Who was Swami Dayanand Sawaswati?
Swami Dayanand Saraswati (1824–1883) was a North Indian social and religious reformer. He is also regarded as the founder of the Arya Samaj in 1875. Also, a strong defender of idolatry, polytheism, religious festivals supported by Brahmins, and stupid practices.
The Ideology of Swami Dayanand
Swami Dayanand was a great supporter of intercaste marriages and women's education. He also opposed the practice of child marriages.
According to him, Vedas are sacred and they lay the foundation of religion. This provided his teachings with an orthodox aura. According to the Swami, post-Vedic changes in Hindu civilization had resulted in weakness and division, weakening India's ability to withstand foreign invasion and slavery.
Dayananda encouraged Hindus to reject the "corrupting" outer expressions of their faith, such as worship, the caste system, and child marriage, and to return to the original nature of Vedic life and thought.
Arya Samaj
The Arya Samaj was a progressive force in North India, promoting social reform.
It advocated for women's rights, social equality, and opposition to untouchability and caste rigidity. While the Vedas were regarded as faultless, the reforms proposed in the contemporary age were the result of rational reasoning.
The Arya Samaj acquired a stronghold in Punjab around the start of the twentieth century, eventually becoming the province's leading nationalist organisation.
Dayanad anglovedic trust and Management society in lahore in 1886 , was an endeavour to combine the samaj and its activities.
Reforms
A variety of institutions were established to elevate women's education and of other disadvantaged groups, these include; schools, colleges, and technical institutions like medical and engineering colleges/universities.
It encouraged traditional Christian weddings and also widow remarriages among Hindus.
Intellectuals and Arya Samaj followers contributed to the goal of attaining equality for all segments of society, as well as to the national cause of India's independence from British rule.
Dayananda died at the age of 59, he was poisoned during his stay in the court of Jaswant Singh II, the Maharaja of Jodhpur. On 26th October 1883, he succumbed to the injuries sustained at Ajmer, where he was transported for medical care.