RSS Chief Tells 5,000 Indian Americans In NY To Fulfill Duties To US Before Aiding India
NEW YORK, NY – In a series of addresses to large audiences and faith leaders in New York, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat emphasized global civic responsibility, pluralism, and human unity, while offering explicit guidance to the Indian diaspora.
Speaking to an audience of 5,000 at the Universal Oneness Celebration at Madison Square Garden on August 29, Bhagwat directly addressed the civic duties of Indians living abroad, urging them to prioritize their commitment to their adopted home.
“We are in America. We live in America. We earn in America. So, we are America. And we should behave true to America,” Bhagwat said. “The diaspora, Bharatiya diaspora, they have a duty to their karma bhumi. They must fulfil that. They should be loyal to their karma bhumi.”
While affirming that members of the diaspora may support India if they choose, he clarified that their primary obligation lies with the country where they reside. “Because Bharat is their Janmabhoomi, if they have urge to do something and they can do that, after fulfilling their duty to their Karmabhoomi, it is not prohibited,” he noted. “Okay. But it is not obligatory. Your Janmabhoomi expects you to live the values it has imparted on you.”
Bhagwat linked national identity to a broader philosophical purpose, framing America’s identity around pluralism and India’s around unity in diversity. He challenged attendees to look beyond material success and focus on community welfare and environmental sustainability.
“How much we earn is not important. How much we distribute is important,” he said. “You think of career. Is career only money? Is career only material happiness? We have to care for each other… I live and not merely let live. Make others live.”
Addressing a separate gathering of more than 180 religious leaders from 30 countries at the “One World, One Humanity” conference, Bhagwat focused on interfaith harmony, definition of Hindu identity, and practical social action.
Recalling a 2018 lecture series in Delhi where Muslim attendees asked if an RSS-led Hindu Rashtra would lead to their expulsion, Bhagwat rejected any concept of exclusion. “I told them, ‘No, that is not Hindutva. If any Hindu thinks that there should be no Muslim in Bharat, he ceases to be a Hindu,’” Bhagwat stated. “If you want to call yourself Hindu, you must believe that all paths lead to the same goal. Every human being has dignity, and there is no difference between human beings.”
Disclaiming status as a religious authority, the veterinary science graduate—who became the RSS’s sixth Sarsanghchalak in 2009 after joining as a full-time pracharak in 1975—framed his perspectives around grassroots experience. He noted that RSS volunteers operate 130,000 service projects without regard to religious affiliation, citing their emergency response to a mid-air aircraft collision over Haryana where many victims were Muslim.
“We never thought at that time that these are Muslims,” Bhagwat said. “Whoever is needing, we are serving, and they serve everywhere, they serve equally.”
Outlining a framework for global peace, Bhagwat argued that faith leaders must build grassroots public consensus to influence government policy and prevent conflict. “If there is public opinion, then no politician will dare to go against it,” he said, urging leaders to decentralize their efforts. “Whatever we decide to do today, we should start in our own country and create pockets of such selfless service, such atmosphere of unity.” (IANS)
