Underlining that the narrative of the nation as a mother owes its beginning to the literary, artistic and cultural patent of Bengalis, Harvard University historian Sugata Bose said that while the idea has been “sanctified by those prepared to die for the mother nation”, it could also be “devised by those ready to kill in the name of religion.”
Delivering a lecture, while inaugurating a single object exhibition of Abanindranath Tagore’s iconic painting Bharat Mata at Victoria Memorial Hall , Prof. Bose, also a Trinamool Congress MP, said the invocation of the nation as mother had raised concerns during the freedom struggle and Subhas Chandra Bose and Rabindranath Tagore came forward to address the issue then.
“Even Gandhiji wanted Bharat Mata Ki Jai and Hindu Musalman Ki Jai to be chanted in the same breath,” the historian said, pointing out that the Father of Nation had made his opinions clear in an article in Young India in September 1920, where he supported the idea of three national slogans.
According to Prof. Bose, Gandhiji preferred Vande Mataram , written by Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay in 1875 to Bharat Mata Ki Jai.
At a time when the Vande Mataram controversy exploded on the political scene in 1937, Subhas Chandra Bose sought a suggestion from Rabindranath Tagore whether the song could be performed as national anthem at a Congress gathering. The idea was to resolve the issue at the meeting of the All India Congress Committee in October 1937.
“Rabindranath wrote in a private letter to Subhas, that the song containing [references to] Durga was inappropriate for a national organisation that was a meeting place for different religious communities,” Prof. Bose said, quoting the letter.
The poet had in the letter further said: “In our national quest, we need peace, unity, good sense. We don’t need endless rivalry because of one side’s obstinate refusal to yield.”
According to Prof. Bose, Tagore argued that the first part of Vande Mataram had inspirational qualities and was not offensive to any community. Heeding the poet’s advice, only the first part of the song was played at the Congress gathering.
Recalling diverse historyDuring his lecture, the historian drew references from literature like Prabhat Kumar Mukherjee’s story and later Satyajit Ray’s film Devi and paintings of Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose.
“When Abanindranath painted Bharat Mata , he had in mind his daughter’s face. It was coming together of human intimacy and divine inspiration that gave not just the picture but the idea of the nation as mother,” he said.
According to Prof. Bose, Bharat Mata to him is radiant and calm as the Abanindranath image depicts, and bestows boons and blessings to her sons with four hands. “The image of Bharat Mata should lead people to service and nothing else,” he said.
The historian also drew on Hindu mythology, particularly the Puranas, and narrated the story of Parashuram who, acting upon his father and sage Jamdagni’s exhortations, killed his mother.
Drawing a parallel between those who are ready to kill in the name of religion and the followers of Parashuram, Prof. Bose expressed the hope that soon they will be banished to Mahendra Parvat (an isolated mountain) as Parashuram, the sixth avatar of Lord Vishnu was after losing to Rama, the seventh and more popular incarnation.
