Kochi (Kerala) [India], October 20 : Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Monday attended the condolence meeting of former Kerala Prant Sanghachalak PEB Menon, saying that he understood the Sangh not as a movement, but as a Sadhana (spiritual practice).
While addressing the Shradhanjali Sabha here, Bhagwat said that there was a lot to learn from the late PEB Menon, who left behind a legacy on managing the Sangh as a family.
"He has left to us the legacy of how we should be as an individual, how should we manage our family as a Sangh family, how as a Sangh Sevak we should conduct our business. These things will remain with us forever. Those who have seen him have experienced. They will narrate these things," Bhagwat said.
The RSS chief stated that PEB Menon came late to the Sangh, but became one with it immediately.
"He came late in Sangh. However, he immediately became one with Sangh. He understood Sangh not as a movement, not as an organisation, not as an activity. But as a sadhana (spiritual practice)," Bhagwat added.
PEB Menon was passed away on October 11 in Kochi at the age of 86. He was being treated at a private hospital. He is survived by wife Vijayalakshmi, son Vishnu Prasad, daughter Vishnu Priya, son-in-law Rajesh and daughter-in-law Anupama.
Earlier, Bhagwat on Sunday said that Indians must liberate themselves from the "foreign influence" of "Macaulay Knowledge System" to access and understand the importance of the country's own knowledge tradition.
Addressing a gathering during the release of a 'Arya Yug' Volume in Mumbai, Bhagwat argued that all Indians have received education under the Macaulay Knowledge System, and thus, "our minds and intellects became foreign".
"We weren't educated in the Indian system. We were educated in the Macaulay Knowledge System (MKS). Our origins, foundation and our intellect for the pursuit of knowledge were formed accordingly. They say we were colonised. We are Indians, but our minds and intellects became foreign. We must completely free ourselves from that foreign influence. Only then will we be able to access our knowledge tradition, understand its importance," Bhagwat said.
"In the meantime, if the rest of the world has made some progress. We should understand the secret of their progress and evaluate it. We should be able to accept what is good and discard what is useless," he added.
Furthermore, Bhagwat said that the world witnessed through "Jnanendriyas" (sensory organs through which we perceive the knowledge of the world) was also based on directions that come from the human mind. He added that one must go beyond "physical brain" in order to perceive the "truth".