Message of Satyarth Prakash

Dr. Balvir Acharya

The title of this book literally means the ‘light of truth’. This was the main message and teachings of Swami Dayanand Saraswati - the founding father of Arya Samaj. In this great scripture which could be paralleled to the Quran, Bible, or Granth Saab, Swami Ji gave a clear and string message. This was not meant to be a book for Hindus alone, but rather for humanity at large.

The history of Satyarth Prakash, as to why and how it came in to being is quite interesting. When Swami ji went to Kashi for the fifth time to give his discourses, Raja Krishan Das, who was deputy collector there during those days, suggested to Swami Ji that he should create a book compiling all of his discourses. Pundit Chandra Shekhar was appointed to write what Swami Ji said. On the 12^th of June in 1874, which was a Friday, the writing of this book began. Swami Ji was talking and Pundit Ji was writing down. In three months, the first edition of Satyarth Prakash was completed. Swami Ji felt that there were a lot of errors in the first edition, so a corrected edition was written while Swami Ji was in Udaipur and stayed in what is now known as Nolakha Mahel. This currently houses the exhibition about the life of Swami Ji.

The book consists of a total of fourteen chapters. In the first chapter, it is clearly stated that god is one, and innumerable other names are based on the different attributes of god. The second and third chapter deals with child and formal education. Swami Ji states that parents and the family have the most important role in shaping up the early childhood and in the formal education chapter, specific details are given on the curriculum and the method of teaching that should be used. The first two parts of the yoga, yam and niyam, have been stressed. The fourth chapter deals with marriage and family life, and the fifth with vanprasth and sanyasa ashram. The government and administrations are dealt with in the sixth chapter. The seventh and eighth chapters deal with god, soul, and nature, and how, when, and why the earth and the universe were created. In the ninth chapter it has been stressed that knowledge is freedom and ignorance is bondage. The tenth chapter deals with good conduct of human beings. The last four chapters, which are the eleventh through fourteenth, are true interfaith dialogues. People have often criticized these chapters, but if one really looks at them in an unbiased way, it is clear that Swami ji had no intention of criticizing any faith in a bias way.

It can therefore be clearly concluded that Satyarth Prakash is a comprehensive guide for anyone’s life, and presents the Vedic philosophy and life in its purest form. This epic was written when there was a systematic and vigorous attack on Hindus by Muslims and Christians. Since the rest of the Hindu faiths were fragmented, it was Arya Samaj who took on the challenge to bring not only the Hindus but also the humanity at large together. He proved beyond doubt that humanity is made up of the children of one god. It appears that we, the present followers and leaders of Arya Samaj, have not been able to promote and propagate the highly enlightened and liberal values of Arya Samaj. If we really respect and believe in the teachings of Satyarth Prakash, we probably would have elevated this great epic to the level of holy books like the Bible or Gita. In Satyarth Prakash, Swami Ji has clearly explained that whatever we do in life and whatever we believe in should be logical and with purpose. In essence this great epic is the workbook of what the Vedic philosophy is all about. Everyone should read the Satyarth Prakash and follow its teachings in life.