All World
Gayatri Pariwar

India – a youthful country

India is a young country. If the population of all the countries is compared, we will find that the number of youth is highest in our country. Among the total population of 110 crores, 55 crores are youth. In the coming four years, by 2015, this number will go up to 65 crores. With this magnitude of youth if we do not utilize their immense potential, then it is a great folly. Whether there is any effort in this direction by others or not, there is a big youth revolution in the making in India at a very subtle level. This revolution is happening in the villages and towns of India. We may see the presence of youth right from the call centers (BPO) of Gurgaon to the Silicon Valley of California, but the fundamental revolution is happening at the semi-urban and rural level. The leaders are the girls and boys hailing from poor homes, living in unhygienic localities and brought up in all kinds of unfavorable circumstances. These people are extremely rich in vitality. All that is needed is to give them the right direction at the appropriate moment. We have to prevent them from getting entangled in the favoritism of politics-art-films and stop them from straying onto the path of glamour. We have to channelize their talents in a creative manner.

Youth is the spring time of life

The phase of youth is similar to the spring season. It comes with its sparkling charm and fills each atom of our body with vibrancy, zeal and enthusiasm. Just as Nature is enthralled in the bounty of spring, so is a young person who transits from childhood to youth. Some chemical changes happen in the form of hormonal changes which not only bring about transformation in emotional parlance but also bring distinct changes in the physical body. Several kinds of thoughts take birth. These can be compared to the activity of waves that hit the shores of the ocean. This is the time when the youth should learn to control their wild urges. This age from 25-30 is the period which is marked by intense emotions, which when given the right direction ensure that you achieve the desired objectives.

Why does one go astray?

Sexual attractions have become more prominent in this material age. Everything is unconstrained. In such conditions there is ample chance for the young blood to lose path or even lose their bright future. Sometimes, out of their own immaturity, they lose out in life; while at some other times the mistakes they do in pursuit of transient pleasures leave them searching for their own life purpose. It is during this age span that the youth tend to get into identity crisis in search of their self-respect. They begin to succumb to anger wherein they blame the system while at some other times they become spectators to revolutionary activities and begin to take part in them. It is during this time that the teachers, leaders and guides of our nation should understand their psychology and devise suitable methods to counter these situations. Youth are not bad, they are made so. If the power of youth has to be harnessed, they have to be given a spiritual perspective. This does not refer to any religious ritual. It is about right understanding, giving value to the quality of life and about organizing oneself. If this could be done, then the youth of our country will form a strong foundation for the mansion of our nation.

Some examples of the power of youth

There have always been such youth who have had the zeal to do something for humanity at large. They have been the symbols of our cultural heritage. Such youth had been there since the Vedic times till the era of Bill Gates. Right from Vamdev, Satyakam, Parashuram, Agastya, Viswarath (later known as Viswamitra), Bhagirath, Shriram, Prahlad, Krishna-Balram, Vyas, Siddharth-Vardhaman, Adi Shankar, Gorakhnath, Kabir, Raidas, Guru Nanak, Guru Govind Singh, Samarth Ramdas, Lakshmi Bai, Mangal Pandey, Tilak, Gokhale, Gandhi, Subhash, Bhagat Singh, Azad, Khudiram Bose, Sri Aurobindo, Swami Vivekananda, Pandit Shriram Sharma Acharya (Shriram Matt)  right upto the present times - Nandan Nilekhani, Narayan Murty, Azim Premji (though not a young man, but he has pioneered the youth revolution), Jalpurush Rajendra Singh, Yoga guru Baba Ramdev, Rahul Gandhi, Naveen Jindal, Indra Nooyi etc – the list is unending. Our youth of today are in position of leadership in knowledge boom in terms of software revolution. A youth with progressive outlook from a village is found managing several self-reliance projects in the city. A film made on a boy in slums – ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ is winning awards one after another because he has lived such a life which made him a millionaire.

Set Example

‘India Unbound’ by Sri Gurucharandas has become very popular and speaks about the explosion in youth revolution of India. Sridas, the CEO of a big company called Procter and Gamble chose to leave his corporate career and has become a full-time writer in support of youth revolution. He firmly believes that the youth of India is bound to transform India into a superpower in the coming 12-13 years. He quotes the examples of IAS officers Sanjay Kumar Singh, Govind Jaiswal, Raju Revu, Mohammad Kesar Abdul Haq, and Sadhu Devi who hail from poor families. He also quotes the examples of several youth who have passed out from IITs and have relinquished fat pay packages and attractive careers to work in villages and bring about a revolution there. A book echoing similar sentiments has come from the pen of Sachchidanand Satpathi titled ‘Youth Vision 2020 – Towards building an India of our choice’. This book from Serials Publishers in Delhi is in itself an encyclopedia of harnessing the youth power of India. This book talks right from environmental changes to personality refinement and also about changes in industrial world. It talks about self-reliance and right education too. Whatever it is, the change is happening, that too at a fast pace.

The Vision of Poojya Gurudev

Param Poojya Gurudev visualized a revolution in the youth through the medium of education. He wanted the education to change such that Indian culture got prominence. He writes – ‘Education will get the credit for era transformation. True education places a person in a mould and cooks him in the furnace. Education should mould them from top to bottom such that theey become true human beings. Until and unless the education system of Nalanda-Takshasila suitably modified to present-day needs is not devised, transformation will not set in (Excerpt from Kaisa hoga aanevala pragyayug – page 5)’. He again says – ‘Then a person need not pay fee or donation to get educated. Students of all economic strata will be able to study without any fee in universities like Nalanda and Takshashila. They will not only study but also be able to earn their living. Teachers like Sudama will be running these universities’ (page 8). It might look like a utopia to many people. But this is soon going to take the shape of reality. The desire of Mahakal is also on similar lines.

University is the center where you will learn the art of living

‘Dev Sanskriti Viswavidyalaya’ is such a center of education - a manifestation of Param Pujya Gurudev’s dreams. In the past 7 years, it has gained world-wide fame as a unique institution for imparting education and providing a perspective of the science of life. There are many countries that are eager to bond with the university. Is it possible for any organization or institute to achieve so much with such minimal resources and ordinary-looking students? This is bound to surprise many people. But this has happened, that too in the sacred pilgrim center of Haridwar and under the guidance of Shantikunj. The students who pass out from this university get placed well because they are believed to be honest and well-groomed. These students have given a new definition to the word ‘Youth’ and have established new standards of moral conduct in campus-based co-education. During the last Vasant Parva, there was a revolutionary beginning from this campus by a movement called ‘DIYA – Divine India Youth Association’.

The auspicious beginning of DIYA

DIYA was officially launched on 30th January (on the auspicious occasion of Vasant Parva). The fundamental objective of DIYA is – how to prepare courteous, healthy, self-reliant, empathetic youth? Initially, the students of the university became members of this movement, accepted the terms and conditions and this DIYA is going to be lit in all colleges and universities in the country. Under the banner of DIYA, several activities pertaining to building the nation, rejuvenation of culture will be taken up. Activities right from sports, cultural programs, understanding the lives of great men to counseling have been taken up by those who have given up everything and taken this up as a full-time work.

A vow: A resolve

The writer of these lines has taken a vow to give this vision to the entire world under the divine protection of Yugrishi and thus mark the beginning of a youth revolution. DIYA will definitely prepare youth who are like Nachiketa, who will walk on the edge of the sword and not like those weak-minded youth who go astray. DIYA will cross boundaries of religion, sect, community and sex. There will be young men and women; employed and unemployed. Everybody will work towards giving a new shape to the society and offer themselves to be transformed into beacons of light. They will channelize their energies for this task. Gurusatta will provide the ghee necessary to keep this flame of light burning in the form of samvedanas. Resources will flow from all directions and we will see this youth revolution happening right in front of us. Only thing that is required is for the youth to come forward and awaken and enliven their latent energies with this DIYA. A flaming torch is ready. The model is ready. All that we have to do is to imitate it and follow in its footsteps. Here is an open invitation to youth who are yearning to do something worthwhile. For details contact: DIYA Cell, Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, Shantikunj, Haridwar. (Website: www.diya.net.in)