THE SAINT WHO DOCUMENTED FACTS AND
IDEAS
Documenting facts as they are without any parochial, personal,
social, cultural, religious or ideological prejudice for posterity is one of
the greatest services
Facts are god’s way of telling the truth and make it understandable
for everyone
In that WILL DURANT is a great saint who documented history, philosophical
ideas and biographies of great minds and god blessed him with a great and
cooperative wife in ARIEL DURANT. He spent more than 50 years to write his
books after serious documentation and compiling in an age when the computers were
not there.
QUOTE:-
Book Review: The Case For India - Will Durant - 1930
The Case For India written by a famed American Historian, Will Durant scores
"This was not the destruction of a minor civilization produced by an
inferior people. It ranks with the highest civilizations of history, and some
would place it at the head and summit of all - like Keyserling.... when the British
cannons attacked.... the Hindus surrendered at once lest one of the most
beautiful creations of mankind be destroyed. Who, then, were the civilized
people? (The Hindus or The English?) The British conquest of India was the
destruction of a high civilization by a trading company utterly without scruple
or principal, overrunning with fire, sword, bribery, murder a country
temporarily disordered and helpless"
"India was a far greater industrial and manufacturing nation than any in
Europe or Asia, producing textile, Metal works, Jewelry, Precious Stones,
Pottery, Architecture. She had great merchants, businessmen, ship building -
nearly every kind of manufacture known to the civilized world was already in
India"
The book describes in graphic detail the atrocities of the so-called
"civilized" Britishers (refer definition below!!!!!) in the chapter
"The rape of a continent". The difference is that he has quoted
numbers and figures; unassailable facts and laws that graphically illustrate
the systematic destruction of all kinds of local enterprise. For example,
produce was taxed at 50%; the documented fact that tax rates were the highest in India across the world;
Sample this:
"The fundamental principle of the British has been to make the whole Indian
nation subservient... they have been taxed to the utmost limit; the Indians
have been denied every honor, dignity or office".... F J Shore testifying
to the house of commons in 1857
"Under their dependence on the British - Oudh and Karnatic, 2 of the
noblest provinces in India, were plunged into a state of wretchedness with
which no part of the Earth has anything to compare" - Lt Col Brigs, 1830
"The Governments' assessment does not even leave enough food for the
cultivator to feed his family" - Sir William Hunter, 1875
"The Rajahs had taxed the people much less severely than the British....
"
"The national debt of India rose from $35,000,000 in 1792 to
$3,500,000,000 in 1929. These figures tell the tale"
The book is littered with such graphic details - all taken from western and
primarily British sources. It examines how the economic fabric of the country
was destroyed, how for example its textile trade was wrecked; its impact on the
prosperity of the nation. It also examines the specious claims of education
improvement - there were more schools in India before the advent of the
civilized British; how the number of schools diminished and were discouraged;
It looks at the now-famous example of the British gift of railways - in the
USA, railways were used largely for goods transport, whereas in India their
function was for the imperial class travels; It examines how every activity of
the British - right down to the bullets used to suppress revolts were exacted
from Indians; It looks at the wages paid to Indians; It details tariffs of 80%
on Indian products as opposed to zero tariffs on British imports; "The
result was that Manchester and Paisley flourished and Indian industries
declined. India was transformed into a purely agricultural country, and her
mineral wealth was not explored; artisans etc were forced to live off the land;
no competition was to be allowed to English industries- Kohn". The book
looks at the balance of trade, which was heavily against India and gives
numbers - hard core numbers of the draining of wealth from what was one of the
richest and most civilized regions of Earth. It looks at how local schools were
destroyed by the British; it looks at British salaries and how the wealth from
India went to England through salaries and pensions - quoting hard core numbers
So far, the book has dealt with what is largely unknown to us. From here, the
book moves into familiar territory, and examines the powers of the so-called
democratic institutions - the limited vote-bank; the powers of the British
viceroy / governors etc to overrule the local bodies; how the local
"elected" bodies had no powers; It looks at the divide and rule
policy of the British, with separate voting for each community -issues which
have been beautifully examined by Jaswant Singh, Bipin Chandra in their books,
so I shall not dwell much on that point.
Then there is the chapter of Mahatma Gandhi, which first gives a biography of
his life till 1930; But even here you find priceless tit-bits: "the British
connection has made India more helpless... politically and economically... no
jugglery of figures can explain away the evidence of the skeletons in many
villages... I have no doubt that England and the towns of India will have to
answer ... if there is a God above, for this crime against humanity which is
perhaps unparalleled in history - Mahatma Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi"
Then it goes on to detail in horrific stomach-turning detail the atrocities:
"Hindus to crawl on their bellies in the street"; school-boys flogged
in public; prisoners bound with ropes and kept in open trucks for 15 hours;
poured lime on naked bodies; cut off electric supplies to Hindu houses;
airplanes to drop bombs on laborers; The perpetrator of this very civilized,
decent, morally consistent, gentle behavior was retired on a pension;
exonerated; public supporters- all civilized, no doubt - raised $150000 as
support... "There was not one bullet wound in the back - each bullet had
struck home in the chest; not one Indian ran; there was passive submission in
the highest forms of non-violence"... The brutal, inhuman retaliation of
the British, for which they would very likely have been hanged in their own
country, made the passive resistance movement one of the bravest, most active
forms of struggle - a struggle unlike any other anywhere on Earth.
"I felt my skin creep and my hair stand on end as I saw those brave men...
testicles crushed... body battered and broken... chest battered... every one
whom I talked to gave the same stories of fiendish beating, torturing,
thrusting lathi in anus, dragging.... what has become of the English Honour...
English Justice - Miss Madeline Slade"
A book that is a must read for all Indians...
(Just to remind ourselves as to what being civilized means:)
civ·i·lized (sv-lzd)
Having a highly developed society and culture.; Showing evidence of moral and
intellectual advancement; humane, ethical, and reasonable; Marked by refinement
in taste and manners; cultured; polished.
civilization
Pronunciation: /ˌsɪvɪlʌɪˈzeɪʃ(ə)n/
(also civilisation)
the stage of human social development and organization which is considered most
advanced;
the process by which a society or place reaches an advanced stage of social
development and organization.;
This book systematically de-constructs all arguments in favor of colonial rule
and its advantages. First, India was formed by the British: let us qualify that
statement - India was formed as a response to the brutality of the British (in
fact, a cursory glance at Indian history - and world history - will reveal that
India has been under one rule at least 4-6 times for long periods, and has
flourished); Education: there was better educational set-up before the British
- and modern education would have come anyway (it should be remembered that
India was a massive power with trade links to the entire world - hence simple
logic dictates that eventually, modern techniques and methods would have come
to our borders!) just as smelting, musket making, and various other techniques
found their way to our nation. It similarly destroys all supposed advantages
and exposes the morally corrupt nature of the Raj, which in its nature was the
very antithesis of the claims to civilization that were professed by its
practitioners.
And lastly, this book brings home the fact that among all the ancient
civilizations, the Indian civilization stands as the only civilization to have
survived all through history - virtually unchanged. We were there during
Babylon, we were there during the time of the Greeks, we were there when Rome
was at its height, we were there when Europe was rising... and today, we are
still present... with the same culture, same ethos, worshipping the same Gods
as we used to 3500 - 5000 years ago, eating virtually the same kind of food...
virtually unchanged. We are indebted to the pain of our forefathers, the
tortures they bore, the indignities they went through - just so we, their
children, could breathe free and with pride, justifiable pride in order that a
new, modern India can be built. We owe it to them to make India truly modern,
forward looking and progressive, strong - economically, socially and
militarily. It is a book that will shake you to the core, brings tears to your
eyes and leave you speechless. No wonder, then, that this book had been banned
in the UK!
11th February
An internet interaction with a gentleman of opposite views has just made me realize
how bad our history education has been... people- Indians - just do not realize
what British rule meant; and actually regard it as a boon! I wonder what they
will say to the sacrifices of Gandhiji, Bhagat Singh, Subhash Chandra Bose, Bal
Gangadhar Tilak etc! Not only that, they are laying all the blame on Indian
shoulders - and pointing to the current rampant corruption as evidence, totally
ignoring the advances we have made since Independence in every sphere of life -
take the example of Famines - all they have to do is compare famines before and
after Independence! I am heartened by one fact, though - I have met a large
number of Indians with views similar to mine, and with knowledge of our past
that is much better than mine. Sometimes I wish we could make the British
return the Koh-i-noor, ask them to apologize for their deeds (which they have
never done - and some nations have done for their misdeeds) and so on and so
forth. Then I remember my teachings - forgive and move on. But forgive does not
mean forget!
