Welcome

As members bearing the Sarvepalli Family name, we welcome you

Note to the Visitors

In remembrance of the Second President of India, the charismatic teacher Late Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan,we have designed this website. 

As members bearing the Sarvepalli Family name, it is our dear wish to propagate the teachings of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. Staying true to the principles which appealed to the Late President, the site is being designed to provide teaching materials, lesson plans and in the process of spreading the message of Go Green.

With hits from Saudi Arabia,Brazil, London, US and many parts of India.. the site is proving to be a success and we hope to make it a part of his legacy. 

" The end-product of education should be a free creative man, who can battle against historical circumstances and adversities of nature. "

by Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan 

The Legend of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan - The Philosopher President of India

Rare are those contemporaries who make a mark in the pages of history.  Each of these great leaders and teachers are cherished by the later generations with pride, honor and respect.

As part of the legacy left by Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, an orator, philosopher and a great statesman, we have prepared the following: 

Autobiography : Life and Writings

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was born on September 5, 1888, at Tiruttani, forty miles to the north-east of Madras, in South India. His early years were spent in Tiruttani and Tirupati, both famous as pilgrim centers. He graduated with a Master's Degree in Arts from Madras University. In partial fulfillment for his M.A. degree, Radhakrishnan wrote a thesis on the ethics of the Vedanta titled "The Ethics of the Vedanta and Its Metaphysical Presuppositions", which was a reply to the charge that the Vedanta system had no room for ethics. Professor A.G. Hogg awarded the following testimonial for this thesis:

"The thesis which he prepared in the second year of his study for this degree shows a remarkable understanding of the main aspects of the philosophical problems, a capacity for handling easily a complex argument besides more than the average mastery of good English".

The thesis indicates the general trend of Radhakrishnan's thoughts... In his own words,

"Religious feeling must establish itself as a rational way of living. If ever the spirit is to be at home in this world, and not merely a prisoner or a fugitive, spiritual foundations must be laid deep and preserved worthily. Religion must express itself in reasonable thought, fruitful action and right social institutions."

In April 1909, he was appointed to the Department of Philosophy at the Madras Presidency College. From then on, he was engaged in the serious study of Indian philosophy and religion, and was a teacher of Philosophy.

In 1918, he was appointed Professor of Philosophy in the University of Mysore. Three years later, he was appointed to the most important philosophy chair in India, King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science in the University of Calcutta. Radhakrishnan represented University of Calcutta at the Congress of the Universities of the British Empire in June 1926 and the International Congress of Philosophy at the Harvard University in September 1926. At the Philosophical Congress held at Harvard University, the lack of spiritual note in modern civilization was the focus of his address to the general meeting.

In 1929, Radhakrishnan was invited to take the post vacated by Principal J. Estin Carpenter in Manchester College, Oxford. This gave him the opportunity to lecture to the students of University of Oxford on Comparative Religion. During that visit, he also gave the Hibbert Lectures on "An Idealist View of Life" to audiences at the Universities of London and Manchester. In his own words,

"It was a great experience for me to preach from Christian pulpits in Oxford and Birmingham, in Manchester and Liverpool. It heartened me to know that my addresses were liked by Christian audiences. Referring to my sermon on "Revolution through Suffering", an Oxford daily observed, "Though the Indian preacher had the marvelous power to weave a magic web of thought, imagination and language, the real greatness of his sermon resides in some indefinable spiritual quality which arrests attention, moves the heart and lifts us into an ampler air."

It is not God that is worshiped but the authority that claims to speak in His name. Sin becomes disobedience to authority not violation of integrity.

From 1936-39, Radhakrishnan was the Spalding Professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics at Oxford University. In 1939, he was elected Fellow of the British Academy. From 1939-48, he was the Vice-Chancellor of the Banaras Hindu University. He later held offices that dealt with India's national and international affairs. He was the leader of the Indian delegation to UNESCO during 1946-52. He was the Ambassador of India to U.S.S.R. during 1949-52. He was the Vice-President of India from 1952-1962 and the President, General Conference of UNESCO from 1952-54. He held the office of the Chancellor, University of Delhi, from 1953-62. From May 1962 to May 1967, he was the President of India.

Aldous Huxley observed that Dr. Radhakrishnan "is the master of words and no words."

Prof. H.N. Muirhead said, "Dr. Radhakrishnan has the rare qualification of being equally versed in the great European and the not less great Asiatic tradition which may be said to hold in solution between them the spiritual wisdom of the world, and of thus speaking as a philosophical bi linguist upon it."

George P. Conger said, "Among the philosophers of our time, no one has achieved so much in so many fields as has Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan of India ... William James was influential in religion, and John Dewey has been a force in politics. One or two American philosophers have been legislators. Jacques Maritain has been an ambassador. Radhakrishnan, in a little more than thirty years of work, has done all these things and more... Never in the history of philosophy has there been quite such a world-figure. With his unique appointment at Banaras and Oxford, like a weaver's shuttle, he has gone to and fro between the East and West, carrying a thread of understanding, weaving it into the fabric of civilization."

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan passed away on April 17, 1975. In India, September 5 (his birthday) is celebrated as Teacher's Day in his honor.

Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan's letter to Prof. Paul Arthur Schilpp, the editor of The Philosophy of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan:

Awards Won

The award winner in sepia: Like many of the old suits in the Peace Prize photo archive, this one of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan is now a little yellowed.

Exchange association director Werner Dodeshöner and award winner Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan leaf through the certificate.

Peace Prize 1961

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan

The board of trustees for the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade elects the Indian religious philosopher Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan as the recipient of the 1961 Peace Prize. The award ceremony will take place during the Frankfurt Book Fair on Sunday, October 22, 1961, in the Paulskirche in Frankfurt. Ernst Benz gives the laudation.

Reason for Jury:

The religious philosopher and statesman Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan gave a profound interpretation of Eastern and Western essence in his literary work and thus created a path to international understanding.

As a politician, he fearlessly presented his insight "Peace is the crown of self-overcoming, humility, conversion and devotion, and not the crown of violence and conquest" to the whole world. By awarding the Peace Prize, we honor his free spirit and thank him for his life's work.

Source Article :

https://www.friedenspreis-des-deutschen-buchhandels.de/alle-preistraeger-seit-1950/1960-1969/sarvepalli-radhakrishnan

India's Vice President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan welcomes the guests, including Federal President Heinrich Lübke.

Acceptance Speech

Books Published

Photo Gallery

Video Gallery

Voice of Sh. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan - YouTube.avi

Documentaries

Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Documentary.mp4
Documentary on Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.mp4

Famous Quotations

Future Events

Nidarshan - Exhibition

As part of the legacy left by Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, an orator, philosopher and a great statesman, we have planned to showcase the magnificence of this great teacher and mentor in the form of a 2 day exhibition.

Some of the  highlights of the exhibition include :-

a. Dramas and Plays about the Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and his interactions with yester year leaders.

b. Information Kiosks with booklets citing teaching principles to students and teachers.

c. Quizzes and Debates among students.

d. Seminars and case studies on the best teaching principles adopted across India.

e. A virtual slide show depicting the life led by Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.

f.  Innovative ideas segment catering to the creativity of modern day students.

g. Dreams come true which highlights the ambitions and desires of individuals.

h. Ashtavadanam where an individual fields eight questions at one time.