Why is Raja Ram Mohan Roy famous ?

He realised that while traditional texts like Vedas, Upanishads and Quran provided him with much reverence for philosophy, his knowledge was lacking in scientific and rational education.

He advocated the introduction of an English Education System in the country teaching scientific subjects like Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and even Botany.

He paved the way to revolutionizing education system in India by establishing Hindu College in 1817 along with David Hare which later went on to become one of the best educational institutions in the country producing some of the best minds in India.

His efforts to combine true to the roots theological doctrines along with modern rational lessons saw him establish the Anglo-Vedic School in 1822 followed by the Vedanta College in 1826.

Ram Mohan Roy vehemently opposed the unnecessary ceremonialism and the idolatry advocate by priests.

Raja Ram Mohan Roy is considered as the pioneer of modern Indian Renaissance for the remarkable reforms he brought in the 18th and 19th century India.

He had studied religious scriptures of different religions and advocated the fact that Hindu Scriptures like Upanishads upheld the concept of monotheism.

Among his efforts, the abolition of the brutal and inhuman Sati Pratha was the most prominent. His efforts were also instrumental in eradicating the purdah system and child marriage.

This began his quest for a religious revolution to introduce the doctrines of ancient Vedic scriptures true to their essence.

In 1828, Ram Mohan Roy formed the Brahmo Samaj, uniting the Bhramos in Calcutta, a group of people, who had no faith in idol-worship and were against the caste restrictions.

He founded the Atmiya Sabha in 1928, nd the first meeting of this new-found religion as held on August 20 that year.

The title 'Raja' was bestowed upon him by the Mughal emperor Akbar II, in 1831. Roy visited England as an ambassador of the Mughal King to ensure that Bentick's regulation banning the practice of Sati was not overturned. He died of meningitis in 1833 while residing in Bristol, England.

The Atmiya Sabha reorganised itself into the Brahma Sabha, a precursor organisation of the Brahmo Samaj.

Early Life and Education

Raja Ram Mohan Roy was born on August 14, 1774 to Ramakanta Roy and Tarini Devi in Radhanagar village of Hoogly district, Bengal Presidency.

The primary facets of this new movement were monotheism, independence from the scriptures and renouncing the caste system.

Brahmo religious practices were stripped bare of the Hindu ceremonialism and were set up following the Christian or Islamic prayer practices.

His father was a wealthy Brahmin and orthodox individual, and strictly followed religious duties. At the age of 14 Ram Mohan expressed his desire to become a monk, but his mother vehemently opposed the idea and he dropped it.

time, the Brahma Samaj became a strong progressive force to drive social reforms in Bengal, especially women education.

Following the traditions of the time, Ram Mohan had a child marriage at age nine but his first wife died soon after the marriage.

Ram Mohan Roy was a staunch supporter of free speech and expression. He fought for the rights of vernacular press.

e was married for a second time at ten and had two sons from the marriage. After the death of his second wife in 1826, he married for a third time and his third wife outlived him.

He also brought out a newspaper in Persian called 'Miratul- Akhbar' (the Mirror of News) and a Bengali weekly called 'Sambad Kaumudi' (the Moon of Intelligence).

Though his father Ramakanto was very orthodox but wanted his son to pursue higher education. He got Bengali and Sanskrit education from the village school.

In those days, items of news and articles had to be approved by the Government before being published.

Ram Mohan protested against this control by arguing that newspapers should be free and that the truth should not be suppressed simply because the government did not like it.