09-19-2009, 05:45 AM
Everyone in India is a Hindu, says RSS chief
Paras K Jha / DNAFriday, September 18, 2009 8:21 IST
Protests against Muslims and Christians are not part of Hindutva, which is non-violent, said Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) while delivering the concluding lecture of a two-day seminar on 'Hindutva in the present context' organised by the Bharatiya Vichar Manch at the Sardar Patel Institute of Public Administration, on Thursday.
"There is no need to define Hindutva as it can be described in different ways. The exact definition may lead to confusion. In the same way, the word 'Hindu' can have many workable definitions. While it is a way of life, it is also a religion. Indians have not coined the word 'Hindu'. There are no references to it in the scriptures. People identified us as 'Hindus' and now the word has become our identity," Bhagwat said.
The RSS chief said that the word 'Hindu' referred to anyone born in India. "So, whether Muslim or Christian, we are all Hindus. Their ancestors were Hindu, their blood is Hindu. They are all our brothers and we are calling them to join us," he said.
Regarding the definition of Hindutva, Bhagwat said, "Hindutva cannot be classified as Swami Vivekananda's Hindutva, RSS's Hindutva, VHP's Hindutva. It is one and it is not anybody's brand or monopoly. The continuous discovery of the truth is known as Hindutva."
He also emphasized the need for Hindus to become strong and powerful. "The world respects the powerful and for that, Hindus will have to become strong and powerful," he said. "Many people have a problem with the word 'Hindu' and they often asked us to give up it. The word 'Hindu' is attacked. But we cannot give up this word as it describes all that which cannot be described by any other word," Bhagwat said.
Bhagwat further said that spoke about the role of women in India. "We worship women as goddesses in temples and in our scriptures. But, in our families, the condition of women is not impressive. Keeping politics aside, we need to correct our social structure, as politics is only a part of society. We should focus on the family, which is a unit of society.
Hindu families have values, traditions and ethics that are still intact. When we make a family strong with values, society will automatically become strong," he said.
Paras K Jha / DNAFriday, September 18, 2009 8:21 IST
Protests against Muslims and Christians are not part of Hindutva, which is non-violent, said Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) while delivering the concluding lecture of a two-day seminar on 'Hindutva in the present context' organised by the Bharatiya Vichar Manch at the Sardar Patel Institute of Public Administration, on Thursday.
"There is no need to define Hindutva as it can be described in different ways. The exact definition may lead to confusion. In the same way, the word 'Hindu' can have many workable definitions. While it is a way of life, it is also a religion. Indians have not coined the word 'Hindu'. There are no references to it in the scriptures. People identified us as 'Hindus' and now the word has become our identity," Bhagwat said.
The RSS chief said that the word 'Hindu' referred to anyone born in India. "So, whether Muslim or Christian, we are all Hindus. Their ancestors were Hindu, their blood is Hindu. They are all our brothers and we are calling them to join us," he said.
Regarding the definition of Hindutva, Bhagwat said, "Hindutva cannot be classified as Swami Vivekananda's Hindutva, RSS's Hindutva, VHP's Hindutva. It is one and it is not anybody's brand or monopoly. The continuous discovery of the truth is known as Hindutva."
He also emphasized the need for Hindus to become strong and powerful. "The world respects the powerful and for that, Hindus will have to become strong and powerful," he said. "Many people have a problem with the word 'Hindu' and they often asked us to give up it. The word 'Hindu' is attacked. But we cannot give up this word as it describes all that which cannot be described by any other word," Bhagwat said.
Bhagwat further said that spoke about the role of women in India. "We worship women as goddesses in temples and in our scriptures. But, in our families, the condition of women is not impressive. Keeping politics aside, we need to correct our social structure, as politics is only a part of society. We should focus on the family, which is a unit of society.
Hindu families have values, traditions and ethics that are still intact. When we make a family strong with values, society will automatically become strong," he said.