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Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 209

8
Social Services, Muscular Hinduism
and Implicit Militancy in West Bengal:
The Case of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha
Raphal Voix
The Bharat Sevashram Sangha (Bharata Sevasrama Sangha)

literally the community of service to India and referred to here as

BSS was founded in 1923 in Bengal by a religious leader named
Pranavananda (18961941). Nowadays, by combining the institution
of a monastic order and the dispensing of social services the BSS,
together with the Ramakrishna Mission, is the most famous Hindu
organisation among contemporary Bengali elites. In this article,
I question the role the BBS plays in the entrenchment of Hindutva
ideology in West Bengal. By showing how the BSSs discourses
and actions fluctuate according to the political context in the state
where it is expanding, I argue, in this article, that the ambivalence
the BSS shows towards the Sangh Parivar can make it both an agent of
resistance to Hindutva ideology and an instrument for the cultural
entrenchment of Hindutva in West Bengal.
In the first part of this article, I will show how the BSS is inscribed
in Bengal culture and will present its activities in the social services
sector. In the second and third parts, I analyse its activities to
reform pilgrimage sites and the way it positions itself in the realm
of politics. Last, I discuss what I call the BSSs implicit militancy:
an attitude where militancy is constantly euphemised through
muscular rituals and discourses. The data used in this article is based
on first-hand fieldwork conducted in 2007 on the BSSs premises,
and has been completed using the organisations literature in
Bengali.1 It is also supplemented with interviews given by leaders of
During a first two-month period of fieldwork (JanuaryFebruary 2007),
I stayed at the groups headquarters in Kolkata. During a second 10-day period
of fieldwork, I attended all the activities conducted at the groups ashram in
Banaras for the celebration of Durga Puja. Along with simple observations of
the groups daily activities, my fieldwork consisted of informal interviews in
1

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Raphal Voix

Hindutva organisations in West Bengal and by civil servants who

have worked directly with this group. By taking the BSS as a case
study, I hope to contribute to the ethnographic knowledge about
West Bengal contemporary religious life and to add to what we
know of traditionalist movements outside mainstream north Indian
ones. More specifically, I wish to provide a better understanding of
the regional cultural entrenchment of Hindutva in West Bengal.2

Pranavananda and the

Bharat Sevashram Sangha
Although it is always difficult to find out exactly how the founder
of a sect recruited lay followers (Shah 2006: 225), hagiographies
published by the BSS reveal that Vinode Dasa, the founder and guru
of the BSS, was born in 1896 to a kayastha family from East Bengal
(Smarta 2001: 6).3 He was initiated to brahmacharya by the abbot
(mahanta) of the natha-sampradaya of Gorakshapur in 1913, and
11 years later to renouncement (sam
nyasa) by a Das nam sam
4nyasi
and renamed Pranavananda (Chakravarty 1992: 247, n. 43).
From 1923 onwards, as an admirer of Vivekananda, by whom he
claims to have been influenced, Pranavananda gathered around him
a group of youths to conduct relief work in East Bengal, work that
was open to both communities even in times of communal tension
Bengali with lay people and ascetics of the movement. I completed these with
visits to different centres belonging to the group in West Bengal, Orissa (India)
and London (England). I wish to thank Swami Buddhanandaji Maharaj,
Secretary General to Bharat Sevashram Sangha, who gave me his full consent
to conduct this research.
2
In West Bengal, I would like to thank Pr. Suranjan Das who provided me
with contacts from his address book. Within the BSS itself, my sincere thanks
go to all the ascetics who welcomed me and agreed to speak to me. I would like
to thank Gwi Lym Becker Legge, Catherine Clmentin-Ojha, Elinor W. Gadon,
Sophie Huguet, Sebastien Mayor and the books editors for comments on an
earlier version of this article.
3
Called Bazitpur, Pranavanandas home village is located in the Madaripur
subdivision of the district of Faridpur in Bangladesh. Nowadays, it still houses
the BSSs former headquarters where a fair is held annually on the occasion of
the Guru Purn.ima.
4
The organisation does not comment on this change of religious affiliation,
although according to the specific rules of each sect, these two initiations would
not be sufficient to be considered a full member any of either of the two sects
(Bouillier 1997: 152); contemporary BSS renouncers claim to belong to the giri
order allegedly created by Sankaracarya (8th9th century).

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 211

(Chakravarty 1992: 232). Pranavanandas youth is closely associated with early 20th-century Bengali political life. His village district was at the very heart of the revolutionary movement in East
Bengal (ibid.: 229), and he himself is described as acting as confident
for local leaders to whom he paid great respect for their courage
and self-sacrifice. However, he did not implicate himself directly in
this trend and even weaned some militants away from the path of
revolutionary terrorism (ibid.: 247, n 42).5
From the 1930s onwards, Pravananda lent a more militant
emphasis to the group. The wider context for this development
was the increasing polarisation of the religious communities in
India, partly due to the British governments introduction of communal representation in politics which spurred on the attempts by
leaders to seek the unification and expansion of their respective
communities (Gooptu 2001: 230). Though Pranavananda did
not consider himself a social reformer, he wished to reorganise,
reunite and revitalise the disintegrated and disrupted Hindu
masses into a well-knit Hindu society (Smart 1985: 102). Striving
to unite Hindu society constitutes the ideological basis for all
Hindutva defenders. To that end, Pranavananda advocated the
creation of temples supposedly open to all Hindus in order to
unite the Hindu population (Hindu milana mandira). He joined the
Hindu Mahasabha, and the BSS even claims that Shyama Prasad
Mukherjee (190154) the Hindu Mahasabhas working, fulltime president from 1944 48 was Pranavanandas devotee, a
claim that shows the BSSs moderate militancy, as we shall see later.6
However, before the Hindu Mahasabhas decision in 1948 to

Like leaders of most traditional Hindu sects, neither did he directly

participate in the national struggle, nor did he overtly condemn it (Sinha and
Saraswati 1978: 206). However, all the groups leaflets present him as an
important national freedom fighter.
6
As a top-ranking member of Bengali society, Shyam Prasad Mukherjee
belonged successively to the Congress, the Hindu Mahasabha he resigned
from the latter in November 1948 when it decided to limit its membership
exclusively to Hindus and the Jana Sangh. However, he is known for his
moderation. The national press has always treated his public statements with
considerable respect and he benefited from a broad following among the
middle classes, well-educated and English-speaking groups which dominated
the professional, business and industrial life of Indias modern towns and cities
(Graham 1990: 913, 5557).
5

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suspend its political activities, with the death of Pranavananda

in 1941 the BSS focussed exclusively on sangathan work: relief
work, the rehabilitation of refugees and a solution to diverse
social, cultural and religious problems. It abandoned its political
struggle and concentrated on the groups prosperity through the
worship of the guru.
Early in the history of the BSS, Pranavananda was believed to
be a divine manifestation (avatara). Hagiographies describe an extraordinarily peaceful (khubai santo) child, spontaneously inclined to
meditation (dhyana). From a more original point of view, they depict
Pranavanandas body as being particularly strong and energetic
(Smarta 2001: 8) and represent it as huge, muscular and physically
trained. Emphasis is also given to the fact that he acquired such
strength through living on a lean vegetarian diet (sakahari) and
through the practice of celibacy (brahmacharya). This emphasis
on the physical potentiality of Pranavanandas body illustrates the
quest for masculinity that was the driving force behind the Bengali
Hindu elite in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In opposition
to the hardy, masculine, imperial British ruler, the Bengali man had
been constructed as effeminate and inept (Rosselli 1980; Sinha
1995). Though it was the condition for their existence within the
British Raj, the Hindu elite of Bengal challenged this archetypical
figure of the effeminate Bengali babu, or government clerk, usually
considered responsible for the degradation of society. Realising
that they had never had a culture of political virility compared
to other Indian Hindus (Rajputs, Sikhs and Marathas) they
launched a physical culture movement that aimed at recovering
what was seen as a loss of manliness (Banerjee 2005; Basu and
Banerjee 2006; Chowdhury 2001). The Vivekananda man-making
mission reformulated a Hindu masculinity in terms of a heroic
ascetic the sam
nya si icon whose strength lied in its selfdiscipline in opposition to the insensitive virility exemplified by
the colonisers (Chowdhury-Sengupta 1996). The core value of this
Hindu nationalist masculinity lies in the celibacy and vegetarianism
believed to confer manliness (Alter 1994a).
Like many Bengali ascetics and saints, Pranavanandas charisma
revolves around the Goddess (Clementin-Ojha 1990; Hallstrom
1999). According to his hagiography, when young, he was so ill
that his mother offered him to the Goddess and since then he belonged to Her. Another story goes that the founder was attending a

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 213

puja and that he prayed to the Goddess to show herself, which she
did by entering his body (Parameshananda 2002: 61). As a matter
of fact, records state that Pranavananda always had, together with
a huge and physically trained body, a motherly grace, charm and
coolness, a detail that would have led some people to mistake him
for a lady while others considered him the divine mother (mataji)
(Yatiswarananda 2005: 198). His image incarnates this duality by
representing Pranavananda simultaneously with the physical attributes of a strongly built ascetic and a feminine appearance long
hair falling loose over his shoulders and a feminine smile of a
motherly goddess. This representation underlines Bengali Shaktisms
influence on the BSS: the Mother Goddess having always been a
symbol of martial strength and prowess.
Nowadays, among its ascetics, the BSS claims to include 400
Bengali male renouncers, and several thousand volunteers (sevaka).7
Besides their religious duties a number of rules, of which the most
important is the vow of celibacy believed to confer spiritual and
mundane power renouncers usually fulfil an administrative task
which consists of providing a service according to the organisations
needs and ones seniority. The oldest and most senior renouncers
hold a seat on the governing body, the supreme authority that rules
the group.8 Though all of them pay their respects to the current
BSS president Tridivananda, the 5th since the founder they
consider themselves to be disciples of Pranavananda, whose sayings
they regard as the revealed truth (brahmava n. ), just as much an
authority as the Vedic revelation (veda va n. ) (Ashokananda 1995:
7172).9 The most important ritual of all the groups ashrams is
the daily cult to the guru (gurupuja ): three times a day, disciples
worship Pranavanandas divine image (murti).
The words renouncers and ascetics are not synonymous: renouncers are
one specific type of ascetics, those who have literately renounced sacrificial
rites. For details about this distinction, see Clementin-Ojha (2006).
8
The governing body rules over four committees the general committee,
Ashram Management Committee, the moving ashrams, the householders
ashrams they all meet annually at the BSS headquarters after Sivas Night
(sivaratri).
9
Many stories are told to prove his divinity and any remark questioning
it is firmly condemned within the group by either expulsion or punishment
(Parameshananda 2002: 9).
7

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The BSSs laity divides itself between devotees (bhakta) who often
come to the ashram, take prasada and can make donations to BSS
and disciples (sisya) who incarnate a higher degree of commitment:
they have been initiated (d ksa) by one of the BSSs renouncers and
practise puja regularly to Pranavananda. While disciples are mostly
women, devotees may be of any sex. Like ascetics, the BSSs laity
comes from Bengali high-caste gentry (bhadraloka) and originates
predominantly from East Bengal.10 It usually comes from an urban
lower-middle class. The mens dominant occupation is clerical office
work (cakure) and, to a lesser extent, local entrepreneurship while
women are mostly housewives. Significantly, the BSSs headquarters
are situated in Kolkata, in the exclusive area, Ballygunge, known
for being a centre of high-caste Hindu Bengali culture and the
native place of a number of Bengali educated intellectuals (siks. ita
buddhij v ra), artists and politicians with a strong Trinamul
Congress presence.11 Of the BSSs 63 ashrams in India, most are
located in West Bengal, the rest being in other Indian states. Outside
India, BSS runs three centres in the USA (Chicago, New Jersey
and New York); two in Canada (Toronto and Ontario); and one
in England (London), Guyana (Nigg), the West Indies (Trinidad),
Bangladesh (Bazitpur) and Fidji (BSS 2006: 4). However, in all these
places, disciples have remained almost exclusively Bengali Hindus,
and the BSSs ashrams are usually considered to be a haven of
Bengali culture and religious traditions.12
The importance the BSS has acquired among Bengalis can only
be understood when reviewing the actions it carried out in Bengal.
The BSS is primarily known for its organised social service (seva).13
Since its creation, it has undertaken extensive relief and rehabilitation
work in times of natural disasters and has offered various services
to pilgrims. Although these are not the only social services provided
by the BSS, it is mainly through them that Bengalis rub shoulders

For a discussion of the concept of bhadraloka with a complete bibliography

see Chatterji (1994: 312).
11
Situated between the Gariahat commercial district and the Bijan Setu
bridge, the address of the BSSs headquarters is 211, Rasbihari Avenue.
12
One exception to the rule is the Guyanese ashram of BSS, where laity
mostly comprises Caribbean Hindus (Hawley 2004: 12125).
13
On seva as organised social service see Beckerlegge (2006).
10

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 215

with BSS activists.14 In all its official papers fliers, website the
BSS describes itself as a worldwide organisation of selfless workers
dedicated to relieving the sick and the distressed, and to providing
basic necessities and comfort during natural disasters. The BSS is
reputed to react rapidly in times of natural disasters by providing
teams of volunteers and supplying the population concerned with
the basic necessities. In many cases, it has proved its efficiency by
being the very first Hindu humanitarian organisation to arrive on
the spot.15 Greatly appreciated in West Bengal an Indian state
known to be prey to regular floods this work has led the BSS to
play an active role in the different calamities that have hit Bengal
since the beginning of the 20th century.16 Besides its relief work, the
BSS has concentrated its efforts in the field of healthcare: it runs 64
free medical centres some of them are mobile and thus able to
access places in the state where the governments presence is still a
pipe dream. This activity has rapidly increased since the 1990s and
BSS now runs a few well-known high-tech hospitals including
one situated in West Bengals capital as well as centres for cancer
patients, etc.17 Freely available to anyone, these services enable the
BSS to come into contact with a sizable number of Bengalis and be
looked upon favourably by the population at large. Nowadays, it
benefits from a very positive global image.

The BSS is also very active in education: the group claims to own 100
schools and to take charge of 32,000 students. However, with 650,000 dollars
spent in 2006, education comes as third in its expenditure, after medical care
and relief work ($3,200,000), and pilgrim services and guest houses ($720,000).
Still, education is of strategic importance since most BSS renouncers are former
students of schools run by the group (Parameshananda 2002: 67).
15
See Devastation Continues, The Statesman, Kolkata, 24 October 2005, or
Chief Minister Declares West Midnapore Flood-hit, The Statesman, Kolkata,
8 July 2007.
16
The Midnapore BSSs headquarters cyclone (1942), the Bengal famine
(1942) and the numerous seasonal floods due to monsoons that have struck
the Bengal region due to its low elevation (1978, 1998, 2001, 2008). It has
also conducted relief work after other disasters in India, such as the Bhopal
gas tragedy (1980), Andhra Pradesh cyclone (1996), Orissa cyclone (2001), the
tidal wave (2004), floods in Mumbai and Gujarat (2005) (BSS 2005: 11).
17
For an up-to-date list of all BSS activities, see its main website: http://www.
bharatsevashramsangha.net/, accessed 3 April 2009.
14

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For historical and cultural reasons its emergence during a strategic period of Indias history and its grassroots in Bengali religious
life the BSS has forged a highly respectable image that has enabled
it to reach a Bengal public beyond mere pro-Hindutva militants.
More especially, the travel agency created by the BSS, specialising in
Bengali pilgrimages, has been the most effective way for the group
to win popularity among high-caste Bengalis. Nevertheless, this
undertaking has led to certain paradoxes, as we shall now see.

The Building of a Bengali Hindu Community

The importance that pilgrimage networks gained in the late 19th
and early 20th centuries for constructing a sacred Indian geography and for forging a national Hindu identity is well known. It
is believed that by sharing religious activities with fellow pilgrims
from all over India, pilgrims may sense that they belong to a larger
cultural tradition, that is, Hinduism. Taking part in a pilgrimage
became a key element for enacting ones Hindu identity. Ethnographical data suggests that in the case of pilgrimages promoted
by the BSS, the effect might not unify the population to the extent
these studies have suggested.
During his lifetime, Pranavananda denounced the malevolent
environment of pilgrimage centres as the reason why Hindus
undertook few pilgrimages. In his view, Hindu pilgrims were afraid
to go on a pilgrimage because of the priests (pan.da) well-known
habit of cheating. Pranavanandas most popular hagiographies an
illustrated life-sketch explain how priests in Gaya had dragged
and caught his hands and how this made him furious. He is
shown punching and throwing one priest, while denouncing the
priests violence, outrage and oppression (juluma). The scene is
particularly violent: two other priests who witnessed it are
depicted as looking scared and running to flee the place. According
to the legend, Pranavananda took the terrifying form of Siva
(rudramurti) and this enabled him to throw the priests one by
one from the site. From that day on, he decided to reform the
pilgrimage sites. In his opinion, this would incite pilgrims to go
on pilgrimages in greater numbers without being subject to any
harassment, and would thus contribute to Hindu unity. Thereupon,
within a few years his disciples had built several rest homes and
infirmaries in different places to encourage pilgrimages, which he

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 217

Plate 8.1: Image of Swami Pranavananda, revered as the King of

the Hindus. A sam
. nyasin from the BSS practicing a ritual
aspersion (abhis.eka) to the divine image of his guru on the
occasion of the great night of Siva (Maha Sivaratri). Kolkata,
February 2007. Courtesy of Raphal Voix.

218

Raphal Voix

thought necessary to boost Hindu unity. Although this criticism of

the malevolent environment surrounding pilgrimages was made
in the 1920s, many of todays educated Hindus would still agree with
it. Priests at pilgrimage sites are largely seen as cheats and indeed as
using a secret dialect known only to them designed to trick,
cheat and dupe clients (Caplan 1997: 23031). This explains the
success of the BSSs ashrams at different pilgrimage sites.
In fact, as mentioned earlier, the BSS literally created a travel
agency for Bengali pilgrims. Nowadays, it provides accommodation,
transport information, ritual worship and circuits to any Bengali
Hindu wishing to go on a pilgrimage. Among the hundreds of Indian
Hindu pilgrimage sites, the BSS has concentrated its efforts on those
places accessible to Bengali pilgrims after an overnight train journey
at the most: Gaya (Bihar); Gangasagara and Tarapitha (West Bengal);
Puri (Orissa); and Banaras (Uttar Pradesh). At each of these sites,
the BSS has built large ashrams where it offers accommodation
for a maximum of three consecutive nights, and provides proper
guidance for religious rituals, a vegetarian canteen and facilities
for families who wish to cook their own food. Everyday, dozens of
people not necessarily disciples seeking information on pilgrimages contact the BSSs headquarters in Kolkata. Divyananda,
along with a few dedicated volunteers, answers the pilgrims
questions and provides them with all the practical information
necessary: train and bus timetables, map of the site, contact number
of the local person in charge, leaflet-giving advice, etc. Receipts are
given for any expenses and all rates are fixed on a donation basis
as is the usual practice in Hinduism. If the BSSs ashrams are so
successful among Bengali pilgrims it is because they provide an
ideal physical and linguistic environment for them. Ashrams are
usually spacious, very clean, and the Bengali volunteers always
helpful and considerate. All communication and exchanges are
in Bengali, the mother tongue of most pilgrims, rather than in the
local language spoken at the pilgrimage centre. The extraordinary
capacity to organise, coordinate and help Bengali pilgrims in their
religious duties is well known among the Bengali urban middle
class: the BSSs pilgrim guesthouse registration books show that
almost only Bengalis use BSS services for pilgrimages.18
The registration records do not tell us whether the guests would have gone
on a pilgrimage in the absence of BSS services.
18

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 219

Considered a sacred space, the pilgrimage site is nevertheless

described as a malevolent environment, full of local priests and
tour operators who try to rip them off. According to the BSS, the
only way to avoid being cheated would be to make exclusive use
of the BSSs services, i.e., to stay in their ashram, perform rituals
with their priests and avoid contact with any other people.19 The
BSS warns pilgrims about using services offered by any other community. It supplies details to ensure that pilgrims reach the BSSs
ashram directly, with no undue inconvenience: photographs of the
main gate of the ashram are provided along with specific details to
avoid people having to depend on any intermediaries. Once inside
the ashram, while checking in, the pilgrim is again told to be wary
of the dangers associated with the local community, a warning that
is reiterated by a sign on the wall. Newcomers are advised to carry
out any activity on the site through BSS, including sightseeing and
ritual worship, all at a reasonable rate (Vedananda 1999: 10).
I argue, therefore, that, rather than reinforcing the Hindu community in a wider sense the pan-Indian Hindu the BSSs
pilgrim-age services contribute to creating a community in a much
narrower sense, a Bengali Hindu community. Not only, as has been
emphasised, are BSSs ashrams specifically designed for Bengali
pilgrims, but they are designed to make sure that the BSSs pilgrims
will use the BSSs services exclusively. The usual homogenising effect
associated with pilgrimages, which occurs because pilgrims, coming from diverse linguistic areas and representing different castes
and occupations, participate together in a standardised set of religious activities (Caplan 1997: 210) is reduced to a minimum here.
Except for the strict ritual time of the pilgrimage, Bengali pilgrims
using the BSSs services have little opportunity to meet any nonBengali pilgrims. Once in the BSS ashram, Bengali pilgrims usually
attend rituals inside it, even when they are neither acquainted with
the BSS nor with the cult of Pranavananda. Many of the Bengali
pilgrims I met in Gaya explained that the BSS monks dedication
had so impressed them that, after their pilgrimage, they had become
For example, the leaflet for Gaya (Bihar) stipulates that pilgrims should to go
to the BSS office situated on the main platform as soon as the train reaches
the station. If the pilgrim does not do this, he is sure to be ripped off (Vedananda
1999: 15) and to become the prey of the machination of thieves and rogues
(ibid.: 10), as the BSS call local guides and priests.
19

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Raphal Voix

devotees and, more recently, disciples. Similarly, Indrajit Ray, head

of a Bengali family living in Guwahati (Assam) came to Puri to visit
Lord Jagannaths temple. He explained that without the BSS ashram
where he was lodging, he could not have taken the risk of bringing
his family. He now considers himself a devotee of Pranavananda.
Another Bengali explained that, because he did not have much
money, he went on a honeymoon with his wife to the BSSs ashram,
since both of them are regular devotees of the BSS.
Henceforth, the importance of the BSSs regional identity must
not be underestimated. As we can see, in many cases, the cultural
factor was determinant in its disciples trajectory. Most relevant to
this particular focus are the cases of former RSS activists. While, like
all Hindu sects, the BSS mainly recruits new members from the vast
number of non-sectarians (Shah 1996: 209), there are a few cases
of disciples who come from other Hindu groups. Such is the case of
Salil Kapat, a Bengali ex-RSS activist who recently joined the BSS.
He explains that he withdrew from the RSS because he found it
overbearing, regimented, unscrupulous and dehumanised, and
also because of its pro-Hindi stand. What bothered him most was
the RSSs Bengali leaders preference for Hindi even when speaking
amongst themselves. They ridiculed Bengalis for lagging far behind the Marwaris and Gujaratis in religion, writes Kapat. Then
he recognises the glory of Bengal with regard to its religious leaders: Having been brainwashed, they forget that Chaitanyadeb,
Bijoykrishna Goswami, Vivekananda, Sri Ramakrishna and Sri
Aurobindo were Bengalis! To his eyes, the BSS showed more
respect to the different Bengali religious leaders. Indeed, as mentioned above, the BSSs founder was very much influenced by
Vivekananda. Therefore, Kapat encountered an assertive Hinduism
in BSS that was deeply entrenched in his culture, the culture of
Bengal.20 Another disciple speculated that the RSS was not part of
the cultural ethos of the State, an argument also put forward by
politicians against Hindutva. In this discussion, the disciple claimed
that the RSSs culture was too Brahminic, while that of the BSS
was more Ks.atriya. The cultural distinction between the BSS and
other militant Hindu organisations is also reflected in the different

Kaneo ami RSSera samparka tyaga korlam (Why I Left RSS). See Modi
Ilks Bigoted Pogrom, The Statesman, Calcutta, 9 April 2002.
20

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 221

locations for these organisations. Whereas, as mentioned earlier,

the BSSs headquarters are situated in a Bengali neighbourhood of
rya
Kolkata, mainstream Hindutva organisations (the RSS, VHP, A
Samaj) are located right on the other side of town, in the Lalbazara
area of north Kolkata which is mostly inhabited by Hindi-speaking
merchants from northern India and usually referred to in Bengal
as Marwari.21 The BSS is seen by its disciples as an autochthonous
organisation, while the RSS is seen as foreign to Bengali culture.
It is well-known that one of any sects major challenges is
regularly to convert new disciples. In the case of the BSS, building
ashrams at different Hindu pilgrimage sites not only contributes
to its nationalist agenda by encouraging pilgrimages, but it
attracts Bengali non-sectarian Hindus and eventually prompts
their initiation into the sect. While the BSS professes an idea of
unity in Hinduism, at the same time it asserts its own vision of
Hinduism. This vision condemns the contemporary depraved
practices (acarabhras.t. a) of Hindus (bartamana Hindu) and
errors (bhranti) of religious leaders (dharm ya netbarge), thus
condemning all other Hindu groups (Nirmalananda 2000: 41)
and suggesting that real Hindus are BSS Hindus, read Bengali
Hindus. This attitude leads to more fragmentation among Hindus.
Thus, during the groups gathering, a cry to the glory of the
eternal religion a concept associated today with Hinduism
is always given in between shouts of glory to the group or to
the guru.22 This association again suggests that only the BSS and
Pranavananda are capable of defending real Hindus and real
Hinduism.
Setting up the BSSs ashrams in major northern Indian pilgrimage centres provides opportunities for spreading the BSSs ideas and
beliefs rather than a vision of Hindu unity. Whereas a pilgrimage
usually reflects a supra-local level of integration, here pilgrimages
contribute to reinforcing the number of devotees in the sect. However, there is another reason that explains BSSs success in the realm
of Bengali religion.
The RSS headquarter, known as Keshava Bhavan, is located at Abhedhananda
Road, not far from the Arya Samaj and the VHPs headquarters.
22
Hail to the Bharat Seva Ashram! Hail to the eternal religion! Hail to
Swami Pranavananda! (Bharata sevasrama sagha K ? Jay ! Sanatana dharma
K ? Jay ! Svam Pranabananda K ? Jay!).
21

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Social Services and Communal Harmony

Although they have made great efforts to penetrate West Bengal,
organisations such as the RSS and VHP, usually recognised as
major agents of Hindutva ideologies, have not gathered as large a
following as in other states.23 In fact, the BSSs overt dissociation
from politics has contributed to the group receiving support from
the Bengali elite. Very early in its history, the BSS distanced itself
from electoral politics. Since it withdrew from the Hindu Mahasabha
in the 1940s, it has not taken part in any political party and claims
to be a purely philanthropic organisation.
Tridivananda, the current head of the organisation, recalls in
each of his public discourses that the BSS is a non sectarian, non
communal and non political organisation.24 Renouncers who insist
on the BSSs independence relay this message. They criticise electoral
politics as belonging to a vile and impure realm.25 Texts published
by the group denounce Indias politicians as regularly being in
favour of the Western material culture and ideals (Vedananda 1950:
11), a culture that he calls the demons culture (asurik sam
. skr. ti),
identified by the material scientific culture in comparison to
dharmas culture (dharma sam
. skr. ti), identified as an Indo-Aryan
spiritual culture (ibid.: 4). Their criticisms do not spare the Sangh
Parivars movements. Although the RSS and VHP are officially
non-political organisations, the BSS considers that they fraternise
too much with electoral politics which, as we will see later, does
not prevent the BSS from joining forces with these organisations
at certain times and places. Members of BSS are proud to publish
the fact that their organisation is totally independent from these
groups: even the BSSs website has no link to any sites affiliated to the
VHP. This is the main argument they put forward to set themselves
apart. As one disciple declared, the RSS is more into political power,

The Sangh Parivar is hardly present in West Bengal. For instance, the VHP
held its first-ever meeting in West Bengal in 2004. The leaders of the Sangh
Parivar explained the meagre prescence in the meeting as being due to the left
coalition ruling the state since 1977. See VHP to Hold first-ever Meeting in
Red Bastion, The Times of India, 11 June 2004.
24
See, for example, Steel Units Gift to Bharat Sevashram, The Statesman,
Kolkata, 20 February 2007.
25
Conversation with different ascetics, Kolkata (January 2007).
23

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 223

whereas (BSS) is working towards the betterment of all people.26

And to demonstrate its secular basis, the BSS claims that its relief
work activities are open to every confession and that since its
foundation it has always treated Hindus and Muslims equally.27
If the BSS pretends not to take part in electoral politics, it is not
necessarily apolitical in the broad sense of the term. In fact, it is not
so much that the BSS is apolitical, but that it considers itself to be
above electoral politics. Nevertheless, the BSSs main ritual carries
heavy political overtones. Every year in West Bengal, at the full
moon of the second month of the Bengali calendar (maghi purnima),
disciples gather at the groups headquarters in Kolkata. They attend
the anointment (abhis.eka) ceremony whereby Pranavananda
is consecrated King of the Hindus. Afterwards, disciples attend
a coronation ritual where they remain seated for hours gazing at
the god-kings image on its royal seat (sim
. hasana, rajasana) while
28
chanting devotional songs. The striking feature of these rituals is
the strong political symbolism of a Hindu state (hinduras.t. ra)
ruled by a god-king29 that they convey. Nirmalananda recalls
that his gurus life is a foretaste of the future coming of royal rule
in India, when Hindu glory and the socio-cosmic order will be restored, and in which religion and politics would not be separate, but
encompassed in a larger vision of the world (Nirmalananda 2000b:
68). However, these rituals are not associated with any political
demands: Nirmalananda immediately disclaims any contemporary
political implication in the organisations aspirations, stressing
their inspired nature: they are purely imagined plans (prakalpa)
and the Guru himself did not consider them as a political demand
of the day (ibid.). This shows us that the BSS considers any struggle
in the political sphere to be of an impure nature and that change in
society will only come about by an inspired change.
Discussion with a disciple, Banaras (November 2007).
It is seemingly asserted that in 1926 a period marked by increasing
communal riots between Hindus and Muslims in West Bengal early members
of the movement offered food to people independently of their confession
and that a great number of Muslims participated in these bhog offerings
(Chakravarty 1992: 232).
28
The description comes from the authors participation in this ceremony on
2 February 2007 in Kolkata.
29
These two rituals suggest that the guru is considered as the ruler of all
realms both as a king and a personification of the deity, an association that has
always been accepted by the masses in India (Gonda 1956: 36).
26
27

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Raphal Voix

Paradoxically, through its sharp criticism of electoral politics,

the BSS has gained great respect from the political elite. Politicians
from all parties and at all levels from the national to the local
have been flaunting themselves at the BSS and have paid tribute to the social work it has organised.30 Even the members of
the Communist Party of IndiaMarxist (CPI-M), a party that the
Sangh Parivar consider to be its strongest opponent, praise the
BSSs social work by stressing its non-political and non-communal
stand. In the address he gave at the Annual Celebration Day of BSS
in New Delhi on 24 October 2008, Somnath Chatterjee, House
Speaker (ex-CPI-M), declared how inspiring the BSSs commitment
to secularism and national integration was. He presented the BSS
as one of (Indias) greatest socio-religious organizations which
propagates the great human values of fraternity, tolerance and inclusiveness in a growing communally polarised environment. He
called upon the BSS to remain a secularist force within India. The
BSSs commitment to secularism, national unity and harmonious
co-existence is more important than ever. Moreover, Chatterjee
presented the Bengali group as being a potential actor in the struggle
against Hindutva in the state. While some groups work to try to
create a chasm between different religious groups, BSS has always
remained concerned about Secularism and National Integration, he
says.31 Through this comparison, he clearly distinguished between
the BSS and the Sangh Parivars associations, and showed that he
has established his own distinction between the two movements as
put forward by the BSSs renouncers.
To a large extent, by strategically avoiding making any political
claim but also by refraining itself, unlike the RSSBJP combined,
from targeting the communists as anti-Hindus, the BSS has been
able to curry political support from a state government known

A tribute that the BSS proudly displays. At its headquarters are photos of
politicians presenting awards to the BSS. Among the latter are national leaders
from the Congress (Dr Rajendra Prasad, Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Atulya Ghosh,
Zail Singh) as well as from the BJP (Atal Bihari Vajpayee, L. K. Advani, Narendra
Modi, Arjun Munda). For an online version of some of these photographs see
http://www.bsstoronto.org/press.htm/, accessed 7 April 2009.
31
Extracts from the address he gave at the BSS Annual Celebration Day in
New Delhi on 24 October 2008. See http://speakerloksabha.nic.in/Speech/
SpeechDetails.asp?SpeechId=283/, accessed 12 April 2009.
30

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 225

for the rigorous secularism of its politics (Chatterjee 2004: 121;

Jaffrelot 1992: 44).32 Every year, the BSS receives large public donations from the West Bengal government and the same amount
from public charities, a privilege that Sangh Parivar Hindu groups
or any politically motivated in the traditional sense parties
do not benefit from.33 The Indian administration has also granted
the BSS the statutory registrations that exempts it from tax on the
donations it receives and authorises it to receive foreign funds.34
Moreover, state agencies collaborate regularly with the BSS. The
West Bengal State Health Department often subcontracts the BSS
to run health schemes in remote areas.35 As declared by a Bengali
administration high-ranking official, the police administration
works hand in hand with the BSS to control the masses at pilgrimage sites during religious fairs. In Gangasagar, where over 35 local
organisations, associations or committees (samiti, sangha, club)
ensure maintenance of the site, the BSS has the most important role
after the state government. While West Bengal government erects
pilgrim shelters for free accommodation, the BSS ashrams lodge
thousands of pilgrims and its volunteers help control the crowd.
More importantly, the West Bengal government feels that the BSSs
nationalist ideology does not interfere too much with its relief
See Lefts Culture is Only Maligning Hindus, The Indian Express, 21
May 2005. Needless to say, this official position did not prevent disciples
from the two groups from entertaining personal links with Sangh Parivar
organisations or personalities (Copley 2003: 32).
33
The BSSs main source of funding comes from donations from devotees and
public foundations (>$3 millions) but it also receives a large financial support
from the state authorities (>$800,000) (Sangha 2005: 30). Although the BSS
is not the only Hindu organisation to receive public donations, if it were to
have the slightest political agenda or communal agenda, it would not enjoy
such support: in West Bengal, the RSS and VHP organisations do not receive
any government donations because of their political stand (interview with Dr
Alapan Bandhyopadhyaya [CPI-M], Municipal Commissioner of Calcutta
Municipal Corporation, Kolkata (January 2007).
34
See the dispensation under Section 35AC of the Income Tax Act.
35
The State Health Department has, for example, decided to extend the
services of five NGOs, among which is are the Bharat Seva Ashram, to a project on Mobile Health Care Services. This would provide basic healthcare
services, including the supply of medicines, in remote areas of the Sunderbans.
See Healthcare Project Extended in Mangrove Land, The Statesman, 21
January 2005.
32

226

Raphal Voix

work.36 It also considers the group as playing an important role in

the public life of Bengal.37
While BSS leaders publicly insist on their secular stand, the
government administration uses their rhetoric to appoint them as
agents of neighbourliness. For example, in some cases, the West
Bengal State Government has made use of the BSS to promote
communal harmony in the states communally sensitive areas. In
Beldanga, Murshidabad district (West Bengal), the Hindu cult to
the Goddess of knowledge (sarasvat puja) had been an occasion
for regular communal conflict. Pradiptananda, head of the BSSs
local ashram, explains that these conflicts were caused by drunken
Hindu youths who used to interrupt the Muslims religious practices during the immersion ceremony. To prevent any violence, the
West Bengal government devised a set of rules and asked the BSS
to ensure that they are properly implemented. The BSS thereby
ordered Hindu residents in Beldanga to handover their divine images
a few days before the actual immersion ceremony. In exchange it
organised, supervised and bore the cost of the procession for the
latter. Thousands of locals participated, accompanied by groups of
musicians and decorated rickshaw-vans carrying their divine
images; the immersion ceremony took place in a lake next to the
BSS temple. The BSS authorities invited both Hindu and Muslim
children to participate and perform (dance, theatre) as part of a cultural programme inside the BSS temple. According to Pradiptananda,
all this went towards both restoring (Hindu) cultural values and
ensuring the peaceful co-existence of different religions. It has
since then been put forward as a fair example of communal
harmony.38
The role imputed to the BSS by the West Bengal government
is, in fact, paradoxical when one looks at how the BSSs position
converges with that of the Sangh Parivar, yet even more so when
we look at the BSSs discreet partnership with the Sangh Parivar in
other Indian states.
Interview with Dr Alapan Bandhyopadhyaya (CPI-M), Municipal Commissioner, Calcutta Municipal Corporation who supervised the work of the BSS in
Gangasagar for nine consecutive years, first as Additional District Magistrate
(19952000) and then as District Magistrate (20002004).
37
BSS monks take full part in Bengals public life. See, for example, Crusader
with a Heart of Gold, The Statesman, 31 July 2005.
38
The Statesman, Kolkata, 7 February 2004.
36

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 227

Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy

Founded in the 1920s in the context of the broader sangathana
movement, the BSS has a lot in common with other Hindu militant groups that emerged at the same period in terms of practices
as well as in terms of rhetoric. Among these, we find some of the
leading themes of the 1920s Hindu resurgence: activities boosting
martial fervour, militant expansion of religious festivals and integration of lower-caste groups into the Hindu fold (Gooptu 2001:
230). Influenced by the caste consolidation programmes launched
chiefly under the Hindu Sabha and Hindu Mahasabha, the BSS tries
to convert low castes and tribes to Hinduism in order to achieve
greater Hindu cohesion and unity.
Within the BSS, martial fervour is propagated through Hindu
manliness. The groups maxim (san. gha van. ) which all disciples
know by heart and display on placards when making public demonstrations at religious fairs celebrates qualities such as heroism, virility and manliness. Though it was written in the mid-1920s,
these different qualities perfectly reflect some of the qualities put
forth by VHP today.39 This cult of strength can also be seen in
the groups various rituals. In the BSS, any puja whether the
daily puja to the guru or the annual puja to Durga includes a
cult to weapons. Monks perform a frenetic dance (dhunici) while
brandishing weapons a trident (trisula), sword (khad.ga) or discus
(cakra) accompanied by the sound of drums (dhak) and ritual
hymns. However, worshipping physical strength is not limited to
the ritual sphere. Proclaiming the need for the Hindu community
to master self-defence, the BSS has developed an important programme of martial arts and physical education. It has built fully
equipped modern gymnasiums next to almost every ashram, where
any Hindu male adult can come and practise body-building on
modern machines; it also offers courses on stick-fighting (la.thikhela) for young boys.40 All practitioners form what the BSS calls
See for example, the new organisation initiated by the VHP and in which
BSS participates called Hindu Solidarity (hindu sam
. hati). The motto of this
conference is courage (sahasa), strength (sakti) and action (sakriata), three
qualities that we find in the BSSs 10 divine messages. http://hindusamhati.
blogspot.com/, accessed 7 May 2009.
40
The ashrams claim to run 76 centres with fully equipped gymnasia and
55 temples where stick fighting is performed.
39

228

Raphal Voix

the defence committee (raks.a dal), a group of Hindu men ready

to protect the Hindu community in case of danger (Ashokananda
1995). Hindu power expresses itself through a physically fit culture, inverting the 19th-century British officials stereotype about
Bengali Hindus being cowards and physically weak (Rosselli 1980:
12123). Like the wrestlers akhara in north India, these gymnasiums
provide a social environment where a moral masculine Hindu
culture can be disseminated among male village and neighbourhood communities. With as its basic values, celibacy for unmarried
young men (or chastity for married men) and vegetarianism, this
culture is struggling against the popular hedonism of modern life
(Alter 1994b).
The BSSs militant agenda is particularly perceptible during its
religious festivals. The BSS has transformed them into militant
gatherings called great assemblies of Hindu Religion and Culture
(Hindu dharma sam
. skr. ti sammelan). In Banaras, for example, it
turned the Durga Puja into an exceptional Nation-building ritual.41
Not only does its celebration represent one of the citys oldest and
largest public puja (sarvajan na) both in terms of the number of
people involved and the size of the goddesss image but it is the
only one that carries such militant emphasis.42 Besides the actual
ritual of worship, the BSS organises a great number of public activities. Bringing the goddesss image to its place of worship (pujalaya)
on the Mahasaptam the great seventh day of navaratra and
bringing it to the riverbank (ghata) for immersion on the 10th
day (dasam ) are both occasions for impressive and colourful
processions.43 On these occasions, the gendered roles of Hindu
nationalism are enacted: one can find the figures of the Warrior
The description comes from the BSS celebration of Durga Puja in Banaras
in October 2007. The quotations are from an excerpt from Hindi and Bengali
leaflets distributed to the crowd on that occasion. Let us note that, on the
contrary, the BSS celebrations of Durga Puja in Kolkata are not accompanied
by five days of conferences and are carried out with deepest sanctity (Chalila
and Gupta 2005: 332).
42
This celebration has been taking place since 1936, and the BSS claims to have
first introduced this Bengali religious festival in the Hindustani city. Though this
claim does not stand as historical proof, the BSS certainly holds one of the oldest
public puja (sarvajan na). See Rodrigues (2003: 2122, 321, n. 51) and Kumar
(1988: 218).
43
In classical iconography, it consists of Durga atop her lion engaged in
the act of slaying the buffalo demon Mahisa. She is represented as flanked by
the four divinities identified as her children: Ganesa and Laksm on her right,
41

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 229

Monks leading the procession followed by Hindu Soldiers and

Chaste Wives (Banerjee 2005). Head-renouncers riding elephants,
camels and horses and brandishing weapons are followed by an
army of renouncers holding sticks (la thi). Then come boy-troops
wearing military outfits (stick fighting, sword, etc.) followed by
thousands of lay devotees mostly women and children
distributing leaflets and invitations to a conference to people
standing on both sides of the streets. This impressive procession
not only asserts the groups presence in the city but also publicly
announces the abduction of the religious ceremony for a militant
reunion. Not only do the protagonists seem to defend the nation,
but they look as if they are the nation. It is well-known that this
kind of symbolic activity in the public space has played a significant role in constructing communalism in colonial northern
India (Freitag 1989).
The climax of the BSSs Durga Pujas celebration in Banaras takes
place at the organisations headquarters when its Hindu defence
committee makes a theatrical demonstration of a riot.44 It starts with
a tussle between two boys, one dressed in blue and one in a white
loincloth (dhoti). After a few minutes, two other boys join in with
the first one to overpower the second in a very violent manner: they
strangle him with two sticks, seize him between them and throw
him to the floor; then stamp on his face and body. Other boys join in
and yell victory, holding the victim in the air. They leave the stage,
the victim acting as if half-dead, alone, lying in the middle of the
stage. Then along comes Budhananda, a renouncer and secretarygeneral to the organisation. Armed with a large sword, he starts
dancing around the boy in exaltation, holding his arm high and
spinning around as if possessed. Suddenly, while the drum beat gets
faster, he strikes a heavy blow to the boys stomach: his body starts
shaking and blood runs from it. Budhananda resumes his dancing,
his sword held high in the air and shouts victory. In the meantime,
helpers bring the victims body directly to the nearby medical unit.
More than a simple demonstration of martial ability, this ritual
clearly displays the BSSs trained youths physical capacity in
Karttikeya and Sarasvat on her left. This complex image is typically Bengali. It
is made of a single unit, called kahamo topped with a decorated arch (chala). In
the non-Bengali image each divinity is made up of a different unit.
44
This celebration takes place on Mahanavam , the last night before the immersion of the icon. On this day the ashram sees the greatest coming together
of people because Durga is believed to be fully manifested within the clay image
and thus completely accessible to her devotees.

230

Raphal Voix

communal fights. The whole ritual can be understood as a ritual of

provocation. During its proceedings, a renouncer explains over the
microphone to the crowd that the ritual reminds Hindus that
worship is not only giving incense, flowers, bilva leaves, or crying
before the Goddess but that the main aim of Durgas worship is to
achieve victory and kill the enemy. Only such worship of strength
(Saktipuja) according to Pranavanandas ideal is able to
destroy Demon Power. The cult of the Mother Goddess is seen here
as a symbol of martial strength and prowess. Beyond any spiritual
vigour, it is the idea of a muscular and martial Hinduism that is
put to the fore. By converting this religious metaphor into a riot
between two gangs of young Indians, the BSS seems to acknowledge
that the enemy lies within the nation and should be conquered
by brute force. Though mention is never made of Muslims or
Christians, all these allusions suggest that it is the non-Hindus who are
the real enemy. In fact, the strength of the scene lies in its ambiguity.
Although it is mere play-acting, it involves a real mastery of group
violence, and the apparent violent frenzy makes it differ totally
from the usual martial ability displayed by the young man in the
group.45 In fact, the audience had been warned that it was for real
and that it could cause injury involving the shedding of blood. By
this play-acting, not only does the BSSs defence committee show
their perfect mastery of stick fighting, but they display their ability
to undertake violent collective action in the event of riots. In the
knowledge that when the disciple undertakes initiation he makes
the pledge to protest against () any injustice done to any Hindu,
even at the cost of (his) life, this demonstration implicitly affirms
the readiness of youths trained by the BSS to participate in rioting
if the situation so requires.46 The same inferred political symbolism
is again used the following day.
At the immersion ceremonywhich takes place on
Dasasvamedhaghata, the citys most popular central riverbank site
(ghat.a) the BSS renouncers deliver discourses with a heavy militant undertone to the thousands of people attending the ceremony.
When they display their ability, all the participants greet each other by
tapping the others hand before and after the combat. It is not allowed to hit
the feet, and hits are exchanged with precision as if respecting a pre-planned
choreography.
46
Let us note that, traditionally, the violence means that the Goddess must
be fed with blood from a sacrificial victim, usually a goat, which is nothing like
an enemy (Togawa 2006: 138).
45

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 231

Using the typical discourse on security that offered the forces of

Hindutva as a tool to legitimise violence as non-violence (Anand 2005),
Jivatmananda, a BSS renouncer calls upon Hindus to be strong and
to cultivate their power to resist Christians and Muslims.47 Referring
directly to the Ramjanmabhumi issue for which the BSS shared a
common platform with the BJP (Shah 2001: 252), he underlines the
threat made to Hindus religious sites.48 Providing a nationalist interpretation of the worship of the Mother Goddess, Jivatmananda
assimilates the goddess Durga with the Hindu nation. The clay image represents Durgas embodiment as the nation and its class (varn. a)
system: Sarasvat , the goddess of learning, is said to represent the
brahmanas; Karttikeya, the god of war, represents the ks. atriyas;
Laks. m , the goddess of wealth and good fortune represents the
vaisya class and its specific power (dhara); and Ganesa, the Lord
of Obstacles who is propitiated before laborious undertakings, represents the s udras or what he calls the common people. Durga
integrates all these varn.as, providing a balanced and harmonious
image of nationhood.49
While the BSS policy is to remain separate from the Sangh Parivar,
leaders of both groups do, in fact, maintain cordial relations with
each other. Top-ranking leaders of the Sangh Parivar, including

It must be recalled that the denegation of violence, from which this discourse
proceeds, is deep-rooted in the Hindu tradition. Extreme acts of violence
committed in specific contexts or by legitimated actors are not considered as
violence. Such is the case of the Brahmin in the sacrificial context (Biardeau
2003), the king or the avatara in the context of preserving dharma (ClmentinOjha 2003) or even the ascetic while combating (Bouillier 2003). For an overall
perspective on violence and non-violence in India see Vidal et al. (eds) 2003.
48
We (the ascetics) travelled from village to village and we saw a decline
of Hindus. () We hundreds crores of Hindus, our Gods do not have their
houses, they had to leave their houses. What is the reason for this? This is an
example of our cowardliness! There is need for unity to set up our Gods at
their rightful place! India today is ruled by demons. Though it is not specified
whom the word demons designates, this sentence provokes a great amount of
applause within the crowd and ululu from women. It could be either reference
to political corruption or to low castes accessing power.
49
See also the BSSs Durga Pujas leaflet: The mission (neibeda) of the worship
of the goddess is to assemble (milan) and unite (lit. the bonding of a community)
(sanghabandhata) millions of Hindus (koi koi). The brochure also affirms that
the real form of the Goddess is Hindu society. Millions of Hindus will wake
up and unify that is the symbol of the waking (bodhana) of the Goddess.
47

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Raphal Voix

former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, are regular visitor to

the BSSs ashrams, while the BSSs renouncers often attend RSS
functions.50 As Vidyananda explains, it is a matter of cordiality: we
know what each other does and invite each other to our respective
celebrations. Although he acknowledges the differences between
the BSS and RSS, he also emphasises their unity. We are Hindu
brothers (Hindu bha ): although we are different, we share many
ideas, we find each other in different places and we respect each
others work, we are both Hindus. Both groups attend common
conferences and Svastika, the RSSs Bengali weekly publication, is
available in all the BSSs ashrams and schools.51 However, in some
cases, cordial relations lead to close collaboration between the
RSSVHP and BSS. Not only does this occur occasionally, usually
in times of natural disasters, for relief work purposes,52 but it also
happens on a regular basis in a few BSS infrastructures within
which Sangh Parivar agents operate. RSS training (sakha) units and
VHP programmes for conversion (parivartana) to Hinduism have
allegedly been seen to operate in BSS temples or BSS schools at
various places around India and abroad.53 In both cases, on behalf of
the BSS administration, the renouncers in charge deny such links.54
These common meetings are not secret as evidenced by the presence of
BSS monks at Golwalkars birth centenary celebrations organised by the BSS
in 2006 with their chief, K. S. Sudarshan. See, for example, RSS Chief Calls to
Foil Evil Designs of Maoists, The Hindustan Times, 23 April 2007.
51
For the online version of Svastika, http://www.eswastika.com/, accessed 4
June 2009.
52
In 2005, during relief work in the tsunami-affected areas, the Seva Bharati,
the RSS mission, announced that the BSS was working under its coordination:
thus, the BSS appeared to be part of the Sangh Parivar. Official website of the
RSS, accessed January 2009.
53
To my knowledge, at least, two BSS schools or temples serve as training
centres for the RSS: in India, the high school run by the Bharat Sevashram Sangh
in Diamond Harbour (South 24 Parganas, West Bengal) and in the USA, the
Minnesota Hindu Milan Mandir (Eagan, Minnesota) through the RSSs
American branch (American Branch-H.S.S.). The Pluralism Project at Harvard
University [www.pluralism.org] shows us the history and activities of the
ashram. Concerning the VHPs conversion programme see Conversion Yagna
with Sangh Blessings, The Telegraph, 23 August 2002.
54
Jivananda, the head of the ashram, denies the implication of its organisation
in this conversion, saying he hosted it at the VHPs request, but did not organise
it. VHP Reconversion Drive in West Bengal, The Hindustan Times, 23
August 2002. Information concerning the RSS branch working inside BSS places
has been taken from a discussion with Purnananda, Kolkata, February 2007.
50

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 233

They emphasise the BSSs independence and claim that any link
is only the consequence of cordial relations between the BSS and
Sangh Parivar. According to these representatives, the BSS merely
provides the VHP with a place from where it can undertake action,
but in no way can it be held responsible for the acts committed by
the VHP on its premises. In this sense, the BSSs militancy is not
explicit, but constantly suggested and denied.
It is only at the local level and, more particularly, in the proSangh Parivar states that any mutual cooperation is acknowledged.
A few cases of overlapping membership between the RSS and BSS
exist, as well as some witness accounts of converting to Hinduism
in exchange for a free education at BSS schools. But in pro-Sangh
Parivar states, the BSS renouncers openly assert their partnership
with Sangh Parivar. In Gujarat, where the BSS has been active since
the 1970s,55 only after the rise of the BJP in the state and its accession to power in 1995 has the organisation stood firmly on the side
of the Sangh Parivar. Reports say that during the 1991 House of
the People (Lok Sabha) and the 1995 Assembly elections its leaders
issued a public appeal to Hindus to vote for the BJP, a party that they
claimed works to protect their interest (Shah 2004: 252). Later, in
2004, the BSS directly associated itself with the VHP to transform the
yearly processions celebrating the birth of Kr.s.n.a (Kr.s.n.a janmas..tam )
into a national security promotional venue. Ganeshananda, secretary of the BSS ashram in Ahmedabad, together with Ashwin
Patel, the VHPs city secretary, explained in a joint press conference
that their newly created alliance the BSS had been organising this
celebration since 1979 separately from the VHP was necessary
because the country and the (Hindu) religion (was) under threat
from all quarters. The two organisations decided to unite and
pay homage not to Kr.s.n.a the child (balakr.s.n.a) nor to Kr.s.n.a the
cowherd who plays the flute (Kr.s.n.a gopala), but to Kr.s.n.a the
avatara: the fighter (sudarsana cakradhar ) who, armed with his disc,
fought people who were against dharma. This, they argued, would
inspire people to fight elements that are against (Hindu) religion
and (India). By portraying Krishna not as a bonny baby in a cradle
but as a tough guy wielding the powerful sudars ana cakra, they

It owns a popular ashram in the state capital, Ahmedabad, an average high

school with a boys dormitory, medical clinic, mobile units and guesthouse.
It became known for its relief work during the Gujarat earthquake.
55

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clearly militated for an offensive Hinduism and the procession

clearly illustrated the union between the two organisations: it left
the BSS office in direction of the VHP office and returned to the
BSS office by evening. Moreover, Narendra Modi then Gujarat
chief minister known for his firm pro-Hindutva stand himself
headed the whole procession. In some cases, the BSS seemed to
approve the Sangh Parivars communal rhetoric and even some
of the communal clashes it led to. During a joint press conference
with the VHP in Gujarat, the BSSs Gujarat secretary denounced
the central governments decision to set up a high-level panel to
probe the Godhra train carnage which triggered riots between
Hindus and Muslims in Gujarat, as being a politically-motivated
move. He accused the central government of going after Hindus.
This declaration, in fact, seems to contradict the BSSs official
stand of non-political involvement as well as its condemnation of
any communal clashes.56 Similarly, when at the end of the Kr.s.n.a
janmas. t. am procession, the BSS offered an idol of the god
Kr.s.n.a, armed as in its warrior image (sudars an cakradhar ), to
Narendra Modi, it may be interpreted as a pledge of allegiance to
the controversial Gujarat chief minister and principal politician
responsible for the clashes.

Conclusion
This article has shown that while provocative speeches hinting at
an unspecified enemy may appear to have brought the BSS close
to HindiHindu nationalism, they have also been an attempt to
promote a Bengali, linguistic and regional variety of muscular
Hinduism, drawing on the early 20th centurys political project
of recovery of physical prowess. Very much rooted in the Bengali
setting and culture in which it was born, this militant form of
Hinduism has been able to gather a large following in West Bengal
not only through organised social services but also through a wellplanned organisation of major pilgrimage sites for Hindu Bengalis.
Moreover, through its policy of non-involvement in electoral politics it has avoided controversies and has gained financial support
from national and state authorities. It nowadays holds the rank
of one of the most celebrated Hindu institutions for the modern
Bengali elite.
Macho Krishna to Boost VHP Image!, The Times of India, Ahmedabad,
3 September 2004.
56

Social Services, Muscular Hinduism and Implicit Militancy 235

BSSs misgivings about its place within the Sangh Parivar enables
it to play a pivotal role in the entrenchment of Hindutva in West
Bengal. Being independent in terms of organisation, finance and
membership, it follows its own institutional logic and sets itself
aside from Sangh Parivar organisations. Thus, in some cases it can
be seen as the latters main competitor. In West Bengal it has, in
fact, been able to occupy the public space that neither the RSS
nor the VHP have been able to occupy despite their many efforts
to penetrate the state. However, when necessary, it does in fact
negotiate a partnership with these same organisations. In other
contexts, the BSS can be seen to collaborate actively with them, although always implicitly: as we can see, the dividing line between selfprotection and active organisation of rioting is not always clear.
By never openly committing itself to violence, by denying any link
with the Sangh Parivar and keeping its militant tendency in its
implicit form, quite paradoxically, the BSS has been able to gain wide
support in West Bengal, while at the same time partly promoting an
ideology that the state government has always vehemently rejected.
It nowadays serves as a vital mediator between the government and
the Sangh Parivars Hindu core groups. Depending on the party in
power, it can be seen and/or utilised either to promote Hindutva or
to resist it. This demonstrates the decisive role of the political will
to promote or obstruct Hindutva entrenchment in India or not.

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