ARAVIND ACKROYD GHOSH:
Date of birth: 15th August, 1872 date of death: 5th December, 1950
Aravind Ghosh was born at Calcutta. His father, Dr. Krishnadhan Ghosh, a civil medical officer in Bengal, added the middle name Ackroyd because a Miss Ackroyd, a visitor from England, was present at his birth. His mother, Swarnalatha Devi, was the daughter of nationalist Rajnarayan Bose. Aravind’s father attained his M.D. from the University of Aberdeen in England. By the time Krishnadhan returned to India, he was so westernized that he vowed to bring his children up as Englishmen.
Aravinda and his brothers were admitted to a special school in Darjeeling, in 1877, which was meant only for English children. For two years the boys were taught by Irish nuns of the Loretto Convent School. In 1879, the children were taken to England. The two elder boys were admitted to a school, while Aravinda, who was just seven years old, was left in the care of Rev. W.H. Drewett and his wife in Manchester. The Drewetts were to tutor Aravinda. Aravinda learned English and Latin from the Reverend, and history, geography, arithmetic and French from Mrs. Drewett.
Aravinda became fond of reading and made full use of the personal library of the Drewetts. After five years of comfortable living in Manchester, when the boys moved to London, their remittances from Dr. Ghosh started dwindling. Aravind continued to excel in his studies despite difficulties. He carried away prizes for the classics-classical literature in particular. He won the Butterworth prize for literature, the Bedford prize for history and a scholarship at St. Paul’s. While in the King’s College at Cambridge, Aravind was awarded a senior classical scholarship of 80 pounds per annum, in addition to a stipend as a candidate of the Indian Civil Service. Aravind passed the Classical Trios examination in the first class with distinction and passed in the open competition for the Indian Civil Service in 1890. He cleared the periodical examination and the medical examination but failed to appear for the horse-riding test which was compulsory for entering the Indian Civil Service. Aravind returned to India on January 1893 aboard the S.S. Carthage. Just before Aravinda set foot in India, his father died of heart failure. He was only 21 and did not even possess proper qualifications. He accepted a post promised by Sayaji Rao Gaekwad of Baroda when he was in England, with a fixed salary of Rs. 200. He was first appointed in the survey settlement department, and later in the department of stamp and revenue. Often he served as the Gaekwad’s personal secretary and prepared the Gaekwad’s speeches and wrote the communiqués between Baroda State and the Indian Government. In 1900, Aravind accepted the post of English at Baroda College and also taught French as a part-time professor. Aravinda married Mrinalini, daughter of Bhupal Chanda Basu, in 1901. Aravind was 29 years of old at the time of marriage while Mrinalini was only 14.
The two had very little time to spend with each other since Aravind lived in Baroda, and Mrinalini remained in Calcutta. Aravinda deeply loved his wife and was always regular in writing letters to her. His letters to her were published as a book called “Letters to Mrinalini”. Mrinalini was initiated by Ma Sarad, saintly wife of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa of Dakshineshwara seeking spiritual refuge. Mrinalini died of influenza in 1918 in Calcutta at the age of 31. In one of his letters to Mrinalini, Aranvind mentioned his three beliefs. First, he believed that whatever he had: talent, virtue, high education-all belonged to God. Second, he wished to come face to face with God. Third, in his own words, “Others look upon India, their country, as a mass of matter, a number of fields, plains, forests, mountains, and rivers and nothing more”. He believed his nation to be his own mother. He adored her and worshipped her. He saw the entire nation at his door, seeking shelter and help in attaining freedom from foreign shackles. Initially, Aravind’s political activities were limited to Baroda, but they soon extended to Maharashtra, Gujarat and Bengal. He studied Bengal under literature Dinendra Kumar Roy.
Ghosh’s goal was to capture the public through writing. He made an extensive study of Indian literature and papers on the Indian freedom struggle. Armed with fluency in Marathi, Gujarati and Bengali, he then transcribed his views in papers like the Indu Prakash, Bande Mataram, Dharma, and Karma Yogin. His writing became the ideal for the Indian youth. He called on the young to serve the nation as “karmayogins”. He wanted the youth to devote all the energies toward freeing Mother India. He told the youth that, “if you will study, study for her sake; train yourself body and mind and soul for her service; work so that she may prosper; suffer so that she may rejoice”. Ghosh formed secret revolutionary societies which enveloped Bengal. He asked members of these secret societies to take a solemn oath to “secure the freedom of Mother India at any cost”. He stoked the fire of revolution by organising a huge rally on 9th November, 1905.
Aravind Ackroyd Gosh Indian Freedom fighter and philosopher
Date of birth: 15th August, 1872 date of death: 5th December, 1950
Aravind Ghosh was born at Calcutta. His father, Dr. Krishnadhan Ghosh, a civil medical officer in Bengal, added the middle name Ackroyd because a Miss Ackroyd, a visitor from England, was present at his birth. His mother, Swarnalatha Devi, was the daughter of nationalist Rajnarayan Bose. Aravind’s father attained his M.D. from the University of Aberdeen in England. By the time Krishnadhan returned to India, he was so westernized that he vowed to bring his children up as Englishmen.
Aravinda and his brothers were admitted to a special school in Darjeeling, in 1877, which was meant only for English children. For two years the boys were taught by Irish nuns of the Loretto Convent School. In 1879, the children were taken to England. The two elder boys were admitted to a school, while Aravinda, who was just seven years old, was left in the care of Rev. W.H. Drewett and his wife in Manchester. The Drewetts were to tutor Aravinda. Aravinda learned English and Latin from the Reverend, and history, geography, arithmetic and French from Mrs. Drewett.
Aravinda became fond of reading and made full use of the personal library of the Drewetts. After five years of comfortable living in Manchester, when the boys moved to London, their remittances from Dr. Ghosh started dwindling. Aravind continued to excel in his studies despite difficulties. He carried away prizes for the classics-classical literature in particular. He won the Butterworth prize for literature, the Bedford prize for history and a scholarship at St. Paul’s. While in the King’s College at Cambridge, Aravind was awarded a senior classical scholarship of 80 pounds per annum, in addition to a stipend as a candidate of the Indian Civil Service. Aravind passed the Classical Trios examination in the first class with distinction and passed in the open competition for the Indian Civil Service in 1890. He cleared the periodical examination and the medical examination but failed to appear for the horse-riding test which was compulsory for entering the Indian Civil Service. Aravind returned to India on January 1893 aboard the S.S. Carthage. Just before Aravinda set foot in India, his father died of heart failure. He was only 21 and did not even possess proper qualifications. He accepted a post promised by Sayaji Rao Gaekwad of Baroda when he was in England, with a fixed salary of Rs. 200. He was first appointed in the survey settlement department, and later in the department of stamp and revenue. Often he served as the Gaekwad’s personal secretary and prepared the Gaekwad’s speeches and wrote the communiqués between Baroda State and the Indian Government. In 1900, Aravind accepted the post of English at Baroda College and also taught French as a part-time professor. Aravinda married Mrinalini, daughter of Bhupal Chanda Basu, in 1901. Aravind was 29 years of old at the time of marriage while Mrinalini was only 14.
The two had very little time to spend with each other since Aravind lived in Baroda, and Mrinalini remained in Calcutta. Aravinda deeply loved his wife and was always regular in writing letters to her. His letters to her were published as a book called “Letters to Mrinalini”. Mrinalini was initiated by Ma Sarad, saintly wife of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa of Dakshineshwara seeking spiritual refuge. Mrinalini died of influenza in 1918 in Calcutta at the age of 31. In one of his letters to Mrinalini, Aranvind mentioned his three beliefs. First, he believed that whatever he had: talent, virtue, high education-all belonged to God. Second, he wished to come face to face with God. Third, in his own words, “Others look upon India, their country, as a mass of matter, a number of fields, plains, forests, mountains, and rivers and nothing more”. He believed his nation to be his own mother. He adored her and worshipped her. He saw the entire nation at his door, seeking shelter and help in attaining freedom from foreign shackles. Initially, Aravind’s political activities were limited to Baroda, but they soon extended to Maharashtra, Gujarat and Bengal. He studied Bengal under literature Dinendra Kumar Roy.
Ghosh’s goal was to capture the public through writing. He made an extensive study of Indian literature and papers on the Indian freedom struggle. Armed with fluency in Marathi, Gujarati and Bengali, he then transcribed his views in papers like the Indu Prakash, Bande Mataram, Dharma, and Karma Yogin. His writing became the ideal for the Indian youth. He called on the young to serve the nation as “karmayogins”. He wanted the youth to devote all the energies toward freeing Mother India. He told the youth that, “if you will study, study for her sake; train yourself body and mind and soul for her service; work so that she may prosper; suffer so that she may rejoice”. Ghosh formed secret revolutionary societies which enveloped Bengal. He asked members of these secret societies to take a solemn oath to “secure the freedom of Mother India at any cost”. He stoked the fire of revolution by organising a huge rally on 9th November, 1905.
Aravind Ackroyd Gosh Indian Freedom fighter and philosopher
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