|
|
Alphabetical Order
|
|
|
|
Roy, Raja Ram Mohan (1772-1833), an Indian social and religious reformer, founded the Brahmo Samaj (Society of Brahma, or God) in 1828. Members of this Hindu society offered worship as a group with prayers and hymns in a hall without images or pictures.
Ram Mohan Roy was born in Burdwan in Bengal. He worked for the British East India Company and became a revenue officer in 1809. As a young man, he disliked many of the social and religious practices of Hinduism. He studied Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity and knew eight languages, including Arabic, Greek, and Latin. He published books on Hindu philosophy, and Christianity. In 1811, Roy witnessed his brother's widow being burned alive on her husband's funeral pyre. A widow who died in this way was known as a sati, which means a virtuous woman. Three years later, he retired and concentrated on campaigning against the practice of women dying as satis. In 1831, Roy visited the United Kingdom to speak on Indian questions. He died in Bristol.
|
