All surviving political writings and speeches from 1890 to 1908 including articles originally published in the nationalist newspaper 'Bande Mataram'.
All surviving political writings and speeches from 1890 to 1908. The two volumes consist primarily of 353 articles originally published in the nationalist newspaper 'Bande Mataram' between August 1906 and May 1908. Also included are political articles written by Sri Aurobindo before the start of 'Bande Mataram', speeches delivered by him between 1907 and 1908, articles from his manuscripts of that period that were not published in his lifetime, and an interview of 1908. Many of these writings were not prepared by Sri Aurobindo for publication; several were left in an unfinished state.
It is always useful to inquire into the inner psychology of common & vulgar types. Their very crudeness and coarseness is an advantage, because we see in them in the rough and laid bare to a surface analysis the secret motives which in the higher evolutions of the type are too self-conscious & self-concealing to be easily detected. It is not easy to detect at first the common Britishness, if we may be allowed the word, of two men so different, at such opposite poles of human evolution as Mr. John Morley, the litterateur, politician, philosopher & fine perfection of the most serious & sober British culture, and the vulgar Newmaniac, the loud, ranting, blustering, impudently lying Yahoo of Hare Street. And yet it is by understanding the Newmaniac that we shall best understand not only John Morley but his whole race and understand too that the policy which Morley accepted from the first to the wonder & dismay of his Indian worshippers, was the only policy he or any other Englishman could have accepted. It is the common Briton in each which forms the bond of sympathy between the Newmaniac & Mr. John Morley and makes them think so wonderfully alike. That is the only answer which we can give to the question why Englishmen professing to be just, beneficent & all that is noble & unique, have so readily accepted a mingled policy of brutal repression and false conciliation in India—because it is the nature of the beast. The Britisher may wish to be or at least to seem just, noble, generous, humane, beneficent; but what is the use? "To their nature all things at the last return, and what shall coercing it avail?"
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