The latter half of the nineteenth century gave birth to various reformist and revivalist movements in India. The Indian society was passing through transition. It had come into contact with new ideas as a result of the British rule even as a wide range of social evils were getting entrenched in the Hindu society. A set of wild superstitions had replaced real religion. People were poor, illiterate and unemployed. The Christian missionaries were taking advantage of the situation and were carrying out their policy of conversion. The conflicts between the Western ideals and Indian ideals, as well as between Christianity and Hindu religion gave birth to these movements. The subjugation to an alien rule provided a political content. While preaching against the social evils and religious superstitions, these movements revived the faith in India’s glory and gave a new confidence to the people. The movements became anti-British and influenced the struggle for freedom. The most important among these movements are discussed here.
Raja Rammohun Roy and Brahmo Samaj
Raja Rammohun Roy has been described as the Father of Indian Renaissance, Advocate of Liberalism and Prophet of Indian Nationalism. He was born in 1772 and died in 1833 in Bristol (U.K.). His name is also associated with two reforms—abolition of sati and introduction of English language. He was mainly concerned with socio-religious matters. He fought against repressive restrictions put on the Indian Press. The wrong was undone in 1835, two years after his death. He pleaded for equality of women in every field and preached against widowhood and child marriage, caste system, polygamy, etc.
Raja Rammohun Roy was a great scholar of Hindu, Muslim and Christian religions. He was confident that the Hindu religion could withstand all criticism levelled by Christian missionaries against it, if the real Hindu religion preached by Upanishads was revived. He was opposed to idol worship and believed in a formless God. He founded the Brahmo Samaj for the purpose of spreading the idea of the sublime truth contained in the Upanishads and for propagating against social evils in Hindu society. This movement rescued Bengal from a state of inertia. It was a movement of ‘enlightenment’ and sowed the seeds of freedom. It preached purity of Hinduism, religious toleration and a liberal social system.
The Brahmo Samaj got split under the leadership of Keshav Chandra Sen. Anand Mohan Ghosh founded “Sudharan Brahmo Samaj”. In Poona, Mahadev Govinda Ranade founded “Prarthana Samaj” with similar ideals.
Swami Dayanand and Arya Samaj
Swami Dayanand Saraswati founded Arya Samaj in North India. It was based on revival of Vedic teachings. It preached monism. In other words, it believed in one God and propagated against paganism. It fought against caste system and untouchability. It propagated widow remarriage and opposed child marriage. It was a national and patriotic movement. It believed in the infallibility of Vedas and superiority of Vedic culture. It fought against Westernism that was having influence over Indian society. There developed two schools in the Arya Samaj popularly known as the Gurukul section and the College section. The Gurukul section stood for Vedic ideals of Brahmacharya and religious service and the College section for imbibing in due measure, modern Western culture through English education. Swami Shradhanand and Lala Lajpat Rai led the two schools, respectively. Arya Samaj preached nationalism and patriotism. Its slogan was “Aryasthan for Aryans”. It was described as a revolutionary movement. It became a mass movement in Punjab and other parts of North India. It did great service in spreading education both among men and women. It fought against social inequalities of women, orthodoxy and heterodoxy.
Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Swami Vivekananda and Ramakrishna Mission
Ramakrishna Paramahansa founded the Vedantic Movement. Vivekananda was his chief disciple who carried his message far and wide. He preached identity of the soul with the Supreme Being. In his opinion, God could be realised not by passive contemplation but by living a life of selfless service. Swami Vivekananda preached unity of religions. “We must,” he proclaimed, “conquer the world by our spirituality and philosophy.” He said : “The only condition of Indian national life, of unassumed and vigorous national life, is the conquest of the world by Indian thought.” Vivekananda was hailed as ‘messenger of a new hope, the proud apostle of Indian freedom’. There is no denying the fact that the great master generated a new spirit of national dignity in the minds of the Indian masses.
Ramakrishna Mission, in the building of which Swami Vivekananda played a significant role, stood for religious and social reform and derived its inspiration from India’s ancient culture. The Mission’s branches were set up in different parts of India and the world and, true to the philosophy of the Master, the Mission stood for the unity of religions while promoting universal love and human brotherhood. The Mission and its Swamijis reminded the people of their great spiritual heritage, India’s pride of place in the comity of nations; and was a pioneer in selfless social work.
Annie Besant and Theosophical Society
The theosophical movement was an international movement. It, however, concentrated on rediscovery and rehabilitation of what was great and glorious in the Indian culture. Col. Olcott, one of the founders of the society, undertook a tour of South India and in his speeches exhorted the Hindus to revive their ancient splendid ‘Hinduism’ and fight against its degeneration. Dr. Annie Besant not only spread the spiritual message of the Theosophical Society, but also led a big political movement in the form of ‘Home Rule’ Movement. Sir V. Chirol says, “The advent of the Theosophists headed by Madame Blavatski, Col. Olcott and Annie Besant gave a fresh impetus to the revival, and certainly no Hindu has done so much to organise and consolidate the movement as Annie Besant, who in her Central Hindu College at Benares and her Theosophical Institute at Adyar near Madras, has openly proclaimed the superiority of the whole Hindu system to the vaunted civilisation of the West.”
These and such other movements gave a new turn to the political life of India. While these movements fought against social evils and religious orthodoxy, they preached high patriotism and nationalism. They created a new zeal for freedom of the country and for cleansing the Indian society of the evils that were eating into its vitals. Pattabhi Sitaramayya sums up the role of these movements in the following words :
“All these movements were really so many threads in the strand of Indian nationalism and the nation’s duty was to evolve a synthesis, so as to be able to dispel prejudice and superstition; renovate and purify the old faith; and reconcilie with the nationalism of the new age. The Indian National Congress was destined to fulfil the great mission.” It can, therefore, be safely concluded that the leaders of reform movements in India played the same role as the Renaissance Movement in Europe and the revival of faith in humanism.