Swami Dayanand Saraswati and Arya Samaj
Dayanand Saraswati was born in AD 1824 in Shivpur village of Tankara pargana of Gujarat in a prosperous and orthodox Brahmin family. His childhood name was Moolshankar. At the age of 14, when he saw a mouse climbing on the Shivling and eating prasad, he lost faith in idol-worship. When he turned 21, his father arranged for his marriage, but he left home in AD 1845 in search of spiritual knowledge.
For 15 years he traveled and studied at different places. In AD 1860 he reached Mathura where he attained knowledge by sitting at the feet of Dandi Swami Virjanand. Swami Virjanand was a great scholar of Vedic knowledge, language and philosophy. He explained to Dayanand the interpretation of the knowledge contained in the Vedas. This study convinced Dayanand that the Vedas are the source of all knowledge.
Swami Virjanand ordered him to re-establish Vedic religion and culture in the country by refuting the myths and superstitions of mythological Hindu religion. Swami Dayanand continued to do this work throughout his life. He was unaffected by western civilization and Christianity. His aim was to establish the superiority of Hindu religion by removing the evils of Hindu religion.
He used Sanskrit language in his teachings. In consultation with Keshav Chandra Sen, he started preaching to the general public through the medium of Hindi language. In AD 1863, he started the work of propagating religion from Agra. In AD 1874, he composed Satyarth Prakash. In his discussion with the ritualistic pundits in Varanasi, he proved that the Vedas are the basis of all knowledge and idol-worship is contrary to the teachings of the Vedas.
Establishment of Arya Samaj
Maharishi Dayanand founded the Arya Samaj in Bombay on 10 April 1875 for the promotion of Hindu religion, civilization and language. After that Swamiji went to Delhi where he called a meeting of Christian, Muslim and Hindu scholars. Even after two days of deliberations, no conclusion was reached. From Delhi he went to Punjab.
Here great enthusiasm was awakened in the general public towards him. In June 1877, a branch of Arya Samaj was opened in Lahore and Lahore became the main office of this movement. After this Swamiji continued to propagate his ideas in different provinces of India and established branches of Arya Samaj.
Books written by Swamiji
To propagate his ideas, Swamiji wrote three texts-
(1.) Rigvedadi Bhashya-Bhumika: In this book, Swamiji clarified his point of view regarding the Vedas.
(2.) Vedabhashya: In this book he wrote commentaries on Yajurveda and Rigveda.
(3.) Satyarth Prakash: Swamiji's most famous book is Satyarth Prakash, in which he critically analyzed all religions and proved that Vedic religion is the best. In this book, he fiercely criticized the pretense, pomp and superstitions of Islam and Christianity, in the same way that he refuted the evils of mythological Hinduism.
This attracted the attention of the Hindus to the basic nature of their religion and put a stop to the feeling of superiority of Christianity which was gaining strength. Swamiji in Satyarth Prakash tactfully refuted things like incarnation, pilgrimage, Shradh, fasting, rituals etc.
He called it necessary for every Aryan to perform the Yagya and Sandhya specified in the Vedas and called untouchability as non-Vedic. Swamiji gave respect to the Arya Samaj by giving Yagyopaveet to thousands of Antyajas. Swamiji rejected child marriage, polygamy and purdah system, emphasized on female education and supported inter-caste marriage.
Last Years of Dayanand Saraswati
The last years of Swami Dayanand Saraswati were spent in Rajputana. Many kings and vassals, influenced by his education, got him preached in their states and jagirs. Maharana Sajjan Singh of Udaipur took education of Manusmriti, politics and Rajdharma from him. In AD 1881, on the invitation of Raja Govind Singh, the vassal of the Baneda Jagir of Udaipur state, Swamiji went to Baneda where he stayed for sixteen days.
During this, Swamiji taught the two sons of King Govind Singh - Akshay Singh and Ram Singh to recite the Vedas aloud. After this Swamiji went to Chittorgarh. In October 1883, Swamiji reached Jodhpur at the invitation of Sir Pratap, the Prime Minister of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur King Jaswant Singh (II) gave a grand welcome to Swamiji.
Swamiji's speeches created a buzz in the state of Jodhpur. Maharaja Jaswant Singh (II) sat in the Raikabagh palace and listened to Swamiji's teachings. His teachings had a deep impact on the kings, ministers, state employees and subjects. The king and ministers paid attention to the progress of the state and the subjects. Established schools for education and Hindi was replaced by Urdu in the state courts.
Swami Dayanand passes away
King Jaswant Singh invited Swamiji to visit the fort and sent a palanquin studded with gems to bring him to his palace. Swamiji returned the palanquin and reached the fort on foot one day without any notice. Swamiji saw that the king was intoxicated and was coming out of the palace carrying the palanquin of the famous prostitute of the state, Little Bai on his shoulder. Swamiji reprimanded the king and got down from the fort.
Swamiji wrote a letter to the king in which he compared the king to a hellish animal. This letter got in the hands of little bai. On 29 September 1883, he mixed powdered glass and poison in Swamiji's milk. Swamiji was taken to Ajmer where he died on the day of Deepawali on 30 October.
On Swamiji's death, Madame Blevatsky, a resident of Russia, wrote- 'It is absolutely true that after Shankaracharya, there has not been any person in India who is a greater Sanskritist than Swamiji, a greater philosopher than him, a more brilliant person than him and Be bolder than them in breaking down on evils.'
After Swamiji's death, the Theosophist newspaper wrote, praising his services - 'He made a heavy attack on the stagnant masses of the shabby Hindutva and with his speeches in the hearts of the people the fire of immense enthusiasm for the rishis and the Vedas. burnt it. There was no other speaker of Hindi and Sanskrit like him in the whole of India.'
Rules of Arya Samaj
The introduction of Swami Dayanand and the principles of Arya Samaj established by him is found in Satyarth Prakash. The ten rules of Arya Samaj are as follows-
(1.) God is one and formless. He is Almighty, Just, Merciful, Immortal, Omnipresent, Ajar, Immortal, Holy and Creator. Therefore he is worthy of worship.
(2.) Vedas are the source of true knowledge. Therefore, reading and teaching and listening to the Vedas is the ultimate religion of all Aryans.
(3.) One should always be ready to accept the truth and give up the untruth.
(4.) All work should be done according to religion i.e. after considering truth and falsehood.
(5.) To do good to the world, that is, to make everyone's physical, spiritual and social progress is the main duty of human society.
(6.) Everyone should not be satisfied in his own progress. But in the progress of all people, one should understand his progress.
(7.) The cause of all knowledge and through it all understanding is God.
(8.) Every person should destroy ignorance and increase knowledge.
(9.) All people should be treated according to religion, lovingly and appropriately.
(10.) Everyone has freedom of conduct in matters of personal interest, but in matters relating to social good, all differences should be forgotten.
Social Reforms of Arya Samaj
(1.) Opposing the caste system: In the Indian society, the caste system, which originated from the varna system, was prevalent for centuries. This practice protected Hindu religion for centuries, but after the arrival of the Muslims, the narrow form it assumed, the Hindu society went on narrowing.
Due to this the social unity of Hindus was disturbed. Swami Dayanand strongly criticized the caste system. According to him, no person should be deprived of reaching a high place in the society on the basis of birth. He raised his voice against untouchability and sea-travel-prohibition and opposed the caste-system justifying the ancient varna system.
(2.) Improvement in the condition of women: Due to the evils like polygamy, child marriage, purdah system, illiteracy, sati-practice and female-slaughter, the condition of women in Hindu society was very deplorable. Arya Samaj paid special attention to women's education and giving them a high position in the society. Arya Samaj strongly opposed child marriage, polygamy and purdah system and supported widow-marriage and women's education.
Sage Dayanand called for stopping the marriage of girls below the age of 16, condemned the practice of Sati as a sin and stressed on equality of men and women. Swami Dayanand said that women have the same right to study the Vedas and to wear Yagyopaveet as men.
(3.) Purification Movement: Arya Samaj gave birth to the Shuddhi movement. People who had left Hinduism and became Christians and Muslims were again accepted into Hinduism through purification rites. Through the efforts of Arya Samaj, lakhs of Hindus who had become Muslims and Christians were purified and called back to Hinduism. Even today they are living respectfully in Hindu society. Arya Samaj revived the dormant self pride, sense of organization and pure religious values of Hindu society.
Religious Reform Work by Arya Samaj
(1.) Opposing Superstitions: Swami Dayanand condemned mythological customs and beliefs. He opposed idol-worship, ritualism, polytheism, incarnation, sacrifice, heaven and hell and belief in destiny as supreme.
(2.) Opposition to Shradh and Hypocrisy: Arya Samaj opposed the Shradh of the dead. He said that it is foolish to imagine that the dead people can be brought to the hereafter by feeding or donating food to Brahmins or other people.
(3.) Restoring the importance of Vedas: Dayanand interpreted the Vedas in such a way that the Vedas can be considered as the source of scientific, social, political and economic principles. Arya Samaj firmly believed that there is no knowledge which cannot be derived from the Vedas. On the basis of the superiority of the Vedas, the Arya Samaj succeeded in saving Hinduism from the invasions of Islam and Christianity.
(4.) Propagation of Vedic Karmas: Arya Samaj laid emphasis on Yagya-havan, chanting of mantras, karma etc. on the basis of Vedas. He believed that God is formless, so idol-worship is meaningless. He supported the concept of salvation of Hindus and said that salvation can be achieved by worshiping God, doing good deeds and observing the fast of celibacy.
Works of literary and educational reform by Arya Samaj
Swami Dayanand and the Arya Samaj founded by him did important work in the literary and educational field. Swami Dayanand contributed to the development of the national language by writing his book in Hindi. While propounding the importance of Sanskrit, he emphasized on its study and teaching. The main objective of Arya Samaj was to spread knowledge by removing ignorance.
Therefore, he stressed on the need to re-establish the ancient ashram system. He introduced the ancient Gurukul system of education, where students could study while observing a vow of celibacy. It was the Arya Samaj that first made Indians aware of the defects of Macaulay's education system. By promoting women's education, she laid the foundation of the country's educational development in the true sense.
After the death of Swami Dayanand, due to differences of opinion among the Arya Samajists on some subjects, two parties were formed in it in AD 1892. This difference started with the fundamental principle whether it is necessary for an Arya-Samaji to follow only ten rules. The leader of one of these two parties of Arya Samaj was Lala Hansraj who was a supporter of Western education.
Due to his efforts, D.A.V. Schools and colleges were established. These educational institutions were affiliated with the government system. The leader of the second party was Mahatma Munshi Ram who wanted to revive the ancient education system of India. Mahatma Munshi Ram founded Gurukul Kangri near Haridwar and established Gurukuls at other places in the country.
It was the first university in the country where higher education was imparted through the medium of Hindi, the national language. The educational institutions established by Arya Samaj proved helpful in the propagation of Hindu religion and culture and the principles of Arya Samaj. इन संस्थाओं के प्रभाव से पंजाब एवं संयुक्त प्रदेश (अब उत्तर प्रदेश) की सरकारों ने शिक्षा के क्षेत्र में बड़े सुधार किए।
आर्य समाज द्वारा राष्ट्रीय सुधार के कार्य
भारत में राजनीतिक जागृति उत्पन्न करने में आर्य समाज का महत्त्वपूर्ण योगदान रहा। आर्य समाज द्वारा किये गये सामाजिक और धार्मिक सुधारों से भारतीयों में आत्मविश्वास और स्वाभिमान का विकास हुआ। आर्य समाज ने भारत के प्राचीन गौरव की चर्चा करते हुए स्वावलम्बन के विकास को प्रोत्साहन दिया। इससे स्वराष्ट्र प्रेम की भावना को बल मिला।
स्वामी दयानन्द के जीवनी लेखक ने लिखा है- ‘दयानन्द का एक मुख्य लक्ष्य राजनीतिक स्वतन्त्रता था। वास्तव में वह प्रथम व्यक्ति थे जिन्होंने स्वराज्य शब्द का प्रयोग किया। वह प्रथम व्यक्ति थे जिन्होंने विदेशी वस्तुओं का बहिष्कार करना तथा स्वदेशी वस्तुओं का उपयोग करना सिखाया। वह प्रथम व्यक्ति थे जिन्होंने हिन्दी को राष्ट्रभाषा स्वीकार किया।’
स्वामीजी ने सत्यार्थ प्रकाश में लिखा है कि अच्छे-से-अच्छा विदेशी राज्य, स्वदेश की तुलना नहीं कर सकता। दयानन्द ने वेद कालीन भारत को इसलिए गौरवमय बताया क्योंकि उस समय भारत में स्वराज्य था। बालगंगाधर तिलक, लाला लाजपतराय, गोपालकृष्ण गोखले आदि जिन नेताओं ने भारतीय राष्ट्रीय आन्दोलन का नेतृत्व किया, वे आर्य समाज से प्रभावित थे।
काँग्रेस में उग्रवाद की भावना का विकास होने का कारण हिन्दू-धर्म की भावना थी। आर्य समाज ने इस भावना के निर्माण में योगदान दिया। डॉ. आर. सी. मजूमदार ने लिखा है- ‘आर्य समाज प्रारम्भ से ही उग्रवादी सम्प्रदाय था।’
आर्य समाज ने भारतीयों के समक्ष प्राचीन भारत के बारे में एक निश्चित विचारधारा प्रस्तुत की। आर्य समाज ने ही परस्पर अभिवादन करने हेतु विख्यात नमस्ते शब्द का प्रचलन किया, जो आज न केवल भारत में अपितु विदेशों में भी लोकप्रिय है। आर्य समाज ने हिन्दी भाषा और साहित्य को प्रोत्साहित करके अँग्रेजी भाषा पर निर्भरता कम करने का प्रयास किया।
कुछ आधुनिक विद्वानों की धारणा है कि आर्य समाज का कार्य हिन्दू-धर्म की पुनस्र्थापना तक सीमित था। इसलिये इसने राष्ट्रीयता का विकास नहीं किया। इन विद्वानों का आरोप है कि आर्य समाज ने हिन्दू-धर्म का पुनरुत्थान करके साम्प्रदायिक भावना को पुष्ट किया। कुछ अँग्रेज लेखकों, अधिकारियों एवं ईसाई धर्म-प्रचारकों ने आर्य समाज के सम्बन्ध में इसी प्रकार के उल्टे-सीधे प्रचार किये।
वेलेण्टाइन शिरोल ने लिखा है- ‘आर्य समाज का उद्देश्य समाज सुधार की अपेक्षा हिन्दू-धर्म को विदेशी प्रभाव से मुक्त करना था।’ शिरोल के इन आरोपों का प्रत्युत्तर लाला लाजपतराय ने अपनी पुस्तक हिस्ट्री ऑफ द आर्य समाज में बड़े प्रभावशाली ढंग से दिया है। उन्होंने स्पष्ट किया कि आर्य समाज के चिंतन का आधार हजारों साल पुराने वेद हैं जिनसे प्रेरणा प्राप्त करना भारतीय समाज की मुख्य धारा को फिर से जीवित करना है इसलिये आर्य समाज को साम्प्रदायिक आन्दोलन की संज्ञा किसी भी प्रकार नहीं दी जा सकती।
अपितु जो लोग आर्य समाज पर साम्प्रदायिक होने का आरोप लगाते हैं, वस्तुतः वे स्वयं साम्प्रदायिक सोच रखते हैं तथा भारत की मूल सांस्कृतिक धारा के प्रवाह को निरुद्ध करना चाहते हैं। आर्य समाज वास्तव में एक ऐसा शक्तिशाली आन्दोलन था, जिसके फलस्वरूप हिन्दू समाज में नव-चेतना एवं आत्म-सम्मान के भाव जागृत हुए तथा हिन्दू यह अनुभव करने लगे कि हिन्दू-धर्म और संस्कृति, विश्व के अन्य समस्त धर्मों एवं संस्कृतियों से श्रेष्ठ है। आर्य समाज ने भारतीयों में स्वाभिमान और राष्ट्र प्रेम की एक अद्भुत लहर उत्पन्न की तथा धर्म, समाज और शिक्षा के क्षेत्र में महान् योगदान दिया।