History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c96.s2.106

v7.c96.s2.106

In 1934 some persons under the guidance of Swāmī Kevalānanda Sarasvatī of Wai (Satara District) started a society which later came to be named 'Dharmanirṇayamaṇḍala'²⁶⁵⁶ (society for arriving at definite conclusions on matters of Dharma). The Swamī was a very learned man and a Sannyāsin, did not know English, but he held very modern views. There were fourteen original founder members of whom the present author is one From 1934 to 1959 eleven sessions attended by hundreds of people were held at Thana, Poona (twice), Lonavla (thrice), Ahmednagar, Badalapur (Dist. Thana), Vardhā (in Berar), Akolā (in Berar), Wai and Bombay. At the different sessions resolutions were passed (in all 82) on several social and religious matters and a committee was appointed to prepare model prayogas (procedures) for Sandhyā, congregational (Sāmudāyika) prayer, *upanayana*, *marriage*, *antyesti* (funeral rites), śrāddha, remarriage (of widows), re-conversion to Hinduism &c That Committee prepared under the guidance of Swāmī Kevalānanda such *prayogas* shorn of unnecessary details and with translations in Marathi, which can be had from Mr. Kokaje of Lonavla. Among the resolutions the following deserve special mention: usages have been changed from time to time by former learned men (śistas) and the learned men of the present day have the authority to introduce changes in usages as the present circumstances may require; that the untouchability of the people of certain castes be abolished (Art. 17 of the Constitution of India subsequently did this), that those sub-castes that have similar usages, saṁskāras and rules about food should merge and such merger is not against Dharmaśāstra; there is no objection to any Hindu sitting in the same row with other persons of different varṇas provided vegetarians are served vegetarian eatables; that Hindus including untouchables are entitled to study the Veda and have upanayana performed with Vedic mantras and priests conversant with the upanayana procedure should be ready to do so, if invited; if any one takes to another religion owing to force or fraud or of his free will and wants to revert to the Hindu fold he should be allowed to come in after proper expiation and after undergoing a simple *vidhi*²⁶⁵⁷; marriages of spouses of the same gotra and pravara should be allowed provided there is no bar on the ground of sapiṇḍa relationship (vide Hindu Marriage Act, 25 of 1955, sec. 5 items 4 and 5); that divorce be allowed among the castes in which it is not allowed at present on the ground of conversion to another religion of one of the spouses &c. (almost the same grounds as in sec. 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955); a Hindu widow succeeding as heir to her husband takes an absolute estate except when any of the following relatives of the husband are alive, viz. daughter, daughter's son, mother, father, brother, brother's son, paternal grand-parents, paternal first cousin (vide Hindu Succession Act, 30 of 1956 sec. 14 which goes further by omitting the near relatives specified above). Most of the decisions mentioned above were proclaimed from ten to twenty years before our Constitution came into operation.