Nationalism

“Neither the colourless vagueness of cosmopolitanism, nor the fierce self-idolatry of nation-worship, is the goal of human history.”

In the words of a poet and in the shape of a prose, Rabindranath Tagore’s Nationalism is the culmination of his lectures and ideas around the emergence, existence and epiphanies of the East and West on this subject. In line with his support for internationalism, he explored what nationalism looked like in the backdrop of World War I and the ongoing Swadeshi movement at home in India. He tore into Western ideas of modernity by emphasising moral and spiritual growth and rallied for the revival of the East’s philosophy and value system. Holding immense relevance in the contemporary political situation, Tagore presents a solution of tolerance and a balance of traditionalism and modernity. These lectures, in their poetic charm yet vivid writing, are a must-read as our quest for true freedom continues.