Orissa Review

with welfare of all sections of people the poor, the down trodden, the exploited and the least. He had the ideal of Gandhian of social upliftment, economic emancipation and Sarvodaya moral resurrection of all. Gandhiji considered this ideal as the only real dignified human doctrine is the greatest good of Prabodh Kumar Rath all, he cherished this welfare of the rich and the poor, the prince and the dullard, the dumb, deaf and mute. He had envisioned development with moral, ethical M. K. was by He located the truth of Indian and spiritual values than the common consent one of the ideas through study of Tolstoy western economic parameter greatest leaders. Asia has and Ruskin. He can be alone. Gandhiji cherished to produced in an era of colonial acclaimed as a politician, establish a democratic state and nationalisms and decolonization, prophet, a humanist, a social a new social order on principles who in his own life time was scientist, a democrat and above of truth and non-violence with called a saint and a all an economist. Sarvodaya. Machiavellian politician and who has become in He viewed the function Sarvodaya as an ideal, independent both a of the existing state as evil a vision and a movement in national myth and an which hardly would permit a Gandhian philosophy in its embarrassment.1 new social order of his dream. origin, dynamic in outlook, it is He opined for a co-operative solidly based on a philosophy The political philosophy federation of village republics. of praxis that demands the of M.K. Gandhi had been He pointed the role of majority commitment of its follower to analysed thoroughly in the rule in western democracy and the care and the uplift of country and abroad. He had precarious position of humanity, especially of the last been a successful man of action minorities. These are not and the least in any society. in pre-independent India. He conducive for promotion of Gandhi¶s dream of Sarvodaya had struggled hard to win the welfare of one and all. society is an ideal towards freedom by non-violent means. which he worked and for which He had aimed to end He coined the term he expected a continuity of exploitation and set up a new Sarvodaya to mean ³good of commitment till it is realized. social order on principles of all´ for the title version of Ruskin The dynamics of Sarvodaya are truth and non-violence. He was µnot¶ the greatest good of the deeply rooted in the world view a great social scientist often greatest number, Gandhi of Gandhi, within which he experiencing certain principles. viewed his class- less society thought and acted and from the

36 October - 2010 Orissa Review perspective of which he viewed level, the Harijans, Tribals and inspiration for the formation of other realties and which gave members the lower castes Sarvodaya. But Gandhi admits him the inner direction for his would be given all the rights of his debt to certain other search for and experiments with equality. sources like the ³Gospels´ by truth. Tolstoy and Thoreau.5 Gandhi Sarvodaya owes its obviously drew a lot of The dynamics of origin to Gandhi. The concept inspiration from Jainism, Sarvodaya assumes a process Sarvodaya was first used by besides Jainsim Gandhi¶s that begins with the last and the Gandhi to express an idea thought owes much to the least in the society and moves which he found. Very scriptures of , Islam, on toward the dawn of a captivating in Ruskins un to this Christianity and Buddhism. Moksha on earth or Ram Rajya last. In order to understand the (Kingdom of God). This full meaning and implications of The ideal of Sarvodaya kingdom was to be attained on Sarvodaya, one has to situate is implied in the word itself; earth and had to be created and it in the broader perspective of Sarva and Udaya. Sarva means nurtured with Sarvodaya beliefs Gandhi¶s thinking. Gandhi never ³all´ and the key to this and and practices.2 Through attempted to build a systematic Udaya means ³uplift´. The Sarvodaya Gandhi attempted thought pattern or sat down to culmination of Sarvodaya to recapture the spiritual write a whole book containing vision, which was the life heritage of India, which had a systematic exposition of his mission of Gandhi, is nothing thrived in the villages and used ideas. Instead, he wrote in bits but a liberated society, a it to build the nation. He and pieces, usually for journals Sarvodaya Samaj. He devoted criticized western civilization not put out by his organizations. He his entire life for the achievement because it was totally corrupt, never hesitated to admit of this goal. Since Sarvodaya but because it was contrary to inconsistencies in his thinking stood for the welfare of all, the needs of India. In western and writings. For Gandhi commitment to all kinds of values he saw a craze for Sarvodaya was a concrete sacrifices, even unto death, for comfort, multiplication of wants manifestation of many spiritual the welfare of others was at the and self indulgence, which could ideas found in many religious core of Sarvodaya. lead to greed, conflict traditions.3 Like many other suppression of the weak by the great concepts, the evolving Gandhi¶s original use of strong and social disparity. and expanding concept of the term Sarvodaya dates back Gandhi was convinced that Sarvodaya had a small and to the year 1904. In translating decentralization of power is the humble beginning. Gandhi into Gujurati, Ruskin¶s unto this key to just and equitable seems to have borrowed the last the book that he society. On economic level concept Sarvoday from a Jain acknowledge as exerting the decentralization of power scripture written by Acharya most radical and revolutionary meant discovering big Samaanta Bhadra who lived influence on his life and industries and encouraging about 2000 years¶ ago.4 No philosophy he first used the term village cottage industry. ³Small doubt for Gandhi Ruskin¶s Sarvodaya. The title of the is beautiful´ thus would become book ³un to the last´ was one book when translated in to the economic slogan. In a social of the main sources of Gujrati was Sarvodaya or ³the

October - 2010 37 Orissa Review welfare of all´ but the idea of down trodden rather. Than all. the following ideology of Hindu ³welfare of all´ formed a part As has observed saints and seers. The Bhagvad of his mental make up even ³The proper rendering of unto Gita is also replete with before he read this book.6 this last would be Antyodaya references to the concept of Ruskin¶s book according to ³uplift of lost´, rather than universal welfare or the welfare Gandhi had three lessons for Sarvodaya.8 But Gandhi of all. Apart from Hindu him. intentionally used the word Scriptures, Buddhism and Sarvodaya or welfare of all Jainism served as adjuncts to 1. That the good of the instead of Antyodaya. Hinduism also lay equal individual is contained in the emphasis on the welfare of all. good for all. The Gandhian concept The universal love and universal of Sarvodaya also inherited 2. That a lawyers work welfare form the corner-stones from the cultural heritage of has the same value as the of the Buddhist philosophy. India-Indian culture since the barber¶s in as much as all have The Jainas equally accept as early days of recorded history the same right of earning their their ideal the welfare of all. clearly conceives of the welfare livelihood from their work. Even before the Christian Era of all. Even Kautilya¶s the term Sarvodaya was used 3. That a life labourer of Arthasastra, a masterpiece of by one Jaina teacher the that is the life of the tiller of ancient Hindu treatise on Samantabhadra. Islam not only the soil and the handicraftsman diplomacy and state craft is the life worth living.´ prescribes that the ruler must be conceives of Allah or God as Omniscient-Omnipresent But to Gandhi our of just and righteous, his supreme the three lessons the first one is consideration being the welfare having no beginning and no end. most significant. But Gandhi of the people. It also concedes that all is from 10 had deep in his heart the God. The message of God cherished objective of welfare ³In the happiness of the and the kingdom of God of all or Sarvodaya even before subjects lies his happiness, in advocated by him comprehend he read Ruskin¶s ³unto this their welfare his welfare. universal good or the welfare last.´ 7 Whatever pleases himself he of all. Thus the Gandhian shall not consider as good, but concept of Sarvodaya or the Gandhi had deep whatever pleases his subjects uplift or welfare of all was down in his heart the desire to he shall consider as good´.9 stimulated by the combined see the welfare of all. unto his effect of ³Common humanity´ last, he stimulated this desire Indians conceived of as preached by all religions. and instilled in him a sense of universal love and universal determination and dedication to service in terms of The philosophy of work for it, to give his life for it. ³Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam Sarvodaya makes the attempt Sarvodaya or welfare of all and Svadesha Bhubana of reorienting human mind, of became hence forward his trayam´. The concept of reconstructing human society. polestar. literally universal brotherhood, Sarvodaya means welfare and translated lays emphasis on the universal love and service to the prosperity of all. All most last, the oppressed and the entire creation is contained in progress together without

38 October - 2010 Orissa Review collision of interest. Prosperity Kisans, Uplift of labour, Uplift 2. Thomas Veltickal, Gandhian is not attained in vacuum. It of Lapers, Uplift of Adivasis, Sarvodaya; A Realistic utopia needs money after all but what Uplift of Students. Gyan Publishing House, New Delhi, 2002. P-8. type of money ? Money earned without moral and spiritual Sarvodaya pleads for 3. Archana Sinha, the school the replacement of the concept philosophy of Sarvodaya consideration leads to animality. (Patna, Janki, Prakasan) 1978 When becomes possession- of class struggle by the more 4. T.S. Deva Das, Sarvodaya and oriented he does not care for rational theory of social goods and harmony. This social the problem of Political anything good or bad. This Sovereignty, Madras, 1974 leads to social imbalance. harmony is to be realised not by mere verbal profession. It is 5. Essays on Gandhian Politics Sarvodaya is a philosophy Oxford, Clearendon Poets, which provides checks against to be experienced in daily 1971, PP17-25 conduct. these imperfections of human 6. Gandhi, M.K. ± The story of my mind and soul. It endeavours to Gandhi¶s ideals have Experiments with truth P ± 224 put man on the tract which may often left little mark on Indian 7. Ibid, P -224 lead him to real social society and politics and where happiness. Sarvodaya ideals 8. Gandhi M.K. : Harijan 10 April they have been influential they 1949 have been there since the Vedic have often been distorted in times. 9. Kautilya, Arthasastra, Book-I, practice by social conditions. Chapter ±VII. For building a What left by the Mahatma in 10. Al Quoran, Chap-iv, quoted in Sarovadoya society in India, modern India is not a social and Islam by Annie Besant P-22 Gandhiji gave 18-fold political reformation, but merely programme. They are :- a tiny group of devoted Gandhis. Some, under the Communal unity, leadership of Jaya Prakash Removal of untouchability, Narayan, preach the doctrines Prohibition, , Other rural of Sarvodaya, the welfare of all. industries, Village sanitation, , Adult Education, References : Uplift of women, Education in 1. Originally published in the health and hygiene, Provincial modern Asian Studies, Prabodh Kumar Rath lives language, National language, Cambridge University Press, in Plot No.184, Paikanagar, Economic equality, Uplift of Vol. III, 1969, PP-321-22 Bhubaneswar-751003.

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