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51-613: The success of the Bengali monthly Digdarshan encouraged the missionaries of the Baptist Missionary Society to embark on a new venture – the publication of a Bengali newspaper. The initiative was taken by Joshua Marshman and William Ward . At about the same time Harachandra Roy was also planning to start a Bengali newspaper from his own printing press at Chorebagan Street in Calcutta . But before he could bring out his publication,

102-583: A Baptist Missionary settled in Serampore, and the Serampore missionaries. With Dwarkanath's munificence, he launched a series of attacks against Trinitarian Christianity and was now considerably assisted in his theological debates by the Unitarian faction of Christianity. He wrote Gaudiya Vyakaran which was the first complete Bangla grammar written book. It was published in 1826. In 1828, he launched Brahmo Sabha with Debendranath Tagore . By 1828, he had become

153-450: A Sunday close to his death anniversary date of 27 September. The Indian High Commission at London often come to Raja's annual commemoration and Bristol's Lord Mayor is also regularly in attendance. The commemoration is a joint Brahmo-Unitarian service, in which, prayers and hymns are sung, flowers laid at the tomb, and the life of the Raja is celebrated via talks and visual presentations. In 2013,

204-591: A book under the title The Precept of Jesus: The Guide To Peace And Happiness where he refuted the supernaturalism of Jesus but admired his moral teachings. The missionaries not content with vindicating the excellence of their own doctrines, attacked all the Hindu shastras as unreasonable, and also abused the Hindus in very offensive terms in Darpan dated 14 July 1821. Doubts were expressed concerning Vedantic teaching about Maya ;

255-534: A grammar in 1797, the same year he translated part of The Bible (from Joshua to Job), a massive task. For the next two decades Maha Nirvana Tantra was regularly augmented. Its judicial sections were used in the law courts of the English Settlement in Bengal as Hindu Law for adjudicating upon property disputes of the zamindars. However, a few British magistrates and collectors began to suspect and its usage (as well as

306-594: A living for himself. He began learning Greek and Latin. In 1799, Carey was joined by missionary Joshua Marshman and the printer William Ward at the Danish settlement of Serampore . From 1803 until 1815, Ram Mohan served the East India Company's "Writing Service", commencing as private clerk ( Munshi ) to Thomas Woodroffe, Registrar of the Appellate Court at Murshidabad (whose distant nephew, John Woodroffe —also

357-504: A magistrate—and later lived off the Maha Nirvana Tantra under the pseudonym Arthur Avalon ). Roy resigned from Woodroffe's service and later secured employment with John Digby, a Company collector, and Ram Mohan spent many years at Rangpur and elsewhere with Digby, where he renewed his contacts with Hariharananda. William Carey had by this time settled at Serampore and the old trio renewed their profitable association. William Carey

408-479: A philosophical discussion circle in Kolkata (then Calcutta) to propagate the monotheistic ideals of the vedanta and to campaign against idolatry, caste rigidities, meaningless rituals and other social ills. The East India Company was draining money from India at a rate of three million pounds a year by 1838. Ram Mohan Roy was one of the first to try to estimate how much money was being taken out of India and to where it

459-464: A recently discovered ivory bust of Ram Mohan was displayed. In 2014, his original death mask at Edinburgh was filmed and its history was discussed. In 2017, Raja's commemoration was held on 24 September. Roy's commitment to English education and thought sparked debate between Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore . Gandhi objected to Roy's devotion to English education and thought and disallowing independent thinking by being overly supportive of

510-657: A village to the north-east of Bristol (now a suburb), on 27 September 1833 of meningitis or a chronic respiratory ailment. Ram Mohan Roy was originally buried on 18 October 1833, in the grounds of Stapleton Grove, where he had lived as an ambassador of the Mughal Empire and died of meningitis on 27 September 1833. Nine years later he was reburied on 29 May 1843 in a grave at the new Arnos Vale Cemetery , in Brislington, East Bristol. A large plot on The Ceremonial Way there had been bought by William Carr and William Prinsep, and

561-511: A well known figure in India. In 1830, he had gone to England as an envoy of the Mughal Emperor, Akbar Shah II, who invested him with the title of Raja to the court of King William IV. This was Ram Mohan's most controversial period. Commenting on his published works Sivanath Sastri writes: "The period between 1820 and 1830 was also eventful from a literary point of view, as will be manifest from

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612-555: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Ram Mohan Roy Ram Mohan Roy FRAS (22 May 1772 – 27 September 1833), popularly regarded as the "Father of Indian Renaissance," was an Indian reformer and writer who was one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, the precursor of the Brahmo Samaj , a socio-religious reform movement in the Indian subcontinent . He

663-541: Is said to have studied Persian and Arabic in a madrasa in Patna and after that he was sent to Benares to learn the intricacies of Sanskrit and Hindu scripture, including the Vedas and Upanishads . The dates of his time in both these places are uncertain. However, it is believed that he was sent to Patna when he was nine years old and two years later he went to Benares . Ram Mohan Roy's impact on modern Indian history

714-708: The Brahmo Samaj expounded by Rajnarayan Basu are: Having studied the Qur’an , the Vedas and the Upanishads , Roy's beliefs were derived from a combination of monastic elements of Hinduism , Islam , eighteenth-century Deism , Unitarianism , and the ideas of the Freemasons . Roy founded the Atmiya Sabha and the Unitarian Community to fight the social evils, and to propagate social and educational reforms in India. He

765-456: The Samachar Darpan began to be published twice a week – on Wednesday and Saturday. The price was raised from a rupee per month to one and a half. However, as a result of the hike in postage duty, the twice a week publication was discontinued and it again became a weekly newspaper from 8 November 1834. In December 1841, the missionaries decided to discontinue the publication that ended with

816-781: The Bible in Indian languages and propagate Christianity to the Indian people. He realised the "mobile" (i.e. service classes) Brahmins and Pandits were most able to help him in this endeavour, and he began gathering them. He learnt the Buddhist and Jain religious works to better argue the case for Christianity in a cultural context. In 1795, Carey made contact with a Sanskrit scholar, the Tantric Saihardana Vidyavagish, who later introduced him to Ram Mohan Roy, who wished to learn English. While there are rumors that between 1796 and 1797,

867-669: The British and thus seeking to legitimise Hinduism in the eyes of the Christian world. In early September 1833 Roy came to Bristol to visit his Unitarian friend, Dr Lant Carpenter , where he made a deep impression on Lant's daughter and future social reformer, Mary Carpenter . While in Bristol Roy preached at the Lewins Mead Meeting House . In mid September he became ill and was diagnosed with meningitis. He died at Stapleton , then

918-532: The King to increase the Mughal Emperor's allowance and perquisites. He was successful in persuading the British government to increase the stipend of the Mughal Emperor by £30,000. While in England, he embarked on cultural exchanges, meeting with members of parliament and publishing books on Indian economics and law. Sophia Dobson Collet was his biographer at that time. The religious reforms of Roy contained in some beliefs of

969-562: The Western philosophical discourses. Tagore wrote a letter rejecting Gandhi's view, saying "[Roy] had the full inheritance of Indian wisdom. He was never a school boy of the West, and therefore had the dignity to be a friend of the West." In 1983, a full-scale Exhibition on Ram Mohan Roy was held in Bristol's Museum and Art Gallery. His enormous 1831 portrait by Henry Perronet Briggs still hangs there and

1020-469: The body in its lac and a lead coffin was placed later in a deep brick-built vault, over seven feet underground. Two years after this, Dwarkanath Tagore helped pay for the chhatri raised above this vault, although there is no record of him ever visiting Bristol. The chhatri was designed by the artist William Prinsep, who had known Ram Mohan in Calcutta . Bristol Arnos Vale cemetery have been holding remembrance services for Raja Ram Mohan Roy every year on

1071-588: The early years of East India Company rule, Ram Mohan Roy acted as a political agitator while employed by the company. In 1792, the British Baptist shoemaker William Carey published his influential missionary tract, An Enquiry of the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of Heathens . In 1793, William Carey landed in India to settle. His objective was to translate, publish and distribute

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1122-487: The educated people. Both in typography and contents the Samachar Darpan maintained a fairly good standard. Its coverage of local news was certainly better than any other English or Indian language newspaper. By reprinting news and comments from other Bengali newspapers, the Samachar Darpan enabled its readers to have acquaintance with the different sections of the Bengali opinion. The paper covered seven main beats: news of

1173-430: The end of 1841, when the publication was discontinued. By 1836, the circulation had reached 400, which was much higher than any other Indian language publication. John Clark Marshman , was the official editor and the editorial staff included some of the most distinguished Bengali Hindu pundits of the time. Marshman's control over the newspaper was only nominal and he had to depend much on his editorial board. Once when

1224-682: The first known theological statement of one who achieved later fame and notoriety as a Vedantin . On its own, it is unremarkable, perhaps of interest only to a social historian because of its amateurish eclecticism. Tuhfat was, after all, available as early as 1884 in the English translation of Maulavi Obaidullah EI Obaid, published by the Adi Brahmo Samaj. Raja Ram Mohan Roy did not know the Upanishad at this stage in his intellectual development. In 1814, he started Atmiya Sabha (i.e. Society of Friends)

1275-641: The following list of his publications during that period: He publicly declared that he would emigrate from the British Empire if Parliament failed to pass the Reform Bill. In 1830, Ram Mohan Roy travelled to the United Kingdom as an ambassador of the Mughal Empire to ensure that Lord William Bentinck's Bengal Sati Regulation, 1829 banning the practice of sati was not overturned. In addition, Roy petitioned

1326-453: The garden is marked by railings and a granite memorial stone. His tomb and chhatri at Arnos Vale are listed as a Grade II historic site by English Heritage and attract many visitors today. A 1965 Indian Bengali -language film Raja Rammohan about Roy's reforms, directed by Bijoy Bose and starring Basanta Chowdhury in the title role. In 1988 Doordarshan Serial Bharat Ek Khoj produced and directed by Shyam Benegal also picturised

1377-503: The government officials, government circulars , news of the European countries other than Britain, new events, birth, obituary and wedding, news of England, history of India and its scholarly books. It published useful information on the appointment of judges, collectors and so on. From July 1829, the newspaper began to appear in both Bengali and English; the Bengali and English sections represented translation of each other. From January 1832,

1428-410: The last issue of December. The official reason stated was that John Clark Marshman who was still the editor of the newspaper couldn't find sufficient time owing to other pre-occupations. But the actual reason was that the Samachar Darpan , though very successful as a newspaper, had failed miserably in its primary objective – propagation of Christianity . Samachar Darpan had an uninterrupted career till

1479-525: The letter. In 1826, the Government requested the missionaries to bring out a Persian edition of Samachar Darpan to provide better communication with the people of Upper India , which did not yet have any Indian-language newspaper. Accordingly, the Persian version called Akhbar-i-Serampur was published on 6 May 1826. The Government subsidized this newspaper with a monthly grant of 160 rupees. But after two years

1530-627: The missionaries published the first issue of Samachar Darpan from the Baptist Mission Press in Serampore on May 23, 1818. The newspaper was published every Saturday and was edited by John Clark Marshman . Its price was 4 annas per copy. It contained news, both Indian and European, collected from various sources, particular from English language newspapers. It also contained brief articles on various subjects. It carried some material of educational value which made it respected and popular among

1581-424: The natives cause for suspicion that the paper had been devised as an engine for undermining their religious opinions." The newspaper was allowed to be circulated through the post office at one-fourth of the usual charge. The general tone of the newspaper was moderate as compared to other missionary publications. It had to be so if the newspaper was to gain some patronage from the public. The Government appreciated

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1632-480: The next two decades, Ram Mohan along with William Carey, launched his attack against the bastions of Hinduism of Bengal, namely his own Kulin Brahmin priestly clan (then in control of the many temples of Bengal) and their priestly excesses. The Kulin excesses targeted include sati (the co-cremation of widows), polygamy, child marriage and dowry. From 1819, Ram Mohan's battery increasingly turned against William Carey,

1683-452: The practice of burning widows. He sought to integrate Western culture with the best features of his own country's traditions. He established a number of schools to popularize a modern system of education in India. He promoted a rational, ethical, non-authoritarian, this-worldly views and social reforms in Hinduism. His writings also sparked interest among British and American Unitarians. During

1734-603: The publication was discontinued to lack of sufficient patronage. Digdarshan Digdarshan ( Bengali : বাংলা ) was the first periodical of Bengal in Bangla language. It was a monthly periodical published by the Srirampur ( Serampore ) Baptist Mission and edited by John Clark Marshman who was the son of missionary Joshua Marshman . Its first issue was published in April 1818. This article related to newspapers in India

1785-458: The pundits took an extended leave during the Puja , Marshman had to postpone the publications as well and he apologized to the subscribers for the delay. The Government showed a favourable attitude towards the publication, because the primary objective of the publication was the propagation of Christianity . The Government warned the missionaries that, "extra-ordinary precautions must be used not to give

1836-431: The pure spirit it dictates!" The "superstitious practices", to which Ram Mohan Roy objected, included sati, caste rigidity, polygamy and child marriages. These practices were often the reasons British officials claimed moral superiority over the Indian nation. Ram Mohan Roy's ideas of religion actively sought to create a fair and just society by implementing humanitarian practices similar to the Christian ideals professed by

1887-539: The reliance on pandits as sources of Hindu Law) was quickly deprecated. Vidyavagish had a brief falling out with Carey and separated from the group, but maintained ties to Ram Mohan Roy. In 1797, Raja Ram Mohan reached Calcutta and became a bania (moneylender), mainly to lend to the Englishmen of the Company living beyond their means. Ram Mohan also continued his vocation as pandit in the English courts and started to make

1938-421: The sake of their political advantage and social comfort. Roy's experience working with the British government taught him that Hindu traditions were often not credible or respected by western standards and this no doubt affected his religious reforms. He wanted to legitimise Hindu traditions to his European acquaintances by proving that "superstitious practices which deform the Hindu religion have nothing to do with

1989-574: The teaching of Nyaya Shastra about God and creation; the dualism of Samkhya system; and the interpretation of sacrificial rites in the Mimamsa Shastra. An outraged Ram Mohan Roy , responded to the article in a forceful letter, only to find that his missive was completely ignored by the editor. Spurred by indignation and eager to counterbalance the Christian missionary propaganda Roy started his own Brahminical Magazine where he eventually published

2040-551: The trio of Carey, Vidyavagish, and Roy created a religious work known as the "Maha Nirvana Tantra" (or "Book of the Great Liberation"). Scholars like John Duncan Derrett are skeptical of this claim calling it "highly improbable" and Hugh Urban argues that "It is probable that we will never know the true author and date of the Maha Nirvana Tantra". Carey's involvement is not recorded in his very detailed records and he reports only learning to read Sanskrit in 1796 and only completed

2091-405: The two for the rest of his life. During his childhood Ram Mohan Roy witnessed the death of his sister-in-law through sati . The seventeen-year-old girl was dragged towards the pyre where Ram Mohan Roy witnessed her terrified state. He tried to protest but to no avail. She was burned alive. The people chanted "Maha Sati! Maha Sati! Maha Sati!" (great wife) over her painful screams. Ram Mohan Roy

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2142-427: The usefulness of the newspaper as a medium of communication with the literate public. At the beginning, the Hindus were not friendly towards the Darpan . But as time passed their attitude changed towards the paper. Reformist and liberal Hindus , generally found in the Samachar Darpan a valuable ally because of its strong support in favour of social reform and education. But conflict arose when Ram Mohan Roy wrote

2193-581: Was a Rarhi Kulin (noble) Brahmin . Among Kulin Brahmins ;– descendants of the five families of Brahmins imported from Kannauj by Ballal Sen in the 12th century as per popular myth – those from the Rarhi district of West Bengal were notorious in the 19th century for living off dowries by marrying several women. Kulinism was a synonym for polygamy and the dowry system, both of which Rammohan campaigned against. His father, Ramkanta,

2244-544: Was a Vaishnavite , while his mother, Tarini Devi, was from a Shaivite family. He was a great scholar of Sanskrit, Persian and English languages and also knew Arabic, Latin and Greek. One parent prepared him for the occupation of a scholar, the Shastri , while the other secured for him all the worldly advantages needed to launch a career in the laukik or worldly sphere of public administration. Torn between these two parental ideals from early childhood, Ram Mohan vacillated between

2295-596: Was also aligned now with the English Company, then head-quartered at Fort William, and his religious and political ambitions were increasingly intertwined. While in Murshidabad, in 1804 Raja Ram Mohan Roy wrote Tuhfat-ul-Muwahhidin (A Gift to Monotheists) in Persian with an introduction in Arabic. Bengali had not yet become the language of intellectual discourse. The importance of Tuhfat-ul-muwahhidin lies only in its being

2346-400: Was disappearing. He estimated that around one-half of all total revenue collected in India was sent out to England, leaving India, with a considerably larger population, to use the remaining money to maintain social well-being. Ram Mohan Roy saw this and believed that the unrestricted settlement of Europeans in India governing under free trade would help ease the economic drain crisis. During

2397-559: Was given the title of Raja by Mughal emperor Akbar II ( r.  1806–1837 ). His influence was apparent in the fields of politics , public administration , education and religion. He was known for his efforts to abolish the practices of sati and child marriage . Roy wrote Gaudiya Vyakaran which was the first complete Bangla grammar written book. Ram Mohan Roy was born in Radhanagar , Hooghly District , Bengal Presidency . His great-grandfather Krishnakanta Bandyopadhyay

2448-661: Was his revival of the pure and ethical principles of the Vedanta school of philosophy as found in the Upanishads. He preached the unity of God, made early translations of Vedic scriptures into English, co-founded the Calcutta Unitarian Society and founded the Brahmo Sabha, precursor to Brahmo Samaj . The Brahmo Samaj played a major role in reforming and modernizing the Indian society. He successfully campaigned against sati ,

2499-413: Was married three times. His first wife died early. He had two sons, Radhaprasad in 1800, and Ramaprasad in 1812 with his second wife, who died in 1824. Roy's third wife outlived him. The nature and content of Ram Mohan Roy's early education is disputed. One view is that Ram Mohan started his formal education in the village pathshala where he learned Bengali and some Sanskrit and Persian . Later he

2550-454: Was the man who fought against superstitions, a pioneer in Indian education, and a trend setter in Bengali prose and Indian press. Roy's political background and Devandra's Christian influence influenced his social and religious views regarding reforms of Hinduism. He writes, The present system of Hindus is not well calculated to promote their political interests… It is necessary that some change should take place in their religion, at least for

2601-467: Was the subject of a talk by Max Muller in 1873. At Bristol's centre, on College Green, there is a full-size bronze statue of Raja by a modern Kolkata sculptor Niranjan Pradhan. Another bust by Pradhan, gifted to Bristol by Jyoti Basu, sits inside the main foyer of Bristol's City Hall. A pedestrian path at Stapleton has been named "Rajah Rammohun Walk". There is a 1933 Brahmo plaque on the outside west wall of Stapleton Grove, and his first burial place in

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