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24/05/22 00:00 AM IST

Raja Ram Mohan Roy

  • WHAT
  • WHY
  • WHEN
  • WHERE
  • WHO
  • HOW
What made Ram Mohan determined to challenge the ‘Caste system’?
  • Ram Mohan Roy was born on May 22, 1772 to Tarini Devi and Ramkanto Roy in Radhanagar, Burdwan, Bengal in British India. His high-ranking family had served the imperial Mughals for three generations.
  • His mother was from a Shaivite family and his father was a Vaishnavite, which gave him an unusual religious background.
  • Born in a notable Brahmin family in an era of orthodoxy, he grew up amid social evils and religious prejudices.
  • At the age of nine, he had to marry two times, and subsequently one more, because it was impossible for him to escape the privilege of Kulinism.
  • As a grown-up man he saw the burning of his brother’s widow as a sati, a sight that shocked his conscience. A prisoner of society and religion, he nevertheless enjoyed certain advantages which even the ‘Dark Age’ provided.
  • Ram Mohan’s predecessors had held high offices under the Nawabs of Bengal.
  • Because of the family status, he was sent to Patna to study Persian and Arabic. From his knowledge of Persian and Arabic he understood the essence of the Koran Sufi Philosophy; from Sanskrit, the deeper philosophies of the Hindu Upanishads.
  • The inner meaning of Hinduism and Islam drew him to monotheism and created an aversion in him towards idolatry. With profound knowledge of Sanskrit, Arabic, Persian and English, and with a deeper understanding of the philosophies of Hinduism, Islam, Budhism and Christianity he became a rare complete intellectual of his time.
  • He was in search of rationalism and felt resentful towards the prevailing socio-religious customs around him.
  • Now that he had understood that his religion and his society needed transformation, Raja Ram Mohan Roy would make his best efforts to make the change happen in his lifetime. In doing so, he would become ‘the maker of modern India’.
  • Sati is an obsolete Hindu funeral custom where a widow immolates herself on her husband's pyre or commits suicide in any other fashion shortly after her husband's death.
  • Monotheism is the belief in the existence of only one god that created the world, is all-powerful and interferes in the world.
  • In 1830, Ram Mohan Roy had gone to England as an envoy of the Mughal Emperor, Akbar Shah II, who invested him with the title of Raja to the court of King William IV.
Why did he become a religious exponent?
  • Review, revaluation and reform of religion were Roy's primary concern.
  • He was of the opinion that rationality and modernity needed to be introduced in the field of religion, and that "irrational religion" was at the root of many social evils.
  • The socio- political progress of his country, according to him, depended mainly on the successful revolution in the religious thought and behaviour.
  • He was interested not only in reforming the Hindu religion, but also in removing the discrepancies among the various religions of the world.
  • He undertook a serious comparative study of religions and realised in due course that true Hinduism, true Islam and true Christianity are not fundamentally different from each other.
  • He hoped that a universal religion for mankind could be established by combining the best elements of all religions.
  • Besides Bengali and Sanskrit, Roy had mastered Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, Greek, Latin and 17 other leading languages spoken in the world. Roy's familiarity with such diverse languages exposed him to a variety of cultural, philosophical and religious experiences.
  • Roy admired the Bible as much as much as he did the Vedanta and the Quran.
  • Roy was highly critical of the outer forms of Hinduism, notably, polytheism, worship of images, and ritualistic ceremonies.
  • Belief in one Almighty god is the fundamental principles of every religion, he said. He established his theories from the Vedanta, the Bible and Koran.
  • Being a champion of freedom and rights, Ram Mohan was an ardent humanist and believed in co-operation, tolerance and fellowship.
  • Roy established the ethical concept of universal love on the basis of the doctrine of ethical personality of God. He was also the exponent of cosmopolitanism and stood for brotherhood and independence.
  • Roy set up a number of social organisations in North India.
  • In 1816, he started a spiritual society known as ‘Atmiya Sabha’ for religious and social purposes, which was later extended to other fields of activity.
  • Atmiya Sabha was simply a discussion club for scholars of religion and philosophy.
  • Roy devoted all his energies to fighting sectarianism and other medieval tendencies prevailing in the Hindu society, such as polytheism, idolatry and superstitions.
  • He was a firm believer of the Advaita philosophy (non-dualism or the idea that ‘All is God and God is all’), which left no scope for such tendencies.
  • Roy was quite sure that unless the Hindu society underwent a religious and social transformation, it would not become fit for political progress.
  • In 1803, his first book ‘Tuhfat-ul- Muwahhidin’ was published, where he argued for Monotheism.
  • The most important event was the establishment of the Brahma Sabha on 20 August 1928, which became famous as the Brahmo Samaj in 1830.
  • After the failure of the British India Unitarian Association (1827), the followers of Ram Mohan felt the urgent necessity of establishing an institution solely devoted to Unitarian and monotheistic worship. Ram Mohan did not contemplate the Brahma Samaj as an institution of a new religious sect.
  • He wanted the monotheists of all religions to use the premises of the Sabah as their own. He also wished this institution to be a meeting ground the people of all religious denominations who believed in one God, who is formless, eternal unsearchable and immutable.
  • He told one of his friends that after his death the Hindus would claim as their own, the Muslims would do the same, and as also the Christians, but he belonged to no sect, as he was the devotee of universal religion.
  • The Samaj stood for the ‘worship and adoration of the eternal unsearchable and Immutable.
  • Thus Ram Mohan began the first great religious movement of the 19th century. Since religion was the dominating force in Indian society, reforming society was impossible without informing religion. The Brahma Samaj was thus a socio religious reform movement.
When did he started  political reforms in India ?
  • Roy believed not only in the natural rights of life, liberty, and pursuit of property, but he also championed the moral rights of the individual. His theory of natural rights, however, was constructed in the prevailing Indian conditions.
  • Thus although an exponent of the theory of Natural Rights and freedom, he also advocated state legislation for social reform and educational reconstruction.
  • As a champion of freedom and democratic rights and a believer in parliamentary democracy, Roy whole-heartedly supported the reform Bill agitation in England.
  • It should be remembered that Ram Mohan Roy championed the struggle for freedom and democratic rights, not for Indians alone but for all human beings in the world.
  • Roy had a keen appreciation of the uncompromising freedom of the creative spirit. He wanted the people of India to develop a sense of self-confidence, and was a crusader against unreason and superstition.
  • He admired the English people who not only enjoyed civil and political liberty but were also interested in promoting freedom, social happiness and rationalism in the areas where their influence extended. Roy was one of the earliest champions of the freedom of the press.
  • Roy recognised and appreciated British rule in India.
  • Although he despised colonialism, he appeared to have endorsed the British rule presumably, because of its historical role in combating the prevalent feudal forces.
  • Roy was the first to create awareness for civil rights amongst Indians.
  • He was grateful to the Britishers because they made available to Indians all those civil rights which were enjoyed by the Queen's subjects in England.
  • Raja Ram Mohan Roy was a global humanist.
  • He was elated after hearing the news of the introduction of a constitutional government in Portugal.
  • He supported the struggle for freedom of the Greeks against the Turks. Roy was opposed to the British occupation of Ireland.
  • He collected funds for the relief of the famine stricken people of Ireland.
  • Law, Roy claimed, was the creation of passionless reason.
  • It was the command of the sovereign. Hence, even the highest officer in the East India Company did not possess the competence for enacting the laws for India.
  • The king-in-Parliament alone could have that authority. What is more, Roy argued that the English parliament, before finalizing every piece of legislation relating to India should take into account the views of the economic and intellectual elites in his country.
  • Roy believed in codification of law. He held that such codification was in the interest of both the rulers and ruled.
  • He suggested that the codification should be done on the basis of the principles common and agreeable to all groups and factions in the society.
  • His ambition was to change the educational system completely. He was convinced that only a modern, science education could instill new awareness and new capabilities in the Indian people.
  • He was perhaps the first thinker of the 18th century who had a clear vision of internationalism.
  • This vision might have occurred to him in the course of his search for universal religion.
  • Roy, the prophet of universalism, argued that all nations of the world must be placed on an equal footing in order to achieve global unity and a sense of broad fraternity.
  • It is only then that the contradiction between nationalism and internationalism can be ended.
Where did Roy leave his mark?
  • Next to religious backwardness, according to Roy, the factor responsible for the political deterioration of India was her social decadence.
  • He had no doubts that social reform was an essential precondition of political liberation. He did pioneering work in the field of social reform.
  • Roy started his public life in 1816 with the establishment of the Atmiya Sabha.
  • This Sabha vehemently protested against the prevalent Kulina tradition. It also opposed polygamy and worked for the removal of caste disabilities.
  • Roy believed in the progressive role of the British rule in India and sought government held in the matter of social reforms, especially in the form of socially progressive legislations.
  • For instance, Roy was convinced that without the active support of the government it would be almost impossible to eradicate the inhuman practices of sati.
  • Perhaps the greatest social reform with which Roy's name will be permanently associated is the abolition of the cruel practice of sati.
  • Roy's aim was the creation of a new society based on the principles of tolerance, sympathy and reason, where the principles of liberty, equality, and fraternity would be accepted by all, and where man would be free from the traditional shackles which had enslaved him for ages.
  • Roy's methods of social reform were multifaceted. He combined all possible means, including even those, which were commonly believed to be incompatible.
  • He appealed to the rational faculty of his compatriots, and often quoted from the scriptures, lines and verses in support of the proposed reforms.
  • Raja Ram Mohan Roy's strongest objection to the caste system was on the grounds that it fragmented society into many divisions and subdivisions.
  • Roy was a champion of women's rights in India.
  • He laid the foundations of the women's liberation movement in this country.
  • He revolted against the subjection of women and pleaded for the restoration of their rights. According to Roy, the root cause of the all-round deterioration of Hindu women was the complete denial of their property rights.
  • Roy vehemently opposed polygamy and with utmost vigor, its shameful evil consequences.
  • He pleaded for an enactment allowing a Hindu male to marry a second wife only after getting a clearance from the magistrate.
Who think he is a exceptionally over rated  reformer?
  • Many on the far right of the political spectrum allege Roy to be an anti-Hindu British stooge.
  • Right-wing propagandists like Rajiv Malhotra claim that the 19th century reformer and social activist was a “British agent” and a “Christian convert” who was part of some grand plan to subvert Hinduism, notwithstanding his contribution, accepted begrudgingly, in helping abolish that abomination of widow burning called Sati.
  • Malhotra even went on to make a short video quoting from a letter by Roy that asked the British to establish English education in India while rejecting all the old Sanskrit schools.
  • It’s easy to ascribe any attribute to Roy._
  • Much of the early writings on him were based on anecdotes and hearsay gathered from friends and co-workers.
  • The earliest biographical writings on Roy were short sketches in English by people known to him. These were thin in details and suffered due to inadequate use of Bengali-language sources and relied only on Roy’s religious thought.
  • Among Indians, the first biographical essay was by Kissory Chand Mitter who was also the first to dispute Ram Mohan’s credentials as a Vedantist and projected him as a culturally neutral and philosophical theist.
  • “Due to substantial gaps in information”, says Prof. Amiya P. Sen, who has authored a recent book on Roy, “scholars have remained undecided on whether Roy visualised a free India or remained a captive of the development chronology of the Empire.”
  • Scholar Ashish Nandy claims Roy focused on Vedic texts as a ploy to secure an audience for theological debates and make religious reformism more acceptable.
  • Philosopher Brajendra Nath Seal suggests Roy took all religions to follow their own distinct paths of social and historical development until they converged at some point.
  • Contrary to general perceptions, Roy’s polemical work Tuhfat is not harsh on Hinduism, nor does it show Brahmins as a devious and self-seeking class though he opens with a dramatic statement that falsehood is common to all religions.
  • Rather, it takes certain general observations about the nature and function of religions and explains what helps to keep them alive and useful to society.
  • Ram Mohan Roy did not insist on English alone as the medium of instruction.
  • His concern really was to make available to young minds knowledge that was advanced and useful and that is why he strongly advocated the study of science, western medicine and technology.
  • In the heat of controversy, what is also often overlooked is the selflessness with which Roy took on the task of spreading modern education and never advocated cultural cloning.
  • Though much of Roy’s work in India faded from public memory shortly after his death, his fame or reputation never declined with age.
  • That is because he remained firmly rooted to his culture and simultaneously absorbed the richness of human experiences. His openness was both resented and respected even as he remained a true cosmopolitan, visualising a world without borders.
  • Those who criticize him forget that it was Raj Ram Mohan Roy who made ‘Hinduism’ enter the English dictionary.
How large is the Raja’s area of work?
  • The mortal remains of Raja Ram Mohan Roy are buried in England. He was originally buried in the grounds of Stapleton Grove where he had died of meningitis at the age of 60. About a decade later, he was reburied at the Arnos Vale Cemetery (pictured), in Brislington, East Bristol.
  • He has a mausoleum to himself, which was designed by artist William Prinsep.
  • He influenced the areas of Indian education, politics, public administration and religion through his work involving social, educational and religious reforms.
  • In 2004, Ram Mohan Roy was ranked number 10 in BBC's poll of the Greatest Bengali of all time. But the rank would have been even higher had there been more awareness about the works of this first reformer of Bengal (and India).
  • Raja Ram Mohan Roy attempted to combine the western and eastern philosophies.
  • His writings and ideas are an example of a synthesis of ancient Indian ideas with modern Western political principles. He had a rational and scientific approach and believed in the principles of human dignity and social equality.
  • He was thus a perfect combination of the East and the West.
  • He read the Upanishads in Sanskrit and translated them into Bengali. His theological treatises show his depth in Koran as well as in the commentaries of Sankara. He realized the importance of English as the gateway to modern knowledge.
  • He acquired enough knowledge in English while working under the company administration.
  • Besides, he studied Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit.
  • He understood the essence of both Hinduism and Islam. Coming in contact with Christian missionaries, he also learnt the real meaning of Christianity. For his vast knowledge, he tried to bring the Indian society into order; thus becoming a rebel against many accepted evils of the society.
  • In 1828 Ram Mohan founded the Brahmo Sabha, which was renamed as Brahmo Samaj in 1830.
  • Brahmo Samaj became one of the most important agents of religious and social change in the nineteenth century India.
  • Under sustained campaigning against Sati by Ram Mohan Roy, the provincial government of Bengal banned Sati in 1829.
  • This was followed up by similar laws by the authorities in the princely states of India in the ensuing decades, with a general ban for the whole of India issued by Queen Victoria in 1861. In Nepal, sati was banned in 1920.
  • The Indian Sati Prevention Act from 1988 further criminalised any type of aiding, abetting, and glorifying of sati.
  • In the field of education, Roy was one of the first thinkers in India to realise the value of Western science and thought.
  • Ram Mohan’s idea of western education helped the Government of Lord William Bentinck to introduce European learning in India.
  • Breaking the orthodox belief to cross the sea and to lose the caste, Ram Mohan Roy was the first Indian to go to England crossing sea in 1830.
  • As mentioned before, it was he who first introduced the word "Hinduism" into the English language in 1816.
  • He along with Mahatma Gandhi represented the two ends, the beginning and the culmination, of the first epoch of Modern India.

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