Essay On Lessons That History Teaches

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Essay On Lessons That History Teaches

An intelligent study of history teaches many lessons. These lessons if properly learnt can make us wiser for life. History has ever been and is a great teacher but only for those who want to learn from it.

History is a record of great minds. Great emperors, great politicians, great thinkers have, through their life and achievements or failures have given great lessons. Queen Elizabeth I of England was ruling in very difficult times when England was badly divided between religious groups. To be a successful ruler, she should have kept both the groups satisfied. So she made a great sacrifice in her personal life and did not marry, as, if she had married a prince belonging to one religion, she would have angered people of the other. Ashok fought a great war but then learnt that killing of men was a sin and turned to become a Buddhist.

Earlier Chanakya, the Prime Minister of Chandra Gupta Maurya, guided the king very wisely in the game of politics. Akbar, tried to follow the middle path in matter of religion and became a great ruler, while the Rajputs suffered from mutual rivalry and met with defeat and humiliation. Infighting within always give to the enemy an advantage and Indian history is an example of it ever since the advent of the muslim invaders right upto the advent of the British. Clive could conquer Bengal with just 200 horse men soldiers only because Mir Jafar sided with him against Mir Kasim. Divided you fall that is the lesson of History.

Ambitious conquerors succeeded in the beginning but in the end, they all met their doom. Alexander, the Great, Napolean, Hitler they all tried to conquer the whole World and in the early stages became successful but the end of all of them was frustration and even suicide. Their experience should be a warning to all future conquerors and empire builders. Dictators have always met their doo sooner or later and dreams of world dominion have always come to nothing.

Then there is still another great lesson. Wars have never solved problems; rather they have created more. The World War I and the World War II, both ended with nothing so much for the victors.

Wars and their results have proved their futility. Neither Russia, nor America gained anything substantially, Britain also lost so many of its dominions the greatest being India; USSR got dismembered and USA’s greatest enemy which suffered the greatest disaster is again a friend to USA. Germany which was bifurcated has been united back. So who gained what none at all. No III World that is a clear warning and a clear lesson. Japan war History has also taught us that oppression and exploitation and domination cannot go on for all times.

The exploited are bound to react and revolt and sooner or later they will have to be set free. The French Revolution overthrew the autocratic monarch and thus ended the exploitation of the people, the Czar of Russia was overthrown in 1917. Tyranny and despotism cannot go on. Slavery came to an end in USA. India, South Africa and several other colonies under the British rule had to be freed from slavery. History teaches that oppression can only go on for sometime but has to go at last and the triumph of justice and forces of good shall stand.

History also teaches how patriotism stands rewarded. It is one of the noblest of sentiments and stands duly recognised. India is a glowing example. The Indian patriots how much they suffered at the hands of the imperialists but ultimately they had their day.

Great civilisations have come and gone the Greek, the Roman, the Egyptian, the Chinese – these were great civilisations in their own times. But now only the remains of these are there as monuments civilisations have gone. India is the only one that sustains itself but not in the original form, though. All this scenario takes us to a philosophic resignation that nothing not even the biggest and the highest is ever lasting. Only virtues remain – ‘Only actions of the just Smell Sweet and blossom in the dust’.

History, thus is a great teacher only if we are really ready to learn from it. It teaches lessons in morality, goodness, in philosophic resignation as also aggression, oppression, cruelty shall always perish. Sin must stand punished and virtue stands rewarded life has gone on these lines and let us learn the right way, that it shall go on, and on the same lines.

History – its lessons can help in the formation of characters, personalities and the people. History is the record of realities but carries us to the realms of idealities.

Essay On Lessons That History Teaches

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