THE SAGE WHO REIMAGINED HINDUISM: The Life, Lessons, & Legacy of Sree Narayana Guru

The Sage Who Reimagined Hinduism is an inspirational account of one of the most important spiritual leaders and social reformers of modern India, Sree Narayana Guru. In terms of his contribution to the betterment of Indian society and Hinduism, he ranks with Swami Vivekananda, B. R. Ambedkar, and Mahatma Gandhi. However, he is not as well-known as he deserves to be, and this book is, among other things, an attempt to remedy that neglect. Born in 1855 into a modest, middle-class family in Travancore (now Kerala) the Guru belonged to the Ezhava caste, which was considered untouchable at the time. The story of how a boy from a socially disadvantaged caste rose to become a charismatic sage with millions of followers is a remarkable one. Yet, the Guru was not just an inspiring spiritual leader. He was also a social reformer who was determined to reshape the oppressive caste system that held millions in its grip. He fought to make the society he was part of more equal, establishing and consecrating temples that were open to all castes, founding schools and other educational institutions, and doing everything he could to empower the lower castes and break the malign influence of the upper castes. Today, if Kerala is one of the most progressive states in the country, plural, secular, and egalitarian, much of this can be traced back to the Guru’s transformative efforts. As the author writes: ‘[Sree Narayana Guru] stands unmatched…as the greatest reformer to emerge from southern India since the incomparable Adi Shankara a millennium earlier, and the most successful champion of the rights of oppressed Hindus in the twentieth century.’