Integral humanism
Encyclopedia
Integral humanism is the political philosophy
practised by the Bharatiya Janata Party
and the former Bharatiya Jana Sangh
of India
. It was first propounded by Deendayal Upadhyaya
in a brief volume entitled Integral Humanism in 1965, attempting to find a "third path" rejecting both communism
and capitalism
, centered on "swadeshi and decentralization
". It is espoused by most Hindutva
organizations.
political philosophies are not acceptable as a blueprint for society because of their "preoccupation" with materialism
, and their overlooking of the social wellbeing of the individual. He saw both capitalism
and socialism
as essentially flawed – stimulating as they do greed, class antagonisms, exploitation and social anarchy.
His proposal was an "integral" approach that attempts to create a harmonious society. This could be done, he argued, by satisfying the needs of the body (hunger, shelter), the mind (traditions), intelligence (reforms), and the soul (common aspirations of a people that shape their unique culture).
Upadhyaya said that each nation creates institutions to satisfy needs, and these must be reshaped so that group solidarity can be sustained and maintained under changing circumstances. He argues that Indian tradition builds on the social nature of people and obliges them to create institutions meant to enhance social solidarity. Advaita vedanta
, or the principle of recognising ourselves in all life, is seen as the philosophic underpinning of this view.
As per Gandhi's view on integral humanism, he believed that religion must be at the center of humanity's work. He believed that religion must guide man's every activity. Gandhi stated a list of sins which can be said to indicate the fundamentals of integral humanism:
*list of sins
Politics without Principles.
Wealth without work.
Commerce without Morality.
Knowledge without Character.
Pleasure without Conscience.
Science without humanity.
Worship without sacrifice.
(2003–2008), anyone seeking primary membership of the party has to pledge that he or she "believe in Integral Humanism which is the basic philosophy of [the party]", apart from also pledging commitment to nationalism
, national integration, democracy
, Gandhian Socialism
, positive secularism
and value-based politics, among other issues.
(BJP) adopted Gandhian socialism
rather than the Deendayal Upadhyaya
-crafted principles of integral humanism, as the party's statement of first principles. But the BJP gave an honoured place to Upadhyaya's ideological statement as well.
At its July 1985 national executive session however, integral humanism once again replaced Gandhian socialism as the BJP's philosophy. But the party's economic policy remained the same substantially.
Integral Humanism is perhaps as old as Indian civilization. However, Integral Humanism was formalized into a nationalistic political approach by Shri. Deen Dayal Upadhyay in mid 1960s. This was surprising as it completely ignored knowledge and ideas (e.g. spontaneous order, transactions costs, role of technology, moral hazard, adverse selection, cost of culture, theory of economic growth, property rights, risk management) that were proven by mid 1960s.
The other criticism of Integral Humanism is that it dismisses socialism, communism, capitalism and individualism as western fads and that they will not work in India. The main problem with this claim is that it does not provide a consistent logical or fact based argument against any of these approaches. Regarding individualism it completely ignores the fact that India had already accepted individualism in 1947 in the form of individual voting rights.
Political philosophy
Political philosophy is the study of such topics as liberty, justice, property, rights, law, and the enforcement of a legal code by authority: what they are, why they are needed, what, if anything, makes a government legitimate, what rights and freedoms it should protect and why, what form it...
practised by the Bharatiya Janata Party
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
and the former Bharatiya Jana Sangh
Bharatiya Jana Sangh
The Bharatiya Jana Sangh existed from 1951 to 1980, whereupon it was succeeded by the Bharatiya Janata Party, one of India's largest political parties...
of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It was first propounded by Deendayal Upadhyaya
Deendayal Upadhyaya
Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya , along with Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee, was an important leader of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, now the Bharatiya Janata Party.-Earlier Life and Education:...
in a brief volume entitled Integral Humanism in 1965, attempting to find a "third path" rejecting both communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
, centered on "swadeshi and decentralization
Decentralization
__FORCETOC__Decentralization or decentralisation is the process of dispersing decision-making governance closer to the people and/or citizens. It includes the dispersal of administration or governance in sectors or areas like engineering, management science, political science, political economy,...
". It is espoused by most Hindutva
Hindutva
Hindutva is the term used to describe movements advocating Hindu nationalism. Members of the movement are called Hindutvavādis.In India, an umbrella organization called the Sangh Parivar champions the concept of Hindutva...
organizations.
Concept in the 1960s
It was first presented by Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya in the form of four lectures delivered in Bombay on April 22-25, 1965. It distinguishes Indian systems from other prevalent systems like communism and capitalism."Pre-occupation with materialism"
Upadhyaya has argued that WesternWestern world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
political philosophies are not acceptable as a blueprint for society because of their "preoccupation" with materialism
Materialism
In philosophy, the theory of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance...
, and their overlooking of the social wellbeing of the individual. He saw both capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
and socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
as essentially flawed – stimulating as they do greed, class antagonisms, exploitation and social anarchy.
His proposal was an "integral" approach that attempts to create a harmonious society. This could be done, he argued, by satisfying the needs of the body (hunger, shelter), the mind (traditions), intelligence (reforms), and the soul (common aspirations of a people that shape their unique culture).
Upadhyaya said that each nation creates institutions to satisfy needs, and these must be reshaped so that group solidarity can be sustained and maintained under changing circumstances. He argues that Indian tradition builds on the social nature of people and obliges them to create institutions meant to enhance social solidarity. Advaita vedanta
Advaita Vedanta
Advaita Vedanta is considered to be the most influential and most dominant sub-school of the Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. Other major sub-schools of Vedānta are Dvaita and ; while the minor ones include Suddhadvaita, Dvaitadvaita and Achintya Bhedabheda...
, or the principle of recognising ourselves in all life, is seen as the philosophic underpinning of this view.
As per Gandhi's view on integral humanism, he believed that religion must be at the center of humanity's work. He believed that religion must guide man's every activity. Gandhi stated a list of sins which can be said to indicate the fundamentals of integral humanism:
*list of sins
Politics without Principles.
Wealth without work.
Commerce without Morality.
Knowledge without Character.
Pleasure without Conscience.
Science without humanity.
Worship without sacrifice.
Pledge for party members
According to the membership form of the Bharatiya Janata PartyBharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
(2003–2008), anyone seeking primary membership of the party has to pledge that he or she "believe in Integral Humanism which is the basic philosophy of [the party]", apart from also pledging commitment to nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
, national integration, democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
, Gandhian Socialism
Gandhian Socialism
Gandhian socialism has been one of the first principles adopted by the Bharatiya Janata Party in India, during some part of its history, since the eighties...
, positive secularism
Sarva Dharma Sama Bhava
Sarva Dharma Sama Bhava is an Indian concept of all religions being treated equally by the State....
and value-based politics, among other issues.
Changes during the BJP era
Around 1980, the then newly-formed Bharatiya Janata PartyBharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
(BJP) adopted Gandhian socialism
Gandhian Socialism
Gandhian socialism has been one of the first principles adopted by the Bharatiya Janata Party in India, during some part of its history, since the eighties...
rather than the Deendayal Upadhyaya
Deendayal Upadhyaya
Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya , along with Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee, was an important leader of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, now the Bharatiya Janata Party.-Earlier Life and Education:...
-crafted principles of integral humanism, as the party's statement of first principles. But the BJP gave an honoured place to Upadhyaya's ideological statement as well.
At its July 1985 national executive session however, integral humanism once again replaced Gandhian socialism as the BJP's philosophy. But the party's economic policy remained the same substantially.
Criticism of Integral Humanism
The most important criticism of Integral Humanism is that it is essentially another form of socialism with less central planning. Integral Humanism goes closer to social engineering and completely ignores spontaneous order that emerges from continuous evolutionary interaction on part of individuals, organizations and institutions.Integral Humanism is perhaps as old as Indian civilization. However, Integral Humanism was formalized into a nationalistic political approach by Shri. Deen Dayal Upadhyay in mid 1960s. This was surprising as it completely ignored knowledge and ideas (e.g. spontaneous order, transactions costs, role of technology, moral hazard, adverse selection, cost of culture, theory of economic growth, property rights, risk management) that were proven by mid 1960s.
The other criticism of Integral Humanism is that it dismisses socialism, communism, capitalism and individualism as western fads and that they will not work in India. The main problem with this claim is that it does not provide a consistent logical or fact based argument against any of these approaches. Regarding individualism it completely ignores the fact that India had already accepted individualism in 1947 in the form of individual voting rights.