Indian Renaissance

  

Sri Aurobindo

Sri Aurobindo is Indian Hindu nationalist, philosopher, scholar, poet, evolutionary, yogi and guru. After a short political career in which he become one of leader of the early movement for the freedom of India from British rule, Sri Aurobindo turned to the development and practical of a new spiritual path which he called the “integral yoga”, the aim of which was further the evolution of life on Earth by establishing a high level of spiritual consciousness which he called the super mind that would represent a divine life.

Sri Aurobindo wrote prolifically in English on his spiritual philosophy and practice, on Indian culture including extensive Indian scriptures, on literature and poetry including the writing of much spiritual poetry.

Critically Analysis of ‘The Renaissance in India’ by Sri Aurobindo Ghosh.      

Introduction

In the19th century, India had lords of superstition blind faith, ignorance, evil customs, and the class system. People were narrow minded and conservative. The condition women was worst the evil customs like female infant, sati ban on widow, remarriage etc. stared. This reforms bought culture and religion awareness and as a result, this event may be considered as Indian renaissance. It is believed that Raja Rammohan Roy has started it.

   The influence of new education

          In the period of 1835-1855 considered as Indian people influence by English education. The period when the British influenced the Indian in a large context this period is called as the period of Lord Macaulay who introduced as vogue (fashion) day by day this period is also cooperated with the Elizabethan period in England that time new literature is born and Indian people start speaking and learning English. They soon start writing as well as.

         The new education system brought rapid changes among people make them similar to western. This is how people were highly affected to foreign language. The moved towards new language that is why Devendranath Tagore concern for native language. He went home to home and requested them not to change their vernacular language in craze of foreign language.

This period are called:

1. Lord Macaulay and

2. Elizabethans

How renaissance began in India

The Indian Renaissance begins with the Modern period. In addition, the modern period starts with the British domination in India. The British rule brought political unity to India, which she was lacking for centuries. It also brought with it a new and expanding religion, a different culture and civilisation, which has had enormous impact the life and mind of the people of India.

The British Impact [negative aspect]

The important fact to be note is that with its roots in a materialistic view of the universe and self-unsteadiness as well the western civilisation was incapable of reviving the spiritual culture of ancient India directly onto the floor. It will be too much to hold that a civilization. Which exaggerates bodily and mental life could directly lead to the discovery of the inner spirit of man and its immense possibilities. At best, it could give rise to condition under which the dormant creative faculty the Indian spirit could be revived.

     “This was the first time perhaps that the Indian mind was thrown off its balance. Even the devastating Muslim invasion and conquests had not produced a result of this kind.”

The British Impact (positive side)

Every “no-moon” has its positive side to show at some or others time. In addition, the impact of western thought is no exception. It gave momentum to the renaissance movement in India. English education enable Indian mind for the first time to have a closer view of western culture. Because of which the mental outlook of the educated Indian mid was broadened. Indian people now could understand and appreciate the ideological force that was the living force for the west. They also felt the direct impact of a great industrial, scientific and technical civilization, which was in a process; to change the shape of the critical and reflective attitude, and they become more conscious of the shortcomings of their own society. Moreover, they could be conscious of evils that had entered Indian society through the ages and had almost deprived it of its dynamism and creative vigour.

The Renaissance in India with defence of Indian culture

1. Essay on the volume of Indian civilisation and culture.

2. This volume consists of three series of essay and one single essay.

 1“The renaissance in India”

 2 “Indian Culture and External Influence

 3 “Is India Civilised?” and “defence of Indian Culture”. 

                

They were first published in the monthly review Array between 1918 and 1921 and 1913 and, they appeared a book under the title. The Foundations of Indian Culture.

The Renaissance in India

The renaissance was a new birth in India. It is the Fact must become a thing of immense importance both to herself and the world to herself because of all that is meant for reassign of a force that is in many respects unlike any other its genius very different from the mentality the modern idea in mankind, although not so far away perhaps from that which is preparing to govern the future.

                There is a first question whether at all there is really a renaissance in India that depends a good deal on mane by the world;

It depends also on the future for the thing itself is only in its infancy and it is too early to say to what it may lead. The shaping for itself of a new body of new philosophical, artistic, literary, cultural, political, social forms by the same soul juvenescent will, I should think, be the type of the Indian renascence,- forms not contradictory of the truths of life which the old expressed, but rather expressive of those truths restated, cured of defect completed.

Sri Aurobindo on Indian Culture

Sri Aurobondo, the hared of India, is unique in interpreting Indian culture he has distinctly advanced the thought of the age on the subject. The meaning of India’s cultural history is depended and widened in the fluent ideas and thoughts imbued in his Stung by the ignorant foreign criticism against Indian culture, Sri Aurobindo has given a new scope to the hitherto unknown world of thought. The image of Indian culture is tarnished indeed in later times but not wholly invisible, nor wholly without its power of inspiration.

       Sri Aurobindo gave as the panorama of India’s past culture history in stimulating and enlightening manner. The political westernisation was followed by a social turn of the same kind, brought consequently all Indian had been vulgarise, and anglicised in its aesthetic nations by English education and influence. The velocity of these rapid, inevitable changes did leave no time for the growth of a sound though and spiritual reflection. Nevertheless, thanks to Sri Aurobindo have forewarned effort in his writings.

      What then was the true meaning of this ancient Indian culture as elicited By Sri Aurobindo? He unfolded the mine of this culture layer so that we can recapture the essence of it. He held a mirror up to. India’s scriptures, religions, literature, social, political and cultural history reflects a comprehensive image of the tree of Indian culture.

      Right from the beginning of Vedas, Indian literature is the mental activity of so great a creative people. The early mind of Indian in its growth is represented by the four supreme productions of her genizus –

     i. The Vedas

  ii. The Upanishads and

Psychological seeds of Indian culture and the Upanishads the true expression of the highest spiritual knowledge and experience. The pure literature of the period is exposing though the two great Epics – Ramayana and Mahabharata. There was an equally opulent and richly coloured decline. Nevertheless, the decline is not to death, for it is followed by certain rejuvenation as was shown by the extraordinary flourish of Bharturihari, Kalidasa and others.

              The cloudy sky of Indian culture is silver lined by Sri Aurobindo’ promising thought. Indian will be the leader in a new would phase. The spiritual and intellectual gulf between East and west if not filled up, will at deist be bridged. There was already the influence of Geeta and Upanishads and great intellects like Schopenhauer and Remer son. The aim of Indian culture was a lasting organisation that would minimise or even eliminate the principal of struggled.

Conclusion

Sri Aurobindo Ashram and auroville as experiments of international communities as embodying the social context of the integral yoga. It is useful to ponder these possible in the ideal and life of the Sri Aurobindo ashram, whose population increased hugely during the 1940s and began to be dominated by increasing religious devotionals. In 1968, the mother took the idea of the spiritual community a step closer to the world at large with the creation of God, and international city with the aim of fostering world unity through spiritual growth in understanding and oneness. Among other things, the mother may have respond to some of the shadows of the Ashram idea in setting up this alternate social field for the practice of the same yoga. This pessimistic though realistic scenario is not, however, without its silver lining-both the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and Oroville continue to harbour personalities and possibilities capable of giving a positive expression to the social experiment that Sri Aurobindo conceived as part of his “dialogic Orientalism” and articulated in his texts and practices partner by the mother. It remains to be seen how the unstable force in these two habitation, whether in fulfilment or failure of their promise, they are able to manifest.