Bhagwa Dhwaj

The Bhagwa Dhwaj (Marathi: भगवा ध्वज, romanized: Bhagwā Dhwaj, lit. 'Saffron flag'), also called Kesariya flag (Kesariyā Patākā), is a saffron-colour flag, that served as the flag of the Maratha Empire. It was adopted by V.D. Savarkar's w:Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha in 1915 and later by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. It is now associated with Hindutva. Double pennant, triangle, or pennant - shaped saffron coloured flags with tassels at its end is also used by Hindus as Bhagwa Dhwaj. Sometimes it also uses Hindu religious symbols like the Om letter or a Hindu Swastika at its center.

The Bhagwa Dhwaj

Quotes

• Seeing the Saffron Flag (Bhagwa Dhwaj), the entire history of the nation along with its tradition and culture comes before our eyes. The mind rises and special motivation comes in it. Only this Saffron Flag (Bhagwa Dhwaj) we consider as our Guru, as a symbol of our Tattva i.e. principle. Sangh has regarded the most sacred Bhagwa Dhwaj as the Guru instead of any particular individual. The reason for this being that an individual may be a great person but he cannot remain consistent in his life style nor can he be perfect in all respects. Consequently, instead of making our position awkward by accepting any individual person, we have adopted an inspirational symbol of victory and strength, Bhagwa Dhwaj, as our guru. It represents our history, tradition and supreme sacrifices made for our nation. It is the embodiment of all basic elements of our nationhood.
  • K. B. Hedgewar as quoted in [1]

• Bhagwa Dhwaj is not Sangh’s own creation. Nor, it has any intention of creating a separate flag. Sangh has only accepted the Bhagwa Dhwaj, which for thousands of years has been the flag of our Rashtra Dharma. Bhagwa Dhwaj has a long history and tradition and it is an embodiment of Hindu culture.
  • K. B. Hedgewar as quoted in [2]