Karl Graul (6 February 1814 – 10 November 1864) was a leader of

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

mission and a Tamil scholar. He was born in a poor weaver family in

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. He moved to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

as the director of the Lutheran Leipzig Mission in 1849 and there he mastered Tamil. Graul was one of the foremost figures in missiology. His approach towards caste system was considered to be too lenient by his critics since he considered that caste system would fade on its own accord and Christian organizations need not interfere with local traditions. He also advocated the supremacy of

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

over other Christian denominations and found it hard to cooperate with Anglicans in India.

Early life

Karl Graul was born in Wörlitz, in the Duchy of Anhalt-Dessau, into a poor weaver's family. In spite of his poor background he received good education in classical and modern languages as well as in theology. However, as for as mission and missiology is concerned he was entirely self-taught.Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions p. 257

Tamil scholar

Karl Graul was appointed the director of the Lutheran Leipzig Mission in 1844. The Lutheran mission had succeeded the Danish-Hale mission in South India. During his stay in India, Graul mastered the Tamil language. After returning to Leipzig in 1853 he taught Tamil language and literature at the mission house. Later Graul wrote ''Bibilotheca Tamulica seu Opera Praecipua Tamuliensium'' (1854–1865). A work in 4 volumes, it contains in its third and fourth volumes the first complete translation of the

Tirukkural The ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'' (), or shortly the ''Kural'' (), is a classic Tamil language text on commoner's morality consisting of 1,330 short couplets, or Kural (poetic form), kurals, of seven words each. The text is divided into three books wit ...

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, German, and the standard spoken Tamil with notes and glossaries. It was published by his student Wilhelm Germann the year after Graul's death in

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. Graul also wrote a ''Tamil Grammar'' in German (1855).

Missiology

Graul being one of the foremost figures in missiology, insisted that other missionaries should go through academic training both in mission as well in theology. He insisted that the knowledge of locals with contextual approach towards indigenous churches.

Views on caste system

Graul's views on caste system was considered by his critics as "too lenient". This was in light that ''Madras Missionary Conference'' resolved that no one should be admitted to

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

until he had shed off the caste identity and breaks the caste by eating food prepared by a person from the lower caste. According to

Stephen Neill Stephen Charles Neill (1900–1984)Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions, p. 488. was a British Anglican bishop, missionary and scholar. He was proficient in a number of languages, including Ancient Greek, Latin and Tamil language, Tamil. ...

all

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

missionary societies agreed to these terms except for Graul's Leipzig Evangelical Lutheran Mission. This was since Graul, who took a “middle” standpoint and regarded the caste as “a natural kingdom lying between the divine and the demonic”, believed that caste system can be removed only as a slow process and making it mandatory is not needed.A History of Christianity in India p. 407 It was his view that missionaries should not interfere with indigenous social orders unless they are wholly incompatible with the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

.Christianity and African Culture p.23

Supremacy of Lutheranism

Graul believed in supremacy of Lutheranism over other Christian denominations. Thus he found it hard on mutual cooperation with Anglicans in India especially on communion.A History of Christianity in India p. 396

Death

Graul in 1864 qualified himself as a university lecturer in missiology at

. However, he died the same year even before taking up the position.

Works

* Übersetzung von Dante Allghieri's ''Göttlicher Komödie''; 1843. (Elektronischer Text auf www.dantealighieri.dk) * ''Unterscheidungslehren der verschiedenen christlichen Bekenntnisse''; 1845 * ''Die Ev.-Luth. Mission an die ev-luth. Kirche aller Lande''; 1845 * ''Explanations concerning the principles of the Leipzig Society with regard to the Caste-Question''; Madras 1851 * ''Reise nach Ostindien'', 5 volumes; 1854–56 * ''Bibliotheca Tamulica sive Opera Praecipia Tamuliensium'', 4 volumes ** Volume 1: ''Tamulische Schriften zur Erläuterung des Vedanta-Systems oder der rechtgläubigen Philosophie der Hindus.'' Übersetzung und Erklärung von Karl Graul. Leipzig 1854.
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** Volume 2: ''Kaivaljanavanīta. A Vedanta Poem. The Tamil Text with a Translation and Glossary and Grammatical Notes.'' Leipzig/London 1855.
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** Volume 3: ''Der Kural des Tiruvalluver. Ein gnomisches Gedicht über die drei Strebeziele des Menschen.'' Übersetzung und Erklärung von Karl Graul. Leipzig 1856.
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** Volume 4: ''Kural of Tiruvalluver. High-Tamil Text with Translation into Common Tamil and Latin, Notes and Glossary.'' Leipzig 1865.
Digitalisat
* ''Outline of Tamil Grammar''; 1855 * ''Die christliche Kirche an der Schwelle des irenäischen Zeitalters''; 1860 * ''Die Stellung der evangelisch-lutherischen Mission in Leipzig zur ostindischen Kastenfrage''; 1861 * ''Über Stellung und Bedeutung der christlichen Missionen im Ganzen der Universitätswissentschaften''; 1864 * ''Indische Sinnpflanzen und Blumen zur Kennzeichnung des indischen, vornehmlich tamulischen Geistes''; 1864

Sources

* Werner Raupp (Ed.): Mission in Quellentexten. Geschichte der Deutschen Evangelischen Mission von der Reformation bis zur Weltmissionskonferenz Edinburgh 1910, Erlangen/Bad Liebenzell 1990 (ISBN 3-87214-238-0 / 3-88002-424-3), p. 336-343 (a) Stellung der evanglisch-lutherischen Mission in Leipzig zur ostindischen Kastenfrage, 1861, p. 1-22; b) Über Stellung und Bedeutung der christlichen Missionen im Ganzen der Universitätswissentschaften, 1864, p. 4-14).

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Graul, Karl 1814 births 1864 deaths People from Wörlitz People from Anhalt-Dessau German Lutheran missionaries Lutheran missionaries in India German expatriates in India Tamil–German translators Tamil–Latin translators 19th-century German linguists Translators of the Tirukkural into German Translators of the Tirukkural into Latin 19th-century German translators Translators of Dante Alighieri Tirukkural translators 19th-century Lutherans Missionary linguists