New Delhi: Our Political Bureau |
On the occasion of the 5151st anniversary of the Bhagwad Gita organised by Gieogita at the Red Fort on Tuesday, RSS sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat said it was an universal book meant for everybody regardless of caste or religion. "When Krishna gave the address, the word Hindu did not even exist. All of us were one and there was no discrimination of the sort that exists today. It teaches you to do your duty, not run away. Even armies from China had come to fight for duty and make a decision."
Continuing with his discourse, Bhagwat claimed that the moral fabric of Indian society had weakened deeply and it was necessary to take Gita's lessons to every household. "The world has lost its balance today. Every time our society has had problems, Gita and its tenets have been recalled. There are hundreds of people in our country who know all the chapters of the Gita by heart. Many martyrs who died during the freedom struggle had a copy of Gita in their hands when they were being hanged."
A week-long celebration of the scripture will see regular Gita Paath in households, temples and institutions, exhibitions of various books written on the Gita, recitation of shlokas and lighting of lamps every evening. Members of Gieogita said Gita would be taken to educational institutions to impart, "concentration, discipline and value lessons" and will be used to promote nation building, Indian values, prevent cow slaughter and even to prisons to reforms the lives of prisoners. "Ghar ghar Gita" is the slogan we will stand by, said the organisers, who said the Red Fort was chosen because there could be no better venue for the historic occasion as it has been a witness to history for many years now.
