Sikh Revivalist Movements- The Nirankari and Namdhari Movements in Punjab in the Nineteenth Century (A Socio-Religious Study)

About the Book This is the first exhaustive and systematic study of Nirankari and Namdhari Movements, during 19th Century. The author's analysis is basically relevant to the forces, which made Sikh Revivalist Movements to emerge in order to step further decay and degeneration of the Sikh religion. These movements primarily relied on Adi Grunth to give new directions to the society with new rays of hopes and to discard dogmas and rituals which had penetrated into the society. These were reformist, puritan and revolutionary movements aimed to regenerating social, religious and political awakening. The book examines the divergent perceptions and critically evaluates the responses and reactions of the different classes of society towards these movements.

It brings into light many interesting and rare documents which were hitherto lying unearthed. This would be at useful reference book for the students and research scholars working on sikhism and the history of Punjab, besides those who are interested in social, religious and political events in Punjab during that period.

About the Author Dr. Surjit Kaur Jolly, Principal Shyama Prasad Mukherjee College, Delhi University, is a person of immense academic taste. She has taught in the same university for 26 years. Her areas of special interest are history of Punjab and Sikhs Religion and Spiritualism as a way of life have always inspired her to work for building a value based society. She deeply believes in application of religion in day to-day life. Despite her occupation as an administrator she takes out time to satiate her mental faculties and thirst for knowledge. She has participated in and contributed papers to national and international conferences. Widely travelled in India, she has also gone abroad in connection with her research and academic pursuit. A recipient of various awards given by various academic social and civic bodies she holds several important positions in different organisations. She is Vice-Chairman of Consumers Federation of India, Secretary of Institute of Advance Studies in Comparative Religion Gobind Sadan, Gen. Secretary of History and Culture Society, Member of Think-Tank for Higher Education etc.

She was bestowed upon the Eminent Personality Award, Best Administrator Award, 1998 Honoree by Who's Who, Award of Merit by Consumer Federation and Prashti Patra by Lions Club etc.

Preface The century had witnessed the emergence of a number socio-religious movements in different parts of India. From Punjab to Bengal there seems to have been a wave of social awareness. and protest against the degenerating and dogmatic nocio-religious behavior of the people. The main object of all those movements was to give a vision to the society to appreciate the basic spirit of the religion in a proper perspective. Farquhar has rightly romarked that "the old religions are the soil from which modern movements spring"

The social reform movements usually have their root in the basic religious principles. Any deviation from it, makes the society dogmatic and ritualistic. The call of those movements was again and again to return to original religious principles. According to Annie Besant "any movement to be strong in India must rest on a religious basis and so interwoven with roligion is the vory fibro of the Indian heart that it only throbs with full response when the roligious note has been struck which call out its sympathetic vibration".

The nineteenth century presents a picture not of political upheaval only but also of major changes in the socio-religious life of the country. This period also had the impact of the influx of Christian missionaries and the western culture and education. Thus in a way, the nineteenth century was an important period in the history of the Indian culture. It was effected by a number of factors which had posed serious challenges to its age-old customs, beliefs and traditions.

In Bengal Raja Ram Mohan Roy founded the Brahmo Samaj in 1828 A.D. and he was regarded as the pioneer, in organising the socio-religious reform movement. This movement has been rightly called as a first important attempt in giving an intellectual rationalism and enlightenment to the modom India.

Prarthna Samaj, an offshoot of Brahmo Samaj, was founded in Bombay in 1867. It's founder Madhav Gobind Ranade was a well known social reformer of Maharashtra.

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