Indian Thinkers

ETHICS

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Indian Thinkers
“The best way to find yourself is to loose yourself in the service of others.”

-Mahatma Gandhi

Indian Philosophers and Religions

Ethics and ethical behaviour has always been an integrated part of Indian culture. Hinduism, Jainism,
Buddhism and Sikhism gave us various values and ethics to incorporate in our daily life.

Hinduism
Ethics is called “Nitishastra” in Hinduism. It is also called “Dharma” which includes virtues, right conduct,
ethics and morality.

In English Dharma is also interpreted as Duty, which may also mean justice, right,moral, good and much more.

Dharma at times can also be quite confusing, for example, ahimsa is considered to be Parmo-dharma (ultimate
duty) yet Lord Krishna teaches Arjuna to fight.

Manu Samhita initially listed ten virtues necessary for a human being to lead a dharmic life:

1. Dhriti (courage)

2. Kshama (forgiveness)

3. Dama (temperance)

4. Asteya (non-covetousness/ non- stealing)

5. Saucha (inner purity)

6. Indriyani- graha (control of senses)

7. Dhi (reflective prudence)

8. Vidya (wisdom)

9. Satyam (truthfulness)

10. Akrodha (freedom from anger)

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Four Goals of the Hindu Life

1. According to Hinduism, man has four broader goals in life:

2. Dharma: Living life according to righteousness

3. Artha: Earning the right amount of wealth to give comfortable life to self and the family.

4. Kama: Fulfilling all legitimate desires to lead a balanced life.

Moksha: Detachment from worldly attachment to free the soul and to become one with the Divine

Bhagavad Gita
Hinduism has several Scriptures like Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas. However, Bhagavad Gita, sometimes called
Gita, occupies a special place in Hinduism and is considered the most sacred book of the Hindus.

Gita is not a scripture in the true sense but a philosophy that teaches people to follow certain values in life.

The Bhagavad Gita, or the 'Song of the Lord' is a part of the Hindu epic Mahabharata.

It is set in a narrative framework of a dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide and charioteer,
Lord Krishna.

In the scripture, Lord Krishna reminds Arjuna to fulfil his duty as a Kshatriya (warrior) and establish Dharma.

The principle teachings of the Gita are as follows:

1. Every living being is made of mortal body and immortal soul (Atman)

2. Soul is part of God (Parmatman), who is eternal and imperishable

3. The Atman leaves the old body when it becomes old and takes birth in a new body to continue its journey
towards God

4. The ultimate goal of Atman is to get freedom from the cycle of birth and death and achieve Mukti
(Liberation/Salvation)

5. Liberation is possible through four paths/yoga: Karma (Selfless Action), Jnana (Divine Wisdom), Bhakti
(Devotion) and Dhyana (Yoga/Meditation)

6. One should perform the righteous actions selflessly without any desire for the fruits of his action.

7. The nature of a person is made of three Gunas of Sattva (Truth). Rajas (Passion) and Tamas (Ignorance).
They bind the soul to the body and men do all the actions due to the influence of these three Gunas.

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Buddhism
Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama in the sixth
century BC. The Buddha taught that life is full of suffering and
unhappiness.This is caused because we have cravings and desires.
Sometimes even if we get what we want we are not satisfied and
want even more. The Buddha described this as thirst or Tanha.

He taught that this constant craving could be removed by following

moderation in everything. He also taught people to be kind and to
respect the lives of others, including animals. He believed that the
result of our actions, whether good or bad, can affect us both in this life and the next. The Buddha taught in
the language of ordinary people Prakrit so that everyone could understand his message.

The four noble truth are the essence of of Buddhist teaching.These truth are:

1. the truth of suffering(Dukkha)

2. the truth of origin / cause of suffering(Samudaya)

3. the truth of cessation of suffering(Nirodha)

4. the truth of path to cessation of suffering(Magga)

Middle Path of the Buddha

Gautama Buddha advised people to shun the path of extremes. He described the Noble Eightfold Path as the
middle way of moderation, between the extremes of sensual indulgence and self-mortification. He had said.

Monks, these two extremes ought not to be practiced by one who has gone forth from household life. There is
addiction to indulgence of sense pleasures, which is low, coarse, the way of ordinary people, unworthy and
unprofitable, and there is addiction to self-mortification, which is painful, unworthy and unprofitable.

Avoiding both these extremes, the Tathagata (the Perfect One) has realised the Middle Path, it gives vision,
gives knowledge and leads to calm, to insight, to enlightenment and to Nirvana. And what is that Middle Path
realised by the Tathagata. It is the Noble Eightfold path and nothing else...

The Buddha accordingly advised that we must regulate our cravings with self-discipline and fulfil the
physiological and physical needs like food and clothing and enjoy minimum comfort.

Other Important Concepts of Buddhism

Buddhism is one of the most popular faiths in the world today. It has spread worldwide.

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The main reason for the popularity of Buddhism is that the teachings of the Buddha are based on rational
thinking, which appeals to the modern man. The Buddha advised people to avoid blind faith and follow any
person's words.

His words of wisdom are popular today due to the truth contained in them. The other important life lessons of
the Buddha can be summarised as follows:

1. He advocated universal compassion, benevolence and kindness

2. He was against animal sacrifice and rituals

3. He was against the caste system

4. He did not believe in God or Atman

5. His did not favour theoretical contemplation and focused on practical wisdom

Jainism
The last and 24th tirthankara of Jainism Vardhamana Mahavira. At the age of 30 he left home and went to live
in the forest. For 12 years he led a hard and lonely life at the end of which he attained enlightenment.

He taught a simple Doctrine: men and women who wish to know the truth must leave their homes. They must
follow very strictly the rules of ahimsa, which means not hurting or killing living beings, “All beings” said
Mahaveer “long to live. To all things life is dear.”

Followers of Mahavira who were known as Jainas had to lead a very simple life, begging for food. They had to
be absolutely honest and were specially asked not to steal. Also they had to observe celibacy and men had to
give up everything including their clothes. It was very difficult for most men and women to follow these rules.
Nevertheless, thousands left their home to learn and teach this new way of living. Many more remained
behind and supported those who became monks and nuns providing them with food.

Jains do not believe in a God or Gods. They believe in “divine being” i.e., people who have acquired divine
qualities due to their self-effort and have thus become worthy of devotion.

Mahavira said, ‘attachment and aversion are the root cause of Karma and Karma originates from infatuations.
Karma is the root cause of birth and death and these are said to be sources of misery. None can escape the
effect of their own past Karma.’

Three Jewels of Jainism.

According to Jainism, liberation can be achieved by living life in a righteous manner by following the three
jewels of Jain ethics:

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1. Right faith (Samyak darshan)

2. Right knowledge myak jnana)

3. Right conduct (Samyak charitra)

Right Faith

One of the most important principles of Jainism is that we must find the truth ourselves and we should be able
to distinguish it from untruth. Samyak darshan means 'right perception!

Right Knowledge

In order to live a virtuous life, we must have an accurate and sufficient knowledge of the real universe. Il also
means to have proper knowledge of the Jain scriptures. However, knowledge alone is not sufficient to have a
composed and happy life unless our character is sound and our conscience clear.

Therefore, we must have a pure soul to have the right knowledge. A pure soul is one that is free from
attachment and desire.

Right Conduct

Jainism gives highest importance to conduct. All the knowledge of the world is useless unless your conduct is
good and in accordance with the ethical rules of Jainism. It means that you must avoid doing harm to other
living things and free yourself from all attachments.

Five Great Vows (Mahavratas) of Jainism

Jains are required to take five vows in order to follow the path of liberation. These are to be observed strictly
and entirely by the monks and nuns. However, partial observance is permitted for householders to live an
ethical life. The Five Great Vows are:

1. Ahimsa (non-violence)

2. Satya (truthfulness)

3. Asteya (not stealing)

4. Aparigraha (non-acquisition)

5. Brahmacharya (chaste living)

When all the five great vows are followed, it is called 'Mahavrata'. When these are followed less strictly, these
are called 'Anuvrata.

Jainism thus teaches us the importance of living a life that is nonviolent and based on mutual coexistence with
all species of the world. It teaches us the value of simplicity and living our life with minimum exploitation of
other species and natural resources of the Earth.

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Chanakya
Chanakya also known as Vishnugupta or Kautilya was a professor at Taxila University and later became the
Prime Minister of the Mauryan Empire.Two thousand four hundred years
ago,he compiled the Arthashastra and with it he proved to be a kingmaker as
he enabled the inception of the Gupta dynasty.

The word Artha denotes the substance of livelihood.Arthashastra deals with

the problem of “acquiring and maintaining the earth”. The Arthashastra is
thus a science which deals with the acquisition and protection of the means
of livelihood.

Arthshastra identifies four different methods of motivation, viz, sama, dama, danda and bheda.

1. Sama is the persuasion method,

2. dama is the incentive method,

3. danda is the punishment method of motivation and

4. bheda is the internal competition method.

Arthshastra contains 32 paragraphical divisions and adhikaranas (sections).

Of the 15 sections of the Arthashastra only four are devoted exclusively to public administration: the first,
second, fifth and sixth.The first section is concerned primarily with how the King must proceed if he is to
choose competent and reliable ministers and set up effective internal and external security systems.While the
second adhikarana deals with political and economic regulatory agencies, the next two focus on family
regulations, criminal justice and norms of public service. The rest of the Arthshastra take up other issues of
state and sovereignty, international relations and war.

It offers deep insights into the political statecraft, particularly the principles of public administration,
machinery of government, economic policy, military strategy, and personnel.

It is the art of government in its widest sense.In the field of politico-administrative studies he laid out a well
planned structure of administration. He provided the monarchy as a system of governance.

Kautilya gives extensive powers to the king, along with an extensive list of duties which he must perform for
the welfare of his people. The King’s foremost duty is rakshana (protection) and palana (nurture) of his
subjects. The text asserts “In the happiness of the subjects lies the happiness of the King and in what is
beneficial to the subjects, lies his own benefit”.

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The king was the head of civil, judicial and military administration. Appointments to the most important
offices were to be made by him, though a rigorous method of training was also mandatory for his civil and
military personnel in order to be trained for their tasks.

The King would lay down the broad outlines of public policy and protect the social order based on the
varnashramas. Religion was not meant to interfere in matters of state and administration. Among his other
duties, great stress was laid on welfare administration, such as building bridges and irrigation works, providing
pastures for livestock, opening of trade routes and working of mines.

The subjects were to be protected from natural calamities and anti-social elements. It was the duty of the King
to provide social security for the minors, the sick, the aged and the unemployed. Together with the ideal of
the welfare state, the Arthshastra maintains that danda (the use of coercive power) is the symbol of
sovereignty and is absolutely mandatory to prevent anarchy in a state.

He was the first to emphasize the importance of secular law and recognized reasoning as a source of state
law.

The seeds of a welfare state are sown into Arthshastra with as much emphasis as an elaborate discussion on
the state structure and the administrative machinery. The Arthashastra endured the test of time and it has
since withstood the test of credibility. He has provided an exhaustive and illustrative description of the duties,
responsibilities and role of the king, prince(s), ministers, and other state officials. He is known as Indian
Machiavelli because of his ruthless and shrewd tactics and policies reflecting approach to statecraft
including warfare.

Kautilya’s Arthashastra is often compared to the Prince of Machiavelli, since the two books are perhaps the
world’s most famous treatises on the art of Kingship. Both writers were in favour of a strong monarchy with
absolute powers. Kautilya however lived and wrote at least a thousand years before Machiavelli. The moral
values and teaching also formed an essential part of his work.His system was essentially a benevolent
monarchy i.e. for the welfare of the subjects.

The paradox of Kautilya’s philosophy is that some of his ideas are publicly criticised and privately practiced.
Thus, to sum up his ancient Indian wisdom to statecraft is considered as the starting of Indian Administrative.

Gandhi
Gandhian philosophy is a double-edged weapon. Its objective is to transform the individual and society
simultaneously, in accordance with the principles of truth and non-violence. Gandhi, as leader of Indian
national movement, and as prolific writer has commented on almost every aspect of human life and society.

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His thoughts are multidimensional and cover political, social, economic, religious and ethical aspects of human
life. He was influenced not only by Tolstoy, Carlyle and Thoreau but also by ethical principles embedded in
Buddhism, Jainism, Hinduism and Christianity.

The twin cardinal principles of Gandhi's thought are truth and non-violence. His ideas are generally expressed
in moral categories or terminology Ethical theories provide the underpinnings for Gandhian thought in any
sphere. Evolution of Gandhian ideas took place within a matrix of non-violent mass political struggle. in the
process, they went through some twists and turns.

Gandhi is not an academic thinker, he is a mass leader. Hence, his emphasis is not on idealism but on practical
idealism Moreover, Gandhian philosophy is certainly considered as a universal and timeless philosophy. They
hold that the ideals of truth and non-violence, which underpin the whole philosophy, are relevant to all
humankind.

Gandhi on Moral Behaviour

According to Gandhi, an action is moral if it is volitional, intentional, universal, practical, selfless, and free from
fear and compulsion simultaneously. The cultivation of calmness, wildness and tranquility of personality;
fostering of good habits; observance of chastity, altruism and righteousness, etc. are the elements of moral
life in Gandhian ethics. Similarly, the moral law in Gandhian ethics is a pious, universal, eternal, immutable,
independent of space and time, objective, self-imposed dwells in the heart and deals with the inner being of
one's personality.

Gandhi and Non-violence

Non-violence in Gandhi's thinking was a tool that anyone could (and should) use and it was based on strongly
religious thinking Non violence, in its active sense, includes truth and fearlessness. Gandhi insists that non-
violence is not a creed of inaction. Nor is it for the weak or the timid. Non-violence does not signify meek
acceptance of evil. It is better to be violent than to be cowardly. Gandhi naturally feared that non-violence
may become a convenient alibi for avoiding confrontation with the British rulers.

According to Gandhi, many prerequisites are necessary for persistent pursuit of ahimsa. Foremost among
these are truthfulness and fearlessness. Except God, men should not fear anyone else. If men obey God, they
need not worry about any human agency. From this follows the doctrine of Satyagraha which denotes fearless
pursuit of truth. Satyagraha is the name which Gandhi gave to the peaceful protests against British rule in
India. And the peaceful protesters are called satyagrahis.

A close look at the instructions that Gandhi gave to followers of his satyagraha movement in India clears his
concept of non violence. The Instructions are as follow:

1. A satyagrahi will harbor no anger.

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2. He will suffer the anger of the opponent

3. In so doing, he will put up with assaults from the opponent, never retaliate, but he will not submit, out of
fear of punishment or the like, to any order given in anger.

4. When any person in authority seeks to arrest a civil resister, he will voluntarily submit to the arrest, and he
will not resist the attachment or removal of his own property, if any, when it is sought to be confiscated by
authorities

5. If a satyagrahi has any property in his possession as a trustee, he will refuse to surrender it, even though in
defending it he might lose his life. He will, however, never retaliate

6. Non-retaliation excludes swearing and cursing

7. Therefore, a satyagrahi will never insult his opponent and therefore, also not take part in many of the
newly coined cries which are contrary to the spirit of ahimsa.

8. A civil resister will not salute the Union Jack, nor will he insult it or officials, English or Indian.

9. In the course of the struggle, if anyone insults an official or commits an assault upon him, a civil resister
will protect such official or officials from the insult or attack even at the risk of his life.

Gandhi's Economic Ideas

Gandhian ethics cover economic sphere also. Gandhi says that everyone should earn his bread with his own
hands or through manual labour. He calls it bread labour, and it alone gives man his right to eat. It is
impossible for a few to amass wealth without exploiting the rest. Exploitation is a form of violence. As men
have a right to live, they are entitled to the means of securing food, shelter and clothing.

Gandhi does not propose drastic or violent means of bringing about economic equality. Ideally, wealth should
be distributed equally among all members of the society. As this is impracticable, Gandhi proposes that wealth
should be shared equitably. He urges that people should reduce their wants and live a simple life. This process
will release resources which can be used to help the poor.

Doctrine of Trusteeship
Gandhi has introduced a concept in which the rich are regarded as trustees of wealth. Ultimately, as all
property belongs to God, the excess or superfluous wealth which the rich possess belongs to society and
should be used for supporting the poor.

Wealthy people have no moral right to what is more than their proportionate share in national wealth. They
simply become trustees for the disproportionate share of God's property they hold. They have to use it for
helping the poor.

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Seven Deadly Sins

Mahatma Gandhi said that seven things will destroy us. Notice that all of them have to do with social and
political conditions. Note also that the antidote of each of these "deadly sins" is an explicit external standard
or something that is based on natural principles and laws, not on social values.

1. Wealth Without Work

2. Pleasure Without Conscience

3. Knowledge Without Character

4. Commerce (Business) Without Morality (Ethics)

5. Science Without Humanity

6. Religion Without Sacrifice

7. Politics Without Principle

Raja Ram Mohan Roy

Ram Mohan Roy was a great religious, social, and educational
reformer. He questioned orthodox Hindu practices. He is known as
the ‘Maker of Modern India’, ‘Father of Modern India’ and the ‘Father
of the Bengal Renaissance’.
He, along with Dwarkanath Tagore established the Brahmo Sabha in
1828, an influential Indian socio-religious reform movement. He
worked tirelessly to abolish sati, the practice in which the widow
immolated herself on her husband’s funeral pyre. Child marriage was
another social evil that he opposed.
Ram Mohan Roy tried to revive the principles of the Vedanta school
of philosophy contained in the Upanishads. He preached about the
unity of God, made early translations of Vedic scriptures into English,
co-founded the Calcutta Unitarian Society, founded the Brahmo
Samaj, and campaigned against sati.
He attempted to combine Western culture with Indian traditions. He
established schools to modernize the system of education in India.

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Ram Mohan Roy worked in the East India Company. He continued his activities as a traditional Brahmin. He
also carried on with certain political activities. From 1803 to 1815, Ram Mohan Roy served the East India
Company’s “Writing Service”.
Interestingly, Ram Mohan Roy estimated how much money was being drained out of India and where it was
headed. He predicted that around half of the total revenue collected in India was sent out to England. Thus, he
anticipated the ‘drain of wealth theory’ which later nationalists formulated. Ram Mohan Roy’s tireless
advocacy was important in William Bentinck’s decision to abolish Sati.
In 1830, Ram Mohan Roy visited England. He was the first educated Indian to break the taboo on crossing the
seas. Roy was an ambassador of the Mughal emperor Akbar II, who conferred on him the title of Raja to lobby
the British government for the welfare of India.
Roy felt that social and religious reforms will politically strengthen Hinduism. He wrote: “The present system of
Hindus is not well calculated to promote their political interests…. It is necessary that some change should take
place in their religion, at least for the sake of their political advantage and social comfort.”
Ram Mohan Roy realised during his interactions with the British that Hindu traditions were often not
respected or thought as credible by Western standards. He tried to justify traditions by showing that
“superstitious practices which deform the Hindu religion have nothing to do with the pure spirit of its dictates”
The “superstitious practices” Ram Mohan Roy objected included sati, caste rigidity and polygamy and child
marriages.
Such practices gave British officials a sense of moral superiority over the Indian nation. Ram Mohan Roy’s
religious reforms aimed at creating a fair and just society by implementing humanitarian practices similar to
Christian ideals. This process would enhance the prestige of Hinduism in the world.

Ramkrishna Paramhansa
Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa was a mystic and a yogi who could transform complex spiritual concepts into
lucid and easily intelligible teachings. He was born in a simple, rural Bengali family in 1836 He pursued the
Divine throughout his life in various forms and believed in the divine embodiment of the Supreme Being in
every individual. He was a key figure in the revival of Hinduism in Bengal at a time when intense spiritual crisis
had gripped the province leading to the predominance of young Bengalis embracing Brahmoism and
Christianity Swami Vivekananda was his most famous disciple who carried on his teachings and philosophy to
the world through the Ramakrishna Mission

Ramakrishna's parents were poor but pious. He was not inclined to formal education and worldly affairs.
When he was sixteen, his brother took him to Kolkata to assist him in his priestly profession He became the
chief priest in the Kali Temple at Dakshineswar built by Rani Rasmani.

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He was married to Sharada Devi at the age of twenty-three, who later became his follower. He died in 1886
after prolonged illness due to throat cancer.

Shri Ramakrishna is often called 'Paramhansa. This is a title of honour applied to Hindu spiritual teachers who
are regarded to have attained enlightenment

Spiritual Ideas of Ramakrishna Paramhansa was a spiritual person who was self realised. He followed the
spirit of the religion rather than the words. Hence, he could see unity in all religions and believed that all gods
were different names of the same reality.

He studied under different Gurus and realised God through each of them. He also learned the paths of Islam
and Christianity.

He looked upon Jesus and the Buddha as an Incarnation of God. He often und Yato mat, Tato path' (As many
faiths, so many paths). He saw God in all beings and preached harmony of religions. Hence, he attracted
people of all denominations. He had a unique way to explain the complex philosophy of religion.

Gita is the most sacred book of the Hindus. However, the philosophy of Gita is extremely complex and often
even the learned scholar fails to understand the true message of Gita. However, Ramakrishna has a very
simple method to explain Gita.

He reversed the order of the words and stated that Gita means Ta-Gi (Tyagi or renunciation). It means
'renounce everything and seek God alone.

However, he explained that renunciation must be internal and voluntary. As long as you are attached to
material things, you can't renounce it. A person can renounce the worldly things, only when he understands
the futility of worldly possessions.

His Explanation of Multiplicity of Religion : Religion is one of the most contentious issues in the world. Many
people fight with each other motivated by their incorrect interpretation of their religion. However,
Ramakrishna explained religion to the masses in very simple words:

A lake has many ghats (banks). From one ghat, Hindus take water and call it "jal From another ghat, Muslims
take water and call it paani. From another ghat, Christians take the same thing and call it 'water.”

The fact is that everyone is talking about the same thing and everyone getting the same thing. The difference
is there only due to the names, which does not change the essential nature of the reality.

Divinisation of Love : A spiritual person can't hate any person because he sees God in everyone. God is
manifested in this world in the form of love. He, therefore, considered love as the force which provides
spiritual unity of all beings in God.

He saw the divine in all and treated everyone with equal respect. He believed in the Christian principle of 'God
is Love. He always preached love in his discourses which can unite people.

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Other Contributions
Ramakrishna Paramhansa was not much educated, but he was a self-realised being. He synthesized all
religions to create religious harmony. He never wrote any book or delivered public lectures. He spoke in the
language of parables and metaphors from daily life. His teachings are compiled in the book Gospel of Sri
Ramakrishna,

He bridged the gap between the ancient religious practices with modern secular concepts. He focused on
morality, truthfulness and renunciation rather than on rituals. His teachings were later popularised by Swami
Vivekananda to the world.

He was a creative genius who could explain even the most complex concepts in the form of stories and
parables.

Legacy of Ramakrishna Paramhansa

Ramakrishna Paramhansa is considered one of the greatest spiritual leaders of modern times. He synthesised
the spirit of all religions and removed all types of barriers between people. His method of explanation was
simple and understandable even to a common man. He spread the message of love and tolerance to the entire
world.

Vivekananda
Vivekananda is among the greatest Hindu saints. He fused Hindu Vedantic ideals
with Western scientific and humanistic thought. He worked against the
tendency of Hindus to devote themselves to exclusive sects and doctrines. He
reminded Indians of their glorious traditions. He popularized Vedanta
philosophy in the West. Above all, he reminded people of the need to help the
masses submerged in poverty and ignorance.

In his early youth, he experienced a spiritual crisis with his mind beset with
doubts about the existence of God. Upon hearing about Sri Ramakrishna from
one of his English professors, he met Sri Ramakrishna who was staying at the
Kali Temple in Dakshineswar. He straightaway asked the Master, “Sir, have you
seen God?” Vivekananda put this question to many others but received no satisfactory answer. But Sri
Ramakrishna, without a moment’s hesitation, replied: “Yes, I have. I see Him as clearly as I see you, only in a
much intenser sense.” This was how a great Guru- disciple relationship of modern times began. Vivekananda
made rapid spiritual progress under Sri Ramakrishna’s guidance.

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During his travels all over India, Swami Vivekananda was deeply moved by the appalling poverty and
backwardness of the masses. He was the first religious leader in India to understand and openly declare that
the real cause of India’s downfall was the neglect of the masses.

The immediate need was to provide food and other bare necessities of life to them by spreading knowledge of
improved methods of agriculture, by promoting village industries and through other similar activities.

During the course of his wanderings, Vivekananda heard about the World’s Parliament of Religions to be held
in Chicago in 1893. Prompted by friends and admirers, he decided to attend the Parliament to present his
Master’s message to the world. But he wanted a sense of inner certainty and of divine calling regarding his
mission. He found these while in deep meditation on the rock- island at Kanyakumari. His speeches at the
World’s Parliament of Religions made him famous as an ‘orator by divine right’ and as a ‘Messenger of Indian
wisdom to the Western world’. After the Parliament, he spent nearly three and a half years mostly in the
eastern parts of USA and in London spreading Vedanta as lived and taught by Sri Ramakrishna.

Swami Vivekananda interpreted religion as a universal experience of transcendent reality common to all
humanity. He denied any dichotomy between science and religion and described religion as the science of
consciousness. This universal conception frees religion from the hold of superstitions, dogmatism, priest–craft
and intolerance, and makes it the highest and noblest pursuit of freedom, knowledge and happiness.

Bridge between East and West

Swami Vivekananda built a bridge between Indian and Western cultures. He did this by interpreting Hindu
scriptures, philosophy, institutions and way of life to Westerners in easily intelligible terms. He made them
realise that they could benefit greatly from Indian spirituality. He was instrumental in ending India’s cultural
isolation from the rest of the world. He was India’s first great cultural ambassador to the West.

On the other hand, Vivekananda’s interpretation of ancient Hindu scriptures, philosophy and institutions
made Indians receptive to Western science, technology and humanism. He taught Indians how to master
Western science and technology while retaining their religious and spiritual roots. He emphasised that Indians
need to adapt Western humanism (especially the ideas of individual freedom, social equality and justice and
respect for women) to Indian ethos.

Contributions to India
In spite of her innumerable linguistic, ethnic, historical and regional diversities, India has had from time
immemorial a strong sense of cultural unity. It was, however, Swami Vivekananda who revealed the true
foundations of this culture and thus clearly defined and strengthened the sense of unity as a nation.

He reminded Indians of their great national spiritual heritage and revived their pride in their past.
Furthermore, he showed the weaknesses of Western culture and how India could help in overcoming them.

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Swamiji’s most unique contribution to the creation of new India was to open the minds of Indians to their duty
to the downtrodden masses. Long before the ideas of Karl Marx were known in India, Swamiji spoke about the
role of the labouring classes in the production of national wealth. Swamiji was the first religious leader in India
to speak for the masses, formulate a definite philosophy of service, and organize large-scale social service.

Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore was a great poet, writer and philosopher. His works
popularized Indian cultural thoughts in many parts of the world. He is the first
Asian to win the Nobel Prize. Though famous as a poet, he also wrote novels,
short stories, dramas, articles, essays and was a painter too. His songs, known as
Rabindrasangeet are very popular in Bengal. He was a social reformer, patriot
and humanitarian.

Rabindranath Tagore was essentially a poet and visionary with a cosmopolitan

culture. His contributions to national life covered various aspects.

Social Reform
Tagore was a social reformer. Having adopted the Brahmo Samaj, he and his
family had broken away from caste, purdah and the spirit of religious insularity. He regards caste and
nationality as incompatible with each other. While politics aims at national solidarity, caste creates endless
distinctions.

Ideas of Modernism Tagore vs Gandhi

Tagore dwelt on a remarkably wide variety of subjects–on politics, on culture, on society, on education. In an
essay written on the 150th anniversary of Tagore, Amartya Sen probes into the decline of interest in Tagore in
the west, and Tagore’s differences with Gandhiji. He traces the differences to Tagore’s attachment to open-
minded reasoning and to human freedom. Tagore admired Gandhi immensely, often praised his leadership,
and insisted that he be called “Mahatma”–the great soul.

But Tagore frequently disagreed with Gandhi in matters over the need for adhering to logic and reason.
Gandhi used the catastrophic Bihar earthquake of 1934 that killed many to further his fight against
untouchability. He called the earthquake “a divine chastisement sent by God for our sins,” in particular the sin
of untouchability. Tagore protested, insisting that “it is all the more unfortunate because this kind of
unscientific view of phenomena is too readily accepted by a large section of our countrymen.”

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Gandhi advocated that everyone should use the chakra–the primitive spinning wheel–thirty minutes a day.
Tagore opposed this injunction.

He disagreed with Gandhian economics. Tagore thought that in general modern technology reduced human
drudgery and poverty. Nehru shared similar views. Tagore deprecated the spiritual argument for the spinning
wheel: “The chakra does not require anyone to think; one simply turns the wheel of the antiquated invention
endlessly, using the minimum of judgment and stamina.”

According to Amartya Sen, Gandhi advocated, in the words of Thomas Malthus, ‘moral abstinence’ as the right
method of birth control. Tagore championed family planning through preventive methods. While Gandhi
distrusted the role of modern medicine

Education
Tagore became famous in the West only as a romantic and a spiritualist. But his writings consistently
emphasised the necessity of critical reasoning and of human freedom. These views guided Tagore’s ideas on
education, including his insistence that education is the most important element in the development of a
country. In his assessment of Japan’s economic development, he singled out the critical role of the
advancement of school education. He observed that “the imposing tower of misery which today rests on the
heart of India has its sole foundation in the absence of education.” He considered the transformative role of
education as the central story in the development process.

Tagore devoted much of his life to advancing education in India and spreading it everywhere. Nothing
absorbed as much of his time as the school in Santiniketan that he established. He was constantly raising
money for this unusually progressive co-educational school. In his distinctive view of education, Tagore
particularly emphasised the need for gathering knowledge from everywhere in the world, and assessing it only
by reasoned scrutiny. Students in Santiniketan were taught about Europe, Africa, the USA, and Latin America,
and other countries in Asia. Santiniketan had the first institute of Chinese studies in India; Judo was taught
there hundred years ago.

Communal Harmony
Tagore opposed the religious and communal thinking that was getting strong. He was shocked by the violence
provoked by the championing of a singular identity of people as members of one religion or another. He
believed that determined extremists sow seeds of discord among common people: “interested groups led by
ambition and outside instigation are today using the communal motive for destructive political ends.” Of
course, some political scientists like Samuel Huntington now see the contemporary world as a “clash of
civilizations” with “Muslim civilization,” “Hindu civilization,” and “Western civilization,” defined largely on
religious grounds, vehemently confronting each other. Tagore was born into a family of wide culture, and “his
reliance on reasoning and his emphasis on human freedom militate against a separatist and parochial
understanding of social divisions”.

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While he denied altogether the legitimacy of the Raj, Tagore was vocal in pointing out what Indians had gained
from “discussions centred upon Shakespeare’s drama and Byron’s poetry and above all.... the large-hearted
liberalism of nineteenth-century English politics.” The tragedy, as Tagore saw it, came from the fact that what
“was truly best in their own civilization, the upholding of dignity of human relationships, has no place in the
British administration of this country.”

Tagore’s ideas and Other Contributions

Tagore is undoubtedly a great poetic genius. His thoughts and values greatly influenced national leaders. From
his perspectives, he sometimes differed from them. There is a certain sublimity and nobility about his thought.
But this created a sense of remoteness from everyday realities, particularly in the political and social sphere.

Tagore was also at times criticized for underplaying the political aspects of the independence struggle. For
example, he commented that India’s problems are social rather than political. His moderate approaches to
patriotism and his cosmopolitanism were sometimes misunderstood. These in no way detract from the great
beauty of his poetry and the charm of its ideas.

Aurobindo
Aurobindo is one of the most difficult writers to read. This is probably because it
is hard to put into words the insights he gained through his long and arduous
meditations. He is also a metaphysician whose thoughts are hard to fathom.
Wading through his philosophical writings is like trying to climb towards remote
peaks shrouded in mist. Clearly, his work is not amenable to common readers

But even a cursory glance at some quotations which his admirers have put
together, conveys deep insights into our ancient culture. There are three points
to note. One is the deep reverence and love with which Aurobindo speaks about
ancient Hindu religion, culture and the scriptures. The second point is the literary
elegance of his language. The third is a strain of sadness which a sensitive person
will feel while watching the slow decay of hallowed, venerable institutions and traditions. In the process, a
sudden realisation dawns on us that we are letting our great culture go to seed..

“TheHindu religion appears ... as a cathedral temple,half in ruins, noble in themass, often fantastic in detail
but always fantastic with a significance -crumbling or badly outworn in places, but a cathedral temple in
which service is still done to the Unseen and its real presence can be felt by those who
enterwiththerightspirit...ThatwhichwecalltheHindureligionisreallytheEternalreligionbecauseitembraces all
others.”

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Aurobindo rates Indian culture as greater than that of ancient Greece, Rome and of Europe before the
eighteenth century.

He also speaks of the Bhagavad Gita as a timeless document amenable to renewed interpretations by
succeeding civilizations and succeeding generations: “The Bhagavad-Gita is a true scripture of the human race
a living creation rather than a book, with a new message for every age and a new meaning for every
civilization.” (TheMessage of theBhagavadGita)

We end with a quotation On Inner Strength: “The great are strongest when they stand alone, A God-given
might of being is their force.” (Savitri)

We may note that Aurobindo’s writings would have boosted the morale of the nation still in bondage. They
would have lifted the feeling of despondency, gloom and inferiority from the minds of people living in
subjugation to a foreign power. The sense of the nation’s glorious past would have stirred their hearts and
minds. There is nothing narrow or chauvinistic in Aurobindo’s thoughts. His message of spiritual self–
enlightenment based on deep internal meditation is addressed to the whole humanity.

Kalam
APJ Abdul Kalam was an Indian scientist and politician who played a leading role in the development of India's
missile and nuclear weapons programs. He was the President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was widely
referred to as the "People's President. He was also awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour.

He was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu and studied physics and aerospace engineering. He spent
the next four decades of his life as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). He was deeply involved in
India's civilian space programme and military missile development efforts. He came to be known as the
'Missile Man of India for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch-vehicle technology. He
also played a pivotal role in India's Pokhran-11 nuclear tests in 1998.

Kalam was noted for his integrity and his simple lifestyle. He never married. His few personal possessions
included his books, his veena (stringed instrument), a few articles of clothing, a CD player and a laptop. He
died of an apparent cardiac arrest while delivering a lecture at IIM Shillong on 27 July 2015. He was eighty-
three years old. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, in 1998, proposed a countrywide plan called "Technology Vision 2020' to
make India a developed nation by the year 2020 and suggested nuclear empowerment, various technological
innovations, improvement of agricultural productivity, etc. Kalam wrote several books, including an
autobiography, Wings of Fire (1999).

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His Religious and Spiritual Views

He was a proud and practicing Muslim who offered daily namaaz and
fasted during Ramadan. His father had also impressed upon young
Kalam the value of interfaith respect and dialogue. He was convinced
that the answer to India's multitudinous issues lay in 'dialogue and
cooperation among the country's religious, social and political leaders.

He believed that respect for other faiths was one of the key cornerstones of Islam. Kalam was well versed in
Hindu traditions; had learnt Sanskrit, read the Bhagavad Gita and was a vegetarian. He was fond of saying. For
great men, religion is a way of making friends, small people make religion a fighting tool

His Contribution to India

LK Advani, the former deputy prime minister of India, once said. "Kalam was the best exemplar of the "Idea of
India", one who embodied the best of all the cultural and spiritual traditions that signify India's unity in
immense diversity. This was most strikingly evident in the book titled Transcendence My Spiritual Experiences
with Pramukh Swami

Dr Kalam was respected and honoured by people of all ages, religions and regions. He symbolised authentic
culture of India. He is also known for many memorable quotes that still inspire the modern generation. Some
of his famous quotes are as follows:

1. You have to dream before your dreams can come true.

2. Dream, dream, dream; dreams transform into thoughts and thoughts result in action.

3. When learning is purposeful, creativity blossoms. When creativity blossoms, thinking emanates.

4. When thinking emanates, knowledge is fully lit. When knowledge is lit, the economy flourishes. Let us
sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow.

Message to the Youth

Kalam once said, 'My message, especially to the young people, is to have courage to think differently, courage
to invent, to travel the unexplored path, courage to discover the impossible and to conquer the problems and
succeed. These are great qualities that they must work towards. This is my message to the young people. He
advised the young people that 'in order to succeed in your mission, you must have single-minded devotion
towards your goal! He asked the youth not to be afraid of the difficulties but to overcome them because 'man
needs his difficulties because they are necessary to enjoy success.

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Practice Mains Questions

Q 1. Discuss Mahatma Gandhi’s concept of seven sins. (150 words)

Q 2. What are the key teachings of Gita. (150 words)

Q 3. What were the contribution of Vivekananda. (150 words)

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