DOI: 10.36347/sjahss.2014.v02i06.018

Pages: 971-974

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of the independent India, delivered a speech entitled “Tryst with destiny” towards midnight on 14August 1947. Speaking from the ramparts of the historical Red Fort in Delhi, he addressed the speech to the Constituent Assembly and to the millions of Indians as well. In his brief and passionate speech, he refers to many important issues concerning India’s past, present and future and dwells on the deeper raison d’etre of the upcoming freedom. He lauds the distinction of India in terms of its constant engagement with the spiritual quest it pursued from the dawn of history; celebrates the significance of the present moment and outlines what path India ought to pursue in future. It is a symbolic speech and has multiple implications having relevance even circumstances that exist today. It has also been a wonderful piece of literature in terms of theme. The paper interprets the symbolic meaning of the brief speech by comparing it with Lincoln’s Gettysberg address and Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. While making us aware of the responsibility, Nehru enlarges the context of freedom in the light of well-being of the whole humanity. The account given below gives a critical perspective on the central motif of “destiny” that constantly figures in Nehru’s speeches. It emphasizes the value of non-violence, the glorious legacy of culture and carves out the blue-print for building a prosperous and democratic Indian nation.