Honesty is the key to success in life: Baba Ramdev

Shashank Verma

New Delhi: The past 67 years have not only changed the face of our Indian society but also affected the mindset of people. Society may have rapidly ‘developed’ but the thought and conduct at large has changed for the worst since independence. Morals values and respect for others has been sidelined and people care only for their own selfish motives. On Bharat Bhagya Vidhata’s show — Nishane Pe — Baba Ramdev, a spiritual leader known for his contributions in the field of yoga, ayurveda, politics and agriculture, said, “An unaware country becomes history.” He shared his concern over the declining moral values in the society and suggested ways to stem the rot. Ashutosh Rana, host of the show, began by questioning him about the reason for this decay? Ramdev replied, "When there is a question mark on the entity of the people in power and religious gurus are being accused of sexual assault, then what will be the effect on general public? We should lead a truthful life, only then we can succeed." "Education system should be changed. Respect for the gurus is diminishing day by day and the conduct of individuals has also degenerated. We can construct roads, bungalows but we can`t ‘build’ a good human being — there is a need for improvement in the overall educational system so knowledge can help inculcate better values. We should shun western influences. Sanyasis (ascetics) should avoid luxuries", said Ramdev when asked about the declining conduct in society. Then why does a sanyasi require an X/Y/Z-category-security and ‘blackcat’ commandos to protect him? "When the question of conflict arises, then you need protection. Anyone who clashes with the authorities needs security, because whoever raised their voice for the change was overthrown. In the past, Swami Dayanand Saraswati was poisoned seventeen times," he said. Countering his critics, Ramdev said, “Why wasn’t a question raised about my work in the past 20 years? I have been working for over 20 years now, why wasn’t I at fault then? We only demanded recovery of black money and implementation of Lokpal so inflation and poverty could be lowered. I wouldn`t have raised my voice if I was wrong. I never opposed the investigation. Also we raised money for ashram by organising shivirs and donation given by ordinary people.” When asked about what he thought was the solution to the current degeneration of society, he summed up saying, “According to me, wherever we may be, we must treat our work as religion. Three things can help our society improve— firstly, each person should be optimistic, committed and fully aware; secondly, consideration for others and high consciousness; and thirdly, struggle for regeneration.” (The show airs on Friday @ 10pm)