Rassegna storica del Risorgimento

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Gita Srivastava
equality and democracy. He taught that there was no independence without war. There is no way except to fight, long, determined and decisive war . *9 He held war to be sacred for it would speli ruin for untruth and victory for the truth. The war calls for the training outside the borders of their own country. Arms have got to be procured and the necessary technical know-how to be learned in order to be able to manufacture arms. An army of patriots has got to be raised and soldiers have to be induced to join the natàonal movement. 43> Once this preparation is done, the guerrilla war must be waged against the enemy.44* He extolled the virtues of guerrilla warfare. He con-cluded that there was no greater joy than the overthrow of the slavery and the achievement of independence.
The significance of Savarkar's work on Mazzini lay in the blueprint that it provided to the revolutionaries of Maharashtra in particular and of India in general. It was small wonder that 2000 copies of Savarkar's book were sold in three months.4S> The book was born out of the brain and heart of a great author and patriot. Dhananjay Keer wrote, Savarkar belongs to the time of Rousseau, Voltaire and Mazzini ... They are great precursors of a coming storm; proclaimers of a new age and originators of a revolu­tion.46)
Thus it is evident from the above enumeration that Savarkar introduced Mazzini to Indians through secret societies like Mitra Mela and Abhinav Bharat, where besides other activities such as physical training, the writings of Mazzini were read and re-read. There was a great similarity between Abhinav Bharat and Young Italy in their objectives and methods to achieve freedom from foreign yoke. The motive behind translating the autobiography of Mazzini in Marathi was to acquaint the Maharashtrians in particular and Indians in general with the martyrdom of Mazzini and wanted his countrymen to emulate his sacrifioing spirit to achieve freedom from the British. To an indominatable will Savarkar combined outstanding courage, breadth of vision and strength of intellect.47) Savarkar, who was threatened with the death penalty, was described as Mazzini's martyr in the Indian Sociologist of November, 1912. Savarkar's book on Mazzini, which was proscribed by the government, became the bible of the revolutionaries.
GITA SRIVASTAVA Meerut University, India
) Jvi, p. 47.
43) Ivi, p. 48.
44) Ivi, p. 49.
45) R.C. BÀJUMDAR (ed.), op. cit., p. 203.
46) DHANANJAY KEER, Veer Savarkar cit., p. 70.
47) VIDYA SACAR ANAND, Savarkar, London, 1967, p. 29.