The BJP’s constitution (Article 3) says, ‘Integral Humanism shall be the philosophy of the party.’ The party’s membership form bears a pledge which members are required to take. The first line of this pledge is: ‘I believe in Integral Humanism which is the basic philosophy of the Bharatiya Janata Party.’

'Integral humanism' is a term many Indians are familiar with but few know much about. It comprises the text of four lectures by Deendayal Upadhyaya between 22 and 25 April 1965 in Mumbai. Upadhyaya held a bachelor’s degree in arts and was a journalist at the RSS house publication, Panchjanya. He was about 50 when he delivered these lectures, and became president of the Jana Sangh a couple of years after.

Let us go through the message of the BJP’s philosophy, which we can then analyse at a future date. What follows is a summary of the argument that Upadhyaya presents in his speeches, and it is presented as neutrally as possible:

The cause of the problems facing Bharat is a neglect of national identity. The nation is like an individual and becomes ill if its natural instincts are disregarded or suppressed. Despite independence, India was still undecided about the direction it would take to realise development. Independence is meaningful only if it is the instrument to express culture.

The focus in India was on episodic problems: economic, social and political. This was because India adopted a Western way of looking at economic, social and political doctrines along with Western science. Westernisation was........

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