Paul Birukoff

“ The substance of religion, as Tolstoy had always faintly conceived it, was the relation of man to the fundamental principle of the universe; this relation, and his unity with it, produced in man the conviction of indestructibility, and belief in immortality. Without this belief, life, with the eternal dread of death, would be terribly absurd—even worse than annihilation itself. The conceptions which led to this belief in immortality were love, self-sacrifice, service to others, to the world, to God—generally, the sacrifice of the ego and devotion to humanity. ”

“ Hence the void which Communist doctrine cannot fill produces a spiritual thirst which they cannot quench; and the political pamphlets spread broadcast by the Party in power are not enough to satisfy the people. It is all very well to wave flags on which are written the great words, Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, Justice, and so forth. The people knew too well that they have been carved on the buildings of a neighbouring republic, and that they failed to lead the nation towards a moral end. ”

“ On this spot, according to Leo Tolstoy, his brother Nicolas had buried the imaginary green wand on which was inscribed the way to make men happy. With contented, happy thoughts the great teacher of life had passed into eternity, and beside that symbol of universal happiness he had desired to be buried.
When the body was lowered into the grave the people again knelt and, in deep silence, thousands of heads were bent in prayer. In the solemn hush, the thud of the frozen earth thrown on the lowered coffin was heard. ”

“ Everywhere that the counter-revolution was triumphant, unheard of cruelties were perpetrated. Every government which is in course of setting up a new regime acts by terror, and liberal reforms come only when the people begin to get accustomed to being afraid. It is in just the same way that savage beasts are made gentle and docile, tamed by the red steel. The tamer is then able to embrace them in the cage, and the public is astonished at the friendly relations between man and lion.
Before my departure from Moscow I read in a Soviet journal an article headed "The End of the Terror." ”

“ Tolstoy defines the conditions under which a man’s regeneration to a new life begins. Every conscious man must observe that in his endeavour to acquire personal happiness he finds himself in direct conflict with those around him, who are also struggling for happiness, and this strife gives him no rest—even poisons his efforts for well-being. Besides, if man succeeds in snatching a particle of happiness, it ceases very soon to satisfy him, because he understands its illusory character. ”

“ Nevertheless we look upon the Communist institutions of Soviet Russia as an accomplished fact, and we believe that we can collaborate in the free education of the people in Communist ideals.
We understand by Communism the recognition of the duty to work and the guarantee of material existence. The abolition of that awful anxiety with regard to material needs in the life of each individual would be without doubt an enormous step forward, and this may indeed be realised. There is no doubt that the luxurious life which the possessing class lives at present cannot be guaranteed to all. ”

“ Intending to write a story of a society lady who had left her husband, Tolstoy chose as a motto the biblical saying, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay,” with the intention of explaining the fundamental idea of the story as that people have no right to judge others—that judgment belongs to the Creator of the laws governing the existence of humanity. For human relations there is but one law: that of mercy. Among all the literary critics, only the novelist Dostoevsky understood “Anna Karenin” in this sense. ”

“ Now, therefore, the people are turning towards the man who has been for a long time looked up to as expressing the consciousness of humanity—Leo Tolstoi. What a deep antagonism between the doctrine of love and non-resistance and the doctrine of violence and terror and dictatorship! And yet Tolstoism plays a leading part in Russia to-day, and the dictators tolerate the followers of the great apostle, and even given them a certain preferential treatment as compared with the members of other parties and movements. ”

“ But especially, like the Hindus who at the age of sixty retire to the forests, like every religious old man desires to devote the last years of his life to God, and not to jokes, games, gossip, or tennis, so I, reaching my seventieth year, with all the strength of my soul am seeking rest, isolation, and, if not absolute harmony, at least not a crying contradiction of my life with my convictions and conscience. ”

“ There is one other aspect of the present system which wins our sympathy, and that is the recognition of the workers' rights, which formally did not exist at all. The capitalist system must resign its power, in the name of Eternal Justice. We turn towards the two parties that are struggling with each other and speak these words of reconciliation. We should like to say to the workers: "You are right. You are the creators of the world, but in order to attain and preserve your supremacy, do not revenge yourselves on your oppressors." ”

“ The ideal of the ant brethren clinging lovingly together, not under two chairs covered by handkerchiefs, but under the wide, blue vault of heaven and embracing all mankind, has remained. As I believed then in the existence of a green stick on which was written the secret which would do away with all evil in humanity and give great happiness, so I believe now that there exists such a truth ”

“ The Government distinguished three classes of peasants, the poor, the moderately well-to-do and the rich. At first it tried to base its support on the poor element, but the attempt was not successful. The poor element, the proletariat, is not held in great esteem in the country. In order to live decently a peasant must have land, a house, a wagon, cattle and implements, etc. The peasant who possesses these things is not poor, and the peasant who does not possess them is no longer a peasant, and therefore loses all influence in his village. ”

“ The truth I found after thirty-two years of life is that the condition of our existence is dreadful.
“‘Take life as it is,’ they say. ‘You have put yourself in that condition.’ Well, I take life as I find it; but when man reaches the highest degree of development he sees that all is nonsense, fraud, and that truth, which he nevertheless loves above all, is terrible. ”

“ WHY THE PEASANTS ARE DISCONTENTED.
There are two other serious points of disagreement between the peasant and the Government. The first is the requisition of wheat. There is no country in the world where the peasant is willing to give up freely the product of his labour. Everywhere only constraint can force him to do that. Where laws are recognised by the population, this is done under the pretext of a voluntary contribution, but in Russia the revolutionary system is in a chaotic state, and compulsion appears in a more visible form. ”

“ Leo Tolstoy speaks also of his other brothers:
"With Dimitri I was comrade, Nicolas I respected, but Sergius I adored, imitated, loved, and wished to resemble. I worshipped his handsome exterior, his singing (he was always singing) , his drawing, his gaiety, but especially, strange to say, his frank egoism. I always used to be self-conscious, and always felt and guessed, rightly or wrongly, what others thought and felt towards me; and that always spoilt the pleasure of my life. That is probably why in others I so much liked the very opposite—frank egoism. ”

“ Moscow, January 4th, 1919.
THE ATTACK ON THE CAPITALIST SYSTEM.
The battle has been opened on the whole length of the front. Capitalism and private property are in danger. Communist Socialism is developing its attack in strength and now for nearly two years has held in its hands the destinies of many nations. Are we to side with one party or with the other? We can side with neither. The Christian law which we profess prevents us from entering into the ranks of combatants who use violence and cruelty against their enemies. We are living at an exceptional period, at the turning of the ways. ”

“ In one feeling I united all—prayer and thankfulness. Every sense of fear had vanished. From this general feeling I could not distinguish faith, love, and hope. No; the feeling I experienced yesterday was love of God, the highest love, uniting in itself all that is good, rejecting all that is evil. How dreadful it was for me to consider the trivial, vicious side of life. ”

“ Manual work must be closely allied with the teaching of mathematics, natural science, geography and history. It gives life to these branches of study, brings them nearer to the child, and thus makes them more intelligible. It awakens in the child interest in these studies, and teaches it to observe and to work out things for itself. In this way manual work brings out the creative impulses in the child, develops the habit of perseverance until the end is attained, awakens interest in technical work, and gives the child the general idea of what work is. ”

“ Tolstoy began to evolve a project to help the people in a new way: to select from the rich heritage of centuries of culture, art, and science all that is most useful and accessible and that leads to the welfare and union of mankind. ”

“ The initiative of the workers, now that it has been set free from the yoke of capitalist exploitation, is making admirable progress. People who have first-hand knowledge have told me that the metal industry especially has made immense strides. A group of metal workers has invented and developed for use a new and ingenious process for steel implements. But industry in general, it is perfectly true, has to overcome the very serious obstacle to its development, occasioned by the lack of fuel and raw materials. ”

“ It is not necessary to dwell on the contents of this well-known work, but only to point out that the fall and regeneration of a human soul are depicted in it with the deepest insight and utmost veracity. ”

“ That was the period of the greatest chaos and disorder, when the peasants, excited by Social Revolutionary agitators, pillaged the property of the landowners. Lenin's Government sanctioned the expropriation of land for the benefit of the people, and by this measure took upon itself the responsibility for pillages of which it had in no way been guilty. It is true that agrarian reform has not yet been finally settled. Land is divided out amongst the peasants, but the forms of possession, the conditions of use and development have not yet been determined. ”

“ Let him come to Soden! One meets here, at every step, consumptives. It seems that the waters of Soden are the best cure for such illness. I am writing to you from two thousand versts distance, as if my word could be of any help... If he has not yet started, he never will... That is how Fate breaks all of us.”
At first Soden seemed to do Nicolas good, but later the news became less and less comforting. Then, in order to take the place of his brother Sergius, Tolstoy went to Soden with his married sister, Marie, and her two little daughters. ”

“ The state of mind of a man who has lost all interest in a worldly life, but has not yet found anything to replace it, is described by Tolstoy in the images of an Oriental tale:
“To save himself from a wild beast, a traveller jumps into a dry well, but perceives at the bottom a dragon with open jaws, ready to devour him. Not daring to climb out of the well and in order not to be devoured by the dragon, the man catches hold of the branches of a wild shrub growing in a crack in the wall of the well. ”

“ The whole day Tartar women are seen moving above and below the mills, washing their clothes. I must tell you that they wash with their feet. There is always great activity, like the bustle in an ant-hill. The women mostly are handsome and well-built. The dress of Oriental women, however poor, is always graceful . . . . Picturesque groups of women, the wild beauty of nature—all this makes a delightful scene. Often I stand for hours contemplating the landscape.”
The greater part of his three years’ stay in the Caucasus Leo Tolstoy spent at Stary-Yurt. ”

“ There is only one way of salvation—to renounce material pleasures, to be re-born, and to adopt love as the principle of life. Love—not in the sense of a physical preference for one over another, but a love which has as its dominating impulse the welfare of others and loving service to them rather than making one’s own personal happiness the chief end. ”

“ The problem for every man is to save his soul. To save his soul he must live according to God’s will, and in order to live according to God’s will he must renounce all the pleasures of life; he must labour, be humble, patient, and merciful.’ The people gather this meaning of life from their religion, transmitted to them by their pastors, and preserved among them by tradition. ”

“ Tolstoy asserted that the personality and activity of Peter showed no greatness, and that, on the contrary, all his qualities were bad. His so-called great reforms were not adopted for the good of the State, but for his personal profit. The old, high aristocracy being in opposition to his reforms, Peter founded a new capital, (St.) Petersburg, in order to separate himself from them and to be able to pursue his personal, immoral life. The nobility at that time played a rôle of great importance, and consequently were dangerous to him. ”