Hemendranath Tagore
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Hemendranath Tagore (1844–1884),
Debendranath Tagore Debendranath Tagore (15 May 1817 – 19 January 1905) was an Indian Hindu philosopher and religious reformer, active in the Brahmo Samaj (earlier called Bhramho Sabha) ("Society of Brahma", also translated as ''Society of God''). He joined Brahm ...
's third son, is notable for being the first
Brahmo Bengali Brahmos are those who adhere to Brahmoism, the philosophy of Brahmo Samaj which was founded by Raja Rammohan Roy. A recent publication describes the disproportionate influence of Brahmos on India's development post-19th Century as unpa ...
as the first child born in 1844 to any of the original 21 Brahmos who swore the First Brahmo Covenant on 21 December 1843 at
Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
(now Kolkata). An intensely private person, he was also well known as the strict disciplinarian entrusted with the responsibility of looking after the education of his younger brothers in addition to being administrator for his large family estates. He was also the constant spiritual companion to his father Debendranath Tagore who founded
Brahmoism Brahmoism is a religious movement which originated from the mid-19th century Bengali Renaissance, the nascent Indian independence movement. Adherents, known as ''Brahmos'' (singular Brahmo), are mainly of Indian or Bangladeshi origin or natio ...
and, despite his youth, he acted as the mediator between his father and the seniors of the ''Tattwabodhini Sabha''. At the time of the First Brahmo Schism of 1865, he was responsible for expelling the non-Brahmin workers from the Calcutta
Brahmo Samaj Brahmo Samaj ( bn, ব্রহ্ম সমাজ, Brahmô Sômaj, ) is the societal component of Brahmoism, which began as a monotheistic reformist movement of the Hindu religion that appeared during the Bengal Renaissance. It was one of th ...
. The
Adi Dharm Adi Dharm refers to the religion of Adi Brahmo Samaj ( bn, আদি ব্রাহ্ম সমাজ, Adi Brahmô Shômaj) the first development of Brahmoism and includes those Sadharan Brahmo Samajists who were reintegrated into Brahmoism a ...
religion is founded exclusively on his philosophy and is today the largest development from
Brahmoism Brahmoism is a religious movement which originated from the mid-19th century Bengali Renaissance, the nascent Indian independence movement. Adherents, known as ''Brahmos'' (singular Brahmo), are mainly of Indian or Bangladeshi origin or natio ...
with over 8 million adherents in India alone. Much like his siblings he had wide interests in various fields and can be regarded as a
polymath A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...
and 'the scientist of the family'. He attended the
Calcutta Medical College Calcutta Medical College, officially Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, is a public medical school and hospital in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the oldest existing hospital in Asia. The institute was established on 28 January 1835 by L ...
(established by his grandfather
Dwarkanath Tagore Dwarkanath Tagore ( bn, দ্বারকানাথ ঠাকুর, ''Darokanath Ţhakur''; 1794–1846) was one of the first Indian industrialists to form an enterprise with British partners. He was the son of Ramlochon Tagore, the founder ...
) and wrote articles on physical science which he planned to compile and edit into a textbook for school students. If his premature death had not prevented him from completing the project, this would have been the first science textbook in Bengali. From 1867, Hemendranath Thakur began conducting his first experiments into radio waves and electromagnetic propagations. Between 1872–73, he wrote several articles on the results of his researches, these were transcribed by another Brahmin Ramendra Sundar Trivedi. In 1874, he compiled the first scholarly Asian work on physics entitled ''Prakritik Vijnaner Sthulamarma'' which was updated in 1878–79. Since the knowledge contained within was potentially explosive its circulation was restricted only to Brahmins of the Adi Brahmo Samaj. Later all works of Hemendranath Tagore and his grandfather Dwarkanath Tagore in the records of Adi Brahmo Samaj were destroyed. He was known for his extraordinary physical strength and prowess in wrestling contests – described as being a "renowned wrestler", as also his expertise in martial arts like
judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...
and ninjitsu. He was also an adept of ancient
Raja Yoga ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in history of South Asia, South Asia and History of ...
at the highest levels with control over Time and Space. Exceptionally modern for the times, after siring 3 sons he sired only daughters thereafter and insisted on formal education for all of them. He not only put them through school but trained them in music, arts and European languages such as French and German. It was another mark of his forward looking mentality that he actively sought out eligible grooms from different provinces of India for his daughters and married them off in places as far away as UP and
Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
. A staunch modernist, he instituted various financial trusts for the womenfolk of Tagore family (especially his sisters) and was responsible for settling the
Shantiniketan Santiniketan is a neighbourhood of Bolpur town in the Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in West Bengal, India, approximately 152 km north of Kolkata. It was established by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore, and later expanded by his son ...
estate near
Bolpur Bolpur is a city and a municipality in Birbhum district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bolpur subdivision. Bolpur municipal area includes Santiniketan, Sriniketan and Prantik. The city is known as a Cultural a ...
which later evolved into
Visva Bharati Visva-Bharati () is a public central university and an Institution of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which means the communion of the w ...
. A practical and scientific humanist, he was deeply loved by the peasants of his estates in Bengal.


Hemendranath and Tattwabodhini

A series of developments in Tattwabodhini Sabha after its merger in 1843 with Calcutta Brahmo Samaj resulted in a select Brahmin group of the Tattwabodhini forming a reformist core which stood apart from Calcutta Brahmo Samaj during the fractious period of 1858 to 1865 to later emerge as
Adi Dharm Adi Dharm refers to the religion of Adi Brahmo Samaj ( bn, আদি ব্রাহ্ম সমাজ, Adi Brahmô Shômaj) the first development of Brahmoism and includes those Sadharan Brahmo Samajists who were reintegrated into Brahmoism a ...
. This core was initially under
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar CIE ( bn, ঈশ্বর চন্দ্র বিদ্যাসাগর; 26 September 1820 – 29 July 1891), born Ishwar Chandra Bandyopadhyay, was an Indian educator and social reformer of the nineteenth century. ...
who later entrusted it to Hemendranath in 1859. Finally in 1865 Hemendranath took charge for firmly insisting on the expulsion of non-Brahmins from preaching posts in the religion. He thereafter organised researches in the formal practices, rituals and observances for
Brahmo Bengali Brahmos are those who adhere to Brahmoism, the philosophy of Brahmo Samaj which was founded by Raja Rammohan Roy. A recent publication describes the disproportionate influence of Brahmos on India's development post-19th Century as unpa ...
adherents which were privately circulated in early 1860 as Brahmo ''Anusthan''. This ''Anusthan'' was limited for the Brahmin families of the 1843 First Covenant only and was first used publicly on 26 July 1861 for the marriage of his second sister Sukumari. The ''Anusthan'' involving discarding the sacred Brahmin thread created considerable controversy and was thereafter adopted for the non-Brahmins also with some small modifications who possessed no thread.


Vision of Brahma

Description of vision of Brahma in 1848:
Then I went out and sat underneath an ashvatta tree and according to the teaching of the saints began meditating on the Spirit of God dwelling within my soul. My mind was flooded with emotion, my eyes were filled with tears. All at once I saw the shining vision of Brahma in the lotus core of my heart. A thrill passed through my whole body, I felt a joy beyond all measure. But the next moment I could see Him no more. On losing sight of that beatific vision which destroys all sorrow, I suddenly rose from the ground. A great sadness came over my spirit. Then I tried to see Him again by force of contemplation, and found Him not. I became as one stricken with disease and would not be comforted. Meanwhile I suddenly heard a voice in the air, 'In this life thou shalt see Me no more. Those whose hearts have not been purified, who have not achieved the highest Yoga, cannot see Me. It was only to stimulate thy love that I once appeared before thee'


Children

Hitendranath (son), Kshitindranath (son), Ritendranath (son) Pratibha (daughter), Pragna (daughter), Abhi (daughter), Manisha (daughter), Shovana (daughter), Sushama (daughter) Sunrita (daughter), Sudakshina (daughter) Kshitindranath was well known as official Historian of Adi Brahmo Samaj and editor of the Tattwabodhini journal, a duty carried on by grandson Commander Amritamoyi Mukherjee I.N. He tirelessly strove to unearth the Tagore family records which were missing since the days of Debendranath who had redistributed the entire property and in the process had denied legitimate shares to the families of the other scions of the Tagore family. Pratibha Debi married Ashutosh Chaudhuri. Their son Arya Chaudhuri studied architecture in England. Pragnasundari Debi married the most famous Assam author ''Sahityarathi''
Lakshminath Bezbaroa ' Lakshminath Bezbarua (, 14 October 1864), was an Assamese poet, novelist and playwright of modern Assamese literature. He was one of the literary stalwarts of the Jonaki Era, the age of romanticism in Assamese literature when through his e ...
(1864–1938) (whose father was the physician to the last Kings of Assam). "The inventive genius of Bezbarua who was an intellectual of the highest order and a humorist of considerable power ... his song ''
O Mur Apunar Dex O Mur Apunar Dekh () is the state and traditional song of Assam, India. It was written by Lakshminath Bezbarua and the tune was made by Kamala Prasad Agarwala. It was first published in 1909 in an Assamese magazine named ''Bahi'' ("flute"). It ...
'' is the most popular Assamese patriotic song of all time" and the de facto anthem of Assam. Prajnasundari Debi (née Tagore) was a literary phenomenon in her own right, her cookbook ''Aamish O Niramish Ahar'' (1900, reprinted 1995) was a standard given to every Bengali bride with her trousseau, and earning her the appellation "India's Mrs Beeton". From 1897-1902 Prajnasundari was the editor of the periodical ''Punya'', at first started as the in-house publication of ''Thakur-bari''. Containing fiction, poetry and domestic science an cooking, it was later edited by Hitendranath and Rithendranath Tagore. Manisha Debi married D.N. Chatterjee a famous surgeon of Calcutta educated in Edinburgh, who later settled in Assam. Their daughter Dipty Chaudhuri married into the family of Pandit Navin Chandra Ray the famous
Adi Dharm Adi Dharm refers to the religion of Adi Brahmo Samaj ( bn, আদি ব্রাহ্ম সমাজ, Adi Brahmô Shômaj) the first development of Brahmoism and includes those Sadharan Brahmo Samajists who were reintegrated into Brahmoism a ...
social reformer of Punjab. Sushama Devi married to barrister Darikanath Mukherjee, they had four sons and two daughters:- Elder son (became
sanyasi ''Sannyasa'' (Sanskrit: संन्यास; IAST: ), sometimes spelled Sanyasa (सन्न्यास) or Sanyasi (for the person), is life of renunciation and the fourth stage within the Hindu system of four life stages known as '' As ...
), Lokendranath Mukherjee (never married) was a freedom fighter, third son (became sanyasi), Dr. Bharganath Mukherjee married to Gauri Devi, daughter Bharati married to Janak Prokash Gangooly (son of artist Jamini Prokash Gangooly), daughter (expired in childhood), Bhaskarnath Mukherjee married to Usha Devi. Hemendranath's youngest child was a daughter Sudakshina née
Purnima Devi Purnima Devi whose maiden name was Sudakshina Devi (1884–1972), was the youngest child of noted Brahmo Hemendranath Tagore, and niece of Rabindranath Tagore, thus part of the main Tagore family. She was married to Sir Jwala Prasada, Zamindar ...
(later Mrs. Jwala Prasada) who was born on 13 May 1884, at No. 6, Dwarkanath Tagore's Lane, Jorasanko, Calcutta. Purnima Devi was educated at the Loretto Convent (a school for European Girls) at Park Street, Calcutta, as a day scholar and in addition to English she knew Bengali, Sanskrit, Urdu, Hindi, French, Piano and Violin. She passed the Cambridge Trinity College Music Examination. She is the first Bengali lady married in the United Provinces, her husband being the late Hon'ble Pandit Jwala Prasada, M.A., Deputy Commissioner of Hardoi,(an officer in the Imperial Civil Services, great-grandfather of Late Kunwar
Jitendra Prasada Jitendra Prasada (12 November 1938 – 16 January 2001) was an Indian politician and a former vice-president of the Indian National Congress. He was also the political advisor to two prime ministers of India, Rajiv Gandhi in 1991 and P. V. Nara ...
, a veteran Congress party Leader) in 1903. She was the winner of the B. P. R. A. medal for Diana matches for schooling (1911 Meerut). She is an expert rider going round her villages on horse back and an expert hunter having taken part in big game shooting with her husband. She took a very keen interest in the education and uplift of her sex in India. In memory of her husband she founded 'The Pandit Jwala Prasad Kanya Pathshala' at Shahjahanpur in UP. She helped in the establishment of the Hewett Model Girls' School at Muzaffarnagar, United Provinces, and founded Pardah Clubs at Shahjahanpur and Muzaffarnagar with a view to the improvement of Pardah ladies. She was the owner of several villages in Shahjahanpur District and a beautiful hill property at Nainital(Uttrakhand)called Abbotsford, Prasada Bhawan

(Now lived in by her 4th generation of Prasada's who carry their ancestral heritage at best till date), and a house acquired by the army in 1947 in Badami Bagh, Srinagar, Kashmir now the official residence of the Army Head and a house beach in Jagannath Puri. She is the author of a Hindi publication, "unki bunat ki PrathaiJi Siksha" adopted by the United Provinces Educational Text Book Committee for schools. She was engaged in writing a novel in English under the title of "The Last Lamp out." She is the holder of a Kaisar-i-Hind medal and was the first Indian lady exempted from the operation of the Arms Act.WHO'S WHO IN INDIA - SECOND SUPPLEMENT. https://archive.org/details/secondsupplement00luckrich


See also

*
Tagore family The Tagore family (also spelled as ''Thakur''), with over three hundred years of history,Deb, Chitra, pp 64–65. has been one of the leading families of Calcutta, India, and is regarded as one of the key influencers during the Bengali Renaiss ...
*
Adi Dharm Adi Dharm refers to the religion of Adi Brahmo Samaj ( bn, আদি ব্রাহ্ম সমাজ, Adi Brahmô Shômaj) the first development of Brahmoism and includes those Sadharan Brahmo Samajists who were reintegrated into Brahmoism a ...
*
Brahmoism Brahmoism is a religious movement which originated from the mid-19th century Bengali Renaissance, the nascent Indian independence movement. Adherents, known as ''Brahmos'' (singular Brahmo), are mainly of Indian or Bangladeshi origin or natio ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tagore, Hemendranath Bengali zamindars Brahmos 1844 births 1884 deaths 19th-century Bengalis Bengali Hindus Bengali scientists Bengali writers People from Kolkata Hemendranath Indian columnists Indian science writers Indian social reformers Indian social workers Indian writers Indian male writers Indian scientific authors Indian essayists Indian male essayists Indian scholars 19th-century Indian scholars 19th-century Indian writers 19th-century Indian essayists 19th-century Indian male writers Indian textbook writers Indian scientists Indian physicists 19th-century Indian scientists 19th-century Indian physicists Social workers from West Bengal Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata alumni