The religious ideas of Rammohun Roy : a survey of his writings on religion particularly in Persian, Sanskrit, and Bengali
Abstract
The religious ideas of Rammohun Roy and his role as a reformer have not yet been properly evaluated. Two extreme and
contradictory views about his achievements are often found. The one elevates him too high in the category of a superman, and the
other denounces his efforts as a complete failure. The present thesis tries to analyse Rammohun's religious ideas and to determine how exactly these ideas contributed primarily
to the new conception of Hinduism that would emerge. It therefore excludes the consideration of socio-religious problems like sat! and the question of his immediate impact on nineteenth century society.
The sources used are mainly his own writings on religion, the writings of his contemporary opponents, and the results of recent researches on him. The Persian influence which was so important in the
development of his ideas, but which is often neglected by his biographers, has been taken into account. The probable connection between a 17th century Persian tract and his first published work the Tuhfatul
muwdhhidin has been explored, and the Jawab Tuhfatu'l muwahhidin which is often ascribed to him (though wrongly), has been translated
with text, introduction and notes in Appendix A. The Jawab gives some interesting information about him, his admirers, and his critics, and shows the nature of religious dispute during the time. Chapter one of this thesis gives the social and religious
background, and the trend of rationalistic thoughts in the country and abroad, while Chapter two outlines Rammohun as a man, and his emergence as a reformer. Chapter three surveys his writings on religion and his controversies with his opponents, and Chapter four deals with his Brahma Samaj and the Dharma Sabha of the orthodox
Hindus. An analysis of his religious ideas and its evaluation form the contents of Chapter five, which also includes the concluding part of the thesis. A letter believed to be written by Rammohun under the
assumed name Satya-Sadhun, and published in the Calcutta Journal is in Appendix B.