Swami Dayanand Saraswati

Table of contents

Context (IE | IE): On February 12, 2025, India celebrates the 201^st birth anniversary of Dayanand Saraswati, a prominent social reformer and philosopher who founded the Arya Samaj.

About Swami Dayanand Saraswati

Biography

Dayanand Saraswati was born on February 12, 1824 in Tankara, Gujarat as Mool Shankar to Karshanji Lalji Tiwari and Yashodabai.
He was attracted to the spiritual realm after the death of his sister when he was 14 years old.
At age 22, Moolshakar left home in search of true knowledge, spiritual purity and moksha (liberation).
He wandered for fifteen years (1845-60) in search of a guru. In 1860, he found his blind guru and mentor Swami Virjanand Saraswati at Mathura.
Virjanand Saraswati gave him the name Dayanand and as gurudakshina extracted a promise from Dayanand that he would devote his life to the revival of Hinduism.
In 1875, he founded Arya Samaj, sought to reform Hindu society and reject its rigid orthodox practices, focusing on social reforms based on Vedic teachings.
- Arya Samaj’s mission was to eradicate ignorance, poverty, and injustice, establishing a unified Hindu society based on Vedic principles.

Philosophy and Key Teachings

Return to Vedic Principles: Dayanand’s seminal work, Satyarth Prakash, emphasized a return to the Vedas, which he believed had been distorted over time.
Monotheism and Simple Worship: He advocated for worshipping one Supreme God, rejecting idol worship and ritualistic practices.
Caste System and Untouchability: While not fully opposing caste, he called for reforms, advocating Vedic education for all castes and opposing untouchability.
Support for Women’s Rights: Dayanand was an early proponent of women’s education, opposing child marriage and promoting widow remarriage.
Economic and Social Reforms: He was a key figure in promoting cow protection, citing economic reasons for the benefits of living cows for agriculture and milk production.

Preachings

To him Veda was the rock-bed of Hindu culture and infallible, being the inspired one of God. He gave the clarion call “Go Back to Vedas”.
His slogan called for a revival of Vedic knowledge and the purity of Vedic religion, not a return to Vedic times.
He strongly criticized the Hindu belief in maya (illusion) as the overarching theme of all physical existence.
He profusely quoted the Vedas and other religious texts to insist that salvation was not the only motto of a Hindu or Arya, as was believed.
To lead a fruitful worldly life, working for a noble cause was important, and he preached that salvation was possible through social service.
He opposed Islam and Christianity and advocated for Suddhi movement to reconvert the other sects to the Hindu order.
He advocated that God, the soul, and matter (prakriti) were separate and eternal entities.
He was against idol worship, caste system, ritualism, fatalism, infanticide, sale of grooms, child marriages, etc. He also stood for the liberation of women and upliftment of the depressed class.
He advocated the ideal age for a girl to be between 16 and 24, and for men between 25 and 40.
He was the first leader in the field of theology who welcomed the advances of sciences and technology.
He believed in the theory of karma and reincarnation.
He subscribed to the Vedic notion of chaturvarna system in which a person was identified as a Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, or Shudra according to the occupation he followed.

Contributions

Maharshi’s first major authorship was Panchmahayajya Vidhi in 1874 AD.
He wrote three books namely:
1. “Satyartha Prakash”,
2. “Veda Bhashya Bhumika” and
3. “Veda Bhashya”.
He founded Arya Samaj in Mumbai in 1875 to promote social service. Later the headquarters of the Samaj were established at Lahore.
The Paropkarini Sabha located in Ajmer was founded by the Swami himself to publish and preach his works and Vedic texts in 1882.
He is credited to have first used the term swaraj (self-rule)- “India for Indians” in 1876, which was later picked up by the likes of Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi.

Rejection of Social Inequities: Dayanand’s rejection of idolatry and social dogmas was aimed at addressing the inequities within Hindu society.
Untouchability and Women’s Rights: His efforts were instrumental in inspiring Mahatma Gandhi, who adopted his campaign against untouchability & worked to empower women by promoting education and self-respect.
Educational Contributions: After his death in 1883, his followers established Dayanand Anglo Vedic (DAV) Schools, which played a crucial role in modern education while maintaining religious & cultural values.

Influence on Nationalism

Criticism of British Rule: His critique of British colonial rule, particularly in Satyarth Prakash, influenced the Indian nationalist movement.
Shuddhi Movement: He initiated the ‘Shuddhi’ movement, advocating for the re-conversion of Hindus who had converted to other religions back to their original faith.

Parallels with Gandhi

Abolition of Untouchability

Both Dayanand Saraswati and Mahatma Gandhi fought against the oppressive practice of untouchability.
Gandhi, influenced by Dayanand, adopted his campaign against untouchability, emphasizing its abolition for India’s social progress.

Swaraj (Self-Rule)

Dayanand Saraswati is credited with coining the term ‘swaraj’ (self-rule) in 1875, which was later popularized by leaders like Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi.

Emphasis on Education

Both believed in the power of education for social change. Dayanand founded institutions like the DAV schools, while Gandhi focused on promoting education as a tool for nation-building and empowerment.

Reform of Caste System

While Gandhi fought for the rights of the “untouchables” (Harijans), Dayanand challenged the hereditary caste system and supported social mobility based on individual merit.

Death and Legacy

Dayanand Saraswati died under suspicious circumstances in 1883, after his public criticism of the Maharaja of Jodhpur.
Today, Dayanand Saraswati’s legacy carries on through the Arya Samaj centres found across India as well as the Dayanand Anglo-Vedic schools and colleges.
- The first DAV School was established at Lahore with Mahatma Hansarj as the headmaster.
Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, India’s second President, called Dayanand Saraswati “a maker of modern India”.