The life and letters of Raja Rammohun Roy - WordPress.com

RAJA RAM MOHUN ROY AS A MANOF LETTRES.(Bv MR. MOHINI MOHUN CHATTERJEE).Forms of expression, though important, do not afford bythemselves, an adequate criterion for judging a literary orgenerally an artistic character. Technique is great, but theidea underlying the subject is greater. Rammohun Roy'sculture was so many-sided, his scholarship so wide andprofound, his natural gifts so rare, that anxious thought andclose study are needed for a proper appreciation of his positionas a man of letters.Considering the varied character of his writings, one isof humanstruck by his sturdy faith in his art as an engineprogress. Primers of Grammar and Geography and abstruseTreatise on Law, Politics and Theology are alike membersof his literary family. From popular songs to unpopularscience, his literary hospitalityis extended. His love ofknowledge in its multiform aspects, beams out of his writingswith equal radiance. As witness, his letter on EnglishEducation addressed to Lord Amherst. His motto may wellhave been the words of Goethe "Licht meir Licht," lightmore light.His controversial writings are instinct with a singularlove of truth and a reverence for freedom of thought. Inform they are the productions of a scholar and a gentleman.Nota word, not a syllable has he written for mere effect or tohurt an antagonist's feelings. His method was justified bythe result conversion by controversy. Ram Chandra Vidyavagishand Dr. Adam were the fruits of his labours in his