AUGUST19, 2019 INDIATODAY 29in Shakespeare’sHenryV,inwhichthekingexhortshissoldiers
withthesewordsbeforethebattleofAgnicourtin1415:
“Fromthisdaytotheendingoftheworld,
Butweinitshallberemembered—
Wefew,wehappyfew,webandofbrothers;
Forhetodaythatshedshisbloodwithme
Shallbemybrother”Weareallbrothersinuniform;status,community,wealth
andbackgroundhavenomeaning.WhenIwasattendingthe
HigherCommandcourse,mylistofgoodfriendsincluded
nameslikeXerxesAdrianwalla,AzadSameer,Satyaand
ChackoIpe.Wewerealllikeonebigfamily,celebratingeach
other’ssuccessesandsharingmomentsofgrief.
YoumaywellaskwhyItalkhereabouttheConstitutionof
India.Itisbecauseeveryofficerandsoldier,whentheyenter
service,takesanoathswearingthattheywill“beartruefaithand
allegiancetotheConstitutionofIndia,asbylawestablished”.We
alsoseethemilitaryasamicrocosmofIndia,andwefeelthatitis
our patrioticdutytopromote,withinourownorganisation,the
valuesandprinciplesonwhichthiscountrywasfounded.
W
alterBernshasdefinedapatriotasbeing
“morethanacitizenormereinhabitantof
anation;hehastobedevotedtohisnation
andbepreparedtodefendit”.Assoldiers,
wearewillingtolaydownourlivesin
defenceofIndiaandarethusautomaticallypatriots.Butwedo
not flauntthis;infact,anyexcessivedisplayortalkofpatrio-
tismisactuallydiscouraged.Onereasonforthisisthatadebate
on patriotismcouldsometimesacquireapoliticalcolour,and
politicshasgenerallybeentabooasasubjectofdiscussion.
Thesecondreasonismorefunctional.Patriotism,while
alwayspresentatthebackofyourmind,isnotconsideredama-
jor factorwithwhichyoucanmotivatemenwhoaregoinginto
battle.AsS.L.A.Marshallpointsoutinhiswell-knownbook,
MenAgainstFire:TheProblemofBattleCommandinFuture
War,‘Itshouldnotbeexpectedthatprideinauniformorbelief
in anationalcauseareofthemselvessufficienttomakeasoldier
steadfastindanger...itisunworthyoftheprofessionofarmsto
baseanypolicyuponexaggeratednotionsofman’scapacityto
endureandtosacrificeonbehalfofidealsalone.’
Therehavebeenmanystudiesonwhatmakesmenwill-
ing to walk into a hail of gunfire, fully aware that
many of them will not be alive to see the next day.
Most of these studies point to unit cohesion and
the quality of leadership as key determinants of
success in battle. Military values like courage and
honour also have a powerful influence on how
soldiers act when facing imminent death. ‘When
rewards become meaningless and punishment
ceases to deter, honour alone retains the power
to make men march into the muzzles of cannon
trained at them’, writes Martin Van Crevald in his
book, Transformation of War.
Therefore, the military focuses on provid-
ing good leadership and inculcating the values
of courage, loyalty, honour, integrity and unit
pride among its officers and men. A unit that can
perform competently in war would be best ac-
complishing the duty that a nation requires of it.
This was clearly reflected in the Kargil War, where
junior leadership and unit cohesion led to victory
against seemingly insurmountable odds.
There is a lot of debate these days on national-
ism versus patriotism, on symbolic patriotism ver-
sus blind patriotism. The arguments on both sides
are well known, and depending on which side of the
ideological divide you sit, you could easily defend
your viewpoint. However, what is important is that
nobody should be forced to adhere to somebody
else’s brand of patriotism. As George Orwell wrote
in his essay, ‘Notes on Nationalism’, ‘By ‘patriotism’
I mean devotion to a particular place and particular
way of life, which one believes to be the best in the
world but has no wish to force on other people.’
For those of us who are or were soldiers, true
patriotism lies in defending the integrity of the
nation and protecting the principles and values
on which our great country was founded. This is
demonstrated not only in the Indian military’s per-
formance in battle, but also in the character and
professional ethic of our organisation.Lt. Gen. D.S. Hooda is former
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief
of the Indian army’s Northern CommandPATRIOTISM IS NOT CONSIDERED A MAJOR
FACTOR BY WHICH ONE CAN MOTIVATE MEN
GOING INTO BATTLE; STUDIES ON WHAT
MAKES MEN WILLING TO WALK INTO A HAIL
OF GUNFIRE POINT TO UNIT COHESION AND
LEADERSHIP AS KEY DETERMINANTS