{"id":2858,"date":"2013-07-13T01:44:13","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:44:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=2858"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:44:13","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:44:13","slug":"31-bande-mataram-20-9-06-vol-06-07-bande-mataram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/03-cwsa\/06-07-bande-mataram\/31-bande-mataram-20-9-06-vol-06-07-bande-mataram","title":{"rendered":"-31_Bande Mataram 20-9-06.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tBande Mataram
\n\t<\/font><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t{ CALCUTTA, September
\n\t20th, 1906 }<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tBy the Way
\n<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tThe Statesman <\/i>and the Indian Mirror <\/i>appear to have entered into a Holy Alliance for the suppression of the extremists. The
\nbasis of this great political combination seems to be mutual admiration of the most effusive and affectionate kind.
\nMirror<\/i>
\nassures Statesman <\/i>that he is a noble Anglo-Indian and a true and tried Friend of India;
\nStatesman <\/i>quotes Mirror<\/i>‘s solemn
\nlucubrations by the yard. It only needs the Hindu Patriot <\/i>to join the league and complete the Triple Alliance. An Anglo-Indian
\npaper, a Government journal masking under the disguise of an Indian daily, and the exponent of the most pale and watery
\nschool of “patriotism”, would make a beautiful symphony in whites and greys. Such an alliance is most desirable: it would be
\na thing of artistic beauty and a joy for ever\u2014 and it would not hurt the new party.
\n\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t*<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tWe were a little surprised to find the Bengalee <\/i>lending itself to
\nthe campaign. It chooses to insinuate that while the methods of the old party are extremely proper, sober and legal, those
\nof the new party are outside the bounds of the law. In what respect, pray? We advocate boycott and picketing, but that is
\na gospel of which Babu Surendranath Banerji has constituted himself in the past the chief
\npanda<\/i>. We advocate abstention
\nfrom Legislative Councils and other Government bodies, but so do the old leaders strongly recommend it\u2014 to East Bengal. We
\nadvocate the assertion by the people of their right to carry on the agitation in every lawful way,\u2014 but so did the old leaders
\nat Barisal. We advocate abstention from all association with the   
\n\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\tPage \u2013 178<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t<\/i>
\n\tGovernment, but such abstention has not yet been forbidden by
\nlaw. We advocate the substitution of Indian agency and Indian energy in every department of life for our old state of dependency
\non foreign agency and energy. We advocate an organised system of self-development guided by a Council with regard to Bengal
\nand an open democratic constitution for the Congress instead of the secret unconstitutional manipulations of a few leaders.
\nWe advocate finally, autonomy as the ideal and goal of our endeavours. Where is the illegality, if you please?
\n\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t* <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tTo listen to these excited people one would imagine we were
\ncalling on the teeming millions of India to rise in their wrath, fall upon the noble Anglo-Indian friends of the
\nMirror <\/i>and with
\nteeth, nails and claws drive them pell-mell into the Indian Ocean. All these imputations have, of course, a definite object and the
\nexcitement is a calculated passion. On one side to discredit our party with the timid and cautious, on the other to draw the attention of the bureaucracy and secure for us free lodgings from a paternal Government, seems to be the objective. Of neither
\ncontingency are we afraid; the new policy is not for those who tremble or who prefer their own safety and ease to the service
\nof their country, and the fear of the Government we renounced long ago and have forgotten what it means. It is no use trying to
\nawaken that dead feeling in our nature. We shall go on our way steadily and persistently, careless of defeat or victory, indifferent
\nto attack or suffering, until we have built up such a nucleus of force and courage in India as will compel both moderate and
\nofficial to yield to the demands of the people. But always within the bounds of the law, if you please, our friend of Colootola. We
\nare a law-abiding people, even when we are extremists. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t*
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\tWe have been severely attacked more than once for splitting up the country into two factions and thus marring the majestic
\nunity of the national movement. We have already given our answer to that charge. Already before the Swadeshi movement
\n    <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\tPage \u2013 179<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\n\tthe divergence of ideals had begun to declare itself and in several
\nparts of India strong sections had grown up who were already dissatisfied with mendicancy and with the haphazard formation
\nand methods of the Congress. Until recently the only course which seemed left to men of this persuasion was to hold entirely
\naloof from the Congress or else to attend it without taking any prominent part in its deliberations. But at the present time the
\naspect of things has greatly changed. The party predominates in the Deccan, is extremely strong in the Punjab and a force
\nto be reckoned with in Bengal. It numbers among its leaders and adherents many men of ability, energy and culture, some
\nof whom have done good service in the past and others are obviously among the chief workers of the future. They have a
\ndefinite ideal which is not the ideal of the older leaders and definite methods by which they hope to arrive at their ideal. It is
\nidle to expect that a party so constituted will any longer consent to be excluded from political life or from the deliberations of
\nthe Congress through which it may exercise a general influence over the country. The old party is anxious that we should take
\nup the position of an insignificant “extremist” party, tolerated perhaps and sometimes made use of to frighten the Government
\ninto concessions, but not recognised. “Exist, if you please, but do not interfere with or oppose us,” is their cry, “and do not
\ntry to assert yourselves in the Congress.” Such a demand is ridiculous in the extreme. When there is a definite difference as
\nto ideals and methods, it is too much to expect of any growing party that it shall not use every means to educate the people to
\ntheir views and organise such opinion as has declared itself on their side. Nor is it reasonable to demand a considerable part
\nof the educated community to banish itself from Congress or only attend as a mute and inert element. If the Congress is really
\na national body, it must admit all opinions and give them free facility for expressing their views and urging their measures. If,
\non the other hand, it is merely a gathering of moderates, it has no right to pose as a national body. The argument usually urged that
\nthe Congress has been built up by a certain class of people and with certain ideas and that therefore it should remain in the same
\n    <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\tPage \u2013 180<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t<\/i>hands and under the domination of the same ideas, is one which
\nhas no value whatever, unless we are to accept the Congress merely as a society for the cultivation of good relations with
\nthe Government. If it is a national assembly, it must answer to changes of national feeling and progress with the progress of the
\nnation. We shall therefore persist in disseminating our ideas with the utmost energy of which we are capable and in organising the
\nopinion of the country wherever we have turned it in the desired direction, for action and for the prevalence of our ideals. The
\nonly question that remains, is the question of united action. It is certainly desirable, if it can be brought about, that the action of
\nthe whole country in certain important matters should be united. But the very first condition of such unity is that all important
\nsections of opinion should have the chance of expressing its views and championing its own proposals, before the united
\naction to be taken is decided by a majority. It is for this reason that we demand an elective constitution and a Council honestly
\nrepresenting all sections, so that real unity may be possible and not the false unity which is all the old party clamours for. Their
\nplan for united action is simply to boycott the new party and impose silence on it under penalty of “suppression”. So long as
\nthey persist in that spirit, united action will remain impossible.   
\n\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\tPage \u2013 181<\/font><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bande Mataram { CALCUTTA, September 20th, 1906 }   By the Way   The Statesman and the Indian Mirror appear to have entered into a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2858","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-06-07-bande-mataram","wpcat-54-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2858","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=2858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2858\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}