Independence

 Independence /ˌɪndɪˈpendəns/ 

Humans have come a long way from the early civilisations and have filtered out a lot of evils form our societies, in the process democracy has emerged as the best form of political structure for a nation, but what independence really means. Wikipedia defines Independence as a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. But let's dig deeper:

Quotes Courtesy-Goodreads:

1. You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind. - Mahatma Gandhi

2. Revolution is an inalienable right of mankind. Freedom is an imperishable birth right of all, People get accustomed to the established order of things and tremble at the idea of change. It is this lethargic spirit that needs be replaced by the revolutionary spirit - Bhagat Singh

3. To ask nothing. To expect nothing. To depend on nothing - Ayn Rand (The Fountainhead)

4. The whole educational and professional training system is a very elaborate filter, which just weeds out people who are too independent, and who think for themselves, and who don't know how to be submissive, and so on -- because they're dysfunctional to the institutions - Noam Chomsky

5. It is the first responsibility of every citizen to question the authorities - Benjamin Franklin

6. If money is your hope for independence, you will never have it. The only real security that a man can have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience and ability - Henry Ford

7. Remember, freedom is a higher value than love. That’s why, in India, the ultimate we call moksha. Moksha means freedom. Freedom is a higher value than love. So if love is destroying freedom, it is not of worth. Love can be dropped, freedom has to be saved; freedom is a higher value. And without freedom you can never be happy, that is not possible. Freedom is the intrinsic desire of each man, each woman – utter freedom, absolute freedom - Osho

8. Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters - Abraham Lincoln

9. For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others - Nelson Mandela

10. Overcoming poverty is not a task of charity, it is an act of justice. Like Slavery and Apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Sometimes it falls on a generation to be great. YOU can be that great generation. Let your greatness blossom, A Nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but it's lowest ones - Nelson Mandela

11. Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility - Sigmund Freud 

12. He who has overcome his fears will truly be free - Aristotle

13. Freedom in capitalist society always remains about the same as it was in ancient Greek republics: Freedom for slave owners - Vladimir Lenin

14. Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high; Where knowledge is free; Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls; Where words come out from the depth of truth; Where tireless striving stretches its arms toward perfection; Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit; Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action - Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake - Rabindranath Tagore (Gitanjali)

15. At least once in a day, allow yourself the freedom to think and dream for yourself - Albert Einstein