The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories

rupted form-Moreover, Christianity is a prophecy of the disappearance of the pagan life, and therefore of the necessity of accepting the Christian doctrine-Non-resistance of evil by violence is one of

es, hypnotism, and the employment of military force-Deliverance from State violence cannot be accomplished by overthrowing the State-Through experience of the misery of pagan life men are compelled to acknowledge the doctrine of Christ, with its non-resistance to evil,-a doctrine which they have hitherto ignored-To this same necessity of acknowledging the Christian doctrine we are brought by the consciousness of its truth-This consciousness is in utter contradiction to our life, and is especially evident in regard to general military conscription; but, in consequence of habit and the four methods of State violence, men do not see this inconsistency of Christianity with the duties of a soldier-Men do not see it even when the autho

ts first appearance, and would straightway have changed and improved the lives of men. One might a

ty is a life-conception more lofty and excellent than the ancient; and such a new conception of life cannot be enforced; it m

surrender themselves to its influence, and live up to its precepts; others-and they are the majority-are brought to t

octrine by the external process of experi

ting it in its true significance, could have been necessary. And yet the very errors, having brought men to their present pos

fused it, like the Asiatic peoples to whom it is yet unknown. But having once accepted it in its corrupted form, the nations embracing it were subjected to its slow but

majority of mankind, with all its errors, was then a necessity, just a

is the doctrine of trut

of disobeying its injunctions and of continuing to pursue their former course, guided only by the precepts which were taught before

s house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not,

Christ's teachings, having disregarded the principle of non-resistance to evil, men have unwittingly fa

and it is one that must be solved. In social life, ever since Christianity was first preached, this question has been like the doubt that confronts the traveler when he comes to a place where the road which he has followed divides, and he know

I did before, without deciding the question of resistance or non-resistance to evil by violence. One must decide at the

each combatant believes to be an evil. But before the time of Christ men did not understand that resistance by violence of whatever the individual believed to be evil-only the s

ctual and absolute evil. For this purpose, dating from the oldest times, men began to invent certain definitions of evil which should be obligatory for all, and for the purpose of establishing definitions which should be thus binding, were issued, either certain laws supposed to hav

particularly among men who had usurped authority,

became that to resist by violence everything that is considered evil is unwise; that the struggle

by men; that men cannot be infallible, no matter with what external authority they may be invested; and that fallible men will not become infallible because they meet together and call themselves a Senate, or any other similar name. Even then this had been perceived and understood by many. And it was then that Christ preached His doctrine, which n

were in authority, although they nominally accepted Christianity, continued to follow the practice of resisting by violence wh

e first centuries of Christianity, had grown still more evident at the time of the dissolution of the Roman Emp

be resisted by violence, was alternately the Emperor, the Pope, the elected body, or the nation at large. But both within and without the State men were always to be found who refused to hold themselves bound, either by those laws which were supposed to be the expression of the divine will

s desirable, and vice versa, and more and more furious grew the struggle. And the oftener men had recourse to violence in settling the difficulty, the m

evil which does not please them, and those who are subject to authority obey, not because they believe that the definitions of evil made by authority are just, but only because they have no power to resist. The annexation of Nice to France, Lorraine to Germany, the Czechs to Austria, the partition of Poland, the subjection of Ireland and India to the English rule, the waging of war against China, the slaughter of Africans, the expulsion of the Chinese, the persecution of the Jews in Russia, or the derivation of profits by landowners from land which they do not cultivate, and by

prisons, the lash, the knout, galleys, executions, military conscription, and wars were unavoidable,-it would be difficult to find a man at the present time who believes that all the violences committed saves a single man fr

mmoral men by exile or imprisonment, where, supported as they are, and living in idleness, they become still weaker and more depraved; or, again, the unspeakable folly and cruelty of those preparations for war, which can neither be expl

ngs. Not only do the rich realize that the possession of wealth is in itself a fault, for which they strive to atone by donations to science and art, as formerly they redeemed their sins by endowing churches; but even the majority of the laboring class now understand that the existing order is false, and should be altered, if not abolished. Men who profess religion, of whom we have millions in Russia, the so-called sectarians, acknowledge, because they interpret the gospel doctrine correctly, that this ord

raphic equipment, that is, with an organization of violence, having for basis nothing less than the most brutal tyranny, and converting all th

fic progress, on an organization so ingenious that it is able to inclose all men within a circle of violence through which it is imp

inst the so-called nihilists, in America against the anarchists, in France against the imperialists, monarchists, communists, and anarchists. Railroads, telegraphs, telephones, photography, the improved method of disposing of criminals by imprisoning them in solitary confinement for the remainder of their lives in cells, where, hidden from human view, they die forgotten, as well as numerous othe

e the bondage of the people. The bribed officials, from the prime ministers to the lowest scribes, form one unbroken chain of individuals, united by a common interest, supported by the labor of the people, fulfilling the

same obligation of obedience to the government. In maturer years this hypnotizing process is continued by the encouragement of religious and patriotic superstition. Religious superstition is encouraged by the erection of churches built from money collected from the people, by holidays, processions, painting, architecture, music, by incense that stupefies the brain, and, above all, by the maintenance of the so-called clergy, whose duty consists in befogging the minds of men and keeping them in a continual state of imbecility, what with the solemnity of their services, their sermons, their intervention with the private lives of men in time of marriage, birth, and death. The patriotic superstition is encouraged by the governments and the ruling classes by instituting national festivals, spectacles, and holidays, by erecting monuments with money collected from the people, which will influence men to believe in the exclusive importance and greatness of their own St

d then, having removed them from all the natural conditions of human life, from home, family, birthplace, and the possibility of intelligent labor, by shutting them up together in barracks, where, dressed in a peculiar uniform, to the accompaniment of shouts, drums, music, and the display of glittering gewgaws, they are daily forced to perform certain prescribed evolutions. By these methods they are reduced to that hypnotic condition when they cease to be men and be

and make it possible to execute and to rob mankind (with the aid of bribed officials)

and there is no possib

ppressed, who will then replace it by a system which will require no such violence and subjugation, and if, so believing, they attempt to

to the government,-take the case of France in 1870, for example,-a government is overthrown by violence and the authority passes into other hands, this new authority is by no means likely to be less oppressive th

arties have nothing better to offer by way of reconciling mankind than violence. Thus, whichever party gains the upper hand, it will be forced, in order to introduce and maintain its own system, not only to avail itself of all former methods of violence, but to invent new ones as well. It simply means a change of slavery with new victims and a new organizati

estic labor. But now even this domain, in consequence of the struggle of socialists and communists, is gradually passing into the hands of the governments, so that labor and

and of deciding, too, the question of social life dependent thereupon,-the resistance or non-resistance of evil by violence. But there is this difference,-that formerly men could either accept or reject t

ad plight that brings

of the pagan order of things there has been posi

l medium, having recognized the truths of the doctrine, have borne witness of it, regardless of threats, pr

, it had become impossible to go on with the pagan life; but by its simplifying process, by its explanati

is to be found in the fulfilment of the Christian doctrine. Certain believers, those who consider the Christian doctrine divine, affirm that this salvation will be accomplished when all men believe in Christ and the time of the second advent approaches; others, who also have faith in the divinity of Christ's doctrine, believe that this salvation will come through the churches, which, having got all men within the fold, will implant in their hearts those Christian virtues which will transform their lives. Others, again, who do not accept the divinity of Christ, believe that the salvation of men will be accomplished by means of a slow, continuous progress, during which the groundwork of pagan life will be gradually replaced by the groundwork of liberty,

om the tiniest seed. "The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, ... which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it

Christianity by its veritable truth; but it is acknowledged by the great ma

that, however far removed from the practice of Christian truths may be the political or social existence of men who are in bonds to violence, yet Christian virtues are admired and exalted by all; while, on the contrary, the anti-Christian vices are unhesitatingly

power, courage, or wealth; but these ideals are passing away; they are not accepted by all, nor by the men of

sents a very different aspect. All the evil of our life seems to exist only because it always has existed from all ages, and the men whose actions are evil have had neither the time no

eem, modern men hate the very order o

e essence of the Christian doctrine, came to Europe and beheld the life of Christians. He could not recover from his astonis

We have but to look at our life from the standpoint of the Indian, who understood Christianity in its true significance, without any concessions or adaptations, and

, whom they seek to benefit. And these contradictions arise, not, as it might seem, because men pretend to be Christians while they are actually heathens, but because they lack something, or because there is some power which prevents them from being what they really desire to be, and what they even conscientiously believe themselves to be. It is not that modern men mere

truments of murder, or in the military exercises by which men are trained for slaughter? Ask whether it be praiseworthy or compatible with the dignity of man, or becoming to a Christian, to undertake, also for money, to arrest some unfortunate man, some illiterate drunkard, for some petty theft not to be compared with the magnitude of our own appropriation, or for manslaughter not conducted by our advanced methods; and for such offenses to throw people into prison, or put them to death? Ask whether it be laudable and becoming in a man a

ten, of his own accord, and for no advantage of a salary, but moved by childish vanity, the desire to possess a trinket of enamel, a decoration, a stripe, voluntarily enter the military service, or become an e

e ashamed and pained to think of what they are doing, especially when the baseness of their deeds has been pointed out to them. A man in modern life, whether he does or does not profess to believe in the divinity of Christ, must know that to be instrumental either as a czar, minister, governor, or policeman, as in selling a poor family's last cow to pay taxes to the treasury, the money of which is devoted to the purchase of cannon or to pay the salaries or pensions of idle and luxurious officials, is to do more harm than good; or to be a party to the imprisonment of the father of a family, for whose demoralization we are ourselves responsible, and to bring his family to beggary; or to take part in

ption system. It is only because a general armament and military conscription have come imperceptibly and by slow degrees, and that governments employ for their support all the means of intimidation at thei

e, aimless, and cruel murders; yet still they go on committing them. But this is not all. In Germany, where the system of general military conscription originated, Caprivi has revealed something that has always been carefully hidden: that the men who run the risk of being killed are not only foreigners, but are quite as likely to be fellow-countrymen,-working-men,-from which class most of the soldiers are obtained. Nevertheless, this admission neither opened men's eyes nor shocked their sensibilities. They continue just as they did before, to go like sheep, and submit to anything that is demanded of them. And this is not all. Th

esses what other men only venture to think, in a talk with certain soldiers, uttered

eaning of what has been said here, but first of all take care ever to follow the orders and instructions that are given to you. You have taken the

that I shall command you to shoot your own relatives, your brothers, even your parents (from

. He says outright that the men who serve in the army serve himand his advant

t abyss of self-abasement into which they fling themselves when they promise obedience. Like a bold hypnotizer, he tests the

on, that a choice is put before them. It seems to them as if there were no choice, but only the one necessity of slavish submission. It would seem as if these insane words, offensive to all that a civilized human being holds sacred, ought to rouse indignation,-but nothing of the kind happens. Year after year every young man in Europe is subj

have to murder your own father; and he, oftentimes a man of learning, who has studied all the sciences in the university, submissively offers his neck to the halter. He is dressed in a clown's garments, ordered to

is, I should suffer alone without benefiting any one." And they are right; for a man who holds the social life-conception cannot refus

ing alone; he lacks the foundation which alone would enable him to resist violence, and

ns for killing men, so it is possible to increase the means for subjecting those who hold the social life-conception. Let them be exterminated by thousands and millions, let them be torn to pieces, men

wildered that they will promise to murder their own parents. What kind of intelligence and morality can there be in a society organized from material like this? Just as it is impossible to build a house from bent and rotten timber, h

hand we see these same men ready, in the name of liberty, to yield the most abject and slavish obedience; in the name of equality, to app

es of violence, has culminated in the negation of the basis on which it was founded. The organization, on principles of violence, of a society whose object was to i

cendants who adopted this doctrine has been fulfilled, and now thei