Asking people to adhere to the lessons of Bhagavad Gita in their life and duties, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday said that the days of invasions are gone.
Speaking at the Gita Prerna Mahotsav in Lucknow, Bhagwat said: “Wo vaibhav ke din bhi nahi rahe. Wo akramano ke din bhi chale gaye. Ab Ram.Mandir par jhanda fahrane waale hain. Tab bhi Bharat tha, Ab bhi Bharat hai. (Those days of grandeur did not exist and the days of invasions too passed. Now, we are going to unfurl the flag at the Ram temple. India existed then too, it exists now as well).”
Linking the scripture’s message to India’s civilisational identity, he called for a revival grounded in the values espoused by the Gita.
“If we live the Gita, our lives will change. Our country used to be the Vishwaguru of the whole world. Bharatvarsh existed then too. It was ruined by invasions for 1000 years, and remained under slavery. There was loss of religious places, there were forced religious conversions. Despite all this, Bharat existed then too,” he said.
He praised initiatives to make the Gita’s teachings accessible through practical interpretations and called on people to study the text and incorporate its lessons into daily life so that individual transformation can feed wider social change.
Bhagwat said that the Bhagavad Gita can steady a world “lost, exhausted and directionless”, and he urged people to live the scripture’s teachings rather than merely recite its verses.
He drew a parallel between Arjuna’s dilemma on the battlefield of Kurukshetra and today’s global uncertainties, saying that material comfort has not brought inner peace or moral clarity. “We are here because the Gita has to be lived, not just recited. Its 700 slokas must be read, contemplated and applied in our daily lives,” Bhagwat said.
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He added that the Gita counsels courage and duty: “Krishna tells Arjuna, ‘Do not escape. Stand firm, confront the problem and act without ego or fear’.”
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who also addressed the gathering , defended the RSS’s funding model and said the organisation survives on voluntary social support, not foreign or institutional funds.
“We tell diplomats and foreign envoys that we have worked as swayamsevaks (volunteers). There is no funding pattern. No OPEC country or international church funds it. RSS stands on the strength of society and works with a spirit of service,” he said.
Adityanath described the Gita as a “divine mantra” and reiterated that religion in the Indian civilisational view is linked with duty and a way of life rather than ritual alone.
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“In our tradition, religion is not limited to rituals or methods of worship; these are only small components,” he said, adding that everyone may choose their mode of worship but the essence of Sanatan Dharma is the art of living.
He urged citizens to practice duty and responsibility, saying moral conduct yields virtue while wrongdoing brings sin.
Adityanath said the Sangh serves people irrespective of religion, language or region and criticised those who turn service into “a tool of deals and influence.”
The chief minister also criticised those who, according to him, have turned service into “a tool of deals and influence”, claiming that they attempt to change India’s demographic character through pressure and greed.
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Adityanath invoked the symbolism of national duty and victory where dharma prevails, and called for innovations, such as robot-assisted sewage cleaning, to reduce risks for manual workers and improve ease of living.
