Hinduism - 20.

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20. The Brahmo and Arya Samajas.

 

Debendranath Tagore (son of the fabulous " Prince " Dwarkanath Tagore),

the next great leader of the Samaj, formulated the Brahmopadesa, comprising

tenets from the Upanisads and Tantras. His successor, Keshub Chandra Sen, sought

to incorporate Christian ideals into the Brahmo Samaj movement. He began the

compilation of a scripture including passages from the Holy Books of many

religions - Hindu, Buddhist, Hebrew, Christian, Muslim etc. Then he went to

England in 1870, he was welcomed by many Christian organizations. As the result

of secessions in the Brahmo Samaj, three institutions arose: The Adi Brahmo

Samaj; the New Dispensation of Keshub Chandra Sen; and the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj

founded by dissenters from the Keshub Church. The Sadharan Samaj, led by

Sivanatha Sastri and Ananda Mohan Bose, gave a rational, monistic interpretation

of the Upanisads, admitting the essential unity of the universal self and the

individual self. The following doctrines, as noted in Renaissance of Hinduism

are common to all these varieties and offshoots of the Brahmo Samaj:

 

1. They have no faith in any scripture as an authority.

 

2. They have no faith in Avatars.

 

3. They denounce polytheism and idol-worship.

 

4. They are against caste restrictions.

 

5. They make faith in the doctrines of Karma and Rebirth optional.

 

Another offshoot of the Brahmo Samaj, the Prarthana Samaj was founded by

Justice Ranade in Bombay. Its programme included disapproval of caste,

recognition of widow marriage, and the encouragement of women's

education. Dr. Atmaram Pandurang, Pandita Rama Bai, S. P. Kelkar and S.

P. Pandit were the principal exponents of this Samaj.

 

The Arya Samaj

 

As a reaction against the influences typified by Raja Ramamohan Roy and

Justice Ranade, the Arya Samaj was founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati.

It attacked the Brahma Samaj for its pro-European and pro-Christian

attitude. A great Sanskrit scholar and a believer in the doctrines of

Karma and Rebirth, Swami Dayananda sought to revive the Vedic ideals and

laid stress on Brahmacarya and Sanyasa. He believed implicitly in the

ancient scriptures, disavowing Puranic Hinduism in favour of Vedic

Hinduism. The Puranic texts, he said, had no Vedic sanction. Holding the

Vedas alone as authoritative, he stated that God and the human soul are

two distinct entities, different in nature and attributes, though they

are inseparable from each other as the pervader and the pervaded. The

doctrine of Karma and Samsara is of course accepted by the Arya Samaj.

One of its main activities is Suddhi, a purification ceremony, by which

non-Hindus are converted to Hinduism. The depressed classes and Harijans

are entitled to be invested with the sacred thread and are given equal

status with other Hindus. The Arya Samaj also reclaimed many Hindus who

had been converted to Islam and Christianity. Sanghatan, organization of

the Hindus for self-defence, is one of the main principles of the Arya

Samaj, and it has played its part as the church militant in the Hindu

fold.