Prarthana Samaj
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The Prarthana Samaj, or "Prayer Society" in Sanskrit, is a movement for religious and social reform in Maharashtra inspired by Keshab Chandra Sen in 1864[1], although based in the earlier reform movements and traditions of Maharashtra. The direct predecessor of the Prarthana Samaj in Mumbai was the Paramahamsa Sabha, a secret society for the furtherance of liberal ideas formed in 1849 by Ram Balkrishna Jaykar and others in Mumbai. It was secret in order to avoid the wrath of the powerful and orthodox elements of society. Meetings were for discussion, the singing of hymns, and the sharing of a communal meal prepared by a low-caste cook. Members ate bread baked by Christians and drank water brought by Moslems.[2]
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[edit] Religious Reform
Like the Brahmo Samaj of Bengal, the Prarnatha Samaj represented an Indian response to European liberalism, including the ideals of rational or theistic belief and social reform. The Brahmo Samaj was based on restoring certain religious concepts of ancient Vedic texts. In contrast, the Prarthana Samaj were followers of the great religious tradition of Maratha saints like Namdev, Tukaram and Ramdas, the guru of Shivaji. Although the adherents of Prarthana Samaj were devoted theists, they did not regard the Vedas as divine or infallible, nor believe in the doctrine of transmigration and incarnation of God. They drew their nourishment from the Hindu scriptures and used the hymns of the old Maratha poet-saints in their prayers.[3] Their ideas trace back to the devotional poems of the Vitthalas[4] as part of the Vaishnava bhakti devotional movement of the thirteenth century in southern Maharashtra.[5]. The Marathi poets had inspired a movement of resistance to the Mughals. But, beyond religious concerns, the primary focus of the Prarnatha Samaj was on social and cultural reform.
[edit] Social Reform
Prarthana Samaj critically examined the relations between contemporary social and cultural systems and religious beliefs and gave priority to social reform as compared with the political changes already initiated by the British government. Their comprehensive reform movement has led many impressive projects of cultural change and social reform in Western India, such as the improvement of the lot of women and depressed classes, an end to the caste system, abolition of child marriages and infanticide, educational opportunites for women, and remarriage of widows. Its success was guided by Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar, a noted Sanskrit scholar, Dr. Atmaram Pandurang, Narayan Chandavarkar, and Justice Mahadev Govinda Ranade. Ranade emphasized that "the reformer must attempt to deal with the whole man and not to carry out reform on one side only". "The social organism in India," according to Ranade, "shows a growth which should not be ignored and cannot be forcibly suppressed."
[edit] See also
[edit] Literature
- Suresh K. Sharma and Usha Sharma, Cultural and Religious Heritage of India, vol. VIII: Cultural and Religious Reform Movements, New Delhi, Mittal, (2004) ISBN 81-7099-955-3.
[edit] References
| Brahmo Samaj · Prarthana Samaj · Arya Samaj · Ramakrishna Mission · Gandhism · Hindutva · Sri Aurobindo Ashram · Parisada Hindu Dharma |
| Topics |
| Bhakti · Caste · Indian independence movement ·Persecution of Hindus ·Shuddhi ·Women in Hinduism |
| Important Hindu reformers and Hindu revivalist writers |
| Sri Aurobindo · Ananda Coomaraswamy · Alain Daniélou · Koenraad Elst · David Frawley · Sita Ram Goel · M. S. Golwalkar · Mahatma Gandhi · Harsh Narain · Gedong Bagus Oka · The Mother · Srila Prabhupada · Raja Ram Mohun Roy · Ramakrishna · Dayananda Saraswati · V. D. Savarkar · Keshub Chandra Sen · Swami Sivananda · Arun Shourie · Ram Swarup · Debendranath Tagore · Rabindranath Tagore · B. G. Tilak · Vivekananda · Yogananda |
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