History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c96.s1.57

v7.c96.s1.57

²⁶¹⁹ It is remarkable that the late Lokamānya Tīlak advocated about four months before his death (in the issue of the 'Kesarı' of 16th March 1920) that anyone who spent his life in Indian freedom struggle must be treated as a brāhmana to whatever caste or sub-caste he might have belonged by birth, that caste should not be treated as a matter of birth but that we must begin to treat it as dependent on qualities and actions and he relies on our śāstras and quotes in support a Pali verse from the Suttanipāta: न जच्चा वसलो होति न जच्चा होति ब्राह्मणो । कम्मणा वसलो होति कम्मणा होति ब्राह्मणो ॥ 'a man does not become a Vrsala, that is, Sūdra by caste (or birth) nor does he become a brāhmana by birth, a man becomes a vrsala or a brāhmāna by his actions' (compare Mahāvagga, vāsetthasutta, verse 57 in SBE Vol. X part 2 p 115). (*Continued from last page*) There is great misunderstanding about his opposition to those reformers who did not care for or engage in political agitation but spent their energies and time in inveighing against some social evils. He wanted to remove the evil of grinding poverty and political bondage of India due to the colonial policy of Britain for over 150 years and therefore he stressed the point that everyone must join in the fight for freedom and did not like the idea of some very intellectual men spending time and energy in crying themselves hoarse for only social reform He thought that when India became free from the incubus of foreign rule, many social reforms would be introduced in no time Events have shown that he was right, and the social reformers who maligned him were wrong Our Constitution abolished untouchability at one stroke (Article 17), legislation has made a provision that to treat a man as untouchable in public is punishable (vide Act XXII of 1955 sections 3 and 4), legislation has removed all ban against intercaste marriages and several other reforms have been brought about Vide 'Social Legislation and its role in Social Welfare' published in 1956 on behalf of the Planning Commission. For Tilak's article, vide 'लोकमान्य टिळकांचे केसरींतील लेख भाग ३, पृष्ठे १५३-५८।. British people were cautious and were generally opposed to progressive social reforms in Hindu Society The High Courts administered Hindu Law as contained in the medieval digests (nibandhas) like the Dāyabhāga, the Mitākṣarā and the Vyavahāramayūkha and not the law found in ancient smṛtis, which allowed anuloma marriages; vide H of Dh. vol. II pp. 448-452 and 'A Century of Social reform' by S. Natarajan, Asia Publishing House, Bombay, particularly pp. 126-173.