Bengali Vaishnavism in Court: the Gaudiya Math’s Crisis of Succession

Abstract

Abstract The events that are the focus of the present investigation relate to a schism within the Gaudiya Math and Mission, a modern traditionalist Hindu religious institution dedicated to the revival of Chaitanya Vaishnava bhakti that was set in motion in 1918 in Mayapur, West Bengal, by the Bengali Vaishnava intellectual Swami Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati (1874–1937). By the time of Bhaktisiddhanta’s passing in 1937, the Gaudiya Math and Mission had grown to be a dynamic and influential institution. Bhaktisiddhanta’s departure had nevertheless exposed palpable tensions within his fledgling movement that assumed the form of a dramatic crisis of succession that engulfed the institution soon after his passing. This article examines in some detail the first three months of the initial court case that ensued after Bhaktisiddhanta’s passing. The material to be examined herein has been acquired from the archives of the Calcutta High Court. These legal documents offer a unique glimpse into the complex inner dynamics of this modern Gaudiya Vaishnava schismatic conflict.