Modi's Bookshelf: Integral Humanism by Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya

Deendayal Upadhyaya is one of Narendra Modi's intellectual inspirations. In his book Integral Humanism, he wrote about the difference between democracy and dharma, why India mustn't ape the west, India's unique worldview, and more. Read on 👇👇👇

Against the Soviet way. Karl Marx put the material needs of man above all. Bread was more important than voting rights. However, a lop-sided approach can't succeed - the followers of Marx soon found out they had "neither bread nor voting rights."

The west is not the best. Deendayal Upadhyaya was against aping the west completely. The US had great wealth and a robust democracy - but then why did it also "top the list in number of persons using tranquillizers to sleep"?

A company wanted to sell more potato peelers. To hit the sales target, they changed the color of the handle to match the potato peels. People accidently threw away their peelers, and this boosted sales. The book warns against capitalism that creates waste to keep growing.

Difference in worldviews. The western mind thinks of life in pieces while the Indian mind takes a "holistic" view. Proper growth takes care of the "needs of body, mind, intellect and soul." Individuals and nations ignore the needs of their soul to their great peril.

The Indian mind doesn't deny the plurality of life, but attempts "to discover the unity behind" it. The western mind focusses on the differences between the trunk, the leaves, and the roots - the Indian mind seeks their common origin in the seed.

Dharma is different from democracy. Dharma is what's right, and it's independent from the majority's view. The French PM and a majority of the public surrendered to the Nazis, but De Gaulle escaped to England and continued the fight. De Gaulle was following his dharma. 

"Govt of the people" is not enough. The government must work for the good of the people. This calls for a value system above and beyond the majoritarian preferences of the day.

National genius. Each nation is a "living entity" with it's own quirks, characteristics, and destiny. Nations fall when they deviate from their innate genius. India must rediscover its "natural instincts" and forge its own path into the future.

Bottom line. . India has a particular worldview and national genius. Instead of aping foreign ideologies, India should learn what is helpful but play to its own strengths.