THE RELEVANCE OF MAHATMA GANDHI’S NON-VIOLENCE

Rajendra Aneja pays tribute Ghandhi, revered leader and messiah of non-violence
“Have you heard of Gandhi? Do you know of him?” was a question asked of me frequently by my colleagues, as I travelled for work, in faraway countries like Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador. Sure, as an Indian, I had known of the sterling role of Mahatma Gandhi in India’s freedom struggle. However, I was amazed to see his fan following in distant countries, after the epic film, “Gandhi” by Richard Attenborough. The film, which won eight Oscars, took Gandhiji into the far corners of the world. I was also tickled that Richard Attenborough, a Britisher had made the film, on a man who had spent almost his entire life, fighting the British.

The 2nd October is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the messiah of non-violence and a globally revered leader. He enshrined truth, in all his relations and politics. He proclaimed, “Truth is as old as the hills.” His message of non-violence, is as relevant today, as it was in the 1930s and 1940s, when he led the Indian freedom struggle. The means were as important as the ends, to Gandhi. As the greatest scientist Albert Einstein, “Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.”

In persuading the British to grant independence to India, Gandhiji followed a policy of non-violence. He asked all the freedom fighters to undertake peaceful resistance, but never resort to violence against the police. There are times, when he would call off a national struggle (“satyagraha”), because some Indians indulged in violence. Every human life was precious for Mahatma Gandhi, even the lives of those who opposed India’s quest for freedom. Those who respect human life, never indulge in violence. By following a policy of non-violence, Gandhiji appeal to the conscience of his opponents.

Mahatma Gandhi impacted the thinking of some global leaders also. Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela were both followers of the non-violence philosophy of Mahama Gandhi. They enshrined his thinking of non-violence in their own struggles, in their own countries.

Mahatma Gandhi spearheaded India’s freedom struggle. However, he never became a pure politician. Gandhiji was involved in a political struggle, but was guided by his spirituality. Gandhiji evoked respect from his opponents too. The British leaders knew that Gandhiji was a person of principles and was always above board. He meant what he said. He never had a hidden agenda.

Mahatma Gandhi, never thought along religious lines. Gandhiji read the Bible, the Quran and the Bhagwat Gita, with equal fervor. He noticed the commonalities in all the religions and advocated mutual respect. Throughout the freedom struggle of India, he involved the Muslims and Christians with equal fervor. Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Maulana Azad were among his close associates, who struggled for India’s freedom.
Gandhiji often proclaimed that he was not just a Hindu. He was a Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Jew, all rolled into one. His vision of India, was a country, where people of all religions lived harmoniously.

Mahatma Gandhi was the greatest unifier of India. His heart broke at the partition of the country in 1947. He wanted the Hindus and Muslims to live together harmoniously. In fact, he was assassinated by extremists who were unhappy with his policy of appeasing the Muslims. Gandhiji gave his life for his dream of a united India.

Gandhiji practised what he preached. If the Hindus and Muslims rioted, during the partition period, Gandhiji would personally go to reside in the afflicted localities and undertake a fast unto death, till peace was restored. If any Muslim children were orphaned, he would insist that some Hindu family should adopt them. Gandhiji never judged a man by his religion, he focused on the deeds of people.

Gandhiji practised, what he preached. In his “ashrams”, (retreats, in which small communities lived by Gandhiji’s teachings and principles), the residents had the responsibility of cleaning the toilets too. Traditionally, toilets in India were cleaned by a group of people who were considered “untouchables.” Gandhiji was against any discrimination. He respected all forms of work. So, in his “ashrams” people cleaned all toilets by rotation. As Gandhiji said, “Be the change, you want to see in the world”.

Gandhiji’s autobiography, “My Experiments with Truth”, is written with absolute candour, in simple, basic English, which everyone can understand. It should be made a mandatory text book for school children. It is important to expose youngsters to leaders, who ushered significant changes in our world, without any violence or firing a single shot from a gun.

Younger generations would also benefit by reading “The Life of Mahatma Gandhi” by the American author, Louis Fischer. This book was my Bible, in my younger days. It is the best book on Gandhiji, written in a very simple style. Fischer spent seven days with Gandhiji at Sevagram Ashram, in Wardha. The author was surprised to see that Gandhiji kept only a black and white picture of Jesus Christ, in his bare room.

However, in most parts of the world, while Mahatma Gandhi is celebrated with statues and postage stamps, his message of non-violence is ignored. The world overflows with armed struggles in Afghanistan, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, etc. Armed militancy movements like Al Qaeda, ISIS in the Middle East and rebel groups in Colombia and Peru have resulted in the death of thousands of people, in the name of ideological struggles. Many of the embattled people, may not even have heard the name of Mahatma Gandhi. If the Palestinians deploy non-violence, it will attract global attention to their cause.

The world needs to subordinate religion to economics. We need to provide more money, food and medicines to about 36 percent of the global population, living below the poverty line of about US$ 2 per day. The world needs to re-discover Mahatma Gandhi again. Feeding and clothing the destitute of the world, is the highest religious duty, we can perform.
As Martin Luther King wrote, Mahatma Gandhi “belonged to the ages.”

o Aneja was the Managing Director of Unilever Tanzania. He is an alumnus of Harvard Business School and the author of books entitled, “Rural Marketing across Countries and “Business Express”. He is a Management Consultant