The Brothers Karamazov
Alas, put no faith in such a bond of union. Interpreting freedom as the
multiplication and rapid satisfaction of desires, men distort their own
nature, for many senseless and foolish desires and habits and
ridiculous fancies are fostered in them. They live only for mutual
envy, for luxury and ostentation. To have dinners, visits, carriages,
rank and slaves to wait on one is looked upon as a necessity, for which
life, honor and human feeling are sacrificed, and men even commit
suicide if they are unable to satisfy it. We see the same thing among
those who are not rich, while the poor drown their unsatisfied need and
their envy in drunkenness. But soon they will drink blood instead of
wine, they are being led on to it. I ask you is such a man free? I knew
one “champion of freedom” who told me himself that, when he was
deprived of tobacco in prison, he was so wretched at the privation that
he almost went and betrayed his cause for the sake of getting tobacco
again! And such a man says, “I am fighting for the cause of humanity.”
How can such a one fight? what is he fit for? He is capable perhaps of
some action quickly over, but he cannot hold out long. And it’s no
wonder that instead of gaining freedom they have sunk into slavery, and
instead of serving the cause of brotherly love and the union of
humanity have fallen, on the contrary, into dissension and isolation,
as my mysterious visitor and teacher said to me in my youth. And
therefore the idea of the service of humanity, of brotherly love and
the solidarity of mankind, is more and more dying out in the world, and
indeed this idea is sometimes treated with derision. For how can a man
shake off his habits? What can become of him if he is in such bondage
to the habit of satisfying the innumerable desires he has created for
himself? He is isolated, and what concern has he with the rest of
humanity? They have succeeded in accumulating a greater mass of
objects, but the joy in the world has grown less.
The monastic way is very different. Obedience, fasting and prayer are
laughed at, yet only through them lies the way to real, true freedom. I
cut off my superfluous and unnecessary desires, I subdue my proud and
wanton will and chastise it with obedience, and with God’s help I
attain freedom of spirit and with it spiritual joy. Which is most
capable of conceiving a great idea and serving it—the rich man in his
isolation or the man who has freed himself from the tyranny of material
things and habits? The monk is reproached for his solitude, “You have
secluded yourself within the walls of the monastery for your own
salvation, and have forgotten the brotherly service of humanity!” But
we shall see which will be most zealous in the cause of brotherly love.
For it is not we, but they, who are in isolation, though they don’t see
that. Of old, leaders of the people came from among us, and why should
they not again? The same meek and humble ascetics will rise up and go
out to work for the great cause. The salvation of Russia comes from the
people. And the Russian monk has always been on the side of the people.
We are isolated only if the people are isolated. The people believe as
we do, and an unbelieving reformer will never do anything in Russia,
even if he is sincere in heart and a genius. Remember that! The people
will meet the atheist and overcome him, and Russia will be one and
orthodox. Take care of the peasant and guard his heart. Go on educating
him quietly. That’s your duty as monks, for the peasant has God in his
heart.
(_f_) _Of Masters and Servants, and of whether it is possible for them
to be Brothers in the Spirit_
Of course, I don’t deny that there is sin in the peasants too. And the
fire of corruption is spreading visibly, hourly, working from above
downwards. The spirit of isolation is coming upon the people too.
Money-lenders and devourers of the commune are rising up. Already the
merchant grows more and more eager for rank, and strives to show
himself cultured though he has not a trace of culture, and to this end
meanly despises his old traditions, and is even ashamed of the faith of
his fathers. He visits princes, though he is only a peasant corrupted.
The peasants are rotting in drunkenness and cannot shake off the habit.
And what cruelty to their wives, to their children even! All from
drunkenness! I’ve seen in the factories children of nine years old,
frail, rickety, bent and already depraved. The stuffy workshop, the din
of machinery, work all day long, the vile language and the drink, the
drink—is that what a little child’s heart needs? He needs sunshine,
childish play, good examples all about him, and at least a little love.
There must be no more of this, monks, no more torturing of children,
rise up and preach that, make haste, make haste!
But God will save Russia, for though the peasants are corrupted and
cannot renounce their filthy sin, yet they know it is cursed by God and
that they do wrong in sinning. So that our people still believe in
righteousness, have faith in God and weep tears of devotion.
It is different with the upper classes. They, following science, want
to base justice on reason alone, but not with Christ, as before, and
they have already proclaimed that there is no crime, that there is no
sin. And that’s consistent, for if you have no God what is the meaning
of crime? In Europe the people are already rising up against the rich
with violence, and the leaders of the people are everywhere leading
them to bloodshed, and teaching them that their wrath is righteous. But
their “wrath is accursed, for it is cruel.” But God will save Russia as
He has saved her many times. Salvation will come from the people, from
their faith and their meekness.
Fathers and teachers, watch over the people’s faith and this will not
be a dream. I’ve been struck all my life in our great people by their
dignity, their true and seemly dignity. I’ve seen it myself, I can
testify to it, I’ve seen it and marveled at it, I’ve seen it in spite
of the degraded sins and poverty-stricken appearance of our peasantry.
They are not servile, and even after two centuries of serfdom they are
free in manner and bearing, yet without insolence, and not revengeful
and not envious. “You are rich and noble, you are clever and talented,
well, be so, God bless you. I respect you, but I know that I too am a
man. By the very fact that I respect you without envy I prove my
dignity as a man.”
In truth if they don’t say this (for they don’t know how to say this
yet), that is how they act. I have seen it myself, I have known it
myself, and, would you believe it, the poorer our Russian peasant is,
the more noticeable is that serene goodness, for the rich among them
are for the most part corrupted already, and much of that is due to our
carelessness and indifference. But God will save His people, for Russia
is great in her humility. I dream of seeing, and seem to see clearly
already, our future. It will come to pass, that even the most corrupt
of our rich will end by being ashamed of his riches before the poor,
and the poor, seeing his humility, will understand and give way before
him, will respond joyfully and kindly to his honorable shame. Believe
me that it will end in that; things are moving to that. Equality is to
be found only in the spiritual dignity of man, and that will only be
understood among us. If we were brothers, there would be fraternity,
but before that, they will never agree about the division of wealth. We
preserve the image of Christ, and it will shine forth like a precious
diamond to the whole world. So may it be, so may it be!
Fathers and teachers, a touching incident befell me once. In my
wanderings I met in the town of K. my old orderly, Afanasy. It was
eight years since I had parted from him. He chanced to see me in the
market-place, recognized me, ran up to me, and how delighted he was! He
simply pounced on me: “Master dear, is it you? Is it really you I see?”
He took me home with him.
He was no longer in the army, he was married and already had two little
children. He and his wife earned their living as costermongers in the
market-place. His room was poor, but bright and clean. He made me sit
down, set the samovar, sent for his wife, as though my appearance were
a festival for them. He brought me his children: “Bless them, Father.”
“Is it for me to bless them? I am only a humble monk. I will pray for
them. And for you, Afanasy Pavlovitch, I have prayed every day since
that day, for it all came from you,” said I. And I explained that to
him as well as I could. And what do you think? The man kept gazing at
me and could not believe that I, his former master, an officer, was now
before him in such a guise and position; it made him shed tears.
“Why are you weeping?” said I, “better rejoice over me, dear friend,
whom I can never forget, for my path is a glad and joyful one.”
He did not say much, but kept sighing and shaking his head over me
tenderly.
“What has became of your fortune?” he asked.
“I gave it to the monastery,” I answered; “we live in common.”
After tea I began saying good-by, and suddenly he brought out half a
rouble as an offering to the monastery, and another half-rouble I saw
him thrusting hurriedly into my hand: “That’s for you in your
wanderings, it may be of use to you, Father.”
I took his half-rouble, bowed to him and his wife, and went out
rejoicing. And on my way I thought: “Here we are both now, he at home
and I on the road, sighing and shaking our heads, no doubt, and yet
smiling joyfully in the gladness of our hearts, remembering how God
brought about our meeting.”
I have never seen him again since then. I had been his master and he my
servant, but now when we exchanged a loving kiss with softened hearts,
there was a great human bond between us. I have thought a great deal
about that, and now what I think is this: Is it so inconceivable that
that grand and simple-hearted unity might in due time become universal
among the Russian people? I believe that it will come to pass and that
the time is at hand.
And of servants I will add this: In old days when I was young I was
often angry with servants; “the cook had served something too hot, the
orderly had not brushed my clothes.” But what taught me better then was
a thought of my dear brother’s, which I had heard from him in
childhood: “Am I worth it, that another should serve me and be ordered
about by me in his poverty and ignorance?” And I wondered at the time
that such simple and self-evident ideas should be so slow to occur to
our minds.
It is impossible that there should be no servants in the world, but act
so that your servant may be freer in spirit than if he were not a
servant. And why cannot I be a servant to my servant and even let him
see it, and that without any pride on my part or any mistrust on his?
Why should not my servant be like my own kindred, so that I may take
him into my family and rejoice in doing so? Even now this can be done,
but it will lead to the grand unity of men in the future, when a man
will not seek servants for himself, or desire to turn his fellow
creatures into servants as he does now, but on the contrary, will long
with his whole heart to be the servant of all, as the Gospel teaches.
And can it be a dream, that in the end man will find his joy only in
deeds of light and mercy, and not in cruel pleasures as now, in
gluttony, fornication, ostentation, boasting and envious rivalry of one
with the other? I firmly believe that it is not and that the time is at
hand. People laugh and ask: “When will that time come and does it look
like coming?” I believe that with Christ’s help we shall accomplish
this great thing. And how many ideas there have been on earth in the