द इण्डियन स्ट्रगल / भारतीय स्वाधीनता संग्राम (नेताजी सुभाष चन्द्र बोस - ऐतिहासिक विश्लेषण)

IN BURMESE PRISONS 159
of Burmese Association and there are as many G.C.B.A.'s
as there are parties. Many people wonder to-day, why
Britain is so keen on separating Burma from India—but if
one knew Burma, there would be no reason to wonder.
Many Britishers think that even if India be a lost Dominion,
it is still desirable to try and keep Burma. Burma is so
thinly populated, is so rich in minerals and in certain parts
has such a pleasing climate that it would be fit for colonisation
by Britishers. Besides, Burma is the gateway of the Far
East and has an important strategic position.
Interesting as Burmese politics was to me, the country
and the people were even more so. I spent a great deal of
my time in studying the ancient history of Burma and in
discovering the old cultural contacts between the two coun-
tries. There is no doubt that many Kshatriya tribes migrated
to Burma from India. They, as well as the people from
Ceylon and South India, brought to Burma, Buddhism and
the Pali Literature. The culture and philosophy of Burma
have been largely influenced by India. The alphabets have
been taken from Sanskrit and even the script is much like
some of the Indian scripts. The pagodas (temples) of Burma
which have a unique charm of their own, are not devoid of
Indian influence. In Pagan and in other old centres of
Burmese culture, one can still see structures which form the
transition between the typical Hindu temple and the typical
Burmese pagoda. I have already said that the artistic sense
of the ordinary Burman is of a very high order. One had
only to see the exquisite handiwork of the prisoners in
Mandalay and other prisons to believe this. In Mandalay, on
two or three jail holidays in the year, the Superintendent
would give the prisoners permission to sing and dance. On
these days they would organise a variety performance. They
would play dramas and sing songs specially composed for the
occasion, would dance their exquisite national dance and
would even improvise a jail orchestra to supply the necessary
music. All this was possible only among a people with a
highly-developed artistic sense.
In October 1925, our national religious festival—the Durga
Pujah—falling due, we applied to the Superintendent for