Harijan is a term which has its roots in the words “hari” denoting god and “jan” meaning children. The literal translation of the word “Harijan” is children of god or children of Vishnu (the Hindu god). The term Harijan has a very strong association with Mahatma Gandhi, the freedom fighter and the father of the nation, a humble man from the state of Gujarat who played a key role in the freedom struggle of India from the British. It is Gandhi who popularized the term Harijan to show his love and compassion for people of the lower caste.
Historical Connotations
The Indian society was stratified initially based on the occupation of the people, but later the occupation of the forefathers became the destiny of the generation in question. This stratification was known as the famous “caste system” of India in which the highest caste was that of the Brahmins and the lowest caste is that of the “Shudras” also known as the untouchables, the Dalits, or the Harijans. These people are the focus of...
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Further Reading
Gandhi Heritage Portal Journal. https://www.gandhiheritageportal.org/journals/
Guha R (2017) The rise and fall of the term Harijan. Published in The Telegraph, http://ramachandraguha.in/archives/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-term-harijan-the-telegraph.html. 10th June 2017
Indian Opinion, newspaper by Gandhi. https://www.mkgandhi.org/articles/history-of-indian-opinion.html
Use of the word Harijan Objected. The Hindu, 27 September 2003. https://www.thehindu.com/archive/. Retrieved 6 Apr 2015
Origin of name Harijan. https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/labelling-dalits-%E2%80%98harijans%E2%80%99-how-we-remain-ignorant-and-insensitive-dalit-identity-35486. Retrieved 18 Apr 2014
Labelling Dalits ‘Harijans’: how we remain ignorant and insensitive to Dalit identity, The News Minute
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Rawal, M. (2022). Harijan. In: Long, J.D., Sherma, R.D., Jain, P., Khanna, M. (eds) Hinduism and Tribal Religions. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1188-1_632
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