Essence of Hinduism lies in embracing all: RSS chief
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Kochi: The essence of Hinduism lies in embracing everyone, RSS sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat said. He was speaking at Gyan Sabha, a national education conference organised by RSS-linked Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas on Monday.
In his keynote address at the concluding session, Bhagwat sought to dispel what he called a "common misunderstanding" about strong religious identity.
Bhagwat also advocated for a strong balance between the letter and spirit of being a Hindu. "There is often a misunderstanding that being a staunch Hindu means abusing others. Such a misconception can happen," he said.
"Being a true Hindu doesn't mean opposing anyone, nor does it mean that we need to respond by saying we are not Hindus.
We are Hindus, but the essence of being Hindu is to embrace everyone," Bhagwat said.
"Anyone who wants to bring Hindus together needs to be mindful of this essence," said Bhagwat. He said there were two types of knowledge in this world — vidya (true knowledge) and avidya (ignorance) — and both play an important role in a person's material life and spiritual quest.
He also said the colonial education system proposed by (Thomas Babington) Macaulay was not suitable for today's India. Instead, through Indian education, it is possible to awaken India's immense power to fulfil a duty based on truth and compassion for global well-being. "Every individual should work for the comprehensive transformation of society as their duty," he said.
UGC vice-chairman Deepak Srivastava presided over the concluding session where Swami Vivekananda University chancellor Ajay Tiwari and Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas national general secretary Atul Kothari also spoke.
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