• UGI USER
  • Feb 20, 2024
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Religious and Social Reform in 19th century India

 

The Indian Renaissance

The advent of the English was the ignition for the renaissance in India. Suddenly Indians were exposed to the scientific thoughts, new discoveries and free-thinking. Indian treasure of scholarship was housed in the Vedas, Upanishads, Sutras, the epics and such scriptures. This realization ushered in the era of Indian renaissance.

Gurudwara Reform Movement

Recently, the centenary of the Sri Nankana Sahib massacre (popularly known as Saka Nankana Sahib) was marked. This agitation was a big leap in the Gurdwara Reform movement.

About Gurudwara Reform Movement

  • Gurdwara Reform movement/ Akali Movement was Sikhs’ long-drawn campaign between 1920 to 1925 for the lib eration of their Gurdwaras or holy shrines from the priests (Mahants) who had asserted property rights over Gurdwaras. It was an offshoot of the Singh Sabha Movement (1873).
  • The properties of places of worship of Sikhs were transferred and given over to the Udasi Mahants by Britishers. Mahants considered the Gurdwara as their fiefdom and encouraged practices such as idol worship, discrimination with Dalits, drinking etc. in violation of the tenets of Sikhism.
  • Sikhs claimed that Gurdwaras were public property, hence, the public could remove mahanats in case of their inability to conform to the wishes of people.
  • People who agitated against such persons, were suppressed by the Government and the result was Gurdwara Reform movement/Akali Movement in which Sikhs had to face imprisonment, suffer atrocity and death.

Events related to Gurdwara Reform Movement

  • Formation of Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC): SGPC came to existence in November 1920, a month after Sikhs removed partial restrictions on Dalit rights inside Golden Temple in Amritsar. It started gurdwara reform movement which was aimed at taking possession of historical Sikh Gurd waras. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) was also founded in December, 1920.
  • Nankana Sahib Massacre: In February 1921, a band of more than 100 Sikhs were brutally killed by Narayan Das the mahant ofNankana Sahib (the birthplace of Guru Nanak) and his army. To hail the non-violent resistance by Sikhs the Indian National Congress passed a resolu tion in Gaya session (December 1921).
  • Other campaigns like Guru Ka Bagh Morcha (1922), Jaito Morcha (1923) etc. were also held whichultimately led to enactment of Gurdwara Act, 1925.
  • Gurdwara Act, 1925: The British government finally passed the Gurdwaras Act in 1925, making SGPC a democratic body for better administration’ of Certain Sikh Gurdvvaras. This act enables SGPC to control all the Historical Gurdwaras as well as Gurdwaras under Section 87 of this act.

Ramakrishna Mission (Prabuddha Bharata)

`Prabuddha Bharata’ journal celebrated its 125th anniversary.

About Prabuddha Bharata

Prabuddha Bharata or Awakened India is an english-language monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Mission. Prabuddha Bharata was founded in 1896 by P. Aiyasami, B. R. Rajam Iyer, G. G. Narasimhacharya, and B. V. Karnes vara Iyer, in Madras (now Chennai), at the behest of Swami Vivekananda.

It is the “longest-running” monthly English magazine of the country.

It carries articles on social sciences and humanities comprising historical, psychological, cultural, and social sciences themes.

Luminaries like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Sister Nivedita, Sri Aurobindo, Sarvepalli Radhalcrishnan etc. wrote in the journal.

Other Publications from Ramakrishna Mission: Udbodhan, Bengali Monthly started by Swami Vivekananda in January 1899; Vedanta Kesari is cultural and Spriritual Magazines in English. It was started in 1914; and Sri Ramalcrishna Vijayam, the Tamil monthly magazine started in 1921.

About Ramakrishna Mission

  • Ramakrishna Mission was founded near Calcutta (now Kolkata) by Vivekananda in 1897 with a two-fold purpose: to spread the teachings of Vedanta as embodied in the life of the Hindu saint Ramakrislma (1836-86) and to improve the social conditions of the Indian
  • It is a philanthropic and volunteer organisation.
  • Mission Motto is Atmano Mokshartham Jagad Hitaya Cha, “For one’s own salvation and for the welfare of the world”. It was formulated by Swami Vivekananda.
  • Organization is based on the three core ideals: Work as wor ship, potential divinity of the soul, and harmony of religions.

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