in the human future — this should be the Indian spirit.”
The oneness of humanity is a topic dear to the heart of Babu Arabinda Ghosh and when I (i. e., the interviewer) suggested to him that Vedantic ideas would be a good basis for unity, his reply was full of enthusiasm:
“ Oh, yes,” he said, “ I am convinced and have long been convinced that a spiritual awakening, a re-awakening to the true self of a nation is the most important condition of our national greatness. The supreme Indian idea of the oneness of all men in God and its realisation inwardly and outwardly, in-creasingly even in social relations and the structure of society is destined, I believe, to govern the progress of the human race. India, if it chooses, can guide the world.”
And here I said something about our “ four thousand ” castes, our differences in dress and in “ caste marks,” our vulgar sectarian antipathies and so on.
“ Not so hard, if you please,” said Mr. Ghosh with a smile. “ I quite agree with you that our social fabric will have to be considerably altered before long. We shall have, of course, to enlarge our family and social life, not in the petty spirit of present day Social Reform, hammering at small details and belittling our immediate past, but with a larger idea and more generous impulses. Our past with all its faults and defects should be sacred to us. But the claims of our future with its immediate possibilities should be still more sacred.”
