Noting that trust in Pakistan's military and political leadership is completely missing in India, top RSS functionary Dattatreya Hosabale on Tuesday said that people-to-people contact is the best way to break the deadlock.

"That should be tried more and more now," he said in an interview to PTI Videos.

"This is the one hope I think, because I believe strongly that ultimately the civil society relations (will work). Because we have a cultural relation and we have been one nation," he said.

"So, that has to be emphasised," he said.

He was asked how India should deal with Pakistan and its continued sponsorship of terrorism.

"See everything has been tried (diplomatically) and Pakistan keeps making pinpricks," he said, citing terrorist attacks such as 26/11, Pulwama and Pahalgam.

"The security and self-respect of a country have to be protected and the government of the day should take care of it. But at the same time, we need not close the doors. We should always be ready to engage them in a dialogue," he said.

Trade and commerce, issuance of visas should not stop, because "there should be a window (open) always for a dialogue", he said.

That's why diplomatic relations have been maintained, Hosabale added.

He said academicians, sportspersons, scientists and community leaders should come forward there, as their political leadership and military leadership have developed some aversion to India.

Sanatan eternal, won't go away for Udhayanidhi

Comparing Sanatan to a banyan tree, Hosabale hit out at DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin, saying just because he wants it eradicated doesn't mean it will disappear.

"Because I feel there should not be light or I feel there should not be shadows, that doesn't mean they will go away," Hosabale said in an interview with PTI Videos.

"Sanatan is the spirit and soul of this nation. It is not a religious practice, but a value and a worldview," he said.

Hosabale was asked about Udhayanidhi's maiden speech as the Leader of Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly earlier on Tuesday, in which he called for the eradication of Sanatan, a view he has expressed in the past also.

"It is his opinion and people have answered it in the elections. But, Sanatan will not go because somebody says so," the RSS leader said.

"Sanatan is that which is eternally there. Eternity is Sanatan. It is like a tree, a banyan tree. Even after 100 years or 200 years, the banyan tree stands there," he said.

Hosabale said it may be old, because its trunk is old, but every season it gets new leaves and flowers.

"So that tree is fresh, ever fresh. So Sanatana is that. That is 'nitya nutana and chir puratana'. That is, it is ever fresh and always ancient. So it is a fantastic combination. That is what our civilisation is," he said.

"We have memories of our civilisation that are thousands of years old, millennia old. Civilization memories. But because of that we are not saying that we don't accept or welcome modernity such as AI and other technological advancements.

"We welcome, we cherish, we enjoy, we celebrate new technology," he said.

"In a way, this gentleman is also practising Sanatan, but perhaps he thinks Sanatan is upper caste," he said about Udhayanidhi.

War on Iran not for wiping out civilisation

The war in West Asia is not a civilisational conflict but it is about oil, Hosabale said on Tuesday, adding that India can play a role in appealing to the good sense of nations and leaders.

He said wars are generally a product of a wicked mind or the greed and arrogance of nations or individuals.

Asked if he was referring to US President Donald Trump, Hosabale said he did not say that.

"Wars generally take birth in minds. When I was in school, there was a lesson titled 'War is a wicked thing'. That wicked thing comes because of a wicked mind," he said.

"When you want to take hold of something that is not yours, or you have become too greedy, or a nation, a society, or leadership becomes one of these things, wars break out," he said.

"Wars are not going to finish humanity, but definitely it will alter... human life," he said.

He noted that prominent thinker Dr Samuel Huntington had predicted the war of civilisations. But, this is not it, he said.

The entire Christian world is not with one country and all Muslim nations are not under one umbrella, he said.

Supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's austerity call, he said it is in the best interest of the country.

Even in the absence of war, India's way of life should be of austerity and simplicity, he said.

"That is the basic thing that we should observe and practice. This should be imbibed and practised... at times of crisis and challenge. It is necessary," he said.

On the West Asia war, Hosabale also said India can play a role in appealing to the good sense of nations and leaders.