New Delhi: A Hindu lives with the resolve that everyone on this Earth should prosper, said retired IAS officer and former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Rajiv Mehrishi at an RSS event Saturday.
Mehrishi, who was speaking at the virtual launch of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s book, titled ‘Yashaswi Bharat’, said, “While I have tried to read and understand the thoughts behind the book,” but “in comparison to Bhagwat, my views can be insignificant. However, I am fortunate that I got an opportunity to understand his viewpoint.”
Known to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mehrishi, who has also served as the home secretary, explained the characteristics of a Hindu as mentioned in Bhagwat’s book.
“Hindu wo hai jo iss sankalp se jeeta hai ki sabka mangal ho… Wo vishwa ka mangal karta hai… kisi ka amangal nahi chahta. (A Hindu is one who lives with the resolve that everyone on this earth should prosper… he makes the world prosper… he never wishes anything inauspicious for anyone),” he said.
The book is a collection of speeches of the RSS chief. It holds significance as this is the second collection of speeches of an RSS sarsanghchalak (chief) to be released — the first was of M.S. Golwalkar’s that was released in the 1960s.
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Chapters which influenced Mehrishi
The former CAG chief said that two chapters of the book — one on Hinduism and other on rashtra shakti (power of the nation) — have particularly influenced him.
The 1978-batch officer, who has also served as the finance secretary, read out a few excerpts from a chapter titled ‘Hindu kaun Hai? (Who is Hindu?)’
He also gave reference to river Sindhu, which is one of the main rivers of the Indo-Gangetic Plain in the Indian subcontinent.
“Sindhu is not just a river, but it is the main source of our culture. It is the root behind the word ‘Hindu’. Everyone born on the basin of this river is the child of Hinduism,” he said.
“Bhale hi kisi jaati prant ka ho, koi bhi bhasha bolta ho. Hindu dharma paschimi vichar dhara ka religion nahi hai, veh usse upar uthakar ek jivan shaili hai (It doesn’t matter what culture or religion a Hindu comes from, what language he speaks. Hinduism is not the religion of western philosophy, in fact, it’s beyond that. It’s a way of life),” he added.
Mehrishi also shared excerpts from the chapter on ‘Rashtriya Shakti’. He said “the world respects power”.
Financial power brings rapid economic growth, he said, adding that “without growth no one respects”.
He further added that one needs to have two other powers to gain respect from all corners — “sahan shakti” (patience) and “naitik shakti” (moral strength).
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“A Hindu is one who lives with the resolve that everyone on this earth should prosper… he makes the world prosper… he never wishes anything inauspicious for anyone”
Whoa!!! BJP is non Hindu?