Discuss the declaration of Dayananda Sarswathi’s ‘Back to Vedas’.
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This was Swami Dayanand Saraswati’s call when he established the Arya Samaj that is today known more for conducting ‘instant’ marriages than espousing high philosophy. SAKINA YUSUF KHAN profiles the community and its rich cultural heritage.
We didn’t want to get married; living in would have been perfect. But those were different times; there was family pressure. An Arya Samaj wedding was the easiest way out,” says journalist Jug Suraiya. “I even haggled with the priest: I asked him how long it would take; he said he could make it last three days. “Nothing doing, wrap it up in 30 minutes,” I told him.We finally settled for 45 minutes,” he recollects. That was more than four decades ago.
But has anything changed? An Arya Samaj wedding is still seen as the way out for couples who want to get married in a hurry. Why? “It is rooted in the Sharda Act of 1929 that allowed Arya Samaj temples to issue legal marriage certificates. On an average, one thousand weddings take place every day in our mandirs,” says Swami Aryavesh, convenor, Coordination Committee, World Council of Arya Samaj.
All you need are two garlands, two kilos of mithai (sweets), and half a kilo of ghee or clarified butter for the havan or sacred fire, the couple’s birth certificates, two witnesses and proof of their identity. “The whole procedure takes one-and-a-half hours and costs just Rs 5,600, including the pandit’s honorarium, informs Suman, caretaker of a South Delhi temple.
Profound Beginnings
But there’s a lot more to this community than ‘instant’ marriages. “The Arya Samaj was founded by Swami Dayanand Saraswati in1875… to counteract the proselytising activities of organised religions and launch social reform programmes,”writes Purushottam Mehra in A Dictionary of Modern Indian History. “The Samaj regards the Vedas as infallible, eternal and divine. It rejects any kind of inequity whether based on caste or gender. The message transformed attitudes towards the depressed classes.
Idolatry, untouchability and child marriage were shunned,” he adds.
So, how are Arya Samajis different from Hindus? “Mainly in beliefs,” says Swami Aryavesh. “Hindus hold that Paramatma is part of Jivatma and is sakar (with form) and hence there’s idol worship. We don’t believe in murti puja, because we consider Paramatma as nirakar or formless. The Vedas say: ‘Na tasya pratima asti’ — there is no image of Him. Hindus believe that your good karma can negate your bad karma through the practice of certain rituals; we don’t think so. And we don’t practice casteism. We have women priests as well.”
No Avatars Here
There is no avtarvaad in Arya Samaj. “We don’t consider Rama and Krishna as gods; we accept them as maryadapurush or ideal beings — they are to be followed, not worshipped. We believe in charitra (character) puja not chitr (image) puja. This holds true of all devis and devtas. Ramayana and Gita are read as books of knowledge but are not held sacred. The Vedas being Dev Vaani or Divine revelations are considered Supreme,” says the Swami. What is Dayanand Saraswati’s status? “He is a guru, his photographs may be there in temples, but he is not worshipped,” clarifies activist-scholar Prof Sheotaj Singh.
Do they celebrate Hindu festivals? “We light diyas on Deepavali, but there’s no Lakshmi puja since we don’t worship gods. We celebrate it as Swami Dayanand Saraswati Nirvan Diwas — the day he left his body. Similarly, Shivratri for us is Bodh Diwas — the day Swamiji got ‘enlightenment’.
An Arya Samaj mandir looks nothing like a temple. It’s a bare hall — with a few photographs of Swami Dayanand and other leading lights on the wall. There are no deities, no bells, no offerings. Swami Aryavesh says: “Actually, the word mandir is a misnomer, these are more of satsang bhavans where there’s havan and members congregate for discourses.” There are large temples abroad, too.
“The one in Toronto can accommodate 2,000 people. There’s an eight-storeyed one in Kenya. Birmingham, Chicago and Houston, too, have big temples. The Bangkok mandir is truly historical — Subhash Chandra Bose’s Azad Hind Fauj had its headquarters there,” informs Swami Aryavesh.
Havan is a vital part of Arya Samaj practices; every ceremony or function starts with it. “It’s not a religious ritual, but a purification process that has scientific basis. We pollute the environment, so we are duty bound to clean it and it’s a sure cure for diseases,” says Prof Singh. Devout Arya Samajis do a 20-minute havan at home, morning and evening, chanting Vedic mantras. “It takes away the tensions of everyday life and keeps me peaceful,” says Anita Arya, a committed Arya Samaji. “Going to the temple every Sunday is a must. There’s an hour-long havan followed by pravachan rounded off with prasad, usually halwa.”
We didn’t want to get married; living in would have been perfect. But those were different times; there was family pressure. An Arya Samaj wedding was the easiest way out,” says journalist Jug Suraiya. “I even haggled with the priest: I asked him how long it would take; he said he could make it last three days. “Nothing doing, wrap it up in 30 minutes,” I told him.We finally settled for 45 minutes,” he recollects. That was more than four decades ago.
But has anything changed? An Arya Samaj wedding is still seen as the way out for couples who want to get married in a hurry. Why? “It is rooted in the Sharda Act of 1929 that allowed Arya Samaj temples to issue legal marriage certificates. On an average, one thousand weddings take place every day in our mandirs,” says Swami Aryavesh, convenor, Coordination Committee, World Council of Arya Samaj.
All you need are two garlands, two kilos of mithai (sweets), and half a kilo of ghee or clarified butter for the havan or sacred fire, the couple’s birth certificates, two witnesses and proof of their identity. “The whole procedure takes one-and-a-half hours and costs just Rs 5,600, including the pandit’s honorarium, informs Suman, caretaker of a South Delhi temple.
Profound Beginnings
But there’s a lot more to this community than ‘instant’ marriages. “The Arya Samaj was founded by Swami Dayanand Saraswati in1875… to counteract the proselytising activities of organised religions and launch social reform programmes,”writes Purushottam Mehra in A Dictionary of Modern Indian History. “The Samaj regards the Vedas as infallible, eternal and divine. It rejects any kind of inequity whether based on caste or gender. The message transformed attitudes towards the depressed classes.
Idolatry, untouchability and child marriage were shunned,” he adds.
So, how are Arya Samajis different from Hindus? “Mainly in beliefs,” says Swami Aryavesh. “Hindus hold that Paramatma is part of Jivatma and is sakar (with form) and hence there’s idol worship. We don’t believe in murti puja, because we consider Paramatma as nirakar or formless. The Vedas say: ‘Na tasya pratima asti’ — there is no image of Him. Hindus believe that your good karma can negate your bad karma through the practice of certain rituals; we don’t think so. And we don’t practice casteism. We have women priests as well.”
No Avatars Here
There is no avtarvaad in Arya Samaj. “We don’t consider Rama and Krishna as gods; we accept them as maryadapurush or ideal beings — they are to be followed, not worshipped. We believe in charitra (character) puja not chitr (image) puja. This holds true of all devis and devtas. Ramayana and Gita are read as books of knowledge but are not held sacred. The Vedas being Dev Vaani or Divine revelations are considered Supreme,” says the Swami. What is Dayanand Saraswati’s status? “He is a guru, his photographs may be there in temples, but he is not worshipped,” clarifies activist-scholar Prof Sheotaj Singh.
Do they celebrate Hindu festivals? “We light diyas on Deepavali, but there’s no Lakshmi puja since we don’t worship gods. We celebrate it as Swami Dayanand Saraswati Nirvan Diwas — the day he left his body. Similarly, Shivratri for us is Bodh Diwas — the day Swamiji got ‘enlightenment’.
An Arya Samaj mandir looks nothing like a temple. It’s a bare hall — with a few photographs of Swami Dayanand and other leading lights on the wall. There are no deities, no bells, no offerings. Swami Aryavesh says: “Actually, the word mandir is a misnomer, these are more of satsang bhavans where there’s havan and members congregate for discourses.” There are large temples abroad, too.
“The one in Toronto can accommodate 2,000 people. There’s an eight-storeyed one in Kenya. Birmingham, Chicago and Houston, too, have big temples. The Bangkok mandir is truly historical — Subhash Chandra Bose’s Azad Hind Fauj had its headquarters there,” informs Swami Aryavesh.
Havan is a vital part of Arya Samaj practices; every ceremony or function starts with it. “It’s not a religious ritual, but a purification process that has scientific basis. We pollute the environment, so we are duty bound to clean it and it’s a sure cure for diseases,” says Prof Singh. Devout Arya Samajis do a 20-minute havan at home, morning and evening, chanting Vedic mantras. “It takes away the tensions of everyday life and keeps me peaceful,” says Anita Arya, a committed Arya Samaji. “Going to the temple every Sunday is a must. There’s an hour-long havan followed by pravachan rounded off with prasad, usually halwa.”
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Dayanand Saraswati about his second pronunciation has been declared by India religious leader and founder of the Arya Samaj. He is a Hindu reform movement of Vedic dharma and thus it could able to deliver a back to Vedas. It always tends to move with scholar that is necessary for many thinkers and able to carry out Sanskrit Language.
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