Ram Mohan Roy’s 250th Birth Anniversary
The 250th birth anniversary of Raja Ram Mohan Roy, the father of renaissance and tireless social reformer of modern India, was celebrated on 22 May.
Rammohun Roy was born on May 22, 1772 in a town called ‘Radhanagar’ in the Bengal Presidency. Ram Mohan Roy, as the representative of Akbar II, placed a demand for pension and allowances for him before the British government.
Rammohun Roy was honored with the title of ‘Raja’ by ‘Akbar II’.
Social Contribution:
- She was a fighter for women’s rights and a vocal opponent of the practice of Sati. It should be noted that the ‘Sati Abolition Act’ passed in the year 1829 was the result of his efforts.
- Raja Rammohun Roy also demanded ‘inheritance’ and ‘right to property’ to women.
- He also raised his voice against polygamy and child marriage prevalent at that time.
- He supported women’s education, as he believed that only education could give women the same social status as men.
Affiliated Organization:
- Raja Rammohun Roy started ‘Atmiya Sabha’ in 1814 to make people aware against idol worship, meaningless rituals and superstitions. He propagated ‘monotheistic ideals’.
- In 1817, he founded the ‘Hindu College’ in Calcutta along with ‘David Heyer’.
- An attempt was made to bring together the then eminent Brahmins to promote ‘religious monotheism’ and social reforms by the ‘Calcutta Unitarian Committee’ jointly set up by William Adam and Rammohun Roy in September
- In the year 1828, he formed the ‘Brahma Sabha’ along with Debendranath Tagore.
- Raja Rammohun Roy established the ‘Anglo-Hindu School’ in the year 1822, in which mechanics and Voltaire’s philosophy were taught.
- In 1825, he started the ‘Vedanta College’ where Indian education as well as western social and physical sciences were taught.
- In 1830, he helped Alexander Duff establish an institution directed by the abbot, which later became the Scottish Church College.
Literary Contribution:
- Ram Mohan Roy published three magazines ‘Brahminical Patrika’ (1821), Bengali weekly ‘Samvad Kaumudi’ (1822) and Persian weekly ‘Mirat-ul-Akbar’.
- Apart from this, he also translated the abbreviations ‘Tuhfat-ul-Muwahideen’ (1804), ‘Vedanta Gantha’ (1815), ‘Vedanta Saar’ (1816).
Source – The Hindu
