SMIS INDIAN RENAISSANCE / SOCIAL REFORMS

INDIA IN 19TH CENTURY CE

By the dawn of 19th century, India under the rule of Princely States and English East India Company was beset by
evil practices of sati, untouchability, female infanticide, slavery, polygamy, purdah system and women injustice.
Conscientious Indians began to seek ways and means to remove social customs and norms which curbed the
liberty of individuals. To cure the society of such evil systems, socio religious reforms/movements like BRAHMO
SAMAJ, ARYA SAMAJ, the RAMAKRISHNA MISSION, the THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, and the ALIGARH MOVEMENT
were started.

RELIGIOUS REFORMS AND BRITISH INFLUENCE - The reformers were aware that if India was to progress and
develop, all the evil practices should be eradicated from the society which existed from several centuries to a large
extent. Removal of these evils would have intended understanding the concepts of UNITY and PATRIOTISM among
the masses. These enlightened Indians who tried to reform the society were also guided by the sense of
RATIONALISM, NATIONALISM, HUMANISM and EQUALITY. To awaken the society, Indian reformers were also
helped by the British who brought the western thought and civilization with them and this exposure had a great
impact on the life of Indians, particularly the educated ones. It resulted in:

1. Indians realized the importance of western education for betterment of the society. The new education
policy also opened doors for western civilization and ideas.
2. The spirit of western education made Indians realize the drawbacks of evil practices in society and also a
hold on blind belief and following behind such practices.
 3. The Christian missionaries paved the way for rendering social services without any expectations of personal
benefit. The social upliftment of the people was a reward of such services and the educated class felt that
they were doing something positive for the society.
4. Awareness amongst Indians of their own history and culture, keeping religion aside.

Bengal became the main center of these reforms and Indian awakening with the influence of western ideas and
civilization. But why Bengal? There are two reasons for this. Firstly, the Christian missionaries had already started
spreading their Gospels in Calcutta and secondly, western education was first introduced in Calcutta (University of
Calcutta was the first British educational organization founded in 1857). RAJA RAMMOHAN ROY was regarded as
the first great leader of Modern India and also Father of Indian Renaissance.

UNIVERSITY OF CALCUTTA
RAJA RAMMOHAN ROY AND BRAHMO SAMAJ – One
of the early propagators of modern education, Raja
Rammohan Roy was born in 1772 in a Bengali Brahmin
family in Radhanpur, Bengal. He was a learned scholar
who was well aware of the theories, philosophy and
ideas of Hinduism, Jainism, Christianity and Islam.
Even though he was from an orthodox Brahmin family
he was against the ideas of (i) idol worship, (ii) caste
system, (iii) sacrifices, (iv) false rituals and (v) against
the idea of Polytheism and advocated the idea of
Monotheism.

Raja Rammohan Roy

was in favor of studying Vedas and Upanishads which preached the worship of
omnipotent god. In 1815, he started ATMIYA SABHA to reform society and in
1828, he started BRAHMO SAMAJ which became more popular than Atmiya
Sabha and also had branches in other parts of Bengal. Due to his hard efforts to
abolish the Sati system, Mughal ruler Akbar II gave him the title of “RAJA”. Raja
Rammohan Roy died in 1833 in Stapleton, England.

BRAHMO SAMAJ – Founded in 1828, the main aims of Brahmo Samaj were in
the fields of social reforms and education. For the upliftment and the
betterment of the society, Brahmo Samaj started its struggle against (i) Sati
system, (ii) Purdah system, (iii) Polygamy, (iv) Child marriage and (v) Female
infanticide.

Against the Sati system, Raja Rammohan Roy was helped by Lord William Bentick
who was Governor General of English East India Company, where in 1829 he
passed the law for the abolition of Sati. Both Rammmohan Roy and William
Bentick were in favor of improving the status of women in society through women education and widow
remarriage.

Raja Rammohan Roy was rational enough to want unification of western and eastern education. He was well
versed with several languages like Sanskrit, Persian, English, Arabic, French and Greek. He studied sciences and
cultures of both east and west. He was aware that education would stop degeneration of society and increase
awareness amongst people. (Image - Lord William Bentick)
Steps taken by Brahmo Samaj in the field of education were: (i) English medium
school was opened in Calcutta, (ii) Setting up of Hindu College in Calcutta in
1817 with the help of some British nationals, (iii) Making people aware about
the importance of both Indian and Western learning and (iv) Raja Rammohan
Roy wrote a book on Grammar in Bengali and encouraged learning of this
language and also supported the cause and introduction of western science
and education.

After Raja
Rammohan
Roy’s demise
in England,
Brahmo
Samaj’s work
was carried by DEBENDRANATH TAGORE and
KESHAB CHANDRA SEN. Later on, Debendranath
Tagore formed ADI BRAHMO SAMAJ which
remained active for some time. Brahmo Samaj is
considered as the first organization for educational, cultural and religious reforms.

SWAMI DAYANAND SARASWATI AND ARYA SAMAJ – Swami Dayanand Saraswati was born in 1824 in Tankara,
Gujarat. For people’s awakening he formed ARYA SAMAJ in 1875 at Girgaon, Bombay. His inspiring leadership gave
the message of looking into the glorious past of the Indian culture and principles of Vedas. Being a Vedic scholar,
he believed that Vedas were infallible and that wisdom inherent in Vedas could solve social problems of the nation.
Swami Dayanand Saraswati wrote a book called SATYARTH PRAKASH which was considered as the Bible for Arya
Samaj. He was assassinated in 1883 in Ajmer, Rajasthan.

ARYA SAMAJ - Just like Brahmo Samaj, even the Arya Samaj condemned the
ideas of (i) idol worship, (ii) evils of the caste system, (iii) child marriage and
(iv) bad treatment to the widows. Arya Samaj encouraged education among
women and their teachings aroused pride in the people of their country by
giving them a national outlook. Arya Samaj also started SHUDDHI
MOVEMENT with the idea of accepting back reconverts from Islam and
Christianity into Hinduism. The influence of Arya Samaj was mostly in north
and northwestern parts of India and centers were set up in Uttar Pradesh,
Rajasthan, Punjab and Gujarat.

After the death of Swami Dayanand Saraswati under the guidance of other
leaders, DAYANAND ANGLO VEDIC SCHOOL was set up in Lahore in 1886.
Besides this, few Gurukuls were also opened in Rajasthan and Gujarat. Arya
Samaj was also in support of Indian National Congress during the freedom
struggle. (Image below - Swami Dayanand Saraswati)

SWAMI VIVEKANAND AND RAMAKRISHNA MISSION – Swami Vivekanand

started Ramakrishna Mission in 1897 in Calcutta to carry on the message and teachings of his Guru,
RAMAKRISHNA PARAMHANSA who was a priest whose simple character had won hearts of many including the
leaders of Arya Samaj who came in contact with him. Ramakrishna Mission stood for social services with the motto
– “Best way to serve God is to serve Mankind.” People were inspired by Swami Vivekanand to struggle unto life and
death and to bring about a new state of things and also sympathy for the poor and bread to their hungry mouths.
 Due to the efforts of the Ramakrishna Mission, Indian culture was prompted abroad. Swami
Vivekanand participated in the Parliament of Religions in America where he addressed a
gathering. This speech is particularly known as the Chicago address. In this address, Swami
Vivekanand waxed eloquently about Hinduism having a worldwide significance. Swami
Vivekanand believed that Indian philosophy and spirituality was the best in the world. The
mission also carried out a crusade against untouchability and opened schools, colleges,
hospitals and even orphan ages to uplift the masses.

THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY – The Theosophical Society was founded in 1875 in

America and came to India in 1882 in Madras. The Theosophical Society
came to India with the idea of reviving ancient religions. It believed in Indian
spiritualism and rejected Western materialism. Its members believed in the
UNIVERSAL BROTHERHOOD of
humankind. Under the guidance of
Theosophical Society, The Central
Hindu College was established at
Banaras in 1898 by Annie Bessant.

Annie Bessant, who was the moving

soul behind the movement was also
responsible for the HOME
RULE MOVEMENT and
contributed a great deal towards the national struggle. The Theosophical
Movement was different from the others as it was led by foreigners while
other reforms/movements were headed by Indians themselves.

THE ALIGARH MOVEMENT – First

person to recognize the need of the awakening of the Muslims in India was
SIR SYED AHMAD KHAN. The Muslims had lost all positions of power and
responsibility. Muslims did not opt western education as they were
traditionally taught by the Ulemas, their religious heads. Muslims had
become so anti-national, particularly in North India that they actively
participated in the Revolt of 1857. Moreover, the British were wary of
Muslims whom they considered as their real enemies.

A few progressive Muslims realised that if they were to progress, they would
have to adopt a different attitude towards the British. To this effect
movements were started to spread modern education and to remove social
abuses like purdah system, polygamy, caste system. Muslims also fought for
social education for women. NAWAB ABDUL LATIF started LITERARY SOCIETY
in 1863 in Calcutta to encourage various discussions and also helped to
spread awareness and education amongst Muslims. (Image - ANNIE
BESSANT)

It was SIR SYED AHMAD KHAN who really impressed upon Muslims that their
plight could only improve by accepting the English education and through the cooperation of British authorities.
For his stand he faced a lot of criticism from the orthodox Muslims.
He felt the need to reconcile the teachings and doctrines of Islam with the modern
western script. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan started the SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY, which
published Urdu translations of English books of science and also established THE
MOHAMMEDAN ANGLO ORIENTAL COLLEGE at ALIGARH in 1875. This gave an
impetus for modern education among the Muslims and also by encouraging a
feeling of unity. This reform movement started by Sir Syed Ahmad khan was called
the ALIGARH MOVEMENT.

OTHER REFORMS/MOVEMENTS – There were other reforms/movements taking

place in the country which were challenging the evil systems of the society.

WESTERN INDIA – In Maharashtra, MAHATMA JYOTIRAO PHULE worked for the

upliftment of women and the oppressed classes of the society. He started schools
for girls, especially of the lower sections of the society and even educated his wife
SAVITRIBAI PHULE so that she could teach other girls. In today’s
Maharashtra if it is possible for a girl to get an education, it is only
because of Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule who were
criticized by every class of society.

They started SATYA SHODHAK SAMAJ (Truth Seeking Society) which was
open to all without any discrimination. Satya Shodhak Samaj demanded
equal rights for the oppressed classes and also opposed Brahmin
superiority.

Amongst Parsis, DADABHAI NAOROJI and MADAME BHIKAJI CAMA were

pioneers of religious and social reforms in the Parsi community. They
published RAST GOFAR, a journal which was used as a medium for spreading
awareness amongst Parsis. Under their leadership, the status of Parsi
women's inheritance and marriage improved a lot. They also spread
education among Parsi girls and raise their marriageable age.

(Image - DADABHAI NAOROJI)

In South India, SRIDHARALU NAIDU

motivated by Brahmo Samaj founded VEDA
SAMAJ which opposed child marriage and
female infanticide in Andhra region. In
Kerala, SRI NARAYAN GURU started a
movement against exploitation and
oppression against lower caste for which he started SRI NARAYAN DHARMA
PAARIPALAN YOGAM. He believed in One Caste and One God. Besides these,
there were others who wanted for lower caste people inside temples and to end
the Devadasi system where young girls were dedicated to temples and exploited.
(Image - MADAME CAMA)

CONSEQUENCES OF THESE REFORMS – The impact of the reform movement

against customs which were irrational, led to awareness among the people. This
in turn paved the way for laws to be enacted. Some of these laws were:

1. In 1829, SATI was banned.

 2. In 1843, SLAVERY was declared illegal.
3. In 1856, WIDOW REMARRIAGE was legal.
4. In 1872, INTERCASTE MARRIAGES were made legal.

Due to educational reforms, there were universities and colleges set up in Bombay, Madras, Banaras, Aligarh,
Lahore and Calcutta. Also, a department in Public Instructions was established in every province. With cultural
awakening, western education not only helped in bringing new ideas, it also influenced a spirit of new inquiry
among writers, scientists and artists.

People started to take pride in their glorious past realising that they were no inferior to the British which infused a
sense of confidence and patriotism in them. Some British and German officials like William Jones, James Prinsep
and Max Muller also helped in setting up India’s ancient past. William Jones founded Asiatic Society in Calcutta to
study India’s past, James Prinsep decoded Brahmi script of Asokan inscription due to which Indian history was
pushed 2500-3000 years back.

In the field of literature, due to cultural reforms, writers like Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
were able to write India’s national anthem (JANA GANA MANA) and national song (VANDE MATARAM).
Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize in the field of literature.

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