Rebellion's prophet

I finished "The Motorcycle diaries" yesterday, a book I enjoyed immensely. The sense of adventure, of discovery and of development of thoughts became evident from the first page. Of course, this book being written by Che made it all the more fascinating, more so because the movie is one of my all time favourite...

However of all the words in the book, the last page is the most haunting. I had first come across the words in Jon Anderson's biography of Che Guevara but it was still had the awesome power to move. I think the power was multiplied because it was the perfect epilogue to the book.

But the most astonishing fact is the prophetic nature of the words. Since Che was himself writing the book, he could not have seen the 'use' that would be made of him, his ideals and his mystique by the generations coming after him. He could not have foreseen the tragedy of co-option by a society that hankered after images.

At the end of the book, as the book draws to a close, Che meets an old man, a refugee from 'somewhere in East Europe' who seems to be a victim of persecution by the communist regimes. As their conversation draws to a close, the old man says -

"The future belongs to the people and gradually, or in one strike, they will take power, here and in every country.

The terrible thing is, the people need to be educated , and this they cannot do without taking power, only after. They can only learn at the cost of their own mistakes, which will be very serious and will cost many innocent lives. Or perhaps not, maybe those lives will not have been innocent because they will have committed the huge sin against nature: meaning a lack if ability to adapt. All of them, those unable to adapt - you and I for example - will die cursing the power they helped, through great sacrifice, to create.

Revolution is impersonal; it will take their lives, even utilizing their memory as an example or as an instrument for domesticating the youth who follow them. My sin is greater because, I, more astute and with greater experience, call it what you like, will die knowing that my sacrifice stems only from an inflexibility symbolizing out rotten civilization, which is crumbling. I also know - and this wont alter the course of history or your personal view of me - that you will die with a clenched fist and tense jaw, the epitome of hatred and struggle, because you are not a symbol (some inanimate example) but a genuine member of the society to be destroyed; the spirit of the beehive speaks through you and motivates your action. You are as useful as I am, but you are not aware of how useful your contribution is to the society that sacrifices you"

The words are chilling in its prescience...

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