Book Review: Camille Bulcke Biography Explores Europe Missionary’s Turn As Hindi Scholar But Skims Over Tough Questions

Ravi Dutt Bajpai and Swati Parashar’s ‘Camille Bulcke: The Jesuit Exponent of Ramkatha’ offers a look at the life of Bulcke, who arrived in India in 1935 as a Jesuit missionary.

The authors describe Camille Bulcke's scholarship with great reverence, highlighting his meticulous research, his love for Tulsidas, and his efforts to elevate Hindi as a scholarly language.

Source : Wikimedia Commons

Among the many Europeans who have come to India and made it their home, few have been as remarkable as Father Camille Bulcke. Born in Belgium, Bulcke arrived in India in 1935 as a Jesuit missionary, only to transform into one of the most respected scholars of Hindi literature. His engagement with the ‘Ramcharitmanas’, his seminal study ‘Ramkatha: Utpatti Aur Vikas’, and his contributions to lexicography remain invaluable to scholars of Indian literature.

This biography by Ravi Dutt Bajpai and Swati Parashar is a welcome effort to document Bulcke’s extraordinary life and work. The book is written with admiration, carefully charting his evolution from a European outsider to an Indian intellectual, fluent in Hindi, deeply immersed in the study of Tulsidas, and passionate about inter-religious understanding. However, it stops short of fully engaging with the contradictions of his life — his position as both a missionary and a scholar, his role in shaping Hindi literary discourse, and the ideological undercurrents of his work.

An Unlikely But Genuine Scholar Of Hindi

Bulcke’s story is one of remarkable transformation. His early years in Belgium gave little indication that he would one day be regarded as a leading figure in Hindi studies. He trained as an engineer before joining the Jesuits, and his journey to India was driven by his religious calling. Yet, instead of focusing solely on missionary work, Bulcke became obsessed with the Hindi language, eventually earning a PhD in Hindi literature from the University of Allahabad. His dissertation, ‘Ramkatha: Utpatti Aur Vikas’, remains one of the most comprehensive studies of the Ramayana tradition, mapping its evolution across languages and regions.

Bajpai and Parashar describe his scholarship with great reverence, highlighting his meticulous research, his love for Tulsidas, and his efforts to elevate Hindi as a scholarly language. They note that ‘Ramkatha’ was not merely an academic exercise but a labour of love, a work that reflected his intellectual and spiritual journey. They also discuss his ‘Angrezi-Hindi Shabdkosh’, a dictionary that remains a standard reference even today. His immersion in Hindi literary culture won him admiration from luminaries like Hazari Prasad Dwivedi and Rahul Sankrityayan.

The Christian-Hindu Conundrum

Yet, for all his sincerity, Bulcke’s work was not without ideological undertones. As the authors acknowledge, he remained a deeply committed Christian, translating the Bible into Hindi and advocating the spread of Catholicism in India. His scholarship, while undoubtedly rigorous, was also shaped by his religious beliefs. His admiration for Tulsidas and the ‘Ramcharitmanas’ coexisted with his conviction that Christianity offered the ultimate spiritual truth.

This duality is one of the most fascinating aspects of Bulcke’s life, but the book does not engage with it as critically as it could have. Was Bulcke’s deep engagement with Hindi literature a genuine act of cultural synthesis, or was it also a subtle means of advancing Christian theology? Did his position as a European Jesuit give him an undue influence in shaping modern Hindi literary discourse? These are complex questions, and while Bajpai and Parashar touch upon them, they do not explore them in depth.

Bulcke’s Legacy In Post-Independence India

Bulcke’s influence extended beyond his own scholarship. He was a firm advocate of Hindi as India’s national language at a time when linguistic debates were shaping the country’s future. His preference for Hindi over other regional languages aligned with the post-Independence push for its dominance in government and academia. While his contributions to Hindi scholarship are undeniable, it is worth asking whether his views on language reinforced a certain linguistic hierarchy, marginalising India’s rich diversity of languages and oral traditions. The biography acknowledges his role in promoting Hindi but offers little critical engagement with the broader implications of his linguistic stance, particularly in regions where Hindi imposition was met with resistance.

The biography presents Bulcke as a largely apolitical figure, devoted to scholarship and interfaith harmony. However, in the highly charged linguistic and religious politics of Independent India, no intellectual was entirely removed from ideological currents. His position as a Catholic scholar of Hinduism set him apart, earning him admiration as well as scepticism. His scholarly engagement with Hindu texts reflected both his deep intellectual commitment and his desire to build bridges across faiths, yet it remains important to ask how his interpretations were received by contemporary scholars and religious leaders. Did his work contribute to a more inclusive understanding of Hinduism, or did it subtly frame the tradition through an external lens?

Bulcke’s advocacy for Hindi and his contributions to literary scholarship positioned him as an influential voice in shaping India’s cultural discourse. However, the historical and political context in which he operated deserves deeper scrutiny. The biography could have explored how his ideas intersected with the broader tensions of linguistic nationalism, religious identity, and postcolonial cultural reconstruction. 

By focusing on his contributions with depth and clarity, the authors provide a superb exploration of Bulcke’s intellectual legacy, shedding light on his significant role in shaping Hindi scholarship and promoting interfaith dialogue. This focused approach allows readers to appreciate the nuances of his work, which remains highly relevant in contemporary debates on language, identity, and pluralism in India. 

A Story Well-Told

Bajpai and Parashar have provided a thoughtful and engaging account of Bulcke’s life, drawing on archival research and personal interviews. They succeed in conveying the warmth, sincerity, and intellectual rigour that made Bulcke a revered figure in Indian literary circles. The book is at its best when it describes his personal journey, his struggles with learning Hindi, his deep friendships with Indian scholars, and his ultimate decision to take Indian citizenship.

However, the book also hesitates to confront the deeper contradictions of his life. 

Bulcke was both an insider and an outsider, a missionary and a scholar, a champion of Hindi who remained committed to Christian theology. His legacy is enigmatic, and while this biography is a valuable introduction to his life, it leaves many critical questions unanswered. A more nuanced engagement with the tensions in his work would have made for a richer and more complete portrait.

Bulcke himself might have appreciated a more interrogative approach. As a scholar who spent his life studying the multiple interpretations of the ‘Ramayana’, he surely understood that every story has many versions, shaped by context, belief, and ideology. His own story is no different, and it deserves to be examined with the same depth and plurality that he brought to his study of India’s greatest epic.

Book: Camille Bulcke: The Jesuit Exponent of Ramkatha By Ravi Dutt Bajpai & Swati Parashar 

Price: Rs 1,150

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

The writer is a Bengaluru-based management professional, curator, and literary critic

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