I am very grateful to you for inviting me here and for honouring me in this way. Perhaps this is the time to clarify what I have already said, because some of my statements have led to certain misunderstandings.
I have said it before, and I say it again today that it appears to me that there is a need for a fundamental change in the role of the Sangh and maybe there is even a need for a modification of its aims and objectives. Though it is not actually so, people still identify it with Hindu communal and caste interests. But I know that a lot of discussion is going on between your organiser and the cadres about associating the followers of other religions – especially of those religions which were not born in India, such as Islam and Christianity – who are as Indian as we Hindus are. Their forefathers were also Hindus, and through conversion their numbers increased, as did a feeling of separatism, which was exploited by British imperialism.
The imperialists were successful in dividing India into two parts. Later on, with the creation of Bangladesh of its own accord, they became three. But I believe that including Bangladesh and Pakistan, we are one nation. Our states can be separate, but our nation has always been the same – Bharatiya. Iqbal himself, a great poet of Urdu and Persian, has said: ‘Kuchh baat hai ki hasti mit-ti nahi hamari’ (There is something perennial about us that has not allowed our existence to be wiped out).
So, friends, there is something special about us, and we have to hold on to it as something invaluable. In spite of being divided into three states today, the biggest of these parts, Bharat, has to conduct itself in such a way, and has to have such a vision, that we should be able to win the hearts of the two parts separated from us in the east and west. These states may remain separate – as has been the case in the past, when Bharat was divided into many states – but even then, our Bharatiyata, or Indianness, should be retained. People in the other two parts should consider Bharat their own, just as we Hindus do. We have to work towards that end.
Apart from this, we Hindus have to acknowledge and address the rank injustice and weaknesses in Hindu society that divide us, create feelings of high and low and uphold untouchability, thereby presenting Hindu Dharma in a perverted form. Instead, we should foster a feeling of oneness among Harijans, Brahmins and others. The feeling that ‘we are Hindus, as well as Bharatiya,’ must also be cultivated among those whom we have long treated as separate and inferior. Muslims and Christians are also Bharatiya. Thus, there is a definite task before the RSS – to consolidate the nation, so that a spirit of national unity is infused in all of us, and the nation gains the strength to accommodate all the differences and diversities within itself.
We Hindus have no holy centre like Mecca, Medina or Rome outside India. For us India is everything, and all our devotion is centred here. But our brethren who embraced other religions – and thus were separated from us as co-religionists – are Bharatiya still. There were cases of forcible conversion too, where some even embraced death to avoid such conversions. Those who converted to other religions have places of worship outside India, and maybe some have even found inspiration outside. For our Muslim brethren, there is Arabia and cities like Mecca and Medina; for Christians, Rome is a holy city – Constantinople is another. For religious inspiration they may look outside, but their national inspiration is Bharat.
The Germans, French, British, Italians and Spanish are separate nations, although their religion – Christianity – is the same. Some follow the Pope, while others, such as the Protestants, have different religious centres. Yet, in spite of religious differences, they have the feeling of being one nation. They consider it their good fortune to get a chance to sacrifice everything for the nation.
The days of religious crusades are over. So many battles have been fought in the name of Islam and Christianity and other religions in India and elsewhere. But now the sentiment of nationalism dominates all over the world. There are so many different nations in the world today. Nowadays there is a move to bring them together even while retaining their diversity. For some reason, man’s intellect tends towards unity. God is one, and all human beings are His creatures. All philosophies point to unity in diversity. Each seeks to identify some binding link among the various nations of the world. President Wilson of the US initiated the League of Nations, and today we have the United Nations – a forum to bring together all the nations of the world onto a common platform. While we cannot say that One World Government is in the offing, but there is no doubt that the ultimate aim is the idea of one world, despite religious, racial, linguistic and geographical differences.
But that is a far-off goal. In spite of the many diversities among the people of India and the existence of so many states in the past, the unity of India has been maintained. During the times of the Mauryas and the Guptas, these very cities of Pataliputra and Kusumpur served as the capitals of the whole of India under Emperors Ashoka and Chandragupta. Thus, empires have existed in this country. These empires eventually disintegrated, for it appears we have historically been weak in statecraft. But with due deference to those among you who profess different religions, I may say perhaps no other religion can match the catholicity, the nobility, the loftiness and the depth of Hinduism as found in its scriptures and philosophical texts.
In other religions there is often one book or holy word, by repeating which you would be initiated into the particular religion and become its devotees. But among us, those who put faith in the Vedas and even those who decry them are Hindus. In fact, the word Hindu is not an ancient one and is not found in any of the ancient books. It was others – who pronounced ‘s’ as ‘h’ and ‘Sind’ as ‘Hind’ – who called us Hindu. In fact, it had nothing to do with any religion and had only a geographical connotation.
So, friends, there are many tasks before the RSS, and some of them are very difficult. Take the caste system, for example. I cannot say what the Sangh is trying to do to break this system. I can understand someone being called high or low according to their action, but we in actual practice have made such a society in which we have dubbed someone as ‘untouchable’ and someone else as ‘Brahmin’, fit to be worshipped as a god. The ‘Brahmin devta’ may be a ‘chandaal’ by action, still he remains a Brahmin. In the villages, we see people greeting a Brahmin by expressing the desire to touch his feet. ‘Panditji, paye lagi.’ ‘Oh scholar! We touch your feet,’ they say. But such an honour is never given to an untouchable, however noble he may be.
Thus, I have great expectations from this revolutionary organisation, which has taken up the challenge of creating a new India. I have welcomed your venture wholeheartedly, sometimes I have offered you my advice and have even criticised you, but it was as a friend. This is because I understand my strength and your potential. There is no other organisation in the country which can match you.
The task of building up the character of the youth is a very urgent task in the country today. We had a big youth movement recently, and I had the good fortune of accepting their leadership at their insistence. I agreed with great reluctance, as I told them that I was ill and that they should be satisfied with seeking my advice whenever necessary. But when they insisted that I would have to take up their leadership, I agreed. They have achieved something. But now the movement has slackened. Its revolutionary content has been dissipated. It does not have the capacity anymore to change the society – though there remains the need for change in society in every sphere, be it economic, social or political. I have an unshakable faith that we can be one nation even while fulfilling the demands of our different religions and communities. Even while carrying out the necessary rituals, we can be united in our hearts to form one nation.
As you call yourself Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and not Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, and this name has been decided upon with due deliberation, therefore it is my desire that you should be instrumental in bringing about a revolution in India. The revolution ushered in by you will command greater respect because people of your standing in the higher rungs of the caste hierarchy, like the Brahmin and Kshatriya classes, will enjoy wider acceptability. Such acceptance will not be easily extended to organizations such as the Chhatra Sangharsh Samiti and Lok Sangharsh Samiti, at least not within the Hindu Society.
On this occasion, I want to point out that we are passing through revolutionary times today. The traditions handed down to us by our ancestors are great. We should go ahead with the task of changing ourselves first, discarding all that is wrong, evil or outdated, while retaining that which is noble in our heritage. Those who do not change themselves and their life, have no right and no power to change others. Those who cannot transform their own lives have no right to ask others to do so. You are committed and devoted people – disciplined and imbued with many qualities. It is my expectation of you and, as an elder, it is my prayer, that God may bless you with enough strength to give a new shape to India – to create a new India where human beings treat one another as brothers, and where there is no distinction between high and low, rich and poor. This is possible, and this should be done!
Even though I know that it is difficult to wipe out poverty – and in any case it is not something that can be achieved in a few days – it is a task worth accomplishing. There are so many households today in which children do not get their fill; they go to sleep crying with hunger. Whatever little food grains they get are of the lowest quality. It is such a painful situation. How shall we change it? The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh should think over this: how to bring about economic transformation? How to transform the village? All our leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, have worked for it.
You have included Mahatma Gandhi in your morning prayers, and he is indeed worthy of being remembered every morning. This is a very good step you have taken. If he had lived a little longer, he would have guided us a little more to remove untouchability and other evils from the Hindu society. But the way is clear now, and I believe that you are more capable than I am of undertaking this mission. You are better equipped, because you think and deliberate upon the various aspects of our traditions, our culture and Dharma constantly.
Therefore, I appeal to you to consider every moment valuable for the purpose. We want to see our country in such a condition where Brahmins and Harijans treat each other as brothers and embrace each other without hesitation; where the distinction between rich and poor is wiped out; and where people have direct control over the administration. This is not an idle dream; it is truly possible. It may not be possible in other countries, but it is possible in this ancient land where the institution of Gram Panchayats has functioned for thousands of years and where they are still playing a role in some form or the other. Their condition may not be excellent today, but they are a standing reminder of what they once were.
So, this society, its glorious history, the heritage of our forefathers, the sacrifices of the builders of this country, their achievements and the freedom that we have won – you are the inheritors of it all, and it is for you to make the best use of it. I say this not to flatter you but to bring home the reality of the situation. Your word has a far-reaching effect. There is the force of spiritualism behind us. You are also in the forefront of the transformation that is taking place before our very eyes. The results of this change are also at your disposal.
Friends, I am overwhelmed when I think of the matters concerning the country. I know that I don’t have long to live. I am living on borrowed time and am at the brink of death. Even then I am determined to serve my country, my society, my people and the poor and the suffering of this land until the last ounce of my energy and the last breath in my body. I commend to you the ideals of service, renunciation and sacrifice. I have no doubt that you are already imbued with these ideals and are of self-sacrificing nature and noble conduct. A vast country lies before you – here is your arena. You can accomplish much. May God give you strength and may you live up to such expectations.
This is part of ThePrint’s Great Speeches series. It features speeches and debates that shaped modern India.