Death anniversary today:
Mahatma Gandhi’s weapon was Satyagraha
Chelvatamby MANICCAVASAGAR
Mahatma Gandhiji’s technique of spirituality in action and his teachings will undoubtedly redeem millions of people from violent, hatred, fear and tension.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi appeared on the political scene in 1915 accordingly and reverentially hailed as the ‘Father of the Nation’ He played a very important and crucial role to India’s attainment of independence in August 1947.
Mahatma Gandhi
The briefless barrister as he was once called at the time of his journey to South Africa, he had a special role to play in the country. He returned to India at a time when the country in general and the Indian National Congress in particular needed very much his valued guidance, wise counsel and astute leadership. He did not fail the party nor the country.
The weapon adopted by Gandhi was Satyagraha and through civil disobedience and peaceful non-co-operation he completely unsettled the mighty British Empire which was ruling the country for more than a century. The peaceful non-violence methods adopted by Gandhi disarmed the British rulers.
In fact, Mahatma Gandhi was fundamentally incomprehensible to the supercilious high brow western intellectuals who were blatantly boastful of their superior civilization which precariously and perilously plunged the whole nation into the vortex of nuclear disaster.
Mahatma Gandhi had the nobility to handsomely acknowledge the virtue of those who differed. He never forgot that his detractors were made of the same flesh and blood and endowed with the same instincts and passions, hopes and aspirations. He knew the art of differing without bitterness.
Talks between Gandhi and Lord Irwin the Viceroy took place in New Delhi in 1931. Winston Churchill did not like it at all. He was revolted by the nauseating and humiliating spectacles of this one time Inner Temple lawyer, now a seditious Fakir, striding half naked up the steps of the viceroy’s palace to negotiate and parley an equal terms and with the representative of the King Emperor.
When Gandhi heard about this, he wrote a delightful rejoinder, “you are reported to have expressed the desire to crush the Naked Fakir as you are said to have described me. I have been long trying to be a Fakir and that too naked, a more difficult task. I therefore regard the expression as a compliment though unintentional”.
On another occasion there was a debate between Rabindranath Tagore and Gandhi on the meaning of culture. Tagore expressed great joy and satisfaction he derived from the beauty of nature and art, the glories of dawn, dusk, the procession of season, the freshness of trees and flowers.
In reply Gandhi said that “it is good enough to talk of God, the beauties of the nature and art while we are sitting here after a nice breakfast and looking forward to a nice lunch. But, how am I to talk of God to millions who have to go without one meal a day.”
The communal virus took such deep roots that Gandhi was considered more a hindrance to one section of the people. A fanatic took an unusual course. A plot was hatched and it was carried out at the last prayer meeting to be addressed by Gandhi on Friday, January 30, 1948. Nathu Ram Vinayak Godse came very close to Gandhi, greeted him with folded hands and then pulled out a revolver and shot at him from close and point blank range.
This sad news conveyed to the country by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. He went on National Radio shortly after the bullets struck and speaking extemporaneously with tears and emotions he said, “The light has gone out of our lives and there is darkness everywhere and I do not quite know what to tell you and how to say it. Our beloved leader Balu as we called him, the father of our nation is no more.”
Nehru further said: “the light that shone in this country was no ordinary light. The light that has illuminated this country for many more years and thousand years later that this light will be seen in this country and the world will see it and it will give solace to innumerable hearts.
Indeed, Mahatma Gandhi was the spokesman for the conscience of all mankind.
DAILYNEWS.LK
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