十七 姐妹
本译文由人工智能辅助工具生成，可能存在不准确之处。如需查阅权威文本，请参考英文原文。
AI-translated. May contain errors. For accurate text, refer to the original English.
中文
XVII
纽约，
1894年4月26日。
亲爱的姐妹（伊莎贝尔·麦金德利小姐），
您的来信昨日送达。您完全正确——那份疯狂的《内陆》（《芝加哥内陆》，一份曾反对斯瓦米的长老会报纸。——编者注）给我带来了不少乐子。但昨日您从印度转来的邮件，正如"母亲教会"信中所言，实是久违的好消息。其中有一封德万吉寄来的美好来信。这位老人——愿主赐福于他——一如既往地表示愿意帮助我。此外还有一份在加尔各答出版的关于我的小册子——至少表明，在我的一生中，先知有一次是在自己的国家里得到荣耀的。册中收录了美国及印度各报刊杂志对我的摘录报道。加尔各答报纸的摘录尤令我感到欣慰，尽管文辞过于溢美，以至于我不愿将这本小册子寄给您。他们称我为杰出人物、奇异天才，以及诸如此类的无稽之词，却代表全体国民向我致以感谢。如今我不在乎自己人对我说什么——只有一件事除外。我有一位年迈的母亲。她一生历尽苦难，却在苦难之中甘愿将我献于对神与人的事业；但若她最心爱的孩子——她的希望——竟在遥远他乡过着低劣堕落的生活，正如马祖姆达尔在加尔各答所声称的那样，这简直会置她于死地。但主是伟大的，无人能伤害祂的子民。
真相已不胫而出——而这丝毫非我所求。您猜那位在报上大力赞颂我、感谢上帝我来美国代表印度教的主要报纸编辑是谁？正是马祖姆达尔的表亲！——可怜的马祖姆达尔——他因嫉妒而散布谎言，反而损害了自己的事业。主知道我从未为自己辩护。
我此前已读过刊载于《论坛》上的甘地先生那篇文章。
如果您手头有上个月的《评论之评论》——请读给母亲听，那篇关于印度鸦片问题中印度教徒的英国驻印高官证词。他将英国人与印度教徒加以比较，对印度教徒赞誉有加。莱普尔·格里芬爵士曾是我们民族最刻毒的敌人之一，是什么使他改变了立场？
我在波士顿布里德夫人处度过了一段愉快的时光，也见到了赖特教授。我还要再去波士顿。裁缝正在为我赶制新长袍。我将在剑桥大学（哈佛大学）发表演讲，届时将下榻于赖特教授府上。波士顿各报都以盛大的欢迎词迎接我。
我已对这一切喧嚣厌倦至极。五月下旬，我将返回芝加哥，小住数日之后，再重返东部。
昨晚我在华尔道夫酒店发表了演讲。史密斯夫人以每张2美元的价格出售门票。大厅坐满了听众，不过那是一个小厅。到目前为止，我尚未见到任何款项。望今日之内能够收到。
我在林恩赚了一百美元，但暂不汇出，因为我须置办新长袍及其他杂项。
波士顿那边的收入不敢期望太多。然而我必须触动美国的思想精英，竭尽所能激励他们。
您爱您的兄弟，
辨喜
English
XVII
NEW YORK,
26th April, 1894.
DEAR SISTER (Miss Isabelle McKindley.),
Your letter reached me yesterday. You were perfectly right — I enjoyed the fun of the lunatic Interior, (Chicago Interior, a Presbyterian newspaper which opposed Swamiji. — Ed.) but the mail you sent yesterday from India was really, as Mother Church says in her letter, a good news after a long interval. There is a beautiful letter from Dewanji. The old man — Lord bless him — offers as usual to help me. Then there was a little pamphlet published in Calcutta about me — revealing that once at least in my life the prophet has been honoured in his own country. There are extracts from American and Indian papers and magazines about me. The extracts printed from Calcutta papers were especially gratifying, although the strain is so fulsome that I refuse to send the pamphlet over to you. They call me illustrious, wonderful, and all sorts of nonsense, but they forward me the gratitude of the whole nation. Now I do not care what they even of my own people say about me — except for one thing. I have an old mother. She has suffered much all her life and in the midst of all she could bear to give me up for the service of God and man; but to have given up the most beloved of her children — her hope — to live a beastly immoral life in a far distant country, as Mazoomdar was telling in Calcutta, would have simply killed her. But the Lord is great, none can injure His children.
The cat is out of the bag — without my seeking at all. And who do you think is the editor of one of our leading papers which praise me so much and thank God that I came to America to represent Hinduism? Mazoomdar's cousin!! — Poor Mazoomdar — he has injured his cause by telling lies through jealousy. Lord knows I never attempted any defence.
I read the article of Mr. Gandhi in the Forum before this.
If you have got the Review of Reviews of last month — read to mother the testimony about the Hindus in connection with the opium question in India by one of the highest officials of the English in India. He compares the English with the Hindus and lauds the Hindu to the skies. Sir Lepel Griffin was one of the bitterest enemies of our race. What made this change of front?
I had a very good time in Boston at Mrs. Breed's — and saw Prof. Wright. I am going to Boston again. The tailor is making my new gown. I am going to speak at Cambridge University [Harvard] and would be the guest of Prof. Wright there. They write grand welcomes to me in the Boston papers.
I am tired of all this nonsense. Towards the latter part of May I will come back to Chicago, and after a few day's stay would come back to the East again.
I spoke last night at the Waldorf hotel. Mrs. Smith sold tickets at $2 each. I had a full hall which by the way was a small one. I have not seen anything of the money yet. Hope to see in the course of the day.
I made a hundred dollars at Lynn which I do not send because I have to make my new gown and other nonsense.
Do not expect to make any money at Boston. Still I must touch the brain of America and stir it up if I can.
Your loving brother,
VIVEKANANDA.
文本来自Wikisource公共领域。原版由阿德瓦伊塔修道院出版。