16. Socio-Religious Reform Movements (19th–20th Century), Intellectual Awakening

CORE Key Points at a Glance

1. 1

   Brahmo Samaj (1828)

   • Founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in Calcutta — first major socio-religious reform organisation
   • Advocated monotheism; opposed idol worship, sati, and child marriage
   • Promoted women's education and widow remarriage using rational Vedantic arguments
   • Combined insights from Christian and Islamic monotheism with Hindu thought
   • Roy is called the "Father of the Indian Renaissance"
2. 2

   Arya Samaj (1875)

   • Founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati at Bombay; motto: "Krinvanto Vishwam Aryam" (Make the World Noble)
   • Proclaimed infallibility of the Vedas; opposed idol worship, caste discrimination, child marriage, and foreign rule
   • Introduced shuddhi (purification) ceremony to reconvert people to Hinduism
   • Spread education through the Gurukul residential school system
3. 3

   Ramakrishna Mission (1897)

   • Founded by Swami Vivekananda in memory of his guru Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
   • Combined Vedanta philosophy with practical social service
   • Motto: "Atmano Mokshartham Jagad Hitaya Cha" (For one's own liberation and the good of the world)
   • Vivekananda's Chicago speech (11 September 1893) electrified the world with "Sisters and Brothers of America"
4. 4

   Theosophical Society (1875)

   • Founded in New York by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (Russian) and Colonel Henry Steel Olcott (American)
   • Shifted to Adyar (Chennai) in 1882; combined Hindu/Buddhist spirituality with Western occultism
   • Promoted ancient Indian wisdom and attracted Indian intellectuals
   • Annie Besant (joined 1889) became its most influential Indian-phase president
   • RPSC 2021 directly tested this
5. 5

   Aligarh Movement (1875)

   • Founded by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan — established Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental (MAO) College at Aligarh (1875; became Aligarh Muslim University in 1920)
   • Advocated Western education for Muslims while retaining Islamic identity
   • Established the Scientific Society to translate Western works into Urdu
   • Initially opposed Congress as a Hindu-dominated body
6. 6

   Prarthana Samaj (1867)

   • Founded in Bombay by Atmaram Pandurang — largely inspired by the Brahmo Samaj
   • Focused on social reforms: widow remarriage, inter-caste dining, women's education
   • Justice Mahadev Govind Ranade and R.G. Bhandarkar were its key leaders
   • Ranade founded the Social Conference of India (1887) to pursue broader social reforms
7. 7

   Young Bengal Movement (1820s–30s)

   • Inspired by Henry Louis Vivian Derozio (1809–1831), a Eurasian teacher at Hindu College, Calcutta
   • Encouraged free-thinking, rationalism, and criticism of Hindu tradition among his students ("Derozians")
   • Derozio was dismissed in 1831 before his death
   • His students became important public intellectuals, journalists, and reformers
8. 8

   Sati Abolition (Regulation XVII, 1829)

   • Lord Bentinck abolished sati (widow immolation) under the influence of Ram Mohan Roy's persistent campaign
   • Roy published A Conference Between an Advocate and Opponent of Burning Widows Alive (1818–19) as the key textual weapon
   • He petitioned the government directly for legislative action
   • After the act, upper castes of Bengal counter-petitioned — Roy submitted a support petition in response
9. 9

   Widow Remarriage Act (1856)

   • Passed under Lord Dalhousie due to the campaign of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (1820–1891)
   • Vidyasagar collected 25,000 signatures and published Marriage of Hindu Widows (1855) — using Parasara Smriti as scriptural argument
   • Also championed women's education and opened 35 girls' schools in Bengal
10. 10

    B.R. Ambedkar (1891–1956)

    • Represented the most systematic challenge to Hindu caste society from within it
    • Founded Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha (1924) and Independent Labour Party (1936)
    • Led symbolic acts: Mahad Satyagraha (1927) — Dalits drinking from a public tank; burning of Manu Smriti (1927)
    • Converted to Buddhism (14 October 1956) with 500,000 followers — 6 weeks before his death; known as "Babasaheb"
11. 11

    Jyotirao Phule (1827–1890)

    • Pioneering lower-caste reformer from Maharashtra (Mali/gardener caste)
    • Founded Satyashodhak Samaj (Truth-Seeking Society, 1873) to challenge Brahmin supremacy
    • Opened the first school for girls in Pune (1848) with wife Savitribai Phule — India's first woman teacher; also opened India's first school for "untouchables" (1852)
    • His book Gulamgiri (Slavery, 1873) drew on American abolitionism to critique caste oppression
12. 12

    Sikh Reform Movements

    • Singh Sabha Movement (1873): Purified Sikhism from Hindu accretions; promoted Gurmukhi literacy and education
    • Akali Movement (1920–25) — also called Gurdwara Reform Movement: non-violent agitation to wrest control of Sikh shrines from corrupt mahants
    • Culminated in the Sikh Gurdwara Act (1925) — restoring shrines to the Sikh community