Looking in on Palmer's Rudyard Kipling
The task of the Anglo-Indian administrator is, indeed, the finest opportunity for that heroic life to the celebration of which Mr Kipling has devoted so many of his tales. This hero has a task which taxes all his ability, which promises little riches and little fame, and is known to be tolerably hopeless. It offers to him a supreme test of his virtue--a test in which the hero is accountable only to his personal will; whose best work is its own reward and comfort.
"Gentlemen come from England," writes Mr Kipling in one of his famous Indian tales, "spend a few weeks in India, walk round this great sphinx of the Plains, and write books upon its ways and its work, denouncing or praising it as their ignorance prompts. Consequently all the world knows how the Supreme Government conducts itself. But no one, not even the Supreme Government, knows everything about the administration of the Empire. Year by year England sends fresh drafts for the fighting-line, which is officially called the Indian Civil Service. These die, or kill themselves by overwork, or are worried to death, or broken in health and hope, in order that the land may be protected from death and sickness, famine and war, and may eventually become capable of standing alone; but the idea is a pretty scary one, and men are willing to die for it, and yearly the work of pushing and coaxing and scolding and petting the country into good living goes forward. If an advance be made, all credit is given to the native, while the Englishmen stand back and wipe their foreheads. If a failure occurs, the Englishmen step forward and accept the blame. (Palmer 38, 39)
Although I hear the tinge of an anti-war yet effectually anti-peace mindset (which exists only in extremes of acceptance), I feel Kipling, and in effect Palmer as well, was in many ways prophetic, if not in actuality then at least in application. And while he recognized that the country of his focus could never stand alone, we must also understand that, of course, no country may stand alone. The foundation of success cannot be due to any man. In addition, the faults and failures of men and mice must be due to us all. We must adopt responsibility for all the flaws of mankind, yet still never live in guilt. We must take on the mentality of Jeremiah as seen in Lamentations 5:16-17,
"The crown has fallen from our head;
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
Because of this our heart is faint;
Because of these things our eyes are dim"
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
Because of this our heart is faint;
Because of these things our eyes are dim"
Although Jeremiah was one of God's chosen, he was accountable for the sins of his people. We must be always accountable yet remain living in constant grace. As in all things, there is a precious balance. It is grace in an antithetical reality. Black and white, no grey; yet forever grace for those who accept that gift. This is what it means to be balanced AND antithetical. No extremes, yet still a duality of light vs dark. It is not yin and yang. It is right vs wrong plus grace and mercy. Our people have sinned, and we diminish the efforts of our modern heroes. We have forgotten our history and are therefore condemned to failure. But there is hope yet. We have needs to be wise and discerning. Our choices in these upcoming days, and all days to come, must be balanced and antithetical. We must take on the charge. We must progress, not digress. Our eyes are still dim, but through the recognition of our calling and an understanding of our past, we can clean our worldview eyeglasses and correct our vision. Perhaps this is obvious. Perhaps this is unlikely. Perhaps this is difficult. But just maybe, this is truth. And truth is worth the struggle.
