In search of a non-Western education model Syed Ross Masood of Hyderabad turns to Japan Sushila Narsimhan, Ph.D Professor (retd.) of Japanese Studies Formerly, Department of East Asian Studies University of Delhi, Delhi – 110007, India <
[email protected]> Introduction In mid-1850s, most Asian countries, including India and Japan were victims of European hegemony. Within fifty years, Japan was not only the sole surviving independent Asian country; it had also become a power to reckon with. Japan’s example had showed that it was possible for the Asian societies to modernize. All that they needed to know was what features of Japanese culture accounted for Japan’s success and might be adapted to their own societies? From the late-19th century onwards, aided by the emergence of new travel infrastructures, and regular direct shipping services between Yokohama and Bombay (1885), and Kobe and Calcutta (1911), several Indians travelled to Japan. Japan played an important role, consciously or unconsciously, in two ways: firstly, as an inspiration for India’s national independence; and secondly, as a model for educational reforms and modernization. While the former abounds with rich literature, the latter is understudied and needs to be highlighted. Japan however served as a working model mainly for the semi-autonomous ‘princely’ or ‘native’ states, collectively called the ‘Princely India,’ ruled by the local hereditary monarchs, and not for the directly-ruled provinces of British India where the former Hindu and Muslim indigenous modes of learning were already replaced by a new public system of British education. However, under the constant pressure of the British encroachment on the fringes of their states, several Princely States realized the need of empowering themselves through educational reforms.