S. A. Swaminatha Iyer
Encyclopedia
Rai Bahadur S. A. Swaminatha Iyer (died 1899),also known as Thanjavur Swaminatha Iyer or simply S. A. S, was an Indian lawyer
, theosophist, administrator and freedom fighter from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu
.
and completed his F. A. from Government Art's College, Kumbakonam. After his initial schooling, Swaminatha Iyer joined the Madras University in 1874. After graduating in law, Swaminatha Iyer rose rapidly in the ranks to become Government Pleader at Negapatam. Swaminatha Iyer served as a member of the Municipal Board of Negapatam and unsuccessfully stood for election to the Madras Legislative Council
for the Municipalities seat losing to K. Kalyanasundaramier
of Trichinopoly Between 1883 and 1885, he became the public prosecutor of Tanjore.
In 1892, when the mirasidars of Thanjavur district
agitated against the rise of the land revenue from rupees 39 lakhs to 56 lakhs as per the newly introduced scientific settlement, Swaminatha Iyer led the movement.
started by Madame Blavatsky
and Col. H. S. Olcott
and rose to become Secretary of the Negapatam branch in 1883. In 1892, he became the President of the Tanjore branch of the Theosophical Society.
Swaminatha Iyer was involved in the Indian independence movement
right from his early days. He was a corresponding member of the Madras Mahajana Sabha
. He also served as the President of Tanjore People's Association.
In December 1885, Swaminatha Iyer participated as the delegate from Tanjore in the first session of the Indian National Congress
. He was one of 72 delegates (22 from Madras Presidency
) who attended the meeting at Tejpal Sanskrit College in Bombay where he made a memorable speech against the Salt Tax.
Apart from expressing outrage at the Salt Tax, Swaminatha Iyer also opposed the stringent customs duties and the British annexation of Burma.
During the third session of the Indian National Congress held at Madras in 1887, S. A. Swaminatha Iyer was appointed member of the 35-member committee which framed the constitution of the Indian National Congress.
Missionary colleges had been set up all over India with the prospect of introducing Christ to upper-caste Hindus. However, with the passage of time, this move became detrimental as western educated students began to oppose evangelism and missionary colleges for deriding their religious beliefs.
In April 1888, serious disturbances broke out in the Madras Presidency
when there were rumors that a Brahmin
student in the Madras Christian College
had expressed willingness to embrace Christianity
In June 1888, Brahmin students in the town of Nannilam
in Tanjore district began to agitate for the missionary school in the town to be shut down. A meeting was held in the district and presided over by Swaminatha Iyer in which he gave a brief description of the Indian National Congress
and exhorted the people to boycott the Christian school and instead start a national school for the education of children. Swaminatha Iyer criticized the liberal spendings of the faculty of the missionary colleges while the people of the Presidency suffered from poverty. The Christian school, eventually, became empty of students, a month before the inspection by the Madras government, thereby depriving it of a government grant of Rs. 200.
Swaminatha Iyer prepared a list of prices of food items to illustrate the comparative poverty of the masses with regard to the affluent lifestyle of the missionaries. This was later supplied as evidence by Rev. Henry Simpson Lunn
during the hearing of the Madras Christian College controversies.
Temple Board in 1885. Throughout the 1880s, there was intense rivalry between Swaminatha Iyer and a wealthy landowner called Veerayyah Vandayar in the elections to the Kumbakonam devasthanam board. Both these individuals desired to be elected as President of the board and they adopted highly desperate measures to succeed in the elections. During 1888-89, both these factions were equally divided with three members on each side in the devasthanams board.
Veerayyah Vandayar nominated a toddy
contractor named Ponnusami Nadar who won the elections in August 1888 and April 1889. However, on both these occasions, Swaminatha Iyer's faction motioned to declare the elections null and void. During the second impasse, however,the District Judge intervened to appoint Ponnusami Nadar to the board giving Veerayyah Vandayar a narrow majority.
and funded music concerts. His granddaughter is the noted ethnomusicologist, S. A. K. Durga
.
Rev. Henry Simpson Lunn, who gave a lecture in Tanjore at a meeting chaired by Swaminatha Iyer, describes him as "the most prominent Brahmin
in South India
".
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, theosophist, administrator and freedom fighter from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
.
Early life
S. A. Swaminatha Iyer was born in the Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu. Swaminath Iyer had his schooling at Anglo-Vernacular School, KabisthalamKabisthalam
Kabisthalam is a village under Papanasam taluk in Thanjavur district in Tamil Nadu.- Village: Kabisthalam : Village Details Name of Taluk Papanasam...
and completed his F. A. from Government Art's College, Kumbakonam. After his initial schooling, Swaminatha Iyer joined the Madras University in 1874. After graduating in law, Swaminatha Iyer rose rapidly in the ranks to become Government Pleader at Negapatam. Swaminatha Iyer served as a member of the Municipal Board of Negapatam and unsuccessfully stood for election to the Madras Legislative Council
Madras Legislative Council
Tamil Nadu Legislative Council is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It began its existence as Madras Legislative Council, the first provincial legislature for Madras Presidency. It was initially created as an advisory body in 1861, by the British...
for the Municipalities seat losing to K. Kalyanasundaramier
K. Kalyanasundaramier
K. Kalyanasundaramier was an Indian politician from Trichinopoly who served as a member of the Madras Legislative Council representing Municipalities for five consecutive terms from 1892 to 1897. He is credited with having introduced an individual bill in the Madras Legislative Council in 1896.-...
of Trichinopoly Between 1883 and 1885, he became the public prosecutor of Tanjore.
In 1892, when the mirasidars of Thanjavur district
Thanjavur District
Thanjavur District is one of the 32 districts of the state of Tamil Nadu, in southeastern India. Its headquarters is Thanjavur.-Geography:...
agitated against the rise of the land revenue from rupees 39 lakhs to 56 lakhs as per the newly introduced scientific settlement, Swaminatha Iyer led the movement.
As theosophist
Swaminatha Iyer was drawn towards theosophy and religion from the 1880s onwards and he joined the Theosophical SocietyTheosophical Society
The Theosophical Society is an organization formed in 1875 to advance the spiritual principles and search for Truth known as Theosophy. The original organization, after splits and realignments has several successors...
started by Madame Blavatsky
Madame Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky , was a theosophist, writer and traveler. Between 1848 and 1875 Blavatsky had gone around the world three times. In 1875, Blavatsky together with Colonel H. S. Olcott established the Theosophical Society...
and Col. H. S. Olcott
Henry Steel Olcott
Colonel Henry Steel Olcott was an American military officer, journalist, lawyer and the co-founder and first President of the Theosophical Society....
and rose to become Secretary of the Negapatam branch in 1883. In 1892, he became the President of the Tanjore branch of the Theosophical Society.
Indian National Congress
Indian independence movement
The term Indian independence movement encompasses a wide area of political organisations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending first British East India Company rule, and then British imperial authority, in parts of South Asia...
right from his early days. He was a corresponding member of the Madras Mahajana Sabha
Madras Mahajana Sabha
Madras Mahajana Sabha was an Indian nationalist organisation based in the Madras Presidency. Along with the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha, Bombay Presidency Association and the Indian Association, it is considered to be a predecessor of the Indian National Congress....
. He also served as the President of Tanjore People's Association.
In December 1885, Swaminatha Iyer participated as the delegate from Tanjore in the first session of the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
. He was one of 72 delegates (22 from Madras Presidency
Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency , officially the Presidency of Fort St. George and also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision of British India...
) who attended the meeting at Tejpal Sanskrit College in Bombay where he made a memorable speech against the Salt Tax.
Apart from expressing outrage at the Salt Tax, Swaminatha Iyer also opposed the stringent customs duties and the British annexation of Burma.
During the third session of the Indian National Congress held at Madras in 1887, S. A. Swaminatha Iyer was appointed member of the 35-member committee which framed the constitution of the Indian National Congress.
The evangelism controversies
In April 1888, serious disturbances broke out in the Madras Presidency
Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency , officially the Presidency of Fort St. George and also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision of British India...
when there were rumors that a Brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
student in the Madras Christian College
Madras Christian College
The Madras Christian College, commonly known as MCC, is a liberal arts and sciences college in Madras , India. Founded in 1837, MCC is one of Asia's oldest extant colleges. Currently, the college is affiliated to the University of Madras, but functions as an autonomous institution from its campus...
had expressed willingness to embrace Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
In June 1888, Brahmin students in the town of Nannilam
Nannilam
Nannilam is a panchayat town in Thiruvarur District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. This panchayat union includes many villages.Nannilam and the surrounding area is home to many temples, including Madhuvaneshwarar Temple, an old Shiva temple which is located center of the town. The town is a...
in Tanjore district began to agitate for the missionary school in the town to be shut down. A meeting was held in the district and presided over by Swaminatha Iyer in which he gave a brief description of the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
and exhorted the people to boycott the Christian school and instead start a national school for the education of children. Swaminatha Iyer criticized the liberal spendings of the faculty of the missionary colleges while the people of the Presidency suffered from poverty. The Christian school, eventually, became empty of students, a month before the inspection by the Madras government, thereby depriving it of a government grant of Rs. 200.
Swaminatha Iyer prepared a list of prices of food items to illustrate the comparative poverty of the masses with regard to the affluent lifestyle of the missionaries. This was later supplied as evidence by Rev. Henry Simpson Lunn
Henry Simpson Lunn
Sir Henry Simpson Lunn was an English humanitarian and religious figure, and also founder of Lunn Poly, one of the UK's largest travel companies....
during the hearing of the Madras Christian College controversies.
Temple Board
Swaminatha Iyer showed an active interest in the administrative affairs of Hindu temples right from the time of his election to the KumbakonamKumbakonam
Kumbakonam , also spelt as Coombaconum in the records of British India , is a town and a special grade municipality in the Thanjavur district in the southeast Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Located 40 kilometres from Thanjavur and 272 kilometres from Chennai, it is the headquarters of the Kumbakonam...
Temple Board in 1885. Throughout the 1880s, there was intense rivalry between Swaminatha Iyer and a wealthy landowner called Veerayyah Vandayar in the elections to the Kumbakonam devasthanam board. Both these individuals desired to be elected as President of the board and they adopted highly desperate measures to succeed in the elections. During 1888-89, both these factions were equally divided with three members on each side in the devasthanams board.
Veerayyah Vandayar nominated a toddy
Toddy
Toddy may be:* Hot toddy, a mixed drink served hot* Palm wine, also known as palm toddy, an alcoholic beverage.* The toddy palm...
contractor named Ponnusami Nadar who won the elections in August 1888 and April 1889. However, on both these occasions, Swaminatha Iyer's faction motioned to declare the elections null and void. During the second impasse, however,the District Judge intervened to appoint Ponnusami Nadar to the board giving Veerayyah Vandayar a narrow majority.
Legacy
Swaminatha Iyer was a noted patron of carnatic musicCarnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
and funded music concerts. His granddaughter is the noted ethnomusicologist, S. A. K. Durga
S. A. K. Durga
Dr. S. A. Kumari Durga is a musicologist and ethnomusicologist from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. She is the founder of the Centre for Ethnomusicology based in Chennai.- Early life :...
.
Rev. Henry Simpson Lunn, who gave a lecture in Tanjore at a meeting chaired by Swaminatha Iyer, describes him as "the most prominent Brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
in South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
".