Essays

Raja Rammohan Roy's efforts to abolish the despicable practice of sati and the setting up of the Brahmo Samaj is more well known than the fact that he was also far ahead of his time in interpreting religion. Much of what, he said more than 200 years ago is relevant even today, in spite of the passage of time and attendant changes in  the Indian social fabric.                             

He mastered Persian and Arabic, read the Korean and the works of Sufi mystics in the original as well as Arabic translation of the works of Aristotle and Plato.

When Raja Ram Mohan Roy was just 16 years of age, he set out on a journey through northern India and Tibet to get firsthand knowledge of Buddhism. He continued with his travels for three years. He went to Varanasi where he learnt Sanskrit and studied ancient Hindu scriptures. He was also influenced by Western liberal thinkers.

In his first publication Tuhfatl  Muwahhiddin in Persian, Roy said, "I travelled in the remotest parts of the world, in plains as well as in hilly lands, and I found the inhabitants thereof agreeing generally in believing in the existence of one being who is the source of creation and the governor of it." He felt that while it was natural for every human being to look up to an eternal being, conditioned responses from sectarian beliefs passed on from one generation to another caused turmoil between faiths.

Rammohan Roy felt that through observing creation and the laws of nature, man "has an innate faculty in him by which he can infer that there exists a being who (with his wisdom) governs the whole universe".

He emphasized self-reliance rather than blind belief in interpreting texts and wrote: "the fact of God's endowing each individual human being with intellectual I faculties and senses implies that he should not, like other creatures, follow the examples of the fellow brethren of hi& race, but should exercise his own intellectual power with the help of acquired knowledge, to discern good from had, so that his valuable divine gift should not be left useless".

Roy believed that morality cannot be separated from religion and spirituality. He said that the Vedas and the Upnishads indicated that moral principle is a part of the adoration of God and quoted from the Katha Upanishad"No man can acquire a knowledge of the soul without abstaining from evil acts".

Rammohan Roy also studied the Bible and wrote three lengthy tracts on the theme, "An appeal to the Christian public in defence of the precepts of Jesus". These tracts focused on love; love of God and of one's fellow men. A belief in God as a loving father and one's fellow men as brothers was a message that echoed Roy's own convictions.

Roy's endeavour in setting up the Brahmo Samaj was with the idea of amalgamating the best in Hinduism and other religions. His attempts at religious reforms were motivated by his desire to see the barriers and antagonisms removed between the adherents of world religions. His view was that God is not limited to any one way.

Raja Rammohan Roy had an open mind. He is often referred to as the father of Indian renaissance. He refused to accept traditions blindly and was willing to give them up if they were found wanting in any respect.

He exhorted Indians to be forward-thinking as well as past-oriented. Roy's most valuable contribution is his belief in the unitarian concept of God and His mercy that is best summed up with- the concluding chant of all Brahma ^worship: Brahma Kripa hi Kevalam, Brahma Kripa hi Kevalam, Brahma Kripa hi Kevalam, Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti, Hari Om. The 231st birth anniversary of Raja Rammohan Roy falls on May 22, 2003.