# Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar, a story of his life and work/Chapter 27

CHAPTER XXVII.
Desertion of ancestral home.
In March 1869, Vidyasagar's house at Birsingha with everything in it was destroyed by fire. His mother and second brother were in sound sleep at the time, but most fortunately they escaped from the fire and not a single life was lost. No sooner did the news of the sad accident reach Vidyasagar, than he hastened to Birsingha and made provisions for the re-erection of the house. He wanted to take away his mother with him to Calcutta, but she declined on the ostensible plea that without her, there would be nobody to look after the comfort of the school-boys, whom Vidyasagar had been giving food and shelter, and after her poor neighbours.
In the same year, he published a correct edition of the Sanskrit Megha-Duta with Mallinatha's annotations.
We now come to a most painful scene—the desertion of his ancestral home. The main cause of this abandonment is attributed to a sad incident in connection with widow marriage. One Muchiram Bandyopadhyay of Khirpai, Head Pandit of the Kenchkapur School, had settled to take to his wife a Brahman widow named Manomohini of Kasiganja. He came to Vidyasagar and implored his help in the affair. Vidyasagar at once proceeded to Birsingha to celebrate the marriage. ​But the Haldars of Khirpai, a respectable body, accompanied with some advocates of widow marriage, called upon Vidyasagar, and entreated him most earnestly to prevent the alliance. The father of the widow marriage movement was so moved by their urgent entreaties, that he promised to them that he would not allow the marriage to be consummated, and told them that they might take away with them the bride and bridegroom, who had been already brought to Birsingha for the alliance. The Haldars were satisfied at the word given by the truthful Vidyasagar, and they went their way. But in the dead of the very night, his second brother, Dinabandhu, and third brother, Sambhu Chandra, with the help of some other villagers, celebrated the marriage, without the knowledge of their eldest brother. Early in the next morning, as he was sitting in his verandah smoking his hookah, he heard a conch sounded. The sound took him by surprise, but he could make neither head nor tail of it. At this moment, Gopinath Sinha, a respectable co-villager made his appearance. Vidyasagar asked him the cause of the sounding of the shell. The visitor replied—’You are not aware? Muchiram's marriage has been consummated.' At the news, his face was flushed ​with rage. He spoke not a word, but began incessant inhaling and exhaling of tobacco smoke. This was an indication of his serious displeasure. He had some peculiar modes of signifying his inward rage. His unusual reserve with gravity of countenance, and respectful addresses applied to his inferiors, signified that he had found cause of displeasure. After a long silence, he asked Gopinath Sinha whether he knew anything of the affair. Gopinath swore by his feet that he was quite ignorant of it. At length, Vidyasagar said,—’I gave word to those gentlemen, but I have failed to keep my word. I therefore quit Birsingha once for all. I shall never more come here.' The truthful Vidyasagar, though the father of the widow marriage movement, was so grieved at the breach of his promise, that he deserted his fatherland for good, never more to return to it. Although he kept his word and never more visited Birsingha personally, he could not efface it wholly from his mind. The very recollection of his early scenes often drew tears from his eyes. The monthly stipends, that he had settled upon his relations and other poor families of the village, and the expenses of the charitable institutions, that he had established there, he paid regularly up to the end of his life. It is said, that some 20 years after this sad incident, one day he received by post a pamphlet in Bengali, styled "Birsingha Jananir Patra" (i. e. a letter from mother Birsingha). The ​pitiful appeals of the paper moved him to a flood of tears, and he resolved to pay a visit to Birsingha, if it was only for once. Accordingly he gave orders for repairs to his house, but ill-health prevented him from carrying out his plan. His illness grew serious, which ultimately carried him off this wicked world, and thus saved him from committing a breach of promise.
In August 1869, he made a gift of the Sanskrit Press Depository to Braja Nath Mukhopadhyay of Krishnaghar. He had been highly dissatisfied with the working and conduct of his officials. As he was sitting one day surrounded by some of his friends and dependents, in course of conversation, he expressed a desire to give away his Depository to any body, who should come forward to receive the gift. Braja Nath, who was one of the company, said that he was prepared to receive the gift, if the donor should gladly and voluntarily give it to him. Vidyasagar at once made him the gift. It is said, that on the next day, some people offered him 10,000 rupees for the property, but he declined the offers, saying that when he had once given his word, he could not retract it even for a crore of rupees.
At 3 O'clock in the afternoon of the 20th February, 1870, Durga Charan Banarji breathed his last. He was one of the best friends of Vidyasagar. He was exceedingly generous and benevolent. He was a great help to our hero in re​lieving the sufferings of the diseased poor. It is needless to say, that the tender-hearted Vidyasagar was heartily grieved at the loss of such a sincere, intimate friend and co-operator. The two were so intimately connected, that as Durga Charan helped Vidyasagar in many of his works of love and benevolence, so the latter aided him with all his heart and soul in all his difficulties. Some time before his death, his eldest son, the Hon'ble Surendra Nath Banarji, the greatest Indian orator of the day, had passed the Competitive Civil Service Examination in England in the year 1869, but the Medical Board had disqualified him as having gone beyond the restriction of the limit of age. Surendra Nath wired to his father of the difficulty, and Durga Charan implored Vidyasagar's assistance in the matter. The latter, in his turn, consulted his friend, Dwarka Nath Mitter, and sent Surendra Nath's horoscope to England, which settled the question of age. Surendra Nath was declared an Indian Civil servant, but his father had not the good luck to hear the glad tidings, as it reached India shortly after his death. Vidyasagar was often seen to shed tears at the mention of Durga Charan's name. Subsequently when Surendra Nath was dismissed the Civil Service, Vidyasagar made him a professor of his own College.
Durga Charan's family were indebted to Vidyasagar on many accounts. After his death, ​his wife and children entered into a serious quarrel about his assets, and went to law-court for the settlement of the dispute. Vidyasagar stood up as an umpire and settled the question out of court. Not only was he a man of great learning and kindness of heart, but he was also the possessor of good business capacities. He had a great tact of settling disputes. Whenever there was a quarrel in a rich family, he was invited to settle it. On the death of Babu Asutosh Dev, generally known by the name of Chhatu Babu, son of the renowned Ram Dulal Sarkar, the self-made great millionaire of Calcutta, when the state of his affairs ran into disorder, Vidyasagar was entrusted with their management. He made his best exertions to settle the matter without asking for any remuneration, but he was so displeased at the conduct of the relations and officers of the deceased, that he was constrained to give over the charge of his own accord.
Vidyasagar had three sincere friends among men of the medical profession, who were his great helps in most of his works of benevolence, namely Durga Charan Banarji, Nil Madhav Mukharji, and Mahendra Lal Sarkar. He had an irrevocable loss in the death of the first two, Nil Madhav having died some time before Durga Charan. He had only one left to him—Dr. Mahendra Lal, who is now on the top of the temple of fame in his profession. In 1870, Vidyasagar ​contributed one thousand rupees to the aid of Mahendra Lal's Science Association. But latterly the two had a great difference. It is said, that it originated on the occasion of the illness of Vidyasagar's youngest daughter. Vidyasagar wrote to the Doctor requesting his attendance to the girl; but the latter put aside the letter without opening it at the moment. After the lapse of several hours, he opened the note and called. When Vidyasagar heard from him the cause of his unusual delay in attending to such a serious case, he was deeply pained and a little offended. Thus originated the difference, which ultimately grew so serious, that the two hardly met, and if ever they met by accident, their four eyes never met. They met only again for the last few days of Vidyasagar's life, when Mahendra Lal willingly forgot the difference and called to see the great man in his sick-bed.
In the year 1874, Vidyasagar lost one of his greatest friends and supporters in the demise of Maharaja Mahatap Chand Bahadur of Burdwan. He was a staunch advocate of all of Vidyasagar's movements.
About this time, he displayed a noble heroism which showed to the world that he was no hypocrite. Some people had been insinuating that Vidyasagar was a double shuffler—that he, who was the father of the widow marriage movement and was forward to consummate such alliance in ​others, had not yet given any member of his own family in such marriage—had not yet shown to the world that "example is better than precept." But every candid man, who knew Vidyasagar personally, must admit that he had no duplicity, in him. It is true that his opinions and convictions in many cases, particularly in matters of social reform, were wrongly formed, but there can be no doubt that he always acted up to those ideas and beliefs with sincerity. That he had not so long given any member of his family in widow marriage was because he had not had an opportunity for it. What could he do? He and his brothers had already been married; he could not make either himself or any of his brothers lose his wife. He could neither make his married daughter a widow, in order to be able to give her in remarriage—to set an example to the public. No sooner had he this opportunity than he availed of it with most eager promptness. He gave his only son in widow marriage.
On Thursday, the 11th of August, 1870, Narayan Chandra was married to Bhava Sundari Devi, a widowed daughter of Sambhu Chandra Mukhopadhyay of Khanakul Krishnanagar. The bride's age at that time was 16 years. Some time after the death of her first husband, her mother took her away to Birsingha, and there requested Vidyasagar's third brother, Sambhu Chandra, to give her widowed daughter in re-marriage. ​Sambhu Chandra wrote to Vidyasagar, who thereupon settled a bridegroom for the girl. In the meantime, Narayan Chandra, who was at home then, fell in love with the fair girl, and expressed a desire to marry her himself. Information of this proposal was sent to Vidyasagar, and he received the news with utmost delight and rejoicing. He sent for the bride and bridegroom, and when they arrived, he performed the ceremony with great eclat. The marriage was celebrated in the house of Kali Charan Ghosh of Mirzapore in Calcutta. Narayan Chandra was, at this time, aged 21 years. Vidyasagar had not fetched his wife at the nuptials, for fear lest she should stand in the way and prevent the alliance. All the members of his family, particularly his brother Sambhu Chandra, were against the union. Before the celebration of the marriage, Narayan Chandra had said to his father; 'Sir, I have no such merit, whereby I could add to the glory of your name. I know full well that your life-long aim is to relieve the miseries of virgin widows by giving them away in re-marriage; in the achievement of that aim you have the chiefest pleasure. That lies in the power of this unworthy son. I shall never turn my back to that. If I can thereby contribute my small mite to minister to your pleasure of heart, I shall consider myself most fortunate; and your opponents will then have no cause to cast innuendoes at your honest, bene​volent intentions.' It is needless to say, that Vidyasagar's heart bounded with delight to hear his son speak in this strain.
We have already said, that Narayan Chandra's mother was not present at the nuptials. Vidyasagar was afraid, that she would oppose the marriage. It was this fear which led him to provide for a separate rented house for the accommodation of the married couple. But Narayan Chandra said to us that she had had no objection to the alliance, and she declared it openly after the marriage. The truth of Narayan Chandra's saying is evident from the fact that when she came down to Calcutta, she lived in the same mess with her son and his wife. She was quite illiterate and a devout follower of the orthodox Hindu faith, and yet it was her love for her husband and dear child, that made her live with them in the same mess and look to their comfort. It may not be out of place to mention here, that Vidyasagar's father, Thakurdas, was opposed to female education, and he had not allowed his daughters-in-law to learn to read and write.
That Sambhu Chandra was quite against this marriage and had written to his brother to prevent the union, is evident from the letter, which Vidyasagar addressed to him after the celebration of the marriage. The letter was in Bengali; we will try to give its purport here in English.
'My dear brother,
'On Thursday, the 27th Sravan, Narayan ​Chandra was married to Bhava Sundari. Communicate the news to my dear mother and others.
"You wrote to say, that if Narayan Chandra married a widow, our kinsfolk and relations would not eat with us and would have no intercourse with us. On this point I have only to say that Narayan Chandra has entered into this alliance out of his own motion, and not at my instance. When I heard that he was determined on marrying a widow and that his bride was also come, what could I do but gladly approve of it; I ought not to have opposed it. I am the originator of the widow marriage movement; we have already given many widows in marriage. Under such circumstances, if my son had taken to wife an unmarried girl instead of a widow, I could not have appeared in public; I would have been an object of hatred and aversion in higher society. By entering into this alliance of his own accord, he has added to the glory of my name; he has made himself worthy to call me his father. I consider the inauguration of widow marriage into Hindu Society the most virtuous deed of my life. I don't think I shall be able to do anything more pious in this life. For the furtherance of this cause I have given my last pice, and if necessity arises, I am prepared to sacrifice my life. In comparison to this, the severance by our kinsfolk and relations of their intercourse with us is of very little consequence. Had I, on this consideration, ​prevented my son from contracting widow marriage, which he did from the impulse of his own heart, I would have been the basest of men. In fine, I consider myself fortunate that Narayan Chandra entered into this alliance out of his own motion. I am not a slave to the customs of my country. Whatever I may deem proper or necessary for the good of the country or myself I will do at all risks. I will never shrink from it for fear of society or of my kinsfolk. In conclusion, I have to say that those, who will not have the courage or will dislike to keep festal or other intercourse with Narayan Chandra for fear of society or for any other reason, may easily refrain from such communication. I don't think, Narayan Chandra will be sorry on that account; and as for me, I too will not be offended or displeased. In my opinion, in these matters every one is at liberty to act according to his or her own free will; no one should follow our instance or act up to our wishes. 31st Sravan.
'Your well-wisher
(Sd). ’Isvar Chandra Sarma.'
The letter clearly shows that Vidyasagar was no double-dealer. His advocasy of the re-marriage of Hindu widows was sincere, though it must be said that his conviction was based on wrong arguments. The Hindu Society has nothing to fear from men like Ram Mohan Ray or Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar, who never concealed their ​real motives under false disguises. There is every fear of danger from those hypocrites, who proclaim themselves true Hindus in public but act quite the contrary in their private life. These non-Hindus are a pest to Society, and the sooner they are shorn of their false guise, the better for the country. A covert foe is more dangerous than a declared enemy.