Jyotirao Govindrao Phule Biography

Date -11 th April 2022, 

Hello everyone on the occasion of Jyotirao Govindrao Phule  Jayanti , I am going to write a biography of  Jyotirao govindrao phule .  This particular blog will  give information about  A Mahatma Jyotirao Govindrao Phule  who was a social reformer, activist, writer and thinker  , childhood, activities, social work, writings and achievements.

Cultural India : Reformers : Jyotiba Phule.

⭐Keypoints-

Born: 11th april 1827

Place of Birth: Satara, Maharashtra 

Parents: Govindrao Phule (father) and Chimnabai (mother)

Wife : Savitri Phule

Children: Yashwantrao Phule (adopted son)

Education: Scottish Mission's High School, Pune;

Associations: Satyashodhak Samaj

Ideology: Liberal; Egalitarian; Socialism

Religious Beliefs: Hinduism

Other names: • Jyotiba Phule • Mahatma Phule

Publications: Tritiya Ratna (1855); Powada: Chatrapati Shivajiraje Bhosle Yancha (1869); Shetkarayacha Aasud (1881) , Gulamgiri(1873) etc . 

Passed Away: 28 November, 1890

Memorial: Phule Wada, Pune, Maharashtra

Jyotirao ‘Jyotiba’ Govindrao Phule was a prominent social reformer and thinker of the nineteenth century India. He led the movement against the prevailing caste-restrictions in India. He revolted against the domination of the Brahmins and struggled for the rights of peasants and other low-caste people. Mahatma Jyotiba Phule was also a pioneer for women education in India and fought for education of girls throughout his life. He is believed to be the first Hindu to start an orphanage for the unfortunate children.

⭐ Early  life-childhood: 

Jyotirav phule was born in 11 April 1827 into a family that belonged to the agricultural (Mali) caste, traditionally occupied as gardeners and considered to be one of the Shudhra varna in the ritual ranking system of Hinduism.The original surname of the family had been Gorhe and had its origins in the village of Katgun, in present day Satara District, Maharashtra. Phule’s great-grandfather worked as a chaugula, a lowly type of village servant, in that village but had to move to Khanwadi in Poona district after exploitation by Brahmin with whom he had a dispute.

He prospered there but his only son, Shetiba, who was of poor intelligence, subsequently squandered what had been gained. Shetiba moved himself and his family, including three boys, to Poona in search of some form of income. The boys were taken under the wing of a florist, who taught them his trade. Their proficiency in growing and arranging became well known and they adopted the name of Phule (flower-man) in place of Gorhe.

Their fulfilment of commissions from the Peshwa, Baji Rao II, for flower mattresses and other goods for the rituals and ceremonies of the royal court so impressed him that he granted them 35 acres (14 ha) of land on the basis of the inam system, whereby no tax would be payable upon it. The oldest brother machinated to take sole control of the property, leaving the younger two siblings, including Jyotirao Phule’s father, Govindrao, to continue farming and also flower-selling.

Govindrao married Chimnabai and had two sons, of whom Jyotirao was the younger. Chimnabai died before he was aged one. The Mali community did not set much store by education, and after attending primary school to learn the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic, Jyotirao was withdrawn from school.

He joined the menfolk of his family at work, both in the shop and the farm. However, a Christian convert from the same Mali caste as Phule recognised his intelligence and persuaded Phule’s father to allow Phule to attend the local Scottish Mission High School. Phule completed his English schooling in 1847. As was customary, he was married young, at the age of 13, to a girl of his own community, chosen by his father.

The turning point in his life was in 1848, when he attended the wedding of a Brahmin friend. Phule participated in the customary marriage procession, but was later rebuked and insulted by his friend’s parents for doing that. They told him that he being from a lower caste should have had the sense to keep away from that ceremony. This incident profoundly affected Phule on the injustice of the caste system.

⭐Young Jyotiba phule :

Jyotirav phule was a bright  student at primary school, where he learned the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. It was not common for children from the Mali community to study beyond a certain point. So, Jyotirao Phule was taken out of school and began working with his father at their farm. Soon after, a neighbour convinced Phule’s father to let him complete his education.

In 1841, Phule was enrolled at the Scottish Missionary High School, where he completed education. Phule was married to Savitribai in 1840 when they were both in their teens. In 1848, he attended the wedding of one his friends from an upper caste. When relatives of the bridegroom insulted Phule over his social background, he left the venue, vowing to challenge the ills of the caste system.

⭐Social reformer:

Jyotirao Phule was influenced by Thomas Paine’s book titled The Rights of Man and believed that the only solution to combat the social evils was the enlightenment of women and members of the lower castes. In 1848, he taught his wife how to read and write, after which the couple opened the first indigenously run school for girls in Pune where they both taught. The school welcomed girls from diverse sections, religions and socio-economic backgrounds  to come and study.

Phule and his wife were ostracised . The couple was however welcome by there friends Usman shaikh at the latter's home from where the girl's School operated by 1853 ,the phules had established three schools but all of them had shut by 1858 due to the shortage of funds after the revolt of 1857. Phule vehemently opposed child- marriage and supported window remarriage . In 1863, he along with his friend and wife opened an infanticide prevention center where pregnant widows could safely give birth and care for infants . They run the center until the mid-1880s

⭐Social  activism:

In 1848  aged 23 , phule visited the first girl's school in Ahmadnagar , run by Christian Missionaries . It was also in 1848 that he read Thomas Paine's book right of man and and developed a keen  sense of social Justice . He realised  that lower caste and women were at a disadvantage in Indian society , and also that education of these sections was vital to their emancipation. To this end. In the same year , phule first taught reading and writing to his wife , Savitribai and then the couple started the first  indigenously -run school for  girls in Pune in his book  girls in Pune in his book Gulamgiri, Phule says that the first school was for brahmin and upper caste girls, however Phule’s biographer says it was for low caste girls.

osracised for this by their family and community, their friend Usman Sheikh and his sister Fatima Sheikh provided them their home to stay.

 ⭐Satyashodhak Samaj-

24, September 1873 , phule formed  satyashodhak samaj to focus on right of depressed group such womens the dalits. Through this The samaj opposed idolatry and denounced the caste system.satyashodhak samaj campained for the spread of rational thinking and rejected the need of priests.

Phule established Satyashodhak Samaj with the ideals of human well-being, happiness, unity, equality, and easy religious principles and A Pune- based newspaper  Deenbandhu provided the voice for the views of the samaj .

The membership of the samaj included Muslims, Brahmins and government officials. Phule's own Mali caste provided the leading members and financial supporters for the organization.

⭐ Occupation:

A part of  his role as a social activist, Phule was a businessman too. In 1882 he styled himself as a merchant, cultivator and municipal contractor. He owned 60 acres of farmland at Manjri, near Pune. For period of time, he worked as a contractor for the government and supplied building materials required for the construction of a dam on the Mula-Mutha river near Pune in the 1870s. He also received contracts to provide labour for the construction of the Katraj Tunnel and the Yerawda Jail near Pune. One of Phule’s businesses, established in 1863, was to supply metal-casting equipment.

Phule was appointed commissioner (municipal council member) to the then Poona municipality in 1876 and served in this unelected position until 1883.

⭐Books, Legacy: 

Phule was also a merchant, author as it well as a municipal council member. In 1863, one of his business was  supply metal-casting equipment construction sites. He was appointed commissioner to the Pune municipality and  in the position until 1883. He was reputed author. His  well books include Gulamgiri (slavery ) and shrtkarayacha asud (cultivator's whipcord). Dhananjay keer , the author of phule's biography said that the title of Mahatma was bestowed on phule by fellow reformer from Bombay vitthal Krishnaji vandekar.

A quick and short life Journey of Jyotirao Govindrao phule -

The famous massage that I want to give you from this blog is -

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~By Janhavi kamble

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