Narendra Modi

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JYOTIPUNJ
by Narendra Modi

Translated into English by

A.K. Gandhi

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 To
Millions of Swayamsevaks
engaged in the service of
Motherland as their sole goal
 Contents
Jyotipunj 9
Introduction 11
Flowers and Leaves 21
1. A Tribute to Vivekananda by Doctor Saheb 25
2. The Honourable Guruji Madhavrao Sadashivrao
Golvalkar 39
3. Transparent Gem – Pappaji Dr. Pranlal Doshi 87
4. Yuga Rishi Centenarian Shastriji 99
5. Sangh Yogi Vakil Saheb Lakshmanrao Inamdar 123
6. Madhur Madhukar Madhukarrao Bhagwat 147
7. The Determined Anantrao Kale 155
8. Dynamic Personality Keshavrao Deshmukh 171
9. Sunset at Noon Vasantbhai Gajendragadkar 183
10. Committed to Service Dr. Vishwanathrao Vanikar 197
11. Persistent Karmayogi Kashinathrao Bagwade 205
12. Struggling Life Nathabhai Jhagda 213
13. Multi-dimensional Talent Babubhai Ojha 223
14. Gangaghat Bachubhai Bhagat 231
15. Witty Personality Vasudevrao Talvalkar 239
16. Evergreen Spring Vasantrao Chipalunkar 247
 Jyotipunj
During this journey of mine for refinement and
transformation, I got an opportunity to come into contact with
a small number of people as the world sees them, yet so exalted
people in life. Their love, their association has been the reason
of inspiration in my journey. The list of such people is quite
long but it is not possible to mention each of them.
Few people are aware of this exalted tradition of sacrificing
their life without expecting anything in return.
Such people who dedicate every moment of their lives and
every particle of their bodies in the service of the Motherland
are seldom remembered, but their fragrance surrounds us
always.
At times, a new wave of inspiration is infused just by
recalling the memories concerning such lives, and so, for the
bliss of the inner-self, for the happiness of everybody, we have
undertaken a humble effort to delineate the fragrance of these
architects of the society.
—Narendra Modi
 Introduction
The life of only those people in the world is purposeful
who are able to dedicate a part or whole of their life in others’
good and service. Such great people have made special
contribution in constructing the world’s history. Service-oriented
people have been born in every country of the world, but it has
been a high point of India, by which it has been able to preserve
and sustain its history over such a long period of time. Other
places cannot match the illustrations brought to the fore in India.
The greatest name in this respect is that of none other than
Maharishi Dadhichi. One devoted time and another youth, one
gave up wealth and splendour and another faced the turmoil of
imprisonment. The land of India is great, the Dharma here is
great, and the gods here are great who inspired a seer to donate
his entire body in order to destroy the demons. Go to a king
and ask for land, and he will willingly give it. Go to a scholar
and ask for learning, and he will teach you for twelve years. Go
to a cloth merchant and ask for cloth, he will give you cloth to
cover the body and money to sustain. We all have heard of
donation of wealth, learning, cloth, land and even good deeds
by the scholarly Brahmins, but nobody has ever heard of an
individual who could donate his body, his life itself. Maharishi
donated each part of his body, in all his sense, in all delight, to
destroy the demon Vritrasur and other demons. It is hard to
find such a strange renunciation in the world.
In these difficult times of modern age, this flow of tradition
has not been impeded. With the blessings of the Almighty, a
great person came to the fore, which is well known by people
of the country. He is none other than the Man. Dr. Keshav
12

Baliram Hedgewar, whom we call by the name of Dr. Hedgewar.

He had an idea that there should be some people in the service
of the nation. Who will build the nation if everybody is engaged
in his own individual tasks of earning livelihood, living a
personal life and procreating offsprings? Who will then guard
the Mother India?
Many people those days were busy to serve these purposes
from political viewpoint. We cannot negate their contribution,
however, on the other hand, Dr. Hedgewar was of the firm view
that politics ultimately leads to fragmenting the society,
individual selfishness comes to the fore at one or the other stage.
In it, good qualities are little spread, the people whose self
interests are not served, they make an effort to prove even the
virtuous as evil. This concept must have resided in his mind;
and this seems to be the precise reason that he kept away from
politics and established the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to
achieve the exalted goals of nation-building and individual-
building. At that time, he had the company of only a few people,
but there is nothing great or small – we must not think that
way.
I got an opportunity to visit two places – one is the banyan
tree in Kolkata and the other Kabir Vat (banyan) on the banks
of the Narmada. When I visited these two places, I wondered
on seeing such massive branches and offshoots that were
touching the ground. They had grown so much that it was hard
to find the source stem, and I enquired this fact from an officer
present there. He said that it was difficult to find out the source
stem; perhaps the previous officers would be able to point it
out. However, the branches had grown to such an extent that
they all appeared to be the source stem. How fortunate must
have been the seed of this tree, from which came forth a tree,
and each branch that came forth from this tree transformed itself
into a complete banyan tree. It is hard to know who sowed the
first seed, nobody knows this man.
This banyan tree had not been created intently. A bird
somewhere might have partaken of a fruit, and it might have
felt the natural desire to discharge its faeces, and this discharge
 13

could have led to this creation. Man could not have done this;
but a bird is very fortunate that it can perform such a great task
though it is very small, very trivial. It can accomplish such a
great task that even the seed in its discharge can become the
greatest banyan tree. It is so wonderful. On seeing this banyan
tree, an idea came to my mind that if an individual decides to
do something with complete devotion and is determined to do
it with complete resolve, his thinking too can become extensive
in order to provide shade, peace and cool, just like the banyan
tree that has grown from a small seed.
If we look at the life of Dr. Hedgewar from this perspective,
we can find that his endeavour was like that of sowing the small
seed in the ground which culminated into the massive banyan
tree. He initiated his work with only five Swayamsevaks. The
scope, capability, outcome and satisfaction derived from the
work continued to expand and augment continuously, and this
soon formed into a chain in which one linked with the next,
and the next with his next. People are wont to proceed ahead
with some selfish motive, but this was a wonderful incidence
in which hundreds of people had resolved to dedicate their
youth selflessly with the motive of building a society. We are
aware that selfless people are seldom respected by the selfish
people, and they propagate about them that they are useless
beings wasting their time. We often claim such things about the
saints and seers too.
Nari mui ghar sampati nasi,
Moond munday bhaye sanyasi.
(As one considers that after the death of wife, family and
property vanish. Similarly, one becomes sage after shaving
his head.)
This is what is said about the saints and seers. This couplet
says that the wife died and there were no assets at home, so
they got the head shaved and became a Sanyasi. Such
accusations are common when it comes to the Sanyasis
(hermits). But when we talk of Swami Vivekananda, Swami
Ramatirtha and hundreds of others following the traditions of
Shankaracharya, they are not those Sanyasis who shaved their
14

heads only out of compulsion; rather they are the ones who
shave others with the razor of learning and virtue. At that time,
people expressed doubt if so few people could transform the
nation. However, Dr. Hedgewar had complete faith in his mind
that it is a national task, it is a divine task. Gradually, he came
into contact with noble people. This was the reason that just the
previous year, we all have celebrated the centenary anniversary
celebrations in the honour of the Man. Madhav Sadashiv
Golvalkar (Guruji) with complete vigour and enthusiasm. With
the blessings of Almighty, I was appointed the Chairman of the
entire National Programme, and I accepted this task in all
humility. Nobody knew that Doctor Saheb would pass for the
heavenly abode so soon, and he assigned this task to a teacher
to take it forward.
Guruji, in his heart of hearts, wished to be a Sanyasi. He
was initiated into Brahmacharya (celibacy) by Swami
Akhandanand, the Gurubhai (pupil-brother) of Swami
Vivekananda and pupil of Swami Ramakrishna Paramhansa.
He grew hair and beard too. He looked noble in this garb.
Swamiji gave him the Kamandal (the alms pot) and said that
his hair and beard looked pretty well; and he asked him not to
shave them. In the meanwhile, he visited the Man. Dr.
Hedgewar.
Doctor Saheb saw Golvalkar. He had been a teacher, he was
a renouncer. He had the spirit of detachment from the material
world, so he had become a Sanyasi. Dr. Hedgewar asked Guruji,
“What are you busy with?” The response was: “I am busy in
meditation.” “For what?” “For Moksha (emancipation).” “This
is such a noble idea, but tell me one thing. You are just about to
find the bliss of Moksha when you find thousands of people
falling in the pit of hell, what will you do then?” Guruji replied,
“I would first deliver those suffering people from the pit, and
only then I would go to seek Moksha.” Dr. Hedgewar said, “Just
the same situation India is facing now. Hundreds of people are
falling in the pit of hell, but there is no one who will think for
Mother India. It appears to me that you should abandon the
idea of Moksha.”
 15

Swami Akhandand allowed him in all affection. He

accepted the Prasad of Kamandal from him and came to Nagpur,
and after that, his unbroken meditation continued. He toured
the whole of India thirty-three times in thirty-three years, and
thus the great soul paid his homage to Adya Shankaracharya.
Lord Adi Shankaracharya had left for his heavenly abode in the
small age of thirty-two years, but Guruji toured India thirty-
three times. How strange, how noble it was! His doctrine
revolved round Advait Vedanta. Spirituality was the foundation
stone for Swami Vivekananda, the pupil of Ramakrishna
Paramhansa, but from the angle of working, he had an eye on
the social life. He had resolved in his mind to accord the nation
the most glorious seat. When an individual starts a noble deed,
he is faced with scarcity of means and resources; however, it
appears to me that had all these means and resources been
together, man would not have been able to abide by his duty,
because he would not be able to do his work, to show his zeal.
He would not have got an opportunity to test the innate faculty
that he possesses.
It was with great divine favour that the work of the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh began despite all the shortages
of means and resources. It was proven without doubt that
‘Kriy°∆ Sattvasiddhi N∞pakara∏Æ.’ (action is not wholly dependent
on resources).
A work is performed, not by means or tools, but by resolve
and determination. It is executed by the great idea and faith. As
he proceeds ahead, tools and resources come his way. People
get their names etched in history even without resources. It is
true that Maharana Pratap could not attain glorious success; he
could not defeat the Mughals, yet the spirit of nationalism in
him went on to prove that despite all scarcity of means, not
only a Kshatriya or warrior, but also a horse, that we know by
the name of Chetak, became such an exalted personality in
history that people visit his memorial to offer their floral tributes.
Only a few people get the credit for their success. This is a
different matter altogether, however, even an unsuccessful
person should be acknowledged for his endeavour, for his self-
16

confidence and for devotion towards his goal. There is ample

evidence of this when we see at every square in the country the
statue of Rana Pratap, mounted on a horse, with a spear in one
hand, and the memorial of Chetak in Haldi Ghati. They are the
souls who sacrificed their lives for freedom. When noble people
initiate a task, they don’t abandon it midway:
‘Pr°rabhyatÆ Na Khalu Vighnabhayaina N¢cai:
Pr°rambhavighnavihit° Viramanti Madhy°:..
Vighnai: Puna:Punarapi Pratihanyam°n°
Pr°rabhya C∞ttamajan°: Na Parityajanti.. ’
Ordinary people do not initiate a noble task thinking it
would result into great pain. Medium people abandon a task
whenever they are faced with an obstacle. Noble people
continue to strike at the rocks, just like the Ganga water, in order
to create a new path. Mediocre people hinder themselves, they
don’t even initiate the work, while noble people carry out their
task to its ultimate goal.
The work of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has been
progressing continuously. A large number of people have
contributed in taking ahead this task. A large number of noble
people have taken birth on the land of Gujarat, who have scarce
thought of their own lives in order to carry forward this task.
They all received inspiration from the Param Pujya Guruji. I
shall not speak about Guruji, because everybody already know
him.
All those people who have worked in Gujarat, we shall have
to keep in our memory Vakil Saheb. I too got an opportunity to
be with him on two-three occasions. One of my programmes in
the Town Hall of Ahmedabad was planned by him. He had
urged me to come, and I went too. We all cannot forget about
Vakil Saheb. As was his name – Lakshmana – he was just like
that. He worshipped India as if his greatest task was to establish
Ramrajya. In this way, he was not limited to guide only the Sangh
in Gujarat, rather he took with him many other people in order
to accomplish a great task in the state.
Dr. Keshavrao Deshmukh, Vanikar was a simple man. Once
I got an opportunity to stay at his house. He achieved his masters
 17

degree in Pathology and despite this high qualification, he lived

a simple life. Nobody could say that he was so learned a man.
He spoke little and worked much. His goal in life was to work
and work. It is difficult to say if anybody would ever match the
work among the tribals that Dr. Vanikar has accomplished.
Babubhai Ojha did a great task. He remained active to the
last moment of his life. He provided momentum and inspiration
to a number of Sangh programmes. Madhukar was like a living
school of the science of organisation. He motivated people by
his mere presence. The Swayamsevaks thought themselves
fortunate because he considered them all his own.
Vasantrao was attached to his work all his life. He was a
Professor in a Law College, yet all his life he was infused with
sacred thinking and hard work. Such was his popularity among
people that thousands of people joined his last journey with
wet eyes. Everybody had profound respect for him. Bachubhai
Bhagat maintained faithful relations with everybody while
undertaking the Sangh work and thus accomplished a great
achievement. Nathabhai acted in several capacities and
motivated a large number of people. He was very humble by
nature. He would himself search out the best doctors in a field
in order to refer his ill Swayamsevaks. All his life he was devoted
to the welfare of public. I got an opportunity to work with
Antarao Kale. I observed at his hardworking nature. He led a
very simple life, wore simple clothes. He was a Maratha but
forgot all about his state when he came to work in Gujarat.
Each individual of the Sangh forgets about his own state.
He keeps only Mother India in his mind. This is his characteristic
feature. Dr. Pranlal Doshi worked much in Saurashtra. Who can
forget him? He effectively delivered great messages by his brief
talks. He inspired the demotivated volunteers in a joyful manner
and infused energy into them. He was like the philosopher’s
stone to them, a touch which turns iron into gold. He had
transformed a number of Swayamsevaks in this way. The Man.
Kashinath arrived from Maharashtra and did great work. At
that time, it was a difficult proposition to work in Kheda district.
18

The people of other ideologies were very active out there; but
his style of hard work bore fruit, and it is known by all people
there. Talwalkar came from Maharashtra and he too did a great
work. He guided the society and infused energy into it. Caring
little about himself he worked tirelessly to spread the message
of RSS.
It would not be an exaggeration to term the Man. K. Shastri
as the storehouse of all good virtues. Despite his being such a
great scholar, I can recall nothing but humility being manifest
in him. I have seen two scholars from close quarters – one was
K. Shastri and the other was Krishnashankar Shastriji Maharaj.
I am discussing K. Shastri only because he maintained his
relations with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad as well as the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh without any anxiety. Many
people opined that he could easily become the Chancellor of
some university had he severed his relations with the Sangh.
He said that the Sangh was right in his blood, and he wished
not a worldly post, but a divine post. He kept worshiping Lord
Sri Krishna and followed the virtuous path. He lived a life of
ancient wisdom. He never partook of food at others’ household.
He abided by his code of conduct and invited the Harijans in
order to fill them with satisfaction, and thus he infused
attachment in them too. Who can forget such a personality as
K. Shastri was? He wrote every day. Whenever I met him, I found
him writing. I got an opportunity to visit his house on a couple
of occasions. At that time, I held the post of Shankaracharya. I
had seen him that he was accompanied by nothing else but
books all around him. They used to be his best friends. He slept
with them, he talked with them; the books were his ideals of
life. In fact, it was an addiction which is a source of great bliss.
The worldly friends may or may not abide by friendship, but
when it comes to books, you can never dislike them after you
have befriended them. If you do not wish to read a book for a
while, just mark it and keep it aside. If you happened to open it
twenty years later, you would find the mark as you had put it
there. They never expressed homesickness when you meet them
after a gap of years. They never cry, you can meet them whenever
 19

you wish to. The greatest friendship is that of books. Such was
the great scholar, the Man. K. Shastri.
Narendra Modi rose from an ordinary volunteer to become
a Pracharak, then a social representative, then the Chief Minister
of Gujarat state and then the Prime Minister, and even on this
high post, he has availed himself time to describe these great
noble personalities. He remembers the people who have
inspired the society. I am acquainted with Narendrabhai Modi
for a long time. He possesses a sense of respect towards me,
and I too possess goodwill for him. He remains a good example
in politics. Often, people live in their glorious present time of a
few years, but it is amply proven by the personal life of Narendra
Modi that the symbols of authenticity can be displayed even in
the present times. He remains cautious to manifest them. When
an individual treads on the path of truth, it is a matter of
difficulty for those who walk the path of untruth.
The rising sun is bound to bring gloom to the owl; if you
set down to please the owls, you cannot please the Sun God. I
feel it good that he befriends the Sun God in order to please
Him; and if during this course, some owls are displeased with
him, he rarely cares for them, because the life of an owl is short,
while the life of the Sun is eternal. The scope of an owl is
regional, but that of the Sun is all-pervading. We are aware that
when India experiences night, it is daylight in America. The
Sun never accepts dark. Narendra Modi too is a spirited traveller
of light. He is treading his path courageously.
Narendra Modi has written this great treatise. I offer my
good wishes to the writer. May God will that the writer within
him keeps alive, while his politics should influence the country
from one corner to the other. May God assign him great
responsibility than the responsibility that he has been assigned
presently, so that the country is set in the right direction, the
society is strengthened, the evil are terrorized and the gentle
are protected.
I am greatly pleased to write the introduction to this book
of Narendra Modi. Recalling the life sketches of great people is
a matter of satisfaction for me too. He could have got it written
20

by anybody else, but he urged me for this. He has honoured me

by this. I offer him my good wishes.
May God keep him healthy, and may God bestow on him
an opportunity to serve, not only the land of Gujarat, but the
whole of nation. It is my wish and prayer.
—Swami Satyamitranand Giri
 Floral Tribute
India is not identified by
its political system,
form of government
or
power of the state.

India is identified on
the basis of its cultural heritage.

It signifies that the building of India has been shared by

those great people
who have always been ready to serve and
achieve goals,
as saints and seers,
hermits and sages,
teachers and religious teachers,
philosophers and the learned,
scientists and thinkers.

This tradition has been in existence for thousands of

years in one or the other form.

Generation after generation,

this sacred continuity
can be experienced in our country
in new forms and colours.
In every corner of India,
we can see thousands of such people
who have engaged themselves in the
sacred task of social welfare
with attention and penance.

An organised endeavour was made to

devote the people in the service
of the cultural heritage of India of the 20th century.
This endeavour was the founding of the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and
this massive task was undertaken by Dr. Hedgewar.
It was to unite the society through individual building
in the service of Motherland.

Today, there are thousands of institutions

to create leaders and
managers in the world,
such as IIMs, Harvard and Stanford.
However, we have to undertake a
comparative study of the western model
of leadership with the Indian model
laid down by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

The characteristic of the

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
has been that it has given a go
by to the features
that attract and impress,
but has given importance to
renunciation, penance, devotion,
loyalty and commitment.

I have been fortunate to acquire

these traits while living in this tradition
in the capacity of a Swayamsevak
of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
As an individual, I might have lacked
some capability by which I could have erred
in assimilating the traits…there may be
some shortcomings in me…but whatever
good and noble I possess, in all that, this
fountainhead of traits from which I drank,
it occupies a very exalted place.

During this journey of mine in the refinement process,

I got an opportunity to be in proximity of
many exalted lives, who might be viewed
as very low by the world, but their love,
their proximity have been the motivating factors
for this journey of mine. The list of such lives
is very long, still it has been possible
to recall a few of them.

Few people are aware of

this bright tradition of sacrificing life
without expecting anything in return.

The world seldom keeps such architects of the society

who devote every moment of their lives
and every particle of their bodies
in the service of the Motherland,
but their fragrance keeps spreading around even today.

Recalling such lives infuses

new inspiration in life,
and so, for the pleasure of the innate soul,
for the happiness of everybody,
I have made this solemn effort
to give wordsm to the fragrance
of the architects of the society
which has resulted into this book.

I am neither capable nor eligible

to assess such high lives.
There are bright anecdotes in the life of everybody.
I am presenting before the readers
only a few of them here from the list
of great personalities.

As a person, as a Swayamsevak,
I offer my respectful tribute
to this great bright tradition
of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
I owe my indebtedness to it.

I am confident that the readers would get

an opportunity to understand the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh through this book.
—Narendra Modi
 The purpose came with a body,
Treading a vacuum
The rising splendour of the nation
Was blending into the vacuum.
The tale of national life
Manifested in all brightness the same moment
To create energy afresh.
 A Tribute to Swami Vivekananda
by Dr. Hedgewar

Vivekananda was introduced to Ramakrishna Dev in the year 1889.

In a short period of only five years after that, Ramakrishna Dev
left for heavenly abode. At one time, Ramakrishna Dev had
assigned everything of his to Vivekananda by empowerment, and
said that he was a fakir (destitute) now. Similarly, in the life of
Doctor Saheb occurred such an incident. Just five years before his
death, he met Madhavrao, the Guruji, to whom he had to assign
the responsibility of the great tasks, and within five years, he
assigns him everything of his through empowerment, and empties
himself, and then departs from this world.

A young man, who might have adorned a pair of jeans,

who might have worn a fashionable style of hair, who might
feel pride in being called an atheist in his peer group only out
of fashion, even such an individual would not be able to help
himself but bow his head before a personality. Vivekananda is
the name of this inspiring personality of this century before
whom bow not only the people of India, but even the people
who somewhat know of India.
When the country is celebrating the birth centenary of Dr.
Hedgewar, it is natural for us to remember Swami Vivekananda,
more so because the thinking of Vivekananda and working of
Doctor Saheb are strangely similar. You can find wonderful
homogeneity between the two. When we look at these two, it
appears that Dr. Hedgewar sacrificed his life in order to pay a
unique tribute – a tribute of life – to Swami Vivekananda.
30

Dr. Hedgewar was a born patriot. The traits of patriotism

were manifest in him right from childhood, whether it pertained
to throwing of the sweets or bunking school after calling aloud
‘Vande Mataram’. Vivekananda, right from childhood, too was
ever ready to discover something, to do something for mankind.
Vivekananda, in the year 1878, when only fifteen years of age,
went to Keshavchandra Sen and initiated himself in the service
of the society through the Brahma Samaj.
Both Vivekananda and Doctor Saheb, right since childhood,
set themselves on the path to achieve the ultimate goal without
wavering. Vivekananda kept visiting the religious scholars,
teachers, social reformers and workers, saints and seers, in order
to discover the truth. Doctor Saheb too treaded different paths
in order to do something for the country’s independence – he
visited Tilakji at one time and revolutionaries at another,
Subhash at one time and Aurobindo at another. Doctor Saheb
was at his heels in order to discover the truth and arrive at the
outcome.
The family circumstances of both these personalities were
pitiable. Narendranath’s mother pushed him out to beg
something from Goddess Kali. She hoped that he would get
some employment. Despite his poor condition, Vivekananda
never felt any attraction for all this. Something of the sort was
the case with Doctor Saheb too. He was passing through a
situation when there was nothing in the house even to serve a
cup of tea to the guests or other great people visiting the house.
But such ordinary worldly obstacles could not waver both these
great people from their chosen paths.
Right from the beginning, Vivekananda possessed an
ardent desire to know the Supreme Being and the world in its
basic form. Therefore, he trained his attitude and aptitude in
that direction. However, in the final fifteen years of his life, his
purpose in life was transformed. The desire for individual
Moksha (emancipation) had been destroyed, now he was no
more bent upon meeting God. He perceived that the service to
the poor and the suffering was his goal of life, and he set himself
on that path. The initial period of Doctor Saheb’s life was filled
with the ardent desire to get the nation freed. He was inclined
 31

to struggle with the British who had enslaved the country.

However, just like Vivekananda, the final fifteen years of his
life too became broader. Now, he was no more working for
independence or opposing those who had enslaved the country,
but his ultimate aim of his life transformed into the progress of
the nation. Like Vivekananda, the sole deity for him was Mother
India.
Vivekananda came in the company of Ramakrishna Dev in
the year 1881. In a brief period of five years after that,
Ramakrishna Dev took leave of him. Once Ramakrishna Dev
had given everything of his to Vivekananda through a power
of attorney, and called himself a fakir. In the life of Doctor Saheb
too, an opposite, but somewhat similar incident takes place. Just
five years before his death, he met Madhavrao, Guruji, on whom
he had to assign the responsibility of the remaining great deeds,
and in a brief period of five years ever since, he emptied himself
through empowerment, and took leave of this world.
Fifteen years before his death, Vivekananda founded the
Ramakrishna Mission and focussed all his attention to it. Much
in the same manner, Dr. Hedgewar too founded the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh and devoted all his focus to it. The obstacles
both of them faced were quite similar in nature. Vivekananda
established his monastery in an old house at Baranagar, between
Dakshineshwar and Kolkata. All those who participated in the
functioning of the monastery did not have enough to fill their
stomachs even. Financial scarcity, lack of necessary resources –
these were the characteristic features of the beginning of the
Ramakrishna Mission. The beginning of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh too was somewhat like this. The associates
had to remain hungry for days together, and they had to look
here and there in order to have a few grains of gram even. After
the death of Ramakrishna, Vivekananda was so depressed that
he approached Pavhari Baba, who lived in the Himalayas, to
learn Hathayoga, in order to be on the path of self-realization.
He tried to do this a couple of times, but every time, the infinite
soul of Ramakrishna would dawn on him and stop him from
doing this, and motivate him to proceed towards his true goal.
Ultimately, he gave all that up, and returned. In the life of Doctor
32

Saheb too, such an instance occurred when he had to work like

Ramakrishna, when he redirected Guruji from the path of
spiritual world for the purpose of attainment of self-realization,
to the path of social well-being.
It was through the Ramakrishna Mission that Vivekananda
had devoted his life for the service of the poor. To accomplish
this task, he took a resolve to empower his race. He sought the
blessings from Mother Sharada and said to his pupil-brothers:
“I shall not return until I acquire such realizations that my very
touch will transform a man.”
We can find his spirit and devotion for a common man in
these words. In the same sense, he uttered once: “I am going
away; but I shall never come back until I can burst on society
like a bomb, and make it follow me like a dog.”
In these words, we can see his anguish against the lack of
order in the society as well as responsibility towards the society.
In the life of Dr. Hedgewar too, the sole goal for him was to
build man through the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. He had
dedicated all his life to build man through the Shakha who could
be capable of serving the society and nation. It was no easy task
for him to leave everything and devote his life towards building
of man. For this specified task, he was ready to devote every
particle of his body and every moment of his life, and with such
ambition, he set himself in this great task. Vivekananda too set
out to tour with the purpose of welfare of the nation. Wherever
he went in the Himalayas – Almora or Alaknanda, Tehri or
Rajpur, Haridwar or Rishkesh – he sought the company of the
saints and seers and homemakers, and spoke for only one thing –
that was the national welfare.

Right since childhood, both Vivekananda and Doctor Saheb

continuously struggled for their respective goals. Vivekananda
made effort to know the truth for which he went after religious
scholars, professors, social workers, saints and seers. Doctor Saheb
too made several endeavours in order to do something for the
country’s independence – he kept visiting Tilak at one time and
revolutionaries at another, Subhash at one time and Aurobindo at
another – all this to discover the truth and accomplish the goal.
 33

Vivekananda declared: “Why should you shame yourself

when you introduce yourself as a Hindu?” And then Doctor
Saheb says: “I stress that this is the Hindu nation.” Vivekananda
says: “It is the duty of man to serve the poor.” And Doctor Saheb
says: “Learn to live for the country.” Both these great people
guided the society in the same direction using their unique
manners.
The significance of Doctor Saheb’s life lies in the fact that
he had taken upon himself the task of accomplishing two
ambitions of Vivekananda without anyone letting know of it,
and today, after sixty years, it would not be an exaggeration to
claim that he has completed the task. Expressing his anxiety for
the nation, once Vivekananda had said, “If I had young men
with iron bodies and purposeful minds, I would change the
very face of India.” If we glance at the accomplishment of Doctor
Saheb, he created a long line of young men with iron bodies,
with fearless minds, cultivated with positive qualities, and thus
he conducted a competition to create young men who could
sacrifice everything of their own in order to make over every
aspect of national life. Of course, in their basis lie the foresight,
renunciation and penance of Doctor Saheb.
Looking at the psyche of the prevalent society, Vivekananda
had once said in remorse, “For the next fifty years, the people
of India should forget about all their gods and goddesses and
should sacrifice everything in the feet of only Mother India as
their sole deity.” This was how Doctor Saheb realized into reality
this solemn wish of Vivekananda. With his insight and working
style, Doctor Saheb accepted Mother India as the deity, and thus
built the social man. This led to the cultivation of the tendency
to worship Mother India.” The slogan ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ was
becoming the favourite slogan as ‘Vande Mataram’ had become
prior to independence.
In our country, the tradition of Sanyasi has been in existence
since ancient times. Vivekananda transformed the definition of
Sanyasi. A Sanyasi, absorbed in personal penance, took his goal
as social service. For a Sanyasi of the Ramakrishna Mission, the
service to the poor is the true worship. Doctor Saheb too created
34

such a great revolution. He initiated the tradition of Pracharak.

Discussing about the Pracharak tradition in which people
renounce all their aspirations and ambitions of their private lives
in order to live life for the nation and society, Swami
Chinmayanand of the Chinmay Mission says: “Doctor Saheb
has gifted this country the Sanyasis adorned in the whites.”
There are a number of such anecdotes in which we find
wonderful similarity between the thinking of Vivekananda and
working of Doctor Saheb. It appears that Doctor Saheb dedicated
all his life in order to realize the dreams of Vivekananda through
his works. Thus, it is his tribute of life to Vivekananda.
o
Lit Himself, Lit Others
Among the tempests
Were a few lamps
Some had burnt out
Once.

And there were more lamps

Fighting with the dark
Flowing,
Radiating light
Engulfed in dark
But there was one
That was you
Lit himself,
Lit others.
Be it a tempest
Be it dark
Still he lit
Still he lit others.
He struggled with darkness
With resolve in the mind
He had to burn
Until the sunrise.
So, he lit himself
And lighted others.
Those who were lit,
Those who are lit,
Those who are being lit,
They are shining like rays
36

They are spreading splendour

So is out
The sun of accomplishments,
There is light around
Light and nothing but light
Around that lamp.
(Sentiments expressed as a tribute to the founder of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh, Honourable Dr. Keshavrao Baliram
Hedgewar)
o
Sangh Work is Essence of Life
I am not out to tell you
something new.
Every Swayamsevak should take
the Sangh work as the main task of his life.
I am bidding you farewell
with this firm determination
that you will leave from here
with this mantra in your heart
that essence of your life
is the Sangh work.

(from his ‘Antim Sandesh’)

o
 Gems of Thoughts
• This life is short, momentary is the worldly joy. But those who
live for others’ sake, they lead a meaningful life. The high
point of others’ lives is death.
• I do not approve of God or religion that fails to wipe a widow’s
tears, or feed an orphan.
• Where else will you go to look for God? Are all the poor and
the suffering and the weak not like God? Why not to worship
them first? Why should we go to dig a well on the banks of
the Ganga?
• Selflessness is more advantageous, but people do not possess
patience to conduct in its conformance.
• So long millions of people live a life of hunger and ignorance,
those with filled bellies do not pay an iota of attention to them,
I consider all such people traitors.
 In learning you appeared to be a saint
With emotions like Adi Shankara
And on face they played innocence like that of an infant
You possessed mercy in the heart
For the poor and the suffering,
I bow to thine feet a hundred times, Madhav.
 The Honourable Guruji
Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golvalkar

The life of Golvalkar, Guruji, is a fine example of dedication. Guruji

possessed all those qualities which are expected of an individual
who lives for his goal – patience, determination, perseverance.

The Parliament of India, which is a representative

institution for millions of Indians, offered its tribute to a great
man, who had never been to the gate of its building. Still, both
houses of the Parliament, leaving aside the tradition, offered its
tribute to this great man, who had never been its member. The
then Prime Minister of India, Smt. Indira Gandhi had said: “He
was not a member of the Parliament. Sri Golvalkar, who was a
prestigious gentleman, is not amongst us. He was scholarly,
powerful, faithful. With his impressive personality and infallible
faith for his ideas, he enjoyed a very important place in national
life.”
Eminent people from all over the country paid their tribute
to this great man. The Deccan Chronicle of Hyderabad wrote:
“Like Vivekananda, he too was a soul of India incarnate.” The
Navbharat Times wrote: “Even those, who possess a difference
of opinion and ideals, accept his detachment, glory, renunciation
and penance with goodwill. These qualities are being lost in
our national life. Individual endeavour for ideals has become a
matter of jokes among hundreds of thinkers; but this is an
undisputed historical fact that no nation can emerge as a
powerful country unless it cultivates in itself those qualities
which were manifested in the life of Golvalkar. The philosophy
44

of secularism and democratic way of life appear to lack

splendour when faced with these great qualities.”
The Motherland wrote: “Today, Guruji is not alive, but the
source of light he has infused in scores of lives, whenever it
would endeavour to limit the country’s dark in itself, this source
of light will illuminate the country in diverse ways. We express
our sorrow on his death, but the future generations will be
happy to note that such an angel took birth in this land. We
offer our emotional tribute to his holy memory.”
The Hindustan wrote: “The life of Golvalkar is an excellent
example of finest dedication. The qualities of patience,
determination and perseverance, that are needed in daily life
in a person living for a goal, were all present in Guruji. Like the
ancient seers and hermits of India, he brought forth all his
meaningfulness and used it like a skilled chemist. When it came
to choose between meditation and accomplishment, he chose
the former, because he inferred that meditation was the
immortal energy. The life of Golvalkar and his spirit of national
service are golden. His penance was noble character and
nationalism was his dedication. There is no space to doubt his
character in any way.”
A Mumbai monthly wrote: “His personality was moulded
in the traditions of Valmiki, Ramdas, Tukaram, Vivekananda
and thousands of other seers.”
The newspapers in Gujarat paid their tributes to him. The
Gujarat Samachar, a daily, wrote: “In the death of Guruji, the
country has been deprived of a strong supporter of nationalism.”
The Sandesh wrote: “Occupying a prominent post in the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh since 1940, the death of
Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golvalkar, better known as Guruji, has
deprived the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh of a bright and
inspiring leader. He possessed unique understanding of the
Hindu nation. The Sangh was impressed by his great personality
and learning. When the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the
Jana Sangh would need acute nationalism, they will have to
confront with a vacuum that can never be filled.”
 45

The Jansatta wrote: “The teachings delivered by Swami

Vivekananda and Madan Mohan Malviya for the cultivation of
Indianhood, were all being carried solely by him; he was the
only one among the present leaders to carry on with these
traditions.”
A number of great people offered their homage to this great
soul. A fine thinker of the Sarvodaya, Dada Dharmadhikari said:
“He was a symbol of indivisible nationalism.” Vinoba said: “The
viewpoint of Guruji was broad, liberal and national. He
considered everything from national viewpoint. He had
unflinching faith in spirituality. He possessed respect for every
religion. He was not at all narrow. He always worked with
national – high national ideas.”
The BBC of London had said when this great soul was forty
years old: “There is a transcendent star on the Indian horizon.”
The then Chief Minister of Maharashtra said: “He is a saint.”

A Pearl in the Nation’s Rosary

The respectable people of India, who have shaped the
national life in their own unique ways, are all like pearls in the
nation’s rosary. If we have a glance at history, we can recall the
names of a number of great people, one after another.
When we think of Shankaracharya, we think of
Advaitism
When we think of the Buddha, we think of pity.
Mahavira is linked with non-violence.
Rana Pratap is linked with his patriotism,
Shivaji for his Indianism,
For declaration of self-rule.
Guru Govind Singh is linked to Panj-pyara (the sacred
five),
Guru Tegh Bahadur for sacrifice of his head,
Ramakrishna Dev Paramhansa for realizing God,
Swami Vivekananda for his declaration on the world
arena,
And service to the poor.
Tilak for his declaration ‘Swaraj is my birthright’.
46

Dr. Ambedkar as if modern Manu,

Sacrifice of Swami Shraddhanand,
Martyrdom of Bhagat Singh
Resolve of Sardar,
Destitution of Gandhi.

All these souls became immortal in the service of the nation

due to one factor or another. One pearl of this national rosary
was Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golvalkar, the second
Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, who
became renowned as Guruji in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak
Sangh and the whole country.
His entire life was filled with diversity. Explaining his life
is like solving a riddle. When he touched the inner-self of an
individual, he would feel as if he were a spiritual being. But he
was not like the other spiritual people the world has seen. He
lived among thousands of people and awakened in them social
sense and nationalism.
The venerable Guruji never sat in the solitary caves of the
Himalayas absorbed in spiritual meditation. Such a fact gives
rise to the question if he was really a spiritual person. Sometimes
he appears to us a great leader, but at others we feel that we are
prone to err if we think this way. When he discussed profound
knowledge of materialism, we felt as if he had taken birth to
dedicate his life as a great scientist. Still, if we linked together
all factors of his life, we would find that he possessed a unique
personality.

Unbroken Spirit of Swayamsevak

His life was full of a number of diversities. He possessed
only one personality and that was the spirit of being a
Swayamsevak.
We could notice different diversities in him, but it is difficult
to point them out. When we met the Param Pujya Guruji, we
noticed that nothing but the spirit of being a Swayamsevak
suited him. He possessed no other ambition than this.
A prestigious leader of the Communist Party of India has
said: “You know what is wrong with your Guruji?” And then
 47

he went on to answer it himself: “His unambitiousness.” He

meant to say that this individual had no ambitions, and it is a
great accomplishment to find oneself in such a situation.
His only ambition was to be a complete, a perfect
Swayamsevak.
What is the meaning of ‘Swayamsevak’? It means dedication
of the self, sacrifice of the self, to sacrifice the whole life for an
ideal. The life of the Param Pujya Guruji was illuminated with
the light of unbroken spirit of being a Swayamsevak, and to
attain which, he had abandoned all rest and repose.
Talking about his Sadhana, the most venerable Guruji has
written at one place: “There was a time when I aspired for
worship of the Lord, I wished to attain God. When I sought the
path of attainment of God, I was asked to go and clean the
utensils, sweep the place, clean the garden, take the cows for
grazing. I used to absorb myself into these activities without
desiring anything in return.” After he commenced his life in
the Sangh, he said: “I had before me the ideals of the Man. Dr.
Hedgewar and his life.” From this very imagination of complete
dedication arose the personality of a Swayamsevak, unbroken
spirit of being a Swayamsevak.
The Param Pujya Guruji witnessed many ups and downs
in his life. Of the eight siblings of him, he was the only one to
survive. When the only surviving child was a son and the
parents were afflicted with the sorrow of death of as many as
seven children, it was natural for them to have many aspirations
from him. His mother must have nursed great aspirations about
him, but the parents must have done everything that was
possible to realize their dreams. However, how must have the
parents felt when their son broke away from their dreams in
order to deviate to another path? It was natural for them to feel
sad. This son was proficient in playing the sitar and the flute.
He knew how to conquer others’ hearts. It was natural for the
mother to feel sorrow when the son started to tune his life with
the strings of spirituality. In order not to deliver more sorrow
to his mother, Madhavrao Madhu, the Param Pujya Guruji, left
his home and set out on the path of spirituality. He wandered
48

about in the Himalayas with an ardent wish to see God, to lead

a spiritual life. Wandering from place to place in the high
mountains, he settled down in the Sargachi Ashram.
Guruji had studied up to M.Sc., and knew the secrets of
science well. His ideas were a fine blend of science, religion
and culture. So only a spiritual person once commented:
“Human progress depends on the development of science.”
His curiosity for spirituality was quenched by a guru,
Swami Akhandanand, who was one of the eleven pupils of
Ramakrishna Paramhansa. Swami Vivekananda and Swami
Akhandanand lived together in the Sargachi Ashram. Once
tapping Guruji’s head, Swami Akhandanand said, “Madhav, the
hair on your head, your beard, they appear to me magnificent,
they are illuminating your personality. Madhav, never should
you shave your hair and beard.” Guruji never disrespected what
his Guru said. Right until the final breath of his life, he took
care of his hair. Therefore, his personality continued to
illuminate brightly like a spiritual person.
It is easy to say something. If somebody were to tell you or
me, “Brother, your hair looks good, don’t get them cut.” You
will feel that it would be better not to get it cut. However, the
life of Guruji was not blocked at this point. Swami Akhandanand
asked him to grow hair, and he grew it in all spontaneity. Once,
Dr. Keshavrao Baliram Hedgewar said to him: “Madhavrao, you
have to control the reigns of the Sangh work.” Dr. Hedgewar
was on his deathbed then. He was breathing his last then. The
death was imminent. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh that
was founded in 1925 had expanded to the whole length and
breadth of the country by 1940. The responsibility for this
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh had to be handed over to a young
man aged just thirty-four years. At that time, he said to Guruji
in all innocence: “Madhav, you have to take responsibility for
this work.”

Dr. Hedgewar’s Faith

After they kept awake the whole night, Dr. Hedgewar had
not yet divulged to Guruji anything about the prevailing
 49

condition of the country. One-thousand-year-long slavery had

resulted into a number of evils in the Hindu society. He had not
mentioned about these even a bit. Guruji had not kept awake
thinking it to be a difficult proposition. Doctor Saheb had neither
sung any patriotic songs, nor did he teach them. He just said in
his spontaneous expression: “Madhavrao, you have to take the
reigns of this work.”
Just for a moment, imagine the time that it was. What types
of thoughts must Doctor Saheb have in his mind when he
assigned Guruji with such a great responsibility? What type of
information must he have sought? How many people must he
have examined? When we sit down to think about this time, we
are prone to think at times that Doctor Saheb must have kept
Guruji awake all night in order to teach him lessons in
Hinduism, must have acquainted him with the finer details of
the decline of the Hindu society, must have done everything
possible in order to inculcate the spirit to serve the society in
place of going after attainment of God and self-realization. In
the year 1940, it was just the beginning for the Sangh as its form
and influence were being shaped then. Common people had a
number of queries in their minds. What could be the factor that
could bridge Doctor Saheb and Guruji? Amongst scores of future
uncertainties, Doctor Saheb must have some element of faith in
Guruji so as to lead the Sangh to historic development. How
effective must have been Doctor Saheb’s quality of testing a
person and Guruji’s transparent personality. Guruji, who was
completely absorbed in the path of spirituality, changed his path
in order to devote all his life in the service of the society. Guruji
invested every particle of his body and every moment of his
life in realizing the responsibility that Doctor Saheb had
assigned him. It was only a small sentence by Doctor Saheb:
“Madhav, now you have to take the reigns of all this.” What an
amazing incident it was! How magnificent the test was! How
excellent the foresight was! What type of trust it was! Yes, this
was what we call the qualities of Guruji.
The spontaneity with which Swami Akhandanand had
asked Guruji to take care of his hair, the same spontaneity was
50

manifest when Dr. Hedgewar asked him to look after the Sangh,
and after he heard these words, he invested the remaining years
of his life, from 1940 to 1973, to realize the goal of expanding
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh like a banyan tree, on all
sides, for which he toured the whole of India, worked with the
sole goal of its expansion.

Unceasing Sangh Work

Guruji’s heart was inclined towards spirituality. We can just
imagine how a spiritual person must have embraced the Sangh
life. Why at all did he devote all his life to the service of the
Bhagwa Dhwaj, the saffron flag? He has spoken a little in this
regard. The Param Pujya Guruji had a long conversation with
the late G.T. Madakhelkar Bhau Saheb, the ex-editor of Tarun
Bharat. Doctor Saheb was present there too. After the discussion
on the book was over, Bhau Saheb asked Guruji, with his
permission, a personal question. This question and its response
are mentioned in an article titled ‘Trikoni Sangam’ (Triangular
Confluence), published in the Tarun Bharat on 16 June, 1973,
after the death of Guruji. He writes in this article: “I asked Guruji:
‘I have heard that you abandoned the Sangh work midway and
went to the Ramakrishna Mission in Bengal, and were initiated
into the path by the pupil-brother of Swami Vivekananda. How
did you then abandon the Ramakrishna Mission and come back
to the Sangh? Don’t you think that the role of the Mission is
quite distinct from that of the Sangh?’ Listening to my question,
Guruji was shocked; he thought over it for a while with half-
open eyes, as if he had traversed to some fanciful world, and
then he started to speak softly.
“He said: ‘You have asked a much unexpected question,
but Doctor Saheb would be a more appropriate person to decide
whether there is distinction in the work of the Sangh from that
of the Mission. I have always been inclined towards spirituality
as well as the work of national unity. I could carry out this work
more effectively in the Sangh. I have felt it during my stints in
Benaras, Nagpur and Calcutta. Therefore, I have devoted myself
body and soul to the Sangh work. It appears to me that
 51

metaphysics and sermons issued by Swami Vivekananda are in

consonance with this conduct of mine. I am more influenced by
his teachings than anybody else’s. I am confident that I would
be able to take forward the work of Swami Vivekananda if I
stay in the Sangh.’ While giving such arguments, I had seen a
streak of self-confidence in the eyes of Guruji, and I just cannot
forget it. Doctor Saheb had grown serious. This was the
psychological fancy of Guruji behind his complete dedication.”
A small sentence uttered by Doctor Saheb had awakened
his unflinching spirit of being a Swayamsevak, and he abided
by this ideal all his life. He kept working without a brake for
thirty-three years on its basis.
Dedication and devotion of Guruji never showed any signs
of recession. It kept on gradually augmenting. We find nothing
but doubts during his initial interactions with Dr. Hedgewar.
With the passage of time, the element of curiosity was
introduced in it. Guruji says himself: “His speeches had no
impact on my mind; but the time etched the same speeches, the
same words, the same face, the same reasoning into my mind
and heart. Doctor Saheb had conquered not only his intelligence,
but the entire scope of sentiments. This process of devotion
continued unabated, and did not stop even after the demise of
Doctor Saheb.” Later, this sentiment saw the zenith when Guruji
was wont to say about himself: “Whenever I felt shaky, the life
of Doctor Saheb inspired me and guided me.” He always urged
the Swayamsevaks to practise the life of Doctor Saheb.

Unending National Journey

It is no trivial thing to travel continuously over thirty-three
years. Did he never suffer from illness? Did his transport never
break down? Did he never get late for the schedule of rest? Did
he not confront any of the factors that could have impeded his
march – fever, feeling cold, sun and shadow, change of season?
He must have had to face a number of difficulties. However,
Guruji nursed no ambitions, no wants, and he set out on his
path with the spirit of complete devotion and firm resolve. He
kept moving ahead, working hard every moment, for thirty-
52

three years, investing every particle of body, every drop of his

blood, every moment of his life, for the well-being of
Motherland, for the glory of Mother India, for the advancement
of millions of people of this land, and this was the ardent desire
in his mind with which he kept on marching ahead as the Second
Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
Once, somebody asked the venerable Guruji, “Where do
you live?” He responded quite spontaneously, “The train
compartment.” His journey continued for thirty-three years,
without a brake. He was inflicted by a terrible disease like cancer,
yet he did not stop and his journey around the country went on
unabated.
This incident occurred in the year 1943. There was a meeting
of the state level volunteers at Pune. Guruji too was present in
the meeting. After he assumed the charge of Sarsanghchalak,
he was touring the country, without a rest, without a brake. The
volunteers would display their sentimental attachment with him
and advise him for a rest. In this meeting, he mentioned this
advice and said, “Rest? What rest? Now rest will be possible
only when the work in hand has been accomplished, or it will
be possible at the deathbed.”

A Swayamsevak of Self-consciousness
In the eyes of people, he was perhaps the Sarsanghchalak,
but he himself was a Swayamsevak of continuous self-
consciousness. When the Sangh Shiksha Varga of the central
Indian region was held at Gwalior, the venerable Guruji was
one of the participants. He was sitting in the row to have his
food. The volunteer in-charge for the management of meals
informed everybody that no Swayamsevak was to rise until the
guests in the middle row finished their meals and walked away.
In the middle row were seated the respected Guruji, Rajmata
Scindia, Atal Behari Vajpayee and others. When the in-charge
informed, all people in the middle row started to rise and walk
away, but Guruji did not rise. At this, the in-charge requested
him to go too. At this, Guruji said, “You had asked only the
guests, and not the Swayamsevaks, to walk away and I am a
 53

Swayamsevak, how could I go?” If we look at this occurrence, it

appears to be quite ordinary, but when we descend into its
depth, we find that his spirit of being a Swayamsevak was very
deep within him. He considered himself an ordinary
Swayamsevak even in abiding by a small instruction. He kept
sitting there itself, and rose when other Swayamsevaks rose to
walk away. Guruji, despite his being the Sarsanghchalak, always
considered himself a Swayamsevak first and last, and due to
this spirit, he touched the inner sentiments of the
Swayamsevaks. He shared their sentiments and emotions. This
spirit in him was always alert.

Expansion of Sentiments
Once Guruji was travelling from Ajmer to Indore by train.
Those days, the train stopped over Ratlam for close to two hours.
There was a Swayamsevak in Ratlam, named Gopalrao. Guruji
was scheduled to have lunch at his house. The volunteer had
planned programmes in tune with the availability of time of
two hours, which included a talk with the local Swayamsevaks
and meals. When Guruji arrived at Ratlam, he was informed
that the train was late and was about to start soon, so he should
take his meals first. But he said: “No, I will talk to the
Swayamsevaks who have come, and if there is any time left, I
would take meals too, else the lunch is suspended.” Guruji sat
down to talk with the Swayamsevaks. Whenever he talked with
them, he used to forget all about himself. Leave aside meals, it
was now time for the train to leave, and now he was forced to
leave without meals. As Guruji started to walk, Gopalrao had
tears in his eyes. He urged, “Guruji, you came to my house yet
you are leaving without meals.” The Swayamsevak was quite
sad. Guruji understood his sentiments. He said, “Brother, I am
a Swayamsevak too. I can understand your feelings. When I
return to Ajmer from Indore, I am about to pass from this place
in the evening. I promise to take meals with you then.” Guruji
was not habitual of eating at night. In Indore, he instructed to
suspend the lunch as he was scheduled to eat meals at Gopalrao’s
house. Gopalrao was an ordinary Swayamsevak, yet Guruji saw
54

his moist eyes and understood his deep emotions. He could

touch the emotions of his Swayamsevaks, he could feel them
himself, because his life had become one with the lives of
thousands of Swayamsevaks. He kept expanding his sentiments
of being a Swayamsevak, all the time.
Swayamsevak and Swayamsevak, the distinction between
Sarsanghchalak and Swayamsevak is eroded, and they become
brothers. A Swayamsevak from Rangoon, named Pravinchandra
Doshi came to India in April 1956 to take part in the Sangh
Shiksha Varga. The Sangh had been founded at Nagpur;
therefore, it is natural for every Swayamsevak to regard Nagpur
as a place of pilgrim. In India, Pravinchandra too headed for
Nagpur on 23 April, and reached at the residence of the Param
Pujya Guruji. He felt gratitude on meeting with Guruji. At that
time, about 15-20 adult Swayamsevaks were with Guruji, one
of whom was a doctor who knew Pravinchandra a little. He
asked him, “Is there any of your relatives here? Where are you
put up in Nagpur?”
Pravinchandra was confused at this question from the
doctor. He found it hard to think of an answer. At this, Guruji
understood the matter, and said, “He is my guest and will stay
at my home.”
Listening to these words from Guruji, Pravinchandra was
pleased uncontrollably, his eyes grew moist – how great
affection this was, how great attachment this was! When a
Swayamsevak meets another, they meet not like two
Swayamsevaks, but like two brothers. Such a spontaneous
conduct the most venerable Guruji possessed. Every
Swayamsevak of the Sangh was like a son to Guruji. He was
very pleased whenever he heard of a Swayamsevak’s
accomplishments. Any stranger coming into contact with him
was bound to feel ‘inaccessible, unapproachable’ on seeing the
curious personality of Guruji. Many Swayamsevaks felt
hesitation and fear when they approached the Sarsanghchalak,
yet once they came into his contact, their hesitation and fear
would evaporate away. In the company of Guruji, all distinctions
of age and status lapsed into oblivion. Guruji was like a child
 55

Swayamsevak when he was among the children. Once in

Nagpur, Guruji went to attend the Gau-rakshan Upshakha (cow
protection sub-camp). After the prayers, he was walking towards
the car. He had with him other child Swayamsevaks who were
enjoying themselves. When he came near the car and opened
the door, a child Swayamsevak asked, “Is this your motorcar?”
Guruji too was in a joyful mood, he said, “Yes, it’s mine.”
“Do you drive it?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Do you still know how to drive a car?”
“Yes, I do.”
“You are wonderful,” the child Swayamsevak expressed
surprise. A child Swayamsevak had certified Guruji, the
Sarsanghchalak, that he was wonderful.

Every Hindu – My Brother

In the Hedgewar Bhavan in Nagpur, a brother named
Mangal Prasad was carrying out the responsibility of a cook, he
had been working in this capacity for several years. Once, on
the death of his brother, Mangal Prasad visited his parental
village, Bandhava. The most venerable Guruji wrote a letter of
consolation. He addressed him as ‘Dearest Friend Mangal
Prasad’. Mangal Prasad had not wept when he received the
information of his brother’s death, but when he read Guruji’s
letter, especially the address ‘Dearest Friend Mangal Prasad’,
his eyes watered down. It was very fortunate of him to be
addressed as the dearest friend by a great man.
Mangal Prasad too looked after Guruji in equal measure.
The Param Pujya Guruji was suffering from cancer; the final
moments of his life were approaching fast. He felt pain even in
taking medicine. It was Mangal Prasad who gave him medicine
daily. One day, Guruji said, “What is the need of taking medicine
now?” Guruji instructed him not to give him medicine, still
Mangal Prasad went to him with a spoonful of medicine. Seeing
it, Guruji said: “I suppose Doctor Abaji has sent you. Go and
tell him that I don’t want to take any medicine.” At this, Mangal
Prasad said: “No, Guruji, I have made it myself.” Listening to
56

this, Guruji gulped down the medicine. Mangal Prasad was a

cook, yet he was part of this Hindu society too, he was a son of
Mother India. ‘He is my brother’, these types of sentiments were
always displayed by Guruji in his behaviour.
“Every Hindu of the Hindu society is my brother. Every
suffering of his is mine. Every sorrow of his is mine,” Guruji
had such feelings in his heart all the time. He never
distinguished between a Swayamsevak and an ordinary
individual, when he was in trouble. He felt the same way
whether it was a coolie carrying luggage at the railway station,
or a mill worker, his heart always melted at seeing his pitiable
condition. On his way to home in Nagpur, there was an old
beggar who daily laid himself on the street. Guruji had noticed
him too. One day, when Guruji was returning, he saw that the
old beggar was not there. He enquired of him from the
neighbouring people, and he was told that he had died just two
days ago.
Listening to this news, Guruji grew sorrowful. The face of
the old beggar was appearing on his psyche repeatedly. In a
meeting of the Prant Pracharaks some time after this incident,
he even mentioned it painfully. The pain that Guruji felt was
that there was no one to look after that beggar in that advanced
stage of life. There was no one to put a drop of water or two in
his mouth; there was no hand to provide succour to him in his
dying moment. There ought to be scores of such unfortunate
people in such a large Hindu society. Who was there to wipe
their tears?
The Param Pujya Guruji took all care to shape the
Swayamsevaks’ lives and groom their personalities. This
sentiment has kept expressing itself in his life. The mother of
the Param Pujya Guruji says: “When Madhu was in the fourth
standard, there was a poem in the syllabus ‘Kevdhe Krorya hai’
(How terrible cruelty this is), that of a bird, in which a hunter
shoots down a bird. It is wounded, it tries to fly away, but falls
down every time. This scene has been delineated in it in a heart-
moving style, reading which Madhu’s eyes streamed down. His
inner-self was very delicate.”
 57

Authenticity of a Swayamsevak
A few years ago, I came across a small occurrence. A Katha
(religious recitation of a holy text) was underway at Mahesana.
It was being organized to collect money for the famine victims.
A bag was being sent across people for the relief fund. In a corner
were seated a few rich, wealthy people, when a volunteer
approached them with the bag. An organizer noticed that the
bags being carried around by people bore a particular colour
and a number; but the man who approached these wealthy
people carried a different type of bag. They felt that he must be
a trickster who would flee away after collecting funds.
Therefore, the organizer caught hold of that man and took him
aside. He raged in fury as he was confident that he was a cheat.
He asked him that he had a bag of different colour, which bore
no number, then why he was collecting the funds. The organizer
kept shouting, but that man did not loose his cool, he looked
into the eyes of the organizer and said, “I am a Swayamsevak of
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.” Listening to these words,
the organizer stepped back. His face lost gleam. He said,
“Brother, I am sorry to have uttered bitter words to you. I am
sorry for the mistake.” In our ordinary life, Swayamsevaks of
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and authenticity have
become so interwoven that they have become inseparable. That
man did not need to say anything else in his defence. Later it
was found out that the man was right. The bag he carried too
was right and he was carrying out his duty well. After the
programme, a meeting was held of the volunteers. The reciting
saint too was present in it. The organizers were sentimental in
this meeting, and they expressed their emotions thus: “We all
beg pardon of our brother from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak
Sangh. We were wrong to disrespect a Swayamsevak and doubt
his authenticity and integrity.”

Not ‘You Do’, but ‘We Do’

Just think how the authenticity and integrity of a
Swayamsevak has remained inviolable after such a long period
of time too! What are the factors behind this concept? Was it
58

not rooted in adequate causes? No, a continuous consciousness

awakening effort has been made for building the Swayamsevaks,
due attention has been paid to this factor. The venerable Guruji
was very careful regarding the fact how Swayamsevaks should
be cultivated. Due attention was given on even insignificant
details.
Once in a programme, a song was being sung. A poet had
emerged with a new song, and our Swayamsevaks were singing
it. The song started with a beautiful line: Tum Karo Rashtra
Aradhan (You worship the Nation). Before the first line was
complete, the Param Pujya Guruji intervened and said: “O
brother, keep standing. It should be ‘Ham Karen Rashtra Aradhan’
and not ‘Tum Karo Rashtra Aradhan’. Guruji laid emphasis on
the word ‘Ham’ (we). The poet had used very fantastic words,
but he had not thought about the traits that it would cultivate.
However, Guruji imagined about the traits that it could cultivate,
so he changed the words from ‘you do’ to ‘we do’. He
conceptualized the idea of ‘we’. He discussed that something
was not for ‘the government’ to do, but for ‘I’ to do. Whose is
the responsibility of building Motherland, for progress of
Motherland, for development of Motherland, for
revolutionizing Motherland, that our Mother India once again
occupies the high seat of world leadership? This responsibility
lies with the Swayamsevaks.
It should not be ‘you do’, rather it should be ‘we do’.
Once the Param Pujya Guruji visited a small Shakha. The
Swayamsevaks were seated in a group after the games. The
Param Pujya Guruji enquired, “Which games did you play
today?” The Swayamsevaks informed that they had played
‘Deepak Bujhana’ (extinguishing lamps). Guruji immediately
retorted, “In Hindu culture, ‘Deep Bujhana’ cannot be
acceptable, we are the inheritors of the tradition in which the
lamp of learning is lighted.” He instructed that ‘Deep Bujhana’
should not be the name of a game. He immediately suggested a
change in its name to ‘Ahwan’. How aware he was!
Once in Jabalpur town, there was a meeting of the Mukhya
Shikshaks and higher officials of the Mahakaushal Prant. It was
 59

the time of morning. Guruji was seeking information from the

officials. The Param Pujya Guruji asked an official, “How many
Swayamsevaks are there in your town?” The number that the
official said was the number of Swayamsevaks who were in his
daily contact. At this, Guruji said, “Your Shakha is quite old,
the number of Swayamsevaks should be larger there. Why is it
so?” The official intimated that a large number of officials had
quit the Shakha. Guruji further enquired, “How long has this
phenomenon of quitting the Shakha been taking place?” And
then he said in earnestness: “The Sangh work revolves around
linking and uniting people of the society, and not leaving them
alone.”

Awareness of Working
How curious, how aware the Swayamsevaks are to their
work! The personalities of the Swayamsevaks have been
moulded through effort of continuous awareness. There is an
incident that occurred in the year 1957. Due to the imposition
of government ban, the Shakha could not be held in the open in
Satara district; therefore, to hold the Gurudakshina programme,
a Swayamsevak held the Satyanarayan Dev Katha in his house,
in which all new and old Swayamsevaks were invited. The priest
too had been intimated that the money collected in the ceremony
would be deposited in the Gurudakshina fund of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh. The priest accepted the condition willingly
and did not take his own Dakshina, rather he too paid it. This
was how the Swayamsevaks used to collect Gurudakshina.
A few days after the programme was held, Guruji visited
the town. He was also told how Gurudakshina was collected.
In the meeting, Guruji said: “The money that the Swayamsevaks
presented before the flag after paying their obeisance to it could
only belong to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. The money
that the Swayamsevaks offered in the worship rightly belongs
to the priest; therefore, that money should be delivered to him
on an urgent basis, and confirm the action taken to me.” He did
not accept anything that deviated from the Sangh’s traditions.
He made untiring efforts to awaken the spirit of being a
60

Swayamsevak in every Swayamsevak.

The spirit of Swayamsevak is cultivated by small, tiny,
insignificant things. Guruji knew this fact well, and it was due
to this reason that he made every effort to improve upon the
Shakhas, the programmes held in them and the behaviour of
the Swayamsevaks, and he expected all Swayamsevaks to
behave themselves accordingly.
The Sangh Shiksha Varga was being held in Kanpur. A full-
dress march was conducted in the presence of the Param Pujya
Guruji. The Swayamsevaks were marching in their respective
rows. The Pracharaks and other important workers from all over
the state were taking part in it in full dress. This march was
taken out through the main road of the city.
After the dinner, the volunteers were sitting with Guruji in
the ground for informal interaction. The topic of the march that
day too came up for discussion. Then Guruji enquired: “One of
your officials in the dress did not have a cap, who was he?” He
had noticed that one among thousands of Swayamsevaks had
not put on his cap. The Swayamsevaks fell silent. Then an official
stood up. The Param Pujya Guruji said, “So, it was you who did
not wear the cap.” The official said, “Yes.” “Where was your
cap? The march had to be conducted in full dress.” He informed,
“I gave it to a Swayamsevak who was here to attend the Shiksha
Varga.” “What happened to his cap?” enquired Guruji. The
officer said, “He did not have it.” At this, Guruji laughed and
said, “Comforting this way does not make one a Swayamsevak.”
Now, let us look at another instance, in which he displayed
his concept of ‘comforting’ a Swayamsevak. The Param Pujya
Guruji was scheduled to attend the concluding meeting of the
two-day meet of the south region in Madurai (Tamil Nadu). He
had to finish his talk at five. The meeting was still on when a
Swayamsevak stood up and walked away, because he had to
catch a bus at half past five. After the programme, Guruji
enquired about him when he was informed of this fact that he
had to catch the bus at half past five, and so he went out early.
At this, he expressed surprise and said: “I had talked to that
Swayamsevak before the programme, and I had informed him
 61

that my talk would be over right at five o’clock, and I had asked
him if he would face any difficulty in this way. He himself had
told me that it would be a fine thing.” After this, Guruji showed
his wristwatch to the Swayamsevaks which struck sharp five at
just that time. What we mean to say that he used to take notice
of even tiny, insignificant things like taking the bus by a
Swayamsevak, even during such a busy schedule.
In a meeting, he was enquiring of Swayamsevaks how the
Sangh work was progressing. At that, a volunteer stood up and
said that the Sangh work was not expanding well. The Param
Pujya Guruji asked why it was so. The volunteer said, “My
volunteers do not work.” At this, Guruji said: “No, it is wrong
to imagine so. You should replace the words ‘my volunteers’
with the words ‘my comrades’.” Thus, he did not approve of
any distinction. He did not accept the distinction between official
and volunteer, leader and follower. He approved of only the
united whole. He has paid attention to such minute details in
developing the Sangh and moulding the Swayamsevaks. This
hard work lies in the basis of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
We can find an effervescence, an illumination, a lamp of light
in his devotion towards his work.

Lamps Numerous – Light One

What type of work does the Sangh do? When we light a
lamp, light emanates from it. The Param Pujya Guruji says: “One
lamp should be lit from another, and thus should numerous
lamps be lit.” This is the express manifestation of the
metaphysics of Shankaracharya’s Advaitism, in which lies no
distinction. Just notice the fact that the light cannot be
distinguished whether a lamp is lit or a number of them are lit.
Science has not developed a device by which light emanating
from different lamps can be distinguished as coming from a
particular lamp, or if light is coming from a lamp lit by oil or
ghee, or if it is being lit in a silver or earthen lamp – we can find
no distinction. A lamp can be distinct, but not its light. The lamp,
in the form of Swayamsevaks, right from Kashmir to
Kanyakumari, from Atack to Cuttack, is lit. A resplendent source
62

of light exists in the whole country, without any distinction of

any kind. You cannot distinguish whether a Swayamsevak
belongs to Ahmedabad or Guwahati or Kanyakumari. All of
them emanate the same light. All are like lamps in the infinite
row of lamps, being lit together, being lit from one common
source.
This work was the outcome of the Param Pujya Guruji’s
hard work in which he built thousands of lives through his
conscious sight, continuous awareness and minute observation.
All this was rooted in the unbroken spirit of being a
Swayamsevak of Guruji, it was eternally alive and conscious,
all residing in one heart, one mind. There is no line which
distinguishes between a Swayamsevak and the Sarsanghchalak.
It is ‘Aham Brahmasmi – Tattvamasi’ manifest incarnate ‘I am
what you are’. As a result, his personality had the capability of
awakening and infusing consciousness in others. When you
touch iron to a philosopher’s stone, it too turns into gold, but
not in another philosopher ’s stone. However, a touch of a
Sangh’s Swayamsevak can make a Swayamsevak. This
continuous rosary could be formed due to continuous work of
the most venerable Guruji. In the life of Guruji, the daily Shakha
was a subject of devotion and faith. He was keenly committed
to the Shakha.

Urge for Discipline

The Param Pujya Guruji wished for perfect spirit of being a
Swayamsevak. He liked complete uniformity, there was no place
for incomplete work or imperfection in it. He always presented
before the Swayamsevaks an ideal form whether it comes to
discipline or system. He laid stress on discipline, and he himself
followed it all his life.
The Bauddhik Varga of the Param Pujya Guruji was
underway at Barabanki. Once a Swayamsevak was making
Guruji’s sketch with a pencil. With the completion of the talk,
he completed the exact sketch of Guruji. After the programme,
that Swayamsevak went to Rajju Bhaiya and showing the sketch
said: “Please get it signed by the Param Pujya Guruji.” Rajju
 63

Bhaiya took him to Guruji. He looked at the sketch and asked,

“Are you only an artist or a Swayamsevak too?” The
Swayamsevak said, “I am a Swayamsevak and attend the Shakha
regularly.” At this, Guruji said, “When I was expressing my inner
feelings through my speech using all my energy, you were busy
making this sketch. This work was not meant to be done at that
time. What type of Swayamsevak you are! I shall not sign this
sketch.”
Once the Param Pujya Guruji visited Andhra Pradesh. The
scheduled time for the train to arrive was about 4 in the morning.
Because the station was a main junction, so the train had to stop
there for three quarters of an hour. The Swayamsevaks thought
that the Param Pujya Guruji would be able to finish his morning
chores in half an hour between four and five. They planned to
keep tea ready in a thermos, and to take the car for their
destination, which was about one hundred km away, so as to
arrive for the programme in time.
When the train started at night, the Param Pujya Guruji
was informed about his schedule for the next day, by a senior
officer Bapurao Modhe. Listening to the schedule, Guruji said:
“There is a notice in the train bathrooms, have you ever read
it?” Bapurao said, “Yes, I have.” Guruji said: “It says that the
use of bathroom is prohibited when the train is standing at a
station. Because I abide by this rule, so I would not be able to
use the bathroom when the train is standing at the station.”
You can just think that millions of people travel in the trains,
and all of them must have read this notice, but how many are
the people who have abided by it?

Dedication Towards Shakha

After the demise of the Man. Dr. Hedgewar, the command
of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh came in the hands of the
Param Pujya Guruji. Prior to Guruji, there were a number of
experienced Swayamsevaks in the Sangh. The country was faced
with the question of independence, the movements were being
held at every place. In such a time, many volunteers would ask
Guruji, flowing in spirits. Once in a meeting, a volunteer said,
64

“Holding this Shakha will result into nothing. Now we should

consider on adopting some new method, else our Sangh and
our country will collapse completely.” Guruji listened to the
anguish of the Swayamsevak patiently and peacefully. Guruji
was about 35-36 years of age at that time. He said in all glory,
“If it collapses, I will begin it from the beginning.”
He said, “If it comes to complete destruction, I will once
again go to Mohite Bare in Nagpur where the Sangh place is
located, and will gather people as Dr. Hedgewar did, and then
start the Shakha, and will rest only after I have hailed Mother
India.” Such unshakable faith he had in the Shakha.
Let us know the height of his dedication to the Shakha from
another instance. This occurred at the time when the
Shankaracharya of Sharda Peeth left for heavenly abode. After
the funeral, the Shankaracharya of Dwarika Peeth, Abhinav
Sachchidanand sent Guruji a message, “Param Pujya Guruji,
the seat of Shankaracharya lies vacant, and there is none in the
world who can fit this high seat. I can see none other than you
who has a suitable personality for it.” It is a matter of honour
for anybody to get this respect, what else he would need! But,
Guruji sent back his message in all humility, “Jagadguru, your
command is supreme, but prior to this assignment, I have
already accepted a great task. The Shakha is the devotion of my
life, I would be able to serve the society better by the Shakha.
Therefore, please drop the idea of considering me for this high
seat of Jagadguru.” Humble as Guruji was, but he had also
expressed his complete dedication to the Shakha in which a few
youths, a few children and a few infants took part. Guruji went
on working with complete faith and devotion, and he gave up
the high seat of Shankaracharya. No other post, even higher
than the Sangh Shakha, could waver him from his faith and
devotion. He had no higher ambition in life than to serve Mother
India.

Height of Spirituality
Once the Param Pujya Guruji toured Madras Prant. He
wished to meet Sri Chandrashekharendra Saraswati, the
 65

Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamkoti Peeth. A message was sent

across to the Man. Shankaracharya. In response, he intimated
that Guruji could see him at his own convenience. Guruji visited
Kanchi Kamkoti. However, when Guruji entered the Shankar
Math, at that time, the Man. Shankaracharya, after due bath
and dress, was offering prayers to the Bhagwadgita in the prayer
hall. There was a rule that nobody could enter the prayer hall
once the prayer had started, even if he were his own pupil.
However, when the Man. Shankaracharya came to know of the
arrival of Guruji, he asked to bring him in. They both offered
prayers together and talked. After that, Guruji took his leave. A
pupil of Shankaracharya was curious to know about all this. He
asked the Shankaracharya, “Swamiji, you don’t allow anybody
else to enter the prayer hall while the prayer is on, why did you
then allow Guruji inside?”
The Man. Shankaracharya replied, “This common rule is
for the ordinary mortals. Sri Guruji is Lord Shiva incarnate.”
But Guruji had no liking for any post higher than the Shakha or
Sangh work.
The Param Pujya Guruji visited the Ramakrishna Mission
and the Vidya Mandir in Mysore. On this occasion, Swami
Amitabh Maharaj said in his welcome speech for Guruji, “Guruji
had undertaken Sadhana with perseverance and patience in the
Sargachi Ashram. On the basis of my company with him during
that period, I can claim that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
has obtained ‘Narendra’ (God of men) as its leader.”
The Param Pujya Guruji was about to visit Gujarat. At this
time, Guru Maharaj Pujya Rang Avadhoot was in Vadodara too.
When he came to know, he said, “I wish to see Guruji.” At this,
the Sangh’s Swayamsevaks said, “It is not proper for the Guru
Maharaj himself to come to see Guruji. Guruji said that he would
go himself, but Guru Maharaj said that he would go. It was a
complicated situation. Ultimately, Guruji had to abide by the
command of Guru Maharaj, and the latter visited him. Just
imagine the scene when the two met! Guru Maharaj arrived at
the residence of Baspa Himmatbhai Thakkar, when Guruji, the
leader of a massive organisation of the world who had attained
66

spirituality himself, came down the stairs running like a child

to receive the celebrated guest. He opened the door to the car.
Guru Maharaj stepped out. Guruji laid himself down before
him in veneration. Guru Maharaj stood him up and embraced
him. Guruji said something which only a learned scholar can
understand. He said, “We have met scores of times before, but
it is for the first time that we are meeting in the bodies.” There
was silence outward, but the dialogue was continuing within.
They exchanged their sentiments, ideas, and thoughts – all
through their spiritual sensations. Everybody was looking at
them in a shocked state. None of them was ready to get apart
from the other. It was believed that Guruji never wished to be
photographed with anybody, but that day, he called the
photographer himself and said, “Come, take my photograph
with Guru Maharaj.” He took Guru Maharaj in his arms and
got himself photographed in this pose. This photo exists even
today. It was an eternal sentiment of Guruji. It is hard to imagine
the height of spirituality that he had touched.

Shakha – the Mantra of Life

The Param Pujya Guruji, who had excelled in spiritual life,
perhaps had the only goal of Shakha as the mantra of life. Let
us experience his unshakable faith and strong belief in the
system of Shakha.
In the month of February in 1946, Guruji visited the city of
Kolkata. One day, Guruji was scheduled to take part in a
refreshment programme with some prestigious people of the
city. In it, an old doctor addressed Guruji thus: “I am in
agreement with the goal of the Sangh, but I fail to understand
how such high goals could be realized through such trivial
means. Will you be ever able to realize such a massive and noble
goal only through Daksha-Aram-Danda-Khadga-Shool-
Kabaddi and the like?” Guruji laughed at this and said, “Doctor
Saheb, what is the master drug in your allopathic system of
medicine?” The doctor said, “Penicillin.” Guruji asked, “What
is it from which penicillin is made?” The doctor said,
“Everybody is aware that it is made from the stale, bad-smelling
 67

grain which nobody would ever like to smell.” At this, Guruji

said, “It simply means that even a useless thing can be utilized
well if it goes in the hands of capable people. Does it not mean
that even the worst thing can yield the best results in the hands
of experts?” The doctor agreed in the affirmative. Guruji added
to this statement: “And here we are the experts in the science of
organisation.”
Once there was a Shivir (camp) for all Pracharaks of the
Sangh at Sindhi near Vardha. It was being attended by numerous
Pracharaks including Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. It was so
arranged that all Pracharaks would serve food in turn. One day,
it was the turn of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. He had to serve
chapattis. As he walked with the basket of chapattis, he reached
the row in which Guruji was sitting. When he reached near him,
a chapatti fell down. Deendayal felt bad. He picked up the
chapatti immediately. At this, Guruji said laughing, “Why
Panditji, it appears that you are not attending Shakha these
days.” Just match the three things – the chapatti falls, the
personality of Deendayal and the remark of Guruji. He meant
by his remark that agility is part of life, and you cannot get that
agility without attending the daily Shakha.

Sangh – A Family
Guruji had a clear vision and expectations about the moral
responsibilities of a Sangh official. Once in a village, the Param
Pujya Guruji requested a prestigious and elderly gentleman to
take the command of the Shakha as a Sanghsanchalak. The
elderly gentleman said, “What do you expect of me as a
Sanghsanchalak?”
“Just suppose that you are the senior most member of a
joint family. Your family comprises of sons and daughters,
cousins and nieces, grandsons and granddaughters. What will
be your duties as the senior most member of the family?” Guruji
asked him in a natural manner. The gentleman replied, “I shall
take care of each of them. I shall make effort so that they all live
peacefully and happily.” Guruji asked, “Will you allow them to
quarrel with each other?” The gentleman said, “No, never. I
68

will not allow them to quarrel with each other, rather I shall
make effort to ensure increase in their mutual love and
affection.”
“Will you pay attention when sons and daughters grow up
in the family after due education?” Guruji asked. And the
gentleman replied, “Yes, of course. I shall think of their future.”
Guruji enquired further, “Will you pay attention to the aspect
that they settle down well in life.” The gentleman responded in
the affirmative that he would. Guruji then asked, “Will you pay
attention to the fact that your sons become persons of good
qualities?” The gentleman agreed that it was his moral and
natural duty. Finally, Guruji said, “Accept the Sangh as your
family. You have to do all this for the Sangh as the
Sanghsanchalak.”
Guruji never approved of any types of distinctions in terms
of caste and race, language or region, small or big, volunteer or
official. Therefore, he kept bulldozing the walls of separation
through his conduct from time to time.
The Sangh Shiksha Varga was in progress in Nagpur. It was
the day of inauguration of the Varga. The most venerable Guruji
too was in attendance. At noon, the introduction session with
the Swayamsevaks was underway. During this process, a
Swayamsevak introduced himself, “I have come from Belgaum.”
Guruji asked, “Is it the same Belgaum which is a subject of
dispute?” The Swayamsevak said, “Yes, the same one.” Then
Guruji said, “Then which state are you supporting?” The
Swayamsevak said, “Sir, I am supporting Maharashtra.” Guruji
said, “Brother, there is only one to be supported by a
Swayamsevak that is the nation. All other isms other than
nationalism are not allowed in the Sangh. If you follow any other
ism than nationalism, you can pack up with bag and baggage. I
seek permission from the respected chief officer to allow me to
do this violation of his rights. The Sangh and the nation cannot
carry such people with them.”

Humility of Great Man

In people’s views, Guruji was great. He had attained
 69

greatness. He was extremely humble, but a large number of

intellectuals of India could not recognize him during his lifetime.
He adopted the Sangh’s dress and discipline. Due to the Sangh’s
tradition of keeping away from propaganda and engaging itself
in the service of Motherland, there were scores of people who
spread all kinds of rumours about the Sangh and Guruji. One
such rumour too spread that Guruji possessed a personality just
like that of Hitler, Lenin or Mussolini. Many writers never knew
Guruji well, they never met him, and still they wrote lengthy
articles on him without having to mention the true aspects of
his personality. They characterized Guruji with a prejudiced
mind and kept themselves busy in false propaganda. It became
difficult to know about humility and virtue of Guruji. The
people, who projected him as the autocrat, could know him
correctly only after his death.
In the final moments of his life, Guruji wrote three letters.
All these three letters are a source of inspiration for every
Swayamsevak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as well
those who wish Mother India to progress. Guruji writes in these
letters: “Working with me for the past thirty-three years, due to
strangeness of my nature, due to defects in my personality, there
might have been some instances when I could have disrespected
you, I could have hurt you, I could have made you feel pain;
however, dear Swayamsevak friends, I entreat you all in all
earnestness to pardon me. I beg pardon of you all, I bind my
hands to beg pardon of you.”
Just imagine of a man who ruled the hearts of millions of
Swayamsevaks, on every command of whose millions of
Swayamsevaks were ever ready to sacrifice their lives, and in
the final moments of his life he begs pardon of all the
Swayamsevaks, all the people of the country, and all the people
he had met in life. His spirit of being a Swayamsevak was
conscious at every moment of life; how humble that seer was,
how authentic his life was!
The most venerable Guruji turned away from fame. He
never allowed anybody to photograph him. At that time, we
felt that it might be quite ordinary when he did not allow
70

anybody to photograph him. But when we glance through the

entire life of Guruji, we find that his turning away from fame
had reached the unexpected heights.
Once the most respected Guruji was invited to attend a
Gauraksha conference being held at Prayag. It was being
attended by a number of well-known saints, seers and hermits.
When Guruji arrived there, some of the zealous people hailed
him: ‘Param Puja Guruji Amar Rahen’, ‘Param Pujya Guruji Ki
Jai’, and the like. When Guruji heard of such slogans, he felt
shocked. He was flabbergasted. He turned and sat back in the
car, and asked the driver to go back. Prabhudutt Brahmachari
saw this. He ran from the stage. He stopped the car before it
could move away. He entreated Guruji, “Please come back,
Guruji.” Guruji said, “A place where you should hail Mother
India, a place where you should discuss the welfare of
Motherland, you are using that place to raise slogans for an
individual. I cannot approve and accept any slogan which hails
me here.” At this, everybody begged pardon of him and
requested him to attend the conference. Only when everybody
raised slogans in the honour of Motherland that Guruji ascended
the stage. The respected Guruji wished to lead the life of an
ordinary Swayamsevak all his life. He never liked anybody
raising slogans for him. He would refuse if anybody ever came
to photograph him. Not only this, he would get any of his
photograph removed if he saw it on a wall or the like. He would
say: “The picture of Doctor Saheb is more than sufficient for
motivation and inspiration.” This great man lived to the last of
his life with this sentiment.

Not I, You Alone

Once the editor of the Dharmayug, a periodical, wrote to
the renowned people of India to write a few sentences on the
topic ‘Goal of Your Life’. A number of well-known people wrote
what they had to. Somebody wrote two pages and the other
wrote five. Everybody wrote as they wished to. However, the
Param Pujya Guruji did not write despite repeated requests. In
the end, the editor himself came to meet Guruji. When he urged
 71

earnestly, Guruji wrote only four words: “Main Nahin, Tu Hi”

(Not I, you alone). Uttering ‘Tu Hi’ were not mere words, they
displayed his dedication, his conduct in life. The entire life of
Guruji is encompassed in just these four words. The word ‘Tu’
(you) signifies Sangh, society and God. He had unified these
three together, they were one for him. There was no controversy,
no dispute in the service of anyone of these. ‘When you serve
one, you serve all’ was the motto of his life, and he kept himself
busy in the service of the Sangh, the whole society and the
nation. In other words, his life itself had transformed into work
for the society and nation. Therefore, in the second of the three
letters that he wrote in the final moments of his life, he wrote:
“I command the Swayamsevaks that no memorial should ever
be raised in my memory after my death.” You can see how
opposed he was to any kind of fame.
As the worthy son of Motherland, he always thought of
welfare. He did not wish to know the distinction who did and
who didn’t. I did but I don’t want a memorial for me, and he
was of this firm view. All his life, he did not get himself
photographed, nor did he allow slogans to be raised in his praise.
When he said ‘not I, you alone’ his faith in life was manifested
expressly. These were not mere words, they were the
manifestation of a whole Swayamsevak incarnate. This was the
dedication etched in the heart of the Param Pujya Guruji. He
always aspired that such sentiments of devotion to the
Motherland should reside in the heart of every Swayamsevak.
The Sangh Shiksha Varga for central Indian region was in
progress in Gwalior. Guruji attended this Varga for two days.
On this occasion, some Swayamsevaks went to present him a
copy of a book titled Rashtriya Suraksha Ke Morche Par (On the
Front of National Security). This book also mentioned of the
contribution of the Swayamsevaks of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh during the Indo-Pak war. The book
delineated in brief the details of renunciation and sacrifice made
by the Swayamsevaks. The Swayamsevaks felt that Guruji would
be happy to see this book and would shower his blessings.
However, the sentiment of devotion to Mother India
72

occupied the complete heart of the venerable Guruji. The

Swayamsevaks were surprised to listen to his reaction when he
saw the book. He said, “I shall not accept this book.” It was for
the reason that he did not approve of any propaganda for any
service, sacrifice and renunciation by the Sangh’s
Swayamsevaks. The Param Pujya Guruji said to his
Swayamsevak softly, “Brother, will you consider a person
worthy if he propagates about his service to his mother?
Whatever the Swayamsevaks did in the service of Mother India,
it was their natural duty, then why should they need
propaganda?”
He lived all his life as a Swayamsevak of the Sangh. He felt
bliss in this capacity. He saw many ups and downs in the life of
the Sangh, yet this great man never lost his equilibrium, he did
never lose his patience.

Oneness with Motherland

After the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, a ban was
imposed on the Sangh. Guruji was arrested, but the Sangh came
out unscathed. Guruji was released from the jail. A programme
was being held in Delhi to honour this Swayamsevak of the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh who talked of love with the
entire humanity. He was forty years of age then. Millions of
Swayamsevaks were ready to sacrifice their lives at one
command of his. Lakhs of people were eager to listen to him in
the public meeting. The renowned journalists of India and
abroad were present in the meeting. They were all eager to listen
to him what he was about to tell his Swayamsevaks. Will he ask
to bring down the Nehru Government? However, that great
man, who had suffered behind the bars for nineteen months,
said in his address: “Forget all that has happened. All those
who have done all this, they too are our own. If the tongue comes
between the teeth and is cut, we don’t break the teeth, because
the teeth are our own too. Therefore, forget about everything.”
Just think of the man, how self-controlled and patient was the
behaviour of this man who led such a massive organisation at
the mere age of only forty years.
 73

He lived a life of a Tapasvi, a life of penance, for thirty-three

years without a break. He possessed in his heart a firm desire
to remain a Swayamsevak in order to attain welfare of
Motherland, and sacrifice himself on the altar of this high goal.
His oneness with Motherland was unique, strange and
wonderful. The day Guruji was being honoured in Delhi, there
was all around a loud applause in his honour. At this hour, sitting
on the stage, Guruji was writing something. People felt that he
must be writing something in response to the ovation that he
was being accorded there. However, Guruji was completely
detached from his applause. At that time, he was writing the
song ‘Vande Mataram’. He wrote the complete song and gave
it to the singer, so that he could sing it well, without omitting a
line from it.

Uninterrupted Hard Work Until the Last

The Param Pujya Guruji kept on working hard until the
final moments of his life. He was afflicted with cancer from the
year 1969. Now, his life became uncertain, death was certain, it
was staring in his eyes, the only factor was time. Still, Guruji
did not lose patience. He was like the sun that spreads its
splendour whether it rises or sets, it feels no sorrow in both
situations; the same way, Guruji felt no delight or sorrow in his
rise or decline, he remained completely detached.
After his ailment of cancer was diagnosed, it was essential
for Guruji to undergo surgery. Even a slight delay could lead to
death, so the officials of the Sangh as well as the doctors decided
that he should undergo surgery as soon as possible. However,
Guruji said clearly that the Sangh Shiksha Varga had been
planned for the summer vacation, and it would not be
appropriate for him to undergo a surgery until its completion.
The suffering was unbearable, the future symptoms were bleak,
but Guruji favoured Sangh work, he preferred Sangh work to
personal work. He kept on undertaking tours for close to two
and a half months. He kept meeting the Swayamsevaks in every
corner of the country. He did not undergo a surgery until his
resolve had been completed. He underwent the operation only
when his schedule was over.
74

Guruji transformed the hospital into a temple of devotion

to the society. After his surgery, he set out to enquire after the
other patients in the hospital. It was a strange phenomenon for
the doctors. Such a task could have been accomplished by a
soul that was replete with spiritual spirit, free from the corporeal
burden; only such a great man could have shared the suffering
of other people in the hospital in such a situation. Guruji had
not allowed any letup to intervene his spirit of social service
even while lying on his deathbed in the hospital.
Guruji had devoted every particle of his body and every
moment of his life in the service of holy Motherland. He did
not pray to God for this mortal body. The mantra of his life was
to undertake continuous service to Motherland. How exalted
his life was, could be seen from the final days of his life. Those
days, Guruji went to Kottaikal in Kerala for treatment. The
process of oil bath was underway. One day, a Vaidya (medicine
man) came there, he lighted a lamp and prayed. Then he
requested Guruji, “Please pray God for your quick recovery.”
Guruji did not get ready for this prayer. He clearly refused it.
He said, “You can do all for my health what you like, I shall not
interrupt you in between, but what is the need to pray God for
this mortal body? He would be able to extract as much work
from it as He wished. When He would feel that my work is
over, He would call me back. I shall not pray to Him only for
the sake of this body.”
Everybody who was devoted to the Param Pujya Guruji
went to meet him in order to share his suffering. Somebody got
a havan conducted, and another some religious ritual; somebody
got a mantra chanting done while another undertook some other
ritual. Everybody had their respective faiths, but everybody
wished that Guruji should recover as quickly as possible.
One such day, Bhaurao Devras and Rajju Bhaiya went to
Allahabad. They wished to get a religious ritual performed by
a brilliant priest. As they reached the threshold, the priest said
from the front, “I know what brings you gentlemen here. You
have come for a ritual to be conducted for a scholarly, devoted,
social worker, but I cannot foresee his life beyond the seventh
 75

of June. He is a saint, he is a holy soul, he is not bound for rebirth,

and he is eligible for Moksha, emancipation. He has attained
the stage of Paramhansa.”
The Param Pujya Guruji was in the form of a body, he was
in the form of deed. He was away from body and material world.
He kept spreading happiness even during his time of illness.
Even in the final moments of his life, he talked to the visitors
about the country, society and Sangh.

Aggregation of Light
On 5 June, 1973, in the morning, Dr. Abaji said that the bell
had been rung. Why did he utter such words? It can be possible
only after a person attains the zenith of spiritual life. Bell, temple
and idol are all linked together. The indication to visit God’s
house and the forecast of the Allahabad’s priest about his certain
emancipation could be found to blend strangely.
In the year 2006 was celebrated the birth centenary of
Guruji. The fragrance of unbroken, continuous, attentive
meditation of an ascetic can be felt even today. Attaining or even
knowing the life of Guruji is beyond our capacity. It was only a
humble effort to recall those happy moments. These happy
moments will lead you all to bliss, it is solemnly anticipated.
o
 Rashtraya Swaha, Rashtraya Idam Na Mam.
(Sacrifice for the Nation. I Have No Existence beyond the
Nation.)
 Glorious National Life
People may call us communal
Yet belief is uniform – theirs and ours,
The only difference being
We have the courage to speak the truth
And they out of fear
Try to appease and suppress.
Of course, this is quite evident
They cover their fear
With large-heartedness and secularism and the like.
There being no other distinction,
So, we arrive at the inference
Is that all those races
That inhabit this land
Yet are not loyal to it,
Have not assimilated its culture,
Have not approved its lifestyle
Which this country has evolved over centuries.
That don’t believe in
Its philosophy, its national persona
And the fundamental elements of this nation.
In brief,
They all are foreign to our national life.
Only the life of Hindu society
Has been the true thinking
And glorious national life
of this holy land.
—Param Pujya Guruji
o
 Revival
Reviving is the sole goal
Of complete glory and
Greatness of our Hindu nation.
To understand our goal
We speak in the prayer
That we ought to understand the sense
Of complete glory of the nation in this way.
Besides, we ought to understand
How we can make our nation
Tall and glorious,
How we can make it stable.
Generally, the glory of a nation
Is measured by material prosperity.
No doubt, a nation must be prosperous
In every way.
All needs of everybody in the nation
Must be met.
But is the concept of glory
For our nation
Is any similar to this?
This is a solemn and vital query,
We ought to think over it earnestly.
—Param Pujya Guruji
o
 Duty, Not Rights
Today, we hear around us
The commotion for rights.
Our government too talks
of equal rights
And cultivates ego in people.
There is no stress
Anywhere
For duty and selfless service.
The soul of the society
Is the spirit of cooperation,
Yet it can live no more
In the atmosphere of self-centred rights.
So, we see different types of struggles
In different fields
of our national life –
Be he teacher or student
Be he worker or industrialist.
By assimilating our cultural view alone
Can revive in our national life
The true spirit of cooperation
And spirit of duty.
—Param Pujya Guruji
o
 Venerate Ideal, Not Person or Book
The Sangh has approved this symbol of life
As its guiding Guru.
Doctor Saheb presented this Bhagwa Dhwaj
As our Guru, our ideal,
His comrades were not happy.
They looked at Doctor Saheb
Made from blood and flesh
And looked at him as their ideal,
They asked, “Why should we not
Adopt Doctor Saheb as our ideal?”
Our founder established dialogue with the spirit of organisation,
And established as our ideal
The indestructible eternal Bhagwa Dhwaj.
No man however great he might be
Cannot replace the national ideal.
Because man is only a quiet being
That flows in the infinite current of the nation.
It is meaningless to expect of man
However great to keep his fragrance
To eternity.
It is not possible for all people
To possess spirit of equal respect for an individual
Who is filled with finest possibilities.
Many people accept Sri Ram as their deity
And others Sri Krishna as their Lord,
And still others have their own deities.
So, the Sangh has chosen a symbol
That has eternal, omnipresent inspiration.
—Param Pujya Guruji
o
I have taken the vow to serve Motherland out of self-
inspiration,
It is our endeavour to become a true Swayamsevak.
 Transparent Gem – Pappaji
Dr. Pranlal Doshi

Pappaji inseparably bound himself with the daily Shakha for the
development and expansion of basic tasks of the Sangh. His
dedication to the daily Shakha was manifest in his conduct even
in the advancing stage of ninety years.

Dr. Pranlal Brijlal Doshi – when you say this name, no

picture emerges on the mind. When you call Dr. P.V. Doshi, you
feel as if you know him a bit. But as soon as you hear the words
‘Pappaji’, you can find a streak of bright light in the eyes of a
large section of people not only in Rajkot, but all over Gujarat.
A personality filled to the brim with diversity, still you feel
not an individual, but the essence. His personality was like the
soft wind that refreshes everybody – young or old – felt this
way.
I tried to recall when I met Pappaji first. I tried to remember
it hard, but could not when I met him first. Maybe, it was the
special feature of that mortal body that had transformed itself
from an individual to essence. Of course, there is some feeling
that several decades lapsed between the time when I met him
first and the time when I bade him farewell. His conduct, his
behaviour was uniform in all aspects of life – body, mind, speech,
interaction. There was a series of events, there were mountains
of questions. The time of calamity came and passed off. All these
manifested in the tests of ideas at one time and momentum to
the working at another. The calamity was natural at one time
and manmade at another. In every moment and instance, he
92

made us feel the shade of a dense banyan tree and gave us cool.
Not only this, he made us feel the massiveness of the banyan
tree.
Pappaji became a dental surgeon in Kolkata. There is a class
of gentry in Kolkata’s way of living that is still influenced by
English way of living. Pappaji lived his youth in Kolkata and
did his practice. He returned to Rajkot and started his
professional life as a doctor. Even in Rajkot, he expressed his
youth of Kolkata. You could not miss his western influence. His
life was replete with daily evening visits to the club, playing
cards and smoke of cigarette flying all about him. If we peep
into the life of Sardar Patel, we would find something of the
sort. He was a Barrister by profession, he visited the bar, played
cards in the club, and mimicked the freedom fighters while
puffing out dense cigarette smoke, and he cut fun at even
Mahatma Gandhi. It was a natural way of life for Sardar Patel.
However, a touch from Mahatma Gandhi transformed the life
of Sardar Patel like never before. He sacrificed ‘self’ for the sake
of freedom. ‘The words of Mahatma Gandhi were the ultimate
words for him. He displayed this commitment and resolve and
lived it. This transformation in Sardar Patel was like a pleasant
surprise for his bar associates. We can find some such
fundamental transformation in the life of Dr. Doshi – Pappaji.
He lived a life of club under the western influence in Kolkata,
but a touch from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh transformed
him wonderfully. Doctor Saheb moulded himself according to
the ideals of the Sangh in no time. He kept on sacrificing
everything of his for the sake of Sangh’s culture, Sangh’s traits
and Sangh’s work. He kept moulding his ‘self’. At that time, the
prestige of the doctor was known as the excellence of social life.
In such a period, he parted away from the prestige of ‘self’, and
moulded himself into a true, devoted, dedicated Swayamsevak
in order to establish the prestige of the Sangh. This task he
carried all his life.
Fragile and thin body. Thrifty in speech, weak body, yet
experiencing the Sangh every moment. No one ever needed to
explain any form of the Sangh after he met Doctor Saheb –
 93

Pappaji. His life was the Sangh incarnate. He did not even look
like an individual, nor did he show his aura of personality. No
outwardly show, nor any means, yet the wonderful speech. He
talked everything, but his words and letters lacked any
ornamentation; rather we can say that his speech showed no
signs of language. We can think of the matter, the essence, but
not the talk. When you are in his company, you feel his wordless
speech, his personality-less existence, with a touch of traits, with
a touch of firm resolve, with a touch of unshakable optimism
and belief, with a touch of affection not rooted in any material
choice. When you come in his proximity, you cannot but
experience his fragrant presence coming out of calamities and
thorns, his freshness existing despite the ripe age of ninety years.
He was being invited to lead a prestigious life as a doctor, yet
he passed his youth in jail for the sake of ideals and principles,
and yet emerged as a conqueror despite his trail body but
determined heart, and you cannot miss all these features of him
when you come into his contact.
Smt. Indira Gandhi, in order to save her post of Prime
Minister, imposed artificial lawlessness (emergency) on the
country. Democracy was coerced, a life-threatening attack was
launched on press freedom. The entire country was turned into
a prison. It was as good as a crime to talk of democracy. All
leaders had been put behind the bars. The people were forced
to live a life in the dark. The black law of MISA was terrifying
crores of people of the country. In such a time, Pappaji started
his struggle for the re-establishment of democracy. He went to
jail during this time of lawlessness (emergency). Looking at his
age, prestige and health, all his comrades entreated him to go
back home on parole, but his firm mind was not ready to
approve of that suggestion. He always said: “I shall not try to
go out of the jail without having attained my goal. I cannot take
an immoral step, that is to leave alone my comrades who are
struggling for democracy.” And he remained in prison until
victory was his, he fought for this on moral grounds.
In the capacity of the first Sanghchalak of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh, he did everything that was possible to
94

expand and develop the Sangh work in Gujarat. His proximity,

his affection inspired everybody to work. His way of working
had a unique characteristic. He thought more about the progress
of a volunteer rather than the progress of work. He was of the
firm view that if you cared for the volunteer, you would not
need to care for the work.
For the development and expansion of the basic Sangh
work, Pappaji had linked himself with the daily Shakha –
inseparably. Even in the ripe age of ninety years, his behaviour
displayed his unflinching faith in the daily Shakha. His urge
towards the Shakha had its influence over the whole of Gujarat.
He was greatly committed to his work. Moreover, he had
profound and wonderful attachment for the tribals, their
progress and welfare. In Gujarat, about 15 per cent of people
live in the forests. Even after forty-fifty years of independence,
the tribals are deprived of the developmental process, he felt
this agony in his heart. He resolved to do something in the
direction of all-round development of the tribals.
When he was seventy-five years of age, he travelled all night
by bus to go to a place called Dharampur in Valsad. He went to
the forests there every month, lived among the tribals to
understand their problems, to infuse vigour in them, to make
arrangements for resolving their problems, to settle a system –
and thus he absorbed in all these tasks. He paid attention to
even trivial matters. He accepted several tribal families as his
own. When the dental surgeon in Rajkot was giving up his
mortal body, at that time, the tribals right from Umargram to
Ambaji, were streaming down tears – what could be better than
this zenith of life?
We can notice in the life of Pappaji a continuous current of
a particular feature, that is the feature of continuous pity
blending with duty. If we glance through the life of Pappaji, we
find it essential to know about the deaf and the dumb. And
when we think of a school for them, we remember of an
institution that was in the form of Pappaji, manifest in his
continuous stream of pity and duty. Pappaji’s daughter suffered
from physical handicap. He linked this personal or family
 95

disability to the society, and considered all such disabled

children as his own; and we can seldom find such merciful
people as Pappaji was; he extended his mercy and emotion to
everybody suffering in this way. This school of Pappaji in Rajkot
is a living memorial of his pity and mercy.
Pappaji was affectionately attached to this deaf and dumb
school. Sometimes it appeared that he loved the school more
than his family members.
The viewpoint of Pappaji towards the disabled is the
practical form of the Sangh’s doctrine. How should our society
feel for the disabled? If there is a disabled person in a family,
his responsibility does not lie on the family alone. If the family
alone has to fight this calamity, if it has to suffer from it, if it has
to sacrifice everything of its own for it, we cannot call it a healthy
sign for any society. A healthy society is the one that considers
all disabled people as its own who are suffering from some
deformity or disability by birth, and the responsibility to look
after such people lies not on the family alone; rather the entire
society should come out collectively to carry out this
responsibility.
If the healthy society took over the responsibility of a
disabled person, the people of his family and other people of
society would become happy, and they would not take it as a
burden. You must not show pity or mercy for the disabled, but
you must look at them with dutifulness. They are not the subject
of sympathy, they are the subject of sensitivity. There should be
homogeneous pity and emotion; the society should feel the pity
as a disabled person feels. The feeling that the world is mine is
equally shared by a disabled person too. This emotion of his
should be respected, this emotion of his should be cultivated,
and if the society falls back in doing so, it would be considered
disabled – we ought to think so.
The shortcoming or disability of a body organ cannot be
considered a handicap, it is erroneous to think so. If I cannot
feel the situation and agony that a disabled person is passing
through, I must be a disabled person myself despite having
healthy legs, hands, eyes and nose – we are bound to think this
96

way. Everybody must examine himself if he is disabled from

within.
Pappaji had expanded his inner-self greatly. As a
consequence, the deaf and dumb school was more important to
him than the temple. His glorious personality, like a
philosopher’s stone, had its influence over this school. Due to
his untiring work, every worker in this school appeared to be a
devotee. The reason in its basis was Pappaji’s resplendent
personality.
In our country, it was compulsory for both healthy child
and handicapped child to attain equal marks (35 marks) for
passing in an examination. How can a disabled child be
compared with a healthy child? In any aspect of life, a disabled
child has to work much harder than a healthy boy. He needs a
longer time too. Nobody had ever paid attention to this agony
that disabled people go through. In the whole country, it was
the BJP Government in Gujarat that took significant steps in
this direction. A new practical rule was formulated by which a
disabled child will have to score 20 marks if a healthy child was
supposed to score 35 marks. This decision made Pappaji
indescribably happy.

The firm mind, residing in the fragile body, was the source of
energy. His blooming life continues to spread fragrance all around
even today. As a single ray from the sun provides succour in
chilling cold, so were love and attachment from Pappaji. Like a
twinkling star in the unfathomable dark, his life was like a streak
of light.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is chiefly an attitude to

culturisation and refinement. Pappaji always favoured
culturisation as well as indoctrination. The tendency to
indoctrination could be seen all over India, but little effort had
been made in this direction in Gujarat. Pappaji took upon himself
the task of the continuous flow of indoctrination and
culturisation, just like he had taken steps for the welfare of the
tribal people. His commitment to this task was so firm that could
 97

shame even the young. You will not find any individual in the
Sangh family who might be interested in teaching, yet he was
not included in discussion or planning for spreading education.
He had made a successful endeavour to select pearls, gather
them and weave them all into a rosary. In no time, a number of
educational institutions came into being that were cultured and
indoctrinated. His contribution was no less in achieving such a
massive work in a limited time.
It is natural for an individual to have in his life vitality,
vigour, coordination, adjustment, maladjustment. Good or bad
effect of an individual can be seen on his favourite work. It is
natural to have joy in a favourable situation and disappointment
in an adverse situation. There are few people who display
uniform emotions or qualities under all circumstances. We
cannot miss the unique personality of Pappaji. He lived a goal-
oriented life, with complete attention to it, and kept working
towards achieving it, and made untiring efforts in order to attain
higher goals – all these factors establish a unique example in
respect of him. You can find individuals who are continuously
inclined towards one goal, but you will seldom find people who
have uniform attitude and aptitude. The reference to Pappaji is
quite significant in this respect.
We can see in the life of Pappaji how a substantial life can
overcome calamities. Whether the difficulty was manmade or
natural, Pappaji took everything in its stride. He had a positive
attitude to think that what God does is for the good, and
therefore, he kept himself engaged in working towards
excellence. Whether it was the terrible breach of the Machchhu
dam at Morbi or the earthquake at Kutch, whether it was famine
or tempest, he did not look back an iota and ensured that the
Sangh did not lag behind even a bit so far as help to mankind
was concerned.
It was the resolute heart in his fragile body that transformed
itself into energy and vitality for others. His fragrant life
continues to spread its fragrance even today. As even a single
ray of the sun provides succour in chilly cold, love and
attachment of Pappaji was something like this. His life was a
98

streak of light in the pitch dark, just like a twinkling star. The
other name for a transparent life was Pappaji. His touch was
like that of a philosopher’s stone. His mere proximity led to
make the path simple and easy. I bow to such Pappaji again and
over again.
o
He is not pained at seeing the poor, he is not attached to the
wealthy;
He loves the palace, as he does the thatched hut.
 Yugarishi
Centenarian Shastriji

Shastriji wrote 250 books and 1500 articles. He was awarded the
Padmashree, Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak and other awards, he
was bestowed upon the title of Yuga Rishi. Once when he was
asked, “Is there anything left still in life, Shastriji?” At this,
Shastriji, who lived life like that of a student, said, “I am yet to
learn computer.”

K. Shastriji
Epitome of learning,
Seer of culture,
Thinker of religion,
Guard of honour.

The venerable Shastriji is a golden page of glorious history

of our great heritage. He made the study of Vedic culture a part
of his life. He assimilated the doctrine of Karmayoga as
enunciated in the Gita, and created a refined food for travel for,
not one or two, but numerous generations to come. I was related
to this epitome of culture like father and son, and was bound
with him in affection and attachment.
The venerable Shastriji was a learned scholar. He was a
scientist, a linguistic scientist. As a scientist is continuously busy
looking into a subject, in order to prove something new, to make
some new invention, to research something new, and this
enriches the world with his newly found knowledge. Shastriji
was much like a scientist. He was a scientist of language. The
104

Gujarati language is by itself unfathomable and prosperous, and

this fact was brought out by him. A miner goes down the depths
in order to search out the diamond lying under the stone,
Shastriji was something like this. His research has revolved
round to the depths, to bring out the language as useful and
prosperous. This was the reason that he was termed as the living
university – the master – of the linguistics.
When a sculptor makes a statue, its luck depends on the
person who owns it. If it makes to a drawing room, it will
decorate the ambience. If it makes to a garment merchant, it
would have new clothes to wear every day, and if it makes to a
seer, it will be established as God and in this capacity it will be
worshipped like God. Maybe the sculptor himself will bow
down before it in all reverence.

Every Letter a Mantra

We all have learnt the letters of alphabet, we have learnt
the word and its meaning, we have learnt how to join words;
but every letter of Shastriji took the form of a mantra; his words
were infused with life. It is our nature to meditate. The power
to transform a letter into a mantra cannot be attained without
having worshipped Sarasvati. Shastriji possessed the ability to
transform letters into mantras. He is an invaluable treasure of
this age.
I can remember when Shastriji went to America for the first
time. After he returned from there, I went to meet him. My
normal tax, whenever I visited Shastriji, was to partake of
laddoos. It was much like the government tax, but I took the tax
in the form of laddoos. He had returned from America, so I
went to see him and asked, “How was the journey?” At this, he
said, “Narendra Bhai, I bought books worth fifteen thousand.”
He was interested to know more about the American
Indians, who in common parlance are called Red Indians. He
wanted to know more about the aboriginal inhabitants of
America. He was curious to know how a Red Indian
transformed himself when confronted by an Indian Hindu and
how he was depicted in his traditions and customs, way of living,
 105

architecture, literature and art. He had bought books worth

fifteen thousand rupees just to study this topic. His research
work tended to comprise in itself as much learning as he could;
he kept diving in the pond of learning.

Meeting with Power of Learning

During the meeting, we talked about the anecdotes that he
had confronted during his sojourn in America. He had
researched much in looking for the elements of Indian culture
in their language, their pronunciation and other processes.
I asked him, “Did you go to America to see America or see
India in America?”
He said, “I found India in America. I have seen myself the
influence of Indian culture there.”
He possessed infinite faith in the native culture. If he came
across a yajna being performed, or another ritual, if somebody
was calling ‘Swaha...Swaha’, he would go into its depths to find
out why it is being so pronounced. He tried to find how our
social life underwent a change. He had returned from there with
this type of knowledge. It simply showed his attachment and
curiosity for the great culture and tradition of this country.
There is much talked today that knowledge is very powerful
in the world. If there is one who has assimilated the power of
knowledge, it appears to me, it is none else but the respected
Shastriji. There are numerous people who see God, there are a
number of people who undertake religious rituals morning and
evening; but he was a personality who accepted knowledge as
God, and worked for its attainment; and he continued to work
in this direction without any expectation in return.

A Living University
A joyful life, a devoted life. If we compare Shastriji taking
only his literary creations in view, it would amount to injustice
to him; it would amount to an erroneous judgement about him.
If we put his books aside, still you will find that his personality
was like an explanation of the future generations. He was like
an unforgettable man of history among the prestigious and
106

accomplished writers. Just take out time to sit peacefully trying

to understand him and testing the truth of his life. We shall
continue to be inspired by him, such was his life. (I wished I
did not lose that opportunity!)
Shastriji worked continuously for joining words in the
Gujarati language. He was very proficient in his work. It is said
that in the year 1936 was held a session of Gujarati literary
council in Ahmedabad, under the Chairmanship of Gandhiji.
He was very strict when it came to discuss the joining of words.
When the Gujarat Vidyapeeth had prepared a dictionary of
joining words, Shastriji refused to approve of it saying that the
job had not been done well as yet, and there needed
improvement in it. He approved of it only when the Vidyapeeth
agreed to undertake the improvement work. You can see from
this instance his attachment towards purity and correctness of
language.
He wished to preserve Gujarati, and stressed that it should
be spoken in the family. All three of his sons are in America, but
their children speak in Gujarati at home.
It is due to his learning that he is better known as Dada or
Shastriji. He was only a matriculate, yet he guided 19 Ph.D.
students in their theses, and he had guided more than 1,000
M.A. students. The fragrance of his writing work rose to the
international arena. The library of Harvard University houses
a book of Shastriji.
It would be pleasing to know how well Shastriji wrote and
how correctly he wrote. A friend of mine, a proofreader by
profession, told me this anecdote. In the past, the books were
composed by the typesetter. The proofreader said that he was
fortunate to compose a hand-written manuscript from Shastriji,
which ranged over thousands of pages. Describing his
experience, he said that this manuscript had thousands of pages,
yet I could locate not even a single error, not one. You can
imagine from this fact how conscious he was while writing. How
much effort he made in his writing, was due to the fact that he
had not missed even a single Matra – small or big – anywhere;
completely errorfree. It is simply something great. There are
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many dimensions of his personality. There must be numerous

people like me who are blessed by him. His fatherly life will
continue to support and inspire us throughout our lives. He is
an invaluable treasure for the people of Gujarat, and it is natural
for all people to take pride in him.

Learn to Live Life

The life of Shastriji will continue to inspire us for numerous
years. His works will continue to teach us for years to come.
Once in a village came a Vaidyaraj (native medicine man).
It was natural for the medicine man to visit different villages;
he would stay at one village for months together, treat people
and serve the people of the adjoining villages. When he was in
a village, he researched on medicinal herbs and plants, and
utilized the medicines on the suffering people. One day, he came
across a leper.
He said, “Vaidyaraj, my life is as good as wasted. How ugly
I look! What will happen to my life? My social life is as good as
finished.”
The Vaidyaraj said, “There is a medicine which can cure
your problem, but you will have to keep self-control.”
The leper said, “I am ready to observe self-control if I can
rid of this illness.”
The Vaidyaraj said, “Think seven times before coming back
to me.”
Next day, the leper came back. The Vaidyaraj told him about
the type of self-control, gave him medicine which was a village
herb, explained it and said, “You have to eat khichdi (rice and
pulse mixed together) daily after mixing a spoonful of Arandi
(castor) oil in it.”
The Vaidyaraj explained to him everything and left for
another village. Twenty years later, he happened to visit the
same village again. A person came and bowed before him in all
reverence, and said, “Vaidyaraj, did you recognize me? You
visited this village twenty years ago. I was a leper boy at that
time. You had told me the treatment. I am that leper.”
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The Vaidyaraj said, “It’s wonderful, you have no spot on

the body. Did you observe self-control?”
The man said, “I am observing self-control even now.”
The Vaidyaraj bowed before him and said, “You are the
pupil for whom my experience proved worthy.”

He had said that the Hindus are tolerant, and they would remain
so in the future too. But being tolerant does not mean that they
would not protect themselves. Terrorism is spreading its wings
for the past few years. Looking at this threat, the Hindus will have
to be active to protect themselves, else the coming days will prove
a threat to them.

The worth, the value of medicine lay in the patient. How

great Shastriji was! Shastriji gave us much, but how much of it
we have abided by, how we have lived of it, how much of it has
been proven worthy. The Vaidyaraj was content that his
medicine was true and effective, he had got a patient to test his
medicine. It was his medicine that taught him to live. Let us
learn this fact by living as per the teachings of Shastriji.

National Heritage
I can recall that his centenary birth anniversary was
organized by the State Government. He was always cautious
lest he should disrespect the person who invited him at the age
of 101 years. Consequently, it was quite simple for the State
Government to hold his centenary birth anniversary. We could
hold different types of programmes, yajnas, talks on the country’s
cultural and other topics, and all these could occur only due to
the Man. Shastriji.
In the programme, when Shastriji stood up to speak, he
asked the person looking after the sound system, “Brother, keep
the mike away, in this ripe age, I am afraid that everybody would
not be able to hear me.”
I requested him, “Shastriji, please sit down and speak.”
At this, he said, “All my life I have stood and taught, so I
shall speak while standing.” Every aspect of his personality was
wonderful, and it was a source of his energy.
 109

There is a large section of people who have infinite faith in

Shastriji. We all have experienced that when aged people of the
social life meet, they often talk, “When I was young, I went to a
particular village where I saw a particular thing,” and the like.
An individual may grow in age and status, yet his memories
keep coming back to him at all times.
I can recall that once Atal Behari Vajpayee described an
incident in a very emotional tone. He said, “When I was young,
I had joined the Hindu movement, and Sardar Patel had come
to Gwalior to attend a celebration holding the integration of a
native state into India. I can remember that glorious face of
Sardar Patel even today, it was a memorial moment of my life.”
It feels good to say such things. Friends, it appears to me that
people would quite often recall that they were present in the
celebration to honour Shastriji when he was 101 years.
There can be no greater joy, greater moment in life than
this. I can say that it is a great revolutionary moment. It is a nice
opportunity to sit at the feet of the cultural heritage. Every
moment of the elderly is our national heritage.
Just as for Mahatma Gandhi his life was his message, we
can say for Shastriji that his devotion to work was his life. It
was always filled with joy, vitality, karma. If you peeped into
his life, you would for sure find something new to learn every
time. He abided by the tradition of change; he did not hold
orthodox views. He was religious, but he did not favour those
who limited the religion into a small bag. It is due to this reason
that he devoted his life to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad right since
the year of its founding; there is no exaggeration to claim so.
Shastriji was associated with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad,
so many laureates were unhappy with him; but Shastriji never
cared about them. He always cared for the welfare of the
Hinduism.
When riots broke out after the Godhara massacre, Shastriji
was the head of the Gujarat chapter of the Vishwa Hindu
Parishad. He advocated for the welfare of Gujarat at that time.
In an interview to a newspaper, he stated: “After the Gujarat
riots, it is the television channels and national newspapers that
110

have spoiled the image of Gujarat. They did not lay stress on
the Godhara massacre, but on the riots that broke out as a result
of it, and showed the world in exaggerative terms, and it has
harmed the interests of Gujarat.” He said, “These channels will
prove very harmful for the Indian culture.” Shastriji exhorted
the Hindus to awaken in a very patient manner.

It is difficult to describe all that he has worked for, all that literature
he has created, all that history he has discovered, all that
archaeological discovery he gave to Gujarat. It was no difficult
proposition for him to maintain a car at home; his family, his
children were all in America. Had he wished, God gave him
everything to lead a comfortable life, but Shastriji lived like a lotus
in water; no greed – no avarice ever touched him. We can see in
him the aspects of his life that are firmed up in him.

He said that the Hindus were tolerant and would remain

so in the future too. But tolerance did not mean that they would
not protect themselves and safeguard their own interests.
Looking at the spreading threat of terrorism, it has become
inevitable for the Hindus to be aware, else the coming days may
spell doom for them.
We have heard much about our ancient saints and seers
that they were like this and that. As soon as we hear of the term
‘rishi’ (sage), an image comes to our mind of an individual with
a long beard, long hair, sitting in solitude in the forest; but the
reality is far from it. All the rishis that we have had in the ancient
time, were all scientists. They have explored learning in one or
the other aspect and have contributed something or the other
to the society. The entire rishi tradition has followed this ideal.
There are two people in the modern times, whom I
continuously remember, who led the life of a rishi. One was
Pandit Satavalekar, and the other was Shastriji. Look at the
qualities of both of them. Satavalekarji gave up this mortal body
at the age of 103 years. When we were celebrating the centenary
birth anniversary of Satvalekarji, the Param Pujya Guruji was
scheduled to attend the ceremony as the chairman. Pandit
Satavalekar delivered a speech in that programme. At that time,
 111

Guruji was about 55-57 years of age. Pandit Satavalekar said in

his speech: “I shall chair the celebration that will be held to
celebrate Guruji’s centenary birth anniversary.” You can imagine
how wonderful his self-confidence was.

Shastriji assimilated Gita in his Life

…And the other rishi-like Shastriji had assimilated the Gita
fully. Reading the Gita, reciting its shlokas, remembering Lord
Krishna every Janmashtami with the slogan ‘Sambhavami Yuge
Yuge’ have become as good as our habits. Learning the shlokas
of the Gita makes us feel as if we have mastered the Karmayoga,
and we looked around ourselves proudly at this
accomplishment. However, the principles of the Gita were truly
mastered and assimilated by Shastriji; he learnt them and tried
to put them into practice in his life.
What kind of life a person, who has assimilated the Gita,
lives, is unfolded before me through two instances spent with
him.
When the lottery system was started, I don’t know how
many of you know, that the first winner for one crore lottery
belonged to Shastriji’s family. And then I went to meet him, I
did not go there to seek any funds, but it was a matter of
happiness. The person who won the lottery was related to the
Brahmin family. I went to meet him. There was nothing in his
speech or behaviour that could make us feel about the one crore
lottery, while all the newspapers in Gujarat carried this news.
Shastriji remained a simple and egoless person. This instance
occurred about 35-40 years ago.
The other experience relates to the occasion when the Man.
Ba, Shastriji’s wife died. It is a terrible moment in the life of a
householder whose spouse departs in the advanced stage of
life. The married people can understand this fact well. At that
time, I was out of Gujarat. I was equally closely related to Ba
and was so moved by this news that I headed to his house from
Delhi. I supposed that the environment would be gloomy. But
when I reached there, I found him writing a book. It was hardly
the third or fourth day. I sat for a while. He was unwell, still we
112

talked on all types of topics. He was completely detached from

the worldly affairs, as if he were talking about the Gupta dynasty
or Mauryan period. He said, “Come, sit here, brother. Your Ba
has left this Prasad for you.” I was in Delhi, yet Ba used to send
besan laddoos (a type of sweet). Even Shastriji remembered this
fact, he used to say, “O, you have a child there, send him too.”
When I reached there on the fourth day, I found that my packet
of sweets was kept there in all readiness. Shastriji did not forget
to place that packet in my hand and said, “Take it, your Ba has
left it for you, but it is for the final time.” He was detached from
the worldly affairs after he had assimilated the Gita in his speech
and deed, and it is no trivial thing. Maybe we might not
understand its sense during the course of description, but it
was no insignificant matter.
He loved me as a father should, I too felt like his son, and
so we sometimes quarrelled in that capacity. I shall tell you a
very interesting instance. Shastriji was in the advancing stage
of his, still he did not like to give up the bicycle. We thought
much, yet he did not allow any of our tricks to succeed. At the
age of 85 years even, he used to go to B.J. Vidya Bhavan riding a
bicycle. One day, he met an accident near the railway crossing,
he suffered from a fracture. Now, taking advantage of this
incident, I rightfully said to him as a son, “Now stop riding this
cycle. You have a broken bone, and the cycle has a broken
handle, just think so.” It was only then that everybody’s wish to
stop his cycling was fulfilled.
It appeared as if the devotee of the ‘letter’ had seen God
through the power of learning. The twenty-first century is
considered to be the century of knowledge. Knowledge is being
revealed. Shastriji was devoted to knowledge for decades. He
knew, identified and experienced every word, and made others
feel their taste too. But he never wished to find out time for any
material pleasures or entertainment. When I became the Chief
Minister, I was thinking about Shastriji one day, “How detached
he is! He could have well rung me up because of his fatherly
right, but he never recommended me anything. Nor did he say,
‘Do this or don’t do that, or take notice of it.’”
 113

But he was always aware of all my activities, which I

discovered one day by his telephone call. He rang me up, “I am
sending the laddoos.” I asked, “Why, what for?”
Then he said, “I am sending them because of some special
reason.”
I asked, “Why?”
He said, “Because you are bringing the Narmada water into
my Mangrol.”
He was detached and destitute, yet he was extremely happy
at my love for the nation and the facilities being created for the
people. This childlike saint, who lived like a lotus in the water,
who had abandoned his guru’s ashram as far back as 60-70 years,
still he could sit in Ahmedabad and enjoy the facilities being
created for the countrymen.
It is worth to know the secret behind Shastriji’s laddoos.
His laddoos occupy a special significance in my life. He is not
alive today, so there is none else who could trouble him, and
due to this fact, there is no obstacle to reveal this secret. We
took out a number of yatras – Somnath Yatra, Ekata Yatra, Gaurav
Yatra and the like. And during these yatras, the journalists often
asked one thing, “Narendrabhai, how is it that you are never
tired? You work for the whole day, yet remain so fresh, how
does this happen?”
That mystery lies in the packet containing laddoos from
Shastriji. The family of Shastriji had accepted me like their own
family member, so I used to access the kitchen to meet Ba. And
then, wherever I might be, she would ensure to deliver me the
packet, and she gave me the benefit of the laddoos until her
last. Ba’s laddoos pervaded through with her infinite affection
and love, which infused a new life and energy into my body.

Devotion to Work
As he was detached to life, so he was devoted to work
without any desire in return.
It is hard to describe his devotion, the literature he created,
the history he discovered, the archaeological gifts he gave to
Gujarat. It was no difficult proposition for him to maintain a
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car at home. He had his children and family in America. God

showered on him everything had he wished to live a life of
comfort, but he lived the life of a lotus in water. Nothing such
could touch him. We can witness the things that had firmed up
in his life.
We often say for different people: “So and so works for 18
hours a day and so and so works for 16 hours a day.” They meant
to say that they did not know when time passed while working.
I experienced the value or extent of 18 hours for the first time
when I was travelling with Shastriji.
We hired a matador (a passenger transport) to visit Eklinglji
temple in Udiapur. On the way, whenever there came a railway
crossing and the matador had to stop for some time waiting for
the railway gate to open, during such brief intervals, Shastriji
would take out some papers from his bag and start to write
something, and he would stop writing as soon as the matador
took to road once again, and keep the papers back in his bag. I
had seen with my own eyes how he utilized every minute of
the 18 hours. When he was writing some letters, and if we asked
something, he would stop his hand and talk to us in a quite
natural tone; he never said that we had disturbed him, or
interrupted him, or that he did not wish to talk. So childlike
and devoted his life was.
We visited Abu once. We found it difficult to locate a place
to stay. We went to Raghunathji Temple. The rooms there were
all full of Gujarati community. I was thinking that some
arrangement would help Shastriji get a rest; but it eluded us
there. When I returned, I found that Shastriji had spread his
sheet on the floor and was sleeping comfortably with his little
bag lying near him. I was worried that he would get cold in
Abu, but he was sleeping in all comfort in the open. And in the
morning, he rose early, took a bath in the Nakhilek Pond in
such a chilly cold weather of Abu, and then sat down to pray
Lord Krishna.
As if God Himself had consecrated this Karmayogi to live
the life of a rishi, with all hard work and dedication. He had
crossed eighty years of his life, but this life is meant for action,
 115

and I have seen this being implemented by him with my own

eyes.
He lived a life of a destitute, yet his humour kept the
surrounding atmosphere lively. There is an anecdote. He had
some trouble in his eyes. Somebody said, “Dada, you have red
eyes. Have you shown it to some doctor?” Shastriji said, “A
young man always has fiery eyes.”
He considered himself a youth even at the age of one
hundred years. Shastriji observed punctuality quite strictly.

Scholar on Water
Water was his favourite topic. He knew well about the
discovery of water, traditional methods of water, water cycle,
and other related topics. Therefore, the state government got a
major project accomplished by him. This work of his is an
invaluable treasure for Gujarat. It is very useful for the
hydrologists. Through his research, he placed before the people
of Gujarat the information about the traditional sources of water,
effective methods of water conservation and other related
matters. It has helped Gujarat to possess a wonderful book.
Due to his interest in water, a movement was launched to
discover the Saraswati, which has now been lost underground.
I got an opportunity to be with him in our journey from the
Rajasthan border to Nal Sarovar.
This team comprised historians, archaeologists, intellectuals
of India and the like, but the oldest in the team was Shastriji.
During the entire course of tour, he would see something from
far, and he would say loudly, “Brother, look there is an egg. Go
and bring it.” And then he would speak as if the stone was
introducing itself, he would say: “Look, this stone belongs to
this particular era, and this egg appears to be its leftover. Life
must have existed here once, and it must have been due to the
flow of the river.” And doing this, he led the team right until
Nal Sarovar.
The working committee, working in the field of historical
research, is still busy with this project, in which Shastriji has
contributed significantly. Maybe, if a tubewell is sourced into
116

the lost flow of the Saraswati river, we might get its flow once
again, such has been the conclusion of all the scholars. Some
work has also been done in that expanse of Rajasthan. He did
not take up this project from historical perspective, or from the
window of archaeology; he took up this project in order to attain
the modern form of the aspects that could touch the liveliness
of social life, and to deliver its benefits to the common people.

Light of Perseverance
An individual, who perseveres, and not works, for as long
as eighteen hours a day, he possessed wonderful regularity,
spontaneity and clarity of ideas. The organisation of a ‘Sangh
Shiksha Varga’ in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has a
special significance. During the summer vacation, when the
people tend to rest and enjoy the free time in the rising
temperature ranging between 40-50 degrees, the volunteers of
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh are busy undertaking hard
penance to worship the nation. The Varga lasting thirty days is
like ‘Sadhana’, an act of perseverance. There is a tradition in
the Varga to appoint the prestigious people of the society as the
Sarvadhikari or the highest officer. In 1972, the Sangh Shiksha
Varga was being held in Ahmedabad. The Man. Shastriji had
been selected as the Sarvadhikari. Generally, a Sarvadhikari
lived in the Varga full time, but the Sangh had allowed a
relaxation in the rules for the first time, it was to bring Shastriji
to the Varga at noon. He attended the Bauddhik Varga. Shastriji
used to come by scooter to attend the OTC when it was as hot
as 44 degrees. A scooter was sent for him, he used to ride pillion.
When he stepped into the Varga, he was so lively that he would
lighten the entire atmosphere; he would conduct himself such
that nobody knew how the time passed. He would leave at half
past four saying, “I have to go to temple.” He never came late,
even by a minute, nor did he absent himself on any day, nor
was he indifferent or unhappy on any day. All these aspects of
his personality are like the light of Tapasya or perseverance.
He never allowed sloth to come anywhere near him. He
delivered his message in one sentence: “If you have to progress
in life, you have to be active all the time.”
 117

Bones in Havan
Our thinking – our way of thinking has been the target of
all people’s inflamed sight. Had it been any other country where
such unique, such rishi-like good person lived, he would be
honoured with a number of titles as the “world’s man” or
“world’s dignitary” or the like, sometimes even leading to the
Nobel prize; but it is our misfortune that our views are so narrow
that we feel trivial when we talk of good things or accept them.
We even take pure gold for ordinary metal in order to degrade it.
We were celebrating the centenary programme for Shastriji.
People started to put bones in the havan. I had to regrettably
remark, “What type of deformed mentality this is! People are
feeling bad when Shastriji is being honoured. It is quite
unfortunate, friends, it is absolutely unfortunate. Either you are
living in ignorance, or you don’t know that he is an invaluable
gem of Gujarat. You are not able to assess him, or you are the
victim of deformed mentality. I feel pity on you. You must have
stood by us when such a large celebration is underway. It would
have illuminated to its glory had it been joined by people from
the opposition camp. But instead, you are doing such things,
aren’t you? You are pointing out why the government is doing
this. Why is the government doing all this with the public
money? A great man who has given so much to Gujarat, isn’t it
good for Gujarat to give him something in return? Friends, he
is the honour of Gujarat.
“He is the gentleman who brought the remains of Shyamji
Krishna Varma to India – the same leading light of Gujarat – a
revolutionary – Shyamji Krishna Varma. He gave the nation the
volunteers who fought for freedom of the country, yet his
remains kept waiting on the foreign soil for the son of the soil
to come and carry them back to India. You never thought of
this, but when we did, we accomplished the task. You
propagated that you would not offer floral tributes to the
remains of Shyamji Krishna Varma. This son of Mother India
sacrificed his life for the sake of freedom of Mother India, yet
you are feeling ashamed on even offering flowers to his remains.
Such is your deformed mentality.
118

“Not only this, friends, when the freedom fighter Veer

Savarkar, the excellent litterateur, who gave invaluable literature
to this country, suffered the punishment of two life
imprisonments in the same life, all three brothers of his family
sacrificed themselves for the sake of Mother India, and when
his picture was adorned in the Parliament in Delhi, you said
that you would boycott it. Is it proper to disrespect the great
people? Such deformed mentality! All those who, in public life,
have contributed to the service of the Motherland, are
honourable, are adorable.
“Today, we honour Pandit Nehru. It was due to his thinking
that the country, Mother India, suffered partition, we are feeling
the pinch of which even today, yet the good deeds that he
accomplished for the country, we feel proud of them. In the
same way, the expression and demonstration of such narrow
views in public for a precious gem of Gujarat cannot be
acceptable. Such disrespect cannot be meted out to him in public
life. Great people must be venerated. We must revere their
greatness in order to attain a bit of it. We may have diverse
views, difference of opinion is natural in a democracy, but there
cannot be a place for hatred.”
Had Shastriji lived in some other country, and had his
centenary birth anniversary been celebrated, the television
channels from all over the world, the doctors from all over the
world, the psychologists from all over the world would have
thronged before him in a long queue to know the mystery of
such a life. But why in our country do we lag behind? Why do
we miss such things? I don’t know, but Shastriji’s life can be a
source of curiosity for any one. It is an infinite treasure of
learning. You might have seen a number of scholars, yet you
will find him distinct from them all. We can feel the touch of
insignificant things in him and his joy and vitality for them.
Even when Shastriji suffered a fracture in the hand, he set
out to vote in the Ahmedabad municipal corporation elections
despite his ripe age of one hundred years. It was amazing to
note that he did not have his name in two voting booths, and
then he headed for the Civic Centre in the Law Garden in order
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to cast his vote by the computer. On this occasion, a laureate

was with him who was getting rueful about the voting booth.
“You need not get angry at this, the time to vote is still there.
We shall certainly locate the voting booth and cast our vote
today.”
When the history of democracy is written, the fact will be
annotated in it that Shastriji went to vote at the age of one
hundred years.
The centenary year of the Man. Shastriji was celebrated by
the State Government throughout the year. We took pride in
disseminating the inspiration of Shastriji’s Sadhana to the future
generations of Gujarat, and for this purpose, this celebration
was held from place to place. It was a humble effort on our part
to preserve the ideology of the Man. Shastriji for the coming
generations. The state government is resolved to undertake all
endeavours within its limits to ornate Shastriji’s attachment to
Sanskrit. In the days to come, we shall keep making effort in
order to bring to the future generations of Gujarat the precious
treasure that Shastriji has left behind him for them.
Shastriji wrote 250 books, 1500 articles and was bestowed
with the Padmashree, Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak and other
awards and the title of Yuga Rishi. “Shastriji, is anything more
left in life now?” Somebody asked him. At this, Shastriji, who
lived life like that of a student, remarked, “Yes, I am yet to learn
computer.”
At the age of one hundred and one years, he regretted that
he was yet to learn computer. But his health did not allow him.
In the centenary celebration programme too, he expressed this
regret, “I have to learn computer, but my health does not allow
me.” This wish of Shastriji remained unfulfilled.

Lived for Death Too

Shastriji gave up this mortal body at the age of one hundred
and one years. However, he did not allow his age or condition
to overcome his Karmayoga right until the final moment of his
life. He was as lively at his final moment as he had ever been.
Shastriji was a follower of the Vaishnav tradition, therefore,
120

before he breathed his last, he asked for the photograph of

Srinathji Baba. He prayed to him and then said, “O God, send
for me now.” And then within half an hour from that instant,
he took a deep breath and left for the heavenly abode. It was
the impact of his Tapa or penance, his Rishitva (the quality of
being a sage). An individual can live as he may wish, but he
cannot attain death as he may wish. Shastriji lived his life as
well as his death as he wished.
Shastriji has left behind him three sons and four daughters.
His family comprises a total of fifty-three members. His fifth
generation too exists in this world. That is, he has frolicked with
the son of the son of his son. Shastriji had witnessed his father
and his grandfather too. Thus, he has been a witness to his eight
generations in his blood relations.
The centenarian Shastriji had assimilated the true
philosophy of life in him. He lived every moment of his life as
the true representative of the Hindu culture. There is no one
who can match Shastriji not only in the field of studying the
Vedas and culture, but also in the fields of research and
culturisation as well as accumulation of learning. He lived for
one hundred years a Sattvik (positive, pure) life of a Karmayogi
and became a source of inspiration to others. His mortal remain
might have blended into the five basic elements, yet his
illuminative soul would ever remain etched in our memory.
He never felt despaired even in the hardest moments of
his life. He remained a true optimist all his life, and this attitude
towards life is worth imitation by us in our lives.
The state government celebrated the centenary
programmes in his honour, and wished to hold such
programmes which could inspire the future generations.
The project undertaken by the State Government to honour
Shastriji in public was a timely action. In this way, we have
honoured an ideal personality, perseverant scholar and learned
man. Had we omitted to hold this programme, this error would
have been counted amongst the blots in the honour of Gujarat.
We are fortunate that we could get this opportunity and I
consider it an important moment in my life. He would continue
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to be a guiding star for the future generations in Gujarat. The

treasure of learning that he has revealed would continue to
remain a bright chapter in the pride of Gujarat, I am of this
clear view.
In my life, I feel the presence of Shastriji every moment.
Narsingh Mehta wrote the ‘Vaishnava Jana’ 400 years ago, but
Shastriji lived it in true sense of the word. He was not a pessimist,
he remained an optimist forever. He lived a life of self-
confidence, and faced every moment of life in delight. We have
to adopt his spirit of optimism into our lives. Had we been living
in some other country, his name would be embossed in golden
letters. I am satisfied that the state government has celebrated
the centenary anniversary for this great seer; and it would
continue to make such effort and undertake such projects that
would inspire the future generations with his works.
o
A Tapasvi (Saint) continues to march towards his divine goal
all his life, he devotes himself in the inerasable immortal
element, with a desire to sacrifice everything; and he
proceeds ahead with the eternal vow of life.
 Sangh Yogi Vakil Saheb
Lakshmanrao Inamdar

There will be few people who know the name of Lakshman Madhav
Inamdar; however, as soon as you say Vakil Saheb, you will find
that he was popular not only in towns but also in remote villages.
Lakshmanrao Inamdar became our Vakil Saheb, and behind it was
his Tapasya, his penance, his perseverance.

Shakespeare has written at one place, “What is in a name?

Call a rose by any other name, its fragrance will still be there.”
This statement of Shakespeare has an element of substance to
some extent, but this rule is not completely true. Name is also
very important. For example, take the name of Ravishankar
Shivram Vyas. This name does not stir anything in us, but as
soon as we say Ravishankar Maharaj, we have before our eyes
the image of a great Tapasvi (sage) who crossed over forests and
mountains to manifest the lamp of humanity. When we say the
name of Amritlal Vitthaldas Thakkar, it appears that we have
nothing to do with this name, yet as soon as we utter Thakkar
Bapa, a wonderful sentiment starts to take shape within us. We
bow before this Karmayogi who saw God in the poor and
thought it the most sacred act to serve them.
Much in the same way, there are few people in Gujarat who
might know about Lakshman Madhav Inamdar. However, when
you say Vakil Saheb, you find that he was popular not only in
towns but also in villages. You will find people who identify
him as their own. It was no magic when Ravishankar Shivram
Vyas transformed into Ravishankar Maharaj or Amritlal
128

Vitthaldas Thakkar into Thakkar Bappa. It was the impact of

their prolonged hard work. In the same way, when Lakshmanrao
Inamdar transformed into Vakil Saheb, it was because of his
Tapasya, untiring hard work and complete harmony with his
work.
History is witness to the fact that the life of this ‘Tapasvi’
has passed through numerous ups and downs. The influence
of family situation and social environment too is perceptible. It
was no easy task to measure the prevalent events in the scale of
truth, and then transform the high ideals emerging from these
events in order to brighten them further. When we look at the
childhood of Vakil Saheb, we find just this fact.
Vakil Saheb was born at a village called Khatao in Satara
district of Maharashtra. His father was Madhavrao. His surname
was Khataokar, which later changed into Inamdar. There is a
history behind this too. There was a tradition in Maharashtra
of bestowing some important village or land as an Inam (prize)
to an individual or family that did distinguished service to the
Swaraj. A forefather of Vakil Saheb, Krishnarao Khataokar too
had served the Swaraj in such manner, so Chhatrapati Shahuji
Maharaj, the son of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and grandson
of Shivaji Maharaj, bestowed on him the title of ‘Sardar’ and
granted him some land. A part of the revenue earned from the
prized land was given to the awardee. With the passage of time,
the Inam or prize vanished, but the title of Inamdar remained.

If you don’t deviate from your path,

You can attain everything, O dear.
You too can attain zenith,
And can touch the stars in the sky.

Vakil Saheb was born on 21 September, 1917. According to

the Indian Lunar calendar, it was the day of Bhadrapad Sudi
Panchami or Rishi Panchami. Vakil Saheb had seven brothers
and two sisters, and among the brothers, Vakil Saheb was the
third.
The family of Vakil Saheb’s father was quite large. Of six
sisters of his father Madhavrao, four had become widow and
 129

came to stay in the parental house with their children.

Madhavrao was a canal inspector. He was often transferred from
one village to the next, so the family lived at Khatao itself.
Vakil Saheb’s school education started a little late. Those
days, a child was admitted to a school after he attained the age
of seven years, so it was not possible to get him admitted early.
In 1923, his father was transferred to Dudhondi village near
Kirloskarvadi. He secured admission in a school there. He
studied there for two years, and then returned to his grandfather
at Khatao.
Vakil Saheb’s father had hired a house at Satara in
Maharashtra state for children’s education. After he completed
his fourth standard, Vakil Saheb too went there. In 1929, he was
admitted to the New English School in Satara.
The Inamdar family had to face financial constraints due
to honest means of income and large family, which was quite
natural. However, it led to some far-reaching advantages too.
There were so many people in the family, each having his unique
nature and understanding, each distinct in age and maturity,
yet they all were his own, so it was natural to undergo some
hardship for their sake. However, it was a source of joy too. He
cultivated this precious trait right from childhood. If we look
carefully, we will find that the entire Hindu family is our own
family; this pillar of the Sangh’s teaching has been inculcated in
this age.
Vakil Saheb’s direct social life commenced from Satara, we
can say so. He was practising in Satara, and he lived with his
peer group. Vakil Saheb was very fond of physical exercise right
from his childhood. He had special interest in forming sports
associations and holding different types of programmes. He was
an expert player of kabaddi and kho-kho. He had been the Sangh
Nayak on a few occasions, and he had won a number of prizes
in sports events. Winning prizes in the sports arena with his
hard work helped him realize the real sense of his title.

Bhaganagar Satyagraha
In such trying times, Vakil Saheb moved towards his goal.
130

He had to divide his time between his practice and Sangh work.
Having passed the intermediate in Arts stream, he took
admission to the LLB course and passed the first year. In the
meantime, a Satyagraha was started at Bhaganagar (Hyderabad)
in 1939. The question may arise—Why did this Satyagraha
begin? Who started it? Before Vakil Saheb joined this Satyagraha,
it would be essential to look at the previous events.
There was a time when there were about five hundred and
fifty princely states in India. One of which was Hyderabad. It
was a large state. The problem was that the majority of the
subjects were Hindus while the ruler was a Muslim; not only
this, the ruler was so cruel and atrocious that the Nizam’s rule
had become synonymous to an atrocious state. The people there
tried to oppose and protest against the atrocious rule, but the
Nizam put down each of these attempts. In 1937, provincial
autonomy was granted, under which the states began their ‘own
rule’. However, the people of Hyderabad continued to be
oppressed. Therefore, the people started a movement for
autonomy. In place of sympathetically considering the demands
of the people, inhuman atrocities were inflicted upon the people
by the police, paramilitary forces and united zamindars
(landlords). There was rumour that the Nizam had a great dump
of ammunition, and because the ruler was a Muslim, the
Congress preferred to keep mum. Ultimately, the great freedom
fighter, Savarkar started the peaceful protest against the Nizam.
Later, the Arya Samaj too joined the movement. On the call of
Veer Savarkar, the teams of Satyagrahis from every nook and
corner of the country started to pour into Hyderabad. At that
time, under the leadership of Late L.B. Bhopatkar, a well-known
lawyer of Poona and Chairman of the Hindu Mahasabha, about
one hundred and fifty youths joined the Satyagraha. Vakil Saheb
abandoned his LLB midway and joined the Satyagraha team
body and soul.

Prant Swayamsevak
At the root of success of the Sangh work lies continuous
work, which occupies an important place. There has been a
 131

tradition of devoting to the Sangh work as much time as possible.

New schemes were often formulated in order to motivate the
Swayamsevaks for more Sangh work. One such scheme was the
Prant Swayamsevak. Under this, a Swayamsevak had to go to a
specified place for at least one year to work as the Pracharak.
Under such a scheme, a number of Swayamsevaks from
Maharashtra came forward to work as the Prant Swayamsevak.
Thus, the environment of the Sangh pervaded all around. As if
a competition had been launched to come forward as a
Pracharak; and how could Vakil Saheb lag behind? Under this
scheme, he arrived at Navsari in Gujarat in 1943. He was only
twenty-five years of age at that time.

Onset of the Golden Chapter

There is a song in the Sangh: “It is easy to take a vow, it is
difficult to abide by it.” However, Vakil Saheb chose this difficult
path for himself. A novel chapter commenced in his life. If we
take into consideration the events that were to be unfolded soon,
we will be bound to say that a new chapter had begun in the
history of Gujarat, a chapter that is adequate to be written in
golden letters.
His idealistic way of life begins from an incident. Two
Swayamsevaks who were attending a Sangh camp went to take
a bath and were drowned. Vakil Saheb was very sorry that he
could not save them. He thought in his mind that it would have
been better for he himself to have drowned. The family members
of the dead Swayamsevaks were greatly anguished, they uttered
a number of bitter words for Vakil Saheb, which he heard
patiently and tried to console them. Consoling the mother of a
Swayamsevak named Lakshman, he said, “Mami, your
Lakshman has gone, but now I am your Lakshman.” Vakil Saheb
addressed the mother of Lakshman as Mami. Vakil Saheb
followed this vow right until Mami lived.

Testing Times
In 1952, the young Vakil Saheb took over the reigns of the
Sangh there. It was no easy task to expand the scope of the Sangh
132

after such a long ban. Several Pracharaks had to go back to their

work in order to mitigate their financial difficulties, and the
number of volunteers had nosedived to twenty; everything
seemed to have undergone a change after independence. It was
our own government, the mass opinion had been formulated
into narrow bonds, and to take forward the Sangh work in such
a hostile environment was no easy task. The young Vakil Saheb
worked with patience and insight. These qualities of him helped
to prosper the Sangh work; and in a period of just 3-4 years, the
Sangh Shakhas started to function at over 150 places as before.
The Shiksha Vargas, held annually, were participated by 150-
200 young Swayamsevaks.

Sadhana of a Sangh Yogi

The people who came into the contact of Vakil Saheb found
the revelation of a personality – untiring, motivating, impressive
and pleasant – and all this gave them an impression that he was
the master of some unique power.
Vakil Sahib was very regular so far as exercise, meditation,
Pranayam (yoga), recitation of the Gita and weekly fasting were
concerned. He had never dreamt of achieving something divine
by his spiritual devotion. Nor had he made any effort in that
direction.

“If you are insisting so much then I shall keep this money with
me. We run a medical centre for the poor friends, we shall use this
money in that. Is it okay? Isn’t it that you wanted this money to
be utilized to look after the health?” He took this money with these
words. The Swayamsevak too felt contented.

Never Waver from Vow

We think of divine tasks undertaken by people like Vakil
Saheb in a different way too. We suppose that such people attain
such heights due to their traits and deeds of the previous birth.
Such great people are adorable and venerable for us. We
ordinary beings can never scale such heights as them; this is
nothing but a hollow argument to conceal our weakness.
 133

Generally, all people live with this assumption. But our thinking
is that ‘if man acts, he can transform into God from man’. These
two views don’t match with each other. The personality of Vakil
Saheb, in fact, was:

Digo na apane pran se to fir

Sabkuchh pa sakte ho pyare,
Tum bhi oonche ban sakte ho
Chhoo sakte ho nabh ke tare.

(If you didn’t waver from your resolve, you could realize
everything; you too could become exalted and could touch the
stars.)
In these lines, you can clearly see the evidence of assurance.
The views that the Man. Sarsanghchalak Balasaheb Deoras had
expressed while paying a tribute to the late Vakil Saheb manifest
the divine qualities of Vakil Saheb. They reveal the mystery
behind these qualities. The Man. Bala Saheb said: “A few of the
qualities were certainly innate and inherited ones, but the entire
range of qualities that we see in him, were certainly cultivated
by him through continuous effort. An individual is bound to
attain the divine qualities only through ardent effort.
In cultivating traits in the Swayamsevaks, several factors
contribute significantly including the ideal conduct of the
officials besides private conversations, meetings and intellectual
discussions. They all leave profound impact on them. During
such conversations and meetings, Vakil Saheb used to explain a
point through the use of suitable illustrations from daily life,
which would make anyone learn and assimilate the point quite
easily. In this context, there is a memorable example. Vakil Saheb
wished to assign a Swayamsevak with the responsibility of
editorship for a weekly. The Swayamsevak was knowledgeable,
but he had little experience of this field; so, he was unwilling to
take up this responsibility. Vakil Saheb said to him, “You are
right, I agree, but it is essential that somebody take the post of
the editor. As it is, you are bound to face some difficulties when
you enter a new field. Just take experience for a few days. If
134

you are able to do it, well, else it’s no problem.” The

Swayamsevak accepted this advice from Vakil Saheb and took
over the responsibility. Today, he is counted one amongst the
best editors.

Wide Contacts
A great characteristic of Vakil Saheb was his wide range of
contacts. Even after he rose to the post of Kshetra Pracharak
and then an official of the all-India level, he used to be busy
expanding his contacts during his visits. He never looked away
from any opportunity in which he was required to visit a former
Swayamsevak’s family. It was his special feature. Even while he
was touring with high all-India level officers such as the Man.
Sarsanghchalak, he would ensure to take time out to visit the
families of new and old Swayamsevaks as soon as the scheduled
assignments were over. Due to his wide contacts, he became a
symbol of infinite affection and unfathomable attachment in
the Gujarat Sangh family.

A Gentleman
During his long stint of thirty-five years, he held a number
of responsibilities. He directed the Sangh work from 1952 to
1973, first as a Prant Pracharak in Gujarat, and then as a Kshetra
Pracharak (Gujarat, Maharashtra, Nagpur, Vidarbha).
When a ban was imposed in 1948, the volunteers had to
face great many difficulties. It was a question of life and death
for the Swayamsevaks from Maharashtra who were then
working in Gujarat. In such a time, he remained underground
in order to successfully run the Satyagraha against the ban
imposed on the Sangh. This type of another calamity befell in
1975 when the emergency was imposed. At that difficult time
too, he had efficiently guided the Sangh in order to achieve the
specified outcome. During both these struggles, the
Swayamsevaks had witnessed his bottomless patience.
He possessed this type of Tapasvi or perseverant
personality; he was ever ready for the development of and
sympathy for the co-Swayamsevaks. If an error was ever
 135

committed by a Swayamsevak, whether big or small, he would

feel no anguish, he would never agitate, and would just say
‘Bhala…manas’ (gentleman), as if this utterance was a more
effective word to rebuke somebody. He had a wonderful nature
to worry for even the youngest Swayamsevak.

Namaste-Namaste
The fascinating personality of Vakil Saheb was the focus of
inspiration for a great number of youths. A royal person,
influenced by his personality, once said, “This boy passed by
my office in order to attend the Shakha. I once introduced with
him. And then, it became a part of his routine to visit my office
and say ‘Namaste-Namaste’. I too was attracted to him infinitely.
I offered him soda sometimes. I never knew that this youth
saying ‘Namaste-Namaste’ would transform my entire life. And
today in reality, I feel proud when I sit at his feet.

Sangh Work is Lifelong, Do This for Now!

In the year 1971, the Sangh Shiksha Varga was held at
Vivekananda High School in Junagarh. A Swayamsevak
attended it as a teacher. The Param Pujya Guruji arrived in the
Varga between 16-18 May. After this, he started off to visit
another Varga in some other state. Soon after his departure, Vakil
Saheb called that Swayamsevak in his cabin, tapped his shoulder
in affection and said, “Now prepare yourself to leave for your
home.” The Swayamsevak was shocked and hurt, and asked in
a trembling voice, “Vakil Saheb, did I commit some wrong? Have
I violated discipline?” Vakil Saheb said, “O no, brother…Bhala…
manas. There is nothing like that. Just don’t worry.” The
Swayamsevak was fully confused. He asked, “Then why should
you ask me to go back home? How can I violate discipline?”
At this, Vakil Saheb opened the telegraph that he had
hidden in his palm and showed it to him saying, “Look, it is a
telegraph from your father. It says ‘Come soon for interview of
Census on 22 May’. So go and give your interview successfully.”
The Swayamsevak argued, “I have applied for a number of other
posts too and I don’t want to quit the Varga just for this
136

interview.” Now, the voice of Vakil Saheb grew sensitive. He

pressed the Swayamsevak’s shoulder softly and said, “Look the
financial condition of your house is not sound. You may not
know, but I am always aware of every trifle. Your family is facing
terrible problems these days, so you must help them financially.
The Sangh work is meant for lifelong, it will continue to be done,
but now you must return immediately and join the service and
thus lighten your father’s burden.”
The Swayamsevak had tears in his eyes. How close was
Vakil Saheb with every family, though in his capacity as a Prant
Pracharak, he always stressed punctuality and harsh discipline.
He was worried for every family. Maybe this is the reason that
numerous families, not Swayamsevaks, joined the Sangh. Every
family felt that Vakil Saheb was its own.
You can find such Swayamsevaks even today. They have
adorned the inspiring image of Vakil Saheb in their hearts!

The Sangh Cares

I can guess it was the year 1982 or 1983. Vakil Saheb’s health
was fast deteriorating. A Swayamsevak approached him and
said, “With God’s grace I have some money, I wish to spend it
in your care. Please accept it.” Vakil Saheb replied, “Brother, I
can understand your sentiments, but the Sangh is there to look
after me and it does it very well. So, there is no question of
accepting any money for this purpose.” The Swayamsevak had
no reply to it. Still he strongly wished to give the money. He felt
that he must do something for a person during his illness who
had shown him and his family a suitable path, who stood by
him in joy and sorrow. Vakil Saheb too was right in his response,
which revealed his exalted nature and his faith in the Sangh.
Still the Swayamsevak was unwavering. He wanted to give it
anyhow. In the end, Vakil Saheb found a way out. He said,
“When you insist so much, then I shall take the money. We run
a medical centre for the poor brethren, we shall use it there.
Why, how do you like it? As it is, you want to spend this money
for medicine.” With these words he accepted the money, and
the Swayamsevak was contented.
 137

Guru Dakshina
In the foundation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh lies
its self-dependent economic system. The Sangh does not spread
its hand to seek money. The Sangh work is executed with the
money that the Swayamsevaks willingly offer once in a year.
Once, a Swayamsevak offered to donate a fan for the Sangh
office. Many people liked the proposal. It would be better to
have a fan in the Sangh office, they felt. Vakil Saheb listened to
them all and said, “If this were done, the Swayamsevak donating
the fan would not be able to develop himself well. His traits
would be blemished, because whenever he visited the office,
he would think that it was he who had donated that fan. Even
those accompanying him would think that he was the
Swayamsevak who had donated the fan. Therefore, the only
path for the Sangh is that of Guru Dakshina, it is not adequate
to assist the Sangh in any other way.” Vakil Saheb measured
every action in the scale of traits and culture. He made every
conscious effort in order to ensure that no shortcoming was felt
in the process of cultivating traits in the Swayamsevaks.

Away from Fame

For thirty-five years, Vakil Saheb continued to visit one
village after another in Gujarat. If you ever met the respectable
Vakil Saheb in some railway compartment, you would feel that
he looked like any ordinary Gujarati merchant from a small town
and his speech had the clear Saurashtran accent. You will find a
book or newspaper in his hand at all times, which displayed
his thoughtful attitude. His personality was so impressive, still
he never displayed any sense of ego. Despite his contribution
in diverse tasks, he never wished his name to be revealed.
It was very difficult to locate his photograph. After we
searched it for long and hard, we found one which was about
15-20 years old. He had been in public life for so many years,
yet his name never appeared in the newspaper, still he was a
high official of the Sangh.

Architect of National Life

During his forty-year-long public life, every moment of
138

which he lived in public domain, he lived meeting different

people, and this interaction must have resulted into numerous
anecdotes, conversations, and dialogues in endless series.
Everybody has his own experiences. Every instance of public
life has its direct or indirect value. It brings joy at one time and
pity at another, it brings hope at one time and despair at another
– everything under the sun occurs in it. It was natural for Vakil
Saheb to undergo everything that man is bound to face. As soon
as we bring to memory the public life extending over forty years,
a series of events starts to unfold in a panorama. He created
this instance and he was a mute spectator to another. He
motivated an individual and worked hard to achieve his
development; he supervised an individual and created new
qualities in him.

From the History

When Vakil Saheb started his public life, the entire world
was being afflicted by the impact of the Second World War. The
country was burning in the communal fire before independence.
The Motherland, in which he had unfathomable devotion, was
being partitioned, while the songs of freedom were being sung.
Millions of Hindus were losing everything and were entering
the country as refugees in mere clothing. It was being considered
how to provide them some succour. The entire country was
greatly hurt by the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. It was
like a blot on the Hindu culture and tradition. With the
assassination of the Mahatma, political tricks and strategies were
formulated. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh was banned,
and then this ban was removed. This period witnessed a
multitude of events. Whether it was the discussion on the Hindu
Code Bill, or the opposition to the terms like ‘India that is Bharat’,
whether it was famine in Bengal in eastern India, or the
rejuvenation of the Somnath Temple in western India which
was a symbol of slavery imposed on India, whether it was the
effort being made to free Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Silvassa
through armed revolution which looked like holes in the golden
plate, whether it was the extensive Satyagraha for the freedom
 139

of Goa and Diu or active cooperation in the Gauraksha (cow

protection) movement that was a point of devotion, whether it
was the holding of a successful programme to reach millions of
people of Gujarat or to hold public meetings to honour Guruji,
whether it was creation of linguistic states or construction of
the state Sangh office in Ahmedabad in Gujarat, whether it was
the attack of China crushing all hopes of peace talks in free India
or the impact of repeatedly held elections on public life, whether
it was the Pakistani attack on the Kutch border or the departure
of two prime ministers in a brief period of three years. Whether
it was the birth of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad that could awaken
a spirit of revolution in the Hindus in the capacity of a positive
force or the contribution of millions of Gujaratis in constructing
a glorious memorial for Vivekananda in Kanyakumari on the
occasion of his birth centenary, whether it was firing on the saints
demanding action for protection of the cow or attacks on
religious places in Gujarat conjoined with widespread
communal riots, whether it was the creation of Bangladesh or
war with Pakistan, whether it was the organisation of a massive
Hindu conference in Siddhapur or the illness of the Param Pujya
Guruji, whether it was the imposition of emergency threatening
the very existence of democracy or struggle to get it scraped,
whether it was the success of the silver jubilee programme of
self-study in Bombay or the manifestation of power of common
people in the general elections, whether it was the destructive
floods at Morbi or fall of the Janata Party government, whether
it was a movement to safeguard the honour of the Hindu
community or a communal commotion in the garb of communal
movement, whether it was the movement to free Ram
Janmabhumi or any other event having direct or indirect bearing
on Vakil Saheb; if you wish to know his views on every such
event, how he viewed and understood these events, how he
planned to settle these events – all these could lead to writing
an independent history. Despite all this, it was no easy task to
assess his public life.
There is a couplet sung in the Sangh:
‘Shapath lena to saral hai,
140

Par nibhana hi kathin hai.’

(It is easy to take a vow, it is difficult to execute it.)

Creator of Nation’s Reconstruction

Vakil Saheb was determined not for the Sangh work alone,
but for the entire society. He started numerous Shakhas, and
the thousands of Swayamsevaks trained in the Shakha are
illuminating social life in different domains. As on date some
people are engaged in literature and others in journalism; some
are making effort to develop the tribal brethren in Dharampur
Taluka, while others are resolved to do something for the sake
of the tribals in such remote and inaccessible areas like Pal, Chota
Udaipur, Danta and the likes. Some people are engaged in
education undertaking to enliven the educational system right
from elementary education to high school, while others are busy
uniting the strength of saints and seers in order to remove the
evils prevalent in the society. Some people are making effort to
infuse social consciousness, while some are coming to the fore
to raise social questions in the Parliament and Vidhan Sabhas.
Some are running women centres for self-reliance while others
are undertaking movements in the border areas of Kutch in
order to awaken people towards their rights; some are making
effort for financial freedom of man, while others are
experimenting in the field of cooperative farming. Some are busy
imparting education and good qualities in the children living
in slums, while others are busy in bringing back the misguided
youth back into the national mainstream. Some of them are busy
with mass awareness programmes through publication of
newspapers while others are trying to infuse positive qualities
of nationalism in the workers. Some are engaged in seeking
cooperation from students in order to invest their creativity in
rural development programmes and others are busy in other
creative tasks. The list of these projects is very long, and the
number of people engaged in them is large too. If you asked
them, “Brother, why are you engaged in this task without an
iota of idea about making your own career?”, they would say,
“We were cultivated with traits of social service by the Sangh
 141

Shakha, and then Vakil Saheb asked us to do it, so there was

nothing more to think about.”
This is the outcome of the inspiring life of Vakil Saheb. You
will not find anywhere the nameplate of this architect engaged
in the project of national construction. He rules thousands of
hearts, he is seated on the throne of their hearts. Despite
suffering from the perilous disease of cancer, he kept himself
busy in service to the Sangh. The death was staring him in the
eyes, still he went on meeting the Swayamsevaks.
He breathed his last in Pune. We can find the reflection of
Vakil Saheb in the Sangh’s life in Gujarat. We miss him at every
step.
Even today, the life of Vakil Saheb is lighted in order to
spread its divine fragrance and light all around.
o
 A Tribute to Vakil Saheb

When people of the world were running after material pleasures,

a great number of luminaries, one after the other, gave up their
homes and sacrificed themselves for the protection of values of life
of the country, following the specific tradition of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh; one of these luminaries was the Man.
Lakshmanrao Inamdar.

We are living in a period when the father can live happily

with five sons in a small hut; but the same father cannot have a
place to live in the five palaces built by his sons. This is the
picture of present-day society – we all have gathered here in
such a period, for a man with whom we are not related by blood.
There is a proverb: “Blood is thicker than water.” But we find a
different scenario here. On the mind, heart and intellect of every
person present here, a sentiment has been created. We have not
grown in the tradition of person-worship, we are the devotees
to duty.
Here –
• Life conquers and not death.
• We adore how you lived, not how much you lived.
• We think over how you spent, and not how you
accumulated it.
Such is the tradition here. And so, the birthday of an
individual who passed all these tests became an occasion for all
of us to gather here.
The birthday of our affectionate Vakil Saheb is a day of
resolve for us. He was born on the holy day of Rishi Panchami
and lived life according to the high traditions.
 143

We are not those who sit inactively

Grieving or drowning in the empire of sentiments,
We have to be resolute
To accept who are good
To realize who are acceptable.
And so,
We have chosen today’s sacred day.
His proximity emanated into affection
For all of us over forty-five years;
Today, he has departed from us.
His life was resplendent like the sun,
And cool like the moon.
His life was duty incarnate,
And death like an approved act.
This was the uniqueness of his personality!
We saw in him consciousness, but no sloth,
Idealism but not absence of action,
Splendour but not eagerness,
Affection but not attachment,
Detachment but not indifference,
Love but not in excess,
Strict but not harsh,
Firm but not fundamental,
Of course, we have seen all this,
Experienced all this,
In a natural, spontaneous way.
(It is hard to imagine that the stream flowing gently on the plains
has emerged from the mountains tearing through the massive boulders.
It is equally hard to imagine the infinite energy that resides in him
when you look at Vakil Saheb.)
The Gita says –
Saints are desireless,
He was.
Saints are detached.
He was.
Saints are destitute.
He was.
144

He was Shankaracharya’s Advaitism

In its concrete form.
Where there is Advaitism,
The traveller becomes the path,
The person becomes the goal,
The doer becomes the action;
The same way,
There was no duality
Between Sangh work and Vakil Saheb,
He lived for others
But never displayed it.
He says,
It is for everybody’s happiness.

Raja Rantidev said –

“Na twaham kamaye rajyam
Na swargam na punarbhavam.
Kamaye dukhataptanam,
Praninam atirnashanam.”
(You should not desire for throne, nor heaven, nor rebirth,
desire is the source of suffering and leads to destruction.)

He too lived and fought without desire for anything.

Life is like music in a way.
If the string is loose, there is no tune.
If it is too hard, it is still useless.
Music is created
When tune and pitch are in harmony,
Voice and melody are in consonance,
Tune and instrument are coordinated.
Vakil Saheb’s life was like music too.
Its mystery lies just in it.
Controlled, well-formulated, coordinated.
He enchanted our hearts too.
Such a divine life took rest on 15 July.
He bid farewell to a body named Lakshman,
But in the heart of everybody sitting here
 145

There resides Vakil Saheb.

He resides in
Deed of one and duty of another,
In patience of one and courage of another,
In duty of one and leadership of another,
In softness of one and sweetness of another,
In the conduct of one and thought of another,
In the dream of one and resolve of another,
In the song of one and learning of another,
In the emotion of one and disposition of another,
In the devotion of one and energy of another,
In the attitude of one and aptitude of another,
In the movement of one and mind of another,
In the doctrine of one and guidance of another,
In the pity of one and inspiration of another –
He resides in we all
In one or the other form.
This auspicious day, we all ought to
Look within us and
Let us bridge our life with Vakil Saheb there,
In harmonious voice,
We shall surely hear
The soft ringing of eternity…eternity…eternity,
The resolve of get up and be awake,
With contentment of sacrifice for the nation,
And non-entity of the self.
In the same way, we should invent his existence within us,
and we take a vow in this music programme devoted to him:
• When sentiments emerge in the form of words, poetry
is created.
• When sentiments touch the instrument as creation,
music is generated.
• When sentiments become expressionless, a sea of tears
overflows.
We have to carry the sentiment on the path of duty, we
have to proceed on the path of action, and we have to resolve
for it.
It is our tribute, our homage.
o
 Rishis’ Debt
We shall not pay homage of tears,
Nor shall we feel sorrow;
We shall illuminate ourselves
As lamps of the house.
Right since the Vedic period,
We have been in the shade of rishis.
In our heart resides the body of the rishi,
Who grants learning of new life.
We are indebted to the rishis,
We shall repay this debt all life,
Our actions in life
Will sing the tale of yours.
Crossing the thorny paths,
Breaching the body and attachment,
You lighted yourself as lamp,
Sending an ember in our hearts.
You emptied yourself
To give new life to us,
You saw no dream for your sake,
But we have dreamt
To have a life like yours.
Page 99: poem
I may smile on the path of action,
And accept calamities like boons;
Let the world listen and sway in love,
Daily I should sing in joy.
o
 I should laugh on the line of duty,
Taking the difficulties as boons;
Let the world know and dance in affection,
So I should sing.
 Madhuram Madhukar
Madhukarrao Bhagwat

Madhukarrao himself was a Pracharak, and he dedicated his son,

Sri Mohanrao Bhagwat as a Pracharak at the feet of the nation
and thus provided a new light in this tradition of sacrifice. Iron
can turn into gold when it comes into touch with a philosopher’s
stone, but it cannot become a philosopher’s stone. The concept of
philosopher’s stone was belied by the examples of Madhukarrao
and Mohanrao. Madhukarrao, the philosopher’s stone, moulded
his son into another philosopher’s stone. Madhukarrao was the
living university of the science of organisation.

He served Mother India for three generations yet presented

himself before none. He did not allow his presence to be given
any importance. He did not make anyone feel the great tradition
of sacrifice. The farewell news of such Madhukarrao Bhagwat
brought to memory a number of anecdotes.
His dress displayed an impression of Maharashtra and
Gujarat. He wore a Gujarati dhoti of Gandhi tradition, a rural
shirt of Vidarbha, holding a tin of betel leaves and eternally
laughing well-known face – such was his disposition that
anybody could like him at first sight. He met a large number of
people and left his impression on all of them. After you met
Madhukarrao, you would feel as if he has blended within us.
His entire personality harmonized within us much like sugar
that mixes into milk.
Gujarat will ever remain indebted to the Man.
Madhukarrao. How can we forget his patriotic actions that he
undertook during the calamitous period of freedom struggle
152

and partition of India? In such a time, when he was an energetic

youth, he gave up his family and village. He sowed the seeds of
Sangh on the ideologically barren land. After that, he worked
hard to prepare the bed of flowers in the form of Shakhas; it is
no easy task to imagine all his hard work.
In the spiritual domain, the guru infuses energy into the
pupil. It is much talked about. Ramakrishna Paramhans infused
energy into Vivekananda. There are a number of such instances,
but one thing we find common in all these instances is the fact
that even the most capable spiritual soul infused energy at the
most once or twice. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
possesses a unique viewpoint so far as spiritual ritual is
concerned in devotion to society and nation. I myself felt the
great Madhukarrao infusing this energy into me as a tradition.
Thousands of people like me have benefited from this energy.
We have had the opportunity to listen about the working style
and lifestyle of Madhukarrao when I was very young, but I got
an opportunity to come before him when I was twenty years
old. That first meeting is still alive within me. He was moving
in me the sensations of devotion to the society as if the bells in
the temple were ringing. He met me as if he knew me for years.
He seems to know everything quite well – who is the person
who has come to meet him? What is he? What has he come for?
What is his purpose? Which way has he to go? What is his
destination? What is his goal? And the like. His style of working
was such that it did not make anyone feel however long the
journey was. It always appeared to him that he was just one
step short of the destination and was about to reach the goal,
and in this way, people after people joined him. How far he had
travelled, nobody knew it, but the destination was closer, he
knew it well.
During the third year Shikshan of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh, I got an opportunity to live with him in
Nagpur. This fine opportunity turned into energy for life.
Narayanrao Bhagwat, father of Madhukarrao, was born at
Chandrapur, near Nagpur in Maharashtra, and was a well-
known advocate. He became a Swayamsevak at Chandrapur in
 153

1929. In 1941, he came to Katni in Mahakaushal as a Pracharak

with Eknath Ranade, the maker of Vivekananda Rock Memorial.
After having some experience there, of the two great
personalities of Nagpur, Yadavram Joshi went to Karnataka
while Madhukarrao first arrived in Surat in Gujarat and started
the Shakha at Parekh Technical Institute. In the beginning, the
Sangh Shakha was started in Vadodara (Baroda) and Karnavati.
Madhukarrao was resolved to spread the Sangh ideology all
over Gujarat. He learnt how to speak Gujarati. Not only this, in
the Vadodara Shakha, where a large number of Marathi
Swayamsevaks too attended, he imposed a ban on their speaking
Marathi and urged them to speak in Gujarati. When the
movement for freedom was at its peak, he laid the foundation
stone of resolute Sangh work in 115 towns which became
possible due to his fantastic organisational skill.
The officials at the national level were so confident at the
organisational skill of Bhagwat that the training sessions
(Prashikshan Varga) for whole of north India and Sindh (now
in Pakistan) were being held in Gujarat during 1943 44. A
number of Swayamsevaks like Lal Krishna Advani had got an
opportunity to train under Madhukarrao.
He accepted the domestic life once again after his mother’s
death and insistence of the family. A few days after his marriage,
his father died. Interested in Sangh work, Madhukarrao once
again came to Gujarat as a Grahasth Pracharak. He worked hard
in order to stabilize the Sangh work in Gujarat, and to make it a
respectable aspect of life there. Perhaps fate willed to test this
work of the affectionate Madhukarrao. The Sangh was still in
its infancy in Gujarat, and it was at this stage in 1948 that a ban
was imposed on it there.
How could Madhukarrao silently tolerate the ban which
was imposed on the Sangh, that was like a seven-year-old infant
then? In the innate mind of the delicate and soft-spoken
Madhukarrao, a flame of struggle came alive. He invested all
his might in order to save his seven-year-old child. You can only
imagine how difficult it was to keep the flame of truth lighted
in the tempest of untruth in Gujarat those days. However,
154

Madhukarrao patiently worked to inculcate self-confidence in

the contemporary Swayamsevaks, and directed them to
undertake Satyagraha in order to struggle against the ban. It
was a matter of surprise that more people went to jail in order
to lift ban from the Sangh than people went to jail in connection
with the freedom movement. It does not take much hard work
to infuse motivation in people when it comes to do some good
work; but a different type of motivation is needed when it comes
to offer sacrifice and undergo punishment in order to get good
things freed from calamities. Madhukarrao was equipped with
such wonderful power to inculcate this inspiration.
Madhukarrao was a Pracharak himself, and he dedicated
his son, Mohanrao Bhagwat at the feet of Mother India as a
Pracharak to take part in the pot of sacrifice and thus provided
a new light. Iron turns into gold when it comes into touch with
a philosopher ’s stone, but it does not turn into another
philosopher’s stone. However, the example of Madhukarrao and
Mohanrao prove this assumption wrong. The gem Madhukarrao
transformed into the gem Mohanrao. Madhukarrao was a living
school of the science of organisation.
Paying an emotional tribute to this great traveller of nation
building is a matter of pride for thousands of Swayamsevaks
like me.
I bow to the life of Madhukarrao hundreds of times.
o
 Let us sing so long the voice is lively,
Let the angel of freedom restrain its breath.
 The Determined
Anantrao Kale

He arrived in Gujarat to work in the well-known Joshi

Construction of Maharashtra with determination and clear
planning. He took over the assignment of constructing the
pedestrian bridge near Kheda. His body and intelligence kept him
busy in constructing this lifeless bridge, but his heart was busy in
planning to groom and develop. He learned Gujarati as quickly as
possible and began the Sangh work.

There is a small Taluka named Devgarh in Singhdurg

district located in the lap of nature. Here there are massive
forests located in the range of mountains.
About sixty years ago, Mahatma Gandhi came to this town
to tell the people to live life devoted to freedom. The well-known
Mahatma found an invigorated environment all around. On the
massive stage in the front were seated the leaders. Among these
great people was seated a child, just eleven years of age, invited
from a nearby village called Undeel; he had brown eyes and a
pink healthy body. However, nobody had yet paid any attention
to him.

Handing Over the Gold Bracelet

The programme began with the arrival of the Mahatma.
This small child started to sing Vande Mataram in his soft, sweet
voice. The sweetness and fearlessness of his voice drew
everybody’s attention there.
As soon as the song was completed, Mahatma Gandhi called
this child to him, asked his name, and looked at the golden
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bracelet on his wrist. Just then, the gentleman sitting next to

the Mahatma said to this child, “Give your gold bracelet to the
Mahatma, will you?” The child lost no time and placed the
bracelet on the palm of Mahatma Gandhi for the sake of
Motherland. Before the Mahatma could say anything, as the
others looked on in amazement, the child climbed down the
stage and was lost in the crowd.
This small child, who conquered others’ hearts with his act,
was Anta, the favourite child of the late Man. Hedgewar, who
rose to be Anantrao Kale, well-known among everybody in the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Gujarat.

In Introduction with the Sangh

Anantrao’s father ardently wished to get a primary school
opened in his village Undeel. He requested the education officer
to open a school in this small village located far-off from the
Taluka headquarters. After his untiring efforts, the education
officer agreed to open a school there with a condition that he
would open the school the following year if the children of the
village Undeel passed the first standard. He accepted this
condition of the government. At this time, Anantrao studied in
a school located in Bare Patan. His father told him about the
school and the condition attached to it. With this, Anantrao
suspended his studies for one year, and strived hard to teach
the village children and cultivate their interest in studies, so
that they could pass the first standard. His hard work bore fruit
and he heaved a sigh of relief only after the school was opened
in the village.

Gujarat is indebted to such resolute people. The only way to repay

their debt is to augment the capital constructed by them – with
our hard work, with our renunciation, with our ideals and with
our infinite determination and devotion.

With the exalted spirit of doing others’ good, he came to

Pune for further studies. Here, he came into the contact with
the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
 159

He was pervaded with the spirit of the Rashtriya

Swayamsevak Sangh in the young age itself. He came into the
close contact of Dr. Hedgewar, the founder of the Sangh. His
behaviour had lighted a lamp of Sangh in the delicate heart of
Anantrao.

Dedication to Studies
Once his annual examinations and the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh programme were scheduled to be held the
same day. If he wanted to attend the programme, he would have
to complete the paper quicker. Anantrao and his friends decided
that they would not miss the programme, so they would
complete the paper as quickly as possible. As soon as the
language paper was handed over to them, they set down to
complete it as quickly as they could, and completed it one hour
prior to the scheduled time. The friends signalled to each other,
and they all stood up to go. However, the examiner intervened.
He asked them to read their answer book well, but they did not
accede to this advice and arrived for the programme in time.
When the result for the examination was declared, they all saw
that they had secured first division in that paper. Thus, right
since childhood, he was focussed to his studies as well as ready
to do the Sangh work.
In 1940, he attended the Sangh Shiksha Varga in Pune as a
teacher. That year, the new Sanskrit prayer was introduced. One
day, the Varga officer showed Anantrao the new prayer and
asked him to recite it at the Sangh assembly. During a Sangh
Shiksha Varga, there were a large number of programmes set
the whole day. He had done them all and at the same time, had
learnt the prayer too, which he recited in the evening.

Veer Savarkar was Impressed

Once Veer Savarkar was present as the judge of a
competition. He was greatly impressed by the speech of
Anantrao. He stepped forward to introduce this small Anantrao,
and remembered this introduction all his life. Anantrao
maintained the schedule of meeting Savarkar once every year
until the last of his life.
160

In the Sangh Shiksha Varga at Pune, there was a

Swayamsevak who saved on time in order to invest it in music.
For this purpose, he kept postponing meeting other people too.
Anantrao saw this. Wherever that Swayamsevak sat for meals,
Anantrao too would sit just in front with his peers and would
pretend as if he was playing the sitar. The Swayamsevak grew
peevish at this, and he complained about this to Dr. Hedgewar.
Doctor Saheb said to Anantrao, “Brother, why do you trouble
that Sudhir Phadke?” After this much, Anantrao became a friend
of the renowned musician Sudhir Phadke.

In Work of Man-making
The contact with Dr. Hedgewar had turned into proximity;
it gave his life a goal. The final message from the founder
Sarsanghchalak moved the sensitive heart of Anantrao, and he
gave up his personal life in that young age itself. He gave up
attachment, affection and comfort of his prosperous family, and
determined to live life in conformance with the Sangh’s scheme
of things.
With a firm resolve and clear planning, he came to work in
Gujarat with the well-known Joshi Construction (Company) of
Maharashtra. He took over the work of building the pedestrian
bridge located near Kheda. Building the bridge was only the
pretension, his body and mind were busy building this lifeless
bridge, but his heart was fully absorbed in the scheme of man-
making. He learned the Gujarati language as quickly as possible.
With the expansion of contacts, he started to undertake the
Sangh work too. As soon as the work on the bridge was over, he
bade farewell to his job with the Joshi Construction. He forgot
all about Maharashtra and assimilated himself fully with
Gujarat. He made Nadiad his area of working for achieving his
goal. In the initial days, there was no arrangement regarding
the basic needs, such as food and shelter, yet he confronted these
difficulties in order to carry out the Sangh work without a break.
It did not take long for him to form a large group of comrades.
 161

He could guess in definite way the immediate and long term

outcome of a decision that he had made in connection with the
Sangh work. He seldom gave his advice, but whenever he did, it
came true. An instance that occurred during the emergency is very
significant even today.

Perseverance for Sangh Work

Once a Swayamsevak insisted to present him a cabbage to
cook, but the condition was such that both chapatti and
vegetable could not be cooked together. That day, the flour was
saved in order to boil and partake of the cabbage, and felt
contented at whatever they got to eat. That Swayamsevak too
felt contented that his present had been accepted by Anantrao.
He was greatly pleased and now it became his daily routine to
deliver vegetable to Anantrao, who too kept eating the boiled
vegetable and saved on the money meant for the flour. He
utilized this money for the bicycle or bus fare if he needed to
send someone to the nearby village in connection with the Sangh
work. Even today, his perseverance, manifested in the initial
stages, has not diminished a bit. It is true that he loved eating
sweets in meals. Eating a kilo or two of srikhand, jalebi or ice-
cream was like a game to him, but he never spent on his taste
any money received from Guru Dakshina which was meant for
the Sangh and social work.

Far from Fame

The Sangh Shiksha Vargas are held in Gujarat during every
summer vacation. In this camp running over a month, about
500 volunteers from Gujarat take part. Every year, when the
Param Pujya Guruji visited the camp in order to know about
the well-being, Dr. Abaji used to visit with him and he carried
many boxes of mangoes too. This was a regular feature.
However, nobody knew where from the mangoes came and who
sent them. After a long time only, it was revealed that these
renowned Ratnagiri mangoes came from the family of Anantrao.
He did not have the habit of revealing anything about
himself, and due to this habit, he did not tell anything to
162

anybody. When his mother died in 1946, he handed over the

charge to the local workers and went home. His co-volunteers
wished to send a letter of consolation, but none of them could
find his correct home address.
The mother tongue of Anantrao was Marathi, yet he has
created several pieces of poetry in Gujarati. These are enough
in number that they could be published as a collection of
excellent emotional and sentimental poems. His poems have
been learnt by heart by the Swayamsevaks, and they recite them
every moment, but they little know who created them. Anantrao
is not only a poet, but also a good singer, and a still better song
teacher.
Whenever Anantrao felt unwell or suffered from fever, he
ensured that no one wasted his time in a bid to be with him. He
was fully conscious that nobody wasted their time in serving
him. After the emergency, a meeting of the Sangh’s all-India
officers was held at Ahmedabad. Those days, Anantrao had met
an accident, and could not even walk. He thought that the
visiting officers would feel pain, so he vacated the Sangh office
and started to live in a small room at Paldi, which had no suitable
arrangements for him.
In the chilly cold of the winter season, Anantrao did not
have woollen clothing. Therefore, Nathabhai brought a woollen
shawl for him when he visited Delhi. He presented this shawl
to Anantrao. He liked it, and when he came to know that it cost
one hundred rupees, he returned it. He was so harsh on himself,
but he was so soft-hearted for his comrades. During the
emergency, a Sangh Pracharak named Maganbhai went
underground but was caught. He had nothing while in jail. As
soon as the winters started, a visitor came to see him in the jail.
He had with him a sweater and a blanket. Anantrao had not
forgotten to take care of his comrade even during the days of
emergency. These things had been sent to him by none other
than Anantrao himself.

‘Vajr°dapi Ka∂h∞r°∏i M§d£ni Kusum°dapi.’

(Harder than rock, softer than flower.)
 163

Who else could be a better example to understand this proverb

than Anantrao?

One day, all friends were sitting together and enjoying

themselves. The friends discussed different topics. Then they
came to discuss—‘what was meant by being indifferent to the
circumstances?’ After different arguments were given, a friend
said, “Indifferent to circumstances, that is Anantraoji.” His
statements are not the subject of analysis, they set deep into the
heart, and they are so striking. Whatever the situation, he never
lost his equilibrium; he remained unwavering under all
circumstances. He never felt angry even under adverse
situations, nor did he express any joy after success. He lived a
continuous uniform life. Whatever the season, he would get up
at half past four in the morning, get ready and play the flute
sitting in one corner. He had assimilated into himself the Sutra –
‘Y° Niø° Sarvabh£t°n°∆ Tasy°∆ J°garti Sa∆yam¢’ (In that which is
night for all beings, the disciplined ones keep awake). He never
underwent a change. He looked the same. He always wore the
same white dhoti-kurta, the same spectacles in the old frame,
the same old chappals filled with dirt, holding a bag in his hand
and sporting a wide smile on the face. He looked the same in
1980 as he looked in 1940, without a change. The advancing age
had certainly grayed his hair; he was always absorbed in his
work whether he travelled by bus or walked on foot, and this
work was recitation of the Gita. During his journeys, he kept
reciting the verses from all chapters of the Gita. He had learnt
the entire Gita right since childhood.
He had interest in education right since childhood, and with
his hard work, he constructed a number of important
educational institutions. The Saraswati School at Dholaka, the
Abhinav School at Siddhapur, the Adarsh High School at Kadi,
the Adarsh High School at Deesa and the Saraswati School in
the remote tribal belt Pal – all these have continued to be effective
centres of education even today. He founded these schools
himself, but he never joined the boards of trusts of these schools,
nor did he join the committee of advisors. These schools are the
164

result of the inspiration and hard work of his perseverant life.

We can feel proud of them.
He could always correctly foresee the short term and long
term impact of a decision. It was seldom that he presented his
views, but when he gave, it was exactly correct. An instance
that occurred during the emergency is very significant even
today.
The Swayamsevaks of the Sangh had decided to put every
resource into making the Janata Party win the elections. So far
as the victory in elections was concerned, we all, including
Anantrao, were very hopeful, and it happened to be so too.
However, we had a difference of opinion on one point. This
difference of opinion pertained to the long term outcome of the
victory. At the time of elections, he had firmly said, “It is the
need of the hour to make them all victorious for the sake of
democracy; however, the first thing that they would do after
ascending the seat of power is to blame the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh, and then, we would be required to
maintain equilibrium and tolerate this all.” At that time, many
of us could not understand what he meant to say. We all were
very optimistic, but the ultimate outcome was the same as
Anantrao had predicted. Those gentlemen in power made the
Sangh the sacrificial goat. The experience and foresight of
Anantrao proved exactly right. Our energy and experience
proved immature.
This Tapasvi undertook unbroken work on the land of
Gujarat, and this resulted into numerous anecdotes and
experiences. He faced different types of difficulties and suffered
most. Gujarat remains indebted to such a great individual, and
to repay this debt, there is but one path, that is to augment the
capital that he has created by his hard work, and this we can do
by our hard work, by our renunciation, by our ideals and by
our goal-oriented resolve.
o
 A Eulogy
In 1940, Anantrao Ramakrishna Kale came to Gujarat as an
engineer and then joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as
a Pracharak. He left for heavenly abode on 12 September. At
the time of his departure towards Undeel, Taluka Devgarh,
district Singhdurg (Maharashtra), the pen found itself helpless
to write this dedication:

How pleasing it is to see

A river
Laughing…jumping…running…
Making a happy noise
Enriching the land.
The scenery is enchanting
To see the swiftly flowing river
Meet the infinite ocean.
The eyes are filled with
The scenery of pretty sights,
And you remember the time of sunrise.
The blood-coloured sky,
The noise of birds,
The movement of cows going back,
The touch of the delicate rays
Coming through the particles of dust,
How pleased they all feel!
The sun’s brightness at noon
Dazzles the eyes,
The sun goes on without a rest
And then
166

Beyond the horizon glances

A destination
Manifesting the delicate redness
Of an instant or two,
And the eyes are stationary.
The heart says
No one should steal this splendour,
Eyes, heart and intellect…
They all are ever ready to obtain
A sight of such splendour.
But sometimes
The heart experiences something else.
It creates something
Not seen by eyes,
Not thought by mind,
Not reasoned by intellect,
Beyond the world,
That is the sensation of heart.
Spirit of the world.
The river that
Blended into the ocean,
The dark enveloping
All directions,
The other side of the horizon
Hiding behind it
Quiet, healthy sun.
This spirit of the world
Is at one time
Soaked into pity,
And at another
Drowned in grief of departure,
And sometimes
The river expresses
A bit of contentment,
And at times,
The moon rises
Spreading cool moonlight
 167

The spirit of twinkling stars

All endeavouring to remove dark,
The effort of the moon
Is being seen by the sun…
Quiet, healthy sun,
With detachment,
With affectionate eyes,
And showering its blessings.
It makes feel the true sense
Of Karmayoga of the Gita,
This spirit of the world has not been created
Just like that.
I wished to look
Into the other side of the horizon,
Behind it lies
An instance,
An inspiration,
An unbroken life of a Tapasvi,
Who kept lighted like a lamp,
Spreading continuous light.
This life…this persona
Came into the caves
Of the Ratnagiri,
From a tiny village like Undeel,
Where a child took birth,
And as he grew young,
Gave up everything
With a resolve to serve Motherland,
And made Gujarat his place of action
Forty years ago.
The face always resplendent
In natural shine,
The tune of the flute,
The melodious song,
Set in a very delicate life.
A number of people are witness
Of the hard work…penance!
168

I did not pick up the pen

To relate the tale of his action,
Today I’ll talk of the sun
Beyond the horizon,
And the river that met the ocean.
12 September, 1988.
The Sangh office at Valsad.
Sits a personality
Quite at ease
With a detached feeling,
Spreading smile
Inspiring thousands
Among a few comrades
Who have heard of him.
The body of this brave doer
Has grown fragile
Though he had arrived in Gujarat
In pink complexion
And rising youth.
Now this body has nothing
To offer to Motherland,
To the society.
And so he has decided
To go back to the land of Undeel
After a gap of forty years,
The land where he took birth,
To live the rest of his life,
This is the moment of his departure,
His farewell…his adieu.
A lighted life
Standing on the other side of horizon
Is about to bid adieu
Peacefully, quietly, healthily.
We recite the Gita,
And hear it too,
But we have witnessed for the first time
Nishkam Karmayoga
 169

That desires no fruit of action,

Sitting before us
In body and soul, incarnate.
You all must have seen the grandeur
Of a lotus in bloom.
This is the time to feel
The natural spirit of the lotus
Folding back its petals
In the light of the setting sun.
The snake is pretty,
So is its skin,
It gives the snake its beauty and protection…
Still
The snake leaves off the skin
In a natural way…
Just like that…
Without attachment…
Quietly, healthily, naturally…
It was a departure
From place of action to place of birth
But, fate drew him back again
To the pilgrimage
To enter the land,
To not allow the body to remain.
He kept sacrificing in the yajna of his actions
Every moment of his life,
Every particle of his body,
And from it manifested
Inspiration for hundreds…thousands.
The mantra is ringing
“Rashtriya Swaha Idam Na Mam.”
(Sacrificed for the nation, I am none.)
This accumulation of light,
The name of this resplendent life is
Anant Ramakrishna Kale.
As I got an opportunity
To bow before him
170

At this time of farewell,

I feel gratitude,
With a feeling of proud in heart
To have an opportunity to work with him.
I recall again
The river falling into the ocean
The sun going beyond the horizon
The lotus folding its petals
And
From heart, from mind, from intellect,
I am inspired to bow with folded hands
Just like you.
o
 His put his life under the nation’s command willingly,
Donated the organisation with the energy to work heartily.
 Dynamic Personality
Keshavrao Deshmukh

Offspring to a scholarly family in Kashi. Passed his childhood

playing in the holy current of the Ganga. All his family is devoted
to the Sangh. The family atmosphere is replete with the competition
that every member does to sacrifice more and more for the Sangh.
Infused with such noble traits, which made Gujarat his land of
action, Keshavrao’s mortal body blended into the five elements with
the Sabar on 2 March, 1981.

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is about an eighty-year-

old mute organisation engaged in man-making. The dedicated
effort of the Sangh revolves round the concept that ‘it is enough
if man has been created’. In a way, the Sangh work has become
an open university of the science of organisation. It is due to
unbroken, continuous, dedicated work over a period of eighty
years that has resulted into a countrywide systematic structure,
in which has evolved an adequate decision-making process. It
has established the noblest values to measure every action in
terms of national interest. Whenever everything is available –
structure, system, and process – still everything is dependent
on the person who looks after this all, who leads this all, who
carries its responsibility.
The foundation of the Sangh in Gujarat was strengthened
due to the hard work of a number of people. The structure has
developed much. In such a time, the late Sh. Keshavrao
Deshmukh took over the responsibility of the Sangh’s Prant
Pracharak in Gujarat. A Prant Pracharak plays a vital role in the
Sangh’s life. When we see the period of Deshmukh during his
174

stint as the Prant Pracharak, we can find an amazing impression

of his working style and personality on the Sangh’s working
and way of life in Gujarat. His priority lay in the expansion of
the Sangh work on the strong foundation that existed in Gujarat.
He formulated successful strategies in order to rejuvenate the
Sangh’s life in Gujarat, to transform the traditional and old image
of the Sangh, to not allow the Sangh to function as a remote
island but to participate in social life, and such other goals. The
working style of Keshavrao Deshmukh was continuously
progressive. His life was active, his effort dynamic, his work
energetic, and his strategy lively. The life of Keshavrao
Deshmukh was dynamic, still more heroic was his death. It is
extremely heartrending to imagine the moment that an active,
inspiring personality receded into quiet peace just before your
eyes.
There are times in the life of man when self-contradictory
but wonderful instances take place which augment the intensity
of such instances several times over. In the case of Keshavrao
Deshmukh, the death had not come as normally it does, rather
it had rained down like a bolt from the blue. The evil thing
about the fate was that Keshavrao Deshmukh was about to
complete sixty years of his life on the Varsh-Pratipada. A
religious ritual was being organised in Kashi by his family
members to celebrate Shastipurti. It was the first family
celebration ever since Keshavrao had abandoned home in his
youth to become a Pracharak. The preparation for the celebration
was underway for the past one year. The Man. Balasaheb, the
Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, had
assented his presence in the programme. The priests in Kashi
too were enthusiastic about this specific religious opportunity.
A number of comrades from Gujarat, like me, had gone to Kashi
to attend the opening celebration. Only a few days were left,
and before the final day of the celebration, Keshavrao
Deshmukh gave up his mortal body. We can imagine how
intolerable the grief of his departure must have been when the
final moment of Shastipurti arrived.
Other instances too came up which produced such
unbearable sorrow. The birthdays of both Keshavrao Deshmukh
 175

(1921) and the Man. Hedgewar fell on the same day of Pratipada
in the month of Chaitra. And the day Keshavrao died, it was
the birthday of the Param Pujya Guruji.
In Baroda, the Sangh’s Swayamsevaks had decided to
celebrate the birthday of the Param Pujya Guruji in a unique
way. A musical programme was held called Swaranjali in which
the Sangh songs were to be sung. The confluence of song, music
and tune, being held at Gandhinagar in Baroda, transformed
the entire atmosphere into an emotional one. The life sketch of
Guruji was presented through song and music, which fleeted
across our sight like a panorama. In this programme, which
lasted close to two hours, the audiences were taken to the zenith
of their emotions though no speeches were delivered. The late
Vakil Saheb too had arrived from Bombay to attend this
programme specifically. At the end of the programme, the hearts
of all those present there were ringing continuously; such was
the feeling with everybody.
Baroda remained the working area for Deshmukh for
several years. He was very pleased with this programme. The
entire programme had heightened everybody to the zenith of
their sentimental being. Everybody wished to live this moment,
nobody wanted to miss this opportunity, therefore, everybody
kept astutely silent there.
A few moments after such an excellent instance, there
occurred a grievous instance, all of a sudden. Keshavrao gave
up his body within half an hour. How hurting it must have been!
Two conflicting instances occurring together. A few moments
before, Deshmukh was absorbed in the Swaranjali dedicated to
Guruji, body and soul, his face was shining in joy; and a little
later, he bade adieu to all of us and made for Guruji.
When we set out for the Swaranjali programme, we had
hoped for a joyful success of it. In the jeep were seated
Deshmukh on the front seat, while the back seats were occupied
by Vakil Saheb and Nathabhai Jhagda, while I was driving it.
Our dinner was arranged at the residence of Subhashbhai
Mehta, who had come from America to settle down in Baroda.
Vakil Saheb was scheduled to leave for Baroda late into the night.
We left the residence at Gandhinagar in Baroda quite happily.
176

We had barely travelled for about 20-25 minutes. The impact of

the programme was so impressive that none of us was talking.
As we turned to enter the society in order to make to
Subhashbhai’s residence, the body of Keshavrao just fell into
my lap. It was the touch of a cold body, as if a piece of ice was
there in my lap. I tried to shake him driving and calling him at
the same time, but all in vain. We reached the residence of
Subhashbhai in about three minutes. The doctor was called
immediately, who declared him dead. It was a moment of
unbearable sorrow just half an hour after the moment of extreme
joy. His death had snatched a piece of diamond from the hands
of the Sangh. Nobody in the entire Sangh family was ready to
accept this information as true. For the Swayamsevaks, who had
attended the Swaranjali programme in Baroda, it was like a
strike from the heaven. The atmosphere was very gloomy.
It was an unforgettable moment of life. I had seen the death
so near me for the first time in life. I had seen death befalling
like lightning. It was for the first time that I had understood
what morality of life means. The metaphysics of uncertainty of
life and certainty of death was manifest before our eyes in its
terrible form.
When we normally call the name of a Pracharak, a particular
image appears before the eyes, but the image of Deshmukh was
quite distinct from it. It was his habit to live a organised life
better than a householder. He was born and brought up in Kashi.
As he was born in a scholarly family, we could find a glimpse of
logic and intellectual elements in his talks. He had been to
Gujarat, especially in south Gujarat, for a long time. This priest
from Kashi was one who could compete with even a trader from
Surat (Surati Lala) when it came to eating. There is a proverb in
Gujarati: “Suratanun jaman ane kashinum maran.” (Birth in Surat
and death in Kashi are auspicious) And here, the priest from
Kashi was fond of Surat food. He lived a very systematic and
excellent lifestyle. He possessed high thinking so far as the
choice of food was concerned. The effect of his lifestyle was
seen on his working style too.
Keshavrao, who passed his childhood in Kashi on the banks
of the Ganga, sat down for meditation on the banks of the
 177

Sabarmati. He appeared to be a perfect Gujarati. He possessed

a complete Gujarati personality in eating, living, language –
everything. Living life as a Sangh Pracharak, he worked like a
saint. All Pracharaks are habituated of these things. He washed
his clothes himself, but he suffered from soap allergy. As soon
as he touched soap, his hand would show up rashes and pimples
all over the hand, resulting into extreme pain. However, he put
up with pain and tried to do his work himself for years. When
the situation grew unbearable, only then did he agree to get his
clothes washed by others.
Deshmukh also suffered from ‘halwa’ allergy. If halwa was
being cooked in the neighbourhood, its fragrance itself was
enough to spoil his health. It would lead to headache and
vomiting and the like. The Swayamsevaks paid attention to all
these factors whenever he was touring.
He basically hailed from Uttar Pradesh, yet he had
completely blended into Gujarati way of living. He accepted
Gujarat as his home. He had assimilated into himself even
Gujarati language, dress, customs, traditions and the like to the
extent that no one was ever ready to accept him as a non-
Gujarati. Due to this closeness, he created thousands of
Swayamsevaks in Gujarat, on the basis of whom the Sangh work
was progressing well in the state. He wished that Gujarat should
excel other states so far as the Sangh work was concerned, and
he continued to work towards this goal.
The lifestyle of Deshmukh was not monotonous; it was
colourful, all-pervading. He possessed a number of sources for
gathering information. The minutest information pertaining to
every aspect reached him. Despite his love for the traditional
aspects of the Sangh life, he had maintained lively contacts with
different types of people of the society in order to derive
information from them.
The foundation stone of any organisation are visits and
contacts, and the working style of Deshmukh was unique in
both aspects. Contact with the families is very important in the
Sangh work. Deshmukh had evolved a particular family contact
style. His style of family contact was in consonance with the
future plans. He contacted families in a very light atmosphere,
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where he met informally in the middle of food and

entertainment. During his family contact programme, he used
to call other people to the family, and gossip with them, while
conducting free discussion on the future course of programmes.
At times, the planning for important programmes was
undertaken in such informal meetings, and it was something
new so far as the style of organisation was concerned.
In 1945, Deshmukh resigned from his remunerative job in
order to join the Sangh as a Pracharak, and arrived at Surat for
work. He met people daily. He met people during recess in
schools. He continued to expand his contacts, and with his
efforts, Shakhas were started to be held. In the initial period,
small children were attracted to games, while their parents were
attracted by Deshmukh’s speech, behaviour and practice.
Therefore, he did not take much time in blending himself with
the people of Surat. Thus, the Sangh work was commenced in
Surat, and people too were attracted to it. To give shape to a
new scheme, Deshmukh was assigned the responsibility of the
Dakshin Vibhag, and Vadodara became is chief centre.
Therefore, Deshmukh arrived in Vadodara.
His touring programme too was like a mobile school of
organisation. He mostly travelled in bus or train. When he
travelled from one place to another in Gujarat, he would keep
the local new Swayamsevaks with him.

Other instances giving unbearable pain too were produced. The

birthdays of Keshavrao (1921) and the Man. Hedgewar were on
the same day of Pratipada in the month of Chaitra. It was a
coincidence that the day Keshavrao died; it was the birthday of
the Param Pujya Guruji.

While travelling from one station to another, he talked to

the new Swayamsevaks in a light mood. He would keep talking
on different issues one after another, and would not allow even
an iota of tension to creep in. He would talk about the joys and
sorrows of the Swayamsevaks, their families, their development,
career prospects as well as expansion of the Sangh work. On
every station, the previous Swayamsevak would climb down
 179

the train, while a new one would join him until the next station,
and then the same series of talks would continue with him too.
This was how he would talk to different Swayamsevaks during
his tours, and thus he hastened the process of the development
of a Swayamsevak as well as the expansion of the Sangh.
We can clearly feel his fragrance of hard work when we
think of the Sangh’s expansion. When we recall his devoted life
today, it clearly brings to the fore numerous qualities in his
otherwise ordinary life. Every Sangh Swayamsevak gets an
opportunity to visit different places and come into contact with
diverse people. However, Deshmukh was very proficient in
identifying the attitude and aptitude of the person coming into
his contact, to feel his energy and to give an opportunity to the
qualities inherent in him. He was at all times making effort to
put into practice the maxim – ‘work for every individual and
individual for every work’. He never felt hesitant to adopt any
information that might have come from an ordinary
Swayamsevak or his family member. An important characteristic
of Deshmukh’s working style was that he did not waste any
time in some particular process to mould others; rather he would
direct the innate qualities inherent in an individual in order to
motivate him to invest him in the national good. Thus, he had
the capability to engage the vigour and energy of more and
more number of people.
When we look at the enterprising decisions made in the
course of Sangh’s life in Gujarat, the name of Deshmukh would
always stick to memory. He was always making endeavour to
develop the work not in the process of ‘addition’ but
‘multiplication’. It was a time in the life of Sangh in Gujarat
when an amount of thirty-five thousand rupees appeared to be
monstrous. In February 1981, a challenge had aroused in the
country due to the conversion of Dalits in Minakshipuram. The
Sangh initiated the awareness programme in the whole country,
and took over the constructive work for the welfare of the Dalit
tribals. At this time, a campaign was also started to collect funds
within a specified period of time. At that time, an amount of
thirty-five thousand rupees appeared to be massive, but
Gujarat’s Sangh collected a relief fund of three lakh rupees, and
180

thus created a unique image in the entire country. It could be

feasible only through the efforts and hard work of a number of
people, on which Deshmukh’s enterprise can be clearly seen
too.
Whatever work he took in hand, he would execute it
keeping the long term benefits and outcomes, and not the short
term ones. It helped in positive outcome in the Sangh work in
south Gujarat as well as other projects in the family fold. The
positive outcome that the Jana Sangh and the Vanvasi Kalyan
Parishad (Tribal Welfare Council) obtained in Surat city and
district, Vadodara city and district and Panchmahal was the
result of the foresight of Deshmukh.
The black days of the Navnirman Andalon in 1973-74 and
the emergency in 1975 were no ordinary occurrences for the
common people of Gujarat. Deshmukh held the responsibility
of the Prant Pracharak even during such a crucial period. He
carefully and ably carried out his responsibility whether it
pertained to taking care of the families whose members had
been put behind bars, whether it pertained to the series of
exploitation and atrocities inflicted by the Congress rulers on
Swayamsevak families, whether it pertained to keeping patience
by the families in such a fearful atmosphere, or whether it
pertained to preservation of democracy and the struggle for it.
The heartrending calamity of 11 August, 1979 that occurred
at the Machchu dam in Morbi is enough to move anybody.
Within no time, thousands of people had been engulfed by
deathly current. The Sangh had a strong foundation in the
nearby city of Rajkot. Moreover, Deshmukh was the Pracharak
of the Rajkot Vibhag before he was promoted to the post of the
Prant Pracharak. Therefore, he had a good contact with the
Swayamsevaks in that part of the state, and he was trusted too.
The Sangh started the relief work at Morbi. The media of the
country and abroad appreciated the Sangh’s efforts at Morbi.
The countrymen too were impressed by the selfless service.
Consequently, funds flowed from all over the country for the
reconstruction of Morbi. Deshmukh did not stop at only service
and relief work; he went further and decided to take forward
the project of reconstruction of Morbi.
 181

It is normal for a Sangh Pracharak to work like saints. All

Pracharaks were habituated of this type of work. They washed their
clothes themselves, but Deshmukh suffered from soap allergy. He
suffered from rashes all over the hand as soon as he touched soap,
which caused him much pain, yet he continued to bear with it for
years and did his work himself. When the situation turned
unbearable and the doctors insisted, only then did he get ready to
get his clothes washed by others.

Due to the breach of the Machchu dam, Morbi and the areas
surrounding it were completely destroyed. The Sangh’s
Swayamsevaks took lead in undertaking immediate relief work,
health service, cleanliness campaign, removing and performing
final rites for the dead bodies of men and animals, and the like.
And then they engaged themselves in the reconstruction of
Morbi for about three years after this incidence. Not only in
Gujarat but in the entire country, the spirit of service displayed
at Morbi went on to be institutionalized as the Sangh’s culture.
Even today, the Sangh’s volunteers are the first to reach a site of
natural calamity in any corner of the country. In a way, working
in the capacity of the Prant Pracharak, Deshmukh’s foresight
has evolved into one of the important attitudes and tendencies
in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
The entire fabric of the Sangh work is systematic and
planned. Broadly, the calendar for the year comprises different
types of programmes, tours of small and big officers and the
like. A characteristic of Deshmukh was that he always infused
novelty into the continuously undergoing projects – how to
make them lively, how to create an invigorated and energetic
atmosphere for them. Deshmukh was an organizer as well as
planner. When we were talking to him in January in connection
with some contemporary errands, he would be thinking of the
programmes to be held around Diwali later that year. He
planned and organized things well in advance, sometimes as
early as eight to ten months, in order to keep his comrades
motivated and energetic.
If a man cultivates even a single quality to its zenith, he
assumes greatness; while Deshmukh had cultivated a number
of qualities in his dedicated life and devoted them to the Sangh
182

work. It was no ordinary task to guide and motivate

Swayamsevaks, Vistaraks and Pracharaks, in order keep them
inclined towards their work, and carry them all towards
accomplishment of common goals. However, he accomplished
all these things so naturally that others felt they were all so easy
tasks. He was a good organizer. He was proficient in organizing
man’s energy in a natural way.
The Sadhana weekly was published in order to strengthen
the national thinkers by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. For
this purpose, there was an old time treadle machine and a
printing press. It was due to insight and enterprising nature of
Deshmukh that the Sadhana’s establishment was converted into
a modern printing press and office.
He was of the view that the Sangh’s Swayamsevaks should
play an active role in the society’s economic development
through cooperative work. In Surat, the condition of the
Panchsheel cooperative bank was going from bad to worse. Due
to his wide contacts, Deshmukh’s attention was drawn towards
this fact. He immediately motivated a few Swayamsevaks
towards it. It did not take long when the command of the bank
came into the hands of the Swayamsevaks, and in a few years,
the bank rose back to its goodwill.
As the Prant Pracharak, Deshmukh got a short stint of only
ten years, yet in this small period, he created a new generation
in every aspect of Sangh’s life which was modern in outlook.
He handed over responsibility to even the young who appeared
to be suitable as per their ability and capability. It is a difficult
proposition to bring about a change in a large organisation like
the Sangh which has been working for so many years and at so
vast a scale. However, in his brief stint, he showed the courage
to develop new systems.
The offspring of a scholarly family in Kashi, who had passed
his childhood in the sacred current of the Ganga; whose entire
family was dedicated to the Sangh; this child belonged to a
family in which each member competed with the other to
sacrifice more and more. With such positive traits, Keshavrao
made Gujarat the land of his action. He passed away on 2 March,
1981.
o
Today nation’s life is sorrowful with greed, enmity and blots,
May it be changed with your inspiration with every particle
fragrant;
Let us sacrifice everything to create a new divine nation
Now the pot of sacrifice is ready.
 Sunset at Noon
Vasantbhai Gajendragadkar

The picture of Deendayal Upadhyay, who was directly linked in

moulding the life of Vasantbhai, influenced his thinking and
meditation that reflected in his behaviour, Upadhyay expressed
satisfaction in his work.

Were you to describe the ocean in words…

Oceans means what?
Large pond.
Large means what?
Large…and nothing.
That has no limit.
You cannot identify the ocean without going near it.
Just the same
Was the personality of our Vasantbhai.
Scholarly, skilled in behaviour, thinker, entertainer,
conscious, diverse, massive personality, is synonymous to
Vasantbhai Gajendragadkar.
Vasantbhai must have met a large number of people, must
have stayed at numerous houses, and must have given diverse
experiences to diverse people, yet my experience been quite
distinct from the rest. I got an opportunity to stay at his home
for a long time during the successful days of his life.
Within the circle of intimate people, we identified
Vasantbhai as Rao Saheb. I don’t know when and under what
circumstances was he born, but I can tell with certainty that we
always uttered his name very affectionately.
186

Entry into Politics: An Amazement

If we examine the contemporary political tendencies and
the lives of political leaders, then the entry of Vasantbhai into
politics was no less than a matter of wonder. Politics has little to
do with values, yet Vasantbhai never accorded priority to politics
due to his values.
It was the time of Parliamentary elections in 1971. There is
a possibility of change if the strategy of one-against-one is
adopted – all political parties were of this view. The name of
Vasantbhai led the rest amongst the possible candidates for
Ahmedabad seat. Looking at the political situation at that time,
there was no reason for Vasantbhai not to get the ticket. The
Jana Sangh started preparation for the election. The propaganda
bills were put up at every place in Ahmedabad. The invigorated
workers were busy in their work, and in the final moments, an
unexpected decision was taken in Delhi, that was that
Vasantbhai would not fight the election. This news was like a
bolt from the blue for the workers working energetically in
Ahmedabad. They expressed their anguish, some even
declared – no ticket to Vasantbhai, no work. In such a situation
even, Vasantbhai did not feel bad at not getting the ticket, and
he urged the volunteers to work devotedly to support the new
candidate Jaikrishnabhai and to ensure his victory. He convinced
the disappointed volunteers himself in person and lightened
the atmosphere. He activated all volunteers – young and old.
Whatever decisions are taken in the national good, we must
stand by them keeping all personal interests aside and to make
all efforts for its execution. He followed such values and taught
others to follow them too.
During these days, Shambhu Maharaj was the Jana Sangh’s
candidate at Dhandhuka. As soon as the election process was
set in motion, the Jana Sangh put forward the name of Shambhu
Maharaj. At this time, a popular leader came to meet Vasantbhai.
He was a leading leader of the vote bank in the Dhandhuka
parliamentary seat and had influence among other voters too.
There were still a few days left for the nomination to be
submitted. He came with the name of another candidate
 187

stronger and more popular than Shambhu Maharaj. It was mere

coincidence that the name proposed by that leader was that of
a close friend of Vasantbhai, and that person was capable and
eligible from every angle; yet Vasantbhai answered in the
negative after having heard the entire argument. It is hard to
imagine when you are refusing a popular public figure of the
same vote bank. Still, the visiting leader said, “Vasantbhai, it is
politics in which everything is fair. What is the problem if
Shambhu Maharaj does not fight? Who keeps word in politics
today?” Despite all those arguments, Vasantbhai gave a clear
verdict, “Brother, promises might not be important for other
people in politics, but our promises are expressed in our life
values. We shall not be a bit pained if we lose the election, but a
breach in promise would tear apart the faith shown in us. We
must keep our word.” The visitor took his leave, but the words
of Vasantbhai had created a tempest in his heart. Influenced by
his dedication to values, he was motivated to think over this all,
and as a consequence, he became a leading worker of the Jana
Sangh within one year.

No Cheap Popularity, Not Far from Struggle

The reconstruction campaign was at its peak in Gujarat.
The successful programmes by the Jana Sangh, one after another,
had made the entire Gujarat’s atmosphere alive and lively. About
this time, the Communist Party in Gujarat announced the
Gujarat Bandh. As the intention of these people was suspicious,
the Jana Sangh did not approve of this decision. They were
apprehensive that if the campaign was controlled by some other
elements, then it might harm the interests of Gujarat. In such a
situation, the Jana Sangh thought it appropriate to keep silent.
This decision of the Jana Sangh created a little optimism in the
heart of Chimanbhai Patel, the then Chief Minister. He tried to
meet Vasantbhai. The meeting was settled. During the meeting,
Chimanbhai said, “Vasantbhai, if the Jana Sangh kept away from
the Gujarat Bandh, I have the necessary ability to deal with all
other people.” The response of Vasantbhai was given in clear
terms, “Whether the Jana Sangh supports the Gujarat Bandh or
188

not, yet our struggle will continue for values. We may not join
the Bandh for the sake of cheap popularity, but we shall not like
to keep away from the campaign which has been started to
establish the values against the government.” The response of
Vasantbhai was fearless in such terms, and in a few days, the
Jana Sangh leaders were all arrested under the MISA.

Significance of Values
Vasantbhai was insistent on values in personal life as he
was for them in public life. Vasantbhai was a professor in the
law college, so he was also assigned the task of examining
answer books in the university. It was quite normal for the
students and their parents to visit the professors examining the
answer books. Several such occurrences took place in this
context. Once, a friend and comrade visited his home when the
paper of an acquaintance came to him to be examined. He
needed some help. Now, the relation was so close that he could
not refuse it at that time, but when the result was declared, the
candidate found that he had failed in that paper.
The leader in any organisation influences the success of
the entire organisation through his conduct and qualities. The
success of Gujarat Jana Sangh as well as the series of unshakable
volunteers will always show the glimpse of life values of
Vasantbhai.

Sensitive Nature
Vasantbhai was a sensitive person, so he got angry too, and
the reason behind it used to be quite different. I was introduced
to Vasantbhai when I was an ordinary Swayamsevak; therefore,
we maintained a respectable distance as it ought to be between
a leader and a follower. However, in a few days, I started to
work as a Sangh Pracharak in Ahmedabad. Vasantbhai greatly
respected Pracharaks. He loved when a Pracharak visited his
house, he used to meet and talk to them for long. However, I
never went to his house, because I had always maintained a
respectable distance from him right since the beginning. Once
we met in a programme. After the pleasantries, Vasantbhai
 189

started to express his unhappiness in some aggressive words.

He said, “Of course, you are an honourable Pracharak now, you
have grown bigger, while I am still a Swayamsevak! You can
say ‘no’ if you don’t want to visit my house.” He uttered this
and went away. I knew this nature of Vasantbhai. He could be
unhappy with no one. The same day I visited his house. He
talked to me for long, right late into the evening, as if nothing
had ever happened in the morning, we took our dinner together.
Not only this, he insisted that I should have meals with him
every Thursday, and this settlement of Thursday meals
continued right until the last.

Vasantbhai’s wife Vidyaben approached the dead body of Vasantbhai

for the final adieu. She was to return the Mangalsutra that she
had been gifted twenty years ago. Vidyaben took out the
Mangalsutra with shaking hands; that sad moment made that
gloomy environment still gloomier.

The Param Pujya Guruji breathed his last on 5 June, 1973.

The meeting was held at the Sangh office the whole night.
Vasasntbhai was on a tour to Patan. He was yet to be informed.
He received the news about the death of the Param Pujya Guruji
from the newspapers the next morning. Immediately he started
from Patna and reached Ahmedabad about eight o’clock. All
officers made for Nagpur by air via Bombay. Vasantbhai came
to my room directly. He was much broken, he was sad to the
extreme. He just uttered a sentence, “What Narendrabhai, you
could not wire me even at night!” Saying these words, his eyes
grew wet. This was the outcome of the infinite faith and devotion
that he possessed for the Param Pujya Guruji.
We had witnessed Vasantbhai’s energy in working a great
number of times. Many of these instances have left an indelible
impression on our mind and heart, and we remember them all
our life. One day during the reconstruction campaign, many of
the Jana Sangh workers had been arrested under the MISA.
Those days, Vasantbhai was busy writing a book ‘Sriguruji’ to
be published by the Sadhana Pustak Prakashan. Had he gone
190

to jail, the book was in all probability to be postponed. Therefore,

as soon as he got the clue, he went underground. I was assigned
the responsibility of keeping contact with the outsiders and keep
him informed of every development outside. The campaign was
at its peak those days. Almost all leaders of the Gujarat Jana
Sangh were in jail. The bullets were flying about outside.
Sacrifices were being made in great many numbers. The entire
Gujarat was under curfew. It was a difficult mental situation
for a sensitive leader like him to be underground. He was very
eager to know what was happening outside. He would grow
quite restless if there was any delay in delivering the news to
him. The violence and assassinations taking place during the
mass campaign were shocking the heart like never before. At
this crucial time, he accomplished his task simultaneously at
two fronts equally well. One was to keep contact with the
struggle outside; and at the same time, concentrate his mind in
order to complete the writing of the book Sriguruji. This
occurrence left a deep impression of his concentration and
sensitivity on my mind.

Simple and Natural in Grave Assignments

Vasantbhai was the most joyful person of the Sangh family.
He was loved by everybody. It was his habit to cut fun at every
member in the family. When Vasantbhai was married, Vidya
Bhabhi did not drink tea. Vasantbhai wished that she should
drink tea. Therefore, he allowed Vidya Bhabhi a time of one
month to start drinking tea. He had specifically asked her to
start drinking tea by 9 March as their marriage was held on 9
February. Moreover, he had urged this in a very fantastic
manner. One fine day after the marriage, his brother’s son started
to chant a new mantra: “Vidya Kaki nau marchala kay karanar?
Chaha pinar…chaha pinar…” (Vidya Kaki, why should you wait
for March? Drink tea…drink tea.)
It became a daily feature. To keep his heart, Vidyaben drank
a cup of tea one day, and after that, she never drank it, nor did
Vasantbhai asked her to.
Vasantbhai suffered from diabetes, but he was much fond
of eating. I used to visit him on Thursdays for meals. Therefore,
 191

he would tell Vidya Bhabhi to make sweets on four or five

Thursdays in a year saying that it was my birthday, and after
that, he would say that it was not Narendrabhai’s birthday.
Much in the same manner, he often teased his Shanti Bhabhi
too. He would conceal her items, terrify her, caught cockroach
and threw it on her; and sometimes, he raised a commotion
with her son in the house in joy. Thus, he made fun and kept
himself in good spirits. Vasantbhai loved to bathe in rain. He
would bathe in it even if he was unwell. His last rain bath was
with us. It was raining heavily. Rao Saheb put on his clothes
and took me along. We sat in the garden in front of his house.
The rain continued for two hours and we enjoyed in it fully.
Rao Saheb was enjoying the drops of rain like a child, and was
watching the nature’s glory. It was the final Savan (month of
July-August) of his life. He lived a simple, quiet and natural
personal life even while holding crucial responsibilities of
Gujarat Jana Sangh and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
Vasantbhai lived a short life, yet it was fully glorious. He
was the living example of striving for the values. The three most
important things that contributed to success in his life were
clarity of thought, faith in conviction and character to act. The
final days of Vasantbhai were very painful. He had to undertake
extreme physical and mental burden due to the threat to
democracy during the state of emergency, as well as in his
capacity of a leader in the struggle being led in other states. He
decided to undergo surgery in Bombay so that his body could
undertake more responsibility.
On the night of 6 February, 1976, we went to see off
Vasantbhai in Gujarat Mail. As always, he started his cycle of
talks with the lighter moments. The elections for the Rajya Sabha
were about to be held in Gujarat, and he was as good as the
final candidate for the Rajya Sabha. At the station, I started my
talk with that point, “What Rao Saheb, you were supposed to
prepare for Delhi, and here you are going to Bombay.” At this
he commented, “Our vehicle runs in the reverse.” This talk in
lighter vein was the last that we have had together. Vasantbhai
was admitted to Bombay Hospital on 9 February. On 12
192

February, the alliance government of Gujarat fell down. As soon

as Vasantbhai got this news in Bombay, he grew restless. He
continuously murmured, “I ought to have been in Gandhinagar
at this hour. It was a fine opportunity to carry out my
responsibility, but here, I am lying on the bed.” He would
murmur such things lying alone in his bed. This news had
certainly shocked him, which aggravated his condition further.
And at 6.40 in the evening on 16 February, he passed away. This
unfortunate news was given to me on telephone.
It was quite heartrending to imagine that the thousands of
volunteers would have to carry the very Vasantbhai on their
shoulders, on whose shoulders they had risen to glory in social
life, but this was the truth. His dead body was brought to
Ahmedabad on 17 February. As soon as his dead body was
brought out of the ambulance, groups of volunteers herded
together to carry it. Here, the people carrying his body had to
carry two responsibilities – to carry the body as well as to carry
the responsibility of realizing his goals.
The dead body was kept in the front room of the house.
The body with half-open eyes was not ready to invite anybody
today, as he had always done. The spring season was not
charming the room with his frolics. The sleeping Vasant had
only four things before him – towards the right on the front
wall was the photograph of his leader, and the photograph of
his mother who appeared to be content with the deeds that her
son had accomplished in life, and the photographs of two great
people right before his eyes – Dr. Hedgewar and Guruji. As if
Vasantbhai was gazing at them, his mute face seemed to be
saying – I am leaving midway without having accomplished
the task assigned by you, are you unhappy about it!

Amongst the intimate group of people, we identified Vasantbhai

as Rao Saheb. I don’t know how this name of his came into
existence, but it was sure that we pronounced this name with
much love.

• Those were directly related to moulding the life of

Vasantbhai, the reflection of whose thinking and
 193

contemplation could be seen in his behaviour, such was

Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay whose photograph seemed
to express satisfaction about the accomplishment of his
companion, at the same time inspiring other comrades
not to feel sorry.
• The being lying here never loved his body.
• He kept lighting a lamp through the lamp of his life.
• He never looked away from hard work.
• He had given up all comfort in order to realize the dream
of people’s welfare.
• His tendency to worry for others could not prevent him
from leading to the funeral pyre.

Preparation was being made for the final journey of

Vasantbhai. No words are enough to describe such a moment.
Vasantbhai’s wife Vidyaben approached the lifeless body
of Vasantbhai to bid farewell for one last time. The Mangalsutra
that she had been gifted twenty years ago, it was time to return
it. Vidyaben took out the Mangalsutra with trembling hands.
This moment turned the entire atmosphere sad and gloomy.
At 2.30 in the noon, his funeral procession started from the
Jana Sangh office at Khadiyan, his place of action. I think it
suffices to say that few political leaders get such a funeral
procession. He ruled people’s hearts. They felt their hearts
turning barren. Tears were streaming down millions of eyes.
At the funeral ground, he was offered a glorious homage.
Every one of those who came to offer his homage had lost
something. There was no formality in this homage; it was the
story of agony of every heart. That night, I noted in my diary:

“The glass of friendship cracked before we could drink,

The sun set before it was the evening.”
o
 On the Occasion of First Death
Anniversary of Vasantbhai
Brother,
What focus you had
That you kept
Lighting
And lighting lamps
In villages after villages,
In houses after houses,
But you ought to have looked back
If the source of light
Itself is being burnt!
But brother,
From the last spring
To this one.
Passing through the door
With the source of light
We treaded much,
Treaded long,
So before the first anniversary,
The ‘alliance’ turned
Into a ‘party’,
To keep the light of democracy
Lighted!
o
 Points to Ponder
Human Well-being
The follower of Hinduism has never try to attract others
through greed and attraction, because it does not lead to eternal
well-being. The Hindu culture seeks learning – from dark to
light, from death to immortality, for well-being of human life
lies just in this.

Human Life
Drops of water look pretty on the lotus, but they are
momentary. These drops are destroyed by the sun’s rays, they
then exist no more. Human life is just like this.

In What Lies Bliss

Bliss does not lie in matter; it lies in the religious mind.
Sweet tastes good, it gives pleasure to eat, but how much can
you eat? How long will you eat? If you eat more, it would lead
to vomiting and you will feel bored of sweet, or you will grow
indifferent to it.
I have undertaken lifelong campaign on the thorny path full
of troubles,
I am ignorant of honey, I have drunk poison all life.
 Committed to Service
Dr. Vishwanathrao Vanikar

There is a depositary of the memories related to Dr. Vanikar. He

was the friend of the sufferers, his pity was natural. He was the
man of action. When he sat with the saints, he was the true pupil.
He was the man of struggle. He remained devoted to the society
until the last moment of his life. He devoted even his personal life
to the society.

Amongst the prestigious families of Ahmedabad is counted

the Vanikar family. His family enjoyed a high reputation. Of
the mill-owner families running over generations, the Vanikar
family enjoyed a unique identity. Anantrao Vanikar was an
engineer by profession. He had served as the Chief Engineer in
Ahmedabad. He had created a number of records one hundred
years ago. Anantrao Vanikar belonged to a village Vani, near
Nasik in Maharashtra; however, over generations, his
forefathers came and settled at ‘Bhau Ki Pole’ in Ahmedabad.
Vishwanath Vanikar was his only offspring. His father was an
engineer, but he chose to be a doctor. He possessed a tall figure,
well built body and impressive personality. He completed his
practice in London and returned to India for service to the
nation. Dr. Vanikar was the first pathologist of Gujarat.
About fifty years ago from now, a doctor enjoyed a high
prestige and reputation in the society. And this prestige was
still higher for this foreign degree holder. If an individual is
respected in his youth, he can be imagined to be riding high in
glory and bliss. This makes some people talk through their heads
200

and walk two steps above the ground; but the traits and culture
of Dr. Vanikar were quite different. Even after he became a
doctor, it was perfectly normal for him to ride a bicycle around.
He led a very simple life, and became a favourite person among
the people of Gujarat. Looking at his capability and prestige,
the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation requested him to take
over the charge of the newly-built L.G. Hospital. He gave up
his good income in order to take over the charge of the L.G.
Hospital just for the sake of people of Ahmedabad. Not only
this, he worked hard to provide extension service to provide
health services to people, especially the mill workers.
For Dr. Vanikar, rendering health services was like serving
God. His profession was not a source of income for him. He
must have cured millions of the suffering people during his
lifetime. Vanikar administered injections to millions of patients,
but an incident was much painful. This made him feel sharply.
The incident was like this. One day, the mother of Dr. Vanikar
came. She was ill. She was ninety years old. Dr. Vanikar served
her like a son should. The doctor who had injected lakhs of
people felt emotional when it came to injecting his mother. His
hand trembled and the place where he injected emerged a
painful sore. It pained her much, but it pained him still more
intensely. He could not forget this incident even after her death,
and whenever he remembered this instance, he grew restless.
Dr. Vanikar was acquainted with several great men
including the Param Pujya Guruji, the Sarsanghchalak of the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, because his family had been
inseparably related with the Sangh-lovers. The liking for
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Gujarat was in a normal
condition, still due to his prestige, the leading people of Gujarat
succeeded to bring Dr. Vanikar in the Sangh’s fold. There were
rumours that he might take up some high post in the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh in Gujarat. He was requested too, but he
refused every time. Not only this, he would bring some new
gentleman and get him introduced to the Sangh. Thus, he
continued to introduce new Swayamsevaks to the Sangh who
were eligible and capable to hold different posts in the Sangh,
and he undertook this task lifelong.
 201

After Dr. Vanikar retired from the L.G. Hospital, he decided

to dedicate his entire life to social service. He was filled with
the spirit that the Hindu society should get united,
untouchability should be abolished, the new limitations
imposed by the society should be done away with, and the
Hindus should feel pride about their great culture and great
people. He undertook effort to realize these goals too. When it
comes to pointing out the name of any one person who assisted
in founding the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in Gujarat, the only
name that will emerge in the mind is that of Dr. Vanikar. In fact,
he had devoted all his life for the development of the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad. When the Vishwa Hindu Parishad had just
been founded in Gujarat about thirty years ago, he published a
fortnightly newspaper called Vishwa Hindu Samachar and thus
he had commenced the course of mass awakening.
The personality of Dr. Vanikar was greatly respected in the
whole of Gujarat as well as the elite classes. It was no difficult
task for him to seek contribution from such wealthy families to
run the Vishwa Hindu Parishad; however, he did not do this,
rather he made a system by which the ordinary people were
associated with the Parishad. He also formulated a system of
‘Daan Peti’ (contribution or donation box). He would go to small
shopkeepers and keep in their shops copies of the Vishwa Hindu
Samachar and the contribution box. He would inspire the
shopkeepers, and he had also started the system that the copies
of the newspaper could be given free of cost to an individual
who donated something in the box. Sometimes a few
shopkeepers did not want to take up such a responsibility, then
he would go himself to convince them. He would say that if the
money collected was as low as five rupees a month, still it was
okay. It was the result of Dr. Vanikar’s hard work and effort that
these contribution boxes were kept at more than five thousand
places in small and big towns. Thus, it created a large network
to communicate the ideas of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and it
did not take much long. The contribution of small amounts by
ordinary people became the source of running the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad. Dr. Vanikar had worked hard for this work
202

though it looked so trivial. Due to his personal reputation, he

was widely respected in different monasteries and temples of
different towns.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad was founded in the year 1964.
However, in a short span of only five years, Dr. Vanikar spread
the organisation in every corner of the state. It could be none
else but Dr. Vanikar who could have the courage to hold the
glorious conference of Gujarat Unit of the Vishwa Hindu
Parishad as far back as 1972. He got unprecedented success in
gathering saints and sages from all over Gujarat and country
on the bank of the Saraswati in Siddhapur. Millions of Gujarati
people were thankful to him for having the blessings of the
teachers, saints, sages, Mahamandaleshwars of all faiths under
the Hinduism.
At this time, the Param Pujya Guruji was afflicted by cancer,
yet he was present in this massive conference right through and
gave his guidance. Dr. Vanikar was always under the blessings
of Guruji.
In the short time period of five to seven years, the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad chalked out its own identity in Gujarat. Dr.
Vanikar was different. He lived the life of a true saint. He was
not at all contented at the stature, influence and fame of the
institution. He was ever ready to serve it in every way. Gujarat
was prone to suffer from famine at a number of times. During
the famine in 1972-73, Dr. Vanikar took upon himself the task of
serving the tribals. He toured Pal, Chitaria, Bhiloda,
Khedbrahma, Vijaynagar of Sabarkantha district. He would also
take people with him to make them feel the plight of poverty
suffered by the tribals. He made solemn effort in order to
inculcate some sentiments in the wealthy people so that they
might get ready to serve the deprived classes. He ran the Chhachh
(buttermilk) centres at some places and kitchen at other places
to help the famine victims. He also undertook a campaign to
supply ‘sukhadi’ (a sweet dish made from flour, ghee and gur)
as nutrition to the famine victims. Seeing him wandering in the
forests amongst the tribals, nobody could ever imagine that he
was the same doctor who had once practised in England; how
devoted he was to his cause.
 203

An ashram school and a farming school were also

constructed for the tribals in Pal-Chitaria extension of Vijaynagar
Taluka in Sabarkantha, which have become the centres of
teaching and culturisation of tribals living there.
When Dr. Vanikar was engaged in serving in this tribal belt,
he felt very bad at seeing some greedy people taking advantage
of the simple tribals. He met sages and saints, and explained to
them the plight of the tribals, and thus made a solemn effort to
help the tribals. Dr. Vanikar possessed a very simple personality.
He did not allow his advancing age to hinder his hard work. It
was his daily routine to do the Surya Namaskar (a type of yoga)
and he followed this routine until the end of his life. He never
looked away from hard work. Every week, he would tour the
tribal belts for thousands of kilometres. He had donated one of
his older cars for social service too. He often drove himself. If
he felt tired due to long driving, he would pull up by the side of
the road, and lie down to sleep on the ground without spreading
a sheet even; and when he awoke; he would resume his journey
towards his destination.
He also significantly contributed in getting the weekly
Sadhana published—an ideological paper in Gujarat. As a trustee
of the Sadhana, he contributed greatly in making it strong. It
was the Sadhana in later period that had raised its voice against
the emergency in order to protect democracy. How could Smt.
Indira Gandhi tolerate that a small paper like the Sadhana was
challenging her government, so she got its proofreaders,
compositors, editors and trustees – everybody arrested under
the Misa and sent them all to jail. However, Dr. Vanikar never
wavered from his struggle for democracy. He was attached to
reputed and wealthy people, but they were all surprised when
a saint-like person like him was arrested. These people tried to
get him released from jail. At this, Dr. Vanikar sent a message
that he was not at all interested to come out of the jail until
democracy was reinstated again and the emergency was lifted.
He liked to be in jail until the emergency was in force.
The state office of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, called
Hedgewar Bhawan, was built due to his foresight. Had it not
204

been the emphasis and planning of Dr. Vanikar, it might not

have been there.
There is a high heap of memories concerning Dr. Vanikar.
He was a messiah for the suffering. Pity was his nature. He was
a man of action. When he was in the company of saints and
seers, we could find the glimpse of a Sadhak or pupil in him. He
kept working for the society until the last of his life. He devoted
all his life in the feet of the society.
At the age of 73 years, when he was returning at 10.30 p.m.
from the forests in Dediapada after doing his service to the
tribals he was hit and crashed by a matador, which resulted in
his death. The final moments of his life too had passed in the
service of the tribals. Today, the name of Dr. Vanikar may not
be identified by people, yet his fragrance can still be felt in the
forests of Gujarat and in the lives of tribals. His fragrance is a
source of inspiration which will bloom our future.
o
 He burnt himself to light the path,
We have discovered the path of inspiration.
 Persistent Karmayogi
Kashinathrao Bagwade

We can witness a wonderful systematic life in Kashinath. He was

at all times punctual in his daily routine, priority to work, pre-
planning, information gathering, and the like. An extremely
systematic life was his chief characteristic.

Even the most ordinary people have something

extraordinary about them. It is chance or opportunity which
makes an individual experience his extraordinary faculties.
There are a few people who mould their lives themselves, just
like a sculptor moulds his image.
Before the onset of independence, the youth was curious
to do something in the world. Kashinath motivated the youth
in order to arouse this curiosity at the opportune time, and thus,
he himself became a part of the movement.
Born in a very ordinary family of Vishnupant Bagwade in
a small village called Vai in Satara district (Maharashtra), he
was filled to the brim with a spirit to do something for the
country’s freedom. This love for the country inclined him
towards the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Due to poor
financial condition of the family, he arrived in Nadiad with his
brothers. He was employed in the New Shorok Mill. The district
of Kheda in Gujarat was an expanse which infused the spirit of
freedom in the people. Therefore, it was natural for the seed of
the Sangh culture lying in Kashinath to bloom. Kashinath was
matriculate, and possessed a lean and thin stature. His
disposition and action displayed his love for the country. He
208

was not a youth who would waste his life in the New Shorok
Mill in Nadiad. He was more invigorated to weave the country
more than he would weave the cloth in the mill. He was
ordinarily educated, but his determination was firm. Even the
strongest strands of the fabric could not restrain him. He was
never inclined towards living a good life in a city like Nadiad,
or to do something only for himself. When the family members
had seen off the young Kashinath from home, they certainly
must have seen some exalted dreams about him that he would
help them financially and the family would become financially
sound. The young Kashinath was well aware of the family’s
needs, situation and expectations from him; but the seed that
had been sown in his heart and the ardent desire for freedom
did not allow him to sit idly. He was being called by his family
inflicted by poverty on the one hand and by the country bound
in slavery in another. In the end, the struggle between the family
and the Sangh went in the favour of the latter. In 1945, Kashinath
resolved to renounce everything of his for the sake of the
country. He abandoned the family, the job, the house, and joined
the Sangh as a Pracharak in order to realize his dream of uniting
the Hindu society.
In the initial stages, he worked in Kheda. Those days, he
made an earnest effort to learn the Gujarati language out of
curiosity. In a short time, he became a Gujarati so far as language
was concerned. He was inclined towards developing his life as
per the ideals of the Sangh, and this effort on his part influenced
many of his comrades. Even the absence of an academic degree
could not become an obstacle in the path of his progress due to
his wide depositary of qualities, simplicity and hard work. Right
from the beginning of life as a Pracharak, he had secured a good
hold over Kheda.
For many years, being transferred to Kutch was considered
a type of punishment. However, the young Kashinath was
assigned the responsibility of Kutch due to his perseverance,
and he was transferred from Kheda to there. Prior to
independence, the journey to Kutch required one to travel by
sea. Kashinath camped in Kutch. He identified the
 209

characteristics, attachment and internal faculties of Kutch well

enough. Even today, the Swayamsevaks of the first generation
in Kutch don’t get tired of the hard work that Kashinath
undertook in Kutch. He walked on foot and rode the bicycle; he
continued to work whether he got to eat something or not. The
zenith of hard work and labour that he undertook during that
period appear to be like some folktale to the young generation
today.
When we talk of evolution of ideology and path of
development of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Gujarat,
our attention is drawn towards two important occurrences. The
cause of both these occurrences was Kashinath, so it becomes
essential to mention them here:
While teaching the lessons of patriotism and social service
in the Sangh, it is continuously said that one hour is meant for
the Shakha and twenty-three hours for the country and society.
In 1956, an earthquake struck Anjar in Kutch. It was a major
natural calamity at that time. Prime Minister Nehru visited
Kutch immediately. At this time, the Sangh was in its infancy
due to the efforts that Kashinath had made. The Sangh was not
so powerful in Kutch, or even in Gujarat, that it could look after
the earthquake victims. The strength of the organisation was
ordinary, but zeal was extraordinary.
As soon as the news of earthquake at Anjar came in,
Kashinath started his campaign to assist the victims. In the
beginning, he delivered all that assistance that he got from
different districts and the state. It was quite disorderly after the
earthquake. There was no bridge between the relief workers
and the victims. For a large section of the Congress, the
opportunity of the earthquake at Anjar was an opportunity for
getting themselves photographed and sent their pictures to the
central leaders. In such a time, Kashinath accepted the task of
service to humanity as the responsibility assigned by the God.
He camped at Anjar with his few workers coming from different
places. He carried with him the least possible things that they
could manage with for sleeping and eating. Then they all set
down to assist and serve the victims in the best way they could.
210

Even the government machinery trusted Kashinath and his team

of Swayamsevaks for knowing the actual information regarding
the victims.
The leaders who arrived there to get themselves
photographed often pouted at seeing the Swayamsevaks clad
in khaki shorts, felt ashamed and finally when they were free
from their important errand of photography, would have no
other way out but to approach the Swayamsevaks of the Sangh
to know the actual condition prevailing there. Kashinath would
ever be remembered for his accomplishment that he did for the
earthquake victims despite his scarcity of resources. He had
only the young Swayamsevaks with him and was equipped with
unfathomable determination for this task. This was the second
calamity on the people of Anjar who had shifted from Sindh
due to partition of the country. At such a crucial time, service
and care of the Sangh became a new ray of hope for them.
During the war with China, Kashinath was the in-charge
of Mehsana district. His hard work bore fruit so widely that the
Sangh work expanded in the district very quickly. When it came
to judge the extent of Sangh’s influence, Mehsana led the other
districts in Gujarat. In its basis lay the fragrance of hard work
undertaken by Kashinath. He was short so far as his physical
stature was concerned. He was so short that his feet did not
reach the cycle pedals, yet he would ride it in the upright posture
which required additional energy, yet he continued to ride it
on the concrete and dusty roads of the city and villages.
We find an extraordinary glimpse of systematic planning
in the life of Kashinath. He was ever ready with his errands,
whether it was his daily routine, giving priority to work,
preplanning, gathering information and the like. Leading a very
systematic life was his characteristic. As a theist person worships
God in the morning and never forgets this commitment; much
in the same manner, Kashinath would rise and get ready in the
wee hours of the morning and sit down to write a number of
postcards. It was his daily routine. He would try to send his
messages across villages through postcards, and he used to this
task right before the sunrise. Every letter was unique in itself,
 211

though it carried the similar information. Every letter was

written as per the status of the Swayamsevak. It was a source of
affection not only for the Swayamsevak but for his family
members too. He wrote all those letters every morning in his
own handwriting, but his letters were never illegible, you would
never find any trace of fatigue in them. Sometimes it makes us
feel that he wrote millions of letters over thirty years in order
to lay a strong foundation of the Sangh. Such an occurrence can
be certainly considered a record-breaking one.
In the other important occurrence, I had an opportunity to
notice Kashinath from close quarters in the capacity of a
Swayamsevak, an organizer, a planner – all in one. In 1964, after
the foundation of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, its work was
commenced in Gujarat. Due to religious inclination of the people
here, its work gained momentum on a rapid scale. The first state-
level conference of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in Gujarat was
held at Siddhapur. It was for the first time that the Param Pujya
Guruji of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the venerable
Shankaracharya, and other prestigious saints, seers and sages
had all gathered on the land of Gujarat. It was a wonderful
confluence of thousands of saints, seers and sages together with
millions of people. The responsibility for the entire arrangement
of this conference held in 1971-72 was held by Kashinath. This
conference was no ordinary one. Every saint is an independent
institution by himself. Every saint has his unique rules. There
is need to observe specific code of conduct, and each has his
own traditions. It is no ordinary thing to control all these diverse
people under the same roof. On the other hand, the arrangement
for millions of devotees was done very systematically. It was
appreciable.
Kashinath toured continuously for over forty years, led a
difficult life, competed for hard work, led a regular Sangh life;
but when it came to his personal life, he was indifferent towards
himself, and due to this negligence, his final stage of life was a
worried one. His lost his auditory ability. His heart disease was
painful too. At this juncture of life, if somebody enquired after
his health, he did not like it even a bit. He was more pained at
212

not being able to do national work rather than facing physical

difficulty.
The lamp of his life might have been extinguished, yet he
lighted a number of lamps all his life. He made efforts to light
lamps to eradicate dark in remote corners; and it remains a true
tribute to him.
o
 Never look how far it is, how long the path is,
And never think how far the world cooperates with us.
 Struggling Life
Nathabhai Jhagda

The voice of Nathabhai was loud and angry, but he possessed a

soft heart, full of sensitivities, who cared for others. Nathabhai
had not received school education, yet he was in the forefront to
make life meaningful.

Nathabhai struggled all his life, and he had to struggle

greatly with the death in the last days of his life. The body did
not cooperate with him, yet he succeeded to push back death a
number of times.
Nathabhai conducted public meetings at a number of places
in Gujarat, and anyone observing him could not guess how
much he struggled to reach that stage of life.
His childhood passed in penury, how could he get
education then? He attended school only for a couple of classes.
With an aim to provide some financial succour to the poverty-
stricken family, he started work at an age when a child is
supposed to play about. He was merely ten or twelve years old
when he held chocolate, biscuits, peppermint and the like in a
plate to sell to the people; he used to sell his wares in front of
Prakash Cinema in Karnawati Gheekanta extension of
Ahmedabad, and thus rendered some financial assistance to
his family. He invested invaluable five to seven years of
childhood in this work. In youth, he started to learn the family
occupation of gold work. During this period, he came into the
contact of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in Kalupur. Thus,
the processes of becoming a gold worker and a Swayamsevak
216

started together. He got an opportunity to look at late Rajpal

Puriji, late Madhukarrao Bhagwat, and late Lakshmanrao
Inamdar (Vakil Saheb) from close quarters. On the insistence of
Vakil Saheb, he started to live in the Sangh office at Manek
Chowk while he was still learning the gold work. The fine
qualities in Nathabhai were family contacts and entertaining
guests. Now, small responsibilities of the Sangh started to be
assigned to him. As the scope of his responsibilities increased,
Nathabhai started to focus more attention towards self-
development.
In 1961-62, Nathabhai started life as a Pracharak. He gave
up the work of moulding gold and busied himself in moulding
lives. Those days, the Sangh work had just started, and it was
progressing gradually. Nathabhai initiated his life as a Pracharak
with the post of the organisation secretary with the Jana Sangh.
The duo of Vasantbhai and Nathabhai strengthened the
foundation of the Jana Sangh with insight.
Nathabhai witnessed many ups and downs in life. If we
see, Nathabhai got merely fifteen years of time to work
satisfactorily, during which he earned a great fame.

Self-development
Nathabhai did not attend school, yet he moulded himself
on the path self-development with his own insight and energy.
Between 1970-80, he was counted amongst the finest orators in
Gujarat. Hordes of workers were always seeking him for the
public meetings. He was the focus of attention due to his
impressive speech, logical arguments, reference to interesting
tales, cleverness and fearlessness. He took the meetings by
storm. Whatever might be the subject of a meeting, whether it
was a stage set for intellectuals or it was a meeting held by the
members of the Lions or Rotary clubs, whether it was to discuss
the policing points of the Jana Sangh or it pertained to
undertaking serious discussion on the problems being faced by
the country, he was equally impressive and sharp.
He did not have the luck of learning English, but his desire
for self-development was so strong that when the Sangh office –
 217

Hedgewar Bhavan – was searched by the government during

the emergency, the cupboard belonging to Nathabhai had books
like Angrezi Pathmala (English Series of Lessons) and Fatafat
Angrezi Bolana Seekho (Learn English the Quickest Way).
Once many years ago, perhaps during the communal riots
of 1969, I got an opportunity to go with Nathabhai to the
residence of Udayan Cheenubhai. The late Monaben, wife of
Udayanbhai used to talk to Nathabhai in English. She asked
her questions in English. I noticed in surprise that he replied to
every question in Gujarati, and he did not commit mistake
anywhere. This was no mean accomplishment. Nathabhai
always tried to read the newspaper Organiser.
In the political domain, the formation of the Jana Sangh
was a new effort in Gujarat. These were the days when the name
of the party had to be made popular. The duo of Vasantbhai
Gajendragadkar and Nathabhai undertook extremely hard work
in order to expand the scope of the Jana Sangh. Bhaikaka of the
Swantra Party used to cut jokes at the Jana Sangh leaders when
he said, “You cannot win elections by drawing lamps on the
walls.” At that time, the election symbol of the Jana Sangh was
Deepak (lamp).
The mantra of the expansion of Jana Sangh was “a worker’s
one leg in rail and another in jail”. It meant extensive travel as
well as struggling for people’s rights and well-being. With this
mantra close to his heart, Nathabhai kept the lamp of the Jana
Sangh lighted in Gujarat.
Looking at the glorious state of affairs of the Bharatiya
Janata Party today, it is hardly imaginable the hard work that
the volunteers of the Jana Sangh have undertaken in order to
provide solid roots to this massive banyan tree.
In the initial period of the Jana Sangh, Nathabhai used to
play his role in different capacities. When a meeting of the Jana
Sangh was to be conducted in any part of Ahmedabad, he would
set out to write the information on the walls himself. On the
day of the meeting, he would set out with a tiny mike
(microphone) in his hand riding a bicycle or tricycle in order to
let people know of the meeting. And when it was the time for
218

meeting, he would change over his clothes appropriate to the

occasion because he was supposed to sit on the stage as well as
address the meeting. Looking at the resplendent address of this
man, nobody could ever imagine that he was the same man
who wrote information on the walls too, and announced the
conduct of meetings on the bicycle/tricycle. Not only this, he
himself was fully engaged in setting up the stage and making
other preparations. Nathabhai played a role in all these aspects
in order to establish the foundation of the Jana Sangh deep and
strong.
During the Congress period, it was an autocratic rule. By
nature, the Congress carried the burden of suspicion and doubt,
much like the British rulers. It had truly inherited this British
tendency. If the Congress did not exist in some corner of the
country, it would look to it with suspicious eyes. It would also
direct its intelligence services after the opponents. All important
leaders of the Jana Sangh were under the watchful eye of the
Congress government. However, he was like a headache for
the intelligence department. He used to ride his bicycle from
one corner of Ahmedabad to another in connection with his
errands of the Jana Sangh. He easily travelled on his bicycle 60-
70 kilometres a day. The policemen employed to keep a watch
on him too had to chase him all over and they used to get giddy
doing this. Therefore, anybody from the police department was
afraid of being employed to chase Nathabhai, and took it as a
punishment for himself. It was the lively instance of the zenith
of perseverance that Nathabhai undertook.
During the period between 1970 and 1980, all jewellers and
goldsmiths had started a campaign against the Congress
government in connection with the Suvarnadhara. On this
occasion, Nathabhai had infused unprecedented energy into the
movement in order to bring to the fore the power of people.
The struggle during the emergency was no exception. It
was an occasion when people were supposed to struggle against
the oppressive government in order to reinstate democracy.
Nathabhai’s skill in organisation as well as his contact with rural
families all over Gujarat helped to provide momentum to this
campaign.
 219

Nathabhai, who left an indelible impression on the political

arena, was a man of a delicate heart and service-oriented nature.
If anybody from anywhere in Gujarat came to any hospital or
other doctor in Ahmedabad for treatment, then his volunteers
ensured his care and nursed him. Due to this spirit of service, a
large number of doctors were in constant touch with him.
Nathabhai was fond of seeing films. If a Jana Sangh leader
visited from the centre, he was sure to formulate a programme
to watch a film together with other programmes, and during
this, he was accompanied with his friends from the city.
Whatever the task, if all people did not come together, Nathabhai
did not feel himself complete and perfect.

Family Spirit
The unbroken energy that flowed in the Sangh, that was
acting as the cementing force, was the spirit of a family. In the
Sangh, if you are not related to the family, it is considered as a
grave shortcoming. Nathabhai possessed a unique family spirit.
He lived like a member in thousands of families in Gujarat.
During the days of emergency, the underground struggle was
underway. At this time, a great many volunteers, big and small,
went underground. At that time, they felt that the families and
homes that Nathabhai had created, proved to be impregnable
fortresses during this struggle against the emergency.

Unfathomable Self-Confidence
During the course of his working, Nathabhai never allowed
inferiority complex to raise its head in him. He was beyond such
things as his education or financial status and the like. He was
capable of presenting his views before the university professors
quite effectively, and he could present his rational views in a
gathering of advocates or doctors or journalists.
It was the occasion of Karnawati Municipal Corporation
elections in 1967-68. An effort was being made by the Jana Sangh
to search out an effective candidate. Nathabhai was sitting with
others in the teachers’ block of Saint Xavier’s College. The
teachers started to blame the politicians and attacked them in
220

many ways. Nathabhai did not defend or contest even a single

point. When everybody was tired, he said softly, “In the coming
corporation elections, some of you friends should hold the
command of candidature. The Jana Sangh would nominate you.”
None of the teachers agreed to be a candidate. At this, Nathabhai
challenged them, “No place in democracy can lie vacant. If you
didn’t come, the goons and unfit people would occupy that
place.” Listening to this, all teachers present there, numbering
about 25-30, fell silent.
After the fall of the Janata Party at the centre (Delhi), the
Janata Party lost the elections. A journalist from Delhi came to
interview Nathabhai. He asked, “Why did you lose so terribly
in the elections?” At this, Nathabhai retorted, “We lost because
people did not vote for us.” The journalist had no words to say
further. In such a brief analysis, he had uttered a very profound
fact.
A large number of intellectual friends, such as the famous
humour writer Vinod Bhatt used to visit Hedgewar Bhavan to
have gossip with Nathabhai. Nathabhai served them sabudana
khichdi (sago), because he was expert in cooking it.
Vasantbhai Gajendragadkar was an advocate. He met
Nathabhai at the court. In some time, other advocates too grew
curious about Nathabhai and waited for him often. It was normal
for Nathabhai to visit the court and meet senior advocates there.

Joy of Eating
It never occurred that Nathabhai was present and the get-
together was not held, that too without eatables. It was supreme
joy when fafda, ganthiya, khaman or pakodas (Gujarati
delicacies) were served. If volunteers visited, he would ask
rightfully, “Why brother, how have you come empty-handed?”
The Bhabhis (friends’ wives) enjoyed a unique place in the
family of Nathabhai. He knew well which Bhabhi was expert in
cooking dhokla, and which in pithalun bhat, and which one in
handava, or methi pakodas. As soon as he entered the house,
both parties knew what is to be cooked that day. Nathabhai had
a number of favourite families identified after the favourite
 221

dishes – panipuri family, dahibada family, dhokala family and

the like.
One day, a volunteer approached Nathabhai for a letter of
introduction for his stay in Kolkata office. Nathabhai enquired,
“We will talk letter of introduction later, first tell me which train
you are taking and which are the stations on the way.” The poor
volunteer blankly stared at his face for some time. At this,
Nathabhai said, “What are you gazing at my face for? Start
writing – Tamtam at Nadiad station, Gota at Anand station, Lilo
chevdo at Baroda, Khari (salted) sing at Bharuch, Ghari at Surat,
Patra at Bardoli…” And this way, he told him a list of the popular
dishes on each station right until Kolkata, and then in the end,
he said, “Now promise that you would get down the train and
eat something or the other at every station, only then you would
get the letter of introduction.”

Sensitive and Sympathetic Spirit

Whenever a volunteer anywhere in Gujarat faced some
problem, he rushed to Karnawati. The number of volunteers
and their families seeking admission to hospitals was especially
large. People also visited in connection with court or other
government tasks. Everybody of them needed some support or
help. Everybody came with a reference of Nathabhai. He too
did all these things whether it pertained to the requirement of
blood, place of stay for a family member of a patient, reference
of a good doctor, or even a good groom for daughter of his
acquaintance.
Once the Sabarmati breached its banks and got flooded, in
which a complete society of Paldi was washed away. At this
crucial time, Nathabhai held the command of relief work there.
He wore the saffron cap and along with the youth workers of
the Jana Sangh, worked wholeheartedly. At this, the people of
Karnawati and newspapers appreciated him greatly.
Nathabhai suffered from fracture in the hand on two-three
occasions. If he saw anybody teasing a girl or woman anywhere,
he would not remain silent. He would just jump into the fray,
and he had suffered from these fractures during such frays,
when he had to remain idle in the plaster for months together.
222

The voice of Nathabhai was heavy and angry, but he was a

man of a delicate heart, full of sensitivity who cared for others.
He had not received school education, yet he led the rest so far
as it related to making the life meaningful.
The present generation of the Bharatiya Janata Party may
not know about the life of Nathabhai, yet whatever glory the
Bharatiya Janata Party possesses today has in it the fragrance of
his perspiration. Nathabhai has turned himself into manure in
order to provide nutrition to the lotus. His hard work, his
enterprise for self-development can inspire any volunteer for
self-development. He gave up all such inferiority complexes
like being poor, uneducated and the like. He always stuck to
his goal with all devotion; and it would be a fit tribute to him
today, and the same would be the duty of today’s generation.
o
Let us sacrifice the whole, leaving aside the personal world,
Let infinite wealth be sacrificed for the welfare of the nation.
Let not these difficult bounds waver you a bit.
Let us sacrifice today body and mind, life and wealth.
Let us sacrifice everything in the national interest.
 Multi-dimensional Talent
Babubhai Ojha

Very perseverant nature, having nature to absorb in his

responsibility, inclined to worry for even minor things…as if
Babubhai had become one with the Sangh work.

There is a general notion about the Rashtriya Swayamsevak

Sangh that only the people belonging to the elite Brahmin
families are linked with the Sangh, and other sections of the
society have no place in it. In fact, this fact is as distant from
truth as is land from the sky. In Gujarat, the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh is a Hindu organisation and has adopted
the Hinduism, so there is no question of any distinction on the
basis of caste or financial status. No greater importance is
attached to the higher classes, nor is any lower caste refused
entry. As a consequence, the rumoured deformity does not exist
in the Sangh even in the slight. All sections of the society are
represented in the Sangh. They all cooperate together, but no
high talks are held about this harmony; therefore, the rumour-
mongers find it convenient to confuse people. However, the
truth is truth, and cannot be denied.
Babubhai Ojha occupied high posts in the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh in Gujarat for many years. Due to his
subtitle ‘Ojha’ and as a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s
Swayamsevak, he was identified as a man belonging to an elite
Brahmin caste. There is no tradition of identifying people by
the caste, and so, the suspicion revolving around the caste was
never taken seriously.
226

Babubhai belonged to a very ordinary Prajapati family of

Mehsana in north Gujarat. He was deprived of the fatherly love
in his infancy. All his family members were engaged in the
traditional earthen work. As he came into the touch with the
Sangh, his outlook changed towards the family life. Babubhai
was energetic by nature. It was his nature to do anything with
total attention. His education could not be hindered due to the
family’s financial condition and social environment, mainly
because of his resolve. He completed his education in
engineering even in those times. Doing the Sangh work
regularly, he became an engineer. He was the first from his
community to proceed abroad for further study. He went to
America due to his excellent educational qualification. He
obtained the M.S. degree from the Illinois University.
Another rumour that is spread about the Sangh is that only
those people can join it who possess ordinary educational
qualification, while the truth is far from it. You will find an
example in Babubhai himself. He went to America about fifty
years ago to obtain a degree, which is a matter of pride not only
for the Indians but the Americans too. In America, everybody
asked him just one thing, “In your absence, does your wife stay
with your parents?” Babubhai explained to them, “In India,
marriage is not coming together of two individuals; rather it is
the social binding between two families, that joins them. The
wife adopts not the husband alone, but the entire family.”
In 1950-55, he was enrolled for getting higher education in
America and had all the chances to lead a fine, prosperous life
in America with a golden future; yet he preferred national
interest to his private interest. Instead of absorbing himself in
the glorious life of America, he decided to return to India in
order to use knowledge and experience for the sake of the
country; and bade farewell to America for all times to come,
and thus settled in the lap of India.
A particular characteristic of the Sangh culture is that it
adopts the whole society as one’s own family. An instance that
occurred in the life of Babubhai in America manifests this. While
he was a student at Illinois University in America, he became a
 227

friend to his co-student, Kiran Singh, who belonged to Laliad

village in Limbadi Taluka in Surendranagar district.
Unfortunately, Kiran Singh met untimely death. He performed
his last rites there and informed his family about all the
developments there. The most amazing thing about him was
that he had kept the Asthis (mortal remains) with him until he
visited India next. He brought them with him. He himself visited
Laliad to hand over the Asthis to Mobat Singh Jhala, Kiran
Singh’s father. It was a moving moment for everybody when
the remains of the deceased friend were delivered to the family.
Mobat Singh and his family were moved at this kind act of
Babubhai. From then on, Babubhai remained like a member of
Mobat Singh’s family.
Another instance is an amazing illustration of his
characteristics. The personal relations, sensitive behaviour and
simplicity are inculcated in the Sangh and are part of its working
style, which all leave an indelible impression on different
people. Dr. Deepakbhai Pandya, the father of the world famous
astronaut Sunita Williams, came into the contact of Babubhai in
his childhood. In his first meeting itself, he had felt a strange
attraction in him. Due to regular contact with Babubhai, he too
succeeded in constructing his life as a true Swayamsevak, for
which he gave credit to Babubhai.
Deepakbhai’s father died in his childhood, and he was small
when his mother died too. During this difficult time, Babubhai
and a team of seven-eight Swayamsevaks cooperated with
Deepakbhai. Not only this, these small Swayamsevaks took over
the responsibility of the final rites of his mother, and stayed
with him round the clock in order to provide him some mental
solace. When Deepakbhai recalls this instance, his eyes become
moist.
The very people, who cry hoarse in the name of democracy,
do not miss an opportunity to inflict atrocities on the
Swayamsevaks of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Due to
his faith in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Babubhai had to
quit his job in the AEC (Ahmedabad Electricity Company) and
join an ordinary job in Maharashtra. Babubhai preferred to
resign his job to quitting the Sangh.
228

After his return from America, Babubhai got a job on a high

post in the renowned company Jyoti Ltd. of Baroda. His job
was prestigious and reputed. Nanubhai Amin of the Jyoti Ltd.
was one of the venerable personalities of Baroda. Nanubhai and
Babubhai became close friends. Now, people looked up to him
with respect, one because he occupied a high post, and two he
was a close friend of Nanubhai Amin. He had everything that
was needed to include him in the elite class in Baroda, he needed
not doing anything to make more effort towards it. However,
as a Swayamsevak, he kept himself aloof from all these things.
He made efforts how he could give more and more of his time
to the Sangh, and how he could benefit it by his knowledge and
experience.
Babubhai was in a situation in which he could have derived
respect and honour in the elite life of Baroda. He could have
joined a few institutions in order to obtain what all he might
have desired for his personal life. 40-50 years ago in our country,
the society looked up to a man in a different perspective if he
had returned from America after obtaining higher studies.
Everybody looked at him with awe and respect, and thought of
having close contact with him. However, Babubhai did not like
this type of pretension even a bit. He gave his priority to the
Sangh work all his life. He devoted as much time to the Jyoti
Ltd. as was enough to do justice to his reputed job, and he
invested the remaining time and energy in the well-being of
the society, as he had learnt from the Sangh’s culture.
Babubhai enjoyed a high reputation in the Jyoti Ltd. because
of his personality and education. He could have served in it so
long he wished to, but he decided to take retirement from there
at the age of 58 years, and decided to devote the remaining
period of life to the Sangh.
In the rank hierarchy of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh,
the post of the Sanghchalak is quite prestigious and reputed.
With his retirement, he was given the post of the Sah-prant-
Sanghchalak of Gujarat. With his decision to dedicate his whole
time to the Sangh, he engaged himself in expanding the Sangh
work in every corner of Gujarat. Unfortunately, Keshavrao
 229

Deshmukh, the then Prant Pracharak, breathed his last suddenly.

A Prant Pracharak is the chief moving force in the Sangh. All of
a sudden, the official on this high post had left for his heavenly
abode. In such a testing time, Babubhai Ojha was selected as
the Prant Pracharak despite his being a householder. While
carrying out his family duties, he took up the Sangh’s
responsibility equally devotedly. He transformed the Sangh
office as his house, and his contact with the family was reduced
to only telephonic or written conversation. He carried out the
Pracharak tradition in true sense of the term, and invested every
moment of his time in infusing new vitality in the Sangh.
To ensure that he did not lag behind in any of his duties,
Babubhai put in more physical work than he was capable, and
thus accepted the difficult life in all willingness.
It appeared that Babubhai had fully absorbed into the Sangh
work, especially with his perseverant personality and care to
do even trivial things carefully; all this told upon his health
adversely in his advancing age.
However, he did not care about his body. He continued to
work despite some minor ailments. He used to conceal his
ailments from his comrades that it might pain them.
Consequently, he suffered from a heart stroke one day. He
breathed his last working to the last moment of his life.
Babubhai’s affectionate behaviour, continuous work, simple
and natural way of living are all etched in the minds of a number
of Swayamsevaks.
o
 At your feet I offer the music of life, O Mother,
And I offer the millions of sons equipped with infinite qualities.
 Gangaghat
Bachubhai Bhagat

By nature, Bachubhai was never struggling, but he was firm in

the mind. In the Sangh, small and big shivirs (camps) are very
important; and making arrangements in them is in no way an
easy task. The development that the Sangh has witnessed in
Gujarat so far as the organisation is concerned, was the outcome
of the hard work undertaken by Bachubhai. Even today, the
traditions he founded are continued to be followed; and we find in
them a glimpse of his touch and working style.

Endless faith of Indian culture, that is Ganga Smaran

(remembering Ganga)
Ganga Darshan (witnessing Ganga)…
Ganga Snan (bathing in Ganga)…
Ganga Achaman (sipping from Ganga)…
This is a wish in every Indian’s heart – to sip Ganga water
in the last moment of life.
How intense faith it is!
Ganga is the witness of the rise and fall of our great culture,
of ever development and expansion.
There is nothing new in worshipping or praying to the
Ganga.
But have you ever thought of the Gangaghat, the bank of
Ganga? Have you ever heard of somebody writing about it or
thinking about it?
It does not appear if ever a poet set down to write a poem
on Gangaghat; and if you suppose, the horizon of the thoughts
appears to be spread to the farthest point.
234

Crores of people must have prayed the Ganga and sipped

from it.
Numerous people must have washed the dirt off their
bodies.
Numerous people must have lighted lamps and incense
sticks.
Numerous people must have spread fragrance from
rubbing sandal.
Numerous people must have undertaken meditation.
And many people like Sant Tulsi must have created eternal
literature of life.
But, look at the special feature of our great cultural heritage.
It is not necessary for Gangaghat to be at the Ganga.
On the bank of the Sangh Ganga flowing in Gujarat, there
is a lively Gangaghat, faith and institution incarnate, that is the
late Bachubhai Bhagat.
In Gujarat, when the Sangh’s Ganga was still like a small
stream like the Gangotri, from that time, the life of the student
Bachubhai has been actively witness to the development of the
Sangh there. Right from the late Madhukarrao, the late Rajpal
Puriji or the late respectable Vakil Saheb, or anybody else from
the present generation, Bachubhai has been very reliable
comrade to each one of them.
The ruinous office at Manek Chowk, which lacked even
the basic facilities, which was an office only in name, was home
to Bachubhai for years.
We never noticed any extravaganza, external show, rise and
fall, pity or anger in the life of Bachubhai. On the bank of the
Sangh Ganga have developed a number of small and big centres
of pilgrim in the form of families. All Swayamsevaks, volunteers
or leaders used to come and sit by Gangaghat in the form of
Bachubhai, and drink from his learning before proceeding
ahead. He had moral influence on all of them. There was no
occasion when Bachubhai asked for something to be done within
the family, and it was not done. All are witness to this banyan
tree of the Sangh family that Bachubhai never intervened in
any task pertaining to the family. Of course, he always rendered
 235

help. He remained loyal to the Sangh all his life; he continued

to do only the Sangh work. In the first glance, this limitation of
the practical life might look insignificant, yet he had never
crossed this limitation right through the fifty years. He always
kept himself under complete control. It reveals how patient he
was.
Several families have contributed in helping the Sangh
Ganga to flow and develop continuously, we claim so. If we
look at this claim expressed in words, we find out a truth that
shakes our hearts.

All people who have been linked in the journey of development of

the Sangh Ganga have come into Bachubhai’s contact, directly or
indirectly. Bachubhai assisted them all to drink from the Ganga
as if he was the Gangaghat. His personality was like the Gangaghat
which has aroused inspiration and love in the life of several people.

Madhukarrao Bhagwat, the father of the present

Sarkaryawah the Pujya Mohanrao Bhagwat, came to Gujarat for
the Sangh work. He made a great contribution in colouring the
student Bachubhai in the colour of the Sangh. Right since his
time as a student, Bachubhai had absorbed himself into the
Sangh Ganga. When he was just 19 years old, his father Biharilal
Bhagat left this mortal world and left him an orphan. As he was
more interested in the Sangh, he did not pay much attention to
his father’s occupation. It resulted into mounting debts, and they
had to sell out two houses near Manek Chowk. One house could
be saved, but it had to be mortgaged. It became difficult to take
admission to college. He had to drop out from the second year
in the college. He underwent a course called GCD (Government
Commercial Diploma), and joined a job with Chandubhai Ravji
Bhavsar at a salary of ` 270 per month. It became difficult to
decide whether to use this much money in repaying the debt or
running the family. Despite all these hardships, he kept
attending the Sangh work regularly, and never let anybody
know about his difficulties.
We can see the intensity of his devotion to the Sangh from
one instance. His father had died and the dead body was lying
236

at home, still he went to the Shakha saying at home, “I’ll just

come after the prayer.” It was not that he had such emotional
intensity towards the Sangh during his youth. Right before the
Sankalpa Shivir in Gujarat, Bachubhai’s wife, our Motiben (elder
sister) died. On the first day of the Shivir was the Terahavin
Vidhi (the ritual held on the thirteenth day after death).
Bachubhai was unwell; still he completed the ritual in the
morning and arrived at the Shivir before noon. In all
programmes held in 60 years of the Sangh Ganga, there must
not have been even a single programme in which he was not
present.
‘One hour Shakha and twenty-three hours Sangh’ was the
motto of Bachubhai’s life. He was a sales tax and income tax
advocate. There has not been noticed an instance in which he
might have settled a case by taking a bribe of even a single paisa.
The income tax and sales tax officers respected him greatly.
Many years ago, a sales tax officer pointed out a wrong entry
worth ` 46 in the case of one of his clients, Tribhuvan Choksi.
An amount of ` 46 was no big deal in that period, but the Sangh’s
traits did not allow him to admit this error, and he went in
appeal. He won the case and kept the flag of his principles flying
high.
Pity was a natural emotion in the life of Bachubhai. During
his days as a student, he had suffered once from typhoid and
was quite serious. During those days, the late Gajananbhai
Devdhar, the father of Sanjeevanbhai Devdhar, was quite a
venerable name in the Sangh family. Gajananbhai himself served
Bachubhai a great deal. Due to this touch of pity, Bachubhai
always possessed a sentiment of pity in himself and he displayed
it whenever somebody in the Sangh family was afflicted from
some trouble. He would nurse the sick in the hospital without
caring whether it was day or night. There are a number of such
instances.
Bachubhai often said: I have three centres of devotion – the
most venerable Guruji, Mahant Dadaji of Karnali Akhada and
the late Vakil Saheb. The entry of Dadaji and Gita Mandir
occurred in the life of Bachubhai by the Bhabhi (Motiben) after
 237

marriage. It was the large-heartedness of Bachubhai’s life. He

himself was fully absorbed in the Sangh; still he accepted the
Gita Mandir quite naturally and thus displayed his devotion.
Bachubhai’s faith in the Sangh was so unshakable that he
did not care for the Muhurta (auspicious moment) for the
wedding of his daughter Manda or his son Kaku. He set the
date for his daughter’s wedding that was convenient to Guruji,
considering it the most auspicious moment. Similarly, he
wedded his son on the day that was convenient to the Man.
Balasaheb.
Bachubhai possessed a unique personality. During his
period with the Sangh over several years, there were only two
friends who called him Bachu; they were the Swayamsevaks
Maheshbhai Nanavati and Nanubhai Mehta.
During his Sangh life, Bachubhai had close friends in the
late Keshavrao Deshmukh and the late Nathabhai Jhagda. They
went to cinema together. Bachubhai was an expert carom-player
and played it in the advocates’ bar. He was very fond of
playing it.
Many a storm came during his journey with the Sangh. The
Congress did not miss an opportunity to crush down the Sangh
on whatever pretext it could find – whether it was a ban on the
Sangh or trivial tensions in Karnawati. In such times too,
Bachubhai remained firm like a hill. Bachubhai was never
inclined to struggle, but he was firm in mind. It is a major task
to undertake management of the small and big Shivirs (camps)
in the Sangh, which he undertook devotedly and perfectly.
Whatever development the Sangh family in Gujarat has seen in
terms of management, was founded by Bachubhai. The
traditions and rules he set during his time continue to be
followed even today. We can find a glimpse of his touch and
working style even today. On the occasion of 51st birth
anniversary of the venerable Guruji, Bachubhai was hardly 25-
30 years of age. Seeking cooperation from several gentlemen
from the society, he completed the task quite well.
The foundation stone of the state office, Hedgewar Bhavan,
was laid 37 years ago. We would not have Hedgewar Bhavan
238

today had we not with us the enterprise of Dr. Vanikar and

management of Bachubhai.
All those who have been linked with the journey of
development of the Sangh Ganga in Gujarat, have come into
direct or indirect contact with Bachubhai. Like the Gangaghat,
the bank of the Ganga, he cooperated with them all in taking a
sip from the Sangh Ganga. His personality was like the
Gangaghat which has kept inspiration and love in the life of
many a man.
o
A devoted lamp in the Mother’s Temple I am,
I wish that I go on burning.
 Witty Personality
Vasudevrao Talvalkar

It was no small thing to decide to quit the job in his youth when
there were a great many aspirations and ambitions heaped upon
him from the family. It could be considered a vital decision in the
life of an individual. Vasudevrao had decided in his heart to
undertake the Sangh work in national interest. He quit his job,
abandoned home, and then set out to serve Mother India.

If we talk of Vasudevrao, we find Kathiawadi accent in his

speech. He was basically a Maharashtrian, yet he had completely
turned into a Bhavnagari, a resident of Bhavnagar.
Vasudevrao engaged himself in the Sangh work at
Bhavnagar; initially he served with the railways. Of all the
government jobs, more importance was attached with a job in
the railways. Vasudevrao continued in his job, undertook studies
and engaged himself in the Sangh work. In other words, he was
fully sentimental when it concerned the Sangh work.
In expansion of the network of Shakhas in Bhavnagar, he
acted as the main worker who laid down a strong foundation;
still he was not much satisfied with his work. He had a streak
of restlessness in his heart. He worked in the Sangh office for
hours; still he kept thinking how he could do still better.
Bhavnagar is a town of culture and tradition. Literature and
culture have been inseparable parts of its life. Vasudevrao
thought that the common families in Bhavnagar should all be
soaked in the colour of literature, and thinking this, he decided
to open a library there. He also thought about manifesting the
242

Sangh work and inculcating Sangh’s traits in it, so that people

might know more about the Sangh. But he worked in a unique
manner. Instead of collecting funds for the library, he contacted
people in an effort to gather such books which could inspire
the families about patriotism and nationalism. He started his
project with the collection of the books and magazines that
people had read, and thus started a small library. He also formed
a new peer group which had interest in reading. Gradually, this
peer group stepped towards patriotism. Consequently, it came
to be utilized for the expansion of the Sangh work too.
Vasudevrao did not enjoy much his job in the railways,
though it was very prestigious to be serving in the railways
those days. It was considered to be as prestigious as serving in
some airlines or telecom sector in the modern times. A common
man strives for better career prospects while in the job, yet
Vasudevrao on the contrary, made all efforts to quit his job.
It was no small thing to quit the job in his youth when his
family had a great many aspirations and ambitions. It could be
considered the most vital decision in the life of an individual.
Vasudevrao had decided in his heart to quit the job in order to
devote himself in the service of the nation. He quit the job,
abandoned home and set off in the service of Mother India.
Vasudevrao was fond of reading. He possessed satisfactory
knowledge of the English language. In the beginning, he satiated
his hobby of reading while travelling in the bus or train; it helped
him proceed towards the goal of self-development.
Working in the capacity of a Pracharak, he had passed much
of his time working in different districts of Saurashtra. In the
view of all senior Pracharaks, he possessed an image of a
hardworking Pracharak. He was an ideal for the youth
Swayamsevaks too. Climbing up Girnar mount in Junagarh had
transformed itself into as good as a part of the Sangh work for
the enterprising youths.
The working style of Vasudevrao had several unique
features. He was quite distinct from other Sangh Pracharaks
who generally lived a uniform type of life. In his personal life,
he never paid any attention to himself. He did not care to comb
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his hair even. His clothes were disorderly. He looked strange in

his old and worn chappals and thick spectacles. The more
disorderly he was in his personal life, the more systematic he
was while doing the Sangh work. He did all the tasks assigned
in the management of the Sangh works, and ensured that no
shortcoming could be pointed out anywhere. When it came to
undertaking the Sangh work, he was insistent, uniform and
regular and accorded priority to it; but when it came to his
personal life, he was not bound in any limits of bathing, eating,
sleeping or reading newspaper. Often he could be found
washing his clothes at one in midnight; it signalled the others
that he had been busy the whole day.
In the main team of the Sangh those days, Anantrao was
popular for his sweet voice. On the contrary, Vasudevrao had
nothing to do with voice, tune or pitch; still he sang the Sangh
songs during his processes. Singing a Sangh song has its
scientific significance too. It is said that singing collectively helps
to cultivate team spirit. Vasudevrao knew this fact well, so he
continued with this tradition even with his shabby, ugly voice,
and thus emerged as an inspiration for his co-volunteers, and
thus he coloured them too in the spirit of patriotism.
Holding meetings is very important in the Sangh work.
Collective thinking, collective decision-making and collective
responsibility – all these are the unique features of the Sangh.
In a way, these have been an important constituent of the Sangh’s
strength. As a result, the process of holding meetings has become
a tradition in the Sangh. These meetings are held over a long
period of time, in which even small points are managed and
discussed in detail. If you had Vasudevrao in the meeting, and
still it would not be a stimulating one, it could not happen at
any time. He was the one who presented in the meeting totally
novel and original views, and explained them to all those
present there. It often occurred that his view was rejected at the
outset, but as the meeting progressed, he would explain the
significance of what he was telling, and by the time the meeting
came to a conclusion; his proposal was more often than not
approved. There were only a few people to be present in a
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meeting to have the good luck to have Vasudevrao too present

in it.
In the absence of Vasudevrao, a meeting appeared to be
solitary, lifeless and colourless, because Vasudevrao was wont
to crack some jokes at some intervals turning the entire
atmosphere light; which enabled the other people to discuss
even a serious topic with a light heart.

He had passed a large part of his life as a Pracharak working in

different districts of Saurashtra. Among all other Pracharaks, he
had an image of a hardworking Pracharak. He was a role model
for the young Swayamsevaks too. The contest to scale Girnar
Mount in Junagarh had become as if a part of the Sangh work for
the enterprising youths.

Vasudevrao was very witty. Once when Lakshmanrao

Inamdar (Vakil Saheb) was speaking in a meeting in the capacity
of the Prant Pracharak, he pointed out Vasudevrao and said he
did not get regular and complete feedback about his working
area. At this, the witty Vasudevarao said, “Vakil Saheb, the
quantity of letters has increased in the Sangh, so I have made a
rule not to open a letter if it is a printed one. It is okay not to
read a typed letter, but a handwritten letter is supposed to be
important, so I read it carefully and implement it too.” This witty
response from Vasudevrao was creative in every way. Vakil
Saheb too laughed at this for long.
When it came to means of transport, Vasudevrao did not
like anything other than bicycle, bus or train. All his endeavours
to learn driving a car or riding a motorcycle went futile. He
loved to ride a bicycle even at an age of 60 65 years. He would
manage car or motorcycle for his juniors, but for himself, he
never wanted anything more than a bicycle.
A large part of Vasudevrao’s life had passed in Saurashtra.
They kept working there. After many years, he was given the
charge of south Gujarat. Once the topic under discussion was
the experience in new areas. He very simply compared the
characteristics of Saurashtra and south Gujarat, and said: “In
 245

Saurashtra, if two vehicles had crashed against each other and

none of them had suffered any damage, still the two drivers
would get down and fight until one of them has a broken
forehead or teeth. However, I have noticed in south Gujarat that
if two vehicles crashed together and suffered some damage,
still the drivers would say that both of them were in the wrong,
and then they would proceed towards their destinations in
peace.”
All Sangh Pracharaks take interest, guide and render help
in the development of projects in other aspects of life, but
Vasudevrao will not do it at the cost of the Sangh work, though
he accepted the importance of development in other areas. Due
to this, he did not display any interest in projects in other fields.
He was like an Arjuna who kept himself absorbed with his goal,
that was the Sangh work, and nothing else.
Vasudevrao displayed indifference at all times when it came
to caring himself; consequently, he had grown weak and fragile.
The serious stomach illness made him quite helpless. He
concealed his illness from his closest friends too for years. He
did never waver from his work and did it with due attention.
He passed a long time in Saurashtra, so he loved the people
there greatly. Thousands of families were ready to serve him
devotedly, yet Vasudevrao continued to work at Bharuch as the
centre of his activity, despite his illness, and struggled with his
illness. When he was advised complete bed rest, and he felt a
little better, he would get up and engage himself in the Sangh
work. He was an ideal illustration of the most excellent spirit of
dedication to his work.
He remained active in the Sangh work until the final
moment of his life. He departed from this world a bit too early.
An entire generation of his comrades still feels the vacuum that
was created by Vasudevrao’s death.
Sitting in the shade of this massive banyan tree of the Sangh
family, we all shall ever remain indebted to him.
o
My sun, cloud, planet, constellation and sky, I am a Hindu.
I am proud that I am a human and I am a Hindu.
 Evergreen Spring
Vasantrao Chipalunkar

If you want to understand the concept of dying for ideology, then

you have to look at the Sadhana (dedication) of Vasantrao for the
Sadhana (a weekly). The high point of his life was to fill everything
in life with humour and to feel the entire life as if prosperous spring
season. During his stint with the Sadhana, we could find a glimpse
of his humorous nature every moment.

When we look at the life of Vasantrao Chipalunkar, a

Pracharak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, it would appear
that he was ever the same, the season of fall (autumn) never
seemed to have entered his life. A resident of Akola town in
Maharashtra, Vasantrao took our leave at the age of 80 years.
For about 60 years, he worked as a Pracharak of the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh in Gujarat. His life as a Pracharak was no
less than a Tapasya, a dedication. He passed through stringent
tests during his lifetime.
During the initial period of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak
Sangh, Gujarat was as good as unknown to the Sangh work.
Gujarat was something new by its name, ideology and working
methodology. Of the people who contributed to strengthen the
foundation of the Sangh in Gujarat, one was Vasantrao
Chipalunkar, who significantly contributed towards this cause.
His life was filled with a range of difficulties and troubles.
However, when we glance through his life, we will be compelled
to think of the energy that kept him happy among all those
difficulties. He never cared for his difficulties; he kept people
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in good humour. His viewpoint of looking at the material world

was quite amazing. He always said that the only mantra to keep
happy in life was never to expect anything from anybody, nor
should you plead with somebody for a favour. No expectation,
no pleading. His principle seemed to be very simple, and it was
the mantra that kept him happy under all circumstances.
Today, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is identified
amongst the largest organisations in the world; in its basis lies
the fragrance of such great people as Vasantrao who have
irrigated it with their sweat. In his initial period, Vasantrao went
to Sabarkantha to start the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh work.
He vowed to establish the Sangh at Idar and Himmatnagar.
There was no support there to start his work there. Neither he
had money to stay there. Facing such adverse situations, he
started the work in his youth. He started the Shakha at
Himmatnagar. He would attract a few children there, and as
soon as the Shakha was over, he would walk to Idar, sometimes
he ran, because he did not have the money to travel by bus. He
walked about 28 kilometres every other day. It became a part of
his routine. He worked at Idar, and often slept in the caves there.
He did not have time to cook his dinner, nor had he any place
to stay, so he often bought bajra flour and soaked it in water to
drink for his dinner. Thus, he worked hard; it was like penance,
and thus, he laid the foundation of the Sangh work there. In
some time, he was assigned to supervise the Sangh work at
Nadiad too. He got a room in the Santram Temple for his stay,
and with this, the Sangh work started to expand.
A couple of Swayamsevaks attending the Shakha at Nadiad
were vegetable trader, so they often gifted Vasantrao some
vegetable. The Swayamsevaks felt that the vegetable would
make his meals tastier, but they never realized that he had
nothing to eat anything with the vegetables. Often he ate up
cabbage, tomato and onion in salad and was content with it.
When these Swayamsevaks realized the truth, they were amazed
to know the penance that Vasantrao was undertaking, but he
never let anyone know of it. It led to firm up their spirit of service
in the Sangh. They also determined to send food for Vasantrao
from their homes in turn.
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Vasantrao was a man of action, and learning. His mother

tongue was Marathi, but he adopted Gujarati as if it were his
mother tongue. He had acquired correctness and purity of the
language due to his association with the Sangh; moreover, he
was an authorized signatory of the Sangh in the region. Looking
at his aptitude in learning, he was assigned the responsibility
of the Sadhana weekly. He would go about the town on his bicycle
to propagate and expand the Sadhana in order to draw more
and more readers to it. He also made effort to seek
advertisements in order to make the weekly financially stronger.
He continued to do this work for close to 25 years.
Vasantrao was a man of learning. He was an ardent seeker
of knowledge. As soon as he was assigned the responsibility of
the Sadhana, he started to make effort in order to cultivate the
required qualities in himself. To do his job well, he did a course
in journalism when he was as old as 45 years. It requires courage
for a man of his age to study sitting together with children aged
18-20 years, but he did it perfectly well. His unfathomable loyalty
to his work alone gave him this courage.
Vasantrao continued to realize the mantra Jahan kum, wahan
hum (we are where there is a deficiency), in his diverse ways.
During his tours, he would deliver the news like a reporter,
change information into news and, at times, take over the
responsibility of the editor on his return from tour. He would
sometimes proofread, and sometimes sit down to paste
wrappers and stamps in order to send the weekly by post. He
even packed the weekly in bundles as well as delivered the
bundles to the post office.

Vasantrao led a ‘happy-go-lucky’ life. He led a life free from all

types of bonds. Due to his forgetfulness, numerous instances used
to take place in the Sangh life that were the source of humour.

If you needed to understand ‘to die for ideology’, then you

would need to look at the focus that Vasantrao had for the
Sadhana. The special characteristics of his life were to fill
everything with lightness and make feel the entire life green
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and lively. During his work with the Sadhana, we could witness
his witty nature every moment and in every instance.
One day, two photographs were published in the Sadhana.
One photograph pertained to the conference of saints and sages
in Bihar, in which a physically healthy saint was adorning the
stage. Next to him was the photograph of the famine-stricken
people in Odisha. Due to an error in the editor’s department,
the captions for both the photographs got interchanged. Under
the healthy saint was written ‘The famine-stricken of Odisha’
and under the famine-stricken was written ‘The conference of
saints and sages’. On this occasion, Vakil Saheb, the Prant
Pracharak of Gujarat, taunted Vasantrao rebuking him at such
a grave error. At this, Vasantrao very coolly replied, “Vakil
Saheb, I am responsible for the proofreading, if there is any
error on that part, you can certainly blame me.” This was how
he created wit even in otherwise serious situation, and thus
lightened the entire environment.
The Sadhana was published on Wednesday, and he did
everything to ensure that it was published regularly under all
circumstances. From Monday to Wednesday, he did not have
time to breathe even, that’s how we can describe his hard work.
It was not possible to employ a proofreader due to financial
crisis, so he would look at the proofs himself, set them in pages,
and proofread them finally; only this made the publication of
the Sadhana feasible.
Vasantrao lived the life of a saint. His life was free from all
types of bonds. Due to his habit of forgetting things, a number
of interesting incident occurred. If you happen to start relating
his instances witty, you would have to laugh for hours together,
interesting incidents. Sometimes, he himself would become a
part of such humour, and thus made the entire environment
lively with his witty comments, and enlightened the entire
atmosphere.
He had habit of forgetting things. If he visited somebody’s
house and he found a bunch of keys on the table, he was wont
to pick it up, play with it while talking with the host, and while
getting up, would put it in his pocket before leaving thinking it
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his own. In his cupboard, you could find a large collection of

bunches of keys. He himself did not know which bunch
belonged to whom. The host was bound to be troubled at the
loss of the key-bunch. Gradually, the people came to know of
this habit of his, and they would care for their keys when
Vasantrao was scheduled to visit them.
Vasantrao had an amazing wit. Once Vakil Saheb was
returning from Akola. Vasantrao’s mother lived in Akola and
was a devoted worker of the Rashtriya Sevika Samiti. Vakil
Saheb met her there. When Vakil Saheb came across Vasantrao,
he said, “I met your mother, she was worried about you. Why
don’t you write her?” At this, Vasantrao remarked, “Vakil Saheb,
can it ever happen? I write her letters regularly, but I forget to
post them.” Saying this, he took about 40 letters from his
cupboard and placed before Vakil Saheb.
After Vasantrao was released from his responsibility in the
Sadhana, he became active in the Sangh work again. On this
occasion, the trustees of the Sadhana held a farewell party for
him. He was leaving after his dedicated work over 25-30 years.
The trustees decided to present him a wristwatch on this
occasion for his long distinguished service. It is natural for a
farewell to be a emotional occasion. When Vasantrao stood up
to address the gathering, he said, “I worked in the Sadhana for
25-30 years, still the trustees of the weekly could not recognize
me well enough. Had they recognized me, they would not have
given me a watch, rather they would have given me the calendar,
because I was never careless about the time, the difficult thing
is that I often forgot the date.” It often happened with Vasantrao
that he went to a place on Monday or Wednesday when he was
supposed to be there on Tuesday. His greatness lay in the fact
that he admitted his mistakes openly before others, without any
pretension.
Once Vasantrao fell ill and his back was stiff. He was forced
to bend down 90 degrees and walk. He had to do all his things
this way. About this time, a Sangh official came on tour. He found
Vasantrao sitting in the wheelchair bending at 90 degrees. He
felt very sad at this. Very sentimentally he said, “Vasantrao, what
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happened? You can’t even stand upright, can you?” Vasantrao

immediately retorted, “If you are out to unite the Hindu nation,
you have no other way but to bend down.” He set his suffering
in metaphysical terminology, made his physical suffering into
bliss and stared into the difficulties in a witty outlook; maybe
Vasantrao was an amazing personality to perceive life
quite rightly.
If during a meeting, Vasantrao shared a room, it was certain
that something would go missing, like shirt, towel or the like.
Everybody knew if a thing had gone missing, they ought to
search Vasantrao’s bag. It often occurred that Vasantrao kept it
in his bag. If anybody taunted him for this, he would say,
“Brother, why don’t you arrange your things well, why do you
throw them here and there? How long can I continue to arrange
them? Still I do it and you all know it that all lost things find the
same destination; if you have lost something, come and search
with me.”

His memory was so sharp that he could repeat or write a speech

verbatim, in exactly the same sequence. His attachment, devotion
and dedication to his work was so profound that he was often fully
absorbed in it without caring for what was happening around. He
was not bound by any limitations in his ordinary life, he knew
how to lead an eternally blissful life.

One day, a youth Pracharak returned after the tour of a

village. It was the dinner time. Vasantrao said to him, “Come, I
have an invitation to a wedding party. You too accompany me.
We shall eat there.” The youth Pracharak thought that it was a
nice thing to happen. “Had I come late, it would have been
difficult to arrange for food,” he thought. Both rode their bicycles
towards the party. The host had his (tailor) shop at a little
distance from the party hall. He noticed that the shop was open
and the host was still at his shop. He stopped his bicycle and
asked, “Arre, what are you doing here? It is the wedding day,
isn’t it?” The host was surprised. He said, “No, no, there is no
wedding today.” Vasantrao said, “How can it be so? I have an
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invitation card.” Saying this, he took out the invitation card from
his bag, only then he saw that it was a year old. Everything was
correct in terms of date, time and venue, but its year was one
year before. The poor Pracharak had to sleep on a hungry
stomach that night.
In the OTC, Vasantrao held the responsibility of examining
debate. He was capable enough to shake every strand of learning
of anyone in his topics for debates, and he enjoyed these
moments. One day, he assigned the Swayamsevaks the topic—
‘the difference between Hom, Havan and Yajna’. All
Swayamsevaks were confused. At this time, Vanikar was the
chief observer listening to the debate. Vasantrao kept sending
the Swayamsevaks to Vanikar for the right answer. He kept
sending the Swayamsevaks to different officials, but none of
them knew the distinction. Such an answer required insight and
profound learning. Vasantrao posed such questions in order to
test and sharpen the intellectual capability and logic of all his
companions as well as participants in the course.
The Shivirs (training camps) enjoy a unique place in the
Sangh work. Its environment is very suitable for inculcating
qualities for leading a collective way of life. The Swayamsevaks
themselves pitch the tents in order to hold the Shivirs. A large
Shivir was held every year in Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in
Ahmedabad. It was held that year too. It was the winter season.
After rain, the tents were all wet and it grew colder. Still, all the
Swayamsevaks attending the Shivir slept on the wet ground in
such a chilling cold. Everybody remembered this Shivir as quite
troublesome. After the Shivir came to a close, and everything
had been packed, an officer remembered that the pits dug for
cooking were yet to be filled up. Vasantrao alone took over this
responsibility. He filled up all the pits with earth with his hands
as he had no tools to do it. There was nobody to ask them had
they left the pits unfilled, yet they did not do it. This is the special
quality of the Sangh.
An atmosphere of high ideals prevails in the Sangh so as to
attain purity in behaviour. There is a system for the Pracharaks
to submit their income and expenditure account every month.
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Vasantrao was very lazy when it came to keeping the accounts.

His accounts rarely matched, as he often forgot where he spent
the money, or sometimes he washed 5-10 rupee notes in the
clothes. At the end of every month, he used to grope in dark
about his income and expenditure report, but he never failed to
submit his accounts. He submitted his accounts something like
this:
1.80: bus fare
0.50: peanuts
0.10: glass of water
1.00: chappal repair
0.80: a bar of soap
34.30: GK
Every account statement of his contained the head ‘GK’.

As naturally he lived, as was his witty life. He had a detached

attitude, with a tendency to be free from all bonds. He lived a life
free from all expectations, without seeking favours, a happy-go-
lucky life – all these qualities had another name – Vasantrao. If
ever an effort is made to compile all the true anecdotes that occurred
in his personal life, a thick book can be written which will be a
treasure of entertaining jokes, such memorable are his anecdotes.

In this way, he spent 80 per cent of his expenditure under

the head of GK. When this head occurred repeatedly, the account
manager drew the attention of Vakil Saheb towards it. Vakil
Saheb called Vasantrao and asked about it, “What is this GK
head in your statements? What is that expenditure?” Everybody
in the meeting wished to know this mystery. Finally, Vasantrao
revealed this mystery. He said, “GK means ‘God Knows’. I
cannot recall where I spent that money, so the total amount I
cannot recall, I just write it under the GK.” How authentic he
was in his dealing, he took God as witness to all his deeds.
One day, a senior Pracharak was writing his account of
expenditure. Once, he was not able to match 25 paise. He
murmured a sweet song Nirmanon ke pawan yug mein… and kept
calculating, but the difference of 25 paise eluded him. He kept
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repeating just one line of the song trying to account for the
difference of 25 paise, but could not. Vasantrao was looking at
him doing this. The witty Vasantrao kept a coin of 25 paise in
his hand and said, “Now you have the account for those 25 paise,
now complete the song, you are stuck at the same line.”
This instance shows how easily he took every situation.
There is a multitude of such anecdotes in his life.
During our life at Dr. Hedgewar Bhavan, the Sangh office,
a formula given by Vasantrao was quite popular – ‘P for P in P
by P on P…’ If a stranger came, he had to struggle much to
understand what this formula meant. This formula uttered at
the breakfast time meant: ‘Poha for Pracharak in Prantik
Karyalaya by Premji in Pot.’ Vasantrao played with words in
such a witty manner, which is like a lively memory of our
Sangh life.
Vasantrao used to camp at Bombay for a couple of months
preceding Diwali for seeking advertisements for the Sadhana
weekly. He created a large section of customers for the magazine.
One year, he secured advertisements from Bombay worth
` 50,000. Vasantrao was extremely happy about it. It was a joyful
occasion in the Sadhana office too. Finding Vasantrao satisfied
about this accomplishment, the volunteers staying with him in
the Bombay Sangh office demanded a party from him, which
he obliged. All of them went to a hotel together. It was no new
thing for a hotel in Bombay to serve non-vegetarian food. The
waiters too normally presented the non-vegetarian menu. “Will
you take non-veg food?” somebody asked. To show his ego,
Vasantrao said, “Yes, why not.” After this, everybody ordered
for their favourite dishes. When it came to Vasantrao, he asked
what all was there in the menu. The waiter listed fish, chicken,
omelette and the like. At this, Vasantrao said, “Call the
manager.” He asked the manager what all things there were in
the menu. The manager repeated all those foods that the waiter
had said. At this, Vasantrao remarked, “Is that all? Will you
serve me such ordinary animals? I want to eat tiger’s roasted
flesh or lion’s soup. Do you have that?” The manager kept
looking at his face in confusion only to utter softly, “No, sir, we
258

don’t have any of these.” Vasantrao said, “Well, then, do one

thing, bring fried lady’s fingers and paranthas.”
Vasasntrao was a vegetarian. Still he surprised his
companions and made them enjoy the occasion. Even the hotel
staff came to see him one by one.
In one way, he used to forget events, things. Yet, his memory
was so sharp that he could write down a speech, that he had
heard, that too in the correct sequence. His attachment and
devotion to work was so exalted that he was often absorbed in
his work without any anxiety of the surroundings. In his normal
life, he was not bound in any limitations. He knew how to live
a blissful life. In my memory, there is no man who ever
complained against Vasasntrao. In such a long period, he had
cultivated a personality which helped him enter any situation
as smoothly as water. He never got stuck in a corner or got
stagnated in life. His presence always enlivened the atmosphere.
Even his absence did not allow the atmosphere to go empty.
And perhaps, this was the outcome of his most exalted state of
his journey of life.
For years, he had not used any other transport other than a
bicycle. As the Sangh work expanded, the means too became
available. The younger Swayamsevaks working under him rode
scooters, but Vasantrao never touched any other transport than
a bicycle to go around. However, he always took care to ensure
that his junior workers enjoyed a good facility.
If the bicycle broke down, Vasantrao would hire a bicycle,
but he often forgot which shop he hired it from, so he had to
enquire from five-six shops to which it belonged. We find a
wonderful assimilation of high intelligence, simplicity, hard
work, attitude to wit, detached sentiments in his personality.
In the final couple of years, he suffered from paralysis; still
he did not break away from his work. To the final day of his
life, he kept himself busy in learning, working for purity of
language and joining words. Despite his suffering, he tried his
best to attend every programme that he could. He suffered from
paralysis close to two years, still he did not mention about his
suffering to any Swayamsevak or visitor in the Sangh office. If
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ever somebody enquired after his health, he would just change

the topic.
In the final stage of his life, we could see on his face the joy
of the outcome of Gujarat elections as well as the satisfaction of
having voted himself. Just twenty-four hours before his death,
I had taken a box of sweet to him to celebrate the victory in
election. He congratulated me for the victory and ate sweet.
But that day he looked different, still he did not want to tell
about his suffering to anybody. He appeared to be a little more
reserve than he normally was. His wit did not last long, as if he
had been sent some divine indication that he was waiting for
the victory in Gujarat, soon after which he seemed to have
started to pack his body for the long journey. As I had been
related with him for years, an idea struck me that I should get
him admitted to a hospital. I took him to a hospital, but the
outcome was what I feared about. With the joy of victory, he
had started to palliate himself into eternity.
With the departure of Vasantrao, a witty and laughing
school of learning has bid us farewell. With his death, we lost a
synonym of hardworking life. He did not shine in the eyes of
the world, yet he twinkled like a lamp in order to spread his
light right until the last breath.
As simple was his life, so was his wit. As was his detached
attitude, so was his tendency to emancipation. Free from
expectation, a happy-go-lucky life without seeking any favours;
the other name for this phenomenon was Vasantrao. If the true
anecdotes of his life are ever compiled, it could result into a
thick book containing a whole fountain of recreation, so
memorable his anecdotes have been.
He had so much energy to work at the age of eighty years
that he could inspire even the young people. He has been an
active participant in the journey of development of several
generations in the Sangh. He was the light who attracted a lot
of people into Sangh’s life. The life of Vasantrao was far from
autumn; his memories would make us feel the spring season
even during the autumn; that is what I can say with certainty.
ooo
 Vande Mataram
(O Mother, I bow to thee. You are filled with fine water of
great rivers and ponds. You are rich. A lot of fruits grow on the
trees growing on you. Whatever exists in your environment is
fragrant and cool like the wind from the Malay mountain. The
fields and granaries spread over you appear pretty in their
greenery. O Mother, I bow to thee.
Your nights replete with silvery moonlight are blissful. My
heart is moved at seeing this beauty. Your green trees possess
blooming flowers and they have fruits, which are indescribable
in words. When I look to them, it feels as if you laugh and talk
sweetly. You are the great welfare-oriented mother, giving all
types of joys and boons. Mother, I bow to thee.
Millions of your sons hail you in a loud sound. Millions of
your sons are standing ready with swords in their hands. How
can anyone call you powerless! You are very mighty. I bow to
thee. You deliver everybody. You eradicate the enemies. Mother,
I bow to thee.
You are learning, you are duty, because everybody in the
world has acquired learning from you, and has learnt duty. You
reside in everybody’s heart; you are the soft heart of everybody.
You infuse might into the arms of your sons. You infuse devotion
in the hearts of your sons. The idols of deities in thousands of
temples are all yours. Mother, I bow to thee.
You are Durga holding numerous weapons. You are
Lakshmi residing on the lotus. You are Saraswati, the source of
learning, art and language. Mother, I bow to thee.
O innocent Mother, you are pretty as lotus. We bow before
you. You are unique in the world. O Motherland rich in water
and fruits, we bow before you.
 261

You are dark in colour, you have a simple nature, you

remain blissful always, and you are fascinating with your beauty.
You accept everybody, you hold everybody. You look after
everybody, you fill everybody, and your affection is infinite. O
Mother, I bow before you.)
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 Vande Mataram
Vande Mataram
Sujalam sufalam malayaj shitalam
Shasyashyamalam Mataram
Vande Mataram…
Shubrajyotsnapulakityaminim
Fullakusumitdrumdalshobhinim
Suhasini, sumadhurbhashini
Sukhadam vardam Mataram
Vande Mataram…
Koti-koti kanth kalkal ninad karale
Koti-koti bujairdhrit kharkarwale
Abala keno Ma eto bole
Bahubaldharini namami tarini
Ripudalvarinim Mataram
Vande Mataram…
Tumi vidya tumi dharma
Tumi hridi tumi marma
Twam hi pranah sharire
Bahute tumi ma shakti
Hridaye tumi ma bhakti
Tomarai pratima gadi mandire-mandire
Vande Mataram…
Twam hi Durga dashprahardharinim
Kamala kaldal viharinim
Vani vidyadayini
Namami twam namami kamalam
Amalam atulam
Sujalam sufalam Mataram
Shyamalam saralam susmitam bhushitam
Dharini bharanim Mataram
Vande Mataram.