52 Facts About Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, natively Radhakrishnayya, was an Indian philosopher and statesman.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan served as the second president of India from 1962 to 1967.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was the first vice president of India from 1952 to 1962.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was the second ambassador of India to the Soviet Union from 1949 to 1952.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was the fourth vice-chancellor of Banaras Hindu University from 1939 to 1948 and the second vice-chancellor of Andhra University from 1931 to 1936.

One of the most distinguished twentieth-century scholars of comparative religion and philosophy, Radhakrishnan held the King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science at the University of Calcutta from 1921 to 1932 and Spalding Chair of Eastern Religion and Ethics at University of Oxford from 1936 to 1952.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's philosophy was grounded in Advaita Vedanta, reinterpreting this tradition for a contemporary understanding.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan defended Hinduism against what he called "uninformed Western criticism", contributing to the formation of contemporary Hindu identity.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan has been influential in shaping the understanding of Hinduism, in both India and the west, and earned a reputation as a bridge-builder between India and the West.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was awarded several high awards during his life, including a knighthood in 1931, the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India, in 1954, and honorary membership of the British Royal Order of Merit in 1963.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was one of the founders of Helpage India, a non profit organisation for elderly underprivileged in India.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan believed that "teachers should be the best minds in the country".

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's father was a subordinate revenue official in the service of a local zamindar.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan joined Voorhees College in Vellore for his high school education.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan graduated from there in 1907, and finished his Masters from the same college.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan wrote his bachelor's degree thesis on "The Ethics of the Vedanta and its Metaphysical Presuppositions".

In reciprocation, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan dedicated one of his early books to William Skinner.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan expresses his anguish, against the British critics, in The Ethics of the Vedanta.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan then explains how this philosophy requires us to look upon all creations as one.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was married to Sivakamu, a distant cousin, at the age of 16.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan completed his first book, The Philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan believed Tagore's philosophy to be the "genuine manifestation of the Indian spirit".

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan represented the University of Calcutta at the Congress of the Universities of the British Empire in June 1926 and the International Congress of Philosophy at Harvard University in September 1926.

In 1929 Radhakrishnan was invited to take the post vacated by Principal J Estlin Carpenter at Manchester College.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was the vice-chancellor of Andhra University from 1931 to 1936.

In 1936 Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was named Spalding Professor of Eastern Religion and Ethics at the University of Oxford, and was elected a Fellow of All Souls College.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan started his political career "rather late in life", after his successful academic career.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was one of those stalwarts who attended Andhra Mahasabha in 1928 where he seconded the idea of renaming Ceded Districts division of Madras Presidency as Rayalaseema.

When India became independent in 1947, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan represented India at UNESCO and was later Ambassador of India to the Soviet Union, from 1949 to 1952.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was elected to the Constituent Assembly of India.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was elected as the first Vice-President of India in 1952, and elected as the second President of India.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan did not have a background in the Congress Party, nor was he active in the Indian independence movement.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's motivation lay in his pride of Hindu culture, and the defence of Hinduism against "uninformed Western criticism".

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan had always defended Hindu culture against uninformed Western criticism and had symbolized the pride of Indians in their own intellectual traditions.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's birthday has since been celebrated as Teacher's Day in India.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was against State institutions imparting denominational religious instruction as it was against the secular vision of the Indian State.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan tried to bridge eastern and western thought, defending Hinduism against "uninformed Western criticism", but incorporating Western philosophical and religious thought.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was one of the most prominent spokesmen of Neo-Vedanta.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's metaphysics was grounded in Advaita Vedanta, but he reinterpreted Advaita Vedanta for a contemporary understanding.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan acknowledged the reality and diversity of the world of experience, which he saw as grounded in and supported by the absolute or Brahman.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan saw Hinduism as a scientific religion based on facts, apprehended via intuition or religious experience.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan objected against charges of "quietism" and "world denial", instead stressing the need and ethic of social service, giving a modern interpretation of classical terms as tat-tvam-asi.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan stated that Western philosophers, despite all claims to objectivity, were influenced by theological influences of their own culture.

When Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan published his Indian Philosophy in two volumes, The Modern Review questioned his use of sources, criticising the lack of references to Bengali scholars.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan further argued that he was lecturing on the subject before publishing his book, and that his book was ready for publication in 1924, before Sinha's thesis was published.

Scholars such as Kuppuswami Sastri, Ganganath Jha, and Nalini Ganguli confirmed that Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was distributing the notes in question since 1922.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was one of India's best and most influential twentieth-century scholars of comparative religion and philosophy.

In India, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's ideas contributed to the formation of India as a nation-state.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's writings contributed to the hegemonic status of Vedanta as "the essential world view of Hinduism".

Steeped, as Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan has been since his childhood, in the life, traditions, and philosophical heritage of his native India, he has struck deep roots in Western philosophy, which he has been studying tirelessly ever since his undergraduate college-days in Madras Christian College, and in which he is as thoroughly at home as any Western philosopher.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan often appears to feel at home in the Indian as well as the Western philosophical contexts, and draws from both Western and Indian sources throughout his writing.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's lengthy writing career and his many published works have been influential in shaping the West's understanding of Hinduism, India, and the East.