My Love , My India
In the beginning of human civilisation
When there were no nation
There existed a holy land
There existed my motherland .
When civilisations were few
And urbanisation was new
There was Harappa and Mohen-jo-Daro
Lothal , Kalibangan and Chanho-Daro .
This was the land of Sanskrit
Of Pali , of Prakrit
This was the land of Gautama Buddha
Of Chandragupta of Magadha ,
This was the land of Ashoka ,
Of Mahavir and Kanishka ;
This was the land of great souls
With great minds and greater goals .
This was the land of Milk and Honey ,
Of Gold , Silver and Money ;
This was the land of age-old culture ,
Of art , history and architecture .
This was the land of glory and pride
For which great heroes had died ,
This was the land of teachings
Of knowledge and preachings .
Then came the foreign invaders ,
Then came the ruthless raiders ,
Who came here as merchants to sell
Who came here as butchers to kill .
Some came from Asia ,
From Afganistan , From Persia ;
Some came from Europe ,
With some ambition , some hope .
People were subjected to cruelty
To torture and brutality ,
People were made to weep
And their sorrows ran deep .
People looked on with helplessness and pity
As this nation was reduced to poverty ,
And there was a time
When patriotism was a crime .
Then there came a 'Messiah'
A noble son of 'Mother India'
A simple man clad in Khadi
And named 'Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi'.
He spread all around India
The concept of 'Quit India'
And suddenly with patriotic cries
Rose the daring 'Satyagrahis'.
People began to revolt
People made their own salt
People began to fight
For a cause , just and right .
The foreigners were forced to quit
Slow and steady , bit by bit ;
And with the beats of the drum
One day India got freedom .
And today there is faith and aspiration ,
That through people's perspiration ,
There shall be a new tommorrow
When there will be no sorrow ;
When every Indian will one day
With pride and honour say ,
My India , I Love You
I Love You , I Love You .
--- Sunder Rangarajan.