JULY 7

Negative Mentality

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (1870-1924) who was later known to the world by his revolutionary name Lenin was born into a family who tended to be political extremists. To make matters worse, Lenin’s elder brother Alexander, made an abortive attempt to kill the Czar and was executed as a result in 1887. Consequently, the whole family had to bear the brunt of persistent persecution by the government.

Lenin resolved to avenge the execution of his dear brother. Hatred for the Czar became second nature to him. But the tragic end of his brother was there to remind him that an attempt by an individual on the life of the Emperor of Russia was futile. It was only united and collective effort that could bring the rule of his loathsome enemy to an end. The theory of Karl Marx supplied him with the much sought for answer.

Lenin found the opportunity to study the ideas of Karl Marx during his studies at the university. Later on, during his stay in Geneva for further education, he discovered more literature on Socialism. It was natural that Lenin was greatly attracted to these ideas. The philosophy developed by Marx not only proved his dreaded enemy wrong, but also justified the abolition of the whole system represented by the Czar. Thus Marxist Socialism provided Lenin with a philosophical basis for launching a mass movement against him, and he plunged himself heart and soul into following its dictates.

It often happens that a person’s thoughts and actions are governed by his personal whims and fancies, but he pretends that they have been inspired by a love for humanity or that he is obeying a commandment of God. But his words and actions bear no relation to each other. While he is one person on the inside, he pretends to be something quite other on the outside. He gives the impression that his thoughts and ideologies have an objective, positive basis, but, in the last analysis, they are nothing but reflex actions.