All India - Socio-Culture reform Movement

Ramakrishna Movement and Vivekananda

• Teachings of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (1836-1886), found many followers.
• Ramakrishna experienced spiritual trances (ecstasy) from a very early age.
• Not write books, conversations with people formed the basis.
• Two objectives of the Ramakrishna movement
1. To bring into existence a band of monks dedicated to a life of renunciation and practical spirituality, from among whom teachers and workers would be sent out to spread the universal message of Vedanta as illustrated in the life of Ramakrishna.
2. in conjunction with lay disciples to carry on preaching, philanthropic and charitable works, looking upon all men, women and children, irrespective of caste, creed or colour, as veritable manifestations of the Divine.
• Foundations of the Ramakrishna Math.
• Swami Vivekananda after Ramakrishna’s death when he founded the Ramakrishna Mission in 1897 (religious and social reform).
• Doctrine of service—the service of all beings.
• Headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission are at Belur near Calcutta.
• Recognised fundamental oneness of all religions and emphasised.
• "Service of man is the service of God".
• Ramakrishna married to Saradmani Mukherjee, later known as Sarada Devi, embodiment of the Divine Mother.

Swami Vivekananda

• Narendranath Datta (1862-1902) later Swami Vivekananda. Subscribed to the Vedanta.
• Declared, knowledge without action is useless.
• Tried to reconcile it to the needs of contemporary Indian society. preacher of neo-Hinduism.
• Teachings of the Upanishads and the Gita and the examples of the Buddha and Jesus are the basis of Vivekananda’s message to the world about human values.
• Bridge the gulf between paramartha (service) and vyavahara (behaviour).
• For our own motherland a junction of the two great systems, Hinduism and Islam, is the only hope.
• Believed that it was an insult to God and humanity to teach religion to a starving man.
• Two kinds of knowledge
1. Secular knowledge
2. Spiritual knowledge
• Imbibe a spirit of liberty, equality and free thinking.
• Parliament of Religions held at Chicago in 1893, lectures on Vedanta in the USA and in London, returning to India in 1897
• Healthy balance between spiritualism and materialism - blend of the materialism of the West and the spiritualism of the East into a new harmony to produce happiness for mankind.
• Unification of Hinduism by pointing out the common foundation of its sects.
• Emphasis was not only on personal salvation, but also on social good and reform.
• Humanitarian relief and social work.
• By service, the Divine exists within man, using technology and modern science in the service of mankind.
• Running a number of schools, hospitals, dispensaries, Offer help of natural calamities like earthquakes, famines, floods and epidemics.
• Worldwide organisation - deeply religious body, but it is not a proselytising body.
• Unlike the Arya Samaj, recognises the utility and value of image worship in developing spiritual fervour and worship of the eternal omnipotent God, although it emphasises on the essential spirit and not the symbols or rituals.

Dayananda Saraswati and Arya Samaj

• Reaction to Western influences, Dayananda Saraswati or Mulshankar (1824-1883) founded Arya Samaj.
• Headquarters in Bombay 1875, later at lahore.
• Famous work, Satyarth Prakash (The True Exposition).
• Vision - classless and casteless society & India free from foreign rule.
• Inspiration from the Vedas, Slogan “Back to the Vedas".
• Call revival of Vedic learning and Vedic purity of religion and not a revival of Vedic times.
• Accepted modernity and displayed a patriotic attitude to national problems.
• Received education on Vedanta from blind teacher named Swami Virajananda in Mathura.
• Every person has the right of access to God criticised Puranas and the ignorant priests for perverting Hinduism.
• Escapist Hindu belief in maya (illusion).
• Every individual had to work out his own salvation in the light of the eternal principles governing human conduct. Attacked the prevalent popular belief.
• Principles of niyati (destiny), Believed in the theory of karma and reincarnation.
• frontal attack on Hindu orthodoxy, caste rigidities, untouchability, idolatry, polytheism, belief in magic, charms and animal sacrifices, taboo on sea voyages, feeding the dead through shraddhas, etc.
• Subscribed to the Vedic - chaturvarna system (Classification not by birth but according to the occupation and merit of the person).
• Fixed the minimum marriageable age twenty-five years for boys and sixteen years for girls.
• Social ideals - fatherhood of God and brotherhood of Man, equality of the sexes, absolute justice and fair play between man and man and nation and nation. Encourage - Intercaste marriages, widow remarriages.
• Met Keshab Chandra Sen, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Ranade, Deshmukh, etc.
• Social service promote Education.
• Death of Dayananda in 1883, Dayananda Anglo- Vedic (D.A.V.) College was established in 1886 at Lahore, difference of opinion.
• College Party - Lala Hansraj, Lala Lal Chand and Lala Lajpat Rai. English education to meet economic and professional, non-vegetarianism
• Mahatma (later Gurukul) Party - Guru Datta Vidyarthi and Lala Munshi Ram. Study of Sanskrit and Vedic, strict vegetarians
• Arya Samaj split in 1893, College Party control over the D.A.V. School and College & Mahatma Party opened Gurukul in 1900 at Gujaranwala.
• Indigenous alternative to Lord Macaulay’s education policy by offering education in the areas of vedic literature, Indian philosophy, Indian culture as well as modern sciences and research.
• Radical social reform, sponsored education for widows
• self-respect and self-confidence to the Hindus. protect the Hindu society from the onslaught of Christianity and Islam, started the shuddhi (purification) movement to reconvert to the Hindu fold the converts to Christianity and Islam.
• Caste system of Hindus into pure caste Hindus

Ten guiding principles of the Arya Samaj

1. God is the primary source of all true knowledge;
2. God, as all-truth, all-knowledge, almighty, immortal, creator of Universe, is alone worthy of worship;
3. the Vedas are the books of true knowledge;
4. an Arya should always be ready to accept truth and abandon untruth;
5. dharma, that is, due consideration of right and wrong, should be the guiding principle of all actions;
6. the principal aim of the Samaj is to promote world’s well-being in the material, spiritual and social sense;
7. everybody should be treated with love and justice;
8. ignorance is to be dispelled and knowledge increased;
9. one’s own progress should depend on uplift of all others;
10. social well-being of mankind is to be placed above an individual’s well-being.

Theosophical Movement

• Group of westerners led by Madame H.P. Blavatsky (1831-1891) and Colonel M.S. Olcott, founded the Theosophical Society in New York City, United States in 1875.
• 1882, shifted headquarters to Adyar, Madras.
• Accepted reincarnation and karma.
• Inspired philosophy of the Upanishads and samkhya, yoga and Vedanta schools of thought.
• Universal brotherhood of humanity, allied with the Hindu renaissance
• Opposed child marriage, abolition of caste discrimination, uplift of outcastes, improvement in the condition of widows.
• Popular with the election of Annie Besant (1847-1933) as president after the death of Olcott in 1907.
• Central Hindu College in Benaras in 1898 with Hindu religion and Western scientific subjects.
• Theosophists did not attain much success but glorifying Indian religious and philosophical traditions.
• Gave much needed self-respect to the Indians fighting British colonial rule.
• Another angle, false sense of pride to the Indians in their outdated and sometimes backward looking  traditions and philosophy.