms both in north and south India. Culturally and in terms og religion , the Vedic religion had established its common hold throughout the land even by absorbing the revolutionary philosophy of Buddha and Mahavir.

The land was fertile ,irrigated by big rivers,and population was limited to less than a 100 million or about ten crore. There was growth in trade and commerce both by land routes to middle east and ses-routs to the south asiatic countries. With trade spread both religion and culture from Bharat to these regions. In literature and arts there was remarkable growth. This period saw great dramatists like Kalidas and mathematicians like Bhaskara.The temple architecture reflects the advance in civil engineering and sculpture. Paintings like the Ajanta show the advance in the field of arts. Classical dance and drama had reached great heights with the establishment of Natyashastra.

However,the local kings were constantly fighting among themselves for domination and this paved the way for invasions from across the Khaibar Pass beginning with Mahmood Gaznavi and cotinuing up to the Mughal period of Babar.It was in this period of about five to six hundred years that the entire northern Bharat was nearly taken over by the invading forces who followed the new religion of Islam. It was also in this period that the land came to be named as Hindustan. The word Sindhu got pronounced as Hindu in Persian Arabic and the people living in this land became known as Hindoos and their caste-based Vedic religion was named the Hindu religion.

The rigid vocation based caste system , created on the basis of ‘Varna’or class hadbecome decadent and this came to the benefit of the new religion of Islam,which belived in one god without any form and in the oneness of all human beings.It was this broad philosophy that drew milions of the downtrodden to the new religion . In addition, it got the support of the sword of the new ruling invaders who followed the new faith of Islam and used it to their advantage, both for conversion and enlisting the soldiers for their armies from amongst the converts. With this way succeeded in establishing their rule and empire in years to come. Once politically stabilized, the Islamic culture also brought with it growth in art and architecture and a new cultural synthesis grew in the Sindhu and gangetic belt.

The stagnating Mughal period witnessed the coming of european invaders through the sea route, first as traders in the 17^th century. Then using the warring kingdoms and indegenous mercenaries, they soon established their hold militarily and in less than hundred years established their empire. The British rulers succeed in establishing their colonial power in India or Hindustan defeating the efforts of both the French and the portuguese, who remained restricted to Pondicherry, Chandernagone and Goa. After 1857, when the British rule got consolidated in India throughout its land, began the period of struggle for freedom, culminating in the partition of India into Hindustan and pakistan and political independence in 1947. It is pertinent to note that most of this period of the last millennium was thus spent in facing foreign invasion and then adjusting and absorbing it and all the time struggling for both political and cultural independence.

It will be worth nothing that the main weakness of the indigenous society througout this period of last thousand years has been its caste based divisive nature . Which was exploited by the Islamic invaders and the European colonisers who also used Christianity as a tool , although it was not very relevant under the new industrial revolutionary era.

The second important factor was the constant infighting and warring amongst the in digenous rulers who helped the invaders ultimately at their own cost . We thus see that most of our feudal kings with their kingdoms big and small became slaves of the foreign masters . This has generated a slavish mentality in the elite ruling class over the past thousand years . Added to this was the meek mentality of the down – trodden castes and the humiliatingscourge of castismwhich had not yet been eradicated , inspite of efforts by great reformers like the Buddha ,Mahavir , Chaitanya , GuruNanak , mahatma Gandhi and Dr Ambedkar in modern times.

In the new millennium beginning with the 21^st centure , the main weakness that will continue to erode and divide the Indian society will be the perpetual curse of the caste structure which still divides the Indian society into backward.and forward sections . It is this aspect that is dominating and dividing the country even politically into various fragments , forcing the democratic parliamentary system to succumb to politics of coalition of fissiparous forces . Unless this fragmented and fractured caste – ridden social structure is eradicated , there is no future for India becoming one united and integrated society or political entity .This scar of birth – based caste prevails and continues even after conversion to different faiths and religions and is the permanent cancer of the Indian humanity.

The next most important factor that will dominate the 21^st century and the new millennium will be the big sweep of modern scientific technologicaladvances, which are taking placae at exponential speed. The impact of this development in the field of information and communication is staggering and societies which are not capable of defending their cultural values will be swapt by the new information imperialism and culture colonialism. The manner in which cosmetics and beverages campaigns, sponsored by multinationals, are brain-washing the elite class in anexcellent example of this new invasion.

Along with social inroads the economic dependence of India on loans from World Bank, IMF and multinationals in infrastructure and consumer goods sector is going to repeat the story of the East India Company for trade.Today, WTO conditions will dominate our economy both in trade and commerce and soon economic subservience will lead to political domination, aided and abetted by our political instability.

One most imporant fact that stood out in the last millennium was the re-establishment of the truth that those who had longer and better firepower and were more mobile succeeded in defeating their enemies and conquering their foes. In the fist millennium, the bow-and-arrow and the horse and chariot dominated over the sword and spear wielding foot soldiers. The coming of the guns and muskets defeated the Indians both of Bharat and of the Americas . The coming of the industrial age brought the automobile and steam engines and the planes . the atomic power finally established the world supremacy of its possessor.

Hence , in the new or the third millennium only those nationals and people who in additions to bravery and discipline will have the knowledge of the latest scientific technologies and can command superior firepower with better mobility and communication , will survive and have a place of respect . This will need huge investment in advanced technologies like long range missile and space ships .The urgent need for Bharat is therefore, to mobilise its full resources and to create proper conditions that will enable its new generations to be better Seducated and equipped to achieve excellence in different fields and become economically and technologically self-relint and competitive in the modern world. There is no dearth of talent in India. All that is necessary is provide suitable apportunities. This cannot be done by out siders who will only exploit us. We will have to rely on our strength and resources. This is the meaning of ‘Arthic Swaraj’ without which political freedom it self will be in jeopardy.