Showing posts with label Peace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peace. Show all posts

Ascent to Spirituality


First and foremost question which strikes our mind instantly is the spiritual identity of a life. Life is restricted to the cycle of birth, development and death. The span between birth and death may be a prolonged one or may be followed by an immediate succession. Some fellow worshippers of knowledge understand this trend easily and consider the divine power as an immortal entity. Some other individuals remain in the clutch of confusion for a long time and fail to recognize the divine as any separate entity. Varieties of qualities in humans; such as intellect, knowledge, clarity of thought, forgiveness, truthfulness, control over the senses and mind, joy and sorrow, birth and death, fear and courage, non-violence, equanimity, contentment, austerity, charity, fame, and infamy; all develop from the supreme sense which implies a command upon memory, intellect and ego.[1] Combination of all such qualities may vary considerably. Combination of such qualities finalise the nature of an individual. Some of the combination may be wiser and some other combination may be demonic.

The yoga of devotion makes the individual linked to the divine power and with such inclination a devotee gains the sense of divine omnipresence quite easily. Such individual considers the diversity of all the living forms as a form radiated out from the divine. All such forms even remain restricted to the divine and get merged to the source after completion of life. It is similar to the act of the formation of clouds at the ocean bed and development of streams due to down pour from the clouds. All these acts jointly ensure the cyclic movement of water from ocean to mountains and again from mountains to oceans through streams. Intermediate results may be of many types and many forms, but the real identity of water droplet remains unchanged.

Whatever we acquire in the form of knowledge will enrich the society in different ways and even it will enrich our efforts of feeling the omnipresence of the divine power. Lord describes himself as an inseparable entity of different forms and capacities which remain prevalent in the surrounding. Lord Shiva, for an example, among Rudras is divine. Every individual in this universe are capable of feeling the oneness with the divine, but they may not be capable of accommodating the source as we may not be able to accommodate the sun in our immediate surroundings. We can feel the warmth and illumination of the sun from a safest distance. Before reaching the ground such radiation is even filtered by the realm of atmosphere. We are absolutely incapable of assimilating the ultraviolet radiations at even a fraction of a percent. Such radiations are competent enough in killing any life forms. On the other hand we cannot think about birth and manifestation of any life form without the sun.

The person having true knowledge of the cycle of creation and destruction keep faith on the divine power and start exploring the existence of such power within the self. Two types of individuals see such a divine power in two different ways: one can recognize it as an inseparable part of the self and other can recognize it as a separate entity having no linkage to the self.

It is more important for an individual to realise the Divine omnipresence; that sense is the only positive impulse which is capable enough in linking up the living form to the nature with perfect band of participatory efforts; such effort will bring desired results during every instances of the functional involvement of the individual in society. Vedic rituals, medicinal herbs, worships of all types and cultivation of knowledge are nothing but different aspects of realising the omni-presence of divine power.[2]   One can recognize the role of the divine power in different realms of creation and destruction.

Person having noble conducts in society remain there in the memory of individuals for a considerable time and may secure a prominent position in the history of development. Such an individual even secure a prominent position amongst nobles because of noble deeds. They even imply a notable influence upon the social conducts. Their contribution in terms of knowledge enrichment may even become the part of the treasure of Vedas. The only lord worshipped by people is the divine power or the creation element (Purush). Common individuals do not know that they worship the supreme creation elements in varying forms. All actions, conducts, rituals and worships should be aimed ultimately towards worshiping the supreme creation element (Purush).  We can even maintain our utter faith on the role of such a creation element in making the process of all the creations true.

Even sinners come out of the clutches of sin after knowing the ultimate fate of such sins and start residing in the process recognizing the presence of creator element (Purush) by the side of the holy creations. They even start recognizing the wider form of the divine manifestation and start delivering their duty in the society with an altered conducts. They quickly get the shelter of the divine and start defining their role in society.

The mighty wind blowing everywhere rests always in sky. In the same way all the organisms rest always in the divine lord and get manifested accordingly when time permits. At the end of one creation cycle all the organisms duly created will be merged into the realm of materials and energy and the entire collection of such kind of lump will be directed towards any of the black hole towards which the centrally located star system will feel the power of attraction. The situation of such a dramatic withdrawal of the diversity of creation may be initiated at any moment. None of the creations and destructions of any types are ever capable of binding the divine power in them. This creator power (the PURUSH element in accord to Sankhya Philosophy) remains independent of the realm of creation and destruction. It ensures the process without being involved actively in the entire process of manifestation. Buddhism adopted changes incorporated in Vedic rituals and other traditional doctrines, which remained in practice through Vedic, Sankhya and Yoga based rituals.[3]

Divine power of such a doer type may often remain non-recognisable because of the non-association of such power in the process of creation. We often recognize the intellect and soul holding such intellect as the creator element. The soul and intellect can have a reflection of the creator superconscious doer element but it cannot be ascribed directly as a doer. We also recognize the soul of an individual as a non-destroyable entity as that of the divine power.  It is similar to that of a stream of water joins the other and a beam of light joins the other. All such sources lose their individual identity before joining. Similar the thing is true regarding diffusion of soul in the surrounding when any individual dies. Band of energy get absorbed in the celestial collection and may be utilized at some other instances randomly during some other phases of creations.

Because of this reason material world moves through series of changes and one change is followed by series of other changes of varying degree and intensity.

Is there any clear distinction in the process of socialisation of human beings during which we may witness activation of a Divine Power (in the form of a Prophet or AVATARA) amongst us? What kind of indications may be there depending upon which we start claiming omnipresence of such power beside us during all instances? The Bhagavadgita highlighted it clearly during discourses in the fourth chapter.[4] Even the purpose of such manifestation is narrated by the Divine Power.[5] People, along with clear understanding of the ways and means of this divine manifestation, succeed in keeping oneself devoid of material attachment to the nature and remain contented thoroughly; by doing so they enjoy the optimum liberation.

Expectations in General

What we want from our immediate surrounding will finalise our comprehensive approach with which exploration of resources and technologies will be advanced. Our effort of linking up resources and technology will confer the effort with which we also want people to get associated with us. Our kind of will inflicted primarily with a sort of bias will generate a sort of agony in the mind of other community or ethnic group of any distant location. One sided aspiration of progress may even give birth to the sort of agony and misconduct. It may even give birth to group clashes and other oppressive conducts of varying types. We are witnessing similar kinds of unrest which are mushrooming at different out pockets of our society. We are, keeping pace with the progressive trend of conflicts, becoming bound to tackle such problems day by day. 

It is also obvious that replacement of armed forces by the acts and conducts of nonviolent resolution may not bring immediate result as some of the countries are badly inflicted with an intention of grabbing resources, lands and technologies of other states without taking care of the aspirations of people settled in the state. Violation of such kinds of basic rules may bring nations back to the war front as some of the leading nations remain indulged in such kind of proxy war, cold war and armed operations. Leadership characters of those conflicting states may also put other nations in trouble as the flow of resources, man power and currencies went on linked and interlinked day by day since last couple of decades. Bringing them out of such network will be easy to say but difficult to implement.

At some instances we may come across the situation during which some of the small and marginal stakeholders living within the jurisdiction of a state may claim that they are in the verge of extinction due to non-supportive policies of the Nation State. Lack of any kind of inclusiveness in the entire framework of development plan may give birth to such kind of separatism and unrest with which some of the states like India are suffering. Addressing all such wills and wishes while keeping the issues of National Security intact is really a matter of deep concern and is open for arranging an intensive study and scholastic interventions. We cannot go on dreaming about any rapid solution to such kinds of burning issues. Boroland of Assam, for an example, is receiving extensive in-migration of different types of Non-Boro Community and are agitating against such kind of state sponsored or some sort of illegal in-migrations. Their demand for a state to safeguard their cultural and social integrity is still a burning issue which puts even India Government in trouble.

We have examples of such kinds of unrest and agony in plenty. It also indicates that the state policy lacks some sort of inclusive efforts with which such kinds of issues would have been addressed effectively. Plans were made as a fraction of the large segments with an anticipation of gaining participation from the reference community but their faith, cultural blend and spiritual orientation utterly kept aside. It was also a plan inflicted with partial motive force of development which gained a negative response from the community members. Expectation of such type, as state planners are coining, should have some sort of comprehensive study and a kind of acculturation with which active participation of the community will be advanced. We are here to sort out such kinds of comprehensive planning process impregnated with resolutions of Peace and Nonviolence to make up our mind for comprehensive and collective progress.

To understand our expectations in a better way it would be better if we move on through an incident which was recorded during execution of a welfare activity at a village level. A farmer named Budhu received a pair of bullock from a nationalized bank. Because of certain health problem he has lost one bullock within a span of one year. Another unpaired bullock became useless. Bank wanted to recover the loan amount form him. He had two alternatives. With the help of the primary teacher of the nearby primary school he has submitted an application to the Branch Manager of the bank requesting him to provide a bullock or to take the living one back.

          The application was of a peculiar type. This incident took place in a village under Nimdih Block of Saraikela, Jharkhand.  Logically Budhu admitted his problem and requested a support from the financial institution. Bank had no such provision of allocating fund for a single bullock or to take the live bullock back. Because of that reason application of Budhu was kept aside. He appeal for a solution remained buried under the heap of pending applications.           After a gap of five years, a new bank officer took the charge of that branch. By that time loan amount which remained in the name of Budhu became a major amount. By paying such amount one can purchase two pairs of bullock similar to those assigned to Budhu. The scheme under which Budhu received such support was under the scheme of Integrated Rural Development Scheme sanctioned by the Government. The matter went to the judiciary. Coming out of the problem and giving any adequate remedy was not in the hand of Bank, Government or even Budhu himself. The only annoying thing happening was the expenses upon the bullock which had no adequate financial return.

          There was another Ashram School Teacher working in the locality. He was even popular amongst villagers because of his timely services. He came to know about the incident. The fellow teacher used to move frequently in the surrounding villages. Because of that reason he had another farmer like Budhu having only one bullock alive. He had arranged a meeting of both the farmer to sort out the problem. Both the farmer decided to work together in a condition of exchanging bullocks for alternate period of six months. Legal proceedings went in the favour of Budhu. There was adequate scope for Budhu to take another pair of bullock from the bank. But the offer was not considered fruitful by the fellow farmer because of his bitter experiences that he went through recently.

          This incident tells us about the limitations of the support services of bank, government or any other welfare institutions. Coming out of the boundary for delivering timely relevant service requires flexibility. The kind of such flexibility is lacking in the present day system of support mechanism. Ultimately farmer, other socially active group and social workers came close to sort out a solution which can give immediate ease to the victim. Because of lack of certain technological input, the problem became a big one. There are instruments that can be handled efficiently even by using a single bullock. That sort of technology was absolutely unknown to both the farmers as well as to the officials.  Installation of any system, monitoring of the same for a stipulated time span, giving support services to the reference group for a selected period of time and helping the person in gaining adequate pace in the production practices are some of the components which should have adequate place in the planning of extending any financial support. Loss of any kind at any place should be considered as a loss to the Nation State.

It is absolutely clear that people involved in the welfare activities rarely bring themselves perfectly in the forefront with adequate enthu; they even lose regulations upon the system due to complications of the planning and implementation process of schemes; lack of spiritual blend in the entire system of financial regulation and execution of the same is another matter of serious concern.

 


[1] Bhagvadgita X – 4-5;

[2] Bhagvadgita IX – 15-18:

Cultivators of knowledge worship supreme lord as an entity. They recognize the diversified forms of such divine power at different instances. Divine power is the worship, Vedic chanting, the fire , the butter and the rituals. Divine is the object of knowledge, the creator element and the Pranava (Om). It is the basis of everything that we see. It has its presence as a creator as well as destroyer element in the universe.

[3] Tadeusz Skorupski (2015). Michael Witzel (ed.). Homa Variations: The Study of Ritual Change Across the Longue DurĂ©e. Oxford University Press. pp. 78–81. ISBN 978-0-19-935158-9.

[4] “Whenever there is a decline in righteousness and a corresponding increase in unrighteousness, The Lord manifest and become active amongst us on earth”

……The Bhagavadgita IV 7.

[5]  “Lord manifest and dwell amongst us to fulfill various purposes; it is not confirmed but can be proposed; to protect the righteous, to annihilate the wicked, and to re-establish the principles of dharma; the Divine Lord appear on this earth, time to time and age after age” ….. The Bhagavadgita IV 8

 

War or Peace!

My part in the War

On arrival in England I learned that Gokhale had been stranded in Paris where he had gone for reasons of health, and as communication between Paris and London had been cut off, there was no knowing when he would return. I did not want to go home without having seen him, but no one could say definitely when he would arrive.


What then was I to do in the meanwhile? What was my duty as regards the war? Sorabji Adajania, my comrade in jail and a Satyagrahi, was then reading for the bar in London. As one of the best Satyagrahis he had been sent to England to qualify himself as a barrister, so that he might take my place on return to South Africa. Dr. Pranjivandas Mehta was paying his expenses. With him, and through him, I had conferences with Dr. Jivraj Mehta and others who were persuing their studies in England. In consultation with them, a meeting of the Indian residents in Great Britain and Ireland was called. I placed my views before them.


I felt that Indians residing in England ought to do their bit in the war. English students had volunteered to serve in the army, and Indians might do no less. A number of objections were taken to this line of argument. There was, it was contended, a world of difference between the Indians and the English. We were slaves and they were masters. How could a slave co-operate with the master in the hour of the latter's need? Was it not the duty of the slave, seeking to be free, to make the master's need his opportunity? This argument failed to appeal to me then. I knew the difference of status between an Indian and an Englishman, but I did not believe that we had been quite reduced to slavery. I felt then that it was more the fault of individual British officials than of the British system, and that we could convert them by love. If we would improve our status through the help and co-operation of the British, it was our duty to win their help by standing by them in their hour of need. Though the system was faulty, it did not seem to me to be intolerable, as it does today. But if, having lost my faith in the system, I refuse to co-operate with the British Government today, how could those friends do so, having lost their faith not only in the system but in the officials as well?


The opposing friends felt that that was the hour for making a bold declaration of Indian demands and for improving the status of Indians.


I thought that England's need should not be turned into our opportunity, and that it was more becoming and far-sighted not to press our demands while the war lasted. I therefore adhered to my advice and invited those who would to enlist as volunteers. There was a good response, practically all the provinces and all the religions being represented among the volunteers.


I wrote a letter to Lord Crewe, acquainting him with these facts, and expressing our readiness to be trained for ambulance work, if that should be considered a condition precedent to the acceptance of our offer.


Lord Crewe accepted the offer after some hesitation, and thanked us for having tendered our services to the Empire at that critical hour.


The volunteers began their preliminary training in first aid to the wounded under the well-known Dr.Cantlie. It was a short course of six weeks, but it covered the whole course of first aid.


We were a class of about eighty. In six weeks we were examined, and all except one passed. For these the Government now provided military drill and other training. Colonel Baker was placed in charge of this work.


London in these days was a sight worth seeing. There was no panic, but all were busy helping to the best of their ability. Able-bodied adults began training as combatants, but what were the old, the infirm and the women to do? There was enough work for them, if they wanted. So they employed themselves in cutting and making clothes and dressings for the wounded.


The Lyceum, a ladies' club, undertook to make as many clothes for the soldiers as they could. Shrimati Sarojini Naidu was a member of this club, and threw herself whole-heartedly into the work. This was my first acquaintance with her. She placed before me a heap of clothes which had been cut to pattern, and asked me to get them all sewn up and return them to her. I welcomed her demand and with the assistance of friends got as many clothes made as I could manage during my training for first aid.



A Spiritual Dilemma

soon as the news reached South Africa that I along with other Indians had offered my services in the war, I received two cables. One of these was from Mr. Polak who questioned the consistency of my action with my profession of ahimsa.


I had to a certain extent anticipated this objection, for I had discussed the question in my Hind Swaraj (Indian Home Rule), and used to discuss it day in and day out with friends in South Africa. All of us recognized the immorality of war. If I was not prepared to prosecute my assailant, much less would I be willing to participate in a war, especially when I knew nothing of the justice or otherwise of the cause of the combatants. Friends of course knew that I had previously served in the Boer War, but they assumed that my views had since undergone a change.


As a matter of fact the very same line of argument that persuaded me to take part in the Boer War had weighed with me on this occasion. It was quite clear to me that participation in war could never be consistent with ahimsa. But it is not always given to one to be equally clear about one's duty. A votary of truth is often obliged to grope in the dark.


Ahimsa is a comprehensive principle. We are helpless mortals caught in the conflagration of himsa. The saying that life lives on life has a deep meaning in it. Man cannot for a moment live without consciously or unconsciously committing outward himsa. The very fact of his living - eating, drinking and moving about - necessarily involves some himsa, destruction of life, be it ever so minute. A votary of ahimsa therefore remains true to his faith if the spring of all his actions is compassion, if he shuns to the best of his ability the destruction of the tiniest creature, tries to save it, and thus incessantly strives to be free from the deadly coil of himsa. He will be constantly growing in self-restraint and compassion, but he can never become entirely free from outward himsa.


Then again, because underlying ahimsa is the unity of all life, the error of one cannot but affect all, and hence man cannot be wholly free from himsa. So long as he continues to be a social being, he cannot but participate in the himsa that the very existence of society involves. When two nations are fighting, the duty of a votary of ahimsa is to stop the war. He who is not equal to that duty, he who has no power of resisting war, he who is not qualified to resist war, may take part in war, and yet whole-heartedly try to free himself, his nation and the world from war.


I had hoped to improve my status and that of my people through the British Empire. Whilst in England I was enjoying the protection of the British Fleet, and taking shelter as I did under its armed might, I was directly participating in its potential violence. Therefore, if I desired to retain my connection with the Empire and to live under its banner, one of three courses was open to me: I could declare open resistance to the war and, in accordance with the law of Satyagraha, boycott the Empire until it changed its military policy; or I could seek imprisonment by civil disobedience of such of its laws as were fit to be disobeyed; or I could participate in the war on the side of the Empire and thereby acquire the capacity and fitness for resisting the violence of war. I lacked this capacity and fitness, as I thought there was nothing for it but to serve in the war.


I make no distinction, from the point of view of ahimsa, between combatants and non-combatants. He who volunteers to serve a band of dacoits, by working as their carrier, or their watchman while they are about their business, or their nurse when they are wounded, is as much guilty of dacoity as the dacoits themselves. In the same way those who confine themselves to attending to the wounded in battle cannot be absolved from the guilt of war.


I had argued the whole thing out to myself in this manner, before I received Polak's cable, and soon after its receipt, I discussed these views with several friends and concluded that it was my duty to offer to serve in the war. Even today I see no flaw in that line of argument, nor am I sorry for my action, holding, as I then did, views favourable to the British connection.


I know that even then I could not carry conviction with all my friends about the correctness of my position. The question is subtle. It admits of differences of opinion, and therefore I have submitted my argument as clearly as possible to those who believe in ahimsa and who are making serious efforts to practise it in every walk of life. A devotee of Truth may not do anything in deference to convention. He must always hold himself open to correction, and whenever he discovers himself to be wrong he must confess it at all costs and atone for it.



Miniature Satyagraha

Though I thus took part in the war as a matter of duty, it chanced that I was not only unable directly to participate in it, but actually compelled to offer what may be called miniature Satyagraha even at that critical juncture.


I have already said that an officer was appointed in charge of our training, as soon as our names were approved and enlisted. We were all under the impression that this Commanding Officer was to be our chief only so far as technical matters were concerned, and that in all other matters I was the head of our Corps, which was directly responsible to me in matters of internal discipline; that is to say, the Commanding Officer had to deal with the Corps through me. But from the first the Officer left us under no such delusion.


Mr. Sorabji Adajania was a shrewd man. He warned me. 'Beware of this man,' he said. 'He seems inclined to lord it over us. We will have none of his orders. We are prepared to look upon him as our instructor. But the youngsters he has appointed to instruct us also feel as though they had come as our masters.'


These youngsters were Oxford students who had come to instruct us and whom the Commanding Officer had appointed to be our section leaders.


I also had not failed to notice the high-handedness of the Commanding Officer, but I asked Sorabji not to be anxious and tried to pacify him. But he was not the man to be easily convinced.


'You are too trusting. Those people will deceive you with wretched words, and when at last you see through them, you will ask us to resort to Satyagraha, and so come to grief, and bring us all to grief along with you,' said he with a smile.


'What else but grief can you hope to come to after having cast in your lot with me?' said I. 'A Satyagrahi is born to be deceived. Let the Commanding Officer deceive us. Have I not told you times without number that ultimately a deceiver only deceives himself?'


Sorabji gave a loud laugh. 'Well, then,' said he, 'continue to be deceived. You will some day meet your death in Satyagraha and drag poor mortals like me behind you.'


These words put me in mind of what the late Miss Emily Hobhouse wrote to me with regard to non-co-operation: 'I should not be surprised if one of these days you have to go to the gallows for the sake of truth. May God show you the right path and protect you.'


The talk with Sorabji took place just after the appointment of the Commanding Officer. In a very few days our relations with him reached the breaking-point. I had hardly regained my strength after the fourteen days' fast, when I began to take part in the drill, often walking to the appointed place about two miles from home. This gave me pleurisy and laid me low. In this condition I had to go week-end camping. Whilst the others stayed there, I returned home. It was here that an occasion arose for Satyagraha.


The Commanding Officer began to exercise his authority somewhat freely. He gave us clearly to understand that he was our head in all matters, military and non-military, giving us at the same time a taste of his authority. Sorabji hurried to me. He was not at all prepared to put up with this high-handedness. He said: 'We must have all orders through you. We are still in the training camp and all sorts of absurd orders are being issued. Invidious distinctions are made between ourselves and those youths who have been appointed to instruct us. We must have it out with the Commanding Officer, otherwise we shall not be able to go on any longer. The Indian students and others who have joined our Corps are not going to abide by any absurd orders. In a cause which has been taken up for the sake of self-respect, it is unthinkable to put up with loss of it.'


I approached the Commanding Officer and drew his attention to the complaints I had received. He wrote asking me to set out the complaints in writing, at the same time asking me 'to impress upon those who complain that the proper direction in which to make complaints is to me through their section commanders, now appointed, who will inform me through the instructors.'


To this I replied saying that I claimed no authority, that in the military sense I was no more than any other private, but that I had believed that as Chairman of the Volunteer Corps, I should be allowed unofficially to act as their representative. I also set out the grievances and requests that had been brought to my notice, namely, that grievous dissatisfaction had been caused by the appointment of section leaders without reference to the feeling of the members of the Corps; that they be recalled, and the Corps be invited to elect section leaders, subject to the Commander's approval.


This did not appeal to the Commanding Officer, who said it was repugnant to all military discipline that the section leaders should be elected by the Corps, and that the recall of appointments already made would be subversive of all discipline.


So we held a meeting and decided upon withdrawal. I brought home to the members the serious consequences of Satyagraha. But a very large majority voted for the resolution, which was to the effect that, unless the appointments of Corporals already made were recalled and the members of the Corps given an opportunity of electing their own Corporals, the members would be obliged to abstain from further drilling and week-end camping.


I then addressed a letter to the Commanding Officer telling him what a severe disappointment his letter rejecting my suggestion had been. I assured him that I was not fond of any exercise of authority and that I was most anxious to serve. I also drew his attention to a precedent. I pointed out that, although I occupied no official rank in the South African Indian Ambulance Corps at the time of the Boer War, there was never a hitch between Colonel Gallwey and the Corps, and the Colonel never took a step without reference to me with a view to ascertain the wishes of the Corps. I also enclosed a copy of the resolution we had passed the previous evening.


This had no good effect on the Officer, who felt that the meeting and the resolution were a grave breach of discipline.


Hereupon I addressed a letter to the Secretary of State for India, acquainting him with all the facts and enclosing a copy of the resolution. He replied explaining that conditions in South Africa were different, and drawing my attentions to the fact that under the rules the section commanders were appointed by the Commanding Officer, but assuring me that in future, when appointing section commanders, the Commanding Officer would consider my recommendations.


A good deal of correspondence passed between us after this, but I do not want to prolong the bitter tale. Suffice it to say that my experience was of a piece with the experiences we daily have in India. What with threats and what with adroitness the Commanding Officer succeeded in creating a division in our Corps. Some of those who had voted for the resolution yielded to the Commander's threats or persuasions and went back on their promise.


About this time an unexpectedly large contingent of wounded soldiers arrived at the Netley Hospital, and the services of our Corps were requisitioned. Those whom the Commanding Officer could persuade went to Netley. The others refused to go. I was on my back, but was in communication with the members of the Corps. Mr. Roberts, the Under-Secretary of State, honoured me with many calls during those days. He insisted on my persuading the others to serve. He suggested that they should form a separate Corps and that at the Netley Hospital they could be responsible only to the Commanding Officer there, so that there would be no question of loss of self-respect, Government would be placated, and at same time helpful service would be rendered to the large number of wounded received at the hospital. This suggestion appealed both to my companions and to me, with the result that those who had stayed away also went to Netley.


Only I remained away, lying on my back and making the best of a bad job.