Page:Calcutta Review (1925) Vol. 16.djvu/393

1925] sentiment of national homogeneity—national feeling. This national feeling in the beginning is nothing else than a pure recognition of a certain homogeneity of certain group in contradistinction to others. It is known as the “instinctive national feeling,” with the increase of nations and their internal solidarity, the consciousness of kindredship and similarities develop which in the case of an individual nation develops into national consciousness or stamped national feeling. Regarding India we see that it is under a wheel of a community of fate which is going to create a community of character, and we are assured of a basis of nationality so far; and with the establishment of a nationality the stamped national feeling will take its rise. But what about the other base—the community of language? It has been said before that India to-day contains several languages; and these language groups are forming the bases of different nationalities in the body-politics of India. By taking the individual language groups and by applying the above formula of Cunow that a nation is a community of character and language, we find that some of the language groups have already built themselves as nations! Today Bengalee, Mahratta, Guzerati, Tamil-speaking groups, etc., culturally are strong nations by themselves. And their sense of nationality when displayed in contradistinction to others is denounced by the laymen as “provincialism”! Indeed in the body-politics of India this sort of “nationalism” is provincialism; but it is unavoidable, as since the break-up of the old Indian unity, different provinces or language groups have developed in their own way; the political, social and economic milieu have evolved a particular character in each of these groups. They have developed what M’Dougall says the “native mental homogeneity” to a certain extent. Thus a community of character and language of the provinces, for example, Bengal and Maharastra, has given them a basis to form nations by themselves.