{"id":1997,"date":"2013-07-13T01:38:49","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:38:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=1997"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:38:49","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:38:49","slug":"32-facts-and-comments-10-vol-08-karmayogin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/03-cwsa\/08-karmayogin\/32-facts-and-comments-10-vol-08-karmayogin","title":{"rendered":"-32_Facts and Comments_10.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tKARMAYOGIN<\/font> <\/font><\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tA WEEKLY
\n\t\t\tREVIEW <\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tof National
\n\t\t\tReligion, Literature, Science, Philosophy, &c.,<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\n
\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tVol. I <\/font>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t }<\/font><\/td>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tSATURDAY 28th<\/sup> AUGUST 1909<\/font><\/td>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t{<\/font>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tNo. 10<\/font><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n

\t\t\t\t<\/font><\/div>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tFacts and Comments
\n\t\t\t<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tThe Cretan Difficulty<\/a>
\n\t\t\t<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tForeign affairs are as a rule lightly and unsubstantially
\n\t\t\tdealt with by Indian journals. This is partly due to want of the necessary information, partly to the parochial habit of
\n\t\t\tmind encouraged by a cabined and subject national life which cannot enlarge its imagination outside the sphere of those
\n\t\t\timmediate and daily events directly touching ourselves. And yet the
\n\t\t\thappenings of today in Asia, Europe and Africa are of great moment
\n\t\t\tto the future of India and full of encouragement and stimulus to the spirit of Nationalism. The recent events in
\n\t\t\tTurkey are an instance. It is not the methods of the Young Turks which have any lesson for India. The circumstances are
\n\t\t\ttoo dissimilar to warrant any fanciful theories of that kind. It is rather the character of the party of freedom which bears
\n\t\t\ta lesson to all struggling nationalities. The dominant qualities of the democratic leaders
\n\t\t\t\u2013and these are the qualities
\n\t\t\tthey have imparted to the movement, \u2013are strength, manhood, a bold heart, a clear brain, a virile efficiency. The
\n\t\t\tGovernment they have established has been showing these qualities to the full in its treatment of the Cretan difficulty. It has shown
\n\t\t\tthat free Turkey, while not rashly oblivious of the circumstances created by an unfortunate past, will not tolerate any attempt<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-189<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\tto be treated as Sultan Abdul Hamid suffered himself to be treated. Sultan Abdul Hamid, afraid of his subjects, afraid of the world, afraid even of his spies and informers, followed
\n\t\t\tthe weak and cowardly policy of a dishonest, intriguing and evasive Machiavellianism. He conducted that policy with a
\n\t\t\tcertain skill and statecraft in details which eventually evoked admiration, but it could neither save Turkey from ignominy
\n\t\t\tand weakness nor permanently protect a throne based upon cruelty, falsehood and despicable meanness. All that it did, for
\n\t\t\tSatan must be given his due, was to stave off a final disruption of Turkey and expulsion of the Ottoman from Europe. But
\n\t\t\ttrue freedom is always conscious of strength and knows that it is better to perish than to live for a short while longer at the
\n\t\t\tcost of continual insult, degradation and weakness. The first efforts of the new Government have been to save what remained
\n\t\t\tof the outskirts of Turkish empire in Europe, the suzerainty in Crete, the supreme control in Macedonia. Their diplomacy
\n\t\t\thas been strong, outspoken and fearless. It did not flinch nor in any way draw back a step or lower its tone until it forced
\n\t\t\tGreece to a satisfactory attitude and obliged the Powers to baffle the tortuous Greek methods by lowering the Greek flag in
\n\t\t\tCanea. It has quietly ignored the attempt of the Powers to interfere even by a suggestion in the direct question between itself
\n\t\t\tand Greece; for we read that Turkey is not going to give any formal answer to the Powers’ Note recommending pacific
\n\t\t\tcounsels as that Note did not call for any reply. It has been supported by the newly liberated nation by means of a Boycott
\n\t\t\twhich would have alarmed into reason a stronger Government than that of Athens. And as strength, when firm and able, can
\n\t\t\tnever be ignored, it has secured the sympathy of the Powers in the shape of concessions which would never have been yielded
\n\t\t\tto a weak or overcautious Government. Strength attracts strength; firm and clear-minded courage commands success and
\n\t\t\trespect; strong and straight dealing can dispense with the methods of dissimulation and intrigue. All these are signs of character
\n\t\t\tand it is only character that can give freedom and greatness to nations.<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-190<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tGreece and Turkey<\/a>
\n\t\t\t<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tIt is not to be imagined, however, that this is the closing chapter. The question between Greece and Turkey will have eventually
\n\t\t\tto be fought out by the sword. It is true that the immediate question is for the moment settled and the rent in the Cretan
\n\t\t\tpatchwork mended. But that patchwork is not of a kind to last. The Greek Government is not likely to give up its methods in Crete,
\n\t\t\tthe Christian population their desire for union with Athens or the present Cretan administration their secret sympathy with
\n\t\t\tand support of these aspirations. It would have been a simpler matter if the population of the island had been wholly
\n\t\t\tChristian, but there is a Mahomedan population also which is as eagerly attached to the Turkish connection as the others are desirous
\n\t\t\tof the Greek. The ancient history of Crete supports the sentiment of Greek unity, its later history the sentiment of imperial
\n\t\t\tOttoman greatness. And apart from Crete, there are inevitable sources of quarrel in Macedonia. Some day the Powers will have to
\n\t\t\tstand aside and allow these natural enemies to settle the question in the only possible way. The result of such non-intervention
\n\t\t\tin an armed struggle could not be doubtful. The Mongolian is a stronger spirit than the Slav, the Musulman a greater
\n\t\t\tdynamic force than the Christian, and it is only ignorance and absolutism that has for the time depressed the Turk. The disparity
\n\t\t\tbetween the Turk and the Greek is abysmal. The former is a soldier and statesman, the latter a merchant and intriguer. A war
\n\t\t\tbetween two such Powers with none to intervene would speedily end with the Turk not only in occupation of Thessaly but
\n\t\t\tentering Athens. <\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tSpain and the Moor<\/a>
\n\t\t\t<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tAnother corner of the Asiatic world
\n\t\t\t\u2013for Northern Africa is thoroughly Asianised if not Asiatic, \u2013is convulsed with
\n\t\t\tstruggles which may well precede another resurgence. There was a time when the Moor held Spain and gave civilisation to semi-barbarous Europe. The revolution of the wheel has now gone to<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-191<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\tits utmost length and finds the Spaniard invading Morocco. But this invasion does not seem to promise any Spanish expansion in Africa. With infinite difficulty and at the cost of a bloody émeute in Spain King Alfonso’s Government have landed a
\n\t\t\tconsiderable army in Morocco and yet with all that force can only just protect their communications and stand facing the formidable
\n\t\t\tcountry where the stubborn Kabyle tribesmen await the invader. There the army is hung up for the present, unwilling to retreat
\n\t\t\tand afraid to advance, and the Spanish General has again sent to Spain for reinforcements, a feat of military strategy at which
\n\t\t\the seems to be exceptionally skilful. If the men of the mountains are fortunate enough to have a leader with a head on his
\n\t\t\tshoulders, the circumstances augur a reverse for Spain as decisive
\n\t\t\tand perhaps more sanguinary than the Italian overthrow in Abyssinia.
\n\t\t\tMeanwhile King Alfonso has sacrificed all his youthful popularity by this ill-omened war and the bloody severity
\n\t\t\twhich has temporarily saved his throne. And with the popularity of the young King has gone the friendship of the Spanish
\n\t\t\tnation for England, for the Spaniards accuse that friendship of the origination of these troubles and the British Government as
\n\t\t\tthe selfish instigators of the intervention in Morocco. <\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\tThe London
\n\t\t\tCongress<\/a> <\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tSince we made our remarks on the proposal of a Congress session in London, we have seen two reasons urged for this
\n\t\t\treactionary step. It is necessary, it seems, to prevent judgment going against us in England by default and also to win the
\n\t\t\tsympathy of the civilised world. The former argument we have already answered in our last issue. Neither the speeches of a
\n\t\t\tfamous orator nor the conjoint speeches of many less famous will win for us the support of the British people for claims which go
\n\t\t\tdirectly against their interests. Only a prolonged and steady campaign in England all the year round for several years can make
\n\t\t\tany impression of a real and lasting kind and even that impression cannot in the nature of things be sufficient for the purpose.
\n\t\t\tThose who are on the side of Indian interests must always be in the<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-192<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\tminority and will always be denounced by the majority as allies of the enemies of English interests. Even now that is increasingly the attitude of the public towards Mr. Mackarness and his sup-porters and we do not think Sj. Surendranath’s eloquence has changed matters. Already the most prominent critics of
\n\t\t\tLord Morley and his policy of repression have received intimation from their constituents of their serious displeasure and are
\n\t\t\tin danger of losing their seats at the next election. This is in itself a sufficient refutation of the fable that speeches and
\n\t\t\tCongresses in England can change an ignorant British public into informed and enthusiastic supporters of Indian self-government. It is
\n\t\t\tonly political necessity and the practical recognition that change is inevitable which can convert the statesmen of England. As
\n\t\t\tfor the opinion of the civilised world, we do not despise it as a moral force. But its practical effect is so little as to be almost
\n\t\t\tnil. In a constitutional question between the present Government in India and the people we do not see what can be the place or
\n\t\t\tmode of operation of the world’s opinion or sympathy. An academical
\n\t\t\tapproval of our aims can be of no help to us. Nor is the sympathy of the world likely to be excited beyond such academical approval unless the Government faithfully imitates the
\n\t\t\tRussian precedent in dealing with popular aspirations. Even then it is not likely to tell on the action of the Government
\n\t\t\tconcerned which will certainly resent foreign interference in its dealings with its own subjects. The impotence of the civilised
\n\t\t\tworld was strikingly shown in the crisis of Russian despotism and at the time of the Boer War. Even were it otherwise, a
\n\t\t\tLondon session of the Congress would only awaken a passing interest. In that respect the visit of Swami Vivekananda to America
\n\t\t\tand the subsequent work of those who followed him did more for India than a hundred London Congresses could effect. That
\n\t\t\tis the true way of awaking sympathy, \u2013by showing ourselves to the nations as a people with a great past and ancient
\n\t\t\tcivilisation who still possess something of the genius and character of our forefathers, have still something to give the world and
\n\t\t\ttherefore deserve freedom, \u2013by proof of our manliness and fitness, not by mendicancy.<\/font><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-193<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPolitical Prisoners<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tWe extract elsewhere some very telling criticisms from the pen of
\n\t\t\tthe well-known positivist Mr. Frederic Harrison on the treatment of political
\n\tprisoners. This is a subject on which a Nationalist writer is naturally somewhat shy of dilating, as any stress on the brutality and callousness of the treatment to which not only convicted but undertrial prisoners of gentle birth and breeding are sometimes subjected in Indian jails, might be misinterpreted by our opponents as an unwillingness to face the penalties which
\n\trepressive legislation inflicts on those who cherish great aspirations for their race and country. But two instances have occurred
\n\trecently which compel
\n\tattention. One is the death of the convicted prisoner Ashok Nandi of consumption brought on by exposure and neglect during fever in the undertrial period of the Alipur Case. We exonerate from blame the jail authorities who were exceptionally humane men and would have been glad to deal humanely with the prisoners. But their blamelessness only
\n\tbrings out the
\n\tbarbarity of a system which allows of the confinement of a delicate ailing lad in a punishment cell exposed night
\n\tafter night to the dews and cold of an unhealthy season, and that without his having committed any fault or shown anything
\n\tbut the mildest and most docile of characters. The other case is that of Mr. Achyutrao Kolhatkar of Nagpur, editor of the
\nDeshsevak<\/i>, a gentleman of distinguished education, ability and character, who was convicted for the publication in his paper
\n\tof the reports of Srj. Aurobindo Ghose’s speeches delivered at a time when Mr. Kolhatkar was absent from Nagpur. The Sessions Judge of Alipur declared on the police reports of these speeches that so far from being seditious or violent they told in favour of the speaker and not against him. We find it difficult to believe that the newspaper report of speeches from which the
\n\tpolice could extract nothing that was not in the speaker’s favour, could be at all seditious. Be that as it may, Mr. Kolhatkar was convicted and perhaps, according to the “strong man” code of ethics, forfeited claim to generous treatment by his refusal to
\n\tapologise. We have heard rumours of treatment being meted<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-194<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n

out to him which can only be described as studied brutality and the evidence of eye-witnesses who have seen the condition to
\n\twhich he was reduced, do not encourage us to reject these reports as fabrications. Finally, the refusal of the Central Provinces
\n\tGovernment to face independent medical inspection and so dispose of the serious allegations publicly preferred put a very ugly
\n\taspect on this case. If the allegations are true, they amount to a treatment which would evoke the loudest indignation and
\n\treprobation in England if applied under the same circumstances in another country. But we cherish little hope of redress. The
\n\tprison system of the European nations is only a refined and systematised savagery perpetuating the methods of ancient and mediaeval barbarity in forms that do not at once shock the eye. Besides, the account of the recent starvation strike of the
\n\tSuffragettes has shown what callous and brutal treatment can be inflicted by English officials in England itself even on women,
\n\tand women of education, good birth, position and culture, guilty only of political obstruction and disorderliness. Yet this is the
\n\tcivilisation for which we are asked to sacrifice the inheritance of our forefathers!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tAn Official Freak<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We suppose in a bureaucracy it is inevitable that officials should be masters and be able to inflict inconvenience and loss on the citizen without any means of redress. Last Monday the publication
\n\tof a new weekly named Dharma<\/i>, edited by Aurobindo Ghose, was due and had been widely announced. The issue was ready
\n\tand the printer duly attended the Police Court to declare his responsibility for printing and publishing the periodical. Except
\n\tunder very unusual circumstances this is a mere formality and one would have thought no difficulty could intervene, but nothing could persuade the Court Official to refrain from delaying the acceptance till the next day. It was pointed out that this would entail unnecessary inconvenience and perhaps considerable financial loss, but that naturally did not concern him as he
\n\twas the master of the public and not their servant. The next<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-195<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n

day a variation of the same vexatious procedure was repeated. It was whispered, we do not know with what truth, that the first
\n\tdelay was for the Criminal Investigation Department to have time to find out whether the printer had been convicted in any
\n\tsedition case. If so it was a futile delay. There is no concealment of the responsibility with regard to this paper. The name of the
\n\teditor and proprietor was openly given and the printer was there to accept his responsibility. This does not look like intended
\n\tsedition. If there were any doubt the required information could easily have been gained from the Manager of the paper who was
\n\tpresent and would no doubt have been glad to save delay and loss by stating the printer’s antecedents. It was not likely that he
\n\twould conceal a conviction as that would be a thing impossible to suppress. But then, if officialdom were to acquire a common
\n\tsense, the laws of Nature would be sadly contravened and it is better to inflict loss on individuals than to upset a law of Nature.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tSoham Gita<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Every Bengali is familiar with the name of Shyamakanta Banerji the famous athlete and tiger-tamer but it may not be known to all that after leaving the worldly life and turning to the life of the
\n\tascetic, this pioneer of the cult of physical strength and courage in Bengal has taken the name of Soham Swami and is dwelling in a hermitage in the Himalayas at Nainital. The Swami has now published a philosophical poem in his mother tongue called the
\nSoham Gita<\/i>. The deep truths of the Vedanta viewed from the standpoint of the Adwaitavadin and the spiritual experiences of the Jnani who has had realisation of dhyan <\/i>and samadhi <\/i>are here developed in simple verse and language. We shall deal with
\n\tthe work in a more detailed review in a later issue.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/font>
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tPage-196<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KARMAYOGIN A WEEKLY REVIEW of National Religion, Literature, Science, Philosophy, &c., Vol. I  } SATURDAY 28th AUGUST 1909 { No. 10     Facts and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-08-karmayogin","wpcat-44-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1997"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1997\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}