Birthday Special
Birthday Special
Arya Samaj Movement and Dr. Ambedkar
Manmohan Kumar Arya
Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar is not only a prominent name in India but is recognized across the world. He played a crucial role in the drafting of the Indian Constitution and also served as the country ' s first Law Minister. Coming from a Dalit background, Dr. Ambedkar faced discrimination and partial treatment from the upper-caste Hindus.
Maharishi Dayanand, perhaps the most influential reformer after the Mahabharata era, challenged the birthbased caste system using the authority of the Vedas and other scriptures. He not only restored the right of women and Dalits to study the Vedas— which had been unjustly taken from them by the orthodox Brahmin class— but also supported this with ample evidence. His followers opened Gurukuls and other educational institutions where Dalit students were admitted. Many Dalits were transformed into scholars, well-versed in Sanskrit and the Vedas, even more so than the orthodox Brahmins. Thanks to the efforts of Maharishi Dayanand and his followers, the walls of caste-based discrimination began to crumble. All sections of society, including Dalits, gradually gained access to education and equal rights.
The revival of the divine Vedas, along with the advocacy for social equality
and reform, is largely credited to Maharishi Dayanand and the Arya Samaj he founded.
April 14, 1891, and Mhow in Madhya Pradesh mark the birth date and birthplace of the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar. The Arya Samaj was founded 16 years before, and Maharishi Dayanand had passed away about eight years prior. Although Swami Dayanand was not physically present during Dr. Ambedkar’ s time, the Arya Samaj movement— the legacy of his ideals— was very much alive. Dr. Ambedkar’ s extensive body of work shows that he was well aware of the Arya Samaj and its activities. At that time, the Arya Samaj movement was at its peak and had a definite influence on Dr. Ambedkar and his generation.
Just as Swami Dayanand, though a Gujarati, belonged to the Audichya Tiwari Brahmin class, Dr. Ambedkar, though born in Madhya Pradesh, belonged to the so-called Shudra( Mahar) community of Maharashtra. Both went on to become not just national but international figures. As the“ Ranade-Phule era” in Maharashtra was coming to an end, the era of Sayajirao Gaekwad, Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj, and Dr. Ambedkar was on the rise. This second generation drew inspiration from reformers like Dayanand, Ranade, and Phule. Sayajirao Gaekwad and Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj were greatly influenced by Swami Dayanand and the Arya Samaj, while Dr. Ambedkar drew more from Mahatma Phule and his Satyashodhak Samaj. Even though Sayajirao Gaekwad and Shahu Maharaj were associated with both the Arya Samaj and Satyashodhak Samaj, Dr. Ambedkar, while being a disciple of Phule, was also an admirer and critic of Swami Dayanand and the Arya Samaj
14 Dalit Andolan Patrika | April 2025