Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh

{{Hinduism small}} The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ({{lang-hi|राष्ट्रीय स्वयंसेवक संघ}}, {{lang-en|National Volunteers' Union}}), also known as the Sangh or the RSS, is a Hindu nationalist organization in India. It was founded in 1925 by K.B. Hedgewar. The RSS is active throughout India and abroad as the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh.

Their general philosophical outlook is cultural nationalism known as integral humanism, aimed at preserving the spiritual and moral traditions of India.Christophe Jaffrelot, The Hindu nationalist Movement in India, Columbia University Press, 1998 The RSS believes that Hinduism is not a religion but a way of life.http://www.rss.org/New_RSS/Mission_Vision/Why_RSS.jsp The proclaimed purpose of the organization is "serving the nation and its people in the form of God - Bharata Mata (Mother India) and protecting the interests of the Hindus in India".

They have engaged in numerous social, service charity, and relief works, and engaged in inter-community dialogues, as well as actively participated in the political process. They are well-organized and have a heirarchial structure to their organization, with the sarsanghchalak being the highest rank.

The RSS was banned in India thrice during periods in which the government of the time considered them a threat to the state: in 1948 after Mahatma Gandhi's assassination, during the 1975 Emergency in India, and after the 1992 Babri Masjid demolition, in order. The bans were subsequently lifted after the Supreme Court of India declined to uphold the bans due to lack of evidence of their involvement in the alleged activities{{Fact|date=April 2007}}.

The RSS continues to be viewed as controversial due its commitment to stop conversions of Hindus and to "organise" Hindu society, allegations of its "Fascist" tendencies and it's alleged involvement in several communal riots (the latest being the riots in Gujarat in 2002). These allegations are made by various academics, politicians and commentators, but disputed by other academics.

Its numbers have been bolstered by the rise of its associated Sangh Parivar members, especially the Bharatiya Janata Party.

History

In 1925, Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, a Nagpur doctor influenced by recent Hindu-Muslim riots in his town, formed the Rashtriya Swayemsevak Sangh aiming to protect Hindus by organizing together.Curran, Jean A. Jr. The RSS: Militant Hinduism Far Eastern Survey, Vol. 19, No. 10. (May 17, 1950), pp. 93-98. Hedgewar proposed the Hindu masses must be united to combat the challenges facing them and protect the freedom and diversity of Indian civilization. In the 1940s the development of the RSS was fueled by a desire of some Hindus to organize themselves in reaction to the growing mobilization, sometimes in paramilitary form, of Muslim separatist movements. The response was strongest in areas where the Hindus were in the minority. RSS benefited from support from local community leaders. The "pracharaks" or "full-time workers", who were dispatched on the recommendation of such patrons, gathered support and coordinated their efforts from their headquarters in Nagpur K R Malkani: The RSS Story. During the Indian independence movement, the RSS campaigned alongside the Indian National Congress for national independence at first keeping its organization separate and core mission different. However when some Congress leaders tried to subsume RSS into the Congress and urged the RSS leaders to dismantle the organization, they slowly diverged away from the Congress.

Partition activities

The Partition of India was a very traumatic event in the young nation's history. Millions of people, both Hindu and Muslim, attempted to migrate from India and Pakistan/East-Pakistan through the violence and the death toll was considerable http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/warstat3.htm#India.

The organization gained considerable strength and support because of its various relief activities organized for the migrating Hindus and successful protection of Hindus in the Hindu-Muslim riots during the time of the partition. At the time, its alleged contribution to the spread of communalism led to allegations of it being anti-Muslim.

Banning and revival

After Mahatma Gandhi's death in 1948, the RSS was accused by the Government of India for taking part in the plot to assassinate the Mahatma. Jawaharlal Nehru, in his opposition to the RSS, believed that the murder of Gandhi was part of a conspiracy on the part of the Hindu Nationalists to "seize power", and he claimed that the RSS was the power behind this conspiracy.For Nehru's claim that the RSS was involved with a conspiracy to seize power and analogy to Europe on the eve of fascist takeovers, see: Nussbaum, p. 167. Nehru saw the situation as analogous to that in Europe on the eve of the fascist takeovers.Quotation from Nehru provided in: Nussbaum, p. 167. . However, without conclusive evidence on the conspiracy of the assassination, the government banned the RSS on February 4, 1948.

Following an intervention of the Supreme Court, the government agreed to lift the ban on the condition that the RSS adopt a constitution. The second sarsanghchalak, Golwalkar began drafting a constitution for the RSS which he sent to the national government in March of 1949. In July of the same year, after many negotiations over the consititution and its acceptance, the ban on RSS was lifted.

Over the 1950s and 1960s, under Golwalkar (usually called "Guruji" by members), the RSS regained its following slowly and steadily. It embraced the Cow Slaughter Ban Movement and the Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya movement. In 1967, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad was founded as an adjunct body, initially to organise the religious leaders of various Hindu sects and streamline religious doctrine.

It has a following throughout India.

Organization

The RSS has over 4.5 million members. BBC News, RSS: An in-depth Analysis. Retrieved 12-May-2007. The RSS organises itself hierarchically.

Sarsanghchalaks

The Sarsanghchalak is the family head of the RSS organization. The individuals who have been Sarsanghchalkas are:

Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar (founder), also known as Doctorji (1925-1940)
Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golwalkar, also known as, Guruji (1940-1973)
Madhukar Dattatraya Deoras, also known as, Balasaheb (1973-1993)
Rajendra Singh, also known as, Rajjubhaiya (1993-2000)
Kuppahalli Sitaramayya Sudarshan (2000-present)

The position is decided by nomination followed with elections held at the annual "Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha" meeting. The current sarsanghachalak of RSS is K.S. Sudarshan.

Shakha

"Shakhas" means "branch" in Sanskrit.

Most of the organisational work of the Sangh is done through the coordination of shakhas, or branches. These shakhas are run every morning (prabhat shakha), evening (sayam shakha) or night (atisayam shakha) for 1 hour in public places and are open to people of all castes, creeds or social and economic status. Currently more than 50,000 shakhas are run throughout India. Apart from 42,000 daily gatherings, there are about 5,000 weekly and 2,000 monthly gatherings conducted throughout the length and breadth of the country{{Fact|date=April 2007}}.

These shakhas are usually operated in playing grounds without any offices. At the end of the shakha the prayer "Namaste Sadaa Vatsale Matrubhoome" (which means "My salutation to you, ever loving motherland") is recited.

These shakhas are the core building blocks of RSS structure. During a Shakha, the activities consist of yoga, games, discussions on broad range of social topics, prayer to Bharat Mata and an inspirational session (baudhik). The RSS uniform consists of a black cap, white shirt and khakhi-coloured shorts. On the day of 'Guru Poornima' the RSS vounteers pay tributes to the 'Bhagwa Dhwaj' - the saffron flag, which has considerable symbolic importance.

An RSS volunteer who attends shakha is referred to as a "Swayamsevak". A Swayamsevak is sometimes appointed as a Sanghchalak, meaning group administrator, and is given the task of leading and organizing the Shaka's events.

Ideology

The primarily goals of the RSS are a revival of Hindu tradition and to be an advocacy group for Hindus, whom they feel are being slowly marginalized due to alleged "negationism" in India and the acts of appeasement against them from the left-wing political parties and politicians in favor of extremist elements of other religious denominations. Their core ideology is based on Integral humanism and Hindutva, a form of Hindu Nationalism. They describe themselves as an "antidote to self-oblivion", and their goals as an attempt to inculcate Indians with the "A burning devotion to the Motherland (India), a feeling of fraternity among all citizens, intense awareness of a common national life derived from a common culture and shared history and heritage", as well as to "activise the dormant Hindu society (of India), realise its past mistakes, to instil in it a firm determination to set them right, and finally to make it bestir itself to reassert its honour and self-respect"Mission & Vision,RSS Web Page.

Views on other religions

The Sangh has declared publicly that its Hindutva philosophy states that Hindutva supports the philosophy Ekam Sat Viprah Bahudha Vadanti Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (translated to Truth is One, Sages Call it by Many Names. The Whole Universe is one Family).BJP Philosophy - Hindutva However, it feels this society has been threatened by repeated persecution of Hindus, especially by Muslims. According to the BJP, a member of the Sangh Parivar:

Thus, the seeds of today's Hindu Jagriti (awakening) were created the very instance that an invader threatened the fabric of Hindu society which was religious tolerance. The vibrancy of Hindu society was noticeable at all times in that despite such barbarism from the Islamic hordes of central Asia and Turkey, Hindus never played with the same rules that Muslims did.BJP Philosophy - Hindutva

The RSS believes that provided better circumstances the a majority of the Muslim population of India would 'revert' to Hinduism, believing that most Indian Muslims can trace their ancestry back to those with a Hindu background. The BJP, the RSS' political wing, has expressed its beliefs on this matter: bjp.org :

The RSS entirely agrees with Gandhiji's formulations that "There is in Hinduism room enough for Jesus, as there is for Mohammed, Zoroster and Moses" and that "majority of the Muslims of India are converts to that faith from Hinduism through force of circumstances. They are still Hindu in many essential ways and, in a free, prosperous, progressive India, they would find it the most natural thing in the world to revert to their ancient faith and ways of life."

The RSS believes all non-Hindus in India should adopt a stance of religious tolerance towards the native religions, or otherwise they should face intolerance in return. This lines up with the RSS's belief that all religions should have the same rights and responsibilities in terms of laws. Regarding non-Hindus in India, Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar, an RSS leader in the past, had also stated (in the 1940s) that:

"The non-Hindu peoples in Hindustan must either adopt the Hindu culture and language, must learn to respect and hold in reverence the Hindu religion, must entertain no idea but those of glorification of Hindu race and culture, i.e., they must not only give up their attitude intolerance and ungratefulness towards this land and its age-old traditions but must also cultivate the positive attitude of love and devotion instead-in a word they must cease to be foreigners, or may stay in this country, wholly subordinated to the Hindu nation, claiming nothing, deserving no privilege, far less any preferential treatment-not even citizens' rights."Craig Baxter, The Jana Sangh: A Biography of an Indian Political Party (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1969), p. 31.

With regards to claims of having an anti-Muslim stance, RSS spokesperson Ram Madhav has stated that such claims are a "distortion of RSS ideology". He asserts that the RSS "believes in the oneness of our culture and the country", and that "any opposition to this view could lead to disintegration as it in fact happened with the Partition. This accent against divisiveness should therefore not be seen as hatred towards any particular religion.Q&A: Ram Madhav,The Hindu.

The RSS denies that they are intolerant of any other religion, citing examples of RSS-dominated communities in India that have lived in relative peace with adherents of other religions.

Views against the Caste system

Historically, the RSS has had several Dalit and Middle-Caste members in their fold, several of whom are in key positions along their rank-and-fileSunday Mail, December 23, 1990.Originally, the RSS was formed by members of the upper caste Brahmin community. However, that situation has changed considerably over time. An RSS sarsanghchalak quotes:"All our best attended shakhas are in the poor areas, not in the alienated middle class or rich upper caste suburbs or cities or towns. In simple words, the new Sangh Swayamsevak is mostly a backward caste or Dalit".

The RSS has recently expressed concern over caste-based political and social conflicts, they have urged Hindus to "get rid of this evil at the earliest"India's RSS urges war against 'evil' of casteism,''Freerepublic archive from the Times of India''.Their resolution adopted at a national executive meeting said:

"Hindu society should take all necessary measures to ensure entry and access to every Hindu, irrespective of his caste, to their homes, temples, religious places, public wells, ponds, and other public places..Hindu society will have to get rid of this evil at the earliest."

The organisation further contends that "caste-based untouchability" and "feelings of high caste and low caste" were the main evils haunting the Hindu society and aims to eradicate Casteism from Indian society. To that end, the R.S.S have tried to reach out to prominent Dalit (traditionally the "Untouchable" Caste) leaders in India, such as poet and leader of the Dalit activist group "Dalit Panthers" Namdeo DhasalDalit leader buries the hatchet with RSS,Times of India. The Dalit Panthers have been traditional adversaries of the R.S.S and peceived them as an "upper-caste" dominated party. However, negotiations with RSS chief K.Sudarshan on August 2006 led to reconciliations, when Sudarshan declared that the R.S.S categorically rejects all forms of caste discrimination in the organization. He further said:

The Dalits are our own flesh and blood, but because of some ill practices and social evils the practice of untouchability has brought havoc on those who were an integral part and defenders of Dharma. This has to be corrected through our deeds and actions."

Namadeo Dhasal said at the meeting with the RSS, "Yes, I do feel that the fight to eradicate caste has to be fought by Dalits and caste Hindus together carrying forward the tradition of Adi Sankara, which got broken somewhere in between."

Sudarshan then said, "I fully agree with what you have said here today".

In addition, the RSS has advocated for training Dalits and other backward classes to be temple high priests (a position traditionally reserved for Caste Brahmins and denied to lower castes). They argue that the social divisiveness of the Caste system is responsible for the lack of adherence to Hindu values and traditions and reaching out to the lower castes in this manner will be a remedy to the problemRSS for Dalit head priests in temples,Times of India.

Appealing for social harmony and Hindu brotherhood, the organisation warned the community against the political parties, which it said had been drawing "political benefits" out of casteism and "Inventing caste based new conflicts in the Hindu society for the sake of political benefits [which has] has become a trend of many politicians these days."

Views on votebank politics

The RSS has spoken out against votebank politics of politicians who encourage caste based rivalries and have urged political parties to keep away from caste based politics and give an Indian culture to democracy.

"No religion or sect is inferior to others. The whole society should be aware that every sect and caste of Bharat has a glorious history..The entire society should fully realize the essence of 'Na Hinduh Patito Bhavet' (No Hindu shall ever come to grief)"

Views against Islamic Terrorism

The RSS has spoken out against Islamic Fundamentalism and acts of Islamist terrorism carried out in various parts of India in recent years. A Senior RSS leader Madan Das has said that there should be "no hesitation whatsoever in fighting against those who do not want peace and added that the world communities should fight terrorism together". They have labelled Islamists as "anti-national elements" and have alleged Pakistani involvement in the various terrorist actsBe vigilant against ‘jehadis’: RSS leader,The Tribune. In addition, the Islamist terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba is suspected for carrying out an unsuccessful attack on the headquarters of the RSS in Nagpur on June 1,2006 Lashkar-e-Toiba,South Asia Terrorism Portal Lashkar attack on RSS HQ foiled; 3 ultras shot,The Tribune, inviting condemnation of the outfit from politicians across the spectrumTerror attack on RSS HQ foiled, 3 Lashkar men shot dead,Times of India.

Position on Israel and Zionism

A recent issue of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-backed weekly Organiser has gone out of its way to support the Zionist cause, arguing that the recent violence was the result of Palestinian intransigence.http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1722/17220140.htm. This follows the rise in support for Israel in India in recent years.Israel's War and India: Aftershocks. This has invited scathing attacks on the party from anti-Zionist elements.http://ghadar.insaf.net/June2004/MainPages/zionism.htm.

In addition. RSS welcomed the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to India in 2003.Sharon's visit was widely condemned by the left-wing parties and Muslims Press spotlight on Sharon's India visit,BBC.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh unilaterally condemned these protests and statements.RSS slams Left for opposing Sharon's visit Google Cache of above. R.S.S spokesperson Ram Madhav said:

The entire world acknowledges that Israel has effectively and ruthlessly countered terror in the Middle East. Since India and Israel are both fighting a proxy war against terrorism, therefore, we should learn a lesson or two from them. We need to have close cooperation with them in this field.

The R.S.S newspaper "Panchjanya" dubbed those advocating friendship with Pakistan as ones responsible for encouraging terrorist activities in India, and described the visit of Ariel Sharon as an opportunity for India to get closure to Israel and fight terrorism jointly .

Political influence

{{Hindu politics}} In 1973, Golwalkar passed away and Balasaheb Deoras took over the leadership, and continued until 1993, when Dr. Rajendra Singh took over from him. During this period, came the rise of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the political front of the RSS. Between 1975 and 1977, the RSS, along with socialists like Jayprakash Narayan launched a civil disobedience movement, to reject the national emergency and postponement of elections by Prime Minister and Congress President Indira Gandhi. The Jana Sangh was an integral part of the Janata Party coalition that defeated Indira Gandhi's Congress in a landslide in 1977.

It was in fact the close relationship between the Jan Sangh and the RSS that proved to be the Janata coalition's undoing, as non-Sangh constituents of the coalition insisted that all members of the Union Cabinet distance themselves from the RSS, as they were now members of the Janata Party. When Vajpayee and Advani in particular refused to do so, the coalition collapsed over what came to be known as the 'dual membership' issue.

The RSS saw its stock rise as the BJP thrived upon the disenchantment of the masses with the Congress-led governments. By 1988, the BJP had 88 seats in the Lok Sabha, lower house of Parliament, and by 1996 it was the single-largest party. In 1998 it went on to head a coalition government that survived six years and another election in 1999.

During recent time, people who share RSS's ideology, many of whom have been swayamsevaks or former swayamsevaks have gone on to achieve the highest political positions in the Indian Politics. These leaders include Atal Behari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani, Narendra Modi, Shivraj Singh Chauhan, Pramod Mahajan, Gopinath Munde and Ram Prakash Gupta.

Sangh Parivar

{{main|Sangh Parivar}} Organizations which are inspired by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's ideology refer themselves as the members of the Sangh Parivar. In most of the cases Pracharaks (Full time volunteers of the RSS) were deputed to start and manage these organizations. The largest organizations within the Sangh are the Bharatiya Janata Party, Vishva Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal. Numerous other Hindutva organizations take inspiration from the RSS's actions.

Social Activity

The RSS has also participated in relief efforts in the Indian State of Kashmir, which has been besieged by Islamic terrorism (see Terrorism in Kashmir). An RSS-affiliated NGO, Sewa Bharti, has adopted 100 children, most of them Muslims, from militancy affected areas of the region to provide them education at least up to Higher Secondary levelJK: RSS adopts militancy hit Muslim children,''oneindia.in''.Sewa Bharati has also collaborated with several relief groups, such as the Catholics Bishops Conference of India to conduct relief operations in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. Activities included building shelters for the victims, providing food, clothes and medical necessitiesRelief missions from Delhi,The Hindu. In 2006, RSS participated in relief efforts to provide basic necessities such as food, milk and potable water to the people of Surat, Gujarat who were affected by massive floods in the regionRSS joins relief operation in flood-hit Surat,Organiser.org.

Khushwant Singh credits members of the RSS with helping and protecting Sikhs who were being targeted be members of the Congress(I) political party during the 1984 Anti-Sikh RiotsK. Singh: “Congress (I) is the Most Communal Party”, Publik Asia, 16-11-1989. . He said:

"It was the Congress(I) leaders who instigated mobs in 1984 and got more than 3000 people killed. I must give due credit to RSS and the BJP for showing courage and protecting helpless Sikhs during those difficult days”

The RSS also rendered relief work during the 2001 Gujarat Earthquake http://www.guardian.co.uk/naturaldisasters/story/0,7369,430302,00.html and the 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake and the subsequent Tsunami http://in.rediff.com/news/2004/dec/29tn3.htm.

Criticism

Allegations of Fascistic tendencies

Some Indians criticize the RSS for its "Hindu supremacist philosophy" and "campaigns" against other religions in India. In addition, academic observers have described it as a "reactionary group of Hindu fanatics with Fascist tendencies."Curran, Jean A. Jr. The RSS: Militant Hinduism Far Eastern Survey, Vol. 19, No. 10. (May 17, 1950), pp. 93-98.. Martha Nussbaum wrote in her book on the rise of the Hindu right that "The RSS is possibly the most successful fascist movement in any contemporary democracy."{{cite book |last=Nussbaum |first=Martha |authorlink=Martha Nussbaum |coauthors= |title=The Clash Within: Democracy, Religious Violence, and India's Future |year=2007 |publisher=The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |isbn=0-674-02482-6 }} p. 155.

Jawaharlal Nehru attacked the RSS when he compared their efforts to fascism. In December 1947, following allegations of RSS's involvement in the Gandhi assassination, he wrote to the provincial governors saying "We have a great deal of evidence to show that the RSS is an organization which is in the nature of a private army and which is definitely proceeding on the strictest Nazi lines, even following the technique of organization....Quotation from Nehru provided in: Nussbaum, p. 167."

Some academics, such as Ian McDonald of the University of Brighton, compare the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and it's concept of "organicism" with 19th century European Nationalism and European Fascism, calling the "apotheosis of RSS's intellectual and physical development the physiological patriot, a Hindu homo-fascitus", and that "the argument of its fascist ideology and methodology" is "profoundly disturbing"Fascism, Physical Culture and Hindu Nationalism,by Ian MacDonald, Univ of Brighton, England

In his book Fascism: Theory and Practice, Dave Renton mentions that in the 1990s RSS has used Communal riots as form of popular politics against the state. Rention further goes to state that, since RSS has adopted only adapted "parts" of Fascist ideology and is NOT a full fledged movement against the state, they cannot be labelled as "Fascist"http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0745314708&id=Ojtn0IT6LpgC&pg=PA108&lpg=PA108&dq=RSS+fascism&sig=saVQjtJle3dbohaeNlWDwFLnwRI.

Other academics, such as David James Smith, Professor of Indian Religions at Lancaster University, writes that despite the organizations past links with fascist ideologies, it's decentralized nature and lack of emphasis with a supreme leader, and the central position that it awards to social system (rather than race), means that describing them as "fascist" is inappropriateSmith, David James, Hinduism and Modernity P188, Blackwell Publishing ISBN 0-631-20862-3.

Vincent Kundukulam, a Christian priest at St. Joseph Pontifical Seminary in Aluva, Kerala, has written a Ph.D thesis in Sorbonne University, Paris, France, that claims RSS to be neither nationalist nor fascist RSS neither Nationalist nor Fascist, Indian Christian priest's research concludes,Christian PostGoogle Cache of above RSS neither nationalist nor fascist, says Christian priest after research,The Indian ExpressWeb Archive,ibid. He states that that RSS cannot be considered as a nationalist organisation in the sense in which the term 'nationalism' is generally interpreted in India. He points out that Indian nationalism and religion are mutually exclusive. Since RSS's primary loyalty is to the Hindus, it can't be called 'nationalist'. He also argues against branding the RSS ideology as "Fascism", "Nazism", "Fundamentalism" and "Communalism". He said the terms fascism, Nazism, and fundamentalism are much abused terms in India. They have a different connotation and meaning in the European context that don't apply to an Indian sociopolitical context. He argues that since communalism is not a part of religion, RSS can be called "communal" only in a limited way.

In addition, accusations of "fascism" have been critiqued by former political philosopherProfile, Jyotirmaya Sharma and Times of India commentator Jyotirmaya Sharma as inappropriate: a "simplistic transference has done great injustice to our knowledge of Hindu nationalist politics"Hindu Nationalist Politics,J. Sharma Times of India.

References

Publications

{{cite news| url =http://www.panchjanya.com/ | title = Panchajanya | publisher = RSS weekly publication| language = Hindi}}
{{cite news | url =http://www.organiser.org/ | title = Organiser | publisher = RSS weekly publication| language = English}}
{{cite book |title= Bunch of Thoughts |year= 1966|publisher= Sahitya Sindhu Prakashana|location= Banglore, India |id= ISBN 81-86595-19-8}} - Collection of Speeches by Golwalkar.

Books

{{cite book |last=Anderson |first=Walter K. |coauthors=Damle, Sridhar D. |title=The Brotherhood in Saffron |year=1987 |publisher=Vistaar Publishers |location=Delhi, India}}
{{cite book |last=Nussbaum |first=Martha |authorlink=Martha Nussbaum |coauthors= |title=The Clash Within: Democracy, Religious Violence, and India's Future |year=2007 |publisher=The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |isbn=0-674-02482-6 }}