Some of the works undertaken at the special suggestions of this Conference were the following—
1. At the Benares Conference in 1905 Mr. V. R. Shinde was requested to cotnpilc this Theistic Directory of all the Brahma and Frarthana Samajes in India.
2. At the Surat Conference, 1907, Mr. A. C. Muzumdar was requested to undertake Famine Relief Work in the United Provinces which he carried out with remarkable energy in 1908 and of which he submitted his report to the Conference at Madras in December 1908.
3. In several sessions the question of the amendment of the Civil Marriage Act III of 1872 was discussed and resolutions passed to memorialize the Government to eliminate the denial clause. This led to a wider movement in the country which finally developed into the famous Bill by the Hon’ble Mr. Bhupendranath Basu in the Supreme Legislative Council of India which however in spite of the wide spread agitation and excitement did not pass.THE KHAS1 HILLS MISSION.
The Khasi Hills Mission, which was established in 1889, was the first attempt on the part of the Brahma Samaj to disseminate its principles amongst an ignorant and backward people, and bring them within its fold. The Khasi Hills district is situated in the northern-most corner of India and has derived its name from the people inhabiting it. The latest Ethnological and Linguistic researches have led the specialists on the subject to the discovery and conclusion, that the Khasis are a soion of the Mon-Annm of the Mongolian race. Nearly forty years ago they were in a primitive stage of civilization, being scantily clad, and having no literature or written language of their own. They have made considerable progress, in various ways, since the advent of the British Government, and under the influence of the foreign missionary bodies. Twenty-three years ago, several Bengali Brahmas, belonging to some Government office or other in Shillings, the head quarters of the district, published a leaflet on the principles of Brahmanism in the Khasi language, which fell into the hands of several inhabitants of Shella, a village situated on the Southern border of the hills. And so they applied to the Sadharan Brahma Samaj for a missionary, who could teach them more of Brahmanism and be their guide in religion Sometime after.
Babu Nilmani Chakravarti was sent there by the Samaj, as their representative, to ascertain whether the place was congenial for opening a small mission. He started with the intention of staying there for a short time, but the longer he stayed, the better he realized the necessity of making a permanent stay. During these years, his activities have been extending further and further in different directions; and he has now got one Bengali and four native assistants, to help him in his work. There are at present twelve Brahma Samajes, scattered over an area of fifty miles in length, not, to mention others, which were destroyed by the earthquake of 1897, and could not have yet been reopened for want of funds. It was with great difficulty that Babu Nilmani Chakravarti acquired knowledge of the Khasi language. The Khasis had no characters or writing symbols of their own. The representatives of the Welsh Calvinistic Mission had adopted the Roman characters in reducing the Khasi language to writing, and published a translation of a portion of the New Testament, and a few other pamphlets. Babu Nilmani Chakravtarti had to pick up the language trom conversations, carried on with the people, the few books available at the time being very defective. "With a view to give the people an idea of the system of our worship, that obtains in the Brahma Samaj, he managed to publish his first pamphlet in the language, within a few weeks after his arrival, with the help of a Khasi gentleman. This was followed by a booklet on Brahmanism, and subsequently several other tracts and pamphlets were published.
When Brahma Samajes were first established at different places, Babu Nilmani Chakravarti had to struggle hard, to prepare the people for the hard task of managing their affairs themselves. As they were rough recruits, and some of them simple illiterate men lacking in the very rudiments of manners, it took him a pretty long time to teach them how to conduct divine services and preach sermons. But there are, at present nearly at each of the mission centres, some person or other, who can discharge the duties of a lay minister tolerably well. The Khasis had at first a strong prejudice against the hymns, on account of their Bengali tunes, and also owing to the indigenous music being in a very crude state. Babu Nilmani Chakravarti had to try hard with patience: and thus, by and by, the hymns began to grow in popularity amongst the people. In the meetings, they are always sung together by the whole congregation. Side by side with the Brahma Samaj, he established women’s meetings at several centres, which are conducted by the women themselves. Although attempts were made to train them up in the same way, as the men had been, they could not make much progress for want of a lady worker amongst them. Now that Babu Umeschandra Chaudhari has joined the mission, it is expected, that Mrs. Chaudhari will remove the long felt want. At the head quarters of the mission, at Cheerapoonji, the children have also their own meetings.
