Source: News on Air
Subject: History
Context: India paid homage to Mahatma Jyotiba Phule on his birth anniversary, with President of India and Prime Minister of India leading tributes at Parliament House.
About Mahatma Jyotiba Phule:
Who He Was?
- Mahatma Jyotiba Phule was a visionary Indian social reformer, activist, and writer who championed the cause of equality for women, laborers, and marginalized castes. He was a staunch critic of the Hindu caste system and is regarded as a foundational figure in India’s social justice movement.
Early Days
- Birth: He was born on April 11, 1827, in the Bombay Presidency (now Maharashtra) to a family of fruit and vegetable farmers belonging to the Mali caste.
- Education: After briefly stopping his studies to work on the family farm, he attended a secondary school run by Scottish Christian missionaries in Pune during the 1840s.
- Influences: He was deeply inspired by Thomas Paine’s Rights of Man, the American anti-slavery movement, and the egalitarian teachings of the Buddha and the mystic poet Kabir.
Contributions to Social and Freedom Movements:
- Education for All: In 1848, he opened one of India’s first schools for lower-caste girls in Pune. He educated his wife, Savitribai Phule, who became the school’s teacher.
- Satyashodhak Samaj: Founded in 1873, the Society of Truth Seekers aimed to unite and uplift Shudras and Dalits, advocating for a social order free from Brahminical dominance.
- Social Reform: He advocated for widow remarriage, opposed child marriage, and established a home for pregnant widows and an orphanage.
- Symbolic Acts: To challenge untouchability, he opened his personal water well to people of all castes, symbolizing his commitment to universal equality.
Literary Works:
- Gulamagiri (Slavery): Published in 1873, this is his most famous work. It presented a scathing attack on the caste system, comparing the oppression of lower castes in India to the enslavement of people in the United States.
- Diverse Mediums: He used books, essays, poems, and plays to publicize his rationalist ideology and call for social justice.
Last Days:
- Title of Mahatma: In 1888, he was honored with the title Mahatma (Great Soul) in recognition of his selfless service to society.
- Illness and Death: He suffered a stroke in 1888 that left him paralyzed. He passed away on November 28, 1890, in Pune at the age of 63.
Significance:
- He broke ancient taboos by prioritizing female literacy and autonomy during a deeply orthodox era.
- His ideological framework provided the foundation for later caste reform movements, including those led by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
