Pandit A pandit (; ; also spelled pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt. or Pdt.) is an individual with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge in Hinduism, particularly the Vedic scriptures, dharma, or Hindu philosophy; in colonial-e ...

Sitanath Tattwabhushan was the official

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

and

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

of the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj.Anusthanic Brahmos
His hymns still form the basis of Brahmo rites and liturgies.

Early life

He was born ''Sitanath Dutta'', in a village in

Sylhet Sylhet (; ) is a Metropolis, metropolitan city in the north eastern region of Bangladesh. It serves as the administrative center for both the Sylhet District and the Sylhet Division. The city is situated on the banks of the Surma River and, as o ...

in 1856. He arrived in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

for higher education in 1871. Although he initially joined Keshub Chunder Sen's Brahmo Niketan where he developed an interest in the philosophy of religion. However following the closure of that institute, he joined Alexander Duff's General Assembly's Institution in 1875.''Reformist Modernism'' in ''The Brahmo Samaj and the shaping of the modern Indian mind''. By David Kopf, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1979. page 80-83 In 1879, he joined Anandamohan Bose's City School as a teacher. Late in 1883, he joined the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj's institute of theology as its secretary, and was associated with its activities for twelve years. During this period he explored comparative discourses on Brahmo theology and religion. He was elected president of the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj in 1926.

Religious positions

Following his extensive readings, and intellectual exchanges with his peers, he developed the view that the failure of Brahmoism to draw converts lay in its being less philosophic, and being more grounded on dogma, based on divine inspiration and unverifiable assertions. To counter this, he put forward the need for developing a faith based on philosophy. In his written works, he developed a theological system of Brahmoism. This was based not on natural intuition or spontaneity, but on the metaphysics of theism and self-knowledge, based on the

Upanishads The Upanishads (; , , ) are late Vedic and post-Vedic Sanskrit texts that "document the transition from the archaic ritualism of the Veda into new religious ideas and institutions" and the emergence of the central religious concepts of Hind ...

and the

Vedanta ''Vedanta'' (; , ), also known as ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six orthodox (Āstika and nāstika, ''āstika'') traditions of Hindu philosophy and textual exegesis. The word ''Vedanta'' means 'conclusion of the Vedas', and encompa ...

. By emphasizing the primacy of ethical development as instrumental to the formation of consciousness, his thoughts presaged those of

Vivekananda Swami Vivekananda () (12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta, was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. Vivekananda was a major figure in th ...

Controversies

He attacked

Vaishnava Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, '' Mahavishnu''. It is one of the major Hindu denominations along wit ...

religion as he felt that natural or spontaneous religion based on the traditions of

bhakti ''Bhakti'' (; Pali: ''bhatti'') is a term common in Indian religions which means attachment, fondness for, devotion to, trust, homage, worship, piety, faith, or love.See Monier-Williams, ''Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. In Indian religions, it ...

did not help in the development of critical rational faculties, and paradoxically served to keep the masses illiterate, and uncritical. His critical appraisal of Brahmo followers (primarily the followers of Keshub Chunder Sen's New Dispensation) as spiritual deviants, and his emphasis on logical empiricism earned him detractors both with the Brahmo Samaj (particularly the followers of Keshub Chunder Sen), and in the wider Hindu society, who criticized his efforts as effete

scholasticism Scholasticism was a medieval European philosophical movement or methodology that was the predominant education in Europe from about 1100 to 1700. It is known for employing logically precise analyses and reconciling classical philosophy and Ca ...

Family

Prabhat Kumar Mukhopadhyaya, best known as the biographer of

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...

, had married his daughter Sudhamoyee. She was one of the earlier period students of

Santiniketan Shantiniketan (IPA: Help:IPA/Bengali, �antiniketɔn 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 Devendra ...

. She was founder of the Bolpur Balika Vidyalaya and was its headmistress for many years. Subinoy Roy, an exponent of Rabindra Sangeet, was the son of his youngest daughter Sukhamoyee Devi.

Works

*''Brahmo Jijnasa (Inquiry into the Philosophical Basis of Theism)'', 1888. *''Philosophy of Brahmoism'', 1909. *''Manual of Brahmic Prayer and Devotions'', 1921.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tattwabhusana, Sitanath Scholars from Kolkata Indian social workers Social workers from West Bengal Educators from West Bengal 19th-century Indian scholars 19th-century Indian educators Brahmos Scottish Church College alumni University of Calcutta alumni Indian theologians 1856 births Year of death missing Bengali Hindus Bengali educators 19th-century Bengalis 19th-century Hindu philosophers and theologians 19th-century Indian philosophers Indian social reformers