\ SAMVAD संवाद
Jyeshtha Shukla 2, Vik. Samvat 2079, Yugabda 5124:1 June, 2022: SM 4005 (For Private Circulation Only)
1. FESTIVALS: PURI RATH YATRA: Ratha Yatra falls on the second day of
Shukla Paksha of Aashadha month as per the Oriya Calendar (July 1 this year).
During the Rath Yatra, Bhagwan Jagannath, Bhagwan Balabhadra and their sister
Subhadra travel from Jagannath Mandir to Shri Gundicha Mandir in huge rathas
allowing public to have darshan. The Rathas are huge wheeled wooden structures,
which are built anew every year and are pulled by the devotees. After nine days,
the deities ride the chariots back to Shri Mandir in ‘bahuda jatra’.
The Ratha Yatra festival has also become a common sight in many major cities of
the world including San Francisco, Prague, Brisbane etc. -GoTop
2. ‘ONE NATION – ONE HEALTH SYSTEM IS THE NEED OF HOUR’:
RASHTRAPATI KOVIND: On May 28, Rashtrapati Ram Nath Kovind graced and
addressed a function on the subject ‘One-Nation – One Health System is the need
of Hour’ organized by Arogya Bharati in Bhopal.
3. ‘KALA YATRA’ INAUGURATED BY DR. MOHAN BHAGWAT: Shri
Kamakhya Kala Peeth - The Centre for Bharatiya Classical Dances (CICD), is a
cultural institution founded in 1977 by Padma Vibhushan Dr Sonal Mansingh. In
the 45th year of the institute, a two day ‘Kala Yatra’ festival was organized on
April 29-30 at Kamani Auditorium in New Delhi. The colourful event, Ramotsav,
was inaugurated with the ceremonial lighting of a lamp by RSS Sarsanghachalak Dr
Mohan Bhagwat who was the guest of honour, and Shri Bhupender Yadav, Union
Minister for Labour and Employment and Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
With a scintillating performance titled “Katha Siya-Ram Ki”, Dr. Sonal Mansingh
showcased how Prabhu Shri Ram and Sitaji lived their lives and handled
extraordinary situations.
4. PM MODI VISITED NEPAL TO MARK BUDDHA PURNIMA: On May
16, Pradhan Mantri Narendra Modi, along with his Nepalese counterpart Sher
Bahadur Deuba offered their prayers at the sacred Maya Devi temple, the main
site of birthplace of Bhagwan Buddha in Lumbini. The leaders paid their respects
at the Marker Stone inside the temple premises which pinpoints the exact birth
spot of Bhagwan Buddha, lit lamps near the Ashoka Pillar located adjacent to the
temple and watered the Bodhi tree sapling from Bodh Gaya which was gifted by PM
Modi to Lumbini in 2014.
5. TIME TO PUT HISTORICAL FACTS IN RIGHT PERSPECTIVE: SUNIL
AMBEKAR: RSS Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh Shri Sunil Ambekar was the main
speaker at the Devrishi Narad Patrakar Samman Samaroh organized by Vishwa Samvad
Kendra in Jaipur on May 16. Speaking on the occasion, he said that awareness of
the national perspective builds and sustains a nation and media has to fulfill
its role in building this national perspective. 
6. SEVENTH INDIA IDEAS CONCLAVE: India Foundation
organized the Seventh India Ideas Conclave in Bengaluru from May 20 to 22. The
theme of the conclave was “India 2.0: Rebooting to Meta Era”. Around 400
delegates attended the event in which an illustrious list of speakers shared
their detailed thoughts on a varied set of fields – economy, industry, science,
religion, politics, commerce, connectivity, history, spirituality – in which
Bharat has to focus to leapfrog into the Meta Era. The speakers included many
Union ministers, leaders from various companies like TCS, Infosys, Facebook,
BioCON, General Atomic Global etc, environment specialists, spiritual leaders
and historians. They spoke on various topics like making Bharat a preferred
destination for semiconductor manufacturing, achieving energy efficiency goals,
capacity building of the population, enabling climate change etc. There was a
poignant session by Vijay Kumar of the India Pride Project. His presentation
showed us how our gods end up being smuggled and sold, the relentless efforts to
bring back these back home and how the villages welcomed back their idols.
7. JORDAN’S KING ABDULLAH II VISITED DARSHANA EXHIBITION:
Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh USA (HSS), in conjunction with a group of American
Hindu organizations representing Indic religions and philosophies held an
exhibition titled “Darshana – A Glimpse into the Hindu Civilization” on Capitol
Hill in Washington D.C. on May 10 and 11. It was visited and appreciated by
thirty-two Congressional offices, two U.S. Senators, and seven Members of the
House of Representatives.
8. SANATAN DHARMA SWAYAMSEVAK SANGH - CAMPS: In the
month of April and May, Sanatan Dharma Swayamsevak Sangh (SDSS) Myanmar
organised one-day Sadhana Vargs at various places. The aim of these vargs was to
increase knowledge about Hindu Dharma and Sangh work among participants and
encourage them to practice the teaching of Dharma and Hindu Sangathan karya in
their daily lives.
9. HSS CANADA : HINDU HERITAGE CAMP AT HALIFAX: A half
day Hindu Heritage Camp was conducted by Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh HSS Canada in
Halifax, Nova Scotia on May 28. 41 Balas of the age group 5 to 15 participated
in activities which included Khel, Yoga, Story, Shloka, Geet and Vedic
Mathematics.
10. TREWYN SCHOOL BOOK FAIR ORGANIZED BY HSS PEORIA: On
the occasion of the Hindu New Year, Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, Peoria chapter,
organized the second annual book fair at Trewyn School in Peoria, IL, from May
11 to May 13. The purpose of the book fair was to get children excited about
books and provide an opportunity for every child to buy at least one affordable
book of their choice. The book fair was first conceptualized in April 2019 after
the cancellation of the regular Scholastic book fair which sold books that were
either not affordable for the students or were not appropriate for the reading
levels of Trewyn children.
11. AUSTRALIA RECOGNISES SWASTIKA & BANNED HAKENKREUZ:
In a significant victory for Hindu organizations, the Australian state of
Victoria has recognized the cultural and historical significance of the Hindu
Swastika symbol.
The Summary Offences Amendment (Nazi Symbol Prohibition) Bill 2022 was
introduced by the Victorian Government which makes it a criminal offense to
intentionally display the Nazi symbol Hakenkreuz in public. At the same time,
recognizing the significance it holds for Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and other
Dharmic communities, the Bill allows the Swastika symbol to be used and
displayed . It identifies Swastika as an ancient and sacred symbol of peace and
good fortune for Hindus and other sister religions.
12. CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY BILL REOCGNISES DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
SWASTIKA AND HAKENKREUZ: On May 26, the California State Assembly passed the
bill AB.2282, taking a historic step and leading the nation as the first state
legislative body to legally recognize the difference between the swastika and
the Nazi emblem, the hakenkreuz. The amended passage of the bill states – “This
bill would state the intent of the Legislature is to criminalize, for the
purpose of terrorizing a person, the display or placement of the Nazi swastika
and not swastikas associated with Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.” Hindu
American Foundation’s Managing Director, Samir Kalra, based in CA, stated “HAF
and Assemblywoman Bauer-Kahan both recognize that the passage of AB.2282, as
amended, is a significant change that is the first step in reform. We still need
to educate the public, media, and law enforcement about the differences between
the hateful Nazi hakenkreuz and the peaceful meaning and sacred use of the
swastika as has been done for thousands of years in the Hindu, Buddhist, and
Jain communities.” -GoTop
13. SEWA FELLOWSHIP: Sewa International (SI) announced
the launch of a new initiative - Sewa Fellowship. Driven by a spirit of service
or 'sewa', the program bridges curriculum-style learning, experiential work at
the grassroots, and one-on-one mentorship by master practitioners. 
14. AUSTRALIAN PM ANNOUNCES $250,000 FOR KARMA KITCHEN:
Prime Minister Mr. Scott Morrison announced a grant of $250,000 to Hindu Council
of Australia for its Karma Kitchen program. The announcement was made by him
during a Hindu Council's Meet and Greet Political Parties event at Park Royal,
Parramatta.
15. WHO HONOURS ASHA VOLUNTEERS: Bharat’s one million
all-women ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers were awarded and
honoured by WHO for their outstanding contribution to advancing global health,
demonstrating leadership and commitment to regional health issues. They were
honoured for their crucial role in linking the community with the health system
and ensuring those living in rural areas could access primary health care
services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ceremony for the awards, which was established in 2019, was part of the
live-streamed high-level opening session of the 75th World Health Assembly. -GoTop
16. CAPT ABHILASHA BARAK BECAME FIRST LADY COMBAT AVIATOR
OF INDIAN ARMY: On May 25, Captain Abhilasha Barak became the first woman
combat aviator in the Army Aviation Corps. She passed out with flying colors
along with 36 Indian Army Pilots, during the passing out ceremony of the Army
Aviation Corps at Combat Army Aviation School (CATS), Nashik. 
The Indian Air Force flies attack helicopters which are under the operational
control of the army. Helicopters such as the HAL Chetak, HAL Cheetah and HAL
Dhruv provide logistical support for the Indian Army.
The Army Aviation Corps also perform combat search and rescue (CSAR), artillery
lift, combat transportation, logistics relief, military prisoner transportation
and medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) in wartime and during natural disasters. -GoTop
17. JAPANESE PM KISHIDA PRAISES BHARAT’S VACCINE HELP UNDER
QUAD VACCINE INITIATIVE: On May 24, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
praised Bharat’s contribution to the Quad Vaccine Initiative while recalling the
country’s help to Thailand and Cambodia. PM Kishida said that Bharatiya-made
vaccines delivered under the Quad Vaccine Initiative were recently received with
gratitude in Thailand and Cambodia. In a ceremony, Kishida also noted that
Cambodia Prime Minister Hun Sen himself attended the handing over ceremony of
the vaccines.
Under the Quad Vaccine Partnership, Bharat presented about 200,000 doses of Made
in Bharat Covovax vaccines to Thailand in April. Bharat also extended its
support to Thailand to help the country fight the war against the pandemic by
supplying medicines and oxygen concentrators, read the official statement.
The Quad Leaders announced the Quad Vaccine Partnership at their first Summit on
March 12, 2021. It aims to leverage Quad’s collective strength to ensure the
global availability of safe and effective vaccines by expanding manufacturing
and assisting countries in the Indo-Pacific with vaccination. -GoTop
18. BHARAT’S MEN BADMINTON TEAM WIN IN THOMAS CUP:
Dishing out a performance for the ages, Bharat’s men’s badminton team lifted the
Thomas Cup title with a commanding 3-0 win over powerhouse Indonesia on May 15,
a historic triumph that will enhance country’s status in the sport. World
Championships medalist Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth and doubles players Chirag
Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy stunned the 14-time champions to win the
prestigious team championship for first time ever. The Bharatiya side had not
even reached the last-four stage since 1979 and ended up upsetting formidable
Malaysia and Denmark en route the summit clash.
19. SHRI VISHWA NIKETAN: Pravas: Saumitra
Gokhale, Vishwa Vibhag Samyojak would travel to Canada. Visitors: Vineet
and Vyom Goel, Raejndra Kelkar: USA; Shekhar Deeptiman: Australia. -GoTop
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: When one is neither attached to sense objects nor to
actions, such a person is said to be elevated in the science of Yog, having
renounced all desires for the fruits of actions.– Srimad Bhagwat Gita (6.4). -GoTop
JAI SHRI RAM
----
RSS, NEARLY HUNDRED
DR MANMOHAN VAIDYA
The Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh was founded in Nagpur in 1925 and on the Vijayadashami of
2022, the organisation will complete 97 years of its existence. As it approaches
its centenary, the Sangh’s reach and influence is growing manifold, despite
opposition and obstacles. Consistent hard work, penance, sacrificial spirit of
the Sangh workers, accrescent support of the society and blessings of the
Almighty have made this possible. This achievement fascinates many, the world
over. Lately, people are also curious to learn how RSS would celebrate its
centenary.
RSS founder, Dr Hedgewar was very clear in his vision, in that he saw Sangh not
as an organisation operating within the society, but as the organisation of the
entire society. One of Sangh’s luminaries, Shri Dattopant Thengadi remarked,
“conceptually RSS and Hindu society are co-terminus and psychologically they are
one.”
Therefore, the centenary of RSS cannot be confined to the organisational level.
Since Sangh is synonymous with society, and Dr Hedgewar opined that our mission
to unify the entire society under Sangh’s vision should be fulfilled even before
the celebration of the silver jubilee, accomplishing the Sangh’s mission before
the centenary would be the ideal centenary celebration.
A Sangh song goes like Karyamagnata Jeevan ho aur Karyapurti hi Vishranti) “to
live is to be absorbed in work and only its completion is to rest.”
The journey of the monumental expansion of Sangh operations has seen four major
phases. The period spanning the foundation of RSS up to the nation’s
independence should be considered the first phase, wherein the focus was on
“organisation” since it was necessary to make people believe that Hindu society
can be united and speak about Bharat and Hindutva as a unified chorus. While
swayamsevaks participated in the ongoing freedom movement and other social
reform movements, Sangh as an organisation completely absorbed itself in
organising the collective.
The second phase of Sangh’s expansion is from Bharat’s independence to the year
1990. A thousand-year-long struggle followed by the inspiration of the freedom
movement called for a need to envision a social and national blueprint based on
our real identity or self (“Swa”). Rooted in the traditions of Bharat,
initiatives were propelled by swayamsevaks in several segments like education,
student development, politics, labour, tribals and farmers. While the
organisation carried on with its core activities, many people’s initiatives
addressing the needs of the entire spectrum of human lifespan also shaped up
alongside.
Today, Sangh’s shakhas are conducted in over 90% of the development blocks and
more than 35 community-driven initiatives are addressing different needs of the
society. The third phase commenced following Dr Hedgewar’s birth centenary in
the year 1990. The mission to weave the society as one with affection and
affinity resulted in the outreach to the deprived, weak and the backward within
our society. Sewa Vibhag (social service initiative) was established to work
towards their uplift.
Take for example the matter of conversion that has been debated since the
freedom movement. In 1967, under Congress governments, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha
passed a bill to stop Christian conversion. Since then this issue has
single-handedly been taken up by the Bharatiya Janata Party only and most of the
bills to stop conversion were passed during the BJP reign in various states with
an exception of Himachal Pradesh.
In 2006, the Congress government led by Shri Virbhadra Singh passed a bill
against conversion there. Just a few years ago, some officials of the Sangh
Sampark Vibhag had met with Shri Virbhadra Singh-ji, who narrated the first-hand
accounts of the passing of the bill and told them that if he could be
instrumental in stopping conversion anywhere in India outside Himachal Pradesh,
then he would readily contribute.
Similarly, in 2008-09, when Gau-Gram Rath Yatra was organised, “Sarvodaya”
workers participated in this yatra at many locations. In this way, issue-based
cooperation with those who might not entirely share the Sangh’s worldview has
been enabled by the Sampark Vibhag.
RSS has been and still continues to be at the receiving end of spiteful,
organised efforts to malign its image through misinformation. To tackle this the
Prachar Vibhag (media relations initiative) of RSS was formed in 1994. Its aim
is to disseminate what Sangh really stands for and does for society. It
emphasises RSS’ national outlook using different media and also counters the
malicious, false propaganda built around RSS by providing accurate information.
Additionally, during the third phase, alarmed by certain burning social
problems, key social reform projects were instituted. It was through the
intervention of “Dharmajagaran Vibhag” efforts to stop organised mass Hindu
conversion operations and the project of helping those proselytised and desirous
of connecting back with their roots were initiated.
Along similar lines, it was felt that village folk could be mobilized to enable
village development, independent of state intervention. With a motto to usher in
extensive rural development by empowering villagers in a way that they can
accrue adequate benefit of the government schemes, “gram vikas” work was
started.
Since antiquity our Hindu society has had members that identified with varied
caste nomenclatures but those elements that have vested interests in dividing
the society have consistently tried to instigate caste-oriented animosity. To
create a consortium for all concerned to discuss common challenges and
contemplate collective action, a series of meetings have been organised, known
as “Samajik Sadbhav” (social harmony) meetings. Similarly, to eradicate
untouchability and malpractices associated with it, by commemorating our common
heritage, efforts have been made through “Samajik Samarasata” (Social Equality
and Brotherhood).
The work of “Gauseva—Gausamvardhan” has flourished with thousands of new
gaushalas coming up all over Bharat. Creating mass awareness about the medicinal
value of products obtained from cows of indigenous breeds, conservation and
promotion and breed improvement of these cows along with education programs to
train farmers in cow dung based natural farming are some of the programs
undertaken.
While Western thought sees the individual as the smallest unit of the society,
Indian culture believes that it is the family. According to the Bharatiya
spiritual worldview, family is the first step of the journey from “Me to We.” In
the present scenario, urbanization and the fast pace of life have shrunk
families and created a lack of opportunities to come together and celebrate our
heritage, traditions, relationships, and festivals. Therefore, “Kutumb Prabodhan”
(familial awakening through dialogue) was started wherein family members gather
weekly to analyze our civilizational heritage, traditions, culture and the
prevailing social scenario from the nationalistic point of view and also discuss
their duties in the light of the same.
In the last 500 years, growth based on a western paradigm of development has
wrecked the ecological balance of our precious earth. With the ambition to
restore this equilibrium, “environmental protection” work was started. It
strives to bring in awareness and propel activism around the issue of
“environment,” by encouraging public participation.
Now we are in the fourth phase of our evolution wherein we expect every “earning
young swayamsevak” to actively participate in and cooperate for social awakening
and social change by choosing any one area for social transformation according
to his interest and ability.
The founder of the Sangh, Dr Hedgewar in his address during a 1940 RSS training
camp said, “Sangh work and values should not be confined to the shakha but must
be extended and established in the entire society.” Earning the necessary income
for our families, nurturing our families and attending shakha regularly would
not suffice. To invest one’s time in actively working towards social change and
social awakening is the definition of a Sangh worker.
Sangh expects that its swayamsevaks, 1. will develop themselves to effectively
execute Sangh’s mission in the society. 2. Will uphold the holistic Akhil
Bharatiya (All-India) perspective, that this entire nation from (Ram) Setu to
the Himalayas is one and is my own. 3. Will realise the feeling that all members
of the society are equal. 4. Will regularly attend shakha so that the practice
of putting the nation above oneself and leading the movement while remaining in
the backdrop could be perfected. 5. Will actively channel the character traits
built through the shakha in one of the many areas of social transformation.
Simultaneously, swayamsevaks should be more active in society, meet new people
so that newer sections of society can come into contact with the Sangh,
understand the Sangh and know the national ideals of the RSS. Being an integral
part of society, they can also connect and contribute to protect Hindu Dharma,
the Hindu culture and the Hindu society and remain devoted to the cause of
all-round progress of the nation.
Along with this, the fundamental work of societal organisation and character
building will go on. Social awakening is also a perennial task. With a view to
bring about systemic changes, swayamsevaks are actively contributing in
different areas through various organisations. It is time that each swayamsevak
goes out with a renewed vigour for social change and through all these
initiatives towards the fulfilment of Sangh work would be the best way to
celebrate the centenary.
(Writer is Sahsarkaryavah of RSS)
https://www.sundayguardianlive.com/opinion/rss-nearly-hundred
-GoTop
SHRI VISHWA NIKETAN shrivishwaniketan@gmail.com http://svn.epapers.in
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