My Patriotism towards the EMPIRE OF SPIRIT

When I sat down to write this blog, the first thing that came to my mind was one my friend Chimpu(A.K.A Abhinav)'s bloggs about how everyone should make a difference towards the development of our country, well I on the other hand was never fond of blogging and especially all those blogs and bloggers who think they can make a difference just by posting their views on the internet. On another occasion I was travelling in a train from Gwalior to Chennai, with some of my closest friends, and there was this gentlemen who along with the above mentioned friend of mine assumed a condescending tone and started criticizing the system, the political machinery and how patriotic they were and how other people who were not a part of their discussion could never do a thing for their country. If truth be said I found the conversation absolutely absurd, and it was just another case of All Talk and No Action. Now if you ask me that why do I need to mention my friends in my article, well I sincerely believe that a man's story or his ideas are not completely his own, they are an amalgamation of the ideas and the influence of the people who have played a pivotal role in his life. For instance the story of Roy Keane would be incomplete without mentioning Sir Alex Ferguson. The thoughts and opinions of these people help us in forging our ideas into principles, our goals into career paths.The thought process of the above mentioned friend and the other gentleman was absolutely right,i.e them feeling all patriotic and all, thats good, but words should be backed with some concrete action. I daresay being patriotic has become more of a fashion statement,after movies like Rang de Basanti, Swades, Halla Bol e.t.c e.tc. . All of us should share the love of the motherland, and the love for the country is what separates us and the developed nations of the west. I dont intend to criticize anyone nor act all puritan, I am just another regular young man trying to find my patriotism towards the Empire of Spirit...India.... our country. If someone asked me a couple of years earlier whether I feel proud to be an Indian, My reply used to be " I feel proud to be an Indian, because I am an Indian,and thats where it stops. I dont have the option of choosing my Nationality". But now things have changed I am trying to discover my love and my patriotism towards our country. Writing this article is like a small journey for me and in its course I ll try to determine MY PATRIOTISM.

Patriotism....... Its a word whose meaning is very subjective. For some it may be dying in the battlefield, for some its helping out your fellow countrymen in need(like the people involved in NGOs and helping out the victims of Bhopal Gas Tragedy), and for some the road to patriotism may take a very wrong turn and then the blame games start as in one community blaming the other for the downfall which is happening in our country today in regions which I dont have to mention, or what happened in Germany during Hitler's reign. Which kind is mine?........ I dont know, I have just started on the path to figure it out, but definitely not the third kind thats the kind of patriotism which should be detested and condemned by all. I believe one thing which I haven't done for a long time is loving my country for what it is. So how can I be patriotic if I dont love my country what it is. Our society is plagued with issues