(i) Arya Samaj attempted to check the incidence of religious conversion in British India.
(ii) One of its main objectives was counter conversion, prescribing a purificatory ceremony called suddhi, directed at Hindus who had converted to Islam and Christianity.

(i) Iyothee Thassar went to Sri Lanka in 1898 and converted to Buddhism. In the same year, he founded the Sakya Buddhist Society at Madras to construct the rational religious philosophy through Buddhist religion.
(ii) He argued that the so-called untouchables were originally Buddhists who were stigmatized by Brahminism.

i) Brahmo Samaj eradicated sati, child marriage and polygamy.
ii) Samaj forbade idol worship and meaningless religious rites and ceremonies.

Vivekananda's activist ideology rekindled the desire for political change among many western education young Bengalis. Many of the youths who were involved in the militant nationalist struggle during the Swadeshi movement following the Partition of Bengal were inspired by Vivekananda.

i) Ramalinga emphasised the bonds of responsibility and compassion between living beings.
ii) Ramalinga showed his compassion and mercy on all living things including plants. This he called 'Jeeva Karunya'.
iii) He established Samarasa Vedha Sanmarga Sangam.
iv) He also established a free feeding house for everyone irrespective of caste at Vadalur.
v) His songs were compiled under the title "Thiruvarutpa".

He laid down four articles of faith:
 i)  In the beginning there was nothing. The one Supreme Being alone existed who created the universe.
ii)  He alone is the God of Truth, Infinite Wisdom, Goodness, and Power eternal, omnipresent the One without second.
iii)  Our salvation depends on belief in Him and in His worship in this world and the next.
iv)  Belief consists in loving Him and doing His will.

(i) Born to poor parents in Kerala, Narayana Guru (1854-1928) evolved into a poet and scholar in Malayalam, Tamil, and Sanskrit.
(ii) In his days the people of depressed classes had no access to temples, streets, public tanks and wells, and educational institutions.
(iii) Men and women belonging to lower castes were not allowed to wear the upper garments.
(iv) Disturbed by the terrible caste tyranny, that the lower caste people suffered, he dedicated his whole life for the betterment of the oppressed.
(v) He set up the Sri Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam, an organization to work for the uplift of the "depressed classes'. 
(vi) He established a grand temple at Aruvipuram and dedicated it to all.
(vii) His movement inspired a radical transformation of Kerala society, especially among the Ezhavas.
(viii) Thinkers and writers such as Kumaran Asan and Dr. Palpu were influenced by his ideas and carried forward the movement.

The influence of Western ideas and Christianity created a new awakening in 19th century British India.
Raja Rammohan Roy:
i) Raja Rammohan Roy was deeply concerned with the prevailing customs of Sati, Child Marriage and Polygamy.
ii) He published tracts against them and petitioned the government to legislate against them.
iii) He advocated the rights of widows to remarry.
iv) He wanted polygamy to end. Rammohan Roy condemned the subjugation of women and opposed the prevailing ideas 'women were inferior to men'. He strongly advocated education for women.
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar:
i) Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar provided evidence from scriptures that there was no sanction for burning of widows or for the prohibition on the remarriage of widows.
ii) He played a leading role in promoting education of girls.
iii) He dedicated his whole life for the betterment of the child widows of the Hindu society.
iv) It resulted in the Widows' Remarriage Reform act of 1856. This act was intended to improve the lot of child widows and save them from perpetual widowhood.
M.G Ranade:
i) M.G Ranade was the founder of the Widow Marriage Association.
ii) He advocated inter-caste marriage, widow remarriage, improvement of woman and depressed classes.
Jyotiba Phule:
i) Jyotiba Phule worked for the cause of women.
ii) He opposed child marriage and supported widow remarriage.
iii) He opened orphanages and homes for widows.
Other Reformers:
i) The leader of the sabha opposed both infant marriage and use of astrology.
ii) Baba Ram Singh considered both men and women equal and accepted widow remarriage. It prohibited the dowry system and child marriage.
iii) Ramalinga established a free feeding house for everyone irrespective of caste at Vadalur (1867), in the wake of a terrible famine in South India in 1866.

The reform movements of nineteenth century in the realm of religion fall under two broad categories.
Reformist Movement
i) Brahmo Samaj
ii) Prarthana Samaj
iii) Aligarh movement.
Revivalist movements
i) Arya Samaj
ii) The Ramakrishna Mission
iii) Deoband movement

S.No	Reformist movements	Revivalist movements
1.	Brahmo Samaj:  (i) Rammohan Roy was one of the earlier reformers, who founded the Brahmo Samaj in 1828. (ii) The Samaj forbade idol worship and condemned meaningless religious rites and ceremonies.	Arya Samaj: (i) Swami Dayanand Saraswati founded the Arya Samaj in 1875. (ii) He rejected the superstitious beliefs in Hinduism. (iii) His cry was "go back to Vedas". (iv) He was against child marriage and supported widow remarriage. (v) He condemned idolatry and Brahmin domination.
2.	Prarthana samaj: (i) Dr. Atma Ram Pandurang was the founder of Prarthana Samaj. (ii)  R.C. Bhandarkar and M.G. Ranade important leaders.  (iii) They worked for inter-caste marriage, inter-caste dining, widow remarriage and improvement of women and depressed classes.	Ramakrishna Mission: (i) Ramakrishna's primary achievement was the ability to attract educated youth who formed religious community. (ii) The Chief Spirit behind this was Vivekananda. (iii) Vivekananda established the Ramakrishna Mission which actively involved in social causes such as education, health care and relief in times of calamities.
3.	Aligarh Movement: (i) It was formed by Sayyid Ahmed Khan. (ii) He exhorted the Muslims to accept western science and to take to English education. (iii) He wished that Muslim shave good bond with the British government.	Deoband Movement: (i) Deoband was a revivalist movement organized by the orthodox Muslim Ulema. (ii) The Two main objectives are propagating the pure teachings of the Quran and Hadith. (iii) The school curricula founded by Muhammad and Rashid shut out English education and Western Culture.