Union Finance Minister Jaswant Singh on Saturday surprised students with his knowledge of Hindu religion when he addressed the convocation programme of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan's Gandhi Institute of Computer Education & Information Technology in Mumbai.

"Lord Hanuman had the spirit to leap the ocean and conquer the world. When you embark on your career, you should also have that spirit to conquer the world. Also, never forget that you are a part of the collective spirit of India," said Singh.

During the course of his talk, Singh recited Sanskrit slogans and verses attributed to Swami Vivekananda and Sant Tulsidas and later, also explained their meaning to the students.

He went on to enlighten them about the origin of the word 'education'. It is derived from the Latin word 'Educo', which means 'I lead out'.

"It means education opens the door to awareness," he said.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said that the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan was doing a great service to the poorer sections of society by giving them free coaching in usage of computers.

Murli Deora, Member of Parliament and vice-chairman of the institution, said, "Over 60 per cent of the students who are educated here get decent jobs and a better life."

Also present on the occasion were Housing Development and Finance Corporation chairman Deepak Parekh and noted industrialist and Member of Parliament Vijay Mallya.

More reports from Maharashtra