Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan OM, FBA (pronunciationⓘ; 5 September 1888 – 17 April 1975; natively Radhakrishnayya) was an Indian politician, philosopher and statesman who served as the second president of India from 1962 to 1967. He previously served as the first vice president of India from 1952 to 1962. He was the second ambassador of India to the Soviet Union from 1949 to 1952. He was also the fourth vice-chancellor of Banaras Hindu University from 1939 to 1948 and the second vice-chancellor of Andhra University from 1931 to 1936. Radhakrishnan is considered one of the most influential and distinguished 20th century scholars of comparative religion and philosophy,[2][web 1] he held the King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science at the University of Calcutta from 1921 to 1932 and Spalding Chair of Eastern Religion and Ethics at University of Oxford from 1936 to 1952.[3]
Radhakrishnans philosophy was grounded in Advaita Vedanta, reinterpreting this tradition for a contemporary understanding.[web 1] He defended Hinduism against what he called "uninformed Western criticism",[4] contributing to the formation of contemporary Hindu identity.[5] He has been influential in shaping the understanding of Hinduism, in both India and the west, and earned a reputation as a bridge-builder between India and the West.[6]
Radhakrishnan was awarded several high awards during his life, including a knighthood in 1931, the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India, in 1954, and honorary membership of the British Royal Order of Merit in 1963. He was also one of the founders of Helpage India, a non profit organisation for elderly underprivileged in India. Radhakrishnan believed that "teachers should be the best minds in the country". Since 1962, his birthday has been celebrated in India as Teachers Day on 5 September every year.[web 2]
Early life and education
Radhakrishnan was born as Sarvepalli Radhakrishnayya[7][8] in a Telugu Niyogi Brahmin family of Sarvepalli Veeraswami and Sithamma. He was the second born of three siblings,[9] in Tiruttani of North Arcot district in the erstwhile Madras Presidency (now in Tiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu).[10][11][12][13][14][15] As per his sons biography, he was born out of wedlock.[16] His family hails from Sarvepalli village in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh. His early years were spent in Thiruttani and Tirupati. His father was a subordinate revenue official in the service of a local Zamindar (local landlord). His primary education was at K. V. High School at Thiruttani. In 1896 he moved to the Hermansburg Evangelical Lutheran Mission School in Tirupati and Government High Secondary School, Walajapet.[17]
Education
Indian President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan with US President John F. Kennedy in the Oval Office, 1963
Radhakrishnan was awarded scholarships throughout his academic life. He joined Voorhees College in Vellore for his high school education. After his F.A. (First of Arts) class, he joined the Madras Christian College (affiliated to the University of Madras) at the age of 16. He graduated from there in 1907, and also finished his Masters from the same college.
Radhakrishnan studied philosophy by chance rather than choice. Being a financially constrained student, when a cousin who graduated from the same college passed on his philosophy textbooks to Radhakrishnan, it automatically decided his academics course.[18][19]
Sarvepalli wrote his bachelors degree thesis on "The Ethics of the Vedanta and its Metaphysical Presuppositions".[20] It "was intended to be a reply to the charge that the Vedanta system had no room for ethics."[21] Two of his professors, Rev. William Meston and Dr. Alfred George Hogg, commended Radhakrishnans dissertation.[citation needed] Radhakrishnans thesis was published when he was only twenty. According to Radhakrishnan himself, the criticism of Hogg and other Christian teachers of Indian culture "disturbed my faith and shook the traditional props on which I leaned."[21] Radhakrishnan himself describes how, as a student,
The challenge of Christian critics impelled me to make a study of Hinduism and find out what is living and what is dead in it. My pride as a Hindu, roused by the enterprise and eloquence of Swami Vivekananda, was deeply hurt by the treatment accorded to Hinduism in missionary institutions.[4]
This led him to his critical study of Indian philosophy and religion[21] and a lifelong defence of Hinduism against "uninformed Western criticism".[4] At the same time, Radhakrishnan commended Professor Hogg as My distinguished teacher,[22] and as "one of the greatest Christian thinkers we had in India.[23] Besides, Professor William Skinner, who was acting Principal of the College, gave a testimonial saying "he is one of the best men we have had in the recent years", which enabled him to get the first job in Presidency College. In reciprocation, Radhakrishnan dedicated one of his early books to William Skinner.[24]
The Spirit of Abheda
Radhakrishnan expresses his anguish, against the British critics, in The Ethics of the Vedanta.[25] Here he wrote, "it has become philosophic fashion of the present day to consider the Vedanta system a non-ethical one." He quotes a German-born philologist and Orientalist, who lived and studied in Britain for most of his life, Max Muller as stating, "The Vedanta philosophy has not neglected the important sphere of ethics; but on the contrary, we find ethics in the beginning, ethics in the middle, and ethics in the end, to say nothing of the fact that minds, so engrossed with divine things as Vedanta philosophers, are not likely to fall victims to the ordinary temptations of the world, the flesh, and other powers."
Radhakrishnan then explains how this philosophy requires us (people) to look upon all creations as one. As non-different. This is where he introduces "The Spirit of Abheda".[26] He quotes, "In morals, the individual is enjoined to cultivate a Spirit of Abheda, or non-difference." Thus he mentions how this "naturally leads to the ethics of love and brotherhood".
"Every other individual is to be regarded as your co-equal, and treated as an end, not a means."
"The Vedanta requires us to respect human dignity and demands the recognition of man as man."
Personal life
Radhakrishnan was married to Sivakamu[note 1] (1893–1956) in May 1903, a distant cousin, at the age of 16, when she was aged 10.[27][28][29] As per tradition the marriage was arranged by the family. The couple had five daughters named Padmavati, Rukmini, Sushila, Sundari and Shakuntala. They also had a son named Sarvepalli Gopal who went on to a notable career as a historian. Many of Radhakrishnans family members including his grandchildren and great-grandchildren have pursued a wide range of careers in academia, public policy, medicine, law, banking, business, publishing and other fields across the world. Sivakamu died on 26 November 1956. They were married for about 53 years.[30][31]
Academic career
hand made portrait of Mr. President.
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan drawn by Bujjai and signed by Sarvepalli in Telugu as "Radhakrishnayya".
In April 1909, Radhakrishnan was appointed to the Department of Philosophy at the Madras Presidency College. Thereafter, in 1918, he was selected as Professor of Philosophy by the University of Mysore, where he taught at its Maharajas College, Mysore. [web 3][32] By that time he had written many articles for journals of repute like The Quest, Journal of Philosophy and the International Journal of Ethics. He also completed his first book, The Philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore. He believed Tagores philosophy to be the "genuine manifestation of the Indian spirit". His second book, The Reign of Religion in Contemporary Philosophy was published in 1920.
In 1921 he was appointed as a professor in philosophy to occupy the King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science at the University of Calcutta. He represented the University of Calcutta at the Congress of the Universities of the British Empire in June 1926 and the International Congress of Philosophy at Harvard University in September 1926. Another important academic event during this period was the invitation to deliver the Hibbert Lecture on the ideals of life which he delivered at Manchester College, Oxford in 1929 and which was subsequently published in book form as An Idealist View of Life.
In 1929 Radhakrishnan was invited to take the post vacated by Principal J. Estlin Carpenter at Manchester College. This gave him the opportunity to lecture to the students of the University of Oxford on Comparative Religion. For his services to education he was knighted by George V in the June 1931 Birthday Honours,[web 4] and formally invested with his honour by the Governor-General of India, the Earl of Willingdon, in April 1932.[web 5] However, he ceased to use the title after Indian independence,[33]: 9 preferring instead his academic title of Doctor.
He was the vice-chancellor of Andhra University from 1931 to 1936. During his first convocation address, he spoke about his native Andhra as,
We, the Andhras, are fortunately situated in some respects. I firmly believe that if any part of India is capable of developing an effective sense of unity it is in Andhra. The hold of conservatism is not strong. Our generosity of spirit and openness of mind are well -known. Our social instinct and suggestibility are still active. Our moral sense and sympathetic imagination are not much warped by dogma. Our women are relatively more free. Love of the mother-tongue binds us all.
Portrait of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan by Serge Ivanoff. 1953
In 1936 Radhakrishnan was named Spalding Professor of Eastern Religion and Ethics at the University of Oxford, and was elected a Fellow of All Souls College. That same year, and again in 1937, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, although this nomination process, as for all laureates, was not public at the time. Further nominations for the award would continue steadily into the 1960s. In 1939 Pt. Madan Mohan Malaviya invited him to succeed him as the Vice-Chancellor of Banaras Hindu University (BHU).[34] He served as its Vice-Chancellor till January 1948.
Political career
See also: British Raj and Indian Independence Act 1947
President of United States John F. Kennedy and President of India, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (left), depart the White House following a meeting. Minister of External Affairs of India, Lakshmi N. Menon, walks behind President Kennedy at West Wing Entrance, White House, Washington, D.C., on 4 June 1963
Radhakrishnan started his political career "rather late in life", after his successful academic career.[4] His international authority preceded his political career. He was one of those stalwarts who attended Andhra Mahasabha in 1928 where he seconded the idea of renaming Ceded Districts division of Madras Presidency as Rayalaseema. In 1931 he was nominated to the League of Nations Committee for Intellectual Cooperation, where after "in Western eyes he was the recognized Hindu authority on Indian ideas and a persuasive interpreter of the role of Eastern institutions in contemporary society."[4]
When India became independent in 1947, Radhakrishnan represented India at UNESCO (1946–52) and was later Ambassador of India to the Soviet Union, from 1949 to 1952. He was also elected to the Constituent Assembly of India. Radhakrishnan was elected as the first Vice-President of India in 1952, and elected as the second President of India (1962–1967). Radhakrishnan did not have a background in the Congress Party, nor was he active in the Indian independence movement. He was the politician in shadow.[further explanation needed] His motivation lay in his pride of Hindu culture, and the defence of Hinduism against "uninformed Western criticism".[4] According to the historian Donald Mackenzie Brown,
He had always defended Hindu culture against uninformed Western criticism and had symbolized the pride of Indians in their own intellectual traditions.[4]
Teachers Day
When Radhakrishnan became the President of India, some of his students and friends requested him to allow them to celebrate his birthday, on 5 September. He replied,
Instead of celebrating my birthday, it would be my proud privilege if September 5th is observed as Teachers Day.[35]
His birthday has since been celebrated as Teachers Day in India.[web 6]
Charity
Along with G. D. Birla and some other social workers in the pre-independence era, Radhakrishnan formed the Krishnarpan Charity Trust.
As President of India, Radhakrishnan made 11 state visits including visits to both the US and the USSR.[web 7]
Role in Constituent Assembly
He was against State institutions imparting denominational religious instruction as it was against the secular vision of the Indian State.[36]
Global policy
Along with Albert Einstein, Radhakrishnan was one of the sponsors of the Peoples World Convention (PWC), also known as Peoples World Constituent Assembly (PWCA), which took place in 1950-51 at Palais Electoral, Geneva, Switzerland.[37][38]
Philosophy
Radhakrishnan tried to bridge eastern and western thought,[39] defending Hinduism against "uninformed Western criticism",[4] but also incorporating Western philosophical and religious thought.[40]
Advaita Vedanta
Radhakrishnan was one of the most prominent spokesmen of Neo-Vedanta.[41][42][43] His metaphysics was grounded in Advaita Vedanta, but he reinterpreted Advaita Vedanta for a contemporary understanding.[web 1] He acknowledged the reality and diversity of the world of experience, which he saw as grounded in and supported by the absolute or Brahman.[web 1][note 2] Radhakrishnan also reinterpreted Shankaras notion of maya. According to Radhakrishnan, maya is not a strict absolute idealism, but "a subjective misperception of the world as ultimately real."[web 1]
Intuition and religious experience
See also: Mystical experience and Religious experience
"Intuition", [web 1] synonymously called "religious experience",[web 1] has a central place in Radhakrishnans philosophy as a source of knowledge which is not mediated by conscious thought.[40] His specific interest in experience can be traced back to the works of William James (1842–1910), F. H. Bradley (1846–1924), Henri Bergson (1859–1941), and Friedrich von Hügel (1852–1925),[40] and to Vivekananda (1863–1902),[45] who had a strong influence on Sarvepallis thought.[46] According to Radhakrishnan, intuition is of a self-certifying character (svatassiddha), self-evidencing (svāsaṃvedya), and self-luminous (svayam-prakāsa).[web 1] In his book An Idealist View of Life, he made a powerful case for the importance of intuitive thinking as opposed to purely intellectual forms of thought.[web 8] According to Radhakrishnan, intuition plays a specific role in all kinds of experience.[web 1]
Radhakrishnan discernes eight sorts of experience:[web 1]
Cognitive Experience:
Sense Experience
Discursive Reasoning
Intuitive Apprehension
Psychic Experience
Aesthetic Experience
Ethical Experience
Religious Experience
Classification of religions
For Radhakrishnan, theology and creeds are intellectual formulations, and symbols of religious experience or "religious intuitions".[web 1] Radhakrishnan qualified the variety of religions hierarchically according to their apprehension of "religious experience", giving Advaita Vedanta the highest place:[web 1][note 3]
The worshippers of the Absolute
The worshippers of the personal God
The worshippers of the incarnations like Rama, Kṛiṣhṇa, Buddha
Those who worship ancestors, deities and sages
The worshippers of the petty forces and spirits
Radhakrishnan saw Hinduism as a scientific religion based on facts, apprehended via intuition or religious experience.[web 1] According to Radhakrishnan, "if philosophy of religion is to become scientific, it must become empirical and found itself on religious experience".[web 1] He saw this empiricism exemplified in the Vedas:
The truths of the ṛṣis are not evolved as the result of logical reasoning or systematic philosophy but are the products of spiritual intuition, dṛṣti or vision. The ṛṣis are not so much the authors of the truths recorded in the Vedas as the seers who were able to discern the eternal truths by raising their life-spirit to the plane of universal spirit. They are the pioneer researchers in the realm of the spirit who saw more in the world than their followers. Their utterances are not based on transitory vision but on a continuous experience of resident life and power. When the Vedas are regarded as the highest authority, all that is meant is that the most exacting of all authorities is the authority of facts.[web 1]
From his writings collected as The Hindu View of Life, Upton Lectures, Delivered at Manchester College, Oxford, 1926: "Hinduism insists on our working steadily upwards in improving our knowledge of God. The worshippers of the absolute are of the highest rank; second to them are the worshippers of the personal God; then come the worshippers of the incarnations of Rama, Krishna, Buddha; below them are those who worship deities, ancestors, and sages, and lowest of all are the worshippers of petty forces and spirits. The deities of some men are in water (i.e., bathing places), those of the most advanced are in the heavens, those of the children (in religion) are in the images of wood and stone, but the sage finds his God in his deeper self. The man of action finds his God in fire, the man of feeling in the heart, and the feeble minded in the idol, but the strong in spirit find God everywhere". The seers see the supreme in the self, and not the images."
To Radhakrishnan, Advaita Vedanta was the best representative of Hinduism, as being grounded in intuition, in contrast to the "intellectually mediated interpretations"[web 1] of other religions.[web 1][note 4] He objected against charges of "quietism"[note 5] and "world denial", instead stressing the need and ethic of social service, giving a modern interpretation of classical terms as tat-tvam-asi.[43] According to Radhakrishnan, Vedanta offers the most direct intuitive experience and inner realisation, which makes it the highest form of religion:
The Vedanta is not a religion, but religion itself in its most universal and deepest significance.[web 1]
Radhakrishnan saw other religions, "including what Dr. S. Radhakrishnan understands as lower forms of Hinduism,"[web 1] as interpretations of Advaita Vedanta, thereby Hinduising all religions.[web 1]
Although Radhakrishnan was well-acquainted with western culture and philosophy, he was also critical of them. He stated that Western philosophers, despite all claims to objectivity, were influenced by theological influences of their own culture.[50]
Influence
Statue of Sarvepalli at Hyderabad (Tankbund)
Radhakrishnan was one of worlds best and most influential twentieth-century scholars of comparative religion and philosophy.[2][web 1]
Radhakrishnans defence of the Hindu traditions has been highly influential,[40] both in India and the western world. In India, Radhakrishnans ideas contributed to the formation of India as a nation-state.[51] Radhakrishnans writings contributed to the hegemonic status of Vedanta as "the essential world view of Hinduism".[52] In the western world, Radhakrishnans interpretations of the Hindu tradition, and his emphasis on "spiritual experience", made Hinduism more readily accessible for a western audience, and contributed to the influence Hinduism has on modern spirituality:
In figures such as Vivekananda and Radhakrishnan we witness Vedanta traveling to the West, where it nourished the spiritual hunger of Europeans and Americans in the early decades of the twentieth century.[52]
Appraisal
Radhakrishnan has been highly appraised. According to Paul Artur Schillp:
Nor would it be possible to find a more excellent example of a living "bridge" between the East and the West than Professor Radhakrishnan. Steeped, as Radhakrishnan has been since his childhood, in the life, traditions, and philosophical heritage of his native India, he has also struck deep roots in Western philosophy, which he has been studying tirelessly ever since his undergraduate college-days in Madras Christian College, and in which he is as thoroughly at home as any Western philosopher.[39]
And according to Hawley:
Radhakrishnans concern for experience and his extensive knowledge of the Western philosophical and literary traditions has earned him the reputation of being a bridge-builder between India and the West. He often appears to feel at home in the Indian as well as the Western philosophical contexts, and draws from both Western and Indian sources throughout his writing. Because of this, Radhakrishnan has been held up in academic circles as a representative of Hinduism to the West. His lengthy writing career and his many published works have been influential in shaping the Wests understanding of Hinduism, India, and the East.[web 1]
Criticism and context
Radhakrishnans ideas have also received criticism and challenges, for their perennialist[41][53] and universalist claims,[54][55] and the use of an east–west dichotomy.[web 1]
Perennialism
Main article: Perennial philosophy
According to Radhakrishnan, there is not only an underlying "divine unity"[53] from the seers of the Upanishads up to modern Hindus like Tagore and Gandhi,[53] but also "an essential commonality between philosophical and religious traditions from widely disparate cultures."[41] This is also a major theme in the works of Rene Guenon, the Theosophical Society, and the contemporary popularity of eastern religions in modern spirituality.[41][40] Since the 1970s, the Perennialist position has been criticised for its essentialism. Social-constructionists give an alternative approach to religious experience, in which such "experiences" are seen as being determined and mediated by cultural determinants:[40][56][note 6]
As Michaels notes:
Religions, too, rely not so much on individual experiences or on innate feelings – like a sensus numinosus (Rudolf Otto) – but rather on behavioral patterns acquired and learned in childhood.[57]
Rinehart also points out that "perennialist claims notwithstanding, modern Hindu thought is a product of history",[53] which "has been worked out and expressed in a variety of historical contexts over the preceding two hundreds years."[53] This is also true for Radhakrishan, who was educated by missionaries[58] and, like other neo-Vedantins used the prevalent western understanding of India and its culture to present an alternative to the western critique.[41][59]
Universalism, communalism and Hindu nationalism
According to Richard King, the elevation of Vedanta as the essence of Hinduism, and Advaita Vedanta as the "paradigmatic example of the mystical nature of the Hindu religion"[60] by colonial Indologists but also neo-Vedantins served well for the Hindu nationalists, who further popularised this notion of Advaita Vedanta as the pinnacle of Indian religions.[61] It
...provided an opportunity for the construction of a nationalist ideology that could unite Hindus in their struggle against colonial oppression.[62]
This "opportunity" has been criticised. According to Sucheta Mazumdar and Vasant Kaiwar,
... Indian nationalist leaders continued to operate within the categorical field generated by politicized religion [...] Extravagant claims were made on behalf of Oriental civilization. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnans statement – "[t]he Vedanta is not a religion but religion itself in its "most universal and deepest significance" – is fairly typical.[54]
Rinehart also criticises the inclusivity of Radhakrishnans approach, since it provides "a theological scheme for subsuming religious difference under the aegis of Vedantic truth."[55][note 7] According to Rinehart, the consequence of this line of reasoning is communalism,[55] the idea that "all people belonging to one religion have common economic, social and political interests and these interests are contrary to the interests of those belonging to another religion."[web 9] Rinehart notes that Hindu religiosity plays an important role in the nationalist movement,[55] and that "the neo-Hindu discourse is the unintended consequence of the initial moves made by thinkers like Rammohan Roy and Vivekananda."[55] Yet Rinehart also points out that it is
...clear that there isnt a neat line of causation that leads from the philosophies of Rammohan Roy, Vivekananda and Radhakrishnan to the agenda of [...] militant Hindus.[63][note 8]
Post-colonialism
Main articles: Orientalism and Post-colonialism
Colonialism left deep traces in the hearts and minds of the Indian people, influencing the way they understood and represented themselves.[41] The influences of "colonialist forms of knowledge"[web 1] can also be found in the works of Radhakrishnan. According to Hawley, Radhakrishnans division between East and West, the East being spiritual and mystical, and the West being rationalist and logical in its forms of knowledge constructed during the 18th and 19th centuries. Arguably, these characterizations are "imagined" in the sense that they reflect the philosophical and religious realities of neither "East nor West."[web 1]
Since the 1990s, the colonial influences on the construction and representation of Hinduism have been the topic of debate among scholars of Hinduism Western Indologists are trying to come to more neutral and better-informed representations of India and its culture, while Indian scholars are trying to establish forms of knowledge and understanding which are grounded in and informed by Indian traditions, instead of being dominated by western forms of knowledge and understanding.[48][note 9]
Feud with The Modern Review
Radhakrishnans appointment, as a southerner, to "the most important chair of philosophy in India" in the north, was resented by a number of people from the Bengali intellectual elite, and The Modern Review, which was critical of the appointment of non-Bengalis, became the main vehicle of criticism.[67][68][69] Soon after his arrival in Calcutta in 1921, Radhakrishnans writings were regularly criticised in The Modern Review.[69] When Radhakrishnan published his Indian Philosophy in two volumes (1923 and 1927), The Modern Review questioned his use of sources, criticising the lack of references to Bengali scholars. Yet, in an editors note, The Modern Review acknowledged that "As professors Radhakrishnans book has not been received for review in this Journal, The Modern Review is not in a position to form any opinion on it."[70]
In the January 1929 issue of The Modern Review, the Bengali philosopher Jadunath Sinha made the claim that parts of his 1922 doctoral thesis, Indian Psychology of Perception, published in 1925, were copied by his teacher Radhakrishnan into the chapter on "The Yoga system of Patanjali" in his book Indian Philosophy II, published in 1927.[70][71] Sinha and Radhakrishnan exchanged several letters in the Modern Review, in which Sinha compared parts of his thesis with Radhakrishnans publication, presenting altogether 110 instances of "borrowings."[72][71] Radhakrishnan felt compelled to respond, stating that Sinha and he had both used the same classical texts,[73] his translation were standard translations, and that similarities in translations were therefore unavoidable. He further argued that he was lecturing on the subject before publishing his book, and that his book was ready for publication in 1924, before Sinhas thesis was published.[72]
Scholars such as Kuppuswami Sastri, Ganganath Jha, and Nalini Ganguli confirmed that Radhakrishnan was distributing the notes in question since 1922.[74][75] Ramananda Chatterjee, the editor of The Modern Review, refused to publish a letter by Nalini Ganguli confirming this fact, while continuing publishing Sinhas letters.[75] The General Editor of Radhakrishnans publisher, professor Muirhead, further confirmed that the publication was delayed for three years, due to his stay in the United States.[74][76]
Responding to this "systematic effort [...] to destroy Radhakrishnans reputation as a scholar and a public figure,"[77] Summer 1929 the dispute escalated into a juristic fight, with Radhakrishnan filing a suit for defamation of character against Sinha and Chatterjee, demanding Rs. 100,000 for the damage done,[77] and Sinha filing a case against Radhakrishnan for copyright infringement, demanding Rs. 20,000.[77][note 10] The suits were settled in May 1933, the terms of the settlement were not disclosed, and "all the allegations made in the pleadings and in the columns of the Modern Review were withdrawn."[67][74]
Awards and honours
S. Radhakrishnan receiving the Bharat Ratna award from President Rajendra Prasad
State honours
DecorationCountryDateNoteRef.
Knight Bachelor[web 4] British India1931Ceased to use the pre-nominal of Sir in 1947, following the independence of India.[79]
Bharat Ratna India1954The highest civilian honour of India.
Order of the Aztec Eagle Mexico1954Sash First Class, the highest civilian honour of Mexico.[80]
Pour le Mérite Germany1954For Sciences and Arts[web 10]
Order of Merit United Kingdom1963Honorary Member
Other achievements
A portrait of Radhakrishnan adorns the Chamber of the Rajya Sabha.[81][82]
1938: elected Fellow of the British Academy.
1947: election as Permanent Member of the Instutut international de philosophie.
1959: Goethe Plaque of the City of Frankfurt.
1961: the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade.
1962: Institution of Teachers Day in India, yearly celebrated at 5 September, Radhakrishnans birthday, in honour of Radhakrishnans belief that "teachers should be the best minds in the country".[web 2]
1968: Sahitya Akademi fellowship, The highest honour conferred by the Sahitya Akademi on a writer (he is the first person to get this award)
1975: the Templeton Prize in 1975, a few months before his death, for advocating non-aggression and conveying "a universal reality of God that embraced love and wisdom for all people."[web 11][note 11] He donated the entire amount of the Templeton Prize to Oxford University.
1989: institution of the Radhakrishnan Scholarships by Oxford University in the memory of Radhakrishnan. The scholarships were later renamed the "Radhakrishnan Chevening Scholarships".[83]
He was nominated sixteen times for the Nobel prize in literature, and eleven times for the Nobel Peace prize.[84][85]
Commemorative stamps released by India Post (by year) -
1967
1967
1989
1989
In popular culture
Sarvepalli Radhakrishna (1988) is a documentary film about Radhakrishnan, directed by N. S. Thapa, produced by the Government of Indias Films Division.[86]
Quotes
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"It is not God that is worshipped but the authority that claims to speak in His name. Sin becomes disobedience to authority not violation of integrity."[87]
"Reading a book gives us the habit of solitary reflection and true enjoyment."[88]
"When we think we know, we cease to learn."[89]
"A literary genius, it is said, resembles all, though no one resembles him."[90]
"There is nothing wonderful in my saying that Jainism was in existence long before the Vedas were composed."[91]
"A life of joy and happiness is possible only on the basis of knowledge.
"If he does not fight, it is not because he rejects all fighting as futile, but because he has finished his fights. He has overcome all dissensions between himself and the world and is now at rest... We shall have wars and soldiers so long as the brute in us is untamed."[92]
Bibliography
Works by Radhakrishnan
The Philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore (1918), Macmillan, London, 276 pages
Radhakrishnan, S. (October 1922). "The Hindu Dharma". International Journal of Ethics. 33 (1). Chicago: University of Chicago Press: 1–22. doi:10.1086/intejethi.33.1.2377174. ISSN 1539-297X. JSTOR 2377174. S2CID 144844920.
Indian Philosophy (1923) Vol. 1, 738 pages. (1927) Vol. 2, 807 pages. Oxford: Oxford University Press (1st edition).
The Hindu View of Life (1927), London: Allen & Unwin. 92 pages
Indian Religious Thought (2016), Orient Paperbacks, ISBN 978-81-222042-4-7
Religion, Science and Culture (2010), Orient Paperbacks, ISBN 978-81-222001-2-6
An Idealist View of Life (1929), 351 pages
Kalki, or the Future of Civilization (1929), 96 pages
Gautama the Buddha (London: Milford, 1938); 1st India ed., 1945.
Eastern Religions and Western Thought (1939), Oxford University Press, 396 pages
Religion and Society (1947), George Allen and Unwin Ltd., London, 242 pages
The Bhagavadgītā: with an introductory essay, Sanskrit text, English translation and notes (1948), 388 pages
The Dhammapada (1950), 194 pages, Oxford University Press
The Principal Upanishads (1953), 958 pages, HarperCollins Publishers Limited
Recovery of Faith (1956), 205 pages
A Source Book in Indian Philosophy (1957), 683 pages, Princeton University Press, with Charles A. Moore as co-editor.
The Brahma Sutra: The Philosophy of Spiritual Life. London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., 1959, 606 pages. [93]
Religion, Science & Culture (1968), 121 pages
Biographies and monographs on Radhakrishnan
Several books have been published on Radhakrishnan:
Murty, K. Satchidananda; Ashok Vohra (1990). Radhakrishnan: his life and ideas. SUNY Press. ISBN 9780791403440.
Minor, Robert Neil (1987). Radhakrishnan: a religious biography. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-88706-554-5.
Gopal, Sarvepalli (1989). Radhakrishnan: a biography. Delhi: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-562999-X.
Pappu, S.S. Rama Rao (1995). New Essays in the Philosophy of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. Delhi: South Asia Books. ISBN 978-81-7030-461-6.
Parthasarathi, G.; Chattopadhyaya, Debi Prasad, eds. (1989). Radhakrishnan: centenary volume. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
See also
List of Indian writers
Indian philosophy
Vedanta Society
Postcolonialism
Sarvepalli Gopal
The president of India (ISO: Bhārata kē Rāṣṭrapati) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive,[a] the first citizen of the country, as well as the supreme commander of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu is the 15th and current president, having taken office from 25 July 2022.
The office of president was created when India became a republic on 26 January 1950 when its constitution came into force. The president is indirectly elected by an electoral college comprising both houses of the Parliament of India and the legislative assemblies of each of Indias states and territories, who themselves are all directly elected by the citizens.
Article 53 of the Constitution of India states that the president can exercise their powers directly or by subordinate authority, though all of the executive powers vested in the president are, in practice, exercised by the prime minister heading the Council of Ministers.[3] The president is bound by the constitution to act on the advice of the council and to enforce the decrees passed by the Supreme Court under article 142.
Origin
India achieved independence from the British on 15 August 1947, initially as a dominion within the Commonwealth of Nations with George VI as king, represented in the country by a governor-general.[4] Following independence, the Constituent Assembly of India, under the leadership of B. R. Ambedkar, undertook the process of drafting a completely new constitution for the country. The Constitution of India was eventually enacted on 26 November 1949 and came into force on 26 January 1950,[5]: 26 making India a republic.[6]: 9 The offices of monarch and governor-general were replaced by the new office of President of India, with Rajendra Prasad as its first incumbent.[6]: 1 India retained its Commonwealth membership per the London Declaration, recognising The King as "the symbol of the free association of its independent member nations and as such the Head of the Commonwealth."[7]
The Indian constitution accords to the president the responsibility and authority to defend and protect the Constitution of India and its rule of law.[8] Invariably, any action taken by the executive or legislature entities of the constitution shall become law only after the presidents assent. The president shall not accept any actions of the executive or legislature which are unconstitutional. The president is the foremost, most empowered and prompt defender of the constitution (Article 60), who has pre-emptive power for ensuring constitutionality in the actions of the executive or legislature. The role of the judiciary in upholding the Constitution of India is the second line of defence in nullifying any unconstitutional actions of the executive and legislative entities of the Indian Union.
Powers and duties
Under the draft constitution the President occupies the same position as the King under the English Constitution. He is the head of the state but not of the Executive. He represents the Nation but does not rule the Nation. He is the symbol of the Nation. His place in the administration is that of a ceremonial device on a seal by which the nations decisions are made known.
— Bhimrao Ambedkar, as chairman of the drafting committee of the Constituent Assembly of India during various debates about the president being constitutional head of the state.[9][10]
Duty
The primary duty of the president is to preserve, protect and defend the constitution and the law of India as made part of their oath (Article 60 of Indian constitution).[8] The president is the common head of all independent constitutional entities. All their actions, recommendations (Article 3, Article 111, Article 274, etc.) and supervisory powers (Article 74(2), Article 78C, Article 108, Article 111, etc.) over the executive and legislative entities of India shall be used in accordance to uphold the constitution.[11] There is no bar on the actions of the president to contest in the court of law.[12]
Legislative powers
Legislative power is constitutionally vested in the Parliament of India of which the president is the head, to facilitate the lawmaking process per the constitution (Article 78, Article 86, etc.). The president summons both the houses (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) of the parliament and prorogues them. They can dissolve the Lok Sabha.[5]: 147
The president inaugurates parliament by addressing it after the general elections and also at the beginning of the first session every year per Article 87(1). The presidential address on these occasions is generally meant to outline the new policies of the government.[13]: 145
All bills passed by the parliament can become laws only after receiving the assent of the president per Article 111. After a bill is presented to them, the president shall declare either that they assent to the Bill, or that they withhold assent from it. As a third option, they can return a bill to parliament, if it is not a money bill, for reconsideration. President may be of the view that a particular bill passed under the legislative powers of parliament is violating the constitution, they can send back the bill with their recommendation to pass the bill under the constituent powers of parliament following the Article 368 procedure. When, after reconsideration, the bill is passed accordingly and presented to the president, with or without amendments, the president cannot withhold their assent from it. The president can also withhold their assent to a bill when it is initially presented to them (rather than return it to parliament) thereby exercising a pocket veto on the advice of the prime minister or council of ministers per Article 74 if it is inconsistent with the constitution.[12] Article 143 gives the president the power to consult the supreme court about the constitutional validity of an issue. The president shall assent to constitutional amendment bills without power to withhold the bills per Article 368 (2).
When either of the two Houses of the Parliament of India is not in session, and if the government feels the need for an immediate procedure, the president can promulgate ordinances that have the same force and effect as an act passed by parliament under its legislative powers. These are in the nature of interim or temporary legislation and their continuance is subject to parliamentary approval. Ordinances remain valid for no more than six weeks from the date the parliament is convened unless approved by it earlier.[14] Under Article 123, the president as the upholder of the constitution shall be satisfied that immediate action is mandatory as advised by the union cabinet and they are confident that the government commands majority support in the parliament needed for the passing of the ordinance into an act and parliament can be summoned to deliberate on the passing of the ordinance as soon as possible. The promulgated ordinance is treated as an act of parliament when in force and it is the responsibility of the president to withdraw the ordinance as soon as the reasons for the promulgation of the ordinance are no longer applicable. Bringing laws in the form of ordinances has become a routine matter by the government and president, but the provisions made in Article 123 are meant for mitigating unusual circumstances where immediate action is inevitable when the extant provisions of the law are inadequate. Re-promulgation of an ordinance after failing to get approval within the stipulated time of both houses of parliament is an unconstitutional act by the president.[15] The president should not incorporate any matter in an ordinance which violates the constitution or requires an amendment to the constitution. The president should take moral responsibility when an ordinance elapses automatically or is not approved by the parliament or violates the constitution.[16] Thus, it is believed that the POI is the de jure head of the state, whereas PM is the de facto head.
Executive powers
The President of the Indian Union will be generally bound by the advice of his Ministers. ... He can do nothing contrary to their advice nor can do anything without their advice. The President of the United States can dismiss any Secretary at any time. The President of the Indian Union has no power to do so, so long as his Ministers command a majority in Parliament
— Bhimrao Ambedkar, chairperson of the drafting committee of the Constituent Assembly of India[9]
Presidential Standard of India (1950–1971)
As per Article 53, the executive power of the country is vested in the president and is exercised by the president either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with the constitution. When parliament thinks fit it may accord additional executive powers to the president per Article 70 which may be further delegated by the president to the governors of states per Article 160. Union cabinet with prime minister as its head, should aid and advise the president in performing their functions. Per Article 74 (2), the council of ministers or prime minister are not accountable legally to the advice tendered to the president but it is the sole responsibility of the president to ensure compliance with the constitution in performing their duties. President or their subordinate officers is bound by the provisions of the constitution notwithstanding any advice by the union cabinet.[17]
As per Article 142, it is the duty of the president to enforce the decrees of the supreme court.
Judicial powers
The primary duty of the president is to preserve, protect and defend the constitution and the law of India per Article 60. The president appoints the Chief Justice of India and other judges on the advice of the chief justice. The President may dismiss a judge with a two-thirds vote of the two Houses of the parliament.[18]
The Indian governments chief legal adviser, Attorney-General for India, is appointed by the president of India under Article 76(1) and holds office during the pleasure of the president. If the president considers a question of law or a matter of public importance has arisen, they can also ask for the advisory opinion of the supreme court per Article 143. Per Article 88, the president can ask the attorney general to attend the parliamentary proceedings and report to him any unlawful functioning if any.[19]
Appointment powers
The president appoints as prime minister, the person most likely to command the support of the majority in the Lok Sabha (usually the leader of the majority party or coalition). The president then appoints the other members of the Council of Ministers, distributing portfolios to them on the advice of the prime minister.[20]: 72 The Council of Ministers remains in power at the pleasure of the president.
The president appoints 12 members of the Rajya Sabha from amongst persons who have special knowledge or practical experience in respect of such matters as literature, science, art and social service. The president may nominate not more than two members of Anglo Indian community as Lok Sabha members per Article 331, which was removed in 2019.
Governors of states are also appointed by the president who shall work at the pleasure of the president. Per Article 156, the president is empowered to dismiss a governor who has violated the constitution in their acts.
The president is responsible for making a wide variety of appointments. These include:[20]: 72
The Chief Justice of India and other judges of the Supreme Court of India and state/union territory high courts.
The Chief Minister of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (Article 239 AA 5 of the constitution).
The Comptroller and Auditor General Of India.
The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners.
The chairman and other members of the Union Public Service Commission.
The Attorney General Of India.
Ambassadors and High Commissioners to other countries (only through the list of names given by the prime minister).[21][22]: 48
Officers of the All India Services (IAS, IPS and IFoS), and other Central Civil Services in Group A.
Financial powers
A financial bill can be introduced in the parliament only with the presidents recommendation.
The president lays the Annual Financial Statement, i.e. the Union budget, before the parliament.
The president can take advances out of the Contingency Fund of India to meet unforeseen expenses.
The president constitutes a Finance Commission every five years to recommend the distribution of the taxes between the centre and the States. The most recent was constituted in 2017.[23][24][25]
Diplomatic powers
All international treaties and agreements are negotiated and concluded on behalf of the president.[26]: 18 However, in practice, such negotiations are usually carried out by the prime minister along with their Cabinet (especially the Minister of External Affairs). Also, such treaties are subject to the approval of the parliament. The president represents India in international forums and affairs where such a function is chiefly ceremonial. The president may also send and receive diplomats, i.e. the officers from the Indian Foreign Service.[27]: 143 The president is the first citizen of the country.[21]
Military powers
The president is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. Only the president can declare war or conclude peace,[21] on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers headed by the prime minister. All important treaties and contracts are made in the presidents name.[28]
Pardoning powers
See also: Presidential pardon
As mentioned in Article 72 of the Indian constitution, the president is empowered with the powers to grant pardons in the following situations:[21]
punishment for an offence against Union law
punishment by a military court
a death sentence[28]
The decisions involving pardoning and other rights by the president are independent of the opinion of the prime minister or the Lok Sabha majority. In most cases, however, the president exercises their executive powers on the advice of the prime minister and the cabinet.[20]: 239 [29]
Emergency powers
The president can declare three types of emergencies: national, state and financial, under articles 352, 356 & 360 in addition to promulgating ordinances under article 123.[26]: 12
National emergency
See also: The Emergency (India)
A national emergency can be declared in the whole of India or a part of its territory for causes of war or armed rebellion or an external aggression. Such an emergency was declared in India in 1962 (Indo-China war), 1971 (Indo-Pakistan war),[30] and 1975 to 1977 (declared by Indira Gandhi).[see main]
Under Article 352 of the India constitution, the president can declare such an emergency only on the basis of a written request by the cabinet of ministers headed by the prime minister. Such a proclamation must be approved by the parliament with at least a two-thirds majority within one month. Such an emergency can be imposed for six months. It can be extended by six months by repeated parliamentary approval-there is no maximum duration.[26][page needed]
In such an emergency, Fundamental Rights of Indian citizens can be suspended.[5]: 33 The six freedoms under Right to Freedom are automatically suspended. However, the Right to Life and Personal Liberty cannot be suspended (Article 21).[31]: 20.6
The president can make laws on the 66 subjects of the State List (which contains subjects on which the state governments can make laws).[32] Also, all money bills are referred to the president for approval.[33]: 88 The term of the Lok Sabha can be extended by a period of up to one year, but not so as to extend the term of parliament beyond six months after the end of the declared emergency.[20]: 223
National Emergency has been proclaimed 3 times in India to date. It was declared first in 1962 by President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, during the Sino-Indian War. This emergency lasted through the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and up to 1968. It was revoked in 1968. The second emergency in India was proclaimed in 1971 by President V. V. Giri on the eve of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The first two emergencies were in the face of external aggression and War. They were hence external emergencies. Even as the second emergency was in progress, another internal emergency was proclaimed by President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, with Indira Gandhi as prime minister in 1975. In 1977, the second and the third emergencies were together revoked.
State emergency
See also: Federalism in India
If the president is not fully satisfied, on the basis of the report of the governor of the concerned state or from other sources, that the governance in a state cannot be carried out according to the provisions in the constitution, they can proclaim under Article 356 a state o.
PHOTO AUTOGRAPHE DU PRÉSIDENT INDIEN S. RADHAKRISHNAN 9X7 SIGNÉE 1962 officiel INDIENNE
