Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar: Difference between revisions

| alma_mater        = [[Vidyasagar College]]<br />[[University of Calcutta]]

| known_for          = Founder of [[Ananda Marga]], [[Progressive Utilization Theory]], [[Amra Bangali]], [[Ananda Marga Universal Relief Teams]]

}}

'''Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar'''<ref>Ánanda Márga spelling: Prabhát Rainjan Sarkár.</ref> (21 May 1921&nbsp;– 21 October 1990) also known as '''Ánandamúrti''' or '''Bábá''' ("Father") to his disciples, was a spiritual [[Guru]], philosopher<ref>{{Cite web|date=2019-08-26|title=महान दार्शनिक प्रभात रंजन सरकार काे किया याद|url=https://www.bhaskar.com/amp/jharkhand/jamshedpur/news/remembering-the-great-philosopher-prabhat-ranjan-sarkar-100004-5328400.html|access-date=2020-08-12|website=Dainik Bhaskar|language=hi}}</ref> and composer of 5018 songs mostly in the Bengali language.<ref name=":1">Chatterjee, Gita. Bengal's Swadeshi Samgit. Published in Banerjee, Jayasri (ed.), The Music of Bengal. Baroda: Indian Musicological Society, 1987.</ref><ref name=":0" /> He founded ''[[Ananda Marga]]'' (''the Path of Bliss'') in 1955 as a spiritual and social organisation that continues to offer instruction in [[meditation]] and [[yoga]].<ref>[[Sohail Inayatullah|Inayatullah, Sohail]]. (2002) [https://books.google.com/books/about/Understanding_Sarkar.html?id=B3rXAAAAMAAJ&redir_esc=y ''Understanding Sarkar: The Indian Episteme, Macrohistory and Transformative Knowledge'']. Leiden: [[Brill Publishers|Brill]], {{ISBN|9004121935}}, [http://www.metafuture.org/Books/Understanding_Sarkar_Brill.htm authors book page].</ref><ref name=":0" />

=== Law of Social Cycle ===

Sarkar's "Law of Social Cycle" applies these traits in a [[theory]] of historical [[evolution]], where [[Geologic time scale|age]]s rise and fall in terms of ruling elites representing one of the above-mentioned traits. This "law" possibly connects to the earlier cyclical historical [[idea]]s of [[Sri Aurobindo]], with a focus on the psychology of [[Developmental psychology|human development]], as well as [[Ibn Khaldun]], among other [[Macro-historical|macrohistorians]] ideas about cycles. However, along with a cyclical dimension&nbsp;— the rise and fall of ages&nbsp;— Sarkar's theory exhibits a correspondent linear [[dimension]], in that economic and [[Technology|technological]] "[[progress (history)|progress]]" are considered critical in terms of meeting the changing material conditions of life. Ultimately, for Sarkar, true progress has to prioritise development in the spiritual dimension.{{Citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Spirituality for Sarkar is defined as the individual realising the "true self". In addition to [[Yoga|yogic]] meditational practices and purity of thought and deed, Sarkar attached great importance to selfless [[social service]] as a means of [[Moksha|liberation]]. Sarkar considered it necessary for the social arrangements to support the inner development of human beings and rejected both capitalism and communism as appropriate social structures for humanity to move forward to the golden age of a balanced way of life sustaining all-round progress. A serious problem with capitalism was according to Sarkar the concentration of wealth in a few hands and stoppages in the rolling of money which he considered root causes of [[economic recession|recessions]], even [[economic collapse|depressions]]. A spiritual way of life, however, would in no way be divorced from creating structures that help meet the basic, though ever changing, needs&nbsp;— food, housing, clothing, health and education.{{Citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Sarkar's [[concept]] of ''karma samnyasa'' refers to the principle that a [[yogi]] becomes a person with all-round development and a balanced mind, that he called a ''[[sadvipra]]''; and that this is accomplished by someone who remains fixed on the "supreme" [[consciousness]] through transformative personal practices and engaging in the politics of social [[Liberty|liberation]] as a form of [[Social work|service work]].{{sfn|Hatley|1999|p=139-151}}

{{main|PROUT}}

By 1959, Sarkar had developed the [[Socioeconomics|socio-economic]] Progressive Utilization Theory (Prout).{{sfn|Craig|1998}} In 1961, the theory was formally outlined in his book ''Ananda Sutram'', published under his spiritual name Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti.{{r|Irving}} In 1968, Sarkar founded the organisation "Proutist Block of India" (PBI), to further the ideals of his theory through political and social action.{{sfn|Fukui|1985|p=357}} The PBI was soon superseded by "Proutist Universal" (PU), which primarily consists of five federations (students, intellectuals, farmers, labour, and youth).{{When|date=May 2018}}

===Culture===

The philosophy of Sarkar reinterprets the general concept of culture by inserting it into a new universalistic outlook. As described by Antonello Maggipinto:

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* {{Internet Archive author}}   

* {{Internet Archive author|name=Shrii Shrii Anandamurti}}