Every year, 7 September is observed as Vande Mataram Day, commemorating the pivotal role of this iconic song in India’s struggle for independence. The date recalls the decision of the Indian National Congress (INC) in 1905 to adopt Vande Mataram at the height of the Swadeshi Movement against the Partition of Bengal. More than a hymn, Vande Mataram evolved into a powerful emblem of cultural nationalism, resistance, and spiritual unity, portraying the nation as a sacred motherland — Bharat Mata.
The Song’s Journey into National Consciousness
Originally composed in highly Sanskritized Bengali by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and published in his 1882 novel Anandamath, Vande Mataram quickly transcended its literary origins. The song gained political prominence when it was sung publicly by Rabindranath Tagore at the Indian National Congress session in 1896.
Its status as a nationalist anthem was firmly established during the anti-partition agitation in Bengal in 1905. Protesters, students, and leaders sang it in rallies and processions, transforming it from poetry into a rallying cry. On October 16, 1905, the official date of Bengal’s partition, mourning, fasting, and the collective singing of Vande Mataram gave the movement its emotional-cultural foundation. Although today there is no single, universally recognized Vande Mataram Day across India, 7 September remains closely associated with its adoption by the Congress, while the Partition anniversary of 16 October also holds deep historical resonance.
Savarkar’s Perspective: A Parallel Vision
Vinayak Damodar (Veer) Savarkar (1883–1966), though not directly involved in the Congress’s 1905 decision, shared a profound affinity with the spirit embodied by Vande Mataram. As a revolutionary, poet, and the chief ideologue and architect of Hindutva, he would have regarded the song as an unparalleled symbol of nationalist fervor. For Savarkar, who endured years of imprisonment in the Andamans for his revolutionary activities, the cry of Vande Mataram represented the emotional intensity and dedication required to inspire sacrifice for the motherland.
The song also aligned with Savarkar’s civilizational conception of nationalism. His Hindutva ideology rested on three pillars: a common country (Rashtra), a common people (Jati), and a common culture (Sanskriti). He emphasized India as both Pitribhumi (Fatherland) and Punyabhumi (Holy Land). The depiction of Bharat Mata in Vande Mataram — a fertile, life-giving, and sacred motherland — resonated directly with this vision. To Savarkar, it was not merely a patriotic verse but a declaration of India’s Hindu civilizational identity.
Although he did not write Vande Mataram, Savarkar was himself a prolific poet whose works, such as Sagara Pran Talamalala (“O Great Ocean, my soul is restless”) and Jayostute (“Victory to Thee”), carried the same revolutionary energy. These compositions were sung in revolutionary circles in India and abroad, often banned by the colonial state for their incendiary power. Like Vande Mataram, they functioned as mantras of national revival, fusing art with activism.
Savarkar was also a rationalist and agnostic. While skeptical of excessive mysticism, he understood the symbolic and mobilizing power of devotional imagery. He would not have defended Vande Mataram on theological grounds but as a cultural and national symbol. In his political framework, opposition to the song was less a question of faith than of loyalty: a refusal to embrace Vande Mataram, in his view, revealed reluctance to assimilate into the cultural identity of the nation.
How Savarkar Might View Vande Mataram Day Today
Were Savarkar to reflect on Vande Mataram Day in the present, several themes would stand out. First, he would interpret it as a symbol of sacrifice, a solemn reminder of the revolutionary spirit that animated the Swadeshi Movement and the many lives given in the struggle for freedom. Second, he would stress its role as an affirmation of cultural nationalism, reinforcing the civilizational unity of India as both sacred land and cultural mother. Finally, he would insist on its character as a call to action. For him, chanting Vande Mataram without concrete effort — whether in building national strength, fostering unity, or defending the country — would be hollow. One could imagine him declaring: “Let us sing Vande Mataram not just with folded hands, but with rifles in hand and books in mind — to defend and build the nation.”
Final Thoughts
Seen through Savarkar’s eyes, Vande Mataram Day occupies a unique place at the intersection of poetry, politics, and philosophy. It is not merely about recalling a historic decision of the Congress in 1905, but about recommitting to the ideals of unity, strength, and sacrifice that the song enshrined. For Savarkar, Vande Mataram was far more than melody: it was a revolutionary mantra, a litmus test of national loyalty, and a cultural declaration of identity. For Savarkar, remembering the day means transforming devotion into discipline, sentiment into sacrifice, and memory into the will to build a fearless and united India.
💭 What do you think? Do you think Savarkar’s interpretation of Vande Mataram as a test of national loyalty still resonates in modern India? Do you agree with Savarkar that singing Vande Mataram without action is hollow? How can we translate patriotism into real contributions today? How should we balance the song’s historic role in uniting people with the controversies surrounding its religious imagery? Can songs, poems, or cultural symbols still inspire national unity in the same way they did during the freedom struggle? Why or why not?
👉 Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Sources:
SAVARKAR, Vinayak Damodar. 1999. Hindutva: Who is a Hindu. Seventh Edition. Swatantryaveer Savarkar Rashtriya Smarak: Mumbai.
Wolf, Siegfried O. 2010. Savarkar’s Strategic Agnosticism. A compilation of his political and economic worldview, in Heidelberg Papers in South Asian Comparative Politics (HPSACP), No. 51, Heidelberg University, Germany.
Wolf, Siegfried O. 2009. Vinayak Damodar Savarkar und sein Hindutva-Konzept. Die Konstruktion einer kollektiven Identität in Indien [“Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and his concept of Hindutva: The construction of a collective identity in India.”]. Online Dissertation: Heidelberg University: Heidelberg.
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