The elimination of force at all costs is Utopian and the new movement which has arisen in the country and of whose dawn we have given a warning is inspired by the ideals which Guru Gobind Singh and Shivaji, Kamal Pasha and Reza Khan, Washington and Garibaldi, Lafayette and Lenin preached.
Interpretation
A call to recognize the necessity of force in certain movements for justice.
In this quote, Bhagat Singh articulates a perspective on the role of force in revolutionary movements. He suggests that the absolute avoidance of force is an unrealistic ideal (Utopian), and he highlights the historical figures who, despite their diverse ideologies, embraced the use of force when necessary to fight for justice, freedom, and change. This reflects the complexities of social and political struggles where ideals must sometimes confront the harsh realities of oppression.
In practice
In a speech about social justice movements, one could use this quote to illustrate the complexities of revolutionary action.
One should not interpret the word “Revolution” in its literal sense. Various meanings and significances are attributed to this word, according to the interests of those who use or misuse it. For the established agencies of exploitation it conjures up a feeling of blood stained horror. To the revolutionaries it is a sacred phrase.
Non-violence is backed by the theory of soul-force in which suffering is courted in the hope of ultimately winning over the opponent. But what happens when such an attempt fail to achieve the object? It is here that soul-force has to be combined with physical force so as not to remain at the mercy of tyrannical and ruthless enemy.
Those revolutionaries who have, by chance, escaped the gallows should live and show to the world that they cannot only embrace gallows for the ideal but also bear the worst type of tortures in the dark, dingy prison cells.
Love always elevates the character of man. It never lowers him, provided love be love
A rebellion is not a revolution. It may ultimately lead to that end.
They may kill me, but they cannot kill my ideas. They can crush my body, but they will not be able to crush my spirit.
And then he drew a dial from his poke, And looking with lack-lustre eye, Says very wisely, 'It is ten o'clock: Thus we may see', Quoth he, 'how the world wags: 'Tis but an hour ago since it was nine, And after one hour more 'twill be eleven; And so from hour to hour we ripe and ripe, And then from hour to hour we rot and rot.
People who make history know nothing about history. You can see that in the sort of history they make.
As gun owners, my husband and I understand that the Second Amendment is most at risk when a criminal or deranged person commits a gun crime. These acts only embolden those who oppose gun ownership. Promoting responsible gun laws protects the Second Amendment and reduces lives lost from guns.
A universe with a creator would be a totally different kind of universe, scientifically speaking, than one without.
Do as you would be done by, is the surest method of pleasing.
There is but an inch of difference between a cushioned chamber and a padded cell.
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