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London: The work of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is rooted in “Shuddha Saatvika Prem” or pure and noble love rather than “intense hatred”, the organisation’s Sarsanghchalak
Mohan Bhagwat said in London.

The idea of “apnapan”, or a sense of oneness and belonging, lies at the heart of Hindu thought and the Sangh’s approach, he said while speaking during the RSS centenary outreach.

“I heard some people say, intense hatred is the basis of our work. It is just the reverse. ‘Shuddha Saatvika Prem’, that is the basis of our work,” Bhagwat said.

He said that the RSS has long emphasised pure and noble love as the foundation of its activities and that the principle has remained unchanged even after a century of the organisation’s existence, while elaborating on the subject.

This sense of belonging extends beyond the individual to family, community, society and humanity, while also underlining the Hindu civilisational connection with nature, he explained.

“The word Hindu, we cannot understand on the basis of any religious practice or a lifestyle. Hindu is a nature. Society which has a nature to accept and respect all diversities because it holds that always leads to the same goal,” the RSS chief said, as reported by IANS.

He referred to a song sung in the RSS to underline the organisation’s emphasis on “Shuddha Saatvika Prem”.

“We sing a song in Sangh; we say: ‘Shuddha saatvika prem apne karya ka aadhaar hai.’ (Pure, noble love is the foundation of our work.) I heard some people say intense hatred is the basis of our work. It is just the reverse,” he said.

“And that has not worn out even in 100 years. You will find the same shuddha saatvika love in the behaviour of swayamsevaks, in the atmosphere of the Sangh,” Bhagwat added.

He said Hindu thought is fundamentally rooted in the belief that existence is one, even though it appears in diverse forms, while responding to a question on what Hindu civilisation could offer the world at a time marked by global conflicts and other economic and technological challenges.

Speaking on the Hindu understanding of diversity and coexistence, he said that differences in ways of life or beliefs should not necessarily lead to separation. He linked this understanding to the broader concept of Hindu civilisation and its approach to living together.

“Hindu is different… Because your way is different, we need not be separate. We can go together, we can work together, we can live together. And we should live together. That is Hindu,” Bhagwat said.

Distinguishing between the concepts of “Nation” and “Rashtra”, he said that the two should not be treated as direct equivalents.