Gopal Hari Deshmukh’s Social Contributions Unveiled : Indian Social Reformer

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PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTION PAPERS

Discuss the social contribution of Gopal Hari Deshmukh. (HPAS Mains Question Paper 2022 – GS 1, Q.4)

  • Gopal Hari Deshmukh, also known as “Lokahitawadi”, was a writer and social reformer from Maharashtra. He was born on 18 February 1823 and died on 9 October 1892. Gopal Hari Deshmukh was born into a Chitpavan Brahmin family in 1823. Deshmukh began his career as a translator for the government under the British Raj. In 1867, the government appointed him a small cause judge in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He worked as a Diwan also in Ratlam state.
  • Deshmukh began writing articles aimed at social reform in Maharashtra at 25, under the pen name Lokhitawadi, for the weekly Prabhakar. During the first two years, he wrote 108 articles on social reform. That group of articles has come to be known in Marathi literature as Lokhitawadinchi Shatapatre. He took a leadership role in founding Gyan Prakash, Indu Prakash, and Lokhitwadi periodicals in Maharashtra.
  • He wrote Panipat War, Kalyog, Jatibhed, and Lankecha Itihas. He also worked to translate English works into Marathi. In 1880, he was a Governor General’s Council member and a judge. He wore a handspun khadi to the Delhi Durbar in 1876 to support national self-reliance.
  • “Lokahitawadi,” a great social reformer and rational thinker, encouraged people to be self-sufficient and seek Western education. These, he believed, were tools for cultivating a sensible outlook and addressing the country’s pressing issues. Humanitarianism and social service, he argued, should be India’s driving forces.
  • He was a brilliant scholar who published hundreds of articles on social issues and volumes on history. In his essay “Lokahitawadi”, he lamented widespread ignorance, outdated social values, religion’s dominance in social life, and the upper classes’ selfishness. He was a strong supporter of women’s rights and a proponent of female education.

Facts about his life

In Maharashtra, the English-educated generation began to question old traditions, institutions, values, customs, and faces, putting them to the test of reason. Following this re-examination, they realised that society needed to be reformed to fit the new environment. As a result, three different types of thought currents emerged. These were represented by three notable individuals, namely Gopal Hari Deshmukh alias Lokhitwadi, Vishnubuwa Bramhahari and Jyotiba Phule. These thought currents may be designated as ‘all sided reformism’, ‘revivalism’ and ‘populism’ respectively.

Books

  • His more significant works are primarily historical. From 1848 onwards, he published short articles on religious, social, political, economic, and educational topics in the periodical ‘Prabhakar.’
  • These one hundred and eight articles, known as Shatapatre, were collected in 1860 as part of ‘Lokhitwadikrta Nibandha sangraha’.
  • The Shatapatree is an outspoken, impatient, penetrating analysis of society’s ills. He wrote a book called Svadhyaya Athava Aryavidyancha Krama, Vichar ani Pariksana (study of the sequence of Aryan learnings, thought, and review), which is more moderate in diction and contains the views of an experienced, mature reformer.
  • The ‘Shatapatree’ and the ‘Svadhaya’ are the keys to unlocking Lokhitwadi’s mysteries. Both books teach the same thing, but the latter is more devoted to the Vedic era.
  • The Shatapatree demonstrates an unusual grasp of current events. It’s incredible to see how modern and secular his outlook is at such a young age.
  • He spared no one’s life or the follies of his fellow citizens who were to blame for the country’s current state of poverty.
  • He was the first to question long-standing authority and traditions. He recognised the value of Western education and the power of knowledge.

Social reformer

  • He was convinced that this was necessary for societal reform. He defined reform as a path toward the common good.
  • His thoughtful reflections on religion, politics, economics, social issues, and administrative matters are revealed in the hundred epistles.
  • His criticism of social issues was all-encompassing. The Epistles demonstrate his patriotic zeal and deep love for his homeland.
  • They express the profound sadness felt by Maharashtra’s intellectual class over the country’s loss of political independence.
  • He was the first to consider the factors contributing to our loss of independence. He blamed the loss on eight factors, which he dubbed “Hindushashtak” (eight aggregate causes of the ruin of Hindus).
  • Ignorance, loss of learning, the dominance of foolish Brahmins, misguided religious notions, fatalism, and blind traditionalism were the causes he enumerated to avoid overlapping in his argument.

His letters

  • His letters provide insight into the values that guided his journalism and reform efforts throughout his life. ‘I request all you people to begin to read, to read new books and newspapers and observe what is happening around you,’ he wrote.
  • Disseminate knowledge of God and the universe to all people. Stop being a slacker. Assign the position of leader to the person who is the most intelligent among you. Follow his instructions to the letter.
  • All men should strive for unity. Remember that there should be no schism between us. Expand your knowledge and move forward. Keep an eye on how the government works, who is in charge, and how he acts.

Religious ideas

According to Lokhitwadi, religion must be approached rationally. ‘Hindus have not yet begun to think for themselves, It is still not clear to them that the mind is a big sacred book and that the written sacred books are all inferior to it’, he wrote.

According to him:

  • He concluded that the claims of the Holy Scriptures needed to be tested by reason when judging his religion from a practical standpoint.
  • The Vedas were composed of rishis, great saints and writers, but not divine beings.
  • Castes were established based on the characteristics of people and their occupations rather than on a divine decree.
  • The avatars were heroic heroes who were brave and virtuous. Only the Puranas gave rise to the belief in reincarnation.
  • Mantras’ effigy is fictitious. Astrology is a deception.
  • It is necessary to combat Sati customs, such as widows’ hair cutting, child marriage, and the prohibition of widows remarrying, as well as other similar practices.
  • However, religion, when understood as a path to God, should not be condemned.

Prathana samaj

  • Lokhitwadi shared Prarthana Samaj’s philosophical outlook. He believed that the universe had only one ruler.
  • The absolute being and the human soul are fundamentally different. The human soul is lower, whereas God is all-powerful. He is responsible for the universe’s creation, preservation, and destruction.
  • The universe does not become unreal due to the changes it undergoes. The world’s reality is a matter of personal experience.
  • He also made his contribution to the development of a liberal political philosophy. He was primarily inspired by the dynastic lineage of Jeremy Bentham, James Mill, and J.S. Mill.
  • He claimed that the state exists to serve the people’s best interests.

According to him:

  • The government has a responsibility to safeguard individual liberty. The views of the people are taken into account in a good state, and its administration is based on their consent. The ruler should be chosen by the people and subject to removal if he abuses his power. There is no divine institution that creates kings. The government should be based on the rule of law. Citizens have the same rights and responsibilities. For the state’s protection, legislation should be equal for all, regardless of caste or creed.
  • Lokhitwadi recognised that the principle of equality should be applied to the English-Indian relationship as well.
  • In contradiction to some of his other statements, he added that the current form of government was not for the Indians’ benefit and did not provide them with the rights that they were due.
  • This was written by him in 1848. He advocated for the creation of an Indian Parliament in which the wisest people were elected, regardless of caste, religion, or whether they were foreign or indigenous. This was a risky proposition.

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