The Famous Nigerian Novelist Ben Okri once said: “To poison a nation, poison its stories. A demoralized nation tells demoralized stories to itself. Stories define a people’s history and aid in shaping their future. Once a people’s story has been corrupted their fate is doomed. Beware of the storytellers who are not fully conscious of the importance of their gifts, and who are irresponsible in the application of their art. The greatest religions convert the world through stories.”
The potential of soft power is immeasurable. It can influence culture and civilizations. Throughout history, the dominant forces have always impacted other cultures through the spread of folklore, art, dance, songs, drama, and historical narrations. The ancient Bharatiya Samskriti passed on from one generation to another through rock carvings, dramatic adaptations of Mahabharat and Ramayana, music, and different forms of dance and paintings. This spread of knowledge was not controlled by boundaries. The greatness of Bharatiya Samskriti was accepted by different parts of the world not because of the brute force of a sword but through various messengers who spread the teachings of great teachers to different parts of the world through love and grace. The Sanatan Sanskriti has remained eternal because of the influence of its soft power and its ability to embrace diversity. The impact of Bharat in shaping different civilizations is widely accepted.
Wang Hui, Professor of the Tsinghua Institute for Advanced Study states that “Many years ago, one of my old friends in China made a comment that in a long history, India has had huge impacts on reshaping Chinese civilizations, mainly because of Buddhism.” The impact of Bharat was felt throughout southeast Asia. The reminiscence of which is felt even till today. However, throughout history with the suppression of Bhartiya culture by rulers of Abrahamic faiths, the penetration of Bharatiya Samskriti has reduced immensely. Even after…