Arya Samaj

Arya Samaj (Aryan Society) was a Hindu reform movement in India under British Imperial rule. It was founded by Swami Dayananda in 1875. He was a sannyasin (renouncer) who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda advocated the doctrine of karma and rebirth, and emphasised the ideals of brahmacarya (chastity) and sanyasa (renunciation).

The doctrines of the Samaj are summed up in Ten Principles:

1. God is the primary cause of all true science and of all that can be known through it.

2. God is Existent, Intelligent and Blissful. He is Formless, Almighty, Just, Merciful, Unborn, Infinite, Unchallengeable, Beginningless, Incomparable, the Support and Lord of all, Omniscient, Imperishable, Immortal, Fearless, Eternal, Holy and the Maker of the universe. To Him alone worship is due.

3. The Vedas are scriptiors of true knowledge. It is the duty of all Aryas to read them, hear them being read and recite them to others.

4. We should always be ready to accept the truth and give up untruth.

5. All action should be performed in conformity with Dharma, that is, after due consideration of the right and wrong.

6. The primary aim of the Arya Samaj is to do good for all, that is, promote physical, spiritual and social well-being.

7. We should treat all people with love, fairness and due regard for their merit.

8. We should aim at dispelling ignorance and promoting knowledge.

9. One should not only be content with one's own welfare, but should look for it in the welfare for others also.

10. One should regard oneself under restriction to follow altruistic rulings of society, while all should be free in following the rules of individual welfare.

Because these principles are stuctured like the Biblical Ten Commandments, it has been assumed by many commentators that Dayananda was influenced by Christian Evangelism. The organisation of the Samaj, and its fundamentalist belief in the absolute authority of the Vedas would seem to confirm this.

While it is likely that Daynanda was indeed influenced by such groups in the British Raj, he claimed to be rejecting all non-Vedic beliefs altogether. He sought to prove that the superior qualities claimed for Christianity and Islam by their supporters were in fact Vedic. His intention was to reform Hinduism in such a way that Protestants and Moslems could no longer denigrate its ‘pagan’ polytheism, idolatry and social inequity.

Hence the Arya Samaj unequivocally condemned idolatry, animal sacrifices, ancestor worship, pilgrimages, priestcraft, offerings made in temples, the caste system, untouchability and child marriages, on the grounds that all these lacked Vedic sanction. It aimed to be a universal "church" based on the authority of the Vedas. Dayanada stated that he wanted ‘to make the whole world Aryan’. That is, he wanted to develop a missionary Hinduism based on the universality of the Vedas, rejecting the claim that hereditary Brahmins alone had the right to interpret the sacred books of the Hindus.

To this end the Arya Samaj set up schools and missionary organisations, extending its activities outside India. It now has branches around the world.