| Vinoba Bhave (1895 - 1982) |
Vinayak Narahari was born in Wardha in Maharastra, to a high-class Brahman family. He abandoned his high school in 1916 burning all his certificates and became the adopted son of Gandhiji. Gandhiji's influence and teachings made him a dedicated man whose mission in life was to improve the villages.
Vinoba in 1940's was sentenced to prison, as he was involved in non-violence moment of Gandhiji.
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In 1951 Vinoba conceived a Bhoomidaan project (land for the landless) which was aimed at making the people of low society into landowners.
He thereafter walked from village to village, appealing for gifts of land to be distributed among the landless and relating the act of giving to the principle of ahimsa (nonviolence), which had been adopted by Gandhi. Later, however, he encouraged gramdan, i.e., the system whereby villagers pooled their land, after which the land was reorganized under a cooperative system. Vinoba was also able to change the lives of some of the most notorious dacoits of chambal.
Throughout 1975 Bhave maintained a vow of silence over the issue of the involvement of his followers in political agitation. As a result of a fast in 1979, he secured the government's promise to enforce the law prohibiting the killing of cows (animals sacred to Hinduism) throughout India.
Vinoba Bhave was a great Rishi who mastered fourteen languages and spread the message of peace and harmony. His only desire was to make India a casteless society.
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| Category filed under: Political |
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