Aurobindo's translation

Aurobindo Ghosh's translation is a product of the turbulent times after the partition of Bengal in 1905 by Lord Curzon. The concept of militant nationalism that Bankim espouses in the novel agreed well with Aurobindo's revolutionary politics of that day. Critics and commentators are unanimous about the visionary nature of Anandamath. Tanika Sarkar calls it a “performative speech act”, because the novel is actually performing a deed which is “the foundation of a Hindu nation, or of a Hindu political will that would realize the nation.” (3959). Anandamath was Bankim's answer to what he thought was a defect in the history of Bengal – the lack of valorous native kings who were capable of putting up a spirited defence of the land and its honour in the face of foreign onslaught. He felt the Bengalis to be effeminate, weak, incapable of powerful military exploits and lacking pride in their unique intellectual inheritance. He therefore felt compelled to invent a role model which was a blend of the past and the future. He wanted to bring back a past that was culturally superior and looked forward to a future that would see a mix of native culture and western rationality.

Aurobindo was attracted to this vision because his politics at that time was militant nationalism. In 1905 there were numerous revolutionary groups in Bengal and Aurobindo belonged to one of them, the Yugantar party, which in turn was an offshoot of the Anushilan Samiti. These groups also believed in Bankim's concept of a Hindu nation and like the Santans of Anandamath, believed in the principle of a healthy mind in a healthy body. Aurobindo also launched a newspaper called Bande Mataram with a slogan “Our Policy – India for Indians”. It was consistently critical of British rule and Aurobindo was charged with sedition and jailed in 1907. His revolutionary groups were involved in numerous violent incidents throughout Bengal especially in the first decade of the twentieth century, leading eventually to the imprisonment of Aurobindo in the Alipore Central Jail. It was but natural if Aurobindo felt it his patriotic duty to translate Anandamath in the attempt to propagate the concept of a resurgent nation that realizes its own strength after centuries of oppression.