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Dharmasastra

Introduction
The concept of Dharma is a central concept in the Hindu system of political thinking. The
Hindu political thinkers conceptualized political life in terms of two central concepts –
danda and dharma. For them ruling a territorially organized community ultimately
consisted in using danda to maintain dharma.

Meaning
➢ The term ‘shastra’ means a systematic study of the general principles and detailed
organization of human activity. Factually shastra means – ‘rule, command, science,
code of laws’. It includes 3 principle goals – ‘dharma’ (law), ‘artha’ (wealth) and
kama (passion).
➢ Dharmasastra relates to ‘dharma’. It is a systematic treatise on general principles
and detailed content of righteous conduct.
➢ They are basically deductive in nature.
➢ The word ‘dharma’ comes from the Sanskrit root ‘dhr’ – meaning to ‘hold’. Dharma is
that which holds a society together.

Origin
➢ According to Rigveda, “Prithvim Dharmam Dhritam” – Dharma is what holds the
Earth. Because of Dharma, the Earth sustains. Adharma will lead to
Pralaya(Destruction).

Hindu

Shrutis (Vedas) Smritis (Dharmasastra)

• Not written. They are revealed •Compiled by Rishis or Sages. They codify
texts. the principle of human life for practical
application.
• They are based on divine or cosmic
sounds. •Based on Shrutis.
•They are written in 'Laukik Sanskrit'.
• They are written in 'Vedic Sanskrit'.
•E.g. Dharmasastras
• E.g. Vedas

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➢ Manusmriti is the most influential and earliest work in the Smriti tradition.

Source of Dharma
➢ The source of Dharma is ‘Rta’ (Riti).
➢ Rta(Riti) means cosmic or natural law .i.e. law given by Brahma.
➢ Dharma is discussed in Dharmasastra. The most well-known Dharmasastra is
Manusmriti.
➢ Rta governs the Univers. Dharma governs Human Society.

Manusmriti contains the following ideas about Dharma

➢ Purusharthas

• These are the four goals of life. It includes:

▪ Dharma
▪ Artha
▪ Kama
▪ Moksha
• These goals represent a balanced way of life which includes both material
and spiritual goals.

➢ Ashramas

• Ashramas denote the different stages of life.

• Each ashrama has a specific goal for each stage.
• Following are the four Ashramas:
▪ Brahmacharya Ashrama
▪ Grihasta Ashrama
▪ Vanaprashta Ashrama
▪ Sanyasa Ashrama

➢ Varnas

• The Varna system in Dharmasastra include the following four varnas:

▪ Brahmins
▪ Kshatriyas
▪ Vaishyas
▪ Shudras
• According to Dharmasastras, each Varna must follow its dharma.
• It is the duty of the King to ensure that all the varnas follow their dharma.
• It is for this reason, the King has the rod of Danda.
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➢ Sanskars
• In Hinduism, the concept of sanskar includes a series of rituals or
sacraments which serve and mark the various stages or ashrams of the
human life.
• They help in the achievement of spiritual wellbeing and ultimately
moksha.
• Following are the 16 rituals or Sanskaras of Hindus:
▪ Garbhadhan (Conception)
▪ Punsavana (Fetus Protection)
▪ Simantonayana (satisfying the wishes of the pregnant woman)
▪ Jatakarma (Birth rituals)
▪ Namkaran (Name-giving)
▪ Nishkramana (Taking the child outdoors)
▪ Annaprashana (Giving the child solid food)
▪ Mundan (Hair cutting)
▪ Karnavedh (Ear piercing)
▪ Upanayana or Yagyopaveet (Sacred thread)
▪ Vedarambh (Study of Vedas)
▪ Samavartana (Completing education)
▪ Vivaha (Marriage)
▪ Vanaprastha (Preparing for Renouncing)
▪ Sanyasa
▪ Antyeshthi (Last Rite)

➢ Origin of State

• Quasi-contractual origin of state.

• The state is a contract between the Man and the God.
• Chapter - 7 of the Manusmriti mentions ‘The Theory of State’.
• According to this theory, there was no state .i.e. there was Arajakta
(Anarchy). In this situation, Matsyayana was prevalent which means ‘Might
is Right’ – Big fish eating small fish.
• In this situation of Anarchy, people requested God to create a King,
• Manu is the First king and the Law-giver. And it is the duty of the people to
obey the laws.
• It is contract between the Man and the God, where everyone follows Dharma.
Dharma is necessary to maintain order in the society.

➢ Nature of State
• The state was a welfare state

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• It was the duty of the state to look after the poor, destitute, orphans and the
weak
• The state was to patronize Art and Culture.

➢ Institution of King

• The King is a divine personality.

• The King is created by God and is different from the ordinary human beings.
• There is a difference between the Dharmasastra’s concept of ‘Kinship’ and
the ‘Divine Rights Theory’ of the King prevalent in the medieval Europe.
• Divine Rights Theory gives absolute authority to the King.
• However in Dharmasastra, the King had only a divine personality but no
divine rights.
• The King was under the rule of ‘Dharma’. He had to follow the ‘Kshatriya
Dharma and the Rajadharma’.
• What is Rajadharma?
▪ In the Indian philosophy, Dharma is the truth and Raja is the
defender and upholder of the truth.
▪ In case of Raja (King), Manu makes little distinction between ‘Dharma’
and ‘Danda’.
▪ According to Manu, the king’s Dandaniti is Dharmaniti.
▪ The king is the model before the subjects who must remain disciplined.
Rajadharma means keeping discipline intact.
▪ The indiscipline must receive Danda.
▪ This Dandaniti or Rajadharma is the foundation of all Dharma.

➢ Duties of King

• The King is supposed to follow the Varna Dharma or the Kshatriya Dharma.
Accordingly, War is a Kshatriya Dharma.
• The king should have the knowledge of Vedas
• He should respect the Brahmins
• He should construct public utilities
• He should help the citizens achieve ‘yogkshem’ .i.e. the four Purushartas.
• Rakshan and Palan should be his main duty towards the citizens
• He should administer Punishment according to the shastras – In Manusmriti,
there is no concept of Equality before law. The lower the Varna, higher the
punishment for the same offence.
• Principle of Taxation was directly proportional to the Fertility of land.

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• Dharmasastras give inferior status to the women. Women are to be kept
under the supervision of men. They were under the perpetual guardianship of
men.

Conclusion
Dharma is not a creed or a religion, but a mode of life or a code of conduct which
regulated a man’s work and activities as a member of the society and as an individual it
intended to bring the gradual development of man and enabled him to reach the goal of
human existence.

Aggannasutta
About –

➢ 27th Sutta of the Digha Nikaya (Buddhism)

➢ Discourse imparted bt Buddha to two Brahanins – Bharadvaja & Vasettha
➢ Buddha explained the beginning of the earth and the birth of Social order.
➢ Explain about wheel of Samsara and life cycle of human in six realms.
➢ It is less about creation of earth and social order and more about refutation of caste.
➢ It counters the caste based theory explained in Rig veda

Key Teaching
➢ Brahamins are born out of women and not from brahama’s mouth.
➢ Arhat- the one who has realized enlightenment. He is above all caste
➢ “I am born of Dharma, created by dharma and heir of dharma, no matter what caste
he was born into.”
➢ Every person is entitled to become virtuous and attain Nirvana no matter what caste
they belong.

Origin of the life on earth

➢ Before the origin of earth, human beings are mostly born in the Abhassara Brahma
world. These luminous beings live for a long time, feeding on nothing but delight.
➢ And while the cosmos has contracted, there are Suns or Stars, Planets or Moons.

Sexcual
Rice family Lust Property
Intercorse

Creation of
Social
Social Instability Stealing
Misconduct
Institution

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The Social Institution

➢ Kshatriyas – to make judgements and decide punishment, warriors and leaders
➢ Brahamins – those who are not good at meditation, started writing religious book
➢ Vaishyas – Tradesman
➢ Shudras – hunters, laboures and servants.

➢ Fifth Caste (Ascetics)

✓ Those who are not satisfied with their living, they left their living, left their
home and became celibate ascetics.
✓ Formed form all the four caste
✓ Arhat

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Topic: Kautilya (324 – 248 BC)

Introduction
Kautilya also referred to as Chanakya and Vishnugupta was born in 324 BC. He was the
Minister in the kingdom of Chandragupta Maurya from 317 BC to 293 BC. He is described
as a ‘saint’, ‘a ruthless administrator’, ‘the King Maker’ and a ‘devoted nationalist’. Many
have compared him with Plato and Machiavelli. A great laureate of economics and politics,
he comes across as the greatest of the diplomats of the world.

Works of Kautilya
➢ Arthashastra
➢ Chanakyaniti

Arthashastra
➢ The views of kautilya are contained in his monumental work Arthashastra.
➢ The word Arthashastra means the science (shastra) of Wealth/Polity/Earth
(Artha).
➢ It is a book on Statecraft written in 4th century BC.
➢ The text is divided into 15 chapters known as books. Different books deal with
different subject matters like:
• Polity
• Economy
• Society
• War
• Diplomacy
• International Relations.
➢ Kautilya’s Arthashastra states that good governance is based on the following
branches of knowledge:

Basis of State Governance

• Anvikasi (Philosophy)
- "Lamp of all sciences"
• Trayi
(The three vedas)
- Cultural Context
• Varta
- Economic Policy
• Dandaneeti (Science of Government and Politics)
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Kautilya on State
➢ Kautilya did not subscribe to the theory of ‘Divine Origin of the Monarch’.
➢ According to him, Monarchy was a human institution and was manned by a human
being.
➢ The King was the protector of Dharma of the whole society.
➢ He describes the King as the servant of the people who receives payments in the
form of taxes for the services rendered to the people.
➢ The state according to Kautilya enables two things:
• Practice of Dharma
• Bhog (enjoyment) of private property rights.
➢ He gives extensive list of duties which the King must perform.
➢ His foremost duty is:
• Rakshana (Protection)
• Palana (Nuture)
➢ The King derived power from three sources:
• Prabhushakti (Power of army and treasury)
• Mantashakti ( Advice of the Ministers)
• Utsahshakti (Charisma)

The Saptang Theory (Seven Elements of State)

➢ Kautilya has mentioned seven elements essential for the state. These seven
elements (Doctrine of 7 Prakritis) are also known as seven elements of Sovereignty.
➢ He described the Swami as the soul and the other six elements of the state as the
body. According to him body politic grows and declines with the swami.
➢ The seven elements or Prakritis or Limbs include:

Amatya (The
Minister)

Janapada
Mitra (Ally or
(The
Friend)
Population)
Swami (The
Ruler)

Bala (The Durga (The

Army) Fortified
Capital)
Kosha (The
Treasury)

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Swami (The Ruler)
➢ The first and the most important element.
➢ He is the centre and plays the most important role. Swami means the Monarch.
➢ According to kautilya, he should be well learned and brave.
➢ He should be born in a noble family and should be a native of the soil.
➢ All the important appointments are made by him. He supervises the government
➢ Kautilya gives extensive powers to his Monarch. However he must exercise this
power for the welfare of his subjects.
➢ According to Kautilya, king should treat his subjects as his children
➢ In the happiness of the subjects lies the happiness of the king. “Praja Sukham Sukhe
Rajya”.

Amatyas (Ministers)
➢ Senior ministers are known as Amatyas.
➢ They are meant to assist the Swami in day to day activities.
➢ According to Kautilya, Amatyas’s should be Brahmins. They should have the
knowledge of Vedas.
➢ They should be native to the country and must be faithful towards the king.
➢ The King should consult the Amatyas on important matters, collects taxes, ensures
defense of the state, etc.
➢ However at the same time he must also keep a check on the integrity of the Amatyas
towards him from time to time.
➢ Kautilya suggests that the King must keep three Amatyas, because two can easily
conspire against him.

Durga (Fort)
➢ Durga is the symbol of both offensive as well as defensive power of the state.
➢ He considered forts as vital part of the kingdom. He attached a great importance to
them for the defense of the empire.
➢ According to Kautilya, the state should have an adequate number of forts across its
territory at strategic locations to ensure the defense of the state.
➢ Kautilya has given a detailed idea with respect to different types of forts. He refers to
four kinds of forts:

• Water fort
• Hill fort
• Desert fort
• Forest fort

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Janapada (The Population/Territory)
➢ Janapada is the territory with people settled in it.
➢ According to Kautilya, the King must take care of the Janapada as it is the source of
revenue and other commodities.

Bala (Force)
➢ Kautilya mentions six types of armies – hired troops; hereditary forces; soldiers of
fighting corporation; troops belonging to an ally; troops belonging to an enemy;
soldiers of wild tribes.
➢ Kautilya accepted a strong and hereditary army of Kshatriyas as the most
important requisite of the state.

Kosha (Treasury)
➢ Kosha should be sufficient so that the king can take care of the welfare functions.
➢ It should be sufficient to meet any emergency or natural calamity.

Mitra (Allies)
➢ Mitra’s according to Kautilya have symbolic importance.
➢ It is the symbol of strength of the King.
➢ More number of Mitras means more powerful the King.
➢ Kautilya envisaged two types of Mitra’s:
• Sahaja – whose friendship was derived from the time of father and grand-
father and were situated close to the territory of the immediate neighborhood
enemy.
• Kritrima – is the acquired ally for the protection of wealth and life.
➢ Kautilya held that ally of the first category is superior to the second one.

Kautilya’s Ideas on Foreign Policy

➢ According to Kautilya, king should aspire to become ‘Chakravarti Samrat’
➢ He calls the King as Vijigishu (The one who aspires for victory).
➢ War is Kshatriya Dharma and Rajadharma.
➢ According to Kautilya, the first action after the coronation of the King is to make
declaration for Expedition.

Kautilya gives the following Siddhants:

➢ Four Fold Policy

• It is the policy of Diplomacy. A country can adopt Four options:
✓ Sam (Peace)
✓ Dam (Economic Diplomacy)
✓ Danda (Coercive Diplomacy)

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✓ Bheda (Use of Espionage)

➢ Shadagunya Niti (Six Fold Policy)

• Kautilya, regarding diplomacy suggested a six fold foreign policy. The six fold
policy includes:
✓ Sandhis (Peace) – If enemy is stronger, then go for Sandhi.
✓ Vigraha (War) – it means hostility towards a state. Kautilya believed
that states are always at war and seek power.
✓ Asana (Neutrality) – In case of equal power, an indifferent foreign
policy works well.
✓ Yana (Preparing for War) – Mobilising the forces for military
exercises.
✓ Samsraya (Alliance) – Join hands with those who have similar
objectives.
✓ Dvaidhibhava (Dual Policy) – For the time being, friendship with one
enemy and war with the other.
➢ Mandal Siddhanta (Theory of Circles)
• It is the theory of Geo-strategy. It is the strategy of war.
• Purpose – Preparation of the strategy for wars.
• It explains the relations between states.
• Mandal Siddhanta explains about 12 kings or 12 circles of state.
• Vijigishu has to calculate the position of his enemy and his friends.
• He has to calculate the status of 12X7 elements of Sovereignty, which is equal
to 84 elements of sovereignty before starting a war.
• The Mandal theory is based on the principle of Balance of Power.

Description of Mandal Theory:

1. Vijigishu – Main King
2. Kings in Front
a) Ari – Neighbor. He is a natural enemy.
b) Mitra – Ari’s immediate neighbor is the Mitra of Vijigishu.
c) Ari Mitra
d) Mitra Mitra
e) Ari Mitra Mitra
3. Four kings in the back (Parshva)
a) Parshva Nigrah
b) Akranda – Friend in the back
c) Parshva Nigrah Sara
d) Akranda Sara
4. Kautilya mentions two more kings:
a) Madhyama – Buffer State. Vijigishu should try to bring Madhyama on
his side.
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b) Udasina – Neutral State. Vijigishu should try to bring Udasina under
his control.
➢ Kautilya has mentioned four types of Wars:
• Kutayudha (Tactical Fighting)
• Mantrayudha (Diplomatic war)
• Prakashayudha (Open war)
• Tushnim Yudh (secret agents war)
➢ Kautilya has mentioned three types of Victories:
• Dharma Vijay (Righteous Conquest)
• Lobha Vijay (Acquisitive Conquest)
• Asura Vijay (Demonic/unfair Conquest)
➢ Role of Ambassadors
• Kautilya has described the role of Ambassadors and their qualities.
• According to him, Ambassadors have a very important role in the foreign
policy.
• He suggests the king to choose a handsome person as an ambassador.
➢ Use of Religion
• Kautilya suggests using religion in the affairs of the state.
• The king can send religious persons/sadhus to the enemy king who can tell
him that his bad times have come.
• This strategy is to weaken the enemy king psychologically.

Kautilya on Corruption
➢ His writings about corruption in the ancient times of India show that corruption has
been an inevitable part of political life.
➢ His approach towards corruption is practical.
➢ He gives special attention towards mis-appropriation of funds by public officials as
well as magistrate or judges.
➢ Why Corruption is a problem?
Corruption directly affects the prospects of the material well being. This generates
disaffection towards the kings. Subjects may join the hands with the enemies to
overthrow the king.
➢ However, according to Kautilya, Corruption is Inevitable:
• Human Nature – humans are easily corruptible. It is extremely difficult to stay
away from temptation.
• Public Officials – For Public officials holding money, it is impracticable to think
that they will not use the public money for private purposes.
• He states that it is impossible to not taste honey or poison at the tip of the
tongue.
➢ According to Kautilya it is difficult to tackle corruption:

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• According to him, it is easy to detect the movement of the birds flying in the
sky, but it is not easy to detect the mis-appropriation of funds.
• There are many ways the officials can engage in corruption. He states forty
ways of embezzlement.

➢ How to tackle Corruption?

• Right sizing the Bureaucracy.
• Transfer officials at regular intervals before he knows all the loop holes.
• Within offices, there should be internal scrutiny and surveillance mechanism.
• He mentions Suchaks (Whistle-blowers). The king should reward them.
• Fines and punishment for corrupt officials. Forcing them to repay the person
who suffered due to his corruption.
• Humiliation of corrupt officials in public.
• Punishment not only to the corrupt official, but the entire chain. Chain also
includes the Dayak (one who gives bribe), Pratigraha (one who receives
money) and Nidhayak (one who keeps the money).

Kautilya and Machiavelli

➢ Kautilya belonged to ancient India, whereas, Machiavelli belongs to the Italy of 16 th
century.
➢ There has been a tradition to compare Kautilya and Machiavelli
➢ Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru called Kautilya as “Indian Machiavelli”.
➢ Max Weber in his book ‘Politics as Vocation’ has mentioned that Kautilya was
more Machiavellian than Machiavelli. If we look at Kautilya’s king, Machiavelli’s
Prince is harmless.
➢ Similarities between Kautilya and Machiavelli:
• Both are Realists.
• Both believe that human nature is Corruptible.
• Both are supporters of expansionist foreign policy.
• Both of them wanted to establish Law and Order, protection and progress of
motherland.
• Both sanction use of Religion in the interest of the Nation.
• Both permit use of immoral means.
➢ Differences between Kautilya and Machiavelli:
• They belonged to different time and space
• In Kautilya, there is no strict separation between Dharma and Danda. King is
not above Dharma. He believes in Varna system.
• Kautilya is a supporter of Monarchy as a form of government. Whereas for
Machiavelli, his ideal government is Republicanism.

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Quotes of Kautilya
➢ “Every neighboring state is an enemy and the enemy’s enemy is a friend.”
➢ “Just as it is impossible to know when a swimming fish is drinking water, so it is
impossible to find out when a government servant is stealing money”
➢ “The arrow shot by the archer may or may not kill a single person. But stratagems
devised by a wise man can kill even babes in the womb.”
➢ “Never make friends with people who are above or below you in status. Such friendships
will never give you any happiness.”
➢ “Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education
beats the beauty and the youth.”

Conclusion
Kautilya represents the realist tradition of Indian Political Thought. His Arthashastra as
the book of Statecraft is regarded as one of the best works in the field of Political science as
Public administration. It leaves no branch of human life and related activity untouched.

Previous Years Questions

1. Which one of the following statements is not correct in case of Kautilya?

(1) He was the first to make political economy an independent subject.

(2) He propounded a theory of politics which dealt with immediate practical concerns of
polity.

(3) He is credited with being the founder of nitisastra tradition.

(4) For the first time he emphasised the need for a strong political control in India.

Answer: 3

2. Who said “Kautilya’s Arthashastra exemplified radical Machiavellianism, compared

to it, Machiavelli’s Prince is harmless”?

(1) Weber
(2) Morgenthau
(3) Waltz
(4) Kissinger

Answer: 1

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Topic: Kabir (1440-1518)

Introduction
Kabir is a fifteenth century Indian mystic poet, a philosopher and a saint whose writings
had a great influence on his time and who is revered even today. The Bhakti Movement in
India was greatly influenced by his philosophy and thought. Kabir is widely known for his
‘Dohas’ or couplets. His verses are found in the Sikh Scripture – ‘Guru Granth sahib’. A
contemporary of Sikander Lodhi, a weaver by birth and a Julaha by caste, the political
thought and poetry of Kabir inspires generations.

Works of Kabir
Kabir has written 72 books generally as a collection of Dohas and songs. Some of these
include:

➢ Rekhtas
➢ Suknidhan
➢ Mangal Vasant
➢ Sakhis
➢ Kabir Bijak
➢ Holy Agams
➢ Sabdas

His works are compiled in

➢ Adi Granth
➢ Panchvani
➢ Sarvangi
➢ Bijak (consisting of three parts – Ramaini, Sabda and Sakshi)
➢ Granthavali

Influences on Kabir

Ramananda
➢ Ramananda, the 14th century poet saint was an important figure who changed the
spiritual landscape of India.
➢ He influenced the Bhakti movement by popularizing the worship of Ram and Sita.
➢ Being a man of wide religious culture, Ramananda influenced Kabir’s life and
poetry which are reflected in his secular outlook.
➢ Ramananda’s dream of reconciling the intense and personal mysticism of Islam with
the theology of Hinduism and that of Christian faith was furthered by Kabir.

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➢ It was the influence of Ramananda that Kabir was able to fuse the Islam, Hinduism
and Christianity.

Jain Philosophy
➢ The Jain philosophy is based on the ideals of Truth, Non-violence, Asteya,
Brahmacharya and Aparigraha.
➢ Kabir’s doctrine of Non-violence is influenced by the Jain Philosophy.
➢ Kabir’s Begumpura – India’s Utopia, is a land where prevails no violence, greed,
crime, etc.

Context of Kabir’s Ideas

➢ The 15th century Benaras, where Kabir spent most of his life, was characterized by
the growth of trade and opportunities.
➢ This flourishing trade linked the towns and villages thereby monetizing the economy
and creating opportunities for development.
➢ The growing trade challenged the prevalent caste rules and the hierarchical feudal
order, creating a new culture of universal humanism.
➢ This led to the creation of a vertical-horizontal mobility of social groups and
individuals in the society.
➢ However this social mobility was widely resented by the prevalent elite class, who
wanted to maintain the status-quo.
➢ Kabir, who belonged to the low caste, was critical of the discrimination of the poor
classes by the elite. He was therefore widely criticized by the Brahmins.
➢ Even though Kabir had an ideological clash with Brahmins, he never criticized them
back. He was therefore much like by the common people.
➢ He reformed the minds of the common people through his Dohas or couplets

Criticism of the King and his Administration

➢ Kabir was highly critical of the prevalent system of taxation and the zamindari
system.
➢ The cult of the taxation system was mainly faced by the poor and the weaker sections
of the society.
➢ Kabir criticized the decision of the king to shift the capital from Delhi to
Daulatabad which led many people to suffer the economic and the social
consequences of the decision.

Views on Hinduism and Islam

➢ Kabir is critical of both Hinduism and Islam.
➢ According to him, Hinduism was caught in the grip of meaningless rites, sacrifices,
rituals etc.
➢ He was critical of the meaningless rites of sacred thread and circumcision.

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➢ According to Kabir, both Hinduism and Islam were misguided by the sacred texts like
Vedas and Quran.
➢ For Kabir, ‘the goodness’s ruby has more value than the mines of ruby’.
➢ He is often regarded as the harmonizer of Hindu and Muslim beliefs in the modern
times. He is known to have coordinated Hinduism and Islam by giving them a
universal path which can be followed by both.
➢ His legacy survives through the Kabir Panth (Path of Kabir) – its members are
known as Kabir Panthis.
➢ According to him, True god is with the person who is on the Path of Righteousness.
He is in the heart of a person and therefore one should always offer inward worship
to him.

Ideal Polity – Begumpura

➢ Kabir was critical of the state, particularly of the Judiciary and the Administration.
➢ He therefore put forward his concept of Ideal state:

Begumpura (A Kingdom of God)

• Land without sorrows
• Land without private property and taxes
• Land without monarchy and social hierarchy
• Land of saintly people
• Land without any fear, greed, caprice, crime
and scarcity
• Land without discrimination on the basis of
caste, gender and religion

➢ Kabir’s Begumpura village was a rationale and a humane society.

➢ There was sovereignty and equality among the people leading to freedom for all.
➢ Begumpura is also called as India’s Utopia.
➢ This ideal utopia was to be achieved through ‘Bhakti’- Through the collective
participation of people in decision making and through social construction. He
regarded Bhakts as Vanguards of Begumpura.
➢ This could be achieved by shattering the socio-economic divisions in the society.
➢ Thus, Begumpura was a land where there was:

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• No State
• No Corruption
• No Surplus Extraction
➢ It was based on the principles of:
• Justice
• Equality
• Freedom

Conclusion
Kabir, a saint of mystical combination of Nath tradition, Sufism and Bhakti, established a
distinctive religion of his own. His poetry (Dohas) not only influenced the common man of
his time but also continues to hold relevance in the modern times. His dream of social
harmony and equality was carried forward by many thinkers and leaders who were
influenced by his ideas and political thought.

Previous year questions

Which of the following is not related to Kabir? (Dec 2019)

1. Begumpura
2. Bhakti
3. Panchvani
4. Gender Inequality

Ans: Kabir in his Begumpura desired to create an ideal village – a land where exists
no discrimination on caste, gender and religion.

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

ZIAUDDIN BARANI (1285-1357)

Introduction
➢ Born in 1285
➢ Belong to the era of Delhi Sultanate – Was a contemporary of Alauddin Khilji,
Mohammad bin Tughlaq and Firoz Shah Tughlaq.
➢ Conservative, Fundamentalist and Bigot
➢ first known Muslim to write a history of India.
➢ Fatwa-i-Jahandari was in most important Political work.

Important works/Books
➢ Fatwa -i- Jahandari
✓ A Nasihat for Muslim ruler
✓ A work of Statecraft
✓ It is compared with Aarthashastra and Machiavelli’s Prince.
➢ Tarikh- I firuz Sahi - covers the period from the reign of Ghiyasuddin Balban to the
first six years of reign of Firoz Shah Tughluq.
➢ Zawabit – State Laws

Advices for an Ideal Sultan / Ruler

✓ Distinction between Personal and Political role of Sultan
✓ Sultan should be from family of monarch and must have a sense of Justice.
✓ Follower of Shariat and agent of God on earth.
✓ Sultan should achieve the objective of Islam and posses the attributes of Terror,
Prestige and Pride.
✓ Sultan Should Resist:-
• Wrathfulness
• Falsehood
• Changeability
• Deception
• Injustice
✓ Sultan must maintain all royalties (Counsellors, army, intelligence officers)
✓ Sultan should protect old Political Families
✓ The real Justification for the supremacy of the king and of there power and dignity is
the need for enforcing Justice
✓ First act of king should be appointment of Judges. King will be at apex of Justice
System

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✓ King must know about forgiveness and punishment together while doing justice
✓ Deliverance of Justice was to be according to the religious practices of the subjects.
✓ Tools to get legitimacy for Sultan
• Use of Religion as a means
• Tyrannical behaviour towards rebellion

Concept of Ideal State

LAWS

➢ He divided Laws in two categories

✓ Zawabit
✓ Shariat
➢ Zawabit should be formulated in case of Inability to apply Shariat
➢ Zawabit must take lessons from Past as well as contemporary Conditions
➢ Zawabit must be in resonance with Shariat
➢ Should not negate the shariat
➢ It must increase the Loyalty towards sultan
ARMY

➢ Army was based on Turkish Mongol Model Divided in four Part

Army

Infantry cavalary war elephant Auxilary

Solider
Solider with Soliders with
without
two horses single horse
horses

➢ Sultan personal troops- “Qalb”

Bureaucracy
➢ Collection of tax, measuring land
➢ Operated at three level:
✓ Centre
✓ Province
✓ Village

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➢ Revenue Department
➢ Centre – Diwan-i- wazarat headed by Wazir and assisted by Naib and Musharif-i-
Mamalik
➢ Province- Headed by Muqtis and Walis
➢ Village – Diwan
➢ Revenue collection was proportionate. Collected on the basis of the revence paying
capabilities of the People.

Justice
➢ Broder view and inclusive
➢ Market price need to be control , because it would affect army and lead to discontent
among masses.
➢ Remission of tax – During calamities
➢ Court System
✓ Civil Court
✓ Criminal Court
➢ King while dealing with religions matter must be assisted by qazi-ul-quzat.
➢ Two operating area of Justice – Urban and Rural areas.

INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

MUHAMMAD IQBAL
• He was a great poet, religious philosopher political
thinker and a Barrister in British India.
• He was born on 22nd February 1873 at Sailkot, Punjab,
British India. (Presently in Punjab, Pakistan)
• His initial education started at a Maktab (Religious School) and later joined
Sailkot Mission School to complete his Secondary Education . He went to
Munich for pursuing his doctoral research on "Metaphysics in Persia” at the
Trinity College, Cambridge.
• His interests and political thought is deeply affected by the Social and Political
happenings and movements in both the National as well as at the International
Sphere.
• His Notable Works:
i) Bang-e-Dara (The Call of the Marching Bell) was his first Urdu
philosophical poetry book.
ii) Tarana-e-Hind a patriotic song in Urdu language which starts with the
statement ‘Sare jahan se achcha Hindustan humara’ (Our India is the
best country in the world) and also articulates Hindu Muslim Unity .
iii) The Secrets of the Self , published in 1915 which deals mainly with an
Individual’s religious and spiritual aspect.

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iv) The Secrets of Selflessness published in 1918 whose main theme was
a relationship between individual and society in order to preserve an
Ideal Muslim Community.
• Initially, Iqbal was a Indian Patriotic but later when he went to Europe and
witnessed aggression against the Muslim countries he returned out to be a
Religious Fundamentalist whose main motive was to safeguard the interests
of Muslim Community and promote the Idea of a separate state for Indian
Muslims . He rejected the Idea of a Secular Indian State.
• After returning to India, in 1925 he contested elections for Punjab Legislative
Council and won the election. He remained in the Council till 1928. He was also
a delegate in the Second and Third Round Table Conference.

• Iqbal also presided over the Allahabad session of All India Muslim League in
1930 and advocated the idea of two administrative areas in India (for Hindus
and Muslims Separately).

• RELIGIOUS IDEAS
■ He had a passion to bring about a revival of the past glory of Islamic thought
and action which eventually demanded a creation of a separate state of
Pakistan as it would be a “laboratory for revision and reconstruction of Islam”
as visualized by him.
■ Iqbal held that government should be based on religion because it was a
great force.
■ He was also of the opinion that a Secular state is merely incapable of solving
the social, economic and political problems of any particular community.
■ Therefore, he sought to develop a typical concept of political power based
on theocracy (subordination of political authority to religious authority).
■ His stay in Europe had also convinced him that in Western Capitalist Society
, People are losing their peace of mind due to their aversion to religion Hence,
he also condemned Machiavelli as the “Messenger of Satan” because of his
theory of separation between religion and politics.
■ Iqbal, therefore, recommended the total Governance in all aspects of the life
by the Law of “Shariat”(Islamic laws).

• POLITICAL IDEAS
Iqbal was a poet at the core of his heart, therefore, much of his political ideas
are articulated in his poems and lectures and not in a systematic or organized
manner .

VIEWS ON NATIONALISM-
■ Nationalism is supposed to be one such notion on which Iqbal's wide
variation in his views is evident .

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■ He believed in Indian Nationalism till his departure to Europe in 1905 but
there he developed new affection for Islamic Religion and People which
shaped his ideas on the lines of Pan – Islamism and turned him against
territorial nationalism.
■ Islamic Universalism and Islamic Renaissance were the main reason for him
to denounced the territorial and racialist concept of Nationalism.
■ He argued that Islamic community was not a single Nation-state but a league
of nations and its most important objective is to demolish human made
distinctions of Caste, Creed, Colours and Economic Status. Thus, paved the way
for human emancipation.
■ His love for nationalism which was very evident in his early poetic
compositions from ‘We are Indians, India is our homeland’ to ‘We are Muslims,
the whole world is our homeland’, was a drastic change. Therefore, he as a
critique of nationalism became quite evident.
■ He opposed the ideology of Nationalism on two basic grounds ; firstly, Indian
Nationalism will result in domination of Hindus over Muslims because of their
numerical majority and Secondly, Nationalism will promote narrow patriotic
feelings among Muslims of different countries in the world and will gradually
loose the bond of Islamic Fraternity.

VIEWS ON PAN ISLAMISM –

■ Pan Islamism is an all comprehensive idea which is aimed at bringing some
sort of Unity and Fraternity amongst Muslims in various parts of the world
irrespective of their geographical location and Iqbal was having a very strong
faith in it.
■ He argued for the adoption of Pan Islamism as a humanitarian notion
because it will denounce the barriers in the form of race, caste, geography or
other materialistic barriers in place of territorial Nationalism.
■ He also tried to revise the crux of Islam from being a religious faith of the
people to a world view of Muslim brotherhood. Therefore, people living in
different parts of the world will feel liberated from worldly restrictions to feel
the common bond of Islam.
■ He also tried to bring Islam in consonance with other modern philosophy
and science as well as accommodation to the people. However, some sort of
difference in the Interpretation of Islam appears by him as he on one hand
argued for going back to the classical notion of Islam while also upholding
modernized, dynamic and accommodative nature of Islam on the other hand.
■ He also held that Islam and racial exclusiveness are contradictory or
antithetical and his sole agenda was to put a better social order which is
universally acceptable in the way of achieving International unity and
cooperation. Thus , Iqbal argued that the correct way of securing
accommodative and unifying social order in the world is through PAN
ISLAMISM.
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VIEWS ON PAKISTAN –
■ He was in support of the demand for separate state for the muslims and was
opposed to unitary Indian state because he believed that the Hindu majority
will dominate the Muslim minority.
■ Iqbal in his various lectures and speeches have mentioned the loss of the
world pivotal position of the Muslims in the country and he sought to bring
enlightenment so that Muslim could regain the Glory and lost status in the
Indian Society.
■ His first reference in regard to the reorganisation of India on religious basis
was in his presidential address in Allahabad at the annual session of the All
India Muslim League.
■ However, Iqbal seeks only reorganisation of the country and not the
partition.
■ He also critised the Simon Commission and the Nehru Committee Report
which ultimately rejected the demand for creation of the “Consolidated North
West Indian Moslem State”, proposed by Iqbal which included the Punjab, the
North West Frontier Province, the Sind and the Baluchistan into a single State
.■ The Consolidated North West Indian Moslem State was the blueprint for
the creation of a Muslim State in India. Therefore, Iqbal is considered as the
Ideological inspiration behind the creation of Pakistan as a separate state in
the Indian Subcontinent.

• Muhammad Iqbal was commonly known as Allama Iqbal for the reason that he
was considered as one of the important intellectuals among the Muslims.
• Moreover, his contribution in the contemporary political process was full of
Contradiction and Inconsistencies but in the realm of poetic creativity were
far more enduring.
• Muhammad Iqbal was a controversial as well as a unique personality of British
India because of the varying perceptions and he will remain in question
whether to call him a Patriot or a Communal thinker.

Question 1 – Match List I with List II –

List I List II

(THINKER) (WORK)

(a) Jay Prakash Narayan (i) Salt taxation in India

(b) Ram Manohar Lohia (ii) The Reconstruction of Religious
thought in India
(c) Muhammad Iqbal (iii) Why Socialism
(d) Barani (iv) Fatwa-i-Jahandari

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(1) (a)-(iii), (b)-(i), (c)-(ii), (d)-(iv)
(2) (a)-(ii), (b)-(iii), (c)-(iv), (d)-(i)
(3) (a)-(i), (b)-(ii), (c)-(iii), (d)-(iv)
(4) (a)-(iv), (b)-(i), (c)-(ii), (d)-(iii)
Answer – Option (1) (a)-(iii), (b)-(i), (c)-(ii), (d)-(iv)

Question 2 - In the context of the two statements which of the following is correct ?

Assertion(A) Muhammad Iqbal is known as the spiritual father of Pakistan.

Reason (R) Because he inspired the Pakistan Movement in British India .

Codes

(i) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

(ii) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(iii) A is true, but R false
(iv) A is false , but R is true

Answer – (i) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

Question 3 – Muhammad Iqbal made a significant demand for a Separate

Muslim State in?

(a) Lahore
(b) Allahabad
(c) New Delhi
(d) Aligarh
Answer – (b) Allahabad.

Explanation – In 1930 while presiding over the session of the All India Muslim
. League at Allahabad.

Question 4 - According to Muhammad Iqbal in which form the government .

heads are counted ?

(a) Democracy
(b) Autocracy
(c) Oligarchy
(d) Monarchy
Answer – (a) Democracy

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Explanation – He denounce Democracy because he viewed it as a form of
. Government in which heads are counted but not weighed. He was also critical of
. democracy for the reason that submission to one who is inspired by religious
. Feeling is better than submission to the heartless many, therefore, he
preferred Theocracy over Democracy.

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

PANDITA RAMABAI
• Pandita Ramabai (1858-1922) has not only been acknowledged as an eminent social
reformer and a scholar but also as one of the first feminist in the modern Indian history who
struggled for the emancipation of Indian women.
• She was born to Ananta Shastri, who was liberal Brahmin Pandit in 1858. During her
childhood she lived the life of a Brahmin Pilgrim and travelled the Indian Subcontinent with
her family. Her father opened the way of Sanskrit Learning and training in public leadership
for her which was especially remarkable considering the fact that in those times women were
denied even the basic right to get literate and these priveleges were regarded the sole
preserve of men. After her parents death she travelled to Calcutta (now Kolkata) .She
received a formal invitation to lecture before a few learned Pandits. Her in-depth knowledge
of Sanskrit Scriptures created a great impact on the audience and as a result they conferred
upon her the highest title possible in India for a woman, that of “Saraswati” meaning ‘Goddess
of Wisdom’.
• Ramabai ignored Caste restrictions and married a man of Shudra Varna(Lower caste) , Bipin
Bihari Medhavi. After 19 months of happily married life , her husband died leaving her with
a little daughter named Manorama.
• Her Major Works are as following :
1. Stri Dharma-Niti which Consists Morals for Women and was published in 1882.
2. The Cry of Indian Woman was about the devastating conditions of the Indian Women
which included Marriage at a very early age , After Marital Harrassment and Heinous
practices that were forced to followed by a Hindu Widow. It was published in 1883.
3. The High Caste Hindu Women considered the prime motive for the Women
Empowerment and Emancipation. This book was the critique for the inferior status of
women in Indian Society. It was published in 1887.

• FEMINIST DISCOURSE-
■ She founded the first feminist organization of India,’Arya Mahila Sabha' in 1881 at Pune .
■ Further she decided to go to England to seek British Support for the Widow’s Home in India
and wrote the Cry of Indian Women which contained details of Indian women’s oppression
through early marriage,martial harrassment and widow hood .
■ In 1883, She converted to Christianity and named herself as MaryRama along with her
daughter .

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■ However she didn’t get much support from the England and went to United States in 1886
on an Invitation to the Women’s Medical College Of Pennsylvania to attend the graduation
ceremony of her cousin Anandibai Joshi who was the first Indian Woman to travel to the US
to become a doctor.
■ She was inspired by the American Ideals of Freedom and Liberty and hence , published the
‘High Caste Hindu Women’ the context of this book was the critique of Women’s Condition in
India as unwanted and inferior.
■ She got the financial assistance from United and therefore after returning to India in 1889
she opened a Secular Residential School for High Caste Widows ‘the Sharda Sadan' in
Bombay.

• CRITIQUE OF PATRIARCHY-
■ The Arya Mahila Sabha which she formed in Pune was also established throughout the
Mumbai as it branches with the objective to promote education among native women and
discouragement of Child Marriage.
■ Ramabai exposed the subtle patriarchal structure of India Society as she connected with
the teachings of Ancient Vedic Literature. She held that in Ancient times people were assigned
to the four castes according to their work and merit and not on the basis of their birth. It was
later that the caste system became identified by the birth and turned Discriminatory.
Therefore, these caste based differences coupled with Gender based affected the Indian
women as in this caste ridden patriarchal society the highest status for a woman was that of
‘SAUBHAGYAVATI’ a woman whose husband was alive and a mother of sons rather than that
of daughters.
■ A widow had the lowest status, especially a Child widow or one without children as she has
to wear plain borderless sari with no ornaments and she was expected to sleep on floor and
eat little food.
■ Ramabai also studied Upanishads, Manusmriti and the Vedas which made her realize that
how the caste system and social customs helped patriarchy to grow as they were responsible
for Women’s Suppression. She held that all Sacred Books in Sanskrit literature shared hateful
sentiments about women like Child Marriage, Polygamy and enforced widowhood which
constitute the Greatest social evils in India.
■ Her most popular work “The High Caste Hindu Women” points out that miseries faced by
Hindu women as they were married without expressing their opinion , women were not
allowed to read Sacred Literature ,women were fit only for household works and the most
importantly hardships of the Hindu Women becoming a Widow to such an extent that the
families cannot have them as a Servant.
■ In order to improve the condition of women she suggested three key focus areas :
1)Self Reliance
2) Education
3) Native Women Teachers

• GENDER JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS-

■ Ramabai’s book ‘Stri Dharma Niti’ turned out to be a Guide for asking illiterate and ignorant
women to recast themselves through Self Reliance and Self Education and advise women of
India to marriage by choice.
■ The ‘Cry of Indian Women’, also seeks Gender Justice by suggesting that the best remedy
was to Impart Education to Women. She demanded Women’s teacher’s in Schools for Girls .

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■ Ramabai also played an important role in the Congress Convention demanding Civil Rights
for Women and to catch the attention of British Government for the needed reforms. She
spoke on two resolutions:
i) Relating to Marriage and shaving head of the widow
ii) Injustice faced by the widows by depriving her of property rights if she marries again
Both these resolutions were passed .
■ She built Sharda Sadan in Pune after collecting funds from America for providing a Shelter
to Widows. But due to Plague Epidemic it was shifted to Khedagon as Mukti Mission and
consists of not only Hindu Widows but famine victims, sexually assaulted, blind and old
women’s. In this Mukti Sadan , Women did everything from weaving , dairy farming, cooking,
gardening to running a printing press.
• She praised America as a nation of Progress, Equality, Opportunity and was impressed by
Women’s entry into the public sphere in the realm of all kinds of Jobs and Organizations. She
was critic of Britishers and condemned the British Non Intereference in heinous crimes like
Sati And Polygamy. The beauty of her thinking lies in acknowledging goodness of the West
and realizing the shortcoming of India Society. Therefore, Ramabai was a Nationalist thinker
with an International Outlook.
• In 1919 , the British Government awarded the Kaiser-i-Hind Medal for her distinguished
service to the Indian Education system. The social benefit of transforming the lives of Widows
from being considered as a burden on society to an empowered Individual who could make
Economic Contribution to the Society was also Acknowledged
• Her personal independence, from her marriage of her choice to a man of different caste and
her conversion to Christianity truly marks her out as Liberal Feminist with a Secular Outlook
• The feminist and liberal ideals she propounded were revolutionary for Indian Society of her
times and had tremendous influence on subsequent political thinking in India.

Her Famous Quotes:

• “A life totally committed to God has nothing to fear, nothing to lose, nothing to regret.”
• People must not only hear about the kingdom of GOD, but must see it in actual
operation, on a small scale perhaps and in imperfect form, but a real demonstration
nevertheless.
• I realized after reading the fourth chapter of St. John's Gospel, that Christ was truly the
Divine Saviour he claimed to be, and no one but He could transform and uplift the
downtrodden women of India ... Thus my heart was drawn to the religion of Christ.

Question 1 – Why was Ramabai accorded with the title of “Pandita" .

i) Social Reforms
ii) Emancipation of women
iii) Eradication of Caste System
iv) Being a Sanskrit Scholar
Answer – iv) Being a Sanskrit Scholar

Explanation- In later Eighteenth Century Women in India were not allowed to get access to Education
while Pandita Ramabai was Literate and a remarkable scholar Sanskrit Language Therefore, because
of her deep knowledge of Sanskrit Scriptures and Literature she was accorded with the title
“Pandita”.
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Question 2 – In the context of the two statements which of the following is correct ?

Assertion (A) Pandita Ramabai was the founded of Arya Mahila Sabha in 1889.

Reason (R) She demanded improvement in the educational system for Indian Women

Codes

i) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

ii) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
iii) A is true, but R false
iv) A is false , but R is true.
Answer –-iv) A is false, but R is true.

Explanation – A is false because the Arya Mahila Sabha was founded by Pandita Ramabai but not in
the year 1889 .It was founded in 1881 in Pune.

INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

RABINDRANATH TAGORE (1861 – 1941)

Introduction
• He was born on 7th May 1861 in Calcutta.
• He was not essentially a mainstream Indian political thinker and was having interests in
music, painting, poetry and literary creations but still his ideas exert much influence on the
social and political vision of India.
• He was the first Non-European to win the Nobel Prize in literature in 1913.
• He is also known as “Gurudev”, “Kabirguru" and “the Bard of Bengal”.
• His composition are now among the National Anthem of two nations -
India- Jana Gana Mana
Bangladesh- Amar Shonar Bangla , which he composed in the wake of the Bengal Partition in
1905 to foster a spirit of Unity and Patriotism among Bengalis.

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• His legacy also endures in the institution that was founded by him Vishwa Bharati University
.
• He is also said to have given the title of Mahatma to Mahatma Gandhi .
• Basically, his stressed has always remained in Unity in Diversity for India’s National
Integration.
• He held that the endeavour of humanity is to seek and discover a creative unity amongst such
diversity.

His Major Works

• Gora which published in 1909 is a novel that includes a philosophical debate on Politics and
religion, tradition versus modernity, urban elite versus rural peasant, Nationalism and the
Brahmo Samaj.
• Gitanjali published in 1910 is a collection of poem by Tagore for which he received the Noble
Prize and is now the part of UNESCO collection of Representative Works.
• Ghore Baire or The Home And The World published in 1916 is also a novel that illustrates
the battle of Tagore with himself, ideas of western culture and revolution against the Western
culture.
• Jana Gana Mana , the National Anthem of India adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India
on 24th January 1950.

On True Freedom
• His view upheld Humanism on spiritual foundations. He regarded human beings as the mirror
of the divine or replica of God and their existence is manifested in the creative spirit of
humans such as art, literature, etc.
• The keynote of his conception of Humanism is the attainment of freedom and held that
Individualism in its spiritual capacity is Independent and cannot be suppressed by any
external forces and it ultimately leads to Self Realization.
• His idea of true freedom is conceptualized far beyond the domain of political independence
and to bring about perfection in the human beings.
• For him, Freedom is “Complete awakening in full expression”.
• Therefore, his idea of true freedom is one in which an Individual aspires to nourish his own
self for moral emancipation and this process needs to be a gradual experience not
spontaneous.
• He described four stages for the realisation of true freedom -
1. Realisation of Freedom at the Individual Level.
2. From Individual to the Community level.
3. From community level to the universe.
4. From universe to infinity.
4. And this is possible when an Individual isolates himself from material things of life.

On Nationalism
5. For him, the idea of Nationalism was a deceptive concept that is counter productive to the
realisation of true freedom by individuals all over the world.
6. He sought to explain that the birth of the idea of Nationalism is a product of modern science
and technological advancements for which people came together to get benefits without any
moral and social consideration.

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7. According to him, this evolution of Nationalism took place in Europe that is morally
unacceptable, politically aggressive and economically insatiable, thus, have negative
influence on humanity.
8. Further, he prescribed the Indian Nationalist leaders to wage a moral and spiritual struggle
against British.
9. He also held that without compromising with the values of universal brotherhood and
spiritual harmony between different people, Indians should fight for the Country’s
Independence.

Critique of Gandhi
10. Gandhi and Tagore do have difference of opinion on India’s National Movement but were
appreciative of each others point of view and personality as a result, Tagore called Gandhi
‘Mahatma’ while Gandhi called Tagore ‘Gurudev’.
11. For Gandhi, the idea of of Swaraj will bring the attainment of freedom from the bonds of
British Colonialism both politically and economically. But Tagore wanted Gandhi to have faith
in reason and impress the British with the virtues of Indian moral cultural values that will
compel them to leave India.
12. He was also sceptical of popularizing the ‘Charkha’ ( the spinning wheel) as the representing
the worsen economic conditions of the people by Gandhi and instead suggested initiating
programmes such as Cooperative Farming that will atleast save the people from abject
poverty and starvation.
13. Tagore also severely criticized Gandhi’s defence of the traditional notion of Varnashrama as
the ideal method of bringing functional differentiation in Society and argued that it has not
only remained a scientific method of functional differentiation of Society but also an
instrument of exclusion, caste based discrimination and the root cause of heinous practices
like that of Untouachability.

His Famous Quotes

14. “Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark”.
15. “You cannot cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water”.
16. “Facts are many, but the truth is one”.
17. “Age considers; youth ventures”.
18. “We gain freedom when we have paid the full price”.
19. “A mind all logic is like a knife all blade, it makes the hand bleed that uses it".

Question - In which year Rabindranath Tagore was granted the knighthood title by the
Britishers ?
1. 1916
2. 1914
3. 1915
4. 1928
Answer - Option 3. 1915

Question - In which year did Rabindranath Tagore surrender the knighthood as a protest
against Jallianwallah Bagh Massacre ? (DECEMBER 2019)

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1. 1919
2. 1924
3. 1935
4. 1939
Answer - Option 1. 1919

Question - Tagore conception of true freedom stands for ?

1. A freedom beyond political independence.
2. Propitious condition for human development
3. Both A and B
4. None of the above

Answer - Option 3. Both A and B

Question - According to Tagore what are the consequences of Nationalism ?

1. It leads to the rise of colonialism
2. It leads to fierce wars between nation
3. Both A and B
4. None of the above

Answer - Option 3. Both A and B

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Indian Political Thought

M.N. ROY (1887 - 1954)

Introduction -

• Manabendra Nath Roy was born on 22nd March 1887 in Changripota, West Bengal.
• He was the founder of the Mexican Communist Party and the Communist Party
Of India.
• His political ideas enriched leftist discourse and advocated grass roots politics.
• He was an ardent revolutionary and joined Anusilan Samiti ; Bengal
revolutionaries group because of the partition of Bengal after which great
turbulence was caused in Indian Society.
• He sought to overthrow the British Imperialists through violent methods.
• Later, his communist discourse also advanced his perspective against Colonialism.
• M.N.Roy advocated the Theory of Late Capitalism that was the Marx theory of
“Bourgeoisie and the Counter Revolution”, which he applied in colonial countries
as the uneven and combined development.
• He had difference of opinion with Lenin on the issue of the relation of the
Communist movements in the west in comparison with those in the colonial
countries.
• He held that communist international should foster the Proletariat revolutionary
movement in the colonial countries as it would eventually overthrow the capitalist
system in Europe because it is strengthened by the profit margin gained from the
imperialism in colonial countries.

His major works -

• India in Transition published in 1922 in which he sought to analyse the past,
investigate the future and visualize the future of Indian Society through a Marxist
standpoint and contains the fundamental ideas of Roy regarding the National
Movement in India
• Materialism : An outline of the History of Scientific thought published in 1940

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• The Problem of Freedom published in 1945
• New Humanism: A Manifesto published in 1947 which consists of 22 thesis which
outlines the principle of the philosophy of Radical Humanism.
• Science and Philosophy published in 1947
• Beyond Communism published in 1947
• Reason, Romanticism and Revolution published in 1948 in which Roy wrote
about his philosophy of Radical Humanism.

Analysis of Indian Society

• M.N. Roy sought to analyse the history and the future of the Indian Society from
a Marxist point of view.
• He held that India is in a state of transition and it is to be judged on the grounds
of the economic development of one section and exploitation of the remaining
which usher a feeling of revolt among the people.
• Revolt is the essence of current transition which will make bankrupt socio-
economic structure to be replaced by a system that will affect the greater facilities
for the progress of people.
• He suggested that Indian communists should organise the masses for National
development into a democratic party as against the existing nationalist party ; the
Indian National Congress.
• The Indian National Congress is created as a nationalist party by the Indian
Bourgeoisie to challenge the British Rule with the support of the masses and
once they overthrow the British rule , they will deceive the masses. Therefore,
he asserted that the lower social classes must be rely for Indian Nationalist
Movement.

His Modified Views –

• Roy was prisoned between 1930 to 1936 , during this period he rethink over the
basic assumption of Marxism and strategies for Revolution.
• His main and immediate objective was to gain national independence and
considered Indian National Congress as an organ of national struggle with the
support of the masses.
• He had revised his views on Indian masses as they are politically backward to
play a complete independent role.

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• In 1930’s he held that Congress is a mass nationalist movement and was not a
political party for a particular class.
• He also proposed that communism should be replaced by Jacobinism in India.

Radical or New Humanism -

• His idea of Radical Humanism or New Humanism are seen as ‘a revival of the
Rationalist or Scientific Humanism of the European Renaissance”.
• He regarded Radical Humanism as a Revolutionary and liberating social philosophy
as it contains three main concepts -
1. Freedom
2. Reason
3. Mortality
• Roy assigned the task for the creation of ‘free society of free men’, to the
individual who is equipped with creative power of the ideas and regarded Individual
as the creator of Society and the State.
• He held that main goal of man made institutions is to enlarge Individual freedom.
• For him the foundation of Democracy is the sovereignty and freedom of individual.
• His Radical Humanism stands for democratic freedom and economic equality by
eliminating exploitation of man.
• He wanted to establish a Radical Humanist society through Education.
• He seeks to replace Parliamentary Democracy to an Organized Democracy that
will composed of a country wide network of people's committee which will enable
individual to exercise direct and effective control of the entire state machinery.
• He held that politics in an Organized democracy will be Scientific, moral and
rational.

Critised Marxism -
• His concept of Radical Humanism was the total revised view and the renunciation
of Marxism
• He criticised that it is suitable for only advanced industrialized society and not
for backward countries.
• It also hampers the growth of free men as the economic interpretation of history
has negated the creativeness of man and foundation of Individual freedom.

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• He also points out contradiction in Marx theory of Dialectical Materialism and
considered it as unscientific because Marx combined two contradictory concepts ,
that is , Dialectics is a subjective and materialism is scientific.
• He falsified Marx's Theory regarding disappearance of the middle class as the
Capitalist Society has itself developed and expanded the middle class which
played a decisive role in a Capitalist Society.
• Further, Roy criticized Marxism as a philosophy that could not go beyond economic
organization of Society and sacrificed individual freedom and violated democratic
principles for the greatest good of the greatest number.

His Famous Quotes -

• ‘Freedom, knowledge, truth are values to be appreciated together by living them'.
• ‘A free society can be created only by free men...a good society can be created
only by good men’.
• ‘Party system will bring out the worst in people and political party leaders will
bring out ultimate backwardness in people’.
• ‘Man is essentially a rational being. His basic urge is not to believe, but to
question, to know’.

Question - M.N.Roy’s Integral Scientific Humanism is also known as (December

2018)
1. Marxism
2. Orthodox Marxism
3. Scientific Socialism
4. New Humanism
Answer - Option 4. New Humanism
Question - Select the correct answers from the codes given (July 2018)
Assertion (A) M.N. Roy did not accepts Marx's materialistic interpretation of history.
Reason (R) It has an element of determinism and idealism.
Codes –
(i) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
(ii) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(iii) A is true, but R false
(iv) A is false , but R is true

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Answer - Option (i) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation
of A.

Question - Which of the following statements is not true in case of M.N. Roy
? (November 2017)
1. He prepared a model constitution for free India
2. Sovereign power was to be vested in the people
3. People’s committee to be setup in villages, towns and cities
4. He did concede the right to secession to its units
Answer - Option (d) He did concede the right of secession to its constituent
units.

INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

BAL GANGADHAR TILAK (1856-1920)

Introduction
• He is also known as Lokmanya which means a leader accepted by the people.
• He was an ardent champion of Indian Nationalism and the first leader of Indian
Independence Movement.
• Mahatma Gandhi called him “the Maker of Modern India”.
• His approach was extremists and was called as the “Father of Indian unrest".
• The concept of Swaraj or Self Rule was advocated by him and the popular slogan
“Swaraj is my birth right and I shall have it".
• He severely criticized the British Government in his two newspapers, Kesari in
Marathi and Marhatta in English which propagated the cause of National freedom
.
• Along with Bipin Chandra Pal and Lala Lajpat Rai he was part of the extremist
trio “Lal Bal Pal".
• He was the founder of All India Home Rule League.

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His Major Works -

• The Orion published in 1893 is based on the ancient texts of Aryans .
• The Arctic Home in the Vedas Published in 1903 is about the origin of Aryanic
people and proposed a new way to determine the exact time of the Vedas.
• Shrimadh Bhagvad Gita Rahasya published in 1915 that is on the analysis of
Karma Yoga in Bhagavad Gita.

On Social Reforms –

• Tilak was of the view that “Political freedom should precede social reforms".
• He was in support of the female education but held that their curricular must be
different from men and there should be separate schools and colleges for both
Boys and Girls.
• He also condemned Child Marriage and was in support of the resolution for Adult
Marriage.
• Tilak also supported the resolution for Widow Remarriage and suggested that
people should actually participate in such marriages.
• However, he was strongly opposed to the ‘Age of Consent Bill', that raised the
age of marriage from 10 to 12 as he found the bill to be intervening in the
matters of Hindu Religion.
• He was opposed to social reforms in India on western pattern and wanted to
reform the Indian Society on the Values based on Indian Culture and Traditions.
• But he asserted that primary motive is not social Reforms but attainment of
political rights .
• He held that socially determined reforms should be introduced gradually through
promoting progressive education and expansion of knowledge based of the people.

On National Education -
• He was opposed to the Western educational system.
• According to him , it was detrimental to the future of India as it was making the
new Indian generation averse to the Indian Cultural tradition and Value System.
• He recommended for the establishment of an educational institution as a part of
the Nationalist reconstruction programme that will impart less expensive education.

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• Therefore, Tilak along with his associates establish educational institutions such
as Fergusson College, Bombay College at Mumbai, Greater Maharashtra
Commerce and Economics College.
• He was not opposed to the opening of Western type schools and colleges for
imparting National education to the Indians but was opposed to the education
founded on western values and not on Indian Values and Beliefs.

On Nationalism -

• He was having an realist outlook and political emancipation of India was his sole
concern.
• For him, Nationalism was not a concrete entity but a kind of sentiment or an idea
, it was psychological concept whose roots lies in the emotions of the Indian
masses and not in intellectual appeals of the Western liberal.
• He felt that nationalistic emotions of the common people could be serve through
memories of Shivaji who became the symbol of resistance against oppression and
injustice.
• He has also emphasized on the economic dimension of Swadeshi Movement,
which indicates his awareness of the economic roots of Indian Nationalism which
eventually became a movement for the political emancipation of the land and
liberation of the country.
• He appealed for the boycott of foreign goods.
• The concept of Swaraj also plays an important role in his idea of nationalism
and stated it as the birth right of Indians .
• His idea of Indian Nationalism lies in the concrete realization of the resolutions
on Swadeshi , Boycott and National Education.

Concept of Swaraj -
• The keynote in his philosophy is the concept of Swaraj which he used in the
sense of National independence.
• He regarded two meanings to the world Swaraj –
1. Politically it meant Home Rule
2. Morally it meant attainment of self control for performing one duty to gain
realization of the spiritual freedom.

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• He held that Swaraj is not only a right but a duty or dharma of every Indian
because for spiritual freedom one requires political freedom.
• Therefore, In 1916 he also founded the All India Home Rule League for the
attainment of Swaraj.
• He held that in the absence of Swaraj, there can be no national education, social
reform or economic welfare. It is the breeding ground of all virtues.
• Hence, he held that acquisition of political power by Indian from the Britishers
was the first and foremost goal of the nation.
• His philosophy of Swaraj played a prominent role in strengthening the national
independence movement in India.

His Famous Quotes -

• ‘Our Nation is like a tree of which the original trunk is Swaraj and the branches
are Swadeshi and Boycott’.
• ‘Swaraj is my birth right and I shall have it’.
• ‘It maybe providence’s will that the cause I represent may prosper more by my
suffering than by my remaining free’.
• ‘The problem is not the lack of resources or capability but the lack of will’.

Question - Which one of the following book is not written by Tilak ? (DECEMBER
2014)
• The Orion
• Arctic Home in Vedas
• Gita Rahasya
• Life Divine
Answer - Option 4. Life Divine

Question - In the context of two statements which of the following code is correct
?
Assertion (A) Tilak rejected the adoption of Constitutional methods against British
Rule in India.
Reason (R) He felt that Constitutional methods had meaning only under a
constitutional Government.

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Codes
(i) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
(ii) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(iii) A is true, but R false
(iv) A is false , but R is true
Answer - Option I. Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation
of A.

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

SWAMI VIVEKANAND (1863 – 1902)

Introduction
• Vivekananda's pre monastic name was Narendranath
Dutta. He was born in an upper class, Kayastha family of North Calcutta. His
father Biswanath Dutta was a lawyer who had progressive views on social
matters.
• His Guru was Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa who made him aware of his
potential which should not be wasted in marriage or domestic chores.
• After Ramakrishna's death he left the monastery and wander the country.
Hence, he became familiar with the people and identified their problems like
poverty, disability, diseases and most importantly the ignorance and
superstition by people.
• Therefore, he asserted that the people of the country requires knowledge in
secular as well as spiritual forms.
• He held that religion must be used as a source of strength.
• He travelled to America to secure material support for India’s social
upliftment.
• He was made an instant celebrity after his opening speech at the Parliament
of Religions where fellow delegates and American press was impressed by his
knowledge of Indian and the Western Philosophy.
• He kept himself away from organised politics.
• He is seen as the key founders of modern Hinduism as he attacked on
traditional Hinduism.
• He was deeply concerned for his country and the social and spiritual welfare
of their countrymen. He gave the Idea of India a cohesive shape - empathy
for the poor and unity of human life.
• He held that change is sign of life while stillness is the sign of death or decay,
therefore, traditions must be interpreted in accordance with the new social
and historical requirements.
• He also believed that change must occur in the minds of men in order to see
the change in action.
• He founded Ramakrishna Mission which played a key role in renaissance and
reformation of the Hindu Society.
• His philosophy of Neo – Vedanta increased the cultural strength of Hinduism
by its reformation which he interpreted will pave the way for Nationalism.

His major works

• Karma Yoga published in 1896 is a book of lectures by Swami Vivekananda.
• Raja Yoga published in 1896 which is his interpretation of Pantanjali's Yoga
Sutras.

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• Vedanta Philosophy : An Address before the Graduate Philosophical
Society published in 1897.
• Inspired Talks published in 1909
• Practical Vedanta published in 1912 which is about how Vedanta can be
made practical in out day to day life.

Philosophy of Neo - Vedanta

• The philosophy of Vedanta upheld that God is real and the visible world is
unreal. Therefore, the goal of individual is absorption of his soul in supreme
soul which is called the Liberation and that is possible through a true
knowledge.
• Three principles of Vivekananda’s Neo – Vedanta philosophy are as follows –
1. Vedanta philosophy believed in oneness of God and man leading to the
solidarity of the universe.
2. It upholds self less action in the services of humanity which should be
treated as service of God.
3. It propagated the principles of Universal Tolerance and treated different
religious faith as different paths to reach the ultimate goal of liberation.
• Therefore, Neo – Vedanta upholds Service, Sacrifice and Freedom .

On Nationalism -
• He is considered one of the Prophet of Indian Nationalism as he seek the
emergence of a strong and self confident India that will propagate the message
of Vedanta philosophy to the World.
• He held that the guiding principles of India's history is the religion that is
primary while the social reforms are secondary.
• He advocated the religious theory of Nationalism as religion, according to him
, is the backbone of a Nation’s existence.
• He was highly critical of the British rule in India as they exploited India's
natural resources and raw materials in all Spheres of socio-economic activity.
• He held that though there are variety of language, cultures and religion in
India but all of them existed on a common ground between Indian people that
spirituality of the Blood of each person is Indian .
• Therefore, they all should became fearless and demand their rights.
• He held that all the educated Indians should use their available knowledge for
the oneness and solidarity of the people and imbibe the spirit of unity in
diversity.
• Therefore, for the growth of India's National spirit independence of the mind
of masses was necessary and declare that all Indians are brothers despite of
their caste, language and religious differences.
• The main component of Vivekananda’s concept of Nationalism are as follows
-
1. Unity in Indian people despite of diversity.
2. Social solidarity by removing evils of caste system.
3. Similarity in the teachings of different religions.
4. Devoting the life to social service and national awakening by young people
to develop the National spirit in India.

Stages Of Human Progress -

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• Vivekananda strongly denounced the Caste System because he asserted that
it was opposed to the essence of Hindu religion.
• However, he use the analogy of Hindu caste system to identify the stages of
human progress as it is a form of social stratification.

HINDU CASTE SYSTEM

Brahman represents Knowledge
Kshatriya represents Order
Vaishya represents Commerce
Shudra represents triumph of equality
• Hence, the ideal condition for Society will be when these four principles ;
Knowledge, protection, economic activities and equality is synthesized and
will lead to overall development of the Indian Society.
• His Idea of Human Progress postulates a State in which equality can be kept
intact by pursuit towards the moral progress.

Critical of Socialism
• Though he was critical of Socialism but due to poverty and starvation ;
moral progress is hard to achieve, therefore, in order to deal with it he
accepted socialism for overcoming with it as he stated ‘I am a socialist not
because I think it is a perfect system, but half a loaf is better than a no bread’.
• He was critical of Socialism because it was constantly committed to material
progress. Hence, increasing material needs which plays a limited role in
human progress because it could be achieved through Moral and Spiritual
progress not Material progress.

Gospel Of Humanism
• He is an exponent of Humanism which is collateral to his faith in
spiritualism.
• His concept of Man and the Value of humanity is based on when man rise
above his animal existence and devotes himself to the pursuit of perfection.
• He held that man is primarily endowed with virtue which he should
continuously developed as man is always traveling from lower truth to
higher truth.
• Self regulating and Self governing are the initial virtue towards which man
should proceed.
• He held that ‘Men are most valuable than all the wealth of the world’,
because it is considered as an epitome of virtue by using his power to do
good, emancipate the downtrodden and do finest things on Earth.

His Famous Quotes

• ‘Arise, awake and do not stop until the goal is reached’.
• ‘You cannot believe in God until you believe in yourself’.
• ‘External nature is only internal nature writ large’.

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Sri Aurobindo (1872 – 1950)

Introduction
Sri Aurobindo Ghosh was a versatile, visionary Indian Nationalist of the
Twentieth century. He is known as great poet, a great metaphysician, a
great patriot, a mystic and the most systematic thinker. He is known as the
Prophet of Nationalism in India. He is known as the great synthesizer in the sense that
he synthesized the Indian and the Western system of Philosophy.

Influences on Aurobindo
➢ Swami Vivekananda
Aurobindo was influenced by the Neo-Vedantic tradition of Vivekananda.
➢ Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Aurobindo was influenced by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s concept of Bharat Mata
➢ French Revolution
Aurobindo’s theory of Nationalism is influenced by the ideals of the French
Revolution. The principles of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity given by the French
Revolution influenced Aurobindo.
➢ German Philosophy (Hegel and Herder)
Aurobindo was influenced by the German Tradition which states that Nation has a
Spirit. According to the German Scholar Herder, Nation is natural. It has Spirit.
Culture, race, language, religion forms basis of nation. This provided an element of
Spiritualism to Aurobindo’s concept of Nationalism.

Works of Aurobindo
➢ The Ideal of Human Unity (1918) – Here he talks about the ideal of Human Unity
which was a part of the Nature’s eventual scheme. He talks about achieving world
unity through some type of confederation,
➢ The Life Divine (1919) – A principle philosophic work of Aurobindo where he gives
a theory of spiritual evolution and the advent of divine life on the earth.
➢ Essays on Gita (1922)
➢ Savitri: A Legend and a Symbol ((1940) – It is a poetic work based on the theology
from Mahabharata.
➢ Synthesis of Yoga (1948)
➢ The Human Cycle (1949)
➢ On the Veda (1956)
➢ Article – ‘New Lamps for Old’ in Indu Prakash Newspaper.

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➢ Weeklies :
• Dharma
• Karmayogin
➢ Bande Mataram Newspaper (1905)

School of Thought
He belongs to the School of Culturalism and Neo-Vedantanism

Main Ideas of Aurobindo

Theory of Nationalism
➢ Aurobindo is known as the Prophet of Indian Nationalism. He took Nationalism to
lofty heights.
➢ He regarded the British rule as Mercantile in foundation and Exploitative in
character. It therefore must be weakened from its base itself.
➢ He is the only person who gave a bold theory of Indian Nationalism. He regarded
the country (India) not only as an inert object, but as a Mother.
➢ He defined the concept as, “Nationalism is not mere political programme, the
nationalism is a religion that has come from God; Nationalism is a creed that you
shall have to live”
➢ He states that ‘nation’ is a mighty ‘Shakti’ which is composed of millions of units
which make up the nation. It is living entity.
➢ Nationalism is a religion which has come from God and therefore it cannot be crushed.
➢ For Aurobindo, his movement was not guided by any political sentiment, but was a
religious mission. Thus for Aurobindo, “Nationalism is a religion by which people
try to realize God in their nation, and their fellow countrymen”
➢ India’s liberation from foreign rule was the main goal of ‘Swaraj’. For him Swaraj was
not merely of economic and political nature, but was ‘Self-Rule’.
➢ He advocated independence (Swaraj) for Indians for the following reasons:
• Liberty – for the rational development of the intellectual, moral, spiritual and
political development of the individual. He talks about freedom at an
individual level.
• To take a lead for the progress of the world through its spiritual
development
• To live well and happily. Indians should live as free people and not slaves.

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➢ Method of Action:
• In the series of articles titled ‘New lamps for Old’, he criticized the
moderates. He criticized them for advocating that British rule is blessing in
disguise.
• He opposed the methods of prayers, petitions and protests and called
these methods as ‘Political Mendicancy’ or ‘Beggary’.
• He proposed that political actions can be channelized through:

Positive programme of Political Action

Use of
Secret Boycott Force and
Writings,
revolutio Passive Boycott of the Non- Violence
speeches,
nary Resistanc of Foreign British Cooperati (If
public
propagan e goods Education on circumsta
contacts
da System nces
demand)

Concept of Freedom
➢ According to Aurobindo. “The longing to be free is lodged in such a deep layer of
human heart that thousands of arguments are powerless to uproot it”.
➢ There is an evolution in his Idea of Freedom.

Concept Of Swaraj Freedom of an Freedom of

for Nation Individual Humanity

➢ He talks about the Spiritual dimension of Freedom.

➢ According to him, freedom is the achievement of the State of Supreme Happiness
(Satchidananda) .i.e. Sat + Chit + Ananada.
➢ This freedom can be achieved through Integral Yoga.

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Ideal of Integral Human Unity
➢ Aurobindo was influenced by the Neo-Vedantic idea of Human Unity.
➢ He held that, ‘aggregation is law of nature’. If we do not go according to the nature,
nature will destroy us.
➢ He emphasized on the principle that people of the world must learn to live together
as brothers.
➢ According to him, the unity to be achieved is not a mechanical one established under
the iron law of the state, but a unity in which the individuals and the communities
get the fullest opportunities to develop their potentials.
➢ He talks about the world society in which the nations will be the intrinsic parts of a
whole.
➢ He held that the rise of India as a nation is not just for the Indians, but for the benefit
of the Humanity.

Integral Yoga
➢ According to Aurobindo, the ideal of Human Unity can be achieved through Integral
Yoga.
➢ He wanted India to take a lead in the spiritual regeneration of the world, and for
that, it ought to be free.
➢ He has explained the origin, nature and destiny of the world in his theory of
evolution. Here he states that in the process of transformation of mind to
Supermind, the technique of yoga comes to help.
➢ Aurobindo has developed his own concept of Integral Yoga or ‘Purna Yoga’. It
includes the following :
• Jnana Yoga (way of wisdom)
• Bhakti Yoga (way of devotion)
• Karma Yoga (way of words)
• Raja Yoga (way of spiritual practices)
• Tantric Philosophy
➢ According to him, the goal of human life is to attain freedom. Freedom is realization
of the Universal spirit.
➢ He gives the principle of Sat, Chit and Ananda. It is through Integral Yoga that man
understands God.
➢ According to Aurobindo, integral yoga requires Tap, Sadhana and Yoga.
➢ Integral Yoga enables the man to move from a fragmented, disoriented state of mind
to a much sharper and clearer understanding of self.

Quotes of Aurobindo
➢ “That which we call the Hindu religion is really the Eternal religion because it embraces
all others.”

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➢ “Hidden nature is secret God.”
➢ “India of the ages is not dead nor has she spoken her last creative word; she lives and
has still something to do for herself and the human peoples.”
➢ “To listen to some devout people, one would imagine that God never laughs.”
➢ “Spirituality is indeed the master key of the Indian mind; the sense of the infinitive is
native to it.”

Conclusion
Aurobindo’s spiritual nationalism is one of the greatest contributions to modern thought of
India and the world. Rabindranath Tagore held that the world will get the message of India
through Aurobindo Ghosh. Romain Rolland has rightly described him as “the prince of
Indian thinkers”.

Previous year questions

1) Who among the following had started two weeklies, the Karmayogin and the
Dharma? (July 2018)

A. Mahatma Gandhi
B. Aurobindo
C. Ranade
D. Tilak
Answer: B

2) Which one among the following is not written by Aurobindo?(June 2013)

A. Life Divine
B. Essays on Gita
C. Yoga:Concept and Practice
D. The ideals of Human Unity
Answer: C

3) Which among the following is correct so far as Aurobindo beliefs are concerned?
A. Belief that his education and talent belong to God which could not be utilised for
personal happiness alone.
B. His resolve that he would not merely repeat the name of God, but have direct
realisation of Him.
C. His conviction that he did not regard the country as an inert object, but as the
Mother.
D. All of the above.

Answer: D

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Topic: Mahatma Gandhi (1869 – 1948)

Introduction
Mohandas Karamchand, popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, transformed freedom
struggle into a National movement with a mass character. He is best known as expert
strategist and a psychologist. He considered himself as a man of action and denied the
existence of Gandhism. He called his life as “experiments with truth”. He is rightly called as
the Father of the Nation.

Influences on Gandhi
➢ Gandhi was greatly influenced by his Mother who was deeply a religious woman. His
inclination towards religion comes from his mother.
➢ Besides Hinduism/Vaishnavism, he was influenced by Christianity, Jainism and
other religions. His thinking was influenced by various religious strands.
➢ The play Harishchandra left a profound impact on his mind. His faith in the
principles of truth and non-violence emanate from there.
➢ He was influenced by many scholars belonging to the school of Anarchism like Leo
Tolstoy, Thoreau, Emerson, etc.
➢ He was influenced by Edward Carpenter’s criticism of modern medicine on
human health.
➢ John Ruskin’s book ‘Unto this last’ had a great influence on Gandhi’s life. Ruskin as
a precursor of social economy influenced Gandhi’s ideas on Economy and
industrialization. He learnt the principle of Dignity of labor from Ruskin
➢ Leo Tolstoy’s ‘The kingdom of God is within you’ and ‘Christianity and
Patriotism’ influenced Gandhi. His ideal of ‘simplicity of life and purity of purpose’
deeply influenced Gandhi. The principles of Truth and Ahimsa came from Tolstoy.

Works of Gandhi
➢ Books:
• Hind Swaraj (1909) – here he expresses his views on Swaraj, mechanization and
modern civilization.
• The story of My Experiments with Truth (1927) – It is an Autobiography, where
he describes his struggle against racism, violence and colonialism. It is a window
to the evolution of his ideas over a period of time.
• Satyagraha in South Africa (1928)
• India of my Dreams (1947)
➢ Magazines:
• The Indian Opinion
• The Young India

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• Harijan

Ideas of Gandhi

Non – Violence (Ahimsa)

Ahimsa

Philosophical Political

God = Truth= Goal of life God

➢ Ahimsa is the foundational principle of the Gandhian political thought.

➢ According to Gandhi, the goal of life is to come nearer to the Truth.
➢ He states, God is Truth .i.e. Self Existent or the Highest Consciousness.
➢ Gandhi never claimed that he knows the ultimate truth and his own life was
Experiments with the truth.
➢ He however held that, he can tell the path, following which, a person can reach the
truth.
➢ Why Ahimsa is the path?
• Gandhi believed in the continuity of Ends and Means. If End is God, then the
means cannot be Satanic.
• According to him, God is the symbol of love and sacrifice. Hence is not just
about not using violence, it has a much deeper meaning.
• Ahimsa is based on the concept of love and fraternity.
• Gandhi states, Ahimsa should not be considered as a weapon of weak, but as a
weapon of strong, the weapon of those who are strong spiritually and not just
physically.
• Gandhi held that he would prefer Ahimsa over Cowardliness.
➢ According to him, Hinsa is the feature of the world of Animals, whereas, Ahimsa
is the feature of the world of Humans.
➢ Gandhi suggests practice of ahimsa in actions as well as thoughts.

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➢ It should be practiced not only towards human beings but also towards animals and
environment.
➢ Ahimsa was a political weapon and strategy of Gandhi.
➢ For him the freedom struggle was the fight for the Truth. It is the fight against
the Evil.
➢ According to Gandhi, history has taught us that between Evil and Good, evil gets
defeated and the truth emerges as victorious.
➢ The person should accept his enemy. The fight is against the evil and not the evil doer.
➢ According to Gandhi, “Victory is not killing the enemy but making him as friend.”

Concept of Satyagraha
➢ Satyagraha is a technique of Revolution and Fighting based on Non-Violence,
resisting injustice.
➢ Satyagraha = Satya (Truth) and Agraha (Holding firmly to).
➢ Satyagraha is NOT same as Passive Resistance.
➢ Satyagraha demands:
• Sat
• Ahimsa
• Tapasya

Non Non
Truth Violence
Chastity Possession

Body Labor/ Control of Equal respect

Fearlessness for all
Bread labor the Palate religions

Economic
strategies Freedom from
(Boycotts, untouchability
Swadeshi)

➢ It is a fight for the truth. Non violence is the essential feature of the strategy of
Satyagraha.
➢ Satyagraha gives a bigger picture to Gandhi’s struggle. It makes the freedom struggle
a DharmaYudha, the fight between the good and the evil.
➢ Thus Gandhi used Satyagraha to legitimize the political struggle.

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➢ He experimented with the strategies of satyagraha. His first experiment was in South
Africa. Later on he experimented Satyagraha on a small scale. E.g. in Champaran,
Kheda and Ahmadabad in India.
➢ His first all India level Satyagraha was the one against the Rowlatt bills. Non
cooperation movement and the Civil disobedience movements were the other
agitations.
➢ He prescribed for individual Satyagraha as well as collective Satyagraha.

➢ Gandhi chalked out a difference between Satyagraha and Passive resistance.

Passive Resistance Satyagraha

Violence is not used because it may not be Complete rejection of Violence. Satyagraha is
appropriate to use violence in the given context. If deontological. It is an article of faith in Ahimsa.
situations favor, Violence can be used.

There is feeling of enmity towards other person. There is no evil feeling against the evil doer but
only against the evil. Purpose of satyagraha is to
help the evil doer become a better person.

➢ According to Gandhi, Satyagraha can be applied to all aspects of life – Economic,

Political, Social and even in Foreign Policy.
➢ In case of foreign aggression, he advises of making a Human Chain.

Swaraj
➢ Swaraj in the Indian concept means ‘Freedom’.
➢ Though, formally ‘Purna Swaraj’ became the goal of Indian National Congress in
1929 when Nehru called for Purna Swaraj, for Gandhi Swaraj is beyond political
freedom.
➢ His idea of swaraj comes from the Mundaka Upanishad.
➢ According to Gandhi, Political Independence was not an end in itself, but was the
first step for Swaraj.
➢ Swaraj means Self Rule and not self Governance. It is the rule of person on oneself.
Swaraj is controlling one’s desires.
➢ Thus the Ideal state- Ramrajya is a stateless society. People will be controlling
their own desires. There is no need of external authority.
➢ Thus Gandhi’s Swaraj was not just liberation of people from the foreign rule, but to
give people Swaraj – a state of perfect freedom which is based on the concept of
Human Dignity.
➢ Gandhi talks about Swaraj at various levels:

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Individual level Self Rule

Social level Swaraj means abolition of untouchabilty and

communalism

Political level Swaraj means self-sufficient village republics

based on Panchayati Raj

Economic level Swaraj requires revival of cottage industries.

Production by masses rather than mass
production.
Cultural level Swaraj means respecting one’s own culture
without disrespecting the culture of others.

➢ According to Gandhi, one should be open to accept good things of others without
losing one’s roots.
➢ He used to say’ “keep windows open and the door closed”.

Sarvodaya
➢ Gandhi’s concept of Sarvodaya is influenced by John Ruskin’s book ‘Unto this Last’.
➢ It is Gandhi’s approach towards socialism. It is a Non-violent Socialism, for
Distributive Justice.
➢ It is based on the concept of Unity of Existence.
➢ Components of Sarvodaya:
1) Bread Labor – ‘dignity of labor’
• According to Gandhi, everyone should perform some kind of physical
labor before taking his bread.
• That is how we can realize the pain and hardships of those who are
engaged in manual work.
• His objective was to give dignity to such people who are engaged in
manual work.
• According to Gandhi, all sorts of work should be treated with equal
respect as each work is equally important.
• Work of a labor deserves equal importance as the work of a lawyer.
2) Trusteeship theory
• Gandhi rejected the Marxist concept of class struggle. He believed in the
Harmony between the classes.
• As per Gandhi, capitalists should not consider themselves as the owner
of the capital.
• Capital is social production. Capitalist should consider himself as the
trusty of the capital. He should keep the amount he thinks is necessary

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to run the industry. Rest of the amount should be given for the well-
being of the workers and the society.
➢ Gandhi‘s sarvodaya implies upliftment of all.
➢ According to him, true Swaraj is where the poorest can live with dignity.
➢ He concede the right to private property to the extent it was necessary for the
physical, moral and mental well-being of the individual.

Critique of Modern Civilization

➢ Gandhi called Modern civilization as Satanic.
➢ He has criticized modern civilization in his book ‘Hind Swaraj’.
➢ The critic of modern civilization was Gandhi’s attempt to establish counter
hegemony. It was Gandhi’s war of position.
➢ He is critical of industrialization and mechanization because it results into
machines controlling man.
➢ He criticized modernity not just because it is western in origin, but because it is based
on the values of materialism, utilitarianism, consumerism, militarism and
individualism.
➢ According to him, imperialism and fascism are not different, rather two
manifestations of modernity.
➢ Modernity undermines human dignity. It has degraded human beings to the level
of animals. It emphasizes on the satisfaction of desires.
➢ According to Gandhi, true civilization is not one which makes us animals, but which
makes us better human beings.
➢ True civilization is not satisfaction of desires but minimization of wants.

Gandhi on State
➢ Gandhi described himself as a Philosophical Anarchist.
➢ Gandhi was against the state because state is not compatible with the ideals of
Ahimsa.
➢ According to him, even a limited state uses coercive force. Therefore state is a
reflection of our weakness as we cannot control our desires.
➢ State cannot understand Ahimsa because it does not have soul.
➢ His Ramrajya is a stateless society.
➢ Ramrajya is based on decentralization keeping individual at the centre.

Gandhi on Means and Ends

➢ Gandhi was critical of Machiavelli’s approach of separating politics and ethics or
religion and politics.
➢ He is influenced by his political guru, Gokhale who talks about necessity of
spiritualization of politics.
➢ Gandhi emphasized on the purity of means. According to Gandhi, Politics without
religion is a ‘Death Trap’(Mrithyu Jaal)
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➢ He believed that we cannot reach the right ends with wrong means.
➢ Gandhi has applied his ends and means theory in choosing the methods in freedom
struggle.
➢ If freedom struggle is to be Satyagraha, means applied has to be Non-violent.

Gandhi on rights and Duties

➢ His views on rights and duties are based on the philosophy of Gita.
➢ Gita emphasizes on Karma or duty without thinking about consequences or rewards.
➢ According to him, rights are inherent in the duty performed in embryonic sense.
➢ We automatically get rights when we perform duties.
➢ Rights cannot be independent of duties.

Gandhi on Education
➢ Gandhi gave the concept of ‘Nai Talim’. According to which, we must learn from the
book of life rather than learning about life from books.
➢ According to him, education is a life-long process.
➢ His scheme of education laid emphasis on the development of body, mind and soul.
➢ He suggested ‘Earning while learning’. He emphasized that the person should be
able to finance his own education rather than being dependent on others.
➢ He favored teaching home science, nursery, forestry, etc.

Quotes by Mahatma Gandhi

➢ “Hate the sin, love the sinner.”
➢ “There are people in the world so hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the
form of bread.”
➢ “Whenever you are confronted with an opponent. Conquer him with love.”
➢ “I call him religious who understands the suffering of others.”
➢ “Liberty and democracy become unholy when their hands are dyed red with innocent
blood.”
➢ “Distinguish between real needs and artificial wants and control the latter.”

Conclusion
Gandhi’ spiritualization of politics and the decentralization of power as key concepts
have influenced in a generation of scholars. The supremacy of ethical values and the
purity of means for realizing the political objectives give a wide view to the moral aspect of
the human beings. His ideals are worth emulation in saving the civilization from its complete
eclipse.

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Previous year questions
1. Match the List - I (Sources) and List - II (Ideas) which influenced Gandhi and select
the correct answer from the code given below: (July 2018)
List - I (Source) List - II (Major idea)
(a) Jainism (i) Catholicity of outlook
(b) Vaishnavism (ii) Contempt for industrial civilization and
(c) Ruskin and Tolstoy ideas on passive resistance
(d) Plato (iii) Idealism and concern for moral values
(iv) Emphasis on Non-violence
Code:
(a) (b) (c) (d)
(A) (i) (iii) (ii) (iv)
(B) (iv) (i) (ii) (iii)
(C) (ii) (iii) (iv) (i)
(D) (iii) (ii) (iv) (i)
Answer: B

2. Gandhi described himself as a? (June 2012)

(A) Liberal
(B) Socialist
(C) Social Democrat
(D) Philosophical Anarchist
Answer: D

3. Match List – I with List – II and select the correct answer from the codes given below:
(June 2012)
List – I List – II
(a) Twentieth century Jacobinism (i) Gandhi
(b) Voluntary Poverty (ii) Aurobindo
(c) I was born a Hindu but will not die as one (iii) Ambedkar
(d) Integrated theory of evolution (iv) M.N. Roy
Codes:
(a) (b) (c) (d)
(A) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv)
(B) (iv) (i) (iii) (ii)
(C) (ii) (iii) (i) (iv)
(D) (iii) (i) (ii) (iv)
Answer: B

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Ram Manohar Lohia (1910-1967)

Introduction:
➢ Born in Faizabad (U.P) in 1910
➢ He pursued his Ph.d in “Salt and Satyagraha”
➢ Due to Gandhi’s influence he propagated the idea of Decentralization of State Power
and Institutions.
➢ Member of Indian National Congress, he helped in formation of Congress Socialist
Party in 1934 within Congress.
➢ He was influenced by the ideology of Socialism and he tried Indianization of
Socialism.
➢ He wanted to Unshackle Socialism from the Theory and Practices of Marxism
and International Communism.
➢ In 1952, he founded Praja Socialist Party due to his difference with Congress.
➢ Became member of Parliament in 1963.
➢ He established Hind Kishan Panchayat after independence for agriculture
solutions.
➢ He gave the concept of Four Pillar State

Important works/Books:

❖ Fragments of World Mind: (1949)

❖ Wheel of History (1955)
❖ Will to Power and Other Writings (1956)
❖ Satyagraha Now (1940) article in Gandhiji’s Newspaper Harijan
❖ Guilty Men of India’s Partition: (1960)
❖ India, China, and Northern Frontiers: (1963)
❖ Marx, Gandhi and Socialism: (1963)
❖ The Caste System: (1964)

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❖ Interval During Politics: (1965)

Criticism of Western Ideologies

❖ Lohia always invested in evolving indigenous models for the needs of the country.
❖ He supported idea of Socialism, but he was also sure about the inadequacy of
European Socialism for an Indian Society. He gave the idea of New- Socialism that
suits India better.
❖ He criticised Marxism for its Internal Contradictions and believed that it is not an
appropriate ideology for Non- Western Countries.
❖ Lohia also Criticized Capitalism by questioning its theoretical foundations. He said
Capitalism is just turning human into a material man, and undermining the Soul of
human.

New Socialism (1959)

➢ He accepted Socialism as a viable ideology for India, He tried to conceptualise it

in the light of Gandhian inputs.
➢ New Socialism offers a comprehensive system of Socio-economic and Political
life for the people of India
➢ He tried to interlock the idea of Socialism with Gandhian Doctrine of Satyagraha.
➢ He is propagating an economic system rooted in the small Machine technology
and finally the idea of Political Decentralisation.
➢ Decentralised Socialist
✓ Cooperative labour
✓ Small Machines
✓ Village Government
✓ Decentralized Planning

Six Fundamental Elements of New Socialism

1.) Egalitarian standards in the area of income and expenditure.
2.) Growing Economic Interdependence
3.) World Parliament System based on adult franchise
4.) Democratic freedom inclusive to right to private life.
5.) Gandhian technique of individual and collective civil disobedience
6.) Dignity and right of common man

Famous Quotes by Lohia:

1. “Satyagraha without constructive work is like a sentence without a verb”

2. “Live Communities do not wait for five Years”

3. “Let us unite to restore hindi to its original glory”

4. “Marxism is the last weapon of Europe against Asia”

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

PERIYAR E.V. RAMASAMY

• Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy was born on 17th September 1879 Erode in the
former Madras Presidency (Now Tamil Nadu) . He belonged to a family of rich
businessmen of backward caste, therefore, he was having an experienced of the
agony caused by social discrimination based on Caste.
• He was regarded as “Periyar” (The Great Man) by his admirers and was
recognised as one of the most prominent leaders of Southern India in Indian
Politics.
• Considered as Father of Modern Tamil Nadu. His efforts led to the end of
Brahmin Hegemony or Dominance in Tamil Political and Social life. He majorly
worked for the elimination of discrimination on caste based, improving the condition
of women in society, preventing the supremacy of Hindi Over Tamil and
reservation for backward castes in Government office , thereby, emerging as a
new form of leadership from backward castes in Tamil Nadu .
• He joined the Indian National Congress in 1919 and hold the position of the
President in the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee. His sole motto was service
and social justice.
• In 1924, he led the famous Vaikkom Satyagraha in Kerala as he was inspired
by Mahatma Gandhi in his technique of Satyagraha for fighting Injustice. In
Vaikkom around the temple Lower caste people were not allowed to enter the
street nearby .Though he during the movement was imprisoned but he succeeded
in his agenda, thus , Periyar was ultimately declared as the Hero of Vaikkom.
• Despite of being the important part of the Congress he faced Caste Prejudices
within the Organisation as being the first Non-Brahmin President of the Party. He
left the Congress in 1925 when his resolution for the ‘Communal Representation’
was disallowed in an Open Session. He left the Congress Party by declaring it
as the “Fortness of Brahmin Imperialism”.
• Thereafter, he joined the Justice Party and headed the Party in 1938 which he
converted into a Non- Political Social Unit and renamed it as the DRAVIDA

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KAZHAGAM. The DMK, AIADMK and MDMK which are presently dominating the
politics of Tamil Nadu are the offshoots of Dravida Kazhagam.
• Kashi Pilgrimage Incident – converted him to an atheist.

The Self Respect Movement

• In 1925, Periyar launched the Self Respect Movement in order to promote social
Reform and social upliftment because for him the exploitation and oppression
faced by the low caste from the Brahmins (upper caste) in the name of Religion,
Caste and Spirituality have dehumanised the majority of Dravidian people in the
South, thus , for him it was immediate problem while he considered the problem
of Colonial Subjugation as Secondary.
• This movement held that Non-Brahmins of Tamil Region should be proud of their
Dravidian tradition and developed the spirit of Unity among themselves to
challenge Brahiminian Hegemony. In this movement Manusmriti was burnt, people
drop the description of caste from their names and Weddings were organised in
the absence of the Priests.
• Naicker blamed the Aryan for introducing an unjust and oppressive social system.
• Naicker called ‘Purana’ as Fairy Tales, not only imaginary and irrational as well
as grossly immoral.

Criticism of Congress and Gandhi

• He felt that Congress is working for the interest of Brahamins.

• He was opposed to Gandhi’s reconstructed version of Varnavyvastha. As it did
not Correspond to the way the caste had historically functional.
• He interpreted Gandhian nationalism as Hegemonic Project to maintain the
dominance of Brahamins.
• When asked “what should be destroyed?” He said “God, religion, congress and
Gandhi should be destroyed”

Abolition of Castes
• Periyar was of the opinion that all men and women should line with dignity and
must have equal opportunities to develop their individual capabilities. Therefore,

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he promoted Social Justice and wanted the end to all kinds of unjust discrimination
in the name of Spirituality and Religiosity.
• He was critical of Brahminism and wanted to encounter it as it was the result
of hierarchical social system “Varnashrama Dharma” in which the Hindu society
was divided into four caste : Brahmins (priests) , Kshatriyas (soldiers) , Vaishya
(traders) and the Shrudras (Servants) in which economical and social priveleges
or restrictions were associated with castes in hierarchy.
• It was a rigid system too because you cannot change the caste you’re born in
with your skills or merit because you’re born in one. The Brahmins was the
highest caste and was considered as a the purest , therefore, they had supreme
authority in all spheres of life over the other three castes while the lower caste
were considered as impure ; especially the shudras were considered as the
Untouchables and were not allowed to enter the temples , they had separate
wells to dwell water from and were meant to reside at the outskirts of the villages.
• Periyar said “Who wants Religion, Scriptures and God, which cannot bring about
a change in the sphere?”.
• He view that the Casteism has made Society weak in General because of the
mutual hatred among the people in particular.
• He also made it clear that he was against Brahminism and not the Brahmins that
was the basis of cast system which justified social inequality, and other social
injustices.

Women’s Liberation
• The Subjugation of women was also Periyar sole concern and he held women
responsible for their devastating conditions in society because they did not feel
that they deserved the total freedom.
• He held that the status of women was even worse than that of the Untouchables
in Society.
• Women were not allowed to get education, so that they could not develop the
ability and intelligence to question their subordination to men.
• Periyar wanted women to realise that being civilised is about living on equal terms
with men and was not about dressing fashionably and looking good.
• He wanted rigorous education, changes in custom of marriage and birth control
for the sake of women’s upliftment and liberation.

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• He rejected the word ‘Wedding ‘and sought to replace it by a ‘Contract For
Companionship In Life'.
• He was also critical of men’s hypocrisy for devising concepts like ‘Chastity’ and
categorized women who were ‘unchaste’ as Prostitutes but they did not obtain
such norms on themselves. It were only meant for women.

Rural Urban Divide

• Periyar equated the status of people of rural areas (Villages) to that of the
Panchamas (Untouchables) which serve the town’s.
• The relation was imbalanced between the village and town in terms of economic
relations as the villagers used to do the Hardwork, the labouring and survives on
the minimum wages while the city or town dwellers exploited their produce.
• He advocated for the elimination of villages and suggested that several villages
must be linked together and must be developed into towns with complete facilities
available such as schools, Hospitals, Parks, Cinema theatre’s , Magistrates and
Markets.
• Therefore, complete Urbanization was the only way out.

Rationalism
• Periyar viewed the root cause of all human evils and suffering was the lack of
rational outlook among the people.
• The Tamilian customs and traditions were based on their percieved Ancient
wisdom and customs that were practiced thousand years back and were justified
in the name of God and religious scriptures.
• Periyar asked the people not to accept anything without rectification only because
it is old , customary, generally accepted based on hearsay or claimed as Divine
words but should apply his/her Faculty of reason which is the distinct aspect of
human beings in order to lead ideal or proper life based on rationalism .
• He believed that God has been worshipped out of fear and dread of the unknown
natural phenomena which has never revealed itself to anyone therefore he rejected
the idea of God.
• He summarized that economical, social and political development is possible only
through rationalistic and scientific thinking.

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• Periyar merged the Self Respect Movement with Communism and founded the
Self Respect Communist Party which aims were to get nationalisation of
Industries railways , banks , waterways , agriculture lands and forests, limiting
working hours to 8 hours a day and enhancing the wages and conditions of the
labourers . Though later he disbanded the Self Respect Communist Party in
favour of the Self Respect Movement but his thoughts were remained influenced
by Communism as he wanted to end the concept of private property and right to
property.

INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

JAYA PRAKASH NARAYAN (1902-1979)

Introduction
• Jaya Prakash Narayan is also known as J P and Lok Nayak was an eminent
exponent of Indian Socialism. He was born on 11th October, 1902 in Bihar.
• He also get educated at Berkeley University in the United States where he
developed Marxist Discourse.
• In 1929 he returned to India and joined the Indian National Congress.
• He followed Mahatma Gandhi and played an active role in Indian Independence
Movement.
• He was also imprisoned in 1932 for participating in the Civil Disobedience
Movement and after his release he formed the Congress Socialist Party for India’s
Independence under the Congress itself but after India’s Independence he formed
a separate Socialist Party in opposition to the Congress.
• Later, he left Party Politics and devoted himself to Sarvodaya Movement that was
based on Gandhi’s philosophy led by Vinoba Bhave.
• He was awarded the India’s highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna in 1999
(Posthumously) for his invaluable contribution to the freedom struggle and
upliftment of the poor and downtrodden.

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• In 1965 , he was awarded the Magsaysay Award for public service in 1965.

His Major Works

• Nation Building in India
• Prison Diary, 1975 which was published in 1977.
• India: Struggle for Freedom, Political, Social and Economic seeks to understand
the complexities of Swaraj.
• Towards Total Revolution: India and her Problems published in 1978.

On Democratic Socialism
• His concept of democracy combines the philosophy of Socialism and Social
Revolution and advocate a democratic form of Socialism that is in consonance
with Indian Culture.
• Therefore, he enunciated some programmes from the platform of the Congress
Socialist Party with the following objectives -
1. Transfer of all power to the masses and economic development of the
country must be controlled and planned by the State.
2. Socialization of means of production which includes major industries, banks
and public utilities along with distribution of credits in unorganised sector
of the economy.
3. Elimination of landlords and distribution of the land to peasants for
Cooperative Farming.
4. Adult Franchise and No discrimination on basis of religion, caste or gender
by the State.
• Later, he emphasized the following features in his Article “My Picture of
Socialism”, in 1946 –
1. Village Panchayats must run cooperative farming.
2. Community should manage large scale industries.
3. Small scale industries must be organized under producers cooperation.
4. A State should perform democratically with limited role.

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• He also sought to advocate the ownership of Industries by the cooperatives and
the community so that the state could be presented from acquiring monopoly in
industry and employment .
• He constantly upheld the abolition of Zamindaari system, and advocated
cooperative farming, nationalization of industries and various land reforms in an
Indian Democratic State .
• Further he also advocated the Decentralization of power in India’s democracy.

On Sarvodaya
• His concept of Sarvodaya upholds Participative Democracy with Socialism.
• Socially, Sarvodaya is based on inclusive egalitarian community of citizens and
politically it establishes a decentralized democracy What JP called the “Panchayati
Raj” and “Swaraj from below".
• He used Gandhi’s idea of Sarvodaya to develop the idea of true socialism as
Sarvodaya means upliftment and welfare of all, therefore, no scope of clash of
interests between different class to come in conflict remains. Thus, promotes the
idea of Class Cooperation by Gandhi.
• He sought to replace the politics of power by the politics of cooperation.

On Total Revolution
• During the Bihar Movement (early and mid 1970’s) on the issue of corruption and
authoritarianism, he put forward the idea of Sampoorna Kranti or Total Revolution
to bring fundamental changes in the electoral , administrative, economic, social,
political and
• educational system of the country.
• Originally, the concept of total revolution was evolved by Vinoba Bhave but JP
encompasses in it the basic elements of socio-economic and political aspects that
will make India a true democracy with federal participatory, equitable and
prosperous nation in the world.
• Basically his concept of Total Revolution is a combination of Seven Revolutions
that are as follows –
1. Social Revolution
2. Economic Revolution
3. Political Revolution

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4. Cultural Revolution
5. Ideological and Intellectual Revolution
6. Educational Revolution
7. Spiritual Revolution
• His concept of total revolution seek to bring development and empowering weaker
and disadvantaged sections of society such as peasants, workers, etc. Therefore,
strengthening India’s democratic system.
• His doctrine of total revolution not only reconstructs the social and economic order
in the Indian society but also gives moral and spiritual rebirth to the Indian people.

On True Democracy
• In his concept of true democracy he recommended a new structure and approach
for Indian democracy by giving preference to Lokniti (Politics of people) over
Rajniti (politics of power) and Lokshakti (power of people) over Rajshakti (power
of state).
• He held that a model of true democracy will secure this spirit of cooperation and
the goal of social Justice.

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• His model of true democracy was based on Partyless Democracy that will carry
out a socialist program based on Sarvodaya.
• The political structure in a true democracy will comprise a network of three tier
structure of Local Self Government.
• In his model of true democracy he did not concede any role for political parties
as they cause fragmentation between communities by creating conflicts among
people on social , economic and political issues.

His famous quotes

• “My Interest is not in the capture of power but in the control of power by the
people”.
• “If you really care for freedom, liberty, there cannot be any democracy or liberal
institutions without politics. The only true antidote to the perversions of politics is
more politics and better politics. Not negation of politics “.
• “Trues politics about promotion of human happiness “.
• “Democracy cannot be made secure and strong without peace .Peace and
democracy are the two sides of the coin neither of them can survive without the
other".

Question - Which of the following is not a feature of J. P Narayan's partyless

democracy?

1. Dispersal of political power

2. Constant Watch of the representatives by the electing bodies
3. Maximum propaganda
4. Comparatively less expensive elections

Answer - Option 3. Maximum Propaganda

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

DEEN DAYAL UPADHYAYA (1916 - 1968)

Introduction
• He was born on September 25, 1916 in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh. His
parents died when he was young and was looked by his maternal
grandparents in Agra.
• He studied at Sanatan Dharam College in Kanpur where he came in
contact with Dr.Hedgewar (Founder of Rashrtiya Sevak Sangh) and
subsequently joined RSS in 1937.
• He was offered an administrative post of a headmaster but he refused as
he wanted to manage the time to work for the RSS ; he wanted to
serve for the upliftment of the country by organising the Indian Society in
accordance with the principles of RSS .
• He worked as an organiser (Pracharak) in RSS under the leadership of
M.S. Gowalkar.
• He founded “Rashtra Dharam Prakashan" in 1945.
• He also launched periodicals such as Rashtra Dharma, Panchajanya and
Swadesh.

His Major Works -

➢ Samrat Chandragupta published in 1946.
➢ Integral Humanism
➢ Rashtriya Jeevan Ki Disha
➢ Akhand Bharat aur Muslim Samasaya
➢ The Two Plans published in 1958 which is study of the First and the
Second Five Year Plan and raises questions concerning socioeconomic
issues.
➢ Political Diary published in 1968 .
➢ Devaluation: A Great Fall

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His Political Life -

• All India Bhartiya Jan Sangh was formed in 1951 and its first conference
held in Kanpur in 1952 where Deen Dayal was given the post of General
Secretary and the responsibility of Satyagraha in Kashmir. He worked as
a general secretary for 15 years .
• He started the movement against Article 370 with the Slogan ‘Ek
Vidhan, Ek Nishan, Ek Pradhan (One Constitution, One Flag, One Prime
Minister).
• In 1964, he released the document ‘Integral Humanism’ which forms the
basis of Bhartiya Jana Sangh.
• In December 1967, he was accorded as the President of Bhartiya Jana
Sangh only for 43 days as he was found dead near Mughalsaraai railway
station which in 2018 was renamed as Upadhyaya Junction.
• He is entrusted as the person behind the strengthening of organisational
structure of Bhartiya Jana Sangh.
• He advocated ‘Swaraj of ideas’ which means decolonization of Indian
minds.
• He also acted as an alternative to Congress by starting anti Congress
regime along with Lohia as he believed India should not be rule by any
one leader or one political party.
• He denounced territorial Nationalism according to which India is a nation
formed by all the people who resides in its territory whether Hindu,
Muslim, Christian and others.
• He asserted three cardinal principles in Indian Politics that is
1. Decentralisation -Rural development ,self reliant economy and more
power to states.
2. Diversity in Social and Cultural Ideas
3. Decentralized planning that is bottom to top approach.

Antyodaya -

• Antyodaya means the rise of the last person, therefore, the economic
plan must keep in mind not only the priveleged section of society but
also the Least disadvantaged section of society to get rid of poverty
issues.

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Integral Humanism -

• In 1965 , Integral Humanism was adopted as the official doctrine of the

Jana Sangh in which Deen Dayal Upadhayaya has borrowed three
Gandhian principles-
• 1. Sarvodaya ( Progress of all)
• 2. Swadeshi (Indian Products)
• 3. Gram Swaraj (Village self sufficiency to self rule)
• These principles give importance to the Indian Cultural and National
values which were based on unconditional individual service to nation.
Therefore Integral Humanism visualised a decentralized polity and self
reliant economy with the village being the core basis .
• Integral Humanism is different from Socialism and Capitalism as it prefers
human beings as the central focus for developing economic model for
Development of India. It basically reconciles between the two concept .
• He held that Capitalist and Socialist based the needs of body and mind
on the materialistic objectives and hence more focus is on economic
development and man is situated as an economic man.
• He, therefore rejected social system in which individual is supreme and
held that Society is born on it’s own as a natural living organism with
ethos and values as its need not from a social contract between
individuals.
• It lays down four objectives of human kind
a) Dharma (Moral duties of a person)
b) Artha ( Wealth)
c) Kama (Desire or Satisfaction)
d) Moksha (Salvation or Total Liberation)
• If there is Balance between Dharma, Kama , Artha and Moksha then
there will be equilibrium in Society.
• Integral Humanism is propounded on the Concept of Dharma and is
based on morality that is above religion.
• It seeks a culturally authentic mode of modernization that will preserve
the values of Hinduism.
• It held that Economic activities should be based on ethos while political
discourses must be based on morality.

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• His Integral Humanism is based on the tradition of Advaita that is
developed by Adi Sankara. It held Non-Dualism which represents the
unifying principle of every object in the universe and of which humankind
is a part, that is, the essence of Indian Culture.

His Famous Quotes -

• ‘It is essential that we think about our National Identity without which
there is no meaning of Independence’.
• ‘Western Science and Western ways of life are two different things
whereas western science is universal and must be absorbed by us if we
wish to go forward, the same is not true about the western ways of life
and values’.
• ‘Human knowledge is a common property’.
• ‘Independence can be meaningful only if it becomes instrument for
expression of our culture’.
• ‘In Bharat the principles of ethics are termed as Dharma- the laws of
life’.

Question - According to Deendayal Upadhyaya “Dharma” is not _____.

i. Science
ii. Religion
iii. Nation
iv. None of these
• Answer - Option ii. Religion

• Question - What is nation according to Deendayal’s views ?

i) It is not born out of social contract
ii) It arises out of a deeper life force
iii) It is self created
iv) All of these
Answer – Option iv) All of These

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

V.D.SAVAKAR

• VINAYAK DAMODAR SAVARKAR, popularly known as Veer Savarkar was

born on 28th May 1883 in a Brahmin family in Bhagur District, Maharashtra.
• He lost his parents in childhood and was brought up by his elder brother. He
got married at a tender age to the daughter of Ramchandra who financed his
university education and from here his revolutionary ideas developed.
• He was inspired by Bal Gangadhar Tilak and considered him as his Idol.

His important works

• The Indian War Of Independence published in 1909. It describes the revolt of
1857 as ‘first war of independence’ and was banned by British Government but
later smuggled in India and became a popular book for the revolutionaries.
• Hindu Pad Padshahi, published in 1925 which analysed the rise of Maratha
power in Maharashtra area in the presence of Muslim predominance in other
part of the country.
• Hindutva: Who is a Hindu? which is an ideological pamphlet on Hindu
Nationalism and was published in 1928.

Revolutionary Savarkar
• His revolutionary phase of life was from 1902 ,( joined Fergusson College in
Pune) to 1921 (coming out of the Andaman Jail ). While this period he wrote
intensively revolutionary articles, held meetings and discussions by organising
people for motivating the youth for emancipation of the nation from British
Dominance through revolutionary acts.
• In College he formed a political group of revolutionary people who used to
discuss the methods, including violent ones, to gain freedom from Britishers.
This group was named as Abhinav Bharat due to which he was expelled from
college as the administration found it extremely dangerous.

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• Shyamji Krishna Verma helped him to study law through scholarship in England.
He stayed there in India House which was the place for Indian revolutionary in
London.
• He was highly inspired by the writings of Mazzini and also met Russian
revolutionaries from whom he learned the techniques of guerilla warfare and
bomb making.
• Basically his Idea of free India justified the use of all means and methods to
achieve freedom and denounced Gandhian practice of Non-Violence.
• He was arrested in 1910 for the Murder of Curzon (Collection of Nasik) and
was imprisoned in Andaman Cellular Jail .After eleven years in 1921 he was
shifted to Ratnagiri Jail and was finally released.

Hindutva And Hindu Rashtra

• After his released, Savarkar was immediately approached by various political
organizations but he followed the path of Hindu Nationalist Politics.
• In 1924, he formed Ratnagiri Hindu Sabha which was later merged with Hindu
Mahasabha.
• In 1923, he wrote the Pamphlet “Hindutva : Who is a Hindu” which consists of
clear articulation of the ideas of Hindutva and Hindu Rashtra .
• Savarkar joined Hindu Mahasabha and became its president for seven years
consecutively and gave the organization a new Ideological sharpness He said “
We Hindus are a nation in ourselves”.
• He was fascinated by Hinduism and the culture of Hindu Religion. In merely
third standard he wrote his first article “The Glory of Hindu Culture” . In 1923 ,
he wrote the book “Hindutva: Who is a Hindu” for advocating Hindu
Nationalism on which lines Rashtriya Sevak Sangh (RSS) claims to follow
presently but with a crucial difference as Savarkar demanded a Hindu State
while RSS demands a Hindu Nation and it also considers him as a guiding
figure but for Savarkar, the Sangh was a “timid hindu organisation”.
• For him Hindu term was a race and a nationality. By Race he meant people in
the territory of Bharat constitutes single unit as they have common forefathers.
• He made a difference between Hindutva and Hinduism, moreover, he
deliberately used the term Hindutva over Hinduism because he wanted to
accommodate the diverse native faith system, beliefs and religious practices
while Hinduism did not as it does has the Sectarian divides on religious lines

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which he considered as one of the reason behind Colonization of the Country
by the Britishers and Muslim Rulers.
• Therefore, Hindutva was not based on religious or spiritual terms but on
Politico- Cultural Category which covers a large political, social and cultural
space.
• He also outlined three essentials of Hindutva which give rise to the idea of
Hindu Rashtra.
• Firstly, ‘ a territorial entity’ (Rashtra) which meant that anyone who is born
here or whose father has origins in this territory is a Hindu .Therefore, a
Britisher or Muslim who even becomes a citizens of the country is not a Hindu
in his views.
• Secondly, ‘a racial entity’ (Jati) which held that people of this land shares a
common race and blood. No matter whether it is a Brahmin or Shudra.
• The third essential is the ‘a common cultural entity’ ( Sanskriti) , thereof,
advocating the idea of One Nation, One Race and One Culture because
Culture unites Hindu as they have common customs, religious texts , rituals and
code of conduct which ultimately makes them different from Britishers or
Muslims
• Therefore, Christianity, Islam and Judaism obviously did not fall into it because
they failed to fulfill the criteria laid down above .
• In 1937 , Savarkar in his presidential address said ,”We are one because we
are a nation, a race and a common civilization” . Hence, for him the concept
of territorial and political nationalism was a sin and considered it as a mirage .

Critical of Hinduism for Untouachability

• He was severely critical of the oppressive and inhuman Caste System as in its
presence to unite Hindu was impossible.
• Despite of being borned into a Brahmin family he considered Untouchability as
a heinous crime as it made Hindu Co- Religionist treated worse than animals
which is against human dignity and a great insult to human soul.
• Savarkar “Hindutva” was essentially a political and cultural concept which would
remain weak if majority of the Hindu population was not emancipated from
social and cultural humiliation.

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• Savarkar advocated for Hindi to be declared as the National Language and
articulated the spirit of the popular slogan ‘Hindi, Hindu and Hindustan’.
• There lies a difference between Gandhi and Savarkar views as Gandhi viewed
that unity of the country lies in cultural and emotional unity prevailed which kept
India united for Centuries and advocated Composite Nationalism without
sacrificing spiritual Hinduism while Savarkar believed that Spiritual Hinduism will
be in danger if political Hinduism was not made stronger and united. Therefore,
he preferred Cultural Nationalism instead of Territorial Nationalism.

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

B.R. AMBEDKAR (1891 – 1956)

Introduction
• Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar also known as Babasaheb Ambedkar was born
into a family that belongs to Mahar (Dalit) caste in Maharashtra which was
considered as Untouchables and were subjected to various socio- economic
discrimination.
• He is also known as the Father of the Indian Constitution.
• He was the Chairman of the Drafting committee in the Constituent Assembly of
India and India’s first Minister of Law, therefore, he provided the provision in the
Indian constitution that guarantees civil liberties for individual Citizens, like
freedom of religion, abolition of Untouachability, outlawing all forms of
discrimination and introduced the system of representation for disadvantaged
section of the Indian Society.
• He formed organization to seek justice, dignity and freedom for Dalits like
Bahishkrit Hitkarni Sabha, Independent Labour Party, All – India Schedule Caste
Federation.
• He also started five periodicals for the defence of Dalits Rights.
1. Mooknayak ( the leader of the dumb ,1920)
2. Bahishkrit Bharat ( Ostracized India, 1924)
3. Samta (Equality,1928)
4. Janata (the People, 1930)
5. Prabuddha Bharat (Enlightened India, 1956)
• He condemned the classic Hindu text, the Manusmriti (Laws of Manu) for the
sake of justifying the caste system and burned it on 25th December, 1927 that
is now celebrated as the Manusmriti Dahan Din by Dalits.
• In 1932, he signed the Poona Pact that grants reservation of seats for the
depressed class (Dalits) in the Provincial Legislature .
• In 1990 he was awarded the highest civilian award of the country, the Bharat
Ratna.

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His Major Works

• Annihilation of Caste published in 1936 in which he severely criticized the
Hindu religion, its Caste System and its religious text for advocating hatred and
Male domination in Society.
• Who were Shudras ? published in 1946 explains the formation of Untouchables
and hierarchy of the Caste System.
• The Untouchables: Who were they and Why they became Untouchables”
published in 1948.
• Buddha and His Dhamma published in 1957 is a treatise on Buddha’s life and
Buddhism. Ambedkar has also mentioned that it is one of the three books
which will form the proper understanding of Buddhism along with Buddha and
Karl Marx and Revolution and Counter Revolution in Ancient India.

On Democracy
• He was a strong votary of Constitutional democracy combined with social and
economic democracy as it is based on liberty, equality, fraternity justice and the
human dignity so that the rights of Untouchables who are in minority shall be
guaranteed by the constitution itself and they will no longer suffer at the will of
the majority rule.
• He has also defined the condition that executive in India are required to fulfill
which are as follows –
1. Majority should give minority the opportunity in forming Government .
2. Minorities should be represented through their own members.
3. Prevent tyranny of majority in executive.
4. Provide executive for good and efficient administration.
• He also defined the role of a State in a Democracy –
1. To maintain right of every citizen.
2. To remove social, political and economic inequalities.
3. To guarantee protection to minority communities.
• He held that in order to democracy to function properly three conditions must
be fulfill which are as follows –
• Adopt constitutional methods for social and economic objectives.
• Must not lay liberty at the feet of another men .
• Conversion of Political Democracy into Social Democracy.

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On Social Justice –

• His notion of social justice is based on social democracy which recognizes

liberty, equality and fraternity as the principles of life.
• Social Justice aimed at elimination of the dis advantageous position of
depressed class in Society and Ambedkar held that the root cause of social
injustice in India is the practice of Untouachability which is a kind of slavery
without no responsibility of feeding the slaves.
• Therefore, he was severely critical of the Hindu Caste System and its root of
Varnashrama ( Division of Hindu society and human life).
• He held that due to the presence of division of society on class basis, a
democratic government would not be able to function properly.
• He held that the Caste system has disorganized and demoralized the Hindus.
Therefore, it needs to be abolished and recommended inter caste dining,
marriage and a rational approach towards the religion.
• He also suggested five steps to the Untouchables to improve their conditions
-
• They should refuse to do the traditional Untouchable work.
• They should educate themselves.
• They should take part in all levels of Government through their own
representatives.
• They should use legal safeguard for the protection of their rights.
• All forms of castes must be abolished.
• He wanted to establish social justice through replacing caste system by a
functional and rational societal organization.

On Separate Electorates –
• He advocated for separate electorate and reservation of seats for the depressed
classes (Dalits) .
• He held that depressed classes are independent community and have no link
with Hindus.
• The main purpose of his life was the emancipation of Untouchables in the
Indian Society.

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• He gave India’s moral and social foundation a new political order of
constitutional democracy that is concerned to the disadvantaged section of
Society.

His Famous Quotes -

• ‘Be educated, Be organized and Be agitated’.
• ‘They cannot make history who forget history’.
• ‘I like the religion that teaches liberty, equality and fraternity’.
• ‘If I find the constitution being misused, I shall be the first to burn it’.
• ‘I measure the progress of a community by the degree of the progress which its
women have achieved’.

Question - Arrange the following Ambedkar’s writings in the order in which

they appeared (DECEMBER 2018)
i) The Untouchables
ii) Who were the Shudras
iii) Annihilation of Caste
iv) The Buddha and his Dharma
Code
1. Iii, ii, I, iv
2. Iv, iii, ii, I
3. Ii, I, iii, iv
4. I, iii, ii, iv
Answer - Option 1. Iii, ii, I, iV

Question – Who among the following said the context of States Reorganisation
Commission Report, “ The lambs are shorn of the wool" and “ they are feeling
the intensity of cold”? (JULY 2018)
i) JL Nehru
ii) B R Ambedkar
iii) B N Rau
iv) KT Shah
Answer - Option ii) B.R .Ambedkar

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INDIAN POLITICAL THOUGHT

JAWAHAR LAL NEHRU (1889 – 1964)

Introduction
• He was born on 14th November, 1889 in Allahabad.
• He was one of the eminent leader of the Indian Independence Movement
and was the First Prime Minister of India.
• In 1955, he was awarded the highest civilian honour of the country, the
Bharat Ratna .
• His birth date is celebrated as Bal Diwas (Children’s Day) in India.
• It was under his leadership that the Congress party emerged as a Catch-
all-party and dominated the politics of both at the National as well as at
State level in India.
• The Non Aligned Movement due to which India was viewed as a regional
hegemon in the South Asia was under the leading role of Jawahar Lal
Nehru.

His major works

• Glimpses of World History was published in 1934 which consists of a
collection of 196 letters on world history that were written from prison to
his daughter Indira Gandhi.
• An Autobiography is also known as Towards Freedom written by Nehru
between 1934 to 1935 when he was imprisoned. It was published in
1936.
• The Discovery of India was written in 1944 when he was imprisoned in
Maharashtra and was published in 1946 . It discusses the journey of
India from its Ancient history to the end of British Raj . He also argued
that India is a historic nation with a right to sovereignty.

On Economy and Technology

• He seek to develop and modernize the Indian Society through
technological and institutional change by formulating policies that are to
be applied by mass participation.

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• He wanted to create a democratic social structure in India with a
classless society.
• He sought to develop India’s agriculture through scientific advancement
by providing better facilities that will yield not only in self sufficiency but
a surplus for India’s progress.
• His main focus was on the growth to enhanced production,
Industrialization and Capital formation by regulating market, generate
resources to fund projects and to industrialize all the regions to create a
uniform capital Labour relations and market economy.
• The Post Colonial Indian economy during his time expanded the business
environment and formed new monetized social relations with the two
power blocs and benefitting with them without allying with either of them.
• He wanted to transform the existing political structure into contemporary
relevance by creating new institutions.

On Secularism
• His approach was Scientific and does not regard much importance to
Religion. He held that Religion provides a set of moral and ethical values
to life. His view was Secular oriented.
• He believed that politics based on religion will not help in social progress
of society as it will divide the society. Therefore, opposed the formation
of political parties based on communal or religious basis as it will result
in social disharmony.
• His views on the concept of Secularism is incorporated in the Indian
Constitution which has the following dimensions -
1. The State shall not encourage or discourage religion .
2. Social and political equality.
3. Promoting secularism by eradicating inequality on religious basis.
• He advocated Secularism but was not opposed to religion as he held
that the secular state will protect all regions but does not favour any
one at the expense of the other.

Views On Socialism
• His Socialism is combined thought of the following -

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1. From Fabianism he derived Constitutionalism and Reformism.
2. From Gandhism he derived purity of means.
3. From Marxism he derived scientific approach and inevitability of
Socialism.
• He tried to accommodate civil liberties with the goal of Socialism.
• He advocated Socialism that will protect as well as nourished the
Individual freedom.
• His planning for economic development which rejected authoritarian
character of planning also relied on socialist method.
• He sought to combine democracy with socialism.

Non - Alignment -

• He was an Internationalist in his outlook as he wanted world of growth

and development for the masses and not of war or nuclear threats.
• His policy of Non - Alignment was an independent foreign policy of
India as India will be cooperating with both the power blocs to ensure
peace and helpful for new independent countries of Asia and Africa
which will be ultimately conducive for India’s national interest.
• Non – Alignment also reflected India’s capability to decide its own
interest and benefitting from the inner contradictions of the two power
blocs by getting maximum economic benefits on a long term basis with
minimum conditions.

Scientific Humanism
• He held that Science should be used for the Social reconstruction in
India as it will help in tackling with poverty, insanitation, illiteracy and
other social problems.
• He described the scientific laboratories as the temples of modern India.
• He also asserted that Science should also be tempered with wisdom
and realize truth and new knowledge.
• Nehru's Scientific Humanism compiles his concern for Science and
Humanity as he attempted to bring harmony between the world of fact
and the world of spirit.

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• Therefore, his Scientific Humanism upheld that power that is gained from
the advancement of science must be directed to the service of humanity
and not to gain profit by exploiting others.

His Famous Quotes

• ‘The policy of being too cautious is the greatest risk of all’.
• ‘It is the habit of every aggressive nation to claim that it is acting on
the defensive’.
• ‘Democracy is good. I say this because other systems are worse’.
• ‘Facts are facts and will not disappear on account of your likes'.
• ‘Democracy and Socialism are means to an end , not the end itself’.
• ‘Citizenship consists in the service of the country’.