The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-07-23
RlCH, WISE HINDU TEACHER,
, p.uaNATHAN, G. NJ. g., y. r.,
X &, HERE WITH A MISSION.
81. co,,n,rymen on Cesion Regard INN .:
~" n rrahn,a Jnan' or Knower OF God. ana
nc,nity Of Faith Is Ills Theme He IL
$50 Ills HaJcsty's sOlicitOr.Generai.

r,cb. wise Hindu with mission arrived
yesterday on the Campania' ne E.
panal Than, c. M. q. D. r.. n. w. LOT
,S,r,ccn years his Majesty's Solicitor.
Ga,er,l in Ccylon, India. He Is the second
-, NJ 4. Ponnanbalam, Mudafyar OF tne
rnvcrnor's Gate and In King EDWARDS
,,o,uain he Is accounted great lawyer.
A. pamar athan il 81 years old. but does
M, appear to he 40. lie wears the hihau
,nrhan Of white and the rcst OF his raiment
e. If an I'm gsh clerical cut. lie Is iarge'
imnr,ssiyo man, and he does not wear u
beard -,
Nr Ranar han was accompanied by
,slauyc aud was met at the pier by several
American friends, including Myron II.
phelps, secretary Of the Montsalvat School
~ comparative Religions at Greenacre'
Ma Ne went to Mr.. Phelps's summer
home in Ncs Jersey, where he VIII remain
until Monday, then to go to Greenacre.
where he will ossure in August Next
winter he will speak in New YORK ana IN
other oiti"'.
The Hindu lawyer has no isms and Is
;dentiticd with no schools. He Is the latest
Of long line of indian teachers VINO nave
oo,ne here in the last twenty years, but ne
oome, With a more ilustrious record. de
Sol loader of the Tamil race in Ceylon.
has been educated in England as well as
in India, has n great fortune and is cele-
hro.ed in Colombo for his philanthropy.
His lectures IN TINS country VIII I've upoh VIC
VII II is with reference to the spiritual aspect
Of life that Mr. Ramana han Is considered
nreeminently representative OF India. HIS
rpenute AZ a man of spiritual illumination is
very great among his countrymen. they
rerard him as a BruhmGJndni, or hnoWeT Oh
God In India there is commonly under
stood BY HindllS to be science quite I'M
known, quite undreamed of by the Vest,
the sCie,:ce OF lndndm, or spiritual "lsdom;
science which has to do solely with spiritual
thinps. which deals with the principles that
underlie both the visible and invisible
worlds which is based upon actual and
Immediate knowledge of the spirit OF Goa;
most sacred ideas of tho Indian ciyiil2a-
ion 10 them all external religious forms
ure alike The Brahnlin, the Buddhist
HE Christian, the Mohammecan and the
agnostiG IRE TO them the .ame' beyelop-
melt ,t character and aptitude for receiv-
ing - ritual instruction are the only Gre
den,J'ls which they regard. The, most en-
leb rened men OF India go to the Jnanis
vi en- seeki. 6 spiritual light,
Mr. Rimai athan has made an extensive
and critical study Of the Christian Scrip
lures and has written exhaustive commen,,
taries Oh the GOSPELS of st. Matthew and
81. .ohp and portion of the Psalms OF
David. These commentaries are sym
ratiIetic and reverent, and as the author
has been from youth mbued with the IDEAS
OF lrUan civilization and is wholly loya
10 hem and to the Indian Scriptures. his
Interpretation of the Christian Scriptures
is essentially harmonization of the two
religious systems He finds in the teach
ings Of the Old and the New Testaments
the leading doctrines OF the sages OF In
Gia as these are laid down In the Great
Iipanshads, the Bhagavad Gita and other
sacred writings in Tamil and Sanskrit.
Mr.. Ia naI han has perfect mastery OF
English and has large acquaintance
with the science and literature of the West
Since his commentaries appeared, ORTHODOX
Indian pundits have undertaken to trans
late the Gospels of St. John and st. Mat
thew, following Mr.. Ra nanathans inter
pretation, into the indian vernacuidr
In order that they may be read by the peo
ME of India to whom hitherto the Bibl'
has been sealed book since the missionary
translations have 10 value for orthouo,
Hindus.
Mr. Ranarathan, after being educated
at the Academy, Colombo, and in Euro peal
colleges was in 1873 enrolled as an advocat
OF the supreme Court of Ceylon. He was
member Of the legislative council of Ceylol
from 1879 to 1882, was called to the Fnglis
bar and three times acted as Attorney
General of Ceylon. He received the Dia
mond Jubilee gold medal in 1897, havin
been sent to England as delegate froI
Ceylon He is the author Of several vo
,lmes of law reports and treatises on philos
ophy religion and e.hnoloFy.