…………..he that laboureth right for love of Me
Shall finally attain! But, if in this
Thy faint heart fails, bring Me thy failure!
It
is now a year since India declared herself a Republic. Her continued membership
of the Commonwealth has not restricted her freedom of action in the
international sphere. In fact it has enabled her, in association with Britain
and some other Commonwealth countries, to playa vital role as peace-maker.
Having no plans of aggression, and supremely anxious to preserve the just
rights of all peoples, East or West of her, India is in a position to influence
the views of the main parties to any conflict. She is not claiming the
leadership of Asia, but that distinction will be hers by virtue of her
persistent efforts to bring New China into the United Nations. India’s refusal
to align herself with America or Russia has cast on her the burden of finding a
peaceful solution of the Far-Eastern problem. The Arab Asian plan of an
exploratory conference of seven Powers including Communist China may be the key
to “this door of opportunity in search of peace”, in Pandit Nehru’s expressive
phrase. America’s insistence, even at this late hour, that China should be branded
as ‘aggressor’ can only bar the way to peace. To plead, as America is doing at
Lake Success, that the naming of the aggressor can be followed by negotiations
for a peaceful settlement of the conflict is to miss the significance of the
crisis. If America had recognised the People’s Government of
China and given it its legitimate place in the United Nations Organisation, the
shape of things might have been different. But at the moment,
the Political Committee is torn between the divergent views of the group
supporting America and the group urging, through B. N. Rau, the necessity of an
intimate conference at a round table, instead of long-range exchanges of notes.
The first anniversary of the Republic India has been rendered memorable by the
part played by the Indian delegation.
At
home, the joy of the Republic Day Celebrations has been marred by the recent
passing away of one of the major architects of our freedom. Friend and trusted
lieutenant of Gandhiji, Sardar Patel worked incessantly for the consolidation
of the Indian Union through the integration of its units–the erstwhile
Provinces and Indian States. Firmness of purpose, allied to tact and skill in
the management of men, enabled the Sardar to achieve in two brief years what
lesser men could not have achieved in decades. It is true that he loved power,
whether in the Congress or in the Government. It is true too that he showed no
mercy to colleagues in the freedom-struggle who dared to oppose his will:
Khare, Nariman, Subhas Bose, Bhulabhai Desai are names that occur to one’s
memory in this context. But the Sardar was singularly impersonal in his
actions, and always strove for what he deemed to be in the nation’s interest.
He protected the infant Republic as its vigilant guardian. India mourns his loss,
and will always cherish the example of a great life spent in the nation’s
service.
The
problems confronting the Republic are many and complex. Kashmir continues to be
a cause of discord between India and Pakistan. The evacuees from across our
borders have not yet been properly provided for. Shortage of foodgrains may
precipitate famine conditions over large areas. Freedom has not brought to the
common man the satisfaction of his primary needs. It has not even ensured
reasonably efficient administration. To add to our troubles, the Congress Party
which controls the Governments at the Centre and in all the States is a prey to
internal strife. The Prime Minister is seeking to restore unity in the ranks of
the Party, and to establish a friendly understanding with other parties by
means of an all-party conference. Incidentally, he has delayed the threatened
action against dissident groups like the Democratic Front. But before the
Congress can regain its old place in the affections of the people, it has to purify
itself and exalt the ideal of service. And the yawning gulf between profession
and practice must be bridged.
It
is hard to realise that Sri Aurobindo is no more. How could the Light of all
lights be extinguished! To those who drew inspiration from his message of the
divinisation of man, Sri Aurobindo was the symbol of Eternity. He was prophet,
poet, and seer. Not by the slow process of a progressive evolution, but the
revolutionary effort of dedicated spirits was humanity to attain the status of
the Divine. The Vision that burst upon him in his prison cell in 1906 was to be
transformed into Reality. And so, he pursued the Path of utter consecration of
body, mind and spirit to the loftiest of ends. He belonged to all lands and to
all ages. Innumerable men and omen sought to shape their lives after the
pattern glimpsed by him, though it was given only to a few to share his Vision.
He preached no Cult, founded no Religion. He was himself the Master-Mind into
whom all cults were absorbed. He was the fulfilment of the dreams all the
founders of religions. In him, the world saw the synthesis between Matter and
Spirit, between Past, Present and Future, between Love, Wisdom and Power.
We
are too close to him in point of time to grasp the immensity of his
achievement. At a critical moment in the life of humanity, Sri Aurobindo became
the vehicle for the transmission of that Energy which enables man to pass the
Gateless Barrier. His beneficence and grace will always enrich the
consciousness of men seeking the light.
From
small beginnings, Sri Rukmini Devi’s art-centre at Adyar –the Kala-Kshetra–has
grown into an institution of all-India importance. Dance and music, sculpture
and painting, find a congenial atmosphere in those sylvan surroundings. The
mind and the emotions of the young votaries of art are here trained with the
utmost care, so that the spirit of beauty unfolds itself and becomes the means
of self-expression for the individual and the group. It is significant that about
the same time that Triveni came into being as a journal of Art and
Letters, interpreting the cultural renaissance in India, a band of music-lovers
organised the Music Academy in Madras, and Dr. James H. Cousins, Sri Rukmini
Devi and other choice spirits founded the International Academy of Arts which
some years later transformed into the Kala-Kshetra. Indian music and dance had
fallen on evil days and Bharata Natya was imagined to be an accomplishment
‘proper’ only to courtesans. With something of a shock, the public of South
India learnt that a cultured and well-born lady like Sri Rukmini Devi actually
learnt to dance. It needed great perseverance on her part to convince Society
that music and dance were the acomplishments of ancient Indian princesses like
Uttara and Malavika. The great Pandava warrior, Arjuna, was a teacher of
dancing. Why, the Lord Siva was ‘Nata-Raja’–the Master of Dance. She collected
pupils, engaged distinguished exponents of the arts of music and dance to train
them, inspired everyone with her own zeal, and gave public performances of pure
dance and dance dramas. But if institutions are to thrive, funds must be
collected and budgets balanced. The dance-recitals of Sri Rukmini Devi and her
pupils brought in some money, but the expanding needs of the various
departments of the Kala-Kshetra,–including artistic handicrafts like the
weaving of dhotis and sarees of exquisite design–had to be met.
The period of struggle and anxiety is almost over. The Central and State
Governments have begun to help. Freed from financial worries, the organisers
can concentrate their attention on the task ahead,–the shaping of the
Kala-Kshetra as a University of Fine Arts, with affiliated institutions in
important towns all over South India. Sri Rukmini Devi is a believer in the
maintenance of the classic tradition in all the arts. Spontaneity and
individual invention are valuable, but these must grow out of the mastery of
the ancient technique. Modern India is greatly indebted to the organisers of
the Kala-Kshetra for their pioneering work in the realm of Art.
Translating the
Constitution
In
accordance with the wishes of the Constituent Assembly, the new
Constitution of India was translated into Hindi and published under the
authority of the President of the Republic. Translations into
other Indian languages are now in progress. Special Committees are at work in
the capitals of the different States of the Union; the State Governments are
primarily responsible for the efficient functioning of the Committees, subject,
however, to the instructions issued by the Parliament Secretariat from New
Delhi. As regards the South Indian languages, the Governments of
Travancore-Cochin and Mysore are in charge of the translations into Malayalam
and Kannada and the Government of Madras is in charge of Tamil and Telugu. As a
preliminary measure, a conference of language experts was held at Delhi,
representing every linguistic area. The conference agreed upon a list of
“all-India equivalents” for the many legal and constitutional terms occurring
in the English text of the Constitution. The list is by no means an ideal one,
but it is the best that could be evolved under the circumstances. The terms
current in the different Indian languages are not enough for the proper
expression of the intricate ideas conveyed through a modern constitution. In
several cases, the experts had to use such Sanskrit words as were available, or
coin new words from Sanskrit roots. They also found that the same Sanskrit word
was being used in different senses. While the Special Committees engaged in
translating the Constitution are required to use the all-India equivalents as a
general rule, they have been given the option to discard any term that is
unsuitable or likely to mislead. But in such cases, the all-India term has to
be indicated in a foot-note, so that in. course of time it may become familiar
to people in that language area. A uniform terminology may thus be possible of
achievement, by the time that the administration of the country is carried on in
the Indian languages. There are several terms in the English text for which no
all-India equivalents have been given. The Committees have to find suitable
words, drawing upon the popular terminology or resorting to Sanskrit roots.
While ensuring accuracy, the latter method is likely to introduce an element of
unintelligibility. The difficulty is common to all Indian languages, but it is
greater in the case of the languages of South India, particularly Tamil which
employs a smaller percentage of Sanskrit words than the others.
Despite
the complexity of the task, it is an exceedingly interesting one. For the first
time millions of citizens in a Democratic Republic have to cast their votes
under a system of universal suffrage. The education of the electorate in the
first principles of the new Constitution necessarily implies the existence of
authorized translations of that important document. The Parliament Secretariat
addressed itself to this stupendous business of simultaneous translation into
fourteen languages. When the labours of the Committees are over within the next
few months, the public will be in a position to evaluate those labours. The
close association of lawyers and linguists on every Committee, is a feature of
importance; the form as well the content of the translations will be
satisfactory. But no translation can be understood thoroughly without an
occasional reference to the original text in English. Annotations and
commentaries may also be needed. But that applies to the English text as well.
When
one is on the wrong side of fifty-five, the tendency to look back becomes very
pronounced. As friend after friend is snatched away, the desire is to cling to
the few that are left. It is always a narrowing circle, for, new friendships
are hard to forge; and they can never make up for the loss of those whom you
have loved for half-a-century, for as long as memory can stretch. Being put to
school is the first important experience in life, and you always remember your
playmates at school. But they drop out of your life and go their own ways. Even
if you meet them later, they are no
better than chance acquaintances. Of how few of our friends of childhood days
can we say, “He was my friend fifty years ago; he is today dearer than ever
before.” Two or three, if even that. It was one of that little group. Udayagiri
Narayana Rao, who passed away suddenly in Madras, on the 5th of this month,
during my very brief absence from the City. He was a keen businessman, but
greatly interested in the fine arts. He was a connoisseur, and loved to
surround himself with objects of art. He had a genius for friendship; artists
and poets were always welcome to partake of his lavish hospitality. To me, he
was one of the few precious links with the days of a childhood so remote yet so
vivid in its memories. We were sons of prosperous lawyers in a small town and
the very smallness of the town made for the intimacy of what were termed family
friendships. During the twenty odd years in which I have been editing Triveni,
Narayana Rao made it his special job, as Chandrasekharan, Gopala Reddi and
Govindrajachari did at different periods, to raise donations for the journal.
But he took care to tell me, “Any day, the Editor is more dear to me than the
journal!”
* January 26