Contextualising Hindu Nationalism: the Development of Political Discourse
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This electronic thesis or dissertation has been downloaded from Explore Bristol Research, http://research-information.bristol.ac.uk Author: Zavos, John Title: Sangathan : the pursuit of a Hindu ideal in Colonial India; the idea of organisation in the emergence of Hindu nationalism 1870-1930. General rights Access to the thesis is subject to the Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International Public License. A copy of this may be found at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/legalcode This license sets out your rights and the restrictions that apply to your access to the thesis so it is important you read this before proceeding. Take down policy Some pages of this thesis may have been removed for copyright restrictions prior to having it been deposited in Explore Bristol Research. 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Sangathan: The Pursuit of a Hindu Ideal in Colonial India The Idea of Organisation in the Emergence of Hindu Nationalism 1870 - 1930 John Zavos A thesis submitted to the University of Bristol in accordance with the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts Department of Theology and Religious Studies September 1997 Abstract Sarzgathan, or organisation, has emerged as a central idea in Hindu nationalist ideology. This thesis examines the development of this idea, culminating in its concrete expression in the nineteen twenties as the sangathan movement. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Hinduism was the subject of a constant dialogue between individuals and groups seeking to define and codify - or orgamse - the religion in the context of colonial control. I argue that this dialogue forms the context for the movement of the twenties, and further that it constitutes the means through which the ideology of Hindu nationalism itself was initially produced. Organisation is examined on two inter-related levels: first, on the level of political mobilisation - the way in which Hinduism became organised as a political force; and secondly, on the level of religious ideology - the way in which orgamsation came to be articulated as an ideal to which Hindus could legitimately aspire. On both levels, the protagonists were forced to confront the question of what constitutes Hinduism: what were its defining characteristics, and where were its boundaries located. Because of this over-arching question, the two levels developed together, producing a series of approaches to the organisation of Hinduism, propagated by various groups claiming to represent the interests of Hindus in the arena of colonial politics. The thesis examines the following groups as progressive examples of the various approaches: the Arya Samaj; the Sanatana Dharma Sabhas and the Bharat Dharma Mahamandal; the cow protection movement of the early eighteen nineties; the shuddhi movement; the Hindu Sabha movement; the Hindu Mahasabha and the sangathan movement; and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. A significant feature of this research is its focus on middle class ideological development. Through a Gramscian interpretation of the state, it recognises the importance of the middle class as strategically placed in the domain of hegemonic politics, close to the focal points of power. On this basis, middle class ideologies are examined as critical to the development of political discourse in India. In particular, the study focuses on the competing ideologies of Hindu nationalism and Indian nationalism as elaborated by this class, and demonstrates a fresh interpretation of the relationship between these ideologies. Acknowledgements I am most grateful to all those who have given me advice and encouragement in the course of this project. In its early phase, I received valuable help in ordering my thoughts and drawing out ideas from Partha Mitter, Bruce Graham, Sudipta Kaviraj, Rohit Barot and Thomas Hansen. I would like to thank all these for their time and interest. Later, I benefited particularly from the thoughtful comments of Christophe Jaifrelot on the direction and content of my work. These comments supplemented the inspiration I gained from Christophe's own work on Hindu nationalism and other matters, particularly his important book, The Hindu Nationalist Movement in India (Viking Penguin India, Delhi, 1996). Christophe also gave me some valuable leads for my study trips to India, for which I am again most grateful. Whilst in India, I benefited once more from the vibrant intellectual atmosphere of the Centre for Historical Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University. I am indebted particularly to Mridula and Aditya Mukherjee, and to Bipan Chandra, for all their help and kindness, as well as their trenchant comments on my work. I would also like to thank Achin Vanaik for sharing his thoughts with me on the nature of communalism and religious nationalism. My approach to these and other issues was examined in fearful detail during long discussions with Eddie and Niva Rodrigues in Bombay. I am amazed at their persistent ability to get to the heart of the matter, as well as their capacity to remain intellectually lively even in the smallest hours of the morning, and alter one of Niva's spectacular feasts. All thanks is due to them for making my time in Bombay so enjoyable, and so critical in terms of the overall direction of the thesis. Thanks is also due to Jitendra Nath, who helped me in so many ways whilst I was in Delhi, and whose indomitable sense of hospitality I will always cherish. I am most grateful to Mohan Kadu for his help in translations from Marathi, and his ability to "go with the flow" whilst at Hedgewar Bhavan in Nagpur. I also thank Ramkrishna Praihad Deo and Shrikant Joshi of the RSS for their assistance and kindness whilst I was in Nagpur, as well as all the swayamsevaks who agreed to talk to me about their early years in the Sangh. Many thanks also to Gita Saberwal, Deputy Director of the Archaeology, Archives and Museums Department in Bhopal: a sane voice in a mad world. In Bristol I have been guided by Professor Ursula King. I thank her for all her work on this project - particularly her persistent ability to inject much needed rigour - and for the many kindnesses she has shown me along the way. I have also been ably advised at Bristol by Dr. Vernon Hewitt in the Department of Politics. His valuable comments have often given me the confidence to proceed, and his consistent willingness to go through my work has been nothing short of heroic. I am most grateful to the Humanities Research Board of the British Academy for funding the bulk of my research period, as well as a study trip to India. In addition, I must thank the University of Bristol for funding the first year of my research, and the Spalding Trust for funding a much needed second trip to gather data in India. Lastly I must thank my family for supporting me, making me laugh, understanding the need for time and all the other complexities and needs of the eternal student. More than anything else, they have never failed to put the whole project in a real perspective. Thanks then to Niki, Callum and (latterly) Isla, but especially to Christina. Because we have lived it together, I dedicate this work to you. Author's Declaration I certify that this thesis is my own work. I also confirm that the views expressed within the dissertation are my own and not those of the University. j. Contents Introduction 1 1.1 Objectives and Limitations 3 1.2 Methodology and Sources 7 1.3 Plan of Presentation 11 2 Key Concepts and Significant Literature in the Study of Hindu Nationalism 14 2.1 Ideology, Class Interest and Cultural Identity 14 2.2 Hegemony and the Colonial State 18 2.3 Nationalism and Communalism 27 I, 2.4 The Hindu Religion in Colonial India 34 2.5 Organisation and Sangathan 41 2.6 Summary of Discussion 44 3. The State and the Hindu Religion in the Nineteenth Century 46 3.1 The Organisation of the State and the Disorganisation of Society 48 3.1.1 Hegemonic Cornerstones as Images of Orgamsation 48 3.1.2 Disorganisation and the Duality of Hinduism 53 3.2 The Pressure to Organise 57 3.2.1 1858: Developing the Colonial Discourse of Organisation 57 3.2.2 Pressures on the Structure of Hinduism in the Public Space 61 3.3 Establishing Patterns of Organisation: Hindu Movements in the Late Nineteenth Century 69 3.3.1 Reformism: The Transformative Structure of the Arya Samaj 70 3.3.2 Orthodoxy: Sanatana Dharma Sabhas and the BharatDharma Mahamandal 77 3.3.3 Defining Approaches to the Organisation of Hinduism 81 3.4 Summary of Discussion 84 4. Indian Nationalism and Representations of Hinduism towards the End of the Nineteenth Century 87 4.1 The Development of Nationalist Organisation 87 4.1.1 Early Indian Nationalism and the State 88 4.1.2 Beginnings of Mass Mobilisation as Nationalist Strategy: B.G. Tilak and the Search for Contact in the 1890s 90 4.2 Undermining Hindu Organisation in the Public Space 93 4.2.1 The Census and the Taxonomy of Hinduism 93 4.2.2 A Challenge to Middle Class Pretensions 97 4.3 Practising the Organisation of Hinduism 102 4.3.1 Cow Protection as Horizontal Organisation 102 4.3.2 Shuddhi as Vertical Organisation 109 4.4 Summary of Discussion 114 5.