Thrissur, June 14:
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday said the RSS is a unique organisation that cannot be compared to any other movement or institution, asserting that there has been nothing similar to it in the past thousand years of history.
Speaking at a special interaction programme in Thrissur as part of the RSS centenary year celebrations, Bhagwat said the organisation, despite being known across the world, still needed to be properly introduced to society. The event was held at the Hyatt Regency, Puzhakkal, as part of a series of programmes marking 100 years of the RSS.
“Today, people in every corner of the world have heard about the RSS. They know it is something connected to India and that it is an organisation or movement. Yet only a handful truly understand what the RSS is,” Bhagwat said.
He noted that people generally try to understand unfamiliar institutions by comparing them with something they already know. However, he argued that such comparisons fail in the case of the RSS.
“The sky can only be understood as the sky and the ocean as the ocean. They cannot be explained through comparisons. The RSS is similar in that sense. It has no precedent and cannot be equated with anything else,” he said.
Bhagwat said many people attempt to define the RSS by observing its activities, but such conclusions are often incomplete. While RSS volunteers participate in route marches and physical training programmes, he said the organisation is not a military force. Similarly, though it promotes indigenous games, martial arts, songs and cultural activities, it cannot be described as a sports or cultural organisation.
“These activities are merely instruments used to achieve a larger objective. They are not the RSS itself,” he said.
According to Bhagwat, the organisation can be understood only through direct experience and participation. He stressed that the RSS has no formal membership system and remains open to all.
“Anyone can come, observe, participate and, if they wish, remain associated for life,” he said.
Bhagwat is on a three-day visit to Kerala and has participated in programmes in Thiruvananthapuram and Thrissur after visiting Amritapuri and meeting Mata Amritanandamayi Devi. He is scheduled to leave for Bengaluru from Kochi on Monday.
