Socio-Religious Reform Movements

The 19th century saw a wave of socio-religious reform movements responding to social evils, colonial critique of Indian society, and a broader process of internal introspection and revivalism.

• Brahmo Samaj (1828, Calcutta): Founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy (often called the "Father of Modern India" / "Father of the Indian Renaissance"), who campaigned against sati (leading to its abolition in 1829), championed women's education and rights, and promoted monotheism and rational critique of idolatry. Later leaders included Debendranath Tagore and Keshab Chandra Sen (whose differences led to a split into the Adi Brahmo Samaj and Brahmo Samaj of India).
• Arya Samaj (1875, Bombay, later based in Punjab): Founded by Swami Dayanand Saraswati, author of Satyarth Prakash; advocated a return to Vedic purity, rejected idol worship and caste-based discrimination, promoted the Shuddhi movement (reconversion to Hinduism), and established the DAV (Dayanand Anglo-Vedic) school/college network.
• Ramakrishna Mission (1897, Belur Math, Calcutta): Founded by Swami Vivekananda in memory of his guru, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa; combined spiritual teaching (Vedanta) with social service and education; Vivekananda's celebrated address at the 1893 Parliament of Religions in Chicago brought international attention to Hindu philosophy.
• Theosophical Society: Founded in the USA (1875) by Madame H.P. Blavatsky and Colonel H.S. Olcott; later headquartered at Adyar, Madras, under the leadership of Annie Besant, who also played a significant role in the Indian nationalist movement (Home Rule Movement) and Indian education (Central Hindu College, Varanasi).
• Prarthana Samaj (1867, Bombay): Founded by Atmaram Pandurang, with M.G. Ranade as a key later figure; focused on social reform within a theistic Hindu framework.
• Aligarh Movement: Founded by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, who established the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College (1875, later Aligarh Muslim University) to promote modern/Western education among Muslims while remaining rooted in Islamic values; he initially supported cooperation with the British and was cautious about Congress-style political agitation.
• Singh Sabha Movement: A Sikh reform movement (from 1873) aimed at countering the influence of the Arya Samaj's Shuddhi campaigns among Sikhs and reviving Sikh religious and educational institutions.
• Other key reformers: Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (campaigned for widow remarriage, leading to the Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act 1856; also a major figure in Bengali education/prose); Jyotiba Phule (founded the Satyashodhak Samaj in Maharashtra, campaigned against caste oppression and for women's/lower-caste education, along with his wife Savitribai Phule, regarded as India's first female teacher); Pandita Ramabai (women's education and welfare); Periyar E.V. Ramasamy (Self-Respect Movement in Tamil Nadu, campaigning against caste and Brahmanical dominance); Narayana Guru (Kerala, "one caste, one religion, one God for mankind," founded the SNDP Yogam).