->Jan Myšák at 15:44, 21 December 2021

2021-12-21T15:44:27Z

New page

{{Short description|Indian writer (1877–1928)}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}}
{{Infobox writer 
| name = Gopabandhu Das
| image = Gopabandhu Das 1964 stamp of India.jpg
| caption =
| birth_place = Suando, [[Puri district]], [[Odisha]], [[British India]]
| birth_date = {{birth date|1877|10|09|df=y}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1928|06|17|1877|10|09|df=y}},
| occupation = Poet, philosopher, social activist
| nationality = Indian
| alma_mater = [[Puri Zilla School]], [[Ravenshaw College]], [[Calcutta University]]
| period = 20th century
| notableworks = Bandira Atma Katha, Dharmapada
}}

''' Gopabandhu Das''' (1877–1928), popularly known as ''Utkalamani'' (''Jewel of Utkal'' or [[Odisha]]),<ref name="acharya" /> was a social worker, reformer, political activist, journalist, poet and essayist.

== Early life ==
Gopabandhu Das was born on 9 October 1877 in Suando village, near [[Puri]], Odisha in then British India. His mother was Swarnamayee Devi, the third wife of Daitari Das. His father was a [[mukhtiar]] and the family were reasonably well-off. Das married Apti at the age of twelve but continued his education. He had basic schooling in the village before progressing to a middle school nearby. Then, in 1893, by which time his mother had died, Das joined [[Puri Zilla School]]. There he was influenced by [[Mukhtiar Ramchandra Das]], a teacher who was both a nationalist and a proponent of public service in aid of people in distress. Becoming organising his fellow children in the spirit of co-operation, the inadequate response of authorities for the victims of an outbreak of [[cholera]] prompted him to start a voluntary corps called Puri Sava Samiti. Its members helped those suffering from the outbreak and also cremated the dead.<ref name="misra" />

Das, whose father by now had died, progressed to [[Ravenshaw College]] in [[Cuttack]]. He became a regular contributor to local literary magazines called ''Indradhanu'' and ''Bijuli'', where he argued that any modern literary movement, just like any modern nation, could not be a clean break with the old but rather had to acknowledge and base itself on its past. In one instance, he submitted a satirical poem that so enraged the Inspector of Schools that Das was punished when he refused to apologise for it.<ref name="misra" />

It was while at Ravenshaw that Das started a discussion group, called Kartavya Bodhini Samiti (Duty Awakening Society), in which he and his friends considered social, economic and political problems. It was also during this time, in 1903, that he attended a meeting of the [[Utkal Sammilani]] (Utkal Union Conference), where he disagreed with [[Madhusudan Das]]'s suggestion that [[Odia language|Odia]]-speaking areas should be amalgamated with [[Bengal Presidency]]. These extra-curricular activities, which also included helping the victims of flooding, impacted on his academic studies such that he failed his degree examination, although he gained his BA at the second attempt. It was also while at Ravenshaw that his new-born son died;<ref name="misra" /> he explained his preference to deal with flood victims on that occasion rather than be with his sick son as being because "There are so many to look after my son. What more can I do? But there are so many people crying for help in the affected areas and it is my duty to go there. Lord Jagannath is here to take care of the boy".<ref name="satapathy">{{cite journal |journal=Orissa Review |url=http://magazines.odisha.gov.in/Orissareview/sept-oct2006/sept-octreview.htm |title=Gopabandhu Das : A Multi-faceted Personality |first=Brahmananda |last=Satapathy |pages=68–69 |date=September 2007}}</ref>{{efn|Notable occasions when Das was involved in relief efforts included during the floods that occurred in Orissa in 1907, 1927 and 1927, and during the 1920 famine.<ref name="Bahinipati" />}}

Das progressed to [[Calcutta University]], where he obtained an MA and LL.B while simultaneously devoting much of his energies in attempts to improve the education of [[Odia people|Oriya people]] who were living in the city, for whom he opened [[night school]]s. His desire to bring about social reform and educational improvements was influenced at this time by the philosophy of the [[Swadeshi movement]].<ref name="misra" /> His wife died on the day he heard that he had passed his law examinations.<ref name="satapathy" /> Now aged 28, all of his three sons had died and he chose to give up care of his two daughters to an older brother, along with his share of property in Suando.<ref name="misra" />

== Legal career ==
Das arrived at his first job as a teacher in Nilagiri in Balasore district of ODISHA.<ref name="Sahu 2002 p. 182">{{cite book | last=Sahu | first=B. | title=New Educational Philosophy | publisher=Sarup & Sons | year=2002 | isbn=978-81-7625-317-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kQl8j9vBz5QC&pg=PA182 | access-date=2019-07-03 | page=182}}</ref> He then became a lawyer, variously described as being based in Puri and in Cuttack. In 1909, Madhusudan Das appointed him to be State Pleader for the [[princely state]] of [[Mayurbhanj State|Mayurbhanj]].<ref name="misra" /><ref name="satapathy" />

== Education work ==
[[File:Gopabandhu Das OSM.jpg|thumb|Sculpture of Gopabandhu Das at State Museum, Bhubaneswar]]
Finding that law did not interest him, Das gave up his practice and worked for the welfare of the people.<ref name="Sahu 2002 p. 182"/>

In 1909, Das established a school at [[Satyabadi|Sakhigopal]], near Puri.<ref name="acharya">{{cite journal |title=An experiment in nationalist education: Satyavadi school in Orissa (1909–1926) |first1=Pritish |last1=Acharya |last2=Krishan |first2=Shri |journal=Economic & Political Weekly |date=18 December 2010 |volume=45 |issue=51 |pages=71–78 |jstor=25764244 }}</ref> Popularly known as [[Satyabadi Bana Bidyalaya]] (Now Satyabadi High School, Sakhigopal) but called the Universal Education League by Das, it was inspired by the [[Deccan Education Society]], operated in the [[gurukula]] tradition and aimed to impart a [[liberal education]] on a non-sectarian basis, despite opposition from orthodox [[Brahmin]]s.<ref name="misra" /> He believed education was necessary if people were to become aware of their both of their innate freedom and their duty to their country.<ref name="satapathy" /> He thought that education could help the child to grow mentally, physically and spiritually. His system allowed children of all castes and backgrounds to sit together, dine together and study together. The school had features like residential schooling, teaching in a natural setting and cordial relationship between the teacher and the taught. Das laid emphasis on co-curricular activities and wanted to generate nationalistic feelings in students through education and teach them the value of service to mankind.<ref name="Sahu 2002 p. 182"/>

Hugely motivated by the positive response he received, the school was converted into a high school in the following year. It secured affiliation from Calcutta University and held its first matriculation exam in 1914. The school further secured an affiliation from [[Patna University]] in 1917. It became a National School in 1921.<ref name="Dash 2016">{{cite document | last=Dash | first=Gitirani | title=A study on Satyabadi epoch in the History of modern Orissa | date=2016-10-26 | hdl=10603/118972 }}</ref> The school faced financial problems and ultimately was closed in 1926. Das had not taught much at the school due to pressures on his time elsewhere but he did act unofficially as its manager. He also attempted to raise funds for it, guide its curriculum and attract pupils.<ref name="acharya" />

== Political career and imprisonment ==
Madhusudan Das encouraged Gopabandhu Das to stand for election to the Legislative Council that had been created in 1909 under the terms of the [[Morley-Minto Reforms]]. He eventually overcame his reluctance, stood and was elected in 1917. There he concentrating his efforts on four themes:
* Administrative amalgamation into a single entity of the Oriya-speaking regions of Bengal Province, [[Central Provinces and Berar|Central Province]], [[Madras Presidency]] and [[Bihar and Orissa Province]]
* Eradication of famine and flood in Orissa
* Restoration of the region's right to manufacture salt without incurring [[excise duty]]
* Expansion of education on a model similar to that he had established at the Satyabadi school<ref name="misra" />

Das ceased to be a member of the Legislative Council in 1919<ref name="acharya" /> or 1920.<ref name="satapathy" />

Prior to his Legislative Council role, Das had been involved in regional politics. He had been a member of Utkal Sammilani from 1903<ref name="Mohanty Patnaik Ratha 2003 p.519 ">{{cite book | last1=Mohanty | first1=G. | last2=Patnaik | first2=J.K. | last3=Ratha | first3=S.K. | title=Cultural heritage of Orissa | publisher=State Level Vyasakabi Fakir Mohan Smruti Samsad | series=Cultural Heritage of Orissa | year=2003 | isbn=978-81-902761-3-9 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kYhKAQAAIAAJ | access-date=2019-07-03 | page=519}}</ref> and was its president in 1919.<ref name="satapathy" /> After its members decided to join the [[Non-Cooperation movement]], made at a conference on 31 December 1920,<ref>{{cite book |title=My Life, My Work |publisher=Allied Publishers |last=Mahapatra |first=Harihar |year=2011 |page=220 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oZ_cWeqBj9YC&pg=PA220 |translator=Mohanty, Ashok K. |isbn=978-81-8424-640-7}}</ref> Das effectively became a member of the [[Indian National Congress]]. This was something he had worked towards, having attended meetings of the [[All India Congress Committee]] at Calcutta and [[Nagpur]] to persuade [[Mahatma Gandhi]] to adopt the Utkal Sammilani's primary goal of organising states based on the language spoken.<ref name="misra" /> He became the first president of [[Pradesh Congress Committee|Utkal Pradesh Congress Committee]] in 1920, holding the post until 1928, and he welcomed Gandhi to the province in 1921.<ref name="acharya" /><ref name="satapathy" />

Das was arrested in 1921 for reporting the alleged molestation of a woman by police but was acquitted due to lack of evidence.<ref name="Bahinipati" /> He was arrested again in 1922, when he received a two-year prison sentence. He was released from [[Hazaribagh]] jail on 26 June 1924.<ref name="satapathy" />

== Contribution to journalism ==
In 1913<ref name="acharya" /> or 1915,<ref name="Bahinipati">{{cite journal |title=Gopabandhu Das : The Lode Star of Idealistic Journalism |first=Priyadarshi |last=Bahinipati |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004212820/http://orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/2012/April/engpdf/20-24.pdf |archive-date=4 October 2013 |url=http://orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/2012/April/engpdf/20-24.pdf |journal=Orissa Review |date=April 2012}}</ref> Das launched and acted as editor for a short-lived monthly literary magazine titled ''Satyabadi'' from the campus of his school. Through this he was able to indulge his childhood aspirations to be a poet, while contributions also came from other members of the school's staff, including [[Nilakantha Das]] and [[Godabarish Mishra]].<ref name="acharya" />

Das saw journalism as a means to educate the masses even though they were illiterate. He initially accepted a role editing ''Asha'', a newspaper published in [[Berhampur]], but found it to be too constraining.<ref name="Bahinipati" /> Thus, in 1919, he started a weekly newspaper called ''[[The Samaja]]'', based at the school campus. This was more successful than the literary journal and became a daily publication in 1927 and eventually a significant media presence for [[Indian independence movement|Indian nationalists]].<ref name="acharya" /> The writing style was intentionally simplistic.<ref name="Bahinipati" />

Das had been persuaded to join the Lok Sevak Mandal ([[Servants of the People Society]]) some time after meeting [[Lala Lajpat Rai]] at a session of Congress in 1920 and the newspaper became a means of promoting it, although operated independently.<ref name="misra" /> He served as editor until his death,<ref name="Bureau">{{cite web | last=Bureau | first=Odisha Sun Times | title=10 things to know about Utkalmani Gopabandhu Das | website=OdishaSunTimes.com | url=https://odishasuntimes.com/10-things-to-know-about-utkalmani-gopabandhu-das/ | access-date=2019-07-03}}</ref> at which time he bequeathed it to the Society.<ref name="Pradhan 2017">{{cite document | last=Pradhan | first=Monali | title=The satyabadi age and a search for oriya identity a critical analysis of a forgotten chapter of the political history of Orissa | date=2017-01-27 | hdl=10603/129681 }}</ref>

==Published literary works==

* Karakabita<ref name="George Sahitya Akademi 1992 p. 305">{{cite book | last=George | first=K.M. | author2=Sahitya Akademi | title=Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology: Surveys and poems | publisher=Sahitya Akademi | series=Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology | year=1992 | isbn=978-81-7201-324-0 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m1R2Pa3f7r0C&pg=PA305 | access-date=2020-02-26 | page=305}}</ref>
* Bandira Atmakatha<ref name="George Sahitya Akademi 1992 p. 305" /> Translated as The prisoner's autobiography<ref name="Das Das 2017 p. ">{{cite book | last1=Das | first1=Gopabandhu | last2=Das | first2=Snehaprava | title=Gopabandhu Das, the prisoner's autobiography | year=2017 | oclc=990802829 }}</ref>
* {{cite web | last=Das | first=Gopabandhu | title=Dhramapada | year=1946 | oclc=1126286052 | url=http://ddsnext.crl.edu/titles/31468 | language=or | access-date=2020-02-26}}<ref name="Das p. ">{{cite book | last=Das | first=G. | title=ଧର୍ମପଦ - Dharmapada: Legend of the Konark Sun temple | publisher=Sannidhyananda | series=Oriya classics | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tsxVDwAAQBAJ | language=la | access-date=2020-02-26 }}</ref>
* {{cite book | last=Das | first=Gopabandhu | title=Abakasa-cinta | publisher=Satyabadi Presa | year=1986 | oclc=499633975 | language=or }}
* {{cite book | last=Das | first=Gopabandhu | title=Correspondence of Pandit Gopabandhu = Dāse āpaṇeṅka ciṭhipatra | publisher=Nilakantha Rath,Distributer, Shikshasandhan | location=Pune Bhubaneswar | year=2013 | isbn=978-81-87982-77-7 | oclc=904902700 | language=la }}
* {{cite book | last=Das | first=G. | title=Gopabandhu racanābaḷī: Śikshā, śikshaka, o chātra | publisher=Gopabandhu Janma Śatabārshikī Samiti | series=Gopabandhu racanābaḷī | year=1976 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qJ4puQEACAAJ | language=qu | access-date=2020-02-26}}

== Death ==
Gopabandhu became All India Vice-President of the Lok Sevak Mandal in April 1928. He became ill while attending a society meeting in [[Lahore]] and died on 17 June 1928.<ref name="misra">{{cite journal |journal=Orissa Review |title=Utkalmani Gopabandhu – The Pride of Orissa |first=Surya Narayan |last=Misra |date=September 2006 |pages=25–28 |url=http://magazines.odisha.gov.in/Orissareview/sept-oct2006/sept-octreview.htm}}</ref>

Brahmananda Satapathy, a professor of political science, has said of Das that "His crusade against untouchability, advocacy of widow
remarriage, campaign for literacy, new model of education, stress on both rights and duties, emphasis on women education, particularly vocational training and above all a deep commitment and compassion for poor and destitutes have immortalised him in Orissa and India".<ref name="satapathy" />

== References ==
'''Notes'''
{{notelist}}
'''Citations'''
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite journal |first=Radhakanta |last=Barik |title=Gopabandhu and the National Movement in Orissa |journal=Social Scientist |volume=6 |issue=10 |date=May 1978 |pages=40–52 |jstor=3516577 |doi=10.2307/3516577 }}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Gopabandhu Das}}
* [http://www.thesamaja.com/ The Samaja]
{{Odia literature}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Das, Gopabandhu}}
[[Category:1877 births]]
[[Category:1928 deaths]]
[[Category:Journalists from Odisha]]
[[Category:Social workers]]
[[Category:Ravenshaw University alumni]]
[[Category:University of Calcutta alumni]]
[[Category:Odia-language poets]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian educators]]
[[Category:Swadeshi activists]]
[[Category:People from Odisha]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian politicians]]
[[Category:Indian National Congress politicians from Odisha]]
[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of British India]]
[[Category:Social workers from Odisha]]

Gopabandhu Das - Revision history

->Jan Myšák at 15:44, 21 December 2021