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{{Short description|19th-century reformist journal in British India}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2025}}

{{Infobox newspaper
| name = Buddhi Vardhak Granth
| type = [[Periodical|Monthly journal]]
| format = Journal
| publisher = Buddhi Vardhak Hindu Sabha
| editor = [[Narmadashankar Dave|Narmad]] (initially)
| founded = {{sda|1851}}
| political_position = Social reformism
| language = [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]
| headquarters = [[Bombay]], [[Bombay Presidency]], [[British Raj]]
| ceased_publication = Unknown
| publishing_country = [[British Raj]]
}}

'''Buddhi Vardhak Granth''' ({{Literal translation|Book for the Advancement of Knowledge}}){{Efn|Likely also referred to as "Gnan Vardhak" in academic literature}} was a 19th-century [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]] journal published from [[Bombay]] (now Mumbai) during [[British Raj]] in India. It was the official publication of the [[Buddhi Vardhak Sabha]], a social reform organisation, and served as a platform for advocating social change.

== History ==
The Buddhi Vardhak Sabha was founded in Bombay in 1851 by young, educated members of the Jnayan Prasarak Mandali, a branch of the Students' Literary and Scientific Society of [[Elphinstone College]].<ref name="Raval19832">{{cite thesis |last=Raval |first=R. L. |title=Socio-Religious Reform Movements in Gujarat During the Nineteenth Century |date=1983 |type=PhD |publisher=School of Social Sciences, [[Gujarat University]] |url=https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/handle/10603/46633 |pages=117–121 |hdl=10603/46633 |location=Ahmedabad}}</ref> The founders included notable figures like [[Narmadashankar Dave|Narmad]], [[Karsandas Mulji]], Pranlal Mathurdas, and Mohanlal Ranchhoddas Jhaveri.<ref name="Motiwala1935">{{cite book |last=Motiwala |first=Bhavanidas Narandas |url=https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.233614/page/17/mode/2up |title=Karsondas Mulji: A Biographical Study |date=1935 |publisher=Karsondas Mulji Centenary Celebration Committee |location=Bombay |page=17}}</ref> The Sabha's primary objective was to promote the social welfare of the Gujarati Hindu community and to challenge religious orthodoxy and harmful social customs through lectures, debates, and writings.<ref name="Raval19832" />

The Sabha launched a monthly journal, the ''Buddhi Vardhak Granth'', in 1851 to disseminate its ideas,<ref name="u200">{{cite book |last=Parikh |first=R. D. |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Press_and_Society/WKtZAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%2522buddhi+vardhak+granth%2522&dq=%2522buddhi+vardhak+granth%2522&printsec=frontcover |title=The Press and Society: A Sociological Study |date=1965 |publisher=Popular Prakashan |page=37 |access-date=July 20, 2025}}</ref> and [[Narmad]] assumed the role of its first editor.<ref name="n200">{{cite book |last=Rāyẏa |first=Niśītha Rañjana |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Public_Associations_in_India/d9y1AAAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%2522buddhi+vardhak+granth%2522&dq=%2522buddhi+vardhak+granth%2522&printsec=frontcover |title=Public Associations in India |date=1984 |publisher=Institute of Historical Studies |page= |access-date=July 20, 2025}}</ref> The publication had an intermittent start, with its first three issues appearing between 1851 and 1853, before beginning regular publication from March 1856.<ref name="Raval19832" /><ref name="Jhaveri1949">{{cite book |last=Jhaveri |first=Krishnalal Mohanlal |url=https://southasiacommons.net/artifacts/2361471/further-milestones-in-gujarati-literature/3369157/ |title=Further Milestones in Gujarati Literature |date=1949 |publisher=N. M. Tripathi & Co. |location=Bombay |page=15}}</ref>

== Content and ideology ==
The articles published in ''Buddhi Vardhak Granth'' dealt primarily with social issues.<ref name="Raval19832" /> As a vehicle for the Sabha's reformist agenda, its content focused on advocating for female education, supporting widow remarriage, and mounting critiques against religious superstition and the entrenched power of traditionalist religious leaders.<ref name="Sharma2013">{{cite thesis |last=Sharma |first=Shital |title=A Prestigious Path to Grace: Class, Modernity, and Female Religiosity in Pustimarg Vaisnavism |date=2013 |type=PhD |publisher=[[University of Cambridge]] |url=https://ia803407.us.archive.org/5/items/Pushtimarg/A%20prestigious%20path%20to%20grace%20class%20modernity%20and%20female%20religiosity%20in%20Pustimarg%20Vaisnavism.pdf |page=100}}</ref><ref name="n200" />

The journal was one of the few reformist publications in Bombay that included the [[Parsi language|Parsi]]-run ''[[Rast Goftar]]'' and Karsondas Mulji's influential paper ''[[Satyaprakash]]''.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Shodhan |first=Amrita |date=1997-09-01 |title=Women in the Maharaj Libel Case: A Re-examination |url=https://doi.org/10.1177/097152159700400201 |journal=Indian Journal of Gender Studies |language=EN |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=123–139 |doi=10.1177/097152159700400201 |issn=0971-5215|url-access=subscription }}</ref> These papers collectively advocated for social change within Hindu society and often included essays on scientific subjects and critiques of traditional customs, aiming to awaken public opinion.

The paper's advocacy centered on what the reformers considered the key social issues of the time, particularly those affecting women.<ref name="n200" /> The journal was instrumental in the public debates surrounding events like the [[Maharaj Libel Case]] of 1862, in which the journal's key figures, Narmad and Karsondas Mulji, were deeply involved.<ref name="Sharma2013" />

== See also ==
* [[Media in Gujarati language]]
* [[List of Gujarati-language magazines]]
* [[Satyaprakash]]
* [[Rast Goftar]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}
== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Periodicals]]

Buddhi Vardhak Granth - Revision history

Jainil Prajapati: Created some post added tags