# Twelve Men of Bengal in the Nineteenth Century/Ram Mohan Roy

Ram Mohan Roy
RAM MOHAN ROY. 1772-1833.
AMONG the famous men of Bengal in the nineteenth century no name deserves a more honoured place than that of Ram Mohan Roy. At once the pioneer of the great Renaissance that was slowly dawning in Bengal and the first representative of India to the British people, he opened up to his fellow countrymen new paths of progress and reform. When as yet the old traditions and the old beliefs, clothed in the gathering ignorance of centuries, still held their ground unchallenged, he zealously sought fresh knowledge and, when found, proclaimed it unafraid. Against ignorance and superstition he waged constant warfare, striving always to find the truth in all things. Hinduism both in its social and religious aspects had fallen on evil days. Sunk in apathy and fast bound by tradition, it was left to Ram Mohan Roy and his little band of followers to prepare the way for its Renaissance. By his ceaseless labours in the cause of education, his successful advocacy of the abolition of Sati, his endeavours to purify the Hindu faith, and by his wonderful bringing together of East and West in the last three years of his life, he has left an undying claim upon the gratitude of his fellow-countrymen. ​Ram Mohan Roy was born on May the 22nd. 1772, at Radhanagar near Krishnagar. He came of a Brahman family, Kulins of the highest caste, which had won rank and wealth in the service of the Nawabs of Bengal. His grandfather, Brajabinode Roy, was like all his family a zealous follower of the Vaishnava sect. Nothing but the most unusual circumstances, therefore, accounted for the fact that his fifth son Ram Kanto Roy, the father of Ram Mohan Roy, was married to a girl whose father not only was a Bhanga Kulin, one who had broken his Kulin caste, but was also a priest of the rival sect of the Saktas. Brajabinode Roy, it is said, lay dying on the banks of the Ganges when a priest suddenly appeared before him and craved of him a boon. The dying man, anxious to comply with a priest's request, gave the required promise and further at the priest's request swore by the holy Ganges to fulfil it. The priest thereupon asked to be allowed to bestow his daughter in marriage upon one of Brajabinode's sons. This was a request that Brajabinode, as an orthodox Kulin, would have scouted had he not sworn by the sacred river, but, having done so, he had no alternative save to fulfil his promise. So, calling his sons, he turned to the eldest and bade him espouse the girl, only to meet with a determined refusal. His next three sons also declined in their turn. Ram Kanto Roy, the fifth son, however, unwilling to refuse his father's last request reluctantly consented to take the ​unwelcome bride and in due course married her. It was a strange union from which to spring so ardent a reformer as Ram Mohan Roy.
Brought up in the midst of such orthodox surroundings Ram Mohan early showed signs of a religious bent of mind. His father, having retired from the service of the Nawab, was spending his days in pious meditations and religious exercises at Radhanagar and he early took steps to secure for his son a sound classical education. When the latter had finished his first course of study at the local patshala where he had already acquired considerable proficiency in Persian, he was sent to Patna and Benares to acquire Arabic and Sanskrit. Here his studies appear to have been somewhat more liberal than those usually indulged in at the time and he is said to have become acquainted with Arabic translations of Euclid and Aristotle as well as with the Koran. The latter made a deep impression on his mind and it is probable that it was this early study of it that later led him to question the orthodox beliefs in which he had been brought up. His first religious enthusiasms, however, were naturally for the old faith. It is said that at the age of fourteen nothing but his mother's, earnest entreaties withheld him from leaving home as a sannyasi. Every home influence ran on orthodox lines. Already long before he had reached an age of discretion he had been married three times according to Kulin Brahman ​usages. There is no record of the first marriage but he was married for the second and third time when he was only nine years old. His father, zealous and devoted, from the first continually instructed him in the religious observances of his faith, while his mother having accepted her husband's beliefs showed all the enthusiasm of a convert. It is thus evident that from his earliest years nothing but the most orthodox influences surrounded the future reformer. How great a hold they retained over him through all his schemes for advancement and reform his future actions show. The sacred Brahmanical thread was worn by him till the end, being found upon him after his death in England fifty years later.
Yet so eager had been his thirst for knowledge that before he had reached his sixteenth year he was able to discuss religious matters on an equality with his father. Gradually the discussions, grew into arguments, respectful always on Ram Mohan's side yet none the less determined and sincere, until at last father and son realised that they differed fundamentally and hopelessly on matters of belief. It was a terrible blow to Ram Mohan's orthodox parents and relations. Hinduism, as they practised it, he regarded as overlaid with superstition and idolatry. Already his studies in the sacred books of his faith had led him to regard the modern practice of it as a false and degenerate ​exposition of the pure original belief. With Hinduism as yet he had no quarrel, but with the abuses that had crept into it he thus early began his long and gallant struggle. So incompatible had his views become with the orthodox home life of his family and so great was his desire for more knowledge that he decided to leave home at least for a time. Eager to study other religions, to see if they had preserved the truth he so much desired to find, his thoughts turned towards Buddhism and Tibet. Though not yet seventeen he made light of difficulties and dangers and setting out on an adventurous journey spent three years in travelling through Tibet, studying Buddhism and holding long discussions with the most learned Lamas of the day. Their religion, however, pure as it had been in its origin, he regarded as having become as corrupt as his own and he returned home disheartened and disappointed. Life in the old home, surrounded by all the old observances in which he had lost faith, he soon again found to be impossible. Deeply as he regretted the breach with his father to whom he was deeply attached, he nevertheless recognised the inevitable, and went to reside at Benares, which attracted him as the centre of Hinduism where he might hope to find its best exposition and where he might continue his studies in Sanskrit and Persian. Here he remained for several years, deeply ​immersed in the study of the Hindu Shastras, and striving always to gain from them a firm foundation of belief.
It was not until 1806 that Ram Mohan first began the study of English and seven years later that he entered the service of the East India Company. He appears to have spent the greater part of his ten years service under Mr. John Digby, of the Civil Service, whom he served as Dewan or Sheristadar in Bhagalpur and Rungpur. Mr. Digby, who later edited Ram Mohan's translations of the Kena Upanishad and his abridgment of the Vedanta, had a high opinion of his abilities and wrote in high praise of the work he did in connection with the survey and settlement operations in which he was chiefly concerned. For five years he was stationed at Rungpur and it was here that he first began those small gatherings of his friends for reading and discussions in his own house which were afterwards to become such a famous centre of thought and interest. Already he had begun to publish his writings. The first of an immense number of publications on an infinite variety of subjects was a treatise in Persian with an Arabic preface entitled Tahfut-ul-muahhidin, being a protest against the idolatry which had crept into so many established religions. For long he had refrained from any public exposition of his opinions, from the filial desire not to do violence to his father's feelings. The breach with ​his father had been a constant grief to him and though he stood by the old man's bed-side when he lay dying in 1803, they were far apart in spirit. After his father's death Ram Mohan inherited none of the family property and his relations with his mother and other relatives became unfortunately still more strained. From all of them he suffered the most bitter persecution, his mother being particularly incensed against him and making life impossible for him anywhere in the neighbourhood of his old home. He protested vehemently against the charges of heresy and godlessness that were brought against him, but they would have none of him. In after days when he had come into possession of the family property, he showed his liberality and forbearance by allowing his mother to continue the management of it, and to retain the position she had always held.
Practically disowned by his family there was thus nothing to prevent Ram Mohan from pursuing the course which he considered right. Coming to reside in Calcutta, he quickly formed a circle of his own. His striking personality and force of character from the first exercised an extraordinary influence over all those with whom he was brought in contact. He had all the advantages of distinction of manner and appearance as well as brilliant conversational powers. "Ram Mohan Roy" wrote an Englishman who knew him well "surpassed the generality of his countrymen in his personal appearance almost as much as in his ​mental powers. His figure was beyond the common height and muscular in proportion. His countenance wore an expression of blended dignity and benevolence that charmed at first sight and put his visitors at their ease while it checked an irreverent familiarity." "It was in argument, however," notes another English friend in the English Court Journal, "that this exalted Brahmin was most conspicuous: he seemed to grapple with truth intuitively and called in invective, raillery, sarcasm and sometimes a most brilliant wit, to aid him in confuting his opponents: if precedent were necessary, a remarkably retentive memory and extensive reading in many languages supplied him with a copious fund: and at times with a rough unsparing, ruthless hand he burst asunder the meshes of sophistry, error and bigotry in which it might be attempted to entangle him. In conversation with individuals of every rank and of various nations and professions, he passed with the utmost ease from one language to another, suiting his remarks to each and all in excellent taste and commanding the astonishment and respect of his hearers."
When this brilliant personality first made itself felt in Calcutta in the early years of the nineteenth century Hinduism had reached well nigh its lowest ebb. Not yet wholly emerged from the troublous times of the eighteenth century, it was not in a position to reap the full advantages of the ​rule of law and order which under British supremacy was gradually settling down upon the distracted land. Hindu Society, in the usual acceptation of the term, there was none. Nothing that could be called public opinion existed. Bengal had no literature, scarcely even a language of its own. Such education as existed was confined to Sanskrit, Persian and Arabic, and even the study of these languages had fallen into decay. Hinduism and all that it represented had fallen on evil times. To the task of restoring and reforming it and of constructing the fabric of Society anew, of bringing together all that was best and noblest, and of making for the first time in their history the Bengali race into a people with great thoughts, high hopes and aspirations, Ram Mohan Roy set the whole force of his brilliant intellect and personality. It was but a reformer's accepted fate that he should meet with opposition and distrust from those whom he most strenuously strove to serve. Far in advance of his time he encountered constant abuse and bitter persecution, yet even by exciting opposition he did his country service. In so doing he aroused public interest where there had been none before: he made men think for themselves and realise their great responsibilities: and above all he created that potent force public opinion, to lead the nation along straight and honest paths. A keen patriot he gratefully recognised how much the British Goverment had done for his ​long distracted country and it was his keen endeavour to awaken his fellow-countrymen to the advantages that it offered them, and to raise them, moraly and mentally, from the slough of despond into which they had fallen.
It was in 1815 that Ram Mohan founded the Atmiya Sabha, the Friendly Association, the first Society of its kind in Bengal. It was a development of the informal gatherings for reading and discussion which he had long held privately in his own house, and its object was mental, moral and spiritual improvement. It met once a week for recitation and reading of the Hindu sacred books and at its gatherings were to be found most of the more ardent younger spirits of the day in Calcutta. From this small beginning came great events. Gradually it was borne in upon Ram Mohan Roy and his little circle of followers that the first and most urgent need of their fellow-countrymen was a more modern system of education, adapted to the needs of modern conditions, which in the last half century had so completely changed the face of Bengal. After many discussions a practical scheme was determined upon. An English College for the education of Hindus in English and western Science should be forthwith started in Calcutta. Gaining the sympathy of such man as David Hare, the one-time watchmaker who had so zealously espoused the cause of education in Bengal, Sir Hyde East, the Chief Justice, Baidyanath ​Mukherjee and Dwarkanath Tagore, a meeting was convened on the 14th of May 1816 to carry out the scheme. It was held in Sir Hyde East's house, and Ram Mohan, probably divining that the animosity he had aroused in certain quarters might endanger the scheme if too prominently associated with his name, was not present and when it was proposed at the meeting to place his name on the Committee, several members threatened at once to withdraw if he was to be in any way connected with it. When this was communicated to him by his friend David Hare, Ram Mohan immediately insisted on the withdrawal of his name, anxious only that the scheme on which he had set his heart should not be endangered. If he could carry that through to a successful issue it mattered little that his name was not to be publicly associated with it. Yet that he was the moving spirit throughout, few were in doubt, and so energetic was the enthusiastic little band of reformers that the Hindu College was able to begin its work on January the 20th, 1817. Other schools were founded about this time by the London Missionary Society at Chinsura and the Baptist Missionaries at Serampore and with all these efforts to provide modern education on modern lines Ram Mohan heartily sympathised.
Meanwhile Government had still to be convinced of the advisability of departing from the old system of education on strictly classical lines. From the ​outset the East India Company had been guided by a sincere desire to avoid all appearance of endeavouring to force western ideas upon the eastern mind. Not only in the matter of religious beliefs but on all things social and educational it strove to avoid even the suspicion of interference. The pioneers of the English in India showed themselves far more ready to adapt themselves to the East than to force the east to imitate or adapt itself to them. The Company had hitherto directed all its efforts to improving on its own lines what it already found in existence. An extraordinarily large proportion of Englishmen in the earliest days threw themselves eagerly into the study of Sanskrit and they were quick to discern how lamentably it had fallen into decay among the Bengal pundits and how shallow was their knowledge of the Vedas and Vedantas, the Gita and the Puranas, which had well-nigh ceased to be read. As for Bengali it had scarcely yet attained the dignity of a language. When the Fort William College was started in order to give young Civilians a knowledge of the vernacular, there were no text books in Bengali, no Bengali grammar and few books of any kind in Bengali prose. Even in such Bengali books as there were, Persian words very largely predominated. It is astonishing to find in what little respect the vernacular was held. When Mr. Adam, a friend of Ram Mohan, suggested that certain lectures should be given in Bengali, the ​Indian members of his committee strongly opposed the suggestion, saying, that 'anything said or written in the vernacular tongue would be degraded and despised in consequence of the medium through which it was conveyed.' It was not till 1847 that the Vetala Panchabinsati the first book in pure Bengali was published.
The establishment of the Fort William College, of the Hindu College and of the various Missionary Schools gave a considerable impetus to the cause of education. Government, anxious to fulfil its part, inaugurated a scheme for a Sanskrit College in Calcutta, an annual grant of a lac of rupees being set aside for the revival of classical learning. Ram Mohan, convinced that it was along modern lines that the education of his countrymen must proceed if they were to grapple adequately with modern conditions, wrote to Lord Amherst, the Governor General, urging the necessity of adopting the study of western sciences through the medium of English. "If it had been intended to keep the British nation from real knowledge" he wrote, "the Baconian philosophy would not have been allowed to displace the system of the schoolmen which was the best calculated to perpetuate ignorance. In the same manner the Sanskrit system of education would be the best calculated to keep this country in darkness, if such had been the policy of the British legislature. But as the improvement of the native population ​is the object of the Government it will subsequently promote a more liberal and enlightened system of instruction embracing mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, anatomy with other useful sciences, which may be accomplished with the sums proposed, by employing a few gentlemen of talent and learning, educated in Europe, and providing a College furnished with necessary books, instruments and other apparatus." The letter was forwarded to the Governor General by Bishop Heber, who admired its 'good English, good sense and forcible arguments' and it was largely owing to Ram Mohan's exertions that, although the Sanskrit College was founded in 1824, a building was founded for the Hindu College adjoining it, the foundation stones of both being laid on the same day. Misfortune however befell the Hindu College almost at the outset. The merchant who had been entrusted with its funds, amounting to Rs. 1,13,179, suddenly failed, only Rs. 23,000 being recovered. The loss of this sum would have been the ruin of the College had not government at once come forward to its assistance, which was the means eventually of bringing it into closer touch with the authorities and placing it financially on a firmer footing. The formation of the Committee of Public Instruction in 1823 by order of the Company showed the interest that Government was taking in the matter and assured a brighter outlook for education in time to come.
​Ram Mohan had meanwhile been waging incessant war against what he rightly considered one of the most depraved customs that was forming a dark blot upon the Hindu faith. Of the evils of Sati he had had bitter experience in his own family. On the death of his elder brother he had hastened home to be present at the funeral ceremony, only to be horrified by a scene that remained burned forever in his memory. Before his arrival his brother's widow had announced her intention of immolating herself on her dead husband's funeral pyre and in spite of all his protestations she remained firm in her resolve. Ram Mohan, helpless in the face of her determination and the approval of all her relatives, could do nothing. But when the torch had been applied and the flames leapt up, her courage forsook her and she tried to escape from the burning logs. Thereupon the priests, helped by her relatives and friends, thrust her back with long bamboo poles and forced her down among the flames, until she lost consciousness, the drums and musical instruments sounding loudly meanwhile to drown her shrieks. Ram Mohan, one against many, was forced to stand by, a reluctant spectator of this heart-rending scene. Then and there he vowed that he would devote himself heart and soul to the abolition of this revolting practice, and from that time onward he became the leader of the gallant little band of men to whose exertions it was largely due that Sati was finally prohibited.
​Ram Mohan carried out his campaign with characteristic thoroughness. Having suffered so severely from persecution himself, he was utterly opposed to coercion in any form. He would avoid, if possible, even compelling people to do what was right, if by any means they could be brought to do what was right by persuasion and a greater diffusion of knowledge. He therefore first endeavoured by every means in his power to bring home to this fellow-countrymen the real hideousness of the practice. His pen seemed never to flag and treatises, letters and articles, written many of them in the vernacular and in the simplest possible language so that they might reach the humblest, were disseminated far and wide. In them he was careful to maintain an attitude of orthodox Hinduism. He insisted on the fact that Sati, though sanctioned by the shastras, was not enjoined by them as a compulsory religious duty. He pointed out how the practice had largely grown up owing to the avaricious desire of the relatives to avoid the cost of supporting the widow and how it was too often regarded not as a religious act but as a choice entertainment that appealed to the lowest human instincts. One of his treatises was in the form of a dialogue between an advocate and an opponent of Sati. The opponent maintains that though there may be some sanction in the sacred writings for the practice, yet that Manu, the greatest of all law ​givers expressly enjoined that a widow should live as an ascetic and should 'continue till death forgiving all injuries, performing honest duties, avoiding every sensual pleasure and cheerfully practising the incomparable rules of virtue.'
Not content with combating the evil from the comfortable vantage of his desk, he was wont constantly to go to the Calcutta burning ground and attempt by personal persuasion upon both the victim and her friends to prevent the Sati. It has often been the practice to tie the victim down upon the funeral pyre so that escape was impossible, but Ram Mohan insisted that the pyre should first be lighted so that the widow might voluntarily enter the flames if she so desired, quoting certain passages in the Shastras that required this to be done. His hope that the sight of the flames might turn the widow from her intentions was often fulfilled though in other cases, the fear of the priests and the exhortations of her own relatives or promises of reward in the life to come, drove her to self-immolation. Finally, disheartened at the slow progress of his campaign, Ram Mohan organised a petition to the Governor-General which was signed by a great number of the most respectable inhabitants of Calcutta. 'Your petitioners are fully aware from their own knowledge,' it ran, 'or from the authority of credible eye-witnesses that cases have frequently occurred where women have been induced by the ​persuasions of their next heirs, interested in their destruction, to burn themselves on the funeral pyre of their husbands; that others who have been induced by fear to retract a resolution rashly expressed in their first moments of grief, of burning with their deceased husbands, have been forced upon the pile and there bound down with ropes, and pressed with green bamboos until consumed with the flames; that some, after flying from the flame, have been carried back by their relations and burnt to death. All these instances, your petitioners humbly submit, are murders according to every Shastra, as well as to the common sense of all nations.'
The question of Sati had for years been engaging the anxious attention of Government. Here again its sincere desire not to interfere with native customs and observances, more especially in the case of a religious rite, had prevented the Company from taking active steps. From the outset the Company had scrupulously maintained the principle it had adopted of full and complete religious toleration. Yet here was a religious observance which to them was opposed to every sentiment of humanity. It was a difficult position. Sati was undoubtedly a rite sanctioned by the Hinduism of the day, with which according to the principle they had adopted they should not interfere, yet it was impossible for them to stand by and see human life, as they considered it, wantonly sacrificed. It was ​sufficiently repugnant to them when the victim willingly immolated herself. When, however, as happened in so many cases, she was actually forced on to the funeral pyre against her will, it was impossible to stand by and permit it. Several instances had occurred in which the local officers had humanely prevented widows from being forced against their will to commit Sati, and cases brought by the aggrieved relatives had come before the courts. The practice of Sati not being illegal, the courts could only declare illegal any interference with it. The Judges were thus put, as they hastened to protest, in a most embarrassing position, being practically forced to give the 'barbarous rite' their protection and lay themselves open to the charge of unnecessarily aiding and abetting suicide. After much anxious discussion and consultation with some of the most learned pundits of the day, the Governor-General issued instructions to all officers on April the 17th, 1813. Even Ram Mohan Roy had hesitated to advise the immediate total abolition of Sati by Government. Bitterly opposed to the practice as he was, he yet dreaded compulsion in any form, trusting to persuasion and hoping that as education spread among his fellow-countrymen they would of their own free will abandon so inhuman a rite. Government's instructions to its officers accordingly were that though the practice could not be forcibly prevented where it was countenanced by Hindu religion and law, it should be ​prohibited in all cases where it had not the sanction of Hindu law, that is, where the victim was unwilling. In January 1815 a further step was reached when the Sati of a widow with very young children was forbidden, while two years later a further Letter of Instruction was issued. Meanwhile it was a fact to which Government could not shut its eyes that, since the year 1813 when the first instructions to officers had been issued, the practice, so far from diminishing, had increased to an alarming extent. During the four years 1815 to 1818, in which statistics were taken, the number of Satis was more than doubled. Government, deeply concerned in the matter, still hesitated, in view of the general prevalence and acceptance of the practice, to decree its abolition, Lord Amherst the Governor-General still trusting that 'general instruction and the unostentatious exertions of local officers would gradually bring about the extinction of this barbarous rite.' Lord William Bentinck, however, who succeeded Lord Amherst as Governor-General in 1828 was of another opinion. While believing no less than Ram Mohan Roy, whom he personally consulted on the subject, in the advantages of persuasion over force, he was unwilling to wait indefinitely for a reform that he considered urgently needed. Statistics still showed that, however much had been hoped from a gradual spread of education and a quiet insistence on the part of local officials, the practice was not ​yet sensibly on the decline. The gradual enlightenment of the people would take years, perhaps generations, and hundreds of innocent human lives would meanwhile be wantonly sacrificed. To Lord William Bentinck's credit it will always be remembered that he boldly took the course he considered to be right, a course which, though it met with much opposition at the time, has received the full approval of posterity. On December the 4th, 1829, was published the decree that finally abolished Sati throughout British India. Henceforward it was punishable as a criminal offence. All persons who aided or abetted it, whether the widow consented or not, were declared guilty of culpable homicide, and where violence was used against the victim it was in the power of the court to pass sentence of death. To Ram Mohan Roy, convinced of its wisdom and necessity, the measure was a welcome one and in the address presented by him and his friends to the Governor-General shortly afterwards was expressed their 'deepest gratitude for the ever-lasting obligation conferred on the Hindu community at large,' for which they were 'at a loss to find language sufficiently indicative even of a small portion of the sentiments they desired to express.' The services that Ram Mohan had rendered in the cause of abolition were fully recognised. It was his insistence on the fact that Sati was nowhere enjoined as a compulsory duty in the Shastras and that there ​were passages in "Hindu law" entirely inconsistent with it, that induced the British Government to abandon in this one instance its position of non-interference with religious practices, and that made its abolition possible in the face of the very strong opposition it aroused.
Throughout all his efforts in the cause of education and the abolition of Sati, Ram Mohan's quest after knowledge in matters of belief had been unceasing. Always with earnest and single mind he had sought the truth. To all that was best in Hinduism he whole-heartedly adhered. It was only its errors and abuses against which he waged continual war. To all that was good and honourable and true in whatever religion it might be found he gave his allegiance. Once in the early days, his wife having overheard a long religious discussion between her husband and his friends, asked of him in bewilderment "Which religion then is the best and highest?" For a moment struck by the directness of the question, he paused, then answered in the illustrative manner that so appeals to the eastern mind—"Cows are of different colours but the colour of the milk they give is the same. Different teachers have different opinions but the essence of every religion is to adopt the true faith and to live the faithful life." Of his large-heartedness and broad-mindedness there are innumerable examples. Although not a Christian ​he was keenly alive to the good work that the missionaries were doing among his fellow-countrymen, and he gave his fullest sympathy and support to any society or any scheme that cordially cooperated in the great work of educating and raising the status of the Hindu community. With this object, in spite of his theological differences with it, he warmly supported the Presbyterian Church in its work in Calcutta and to him in some measure may be attributed the coming of Alexander Duff to India. The Church of Scotland Chaplain in Calcutta wrote home:—"Encouraged by the approbation of Ram Mohan I presented to the General Assembly of 1824 the petition and memorial which first directed the attention of the Church of Scotland to British India as a field for missionary exertions, on the plan that it is now so successfully following out, and to which this eminently gifted scholar, himself a Brahmin of high caste, had specially annexed his sanction."
On his arrival Alexander Duff at once met with the ready assistance of Ram Mohan who secured for him his first school house and his first scholars. On the opening day he himself was present to smooth away any difficulties that might arise and to endeavour to give the enterprise a favourable start. When the orthodox objected to his connection with a Presbyterian school, where the scriptures were read, Ram Mohan replied "Christians have ​studied the Hindu Shastras and you know that they have not become Hindus. I myself have read the Koran again and again: but has that made me a Musulman? Nay, I have studied the whole Bible and you know I am not a Christian. Why then do you fear to read it? Read it and judge for yourselves." This was the attitude of impartiality that he always adopted. Let each man enquire and gain all the knowledge that he could, then judge for himself.
Ram Mohan was as fearless in supporting Government against the prejudices of his fellow-countrymen as he was in pointing out to the authorities any injustice that they committed or failed to remedy. While he strongly opposed Government over the famous Jury Act of 1827 which he considered introduced unjustifiable religious distinctions into the judicial system of the country, he was equally strong in his defence of the indigo planters of Bengal, whom, at the time of certain indigo labour difficulties, a section of the Indian community was vilifying. He at once instituted special and private inquiries on his own account into the circumstances, and having obtained a true version of the facts, he did not hesitate to proclaim them. He pointed out how widely indigo had benefited Bengal, and in how many places the plantations had brought a wide area of waste land under ​cultivation, adding that it was his mature opinion that "the indigo planters have done more essential good to the natives of Bengal than any other class of persons.' 'This is a fact which I will not hesitate to affirm' he wrote 'whenever I may be questioned on the subject either in India or in Europe. I, at the same time, must confess that there are individuals of that class of society who either from hasty disposition or want of due discretion have proved obnoxious to those who expected milder treatment from them. But you are well aware that no general good can be effected without some partial evil, and in this instance I am happy to say that the former greatly preponderates over the latter. If any class of natives would gladly see them turned out of the country, it would be the Zemindars in general, since in many instances the planters have successfully protected the ryots against the tyranny and oppression of their landlord.'
Although for a time Ram Mohan joined the Unitarian Community, it was inevitable that he and his followers should form a separate community of their own. This came to pass on August the 28th, 1828, when the first Theistic Church of modern India was founded. At the outset it was called simply Brahma Sabha, the Society of God. It was not until eighteen months later that the first building for the worship of the new society was dedicated in the presence of about five hundred Hindus of all classes. ​The building was situated in the Chitpore Road and the names of the five 'Settlers' were given as 'Dwarka Nath Tagore, Kaleenuth Roy, Prassunnakoomar Tagore, Ram Chunder Bidyabagish, and Ram Mohan Roy,' who transferred the Trust Property to three Trustees, Boykonto Nath Roy, Radha Persaud Roy and Rama Nauth Tagore. The trust deed dated January 8th, 1830, formed the declaration of faith of the new community. By its terms the Trustees—
'Shall at all times permit the said building, land, tenements, hereditaments and premises, with their appurtenances, to be used, occupied, enjoyed, applied and appropriated as and for a place of public meeting, of all sorts and descriptions of people, without distinction, as shall behave and conduct themselves in an orderly, sober, religious and devout manner.
'For the worship and adoration of the Eternal Unsearchable and Immutable Being, who is the Author and Preserver of the universe, but not under or by any other name, designation or title, particularly used for an applied to, any particular Being or Beings, by any men or set of men whatsoever; and that no graven image, statue or sculpture, carving, painting, picture, portrait or the likeness of anything, shall be admitted within the messuage, building, land, tenements, hereditaments and premises: and that no sacrifice, offering or oblation of any kind of thing shall ever be permitted therein: and that ​no animal or living creature shall within or on the said messuage, building, land, tenements, hereditaments and premises, be deprived of life, either for religious purposes or for food.
'And that no eating or drinking (except such as shall be necessary by any accident for the preservation of life) feasting or rioting be permitted therein or thereon.
'And that in conducting the said worship or adoration no object, animate or inanimate that has been, or is, or shall hereafter become, or be recognised, as an object of worship, by any man or set of men, shall be reviled or slightingly or contemptuously spoken of or alluded to, either in preaching, praying or in the hymns, or other mode of worship that may be delivered or used in the said messuage or building.
'And that no sermon, preaching, discourse, prayer or hymn be delivered, made or used in such worship but such as have a tendency to the promotion of the contemplation of the Author and Preserver of the Universe, to the promotion of charity, morality, piety, benevolence, virtue and the strengthening the bonds of union between men of all religious persuasions and creeds.
'And also that a person of good repute and well-known for his knowledge, piety and morality be employed by the said Trustees as a resident superintendent and for the purpose of superintending the ​worship so to be performed as is hereinbefore stated and expressed: that such worship be performed daily or at least as often as once in seven days.'
Its breadth of sympathy, its earnest endeavour after a greater sincerity and simplicity of faith and its strong desire to avoid the condemnation of others make this trust deed a remarkable document in an age of intense bigotry and bitter personal anmosities.
The bitterness aroused against Ram Mohan in certain quarters was very great. Freedom of thought and freedom of speech were then in their infancy, and Hinduism, which had so long exacted unquestioning and blind obedience, mustered all the forces at its command against the reformer. Though still clinging to all that was best in Hinduism and observing all outward performances necessary to retain his caste, he had too effectively attacked the abuses that had become a part of it, to escape the hatred of the orthodox. The storm of opposition he aroused would have overwhelmed a weaker man. Though he had proved again and again how deep was his zeal for the public good, it was counted to him as nought compared with his break with the old shibboleths of his faith. So fierce was the feeling against him that latterly his life was in danger, and his friend Mr. Montgomery Martin relates how he took up his residence with him in order that he might watch over and protect him. For many years he ​had been intending to visit England and convinced of the sincerity and fidelity of his following after the founding of the Brahma Sabha in 1830 he felt that at last the time had come. He was anxious not only to meet with the greatest and most advanced thinkers of the day, but above all to lay the case for progress on behalf of his fellow countrymen before the British people and the British Government. To break through centuries of tradition and brave the journey to England in those days needed no little courage. A letter of introduction given by a friend of his to the celebrated Jeremy Bentham gives an illuminating picture of the man and of the undertaking.
"If I were beside you and could explain matters fully," runs the letter, "you would comprehend the greatness of the undertaking—his going on board ship to a foreign and distant land, a thing hitherto not to be named among Hindus and least of all among Brahmans. His grand object besides the natural one of satisfying his own laudable spirit of enquiry has been to set a laudable example to his countrymen: and every one of the slow and gradual moves that he has made preparatory to his actually quitting India has been marked by the same discretion of judgment. He waited patiently until he had by perseverance and exertion acquired a little but respectable party of disciples. He talked of going to England from year to year since 1823, to familiarize the ​minds of the orthodox by degrees to this step, and that his friends might in the meantime increase in numbers and confidence. He now judges that the time is come and that the public mind is equal for the exploit. The good which this excellent and extraordinary man has already effected by his writings and example cannot be told. But for his exertions sati would be in full vigour at the present day and the influence of bigotry in all its current force. He is withal one of the most modest men I had ever met with. It is no small compliment to such a man that even a Governor General like the present, who, though a man of the most honest intentions, suspects everybody and trusts no body, and who knows that Ram Mohan Roy greatly disapproves of many of the acts of Government should have shown him so much respect as to furnish him with introductions to friends of rank and political influence in England.'
He was careful, even when breaking so far with Brahmanical tradition as to cross the sea, to observe the laws of caste. He took with him on board the 'Albion' by which he sailed in November the 19th, 1830, two Hindu servants and two cows to supply him with milk, and throughout the voyage and during his stay in England he endeavoured to continue the strict Brahmanical observances which he had always carefully maintained.
Ram Mohan's three years in England were fraught with far-reaching results. His journey to Europe ​marks an epoch in Indian development. Before him no member of the highest caste had dared to break the spell which the sea had laid on India. He was the first Brahman to cross the ocean and the first ever to be received by an English king. His name stands out as the pioneer of that long line of Indians who have since gone westwards to grasp in a day the knowledge that the west has taken such long years to come by. His bold example stirred his countrymen to follow in his wake, and served to bring them into closer touch with the great nation with whose destinies theirs have become so closely linked. The presence of such a brilliant personality as that of Ram Mohan brought home to the British people in a personal, intimate way, as nothing else could well have done, the piety, learning and dignity of their Indian fellow subjects. He in his own person won a new respect for his race among Englishmen. His tall dignified figure, familiar at court and in the highest circles of society, welcomed alike by the English Church and non-conformists, and equally at home in every circle of society, became in the eyes of those, who for the most part had never before seen an Indian at all, the embodiment of the Indian Empire. His learning and culture evoked astonishment and admiration. He was the complete refutation of what the untravelled western mind had popularly adopted as the Asiatic type. Ram Mohan Roy by his visit to England was not only enabled to ​interpret England to India, he did the even greater service of interpreting India to the English. The west had long since gone to the East, eager to explore its mysteries and develop its resources. With Ram Mohan Roy the East for the first time broke through the bonds which had so long held it and began the journey to the west. He may well be called the first ambassador of India to the English people.
The great reformer was destined never again to return to his native land. His health gradually failed and though surrounded by all that modern science could provide, he slowly sank and died amid a faithful little company of friends at Bristol on the 27th September, 1833. Though his remains lie far from the land he strove so hard to serve his memory will ever live in the hearts of his grateful fellowcountrymen. Above his grave a memorial stone pays this last tribute—
Beneath this stone rest the remains of
RAJA RAM MOHAN ROY BAHADOOR.
A conscientious and steadfast believer in the unity of the godhead, he consecrated his life with entire devotion to the workings of the Divine Spirit alone. To great natural talents he united a thorough mastery of many languages, and early distinguished himself as one of the greatest scholars of his day. His ​unwearied labour to promote the social, moral and political condition of the people of India, his earnest endeavours to suppress idolatry and the rite of sutee and his constant zealous advocacy of whatever tended to advance the glory of God and the welfare of men, live in the grateful remembrance of his countrymen.
THIS TABLET
Records the sorrow and pride with which his memory is cherished by his descendants.
He was born in Radhanagar in Bengal in 1774, and died at Bristol, 27th September, 1833.
Footnotes