Subal Chandra Mitra

“ As a man, who has been without food for a considerable length of time, feels an indescribable delight to eat a delicious meal, so my heart of hearts has felt an inexpressible pleasure to drink your sweet words after the lapse of 14 long years. At each display of your kindness, tears of ecstacy trickled down my breast. Oh! how I wished that my unhappy mother had witnessed this display of mercy,—alas! the thought rends my heart. O mother, open your eyes, if for once only, and see that your unfortunate Narayan has found shelter under his father's feet. ”

“ There is not merely a sea of salt; there are a sea of milk, a sea of curd, a sea of honey, and so forth. You are not a sea of ignorance; you are one of knowledge. When I have come to you, I will fish out pearls; you are full of pearls.' After such humorous talks for some time, they fell to serious conversation on different topics, and each was highly delighted at the other's conduct and manner of speech. In the meantime, arrived a quantity of the well-known delicious confectionary of Burdwan presented to Vidyasagar by one of his friends. ”

“ Joint family is a prominent member of Hindu Society—the principal means of the realisation of Yoga—the royal road to salvation. What is Yoga? It is nothing but union or communion—complete absorption—in Divinity. It is nothing but the combination of one with the other—the conversion of duality into unity. The union of self with the whole world, the annihilation of the universe in self, the feeling of the existence of every external thing in self, this is the high way to redemption for the Hindu. ”

“ How can I ever give place to such a thought in my mind that he, who is the receptacle of patient fortitude, whose heart is the seat of forgiveness, in whom affection is an ever-conspicuous element, who is moved to an incessant flow of tears at the tale of other people's distress—that such a merciful great man should cast adrift his unfortunate, penitent, sincerely grieved, only son. ”

“ As a literary man he had no equal in Bengal, until the genius of Bankim Chandra came to be recognized at a later date; as a philanthropist and a benevolent helper of the poor and the needy, Vidyasagar stands in the highest rank achieved by any man in any age or country. The princely income derived from his books was devoted to the relief of suffering and distress; hundreds of poor widows owed him their maintenance; hundreds of helpless orphans owed him their education. His name became a household word in Bengal; the rich and the poor loved him alike ”

“ The names and works of those good and great men, who sacrificed their lives for the welfare of their country, or by noble deeds added to the glory of their nation, or benefited the world, should not be the exclusive property of the particular countries in which they were born. The lives of such illustrious persons, as form the subjects of his discourse in the Jibana Charita are commendable to all classes of people. The Hindu, the Mussulman, or the Christian may be equally benefited by them. Vidyasagar cannot be blamed for placing thess exemplary models before the youths of his country. ”

“ His advocasy of the re-marriage of Hindu widows was sincere, though it must be said that his conviction was based on wrong arguments. The Hindu Society has nothing to fear from men like Ram Mohan Ray or Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar, who never concealed their real motives under false disguises. There is every fear of danger from those hypocrites, who proclaim themselves true Hindus in public but act quite the contrary in their private life. These non-Hindus are a pest to Society, and the sooner they are shorn of their false guise, the better for the country. ”

“ Will you let destruction overtake me, my old friend and protector? If you see the Rajeeb and with your fervid eloquence rekindle in his heart his old love for me, now bowed down with shame and sorrow, he will not lend you a cold ear. What is a loan of 2,000 Rs. to him? I have to meet 3 Dears next Tuesday, my landlord won't wait any longer and all my pretty creditors are up against me. Two thousand rupees would save me and I could at once remove to a smaller house and begin a most rigid system of economy. ”

“ Your son, son-in-laws, brothers,—if any one of these were equal to your mind, you could have left charge with him, and in illness could have lived a retired, secluded life free from anxieties. Whenever I recall to my mind your thinned limbs, pale face, and enfeebled voice,—and over and above that, your anxieties and troubles for others—when I recall to my mind how you go to Karmatar with only a servant for your companion, it strikes me, why should I be still living? ”

“ It so happened that, one day, when the Raja Bahadur was washing his face and hands after dinner, Vidyasagar passed by him, on his way to Ananda Krishna Babu. The Raja Bahadur caught a glimpse of him, and enquired of a relation who was near by;—'Who is that stout and strong, handsome Brahman youth, who passed by us? His very appearance indicates that he is a man of uncommon genius. Send for him at once.' Vidyasagar immediately appeared before the Raja Bahadur, who heard from him everything connected with his life. ”

“ If you give me shelter under your feet, no body will blame you; on the contrary, it will display your greatness. In fine, if you should be pleased once more to display your uncommon magnanimity and employ your own unfortunate son to serve your feet, then you shall see whether I can be up to your mind. Whether good or bad, my unfortunate self am the first of all your relations. What have you not done for every one? I would humbly request you once more to display your extraordinary forgiveness and give this unfortunate person one more trial by giving him a little place at your feet ”

“ After the acquisition of the lands, he would not receive Isvar Chandra's stipend money, but directed his son to spend a portion of it in buying manuscript copies of rare and valuable Sanskrit books. Isvar Chandra procured many such manuscripts, and they are still to be found in his library.
Nor was this all. The heart of Isvar Chandra was as soft, as his mind was strong. He was kind and sympathetic, and always eager to relieve the distrest. He was a lover of mankind. His small heart was the seat of unbounded love and kindness. ”

“ Although Burdwan had lost its former salubrity of climate, it was all these attractions and his former love of the place that made Vidyasagar visit it now and then. The people of Burdwan knew him too well to forget him. Whenever he alighted at the platform of the Railway Station, the poor surrounded him on all sides, as they were sure to get from him something. On one of these occasions, a poor, ragged, little boy with a pale countenance approached our noble hero and begged him for a pice. The lad's fleshless body and wan face moved him to compassion. ”

“ One can never give up hopes of being forgiven by one's parents. This is my destiny in this world; but, please, do not block up my way to the after-world (i. e. salvation) . If I cannot serve your feet, how can I expect salvation in the next world? I would request you to drive away wrath and ill-feeling from your mind, and then to think over seriously with your saintly sweetness and magnanimity of heart, whether any blame will not attach to your world-renowned good name, if you cast adrift your unworthy child. ”

“ By degrees, they formed an intimate friendship, which ripened with their age and made them very closely united. In later years, whenever Vidyasagar attemped at, or began, a noble, benevolent deed, Madan Mohan was always by his side, lending a helping hand with all his zeal and ardour. In some cases the two were found to be equally eager and interested, and it would than be very difficult to distinguish the principal from the assistant. Vidyasagar's friendship was always sincere and uniform. He could never be apathetic to one whom he had once loved. ”

“ If he should live to an age, he must be known to the world by your name. If you cast me aside by a thrust of your feet, how will my son venture to appear before Society? It would be far better, if you will trample him to death, as you have already trampled upon me. Death is preferable to the living of a detested life. ”

“ If it is a cruelty not to relieve the miseries of a handful of widows, then it must be a barbarous inhumanity to cause mischief to thousands of individuals of the society by inaugurating widow-marriage; it would be no piety to make a gift of a pair of shoes after killing a cow. If there are apprehensions of widows turning immoral, those apprehensions cannot be wholly eradicated by giving them away in marriage, for many married women are as well seen to lose their character. ”

“ As a fruit of that meeting, a statue of the first Principal of the Sanskrit College has been set up in the College-building as a tribute of respect to the great man.
But is this sufficient? Who is to answer the question? The natives of Bengal must consider themselves fortunate that they have been able to do so much. Most surely, they have won a very bad name that they are great in words, but small in deeds. How often have they assembled in large gatherings rending the walls of the room with loud vociferations of their thundering eloquence, and how often have they failed in deeds! ”

“ Hindu Law, as His Honor is aware, is a vast subject—it forms the life-study of a man. It is true that there may be versatile persons, who may combine a thorough knowledge of Sanskrit literature with a profound acquaintance with Hindu Law, but such versatility is rare. To merge the chair of Hindu Law with other chairs is to give it a secondary rank and to reduce its practical usefulness, for a professor who will teach it at his leisure moments as it were cannot be expected to devote that attention to it, which the vastness of the subject demands. ”

“ You are the only friend who can rescue me from the painful position to which I have been brought, and in this you must go to work with that grand energy which is the companion of your genius and manliness of heart. Not a day is to be lost. ”

“ He asked the professors, that if they believed that the Sudras were not entitled to Sanskrit education, how was it then that Raja Radha Kanta Dev, who was as well a Sudra, could obtain instruction in Sanskrit, and the professors did not object to his discussion of the Sastras? He also asked them, that when they were disinclined to teach Sanskrit to the Sudras and other low caste boys, how was it that they did not feel compunction in teaching the godly language to Europeans, who were no Hindus, and received, in return, money from them as wages? ”

“ Do not throw it on my head.' The boys fell to Vidyasagar's feet, and with tearful eyes, craved his forgiveness, promising never to do so again. Vidyasagar now forgave them, and told them to go to school. Dear reader, do you see the beauty when strength of mind is combined with kind forgiveness?
It is not very difficult to forgive an offender, when he admits his guilt and repents of it, and it is almost a daily occurrence. But it is not so easy for a man of influence to ask forgiveness of his inferior, for the superior thinks it beneath his dignity to do so, and his pride is wounded. ”

“ The history of our national work in the nineteenth century, is full of encouragement and hope; and that history connects itself with the story of Vidyasagar’s life more intimately than with the life of any other man. ”

“ We embrace this opportunity to say a few words in connection with the Society referred to in Vidyasagar's letter quoted above. No sane man can question the incalculable good the British Government has done to this country. May we ever live in peace under the benign rule which was so providentially offered to us, when the country was groaning under the miseries of anarchy. But, at the same time, no man of sense can deny that Europeans have been, in a manner, eating away the vitals of the land by bringing in with them the alcoholic poison of Europe. ”

“ If I have to suffer punishment for what I am and what I have been doing, I must take the consequences. Suppose, I turn a missionary and convert some people to my faith. If they should be asked who converted them, they must point to me, and supposing that they are punishable for their acts, it is I on whose back the punishment is sure to fall. I can suffer for my own sins; but how can I receive stripes for others?'
Raj Narayan consulted Vidyasagar on all important matters. He once asked for his friend's advice on the subject of his daughter's marriage. ”

“ In his autobiography Vidyasagar thus describes her:—'I have never seen a woman equal to Raimani in kindness, affection, amiability, loveliness, and openness of heart. The image of this noble woman has been indelibly engraved in my mind. ”

“ The French prose literature was the best model it could have. Want of freedom and poverty of the Bengalees are great obstacles to the development and progress of their national language. The decrease of an eager desire for a knowledge of Bengali, on the part of the natives of the country, generated by the predominant influence of English, and want of good models are among other very powerful obstacles. No doubt, English is, at present, a good model, but it also serves to make the Bengali literature impregnated with foreign ideas and notions, a state of things not at all desirable. ”

“ They struck their breasts and foreheads with their fists, loudly bemoaning their fate, and filling the whole neighbourhood with pitiful lamentations, which no body had the heart to prevent. Thus ended the worldly life of the great man, who had struggled manfully with adverse circumstances from his very early years to the last days of his existence. ”

“ Vidyasagar called on the Lieutenant Governor as desired, when after much strenuous efforts and persuasions, Halliday induced him not to take such a hasty step at once, but to see and wait for a favourable turn of the gale, that might save his wreckage. Vidyasagar promised, and waited for nearly a year, but the arrogant young civilian was not amenable to reason. Every day, he grew more and more imperative and insolent, and Vidyasagar's independent spirit revolted at the repeated ill-treatments he received at his superior's hands. ”

“ The moment my health is restored, it is my intention to devote my time and attention to the composition and compilation of useful works in the Vernacular language of Bengal. Thus, although my direct official connection with the education and enlightenment of my countrymen will have ceased, I venture humbly to hope that my remaining years will still be devoted to the advancement of a great and sacred cause in which my deep and earnest interest can only close with my life. ”

“ The empire has, however, under the benign dispensation of Providence, entered upon a new era of peace, progress and prosperity, and your Honor's Administration has been distinguished by not a few measures connected with the material and social improvement of the people. It is the fervent hope and prayer of your petitioners that before your Honor laid down the responsibilities of your office, your Honor might signalize the close of your long and successful career by emancipating the females of Bengal from the pains, cruelties and attendant crimes of the debasing custom of Polygamy. ”

“ After all, Vidyasagar was a native of unfortunate Bengal, particularly of this degenerated age. The Bengalees of the present age have no unity among themselves; they cannot act in union and conjunction. Every one is independent; every one is arbitrary; every body follows his own opinions. It was with a view to remove this slur of his countrymen that Vidyasagar attempted to exhibit a different scenery on the stage of the Annuity Fund. ”

“ Before her death, she had begged for the blessings of her husband, whereupon Thakurdas said:—’How shall I bless you? You are a most pious woman; it is your own piety that takes you away before me: yours is the victory.' It is needless to say, that he was deeply grieved at the loss of such a virtuous wife. ”

“ The news of this unparalleled success soon spread like bonfire, and surprised even the learned professors of the Sanskrit College. People of all classes daily crowded Vidyasagar's house, with an eager desire to have a sight of the unusually intelligent and hardworking pupil and of his ingenious and clever teacher. ”