Exploiting Vulnerability? RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat On Missionaries And Religious Conversions

Mohan Bhagwat, the RSS chief, while referring to issue of religious conversions, has stated that missionaries exploit situations where people feel unsupported by their society.

"We don't see our own people. We don't go to them and ask them. But some missionary from thousands of miles away comes and lives there, eats their food, speaks their language and then converts them," Bhagwat said, reported PTI.

He said this at an event on Sunday, where he dedicated to the people the samadhi of Govindnath Maharaj.

Bhagwat stated that individuals came to India with the intention of changing everything over the past century. Despite their lengthy efforts, they could not achieve their goals because the roots of India remained firmly established through the hard work of our ancestors.

"Efforts are made to uproot them. So, the society should understand that deceit. We have to strengthen the faith," he said.

According to Bhagwat, deceitful individuals raise doubts about religion to weaken people's faith. He mentioned that earlier our society never encountered such people, which made people skeptical. Bhagwat emphasised the need to address this vulnerability. He further said that despite such attempts, our society remains steadfast.

He added, "but people change when they lose faith and feel that the society is not with them." 

Bhagwat cited an example of a village in Madhya Pradesh that had converted to Christianity but became "sanatani", 150 years later. He attributed this transformation to the assistance provided by Kalyan Ashram, a voluntary organisation backed by RSS.

"We don't need to go abroad to spread our faith as 'sanatan dharma' doesn't believe in such practices. We need to remove the deviation and distortion of the Bharatiya traditions and faith here (in India) and strengthen the roots of our 'dharma'," he said.

Following his visit to Gurdwara Badi Sangat to pay respects, Bhagwat stated while addressing a Dharma Sabha that the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of Sikhism, serves as a source of inspiration for Hindus.