Bhoodan Movement

Bhoodan Movement (land gift mission started in 1951)

Acharya Vinoba Bhave

Vinoba was a faithful disciple of Gandhi.

Studied Sanskrit, Persian, Urdu, Hindi, Marathi, Guajarati, Bengali, Telugu, Kanarese,

 Malayalam and English.

Preached in many places: “walked from one to another of India’s  700,000, villages, he

            asks those  who have land to share it with those who have none.”

            It is more blessed to give than to receive.

I have come to loot your love

Vinoba called his campaign as ‘Bhoomidan Yagna’

He walked 6500 miles, distributed more than a million (thousand thousands) acres of land to the poor.

 Largest single gift was 100,000 acres from a Maharaja.

Not all the gifts are prompted by charitable impulse (violence of communism).

Except communists, all parties accepted Raja Vinoba’s method.

Bhoodan has given pride of ownership to hundreds of thousands.

Vinoba was a Brahmin, born in 1895 in Maharastra.

His original name was Vinayak but Gandhi changed into Vinoba.

At ten he took to lifelong celibacy. He practiced yoga for forty years.

At 20 he was shipped off to study at Bombay, but went to Bengal and joined the national

            movement.

Vinoba was a sick man (ulcer and malaria)

He first saw Gandhi in 1916.

Gandhi invited him to his ashram in Sabarmati. Gandhi himself sat and wrote letter to

 Vinoba’s father

In 1932  he was first arrested for taking part in Gandhi’s civil disobedience movement.

The bhoomidan movement was born in bloody Telungana 91951).

(3000 killed, 35000 jailed, before government troops restored order)

Almost about 35,000 acres were collected and reassigned to the most destitute.

He walked almost 10-12 miles a day.

3 a.m., he and his disciples singing hymns , moved from one village to the other. Of course some go early and prepare things.

He used to meditate for an hour.

His ashram is in Puanar in Madhya Pradesh.

Nehru wanted him to come to Delhi and discuss Bhoomidan woth the national planning commission.

When in Bihar  he was seized with acute malaria (from 1952).

He collected 365000 acres of land in Bihar he respected the scriptures of all the faiths.

People called him babaji (little grandfather). Gandhi Bapu- father.

Vinoba’s policy was based on village whereas Nehru’s is development policy.

Sarvodaya- rise of all/ welfare of all

It was a principle of Gandhi. Democracy guarantees the welfare of the majority and not all.

But savodaya is based on a spiritual foundation. Its means also was spiritual.

The foundations of Sarvodaya are: satya, ahimsa, brahmachariya, dhariya

            swaparityaga.

The goal of sarvodaya was to build a society without exploitation.

The education system should be skill oriented. No doubt education gives liberation, but job oriented education is helpful.

Often highly educated people are not creative.

There should be elementary education for seven years.

People should pay the expense of education through work.

Higher education should be a concern of private.

In economy everyone should get equal opportunity. And there should be help to the needy.

The land belongs to God

Cooperative cultivation is good.

Vinoba followed Gandhi.