Review Of Indian Nationalism

Religious mechanisms have contributed predominantly in setting, guiding, and spreading values, living style and culture along with the view and way of life. These have also remained the foremost in identifying national standards and people of a nation. They are still significant in this regard.

- Dr. Ravindra Kumar

Nationalism has been interpreted differently by different writers across the globe. But, the essence of each one of them lies in defining nationalism as a sentiment dedicated to a particular nation. It is an idea revealing people’s devotion and loyalty to their respective nations. It also categorically reflects the disposition of people (a particular society in a broader sense) in which they treat themselves as cohesive based on history, values, traditions, language, culture and so on. Further, to work for the nation having a national interest as the nucleus is the foremost of the ideas of nationalism. Thus, the idea of nationalism generally applies to a particular nation, a country, or a nation-state, a word that emerged from contemporary Western ideas identifying and accepting a particular territory as the nation-state based on its own political legitimacy as a sovereign entity.

The one who is dedicated to national interest and keeps the cause of the nation as the foremost in his ideas and works, both, she/he is called a nationalist in general. In other words, musing on a nation’s interest and development, and striving to achieve it, is the basis of one’s being a nationalist. Further, along with indigenous values, culture, and language etc. prevailing circumstances of space and available resources remain in the centre while work for nation’s growth is undertaken. It is because these elements could ascertain national progress. Categorically, the large-scale progress of the nation as per the demand of time and space remain the supreme here. This, undoubtedly, paves the way for the development of the nation concerned.