A SEA OF KNOWLEDGE, AN OCEAN OF WARMTH...
Born 200 years ago on 26th september, 1820, Ishwarchandra Bandopadhyay (honorifically titled and popularly recalled as 'Vidyasagar' ) was a Bengali polymath whose wide-ranging academic and social efforts resulted in -
1. modernization of the Bengali alphabet and printing type/font,
2. popularization of the Bengali text and simplification of sentence-construction in bengali, as a means of communication alternative to pedantic Sanskrit , and
3. establishment and nurturing of several schools for girls, often with his own money.
However, in collective memory, Vidyasagar is largely remembered for his strong lobbying of the colonial govt in favour of enacting the Hindu remarriage act of 1855, as a means to improve the legal/social status of widows. A keen observer with a mighty heart and unparalleled tenacity, Vidyasagar noticed how socio-religious conventions would 'condemn' widows to a lifelong bondage of austerities after the death of their (often much-older) husbands . Tagged as inauspicious, they would be demoted as in-house labourers who must work extra hard every day and eat only frugal meals as part of endless lists of penances, and also be easy prey for sexual harassment . A no-nonsense man whose only beacon was humanity, Vidyasagar made it his mission to end this oppression.
Much like the social activists of today's India, Vidyasagar - an outstanding Sanskrit scholar but non-ritualistic (probably agnostic) brahmin - ran into severe opposition from the brutally orthodox sections of Bengali society for his efforts. While Vidyasagar's petition gathered 987 signatories, the orthodoxy's counter-petition collected 36,763 signatures! By sheer votes, Vidyasagar would have lost 37-times! The Company govt however took an enlightened legal view and it was passed. Of course, Vidyasagar was slandered, ostracized and there was at least one attempt on his life....Interestingly, his unflinching secular stand in public matters and well-known criticism of religious orthodoxy makes it difficult for religion-based politics to make him a icon even today....
Vidyasagar's efforts did not directly change the lot of lakhs of widows (cos, after all, society is kind-of autonomous from what the law says...) , but certainly contributed to the ideals of liberalism of the Bengali Renaissance and are still fondly held as a moral-compass by millions. In his latter life, Vidyasagar - embittered by personal problems and glaring social hypocrisies - left 'elite calcutta' and found solace among the Santhals of rural bengal....
In today's Bengali society, Vidyasagar is a 'modern-day god', seated on the same pedestal as Tagore, Vivekananda, Nazrul, Chittaranjan, Rammohan and Netaji. Every bengali child starts his/her education with a copy of Vidyasagar's 'barnaparichay' - which has been inducted into the formal 'hate khori' (alphabet-writing) ceremony! To put it bluntly, most bengalis today havent read much of Tagore, but everyone has read Vidyasagar. For the last century and half, he has been the first of our teachers. And, just like the man himself, the textbooks have almost zero religion and rituals. They are a unique combo of simple essays and stories on kindness, honesty and ethics that every child should learn.
But its not only the textbook. Vidyasagar-anecdotes (not always historically authentic) are a staple part of Bengali growing-up. He is habitually garlanded at least once a year, irrespective of whether we have imbibed his core ideals or not ! Hence, it is no wonder that the wanton destruction of his statue during the buildup to last year's elections triggered an especially strong outrage in Calcutta. If nothing else, it showed his enduring popularity in the collective Bengali mindset.
A superb biopic from 1950, starring Pahari Sanyal in his most famous role, is a must-watch. In our times, such a movie would have been banned for the faithful depiction of how Vidyasagar had 'hurt our sentiments'. do watch it, if you havent.
(pics: the www)
