When Prime Minister Narendra Modi chooses to spend two nights in Somnath, it sends a message. Indian political culture places great emphasis on where a leader goes; however, how long a leader stays is of even greater significance. A fly-in-and-out visit signals political courtesy, not commitment. A pause, however, signals intention.

PM Modi’s two-night stay in Somnath comes after his comments on the long arc of civilisational memory and resilience. This visit is a re-embedding of the Indian state in a geography marked by rupture and continuity. Destroyed, rebuilt, desecrated and rebuilt every time — if there was ever a civilisational stress test, Somnath has endured it and passed.

For decades........

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