#Sankalpdivas
of Rashtra Sevika Samiti is celebrated on Aashaad Shukla Dashami (
amaant ), the janmatithi of Vandaneeya Lakshmibai Kelkarji, fondly
remembered as Mausiji. She was the founder of Rashtra Sevika Samiti.
Mausiji was very much impressed by Swami Vivekananda's teachings who
said that the bird which has to take a high flight, requires both its
wings to be equally strong and capable. The king of birds is garuda,
i.e. our Bharat. Its two wings are men and women, both
of them must be equally capable if our nation has to be taken to a
great height. Vivekananda also said that if a woman becomes aware
culturally she makes the whole nation aware and strong enough to face
the challenges to bring about the nations growth.
Mausiji noticed the difference in the behaviour of her sons who
attended the Sangh shakha. She got an answer when she met Dr Hedgewar
who happened to visit Wardha for a programme. She discussed the matter
with him and stressed the need for setting up a women's organisation to
empower them for their role in the nation building process. After
serious discussions, the Samiti came into existence on the auspicious
day of Vijaya Dashmi, 1936.
The Samiti's aim was to strengthen women as self conservationists; self conservation was not merely the ability of women to protect themselves, but it meant conserving everything that is associated and related to the self. Thus from herself to her own family, from her family traditions to her nation—Mausiji defined a new ambit for women. In the shakhas, sampat, prayer, daksha, siddha, yogachap, dand, niyuddh, and self defence were practised.
It was the sensible advice of Dr Hedgewar that Samiti would not function as a women's wing of RSS, but both the organisations should be mutually complementary and co-operative, having similar aims and objectives. She wanted enrichment and empowerment of women, keeping in mind the better and larger interests of the nation.
She gave new interpretations to some views:
Identification of Bharat Mata is the best sewa (service) to her.
Sati — this is feminine gender of sat, the term used for Supreme God. So if all these qualities are represented by a woman, she is a sati. It has no relevance to the tradition of sati of burning oneself on the pyre of one?s husband.
Motherland — not a piece of land but a vibrant mother.
Dharma — a set of noble, humane values of life. It should not be related to a way of worship.
Motherhood is not only giving birth to a child but imbibing in the child all good sanskaras.
- From article by Vandaneeya Pramilatai Medhe.
The Samiti's aim was to strengthen women as self conservationists; self conservation was not merely the ability of women to protect themselves, but it meant conserving everything that is associated and related to the self. Thus from herself to her own family, from her family traditions to her nation—Mausiji defined a new ambit for women. In the shakhas, sampat, prayer, daksha, siddha, yogachap, dand, niyuddh, and self defence were practised.
It was the sensible advice of Dr Hedgewar that Samiti would not function as a women's wing of RSS, but both the organisations should be mutually complementary and co-operative, having similar aims and objectives. She wanted enrichment and empowerment of women, keeping in mind the better and larger interests of the nation.
She gave new interpretations to some views:
Identification of Bharat Mata is the best sewa (service) to her.
Sati — this is feminine gender of sat, the term used for Supreme God. So if all these qualities are represented by a woman, she is a sati. It has no relevance to the tradition of sati of burning oneself on the pyre of one?s husband.
Motherland — not a piece of land but a vibrant mother.
Dharma — a set of noble, humane values of life. It should not be related to a way of worship.
Motherhood is not only giving birth to a child but imbibing in the child all good sanskaras.
- From article by Vandaneeya Pramilatai Medhe.
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