१८५७ का स्वातन्त्र्य समर (वीर विनायक दामोदर सावरकर - अंग्रेजों द्वारा छपने से पूर्व प्रतिबन्धित महाग्रन्थ)

THE VOLCANO
spirit of the sepoy and the civilian, king and pauper,
Hindu and Mahommedan.
Equally misleading is the theory that the rising was
due to the annexation of Oudh. How many were fighting,
taking their lives in their hands, that had no interest
whatsoever in the fortunes of the Oudh dynasty? Then,
what was their motive in fighting? The Nabob of Oudh
himself was imprisoned in the fort of Calcutta; and
according to the English historians, his subjects were very
much disaffected under his regime. Then, why did
Talukdars, soldiers, and almost every one of his subjects
unsheath their swords for him? A 'Hindu' of Bengal
wrote an essay in England at that time about the Revo-
lution. In it the 'Hindu' says, 'You have no idea how
many simple and kind-hearted people who had never seen
the Nabob, nor were ever again likely to see, wept in their
huts when the sorrows of the Nabob were being related
before them. And you do not also know how many
soldiers were daily taking an oath, after the tears had
flown, to avenge this insult on Wajid Ali Shah, as if a
calamity had fallen on themselves in person.' Why did
the Sepoys feel this sympathy with the Nabob and why
did eyes which had never seen the Nabob glisten with
tears? It is plain, therefore, that the Revolution did not
break out simply on account of the annexation of Oudh.
The fear of greased cartridges and the annexation of
Oudh were only temporary and accidental causes. To
turn these into real causes would never help us in under-
standing the real spirit of the Revolution. If we were to
take them as the real moving causes, it would mean that,
without these, the Revolution would not have taken place
—that without the rumour of greased cartridges and with-
out the annexation of Oudh, the Revolution would not
have been there. It would be impossible to find a theory
more foolish and more deceptive. If there had been no
fear of the cartridges, the principle underlying that fear
Published by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi, 2014.
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