Vinoba Bhave was a spiritual successor to Mahatma Gandhi, who advocated for nonviolence and human rights throughout his life. He fought evil on a constant basis with nonviolent means and instilled in people a religious and spiritual outlook on life. Interestingly, despite the fact that Bhave abandoned mundane daily life to join Mahatama Gandhi in the struggle for India’s independence, he was unknown to the public until 1940. Gandhi chose Bhave as the first individual satyagrahi in 1940. The incident thrust Bhave into the national spotlight, despite his previously obscure religious and social work career. He instituted several welfare programs, including the infamous Bhoodan-Gramdan movement, through which he amassed over a thousand acres of land. Bhave was a profoundly learned and brilliantly endowed scholar who is still regarded as India’s National Teacher. He was imprisoned several times for his involvement in the independence movement. Bhave used his time in prison to read and write. Several of his most accomplished works were written while he was imprisoned. Bhave lived a life of commitment, pursuing the highest level of spirituality through human faith, love, and respect. He dedicated his life to serving others.
Childhood & Adolescence
Vinoba Bhave was born Vinayaka (Vinoba) Rao Bhave in Raigad, Maharashtra, on September 11, 1895, to Narahari Shambhu Rao and Rukmini Devi.
He was born into a Chitpavan Brahmin family and was the couple’s eldest child. His father was a skilled weaver, and his mother was a devout Christian. She influenced and inspired the young Bhave’s mind and life.
Academically gifted, Bhave was well-versed in the works of Maharashtra’s saints and philosophers and exhibited a strong affinity for mathematics.
As an avid reader, he kept abreast of current events. Gandhi’s inaugural address at Benaras Hindu University captured the young Bhave’s attention, and he became an ardent follower of Gandhi.
In 1916, with the intention of furthering his education, Bhave traveled to Bombay (now Mumbai) to sit for intermediate examinations. However, on the way, he set fire to his school and college diplomas and made the fateful decision to travel to Benaras in order to study ancient Sanskrit texts.
Bhave read a newspaper report about Gandhi’s speech at Benaras Hindu University. The speech had a profound effect on Bhave, and he wrote Gandhi a letter. Gandhi advised Bhave to meet him at Kochrab Ashram in Ahemdabad following the exchange of letters.
Bhave met Gandhi on June 7, 1916. The visit had such an impact that it altered the course of Bhave’s life. He desired to travel to the Himalayas for inner peace and to Bengal to experience the fervour of resolution and found both in Gandhi.
Career of Vinoba Bhave
Bhave abandoned his studies and settled at Gandhi’s ashram, where he taught, studied, and spun. He also worked to improve the community’s quality of life.
Bhave took an active role in Gandhi’s constructive programs, raising awareness about the use of Khadi, establishing village industries, establishing a new educational system, and educating the populace about sanitation and hygiene.
In 1921, he relocated to Wardha and assumed leadership of the Ashram. Two years later, he founded Maharashtra Dharma, a monthly Marathi newspaper that featured essays on the Upanishads. The newspaper’s popularity grew, and within a short period of time, it became a monthly, and then a weekly. Three years were spent on the newspaper. Bhave moved to Vaikom, Kerala, in 1925, at Gandhi’s suggestion, to supervise the Harijans’ entry into the temple.
Bhave was arrested numerous times during the 1920s and 1930s. He did, however, use his time in prison to study and write. In addition to ‘Gitai’ and ‘Swarajya Shastra,’ he scripted ‘Ishavasyavritti’ and ‘Sthitaprajna Darshan’. Additionally, he educated his fellow inmates about the Bhagwad Gita. These speeches were later compiled into a book titled ‘Talks on the Gita,’ and were translated into a number of languages.
Though Bhave was an active participant in the anti-British civil disobedience movement, he was neither well-known nor famous. Bhave first gained prominence in 1940, when Gandhi chose him to be the first individual Satyagrahi (a person who stands up for truth rather than collective action) against British rule.
Between 1940 and 1941, Bhave was imprisoned three times in Nagpur. Bhave participated in the Quit India movement in 1942 and was imprisoned for three years in the Vellore and Seoni prisons. He mastered four South Indian languages while imprisoned in Vellore and wrote the script for ‘Lok Nagari’.
The idea of Sarvodaya Samaj emerged in 1948 at a meeting in Sevagram, Wardha, attended by Gandhi’s followers and constructive workers. Vinoba Bhave sought spiritual solutions to the problems confronting the average Indian villager.
Beginning in 1950, Bhave initiated a series of programs aimed at healing the wounds of partition. ‘Kanchan-mukti’, or independence from gold or money, and ‘Rishi-Kheti’, or cultivation without the use of bullocks, as practiced by the ancient sages, were among the numerous programs initiated.
In 1951, Bhave embarked on his peace trek through what is now Telangana. When Bhave met the villagers at Pochampalli, he had no idea that his meeting would usher in a new chapter in the nonviolent movement.
The Pochampally Harijans required 80 acres of land to survive. When Bhave sought advice from the villagers on how to resolve the issue, Ram Chandra Reddy, a landlord, offered assistance by donating 100 acres of land. The incident sparked the birth of a new movement, ‘Bhoodan’ (land gift), dedicated to resolving the landless’s problems.
Following the Pochampally incident, Bhave expanded the Bhoodan movement throughout the country, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Orissa, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh. Individuals made significant contributions to Bhoodan, to the point where some donated their entire land to the villagers as Gramdan.
Bhoodan’s success enabled Bhave to launch additional initiatives such as Sampatti-Dan (Gift of Wealth), Shramdan (Gift of Labor), Shanti Sena (Army for Peace), Sarvodaya-Patra (the pot into which each household contributes a daily handful of grain), and Jeevandan (Gift of Life).
In Paunar, Maharashtra, he founded the Brahma Vidya Mandir, a women’s community. The community’s mission was to assist women in achieving self-sufficiency and nonviolence. The group’s women farmed for food, recited prayers, and fervently read and practiced the Bhagwad Gita’s teachings, among other things.
Bhave, like Gandhi, recognized the power of ‘padayatra’ (march on foot). He walked for 13 years; he began his padyatra on September 12, 1951 and ended it on April 10, 1964, having traveled the length and breadth of India.
He began Toofan Yatra (traveling at the speed of high-velocity winds) in 1965, using a vehicle. In 1969, he completed the Toofan Yatra.
He returned to Paunar in 1969. His search for an inner spiritual force compelled him to forego worldly activities. Between December 25, 1974 and December 25, 1975, he observed a year of silence. During this time period, as he withdrew from other activities, his spiritual pursuits intensified.
Significant Works of Vinoba Bhave
Bhave dedicated his life to following Gandhi’s path of non-violence and human rights. As a learned scholar and spiritual visionary, he devoted his life to the cause of establishing a just and equitable society. Though Bhave worked continuously throughout his life, he first gained prominence as the first individual satyagarhi. Throughout his life, he pioneered numerous movements for the common good, but one that garnered widespread attention was Bhoodan-Gramdan. He cultivated and prospered millions of landless and helpless people through it. He walked for ten years on foot, spreading the message of Bhoodan and assisting the homeless. According to legend, Bhave amassed over 1000 villages through donation.
Awards and Accomplishments
Bhave was the first recipient of the international Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 1958.
In 1983, he was posthumously awarded India’s highest civilian honor, the Bharat Ratna.
Personal History and Legacies
Vinoba Bhave lived his entire life as a Brahmachari. He had made a vow of celibacy in his adolescence and thus remained single throughout his life.
Bhave spent his final days at the ashram of Brahma Vidya Mandir in Paunar, Maharashtra. He died on November 15, 1982, after refusing food and medicine in accordance with Jainism’s ‘Samadhi Maran’ /’Santhara’ doctrine.
Indira Gandhi, then India’s Prime Minister, cut short her visit to Moscow to attend the funeral of Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev to attend Bhave’s funeral.
In 1983, he was posthumously awarded the country’s highest civilian honor, the Bharat Ratna.
On November 15, 1983, the Government of India issued a commemorative postage stamp honoring Acharya Vinoba Bhave.
Estimated Net Worth
The Estimated Net Worth of Vinoba Bhave is unknown.