CDS History · Modern India
Religious Reform Movements
The Brahmo tradition of Bengal and its orthodox rivals, the Arya Samaj, Vivekananda and the Theosophists, and the Aligarh and Ahmadiyya movements among Muslims.
Why this matters
Eleven CDS questions, seven of them MODERATE, from 2017 to 2026. Almost every one asks who founded what, so each table pairs a body with its founder and year. Watch for a list of four bodies when the person founded only two of them.
Concept 1 of 3: Ram Mohan Roy and the Brahmo tradition
In Bengal, Western education and missionary printing met an old society. Ram Mohan Roy wanted Hinduism cleaned of idol worship and of sati. Others carried his work on, and the orthodox set up their own society to defend the old ways.
Definition
The Bengal bodies:
- Serampore Mission (1800): the Baptist trio William Carey, Joshua Marshman and William Ward. David Hare was a Calcutta philanthropist, not one of them.
- Raja Ram Mohan Roy founded the Atmiya Sabha (1814) and the Brahmo Sabha (1828), later the Brahmo Samaj. He campaigned against sati, which Lord William Bentinck banned in 1829.
- Radhakanta Deb founded the Dharma Sabha (1830) to defend orthodox practice; it petitioned against the ban on sati.
- Debendranath Tagore founded the Tattvabodhini Sabha (1839), which later merged with the Brahmo Samaj.
- The Prarthana Samaj (1867, Bombay) was founded by Atmaram Pandurang, and the Arya Samaj (1875) by Dayanand Saraswati: neither by Ram Mohan Roy.
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2017 · CDS (II) 2017 — General Knowledge · Q103Moderate
Example 1 · Modern India · Religious Reform Movements
Which of the following was/were founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy?
1. Atmiya Sabha
2. Brahmo Samaj
3. Prarthana Samaj
4. Arya Samaj
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Two bodies, not four
Ram Mohan Roy founded the Atmiya Sabha and the Brahmo Samaj only. The Prarthana Samaj and the Arya Samaj came decades later, from other founders.
Dharma Sabha was the orthodox side
Radhakanta Deb's Dharma Sabha opposed reform. Do not place it with Ram Mohan Roy or Keshab Chandra Sen.
Concept 2 of 3: Arya Samaj, Vivekananda and the Theosophists
A second group of reformers looked back rather than outward. Dayanand wanted a return to the Vedas, Vivekananda took Vedanta to the world, and Annie Besant, a Theosophist, built a Hindu school that grew into a university.
Definition
The revival:
- Swami Dayanand Saraswati founded the Arya Samaj (1875) with the call "Go back to the Vedas". He rejected idol worship and the later Puranic rituals.
- Swami Vivekananda spoke at the World's Parliament of Religions, Chicago, on 11 September 1893, opening with "Sisters and brothers of America". He founded the Ramakrishna Mission (1897).
- Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu School at Benaras in 1898. It became the nucleus of Banaras Hindu University (1916), founded by Madan Mohan Malaviya.
- The Hindu Mahasabha took shape at the Haridwar Kumbh Mela in 1915.
| Person or body | Year | Fact |
|---|---|---|
| Arya Samaj | 1875 | Dayanand Saraswati; inspired by the VedasQ |
| Vivekananda at Chicago | 1893 | "Sisters and brothers of America"Q |
| Ramakrishna Mission | 1897 | Vivekananda |
| Central Hindu School, Benaras | 1898 | Annie Besant |
| Hindu Mahasabha | 1915 | Formed at the Haridwar Kumbh MelaQ |
| Banaras Hindu University | 1916 | Madan Mohan Malaviya |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2021 · CDS (I) 2021 — General Knowledge · Q47Moderate
Example 2 · Modern India · Religious Reform Movements
Who founded the Central Hindu School at Benaras which was later developed into Benaras Hindu University ?
Besant's school, Malaviya's university
Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu School. The university that grew out of it was Madan Mohan Malaviya's BHU. Madame Blavatsky, a fellow Theosophist, founded neither.
Concept 3 of 3: Aligarh and the Ahmadiyya movement
Among Muslims, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan wanted modern education with loyalty to the British, and he kept away from the Congress. In Punjab a new sect, the Ahmadiyya, grew from one small town.
Definition
The Muslim movements:
- Sir Syed Ahmad Khan founded the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental (MAO) College at Aligarh (1875). Its course blended Muslim theology with European science.
- He saw India as a federation of communities based on common descent, not as a nation of individual citizens, and he opposed the Congress.
- The Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental Defence Association of Upper India (1893) worked from Aligarh to keep educated Muslims loyal to the Raj and away from the Congress.
- Mirza Ghulam Ahmad started the Ahmadiyya movement in 1889 at Qadian, in Gurdaspur district of Punjab.
| Movement | Year | Fact |
|---|---|---|
| MAO College, Aligarh | 1875 | Sir Syed; Muslim theology with European scienceQ |
| Ahmadiyya movement | 1889 | Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Qadian (Gurdaspur) |
| MAO Defence Association | 1893 | Aligarh; kept Muslims away from the Congress |
Practice this conceptself-check · 3 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2020 · CDS (II) 2020 — General Knowledge · Q14Moderate
Example 3 · Modern India · Religious Reform Movements
In which one of the following places was the Ahmadiyya Movement started by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad?
Sir Syed was not close to the Congress
'His philosophy was very similar to that of the Congress' is false. He opposed the Congress and kept his followers away from it.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (3)
Arya Samaj, Vivekananda and the Theosophists6 rows
| Person or body | Year | Fact |
|---|---|---|
| Arya Samaj | 1875 | Dayanand Saraswati; inspired by the VedasQ |
| Vivekananda at Chicago | 1893 | "Sisters and brothers of America"Q |
| Ramakrishna Mission | 1897 | Vivekananda |
| Central Hindu School, Benaras | 1898 | Annie Besant |
| Hindu Mahasabha | 1915 | Formed at the Haridwar Kumbh MelaQ |
| Banaras Hindu University | 1916 | Madan Mohan Malaviya |
Aligarh and the Ahmadiyya movement3 rows
| Movement | Year | Fact |
|---|---|---|
| MAO College, Aligarh | 1875 | Sir Syed; Muslim theology with European scienceQ |
| Ahmadiyya movement | 1889 | Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Qadian (Gurdaspur) |
| MAO Defence Association | 1893 | Aligarh; kept Muslims away from the Congress |
Watch out for (4)
- Two bodies, not four→ Ram Mohan Roy and the Brahmo tradition
- Dharma Sabha was the orthodox side→ Ram Mohan Roy and the Brahmo tradition
- Besant's school, Malaviya's university→ Arya Samaj, Vivekananda and the Theosophists
- Sir Syed was not close to the Congress→ Aligarh and the Ahmadiyya movement
Test yourself on Modern India
20 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 20 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.