A Hindu approach to economy and society based on the principles of Dharma is the only way to replace Capitalism and Communism as both the ideologies have become futile, said Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideologue Dattopant Thengadi in his book ‘Third Way’. He envisioned a value-based society and an economy which thrived on self-employment, free competition, equality, and promoted complete harmony between the individual, the society and nature.
The book was first published in 1995, and then republished in 2023 by Sahitya Sindhu Prakashana. Thengadi, who founded Swadeshi Jagaran Manch, Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh and Bhartiya Kisan Sangh, studied the two dominating economic ideologies- Capitalism and Communism-and came to a conclusion that the world needs a third way which could emerge from India.
“A Hindu approach to economy and society is the only way to save humanity”, wrote Thengadi. He visualised a society which maintains a fine balance between material and non-material needs. It “is neither rooted in the individualistic ethos of capitalism nor in the collectivist thinking of communism,” he added.
“The process of disillusionment started after the October 1987 crash in the capitalist camp and publication of ‘Perestorika’ in the communist world. Hindu economics appearing on the scene at this critical juncture boldly pledged to fill the vacuum and indicate the Third way which may ultimately be recognised as the only way,” he explained in the book. “We have deep faith in the efficacy of our own culture in solving problems of humanity in different spheres. Today it may appear to be preposterous to claim that the Hindu culture can furnish remedies for all human maladies. But with all modesty it can certainly be claimed that this culture is quite capable of curing national maladies,” he observed in the book.
Thengadi’s Hindu economic system is based on the rules laid down in Hindu religious scriptures such as Shastras and Smritis. Describing the Hindu model of progress and development, he said that “self-employment” is one of its main features in contrast to “wage-employment” propounded in the Western economic ideology. It is not possible to provide government jobs to such a huge magnitude of the people entering the workforce. Therefore, the idea is to have an “ever-growing self-employment sector” as opposed to “the ever-increasing army of the proletariat” seen in the western economic approach.
Hindu economic ideology favours “free competition without manipulated markets where the “nature is milked not raped” and where “movement is towards equitability and equality.” It promotes “complete harmony between the individual, the society and the nature”. On the other hand, the western approach causes “ever-widening disparities in the society” and “constant conflict between the individual, the society and nature”.
To conceive or appreciate anything essentially Hindu, it is necessary to go beyond the present mental and intellectual framework to de-westernise one’s approach and thinking, he said. Thengadi was of the opinion that we should not imitate Western ideas blindly and not mistake Westernisation for modernisation. “Westernisation is not modernisation,” he declared in the book. “We don’t subscribe to the view that western paradigm is the universal model of progress and development. We don’t think modernisation is westernisation,” he said.
Thengadi who propounded Swadeshi Economics had said that Swadeshi concerns itself not only with goods or services. It concerns the spirit determined to achieve national self-reliance, preservation of national sovereignty and independence, and international co-operation on equal footing. “Swadeshi is the outward, practical manifestation of patriotism. Patriotism is not considered as isolationism..Patriots are not against internationalism. Their plea for national self-reliance is not incompatible with international cooperation, provided the latter is on equal footing..” Unemployment must be tackled on a war footing, he said.
“While industrialisation is a must, it need not be the blind imitation of the West. Nature is to be milked and not killed. Ecological factors, balance of nature and the requirements of the future generations should never be lost sight of. Greater stress should be laid on the labour-intensive rather than the capital-intensive industries,” he explained. He further suggested that reasonably adaptable changes should be made in the traditional techniques of production without incurring the risk of increase in employment. The focus should be on decentralisation of the processes of production with the help of power, making home, instead of factory, the centre of production, he added.
Thengadi further said that the labour of every worker should be evaluated in terms of share, and workers raised to the status of shareholders contributing labour as their share. Addressing the “growing scepticism among humanitarian scientists about the desirability of unrestrained and unguided advance of science and technology”, he warned that excellence in science was no guarantee for humanitarian concern for world welfare.
To deal with the threat, he made a strong suggestion to focus on the ‘technical know-how’ which could tell us what purposes were worth being achieved. “There should be a Technical Ombudsman comprising cultured men known for humanitarianism to control, guide and direct the work of scientists and technologists,” he added.
As part of the third way, he proposed Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya’s concept of Janapada – an integrated form of government which would be unicentral but vested with minimum powers. There would be widest possible decentralisation of power to the lowest units through the Janapadas which comprised areas with common local characteristics, he wrote.
He further said that Shri Guruji, the second chief mentor (Sarsanghchalak) of the RSS, was firmly of the view that elections to the lowest primary units must be unanimous; unless there was unanimity there should be no elections. Another important suggestion was regarding functional representation. Occupation wise organisation must be expedited, for successful introduction of the principle of functional representation. As many traditional trades became obsolete or uneconomical and new trades came into being, it resulted in breakdown of the traditional caste-system, though casteism grew stronger for political reasons.
Thengadi was of the view that “the political party acts as a barrier between the people and the elected representatives”. He said that the political party whose directives do not contain what the people desire is an obstacle to direct democracy. “While elected representatives do not necessarily represent the wishes of the majority of the constituency, they are capable of great mischief if the general electorate is less educated and not so aware of its responsibilities…After being elected the representatives are to act on the directives of their respective political parties and there is no guarantee that the directives will reflect the wishes of the majority of the people in their respective constituencies…” he explained giving example of the Emergency when the elected representatives came together and conspired against the people who elected them.
A good constitution does not always guarantee good citizens, Thengadi said. Giving examples of the US and China, he said, “There is now in the West a growing awareness of the important role of socio-cultural and religious institutions as a factor in economic growth. After 1979, this realisation dawned upon China also. Her leaders then resolved to inaugurate an era of spiritual civilisation maintaining their drive for material progress but without materialistic philosophy. They came to experience that when people do not cherish and uphold spiritual values, they become capable of possessing national character, integrity, self-discipline and dutifulness.” National integration should therefore start with the moulding of man. “Such an integrated approach is the speciality of Hindu thinking. Hindus always felt that education, ecology, economics and ethics, among other things, must be taken into consideration in an integrated manner.” The only starting point of our national reconstruction, according to Thengadi, could be the regeneration and rejuvenation of Hindu culture and Sanatana Dharma. The book is a must read for those who want to delve deeper into Hindu thought on economics, governance and structure of the society in detail.
(The writer is a senior business journalist and has covered business and economics in India for more than two decades)