KIRAN ATMA: Brahmo Samaj

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Hinduism - ACARYA

Who Is An Acarya?

A teacher is referred to as Acarya in Sanskrit.

It is derived from acara, 'course,' according to Nirukta 1.4, although Katyayana and maybe also Panini regarded it as 'the one to be approached' (Scharfe 2002: 90f.).

The upanayana in the Veda creates a link between the acarya and the brahmacarin, who resides in the teacher's home (acarya-kula, later called gurukula).

Normally, an acarya had a small number of pupils, although some reports record huge groups, with assisting instructors (Scharfe 2002: 220).

Acarya also refers to a master artisan who instructs a student (Scharfe 2002: 265).

Although the terms guru and acarya are sometimes used interchangeably to refer to the same individual, acarya denotes his authority in his field, whilst guru denotes the respect and adoration owed to him (Hara 1980).

Acarya may be appended to any name, such as Dron-acarya (Drona), Sankaracarya, and so on (Sankara).

Dignaga, a Buddhist logician, is simply known as Acarya by his disciples.

Acarya, or 'minister' in English, is the title given to Brahmo Samaj preachers.

~Kiran Atma

References And Further Reading:

Hara, Minoru. 1980. ‘Hindu Concepts of Teacher: Sanskrit guru and acarya’. In M. Nagaromi, B.K. Matilal, J.M. Masson and E. Dimock, eds, Sanskrit and Buddhist Studies: Essays in Honour of Daniel H.H. Ingalls. Dordrecht: Reidel, 93–118.

Scharfe, Hartmut. 2002. Education in Ancient India. (Handbuch der Orientalistik, Section 2, vol. 16.) Leiden: Brill.

Hinduism - Who Was Ram Mohan Roy Or Raja Ram Mohan Roy?

Ram Mohan Roy (1774–1833)

He was a successful businessman and public servant who hailed from an affluent Bengali family.

He arrived in Calcutta in 1815, just as the British were starting to pay attention to traditional Indian culture, particularly the things they deemed "bad."

Roy's reforming goals were generally aligned with the British.

Roy had opposed the use of pictures in worship from an early age, probably as a result of his exposure to Sufi teachings, and his first public battle was against such worship of gods and goddesses.

Roy, like other Indian reformers, utilized Sanskrit books judiciously, and the most significant for him were the theoretical Upanishads, which he translated to represent monotheistic (under the influence of English Unitarians) (belief in the existence of only one God).

In his latter years, he advocated for a variety of educational and social causes, but he is most remembered for his resistance to sati, the practice of a widow being burned on her husband's burial pyre.

Brahmo Samaj, the first prominent Indian proponent of Hindu social and religious reform, was created for this goal.

Although he was subsequently criticized for being unduly influenced by the British, his rewriting of history served as a model for others.

Robert D. Baird (ed. ), Religion in Modern India, 1998, is a good place to start.

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Be sure to check out my writings on religion here.

Hinduism - What Is The Brahmo Samaj?

Brahmo Samaj is a Hindu religious organization.

Ram Mohan Roy (1774–1833) established the first Hindu reform organization in Calcutta in the early nineteenth century.

His goal was to rid modern Hinduism of “corrupt” traditions including sati (widow burning), widow remarriage bans, image worship, and caste systems.

He selected the Upanishads as his primary religious books in his search for a traditional authority for such changes.

Following his death, the movement was led by Debendranath Tagore (father of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore) and subsequently by Keshub Chander Sen; nevertheless, disputes over ceremonial issues caused the organization to split under both leaders.

The Samaj's influence had faded by the late 1800s, but it did provide as a conduit for the mystic Ramakrishna to meet many of his followers in an intriguing twist.

The social agenda of the Brahmo Samaj mirrored and reacted to current European criticisms of popular Hinduism, some of which were leveled by Christian missionaries and others based on the Enlightenment's rationalist focus.

Because of its transparency, the Brahmo Samaj was at the forefront of legal reform, influencing the 1829 legislation against sati.

However, its members were mainly Westernized metropolitan intellectuals who were disconnected from Hindu life and religious concerns.

Spencer Lavan, “The Brahmo Samaj: India's First Movement for Religious Reform,” in Robert D. Baird (ed. ), Religion in Modern India, 1998, for further information.

You may also want to read more about Hinduism here.

Be sure to check out my writings on religion here.