MODERN RELIGIOUS AND SECULAR MOVEMENTS IN INDIA

Dr. RADHAKRISHNAN AND HIS PHILOSOPHY

Submitted by Nijo Jose Skaria

Introduction

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan is one of India’s best and most influential twentieth century
scholars of comparative religion and philosophy. He is an eminent expositor and interpreter
of Indian traditional philosophy, which carries with it the actual reflection of Indian culture.
He is a philosopher, statesman, and a diplomat consistently at the same time. 1 Naturally he
combined the two traditions with perfect ease and is able to evolve a philosophy of synthesis.
He focused his work on interpretation and explanation of different aspects of Indian culture,
philosophy and religion. His extensive knowledge has helped to become a bridge-builder and
a synthesis between the Western Philosophical and Indian Philosophical world view and
being influenced by both.

His Philosophical Position

Radhakrishnan sought to define, defend, and promulgate his religion, a religion he
variously identified as Hinduism, Vedanta, and the religion of the Spirit. For him, Hinduism
was both philosophical and ethically viable. His philosophy was grounded in Advaita
Vedānta reinterpreting this tradition for a contemporary understanding and developed a new
outlook for Hinduism. His basic philosophical position is an outcome of synthesis between
the East and West traditions. He synthesises Advaita Vedānta especially of Sankara and
Absolute Idealism of the West that leads to the concept of organic unity. This organic unity is
between universe and with nature of man, of man and universe, finite and infinite, human and
divine.2 As a neo-Vedantin he reinterprets, reconstructs, purifies and extends the
philosophical doctrines of the Upanishads and the Advaita Vedanta of Saṅkara, Bhagavat
Gita in the light of modern science and technology.
Therefore some of his fundamental philosophical principles are discussed below;

Philosophical Positions of Radhakrishnan

The fundamental philosophical position of Radhakrishnan could be identified with three
major distinctions like Metaphysics and Intuition.

Metaphysics
Radhakrishnan allocated and framed his Metaphysics within an Advaita philosophical
framework and could be embraced as metaphysics idealism. 3 It is to identify the reality and
the diversity in the world of experience (prakrti), while at the same time to preserve the
notion of wholly transcendent Absolute, an Absolute that is identical to the self (atman).
Therefore the world of experience is not the reality, it is subjected to change and
characterised as finitude and multiplicity. For further explanation, Radhakrishnan quotes

1
D. S. Sharma, Hinduism Through the Ages (Bombay: Bavens Book University, 1967), 230.
2
Moore A Charles, Radhakrishnan’s Metaphysics and Ethics, (New Jersey: Princeston University
1960), 282.
3
Metaphysics idealism could be identified as the search to identify the very being, identity which
would help to led us to reframe, restructure to pursuit the perfection.
Sankara’s notion of Maya (un-satisfied prakrti) that takes the world to disconnect from
Brahman and leads misinterpretation of the world as real.4
Therefore his emphasis is made much on Spirit which remains as the permanent
element in discussing the nature of human beings as he distinguishes between the finite and
infinite man. Human nature undergoes constant modification, but in the case of Spirit it
remains unchanged. He focuses much on the significance of Spirit which cannot be perceived
by naked eye, the basic core of evolution. 5 They are matter, life and Spirit. Radhakrishnan
considers God as the spirit; universal spirit existing in man and the world, and the Spirit is the
ultimate and Absolute.
In other sense Radhakrishnan would use the term Absolute as spaceless, timeless
reality and pure consciousness with infinite possibilities. 6 The absolute is not exhausted by
cosmic process and gives the pure freedom.

Intuition
It deals with his understanding and his interpretation of experiences. For Him, such intuitions
are considered as “integral experience”. The term “integral” could be attested in three ways;
 Intuition is integral in the sense that coordinates and synthesis all experience
 Intuition is integral to form the basis all experience
 Intuition is integral to integrate the experiences into the life of individual
Intuition is the ultimate form of experience which is both truth-filled and truth-bearing,
which has its own cause and explanation.7 This ultimate sense constitutes the fullest and
therefore the most authentic realization of the Real (Brahman). Intuition is a self-revelation of
the divine. It operates on a supra-conscious level, and he holds that there is no such thing as
pure experience, raw and undigested. It is always mixed up with layers of interpretation. 8
Every intuition moves beyond the limits of language and logic and there is no conception to
define it. 9 While the experience itself transcends the expression.

Philosophy on His Religious Pluralism

In his philosophical mindset he considers ‘religions’ as interpretation of experience.
“If experience is the soul of religion, expression is the body through which it fulfils its
destiny.”10 He maintains a hierarchy of religions: especially considering “Hinduism”
worshippers of absolute as in highest rank, worshippers of Personal God as in second
position, then come the worshippers of incarnation, followed by the those of worship
ancestors, deities and sages and to the lowest worshippers of petty forces.11
He tries to brand Hinduism and makes a clear distinction between experience and
interpretations. For him His religion is a kind of life or experience of the self. Therefore the
experience and realization that features Advaita Vedanta makes him to consider it as superior
and other religions as interpretations of his Vedanta. Vedanta is not a religion, but religion
itself in its most universal and deepest significance Religion and religions are related in
Radhakrishnan's mind as experience and interpretation. He Hinduizes all religion by

4
Basant Kumar Lal, Contemporary Indian Philosophy (Patna: Motilal Banarsidass, 1973), 261.
5
S. Radhakrishnan, Recovery of Faith (USA: Harper & Brothers, 1955) 232.
6
S. Radhakrishnan, An Idealist View of Life (Bombay: George Allen & Unwin Pvt. Ltd, 1976), 86-89.
7
Ibid., 93.
8
Ibid., 99.
9
Ibid., 96.
10
Ibid., 90.
11
S. Radhakrishnan, The Hindu View of Life (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1927), 32.
clarifying Sankara’s notion of prathyasha and anumana. For him all traditions are common
ground of experience (that is, Advaita Vedanta), each religion has value, unique and valuable.

Authority and Scientific Basis of Hinduism

Hinduism, as he understands it, is a scientific religion. It always remains open to experience
and encourages an experimental attitude with regard to its experiential data. He would
consider Experience and experimentation as the origin and end of Hinduism, because unlike
other religion it moves beyond spiritual experience. Radhakrishnan considerers Rsis not as
authors of truth but as the pioneer researches in the realm of spirit with continues experience
of resident life and power.12 Thus Upanishads are records of experiment; Vedas as the
intuitions of perfected souls holds his understanding of scripture as the scientific records of
spiritual insights, not only for Hinduism, but for all religious creeds.
He claims that, they ought not to be taken as authoritative, but it is to consider the
integral intuitions validated in the light of reason are final authority on religious matters.

Ethical Mysticism
Radhakrishnan notion of Ethical Mysticism could be considered as a clear critique to
ideology of “Asceticism”. For him Asceticism is considered as the execess indulged to
exaggerate the transcendant aspect of the reality. He replaces Ascetic experience with the
notion of Ethical Mystic experience. Ethical Mystical experience is not to see the inherent
value of the world but to be guided in this world with intuitive experience. Here he
challenges the moral pre-set principles/dogmas. This helps to promote social tolerance and
accommodation. Therefore Hinduism becomes a comprehensive charity than being fanatic. 13

Philosophy of Caste
He considers caste system in much positive manner and a case of ethical tolerance and
accommodation. He explains caste as an outcome of tolerance and trust not on the basis of
mechanical fatalism of karma. He considers the caste system as a part to achieve his/ her
integral experience and that values each individual to work out their spiritual realisation.
Radhakrishnan identifies this system with the relative ranking of religions with proximity to
Vedanta, that the caste is a social recognition for each individual to experiment their own
spiritual consciousness free from dogmatic restraints. Caste is an integral experience to have
unshakable faith in the supremacy of the spirit.14

Nature of God
God is considered as the finite power of the absolute. He is not the eternal, but he exists as
long as the universe is not dissolved and God’s reality is identified from absolute. He is
considering as the creator and the redeemer, who is beyond time and space. According to him
when the whole world is redeemed, God and the universe become unified. 15 For
Radhakrishnan, Absolute is the pre-cosmic condition and the cosmos upholds the
potentialities of the creator.
Conclusion
Radhakrishnan focuses his philosophical framework to re-interpret the Hinduism with the
framework of Advaita Vedanta. His philosophy is an attempt to search the ultimate spirit or
12
S .Radhakrishnan, An Idealist View of Life (Bombay: George Allen & Unwin Pvt. Ltd, 1976), 89-90.
13
S. Radhakrishnan, The Hindu View of Life (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1927), 37.
14
S. Radhakrishnan, An Idealist View of Life (Bombay: George Allen & Unwin Pvt. Ltd, 1976), 126.
15
S. Radhakrishnan, Eastern Religion and Western Thought (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1975),
93.
the absolute that leads towards pure freedom. For him, the understanding of experience and
intuition are considered as source of finding new consciousness. This helps in identifying the
organic unity which is a holistic in nature.