Swami Dayanand & Satyarth Prakash

Swami Dayanand & Satyarth Prakash (Light of Truth)

e-Symposium

Dedicated to Giani Dit Singh (1853 - 1901) An eminent scholar, a versatile poet, and a prolific writer gifted with profound wisdom, discerning intellect and wit. Giani Dit Singh was the leading light of the Singh Sabha Movement

Swami Dayananda (1825-1883) was a “giant figure” of the nineteenth century British-India. He is the founder of Arya Samaj. The nineteenth century Punjab started off with a new era full of hope and peace under the kingship of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. This was a significant event considering the centuries of persecution and bloodshed that had plagued the Punjab landscape under the onslaughts of foreign forces both pre-Islamic and Islamic. For roughly four decades, people of Punjab truly experienced a climate of peace and they thereby demonstrated the reservoir to freely interact and live at peace with their neighbors—a fine example of a true pluralistic society. After 1839, upon Ranjit Singh’s death, the ruling family and its elite propelled in a rapid downward spiral, as a result of which by 1849, a breed of new foreigners entered and colonized Punjab: the British administration, Christian missionaries by the busload, and the Bengali Babus--collectively changing the ruling mantle.

Punjabis in general and Sikhs in particular were unprepared to face these new ruling actors. While the East India Company was consolidating its powers, the Christian missions opened new evangelical centers, and the Bengali Babus were pitching in to spread the gospel of modern Hinduism. This was simply too much for Punjabis to handle. Their lives were about to change irremediably: Punjab was set up for the next wave of ideological invasion. It started off with Swami Dayananda’s infamous journey to Punjab. With roughly three decades of western education, Christianity, and a new set of circumstances, the Punjabis had no inkling what was in store for them with this new man on the horizon. This debate will explore that. Swami’s itinerary in Punjab is listed here: (taken from: Life & Teachings of Swami Dayanand by Bawa Chhajju Singh)

Ludhiana March 31, 1877 April 19, 1877 Lahore April 19, 1877 July 5, 1877 Amritsar July 5, 1877 August 17, 1877 Gurdaspur August 17, 1877 August 26, 1877 Amritsar August 26, 1877 September 13, 1877 Jullundhar September 13, 1877 October 17, 1877 Lahore October 17, 1877 October 26, 1877 Ferozepur October 26, 1877 November 5, 1877 Lahore November 5, 1877 November 7, 1877 Rawalpindi November 8, 1877 December 26, 1877 Jhelum December 27, 1877 January 13, 1878 Gujrat January 13, 1878 February 2, 1878 Wazirabad February 2, 1878 February 7, 1878 Gujranwala February 7, 1878 March 3, 1878 Lahore March 3, 1878 March 12, 1878 Multan March 12, 1878 April 16, 1878 Lahore April 17, 1878 May 15, 1878 Amritsar May 15, 1878 July 11, 1878 Jullundhar July 1878 July 1878 Ludhiana July 1878 July 1878

A

t Amritsar, until September 13, 1877, the Swami stayed in a posh house near the Ram Bagh Gate as a guest of Sardar Dayal Singh of Majithia. The reader should take note from the itinerary that Swami stayed at Amritsar off and on for a good amount of time. You would at least expect Swami to have paid a visit to the Golden Temple. But he didn’t. Why is that important? In his Satyarth Prakash, (page 393) Swami’s own version of the Bible, he recorded this about Amritsar and the Golden Temple in a question-answer format:

Q.--- The lake at Amritsar is verily nectar itself. One half of a fruit of Sapindus Detergens is sweet (whilst the other half is bitter)…. Are these things also not worthy of belief? A.--- No. that lake in Amritsar (Amrit—nectar, sar—lake) only. When the place (where the town of Amritsar is situated) was a jungle, the water must have been good and sweet, hence it was named Amritsar (lake) or a lake of sweet water. Had it been real nectar, no one (as held by the followers of the Puranas) ought to have died there….

While staying at Amritsar, Swami could have easily walked or taken a simple ride for a short distance to the Golden Temple to examine for himself his answer about the water. Or he could have verified whether his version of how Amritsar was named was indeed correct. Having failed to do so underscores his tragic lack of willingness to double check his version of facts. His narcissistic personality coupled with willful negligence and refusal to listen to others with opposing points of views sowed the seeds of inter-religious distrusts that finally axed Punjab. So many educated Punjabi Hindus instead of mounting effective countermeasures against him actually fell into his trap. The tragedy was double. Not only did Swami, a Gujarati man, fool the educated Hindu Punjabi elite, they reciprocated by following the dictates of self-destruction. This is the first time an open skeptical inquiry is being held on the Swami. Making sure the debate is balanced I contacted who’s who of the Arya Samajists, inviting them for the purpose that they might wish to support the views of their savior Swami. A number of Arya Samajists were cordial and helped me earnestly to find someone within their ranks who could just do that: defend Swami’s bizarre outpourings against Guru Nanak, Guru Gobind Singh, and the Sikhs in general. To date, no Arya Samajist has come forward to debate this topic in the e-Symposium. Swami’s visit to Punjab brought forth another facet. He noticed that Punjab was in the clutches of the Christian missionaries and with the meager exception of some rudimentary Hindu groups trying to counter them, the rest of the masses were blissfully sleeping. Swami’s prescriptions to counter the missionaries were overshadowed by other communal forces that he himself unleashed in Punjab. What transpired between Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs etc. during the years after Swami’s departure are not under discussion here. Nor is the discussion of Swami’s hijacking of the Vedas via his concocted methodologies. In much fashion of our scrutiny, this debate’s parameter encircles Swami’s Punjab related activities and in particular analysis of his caustic remarks against the Sikh Gurus. Our inquiry is important for another reason that two biographies of the Swami authored by Lala Rajpat Rai The Arya Samaj, An account of its Aims, Doctrine and Activities with a Biographical Sketch of the Founder (1915), and Bawa Chhajju Singh’s, Life and Teachings of Swami Dayananda (1903), both Punjabi authors and both quite possibly connected with Sikh backgrounds totally ignored to spell a word of Swami’s remarks against the Sikh Gurus. In order to fully grasp the contents of this e-Symposium I urge readers to read the materials presented in the following sequence.

1. Swami’s Literature & Satyarth Prakash by G.B. Singh

2. Guru Nanak & Sikhs as Perceived by Swami Dayananda: A Commentary by G.B. Singh

3. Evaluating Dayanand's Views on Guru Nanak & the Sikhs by Dr. Baldev Singh

4. Undermining of Guru Nanak by Prof. Devinder Singh Chahal et al.

5. Language and Script of the Aad Guru Granth Sahib by Prof. Devinder Singh Chahal

6. Dayananda Saraswati: A Prophet of Modern Hinduism by G.B. Singh

Article By

S.G.B. Singh