DISCOURSES (From Second Part) Sri Sri Thakur’s Conversation with Two Leaders of Assam Compiled and Translated by Shri Prafulla Kumar Das, M.A., (Prati-Ritwik) Saturday, August 4, 1945 (Ist phase) Shri Gopinath Bordoloi, Ex-Chief Minister of Assam, and the Hon. Rohini Kumar Choudhury came to Central Satsang, Pabna from Calcutta by Assam Mail today. They put up at Pramathda’s house. They went there, took rest for a while, and then they went to Thakur. Thakur was seated on a bedstead near the embankment of the River Padma. It was the rainy season, and the water was flowing past the embankment with a soft and sonorous splashing sound. They came and took their seats on chairs beside Sri Sri Thakur. I came after they did ; so I don’t know what conversation took place before I came. It was night time of the dark fortnight. Thakur said, “It is not convenient to talk if the face is not visible.” So the light was put on. Kestoda, Panchananda, Chakrapanida, Pramathda’s, I and others were present. Shri Bordoloi raised topics on Dharma and Politics. Thakur said, “Dharma is such a thing that nothing other than Dharma can be Dharma ; so it is called a science. The cuckoo of England, of the Sahara, or of any place utters the cry ‘coo,’ if it is a cuckoo at all. Dharma is everywhere one and the same, and Dharma is all. You will find in the Philosophy of Sri Krishna that He has spoken of all-inclusive Dharma alone. He has not spoken separately of politics, as something divorced from Dharma. Politics is an integral part of Dharma. Politics normally evolves where there arises a big crystallized community of people centering around Dharma and its living embodiment. Then the slogan becomes spontaneous, ‘We take shelter of Buddha, we take shelter of Dharma, we take shelter of holy organization.’ In this way Dharma naturally includes Politics.” Then came the theme of non-violence. Thakur paused and then replied emphatically,”Non-violence necessarily presupposes violence to violence. You cannot establish non-violence by allowing violence to remain unhampered and undisturbed. To be non-violent to violence is to nurture violence by indulgence.” Shri Bordoloi brought up the problem of tribes in Assam. He referred especially to their separatist tendencies. Sri Sri Thakur said, “We must spread among them through the channel of Dharma ; we must serve them, we must build institution for them suiting their needs and give them power befitting their ability. Then they will feel us as their own and will try with us to make the entire society powerful.” Thakur went on spontaneously, “there are two aspects in Dharma ; one divine ; the other, discrete. That which is divine is eternal, universal and invariable ; there is no change in it. But the discrete changes according to time, place and circumstance. For example, it is necessary to take many chillies in one’s diet in Madras. But taking so many chillies here will bring dysentery. There are some cold places where the smoking of hemp (ganja) may be needed for one’s health ; so there is Dharma to smoke hemp. But it will not hold good everywhere. In emergencies there is also the provision for taking beef ; but if out of lust we introduce it everywhere---indiscriminately—then Dharma or scripture cannot be blamed for the mischief. If we disregard moral law, nature will have its own reaction. Do we care to obey scripture ? Say, for example, there is definite mention in the Koran that the blood and flesh of creatures do not reach Allah, but in actual practice just the opposite thing is observed in the name of Dharma. There can be no difference among true Hindus, true Muslims and true Christians. If there is difference, there is no Dharma. At least, some deviation or disorder has crept in somewhere. This is the plain fact I know ; I am not a learned man.” [To be Continued..........]
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 18:57:25 +0000
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