Preservation of India’s heritage is nationalism, says Vice-president Naidu in World Hindu Congress
India’s Vice President Venkaiah Naidu renewed Swami Vivekananda’s message to the World Parliament of Religions in 1893 and appealed to the second World Hindu Congress delegates to follow the ideals of the great saint of India.
Naidu was delivering the keynote address at the concluding session of the congress, on the eve of the 125th anniversary of the Hindu monk’s exposition of Hinduism to the western world in Chicago on Sunday.
Swami Vivekananda was the embodiment of Hindu culture. “Let us rededicate ourselves to the thoughts (of Vivekananda) for the greatness of mankind,” Naidu said.
Naidu peppered his speech with generous Sanskrit and Telugu quotes. He told the gathering though he was not in politics anymore, he was glad to come to Chicago and felt it was his duty to attend the great event happening in the name of Swami Vivekananda.
“I have retired from politics, but not tired from public life,” he quipped.
Naidu extensively referred to Swami Vivekananda’s epoch-making address, which described Hindu philosophy as “discovering of spiritual well springs” that have sustained the world for many centuries.
The philosophy of tolerance and acceptance of all religions, was an essential part of the timeless, eternal, holistic, integrated and universal world view of Hinduism.
Naidu reiterated that “Hinduism is a way of life and share and care is the core of Hindu philosophy.”
Naidu elaborated on some of the essential elements of Hinduism namely the breadth of its vision in treating the world as one family, tolerance and acceptance of plurality, unity in diversity, and that truth is one though wise men describe it in different ways.
Naidu specially highlighted the place of women in Hindu society and discredited the view that women’s role is at home. All rivers in India have been named after women and the country itself is called motherland, he said.
The way women are treated is a thermometer to gauge that nation, Naidu said. As vice-president, he had visited 56 universities and attended 32 convocations. He has been presenting awards to graduates earning gold medals. “Over 65 percent of the gold medalists are women,” he said to a resounding applause from the audience.
Naidu subtly alluded to the term “congress” and congress meant a platform (not a reference to India’s Congress Party) to present ideas.
Mahatma Gandhi had said “disband the Congress; back to the villages,” Naidu said. He did not want to deal with the political part, but added that “Rama rajya is not complete without grama rajya,” meaning rejuvenation and celebration of rural India, with an emphasis on agriculture and farming. That is a necessary tool to bridge the urban-rural divide, he said.
One should not condemn or appease other religions for the sake of votes, Naidu noted.
Compassion, service, charity, gender equality, protection of the environment and such noble aspects are key ingredients of Hindu philosophy and they are more relevant today than ever before, Naidu said.
Listen Hon Vice President Speech in WHC 2018
The theme of the World Hindu Congress, “Think collectively, Achieve Valiantly,” was an apt motto, Naidu said.
True nationalism is in the preservation of India’s invaluable heritage, though some may consider the term Hindu as undesirable or untouchable. In this context, Naidu said “We should guard against aberrations in Hinduism.”
“To serve fellow countrymen is patriotism,” according to Naidu.
“Kanyakumari to Kashmir, India is one nation, irrespective of religion or regions,” Baidu said.
Naidu brought the Hindu tradition of respecting one’s mother to the forefront and added that we should respect our motherland. Then, the guru or teachers deserved respect.
“Google can never replace a guru,” he said in a lighter vein.
Mother tongue is part of one’s culture and everyone should preserve their respective mother tongue, while learning as many other languages as possible, Naidu said.
The organizers announced that the third World Hindu Conference will be held in Bangkok, Thailand, from Nov. 4 to 6, 2022. The conference theme will be “Victory of dharma, not adharma.”
