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A lenghty, notable non-fiction work by Tolstoy where he discusses nonviolent resistance and the core of Christianity, is "The Kingdom of God is Within You" [1].

by marttt 6y ago

A lenghty, notable non-fiction work by Tolstoy where he discusses nonviolent resistance and the core of Christianity, is "The Kingdom of God is Within You" [1]. Apparently Mahatma Gandhi listed this one among the three books that have most influenced his views. A short (ca 80 pages in my language) interpretation on these topics was also "A Confession" [2]. I sometimes wonder if I would have made a few different choices if I had read this book in my early 20s. Probably not, but it is a nice dream. Also, a short fiction masterpiece by Tolstoy on life and death is "The Death of Ivan Ilych" [3]. It has some excellent plot twists. I remember feeling like a ping-pong ball in the hands of the author; whatever he wanted me to think, I did. 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kingdom_of_God_Is_Within_You https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kingdom_of_God_Is_Within_Y... 2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Confession https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Confession 3: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Death_of_Ivan_Ilyich https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Death_of_Ivan_Ilyich

082349872349872 6y ago
Parker on one facet of A Confession: "Razors pain you / Rivers are damp."
catawbasam 6y ago
Similarly, Tolstoy's thought influenced Martin Luther King Jr. Arguably among the most influential thinkers of the 20th century in terms of social and political impact.
- 082349872349872 6y ago
  In one of MLKJ's speeches, he laid out his calculations for a boycott strategy: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23414101 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23414101 He was cancelled the very next day, suggesting that economic sanctions might be a kind of nonviolence on which state level actors prefer to retain their monopoly.
xlm1717 6y ago
Interesting that this isn't more widely known. At the peak of his popularity Tolstoy was an international celebrity, not only for his novels (which are among the greatest works of literature of all time), but for his social teachings. The article mentions that if anything outside of his novels is discussed, he is more often than not called a cult-inspirer. He was aware of this, and asked people not to follow "Toltoyism", but their own conscience. Nevertheless, people still started what they called Tolstoy Farms. Almost all of these farms quickly collapsed. So people forgot about Tolstoy's social teachings, even while his novels remain timeless, and people inspired by him, like Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., are still celebrated today. I think the problem was Tolstoy's social teachings removed the timeless aspects of Christ's teachings (what other people would call the religious/supernatural aspects), and like other rationalist movements, such as the French Revolution and eventually the Bolshevik Revolution, Tolstoy's social teachings gradually faded away (though thankfully his teachings were explicitly based on nonviolence). What MLK and Gandhi did was take what Tolstoy saw as the best parts of Christianity, and recontextualize them in religion, MLK in Christianity and Gandhi in Hinduism. Gandhi was very familiar with many religious traditions, and remained a Hindu his whole life, approaching nonviolence, boycotts, and hunger strikes with a Hindu perspective. MLK regularly delivered sermons at churches, and one of his most remembered speeches, I've Been to the Mountaintop, was one such sermon. MLK's speeches, teachings and actions wholeheartedly embraced Christianity. I think religion will let MLK's and Gandhi's teachings endure, while today most people aren't even aware of the influence Tolstoy had on them.

by marttt 6y ago

082349872349872 6y ago

Parker on one facet of A Confession: "Razors pain you / Rivers are damp."

catawbasam 6y ago

Similarly, Tolstoy's thought influenced Martin Luther King Jr. Arguably among the most influential thinkers of the 20th century in terms of social and political impact.

082349872349872 6y ago
In one of MLKJ's speeches, he laid out his calculations for a boycott strategy: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23414101 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23414101 He was cancelled the very next day, suggesting that economic sanctions might be a kind of nonviolence on which state level actors prefer to retain their monopoly.

xlm1717 6y ago

Interesting that this isn't more widely known. At the peak of his popularity Tolstoy was an international celebrity, not only for his novels (which are among the greatest works of literature of all time), but for his social teachings. The article mentions that if anything outside of his novels is discussed, he is more often than not called a cult-inspirer. He was aware of this, and asked people not to follow "Toltoyism", but their own conscience. Nevertheless, people still started what they called Tolstoy Farms. Almost all of these farms quickly collapsed. So people forgot about Tolstoy's social teachings, even while his novels remain timeless, and people inspired by him, like Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., are still celebrated today. I think the problem was Tolstoy's social teachings removed the timeless aspects of Christ's teachings (what other people would call the religious/supernatural aspects), and like other rationalist movements, such as the French Revolution and eventually the Bolshevik Revolution, Tolstoy's social teachings gradually faded away (though thankfully his teachings were explicitly based on nonviolence). What MLK and Gandhi did was take what Tolstoy saw as the best parts of Christianity, and recontextualize them in religion, MLK in Christianity and Gandhi in Hinduism. Gandhi was very familiar with many religious traditions, and remained a Hindu his whole life, approaching nonviolence, boycotts, and hunger strikes with a Hindu perspective. MLK regularly delivered sermons at churches, and one of his most remembered speeches, I've Been to the Mountaintop, was one such sermon. MLK's speeches, teachings and actions wholeheartedly embraced Christianity. I think religion will let MLK's and Gandhi's teachings endure, while today most people aren't even aware of the influence Tolstoy had on them.