1. Post-independence, Indians have been made to believe that war is bad and Indians (read Indian kings) only fought battles in defense, never in offense (whatever that means). #indiachinastandoff

2. Further, 'resilience' rather than strong response to provocation, be it in form of terrorism or incursions, have been upheld as the ideal. [Remember the Mumbai's so called resilience in the face of 26/11 attacks?] #indiachinastandoff

3. However, this goes everything against Indian civilizational ethos and worldview. Our civilization never asked us to act like Dhimmis and cowards and its a colonial and Gandhian myth fed to us. #indiachinastandoff

4. Take Kaultiya's Arthashastra for example. It (7.1.2) designates waging war as one of the six elements of state policy. #indiachinastandoff

5. In verse 2.10.47, it speaks about four methods of diplomacy that a ruler must employ: Sama (negotiation), Upapradaana (inducement), Bheda (causing dissension), and Danda (war). #indiachinastandoff

6. Further, in verse 9.7.68, it suggests that in case of trouble from neighboring rulers, one must adopt the policy of causing dissension and war. #indiachinastandoff

7. Across Smritis we find statements like this: “Neither for the sake of friendship, nor for the sake of a large gain of money, should the king let off the perpetrators of violence, who cause terror to all living beings.” (Manu Smriti 8.347) #indiachinastandoff

8. Even Bhagavadgita 2.31 says: There is nothing else better for a Kshatriya than a righteous battle! #indiachinastandoff

9. This being the case, there is a huge need to change the mindset of Indian- leadership as well as the common citizens towards Strategic issues. This change needs to happen sooner, rather than later, otherwise we will miss the bus in global transformation. #indiachinastandoff

10. Those who want to read more on this, here is my article 'Countering Chinese threat: An Indic civilisational perspective- https://thedailyguardian.com/countering-chinese-threat-an-indic-civilisational-perspective/ #indiachinastandoff