Arya samaj Flashcards
Give five facts about Dayananda Sarsawati
- He was born to a wealthy brahmin family and was a gifted scholar. 2. He visited a shiva temple as a boy and noticed mice stealing offering to shiva, this convinced him that shiva had no power and shouldn’t be worshipped. 3. He studied the Vedas and came to believe that god was without form. 4. He left home at a young age to avoid an arranged marriage and joined the sarsawati renunciation order. 5. His guru predicted he would restore Hinduism to its Vedic glory.
What are five key features of the Arya samaj? (1875)
- A return to sanatanadharma with an emphasis on the Vedas. 2. God is formless and should be the center of all life. 3. National identity based on Vedic Hinduism. 4. Education and equality for all. 5. Hindu as a national language.
Describe ‘national identity based on Vedic Hinduism’
Sarsawati believed India was the homeland of Indian civilization which was once based on the Vedas, it has since become corrupted and he sought a return to this golden age.
What language did Sarsawati want to become the national language and why?
Hindi, it fitted with his vision of a hindu state. He founded schools to teach it, they excluded Urdu speaking Muslims and Hindus who spoke Dravidian languages. He actively encouraged separatism between Hindus and Muslims.
What belief did Sarsawati hold that contradicted ahimsa?
He advocated an armed struggle against the British, going as far to send agents to France for training in insurgency and terrorism.
Give four features of the Education for all aspect of the movement
- He believed education would enable people to return to the Vedic golden age. 2. He founded Gurukulas where students were taught Vedic theology and modern science. 3. He thought scientific knowledge was important. 4. He claimed modern scientific achievements were Vedic, the vedas already held all of the truths that science later found out.
What did Sarsawati thinks about women’s rights?
He supported widow remarriage and an end to child marriage and he wanted education for all girls. He believed that salvation could only be gained through considering the wellbeing of all people. The movement set up numerous schools and orphanages.
What is suddhi?
A ‘Vedic’ ritual whereby Dalits and lower caste members who converted away from Hinduism could be brought back into Hinduism as twice born Hindus. This was very popular and gained a lot of support from untouchables and lower caste members.
What is sanskritization?
When lower castes imitate the behavior of higher castes, it leads to a more harmonious religion whereby Sanskrit reflects local languages and local practices are abandoned.
How is god seen in the Arya samaj?
He is formless, murti worship is wrong as the god of the Upanishads is formless, eternal and impersonal. The many deities are manifestations of a single ultimate reality.
According to the Arya samaj, what is contained within the vedas?
- Methods for reaching god. 2. The ideal structure of society. 3. Rules for living. They were seen as the prime test of Hinduism.
What did Sarsawati think of other hindu scriptures?
He rejected them as corrupt and composed by self interested men, he did, however, accept some of the laws on any. He believed all knowledge could be found within the vedas.
What was Arya samaj worship like?
- Services held on sunday, no murtis used and passages from the vedas read out. 2. Reintroduced the Vedic sacrifice. 3. Encouraged sanskritization and tried to get temples to accept his form of worship.
Give three positives of the legacy of the arya samaj
- It was influential amongst the middle classes and Hindus in South Africa and Fiji. 2. Suddhi developed Hinduism into an agresssive force against Islam and Christianity. 3. Gurukulas still operate and spread Vedic values and social reform.
Give a farther three positives of the legacy of the arya samaj
- The idea of a sense of national pride in Hinduism and a communal identity is a major force within Indian politics to this day. 2. The movement has had a huge impact on the BJP and other right wing groups. 3. The group is still active in India and has branches in Kenya, the Netherlands and USA.
