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Elective English–I

Notes embraced the pacifist doctrine of non-resistance as per the teachings of Jesus outlined in the
gospels, Tolstoy gave up meat, tobacco, alcohol and preached chastity. He wrote The Kingdom
of God Is Within You (1893), titled after Luke’s Gospel in the New Testament. When Mahatma
Gandhi read it he was profoundly moved and wrote to Tolstoy regarding the Passive Resistance
movement. They started a correspondence and soon became friends. Tolstoy wrote “A Letter
to a Hindu” in 1908. Admiring their ideals of a simple life of hard work, living off the land
and following the teachings of Jesus, Tolstoy offered his friendship and moral and financial
support to the Doukhobors. A Christian sect was persecuted in Russia, many Tolstoyans
assisted them in their mass emigration to Canada in 1899. Tolstoy was involved with many
other causes including appealing to the Tsar to avoid civil war at all costs. In 1902 he moved
back to Yasnya Polyana.
In January of 1903, as he writes in his diary, Tolstoy still struggled with his identity: where
he had come from and who he had become; “I am now suffering the torments of hell: I am
calling to mind all the infamies of my former life—these reminiscences do not pass away and
they poison my existence. Generally people regret that the individuality does not retain memory
after death. What a happiness that it does not! What an anguish it would be if I remembered
in this life all the evil, all that is painful to the conscience, committed by me in a previous life….What
a happiness that reminiscences disappear with death and that there only remains consciousness.”
The ruminations were prompted by his friend Paul Biryukov asking him for his assistance in
penning his biography. His literary executor Chertkov would write The Last Days of Leo
Tolstoy (1911). For as the last days of Tolstoy were playing out, he still at times agonised over
his self-worth and regretted his actions from decades earlier. Having renounced his ancestral
claim to his estate and all of his worldly goods, all in his family but his youngest daughter
Alexandra scorned him. He was intent on starting a new life and did so on 28 October 1910,
making it as far as the stationmaster’s home at the Astapovo train station. Leo Tolstoy died
there of pneumonia on 20 November 1910. Although he wanted no ceremony or ritual, thousands
showed up to pay their respects. He was buried in a simple wooden coffin near Nikolay’s
‘place of the little green stick’ by the ravine in the Stary Zakaz Wood on the Yasnya Polyana
estate; returned to that place of idylls where Nikolay told him one could find the secret to
happiness and the end to all sufferings.

5.4 The Spark Neglected Burns the House

‘Then came Peter, and said to him, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?
until seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times; but, Until seventy
times seven. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would make a
reckoning with his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed
him ten thousand talents.

But forasmuch as he had not wherewith to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and
children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down and worshipped
him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And the lord of that servant, being
moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. But that servant went out, and found
one of his fellow-servants, which owed him a hundred pence: and he laid hold on him, and took him
by the throat saying, Pay what thou owest.
So his fellow-servant fell down and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee.
And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay that which was due. So when
his fellow-servants saw what was done, they were exceeding sorry, and came and told unto their lord
all that was done. Then his lord called him unto him, and saith to him, Thou wicked servant, I forgave
thee all that debt, because thou besoughtest me: shouldest not thou also have had mercy on thy fellow-

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