Mottoes of Indian and International Organisations

A motto is the one line an organisation chooses to say what it exists for, and it is usually carved on its crest, so it changes rarely. That is exactly why the static general knowledge paper likes it: the answer today is the answer it was twenty years ago. Most Indian mottoes come from Sanskrit, often lifted from the Upanishads, the Gita or the Mahabharata, while most international ones are in Latin or in plain English. The reliable way to carry them is in families, force by force and body by body, with the source text wherever one is known.

The national motto

The motto of the Republic is Satyameva Jayate, meaning truth alone triumphs. It is taken from the Mundaka Upanishad and is written in the Devanagari script on the abacus of the State Emblem of India, which is adapted from the Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath and was adopted on 26 January 1950. The wheel, the bull and the galloping horse on the abacus are part of the emblem; the inverted lotus of the original capital was left out.

The armed forces and the academies

The central armed police forces and the agencies

Courts, departments and institutions

The Supreme Court of India carries Yato Dharmastato Jayah, where there is righteousness there is victory, a line from the Mahabharata. The Income Tax Department uses Kosh Mulo Dandah, the treasury is the root of administration, from Kautilya. The Indian Space Research Organisation works under the motto of space technology in the service of humankind, and the Defence Research and Development Organisation under Balasya Mulam Vigyanam, science is the source of strength. The Life Insurance Corporation uses Yogakshemam Vahamyaham, your welfare is my responsibility, from the Gita. Doordarshan broadcasts under Satyam Shivam Sundaram, the true, the auspicious and the beautiful, while All India Radio, or Akashvani, uses Bahujan Hitaya Bahujan Sukhaya, for the good and the happiness of the many, a Buddhist phrase. The Indian Railways describes itself as the lifeline of the nation.

International organisations

The Olympic motto was coined by Father Henri Didon and adopted by Pierre de Coubertin for the modern games; the fourth word, Communiter, meaning together, was added by the International Olympic Committee in 2021, so a question that offers only three words is testing the older form. The Olympic creed and the oath are separate texts and should not be confused with the motto.

Country mottoes

Nepal uses Janani Janmabhumishcha Swargadapi Gariyasi, mother and motherland are greater than heaven. France uses Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite. The United Kingdom uses Dieu et mon droit, God and my right. The national motto of the United States is In God We Trust, with E pluribus unum, out of many one, on the seal. Canada uses A Mari Usque Ad Mare, from sea to sea, and Indonesia uses Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, unity in diversity.