His Vision Lights Our Path

Shri Kulapati Dr. Kanhaiyalal Maneklal Munshi (30 December 1887 – 8 February 1971) was a visionary educationist, litterateur, patriot, and a steadfast champion of Indian culture. Born in Bharuch, Gujarat, he excelled academically and pursued higher studies at Baroda College, where his association with Shri Aurobindo Ghosh inspired him to join India’s freedom movement.

Dr. Munshi had unwavering faith in the timeless strength of Indian civilisation, believing that while many ancient cultures faded, India endured through its living traditions and spiritual heritage.

A man of action, he actively championed women’s empowerment, education, and social reform rooted in Indian values.In 1938, with the blessings of Mahatma Gandhi and other national leaders, Dr. Munshi founded Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan as an “Adventure in Faith” - a faith in India’s past, present, and future. Guided by the ideal Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and the motto Aa No Bhadrah Kratavo Yantu Vishwatah, the Bhavan grew into a global movement dedicated to education, culture, national integration, and harmony.

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan today stands as a living movement, nurturing values and holistic education from the cradle to the grave. In reverence to this great visionary, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s R.K. Sarda Vidya Mandir proudly bows in honour of Kulapati Dr. K.M. Munshi.

The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan's multi-dimensional programmes include;

• Schools, from pre-primary to Std-XII affiliated to central Board of Secondary Education, New Delhi and State Boards, all over India, to instill Fundamental values of Indian Culture, Communal harmony, National Integration, and pride of being an Indian among school children. The number of schools under the management of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan is currently 96.
• Colleges of Arts, Science, Commerce and Engineering, affiliated to various universities;
• Institutions for teaching Modern Management and Research;
• Institutions for Research in correlating Ancient Insights & Modern Discoveries in the fields of Life and Health science & human values; Gandhian Studies; Public Affairs and Administration;
• Publication of Books on Ethical and Spiritual values & Research;
• Publication of Journals devoted to Life, Literature and Culture; publication of Indian language editions of the 11-volume 'History and Culture of Indian people' as also the 100 volumes of 'Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi', beginning with Hindi, Tamil, Kannada edition;
• Fine Arts such as Indian Classical Music, Dance, Drama and Theatre, promotion of Yoga and Karate;
• Promotion of National Integration and Communal Harmony, Purity in public Life and rural Regeneration.

Thus, Bhavan's programmes cover "All aspects of life from the cradle to the grave and beyond... It fills a growing vacuum in modern life" as Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru observed when he first visited the Bhavan's in 1950.

As on date the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan's is a vibrant community of 200,000 students and 11,000 teachers in 370 institutions that includes Schools, Colleges of Arts, Sciences, Commerce, Management and Centres for studies and research in Indian Culture, Indology and Sanskrit - all working in tandem for the development of posterity.

For the yeoman services rendered, the Bhavan's has been recognized as an "Institute of National Eminence"(2001) by the Government of India and is also the recipient of the "Rajiv Gandhi Award for National Integration"(1992), "Communal Harmony Award"(1999) and above all the "International Gandhi Peace Prize"(2002). Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan is not merely an institution; it is a living movement inspired by shared ideals. It transforms values into action through education and culture, giving them strength and continuity. Ever-evolving and dynamic, the Bhavan remains an unending movement dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Indian culture.