{"id":2029,"date":"2013-07-13T01:39:00","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:39:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=2029"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:39:00","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:39:00","slug":"81-the-necessity-of-the-situation-vol-08-karmayogin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/03-cwsa\/08-karmayogin\/81-the-necessity-of-the-situation-vol-08-karmayogin","title":{"rendered":"-81_The Necessity of the Situation.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
<\/p>\n

\nThe Necessity of the Situation<\/font> <\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nA
\nVERY serious crisis has been induced in Indian politics
\nby the revival of Terrorist outrages and the increasing
\nevidences of the existence of an armed and militant revolutionary party determined to fight force by force. The effect
\non the Government seems to have been of a character very little
\ncomplimentary to British statesmanship. Faced by this menace
\nto peace and security the only device they can think of is to
\nmake peaceful agitation impossible. Their first step has been to
\nproclaim all India as seditious. Their second is to announce the
\nintroduction of fresh legislation making yet more stringent the
\nalready all-embracing law of sedition. By these two measures
\nfree speech on press or platform will practically be interdicted,
\nsince the perils of truthfulness will be so great that men will
\nprefer to take refuge either in a lying hypocrisy or in silence.
\nFrankness, honesty, self-respecting and truthful opposition in
\nIndian politics are at an end. The spirit which dictates the resort to these measures, will inevitably manifest itself also in the
\nproclamation as illegal of all societies or organisations openly
\nformed for the purpose of training the strength of the nation by
\nsolid and self-respecting political and educational work towards
\na free and noble future. By the law which gives the Government
\nthat power of arbitrary suppression associated work is rendered
\nimpossible, though not as yet penalised. If free speech, if free writing, if free association is made impossible under the law, it
\nis tantamount to declaring a peaceful Nationalism illegal and
\ncriminal.\n<\/p>\n

\nThe effect of the recent assassinations on the Moderate party
\nhas been to throw them into a panic and demoralisation painful for any lover of Indian manhood to witness. It is quite possible
\nfor an Indian politician at this crisis to consider in a spirit of
\nworthy gravity and serious recognition of the issues involved the<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nPage-439<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nbest way of combating the evil, even if it involves co-operation
\nwith a Government which persists in the repression of the national hopes and aspirations and seeks to compel co-operation
\nby pressure instead of by winning the hearts of the people. But
\nthat is not the spirit shown by Moderate organs and by Moderate leaders. All that we can see is a desperate and cowardly
\nsauve qui peut<\/i>, an attempt by every man to save himself and to
\nburrow under a heap of meaningless words. Wild denunciations
\nof the revolutionary instruments as fiends, dastards, cowards,
\nwith loads of other epithets which defeat their purpose by their
\ngrotesque violence; strange panegyrics of the deceased police
\nofficer as a patriot, saint, martyr by those who formerly never
\ndiscovered his transcendent merits or had a good word to say
\nfor the police; meetings to arrange steps for the suppression of
\nAnarchism loudly advertised by leaders who know that they
\nare powerless to take any effective steps in the present state
\nof the country; Vigilance Committees which can at best pay
\nfor the hired vigils of watchmen easily avoidable by a skilful
\nnocturnal assassin; \u2013are these the speech and action of responsible and serious political leaders or the ravings and spasmodic
\ngesticulations of a terrified instinct of self-preservation?\n<\/p>\n

\nThe Nationalist party can take no share in these degrading
\nperformances. On the other hand its own remedies, its own
\nactivities are doubly inhibited, inhibited from below by the
\nparalysing effect of successful or attempted assassinations, inhibited from above by panic-stricken suspicion, panic-stricken
\nrepression. We have not disguised our policy, we have openly
\nadvertised our plans of party reconstruction and reorganisation, we have sought to speak and act candidly before the Government
\nand the country, not extenuating the errors of the Government,
\nnot inflaming the minds of the people. The first answer to our
\npropaganda was given by the revolutionary party in the blow
\nstruck at Nasik, the second by the Government in the extension
\nof the Seditious Meetings Act to all India. We still felt it our
\nduty to persevere, leaving the results of our activity to a higher
\nPower. The assassination in the High Court and the announcement of a stringent Press legislation convinces us that any farther<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nPage-440<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nprosecution of the public activities we contemplated, will be vain
\nand unseasonable. Until, therefore, a more settled state of things
\nsupervenes and normal conditions can be restored, we propose
\nto refrain from farther political action. The Government and
\nthe Anglo-Indian community seem to be agreed that by some
\nprocess of political chemistry unknown to us the propagation of
\npeaceful Nationalism generates armed and militant revolutionism and that the best way to get rid of the latter is to suppress the former. We will give them the chance by suppressing ourselves
\nso far as current Indian politics are concerned. We have no wish
\nto embarrass the action of the Government or to accentuate the
\ndifficulties of the situation. The Government have no doubt a
\npolicy of their own and a theory of the best means of suppressing
\nviolent revolutionary activities. We have no faith in their policy
\nand no confidence in their theory, but since it is theirs and the responsibility for preserving peace rests on them, let them put their
\npolicy freely and thoroughly into action. We advise our fellow
\nNationalists also to stand back and give an unhampered course
\nfor a while to Anglo-Indian statesmanship in its endeavours to
\ngrapple with this hydra-headed evil.\n<\/p>\n

\nBut before we resort to silence, we will speak out once freely
\nand loudly to the Government, the Anglo-Indian community and
\nthe people. We will deliver our souls once so that no responsibility for anything that may happen in the future may be laid
\nat our doors by posterity. To the Government we have only one
\nword to say. We are well aware that they desire not the cooperation of the Nationalist party, but its annihilation. They
\ntrace the genesis of the present difficulties to the propaganda
\nof the Nationalist leaders and an unstatesmanlike resentment is allowed to
\noverpower their judgment and their insight. Choosing to be misled by a police whose incapacity and liability to
\ncorruption has been loudly proclaimed by their own Commissions presided over by their own officials, they have formed
\nthe rooted opinion that the leaders of Nationalism are secretly
\nconspiring to subvert British rule, and neither the openness of
\nour proceedings nor the utter failure of the police to substantiate
\nthese allegations have been able to destroy the illusion. The open<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nPage-441<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nespionage, menace and detective machinations to which we are
\nsubjected, are sufficient proof of its persistence. Nevertheless, it
\nis due to the Government that we should speak the truth and
\nit is open to them to consider or reject it at their pleasure. The
\none, the only remedy for the difficulties which beset them in
\nIndia, is to cease from shutting their eyes on unpleasant facts, to
\nrecognise the depth, force and extent of the movement in India,
\nthe radical change that has come over the thoughts and hearts
\nof the people and the impossibility of digging out that which
\nwells up from the depths by the spades of repression. They
\nare face to face with aspirations and agitations which are not
\nonly Indian but Asiatic, not only Asiatic but worldwide. They
\ncannot do away by force with these opinions, these emotions,
\nthese developments unless they first trample down the resurgence
\nin Japan, China, Turkey and Persia and reverse the march of
\nprogress in Europe and America. Neither can they circumvent
\nthe action of natural forces which are not moved by but move
\nthe Indian political leaders. Reforms which would have satisfied
\nand quieted ten years ago are now a mere straw upon a torrent.
\nSome day they must make up their minds to the inevitable and
\nfollow the example of rulers all over the world by conceding
\na popular constitution with whatever safeguards they choose
\nfor British interests and British sovereignty, and the earlier they
\ncan persuade themselves to concede it, the better terms they
\ncan make with the future. This has been the traditional policy
\nof England all over the world, and it has always been an evil
\nday for the Empire when statesmen have turned their backs
\non English traditions and adopted the blind impolicy of the Continental peoples. They have seen at Lahore and Hughly that
\nModeratism is a dead force impotent to help or to injure, that
\nwhatever the lips may profess, the hearts of the people are with
\nNationalism. Impolitic severity may transfer that allegiance to
\nthe militant revolutionism which is raising its head and thriving on the
\ncessation of all legitimate political activity. The Nationalist leaders will stand unswervingly by their ideals and policy,
\nbut they may prove as helpless hereafter as the Moderates are
\nin the face of the present situation.<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nPage-442<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nThe Anglo-Indian community, through its recognised organs, is now busy inflaming
\nhostility, hounding on the Government to farther ill-advised measures of repression and adding
\ndarkness to darkness and confusion to confusion. Statesmanship they never had, but even common sense has departed from
\nthem. The Indian people made a fair offer of peace and alliance
\nto them at the beginning of the movement by including goods
\nproduced in India through European enterprise and with European capital as genuine Swadeshi goods; but instead of securing
\ntheir future interests and position by standing in the forefront
\nof the political and industrial development of India, they have
\npreferred to study their momentary caste interest and oppose the
\nwelfare of the country to which they owe their prosperity. As a
\npunishment God has deprived them of reason. They are hacking
\nat the roots of British investment and industry in India by driving
\nblindly towards the creation of more unrest and anarchy in the
\ncountry. They are imperilling a future which can still be saved, by fanatical attachment to a past which is doomed. If they could
\nlook at politics with the eye either of the statesman or of the man
\nof business, they would see that neither their political nor their
\ncommercial interests can be served by a vain attempt to hold
\nthis vast country by pressing a mailed heel on the throats of the
\npeople. The pride of race, the arrogance of colour, a bastard mercantile
\nImperialism are poor substitutes for wisdom, statesmanship and common sense. Undoubtedly, they may induce the
\nGovernment to silence and suppress, to imprison and deport
\ntill all tongues are hushed and all organisations are abolished
\n\u2013except the voice of the bomb and the revolver, except the subterranean organisation that, like a suppressed disease, breaks
\nout the more you drive in its symptoms. Have they ever contemplated the possibility of that result of their endeavours -the possibility that their confusion of Nationalism with Terrorism
\nmay be ignorant and prejudiced, and that the measures they
\nadvocate may only destroy the one force that can now stand
\nbetween India and chaos?\n<\/p>\n

\nTo the people also we have a last word to say. We have
\nalways advocated open agitation, a manly aspiration towards<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nPage-443<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\nfreedom, a steady policy of independent, self-sustained action
\nand peaceful resistance to the repression of legitimate activities.
\nThat policy was only possible on condition of a certain amount
\nof self-restraint in repressive legislation by the Government,
\nand a great amount of courage, self-restraint, resolution and
\nself-sacrifice on the part of the people. It appears we cannot
\ncount on any of these conditions. The rise of a revolutionist
\nparty fanatically opposed alike to the continuance of the British
\nconnection and to peaceful development makes our policy yet
\nmore impossible. A triangular contest between violent revolution, peaceful Nationalist endeavour and bureaucratic reaction is an impossible position and would make chaos more chaotic.
\nAny action at the present moment would be ill-advised and possibly disastrous. The Government demands co-operation from
\nthe Moderates, silence from the Nationalists. Let us satisfy them
\nand let there be no action on our part which can be stigmatised
\nas embarrassing the authorities in their struggle with Terrorism.
\nThe self-restraint of our party after the conviction of Mr. Tilak
\nwas rewarded by the breakdown of Moderatism after it had
\nundisputed control of the press and platform for almost a year.
\nA similar self-restraint will be equally fruitful now. Revolution
\nparalyses our efforts to deal peacefully but effectively with Repression; Repression refuses to allow us to cut the ground from
\nunder the feet of Revolution. Both demand a clear field for their
\nconflict. Let us therefore stand aside, sure that Time will work
\nfor us in the future as it has done in the past, and that, if we
\nbear faithfully the burden of the ideal God has laid upon us, our
\nhour may be delayed, but not denied to us for ever.<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n

\nPage-444<\/font><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Necessity of the Situation   A VERY serious crisis has been induced in Indian politics by the revival of Terrorist outrages and the increasing…<\/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-2029","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\/2029","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=2029"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2029\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}