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Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)

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  • First Online:
Hinduism and Tribal Religions

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Indian Religions ((EIR))

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Definition

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is an all-India, cadre-based Hindu cultural organization which along with the Sangh Parivar (organizational family) has a significant presence in Indian society and politics.

Inception, Ideological Moorings, and Semiotics

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS-Association of National Volunteers) was set up in 1925 in the context of Hindu revivalism that gained currency in India in the early part of the twentieth century. Hindu revivalism included resurrecting the contributions of the ancient Hindu civilization and that of Hindu rulers through a “Kshatriya (warrior) worldview” [1]. The emphasis on a “martial tradition” led to the RSS earning the sobriquet of a “paramilitary” organization most often symbolized in the akharas (gymnasiums) that were an essential part of training the swayamsevaks(as members of the RSS were called). Historically the rise of Hindu revivalism was co-terminus with and therefore became interminably linked with...

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References

  1. Anderson WK, Damle SD (1987) The brotherhood in Saffron the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Hindu revivalism. Vistaar Publications, New Delhi

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  2. Jaffrelot C (ed) (2005) The Sangh Parivar a reader. Oxford University Press, New Delhi

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  3. Kanungo P (2002) RSS’S tryst with politics from Hedgewar to Sudarshan. Manohar, New Delhi

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Political Science, Motilal Nehru College, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India

    Radhika Kumar

Authors
  1. Radhika Kumar
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept of Anthropology, The University of North Texas Dept of Anthropology, Denton, Texas, USA

    Pankaj Jain

  2. The Graduate Theological Union , Berkeley, California, USA

    Rita Sherma

  3. Jamia Millia Islamia, Centre for the Study of Comparative Reli Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India

    Madhu Khanna

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Kumar, R. (2018). Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). In: Jain, P., Sherma, R., Khanna, M. (eds) Hinduism and Tribal Religions. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_368-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_368-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Religion and PhilosophyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Humanities

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