Chitta Ranjan Das and Our Creative Planetary Futures
Description
This book explores the profound legacy of Chitta Ranjan Das (1923-2011), a pioneering Indian thinker, educator, and writer who left an indelible mark on philosophy, literature, and education. As the founder of Jeevana Vidyalaya (School of Life) in 1950s Odisha and a devoted nurturer of integral education movement in Odisha, Das redefined education through integral learning, deeply influenced by the visionary ideals of Tagore, Gandhi, Kristen Kold, Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.
This volume brings together a diverse group of international scholars to engage with Das's ideas, placing his work within the broader context of global intellectual discourse. His contributions-ranging from philosophy and culture to literature-continue to inspire fresh perspectives on education and social transformation. Das's translation efforts introduced Odia readers to world literature, including works by Tolstoy, Gandhi, Sri Aurobindo, and Boris Pasternak, bridging cultures and ideas across linguistic boundaries.
In an era of increasing interest in diverse global philosophies, this book offers a timely and essential exploration of Das's work, linking his thoughts to the contemporary movement of planetary thinking. With its transdisciplinary approach-interweaving literature, philosophy, and history-this volume is a must-read for scholars, educators, and anyone interested in the evolution of thought beyond conventional borders.
Reviews / Votes
"I am delighted to see the much-deserved placement of one of my Gurus in the History of Planetary Futures. These contributions in creative theory connect Chitta Ranjan's most challenging experiments in bonding peace and beauty for all with global possibilities in fundamental transformation." (Professor Manoranjan Mohanty, Former Professor, University of Delhi, India)
"Freedom fighters, whether from India or elsewhere, were not just passionate patriots. They were also humanist thinkers, and multifaceted rich personalities. Chitta Ranjan Das was one of them. Ananta Kumar Giri has done well to celebrate the memory of this great thinker and freedom fighter through 14 gems of essays by eminent scholars in a thoughtfully edited volume. I wish the book great success." (M V Nadkarni, Honorary Professor, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bengaluru, India)
"This book is an impressive homage to Chitta Ranjan Das, a famous Indian writer and social reformer. Acknowledging Das's achievements in different spheres, the international team of contributors to the volume concentrate on his work as a philosopher, educator, activist particularly by including Das in the global stream of thought from Socrates to Camus, thus showing the importance of the figure of this outstanding intellectual beyond any temporal or spatial borders." (Dmitri M. Bondarenko, Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russian Federation)
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Ananta Kumar Giri is the Founding Executive Trustee of Vishwaneedam Center for Asian Blossoming and a former Professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, Chennai. Professor Giri is the author, editor, co-editor and translator of more than six dozen books in English and Odia.
Content
Chapter 1: Introdcution:Chitta Ranjan and Our Creative Planetary Futures.- Part 1.- Chapter 2 : Chitta Ranjan Das and the Quest for Freedom : Creative Traditionalism and Cultural Citizenship in Educational Futures.- Chapter 3 :The Organic Intellectual as Universalist :Transcending the Boundaries of Conventional Social Science.- Chapter 4 : Chitta Ranjan Das, Albert Camus, and Rebellion.- Chapter 5 : Chitta Ranjan Das as a Threshold Person : Relating the Significance of Positionality in the Bodhgaya Land Movement to Das's Critical Turn to Nature and the Poor.- Part 2.- Chapter 6 : Ethical Living for Today : Chitta Ranjan's Meditation with Jesus Christ and Dialogue with Pope Francis for Self-Realisation and Social Transformation.-Chapter 7:Chitta Ranjan: Faith Reconfigured.- Part 3.- Chapter 8 : Creative Education and Cultural Works for Freedom, Social Change and Transformation of Consciousness: Chitta Ranjan Das, Paulo Freire and Alternative Planetary Futures.- Chapter 9 : Socrates in the Classroom : Chitta Ranjan Das's Examination of Mainstream Education.-Chapter 10:Challenging Cultural Racism in Tribal Schooling.- Chapter 11 : Folk Schools, Highlander, and the Calling of Transformative Leadership in Education : Chitta Ranjan Das, the Odia Socrates, and the Pluriverse.- Chapter 12 : From Deschooling Society to New Visions and Pathways of Planetary Co-Learning : Hope, Conviviality, Critique, Creativity, and Social Transformations in the Works of Ivan Illich and Chitta Ranjan Das.- Part 4.- Chapter 13 : From Performative Hierarchization towards Transformative Hierarchization.- Chapter 14 : Dialogues in Words and Images:India and Israel from Chitta Ranjan Das to Siona Benjamin.
