BY ABDUL WAHAB

It has been well observed that, with the inauguration of the Reforms, there has been a marked rise in communal bitterness. That is at once a strong argument for the continuance of the British control and a strong proof of the skin-deep nature of Indian nationalism. One thing anyway has been proved, that, except to the very few, the idea of India as a nation, having a prospect as such, has no appeal. The problem may be solved by means of a balanced outlook, but unfortunately that is exactly the attitude which the majority refuse to take. One piece of transgression is paid for by another of a similar nature, and so the cycle is kept on moving.

Sir William Orpen, commenting on the art of that glittering period of French history which preceded the French Revolution, remarked that "they were so full of culture that there was little room for humanity." We also have done away with that precious article of life. All on a sudden we have developed such inordinate fondness for what is our own, that this purely natural leaning cannot be satisfied unless it be appeased by an attack on others, which it may be laid down is going beyond our legitimate bounds. There have been a series of political utterances by leaders on both sides which are amazing for their lack of the human touch. One could quote them. But this is a lament and not a fault-finding scheme. Not only is this a lament but an attempt to think rationally, brought about by the realisation of the fact that to lay the blame on any shoulder would be failure to grasp the totality. This procedure of thought anyway is advocated for those desirous of impartiality. Indeed so senseless have been the acts of some that one has the suspicion of conscious partiality and deliberate design behind communal moves.

A contention which we find often translated into practice is that the real struggle between Hindus and Muslims is one for Dal Bhat, and that the Services represent that priceless commodity. This is certainly a narrowing down of the sphere of struggle, and it is this limited world of competition which makes it unhealthy, and leaves the more enterprising community to advance in other more profitable fields. An open and honest competition there must be, but on the narrow issue of Services never. The struggle for Services is unhealthy because these lie in the gift of others and hence lead to the adoption by all of all sorts of means to gain their favour, and it need not be added that this demoralises "both him that gives and him that takes." The struggle in the other spheres is certainly healthy, since success in the Industries, Business and Finance, etc., does not lie in the gift of anybody, and the best men go to the top. This is atleast true in the majority of cases. Moreover, a little thoughtful reflection would make us see the folly of fighting on the issue of Services and of regarding Government Services of these days as representative of power and prosperity. A struggle on this issue would be energy dissipated. The standards of one age are seldom the true criteria of another. As a means to getting an entry into the world it has the solitary attribute of being the orthodox path. Service as a road to prosperity was good during the last decade, and was still more so during the days of John Co. What attracts people in India to this lies in the fact that it has been the peculiar fate of India that those who saw the new light here saw it through Government Service. One enterprising member of any family got western education and grew prosperous. His sons in turn also were educated, and were in turn immediately employed, there having been very few men in those days with the necessary qualifications. And thus the torch of learning (if we may call it so) and the wheel of prosperity came to abide. And it is mainly this economic reason which has resulted in this unthinking worship. And the national imagination has wholly been captured by its lure The Indian mother even today croons her baby to sleep on a lullaby which pictures it as a high official. Little does she, poor soul, realise that times have changed; and there is a writing on the wall for those who refuse to change with the times. The masses, at once surging and clamorous, are insistent on having their claims heard. New fields of livelihood and vastly more profitable ones are being thrown oopen for all to exploit, while you sit dreaming in a new world about old times and are satisfied with a job with its miserably reduced cadres and, one may add, its greatly lessened prestige. For with the rise of the masses and a growing political consciousness, bureaucracy can do very little and help still less. In times not far off, only that community will rule which has the majority of its units distributed equally in the Industries and in the liberal professions. Of course a backward community must be allowed discrimination in its favour in the Services in order to help its progress, for the present, by the same path by which another community rose, though under more favourable and different surroundings. But it must again be noted here that mere Services cannot in the present state help much in the raising; all that these can do is to give a start. The community which only confines its attention to jobs is doomed. Because, while the lucky few would be at their jobs, the job-holders along with the rank and file of the said community would be exploited by the Industries and the professions of which other people are masters. Let us take a practical example. Fifty people of a certain community get some jobs. They are jubilant that triumph has been gained. In the course of their service they would naturally insure their lives. The gain would naturally go to other people, since the Insurance Companies are not theirs. The Burra Sahib would certainly buy clothes: these again would certainly come from the mills of other people. The human creature would sometimes fall sick. The best doctors are people of another community. Summing the whole up, they have served their whole lives to pour money into the pockets of others. This example would serve to show people the folly of fighting on the issue pf jobs which after all can provide only for the few. What about the masses, who along with the Service-holders would be exploited in the manner indicated above? If any community would like to rise, let it not try for the Services but attempt to get a footing in the other spheres as well, which are rapidly being opened up. For India is in the melting pot.

But there is another reason why representation in the Services is so much sought after. That is for the sake of impartiality in the administration, lapses from which are sadly evident. The caption, "Wanted a European officer to deal with the situation," is a slap on the face of India. But here, only an advanced intellectualism can save the situation. The heart and the intellect must be brought into play to create proper understanding. In India there are yet a few people ready to judge by the neutrality of learning. Such people, who are deeply imbued with the realisation and knowledge of the heritage of all, must unite, though few be their number, and be prepared to lay down their all and give of their best to this cause. Speaking in the language of proverbs, the "ink of the scholar" and the "blood of the martyr" must come from one and the same man. They must, backed by their learning and the prestige it brings, tour the country, delivering lectures, pointing out the beauties and verities of each culture. And let everybody know that, when one attacks people not one’s own, one attacks the product of the genius of a race. It is, indirectly though, a fling at the Godhead. The whole object of this campaign should be to create a powerful intelligentsia to whom the cardinal sin would be intolerance, and reason the best sentiment. All the resources of the land must be drained for this purpose, and all the subtle means of propaganda, the press, the platform, and the film industry, must be utilised, diverted as much as is necessary for this common end. It is no luxury, it is a necessity of the times, rendered imperative by the signs of the times. One must further add that along with this propaganda, the mind of the young and the impressionable must be taught to think rationally. And this is to be achieved by means of reformed University curricula and by scholarships affording opportunities for, and at times by compelling, study and enquiry into the ways and cultures of others. Herein is reiterated the belief as to the cause of all this trouble. In our case prejudice is the primal sin, and reason the best virtue. And an exercise of the latter is an act of faith. It is tolerance that is wanted, more than anything else.

No Indian leader would deny that India must take her place in the ordered march of true civilisation. But most men are acting in such a way as to make this impossible. In order to fall in line with the other great nations, India must develop her individual genius, and the first pre-requisite for this advancement is freedom, within the British Empire or without, the former to be favoured so long as it gives proper scope. Minus freedom, the nation becomes temperamental. The sense of subordination is always present and results in a squeamish tendency on all matters relating to the nation. The result is that, while a certain section of the people imitate their masters too abjectly, others run away from what is good in the masters too hurriedly. That rare blending which boldly takes what belongs to others, at the same time fashioning the whole on the rhythm of the individual song, is absent. On the other hand, when the sense of nationalism is aroused, it is aggressive in its expression even in minor details, hoping thereby to win by trifles what they have lost by the sword. Not only is the result of this mental attitude pernicious, but it also results in an appalling waste of national energy.

BACK