Dr. V.K.Maheshwari, M.A(Socio, Phil) B.Sc. M. Ed, Ph.D
Former Principal, K.L.D.A.V.(P.G) College, Roorkee, India
I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him. ~Abraham Lincoln
Nation can be defined as that human group which lives in an area with clearly defined geographical boundaries, united by common traditions, common interests and common sentiments, possessing a desire for unity and common political ambitions. Elements which go to make up the nation are of two kinds—the objective and the subjective. Among the objective elements are geographical unity, unity of language, unity of race, a common religion, political unity and independence. But the objective elements are of greater significance. According to Renan and Mill, it must also possess consciousness of a glorious past, feelings of pride and shame, happiness and pain, common experience and sacrifice, true glory, allied to this past. The chief among these emotive elements are common interests and traditions, common political ambitions, and, most important of all, a community feeling, or we feeling.
Community we feeling or simply we feeling is such an important constituent of nationhood, which MacIver has defined nationally in terms of this feeling. He defines nationality as a kind of community feeling that has its origin in certain historical circumstances, and which is also strengthened by such strong common psychological factors that individuals who experience it desire to form a specific and even an individual government of their own. Oppenheimer has commented that consciousness of nationality makes the nation.
Historical Retrospect
There are some people who think that India has never existed as a unified, undivided and indivisible unit in the past. Sir John Seeley said that India was not a political name but only a geographical expression like Europe or Africa. Sir John Strachey wrote: “This is the first and the most essential thing to learn about India that there is not and never did an India or even any country of India possess, according to European ideas, any sort of unity, physical, political, social or religious. No Indian nation, no people of India’ of which we hear so much.” As late as 1930, the Simon Commission referred to India as a “conglomeration of races and religions.” It is not only foreigners but many Indian thinkers also believe that India never existed as a nation and there was no national integration in India in any period of her history. So far as foreigners are concerned, they appear to be biased against India and her peoples’ capacity for unity.
Even a general survey of Indian religion, philosophy, mythology, legends, art, literature and architecture will make it abundantly clear that India existed as a single homogeneous, well-united nation in the past. May be there are diversities, but they should not be mistaken for disunity. This diversity is a special feature of India’s unity, it provides colour to Indian life. All the discordant ‘isms’, that have no doubt succeeded in creating certain spells of unfortunate trends towards disintegration, have their origins outside India and have been imported into India by vested interests. Before that India continued to be the torch-bearer to entire humanity—a nation with & rich sonorous music of unity.
If we look back and analyse our history, culture and heritage, the first thing that strikes us very forcibly is the underlying spirit of our fundamental unity in diversity in all times and ages. The concept of India as a well-knit, composite and homogeneous entity, transcending all her external diversities is an eloquent theme that runs throughout our literature, epics and folklore.
During the Vadic period religion and language .played a pre-eminent role in fostering national and emotional integration. Religion occupied an enviable position as an agent of unity. The common devotion of the people to religion evoked affinity and sympathy for each other. The rise of new religions like Jainism and Buddhism and new sects like Shaivism and Vaishnavism created a few short intervals in the total allegiance of Indians to Hinduism. Invocation to the rivers Ganga and Jamuna as also to Krishna and Kauvery is common to the rituals performed by the Hindus all over the country. The barriers of caste, race, language or region did not exist br any material purpose. The four tirths established by Shankaracharya at four corners of the country, namely Shringeri, Puri, Dwarika and Badrinath are unshakable pillars of India’s emotional unity. It is clear that the evils of Castism did not exist in those days. Do the temples of Tanjore not belong to every Indian ? Is every Indian not proud of Ajanta and lora paintings. The Meghadoot of Kali das brought the South and North under one canvas.
During the medieval period a new society appeared in India ’With its distinct religion, customs and traditions. But the Bhakti movement preached an understanding among the people practising different religions and observing different customs. The great _bakhti reformers like Kabir, Nanak, Chaitnya, Tukaram belonged to all. Akbar, the Great Mughal, who ruled practically the whole of India as one unit, practised toleration,
With the establishmentt of the English rule the. unity and understanding that had existed for ages, though certainly weakened by certain factors, and was badly shaken up. Britishers played ‘the game of ‘divide and rule’. They separated the Muslims from, the mainstream of national life and made them believe that they were ‘distinct from the Hindus. In Hindu community itself they created a wedge between the scheduled castes and others. They pitched the English educated urban class against the rural masses. Simultaneously it was under the British rule that a number of new factors like improved means of transport and communication, a common language, were introduced which were of great help in national integration
The most important phenomenon in New India is the growth of a national consciousness, which ultimately found active expression in the formation of the Indian National Congress, the Muslim League, and other bodies of the kind. Various factors contributed to the development of this national awakening, which was based upon two fundamental principles, viz. the unity of India as a whole and the right of her people to rule themselves.
As with all great national movements, e.g. the French Revolution, there was an intellectual background to this political regeneration. In a previous chapter we have traced the growth of English education in India. It is a matter of common knowledge that a tremendous wave of liberalism was passing over English politics and literature during the nineteenth century. By the study of English literature and European history educated Indians imbibed the spirit of democracy and national patriotism which England unequivocally declared to be her political ideals. Further, the promotion of these sentiments was deliberately encouraged by the liberal statesmanship, which England at first displayed in her policy towards India and other dominions.
From the very beginning the British Government publicly declared its liberal policy towards India. The Charter Act of 1813 definitely laid it down that “it is the duty of this country to promote the interest and happiness of the native inhabitants of the British dominions in India”. This was not only corroborated but even further elucidated by the Parliamentary Committee of 1833 when it laid down “the indisputable principle that the interests of the native subjects are to be consulted in preference to those of Europeans whenever the two come in competition”. Finally came the Queen’s Proclamation of 1858 in which she declared that “We hold ourselves bound to the natives of our Indian territories by the same obligations of duty which bind us to all our other subjects”.
The pronouncement of Queen Victoria acquired a special significance for Indians in view of the democratic constitution granted to Canadian subjects during her reign, followed by similar measures of self-government conceded to other colonies in subsequent times.
All these causes created new aspirations in the minds of educated Indians. They had great faith in the liberal statesmen of Britain and their sense of justice and fair play. They thought that as soon as the Indians could make up a good case and present it well, nothing would be wanting on the part of British liberals to meet their reasonable demands.
The first concrete demand was naturally one for a larger admission of Indians to the higher ranks of the Civil Service. The Civil Service was the “steel-frame” of British administration, and Macaulay did not very much exaggerate the fact when he said in the House of Commons that “even the character of the Governor General was less important than the character and spirit of the servants by whom the administration of India was carried on”. It was obvious to educated Indians that the first step to secure a real and legitimate share in the management of the administration was to get into the higher ranks of the Civil Service in steadily increasing numbers.
A definite pledge was given by the Charter Act of 1833 that no Indian “shall by reason only of his religion, place of birth, descent, colour or any of them be disabled from holding any office or employment under the Company”. This was reiterated in the Queen’s Proclamation of 1858 and the Indian Civil Service Act of 1861. In spite of these promises there was plainly visible a growing reluctance on the part of the British Government to admit Indians in large number to the Civil Service. The failure to fulfil the pledges so repeatedly given is admitted by British statesmen themselves. “Lord Houghton observed that the declaration which stated that the Government of India would be conducted without reference to differences of race, was magnificent but had hitherto been futile.” That the Government did not choose to carry out this policy is admitted by no less an authority than Lord Lytton , the Governor- General. In a confidential despatch on this subject, he stated that “all means were taken of breaking to the heart the words of promise they had uttered to the ear”.
Factors leading to the growth of Indian Nationalism
Following are some factors which contributed in the growth of national consciousness in India:
Racial Pride of the British Rulers
The British rulers considered themselves to be racially superior to Indians and were proud of their complexion, blood and culture. They looked down upon Indians as uncivilised and dubbed them as ‘black people’ and hated to mix with them. Indians were not allowed to travel in the same railway compartments in which Englishmen travelled and were debarred from going to clubs and hotels visited by Englishmen. The Arms Act of Lord Lytton declared keeping of arms without licence a crime but the Europeans were made an exception. This discriminatory Act angered the Indians. Surendranath Banerjee aptly remarked, “The Arms Act imposed on us a badge of racial inferiority.” In the matter of justice, Europeans were given preferential treatment. While Englishmen were let off or lightly punished even for murders and brutalities committed by them, Indians were severely punished for minor offences. G.O. Trevelyan pointed out in 1864: “the testimony of a single one of our countrymen has more weight with the court than that of any number of Hindoos, a circumstance which puts a terrible instrument of power into the hands of an unscrupulous and grasping Englishman.” The policy of racial discrimination led to acute resentment among the educated Indians against the foreign rulers. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru wrote, “there were two worlds: the world of the British officials and the world of India’s millions and there was nothing in common between them except a common dislike for each other.”
Western Education
The British rulers introduced the teaching of the English language in schools and colleges to get a regular supply of clerks and babus to work in the administrative offices established by them. Knowledge of English proved to be a boon as the young men educated through the English medium were introduced to the liberal ideas of the West, such as freedom, democracy and nationalism. They were highly impressed by the teachings of Garibaldi, Mazzini, Rousseau, Thomas Paine and other liberal thinkers of the 19th century. Revolutionary ideas contained in the writings of these thinkers brought about social awareness and national consciousness among the educated Indians. In the words of Lord Ronaldshay, “The new wine of Western learning went into the heads of the young Indians. They drank deep from the source of liberty and nationalism. Their whole out look underwent a revolution. Influenced by these national and democratic ideas, Indian intelligentsia looked to the problems facing the country from an all-India angle.”
English proved to be a link language through which people living in widely separated regions began to communicate. It became a lingua franca of the country. Official and business correspondence began to be conducted through English. The knowledge of English was thus responsible for the unification of a vast country inhabited by people speaking different languages and dialects. Naturally, the first leaders of the national movement were those young men who had acquired an English education.
Economic Exploitation
With the establishment of British rule in India, the country’s economy was crippled. Indian handicrafts began to die out. India, which had won world-wide fame as an exporter of fine cloth, was turned into an importer of machine-made cloth and other factory goods from England Millions of craftsmen and artisans were thrown out of employment, resulting in poverty everywhere. With this change in the pattern of trade, every class of Indian society was adversely affected. In the words of Blunt, “the vice of Indian finance was that the Finance Minister of India looked more to the interests of Great Britain than to those of India.” A huge amount of money was drained off from India for the payment of salaries and pensions to British officers. Apart from this, millions of pounds were taken away by the British businessmen out of India through their import and export trade. Lord Salisbury, the Secretary of State, aptly said, “the British Rule was bleeding India white.” The net result of this exploitation was that the average income of an Indian fell below the level of subsistence. There were repeated famines which caused untold havoc. Each famine was followed by an epidemic which took a heavy toll of life. The Indian people became physically weak and morally crippled. Ruthless exploitation of the country’s resources made them miserable and brought about disaffection and resentment against an alien regime.
Discrimination in Services
In the early years of British rule in India, all important positions in the administration and army were held by Englishmen. Indians were distrusted and not assigned any position of trust and responsibility. In the later part of British rule, some Indians were given posts in lower grades in the services but preference for higher services was always given to men of British origin. A general notion prevailed among the British that Indians, howsoever qualified they might be, were inferior to Englishmen. Indians were mocked at as ‘drawers of water and hewers of wood.’ The Charter Act of 1833 and Queen Victoria’s Proclamation of 1858 had promised equality of opportunity in employment, but these well-intentioned pronouncements were never translated into action. Higher services remained the sole preserve of the Europeans. Garret rightly says, “the policy of excluding Indians from the higher ranks of services was responsible for arousing national spirit among the people of India.” In the army the Indians were deliberately excluded from the artillery section.
The bitter sense of discrimination by the British against the Indians came to the fore during the Viceroyalty of Lord Ripon. The Viceroy, who was a man of liberal views, was in favour of giving the Indian judges authority to hear cases against the Europeans. His law member, Mr. Iibert, drafted a bill which was to give Indian magistrates the right to try Europeans for criminal offences. The English opposed the Bill vehemently.
Lord Ripon bowed before the storm of opposition and amended the Bill. The European offenders were given the right to demand trial by Jury. Half the jurors had to be Europeans. The Bill failed in ending discrimination, which it aimed to do, as Indians were not given a similar privilege. The Iibert Bill controversy exercised a crucial influence on the growth of nationalism. S.N. Banerji rightly remarked, “No self-respecting Indian could sit idle under the fierce light of that revelation. It was a call to that high patriotic duty of those who understood its significance.” Lord Salisbury rightly described the British pledges to Indians as political hypocrisy. [5]
Reform Movements
The second half of the 19th century was a period of Indian awakening and reformation. The Brahmo Samaj, the Ramakrishna Mission, the Arya Samaj, the Theosophical Society and many socio-religious movements not only fought against social evils but also generated confidence and national pride in the people who had sunk down to the lowest level of social and moral degradation. These movements reminded the people of the excellence and greatness of their cultural heritage. Swami Vivekananda, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Mrs Annie Besant, Mahadev Govind Ranade and many other social reformers aroused in them an urge for freedom. They proved by the force of their arguments that Indian culture was superior to that of the West and there was no reason for Indians to be cowed down by the westerners. They gave people a new sense of self-respect and a new pride in the past and these in the long run proved to be important factors in building up a new India. Swami Dayanand Saraswati, the founder of the Arya Samaj, gave the slogan, “India for the Indians”. In the words of Sarkar and Datta, “the religious and social reformers of the 19th century in India impressed upon the minds of the people the greatness of the ancient thought of their country and thus served to awaken in them a keen desire for national regeneration on the basis of the best in the past.”
Growth of Indian National Congress
The growth of the political organisations like Indian national congress was the upshot of the national consciousness of the unified India. Indian nationalism grew partly as a result of colonial policies and partly as a reaction to the colonial policies. The growth of the Indian national consciousness was first noticed in the latter half of the 19th century. Prior to this a number of scattered uprisings lacked the enthusiasm to incite the nationalist feeling. But with the establishment of the Indian Nationals congress, the fragmented political feeling achieved a common front. Hence the growth of the Indian National Congress in 1885, led to the growth of Indian nationalism in the closing decade of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century. Right from the foundation of the Indian national Congress, the nationalist feeling and consciousness received a great impetus. Following the establishment of the Indian National Congress, several other political organizations came into existence representing the nationalist feeling of India.
British Oppression and Exploitation
In the aim to establish their political authority in India, the British completely exploited the Indian resources, which undoubtedly resulted in the growth of Indian Nationalism. The Imperial British conquered the entire length of the country. The British oppression ultimately imposed political unity in India. Despite the imperialist efforts to sow the seeds of communal disintegration, the establishment of the political unity fostered the spirit of one mindedness and at the same time prompted the nationalist feeling.
The impact of the British rule on the Indian economy was disastrous. Moreover the great famine was also the result of this economic exhaustion. The British Government levied unjust taxes on the Indian farmers, which shattered the economy of the Indians colleges completely. Thus the economic policies of the Government inculcated the spirit of nationalism among the Indians. The educated intellectuals made the common people aware about the ill effects of the economic policies of the British. Thus the growth of Indian nationalism received a powerful stimulus in the process of Indian hatred against the government`s economic policies.
Development of Means of Transport and Communication
The British rulers established a wide network of roads and railways to promote their commercial interests and maintain a rigid administrative control over India. The railways proved to be a blessing for the country in as much as its various parts separated by rivers, hills and mountains were connected with one another and brought closer together.
Lines of communication knit together the vast country and its geographical unity became a tangible reality. It enabled educated Indians living in different parts of the country to come in contact with one another and discuss the problems facing the country as a whole. Development of roads and railways made it possible to mobilize public opinion on a national scale. Some of the educated young men went abroad and had the opportunity to study the working of the free and democratic institutions of Europe. It infused in them a new love for freedom and liberty. It was this feeling which inspired them to launch a movement for the liberation of the country
Development of rapid means of Transport and Communication also led to the growth of Indian Nationalism. The provincial political unrest, which was limited within a small area, came in contact with the nationalist current of the whole India. More than anything, the growth of Indian Railways has unified the country. According to the historians, the railways have facilitated the growth of Indian nationalism more than any other advantages. Moreover, the development of Modern Postal System and the introduction of Electric Telegraph helped to unify the country. As a result the disjointed political consciousness came in contact with each other, which helped for the emergence of a consciousness with a national colour. The growth of various political organisations like All India Trade Union Congress, All India Kishan Sabha etc would not have come into existence unless the growth of efficient transport and communication.
Growth of Education
The introduction of the modern system of education opened the opportunities for the assimilation of the modern western ideas with the Indian ideals. As a result, the political consciousness of the west blended with the Indian political thinking. The British took a momentous decision in 1835 to introduce the English education and the study of western philosophy in India. The idea of liberty, self-government made them conscious of the oppression and diplomacy of the British rulers in India. In this way the sense of Swaraj and independence developed the nationalist feeling among the Indians. The newly educated class being conscious of the citizen rights could form a political consciousness of their own. They began to make the common people aware of their rights and duties and aided in the growth of Indian nationalism.
The Vernacular Press
The Vernacular Press was the chief instrument through which the nationalists spread the message of patriotism and modern economic, social and political ideas and created an all-India consciousness.
During the second half of the nineteenth century, a number of newspapers, journals, magazines and books appeared in Indian languages, which criticised British administration and pointed out its defects. In 1877, there were as many as 62 newspapers appearing in Indian languages. The total circulation of these papers was calculated as 1,00,000. The Vernacular Press Act of Lord Lytton in 1878 laid down that the editors of the vernacular newspapers were to sign a bond to publish nothing that would create feelings of dissatisfaction against the government. But the English language press was kept outside its purview. This discriminatory and repressive measure of Lord Lytton inflamed the feelings of bitterness among the Indians against the British. In spite of all the restrictions, the Indian Press continued to criticise the British administration and espoused the national cause. The Vernacular Press Act was withdrawn by Lord Ripon in 1882. Steadily and silently, Indian newspapers infused a spirit of patriotism and nationalism in the people and provided a direction to the national struggle for emancipation.
Many Indian writers brought out books based on patriotism. Bankim Chandra’s famous book ‘Anand Math’, the Bible of modern Bengali patriotism, provided very great inspiration to the people. Vande Mataram, the national song of India was adopted from this very book.Rabindranath Tagore in Bengali, Lakshminath Bezbarua in Assamese, Vishnu Shastri Chiplunkar in Marathi, Subramanya Bharati in Tamil, Bhartendu Harishchandra in Hindi, and Altaf Hussain Mali in Urdu were some of the nationalist writers of this period.
Emergence of Printing Press
The emergence of the modern Press both in English and local languages, was one of the significant reasons for the growth of Indian nationalism in the late 19th and the early 20th centuries. The British set up Printing Presses in India and published newspaper in English. Gradually the Vernacular Press came into existence, which was developed in the pattern of the English newspapers. Several Acts were passed to stop the circulations of the vernacular Press as they revealed the oppressive and the repressive policies of the British the Government. The Indian press had played a notable role in mobilising the public opinions, organising political movements, fighting over political controversy and promoting nationalism. The newspapers like The Indian Mirror, The Bengalee, Anandabazar Patrika, Bombay Chronicle, The Hindu Patriot, The Marhatta, Keshari etc exposed the excesses of British Indian administration. Press became the primary medium of public education and probably played the most important part in forming the Public opinion.
Rise of the Middle Class
By the end of the nineteenth century, a middle class comprising businessmen, industrialists and financiers came up. This class was keenly conscious of the fact that British rule was a great hindrance in the path of industrial progress and prosperity of the country. The Indian business community had to work against heavy odds. They had to carry on their business in competition with the most advanced industries of England. The British rulers were averse to the industrial development of the country and wanted to keep India merely a supplier of raw materials and a potential market for dumping goods manufactured in England. Severe checks were imposed on Indian industries. Almost every article of daily use like sewing needles, sewing and printing materials, soaps, cosmetics, etc., were imported from England.
The new industrial class of India realised to their dismay that they could not prosper under British rule. Forced by the circumstances, they joined the national movement and helped it with money. The role of the Indian bourgeoisie (middle class of businessmen and industrialists) was, thus, no less significant in the freedom struggle of India.
The administrative and the economic innovations of the British gave rise to a new class called middle class. The middle class was conscious of their social position and was properly educated. The middle class intellectuals formed the dynamic minority in India. This class had a sense of liberal idea and political thought of themselves and gradually they infused the whole India with its spirit. This class provided leadership to the Indian National Congress in its stages of growth.
Socio Religious Movements
In the nineteenth century the educated Indians began to analyse their religious beliefs and customs and social practices in the light of the modern knowledge of the western science and philosophy. As a result various social and the religious movement came into existence, which liberate the society from the social evils. These movements liberated the societies from superstitions like Casteism, Untouchability etc. Hence it opened the opportunity of free mixings of all sects, caste, creeds etc. In these circumstances, people belonging to different sects shared their political thoughts and ideals in a common platform. Thus the progressive character of the socio religious movements all the more developed the nationalism throughout the whole India.
Thus the growth of Indian nationalism was not a sudden outcome; rather it was the result of the gradual process of development due to the oppression and the repression of the British Government.
Development of Nationalism in the New Generation
The following suggestions can be given for generating nationalism in the younger generation:
1. Development of a national language.
The first prerequisite for developing nationalism is the development of a national language in the country. In India, this position can be occupied only by Hindi. When the succeeding generations learn Hindi and use it, the feeling will gradually take root that India is one nation.
2. Development of a national literature. Development of a national language will lead to the development of a national literature. With the propagation of Hindi in every part of the country, a new literature will be created, which will be read everywhere. Apart from encouraging national unity, it will also enable the people to create a literature which encourages national power and protects the cultural heritage of the country.
3. National educational programme. In India the spread of education is the responsibility of both the central and the state governments but as yet, it has not been possible to formulate a national programme of education with the result that one can see considerable disparity in the various parts of the country. In order to evolve a feeling of nationalism the country should have unified educational programme which should be flexible enough, to take within its purview the differences that exist between one region and another. This will lead to a certain similarity in the education in all parts, and make possible the application of a single curriculum through which national literature on the all India scale can be created.
4. Observance of national festivals. The feeling of nationalism can also be strengthened by enthusiastic observance of national festivals, independence day, republic day, children’s day, teacher’s day and the birthdays of all great men.
5. Respect for national symbols. Another way of fostering the feeling of nationalism is to generate and show respect for national symbols such as the national anthem, the national flag, the national bird, etc. Now-a-days the national anthem is played after every film show and people are required to stand at attention to show their respect for it. This also helps growth of national sentiment.
6. Improvements of curriculum. In order to help the development of the national sentiment, it is desirable that the teaching of history, civics, etc., should be conducted in such a way that it helps national sentiment. This can be done by preventing the publication of any material in text books and other media of publication which hurts national sentiments and pride. The government seizes all copies of such material and punishes the publishers and authors.
7. Cooperation of political parties. It is impossible to generate nationalism if the political parties fail to cooperate. Many political parties not only hinder the growth of this sentiment, but actively engage in activities calculated to harm the national interest. Such political parties owe their allegiance to other nations, show no respect for national symbols and spread anti-national feelings among the people. As far as possible political parties should be prevented from indulging in such activities.
8. Cooperation of teachers. Education for nationalism can never be really successful without the active co-operation ofteachers. For this reason the educators must themselves possess this feeling, because then they can set an example for the educands. It will then be even easier to foster the national sentiment among the younger generation.
Synthesis of Nationalism and Internationalism
Nowadays many thinkers object to the use of education for fostering the national sentiment because they have come across many bad effects of narrow nationalism in many countries and seen that education for nationalism has stood in the way of the growth of internationalism. The education for nationalism that was given in Italy and Germany, for example, was completely opposed to internationalism. It is in connection with this one-sided education that Bertrand Russellpointed out that children are taught to exhibit complete devotion and worship to the state of which they are citizens. The lesson taught to them is that worship of the state consists in doing as directed by the state. For this they are taught distorted versions of history, politics and economics so that they should not be critical of the blind national faith expected of them. They are acquainted with the evil actions of other nations but not of their own, although the truth is that eachnation has been unjust to other nations. It is unquestionably true that if the facts of history are distorted in order to propagate the sentiment of nationalism it is undesirable. But this danger is not peculiar to nationalism alone. It is true of almost all human relations that as they become deeper and stronger they also become narrower, and that they impede the growth of any liberal attitude. If, for example, an individual has intense love for his family, this may come in the way of his loving his nation, but this does not imply that love for nation can exist only at the cost of love for family. Proper and healthy love for the family does not impede love for the nation, it helps it to grow. In the same way healthy nationalism also does not preclude the possibility of internationalism. As Dr. Louise has said that it is essential to strengthen one’s love for one’s motherland, but this does not make it proper to violate the cannons of humanity, for the external benefit of one’s own nation. It is obvious, therefore, that education must not only propagate nationalism but must also encourage internationalism. The plan for national education presented by such eminent educationists as Mahatma Gandhi, Sri Aurobindo, Vivekanand, Rabindra Nath Tagore, etc. has kept this in view, that nationalism and internationalism should grow harmoniously. That is the reason why Rabindra Nath Tagore’s Shantiniketan turned into an ideal institution for education in internationalism. According to Tagore the educand’s aim is to reach the level at which there is no distinction between nationalism and internationalism.