Brahmo Samaj

The Brahmo Samaj appears in the novel only as the subject of a passing joke: Satyasundar Bose invokes it while dismissing the importance of confusing Brahma with the composer Brahms. The brief reference offers no broader account of the organization, but it shows how Bose turns a mistake of names into an occasion for teasing argument.

The Allusion

During a conversation with the narrator, Bose remarks that only two people take coffee at that hour: Gómez and the composer Brahms. The narrator corrects him, but Bose brushes off the distinction between the names Brahms and Brahma, arguing that calling the composer by the other name would not affect his standing as a composer or change the Brahmo Samaj’s worship.

Narrative Function

The organization is not described through its history, members, or practices; it enters solely as the endpoint of Bose’s wordplay. His deliberately casual comparison makes the name confusion seem harmless and gives the exchange its comic turn. The allusion therefore characterizes Bose’s quick, irreverent conversational style rather than developing the Brahmo Samaj as a separate subject.