Ralph

Richard

Keithan's grave

at Oddanchatram in Dindigul district (TOI pic)

DINDIGUL (TN): In an inconspicuous corner of the Christian Fellowship Hospital at Oddanchatram in Dindigul district lies a grave with an unusual epitaph – it begins with lines from the Bible and ends with the words ‘Om Shanthi, Shanthi, Shanthi’ and there is a lotus engraved. It belongs to Ralph Richard Keithan, an American missionary who took part in the Indian freedom movement. No wonder then he is described as ‘Pioneer Christian Missionary, Friend of the Downtrodden, Revolutionary Social Reformer, Ardent Gandhian, Sarvodaya Leader and a true disciple of Jesus’.Keithan was born in Silver Lake in the US in 1898. In 1925, at the age of 27, he came down to India, following the many other American missionaries, to spread the word of Christianity and carry out charitable work. He first began his ministry in Manamadurai and later assumed the role of manager of missionary schools at Pasumalai in Madurai.While in India, he was attracted to Mahatma Gandhi and his principles of non-violence, and brought freedom fighter Rajagopalachari (Rajaji) to Pasumalai to deliver a lecture on prohibition. In 1929, he visited Sabarmathi Ashram and met Gandhi.His activities, however, did not go down well the British officials. Hall, the then Madurai collector, asked him to leave the country for a period of three weeks, said D Devaraj Athisayaraj, retired Tamil teacher and local historian. “Keithan appealed to the governor at Madras and his exile order was relaxed,” he said.Keithan later returned to the US and got married there, but came back to India after some years, when the independence movement was in full steam. He became a Sarvodya leader and actively participated in the 1942 Quit India movement. Unable to tolerate his activities any longer, the British government finally exiled him in 1944. While going back, he met Gandhi and Rajaji in Mumbai.“Shortly after independence, Rajaji wrote to Keithan and invited him to free India. He returned promptly, and remained in India till he breathed his last at Christian Fellowship Hospital in 1984,” Devaraj said. All through his life, he worked for the poor and downtrodden, especially for the farmers. Local Congress men used to call him ‘Keithanji Annachi’, he said.Keithan was also associated with Gandhigram University, Dindigul for a long period of time. Gandhi Museum secretary M P Gurusamy said Keithan had been a true Gandhian. Former vice-chancellor of the university G Pankajam has penned a book on Keithan’s life.