Sister Nivedita: An avant-garde Flag Designer

This paper will illustrate the unique contribution of Sister Nivedita, who not only propagated the importance of the need of a National flag for India - her adopted country, but also introduced a National flag envisioned by her way back in 1904-5. She was an independent thinker far ahead of her time – an avant-garde flag designer. Her contribution was as unique as her own life story.

In the late 19^th century, when the national leaders in India became passionately infused with the spirit of reasserting the country’s independence, they felt the need for a distinctive national symbol for India. Sister Nivedita became most proactive when the question of the invention of a national flag for India began to be discussed in the press. Nivedita advanced her theory for the Vajra as the National flag for India in an illustrated article - ‘The Vajra as a National Flag’ published in the ‘Modern Review for November,1909’. 

She wrote: “Those who contemplate the desirability of such a symbol, however, seem to be unaware that already a great many people have taken up, and are using, the ancient Indian Vajra or Thunderbolt, in this way. When we look at all that a national banner means, we see the utter impossibility of manufacturing or devising such an emblem.”

It was, one of the first articles in printed form on the subject which delved into the question of the invention of a flag for India.

Yes, it was she who first realised and then relentlessly propagated the need for a pan-Indian national flag during the period that Rajani Palme Dutt termed as the first great wave of national resurgence.

Sister Nivedita had a universal mindset. Ole Bull (1810-1880) the famous violinist and composer was caught up in a rising tide of Norwegian romantic nationalism, and acclaimed the idea of Norway as a sovereign state, separate from Sweden—which became a reality in 1905. Bull had played an important role when the pure ‘red-white-blue’ State flag was hoisted on all Norwegian fortresses on June 9^th 1905. On the occasion of unveiling of a statue of Ole Bull, it was Sister Nivedita who drafted the speech for Ms. Sara Bull on April 4, 1901, praising the “Colours of Freedom” of the Norwegian Flag. 

Women Flag Makers vis-à-vis Flag Inventors

When we see a flag we generally wonder about its design, colour and graphics. Rarely do we think how the design first came about in flag form – who first translated the design onto a piece of cloth.

Surely, the process had to involve very skilled persons adept at needlepoint. Only someone who is very meticulous, can translate a virtual concept into a physical form. Fascinating stories of women flag makers weaving, stitching, embroidering, appliquéing pieces of cloths to turn them into national pride - their national flags, abound flag history. It is no surprise that the adage ‘behind every successful flag design there was a woman’ is so apt. But for Nivedita she was not behind anyone, she was the front-runner.

 The name and fame of most of the women flag makers remained within the ambit of celebrity seamstresses - ‘the first’ – to transfer ‘flag designs’- into real flags. They are not necessarily Flag inventors or designers.

Many of these splendid women flag-makers have been immortalized in postage stamps, banknotes, paintings, statues and on various other myriad objects. Many of them, the awe-inspiring ladies have been promoted as patriotic role models for young generations in their respective countries. 

In India, however, the fact of the matter is Nivedita’s contribution as first flag designer (not just flag maker) was not known amongst vast majority of people. Prof. Suniti Kumar Chatterji in an article published in the Modern Review for June 1931 had mentioned very briefly about Nivedita’s suggestion in which the Thunderbolt and the Lotus were included, to symbolise the spiritual aspirations of India. Prof.Chatterji wrote the article in response to the questionnaire issued by Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramayya, the Convener of the Flag Committee of the Congress on 23 April,1931. It was perhaps, after the release of Pravrajika Atmaprana’s book “Sister Nivedita” in 1961, that the glimpses of Nivedita’s flag first appeared. The late Sankari Prasad Basu, scholar, writer, researcher and critic in a series of articles “Nivedita O Jatiya Andolan Prasongey’ published in instalments in Bengali weekly ‘Desh’ in 1980s, lamented that none of the so-called great historians in India, not even in Publications Division’s booklet “Our Flag” first published in January 1950, cared to acknowledge or give Nivedita her due credit. I felt honoured that Sankari Prasad Basu very kindly mentioned my name in his book “Nivedita Lokmata” (vol 2, page 156) about my initiative in recording Nivedita’s contribution in the World body of Flag Research, USA. Good news is this that off-late there have been several books published on Indian flag which have dedicated chapters on Nivedita’s flag, this includes Publications Division’s “Our National Flag”,1991 penned by my friend the Late Lt. Cdr. KV Singh.  

  I have already mentioned Sister Nivedita played a pivotal role in organising the anti-partition movement of 1905 and plunged into the Swadeshi movement. She devised a distinctive pan-Indian National Flag to rally around. “India appears to be waking up in these days…. The people are feeling their power. I think Curzon has broken the British Empire” - wrote Nivedita on 13 Sept. 1905.

Sister Nivedita conceived the idea of the Vajra flag during a visit to Bodh Gaya her third in 1904, in the company of Jagadish Chandra Bose, Rabindranath Tagore, Jadunath Sarkar, Swami Sankarananda and Mathuranath Sinha. The idea of the national emblem was inspired by the ancient symbol of the Vajra - a symbol of Buddha that implies ‘The Selfless Man’. It was the weapon of Lord Indra. The thunderbolt is the symbol of renunciation and service. According to legend, Vajra was created from the bones of Rishi Dadhichi. It is a symbol of supreme sacrifice. Vajra is also associated with Goddess Durga.

 On 1 December 1904 in a letter written to Miss MacLeod, Nivedita mentioned her preference of “thunderbolt” as our National symbol. In a second letter dated February 5, 1905 she wrote to Miss MacLeod: “We have chosen a design for a National Flag – the Thunderbolt – and have already made one. Unfortunately, I took the Chinese war-flag as my ideal, and made it black on red. This does not appeal to India, so the next is to be yellow on scarlet”.

The final design of the flag adorned the symbol of the Vajra placed in between the words ‘Bande’ and ‘Mataram’ in Bengali with ‘108 jyotis or flames’ embroidered along the outer periphery.

The number 108 is considered to be most auspicious for both Hindus and Buddhists. “108” is a perfect three-digit multiple of three, its components adding up to nine, which is the sum of triple threes. Three is Trinity that represents supreme balance in the form of creation, maintenance and destruction or transformation. The traditional japa-malas or prayer-beads have 108 beads that are used to count the repetitions of prayers, chants or devotions. The song Bande-Mataram meaning ‘Hail to the Mother’ was composed in 1876 by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and incorporated in his novel ‘Ananda Math’ (Abode of Bliss) in 1882.

During the anti-partition movement in Bengal, “Bande Mataram” also spelled as “Vande Mataram” became the ‘war cry’ of national resurgence.

The Vajra flag was embroidered by her pupils.

Nivedita’s Vajra flag was publicly displayed in the Calcutta Congress Exhibition in December 1906.

The Flag is now preserved in the Acharya Bhavan Museum, Kolkata, the erstwhile residence of Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose. In spite of efforts of the museum administration to maintain the Flag in apple-pie order, the vagaries of climate had taken its toll on the century old silk satin flag.

 In 2014 the original flag was sent to INTACH laboratory for conservation and restoration.

   

The flag made of pure Indian silk measuring 3’6” x 3’6”, has been restored recently in 2015. It is now back in its place of pride in the Acharya Bhavan Museum of Sir J. C. Bose Trust, Kolkata

Nivedita’s flag and the subsequent other two flags with inscriptions ‘Bande Mataram’ did not find much support and ultimately relegated to history.

References:

The Modern Review for November 1909

The Modern Review for June 1931

Our Flag, Publications Division, January 1950

Sister Nivedita, Pravrajika Atmaprana, 1961

Desh, 30 October 1982.

Nivedita Lokmata. Sankari Prasad Basu, Ananda Publishers, 1987

Our National Flag, Lt. Cdr. KV Singh, Publications Division,1991

The National Flag unfurled through Philately, Sekhar Chakrabarti, Niyogi Books, 2012.

Proceedings of 26^th International Congress of Vexillology, Sydney, 2015.

Des Femmes et Des Drapeaux, by Patrice de La Condamine. 2017, (Women and Flags, 27th Int. Congress of Vexillology, London).

Vexillology: Study of Flags; One of the Newest Pursuits

Vexillology: One of the Newest Pursuits

Scholarly study of all aspects of flag is Vexillology. The term was coined in 1957 by Late    Dr Whitney Smith from the Latin word vexillum for flag. The Flag Institute, UK defines Vexillology as the scientific study of flags and related emblems. It is concerned with research into flags of all kinds, both modern and historical, the creation of a body of practice for flag design and usage, and of a body of theory of flag development.

Since time immemorial man has felt the need of a sign or symbol to distinguish himself, his family, his tribe, his country, and such symbols have taken many differing forms, of which one is the flag. Every country has a National flag. Today, there is no country in the world which does not have a National flag. It is an explicit outward symbolic expression of how a country sees itself.                                                             

Flags became wide spread symbols of national identity from early 19th century.
Before the French Revolution of 1789, it was monarchy and not the common people,
who had a flag. With the advent of ‘Nation-State’ concept and the ensuing growth
of nationalism - flags have become a globalised phenomenon.

Flags are ‘short hand of history’. The relevance of the adage of Harry Truman;
“the only thing new in the world is the history you don’t know” is amply established
in the study of flags. A flag is something more than a coloured piece of cloth (bunting)
of which it is made. It incarnate s something spiritual. Intrinsically a flag may be
valueless but extrinsically a national flag is priceless. In most countries, people
feel that the national flag belongs to the citizens and,therefore, they articulate this
by waving it in innumerable social settings which manifest the existence and
glorification of the country.

 Nowadays, it has become a trend to wave the flag colours profusely to cheer their
favourite teams in the Olympics and other international sports events.

Flags are truly inseparable from society. The serious study of flags is one of the
newest pursuits available to those who take an intimate interest in the world
around them;

Study of a flag is A BIT LIKE BIRD WATCHING; is that it involves Spotting, identification,
classification, and some knowledge of backgrounds, type & various other features
and their functions.

IT IS ALSO A BIT LIKE HISTORY; is that it includes some understanding of past events
and how they came about. In fact, story of flags is mostly interwoven with historical events
reflecting our struggles, aspirations and hopes.

IT IS A BIT LIKE GEOGRAPHY too; is that one has to know his way around the world,
his own country, and even obscure places.

A vexillologist collects, preserves, organizes and publicises flag information. For him
the flag study is not just restricted on collecting the real flags only but from a plethora
of other artifacts
and materials, namely, books, archival documents, news-papers, advertisements
and many other conventional/unconventional sources like; postage stamps, medals,
coins & currency notes, match box labels, propaganda/publicity leaflets, cigarette
cards, and so on and so forth. In another word he embraces a rainbow of all
collecting arena.

International Congress of Vexillology (ICV)s
are held each two years under the auspices of the International Federation of
Vexillological Associations (FIAV). The ICVs consist mainly of lectures, presentations
and workshops by the leading flag experts who have the opportunity to present
their research and activities to their international peers. The author represented
India in three consecutive ICVs, the only Indian to do so, at Rotterdam (25th ICV, 2013),
Sydney (26th ICV, 2015) and in London (27th ICV, 2017).

London International Flag Congress, ICV 27

International Flag Congress, London, August 2017: A report

This year, the 27^th International Congress of Vexillology (ICV) held at the Imperial College, South Kensington, London from 7^th -11^th August attracted about 300+ delegates from 38+ different countries where 42 lectures were delivered. It was such a pleasure meeting old friends and new, and all had a great time - despite the best efforts of the good old British weather!

International Congress of Vexillology (ICV)s are held every two years under the auspices of the International Federation of Vexillological Associations (FIAV). FIAV is an association of 60 + Flag societies and flag research centres from 43+ countries. ICVs consist mainly of lectures, presentations and workshops by the world’s leading flag experts who have the opportunity to present their research and activities to their international peers.

 Attendance at the Congress and the excursions to flag-related sites and various social functions provide the forum to deepen relationships with other vexillologists who have similar interests, and the opportunity for ideas to be cross-fertilised by contact with peers who have different specialisations.

International Congress of Vexillology(ICV)s are held every two years under the auspices of the International Federation of Vexillological Associations (FIAV). FIAV is an association of 60 + Flag societies and flag research centres from 43+ countries. ICVs consist mainly of lectures, presentations and workshops by the world’s leading flag experts who have the opportunity to present their research and activities to their international peers. Attendance at the Congress and the excursions to flag-related sites and various social functions provide the forum to deepen relationships with other vexillologists who have similar interests, and the opportunity for ideas to be cross-fertilised by contact with peers who have different specialisations.

   

 About 40 acclaimed speakers from all across the world presented their original researched papers on myriad flag related topics. Later these lectures will be published in book form by the Flag Institute, UK.

Sekhar Chakrabarti on political party flags that have doubled up as national flags

From India, Mr Sekhar Chakrabarti, a well known vexillologist participated as an invitee to the 27^th ICV and presented his well researched paper on aspects of Indian National Flag which was highly appreciated by the esteemed audience.
 He has earned the distinction of being the sole Indian delegate to present his papers in three consecutive ICVs viz. the 25th ICV at Rotterdam, Netherlands in 2013, the 26^th ICV at Sydney, Australia and the 27^th ICV in London.

Dr. Patrice de La Condamine on "Women and Flags.

Christopher Maddish writes Condamine focused on portrayal of women on flags.  They can be seem of patriotic or rather "matriotic" heroines, religiously, warriors, motherly images, and many other ways.

He noted that although Islamic statues forbids the portrayal of women in forms, one flag in Egypt has the statue bust of Nefertiti upon it.  Caondmine also pointed out several flags from Nazi Germany and North Korea that used women to inspire and represent the people.

Patrice also pointed out some fun flags, which included the proverbial tri-skelleton flag for the opposing gender the Isle of Woman.  

Dr Condamine with our each others books

Kevin Harrington's paper was entitled Flags and the Anniversaries of 2017: Myths, Mistakes, Misconceptions. Christopher writes Harrington spoke briefly about flags that were changed due to the Socialist Red Scare, namely of the old red Oklahoma flag and a few others.  Harrington also gave an enchanting retelling of his youthful excitement in 1965 when the current Canadian flag was adopted, which he instantly loved.  

Harrington proposed that the some Canadian flags with the red and blue ensign may have never existed, and only came into existence due to assumptions and errors.  Essentially the Admiralty was making mistakes and assumptions, based upon the hypotheticals.  As of yet there is no direct evidence that some flags existed.  Perhaps the flags were proposed, but none were created to fly on a flag pole?  

Ralph Kelly of Australia spoke on "A Flag For Empire"

Scot Guenter of USA giving a wonderful paper on the "Essence of vexillology", his paper titled "Historical shifts and emergent paradigms : tradition, ideology, source of power and influence in flag studies".

 Ms Sukla Chakrabarti(extreme left) with Maria Esther Cruz (Netherlands), Scot Guenter and Nicolas Hugot (France).

Kevin Harrington of Canada spoke on "Flags and the Anniversaries of 2017: myths, mistakes, misconceptions".

Christopher Maddish of USA on "Colour Coding"

Rachel Phelan of Ireland on "Conserving the Irish Republic flag that flew during the 1916 Easter Rising".

Roberto Breschi of Italy on "The flag treasures in Florence".

Mr Chakrabarti presenting his award winning book "The Indian National unfurling Through Philately" published by Niyogi Books to Dr Michel Lupant (in the centre) of Belgium - the President of the FIAV and to Prof Ian Sumnar of Flag Institute, UK, Programme Director ICV27, Maggie Sumner.

Signing Books

The Prize Winners

Texas Flag Society receiving the FIAV flag for the next Congress at San Antonio in 2019

To be continued

ICV 27, London Flag Congress 2017.

London Flag Congress, ICV27

Since 1969, the Fédération internationale des associations vexillologiques (FIAV) an international federation of 52 regional, national, and multinational vexillological associations and institutions across the globe. has sponsored the biennial International Congresses of Vexillology (ICV). Every two years the world’s flag people come together to discuss the subject they love best, flags, hear talks on various vexillological subjects and socialise. 

 Flag Institute, UK will organise the 27th International Congress of Vexillology (ICV27) from 6-11 August 2017, at Huxley Building, Imperial College, 180 Queen's Gate, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ . http://www.icv27.co.uk

Here is the full programme, list of the speakers and the titles of their topics to be presented during the Congress. 

SUNDAY 6 AUGUST

1500-1800 Registration

Venue: Huxley Building

1800-2000 Informal get-together

Venue: FiveSixEight, Beit Quadrangle, 2 Prince Consort Rd, Kensington, London SW7 2BB

MONDAY 7 AUGUST

0900-1000 Opening Ceremony / official ICV27 photograph

Venue: Queen's Lawn, Imperial College
 Conference Speakers;

1030-1100 Annie Platoff (USA) : Little Leninists: flags, symbols, and the political socialization of Soviet children

1100-1130 Tiago José Berg (Brazil) : Vexillology with high school students

1130-1200 Ted Kaye (USA) : American city flag redesign - a welcome change

1200-1230 Kevin Harrington (Canada) : Flags and the Anniversaries of 2017 - myths, mistakes, misconceptions

1400-1430 Christopher Maddish (USA) : Colour coding and new vexillological avenues for flag design

1430-1500 Pierre-Jean Guionin (France): The new edition of Album des pavillons et des marques distinctives

1500-1530 Victor Lomantsov (Russia) : Flags of trade-unions' sport societies in the USSR

1600-1630 Sekhar Chakrabarti (India): Variant of dominant political party flag as national flag - confusions and controversies: a case study

1630-1700 John Cartledge (UK) : Red for danger

1830-2200 Welcome barbecue includes celebration toast marking the 50th Anniversary of the Inception of FIAV (ICV2, Rüschlikon, 1967)

Venue: Roof terrace, Baden Powell House, 65-67 Queen's Gate, South Kensington, London SW7 5JS 

TUESDAY 8 AUGUST

0900-0930 Ralph Bartlett (Australia) : Flags by King for Country

0930-1000 Rachel Phelan (Ireland) : What's up with the big green flag? The conservation of the flag of the Irish Republic

1000-1030 Roberto Breschi (Italy) : A vexillological treasure in Florence, Italy

1100-1130 Manuela Schmöger (Germany) : kommunalflaggen.eu - a Wiki about municipal flags

1130-1200 Scot Guenter (USA): Historical shifts and emergent paradigms: tradition, ideology, sources of power and influence in flag studies

1200-1230 Alan Hardy : The standard colour set, a common ratio, contrast and individualities

1400-1430 Ralph Kelly (Australia): A flag for Empire

1430-1500 Cédric de Fougerolle (France) : Ex-libris and vexillology

1500-1530 Ladislav Hnát (Czech Republic) : Party flags, colours and logos in the 8th European Parliament

1600-1610 Pluethipol Prachumphol (Thailand) : History of the Thai flag

1610-1620 Slovenian Vexillological Association : ICV29 bid - supporting presentation

1620-1630 Genealogical Society of Ireland : ICV29 bid - supporting presentation

1630-1800 25th FIAV General Assembly

WEDNESDAY 9 AUGUST

8.30-9.30 Full day excursion to Greenwich

9.30-13.30 Arrive Greenwich Park (Blackheath Gate) for a guided walking tour including Royal Observatory (Prime Meridian, Flamsteed House, great views), Old Royal Naval College (Painted Hall and Chapel), Cutty Sark

13.30-15.00 Lunch - Davy's Wine Bar, Greenwich

15.15-15.45 National Maritime Museum: 'Flags in the NMM: an introduction', a talk by Barbara Tomlinson, Curator Emeritus

15.45- Explore the NMM and Greenwich

Return travel: by river on Thames Clipper to Westminster Pier

THURSDAY 10 AUGUST

0900-0930 Marcel van Westerhoven (The Netherlands) Polderboard flags - requiem for a dream

0930-1000 Bruce Berry (South Africa): The beloved green and white - (white) Rhodesia’s search for a unique symbol of identity

1000-1030 Stoyan Antonov (Bulgaria) : Flags of Bulgarian municipalities

1100-1130 Hervé Calvarin (France) : Doubts and certainties in vexillology

1130-1200 Jos Poels (UK) : Evolution of the Gambian flag

1200-1230 David Chkheidze (Georgia) : The flags of contemporary Georgia

1400-1430 Aleš Brožek (Czech Republic) : The survey of flags used by rowing clubs in the Czech Republic

1430-1500 Avelino Couceiro Rodriguez (Cuba) : Cuba and Puerto Rico: Two flags, two wings of a single bird

1500-1530 Patrice de La Condamine (France): Flags and the woman

1600-1630 Uroš Žižmund (Slovenia): Two flags, two proposals - a new system of national and rank flags of Slovenia

1630-1700 Stan Zamyatin (Ireland): County flags of Ireland

1700-1800 Flags of the World (FOTW) Meeting (continues at FiveSixEight, Beit Quadrangle)

FRIDAY 11 AUGUST

0900-0930 Željko Heimer (Croatia) : Historical origins of contemporary Croatian municipal flags

0930-1000 Tony Burton (Australia) : Budgie smuggling and flag mayhem in Malaysia

1000-1030 Alain Raullet (France) : The third way of raising flags in Brittany

1100-1130 Roman Klimeš (Czech Republic) : Symbols of the Bohemian Olympic Committee 1912

1130-1200 Carlos Alberto Morales-Ramirez (Singapore) : Zoogeographic vexillology of North America - exploring endemism in sub-national flags

1200-1230 Nicolas Hugot (France) : A journey through constitutional vexillology

1400-1415 Xinfeng Zhao (China) : The flags of Genghis Khan

1415-1430 Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg (The Netherlands) : Five rings to bring them all - a presentation of the Olympic Flag

1430-1500 Attila István Szekeres (Romania) : The evolution of the Szekeler flag in the last four centuries

1530-1600 Rob Raeside (Canada) : Sub-national flags in Canada

1600-1610 Aleksander Hribovšek (Slovenia): The new Association flag and flags of the officers (Heraldry Society of Slovenia)

1610-1620 Theun Okkerse (The Netherlands): The obverse and reverse paradox

1620-1630 Vexillological Association of the State of Texas : ICV28, San Antonio 2019

1630 -1700 Closing Ceremony

1900-2200 Farewell Aperitif and Closing Banquet

Venue: Gladstone Library, Royal Horseguards Hotel, 1 Whitehall Ct, Westminster, London SW1A 2EJ

COMPANION PROGRAMME

Based around the conference venue in the heart of Royal Kensington and Chelsea, the ICV 27 Companion Programme will explore the monuments, palaces, houses, gardens and hidden corners of this special corner of London. Highlights include the Royal Albert Hall - of Summer Proms fame; Kensington Palace - once home to Queen Victoria, Princess Margaret and Princess Diana, and now to Prince William, Duchess Kate and Prince Harry; Leighton House - a ‘private palace of art’ with an extraordinary Arab Hall; Hyde Park and the Serpentine; Kensington Gardens and the Albert Memorial; and lovely Holland Park with its stunning Kyoto Garden.

ICV27 - REGISTERED COMPANIONS, as on 12 June 2017.

Sukla Chakrabarti (India), Maria Esther Cruz (The Netherlands), Elizabeth Dangaard (Australia), Annie de La Condamine (France), Elisabeth Dreyer (Switzerland), Patrica Edwards (Canada), Deanna Hartvigsen (USA), Irina Herzfeld (Germany), Debbie Kaye (USA), Mike Kearney (UK - ICV27 Companion Programme Guide), Patricia Keegan-Poels (UK), Suzanne Kelly (Australia), Roman Križanič (Slovenia), Janice Lancaster (Canada), Lin-na Li (China), Lena Lindquist (Sweden), Ksenia Lomantsova (Russia), Karen Lowe (USA), Jenny Naughton (Australia), Michael Platoff (USA), Wendy Raeside (Canada), Barbara Ross (UK), Susanne Schmidt (Germany), Maggie Sumner (UK - ICV27 Companion Programme Organiser)