[UN Day of Non-Violence] File Photo: Mahatma Gandhi shares a moment of levity with Lord Mountbatten two weeks before Britain returns independence to India. New Delhi, India. August 1st, 1947.
Gandhiji abhored violence of all types. Force may achieve an immediate end and often such is at great cost in lives and property. Force leaves a lot of scars that in respect of nations and people can last for a long period of time. The spirit of non-violence respects every one as fellow human beings and this acceptance creates a mutuality that is seen as vital for human progress.(October 02, Toronto, Lanka Guardian) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was a man of indomitable will with a conscience of justice and fair play, a sense of humour and a vision of the future not just for the people of India alone but the whole of humanity.
He was deeply religious, believed in one eternal God for all creation and never reckoned anyone as an enemy. This became the rock on which he founded his Satyagraha (truth) movement to combat British colonialism, and in the process developed the political science of non-violence.
No other individual in recent history has influenced the direction of humanity as this frail old man from Gujarat did and succeeded in bringing an end to the era of colonial empires. He led an army of simple people dedicated and committed to truth and sought India's freedom through sheer resistance without the use of violence. The people of the Philippines used this power to bring down the dreaded government of Ferdinand Marcos.
On completion of his law studies in Great Britain, Gandhi had ambitions to practice his profession in South Africa where thousands of Indians had found employment in various sectors. Apart from the descendants of Dutch settlers, the Boers, there were those of the British, the native Bantu and Zulu people and the Indians. Unfortunately, the Boer majority was intolerant of the African and Indian people and discrimination of the worst form began to take roots leading to the infamous, inhuman apartheid laws.
It was in the midst of this Gandhi arrived in South Africa and quickly faced conflicts with the country’s law and order authorities. The incident in the train where he was thrown out for traveling quite legitimately in the first class was a landmark event that triggered Gandhi into action. There was no turning back from this moment onwards; the battle was determined will over brutal force.
During the height of colonial arrogance Africans were snatched away from their communities and transported as slaves to North America. Indians, mostly from the south, were employed as labourers in the plantation industries in Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana, South Africa and in some other places too. While the Africans were called niggers, the South Asians were known as coolies from the Tamil word for wages paid to a worker. In course of time, the word came to take the characteristic of contempt because of the conditions under which these people were employed.
Gandhi's landmark campaign in South Africa was the public burning of the passes that had to be used by non-whites, which he led with immense courage. He was beaten up and jailed along with hundreds of others but the South African government soon realized they could never contain the spirit of defiance that was nurtured in the community by Gandhi's leadership. Soon afterwards he left for India and became the political and spiritual leader of India in the country's freedom struggle.
The white class mostly through ignorance and the pride that it was a civilized race, practiced gross discrimination against native populations wherever they ruled, and among the colonial masters, the Boers of South Africa were the severest. It is no wonder therefore they were the ones who sired the wretched apartheid laws. Today, apartheid is recognized as the one force that to a considerable degree stirred up Gandhi and planted in him the mighty power of peaceful non-violence.
It was this that made a great impact on people like Father Trevor Huddleston, Chief Albert Lithuli, Bishop Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela and others to lead a concerted campaign against the apartheid contraption and bring an end to it. They were even able to share the leadership of the entire nation with their oppressors and embark on a mission of reconciliation.
Liberation after all means both the oppressor and the oppressed have to be liberated as it would be seen how Britain and India parted ways as the colonizer and the colony and became equal partners in mutual development as members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
This was possible all because of one man's indomitable will. Mandela spent 26 years in prison and such was the power of his will that his very oppressors became partners in government once the apartheid system was buried into the past.
Among the Indian campaign for freedom there are many milestone events. One of them was the salt march. Gandhiji also brought the Indian nation of diverse communities together by encouraging the development of rural industries especially in the sphere of textiles. Virtually every home in India took to spinning cloth using traditional technology as a symbol of their struggle in unity. Like little drops of water that makes a mighty ocean, this rural enterprise soon posed a great threat to the British textile industry.
Gandhi has also opened the floodgates that maintained the caste system, which has now been outlawed in India. Although the country has a long way to go before there is real liberation of the oppressed communities on account of their birth, it is a matter of pride Gandhi called them Harijans, children of God. Dr R K Narayan, a former President of India, is one such child of God.
In South Africa, General Smuts and the South African authorities underestimated Mohandas Gandhi. In fact, the Europeans hardly understood or appreciated the power of the soul of the Indians or even the Asians. They were blind to their culture; even trashed it. People like Gandhiji were the exceptional ones. The British Raj enjoying the support of many Indian kings and rulers was confident they could hold their sway. Sir Winston Churchill was certain that the sun would never set on the British Empire; he reckoned without Gandhi; once he dismissed him as the "half-naked fakir" from Asia.
The use of force may achieve an immediate end and often such is at great cost in lives and property. Force leaves a lot of scars that in respect of nations and people can last for a long period of time. The spirit of non-violence respects every one as fellow human beings and this acceptance creates a mutuality that is seen as vital for human progress. Gandhi's determined socio-political vehicle was non-violence and this underlines the fact that we should love each other at all times.
He was deeply religious, believed in one eternal God for all creation and never reckoned anyone as an enemy. This became the rock on which he founded his Satyagraha (truth) movement to combat British colonialism, and in the process developed the political science of non-violence.
No other individual in recent history has influenced the direction of humanity as this frail old man from Gujarat did and succeeded in bringing an end to the era of colonial empires. He led an army of simple people dedicated and committed to truth and sought India's freedom through sheer resistance without the use of violence. The people of the Philippines used this power to bring down the dreaded government of Ferdinand Marcos.
On completion of his law studies in Great Britain, Gandhi had ambitions to practice his profession in South Africa where thousands of Indians had found employment in various sectors. Apart from the descendants of Dutch settlers, the Boers, there were those of the British, the native Bantu and Zulu people and the Indians. Unfortunately, the Boer majority was intolerant of the African and Indian people and discrimination of the worst form began to take roots leading to the infamous, inhuman apartheid laws.
It was in the midst of this Gandhi arrived in South Africa and quickly faced conflicts with the country’s law and order authorities. The incident in the train where he was thrown out for traveling quite legitimately in the first class was a landmark event that triggered Gandhi into action. There was no turning back from this moment onwards; the battle was determined will over brutal force.
During the height of colonial arrogance Africans were snatched away from their communities and transported as slaves to North America. Indians, mostly from the south, were employed as labourers in the plantation industries in Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana, South Africa and in some other places too. While the Africans were called niggers, the South Asians were known as coolies from the Tamil word for wages paid to a worker. In course of time, the word came to take the characteristic of contempt because of the conditions under which these people were employed.
Gandhi's landmark campaign in South Africa was the public burning of the passes that had to be used by non-whites, which he led with immense courage. He was beaten up and jailed along with hundreds of others but the South African government soon realized they could never contain the spirit of defiance that was nurtured in the community by Gandhi's leadership. Soon afterwards he left for India and became the political and spiritual leader of India in the country's freedom struggle.
The white class mostly through ignorance and the pride that it was a civilized race, practiced gross discrimination against native populations wherever they ruled, and among the colonial masters, the Boers of South Africa were the severest. It is no wonder therefore they were the ones who sired the wretched apartheid laws. Today, apartheid is recognized as the one force that to a considerable degree stirred up Gandhi and planted in him the mighty power of peaceful non-violence.
It was this that made a great impact on people like Father Trevor Huddleston, Chief Albert Lithuli, Bishop Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela and others to lead a concerted campaign against the apartheid contraption and bring an end to it. They were even able to share the leadership of the entire nation with their oppressors and embark on a mission of reconciliation.
Liberation after all means both the oppressor and the oppressed have to be liberated as it would be seen how Britain and India parted ways as the colonizer and the colony and became equal partners in mutual development as members of the Commonwealth of Nations.
This was possible all because of one man's indomitable will. Mandela spent 26 years in prison and such was the power of his will that his very oppressors became partners in government once the apartheid system was buried into the past.
Among the Indian campaign for freedom there are many milestone events. One of them was the salt march. Gandhiji also brought the Indian nation of diverse communities together by encouraging the development of rural industries especially in the sphere of textiles. Virtually every home in India took to spinning cloth using traditional technology as a symbol of their struggle in unity. Like little drops of water that makes a mighty ocean, this rural enterprise soon posed a great threat to the British textile industry.
Gandhi has also opened the floodgates that maintained the caste system, which has now been outlawed in India. Although the country has a long way to go before there is real liberation of the oppressed communities on account of their birth, it is a matter of pride Gandhi called them Harijans, children of God. Dr R K Narayan, a former President of India, is one such child of God.
In South Africa, General Smuts and the South African authorities underestimated Mohandas Gandhi. In fact, the Europeans hardly understood or appreciated the power of the soul of the Indians or even the Asians. They were blind to their culture; even trashed it. People like Gandhiji were the exceptional ones. The British Raj enjoying the support of many Indian kings and rulers was confident they could hold their sway. Sir Winston Churchill was certain that the sun would never set on the British Empire; he reckoned without Gandhi; once he dismissed him as the "half-naked fakir" from Asia.
The use of force may achieve an immediate end and often such is at great cost in lives and property. Force leaves a lot of scars that in respect of nations and people can last for a long period of time. The spirit of non-violence respects every one as fellow human beings and this acceptance creates a mutuality that is seen as vital for human progress. Gandhi's determined socio-political vehicle was non-violence and this underlines the fact that we should love each other at all times.
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