Brahmo samaj

Question 1

Give five facts about Ram Mohan Roy

Answer 1

1. He founded the brahmo samaj in 1828 and aimed to redefine Hinduism as rational and ethical. 2. He came from a Brahman Bengali background and was highly educated. 3. He studied Buddhism, Hindu scriptures and learned Hebrew. 4. After working for the east India company, he retired in 1814 and devoted his life to social and religious reform.

Question 2

List four of Roy’s influences

Answer 2

1. He saw British rule as beneficial to India. 2. He wanted to make Hinduism acceptable to the west. 3. He was impressed by Christianity and monotheism. 4. He was a Unitarian who focused on freedom of conscience.

Question 3

What four things did Roy aim to do?

Answer 3

1. Create a new Hindu philosophy which was monist and included other beliefs. 2. Reject all scriptures except for the Vedas. 3. Reject murti worship, the caste system and sati. 4. Establish modern scientific education to create a society which was a mix of eastern spirituality and western rationalism.

Question 4

Give four aims of the brahmo samaj

Answer 4

1. Remove the caste system and sati. 2. Encourage women’s education and widow remarriage. 3. Ban child marrige. 4. Reject murtis and reassert the ideas of samsar and karma.

Question 5

What was brahmo samaj worship like?

Answer 5

Congregational worship based on Christianity, no SA rifles, no merits, hymns sung and Vedas read out.

Question 6

Why did Roy oppose the caste system?

Answer 6

He believed in the equality of all people and saw the systems as divisive.

Question 7

Why did Roy oppose Sati?

Answer 7

In 1811, he had witnessed his sister in law take sati, there was no mention of it in the Vedas as he saw it as cruel. It was because of him that it was outlawed in 1829.

Question 8

Why did India have a problem with child brides?

Answer 8

Girls were seen as burdens, so were often married off to much older men if a suitable match from their cate could not be found of their age, Roy campaigned strongly against this.

Question 9

What did the brahmo samaj campaign for for widows?

Answer 9

Remarriage, widow remarriage was legalized in 1856, but it was still taboo. The movement campaigned against this prejudice and many followers made the point of marrying widows.

Question 10

How else did the movement support women’s rights?

Answer 10

They campaigned for their education and allowed women to pray alongside men, in 1881, their first female preacher was appointed.

Question 11

Why did the movement reject murtis?

Answer 11

They were seen as impure by Royal, he rejected the worship of idols as gods as he believed it was false consciousness.

Question 12

Give three positives of the legacy of the movement

Answer 12

1. It was influential in its day and stopped many from converting to Christianity. 2. It attracted the middle class and made them more proud of Hinduism. 3. It was the first Neo Vedanta movement and advocated Hinduism as rational and ethical.

Question 13

Give two negatives of the legacy of the movement.

Answer 13

1. It has virtually no influence today and is very small. 2. Roy underestimated the importance of murtis and traditional practices, it also went against traditional brahmin ideas, so never had any lasting impact on India.

Question 14

Who led the movement after Roy’s death?

Answer 14

Tagore and Chandra Sen.

Question 15

What did Tagore and Chandra sen disagree on?

Answer 15

Tagore introduce the idea that scripture should be rejected if it does not harmonize with reason. Sen wanted to include Christian practices such as baptism and the lord’s supper in Hinduism, he wanted to get rid of he sacred thread ceremony. The two disagreed over these ideas and this wakened the movement.