Preface
The functioning, the ideology and the deployment of the workers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh are such that sacrifice and continued hard work are given the pride of place. The premium on sacrifice and hard work automatically leads to a low priority being given to intelligence and capabilities which are, as a result, at a discount. The development of a finely-honed organization, backed by a large body of dedicated members, the intense but liberal national-ism, the spontaneous discipline and eternal preparedness-qualities which distinguish the R.S.S. from other organizations-flow out of the emphasis on sacrifice and continuity. But its weaknesses and its lack of effectiveness in proportion to its size are also the by-product of the same emphasis on hard work and sacrifice and the consequent discount on capability and intelligence. The pracharaka system In the R.S.S. is an embodiment of the spirit of sacrifice and continued hard work which percolates to all levels in the organization. Lest I be misunderstood the spirit of sacrifice is the rarest quality one finds in present-day society. One can be proud of the pracharakas, their sense of dedication and the hard work they have been doing. I, for one, am. The life-long work that the pracharakas and the workers do add to the self-respect of the organization and is an assurance to the nation, particularly in the present atmosphere clouded with a miasma of The Sangh is, however, unable to find a way to deal with the by-product of its distinctive qualities, which limits its scope, causes some shortcomings and obstructs the exercise of its influence in the right proportion. A detailed analysis of this is carried out in the present work. Unless the challenge inherent in the crisis referred to therein is adequately met, the R.S.S. may not be able to make a meaningful contribution-which it otherwise can-in the emergence of a great, strong, egalitarian and prosperous India. The R.S.S. does not lack intelligent and capable men: their number would be more than in any other similar organization. That is so because of the size of the Sangh, but even so, the number of such persons is far from adequate. Most of the swayamsevakas are experts in organizational matters and have been working consistently. The sum total of their ability is much more than it is found in other organizations. The density of ability or the ability per worker is less than in some organizations. The average organizational capacity per worker, however, is many times more than elsewhere. This paradox limits or, at least, weakens the possibilities of the contribution of the Sangh in proportion to its size towards national regeneration. Change being the law of life, it applies equally to individuals and organizations. Some organizations change more than others, because they feel a greater need for change. Mutability is not given to all, however, and one finds in India today models of immutability stridently claiming to be the reincarnations of their old selves. There are other models too, about which the charge of immutability can-not be made without disregarding truth.
Foreword
If untouchability in social life is bad, the practice of untouchability in public and political life is no less deplorable. A systematic campaign has been going on these days to make the R.S.S. and any-one associated with it pariahs in public life. The campaign has not succeeded because the campaigners are mostly political self-seekers, and their power-game is transparent. It has actually earned for the R.S.S. great sympathy in non-political circles. And, generally speaking, a lot of interest has been aroused in the people about the organization. On Vijaya Dashmi Day this year (1979) the R.S.S. was fifty-four years old. Never before during its existence has the organization been as much in the limelight as it has been during the last two and a half years, that is, since the revocation of the Emergency. It is regrettable, however, that most discussions about the R.S.S. are singularly ill-informed. They are based generally not on what R.S.S. stands for, or says or does, but on what the political elite of the country thinks it is. It is thus more the image of the R.S.S. that is discussed than its reality. My own associations with the R.S.S. have been since my school-days. And I know that the R.S.S. image is considerably different from the reality. In some respects, of course, the reality and image tally. Even the opponents of R.S.S would not deny that it is a strong and disciplined organization and that its cadres are patriotic and selfless. Its capacity for constructive endeavour also evokes universal admiration. By its wonderful work in the cyclone-ravaged areas of Andhra, or more recently, in the Morvi floods, it has proved this capacity remarkably. But there are certain areas where the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's image is totally different from reality. The repeated charge of communalism hurled at the R.S.S., for instance, is the result of a false image created about it by its adversaries. From its very inception, the R.S.S. has shunned politics: this is the reality. But the image is different. Those who have come into close contact with the R.S.S. leadership would readily acknowledge their catholicity of outlook, their progressive attitude to problems and their keen sense of social awareness. But their image in many quarters is of narrow-mindedness, and even of obscurantism. The R.S.S. role in the fight against the British rulers also is not widely known so that it has been possible for its detractors to speak disparagingly about this patriotic organization even in that context. Shri Dina Nath Mishra's study, I am sure, is going to meet a long-felt need by projecting the reality of the R.S.S. through the eyes of a sympathetic author. The first part of the book constitutes a thorough and painstaking study of the history, ideology and organizational working of the R.S.S. The second attempts an analysis as to why and how a communication gap subsists between the Sangh and the rest of society, and why the image is different from reality in several aspects. While the first provides students of Indian affairs valuable insight into the working of this great organization, the latter part offers to those connected with the organization itself a lot of food for thought.
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