As we are getting ready to celebrate Indian Republic Day, let us go deeper into the subject of our constitutional duty, from a spiritual point of view. We will be surprised to see, how an analogy with the Indian Republic Day, can help us to easily understand this most fundamental aspect of our spiritual existence.

Indian Republic Day, celebrated on the 26th of January every year, marks an important milestone in the history of this country. In the year 1950, on this day the Constitution of India came into effect replacing the Government of India Act (1935). It is the longest written constitution in the world.

Thus Indian Republic Day is directly connected to the Constitution of India which is the supreme law of this country. The constitution directs the core instituting the political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens. It ensures India as a secular, sovereign, socialist, democratic republic, assuring its citizens justice, equality and liberty, and fraternity.

Law-abiding Citizen or Criminal?

The citizen is expected to act as per the duties and fundamental rights outlined in the constitution. Those citizens who abide by the constitutional laws are free citizens and such good citizens can lead their lives peacefully without being fearful of any disciplinary actions or punishment by the Government. They can enjoy all the facilities and initiatives extended by the government from time to time. But there are also those who break the laws, violating the fundamental rights of other citizens and so the Government deals with them in appropriate ways. For such criminals, there are prison houses and various other forms of punishment.

Similarly, in the total cosmic manifestation, which is governed by the supreme laws of Lord Krishna, there are prison houses called the material universes, meant for the living beings (jivas) who don’t act as per their original constitutional position. Those who do, enjoy eternal, blissful life in the spiritual world in the company of the Lord. Let us then understand our original constitutional position.

Our Original Constitutional Position

It is our common experience in this world that all of us are always engaged in rendering some service to someone else in different capacities. A servant serves his master, one friend serves another friend, the mother serves the son, the wife serves the husband, the husband serves the wife, and so on. Thus service is the constant companion of the living being. But what is the best form of service? Which service can make us happy?

We learn from Bhagavad-gita that all forms of living entities like birds, trees, insects, beasts, human beings, etc. are spirit souls and Lord Krishna declares that constitutionally they are all His eternal parts and parcels (amshas). Thus we are related to the Lord just like different parts of our body are related to the whole body.

Now, since we are constitutionally parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord, naturally our constitutional position is to render service to the Lord as His loving servants. We cannot avoid our nature of service but when we serve the Lord, we can be happy in our constitutional position of being a servant of the Lord. Any service that is not rendered to the Lord cannot make us happy as it is something outside our constitutional position. This is the basic constitutional law that operates in the Supreme Government of Lord Krishna. One who understands this law and engages himself in the service of the Lord becomes eligible to be released from the prison-house of the material world, a miserable place of repeated birth and death, and gain entrance into the blissful spiritual world.

On the occasion of this Indian Republic Day, let us meditate on our spiritual constitutional duty and act accordingly to become good, God-conscious citizens of the kingdom of Lord Krishna and receive His blessings. May the Indian Republic Day inspire us in that direction while we continue rendering our constitutional duties towards our nation, The Indian Republic.

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