Guest guest Posted September 28, 2004 Report Share Posted September 28, 2004 Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh - On its way to obsolescence ? http://vichaar.org/article129.html Posted on Friday, September 24 @ 15:20:08 PDT by chanakya The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has been praised, supported and admired for its views. The RSS has also been bitterly hated and heavily criticized. But it has persisted as an integral part of the collective Indian pscyhe, either as a part of the problem or a part of the solution, depending on the point of view of the observer. Where does the rise and fall of the BJP government, the (apparent) fall from public interest in Ayodhya-like issues (despite several attempts at resurrection), and the glimmer of hope of seeing an economically strong India leave the RSS ? Will this landmark of the Indian intellectual landscape fade away into history, or will it persist to work towards its dream of Indian cultural revival and create yet another generation of strong supporters and extreme critics ? The RSS complains about unfair media coverage Tarun Vijay, editor of Panchjanya (the RSS newspaper), makes a passionate case against the the "hateful" media coverage of the RSS: If we say, we are against dowry and the maximum numbers of inter- caste and dowry-less marriages are held in RSS inspired families, or we strongly oppose female foeticide, that we ridicule Hindus who worship Durga during Puja but "kill" her when she arrives in the womb, or feel equally happy to visit a nearby church during Christmas, there is simply no possibility of a patient audience. Unless there is a protest against Valentines Day. This gets wide media coverage, surely because at that moment we saffronites fit snugly in our perceptional cage.[imprisoned by Left intellectual terrorism] Despite the explosive growth in Indian news media, there still exists a very strong undercurrent of sensationalism, a logical product of heavy competition and short attention spans of the public. But surely the RSS itself can do more than just complain about the media coverage it receives. It needs to undergo a process of sincere transformation and reorganization. What the RSS must do to stay relevant Whether the RSS should or should not survive are clearly matters of opinion. But this much is clear - there is a minimum set of changes the RSS must make if it is to survive. It should differentiate itself from the other members of the Saffron Brigade: Just one example - the Shiv Sena has (or has had) a distinct anti-migration stance to it. It has opposed the rapid cosmopolitization of Bombay. It is one thing to speak out against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, but the Shiv Sena has also opposed legal migrants from other parts of India, notably from Gujarat and the South. Is this not a direct violation of the RSS' own notions of the national and cultural unity of India ? Why has the RSS not been critical of these stands of the Shiv Sena ? If the reason for its deafening silence is political expediency, then the RSS cannot complain if some of the mud that is thrown at the Shiv Sena begins to stick on its door as well. It should embrace English: The RSS must reform itself and enter the 21st century. The RSS goal of preserving, nurturing and furthering Hindu cultural thought might be one that several can support - but the RSS approach to it has even strong supporters running away. Israel has revived and nurtured Hebrew, and yet Israelis speak impeccable English and can articulate their positions in any international forum. In sharp contrast, the RSS has a rather bizarre anachronistic anti-English stand: All this points to just one solution to these English-supremacy theories: Ban English. This is just a step in saving Hindustan from self-destruction.[Why not make Sanskrit the official language?] The RSS needs to realize that like it or not, English is the language of the world. To reject it is to deprive India the global economic and cultural power it deserves, and is necessary for its culture to survive in *any* form. It should support globalization and economic liberalization: India gains and not loses from globalization. The RSS must encourage and promote Indian economic strength. Instead the RSS says this: It is unfortunate that views of the Indian people are not reflected in the economic system the government tried to impose since 1991. The 'Economic Reform' policy has the philosophy which is directly opposed to the philosophy of the life of Indian culture and the Hindu religion. Thus, the people of India have to live with an alien economic system, which they are opposed to. The results of the successive elections in India have proved, that those who have propagated for the 'Economic Reform' were defeated in the elections. [An economic policy for India] Support non-controversial Indian cultural values: Not all Indian values hover around controversial religious themes. Where is the RSS- supported world-class Indian classical music school ? Why not use RSS volunteers to start a national network of free libraries in local language literature ? How about a museum of Indian history ? Surely there are things that the RSS can find (other than Ayodhya) to gain the support and trust of the Indian public. Surely it can raise more funds for more noble causes. And finally, what about the Muslims ? The RSS claims that it does not oppose Muslims or Islam, it merely wants to "Indianize" them. By any estimates, poverty and illiteracy, not Indianization are the biggest problems plaguing the Muslim community - and are the cause of many of the problems that are so stereotypically blamed on the Muslims. Whatever the RSS claims, today it is an untouchable entity for the Muslim popualation. The RSS agenda of Indianization is largely aimed at Muslims (since Hindus are presumed to be Indianized) - yet today the surest way to rally all Muslims against an idea is to get the RSS to support the idea. Surely even moderate Muslims had second thoughts about singing the Vande Mataram after the RSS started raising the issue. The RSS must realize one thing - in the RSS' current form, trying to "Indianize" Muslims is a hopeless task for it. The hard reality is this - even if 100% of the Hindu population of India supports the RSS, the goals of the RSS will not be realized. The core constituency of the RSS *is* the Muslims - one in which it has negligible support. It is only once (and if) the Muslim community starts supporting the RSS that the RSS can even begin to see the sort of broad-based Indian cultural revival that it seeks. And how exactly does the RSS go about gaining the trust of the Muslims ? Well that is a question for the RSS to ponder. Related Links · More about The future · News by chanakya --- ----------- Most read story about The future: Census: Do we need religion-based growth rates ? Article Rating Average Score: 0 Votes: 0 Please take a second and vote for this article: Sponsors Options Printer Friendly Page Send to a Friend Threshold -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 No Comments Nested Flat Thread Oldest First Newest First Highest Scores First The comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for their content. Re: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh - On its way to obsolescence ? (Score: 2, Insighful) by abhijitnandy on Saturday, September 25 @ 07:33:20 PDT (User Info | Send a Message) Excellent, excellent article. When the rest of India is discovering and defining the "New India" of the 21st century, RSS is trying to push things back to 16th century and even behind. Indian culture has survived centuries of onslaughts and has come away unscathed. In fact, the opposite has always happened - whoever has come to India has inevitably become "Indian"!! And this happens even to this day. What is "Indian Culture" is not something that is static; it is something that is dynamic and which Indians have defined for themselves each generation. Like mentioned in the article, there are many, many good things about India that we should and can do. Not only do them better, but to make it well known, make it public, and make those concepts global. In the end of the day, I'd rather believe in a more vibrant, alive, self-confident India and Indians who can speak more than three languages fluently, who are comfortable in any corner of the world, and yet who will wear a tika or go to the temple, mosque, church, gurdwara on festival days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 1, 2004 Report Share Posted October 1, 2004 There are some more things which RSS needs to do.They should build schools and colleges in small towns and villages.They should build hospitals for poor,They should educate village folk about how they can manage their resources in an effective manner.They should try to revive the old ways of managing public systems like building water tanks,small canals etc.They should also try to educate people in the villages about industries or businesses which they can do themselves.They can also train people on pottery,making carpets etc. These are some of the ways through which RSS can win the support of public.RSS also needs to publicize all this when they are doing it over a period of time.This age fortunately or unfortunately belongs to promotion,brand building,media coverage etc.In other words RSS needs to reinvent and market itself with a new brand. -- In vediculture, "vrnparker" <vrnparker> wrote: > Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh - On its way to obsolescence ? > http://vichaar.org/article129.html > > Posted on Friday, September 24 @ 15:20:08 PDT by chanakya > > The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has been praised, supported > and admired for its views. The RSS has also been bitterly hated and > heavily criticized. But it has persisted as an integral part of the > collective Indian pscyhe, either as a part of the problem or a part > of the solution, depending on the point of view of the observer. > > Where does the rise and fall of the BJP government, the (apparent) > fall from public interest in Ayodhya-like issues (despite several > attempts at resurrection), and the glimmer of hope of seeing an > economically strong India leave the RSS ? Will this landmark of the > Indian intellectual landscape fade away into history, or will it > persist to work towards its dream of Indian cultural revival and > create yet another generation of strong supporters and extreme > critics ? > > The RSS complains about unfair media coverage > > Tarun Vijay, editor of Panchjanya (the RSS newspaper), makes a > passionate case against the the "hateful" media coverage of the RSS: > > If we say, we are against dowry and the maximum numbers of inter- > caste and dowry-less marriages are held in RSS inspired families, or > we strongly oppose female foeticide, that we ridicule Hindus who > worship Durga during Puja but "kill" her when she arrives in the > womb, or feel equally happy to visit a nearby church during > Christmas, there is simply no possibility of a patient audience. > Unless there is a protest against Valentines Day. This gets wide > media coverage, surely because at that moment we saffronites fit > snugly in our perceptional cage.[imprisoned by Left intellectual > terrorism] > > Despite the explosive growth in Indian news media, there still > exists a very strong undercurrent of sensationalism, a logical > product of heavy competition and short attention spans of the > public. But surely the RSS itself can do more than just complain > about the media coverage it receives. It needs to undergo a process > of sincere transformation and reorganization. > > What the RSS must do to stay relevant > > Whether the RSS should or should not survive are clearly matters of > opinion. But this much is clear - there is a minimum set of changes > the RSS must make if it is to survive. > > > > > It should differentiate itself from the other members of the Saffron > Brigade: Just one example - the Shiv Sena has (or has had) a > distinct anti-migration stance to it. It has opposed the rapid > cosmopolitization of Bombay. It is one thing to speak out against > illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, but the Shiv Sena has also opposed > legal migrants from other parts of India, notably from Gujarat and > the South. Is this not a direct violation of the RSS' own notions of > the national and cultural unity of India ? Why has the RSS not been > critical of these stands of the Shiv Sena ? If the reason for its > deafening silence is political expediency, then the RSS cannot > complain if some of the mud that is thrown at the Shiv Sena begins > to stick on its door as well. > It should embrace English: The RSS must reform itself and enter the > 21st century. The RSS goal of preserving, nurturing and furthering > Hindu cultural thought might be one that several can support - but > the RSS approach to it has even strong supporters running away. > Israel has revived and nurtured Hebrew, and yet Israelis speak > impeccable English and can articulate their positions in any > international forum. In sharp contrast, the RSS has a rather bizarre > anachronistic anti-English stand: > > All this points to just one solution to these English-supremacy > theories: Ban English. This is just a step in saving Hindustan from > self-destruction.[Why not make Sanskrit the official language?] > > The RSS needs to realize that like it or not, English is the > language of the world. To reject it is to deprive India the global > economic and cultural power it deserves, and is necessary for its > culture to survive in *any* form. > > It should support globalization and economic liberalization: India > gains and not loses from globalization. The RSS must encourage and > promote Indian economic strength. Instead the RSS says this: > It is unfortunate that views of the Indian people are not reflected > in the economic system the government tried to impose since 1991. > The 'Economic Reform' policy has the philosophy which is directly > opposed to the philosophy of the life of Indian culture and the > Hindu religion. Thus, the people of India have to live with an alien > economic system, which they are opposed to. The results of the > successive elections in India have proved, that those who have > propagated for the 'Economic Reform' were defeated in the elections. > [An economic policy for India] > > Support non-controversial Indian cultural values: Not all Indian > values hover around controversial religious themes. Where is the RSS- > supported world-class Indian classical music school ? Why not use > RSS volunteers to start a national network of free libraries in > local language literature ? How about a museum of Indian history ? > Surely there are things that the RSS can find (other than Ayodhya) > to gain the support and trust of the Indian public. Surely it can > raise more funds for more noble causes. > And finally, what about the Muslims ? > > The RSS claims that it does not oppose Muslims or Islam, it merely > wants to "Indianize" them. By any estimates, poverty and illiteracy, > not Indianization are the biggest problems plaguing the Muslim > community - and are the cause of many of the problems that are so > stereotypically blamed on the Muslims. Whatever the RSS claims, > today it is an untouchable entity for the Muslim popualation. > > The RSS agenda of Indianization is largely aimed at Muslims (since > Hindus are presumed to be Indianized) - yet today the surest way to > rally all Muslims against an idea is to get the RSS to support the > idea. Surely even moderate Muslims had second thoughts about singing > the Vande Mataram after the RSS started raising the issue. The RSS > must realize one thing - in the RSS' current form, trying > to "Indianize" Muslims is a hopeless task for it. > > The hard reality is this - even if 100% of the Hindu population of > India supports the RSS, the goals of the RSS will not be realized. > The core constituency of the RSS *is* the Muslims - one in which it > has negligible support. It is only once (and if) the Muslim > community starts supporting the RSS that the RSS can even begin to > see the sort of broad-based Indian cultural revival that it seeks. > > And how exactly does the RSS go about gaining the trust of the > Muslims ? Well that is a question for the RSS to ponder. > > > > Related Links > · More about The future > · News by chanakya > > -- - > ----------- > > Most read story about The future: > Census: Do we need religion-based growth rates ? > > > > > Article Rating > Average Score: 0 > Votes: 0 > > > Please take a second and vote for this article: > > > > > > > Sponsors > > > > Options > > Printer Friendly Page > > Send to a Friend > > > > > > Threshold -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 No Comments Nested Flat Thread Oldest > First Newest First Highest Scores First > > The comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for > their content. > > > > Re: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh - On its way to obsolescence ? > (Score: 2, Insighful) > by abhijitnandy on Saturday, September 25 @ 07:33:20 PDT > (User Info | Send a Message) > Excellent, excellent article. > > When the rest of India is discovering and defining the "New India" > of the 21st century, RSS is trying to push things back to 16th > century and even behind. > > Indian culture has survived centuries of onslaughts and has come > away unscathed. In fact, the opposite has always happened - whoever > has come to India has inevitably become "Indian"!! And this happens > even to this day. What is "Indian Culture" is not something that is > static; it is something that is dynamic and which Indians have > defined for themselves each generation. > > Like mentioned in the article, there are many, many good things > about India that we should and can do. Not only do them better, but > to make it well known, make it public, and make those concepts > global. > > In the end of the day, I'd rather believe in a more vibrant, alive, > self-confident India and Indians who can speak more than three > languages fluently, who are comfortable in any corner of the world, > and yet who will wear a tika or go to the temple, mosque, church, > gurdwara on festival days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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