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Azhikode calls for strengthening renaissance spirit in the State

Staff Reporter

Universities urged to revive the spirit of the renaissance tradition

CLARION CALL: Social critic Sukumar Azhikode inaugurating a seminar on `Renaissance, religion and modernity'in Kannur on Thursday.''

KANNUR: Sukumar Azhikode, social critic, has called for efforts to strengthen the renaissance spirit, ignited as part of the freedom struggle, of the State.

Inaugurating a seminar on ``Renaissance, religion and modernity: mission of Swami Anandatheertha,'' organised jointly by Kannur University and the Swami Anandatheertha Birth Centenary Celebration Committee here on Thursday, Prof. Azhikode said the idea of `Kerala model,' often used to refer to political development, should be understood as an action plan that imbibed the spirit of the renaissance tradition in the State, started by great spiritual leaders, including Sree Narayana Guru. Swami Anandatheertha was part of the ``solar system'' of Sree Narayana Guru, he added.

Repenting the absence of the spirit of the renaissance tradition in religious institutions, Prof. Azhikode called on universities to revive it for the creation of a new India. Universities were not just institutions where students could take degrees; they should allow students to expand the horizons of their knowledge. Education should give students a sense of freedom. The Government's activities should also reflect the spirit of that renaissance tradition, he added.

Prof. Azhikode said Swami Anandatheertha, in his life, had blended the teachings of Sree Narayana Guru and Gandhiji. The swami had renounced everything for waging a battle against the caste system in this region. He represented the renaissance tradition of the State that was triggered by a general sense of political freedom and freedom from caste-driven social practices.

Delivering the keynote address, the former chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research M.G.S. Narayanan called for a fresh evaluation of renaissance, religion and modernity. There was no official religion in the history of India. Despite the renaissance tradition, caste system still existed in people's behaviour and their social and political activities, he added. Terming the system a cancer, Dr. Narayanan said that distortions of the religious tradition in the country had to be questioned. Vice-Chancellor P. Chandramohan presided over the function.

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