e English translation of the soubriquet ‘Mahatma’, means ‘Great Soul’. In Indian history, this honorific is bestowed upon Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi as ‘Mahatma’ Gandhi. Most historical texts characterize him as an angelic, saintly statesman who could do no wrong. Along with Jawaharlal Nehru, Gandhi is presented as the epitome of Indian nationhood. But this trend has prevailed because the history of the ‘Indian Freedom Struggle’ is principally narrated by the hagiographers of the aforementioned leaders. Any other leader, statesman and freedom fighter was treated as an afterthought in history texts. One such ‘afterthought’—indeed, his name has all but been erased in Indian history textbooks—was a gallant leader, also hailed as a ‘Mahatma.’ He was ‘Mahatma Munshiram’ more famously known as Swami Shraddhanand. For long, the Swami has been portrayed by historians as just a ‘Hindu’ revivalist. But if one goes through the story of his life one will find him to be a living portrait of bravery and sacrifice.
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 12:21:05 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015