Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

“ The British government responded; the act was passed in 1856, and some years after Iswar Chandra's own son was married to a widow. In the last years of his life Iswar Chandra wrote works against Hindu polygamy. He was as well known for his charity and wide philanthropy as for his educational and social reforms. His large income, derived from the sale of school-books, was devoted almost entirely to the succour of the needy; hundreds of young men owed their education to him; hundreds of widows depended on him for their daily bread. ”

“ It is too late to mend matters by patch-works. I am very unwell and am therefore unable to write more.
"Yours sincerely "30th Sept. 72
(Sd.) "Isvar Chandra Sarma" Babu Bihari Lal Sarkar, who has written a very good biography of Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar in Bengali, says:—'It must not be thought that Michael did not wilfully repay Vidyasagar's debts out of any evil motive. In fact, he was quite unable to pay. ”

“ Sd. 'Isvar Chandra Sarma.' The reader is, no doubt, familiar with the name of the saintly Ram Krishna Paramahansa, whose purity of manners, honesty of purpose, and pious conduct had drawn to him many disciples. He was fond of the company of pious and honest persons. One day he said to his disciples that he wanted to have an interview with the famous Vidyasagar. His disciples asked him why he so wished. He replied, because without God's love and divine grace, Vidyasagar could not have been so great. Accordingly he presented himself one evening before our hero. ”

“ As a literary man he had no equal in Bengal, until the genius of Bankim Chandra came to be recognized at a later date; as a philanthropist and a benevolent helper of the poor and the needy, Vidyasagar stands in the highest rank achieved by any man in any age or country. The princely income derived from his books was devoted to the relief of suffering and distress; hundreds of poor widows owed him their maintenance; hundreds of helpless orphans owed him their education. His name became a household word in Bengal; the rich and the poor loved him alike ”

“ The literature of Bengal, previous to the 19th century, was entirely in verse. Ram Mohan Roy, the religious reformer of Bengal, created the literary prose of Bengal early in the 19th century by his numerous translations and religious tracts; and Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar and his fellow-worker, Akhay Kumar Datta, added to its power and beauty about the middle of that century. These three writers are generally recognized as the fathers of Bengali prose literature. As a social reformer and educationist, too, Iswar Chandra made his mark. ”

“ In one part of the paper, he said;—'We begin a thing, but never finish it; we make a great show, but never do anything; what we commence we do not believe; what we believe, we never perform; we can compose largest sentences, but we cannot sacrifice self in the least.' The Hon'ble President, in deep despondency, said;—'I see no harm in that we have failed to erect a monument; Vidyasagar himself is engraved in the heart of every native of Bengal.' This was no doubt an expression of helpless consolation arising out of heart-rending disappointment. ”

“ The language of the book is as plain, melodious, and elegant as that of his former productions.
Some might insinuate that, instead of narrating and illustrating the lives of good and great men of the country, he went to seek for them in foreign lands. But it should be borne in mind, that Vidyasagar had the very liberal views of a real Hindu. He was not prejudiced against any nation, country, or religion. He appreciated merits, wherever he found them. Besides, there can be no objection or harm in trying to imitate the virtues of a man, though he be of a different nation or religion. ”

“ It so happened that, one day, when the Raja Bahadur was washing his face and hands after dinner, Vidyasagar passed by him, on his way to Ananda Krishna Babu. The Raja Bahadur caught a glimpse of him, and enquired of a relation who was near by;—'Who is that stout and strong, handsome Brahman youth, who passed by us? His very appearance indicates that he is a man of uncommon genius. Send for him at once.' Vidyasagar immediately appeared before the Raja Bahadur, who heard from him everything connected with his life. ”

“ Stubbornness was one of the principal features of Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar's character, and it was conspicuously visible in most of his acts. Stubbornness generates fixedness of purpose. It was for this reason that Stephen Gerard employed under him men of stubborn character. Isvar Chandra had a great fixedness of purpose. Whatever he handled, whether good or bad, he never left undone or half-done.
Thakurdas could not grasp the real purport of his father's jest. ”

“ After the acquisition of the lands, he would not receive Isvar Chandra's stipend money, but directed his son to spend a portion of it in buying manuscript copies of rare and valuable Sanskrit books. Isvar Chandra procured many such manuscripts, and they are still to be found in his library.
Nor was this all. The heart of Isvar Chandra was as soft, as his mind was strong. He was kind and sympathetic, and always eager to relieve the distrest. He was a lover of mankind. His small heart was the seat of unbounded love and kindness. ”

“ Vidyasagar regarded Madan Mohan as if he was his own brother, and always sought for opportunities to do him a good turn. It was mainly through Vidyasagar's exertions that his friend, Madan Mohan, obtained the situation of Head Pandit in the Calcutta Bengali Pathsala. After this, when the latter was acting as Head Pandit of the Barasat Government School, a teacher was required in the Fort William College to teach Hindu Law to the civilians. At the instance of Vidyasagar, Madan Mohan Tarkalankar was appointed to the post on a monthly salary of forty rupees. ”

“ The fame of Isvar Chandra's extraordinary talents, uncommon powers, and great proficiency in Sanskrit, soon spread throughout the length and breadth of the country, and many persons came forward with proposals of marriage, offering their daughters as brides to Isvar Chandra. At last, the marriage was definitely settled with a daughter of one Satrughna Bhattacharya, a well-to-do Brahman of Khirpai. ”

“ About this time Narayan Chandra so much offended him that he was compelled to cut up all connection with the erring son. Dinamayi Devy felt the unnatural separation most keenly and tried to effect a reconciliation without success. The offence must have been serious seeing that it dried up the fount of parental affection from such a large heart as that of Vidyasagar. He whose eyes brimmed over with tears at the slightest distress of strangers must have had good reason when he became so severe towards his only son. Yet he always gave willing aid to the wife and children of Narayan Chandra. ”

“ The difficulties and troubles rather served to encourage him the more. He has shown to the world that poverty is no hindrance to the attainment of an object. He has left an unparalleled example of noble heroism for the poverty-stricken. With such a precedent before one's eyes, one cannot lose heart, even under most adverse circumstances.
When Isvar Chandra was reading in the second year class of the Belles-lettres department, his younger brother, Dina Bandhu, [4] came to Calcutta to prosecute his studies in the Sanskrit College. ”

“ It is said that at the time of his death, he could leave only 15 or 16 thousand rupees. There can be no doubt, that but for his liberal charities he could have amassed and left lakhs of rupees. He made no provisions in his Will for the worship of Hindu gods and goddesses, which clearly indicated which way the wind blew. On the 13th July, 1875, Vidyasagar married his third daughter, Binodini Devi, to Suryya Kumar Adhikari B. A., a graduate of the Calcutta University. ”

“ Such was Satrughna Bhattacharya, the father of the fair girl, Dinamayi, who was married to Isvar Chandra. But we have digressed too long, and it is now proper, that we should resume the thread of our narrative.
At the age of fifteen, Isvar Chandra entered the Rhetoric class. Premchand Tarkavagis was the teacher of this class. He was equally erudite in grammar, language, and rhetoric, and taught the three subjects equally well. Most of his pupils attained great proficiency in Sanskrit. Of all the Students of this class, Isvar Chandra was the youngest in age, but the best in proficiency. ”

“ On a previous occasion, while his mother was still living, the Brahmans of Benares asked him whether he believed in Visvesvara (the god Siva of Benares) . Vidyasagar replied,—'I have no faith in your Visvesvara.' The Brahmans were highly offended at such a reply from a Hindu, and asked him,—'What do you believe in then?' Vidyasagar answered,—'My Visvesvara and Annapurna (another name of goddess Durga, Siva's wife) are my father and mother, present here in flesh.' Here was some indication of his religious faith. ”

“ In an age when Bengali language was still in its infancy, when standard books for children were in great request, he thought that the writing of primers would bring about profound and lasting results. There were others to produce works of the highest ability and interest. The memory of authors like Bankim Chandra Chatterji and Dinabandhu Mitra would remain fresh through the ages. To do the greatest good to the greatest number was Vidyasagar's main object. He created a style of his own, lucid, chaste, sweet, laconic, and is regarded by qualified critics as the father of Bengali prose. ”

“ It is said, that on one occasion, he was walking to Calcutta, as usual, from Birsingha. When he reached a field, he saw an old cultivator standing there with a load on his head. The load was too heavy for the old man, and the old man was too weak to walk with the load. On enquiry, Vidyasagar learned from him that his house was 5 or 6 miles from the place, and that his son, who was a young man, had charged him to carry the load home. The sight of the poor, old man's condition, and the tale of his son's conduct moved Vidyasagar's kind heart, and tears flowed in torrents from his eyes. ”

“ He had, in his house, a young widowed daughter, and he was determined to give her in marriage. He had secured favourable opinions of Pandits from different parts of the country, and, at last, asked for the opinions of the Pandits of Nuddea, who gave quite contrary opinions, Raja Raj Ballabh had, therefore, to give up his project. Some 19 or 20 years before Vidyasagar's agitation, a Mahratta Brahman of Nagpore in the Central Provinces of India, started a movement on the subject, but without success. ”

“ Form this, it is apparent that Vidyasagar was not well disposed towards the Hindu system of joint family. It was not his innate fault. It was his English education that produced in him this failing. It was his want of insight that led him to meddle with the customs of Hindu Society, which is self-evident from the dismemberment of his joint family. The practice of the Hindu in his own household, in his dealings with Society, and in everything else is conducive to the attainment of spiritual knowledge. ”

“ By degrees, they formed an intimate friendship, which ripened with their age and made them very closely united. In later years, whenever Vidyasagar attemped at, or began, a noble, benevolent deed, Madan Mohan was always by his side, lending a helping hand with all his zeal and ardour. In some cases the two were found to be equally eager and interested, and it would than be very difficult to distinguish the principal from the assistant. Vidyasagar's friendship was always sincere and uniform. He could never be apathetic to one whom he had once loved. ”

“ Isvar Chandra was fearless and enthusiastic from his very childhood.
Both father and son started on foot, and after walking a distance of more than twelve miles, came to village Patul, where they lodged for that day. This first day Isvar Chandra felt no difficulty. The next morning, they started for Ramnagar, a village twelve miles off from Patul. Annapurna, a younger sister of Thakurdas's, had been married to a respectable Brahman of Ramnagar. ”

“ Like her father, Satrughna, she was a woman of uncommon spirit, and magnanimity of heart. If ever she wanted her husband for a thing, and he refused it to her, she would be highly piqued. But Vidyasagar was equally strong-minded, and he would not care for her piquancy. ”

“ Vidyasagar's mother wrote to him desiring his presence home at the marriage of his younger brother Sambhu Chandra. When he applied for leave of absence Mr. Marshal did not see his way to grant it. Next day he renewed his efforts, intimating that he would rather give up the post than make his mother unhappy. ”

“ In this way he walked over the village, day and night, distributing alms. He helped with money those poor persons of higher classes, who felt ashamed to beg in public. A rumour, therefore, had got up in the neighbourhood, that Vidyasagar was immensely rich. The foolish could form no idea of the greatness of his heart. They had not the power to comprehend, that a philanthropic, liberal man spends every pice that he earns for the succour of the needy. The robbers got scent of the rumour, and had also the information, that Vidyasagar was come home from Calcutta with a good, round sum of money. ”

“ What is considered to be a fault in ordinary men, turns to good account in the case of those who are gifted with extraordinary talents. Such was the case with Isvar Chandra. He was zealous, enthusiastic, and obstinate. He chose to be guided by nobody but his own will. He did not care for what other people said or would say. Menaces and threats, or even punishment, could not move him a single step from his design. If his father told him to change his dirty clothes and put on clean ones, he would act quite the contrary. If his father told him to bathe, he would never do it. ”