no light Shah This 28th August is the memory day of Karsandas Mulji. His life span from 1832 to 1871, rather his life work is being well remembered these days. Karasandas' character was up in the air for the film 'Maharaj'; And also the book on Karasandas written in 1983 on the first anniversary of Achyuta Yagnik (4th August) was also modified: it was specially prepared for the half centenary of the birth of Karasandas Mulji in 1982-83. Among the activities that Achyuta was doing through initiatives such as the Extremism Eradication Council through 'Setu', the reform and revival movement in Gujarat was also a subject of special interest. As I write this, I am reminded that a dilapidated copy of Vijayaraya's Medicinal 'Leelaan Sukakan Paan' is still preserved in my personal collection, among the source material discovered and discovered when we came together to pre-deliberate on the Sardha Shatabdi. This 'Leelaan Sukakan Pan' is a collection of twenty essays written by Vijayaraya on the subject of the Narmad Yuga. We found it very useful as an introduction to the 'Yahome' environment of the Narmad era – and especially as a glimpse into the early issues (September-December 1855) of Karsandas Mulji's letter 'Satya Prakash'. However, the attempt to stop the screening of the film 'Maharaj' was not the first such case. Campaign to remove text taken from Vishwanath Bhatt's Viral Narmadcharitra in Gujarati textbook K. Ka. Decades have passed since Shastri's leadership, but the memory is fresh and incidents like the 'Maharaj' controversy continue to fester. Vishwanath Bhatt's idea of reform movement of Narmad Adi mentioned the misdeeds of Aapna Jadunath Maharaj Tareh, so there was a movement to delete this text. On the issue, if we discuss the reformative activity in the Narmad period, it cannot remain without mentioning the revolution manifested through characters like Jadunath Maharaj. When Jirnamat is supported in the name of Shastra, you see Narmad challenging Maharaj that the Shastras are not created by God, be it on issues like widow remarriage or the Guru's relationship with the followers' marriages. Vijayarai Vaidya in 'Leelaan Sukakan Paan' has made a heart-rending note of Narmad's heart-felt, fiery, passionate speech in a public meeting about 'widow remarriage' on the fifth of October, 1860. Giving details of what the child widow has to endure, Narmad said: 'Isn't it enough to pierce the tender breast of mankind and bring a sack of mercy?' That day, Narmad wrote, 'After coming home I was not spoken to for an hour. Since that day, the sweetness of my voice has gone.' Revival and revival were sometimes important words for our literature and it was not welcome in the alleged literary consumption. When you look at the work of Karsandas Mulji, the so-called Jahal Mandali feels very pale in spite of its other features and offerings. Those were the days when a ten-year-old girl was considered marriageable and if she did not allow her husband to enjoy that marriage right, he was legally punishable. When it came to reform in 1890, Tilak Maharaj opposed it, on the issue of British interference in religion! On the other hand, when 11-year-old girl Phulmani died while her older husband was trying to usurp her marriage rights, Narasimharao Divetia wrote the poem 'Phulmani Dasi no Shaap', saying that this fire would continue to consume the entire Aryabhumi. We will conclude this chronicle with the thoughts expressed by the eminent writer Dhirubhan Patel at a meeting held in Mumbai in 1983 in association with the Farbes Gujarati Sabha on the occasion of the publication of the first edition of this book written by Makarand Mehta and Achyut Yagnik: 'A man born early, a man who becomes a 'misfit' in that era.. .It's sad to get out of 'Me and My Life'. Even in today's times, if Karsandas is born again, he will not be happy. We have to raise the flag of reform again.' In the life of '39 years, the man left a strong impression. The literature that came out of the heart was conveyed to the people. The Naats were put out, Nagar entered the Naat of Vania. The shore of reform is like the waves of the ocean. Don't be discouraged if there is a setback after progress. Nagar Vania lost his support and got another support. Deported once again.' 'Do not allow independent intellect to be dominated by clerics. Fought against it. After the Maharaj Libal case was settled… he brought his widow sister from Limbadi and got her married to a nobleman with great fanfare. He should get Veerachakra, Paramveerachakra for all his work.' 'We are very impulsive as children. Then with age the blood becomes colder. But this did not happen in the life of Karsandas. Karsandas did something for future generations. If he were alive now, what means would he not use?!' In a way, all these were the forerunners of today's civil liberties movement… alas!
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
Shadow of History: What if Karsandas Reborn?
