In an era when rigid social stratifications constrained access to knowledge and worship, Ramanujacharya envisioned a spiritual democracy rooted in the concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.
A view of the Statue of Equality. (ANI)
New Delhi: The Statue of Equality in Hyderabad of the philosopher and reformer Sri Ramanujacharya (1017–1137) is not merely about national pride. It is a civilizational reaffirmation. It is about India rediscovering an ancient yet modern ideal that spiritual realization must translate into social equality. Ramanujacharya’s philosophy, rooted in Vishishtadvaita Vedanta, was not a call for escape from the world but for transformation within it. He stood as the bridge between metaphysics and social justice, bringing together the intellectual depth of the Vedas with the compassion of the Bhakti tradition.
In an era when rigid social stratifications constrained access to knowledge and worship, Ramanujacharya envisioned a spiritual democracy rooted in the concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, which is understood as the conviction that the entire world is one family. Today, as India reclaims its intellectual heritage through the Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), his message acquires renewed significance. For IKS is not about nostalgia, but about the living continuity of values that once shaped India’s ethical and intellectual foundations, values of inclusivity, human dignity, and spiritual inquiry.
BHAKTI AS INTELLECTUAL REVOLUTION
The Bhakti movement is often viewed as merely an emotional wave of devotion. But Ramanujacharya redefined it as an intellectual revolution. Born in 1017 CE at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu, he studied under the scholar Yadavaprakasha. He found his mentor’s strict Advaitic interpretations of the Vedas to be philosophically inadequate and socially exclusive. Ramanuja’s divergence was not an act of rebellion but of refinement. It was an assertion that the divine is both transcendent and immanent, and that every human being, regardless of birth, has the right to experience this divinity.
His Vishishtadvaita (qualified non-dualism) presented a profound synthesis: Brahman as the supreme reality, yet inseparable from the multiplicity of souls and the material world. Unlike the abstract monism of Advaita, Ramanuja’s vision upheld the individual’s personal relationship with the divine. A relationship, he believed, was built on devotion (Bhakti), service (seva), and surrender (prapatti). To him, this was not a philosophy to be merely confined to monasteries but a theology that goes beyond and empowers the common people.
By declaring that Jiva (individual soul) and Ishvara (God) are distinct yet inseparable, he humanized metaphysics. Knowledge was not a privilege for a few but a birthright of all. At its most fundamental level, his philosophical view challenged the prevailing caste orthodoxy by inviting those considered “untouchable” into temples and publicly reciting sacred mantras. This was a radical act of spiritual egalitarianism, where everyone, not just a select few, has the right to knowledge. When his guru demanded secrecy for the powerful Ashtakshari mantra “Om Namo Narayanaya,” Ramanuja chose dissemination over exclusivity, proclaiming it from the temple tower so that every soul could find liberation. His explanation was simple yet transformative. He argued that if his damnation ensured the salvation of others, he was willing to act without hesitation. Such sentiment, in essence, defines the moral core of India’s spiritual democracy.
This democratization of spirituality was, in itself, an early articulation of the IKS spirit, where knowledge is not proprietary but participatory. Similarly, wisdom does not divide, but unites us. Ramanujacharya, thus, reconfigured devotion into a collective pursuit of justice by making it an intellectual form of Bhakti, where the heart and reason worked in harmony for all, without exclusion.
EQUALITY AND ETHICAL MODERNITY
The 216-foot Statue of Equality, crafted from panchaloha (a blend of five sacred metals), stands as one of the tallest metallic statues in the world. But its significance lies not in its grandeur alone. It serves as a reminder that the true measure of civilization is not material wealth but moral depth. The accompanying Bhadra Vedi complex, which encompasses a Vedic digital library, research centre, and galleries devoted to Ramanujacharya’s works, enlarges the commemoration into a step towards opportunity and thereby fosters a culture of learning.
In an age fractured by identity, inequality, and hyper-materialism, the statue embodies an alternative imagination of modernity where focus lies on ethics rather than exploitation and isolation. Undoubtedly, it reflects Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s broader vision of Amrit Kaal, where India’s growth must be underpinned by cultural self-confidence and moral universality. By invoking “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,” the statue reiterates that equality is neither new nor a Western import, but a deeply indigenous idea, evolving from the Indian consciousness of oneness.
Ramanujacharya’s life also carries lessons for contemporary governance and social policy. His insistence on temple accessibility, inclusivity in education, and compassion for the marginalized represents the earliest form of affirmative ethics. He institutionalized equality by integrating service into worship. Therefore, for him, the temples were a public space of shared divinity.
The IKS aims to rediscover India’s indigenous frameworks of sustainability, ethics, and collective well-being. In such a context, his ideas have direct relevance for the IKS. Ramanujacharya’s emphasis on harmony with nature, his warning against over-exploitation, and his holistic view of knowledge prefigure today’s discourse on sustainable living. The IKS framework, by integrating traditional wisdom with contemporary science and policy, seeks precisely this synthesis of ancient insights to illuminate modern challenges.
Thus, the Statue of Equality becomes more than a cultural monument, but a pedagogical instrument. It reminds us of a rapidly changing India that actual progress must harmonize intellect with empathy, knowledge with humility, and power with justice.
RECLAIMING SPIRIT OF VASUDHAIVA KUTUMBAKAM
Ramanujacharya’s philosophy was never insular. His travels across the subcontinent, from Kashmir to Kanchipuram, were journeys of dialogue and inclusion. He debated, persuaded, and healed divisions. Even during persecution, he responded not with retaliation but with resilience. At Melkote in Karnataka, he built temples where even the so-called “depressed classes” were granted entry, centuries before social reform became a political project.
This universality forms the moral spine of India’s civilizational identity. The IKS framework today must draw from such figures who exemplified intellectual courage and ethical inclusivity. Ramanujacharya’s vision transcends religion and philosophy. And calls to humanity to reclaim fraternity as the first principle of civilization. As India positions itself as a global moral and cultural leader, advocating for shared prosperity, climate justice, and equitable growth, the message of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam is finding new resonance. As such, for Indians, equality is not merely a social ideal but a cosmological truth, where we view the universe as interdependent and interconnected, and wherein every being carries within it a spark of the divine.
EQUALITY AS A CIVILIZATIONAL CONTINUUM
Ramanujacharya lived for 120 years, but his ideas have outlived him by way longer, spanning into centuries, because they spoke to the enduring quest for justice and meaning. The Statue of Equality, in this sense, is not a monument to the past but a mirror to the present, urging us to bridge divides, democratize knowledge, and pursue devotion not as a ritual but as a responsibility. In a world often divided by identity and inequality, his life reminds us that faith must be lived as fraternity. The IKS initiative, by reclaiming such legacies, is restoring India’s moral vocabulary where we refuse to separate knowledge from compassion or spirituality from service. The celebration of Ramanujacharya, therefore, is not about looking back. It is about moving forward with the clarity that equality, compassion, and oneness are not ideals to be imported or imitated. His ideas constitute both the oldest and most prized intellectual inheritance of Bharat; we would fail to honor his legacy if we choose to ignore his wisdom.
Prof Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit is the Vice Chancellor of JNU.
