Table Of Content7
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Rise of Reason
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5 This book offers one of the first critical evaluations and in-depth anal-
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2 ysis of the intellectual movement in Maharashtra in the nineteenth
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t century. Arguing against the prevalent view that Indian rationality
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] was imported from Europe through the colonial agency, it traces the
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g rational roots of the movement to indigenous intellectual traditions
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Di and history. It also questions the centrality assigned to the ‘Bengal
n Renaissance’ as being the representative of the contemporary intellec-
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S tual movement in the country.
a, Strongly grounded in primary research, this volume brings forth
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r many new facts and facets into the scholarly discourse on topics such
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f as the idea of ‘Drain’ and the rise of Indian nationalism, so far seen
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a as a predominantly political process divorced from its cultural dimen-
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sions. It re-examines the view that cultural consciousness that pre-
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y ceded political agitation was a separate sphere of activity and suggests
it that both were integral stages of anti-colonialism in the country. The
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er author maintains that rationalism and nationalism were closely con-
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i nected as a means-and-end continuum. He also provides a new and
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U substantially different understanding of the nineteenth-century intel-
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y lectuals Mahatma Jotirao Phule and Pandita Ramabai among others.
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d Lucid, accessible and thought-provoking, this book will interest
e scholars and researchers of modern Indian history, Indian political
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a thought, sociology, philosophy and Marathi literature.
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Hulas Singh is a senior civil servant with the Ministry of Railways,
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D Government of India, a keen researcher and independent scholar. He
specialises in the intellectual history of nineteenth-century Maharashtra.
He completed his MPhil and PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University,
New Delhi. Presently he is working on a comparative study of Mahatma
Jotirao Phule and Babasaheb Ambedkar to bring out aspects of conver-
gence and contrast in their respective approach to society and culture.
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5 In memory of mai.
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Rise of Reason
Intellectual history of 19th-century
Maharashtra
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First published 2016
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
7 © 2016 Hulas Singh
1
0 The right of Hulas Singh to be identified as author of this
2 work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and
e 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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u All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
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5 or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
0 mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
8 invented, including photocopying and recording, or
5
: in any information storage or retrieval system, without
2
2 permission in writing from the publishers.
at Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be
] trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
o
g identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
e
Di British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
n A catalogue record for this book is available
a from the British Library.
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a, LAi bcraatarlyo gof rCecoonrgdr ehssa Cs baetaenlo grienqgu-einst-ePdu fbolirc tahtiiso nb oDoakt.a
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r ISBN: 978-1-138-92972-2 (hbk)
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f ISBN: 978-1-315-68096-5 (ebk)
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Ca Typeset in Galliard
f by Apex CoVantage, LLC
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Contents
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5 Preface vii
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] 1 Introduction 1
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Di 2 Social questioning 88
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S 3 Reason and religion 168
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r 4 Rationalism and nationalism 198
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C 5 Idea of India to be 251
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y Conclusion 301
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n Bibliography 316
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[ Index 337
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Preface
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5 This work is the outcome of my long-cherished wish which was given
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2 a positive shape in a chance meeting in the year 2008. We had gone
at to see Prof. Bipan Chandra who was recuperating in Sir Ganga Ram
] Hospital in Delhi. As luck would have it, Prof. Aditya Mukherjee and
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g Prof. Mridula Mukherjee also happened to be there at the time. It
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i
D was during the course of our discussion that the contours of this work
n were firmed up to a significantly meaningful extent.
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S Intellectual history was not entirely a new field for me. But then
a, challenges of one kind or the other tended to unfold themselves in
i
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r the course of study. The task of study and analysis of ideas inevi-
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f tably involved generalisation but there was hardly a generalisation
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a that did not stumble upon some contrary evidence. Reconciliation
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f of chronological sequence and thematic orientation of ideas was
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y another big challenge glaring at my craft all along. As it is, study of
it ideas often militates against the confines of chronology. If one con-
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er centrates on chronology, the soul of thought tends to elude, even
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i evaporate. But when chronology is ignored, historicity suffers. An
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U attempt has, however, been made to match to the extent possible
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y the thematic and chronological dimensions of thought in the con-
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d text of nineteenth-century Maharashtra – the most taxing part of the
e project.
d
a In prosecution of this work, I have received help and guidance
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nl from a large number of people and institutions. Prof. Aditya Mukher-
w
jee, my teacher, has been a constant source of encouragement to me
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D right from the beginning. It was he who discussed in detail the pro-
gress of this work at nearly every stage and helped me contextualise
the study. I owe, indeed, a special debt to Prof. Mukherjee. I am
also extremely thankful to Prof. Bipan Chandra and Prof. Mridula
viii Preface
Mukherjee for their encouragement and care. Prof. Yogendra Singh
was kind enough to go through the entire draft and he corrected
some of the logical and conceptual inconsistencies which had inad-
vertently crept into the text. I shall remain grateful to him for his
scholarly advice and guidance.
One person, however, who has fundamentally shaped me both as
7 an individual and a researcher is Prof. K. N. Panikkar, my guru emeri-
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0 tus. It was he who initiated me into the world of ideas and taught
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e me the rigours of research. His personal care would ever remain my
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u most prized possession. In particular, he promoted critical thinking.
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5 If I have dared to differ with him, it is because he trained me in criti-
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8 cal thought.
5 My friends Salil, Shashi Bhushan, Rakesh, Mayank and Mahal-
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2 axmi went through the draft and provided valuable suggestions,
2
t apart from correcting some of the awkward formulations. Salil was
a
] quite forthright in offering his ruthless comments which proved to
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g be of immense value. His critique made me revisit some of the initial
e
Di formulations which helped in nuancing my analysis of the subject.
n Mahalaxmi’s comments particularly on Phule were very incisive and
a
S helpful. I thank them all. My other friends who helped me in one way
a, or the other are, to mention a few, Anand, Om Prakash, Raj Mangal,
i
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r Rizwan, Gyanesh, Indiver, Medha, Anthony, Visha and Sucheta and
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f I am extremely thankful to all of them. But for the support of Neerja,
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a Namit and Mallika, however, I would not have been able to devote
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f time the way I could to complete the work.
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y The role of institutional support had been really inestimable.
it I would like to extend my warm regards to the library staff of the fol-
s
er lowing institutions in particular for their help and cooperation: Nehru
v
i Memorial Museum, National Archives, Jawaharlal Nehru Univer-
n
U sity, Central Library and Maharashtra Information Centre in Delhi;
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y Bombay University, Bombay Archives, SNDT Women’s University
b
d and Asiatic Society of Bombay in Mumbai; and Bhandarkar Orien-
e tal Research Institute, Fergusson College, Deccan College, Gokhale
d
a Institute of Politics and Economics, and Tilak Museum in Pune.
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nl These institutions contain mines of material on nineteenth-century
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Maharashtra.
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D I alone am, however, responsible for the strength and weaknesses
of the work.
October 2014
New Delhi
1 Introduction
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5 Indian rationality attained a distinct personality in the nineteenth cen-
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2 tury, the period of an intense intellectual heightening in the country.
t Western India was one of the major loci of rationalist manifestation,
a
] although Bengal happened to be the forerunner of rationalist think-
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g ing in India during the period. Almost three decades later than in
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D Bengal, Maharashtra in the nineteenth century witnessed the emer-
n gence of an enormous intellectual unrest resting on faith in reason
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S as the ultimate arbiter of assessment, as the supreme touchstone of
a, truth. The intellectual initiative was predominantly concerned with
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r the social side of national reconstruction, despite the sensitivity to the
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f imperative of an overall development being a fairly dominant sensibil-
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a ity in nineteenth-century Maharashtra. In other words, sociocultural
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f reform formed the major plank of the intellectual initiative at that time
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y point, although the consciousness touched upon the mega-structures
it of national life – social, religious, economic and political.
s
er The term ‘Maharashtra’ has been loosely used to suggest the
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i region of Western India which was broadly Marathi speaking; it
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U is not intended to necessarily indicate the wider areas covered by
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y present-day Maharashtra. In actuality, Maharashtra did not consti-
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d tute a single administrative unit during the whole of the nineteenth
e century. It was divided into Bombay Presidency, Hyderabad, Central
d
a Provinces and Berar. Poona (now Pune) and Bombay (now Mumbai)
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nl were the two main centres of intellectual fermentation during the
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period, and they, thus, prominently figure in the discourse.
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D Maharashtra was destined to host three major events, or more pre-
cisely, movements of national importance during the nineteenth cen-
tury: the intellectual awakening, the advent of Railways in 1853, and
the formation of Indian National Congress in 1885. All these three
