Jesus Bhakti in Hindu Communities
Try: "R.C. Das", Banaras, Bhakt

The Pilgrim

The Quarterly Bulletin of the Christian Society for the Study of Hinduism

Volume Date Issue
8 June 1949 2

Editor: P. Chenchiah

To Our Readers

Apart from members who are on the rolls, this, paper is sent to (1) those whose names may have been inadvertently omitted in the list of members, (2) those who were subscribers in the earlier years and who for some reason or another did not renew their membership, (3) those who are interested in the Society but have not joined so far, (4) Hindu friends who are interested in the Study of Hinduism and Christianity. If you come under any of these heads, and desire to become a member may I request you to drop me a card expressing your desire to receive the paper and I will place your name in the mail list and send the Magazine regularly. Correct names, designation and address in capital letters will greatly help You may ask me to stop sending the paper if you do not want it. The year counts from the month we send the ‘Pilgrim’. Thanking you for your co-operation.

The Editor

Requests

  1. Before you tear the cover please examine the address carefully and see if the name, designation address is correctly given -if not please send the corrections.
  2. If you do not receive the paper in time please report. The paper will be issued on the twentieth of March, June, September, December. It must be in your hands by the end of the month - in India.
  3. Treasurer reports that one member has sent by M.O. his subscription of Rs. 5, but the name was not noted. If any member has paid, but has not received the paper, please let me know.
  4. Editor requests those who have been members of the association in the past but whose names were omitted from the list and therefore did not get the Pilgrim, inform the Editor of the same.

Announcement

By reason of increase of prices in materials, postage and printing the subscription for the Pilgrim has to be raised. The annual subscription is fixed at Rs. 4; subject to confirmation by the Committee which may take some time. Those who have sent the subscription at the old rate of Rs. 2 are requested to send the balance and those who have received the Pilgrim and have not yet paid may send Rs. 4 to the Treasurer, Dr. Thobern, Leonard Theological College, Jabalpur, C.P.

P. CHENCHIAH, Editor.

1. Editorial Notes

A. Easter Greetings

Yesu-Mrityum Jaya

To all our readers - Hindu and Christian, to all the children of India of whatever race or religion - we send our Easter greetings. May India receive from the hands of Him who conquered death - the gift of immortality.

If it is asked what significance can Easter have for the non-Christian we answer that resurrection does not belong to the region where differentia of religions and faiths exist but to the depth of being where all men are one in common destiny - death and will be one in the transcendence of common fate - immortality. What the Upanishad Poet - singer prayed for - Mruthyomma amrutham gamaya - was answered in the evolution of life for all men in the Resurrection of Jesus.

Orthodox Christianity represents Christ as fulfilling prophecy. In fact, he did not fulfil the messianic prophets who represented him as a king. He has in some measure fulfilled Deutero-Isaiah’s conception of Messiah. Deutero-Isaiah never entered into the dreams of Jews and patriots. Jesus, it may be asserted with greater amount of truth, fulfilled universal Mythology. Mythology is imaginative prophecy and theology figuring forth in legend the dreams of destiny of humanity as conceived by children of mankind before reason banished instinct and intuition. In all the myths of religions we find two aspirations whose fulfilment was prefigured: one - the birth of sons of God - children born to God and the women and the other the conquest of common enemy - Death. Siva stands as the conqueror of death in Hindu Mythology. Gods are not subject to death, and do not need to conquer death. It must be for man subject to death, that, death was conquered. The Easter message proclaims that in Jesus - the carpenter of Nazareth - evolution has neutralised its own poison-death and became Nilakanta. Since Hindu and Christian are one in death and decay, they are also one in immortality.

May Jesus stretch His hands over Mother India and pronounce over the children of the Mother the benediction of immortality - shanti, shanti, shanti.

B. Articles in This Issue: Hinduism in an Indian Christian

In the editorial notes of the March issue we indicated that the study of Hinduism should be carried out not only in Hindu scriptures and religious literature of the past, but in the Hindu of today as its living embodiment and in the Indian Christian who sums up in himself all Hinduism representing the living past, which survives and continues in Christ. Such a study will throw new light both on Christ and on Hinduism. In the notes below, some indication is given how Hinduism may help in gaining a deeper understanding of Christ and in practising Christianity. The three articles in this issue:

  1. Pramanas by Ven. A.J. Appasamy
  2. Religious experiments by Rev. R.C. Das
  3. Kingdom of God by Mrs. Kibble

These are all products of reflection and thought by Indian Christians or those who are in sympathy with Indian Christians. They naturally and unconsciously reveal what in Hinduism survives and operates in the true Christian life and how the Hindu in the Christian offers a medium of interchange of ideas and views between the Hindu and the Christian effectively. All the articles face the problems that confront us in New India at one level or other and deserve the attention of our Christian and Hindu readers.

C. Study of Hinduism

Study of Hinduism has been carried on from different standpoints:

  1. By orthodox Hindus standing in the Historical tradition.
  2. By modern Hindus who live in a world environment and are conscious of problems and issues that never confronted tradition.
  3. By those who feel that the message of Hinduism should be presented to the world as a gospel.
  4. By those liberal Hindus who feel that Hinduism to suit modern life should be re-interpreted in the light of ancient and modern illuminations of Hindu and other religions.

All these study Hinduism from within. From outside, the study of Hinduism is carried on (i) by orientalists interested in the past of Hinduism as antiquarians (ii) by scientific scholars interested in the religious phenomena as a whole - (i e.) by students of comparative religion (ill) By missionaries of various types - orthodox and conservative to show how inadequate and erring Hinduism is and how much it stands in need of Christianity; by liberal missionaries, who present Christ in an acceptable manner as fulfilment of Hinduism (iv) By theosophists to ascertain the ancient and historic wisdom Hinduism contains. (V) By modern leaders of thought who feel that religion should be re placed by Science in India. A comprehensive study of Hinduism would include all these view-points. There are three directions in which Hinduism may be studied by those who do not belong to Hindu tradition.

  1. In contemporary exponents of Hinduism Sri Rama Krishna, Swami Vivekananda, Sri Ramanamaharishi, Sri Aurobindo; Master C.V.V., Sri Radhakrishna and Dr. Sarma.
  2. From the standpoint of interreligious school - who believe in religious co-operation work, prayer and worship between religions as the right medium for transmitting values in each religion to other religionists.
  3. In the Indian Christian converts of Hinduism who embody in themselves a living synthesis of Hinduism and Christianity.

We hope to offer now and then, information and guidance for the study of Hinduism from each of these standpoints both in the editorial notes and in articles. We hope they will be of some practical use to the missionary, the Indian Christian and the Hindu and generally to all those who desire to make a systematic study of Hinduism. In this issue we present some aspects of Hinduism as they come out from the mind and heart of the Indian Christian.

D. Pramanas

In his paper on Indian Christian theology read at the Bangalore continuation 1948. Dr. Appasamy maintained the thesis that a systematic exposition of Indian Christian theology demands the formulation of pramanas (i.e.) valid instruments of knowledge and that of the three pramanas accepted by Hindu theological writers, Christian theologians should underline the primacy of prathyaksha or direct knowledge and supplement the traditional number of pramanas with a new one which he has named sabha pramana or authority of councils, its English equivalent. While we are in general agreement with the views expressed, we think they need to be very much supplemented, to represent the correct Hindu statement and to make it adequate for the purposes of Indian Christian theology. Our criticisms are offered from this standpoint.

In the twenty-first chapter of Manimekalai1 - a Jain Tamil classic - sequel to Kovalan or the burning of Madura - the heroine who goes about inquiring into the tenets of the existing Hindu sects - was given the following information about Pramanas. The Pramanas - instruments of knowledge are taken to be ten by Vedavyasa, eight by Kritakoti and six by Jaimini, who is followed generally in the modern times. The ten instruments of Vyasa are:

  1. Pratyaksha - direct perception
  2. Anumana - inference
  3. Upamana - comparison
  4. Agama - scriptures
  5. Arthapatti - postulation
  6. Svabhava - context
  7. Aitiham - tradition
  8. Abhava - non-existence
  9. Parisesha - inference by correlation
  10. Sambhava - inference from the course of nature

Kritakoti recognises first eight, Jaimini the first five and the eighth, the other four being held to be covered by the six pramanas retained by them. Abhava is known also as Anupalabdhi, among advaitins, Agama as sabra. Vedanta - paribhasa says - pramanani shat - prathyaksha Anumana, upamana, Agama, Arthapatti, Anupalabdhi Bhedath. Each system of philosophy has its own pramanas. Extreme materialists - Lokayatas recognise only prathyaksha, extreme ritualists - only sabda or Vedas. Heterodox sects reject sruti or revelation.

Pramanas, it should be clearly understood are instruments of knowledge - except for sruti and prathyaksha - logical instruments and not instruments of experience. Prathyaksha - means perceptual knowledge through five senses and anthakarana. Hinduism recognises supra-sensual knowledge attained through yoga. Prathyaksha of God has been the debating ground of Hindu theologians. Is God perceived or inferred? Normally God is inferred but through yoga HE can be perceived. Hence, in Hinduism Samadhi or as pantajali puts it samyama - generic name for “Dhyana, Daruna samadhi” is recognised as psychological methods of acquiring knowledge in Gita. Indian Christian theology should recognise these. Science - and this has the approval of Hinduism - would include experimentation as a means of experience and knowledge. Knowledge is not gained solely by observation but has to be wrested by experiment, manipulation, by action and interaction. Knowledge of God does not come through contemplation only but also through communion and wrestling with God as some saints say. Mr. Appasamy should include yoga and experiment among pramanas. Scriptures speak of the Holy Ghost as an instrument of knowledge - Luke 2:26 ‘it was revealed to him by the Holy Ghost’. Luke 12:12 “Holy Ghost shall teach you”. The status of sruti - Revelation as an instrument of knowledge requires re-examination. Do scriptures impart to us knowledge inaccessible to human faculties? What is such knowledge? Hinduism assumes the coming in of knowledge through revelation while Buddhism and Jainism deny it. The Christian should not assume knowledge through revelation but should argue it out. The burden is on the orthodox to show what knowledge unattainable through human means has come to us through scriptures. Thus, we cannot accept pramanas of Hinduism without critical examination. We have to question and discard some of the pramanas and add some more as pointed above.

The suggestion that a new pramana - Sabha pramana should be added to the existing six or ten may meet with several objections. Tradition conveying to the individual, the freight of experience may be said to give to the individual what he cannot acquire by himself. This may be said of contemporary knowledge also. With regard to the past, tradition may be a pramana and is included under the name of aitiham in Vyasa’s ten sources of knowledge. A presentable case may be stated for extending the principle of tradition to contemporary knowledge. It may be contended that group or co-operative thinking - such as cultivated in world-conferences and their committees - is an independent source of knowledge. Social mind may be a fiction or reality, but its existence is least open to argument. Mr. Appasamy does not use Sabha pramana in this sense but applies it to the authoritative formulation of creeds by councils. Would he permit new formulations of creed and hold all creeds formulated before and after the schism of Eastern and Western churches as authoritative? Authority can never be a source of knowledge. It stands as a different category - representing the binding rather than illuminating nature of truth and knowledge. Where sruti or scriptures are a pramana - they contain the sum of saving knowledge and no additions can be made to it. Councils and creeds do not even purport to give new knowledge but only formulate knowledge found in the scriptures. The relation of councils and creeds to scriptures is analogous to the relation of courts to legal enactments. Courts do not add to laws, they only give authoritative interpretation of the Acts. Authority is not an instrument of knowledge but only an instrument for enforcing knowledge. Nor can we accept the argument that the lack of such authoritative statement in Hinduism was the cause of its weakness. Historically, it can be shown to be otherwise. Buddhism which had councils and creeds predeceased Hinduism in India. While the tendency to express itself in rigid social institutions made for the stag* nation of Hinduism, its stern refusal to be bound by authority in religion contributed to its survival value.

Pramana Sastra in Hindu theology corresponds to the branch of Epistemology in Western philosophy. They deal with conditions and criteria of objective knowledge and determine how illusion and doubt arise. As ideas detached from perception become the ground of higher knowledge pramanas develop into nyaya or principles of correct thinking - contrasting sound reasoning with fallacies - an important branch of pramanas in Nyaya-Vaishesikaa system. Later, in the days of disputation - pramanas meant principles of debate and disputation. Sri Madhwa strikes the right note in defining pramana as Yadharthatham - cognition of an object as it is. To translate pramanas as norms and standards may not be in the spirit of Hindu theology. Measures are the contribution of objective physical sciences Law has the reasonable man as the standard and medicine the ‘normal man’. But to use them as equivalents of pramana - takes us away from the root meaning of cognition and apprehension.

Standards or common measures may be useful. But they create the danger of regarding the normal, or standardised truth as the truth and the abnormal as false. The normal man we were told by a doctor is an insipid man. All progress, all visions, ideals have come through the abnormal or supernormal men. Pramanas relate not so much to measures as to that which is sought to be measured.

Mr. Appasamy has opened a subject which Indian Christian theology has to face in its intellectual formulation of its faith. Lack of a critical examination of the epistemological foundations of theology strikes every Eastern student of Western theology. There may be conceptions of theology - which assign a minor role to pramanas. But text books on theology, written on Indian models cannot escape the problem. We hope that theological colleges and theological groups of laymen will treat pramanas as a subject for investigation and critical examination.

E. Religious Experiments in Christianity

Religious experimentation has the disapproval, even the hostility of the orthodox Christian as implying want of faith in God. Strongly credal religions, where the salvation comes from the magic of faith, shy away from religious experiments. Hinduism however from the beginning included yoga, the technique of realisation, as an integral part of theology and practical religion. The article of Rev. R.C. Das - a short summary of the paper read at Bangalore conference - deals with an aspect of Christianity which may press itself forward to the very centre of Indian Christianity. Christianity embodies a type form or personality - new to creation - first expressed in Jesus. No creed or belief can change us into the figure and image of Jesus. Since Holy Spirit does not seem to operate of itself as a pro-creating agency, we have by investigation, prayer and search, to discover the condition of its operation. Yoga of Christianity will be the science of Holy Spirit - the technique of reproducing Christ in the Christian. In the general outlook there appears one fundamental difference between Hinduism and Western Christianity. The Catholic Church in its disciplines planned at the level of self-control and conduct - corresponding to ‘yama’ of Hinduism. The Protestant discipline was philanthropic and institutional. It seeks to control life by and through changes in the environment and by regimentation of will and emotion. None of them endeavour to reach down to the level of the spirit. Yoga stands, for change of life - power and not of environment or psychical apparatus of life. Christian yoga reaches beyond conduct, control and discipline to new life, creative life new spirit - Holy Spirit. Indian Christian yoga will be, unlike its philanthropic, ascetic, disciplines, an experiment, in the new life of Holy Spirit. Assisted and encouraged by Hinduism and science Indian Christianity will venture into the untrodden fields of experiments in Holy Spirit. We welcome short articles based on experience on Christian Yoga.

F. Kingdom of God

We give a short summary of a talk on the Kingdom of God given by Mrs. Kibble at a meeting of the Christo-samaj. The ‘Kingdom of God’ - so fundamental and prominent in the teachings of John the Baptist and Jesus was eclipsed even by the end of the Apostolic age by the Church. The identification of the church with the Kingdom of God obscured the message of Jesus continued till modern criticism recovered the Kingdom of God idea for the Christian. Reinstatement of the Kingdom of God as the central theme of the teachings of Jesus has been one of the constructive gifts of modern criticism for which the Christians may be thankful. Indian Christian theology should profit by western errors and keep the Kingdom of God quite separate from the church. The church may or may not have been instituted by Jesus. It is in all probability, a natural institution like the family but should not be allowed to oust Kingdom of God either by usurping its place or by offering itself as a means towards the realisation of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God is cosmic, extends to all aspects of life and has to be realised by humanity as a whole while the church is a domestic institution of the Christians operating avowedly within the ambit of Christian community.

The discussions that followed the discourse pointed out certain lines along which a study of the topic by Indian Christian theologians should be conducted. We state it in form of questions.

  1. Does the term Kingdom of God convey the full meaning of the vision which Christ had in mind? When a great teacher proclaims a new message he has to use old terms, which by reason of previous history and association, delimits and narrows the new idea. The Kingdom of God, was an idea Jewish in setting and context and was taken over by Jesus from John the Baptist. It conjures up the political setting of a ruler, subjects and the law all crucial Jewish ideas and none of which are fundamental ideas in the teachings of Christ where God is the father, man, the son and love, the spirit. A ‘family’ of God ‘or Universe of God’ or ‘Brotherhood of children of God’ brings out the implications of the term better. More than pramanas, the Indian Christian theology, requires a technique of interpretation of words of Christ.

  2. What is the relation between Kingdom of God and sons of God? Jesus taught the Kingdom of God in the early phase of His ministry and the worship of Man represented by Himself in the later part. St. John prefers the idea of worship to Kingdom. We need a careful synchronising of these two concepts if one of them is not to cancel the other.

  3. Does the Kingdom of God mean, the recognition of values already existing in the world unheeded or creation of new values by Christ. Many of the parables, for example the parables of Great pearl and of the Drag net suggest the former idea.

  4. In what relation does the Holy Spirit stand to the Kingdom of God? Is Holy Spirit the architect, or creative energy? If so Kingdom of God cannot be a discovery but a creation.

  5. Is Kingdom of God Utopian or realistic - hatched out of our dreams or coming full-made from heaven like new Jerusalem or evolved out of the existing factors of History as communism is evolved out of capitalist as its antithesis?

  6. Is the Kingdom of God a dialectical oscillation-an antithetical movement or a consummation or a synthesis?

  7. And lastly is the Kingdom of God a cosmic process continuing the evolutionary movement of life which will come into existence with or without our help or a peculiar product of the operations of the Church. Is it a universal social order or a specialised group life achieved over against the tensions of world-life.

A comparison between the conception of the Kingdom of God of Jesus with its analogues in Judaism as found in the prophets particularly Isaiah and in Hinduism may be profitable. There are three such parallels in Hinduism. (1) Rama Rajya, (2) Satya Yuga, (3) Descriptions of heaven on earth in Puranas. Of these Rama Rajya has attracted considerable attention by reason of its association with the message and labours of Mahatma Gandhi. While Christian tradition reared the Kingdom of God in the Church - in the sacerdotal and sacramental region, Mahatma Gandhi planted it right in the secular political field Very little concrete study has been made of the nature of Rama Rajya, beyond using it as an emotional, national slogan. We need a concrete picture of Rama Rajya taken from. Ramayana and supported from the texts in Ramayana. We hope to publish an article on the subject from the pen of an ardent Hindu student of Ramayana, before long.

The cyclic scheme of ages in Hinduism assign four aeons to one Maha Yuga - Satya, Treta, Dwapara, Kali. Kali yuga is said to have begun with Mahabharata war and the samkalpa recited by Brahmins on ceremonial occasions fixes the present time thus: - Adva Brahmanam (first Brahma day) Dwitiya paratha (second half) swethavaraha kalpe (kalpa of swethavaraha) Vaivaswatha Manvanthre (period of vaivaswatha Manu) twenty-ninth Mahayuga, Kaliyuge, pradhama pade (first quarter) Salivahana sakha.

In a book called ‘Chetavani’ - in Hindi - this computation based on the principle that one year for us is a day to Brahma and adopted without question from the time of Medathithi a commentator of the Code of Manu assigning to kali yuga 4,32,000 years (2,400 Brahma years by 360), is challenged - on the ground that Divya varuna, does not mean - a year of Brahma but a solar year - in which case we are already in satya yuga - though appearances do not seem to support this optimistic view. The author asserts that Satya yuga will begin (the book was published in 1940) on first August 1943. We have also in the modern schools of Aurobindo and Kumbakaronam the idea of the advent of sons of God. Altogether the time seems to be opportune for the Hindu and Christian scholars to start combined investigations of the vision of Kingdom of God and Sons of God as revealed in Christianity and Hinduism in its various aspects of Kingdom of God, Ramrajya. Satya yuga, earthly paradises, Sons of God, jivanmukta and Divyapurushas.

G. Kathakali - Religious Drama of Hinduism

My friend Rev. R.C. Das warns me against converting Pilgrim - into a study of highbrow Hinduism - Hinduism of abstruse metaphysics, abstract philosophy and points out that popular Hinduism or better still how Hinduism seeks to reach the common man, should never be left out of the picture. This is a necessary caution. Christianity sustains itself in all ranks of social’life through the organisation of the church - through pulpit preaching and religious magazines and congregational worship in Protestantism and through elaborate mime and ritual, drama and poetry of worship in Catholicism. How does Hinduism convey its inspiration to the masses? In answer, we may say through temples, festivals, domestic rituals, literature, song and drama. We are reporting elsewhere in this issue a Kathakali performance we recently witnessed in Madras, by way of giving effect to the inclusion of popular Hinduism in the menu offered by this magazine to its readers. Kathakali is peculiar to Malabar. To call it a pantomime is to translate it into a European language without transmitting the real picture. The actors in Kathakali never speak but convey their sentiments through abhinaya of gestures. Of recent years it has attracted the attention of the world art and was well-spoken of. In the audience was a European lady artist, interested in Indian art, who sat out for nearly four hours following the themes closely, and taking elaborate notes.

H. Two Memorable Birthdays: Buddha and Sankara

Two great birthdays occur in the month of May - Buddha Jayanthi and Sankara Jayanthi. India has done well in making them solemn occasions for Thanksgiving, for when all is said and done the North has not produced a larger heart than Sri. Buddha nor South India a mightier intellect than Sri. Sankara.

Surely great must have been the stature and tremendous the spirit which forced Hinduism to open to a heretic the agrasana of an incarnation. We are told that Buddha was counted among avataras ousting Sri Krishna. When and under what circumstances and why, we should like to know? We hope some of our religious magazines will tell us about it, quoting texts in support. Meanwhile, we can say that India never produced a personality so mighty and magnanimous, so worthy to fill the role of an avatar as Gouthama - for many reasons far better fitted for the role, than traditional Hindu incarnations. To appreciate Buddha you need to see him with Christ - the prince of love. Both were of great heart, divine heart, divine love. If a Christian cannot appreciate Buddha, it simply means he never gazed on the countenance of Jesus. The Theosophical Movement, very aptly, calls attention to the story of Vasavadatta to illustrate the spirit of Love of Buddha. We advise every one of our readers to read the story - as a suitable way of celebrating Buddha Jayanthi and drink in the spirit of love it breathes through Upagupta.

Sankara takes his place, by right of his superb intellect among the great philosophers of the world. He gave to Advaita its unquestioned status in India and in modern times, abroad. Though missionary Hinduism takes its birth in the warm heart of Sri. Ramakrishna - typifying Bengal - advaitist, still the intellectual format of Advaita was the gift of Sankara. Both Tatagata and Sankara are greater than their messages. The Love of Buddha towers above his metaphysics and leaves its impression on the Indian heart. Sankara was a philosopher but let us not forget Sankara of ‘Bhaja Govinda’ and Sankara who purged South India of ‘leftist saktism.’

We in India - in free India - must learn to admire and value great men we do not follow. To admire Buddha it is not necessary to be a Buddhist in metaphysics nor to appreciate Sankara need one be an adtwaitin. The soul that has lost sensitiveness to perceive greatness and goodness wherever it meets them, suffers from blindness. We join the rest of India in paying our tribute of reverence and affection to Sri. Buddha and Sankara. Did not Sankara receive the tribute that he was Prachanna Buddha?

  1. Benares Institute of Hinduism Mr. R.C. Das writes: -

A fortnight course of this institute was held in January with six Students and in May with four Students. Father Pierre gave two series of lectures one on Vedanta and one other on Bhakti. Students came from Jabalpur, Calcutta etc., and belonged to different groups - Baptists, Quakers, Methodist, Syrian and Jewish. The next course will be held - from Monday 26th September 1949 for a month. For details please write to Rev. R.C. Das, 129 Dasaswamiah, Benares.

2. Pramanas

By THE VENERABLE A.J. APPASMY M.A., Ph.D.

To-day in India as well as in other parts of the Christian Church powerful influences are at work and who soever seeks to restate the Christian doctrine under the pressure of diverse streams of thought has on his hands a highly complicated and difficult task. The primary task of Christian theology in India today is to settle the norms of Christian thought. This fact is well recognised by the publication of Prof. Marcus Ward’s book ‘Our Theological Task.’ For a good number of years now we have recognised that Christian traditions and ideals need to be closely related to the philosophical and religious background of India. The first task in which we have, to engage as we set out in this process of reconstruction is to make clear the norms of our thought.

Through the ages India has recognised three pramanas or norms. They are Prathyaksha (intuition) Sabaha (Scriptures) and Anumana (Reason). An Indian scholar thus sets forth Ramanuja’s teachings about these three Pramanas. The Scriptures being a record of the vision of God granted to Holy men in the past must be our guide in matters concerning Him. Vamadeva and others saw God by means of Bhakti (Devotion) and our doctrine with regard to God must rely on the religious intuition of such men as that is recorded for us in the Scriptures. But, that Ramanuja does not mean by this that divine revelation is confined to the Scriptures and that we can never know God first hand, is clear from the words above cited, which declare that Upasana whereby the individual realises Brahman is in point of directness and intuitive clearness is not inferior to the clearest presentable thought. His contention that Scripture is our source of knowledge of Brahman when taken in the light of this fact, must be understood, it would seem, in the sense that ultimately we must rely for matters concerning the deity on religious experience, whether that be of men of the past as that is recorded in the Scriptures or one’s direct vision of the Deity. But since both are revelations of the supreme being they cannot vary in essence and since Scriptures provide us with an objective criterion we must regard Scripture as our guide. But Scripture, Ramanuja makes it clear, is only a means of higher knowledge which consists in direct intuition of Brahman.

“The lower knowledge is the Rigveda etc. This knowledge is a means towards the intuition of Brahman while the higher kind of knowledge, which is called upasana has the character of devout, meditation (Bhakti) and consists in direct intuition of Brahman. It is direct religious experience therefore that gives us true knowledge of Brahman. But Scripture provides the necessary information regarding Brahman and hence authoritative.”

Prathyakshapramana

  1. The Sanskrit term prathyaksha means ‘Before the eyes’. What is seen with the eyes has a clearness and certainty which nothing can shake. Prathyaksha of God may come as visions and intuitions. Psychologically belief in God comes first. But its significance becomes real to us only as the result of experience.

  2. Prathyaksha needs the practice of the arts of meditation. It is unfortunate that our missionary teachers in India have not given us any training in the arts of meditation and contemplation. They have taught methods of public worship and ways of intensive, study of the Bible. It is to be hoped that, as leadership, in the Indian Church passes into Indian hands the need for adequate training in, meditation and prayer will be recognised fully.

  3. Prathyaksha enables us to have the right perspective in spiritual matters.

  4. I do not however hold that prathyaksha is the only norm of Christian theology. God reveals Himself to mankind in many ways - through visions and voices, through intuitions, through circumstances of one’s life and through spiritual victories achieved with His power. While there are so many ways through Which the spirit of God works in the hearts of men, it is, unwise to deny the existence of any or all of them. We should do whatever is possible to keep fully open the various avenues of the approach of God to the human soul.

It may be noted that from a Christian point of view there is a serious, lack in the pramanas which Hinduism has set up as necessary for judging the validity of religious thought. I refer to the omission of the Church as a norm of religious doctrine. To the three pramanas accepted in India we must add a fourth namely Sabha pramana. In India considerable criticism has already been made of the Church as an objective source of doctrine by some Christian thinkers who are engaged seriously in the task of theological restatement.

Without dealing in detail, with the criticisms, I may advance the following considerations in support of the necessity of sabha pramana.

  1. We should certainly recognise and meet the urge in the Indian soul for solitude as a vital need of the religious life St. Paul spent years in Arabia and Tarsus thinking out the implications of his newly awakened faith. But we do well to remember that it is the same Paul who later in life wrote of the great importance of the church in the Epistle to the Ephesians and elsewhere. While it is true that the corporate life of the Christian Church has breadth, in the range of its prayers and in the spiritual help which it gives to large multitudes of men and women, real depth in religion, thought and experience is only possible in fellowship and not in solitude.

  2. We are ready to recognise the work of the Holy Spirt in individuals India has always been willing to concede the value of spiritual insight and power granted, to individuals by God. But that groups and assemblies can receive the spirit of God is of the essence of the Christian religion. If the experience of St. Paul on the road to Damascus was real, the experience of Pentecost was equally real.

  3. The History of Hinduism is an effective demonstration of the weakness of any religion which does not accept the authority of common, councils and ecclesiastics who set up standards of orthodoxy in matters of doctrine. There is the widest and most varied divergence of belief in Hinduism ranging, from Atheism to, the highest summit of Bhakti religions. Surely this vast range of the most diverse beliefs, is the weakness of Hinduism rather than its strength. The great theologians of Hindu religion such as Sankara and Ramanuja, unlike their, modern successors in India, urged the most precise formulation of religious beliefs and marked off carefully their theological doctrine from that of others. Hinduism would have gained much in the unity of belief and the soundness of doctrine if there had been a corporate organisation to set up standards of orthodoxy and religious authorities to enforce them on priests and people.2

3. New Experiments in Religion

By REV. R.C. DAS, BENARES

Truth and religion, if not merely abstract and rationalistic, admit of experimentation and application under differing conditions of time and place. Christianity to my mind being concrete truth revealed in the personality and character of Jesus Christ and also because it is truly universal and Catholic is not only capable of, but stands in need of local, temporal, racial and national self-expression. Self-propagation and energetic activity with a redemptive purpose and idealistic impulse as its source are of the very essence of the religion of Christ. To realise itself and to communicate and apply its principles to various situations, the spirit of Christianity, must of necessity take note of and use as its field of operation the varying racial, national, and local heritages and even historical and geographical conditions. The Christian activity presupposes and assumes the need of institutions and ventures which will make it real and adapt to local circumstances, the great truths of Christianity. This realisation and experimentation will be both on individualistic and collective lines. This is correct, and is bound to happen when religion can be defined as integrated love consisting of and subsisting in both truth and grace. When religion is presented as doctrine, as teachings different from a Saviour teacher, when religion is presented as a theology or a creed; instead of defining it as faith in a personal God or even when while not ignoring the personal aspects of truth, the doctrinal, dogmatic and institutional sides are overemphasised there is hardly any room in that atmosphere and situation of close authoritarian vigilance and dictatorial detection, for ventures of faith or experiments of hope and final attainment of love and joy. Experiments are in their very nature new and bring freshness and life when successful.

Some Historical Examples of Religious Experiments in Hinduism

  1. The external religion of Vedas was turned into inner realisation of universal truth through experiments in personal meditation and community life and corporate search by the Rishis and Munis in the forest ashram.

  2. Buddhism itself is a huge experiment on a social and psychological level upon the Vedic truth. (i) The oneness (Brotherhood) of, humanity in Brahman. (i) The possibility of the attainment of poise through Nirvana.

  3. Bhakti movement Is an attempt-quite spontaneous and inevitable-to sense and feel God through our whole emotional nature even through our passions - Joy and sorrow pleasure and pain, love and hate, through non-violence and unqualified surrender.

  4. The large scale revival of popular Hinduism of temple worship and Varnashrama Dharma is to protect Hinduism from Islam and Christianity.

  5. The Yoga and Tantras are in fact experimentation through certain physical and mental processes upon the attainability of God or reality and upon the possibility of mastery over passions hate, love, lust, pleasure, pain, disgust etc.

Eastern Christianity met Hinduism in the South and produced the Syrian Church. Though this form of Christianity has been acclimatised in a certain sense (i.e.) in a social, economic and political sense it remains in its spiritual, intellectual and cultural life still alien to the soul of India. Protestant Churches of the West during a century or two have wonderfully succeeded in establishing and repeating themselves. But they remain more or less outside the vast realm of creative activity and thought that have emerged in the wake of the national renaissance all over the country in all departments of life. Christianity must grow from within the soul and soil of India. Both for its own sake and for the enrichment and strengthening of our common national life it is incumbent on us that we relate our life to the Indian climate and situation. It is a matter of historical truth that Christianity has adapted itself to the life of the country to which it has gone. The following instances of the adaptation of the Church may be mentioned: -

  1. The early Christian Church experimented on the vital truths of Christian, unity, brotherhood, peace, fellowship and produced a communistic society giving a concrete demonstration of the socialistic teaching of the Gospel

  2. They practised love as taught by the Master were non-violent and pacifist, did not join the army and faced the consequences.

  3. They suffered martyrdom in their unflinching loyalty to truth.

  4. The monastic orders of the Church have demonstrated started the harmony between knowledge and service - the sacred and the secular and also between God-realisation and Evangelism, individual and corporate life - Sanyas and Samsara - a synthesis truly Christian.

  5. On the whole the structure of the Church has been an experiment on the reconciliation of individual freedom with collective responsibility and authority.

  6. Social and political democracy of the West is a result of experiment on the worth of the individual, as is communism of Soviet Russia, stripped of its anti-religious bias.

  7. The peace movements represented by groups like the Society of Friends, Fellowship of Reconciliation, the now defunct League of Nations and the present U.N.O. - are attempts however feeble at the realisation of the Kingdom of God on earth.

There are three distinct spheres in which we can forth with start experiments.

  1. The Social-Political - The Christian community should realise the ideal laid down in 1 Corinthians 12 preserving the elements that can enter into it from Varna - ashrama Dharma, Democracy, communism. The Christian Community should organise itself to conserve these values.

  2. Spiritual mystical: The Hindu experience of the relation between God and Soul, between Atman and Jivatman - as also emotional experience of Krishna devotees may throw light on the path of aspiring Christian devotees to have relational experience of the Lord the Father and the Holy Spirit. The result ought to be marvellous in the emergence of the hitherto unknown experiences of joy, peace and blessing coupled through and through with a dynamic specially Christian, and wonderfully creative.

  3. In the typically religious field the interrelation of Christian faith and Hindu Bhakti is a matter of experimental test. A harmony between passionate Love and Holy living remains to be effected by an Indian Church fully appropriating all the best elements in Hindu Bhakti.

Prognosis

A few small things, happenings and movements almost in their beginnings point like the feeble straw to the goal and direction and destiny of Indian Christianity of almost the immediate future. These are:

  1. Organisation of Christian Ashrams.
  2. Study of Hinduism.
  3. Christian Sanyas and Sadhu life.
  4. Slow but steady veering round of Indian Christians to Nationalist position.
  5. New trends of thought in Indian Theological circles.
  6. Movements like Christo Samaj, National Missionary Society, Indian Christian, Associations and unions.
  7. Disillusionment in many Western Churches on the realisation of their spiritual bankruptcy.
  8. In many Hindu circles throughout India in orthodox quarters more earnest search into the acceptance of Christian ideals and values and establishment of institutions on unacknowledged Christian principles.
  9. The failure of leadership of the modern religions and culture groups.
  10. The challenge of the political situation in free India, calling for greater spiritual reserves.

These forces are bound to react upon, influence and help Indian Christianity to become Catholic, claiming the inheritance of the West and East alike in Jesus Christ the Saviour God and the PRINCE OF PEACE.3

4. The Kingdom of God

Mrs. J.C. KIBBLE

(Abridgement of a summary furnished, by Mrs. Kibble of her address on The Kingdom of God at the meeting of Christo Samaj held on 4-3-49)

The words ‘Kingdom of God’ occur first in the New Testament, not on the lips of Jesus, but on those of John the Baptist. His message is summed up in the words ‘Repent ye for the Kingdom of God is at Hand.’ Matthew 3:2. John left us in no doubt as to the kind of conduct required by the near approach of God’s rule. “Let everyone who possesses two shirts share with him who has none and let him who has food do likewise.” To do these things is to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance.

With this revolutionary teaching and practice Jesus identified Himself at His Baptism. This was, also the first message of Jesus and later on He sent out His disciples to tell people the good news of the Kingdom of God. Jesus said “The time has now come”. God’s realm is near, repent and believe in the Gospel.

What is this realm? Obviously it is not a territorial Kingdom. In answer to Pilate? Jesus said ‘My realm does not belong to this world.’

Are we then to think of the Kingdom of God as belonging to another world altogether? No; for Jesus constantly speaks of people entering or refusing to enter the Kingdom of God; of their finding it or of their being invited to it. It seems to be true that the Kingdom of God exists here and now - that it always existed. Yet it is also true that the Kingdom is yet to come. Our constant prayer is to be ‘Thy Kingdom to come’. So the Kingdom of God is something which was in the original plan of creation, which is now within the reach and which will be seen in its full glory in the future.

What is our connection with the Kingdom of God? We are invited to become citizens, but the teaching of Jesus implies that the way is through the narrow gate - not an easy way. God invites us to enter His Kingdom but people except a few, refuse his invitation. For those who find the Kingdom of God, wonderful things are in store - buried Spiritual treasures. The Kingdom of God is, wherever an honest attempt is being made to discover and obey the will of God. The Kingdom of God in any country or city or home is measured by the number of people in that country, city or home, who are truly trying to bring their lives under God’s control. The fight to do God’s will means the cross - humiliation and death from which human nature shrinks.

Kingdom of God is entered by rebirth. ‘Unless one is born of water and spirit he cannot enter the Kingdom of God.’ Water refers to cleansing of life by repentance and confession.

How does rebirth come to people? It seems to come in different ways, sometimes very suddenly, sometimes as a gradual growth. However it happens, it is as definite as the birth of a baby. The newborn man sees familiar things with new eyes and touches them with new hands. The earth becomes the Lord’s and the fullness of it, something which man receives as trust to be used for the glory of God.

Rebirth is not something which man can produce at will It is a breathing of God’s spirit into the human soul. We can have a share producing the conditions in which birth into the Kingdom of God can occur. We must have faith that it is possible to be reborn and must desire it. We must make an act of will by which we give all we know of self to all we know of God - unconditionally. We must obey the will of God as we see it quite simply like children.

The truth of these things can only be proved by experiment It is difficult to know God’s will. But far more often our difficulty is to obey God’s will, after knowing what it is. We are so apt to find excuses for our disobedience, that we need to check our ideas of God’s will within the following of Holy Spirit.

The Kingdom of God is wherever, God is obeyed. The way in, is to repent, confess, accept forgiveness and reconciliation of God through Christ. To receive the Holy Spirit is to be born again. Ask and the gift will be yours, seek, and you will find it, knock and the door will be open to you - Luke 11:9-13.

5. Kathakali

(RELIGIOUS DRAMA OF MALABAR)

“Get a little Art into your Philistine soul” pleaded my friend Mr. Warrier - a co-grinder with me of the legal machine in the High Court. “Attend our Kathakali performance. Tickets are going dead cheap - five rupees for one.”

“I have heard of a friend of mine” I replied in self-defence “who radioed S.O.S. signals five minutes after he indiscreetly walked into a Kathakali, and History does not record what untold tortures he suffered, for nobody came to his rescue, the whole audience being Malayalees”.

“Whoever spreads such scandals 1 don’t know,” bemoaned my friend. “There is only one thing for you to do. Take a ticket, witness Kathakali and bear testimony in public to its excellency as an atonement for your past sins against Art.”

I did and this is my testimony. I witnessed the performance wide-eyed for three hours and would have remained two more, had not the task-master of a university insisted on my correcting Law examination papers, giving me so little time, that I had to do fixed quota grimly each night, Kathakali or no.

When I entered, the open courtyard I saw a primitive platform which did not look the money it cost. A totally unnecessary oil lamp on a tall brass stand, fed by oil and crossed by plantain blocks used to prod expiring wicks to shine brightly, stood in front of the stage. A young man fair and athletic was drumming away for all he was worth. I never knew that drumming can develop such beautiful muscles. By the bye I like drumming very much, sometimes I think, if I am not a lawyer, I could have earned my livelihood as a drummer though my appreciation of drumming is that of a layman, not of a pundit. Two doctors sat next to me - one an Andhra and the other a Malayalee. The Malayalee doctor became our guide and earned our gratitude. He informed me, that in Malabar these performances are free to all, the master of the house footing the bill and that the drumming was intended to summon the village to the show. They are like our church bells in a city, survivals without any intelligible function.

After some time, the first drummer who played on a horizontal drum on both sides, was joined, by another who played on a vertical one with two sticks. He was wonderful and evoked beautiful sounds that lifted you into the empyrean. The drummers played in relays. One thing, I as an Easterner (i.e.) East coast man observed, was that the horizontal drummers bound their fingers in white slips of plaster. Eastern: drummers play with bare fingers. If there was nothing else in the Kathakali, the drummers alone could have held me captive till they finished.

Next came the background singers. They sang well and with gusto. I like them when they abandon themselves to all the twists and turns of the raga not sparing in the least their face and features. One of them, an old experienced hand, followed the twists of the tune with twists of his body tying himself into complicated knots, but with great dexterity untied himself quite easily. This background music served a different purpose than their opposite number in the East. The accompanyists are intended for relieving the strain on the vocal singers in South India. In our music halls the musician sings for, three hours at least. This he can do, as the accompanyists supply the background of sound which renders high pitch and strain unnecessary. They also tone down the idiosyncrasies of individual voices. In dancing, the background music, gives signals for changeovers but rarely interprets action. Kathakali music tells the story and interprets the mudras (i.e.) the gestures and postures of actors.

The main difference between Kathakali and drama lies exactly here that Kathakali is music-pantomime. The actors do not open their mouths. They have to convey their sentiment through acting - pure and simple. If as in Eastern Abhinaya the gestures are ancient language, not current coin, Kathakali will be an unintelligible dumb show. This division of labour - actors to act, singers to tell the story seems to be original and effective. The gestures are such as can be interpreted by the audience and with the help of the singers one can easily follow the story.

The stories are usually puranic stories; the one I sat through was Kuchela Upakhynam. Two more were to follow - Keechaka Vadha and Prahlada. The rasa was Bhakti in different modes - in the first and third and Rowdra in the second. Kuchelopakbyanam - relates to one of the most human episodes connected with the life of Sri. Krishna. Kuchela was an old class-mate of Sri. Krishna - a devout, simple-hearted Brahmin and like all devout and simple-hearted men - miserably poor - not with the sublime poverty of religious text-books but with the corroding poverty of mean destitution - where you have to see your dear ones starve. His wife persuades him to see the Lord of Dwaraka. Kuchela hesitates. Lords are not given to recognise old class-mates and effuse over them. When you go to see a king you have to take a present. The wits of the couple are set to the problem. Ultimately, she provides him with a small quantity - not all they could spare but all they could manage of a stuff which for some unknown and, mystifying reason is called parched-rice. As he approaches Dwaraka his misgiving increases. Would Krishna recognise him? Would the gates-men allow a ragged mendicant into the palace? He was almost tempted to go back but the memory of the home poverty drives him on. Krishna sees him at a distance, runs for him and embraces him - evidently an ancient custom - (happily no longer current) seats him on the throne, grows reminiscent, talks of school days, asks what he brought as a present; snatches the bundle - eats, first one handful of parched rice next the second, and was about to eat the third when Rukmani intervenes “enough” she says “the poor man has been dowered with all that world could give. Anything more, we have to be his servants.”

That is how Kuchela the indigent became rich. There is a sequel to this - whether the sequel is from puranas or invented by a later-day poet I cannot say - Kuchela - Kubera. Kuchela becomes rich and arouses the envy of Kubera - Indian Croesus. The poor man’s desire is riches. The rich man’s longing is for the peace of poverty God wisely refuses to hear the prayer of either.

An audience of two hundred sat through four hours. They were all of them bourgeois - the clerk, his wife and children. In rural parts the proletariat may preponderate but not in Madras. Kathakali is art and uplifts one above the crass and humdrum as all art does. Does it spiritualise, does it change conduct? Religious drama East or West never did it. They soften the crudities of life. Anything more depends on you. Anyway, Kathakali belongs to the mechanism whereby Hinduism seeks to popularise its message and inspiration to its children.

6. Reviews

  1. THE RELIGIOUS HUNGER OF INDIA BY REV J.F. EDWARDS, C.L.S. OF INDIA. PAGES 349, RS. 4.

The new setup of the world and the new conditions in India demand a thorough re-examination of missionary theology and methods. Those who are preparing themselves for this vital Christian task will find considerable help and illumination - in this book of Rev. Edwards which embodies the mature reflections on the subject by a missionary who has given his life to the service of Christ in India.

There are three ways of Evangelism. One which has obtained much undeserved currency among us, believes that by repeating the latest slogan of the West - ten years plan or commandos - the task will somehow be accomplished with scriptural quotations - commonly described as the double-edged sword of God - as weapons of warfare. This method so superficial and lacking in the appreciation of the colossal forces of the world operating in our midst does not deserve serious attention.

The method of the Holy Spirit so much in evidence in the Apostolic Age depends upon our possession of Holy Spirit and our capacity to use Him in Evangelism. Both these facts may be doubted.

Between them the educative method pressed in this volume (which also emphasises the primacy of Holy Spirit in Evangelism) is available for most of the earnest workers. The group of which the author was a conspicuous member devoted their attention first to the study of Maharashtra religious mind as revealed by Maharashtra saints, and secondly to the study of life of eminent Indian Christians - Nehemiah Goseh, Pandita Ramabhai - N.V. Tilak. This method enables us to approach the Hindu, psychologically and scientifically. This short review is intended not s .much to exhaust the contents of the book or to form an adequate estimate of its value but to draw attention of our readers to a timely and valuable addition to the literature of a subject of primary importance to the Indian Christian in his inalienable task of commending Christ to his countrymen and induces him to read the book himself - which we consider is the true function of a review.

  1. MANIMEKALAI

Justice A.S.P. Iyer made his mark in the literary field with his Baladitya - a historical romance conceived in the tradition of Bakim Chandra but improved in the matter of imaginative reconstruction of a historic period - faithful in detail and atmosphere. Of late he has been giving to the reading public translations of Tamil classics Kovilan and its sequel Manimekalai which are monuments of what Tamil literature owes to Jains whose persecution under aggressive saivism was a blot on Tamil history. In this book, Mr. Iyer presents in simple English the main feature of the story which portrays the whole culture of the age. Those who are not Tamils but aspire to understand Tamil culture, must buy and read those two classics. They show for one thing the toleration and catholicity that characterised the religious bodies in India. Much information useful to the student of religion may be gleaned from these pages. The book also reveals that acceptance of religion in those days was not a blind obedience to authority and tradition, but choice based on acute criticism of existing systems and that conversions were freely permitted. Kovilan and Manimakalai must be read by every citizen of India and Mr. Iyer’s translations offer an easy means of doing so.

  1. THE BLADE

The Blade - Life and work of Brahmabandhab Upadhyaya by B. Animananda preface by P. Turmes S.J. - Roy and Sons. 79/25 Lower Circular Road Calcutta. Price Rs. 4.-.

To those who care for the principle of justice and fair play, the eclipse of the memory of Brahmabandhab, was a challenge that cried for redress and this volume which endeavours to assign the right place in history of Bengal to one of her great sons will be welcomed on all hands. The reviewer heard from one of his friends, who attended one of Upadhyaya’s lectures, at Madras, how profound and deep was his knowledge of Hindu philosophy and how impressive was his presentation of Christian truth, and his longing to know more of this convert had to wait years and then in Heller’s book he saw a portrait of this Christian worthy of him. He has often wondered on the tragedy of history that has obliterated this figure so thoroughly in his own land and church. The topic cropped up incidentally at a conversation at Serampore between the reviewer and Rev. Fallon S.J. I am glad my friend remembered it and sent me this study of Upadhyaya.

The recent History of Bengal presents two landmarks, one the birth of Brahmo Samaj and the other birth of Nationalism at the partition of Bengal. All the great names of Modern Bengal are to be found either in the spiritual turmoil of Brahmoism, or political upheaval of Partition. Heroes. Keshub and Muzumdar jumped from Brahmoism into Christianity within Hinduism. Swami Vivekananda and BrijoKrishna. Grosayee and his disciple Bepin Chandra Pal - jumped into Hinduism back again. C.R. Das and Bepin Chandra Pal and Upadhyaya jumped into politics during partition. To this valhalla of Bengal Upadhyaya belonged - souls ever in turmoil and whom nothing satisfied, but everything urged from place to place till death put an end to all frenzy and fretfulness of life. Of change Upadhyaya had enough-from Hinduism to Brahmoism, from Brahmoism to Roman Catholicism from Catholicism to politics.

There can be no doubt that there was a crisis in Upadhyaya’s life which radically changed his earlier Christian views. He started as an ardent Christian and Catholic, sought to reconcile his ancient legacy with his chosen loyalty in an effort to interpret his Lord to his country.

He endeavoured to establish a monastery, where the Christian takes a shape understood of his country. The interdicts of the church which put an end to his Sophia, monthly and weekly, to the ‘twentieth century’ and to his monastery, pressed the cross heavily on his soul. Fortunately or unfortunately he was not cast in the mould of submissiveness and his was an enthusiasm that neither authority nor opposition could quench. Instead of rebelling, he chose to drown the memories of his early vision in intense political activity,

We may explain and defend his devotion to Sankara, his Bhakti to Krishna, his unintelligible attachment to caste and even his inclination to idols, but the broad thing remains that his religious position was ambiguous towards the end and sometimes offended even his friends.

The reviewer himself views Christ from a Hindu background and has believed and advocated that Christ Himself reveals anew when looked at from Hindu heritage. Fully conscious that Christianity will take strange shapes, and forms in India, he finds it difficult to understand not so much Upadhyaya’s Christianity but his Hinduism which pivoted on three points. (1) Unchanging God (2) The caste System (3) The Iconic worship. This interpretation of Hinduism has not the approval of practically all great men of Bengal and has been more or less renounced by his colleagues in Hinduism, Any day I would take my interpretation of Hinduism from Ramkrishna and Vivekananda - who had the true Hindu instinct than from Upadhyaya. Vivekananda might, defend Sankara but preferred a more humane interpretation of it by pramahansa, he may defend caste and idolatry in public but followed neither in private. Upadhyaya’s love for caste, iconography, extreme advaitist are not so, unintelligible from the Christian as from Hindu standpoint.

The book under Review gives an admirable account of the part played by Upadhyaya in the political life of Bengal through ‘Sandhya’. We wish it had given a fuller account of Upadhyaya’s understanding of and personal attachment to Christ. The only thing that could forgive his weakness in undergoing prayaschitta, his desire to hide his Christianity, his anxiety to pass off for a Hindu was his secret devotion to Jesus. Even in this I find Swami Vivekananda, Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Bhakta Keshub strike deeper notes than Upadhyaya. We should like to hear more of Upadhyaya who tended the plague stricken at Karachi, who caught rare glimpses of the meaning and beauty of the Incarnated one. Whether he continued a catholic to the end or not to which so much attention is paid in the book - is a matter of minor importance. His attitude to Advaita, Sri Krishna and caste are not so important either. How did he love Jesus? How did his heart warm up to him? On these questions there is tantalizingly very little. Now that justice has been done to his attitude to Hinduism and to his politics there is room for a book which shows how a Hindu steeped in ancient traditions loves the Nazarene. Who will give it to us?

7. Religious Centres in India

(Varanasi), (Benares)

REV. R: C. DAS

The City of Temples

Benares - situated centrally on the broad Ganges left bank in North India and well-connected with the East India Railway - the Holy Ground where death is blessed - a remarkable city of nearly half million souls - is one of the most densely populated cities of India and one of the oldest in the whole world. Some of its special features are:

Scores of dark narrow lanes; hundreds of temples; a hundred bathing ghats; the Buddhist Ruins - where 500 years before Christ the noble Buddha taught and commissioned his disciples and where an energetic modern Buddhist Mission has erected a grand temple, developed other activities and conceived an International University. A large modern Hindu University - founded and nurtured by a leader of rare genius, a man of great piety, with the object of assimilating western sciences into Hindu culture and presided over for long by a scholar and organiser of international repute; above all, the magnificent view of its 5-mile river front, bent like a bow or a crescent crowded with high buildings and comparable to a beehive. Besides being a centre of high political life and social activity Benares can boast of manufacturing ability of no mean order.

Of the population large sections are (1) temporary pilgrims (2) Vanaprasthas who in retirement spend time in devotions, studies and social service (3) Sadhus (saints) and Sanyasis (who have renounced the world) living mostly in monasteries, some being high cultured and foreign travelled. The rest are people engaged in ordinary avocations of life.

All sects of Hinduism - ancient and modern - orthodox and heterodox, different schools of thought and types of religious organisation or Muths are strongly represented. As a shrine and chief centre of pilgrimage Benares is the seat of the cult of Shiva embodied at the Golden Temple and everywhere else, through the phallic symbol. Reinforced by the visit and example of the great Shankaracharya and other prominent founders and scholars of Hinduism - Benares has been attracting ever since the Vedic times millions of pilgrims and seekers every year from the entire length and breadth of India.

A seat of ancient Aryan and Sanskrit learning with many sacred spots where sat saints, poets and authors - surviving the onslaughts of time - Benares is verily the nerve centre the head and heart - of Hinduism, and in a very real sense, unifies and controls almost the entire religious and social polity of Hindu India. From here have radiated throughout India and abroad the light of Vedic Aryan culture and religion. The different sects sometimes warring, have drawn their inspiration and authority from legalistic and spiritual heads of this place. Even sects arising elsewhere have had their order and orthodoxy confirmed by these authorities. Benares is the cradle of Buddhism - a universal and widespread religion. All Hindus whenever any serious disputes arise refer to Benares, which is the Rome of Hinduism. One who studies the historical development of Hinduism in India and the role that Benares has played as the meeting place and final compromise of Aryan Vedism and original Buddhism knows the strategic importance of Benares both for the Hindu religion and life as well as for a new faith and culture that have the ambition of moulding and regenerating the whole of life Indian and Hindu.

The Christian forces in India must produce and prepare men and women who will be qualified, both of head and heart, to meet the real Hindu with the power and grace of the Holy Spirit. For this a penetrating and wide knowledge of Hindu religion and culture is most valuable. Effective methods and spirit of approach must be re-studied and re-discovered. Christians must not cease to pioneer in each age.

Printed by FENN THOMPSON and CO., Vepery, Madras.

Our Contributors

‘Indian Christian Theology’ - Pramanas - by Venerable A.J. Appasamy, Archdeacon of Palamcottah - author of ‘Temple Bells’, ‘Rhe Gospel and Indian Heritage’, etc.

Christian Experiments - by Rev. R.C. Das, founder of Khristpanthi ashrama - head of the institution for the study of Hinduism, Benares - Editor of the ‘Seeker’.

Kingdom of God - by Mrs. J.C. Kibble, Tambaram, Secretary of International Fellowship of Madras.

Kathakali and Reviews - by Priyasishya.

In the September issue we hope to publish articles on Madhwa’s Dwaitism - Psychology of the Hindu Religious Mind, Kingdom of God - among other articles.

Objects and Aims

The objects of the Christian Society for the Study of Hinduism are:

  1. To create and maintain adequate interest in the study of Hinduism by Christians,
  2. To carry on the study in a sympathetic, constructive and critical way for the purpose of effective evangelism and
  3. To achieve the above objects in co-operation with Church and Mission bodies.

The activities of the Society are:

  1. To conduct in Benares and if possible in South Indian centres an Institute of Hinduism stressing its popular aspects,
  2. To publish The Pilgrim a quarterly bulletin, bearing on Hinduism, its relation To Christianity and work among Hindus and
  3. To encourage the organisation of a permanent School of Hinduism.

Every member will receive the Pilgrim free Membership fee Rs. 4 per year

Our Exchange

  1. VEDANTA KESARI
  2. ARYAN PATH
  3. THE THEOSOPHICAL MOVEMENT 8. GUARDIAN:
  4. KALYANA KALPATHARA
  5. KALYANA (HINDI)
  6. SANMARGE
  7. N.C.C. REVIEW
  8. GUARDIAN
  9. THE WAY OF CHRIST

These magazines, have not only readily responded to our request but have sent their greeting as well. We express our thanks and hope that our Fellowship will grow more and more intimate.

Announcement: The Bangalore Conference Continuation 1949

The 3Ist Session of the above conference will be held from September 29th to October 2, 1949 at Tambaram. (S.I.R.)/ Sri P. Chenchiah will lead Bible Studies on “Holy Spirit”.

Papers are expected to be read on the following subjects:

  1. Christian / alternative to Communism by Prof. M. Ratnaswamni.
  2. Second Coming of Christ by Sri. V. Chakkarai.
  3. Is Democracy Suitable for the Christian Church in India by Sri V. Koilpillai.
  4. The trouble in the Christian Church in India by Bhaskara Yesupriya.
  5. The Ideal Christian Home by Nirs. A.N. Sudarisanam.

Friends intending to attend the conference are requested to communicate with the convener, T.P. Gopalasamy, Hermitage, I-A/9, Gopal Street, T. Nagar, Madras.

Note

  1. Subscription for membership to Christian Society for the Study of Hinduism is Rs 4 per annum.
  2. Subscriptions and Applications for membership and donations should be sent to the treasurer:

Dr. C.S. Thoburn, Leonard Theological College, Jabalpur.

Pilgrim is sent free to members of the Society. Complaints as to non-receipt, corrections or change of address and communications about the paper and literary contributions should be sent to:

P. Chenchiah, M.L.
Advocate,
Editor ‘The Pilgrim’,
28, Halls Road,
Egmore, Madras

  1. A Review of a translation in English by Justice A.S.P. Iyar appears in this issue.↩︎

  2. Abridged version of the paper read at Bangalore continuation conference 1948 held at Tinnanur and afterwards published Internation Review of Missions April 1949.↩︎

  3. Abridged version of the paper read at Bangalore Continuation Conference 1948 held at Tinnanur and afterwards published in the Guardian Madras in the issue of - 30th Sept: and 7th Oct: of 1948.↩︎