{"id":55306,"date":"2019-08-17T09:46:59","date_gmt":"2019-08-17T04:16:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dwarkaparichay.com\/blog\/?p=55306"},"modified":"2019-08-18T06:48:58","modified_gmt":"2019-08-18T01:18:58","slug":"atal-bihari-vajpayee-epitome-of-indian-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dwarkaparichay.com\/blog\/atal-bihari-vajpayee-epitome-of-indian-culture\/","title":{"rendered":"Atal Bihari Vajpayee – Epitome of Indian Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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With the passing away of Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee \u2013 truly\nthe end of an era – the country has lost one of its most illustrious sons.\nVajpayee, a soft spoken and suave person, was more of a statesman and less of a\npolitician. Known more for his political achievements as Prime Minister –\nnotably the Kargil war, nuclear tests and the Lahore summit – Vajpayee embodied civility in public life even as he had\nthe gumption to look the US in the eye.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vajpayee, indeed a\nmultifaceted personality \u2013 was a distinguished leader, journalist, poet and a\npersuasive orator. A man of principle, he was a humanitarian and nationalist\nwith values, passion and foresight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three times Prime Minister\nof India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee was born in Gwalior on 25th December 1924.\nVajpayee did his early education from Saraswati Shishu Mandir graduating with\ndistinction in English, Hindi and Sanskrit. It was probably his studying the\nSanskrit language that Vajpayee\u2019s thoughts, words and deeds were rooted in\nIndian ethos and culture and made him the gentleman that he remained throughout\nhis life. It is this imbibing of Indian culture that made Vajpayee into an\nAjaatashatru (a person who does not have any enemies).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Vajpayee is famous for his achievements as one of India\u2019s tallest leaders, equally well known is his love for Indian art and culture. He was a poet of the highest standards, and published several books full of poems, the prominent ones among them being Meri Ekyavan Kavitayen, Twenty\u2011one Poems and Chuni Huvi Kavitayen. Starting his career as a freedom fighter, he developed a reputation of being the most eloquent defender of his thoughts. Vajpayee’s eloquence and oratorial skills are only too well-known. His articulate excellence stood him in good stead when he became President of Jana Sangh in 1968. His oratorial skills so impressed the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, that Nehru predicted that the young Vajpayee would someday become the Prime Minister of India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 A judicious and balanced blend of\nVajpayee\u2019s sophisticated civilized elegance, his poetic trappings, his kind and\nfriendly disposition and numerous illustrations of his superlative oratory\ntogether helped him earn tremendous goodwill of the masses and he was held in\nhigh esteem by political leaders irrespective of their ideologies. One of the\ntallest statesmen in the global arena, Vajpayee with his articulation and\nliterary command, represented India\u2019s rich diversity. He had the exceptional\ndistinction of being a Parliamentarian for 12 terms (10 terms in Lok Sabha and\n2 terms in Rajya Sabha). Possessing an excellent sense of humour, he drew both\napplause and laughter from members of Parliament across the political spectrum,\nwhenever he spoke. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Vajpayee\u2019s love for culture is well known. Indian music and dance were dear to his heart, as was his love for\nnature, and anything Indian. A celebrated poet, it\nwas Vajpayee, who as Foreign Minister of India, delivered his address at the\nUnited Nations in Hindi, the first by an Indian leader at this exalted\ninternational forum. That moment and the speech he delivered are indeed a\nmatter of pride and honour for every Indian. With his inspiration, his thoughts\nand exemplary conduct, Vajpayee realized the value of Indian culture and established\nthe Indian cultural values in public life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vajpayee\nhad the flair for balancing poetry and politics with ease. Vajpayee inherited\nthe poetic trait from his father and was inspired by works of luminaries like\nTulsidas\u2019s Ramcharitamanas, Jaishankar Prasad\u2019s Kamayani, Sueyakanh Tripathi\nNirala\u2019s Ram Ki Shakti Puja, and Mahadevi Verma\u2019s Geet. While some of his poems\nrelate to Hindu mythology and history, some touch upon nationalism and\npatriotism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several\nincidents and instances in Vajpayee\u2019s life are reminiscent of the Indian\nculture, Indian values and Indian traditions having seeped into Vajpayee\u2019s\nveins and blood. At a point of time when many in his party were prone to run\ndown Nehru, Vajpayee paid a touching, emotional tribute to Nehru, after Nehru\npassed away in 1964. Vajpayee spoke in glowing terms of Nehru\u2019s dreams,\naspirations and ambitions of India; and emphasized that the nation could pay a\nfitting tribute and homage to Nehru only by walking on the path Nehru had\nshown, and by establishing lasting peace. Such thoughts, such emotions can be\nexpressed only by one who has \u2018Indianness\u2019 coursing through his veins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Himself a litterateur and a distinguished poet, and a\ndevoted connoisseur of art, Vajpayee proved himself to be in a different league\nas a politician. It was perhaps the importance he gave to India\u2019s cultural\nvalues which made him compassionate and truthful, and more of a sage in India\u2019s\npolitics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Kashmir issue was addressed by Vajpayee in his own\ninimitable style. His approach to face the complex issue was coined as the\nVajpayee Doctrine. Vajpayee maintained that the Kashmir issue could be resolved\nby following the three guidelines of Insaaniyat (humanism),\nJamhooriyat (democracy) and Kashmiriyat (Kashmir\u2019s bequest of friendship). He\nwas of the firm conviction that the above guiding principles would lead to\nrealizing harmony, progress and prosperity in Kashmir. The Vajpayee Doctrine\nreveals the significance he accorded to India\u2019s cultural diversity.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vajpayee\nwell and truly recognized that India is a country whose traditions are\ntimeless, whose cultures are borderless, and whose values are ageless. He made\nfervent appeals to Indians and Pakistanis to leave the murky past behind and\nembrace a future of cooperation and amity. It was this \u2018Indianness\u2019 that helped\nVajpayee conquer the hearts of people across the border too.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few of Vajpayee\u2019s quotes reveals the importance he\naccorded to India\u2019s ethos and heritage and the emphasis he laid on preservation\nof its culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n