Patriotism: Types, Importance and quotes
Patriotism is defined as the feeling of love, attachment to their country or motherland. This attachment can be with anything like culture, tradition, politics, or natural beauty. Patriotism is the devotion of a person to his/ her motherland. Patriotism involves loving and supporting the nation while it’s developing. Patriotism meaning in Hindi is ‘Desh Prem’ i.e. the one who loves his country in every situation.
Well, there have been many instances where people are confused between patriotism and nationalism. We have seen many protests and wars because people feel they are protesting out of patriotism. But instead, they were practicing nationalism. Let us understand this further.
Patriotism is defined as the devotion of a person for his/ her country. A person believes that his/ her nation is the best in the whole wide world. Patriotism does not force one to believe that their country is the best. It is according to the individual whether they support their country or not. Patriotism gives a person the necessary freedom so that they can practice or do things wisely.
Nationalism on the other hand is defined as an idea or a movement that is carried out by the people in order to promote the interests of the nation. Nationalism is aimed at self–governance. Basically, nationalism accounts for the desire of power. It is completely opposite to what patriotism is. For instance, a country providing citizenship to the diasporas (people who are initially from India but have permanently settled in Canada or in other countries of the US) can be considered as nationalism.
People tend to get confused between the two as they feel nationalism and patriotism are the same. Well, people need to know what is included in patriotism v/s nationalism. Students and people must not be confused between the two.
But one thing must be noted here. Apart from being confused between patriotism and nationalism, people are also confused about the types of patriotism that they follow. Many people might not know that there are two types of patriotism that they practice i.e. Blind Patriotism and Constructive Patriotism.
Constructive Patriotism includes love and support for the nation. But it also involves questioning and criticizing as well so that the nation moves in a positive way. In this way, the nation becomes developed because of positive criticism. Constructive Patriotism was seen in both World War I and World War II as people were capable of practical judgement.
On the other hand, Blind Patriotism is a kind of extreme nationalism. Nazis and Tribals used to follow blind patriotism that does not involve rational culture. Blind Patriotism generally means no democracy; only autocratic leadership is followed. Autocratic leadership is the one where the ruler or the governor rules (for example; Hitler). There is no room for the people of a nation to do anything against the will of the governor or ruler.
Constructive patriotism is generally followed by countries. We have already seen what happens to a country that follows Blind patriotism through our history books. Patriotism is important but it doesn’t mean you must follow anyone blindly despite knowing what is good and what is bad. Well, talking about good and bad, we must know the importance of patriotism in our lives.
Who better than soldiers can represent patriotism for the country? A soldier knows why patriotism is important. He loves his country effortlessly and remains dedicated to the nation. We might know why patriotism is important or how we can practice it. But soldiers practice patriotism every day. They teach us that love and dedication is an important part of our growth.
Patriotism means making sacrifices for the country to protect its honor. The Indian Army does that. Patriotism in India is seen in how our armies fight for their motherland to restore and protect it’s honor. We might read and somehow practice patriotism partially. But our soldiers define patriotism in the correct way.
Patriotism is a national pride that is important to inculcate. Parents must inculcate the feeling of patriotism among their children right from their childhood. Celebrating festivals is one way of developing patriotism. Republic Day, Independence Day, Kite Festival etc are some festivals that must be celebrated in order to inculcate patriotism.
Now, to maintain and instill this feeling, here are some patriotism quotes and sayings:
1. A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of colored ribbon.
Napoleon Bonaparte
2. Real patriotism is a willingness to challenge the government when it's wrong.
Ron Paul
3. Patriotism is voluntary. It is a feeling of loyalty and allegiance that is the result of knowledge and belief. A patriot shows their patriotism through their actions, by their choice.
Jesse Venture
4. "Karo ya Maro" - Mahatma Gandhi
5. “Freedom of mind is the real freedom.
A person whose mind is not free though he may not be in chains, is a slave, not a free man.
One whose mind is not free, though he may not be in prison, is a prisoner and not a free man.
One whose mind is not free though alive, is no better than dead.
Freedom of mind is the proof of one's existence.”
― Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, Writings And Speeches: A Ready Reference Manual
6. "Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath of life. What would a man not pay for living?"
- Mahatma Gandhi.
7. "Dushman ki goliyon ka hum samna karenge, Azad hee rahein hain, Azad hee rahenge"
- Chandra Shekhar Azad
These are some of the patriotic quotes for the students to refer to. But apart from these quotes, do you know what is patriotism called in other words? No, right. So here are some patriotism synonyms that you must know.
- Loyalism
- Xenophobia
- Isolationism
- Jingoism
- Flag – Waving
These are the synonyms of patriotism. But they mean the same. So if you use ‘patriotism’ as the word, which will also be fine. You can use these synonyms for knowledge purposes.
Now, students might be wondering as to what they can include in the ‘what is patriotism’ essay. Well, you can include the above–mentioned points in your essay. Students can get this topic for 5 – 10 marks so you need to prepare accordingly. You must first practice patriotism in order to write about it. Once you understand patriotism, it wouldn’t be difficult to memorize the above–mentioned information provided. Thus, patriotism must be inculcated within kids from their childhood.
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