Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli

(1888–1975) Modern Indian philosopher
and statesman. Like many elite Indians
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Radha
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Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli
Radha, the god Krishna’s lover and companion.
of his generation, Radhakrishnan was
educated at Christian missionary
schools, and the contrast between the
Hindu piety of his home and the
Christian doctrine he encountered at
school sparked his interest in comparative philosophy. He spent the rest of his
life as an interpreter and apologist for
classical Hindu thought, particularly
the Vedanta school, and as a proponent
of philosophical idealism, the notion
that absolute truth can be found
through intuition alone. Aside from his
work as a college teacher and administrator, he also served as the vice president of India from 1952 to 1962, and as
president from 1962 to 1967. For further
information on his thought, see his An
Idealist View of Life, 1981; Paul A.
Schilpp, The Philosophy of Sarvepalli
Radhakrishnan, 1952; and Robert N.
Minor, “Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and
‘Hinduism’ Defined and Defended,” in
Robert D. Baird (ed.), Religion in Modern
India, 1998.