“India is my country and all Indians are my brothers and sisters. I love my country and I am proud of its rich and varied heritage. I shall always strive to be worthy of it. I shall give my parents, teachers, and all elders respect and treat everyone with courtesy.”
As students, this National Pledge was one of the first things we were taught in school. It is printed on the front page of most of our textbooks and we had to recite it on occasions like school assemblies, Republic Day celebration, and Independence Day celebration. We all have memories from the school of our hand hurting as we are made to recite it at the top of our voice with the right hand raised in front of us. But no matter how tiring, we all said it with complete conviction because it was a representation of the pride that we, as Indians, have in our nation and its ideals.
And this very sense of pride is what motivates us to not only support our country whether it comes to sporting events like the Cricket World Cup, in the field of arts be it the Oscars or Cannes Film Festival but also in the tough time like wars and conflicts with our neighbors.
Wars are the best example of how possessive we, as a species, are for our homelands and how much we are willing to sacrifice for it. It is during wars that we sacrifice everything just to defend our home against foreign aggression. Be it the USA’s war of independence or the 2 World Wars or our tough battle with our neighbors Pakistan and China, the root cause of these wars was the spirit of the people on both sides to fight against those who they considered a threat to their home even when they are outnumbered and outgunned.
The main cause of the Indo-China War was a shared border in the Himalayas which was disputed by the Chinese. Both sides fought for what they considered to the border of their homeland. and this conflict isn't over yet, both Indian and china are still in confrontation due to the disputed border, and neither India nor China's will to defend its own is fading, this puts into perspective the kind of firm belief of protecting and defending their homes.
World War 2 is another greatest example of fighting for your homeland. On one side, there were the Axis powers consisting of the Germans, the Italians, and the Japanese, and on the other were the Allies, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States. The war caused devastation on an unimaginable scale and resulted in the deaths of millions of soldiers and civilians.
Every war in history can be said to have the love for one’s homeland at its core. The power of that nationalistic pride is overwhelming especially in face of unfavorable odds and that is how soldiers are able to carry on even after watching their comrades die. We all have a special love for our homeland, a love that multiplies when it is threatened. And it is the power of that love, which makes us fight wars, sacrifice ourselves or kill another who is fighting for his homeland.
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