The Bengal Renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the region of Bengal in undivided India during the period of British rule. The Bengal renaissance can be said to have started with Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775-1833) and ended with Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), although there have been many stalwarts thereafter embodying particular aspects of the unique intellectual and creative output.^[1] Nineteenth century Bengal was a unique blend of religious and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic orators and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance, and marked the transistion from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'.^[2] Bengal, known as Bôngo (Bengali: বঙ্গ), Bangla (বাংলা), Bôngodesh (বঙ্গদেশ), or Bangladesh (বাংলাদেশ) in the Bengali language, is a region in the northeast of South Asia. ... Undivided India has several socio-political, historical, and geographical meanings. ... The British Empire at its zenith in 1919. ... Indian reformer Ram Mohan Roy died in Bristol, England, where this statue of him stands. ... Rabindranath Tagore in Kolkata, c. ...

Background

During this period, Bengal witnessed an intellectual awakening that is in some way similar to the Renaissance in Europe during the 16th century, although Europeans of that age were not confronted with the challenge and influence of alien colonialism. This movement questioned existing orthodoxies, particularly with respect to women, marriage, the dowry system, the caste system, and religion. One of the earliest social movements that emerged during this time was the Young Bengal movement, that espoused rationalism and atheism as the common denominators of civil conduct among upper caste educated Hindus. Bengal, known as Bôngo (Bengali: বঙ্গ), Bangla (বাংলা), Bôngodesh (বঙ্গদেশ), or Bangladesh (বাংলাদেশ) in the Bengali language, is a region in the northeast of South Asia. ... An intellectual is a person who uses his or her intellect to work, study, reflect, speculate on, or ask and answer questions with regard to a variety of different ideas. ... Raphael was famous for depicting illustrious figures of the Classical past with the features of his Renaissance contemporaries. ... See colony and colonisation for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism. ... A dowry (also known as trousseau) is a gift of money or valuables given by the brides family to the grooms at the time of their marriage. ... The word Caste is derived from the Portuguese word casta, meaning lineage, breed or race. ... American Civil Rights Movement is one of the most famous social movements of the 20th century. ... A name attributed to a group of radical free thinkers emerging from Hindu College, Kolkata in the early 19th century. ... The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ... The 18th-century French author Baron dHolbach was one of the first self-described atheists; he did not believe in the existence of any deities. ...

The parallel socio-religious movement, the Brahmo Samaj, developed during this time period and counted many of the leaders of the Bengal Renaissance among its followers [1]. In the earlier years the Brahmo Samaj, like the rest of sociey, could not however, conceptualise, in that feudal-colonial era, a free India as it was influenced by the European Enlightenment (and its bearers in India, the British Raj) although it traced its intellectual roots to the Upanishads. Their version of Hinduism, or rather Universal Religion (similar to that of Ramakrishna), although devoid of social evils like sati, purdah and polygamy that had crept within Hinduism during the Islamic rule, was ultimately a rigid impersonal monotheistic faith, which actually was quite distinct from the pluralistic and multifaceted nature of the Hindu religion and was intellectually too rich for the masses. Future leaders like Keshub Chunder Sen were as much devotees of Christ, as they were of Brahma, Krishna or Buddha. It has been argued by some scholars that the Brahmo Samaj movement never gained the support of the masses and remained restricted to the elite, although Hindu society has accepted most of the social reform programmes of the Brahmo Samaj. It must also be acknowledged that many of the later Brahmos were leaders of the freedom movement Brahmo Samaj is a social and religious movement founded in Kolkata, India in 1828 by Raja Ram Mohan Roy. ... Look up Enlightenment in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The British Empire at its zenith in 1919. ... Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (Bangla: রামকৃষ্ণ পরমহংস), born Gadadhar Chattopadhyay (Bangla: গদাধর চট্টোপাধ্যায়) , (February 18, 1836 - August 16, 1886) was one of the most important Hindu religious leaders, and is deeply revered by millions of Hindus and non-Hindus to this date as a messenger of God. ... Sati may refer to any of the following: The Hindu Goddess Sati, daughter of Daksha and wife of Shiva A social practise in some parts of India in past centuries, often spelt Suttee The Buddhist Sati; see mindfulness. ... Purdah (Persian: پردہ, Hindustani: पर्दा پردہ) literally meaning curtain) is the practice of preventing men from seeing women. ... Monotheism (in Greek monon = single and Theos = God) is the belief in a single, universal, all-encompassing deity. ... Keshub Chunder Sen (Keshava Chandra Sena, 1838-1884) was an Indian religious reformer born of a high-caste family at Calcutta in 1838. ... This page is about the title or the Divine Person. For the Columbia University physics professor, see Norman Christ. ... Brahma (written Brahmā in IAST) (Devanagari ब्रह्मा, pronounced as ) is the Hindu God (deva) of creation, and one of the Hindu Trinity - Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. ... Krishna with Radharani, 18th C Rajasthani painting Krishna (कृष्ण in Devanagari, in IAST ), according to various Hindu traditions, is the eighth avatar of Vishnu. ...

The renaissance period after the mutiny saw a magnificent outburst of Bengali literature. While Ram Mohan Roy and Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar were the pioneers, others like Bankim Chandra Chatterjee widened it and built upon it. ^[3] The first significant nationalist detour to the Bengal Renaissance was given by the brilliant writings of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (Chattopadhyay in the original Bengali; Chatterjee as spelt by the British) was an Indian poet and author, most famous as the composer of Vande Mataram. ...

Later, with the advent of Ramakrishna Paramhansa, the great saint of Bengal who realized the truth of all religions, and actually reconciled the conflicting Hindu sects ranging from Shakta tantra, Advaita Vedanta and Vaishnavism, as well as other religions like Christianity and Islam. The Vedanta movement prospered principally through his disciple and sage, Swami Vivekananda who on his return from the highly successful Parliament of Religions in Chicago in 1892 and lecture tour in America, became a revered national idol. He urged Indians to break free from the shackles of colonialism, past and present and reaffirmed service to mankind as the highest truth of the Hindu Vedantic religion. "Service to mankind is service to god" was his motto. He was the first Indian to conceptualise an absolutely free, prosperous and strong India, which while appreciative of its rich cultural past would be vibrant enough to walk confidently into the future.^{[citation needed]}Ramakrishna Mission, the great organisation founded by Swami Vivekananda, was totally non-political in nature. Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa (February 18, 1836 - August 16, 1886) was a Bengali religious leader. ... A Shakta, pronounced shaakt, is a follower of a sect of Hinduism which worships the Mother Goddess, or Shakti, in any of her various manifestations. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Advaita Vedanta (IAST ; Devanagari ; IPA ) is a sub-school of the Vedānta (literally, end or the goal of the Vedas, Sanskrit) school of Hindu philosophy, the other major sub-schools of Vedānta being Dvaita and . ... Maha-Vishnu depicted as resting on the causal ocean, with countless universes emanating from his skin pores. ... Vedanta (Devanagari: , ) is a school of philosophy within Hinduism. ... Swami Vivekananda (Bengali: স্বামী বিবেকানন্দ Shami Bibekanondo), whose pre-monastic name was Narendranath Dutta (নরেন্দ্রনাথ দত্ত Nôrendronath Dotto) (January 12, 1863 - July 4, 1902) was one of the most famous and influential spiritual leaders of the Vedanta philosophy. ...

The Tagore family, including Rabindranath Tagore were leaders of this period and had a particular interest in educational reform [2]. Their contribution to the Bengal Ranasiassance was multi-faceted. Indeed, Tagore's 1901 Bengali novella, Nastanirh was written as a critique of men who professed to follow the ideals of the Renaissance, but failed to do so within their own families. That is only one example but the contribution of the family is enormous. The Tagore family, with over three hundred years of history [1], has been one of the leading families of Kolkata, and is regarded as a key influence during the Bengal Renaissance[2]. The family has produced several persons who have contributed substantially in the field of business, social and religious... Rabindranath Tagore in Kolkata, c. ... Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা, IPA: ) is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pāli and Sanskrit. ... A novella is a short novel; a narrative work of prose fiction somewhat longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. ... Nastanirh (also Nashtanir), (1901), or The Broken Nest is a Bengali novella by Rabindranath Tagore who was a Bengali poet, Brahmo Hindu philosopher, visual artist, playwright, composer, and novelist. ...

Comparison with European renaissance

The word "renaissance" in European history meant "rebirth" and was used in the context of the revival of the Graeco-Roman learning in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries after the long winter of the dark medieval period. A serious comparison was started by the dramatis personae of the Bengal renaissance like Keshub Chandra Sen, Bipin Chandra Pal and M. N. Roy. For about a century Bengal’s conscious awareness and the changing modern world was more developed and ahead of that of rest of India. The role played by Bengal in the modern awakening of India is thus comparable to the position occupied by Italy in the European renaissance. Very much like the Italian renaissance, it was not a mass movement but restricted to the upper classes. Though the Bengal Renaissance was the “culmination of the process of emergence of the cultural characteristics of the Bengali people that had started in the age of Hussein Shah, it remained predominantly Hindu and only partially Muslim.” There were isolated examples of Muslim intellectuals like Saiyed Amir Ali and Mosharraf Hussain.^[4]

Some scholars in Bangladesh, now hold Bengal Renaissance in a different light. Dr. Muin-ud-Din Ahmad Khan, Department of Islamic History and Culture, Chittagong University, writes, “During nineteenth century A.D., Bengal produced a galaxy of reform movements among the Hindus as well Muslims… the Islamic reform movements such as Faraizi, Tariquah-i-Muhhamadiyah, and Taaiyni and Ahl-i-Hadith, occupied a conspicuous position amongst them. These Islamic movements were revivalist in character… these Islamic movements were born of the circumstances, which had also given birth to the contemporary Hindu reform movements such as Brahmo Samaj and Arya Samaj, which thrived in Bengal side by side with them… Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s movement is generally regarded as ‘Renaissance movement’. It is called by some as ‘Hindu Renaissance’ and by others as ‘Bengali Renaissance’ movement. It should nevertheless be observed that compared with the European ‘Renaissance model’, it was a Renaissance with a difference, especially, deeply inlaid by a revivalist make-up of pristine Hindu or Aryan religious spirit…Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s Renaissance aimed at resuscitating the pristine Aryan spirit, ‘Unitarianism of God’, with the help of modern Western rationalist spirit.”^[5]

Literature

According to Romesh Chandra Dutt, “The conquest of Bengal by the English was not only a political revolution, but ushered in a greater revolution in thoughts and ideas, in religion and society... From the stories of gods and goddesses, kings and queens, princes and princesses, we have learnt to descent to the humble walks of life, to sympathise with the common citizen or even common peasant … Every revolution is attended with vigour, and the present one is no exception to the rule. Nowhere in the annals of Bengali literature are so many and so bright names found crowded together in the limited space of one century as those of Ram Mohan Roy, Akshay Kumar Dutt, Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar, Michel Madhusudan Dutt, Hem Chandra Banerjee, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and Dina Bandhu Mitra. Within the three quarters of the present century, prose, blank verse, historical fiction and drama have been introduced for the first time in the Bengali literature...”^[6]

Notables

• Raja Rammohun Roy (1774-1833)
• Henry Derozio (1809-31) and his radical disciples called Young Bengal
• Krishna Mohan Banerjee(1813-1885)
• Debendranath Tagore (1817-1905) (father of Rabindranath Tagore)
• Akshay Kumar Datta (1820-86)
• Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (1820-91)
• Michael Madhusudan Dutt (1824-73)
• Lal Behari Dey(1824-1892)
• Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay (1838-1894)
• Jagadananda Roy (fl. 1857-1879)
• Jagdish Chandra Bose (1858–1937)
• Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941)
• Kadambini Ganguly (1861-1923)
• Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902)
• Brajendra Nath Seal (1864-1938)
• Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay (1876-1938)
• Satyendra Nath Bose (1894-1974)
• Premendra Mitra (1904-1988)

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Ram Mohan Roy. ... Henry Louis Vivian Derozio (April, 1809 – December, 1831) was an appointed teacher of the Hindu College of Calcutta and a scholar, poet and academic of Eurasian and Portuguese descent. ... A name attributed to a group of radical free thinkers emerging from Hindu College, Kolkata in the early 19th century. ... Krishna Mohan Banerjee (Bengali: ) (1813-1885) (also referred to as Rev. ... Debendranath Tagore (Bangla:দেবেন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর, Debendronath Ţhakur)(May 15, 1817 - January 19, 1905) was a Bengali philosopher from current-day West Bengal, in India. ... Rabindranath Tagore in Kolkata, c. ... Akshay Kumar Datta (also spelt Akshay Kumar Dutta) (15 July 1820 - 18 May 1886) was born in Chupi in Bardhaman. ... Indian postal stamp on Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (Bangla: ঈশ্বর চন্দ্র বিদ্যাসাগর) (1820-1891) (born Ishwar Chandra Bandopadhyay) was a Bengali polymath. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... The Reverend Lal Behari Dey (Bengali: ) is well known as journalist and as author of Folk Tales Of Bengal, Bengal Peasant Life, and other works. ... Bankim Chandra Chatterjee Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (b. ... Jagadananda Roy was an eminent Bengali science fiction writer in the 19th century. ... Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose (Bengali: জগদীশ চন্দ্র বসু Jôgdish Chôndro Boshu) (November 30, 1858 – November 23, 1937) was a Bengali physicist from India, who pioneered the investigation of radio and microwave optics. ... Rabindranath Tagore in Kolkata, c. ... Kadambini Basu Ganguly (1861-1923) was the one of the first two female graduates of the British Empire and the first female physician of South Asia to be trained in the European system of medicine. ... Swami Vivekananda (Bengali: স্বামী বিবেকানন্দ Shami Bibekanondo), whose pre-monastic name was Narendranath Dutta (নরেন্দ্রনাথ দত্ত Nôrendronath Dotto) (January 12, 1863 - July 4, 1902) was one of the most famous and influential spiritual leaders of the Vedanta philosophy. ... Sir Dr. Brajendra Nath Seal was born in Calcutta in 1864. ... Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay (Bangla: শরত্চন্দ্র চট্টোপাধ্যায় Shôrotchôndro Chôţţopaddhae), also known as Saratchandra Chattopadhyay or Sharat Chandra Chatterjee (15 September 1876 - 16 January 1938) was an author from India. ... Satyendra Nath Bose on an Indian stamp Satyendra Nath Bose /sɐθ.jin. ... Premendra Mitra (1904), a renowned Bengali poet, novelist, later, a thriller and science fiction writer. ...

Contributing institutions

• Asiatic Society (est.1784)
• Fort William College (1800)
• Serampore College (1817)
• Hindu College (1817) (later rechristened Presidency College)
• General Assembly's Institution (now known as Scottish Church College)(1830)
• Calcutta School-book Society (1817)
• Calcutta Medical College (1835)
• University of Calcutta (1857), and Bethune College (1879)
• Visva Bharati University

The Asiatic Society was founded by Sir William Jones (1746-1794) on 15 January 1784 in Calcutta, the capital of British India, to enhance and further the cause of Oriental research. ... Fort William College was an academy and learning center of oriental studies, set up by then British India Governor General Lord Wellesley. ... Serampore College is a Christian Seminary located in India. ... Presidency College, Kolkata is one of the leading Indian institutions for undergraduate studies in the liberal arts. ... Located at 1 & 3 Urquhart Square, Calcutta - 700006, the Scottish Church College is the oldest Missionary liberal arts and sciences academy in India. ... Calcutta Medical College aka Medical College Calcutta was established in 1835 as Medical College, Bengal. ... Formally established on the 24 January 1857, the University of Calcutta (also known as Calcutta University) (Bengali: কলকাতা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়), located in the city of Kolkata (previously Calcutta), India, is the first modern university in the Indian subcontinent. ... Established by John Drinkwater Bethune, the Bethune College, is the first womens college in India. ... Established by Rabindranath Tagore in 1921, the Visva-Bharati University, located at Santiniketan, West Bengal in India is a central university and an institution of national importance. ...

See also

• Brahmo Samaj
• History of Bengal
• Parineeta
• Tattwabodhini Patrika
• Scottish Renaissance

Brahmo Samaj is a social and religious movement founded in Kolkata, India in 1828 by Raja Ram Mohan Roy. ... Buddha and Bodhisattvas, 11th century, Pala Empire Further information: History of Bangladesh The history of Bengal (including Bangladesh and West Bengal) dates back four millenia. ... Parineeta (1914), a novella written in the Bengali language, is a story by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay set in Calcutta, India during the early part of the twentieth century. ... Tattwabodhini Patrika (Bengali: )(Tattwabodhini means truth-searching and Patrika means newspaper or magazine) was started by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore in 1843 and continued up to 1883. ... The Scottish version of modernism, the Scottish literary renaissance was begun by Hugh MacDiarmid in the 1920s when he abandoned his English language poetry and began to write in Lallans. ...

References

External links

• Influence of the Tagore family from the Rabindra Bharati Museum
• Banglapedia
• Some relevant articles