CHAPrER - III

THE SOCIO-RELIGIOUS CONCEPTS OF DEROZIO

142

CHAPTER - III

THE SOCIO-RELIGIOUS CONCEPTS OF DEROZIO

Indian society was in a state of transition. The

moot question of the day was whether the modernization of

the society was to take place along western line or along

the line of RammohU:n Roy, who proposed a synthesis between

the East and the west. In this transitional period Derozio

wanted to spread western, particularly English ideas. This

was his primary intellectual commitment.

1. Sources of Derozio's Socio-Religious Concepts : Derozio

And western Philosophers :

Derozio was largely inspired by Francis Bacon • s

( 1561--1626) philosophy. Bacon stood for what was a revolt

against scholasticism. He advocated sound and solid learning,

particularly scientific learning, in place of matters and

studies of far inferior importance. He held that thirst

after knowledge was the thrust to human progress. He eulogised

the role of natural science in the advancement of knowledge

and c1~aved after power over nature. His works, especially

'Advancement of Learning', are worthy to be called classical.

His Novum Organum (1620) embodied his scientific views, and

New At~lantis ( 1624) set forth scientific utopia. 1

He

1. Barlingay, S .S. & Kulkarni, Padma B. A Critical Surv~ Of western Philosophy, pp. 21-2 2; Also Cottchalk, Louis, and Lach, Donald The Rise of Mooern Europe, Vol. I, pp. 334-335.

143

revolted agairu;t submission to tradition which had become

static and stale. He shared this attitude with Descartes,

though the latter's zeal was philosophic while that of

Bacon was scientific. Further, like Descartes, Bacon

recommended a fresh start for knowledge - beginning with

doubt and not with certainties. He maintained doubt to be the

first step on the way to truth. la Again, he was against the

method of speculation used by the schoolrnen. He wanted to

create a new mansion of natural sciences, based on obser-

vation and experiment. In his Novum Organ\1!!! he did not accept

the methods of classical scientists who fitted particular

facts into the general proposition and thus greatly relied

on theori~ing. He advocated the "inductive method 11, i.e.

the collection of facts first from which general propositions

could then be forrnulated.lb Finally, Bacon's time marked a

transitional period when minds of men were being disentangled

from the church. Alt:hough in Bacon's religious views there

was the sovereignty of faith, particularly the acceptance

of revelation and submission to God • s will, in his scientific

lc views there was a reign of reason. In order to remove

la. Barlingay, s.s. & Kulkarni, Padma B., loc. cit., p. 22.

lb. Barlingay, s.s. et al. pp. 23 & 25. Also Gottchalk ., Louis and Lach, Donald, op. cit.,pp. 334~

335. lc. Barlingay, 0.~. et al., pp. 23 & 28.

144

the impediments .in the way of acquiring knowledge Bacon

prescribed to a scientist a whole course of purging the mind

of different prejudices which he called 11 idols 11 .ld He had

given a list of qualifications necessary for a scientist

while he described his own capacities. 1e Here he virtually

took a critical view of the theological assertion that faith

and the church were the only source of truth. He thus esta-

blished a new cr;Lterion of truth, divested of theological

assertions.

Derozio shared the Baconian idea of fresh knowledge

as th-e driving force of human progress. In an address to

the students he wrote : "As your knowledge increases,

moral principles will be fortified and rectitude of conduct

ld. Barlingay, s.s. et al. p. 24.

le. Ba.con held :

'I was fitted for nothing so well as the study of

truth, a mind nimble and versatile enough to catch the

rBsemblances of things and at the same time steady

enough to fix and distinguish their subtler differences;

as being gifted by nature with desire to seek, patience

to doubt, fondnes.:; to meditate, slowness to assert,

readiness to recon::;ider, carefulness to dispose and

sE!t in order and as being a man that neither affects

·what. is new nor ctdmires what is olu and hates every

klno at imposture.• -

Br.trl.inyay, ;.;...;.;;. 01 i:(LLJ.karni, Pacirna b. A Criticdl .;,urvey

uf Nester~ ~h'l- · t p 30 ---- . .L u-.,~, • •

145

will. ensure happiness ... 2

As it is reflected in his Sonnet

"To My Pupils" {1829) 2a, he fondly wished that the new

learning was to shed new perceptions upon their mind,

emancipating them from the spell that bound their intellec-

3 tual energies and powers. It may appear from a "Sonnet"

{ 1830) 4 to the students that he felt a strong hope that the

studeni:P he trained would help the resuscitation of India's

greatness in fui:ure by removing the gloom caused by the

tyranny of the priests. 5 He composed a 11Sonnet on the

2. Derozio, H.L.V., "Conclusion Of My Address ~.o My Students Before The Grdnt Vacation In 1829 .. , in "Thoughts On Various Subje:cts", The Calcutta Literary Gazette, January 3, 1835; Also Sengupta, PallaQ_, Jharer Pakhi : Kabi Derozio (Bengali, 3rd edition), p. 104.

2a.The Sonnet, "To My Pupils" was printed in the Kaleidos­c_ope No. I, 1829 under the pen name "D" 1 The Kaleidoscope No. 1, 1829, reprinted in Chattopadhyay, Gautam, (ed} Bengal : Early Nineteen century (Selected Documents): p. 5. But the Sonnet was printed by most writers under the caption, "Sonnet to the Pupils of Hindu College".

3. The sonnet "T'o My Pupils" in the Appenaix- I. pp. 716-717.

4. DE~rozio, H.L.V. 11 Sonnet" (March 8, 1830), The Poetical Works of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio (Mr. owen Aratoon's edition), p. 64. The Sonnet was dedicated to those students of the Hindu College who originated and carried into effect the proposal for procuring a portrait of David Hare. The Sonnet in the Appendix - I. P• 717.

5. David Kopf observes : "As is reflected in the ••• Sonnet, hE~ felt a deterministic optimism that the students he trained would help direct India's course towards the se~cular millennium"- Kopf, David, British Orientalism ~1d Bengal Renaissance, The Dynamics Of Indian Moderni­~ltion, 177 3·-1835, p. 256.

146

Philosophy of Bacon". In the Sonnet he welcomed Bacon's

scientific and secular ideal of truth. 6

He thus sought to

emancipate the mind of his pupils from medieval· scholastic

and r'eligious tradition. He believed that herein lay the

sprin9 of India 1 s progress.

Thomas Paine • s (1757-1809) 'Age of Reason' (1807) was

popular among Derozio 's students and disciples. The book

brought about a virtual revolution in the field of religious

thought in France and England. It sought to discredit

authority and tradition outright and raised a storm of dis-

approval in both the places. It openly challenged the validity

of accepted social systems and ala.rmed the prejudices of

orthodox men in t.he country. It questioned the validity of

archaic religious ideas and outworn social institutions. It

sough·t to justify everything in te.rms of reason 7 • Paine 1 s

rational spirit, it is likely, inspired a number of Derozio's

students.

One may contend that Derozio was an atheist. There

might be some arguments in favour of the contention. Once

in 1826 Derozio remarked : "I am cut out for anything but

6. De:r:ozio, H.L.V. "Sonnet on the Philosophy of Bacon 11 ,

pr:Lnted in the Calcutta Gazette, March 21, 1829, .Reprinted in Shah ,B .B. (ed.) The Poetical Works Of !:!!.!1ry Louis Vivian Derozio, Vol. I, p. 162, Also Appendix, I. pp. 709-710.

7. Mustafi, ~shoke, "Thomas Paine And Young Bengal: The Calcutta Review, February, 1962, pp. 143-I4•l.

147

8 the pulpit". In the will for the disposal of family and

individual property he wrote on December 23, 1831, just

three days before his death, 9 there was no declaration of

solemn oath in the name of God. 10

The death- bed scene closed

with the recitat:ion of the second book of Campbell's

Pleasures of Hopt:_" 11 but not with the reading out of the

texts from the Bible. The story of the death- bed recanta­

tion of his infidelity remains challenged. 12 It can not be

8. Derozio, H .L .. v. "Torn out leaves of a Scarp Book" (beginning with-11 Li terature in India Promises"), The India Gazette, July 17, 1826, reprinted in The Calcutta Review, Vol. 75, 1882, p. 217.

9. According to E. w. Madge, Derozio died <¥ cholera on Monday, December 26, 1831 and not [on 23rd as stated by Thomas Edwards],Madge, E.w., !:,!enry-Derozio.L.!!!~ Eurasian Poet And Reformer (ed) by Raychoudhuri,Subir, p. 15. This view is accepted by Bandopadhyay, B.N. (ed), Sambad Patre ~kaler Katha (Bengali), Vol. 2, p. 32.

10. Sarkar, Nikhil, "Derozior Sesh Ichhapatra", De, Rama Prasad (ed.) Derozio (Bengali), p. 10~.

11. Edwards, Thomas, Henry Derozio, The Eurasian Poet, ~eacher And Journalist, p. 167.

12. Thomas Edwards cited the testimony of Mohesh Chunder

Ghosh who was present when Rev. Mr. Hill visited

D•~rozio in a last effort to reclaim the lost sheep.

Mahesh Chunder Ghose, Edwards argues, had every

incentive to present Derozio as a Christian but

always denied the story of death-bed recantation

(Edwards, Thomas, op. cit., pp. 125-126) spread by

Rev. Hill an~ repeated later by E.W. Madge

(M,adge, E.w. op. cit., pp. 15 - 16).

148

safely said that the poem, 11 A Dramatic Sketch 11 reflects

Derozio's belief in God.12

a

But what Derozio sought to impress upon the mind of his

pupils was David Hume's (1711-1776) scepticism. It may

be conjectured that Derozio was imbubed with David

Hume • :s scepticism as interpreted by his teacher, David

Drummond, who was suspected to be a sceptic and follower of the

Scottish philosopher.However,in his letter to H.H. Wilson

dated April 26, 1831, he denied the charge of atheism brought

against him and defended scepticism in a somewhat diplo-

matic manner. He wrote that he had never denied the exis-

tence of God in the hearing of any human being. But he found

it not:hing wrong ·to open discussion on such a subject. He

was nE!ither afraid nor ashamed to confess having stated the

doubts of philosophers upon the God-head, because he had

also stated the solution of these doubts. He held that if it

was forbidden anywhere to argue upon such a question it must

be equally wrong to adduce an argument upon either side.

12a. Derozio, H.L .. V. "A Dramatic Sketch", The Poetical Works Qf Henry Louis Vivian Derozio , Vol. I, ed. by Shah,

B.B., pp. 15~~-160; Also Appendix- I. PP• 729-731 .. As it is :t:eflected in the poem, 11 A Dramatic Sketch", the poet in a romantic mood dreams solitude and bliss in a realm far away fromthis world, ~hich is as if Godly or divine. It is noteworthy that this poetic vision of unearthly bliss out of romantic spirit, though welcomed by the 11 Devotee", is regarded by the "Follower" as R wild fancy deadenin~ one's fellow-feeling and love of this pr.:ictic;a1 world.·

149

He did not think it consistent with an enlightened notion

of truth to wed tnemselves to only one view of so important

a subject, resolving to close their eyes and ears against

d 1 . 13

the impressions t:hat oppose themse ves to ~t.

He described his students as 11 youths peculiarly cir-

cumstanced11• He did not describe the circumstances, but he

probably wanted t:o argue that his teachings were calculated

to improve the mental condition of his students. He wanted

to remove what he referred to as their 11 contented ignorance. 11

He thought that he would have made them 11 pert and ignorant

dogmatists 11 by permitting them to know what would be said

upon only one side of such a grave question.14

11 Doubt and uncertainty 11, he added, 11 besiege us too

closely to admit the boldness of dogmatism to enter an

enquiring mind11• He recited Francis Bacon's famous saying

"If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in

doubt 11•

15

He, therefore, thought it his duty to acquaint several

of the college st~udents with the substance of Hume 's cele-

b-rated dialogue t>etween Cleanthes and Philo in which the most

----------------·------------------------------------------------13. t:;.dwards, 'I'homas, Henry Derozio, The Eurasian Poet,

.TeacherAno ,Journalist, pp. 82-83.

14. l oid, p. 83.

15. Ibiu,pp. 83-84.

150

subtle and refined arguments against theism are adduced but

he also furnished them with Dr. [Thomas] Reid's (1710-1796)

and Dugald Stewart's (1753-1796) more acute replies to

16 Hume. He thus taught his students to debate and doubt the

exist:ence of Godhead in an artful manner, thereby unhinging

their mind from the traditional moorings of the day.

Derozio' s objections to the philosophy of Immanuel

Kant (1724-1804) are noteworthy. In the present state of

our knowledge we cannot definitely say what were points of

Derozio•s contention. Dr. Mill, the distinguished Sanskrit

Scholar, and one of the most learned and able Principals of

the old Bishop's (Middleton) College, declared before a large

public assembly 11 that the objections, which Derozio pub-

lishe~d to the philosophy of Kant, were perfectly original,

and displayed pO'.Yers of reasoning and observation which would.

not disgrace even gifted philosophers. 1117 Kant was a ratio-

nalist and an idealist. Nevertheless, in his "critique of

practical Reason11' (1788}, Kant argued that freedom of the

Will, immortality, and the existence of God must be assumed

as "postulates of pure practical reason" in order to provide

------------------------------------------------------------16 • I bid, p • 84· •

17. Ibid, p. 40; Also Shah, B.B. (ed.). The Poetical

Works Of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio,Vol. I,

introduction, p. iv; The Oriental Mdgazine {No.10),

Vol. I, 0cc.ober, H:l43, p. 377; Mddge, E.w., op. cit.,

p. 7.

151

a foundation for moral law and moral action.18

Kant speaks

of the universal1 ty of moral principles. 19

According to Kant,

a will, which acts for the sake of duty, is a good will.20

It

21 must not be determined by interests. It must be autonomous.

we cannot regard ourselves as making universal laws, as

morally autonomous, save under the idea of freedom. 22

Kant

23 speaks of the 11~ummon bonum 11 i.e. perfect good. The first

element of perfect good must be realized in the form of an

indefinite, unending progress towards the ideals. But this

endless progress is possible only on the supposition of the

unending duration of the existence and personality of the

same rational being which is called the immortality of the

24 soul. Kant also thinks that we cannot really conceive of

the possibility of the perfect good being realized except

on the supposition that there exists a God. 25 Kant's

26 concept of ethics was largely free from formal theology.

He held that "moral law leads to religion, that is to

18. Frederick Copies ton, S. J. "Morality and Religion" (Chapter xiv, pp. 101-140), A History Of Philosophy, Vol. 6 (Modern Philosophy), Part II, (Kant), p. 120. Also Gottchalk, Louis and Lach 1Donald, loc. cit.,p.606.

19. Frederick Copleston, s. J., A Histor;x: of PhilosoEh:t> Vol. 6, Part II, p. 104.

20. Ibid, p. 108.

21. Ibid, P• 121.

22. Ibid, p. 125.

2 3. IbiQ, p. 128.

24. Ibid, p. 130.

25. I.bid, P• 1.32.

26. lbid, P• 135.

152

the recognition of all duties as divine".27

This point of

view reappears in his "Religion Within The Bounds Of Pure

28 Reason" (1793). It is likely that Derozio did not subs-

cribe ·to Kant • s concept of moral law which lay at the basis

of fai·th in God or immortality of soul, because he chiefly

concerned himself with David Hume's scepticism.29

Derozio translated the moral philosophy of M. Pierre

Louis Horeau, De Maupertuis, a French thinker, from French

into English. The translation was printed posthumously.

The translated work on Moral Philosophy consists of three parts :

1) What is happiness and what is misery ?

ii) In ordinary life, the sum of evil exceeds

that of good.

iii) Reflections on the nature of pleasure

and pain~.

A.s it appears from the translated portions, Maupertuis

closely in Benthamite style identified pleasure with happiness

27. Ibid.

2 & • Ibid I p p • 13 5 -·13 6 •

29. R.K.Dasgupta makes an interesting observation : "Actually Derozio • s master was the philosopher about whom Kant said that he had awakened him from his dogmatic slumbers. Kant said this after reading a work called "Inquiry Into Human Understanding" published in 17l38 (?). Dasgupta, R.K. "Henry Louis Vivian Derozio, ~~al o.f: ~tor~', Jadavpur University, Vol. v, p.7.

153

and pain with mi.sery. 30 He talked of the choice of the

grea·t.est good and the rejection of the greatest evil, the bad

use of reason as the root of evils in life, and of the

31 pleasures as the greatest.

Yet Maupertuis, like Bentham, failed to uphold the

idea of the greatest good of the greatest number. Mauper-

tuis was concerned with "the infinite variety of human

conduct [owing] ·t.o the different ways in which ••• calcula-

• It .32 II ' 1 t~ons are made. Would not a happ~er ife be the reward

of his {man's) reflections and his exertions"33

- his

query notwithstanding, he appeared at times not ready to

make a discrimination between one pleasure and another. AS

he wrote : "Let us not then be alarmed about comparing the

pleasures of sense with the most intellectual pleasures;

let u.s not create an illusory belief that there may be some

34 pleasures of a less noble nature than others". He was

thus concerned with calculations of good and evil or of

pleasure and pain varying from one individual to another in

proportion to the changes in the working of one • s mind.

T'he reason for Derozio's inclination to Maupertuis's

moral philosophy :ls not far to seek. Derozio was imbued with

-----·------------·----------------------------------30. The Calcutta Quarterly MagazinP And-Reyiew,No.2,1833,

reprinted in calcutta'Review,vol.75, 1882, p. 228. 31. Ibid, pp. 229-231. 32. Ibid, p. 229.

33. Ibid, p. 230. 3 4 • I b.i d, p. 2 31 •

154

the individualist philosophy of the west. As such he concerned

himself with the individual's pleasures and pain as incul-

cated by Maupert.uis.

Derozio did not seem to share the epicurean note of

Maupertuis~ philosophy. He shared the idealistic faith of the

perfectability of man.

It may appear from a Sonnet35 that Derozio had faith in

the inherent capacity of man to vanquish the forces of evil

and to determine the course of improvement. In him the idea

of the promotion of good was bound with such individual capa-

city. He thus shared the eighteenth century prophetic concept

of man's perfectability, which was spiritually akin to

Condorset•s unswerving faith in the universal rhythmof

h . . 1 36 1.stor1.ca progress.

In the •sonnet• the concept of perfectability was exem-

plified in the gaun·tlet against the notion of fate which was

a dominant trend among the Hindus, Derozio trusted to the

capacity of man to defeat the tyrant fate.

It is noteworthy that he exhorted the students to cul-

tivate sound moral principles. In an address to the students

(1829) he wrote :

35. Derozio, H.L.V., •sonnet•, Bradley Birt, F.B., (ed). ~:ns Of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio, p. 139, For the Sonnet in the Appendix, I. P• 714.

36. Kop:t, uavic.t, J.oc. cit., p. 255.

155

My advice to you is that you go forth into the world

strong in wisdom and in worth, scatter the seeds of

love among mankind, seek the peace of your fellow

creatures , for in their peace you will have peace

yourselves.

38 As a poet hE~ was greatly inspired by the English

romantic poets - 'I'homas Moore (1799-1852), L.E. Landon (1802-

1838), Lord Byron (1798-1824), William Wordsworth (1770-1850),

John Keats (1795-1821), P.B. $helly (1792-1822), and Sir

Walter Scott (1791.-1832). Perhaps nineteenth century roman-

ticism can best be defined by comparison with the ideals of

Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution,by whose rationalism

and materialism the11 romanticists11 were repelled. As a general

rule ,the romantics instead of emphasizing reason and empiricism, trus ·t~d the emotions and inner personality

37. The Calcutta Literary Gazette, January 3, 1835 ~ Also Sengupta,Pallab, op. cit., p. 104.

38. Two volumes of Derozio 1 s poems were published in his life time - 1) Derozio, H.L.V ., Poems (1827), ii) Derozio, H.L.V. The Fakeer of Jungheera,AMetrical Tale And Other Poems ( 1~·2 8). In addition to the poems of these volumes, there might.. be many othersstrewn here and there. Later Derozio 1 s poems were published - The Poetical Works Of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio witfi" a memoir of the author (1871); Shah, B. B. (ed), The Poetical Works Of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio, with a memoir of the author by E.W. Medge (Vol. I, 1907); Bradely- Bir·t, F.B. (ed.). Poems Of Henry Louis Vivian Derozio a forgotten AntloTindian Poet, with an intro­duction {1923). A few poems were published by Edwards, Thomas, "Sections From The Inedited Prose And P_oetry Of Derozio" in the Calcutta Review, Vol. LXXV (75), 1882, pp. 214-226 & in Henry De£Q_zio, The Eurasian Poet, Teacher And ~~arist (1884 & 1980), pp. 216-219; ::.lf'~lected editions of .Derozio 1 s poems are available -Lal, P. (ed). Poems (Of Derozio) (1972); Dasgupta, Marry Anne ( ed.), He1.1.ry Louis Vivian LJerozio 1 A Memorial ~)lun,€ (19 7 3) an..:.1 in SAngupta, Pallab (ed) I Jharer-Fakh'I: Kabl Dt:rvzio tBer.gali, 1979, 1982, 1985}. A work on Dt~ro·z.1.c "'tS an .:!:nc;lish .Poet still remaJ.ns to be done.

156

d I ' d ' 39 ' ' ' d to moul man s m~nd an behav~our. Romant~c~sm was a k~n

of passionate protest against social convention and social

l 't 40 mora l y.

Derozio shared the English romantic spirit of literary

and social protest against convention. He composed poems on

love and romance in imitation of Thomas Moore, L.E. Landon,

Lord Byron, and Sir Walter Scott, and on nature after Joh~

Keats and P .B. Sht=lly. He subscribed to the romantic ideal

of freedom of individual feeling, emotion and passion.41

He imbibed Wordsworth's,Shelly's and Keats's love of nature.

He harped upon its wonderful power and turned to it as a

source of inspiration.42

Like Shelly, he described its mystic

influence on man. Like Wordsworth, he traced the affinity

between man and nature. 43

39. Gottchalk, Louis and Lach, Donald, loc. cit., p. 850.

40. Bertrand Russell thus evaluates the nature and con­sequences of the 'H.omantic' movement : The romantic movement, in its essence, aimed at libera-ting human personality from the fetters of social convention and social morality ••• The romantic movement brought the I~volt into the sphere of morals. By encouraging a. new lawless Ego, it made social co:. operation impossible, and it left its disciples with the alternatives of anarchy and despotism.

RusseU. Bertrand, ti~story Of Wes~rn Philoso£hy, pp. 658-659.

41. Derozio, H.L.V., "Poetry .. (February, 1827), Poems, pp. 18-19; Also Appendix, I. p. 705.

42. D~3rozio, H • .w.V., "Morning After Storm" (April, 1827), Ibid, pp. 108-109, Also Appendix, I. pp. 705-706.

43. DE~rozio, t'i.L.v. "A Walk By Moonlight" (1830), Bradley­B :Lrt, .F .B. (ed.), op. cit., pp. 105-108, Also App..andix, I. o. 708. . '

157

Derozio typi.fied the romantic ideal of freedom in his

passionate protest~ against certain Hindu customs and tradition

in some of his poems like "The Fakeer Of Jungheera 11 ( 1828)

and "Eclipse·~ 44 In his poem named "Tasso 11 he made a passionate

plea that want of liberty was like the confinement qf a bird

45 in a cage. He instilled the pass ion ate ideal of liberty_· into

the mind of his students. Alexander Duff noted that the

English romantic poets were sometimes quoted by the students

in the Academic Association, a debating club set up in 1828

' . . 46 unuer hls ausp1ces.

As a romanti.c poet he, however, m<:::t with severe criti-

cism. In the opinion of some critics 11 The Fakeer Of

Jungheera" is altogether upon the strained and extravagant

47 model of Lord Byron's poetic romances of love and murder11•

According to some writers, 11 Derozio gave up his soul to the

d L E - 48 . l llh be writings of Moore, Byron, an •• L. H1s sty e as en

II 49 termed the echo of Byron, Moore and L.E. Landon, and

"exaggerated idealism and pictures of passion" 50

44. For details section III of this chapter. pp. 165-166.

45. Derozio, H.L •. V. "Tasso", Poems, pp. 94-95; Also Appendix, I. p.;. 716. ---

46. Duff, Alexander, India And India Mission.s, pp. 614-615; Also Ghoset, Benoy, Bidrohi Derozio (Bengali), p. 59.

47. The Oriental Herald, No. 67, Vol. 22, July~1829, pp. 114-115; Supplement to the Calcutta Gazette. Monday, Evening, November 23, 1829.

48. The Oriental Maga~, Vol. I, No. 10, October, 1843, p. 376.

4 9. M<.'\dg8, r;. w • , Lo '- • .::it. , p. 2 3. :'JQ. Edwards, ·fuorna.~ op. cit., p. 192.

158

Derozio was not solely a romantic poet, nor all passions

and emotions as his critics would have us believe. In some of

his poems he seemed to concern himself with the material

world by which the English r.omantics were repelled. 51

His 52

observations on 'The Modern British Poets' (1830) read some-

thing like an answer to his critics. Here he was somewhat

critical of romanticism, though he had respect for Byron,

Shelley and Wordsworth. He gave a clarion call to the poets

to rise above false sentiments, misdirected enthusiasm and

base passions, wnich were calculated to subvert noble elements

of human nature and to make human beings indifferent to

1 . t 53 rea 1 y. He held : "Let the poet abandon war, misan -

thropy, romance and false feelings; let his enthusiasm be

on that side which espouses man's best interest; let it be

his object to imp.rove • • • and to promote the advancement

of society. "54 He added that poetry "should be made •••

an instrument for elevating and improving man • s moral and

intellectual nat"LLre .u 55 He regretted that few poets "have

advocated that independence of thought and action which

elevates a man to the condition he should enjoy, and for

56 which he was doubtless (ly) designed by nature."

51. Derozio, H.L.V.,"Poetry Of Human Life", Appendix, I. pp.708-52. The India Ga~ette, Friday, January 22,1830, reprinted 709 •

In The Calcutta Review, Vol. 75, 1882, pp. 223-225.

53. I bJ.d, pp. 223-224. 54. Ibid, p. 224.

:,5. I.o.Lu, p. 22 3.

':)6. I.bia.

159

Derozio wrote a poem named "Independence" posthu-

mously printed. H~~~ ~~ stood for individual freedom from

57 fear of tyranny.

Derozio voiced the humanitarian ideal of the West.He

was to some extent inspired by Thomas Campbell (1774-1843)

in this respect. He wrote a poem entitled "Freedom To The

Slave" (1827) after the famous saying of Campbell -

58 "And as the slave departs the man returns." In the poem he

expressed the feeling that slavery was degrading and incon-

sistent with the status of a man - his free movement, thought

and action. He sang the glory of the struggle for freedom

from the fetters of slavery and tyranny.

It is interesting that Derozio wrote the poem on

slavery at abou·t the time when the anti-slavery movement was

quite strong in England. It started in the late twenties of

19th century England. George Thompson, the later political

"guru" of young Bengal, played an important part in the move-

ment. The movement bore fruit. An Act prohibiting slavery

was passed in 1B33, a year after the passing of the Reform

Bill•

57. Derozio, H •. L.V. "Independence", Edwards, Thomas, loc. cit., p. 166; Also Appendix, I. ~· 714.

58. Derozio, H.L.v., "Freedom To The slave" (1827),

Poems, PP• 19 -20'; Also Appendix, I. pp. 715-716.

Derozio wrote another poem 111 l!:vening In August" after

Campbell's dictum - "And Muse On Nature with A Poet's

e yen - ~.:!, pp. 40-41; Also Appendix, I. p-. 707.

.lOU

In India slavery was persist~nt in its worst fo.rm.

In 17 85 Sir Willi. am Jones, while referring to a Court -

decision on the slave trade in Calcutta, unfolded the story

of cruel torture and oppression of the slaves. He pointed

out that it was caused by the extreme penury of the poorer

Indians who were forced to sell their sons and daughters

under the compelling situation, or under economic hardship

during the natural calamities like famine. He added that

children were abd.ucted from remote villagES of Bengal and

59 carried to the slave-market of Calcutta. Every year about

a hundred boys and girls used to be brought from Assarn and

Cooch Behar to Be·ngal for the purpose of slave trade (during

the reign of Maharaja Harendra Narayan in Cooch Behar, who

died .in 1839). 60 In 1793 the Court of Directors issued

order.s,prohibiting the export of slaves to places outside

61 Bengal. However, the traffic in slaves persisted in Bengal

59. Ghose 1Benoy, Bidrohi Derozio {Bengali) (Ayan edition) 1 p. 39.

60. Das, Karnalesh Chandra, 'Kritadas Byabastha o Samajik Punarbasthane Cooch Behar Samanta Rajya', Chatto­padhyay ,Gaut.am (ed.) Itihas Anusandhan {Bengali, Paschim Banga Itihas Samsad), Vol. 3, p. 205.

A very brief analysis of the slave system in Cooch Behar, .a trib.;utory state of the English, has been made in the article, Ibid, pp. 2 04-2 06.

61. Ghose 1 Benoy,loc. cit., p. 39. It may be noted in this connection t.hat during the reign of Maharaja Harendra Narayan children were sometimes sent from Gooch Behar -to Burma through Assam for slave trade - Chattopadhyay, GautdiTt (ed.), loc. cit., p. 205.

161

about the middle of the 19th century. 62 The Periodicals

(English and Bengali) like the Calcutta Gazette and the

Samachar Durpan of the second, third and fourth decades of

the 19th century occasionally supplied informatio~regarding

the slaves of Calcutta - the oppression of the slaves by

their new masters, the fleeing away of the servants and

slaves out of the fear of torture, the advertisement about

the purchase and sale of slaves like commodities, the sale

of sons and daughters by the hapless and poor parents at a

very nominal price, even the giving away of children by some

natives out of orthodox religious belief.63

Speaking of slavery in the tributary state like Cooch

Behar, a writer contends that the 1Tantric • rituals, which

necessitated the sacrifice of human life, contributed to

the rise of slavery in the region. Among other causes of

slavery mentioned by him was the inability of a ryot to pay

off debt to a Zamindar. 64 In 1843 the British Government

passed an Act rendering the system of slavery illegal in

India. In Cooch Behar it, however, went on till 1864.

62. Ghose, Benoy, loc. cit., p. 39.

63. Gho3e, Benoy, loc. cit., pp. 39-40.

64. Chattopadhyay, Gautam (ed.), op. cit., pp. 204-205.

162

In that year it was formally abolished by the promulgation

of a Regulation (in the Bengali language) primarily through

the exertions of Col. Hotton, the Commissioner of the

65 State.

In the con·t.ext of India Derozio 's poem on slavery was

pregnant with a radical implication. His poem reflected

sympathy for the tortured and oppressed slaves. It had the

ringing note of a fervent appeal for struggle for the

freedom of the slaves.

Derozio had, however, no programme of action to

follow up his clarion call for the abolition of slavery.

But that need not: detract from the intrinsic merit of a I

humanitarian call given by a young Eurasian poet.

Derozio was largely moved by the humanitarian consi-

deration in voicing sympathy for the distress of the fair

sex. In a poem named "The Orphan Girl" he voiced the con­

cern over the uncertain fate of an orphan girl.66

He also

devoted his pen t.o the sad state of Hindu females in some

of his poems. In his poem, "On The Abolition Of Sattee", he

viewed the depressed condition of Hindu women with indig-

nation. He also contended that the condition ot Hindu women

65. Chattopadhyay, Gautam (ed.), op. cit., pp. 204 & 206.

66. Der:ozio, H.L.V. "The Orphan Girl", Poems, pp. 54-55. J\lso Appendix, I. p. 720.

163

67 was inferior to that of "Daughters of Europe". As it is

reflected in the poem, he was inspired by broad humanitarian,

liberal and rational considerations.

Dero:z.io learnt to love Robert Burns (1757-1 796) at the

instance of his t:eacher, David Drummond, who out of deep

respect for the poet composed a poem named "In Memory Of

68 Robert Burns." Robert Burns wrote numerous poems in the

Scottish dialect on the life of Scottish peasants, and the

common men and women. He was also a great lyricist. Derozio,

in common with Wordsworth or Burns, might be said to have

felt and expressed the affinity and sympathy between man

69 and nature. What greatly impressed Derozio was Burns • s

humanitarian idec:tl of universaJ. brotherhood. Just a few days

before his death, he in a notice on the examination of the

pupils of Dharmatollah Academy appreciated the free academic

atmosphere of thE! Institution by quoting with glee from

Burns's couplet on universal brotherhood of man. He observed:

67. Derozio, H.I~.v. "On The Abolition Of Sattee',Edwards,

Thomas, op. cit., pp. 218-219, Appendix, 'I. pp. 711-714. Montague, c. J.,

68. L "A Brief Memoir Of The Late Mr. David Drummond",

The Orienta~ Magazine; No. 6, Vol. I, June 1843, p.220.

69. ~dwards, Thomas, op. cit., p. 203.

164

At the Dhurrumtollah Academy it is quite delightful

to witness the exertions of Hindu and Christian youths,

striving together for academic honours; this will do much

towards softenin9 asperi-ties,. which always arise in hostile

sects, and when t.he Hindu and the Christian have learned

from mutual intercourse how much there is to be admired in

the human charact.er, without reference to differences of

opinion in religious matters, shall we be brought nearer

than we now are to that happy condition when

"Man to man the world o 'e.J;',

70 Shall brothers be and a' that".

In this plea for Burns's deal of universal brotherhood

he disregarded. the prejudice of Christian parents against

getting their children educated with Indian youths. It is,

however, noteworthy that he instilled the ideal into the

mind of his students which proved inspiring to them in

revolting against the institution of caste. Krishna Mohun

Banerjea, a disciple of Derozio, to cite for example, was

greatly inspired by Burns'sideal of universal brotherhood

------------------------------------------------------------------

70. The East In<~, Saturday, December 17 (1831)

cited in the ~ndia Gazette,

1831.

December 21,

165

l . t t 71 in unfurling the banner of revo t aga1.ns cas e.

ii) Derozio And Hindu customs And Practic~ :

Derozio grew critical of Hindu religious customs and

practices including Hindu prejudices and superstitions. He

attacked the institution of priesthood. In "The Fakeer Of

Jungheera" he sought to expose the unholy deeds of holy

characters and hollowness of saintly men and priests of

72 India. He believed that superstitions were priestly

impositions. In his poem named 11 Eclipse" he contended that

the Brahmins knew the real cause of eclipse but the people

in general were plunged into the superstitious notion of

it. 73 In a "Sonnet To The Pupils Of The Hindu College" (1830)

he, as noted before, attributed the degeneration of India

primarily to the priestly tyranny. In his ode "On The

Abolition Of Sattee" he condemned the tyranny of priests as

being responsible for prolongation of the degradation of Hindu

74 females.

71. 11 The Young "liberals" • • • formed debating societies of their own, and to those (Alexander) Duff would go and take part in their discussion ••• Duff quotes with glee a conversation on the subject of caste with a young Brahmin,who suddenly broke into quotation from Robert Burns. 11

The young Brahmin referred to was Krishna Mohun Banerjea, Paton

1'(-Jilliam, ~lexander LJuff, pp.Sl-82. For Burns's

influence on Kr1.shna Mohun Banerjea, see Smith, Georye, !J:.fe of Alexander Duff, p. 92.

72. Derozio, H.L.V .. 11 The Fakeer Oi Jungheerct" Canto Firs·t,IV & V, in Eardley·· Birt, F.B., loc. cit., pp. 140-142. Also

., 3.

74.

Appendix, I. p. 718.

Oerozio, .H.L •• v ..

De roz i<D, .H. L • v • 711-714.

''E.c1tp.:::e, 11 1:\.:>t:;ms•;

''Or: ':.'he AJJOLl~l.on

pp.710-71] pp.97-98,Also Appendix,I.f.

of sa:ttee'~ Appendix, 1. pp.

166

He entered int.o a fervent protest against the wret-

ched condition of Hindu females and stood for female

emancipation. He voiced the frustration to which Indian

women were doomed at: that time in the poem, "Song Of The

Indian Girl". 75

In 1" The Rakeer Of Jungheera" he viewed Sati

as an inhuman act. 76 In a note on the poem he pointed

out that Sati was not a voluntary act as was generally

supposed at that time. The victim of Sati, in his opinion,

had little notion of heaven and preferred immediate death

to protracted widowhood because of the miserable existence of

a widow in the world. Sati was not 11 an act of unparalleled

magnanimity and devotion" but 11 a melancholy reflection upon

the tyranny of superstition and preist-craft11 ?7 While paying

tribute ·to Bentick for the promulgation of the anti-S ati Regulation

in his ode "On The A.bolition Of Sattee•! he held that women

were the victims of the tyranny of priestcraft and supers-

titian and doomed to misery, seclusion, ignorance, early

marriage,, Sati and widowhood. He looked forward to female

emancipation in fu~re. 78

75. Derozio, H.L.V ., "Song Of The Indian Girl" (January, 1827), Poen~, p. 50, Also Appendix, I. p. 72 O.

76. Derozio, H .L .v. "The Fakeer Of Jungheera", Canto I. X Bardley-Birt, F.B. op. cit., pp. 147-148, Alao Appendix,I

pp. 718-/19. 77. Derozio, H.L.V. (A note on) "Hindu Widow", (on "The Fakeer

of ~rungheera"1 Canto I, ~tanza X) reprinted in Sengupta, Pallab, Jhart.:r Pal<hi : ~ J)erozio, p. 118.

78. Derozio, H.L.V. "On The Abolit.1on OfSattee", Appendix,!. pp. 711-714.

167

He attacked idolatry. In The East Indianof December,

1831 he criticised the orthodox Hindus, particularly their

endeavour "to defend the cause of idolatry. 1179

He, however, grew critical of all Hindu religious

observances .In a review of the annual function of the Qnar- -

matollah Academy, a few days before his death, he wrote

When a Hindoo casts off all appearancesof Hindoo

religious observance, the majority of his countrymen

naturally consider that person as an outcast. He is no

longer [a] Hindoo. rihat then is he ? [He replies) -

a lover of Truth. 80

Here Derozio upheld what might be called the secular ideal

of truth. It would have been fair on the part of Derozio as

a free thinker had he not launched sweeping attack upon

Hindu religious practices. It is likely that Derozio 1 who

was a .t::urasian and brought up in Western intellectual and

social tradition, had little knowledge of the religious

observances of the Hindus. One may contend that he was

overzealous in the matter of social reform and change of the

Hindu society. But it would be erroneous to think that

Deroz:io attacked the whole system of Hinduism. Hinduism is

not merely a set of religious observances or practices. It

enshrine~ a system of philosophy, laws, ethics and morality.

79. The East Indian, October, 1831 cited in The India Gazette, Octob~r 5, 1831.

80. Th~ Governn~nt Ga~ette, December 12, L831, reprinted in Mo.i era, SurPE:h -:h --mcr"i, "Hindu Colle':J"? ; .Deco~:·, Lo : Adh•n •. i..ko.tcl 11

, t''H 1 ''·"'r:,.~ Pr~sad (ed), [)erozio (Benyali), p. ~4.

168

However, Derozio was highly critical of Rammohun Roy

and his followers for their inconsistent blending of libera-

81 lism w.ith orthodoxy. He pointed out that though Rammohun

was a .liberal in his religious profession, he was as good as

an orthodox Hindu. Rammohun, he wrote, "appealed to the Vedas,

the Koran, and the Bible~ holding them all probably in equal

estimation, extracting the good from each and rejecting from

82 all whatever he considers apocryphal". But in practice

Rammohun conformed to Brahmanical orthodoxy. Derozio cited

that when a person would salute Rammohun as a Brahmin, the

latter would pronounce Brahmanical benediction upon such

occasion. He always lived like a Hindu, drinking a little

wine occasionally i.n cold weather. He "has •• sat at table with

Europeans, but never eaten anything with them:' 83 In these

citatior:s 1Jerozio tried to explain the contradiction of

Rammohw1 between thought and action.

Derozio also referred to the contradiction of the Brahma

5abha in glowering terms. "The Bruhma Sabha" he wrote,

uwas not a Brahmanical Juggle" and "established by Rammohun

Roy upon the purest principles of worship to God and love

81. The India Gazette, October ~, 1831; Also Moitra, Suresh Chandra "Hindu College : Derozio : Adhunikata", De, Rama Prasad (ed) Derozio (Bengali), pp. 83-84; Also 5·allhuddin Ahmed, A F. Social Ideas And Social Change In Bengal (1st edn.), p. 43.

82. ~ India Ga.zet~, October 5, 1831 ~

83. lbi.c:i.

169

84 to man". But the Director~ of the .Sabha, by bestowing gift

upon the Brahmins to the exclusion of others, he added

made an unreasonable distinction between one man anu another,

anc "to give the Brahmins up on one account and to take them

bc.ck on another is quite super derogatory" and "the same

.. as humbug un<:~ er another name.

Of Rammohun's follov-.ers, Derozio wrote : "His followers,

atleast some of them, are not very consisten~. Sheltering

tnemse l.ves under the shadov-: of his name, they ind ul;;e to

[ irl ? ] licentious Di:.: s s in everyt:.hing forbidden in the Shas tLlS,

a~ meat and drink, while at the same time, they fee the

Brahmins, pro:re ss t.o disbelieve [in] Hinci ooisrn, anC:. never

l h P . hs h "86 h ne•:J ect to c..ve ooJa at . .Jme. Furt er, "The Brahmins

are treateo by his followers with as much respect as they are

by the rno:::>t orthodox11•

87

He charged Prosunno Coomar Tar3ore, a notable disciple

ot rtammohun Roy, for his attack on idolatry in the Reformer

(1831) and at the same time ::;elebrating idolatrous worship

.; . 88 ' h h - . d f ..... n n.~s no,1se. ln refJ.lY to t E: c arge e. fr~·2n o Prosunno

Coornar Ta•Jore wrotC: : "He ha:::; celebrated an idolatrous

pc,)jah .Lr1 nL:. family not lJ€Ccluse he appL·oves of it but

oec<~USE ht- cannot ··void duim· i.t. ThE': property he inherit:::.

84. ThE: l!..oS1~ lnCJ.l.dn refJri!,t.~<: in rtte lnuia Ga~ette, ieptei,lLPr :n, 1831.

e 11c. ;.!..:>-· l~ ) L , in t:.hc lnuia ~:_:ct~,

.;) i • !.b l .j •

b 8 • .l h c I 1! ~2:..::::._ ,;}.__~::!:., 1 .. h.: t. '-' Lc l .l ':.! 1 ~ b 3 l •

170

from his ancestor is left to him on condition of celebrating

89 the Poojah every year." To this a rejoinder was given in

the E.ast Indian , denying the authenticity of such a state-

t 90 ·) · d 'b d R h h. d. . 1 men • J eroz1o escr1 e ammo un or 1s 1sc1p es as

"half-liberals".91

iii) Derozio's Socio-religious Concepts And Their Dissimination

Derozio adopted different methods with a view to disse-

minating his ideas. He wanted to develop the power of inde-

p~ndent thought of his pupils through his teachings in the

class-rooms. He drew them out to give free and full expression

to their opinions on topics naturally arising from the

course of their work in the class 92

rooms. "The class of

Derozio in the Hindu College", as Lal Behari De wrote, 11 was

not dull and monotonous. It was to compare small things with great

[ones] like the Academies of Plato, or the Lycum of Aristotle.

There was free interchange of thought between the professor

ana the pupils; and t.ht:- young men were not so much crammed

with information as t.aught to think and judge." 93

89. Ibia ..

90. The Ind.1 a Gazette, November 1, 1831.

91. The India 3azette, October 5, 1831.

92. Edv.Japjs, Th·)!TIC\S, ')t,. cit., p. 31.

93. Dt-, ,_,c.t.l beitdri, ptecullectionsuf Alexander .Ouif And Of

171

As the class-room could not be turned into an arena of

discussion on all topics, the students were encouraged to see

him outside it. Derozio conducted a Conversazione or a discu-

ssion course in the Hindu College without the knowledge of the

Managers. The meetings were neld almost daily before and after

school hours. Thomas Edwards writes: 11 He fostered their taste

in literature, taught the evil effects of idolatry and supers-

titian, and so far formed their moral conceptions and feelings

as to make them completely above the antiquated ideas and

dSpirat~ions of the age." 94

However, the advanced students of the Hindu College

frequently sought his company during the tiffin hours, and

after the school hours, and in his house. He encouraged every-

one to speak out freely, and this led to free exchange of

thought on all subjects, particularly on social, religious,

moral and metaphysical subjects. 95

In 1830 Deroz:io started giving a course of weekly

evening lectures on metaphysics in the rooms of the Calcutta

scnool ~ociety's school at Pataldanga (subsequently known as

Hare's ~::ichool), which werE: attended by about one hundrea and

. 96 h f k tltty young men. In t e present state o our nowledge we

·::}4. E:d~..;-3-rds, Th·.)mas, op. :::it., p. 67.

Y'). Mi 1 .. Ict, Penr!Ch;.lr¥.1, A :Oi::Jqru.ph.:_lcctl ;:>ketch (Jf Javiu. Hare,p.l5

~tc, L•c1J.. chr>,tn., Loc • .:!Lt., pf:J. 29-JO •

.>f.'~'+:., Pf:J· 41.-42.

172

cannot SciY what was the view-point of Derozio 1 s lectures. How-

ever, accordingtoa writer, many of the youths, who attended

the lectures, were delving deep into Bacorn, Hume, Paine, Adam

Smith (1723-1770) 1 and Jeremv Bentham (1748-1832) • 97

Speaking of Derozio•s teachings, \•!hat Kissory Chand

Mitra observed is noteworthy. According to Kissory Chand,

Derozi:::> sought not~ to cram the mind but to inoculate it with

large and liberal ideals, and thereby opened the eyes of his

pupils 1 understanding. He taught them to think and throw off

the fetters :::>£ dntiquated bigotry. In truth, he imparted a

freedom of thought and action which culminated in an open

98 renunc1ation of idolatry and an aggressive heterodoxy.

uerozio sought to inculcate the spirit of free thinking

through his poems and writings. In his poem entitled 11 0n

Abolition Of Sattee", he gave a clarion call for freedom from

despotic customs, 'Nh1ch set seal upon human thought and action.

He believed that such freedom was essential to the fulfilment

99 of the aspirations or desires of a man.

97.

98.

:l (" 7 .-J.

Sar:kC~r, .Sus~bhan, '1Derozio ~nd ioung Bengal 11, Gupta,

A.C. (eo.). Si:udies In ·rhe Bengal Renaissance, p. 20.

Mi"t.ro Kissory Chand, 11 Ramgopal Gho::>e 11, The Calcutta

.~~~ V:Jl. X.LVI, 1868, p. 508.

iJ'::'r:::);.c,.i.u, ~•.L.v. "Un ~·hf: At·OLLtion Or Satteto", in the

Ap · .l"-'. on l ;z , 1 . p?. 711- 714.

172 a

In a note entitled "Acknowledgement Of Errors" in

"Thoughts On Various Subjects", he urged the students to

question the unquestionable authority of their superiors,

particularly parents and instructors, which, in his opinion,

was the source of all errors and prejudices. He wrote :

It has been frequently maintained, the parents and

:instructors should behave in such a manner towards

children as to lead them to suppose that they are

infallible ••• This is fraught with mischief, and should

be discouraged. It makes boys take opinions upon trust -

the cause of all the prejudices and errors that exist. 100

Krishna Mohun Banerjea, a disciple of Derozio, carried

this idea. He wrote in The Enquirer of 1831 that when a Hindu

boy under the inj: luence of liberalism would begin to hesitate

believing all what was said by his parents and appeal to his

101 reasonthey would begin to feel the triumph of their party.

Derozio was emphatic about the integrity between

thought and action :

100. Derozio, H.L.V ., "Acknowledgement of Errors" in Thoughts on various subjects", The Calcutta Literary Gazette, January 3, 1835, cited in Sengupta 1 Pallab, op. cit., p. 101.

101. The Enq,uire.r quoted in the India Gazette,

0 ctobe r 2 ~ , 1831 •

would men embody their thoughts, that is, act

accorciing to their principles, we would see less

'l h . t 102 ev1 s t an at present ex1s •

173

This is a unique trait of Derozio's teachings. In India

the strength of tradition \vas very great. Tradition was the

bedrock of family. p, student might study the philosophy of revo-

lution ana rationalism in the class-room. But when he returned

to the bosom of his family,he had to abide by tradition. This

largely accounted for the contradiction of a number of intellec-

tuals of Derozio's time between thought and action.

As noted before, Derozio criticised the contradiction

of Rammohun and his followers between profession and practice

in his newspaper, The East Indian. The paper also attacked

Hindu orthodoxy.

~rhe Academic: Association was perhaps the most important

platform for dissemi.nating Derozio' s concepts. The name

'Academic" ·,.;as possibly derived from the Greek word, 'Akademia''.

In 1828 Derozio started a debating club named the Academic

ASsociat.ion, which met at first either in his house or elsewhere

and was late.r transferred to Sreekissen Singh's Garden-house

located at Maniktollah. 103 Derozio was its President and

102. Derozio, H.L.V., "Human Action" (February 1, 1830) in "Thoughts On various Subjects", The Calcutta Literary GaL:ette, January 3, 1835; ::ited in Sengupta, Pallab, 10:::. Clt., p. 103. 1

103. ThE Modern H.evi~, Vol. S5, 1934, p. 646, Shastri, Shivnath, "Henry Louis Vi.vicin uer,.)zj_o", De, rtama Pr'l~aa (ed.) De.rozj J,

(Bcnc;:jdli), ~· :-..• AccoroJ.r.(J to ::)uresb Chuncira Moit.ra, 1t ~l L.!::>l,. fliEt ir. c:tt• riindu 8ul tt:·<jF!, - Moit:ra, .Suresh Chandra,

''Hi:ncJlJ ·::;~>l ... t-]1:'-i .l<c(.):.i·,: Z\.dhunikata", De, ii.arn.=t Ptct.sad (eti·, ) (J • . : l. t .. ·~ , ~). ·~) ~.

174

Uma Charan Bose its Secretary. It was perhaps the first

debat.i.ng club in Bengal. In it the students met in the

evenings. Derozio was usually the Chairman of these meetings.

They discussed and debated everything with utmost freedom.

As Alexander Duff recorded

Opportunities were constantly presented for the advance-

ment of counteracting statements and opinions on all

subjects. W11en a topic for debate was selected,individuals

weJ::-e not appointed to open discussion on either side •••••

All were therefore left alike free in their choice;hence

it not frequently happened that more than half a dozen

f 11 d . . th . d 104 o . owe .1n success .ton on e same S.l e.

The meetings of the~ Association were frequently attended by

David Hare, and occasionally by Sir Edward Ryan, and Colonel

Benson, Private Secretary to Lord William Bentick, Colonel

Beatson, afterwards Adjutant-General and Dr. Mill, the

105 Principal of the Bishop's College. The visitors felt it a

rare prlvilege to respond to the invitation for participation

in the deliberations. According to Duff, after all the members

who were disposed had concluded, the strangers or visir.ors

prest:::nt were invited to deliver their sentiments on the leading

104. 0uff J Aledander, op. cit. I pp. 614-615; Al'=>o Ghose, Be no y, l oc • c i t. , p. 58.

1 0 5 • c:; d '"" a ra s 1 I' h om as I l uc • c i t • I p • 31 •

175

subjec1::: of the evening's discussion or any of the sentiments

expressed by thE different speakers in cour:se of it. 106

In the Assvciation the students read their papers, dis-

ct,;.ssed, debated and wrangled. They thus acquired for them-

selves the facility of expressing their thoughts in words

and the power of ready reply and argument. The topics were

discussed and debated with reference to European authors. As

Alexander Duff wro·te : 'The sentiments delivered were forti-

fied by oral quotai:ions from E.nglish authors. If the subject

was historical, LWilliam] Robertson and [Edward] Gibbon (1737-

1798) were appealed to,· if political, Adam .Smith and Jeremy

Bentham; if scientific, [Sir Isaac] Newton (1642-1727), and

Davy,- if religious, [David) Hume and Thomas Paine; if meta-

physical, [John] Locke (1632-1704), Thomas Reid, Dugald Stewart

and Robert Bro·tJn. The whole was frequently interspersed and

enlivened by passa9es cited from some of our most popular

!:.nglish poets, particularly Lord Byron and Sir I"Jal ter Scott.'

A::-~d more thdn once were his ears greeted with the sound of

107 .:;c otch rhymes from the poems :>f Robert Burns.

Subjects broached and discussed were free will, fore-

ord.ination, fate, faith,the sacredness of truth, the high duty

lU6. uuff, Alexander, loc. cit., PI?• 614-615; Also Ghose, Benoy, op. ci1:., p. 58.

L07 • .JUtf, ~:..Pxc,nd·~r, loc. cj.t., :Jp. 614-61~, Al:c:oGhost'?, H (, no ; , L ~}c • · .: i t • , p • 5 9 •

176

of cultivating virtue, the meanness of vice, the nobility of

patriotism, the attributes of God, and the arguments for and

against the existence of deity as these have been set forth

by Hume on one side and Reid, Dugald Stewart and Brown on the

of 108 other, t.he hollowness of idolatry and the shams;priesthooj.

Tb.e Academic Association proved inspiring to the educated

youths of Bengal in establishing associations of the similar

kind. By 1830 students not only of the Hindu College, but those

belonging to Rammohun Roy's Anglo-Hindu School as well as the School

En0lish schools run by the CalcuttajSociety established as

many as seven assoc:Lations of the Kind. Most of their meetings

were held once a week, and some at long intervals, for dis-

cussing questions on literature and science, and sometimes on

politics. The number of members varied from seventeen to fifty.

At some of the sociE~ties written essays were prcx:iuced upon

which discussions followed. At one of them lectures on

intellectual topics were delivered in rotation by the members.

Although Derozio was President of the Academic Association, he

was also connected vdth most of the other societies as a

lOS. The John Bull , December 11, 1830", Also .C.:dwards,

Thomas, op. cit., p. 32.

177

mb d k t . i t . th . t. . t. 109 me er, an too an ac ~ve nteres ~n e~r ac ~v1 1.es.

I'::. is noteworthy that these societies became so much

popular that some non-students started two or three verna-

cular societies. At these written essays on various subjects

110 were prc~uced. verbal discussions then followed. The

societies helped in promoting free discussion and the spirit

of free enquiry arnong the youths o£ Bengal.

iv. Derozio's Socio-religious Teachings : An Assessment :

Der'.JZio was highly enthusiastic alJout the modernization

of the Hindu society in the light of ,.;estern ideas. He dis-

liked Hindu superstitions and the mediaeval outlook of a

number of his Hindu contemporaries. Unlike James Mill and

some of the missionaries like .Rev William 't~ard, .oerozio

dici not .make any hi<;~hly critical evaluation of Hinduism of

which his knowledge was rather poor. But he did not antici-

pate what could be r·esul ts of his teachings. AS a contemporary

wrote in Hay, 1.829, a number of students of the first and

second classes openly condemned the principles and practices

109. The India Gazette, quoted by the John Bull, December 11, 1830, cited in Majumdar, J.K. (ed.) Hammohun Roy And Prc>vressive Movement;;, In India (2nd edition), Vol. I, pp. 272.-2"'3; Al::.o .:>alahuddin Ahmed, A.F., op. cit., p. 41; De, t<c:;rua Prsaad (ed.), loc. cit., pp. 38-39.

110. Majum<.J<.ir, .J.l<..(edJloc. cit., p. 273.

178

of Hindu religion. Hinduism was denounced as vile and corrupt

and unworthy of the regard of rational beings. Reason was pro-

rooted tm be the idol of fools. The sentiment:3 of Hume had been

. d l d. ff d l . d 111 l h . k. w1 e y 1 use and warm y patron1se • La Be ar1 De,spea 1ng

of the proceedings o:E the Academic Association, observed :

"The young lions of 'the Academy" roared out week after week -

112 "Down wit.h Hinduism1Down with orthodoxy"! The Parthenon{1830),

an English magazinE:,started in 1830 by the senior students of the

Hindu College under the direction of Derozio, raised the similar

113 . 114 slogan. Apparently conducted under Derozio's gu1dance

the ~nquirer, an £ngJ.ish weekly115 and the Jnananveshan

111. Edwards, Thomas, op. cit., p. 68; Also .S.alahuddin Ahmed, A.F., loc. cit., p. 42.

112. De, Lal Behari, loc. cit., p. 30.

113. The Bengal Past~ And Present, Vol. 3 7, Part II, Serial No. 74 (April-..:rune) 1929, p. 141.

114. S.alahuddin Ahmed, A.F., op. cit., pp. 48-49.

115. Krishna Mohun Banerjea applied to the Government for

a license to publish a weekly English paper from the

printing press of Lall Bazar, Calcutta,on May 5, 1831,

and obtained it on May 10, 1831 (Home Public

Department, May 10, 1831, pp. 141-142). On 2nd October,

1832, he obtained the permission to shift the print-

ing press from .Lall Bazar to Bowbazar (Ibid, October

2, 1832). 'rhe last issue of the Paper was published

on ~Tune 18, 1835 (Biiiwas, Krishna Kali, Unabimsa

..:i.atabdir Naba Jagoraner Aloke R.everened Krishna M0hun Bando­

pctdr~ [Benqal.i J, p. 68.

179

a Bengali ~eekly, 116 attacked Hindu religion. 117

Derozio introduced his pupils to certain liberal ideas

of the west and sought to stimulate a scientific or rational

116.

Home Pub­

ic Depart­=nt,January 5, 1833,

Duckinarunjan Mukhopadhyay applied to the Government for a license to print and publish a Bengali weekly from Huru Chunder Tagore's house at Chorebagan on Hay 28, 1831 and obtained it on May 3:}..,1831 (Home Public Department, May 31, 1831, pp. 338-340). The Paper was started on June 18, 1831 (The Samachar Durpan, July 2, 1831 quoted in Bandopadhyay, B.N., Bangla 5amayik Patra, (Bengali,l818-lE!67), p. 57 • The Paper was edited by Gourishankar Tarkabagish (The Sambad Timir Nashak quoted in The Samachar Duroan, January 21, 1832, cited in Bandopadhyay, B.N., . Bangla .Samayik Patra, p. 57). Madhob Chunder l'1allick and xusick Krishna Mullick approached the Government for a license to print and publish the paper from Chorebagan (No. 141) in Calcutta in both English and Bengali. They were granted the permission on January 15, 1833,LPP• 123-124). They conducted the paper for about two ye~ars. It was sometime about 1835 or in 1835 that Ramgopal Ghose conducted the editorial mana­gement (The Hindoo Patriot, April 10, 1865, p. 118 cited in Ban.dopadhyay, B.N., Bangla Samayik Patra, p. 58). In J•ly, 1837 it fell into the hands c)f Duckinarunj an Mukhopadhyay (Ramgopal Ghose • s letter to Gobind Chunder Bysack dated July 9;1837,cited in Bandopadhyay, B .N. , _ Bangla Sainayik Patra, p. 58) • Taruk Chunder Bose was the Principal editor of the Jnananveshan. In September 1838 he severed connection with the paper (Ramgopal'o? letter to Gobind dated September 21, 1838, Ibid, p. 58). Later Ham Chund~::.:r Ni tra and Horomohun Chatterjee conducted the paper (Karr.gopal' s letter to Gobind dated November 24, 1838, Cited in Bandopadhyay, B.N., __ Bangla ...)amayik Patr<~, pp. 58-59). The paper ceased to exist. in November, 1840. According to the Calcutta Courier, it was given up for want of public support (The Calcutta

Courie_r:, November 24, 1846, reprinted in Bandopadhyay, o .N. # Banyla Samayik Patra, p. 59). In 1850 the Jnanasancharini Patrika issued an advertisement for the ~1blication of the Jnananveshan-. The paper was, novJever, notre--.:.:tablished (The ~ambad Purnochandroday, April 2•i, Lb50 cit.eo in B-1nrlopn.dhyay, B.N., ilangla Samail< Pc~, p. '39.

180

spirit of enquiry in their mind •118

The Young Bengali • s

first glimpse in1:o the science and knowledge of the western

v<orld, a writer contended, stirred up in their mind the

spirit of free thinking and awakened in them a fervent sense

f . j' . t H' d t't' d 1' i 119 o ln< 1gnat1on a : 1n u supers 1 1ons an re 1g on.

Derozio, according to some writers, dissipated the

bigot·ted ideas of his pupils with the rod of an enchanter

and inflicted a death 4 blow on the impositions of the

h . 120

Bra mJ.ns. His lessons, according to Bholanath Chunder,

swept 3.way the scales from their mental eyes and removed the

cataract from which generations had suffered. 121 The

spirit:ea band o£ Youthful reformers, Bholanath added, took

to ovc r-indulgence after their emancipation from long-borne

shackles. They raised an outcry against the Hindu religion! 22

118. 'rhe Calcutta Monthly Journal, No. XXXVII , 1837, p. 83; S.anyal, S.C."A Short Account Of The Life Of Mr. H.L.v. Derozio 11

, The CalcuttaUniversity Magazine, May-June, 1895, p. 71; Derozio - The Anglo-Indian Poet", The Presidency College Magazine. Vol. XIII (Year?) p. 111.

119. Rev. HackaJ ,. "History Of Native £ducation In Bengal", The Calcutta Review, Vol. XVII (January-June),l852, p. 3 52 •

120. The Calcutta Honthly Journal, No. XXXVII, 1837, p. 83.

121. Chunder, Bh·:Jldna.th, ,.Recollections Of The Old Hindu colleoe", The Calcutta University Mdgi:izine, March, ·l89~. PP· 32.-33.

122. IL·L:i, ~-· p • J 3 - J 4 •

181

Derozio was young and inexperienced. He was impractical

too. He was uncompromising in his opposition to Hindu

superstitions and customs. The students he taught were too

young, mostly adolescent. They were fervently carried away by

their adolescent enthusiasm in the cause of reformation. rhe

result exceeded t:he bound of his teachings. S orne of his

students committed exc.essE7 and grew unreasonally aggressive

towards their religion and fellow-countrymen for a time.

The over-emphasis upon the aggressive tone or temper

oi some adolescent youths has, however, obscured the fervent

re.forming impulse of Derozio's students. In the Academic

Association the degraded state of the Hindus formed the topic

of many debates. Their ignorance and superstitions were

declared to be the cause of such a state. It was then

resolved that nothing out a liberal education could enfran­

chise the mind of the people.123

Again, in the ASsociation

the de~;JTadation of the female mind was viewed with indig-

nation. It was carried unanimously that women should be

124 taught.. The Parthenon denounced Hindu superstitions

ctnd advocated female education. 125 The £ny_uirer of 1831

grew critical of Hindu customs and practices like idolatry,

123. Edwards, Thomas, op. cit., p. 68.

124. t;dwards,Thomas, loc c1.t., p. 68.

12') • .:£ht: Bengal .... qX:Ct-:lc:.or, ,_,eptewb8r 1, 1842, (No. 7}.

182

126 and caste etc. There is perhaps some substance in Bhola-

nath Chunder • s contention that Derozio turned out 11 the

Reformer Young Bengal", while David Lester Richardson turned

127 out 11 t:he Literary Young Bengal".

Unfortunately, it was because of the tone of some pupils

against Hindu rel:Lgion that the College Committee scented

the rise of atheism among the Hindu College students. In

1829 t.hey passed an order to the following effect : "The

students of the H1ndu College are liable to lose all

religious principles what e.ver _ [and] it is resolved that

Mr. D 1 Anslern (the Headmaster) be requested to communicate

with the teachers and check as far as possible all disquisi-

tions tending to unsettle the belief of the boys in the great

principles ot Natural Religion". 12 8 The Managers suppressed

the Parthenon through the intenTe ntion of H .H. Wilson only

after one issue of the Magazine had been published and

129 circulated. In February, 1830 they passed further order,

strictly forbidding the teachers from having any communication

with the pupils on religious subjects and especially on the

130 religion of the Hindus.

126. For details Chapter V, Section VI. pp. 273-275.

127. Chunder, Bholanath 11 Recollection of D.L • .H..", The Calcutta £;niversity Magazine, July, 1894, p. 108.

128. Edwards ,Thomas, 11 Henry Louis Vivian Derozio", The Cal­cutta Review, Vol. LXIII (73), 1881, p. 43.

129 • .I11e Benoal Spectator, September 1, 1842.

130. !!:dward~, rh'm.as, Henri ..J,~r JZiu, The Eurasian Poet, l'eachc:r o.nc. Journal.1s€, (2nd edition), pp. 69-70.

183

But it is not proper to think that atheism widely

prevailed among t~he Hindu College students. According to

the D=port of a contemporary English periodical, the

Moderate Party consisted of two divisions - the friends

and adherents of Rammohun and a number of students of the

Collesde. There might be little or no actual co-operation or

intercourse between the two divisions. But both rejected

idolatry on the ground of its opposition to reason, while

they did not practically abstain from all observances • 131

Again, to say that those students of the Hindu College or

of Derozio, who decried Hinduism, were all atheists, was a

hasty judgement o:E history. A threadbare and careful

analysis is necessary before branding them as atheists • 132

Among the charges brought against Derozio by the

Hanager of the Hindu College at an emergent meeting of

April 23, 1831, and corrut!Unicated to him by Wilson in a

letter dated April 25, 1831, the first charge was that of

atheism. In a lett:er dated April 26, 1831, Derozio gave a

lengthy reply to ,,lilson. Derozio wrote that he was a free

thinke.r:-, who taught his students to argue for and against

131. ~rhe India Gazette, October 25, 1831.

132. .For details, Chapter V, Section v. Pf ~~s-- 2..&~

184

the existence of God. 11 Thi·s is 11

1 he wrote, "the head and

front of my offending" 133 11 If "b'!e religious opinions of

the s·tudents 11, he added, 11 have become unhinged in consequence

of the course I have pursued, the fault is not mine. To

produce convictions was not within my power, and if I am to

be condemned for the 'Atheism• of some ,let me receive credit

134 for the 'Theism' of others 11

•

Another charge against Derozio was that he taught his

students to disrespect their parents. Derozio refuted the

charge in no uncertain terms. He wrote : 11 I havs always

insisted upon respect and obedience to parents. I have

indeed condemned that feigned respect which some children

evince as being hypocritical and injurious to moral character,

but I have always endeavoured to cherish the sentient feel-135

ings of the heart: ,dnd to direct them into proper channels 11•

He furnished two examples to vindicate his contention on

this point. He wrote that he dissuaded Duckinarunjan

Mukhopadhyay from leaving his home on the plea of his

father's insupportable treatment of hi!il, which was not

altogether without a base. But, to his regret, Duckina-

runjan took his advice tor a short time, and sooner left

his house wi thou 1~ consulting him. AS another instance he

13.3. ~dwarct;·; I rh~)fn,:JS, Henry Derozio, 'l'he t;urasian Poet, Tedcher ~ Juu.rndlist, p. 84.

134. lbia.

185

he wrote that he reproached Mohesh Chunder ~ingh for his

having behaved ruclely to his ±ather and offended some of his

other relatives. He told Mohesh that until he sought forgive­

ness from his father he would not speak to him. 136

A charge against Derozio was that he found nothing wrong

in advocating the marriage of brothers and sisters. He dis-

missed the charge as a mere fabrication. He wrote that some

fellows like Brindaban Ghosal, a poor Brahmin, were active in

fabricating absurd and groundless stories about him and his

family,, and circulated them from house to house. As a result

vague reports and unfounded remour went abroad concerning

h. 137 1m.

'J~he charge of immorality against Derozio was not tenable.

The Government Gazt:=tte .i:n its obituary on December 29, 1831

observed that his moral character was irreproachable; his

devotion to spirit of what he deemed truth, was romantically

uncompromising, an<i his intention good; his conduct as a son,

a brother and friend and a member of society, which it was his

dearest wish to elevate and improve, was such as to reflect

credit on his memory and to make his death lamented by an

extensive circle of friends and acquaintances. 137 (a)

136. Ibid, pp. 85-86.

137. Ibid, pp. b7-88.

1J7(a) Cited in Edwards, Thomas, Henry Derozio, T.he E.urasiar:.. Poet, .l'eacher And Journalist, pp. 176-177.

186

The Weekly Examiner of 1840 edited by David Drummond remarked

in its obituary that he left behind him a fragrance in the

hearts of all who knew him.138

Hurro Mohun Chatterjee, a

contemporary college assistant, wrote in his manuscript

histo~r:y of the college that such was the force of his ins-

tructions that the conduct of the students out of the

colleqe was most exemplary. He added that indeed, the

college boy was a synonym for truth and that it was a general

belief and saying among our countrymen that such a boy was

incapable of falsehooct. 139 Derozio, according to Peary

Chand Mitrd, urged them to live and die for truth,and to culti-

140 vate all virtues 1 shunning vice in every shape. Radhanath

Sikdar wrote that his moral teachings could not but be bene-

fl.. cl.· al. to Indl.' a.141

0 t d th t th t t t ne may con en a ese s a e~en s

were hasty generalizations about Derozio 1 s moral teachings.

These 1 however, tend to suggest that his moral teachings

were high.

One great charge brought against Derozio by a number

138. Juoted in Nadge, E.W. Henry Derozio, The Eurasian Poet And Reformer, pp. 19-20.

139 •. i!:dwards rhomas, loc. cit., pp. 67-68. Accoruing to Thomas Edwards, Hurro Mohun Chatterjee's account referred to the position of affairs in the Hindu College during 1828 - Ibid, pp. 65-66.

140. Hitro., Peary Chand, A Biographical 3ketch 0f Javid Hare, p. 2 7.

l4l. ~rhE Arya lJarsh:.:m (Ben . .Jali), KarU.cJ<:., 1291, B.S. cited .Ln Bao:a.l, J.C., "Henry Derozio : Th(;:· Teacher-Patriot11 ,

~rhe~E..rr __ ~.evi8W 1 Vol. 55, 1934, o. 645.

187

writers was that he was a Christian collaborator.142

While

a number of Hindu College students was. raising slogans

against Hindu rel.igion and tradition, Alexunder Duff along with

Adam, Dealtry and Hill made an arrangement for delivering a

series of lectures on Christianity in a house opposite to the

college in order ·to convert the educated Hindus into it. The

Managers of the H1ndu College prohibited the students from

attending Duff •s lectures. The order of the Managers reads as

follows : "The Managers of the Anglo-Indian College having

heard that several of the students are in the habit of attend-

ing societies at which political ana religious discussions are

held, think it necessary to announce their strong disapproba-

tion of the practice and to prohibit its continuance. Any

student being pre~ent at such a society will incur their

serious displeasur:·e."143

The India Gazette passed a strong

protes-t against the order. The paper regarded it as 11 an

example of presumptuous, tyrannical and absurd intermeddling

with the rights of private judgement on political and religious

144 questions. It warned that a Christian Government and a

142. Biswas, Dilip Kumar, Rammohun Samiksha (Bengali), p.430. Chi ttabrata ?alit observes : "Dilip Kumar Biswas in his recent survey of .Rammohun has cast aspersions on Derozio as a Christian collaborator~ He accepts verbatim '-''hat Edwards writes about Mahesh Ghosh and Krishnamohan Banerjea" - Palit, Chittabarta, "Derozio Controversies". ,The Journal :Jf History (Jadavpur Univer~ity), Vol. v., p. 22.

143. EdvJard.::., I'h'Jii1·"1S, op. cit.., p. 70.

144. l'ht: lnui.. .. .jJ.~'.::tte {UOteu .in edwards, ;rhomas, H•..:HLj .J€.C0Zlo_, Th~ Eurasidn ?oe~, Teacn~r And Journalist, p. 71.

188

christ.ian community would not tolerate that the Managers of

an Institution, supported in part by public money, should

single out Christianity as the only religion against which

, . h . . t th . . fl d h ' 145 I tney m~g t a~rec e~r ~n uence an aut or~ty. t

desired that Christianity must,atleast, have a hearing from

146 those ·who were willing to hear. It appealed to Messrs .Hill

147 and Duff to resume their lectures without delay. According

to Thomas Edwards, the above comment of the India Gazette

"has considerable resemblance to the style of Derozio and

which, if not writ.ten by him, certainly speaks [of] his

148 sentiments regarding the action of the mu.nagement." It is

not, however, definitely known, whether it came from Derozio 1 s

pen. But Derozio encouraged his students to attend Duff •s

lectures in defiance of the mandate of the Managers. When

Wilson disapproved of such course of action on the part of

Derozio in directly setting at defiance the mandate of the

Managers, he declaJ::-ed that it was no business of his own to

149 put a stop to free discussion and search for truth. "W~t-

ever comes before you in the semblance of truth, that enquire

into with all dili9ence, out of the high respect due to truth"-

145. Ibid, p. 72.

146. Ibid.

147. Ibid.

148. Ibid, p. 71.

149. lbid, .t-' • l.~4.

189

150 was his exhortation to the pupils. What Derozio desired

was that his students would attend the lectures of Duff and

his associates on Christianity with their rational and

enquiring mind. Derozio may be said to have initiated

rational enquiry into Christianity. He had no faith in the

Christian revelat:ion. He did not view Christianity as a

communication from the divinity to the fallen man.151

It is noteworthy that some students of Derozio like

Krishna Mohun Banerjea, who attended the meeting on Chris-

tianity, ::1rev-. critical of Duff's lectures. Krishna .tv10hun was

not n~ady to accept the contention of Duff that the name of

a Christian would be sufficient to cover the moral defor-

mi ties of his heart and the worthlessness of his head,

because men after truth or honest men would not count while

152 selfish or immoral characters could be protected thereby.

According to him, Duff •s observation that not to be convinced

of his position after hearing him was not error of under-

standing but obst~inacy ·, or (to use Duff's words) 'a disease

in th•= heart but not in the head' was tantamount to intole-

153 ranee. He was not ready to accept Duff's sayings

150. Ibid.

151. The Calcutt~o. Gazette, February 13, 1832: Also 'rhe Calcutta H.eview, Vol. XVII (January-June ) 1852 ·, p. 354.

l5L:. ·rhe .E. nqui re r reprinted in ·rhe India Gazette, .r' ebrudry 141 1832 e

15 3. rht: .t:. nquirt: .r· ce printed in fhc India G a~e tte, Narch 10, 1832.

190

11 We aJ::-e bound to believe this; and if we doubt this, we must

rejeci: all history."154

He held that such a statement was

dictatiorial. He maintained that belief was not arbitrary

but voluntary and a matter of free choice •155

It is note-

worthy that he, while criticising Duff, also blamed "the

Hindoos in consequence of their fanatical cursing and

, · t t t f the ; r 1 · · " 15 6 sweaLLng aga1.ns apor a es rom .... re ~g1.on.

Duff, who was initially frustrated in his missionary

design, blew up the trumpet of alarm about the scepticism or

atheism of a number of Hindu College students •157

A Writer

observes tnat the Hindu You -c.h 's notion of the Religion of

Jesus was drawn chiefly from Thomas Paine's Age of Reason,

158 and the pages of Gibbon and Hume. In fact, Paine's

Age ot Reason was very popular among a number of students.

Duff found that it was a great obstacle in the path of con-

verting the Hindus. He collected all the copies of it that

were :found in the market, piled them in the street and made

a bonf:ire of them.159

But the craze for the book among the

Hindu youths was great and it was sold at a much higher rate

' i l . 160 f . f than t~ne or1.g na f-'rJ.ce. Passages rom J.t were o ten

154. Ibid.

155. Ibid.

156. Ibid.

157 • .Smith, GeO[\Je, Life ut Alexander Uuif, p. 89; Also Duff, Alex-3-nder, ,India And India Missions, p. 608.

l5b. _l.'bc ..,ctlcutc~:..~vi:~w, Vol. XVII,January-June,l852, o.354.

15<1. ,:)w;1r: .1\bhedananda, . India And Her People, p. 107.

L bu.

191

161 translated in Bengali and inserted in the newspapers.

Someone took the trouble to translate it into Bengali and

' h d 1't . th S b d P bh k 16l(a) M H' d publls e 1n e ung a ro a ur. any 1n us

reprinted the book and distributed it among their fellow-

162 countrymen.

The students or followers of Derozio appeared to be

opposed to the Christian Missionaries for a time. Krishna Mohun

Banerjea wrote in his autobiographical sketch : "The opposi-

tion t.hey manifes·ted to Christianity was nearly as decided

as their antipathy to Hindooism. Several nights the subject

of ou.r sketch rambled in company with large bodies of

friends in the principal streets in the town in order to

throw the missionaries into ridicule, by feigning to preach

the gospel, and imitating their pronunciation of Bengalee 163

and their incorrect use ot words and phrases in the language'!

~orne ol Derozio's biographers or some writers, however,

bring the charge of collaboration with the Christian Missio-

naries against Derozio. According to E. W. Madge, the moral

lessons taught by Derozio made "the work of missionaries easy

of accomplishme nt."164

But Derozio had, like Shelley,

161. ~:>anyal, .:l.c. "History Of Press In India", The Calcutta l~eview, January, 1911, p. 28.

16l(a) ,, Majumdar, B .B., History Of Political Thoughtin _India: From :~ammohan ro Dayananda, p. 83.

-·· 162. .:>wdmi Abh eriananda, op. cit., p. 107.

163. Ex tl cl.c t.:c, t .r:um che au tobioc.;raphical sketch Jf Krishna Nohun Bdn'-':r-J•?a quoted in thc India Review, October 1842, C~'--;..>rlnced in l'ht: t-'ioaern Review. Vol. ')5, 1934, p. 646.

Loc. CJ. t., 9· 1.0.

192

reverence for thE;= person of Christ, although he never

d h f i i . 165 .

accepte t e tenets o Chr st n1ty. DerozJ.o was an

admirer of the moral principles of Christianity.166

It was

Christian morali.ty as preached by Derozio that appealed most

strongly to the hearts of RamtanOO Lahiree and his fellow-

167 pupils.

Thomas Edwards contended that the work of Duff,

indeed, was but the complement of Derozio's.168

Again,

that Duff only entered on the heritage of Derozio or that

Krishna Mohun Banerjea,Mohesh Chunder Ghose and others of

Derozio's pupils went over to Christianity was the only

logical consequence of the teaching of their friend and

master.169

But the same Edwards wrote that Derozio could

neither subscribe to the unquestioning acceptance of the

authority of the Romish Church in matter of faith, to the

sacerdotalism of: epistopal clergyman, to the fervid evange-

licalism of Duff and his admirers or to the passionless,

inhurnan theology of Calvin. Truth like a torch (the more

it shook it shines) was the moving spring that worked the

mechanism of his intellect and life. 170

16S. "Derozio, rhE: Ango-India Poet 11, The Presidency College

Magazine, Vol. XIII(Year ?), p. 108.

166. Ghose, Benoy, loc. cit., p. 125.

167. Shastri.r-'hivnath, Ramtanu Lahiri-0-Tatkalin Ban~­samaj \o·.·ngali), p. 349.

168. Edwarcis, l'homc!s, Henry Derozio, The Eurasian Poet..,rea­cher Ana Journalist, p. 66.

1.6':1 • .Luiu, pp. 91 & 95.

i. '/!~. Ib:tc.., p. .t.69.

193

According to Peary Chand Mitra, the moral lessons

taught by Derozio gradually produced practical effects.

Krishna Mohun and Mahesh gradually acquired calmness, and

findi.ng a void in Derozio • s teachings inasmuch as they did

not~ open the v.ista into the life to come, began to examine

the e:vide nces of Christianity and atlast embraced i t. 1 71

But the: same Peary Chand remarked that he used to impress

upon the pupils the sacred duty of thinking for themselves­

to be in no way influenced by any of the idols mentioned

172 by BcLcon.

It is, therefore, not safe to rely on what may be

called verbal or oral testimony of the above writers in

bringing the charge of collaboration with the Christian

Missionaries against Derozio.

Derozio was an idealist, Subjectivity was an impor­

tant aspect of his teaching. He allowed ample freedom of

expression, opinion and thought to his pupils. He did not

define the limits of such individual liberty. But he

believed that his students would approximate to the standard

of t.ruth and reason or to what might be called perfect­

ability of mankind. When one of the students leaned towards

either ~1rthodoxy or Rammohun•s BrahfTiaism and compromising

tendency, or Duff's Christian teachings, one followed up

171. Mitr~, ~e~ry Chana, OfJ. cit., p. 30.

~ 7 ~ • tv'! 1 t-.r a • .?c a r y :.:;r, i'1 nv • 'p • c i t • , o • 2 7 •

194

one's judgement in disregarding the tenor of Derozio's

teaching. ~hether Krishna Mohun or Mohesh or any of his

pupils embraced Christianity or whether some of his pupils

embraced Rammohun 's Brahma ism or deism, formally or

informally - all were unDero~ian, and for all these Derozio

could hardly be blamed.

The spirit of Greeco-Roman Renaissance, which favoured

the revival of classical literatures, or the Protestant

ideal of reformation is to be missed. in Derozio 's teaching.

Born and bred up in western cultural tradition, Derozio

could not be expected to effect a revival of Indian learning

within a very brief span of life. One also could not

expect so much rnaturi ty from a young E.urasi an in reinter­

preting Hinau religion in the light of the west and provi­

ding an alternative to traditional Hinduism. Derozio had

also not profound knowledge of Hindu religion or of any

other religion of India.

It would be far more consistent with the spirit of

free thinking, rationalism, idealism and cosmopolitanism

wilich Dero:.::.io sou.ght to stir up had he equally conducted

inve:~ ti<;1atiun into all religious traditions, dindu, Muslim

and Chr.1stian and even into the Company's tradition,or had

lJerozio m::J.dc 6 ClJI!tpdrative study of -:3.11 religious tradi­

tiom,. But uer )/l.fj souyht to stir up the spirit ot rational

enquJ.ry iutu ::"t-' /C.n.ine; in tnE mico Jt nis :;tudents and

f u l L ,)'v'J'~ L ;:, •

195

It is true that Derozio was to some extent inspired

by i::he English r8mantic flavour of passionate protest

against customs and conventions. But that need not justify

the violence of feelings on the part of some of his pupils

in unneces.:>arily running counter to the prejudices of their

countrymen. Moreover, in Derozio there was not lawlessness

and immorality that w=re usually associated with some of

the hnglish r:.omantic poets.

The chief essence of Derozio's teaching was that

reason was the 1ardstick of judgement on any issue. It is

necessary to exa.mine to what ext:.ent Derozio's students

and followers responded to his teaching.