A Culture Of Reading Is The Foundation Of A Developed India

Today, India has emerged as the world’s fourth-largest economy, surpassing nations like Britain, France and Japan. From sports, arts, and politics to the start-up ecosystem, India has established a distinct and powerful global presence. People of Indian origin like Rishi Sunak, Kamala Harris, Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Sunita Williams, Sundar Pichai, and Satya Nadella have astounded the world with their brilliance, making their mark in other nations. All these individuals consider books vital in their lives and universally agree that reading makes a person resolute and illuminates their path. Yet, there remains a glaring shortcoming among the people of our country. It is a harsh reality that stings: India does not read.

Books sculpt individuals

According to the National Reading Habit Survey and various global studies, “An average Indian citizen barely reads one or two books a year.” In contrast, in countries like Japan, South Korea and Finland, this number is ten to twenty times higher. It is a direct impact of the reading habit that a small country like Finland has consistently topped the ‘World Happiness Report’ for years, while our country lags far behind. Books do not merely impart knowledge; they sculpt individuals. They work much like a sculptor who carves a rugged stone into an expressive, breathing masterpiece. Michelangelo believed that a beautiful sculpture is already hidden inside every block of stone. Similarly, the element that refines and polishes a person’s personality remains hidden within the pages of books.

Knowledge is the foundation of Indian culture

There is a direct correlation between knowledge, the habit of reading and national power. Since ancient times, our nation’s wealth of knowledge has magnetised the entire world. The profound intellect and reading habits of scholars like Gargi, Maitreyi, Lopamudra, and the mathematician Lilavati immortalised them. It was solely on the strength of education and books that Acharya Chanakya transformed an ordinary boy into the great Emperor Chandragupta Maurya, presenting a formidable ruler to the world. He used to say, “Knowledge is wealth, that no one can steal. In a foreign land, knowledge is a person’s greatest friend.” Universities like Nalanda and Takshashila were the world’s supreme centres of learning. Great visionaries like Acharya Ramanujacharya, Swami Ramatirtha, and Swami Vivekananda always emphasised the importance of reading. Swami Vivekananda considered reading books strictly essential for developing mental concentration. Our country was paramount in the realm of knowledge and Indian culture stood at the forefront of all global cultures—precisely because of such extraordinary minds.

Books are the foundation of a nation’s progress

Britain revamped its public library system to help usher in the Industrial Revolution. Behind America’s rise as a global superpower, temples of knowledge like Harvard, Stanford, and MIT certainly play a major role, but another primary reason is the profound love its citizens have for books. Following the Second World War, Japan was utterly devastated. Yet, they revitalised their culture entirely on the strength of knowledge and literature. Today, Japanese concepts like Ikigai, Ganbatte, Kaizen, and Wabi-Sabi are enlightening the entire world. Similarly, the Chinese Taoist concept of Wu-Wei and South Africa’s Ubuntu have deeply inspired humanity.

Where there is a book culture, there is success

Many small countries have achieved immense success solely by fostering a reading culture. Prominent among these are Finland, Japan, Germany, South Korea and Iceland.

• Finland: Public libraries here feature special gadgets, toys and reading dogs for children. This innovative approach greatly boosts the children’s confidence.
• Japan: The culture of ‘Tachiyomi’ is highly famous here, where people stand in bookstores and read for hours.
• Germany: Volunteers regularly visit schools to read and narrate engaging stories to children.
• South Korea: Through brilliant architecture and technology, a deep interest in books is actively cultivated among readers.
• Iceland: Its ‘Jólabókaflóð’ (Christmas Book Flood) tradition is world-renowned. On Christmas Eve, people gift books to one another and spend the entire night reading.

Readers are leaders

The power of leadership is consistently greater in individuals who are avid readers. Every distinguished personality inevitably reads books. Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln,

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, Subhas Chandra Bose, and Nelson Mandela considered books to be a massive contributor to character building. Nelson Mandela went so far as to say, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

Business magnates like Warren Buffett, Elon Musk, and Bill Gates view books like compound interest—reading them makes a person’s life exponentially better over time. Once, when someone asked Elon Musk, “Where did you learn to build rockets?” his simple, profound answer was, “By reading books.”

Modern gadgets have diminished the reading habit

There was a time when reading comics, novels, and storybooks was the ultimate option for entertainment. Times changed and alternatives multiplied. The habit of reading was buried under these new choices and mobiles, OTT platforms, and short-form video reels gripped the youth so tightly that they began to view reading as a burden, restricting themselves merely to academic textbooks. Reading is not a burden; it is life’s most beautiful and delightful form of entertainment. Reading books offers countless benefits to an individual, such as:

• It actively develops imagination and a higher mental faculty.
• It provides the best approach to finding solutions to complex problems.
• It drastically increases self-confidence and instils a sense of hope.
• It enhances empathy, emotional intelligence and natural intelligence in readers, thereby strengthening humanity as a whole.
• Books act as free mentors, not only increasing a person’s knowledge, but also providing immense inspiration.
• Books are always your best friends, as they offer comfort and profound relief in every possible situation.
• Reading cultivates the art of innovation within an individual, which plays a decisive role in transforming society and the country.

Ways to cultivate a book culture in India

No task is impossible. A robust book culture can undoubtedly be cultivated in India, fostering a habit of reading in children right from their early years. The following measures can be taken to achieve this:

• Gift colourful books at birth: Currently, relatives pile up clothes and toys when a child is born. Due to a lack of reading culture, people do not naturally buy books. If books are given as gifts by friends and relatives, it will lay the foundation for a lifelong reading habit.
• Celebrate reading as a festival in schools: When the word “festival” is used, the mind and body naturally dance with joy. If children celebrate a book festival in school, they will treat it as a special occasion and read with genuine happiness.
• Lead by example: Parents should take their children to the park in the early mornings and spend some time reading books with them in beautiful gardens. A child quickly learns what their parents do. Even at home, parents should read books themselves to actively draw their children’s attention towards reading.
• Create mini-libraries: Small libraries should be set up in parks, public transport and metro stations. Public transport can serve as a highly effective medium to heavily promote a book culture.

Just imagine, when 1.47 billion Indians hold a book in their hands, India’s culture, innovation, originality, and intellect will be absolutely unmatched globally. Then, in the truest sense, our country will become a Vishwa Guru. A nation truly deserves to be called a global leader not when it is supreme in physical might, but when it is supreme in intellect—because, for centuries, intellect has consistently conquered brute strength. A wise person can easily control physical force, but a muscular person cannot defeat a wise one.

He who reads becomes a master of qualities like intellect, imagination, innovation, logic and maturity—and it is exactly this kind of person who creates history and sets new records. So, the ultimate decision is yours: do you want to become the master of these qualities, or a slave to those who possess them?

When the nation reads, it will rise, and it will lead the entire world.