Vol. 3, Issue 4, Part L (2017)

Arya Samaj nurtured the spirit of nationalism through a vision of one nation-one language. Swami Dayanand heralded a new era of nationalistic sentiments and put in the minds of the Indians the feeling of patriotism to achieve freedom. Arya Samaj was a reaction against the influence of the British and western religion. To counter the Colonial tools of expansion, Swami Dayanand championed the usage of Hindi language and encouraged Indians to apprehend the potential of this language as the binding force for the whole nation on the path of independence. He made Hindi a mandatory language of usage in Arya Samaj and he used to call Hindi as the Arya Bhasha which consequently turned a strong impetus for the nationalistic feeling. Swami Dayananda had a deep influence over the entire world of Hindi literature and he stressed the significance of Hindi language throughout life. The unparalleled contribution of Arya Samaj in the spread of Hindi and its popularity can be seen from the fact that Hindi was made the national language with the attainment of Independence.