Magadi Karanika Krishnamurthy is worthy of remembrance. He had a mind that was liberal, a heart that was generous, and an outlook that was progressive. The reward the world gave him was—to some extent—admiration and a bit of ridicule.
The situation in the states ruled by the Maharajas were not really praiseworthy.
Bhopal was a Hindu-majority state as long as it was under the suzerainty of the Gonds – until Mohammad Khan captured it. By the beginning of the 20th century, the situation had declined so badly that not even one percent of key administrative posts was in the hands of Hindus.
The following incident happened in the 1930s, when Śrī Candraśekhara-bhāratī Mahāsvāmi adorned the Śāradā-pīṭha at Sringeri. The Mahāsvāmi’s liking for and support of scholarship is well known. He took great interest in the development of Gīrvāṇa-prauḍha-vidyābhivardhinī Pāṭhaśālā that is housed in the Bengaluru Śaṅkara-maṭha. Back in the day, this Pāṭhaśālā was one of the greatest centres of traditional learning.
DVG practiced journalism for an unremitting seven decades; from the beginning, he fiercely upheld the nationalistic spirit in both speech and writing. From 1913-1920 when D.V.G. was editing the English biweekly Karnataka, this was the tenet that he declared: “The newspapers of our country need not imitate their counterparts in America or other foreign countries. Our papers need to conduct themselves in a manner that is consonant with our social circumstances and the nature and traditions of our people.”
ಶೇಷಣ್ಣನವರ ಜೀವನದ ಕಡೆಯ ದಶಕಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಬಂದೆರಗಿದ ಆಘಾತವೆಂದರೆ ಅವರ ಧರ್ಮಪತ್ನಿ ಶಾರದಮ್ಮನವರ ವಿಸ್ಮೃತಿರೋಗ. ಎಷ್ಟೆಲ್ಲ ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯದ ಹಾಡು, ಸ್ತೋತ್ರ, ಗೀತಗಳನ್ನು ವಾಚೋ ವಿಧೇಯವಾಗಿ ಇರಿಸಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಒಂದು ಅಕ್ಷರವನ್ನೂ ಮಾತನಾಡಲಾಗದಂಥ ಭೀಕರವಿಸ್ಮೃತಿ ಬಂದೆರಗಿತ್ತು. ಅವರಿಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ದೇಹದ ಮೇಲೆಯೇ ನಿಯಂತ್ರಣವಿರುತ್ತಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಮನೆಯಿಂದ ಹೊರಟರೆ ಮತ್ತೆ ಬರುವ ದಾರಿ ಗೊತ್ತಾಗುತ್ತಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಅನುದಿನದ ಗೃಹಕೃತ್ಯಗಳಿರಲಿ, ವೈಯಕ್ತಿಕವಾದ ಕೆಲಸಗಳನ್ನು ನಿರ್ವಹಿಸಲು ಕೂಡ ಅರಿವಾಗುತ್ತಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಇದೊಂದು ಬಗೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬೆಳೆದ ಮಗುವಿನ ಪರಿಸ್ಥಿತಿ. ಇಂಥ ಅನಾರೋಗ್ಯದ ತೊಂದರೆ ಎಂಥದ್ದೆಂಬುದನ್ನು ನಾನು ಆ ಬಳಿಕ ನನ್ನ ತಾಯಿಗೆ ಇದೇ ರೀತಿಯ ಸ್ಥಿತಿ ಬಂದಾಗಲೇ ಅರಿತದ್ದು, ಅನುಭವಿಸಿದ್ದು.
I’ve already told that the main aspects of his ingenuity were his wisdom and his conduct. One of his key principles was the prominence he gave to the capability of creating happiness. He wanted to interact with everyone in a way that would gladden them. None of his words have caused bitterness in anyone nor have they tarnished anyone’s image; in essence his policy was to ensure happiness in everyone as far as possible.
संतोषं जनयेत्प्राज्ञः
तदेवेश्वरपूजनं॥