A MASTER OF ALL

PANDIT DEENDAYAL: A VISIONARY PAR EXCELLENCE

Born in the village of Mathura in Uttar Pradesh on September 25, 1916, Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya lost his father Bhagwati Prasad when he was less than three years old and his mother before he was eight. Brought up by his maternal uncle, he continued his studies, being a brilliant student throughout his academic years.

Recipient of gold medals, both at matriculation board exam in 1935 and intermediate exam in 1937. He even qualified the civil service exam, but did not join the civil services as he was fascinated by the idea of working with the “common man”.

While he was a student at Sanatan Dharma College, Kanpur, in 1937 he joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), dedicating himself to full-time work in the RSS from 1942.Deendayal Upadhyaya was a man of soaring idealism and had a tremendous capacity for organisation – key attributes of his that were visible in his initiation of the monthly Rashtra Dharma, a weekly Panchajanya and a daily Swadesh.

Pandit Upadhyaya passed his intermediate exams with distinction in Pilani, left to Kanpur to persue his BA, and joined the Sanatan Dharma College. At the instance of his friend Shri Balwant Mahashabde, Pandit Deendayal joined the RSS in 1937.in 1937 he received his BA in the first division, and moved to Agra to persue MA.here he joined forces with Shri Nanaji deshmukh and Shri Bhau Jugade for RSS activities. Around this time Rama Devi, a cousin of Deendayalji fell ill and she moved to Agra for treatment. She passed away.

Deendayal was very depressed and could not take the MA exams .his scholarships ,received earlier from Maharaja of Sikar and Shri Birla were discontinued at the instance of his aunt he took a government conducted competitive examination in dhoti and kurta with a cap on his head, while other candidates wore western suits. The candidates in fun called him “Panditji”-an appellation millions were to use with respect and love in later years. Again, at this exam he topped the list of selectees. Armed with his uncle’s permission he moved to Prayag to establish the publishing house ‘Rashtra Dharma Prakashan’ in Lucknow and launched the monthly magazine ‘Rashtra Dharma’ to propound the principles he held sacred.

A MASTER OF ALL...

In 1951, when Dr Syama Prasad Mukherjee founded the Bhartiya Jana Sangh, Deeendayal became the first general secretary of its UP branch. Next, he was chosen as the all-india general secretary. The acumen and meticulousness shown by Deendayal deeply impressed Dr Mookherjee and elicited his famous remark:’ if I had two Deendayals, I could transform the political face of India.’

After Dr Mookherjee’s death in 1953, the entire burden of nurturing the orphaned organisation and building it up as a nation-wide movement fell on the young shoulders of Deendayal.for 15 years, he remained the outfit’s general secretary and build up, brick a band of dedicated workers imbued with idealism and provided the entire ideological framework of the outfit.

AN INIMITABLE APPROACH:

Pt Upadhyaya is well known for his idea of integral humanism – the concept that is deeply embedded in the Indian psyche. The philosophy of integral humanism advocates the simultaneous and integrated program of the body, mind, intellect and soul of each human being. His philosophy of integral humanism, which is a synthesis of the material and the spiritual, the individual and the collectives, bears eloquent testimony to this.

In the field of politics and economics, he was pragmatic and down-to-earth. he visualised India a decentralized polity and self-reliant economy with the village as the base.Deendayal Upadhyaya was convinced that we as an independent nation cannot rely upon western concepts like individualism, democracy, socialism, communism, capitalism etc., and he was of the view that the Indian polity after our independence has been raised upon these superficial western foundations and not rooted in the timeless traditions of our ancient culture. He was of the view that the Indian intellect was being suffocated by western theories and ideologies and consequently there was a big roadblock on the growth and expansion of the original Bhartiya thought. He said that there was an urgent public need for a fresh breeze.

He welcomed modern technology but wanted it to be adapted to suit Indian requirements.Deendayal believed in a constructive approach. He exhorted his followers to co-operate with the government when it was right and fearlessly oppose when it erred. He placed nation’s interest everything else.

 TO THE CORE:

Pt Deendayal passed away under unexpected circumstances and was found dead on 11^th February 1968 at Mugal Sarai Railway yard.

The rousing call that he gave to the thousands of delegates at the Calicut session, still rings in their ears.