How can one begin to express the depth of gratitude to Dharampal for upending our understanding our past.
For me personally, Dharampal's findings helped clear the cobwebs in my understanding of the actions of my elders on both sides of the family (maternal & paternal) in the early part of the 20th century. I developed a new found respect for their efforts in finding economic success in a devastated economy.
From an ambivalent attitude toward the jati system, I became convinced that IT IS THE BACKBONE of Indian society, and also acted as a poison pill that prevented the complete digestion of Hindu society into Islam & Christianity, a process that is acclerating rapidly following atleast a century long effort of demonizing the Jati system.
Also, Dharampal revealed to me the absurdity of people who are able to produce only 200 kgs of foodgrains per person per year (that would be us, the Indians of today) passing all kinds of judgement on people who were able to produce 1000 kgs of foodgrains per person per year (Indians of pre-British India).
As for the MONITORIAL system of education mentioned by S.Gurumurthy in his Dharampal obituary, here a few links I found that may extend our understanding of the Indian contribution to world education
The trajectory from appreciation to disrespect can be observed in the following series of links
The following link establishes the link between Lancaster & Bell, and reveals that contrary to the wikipedia enty, Joseph Lancaster did not develop the system that bears his name on his own.
And this final link, of a thesis submitted to Columbia University by a John Franklin Reigart, basically disses the Monitorial system after it was replaced as the preferred method of education in the New York school system in the early part of the 20th century.
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How can one begin to express the depth of gratitude to Dharampal for upending our understanding our past.
For me personally, Dharampal's findings helped clear the cobwebs in my understanding of the actions of my elders on both sides of the family (maternal & paternal) in the early part of the 20th century. I developed a new found respect for their efforts in finding economic success in a devastated economy.
From an ambivalent attitude toward the jati system, I became convinced that IT IS THE BACKBONE of Indian society, and also acted as a poison pill that prevented the complete digestion of Hindu society into Islam & Christianity, a process that is acclerating rapidly following atleast a century long effort of demonizing the Jati system.
Also, Dharampal revealed to me the absurdity of people who are able to produce only 200 kgs of foodgrains per person per year (that would be us, the Indians of today) passing all kinds of judgement on people who were able to produce 1000 kgs of foodgrains per person per year (Indians of pre-British India).
http://www.cpsindia.org/index.php/art/109-series-of-articles-on-chengalpattu-in-the-sunday-magazine-of-the-hindu
As for the MONITORIAL system of education mentioned by S.Gurumurthy in his Dharampal obituary, here a few links I found that may extend our understanding of the Indian contribution to world education
The trajectory from appreciation to disrespect can be observed in the following series of links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monitorial_System
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Bell_(educationalist)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Lancaster
The following link establishes the link between Lancaster & Bell, and reveals that contrary to the wikipedia enty, Joseph Lancaster did not develop the system that bears his name on his own.
http://madrasmusings.com/Vol%2023%20No%2014/recalling-the-madras-system.html
And this final link, of a thesis submitted to Columbia University by a John Franklin Reigart, basically disses the Monitorial system after it was replaced as the preferred method of education in the New York school system in the early part of the 20th century.
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/digital/collections/cul/texts/ldpd_6316626_000/ldpd_6316626_000.pdf
I could go on,and on, but maybe I ought to organize my thoughts and publish it as a blog post somewhere instead of a comment :-).
A video (talk) introduction to Dharampal & his work by another big Dharampal champion, Claude Alvares.
This is from 2013
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B27IBNotwpE
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