Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan ; 5 September 1888 – 17 April
1974) was an Indian philosopher and statesman who was
the first Vice President of India (1952–1962) and the
second President of India from 1962 to 1967.
One of India's most influential scholars of
comparative religion and philosophy, Radhakrishnan
built a bridge between the East and the West by
showing how the philosophical systems of each
tradition are comprehensible within the terms of the
other. He wrote authoritative exegeses of India's
religious and philosophical literature for the
English-speaking world. His academic appointments
included the King George V Chair of Mental and Moral
Science at the University of Calcutta (1921–1932) and
Spalding Professor of Eastern Religion and Ethics at
Oxford University (1936–1952).
Radhakrishnan was awarded the Bharat Ratna, the
highest civilian award in India, in 1954. Among the
many other honors he received were the British Knight
Bachelor in 1931 and the commonwealth Order of Merit
Radhakrishnan represented India at UNESCO (1946–52)
and was later Ambassador of India to the Soviet Union,
from 1949 to 1952. He was also elected to the
Constituent Assembly of India.
Radhakrishnan stated that Western philosophers,
despite all claims to objectivity, were influenced by
theological influences of their own culture. He
wrote books on Indian philosophy according to Western
academic standards, and made all efforts for the West
to give serious consideration to Indian philosophy. In
his book An Idealist View of Life, he made a powerful
case for the importance of intuitive thinking as
opposed to purely intellectual forms of thought.
A true teacher is not someone who just teaches
academic lessons to his/her students. Rather, he/she
is like a guide, who helps the...
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