Logic of Truth and Nonviolence

RECAP:

Truth : That which exists; All-encompassing-Reality, Absolute;

The Universe exists and its all-encompassing-reality. Hence the Universe is the manifest form of the Truth.

This truth is not static, sedate; but dynamic and vibrant.

There is an order in the manifestation; If there is order, there must be a law that governs the orderly

function of the universe.

The law is not external to the Universe , the Law and the Law provider and Law practitioner are one and the same.

Order in the Universe is -Self-governed; for, the universe is its own law.

The universe follows its laws non-violatively.

Nonviolence: nonviolative conduct of life is called nonviolence.

For humans, life is to live. We are born to live. Nonviolence means conducting life in a pro-life manner.

Every action or conduct that is pro-life, pro-living , is considered nonviolent action or conduct.

Any action, any conduct that is towards protecting life, promoting life and preserving life is called

nonviolence.

To live is our mandate; Pro-life action is called as Nonviolence:

As we are all born with the mandate ‘to live’ , causing death or killing is a negation of that mandate / that purpose. Therefore killing, hurting, injuring, and jeopardizing life is considered as violence. Abstaining from such violence is called as non-violence

Nonviolence in personal conduct: not to kill, not to hurt, not to injure any is nonviolence. 

Systemic nonviolence: 

As social being, life of humans is governed by the many systems and structures we have created. Social culture, economy, politics are part of those systems. An economy that does not ensure life to every human living in it, is called as ‘violent economy’.

 An economy that ensures life to every human living in it, is called as ‘nonviolent economy’. In the same manner a political arrangement (administration, bureaucracy, governance) that discriminates / exploits any of its people is a violent political order. In this manner nonviolence seen as a ubiquitous principle. Pro-existence, pro-life principle.

Discussion:

Mythili: Nonviolence is so difficult to practice as much as it appears logically so easy to understand.

Nonviolence is not so difficult to practice. We all practice nonviolence, we do practice nonviolence precisely, in our known circles, circles in which we hold people dear to us.

When we recognize the primacy of individual, when the next person is my own person (sister, brother, parents, spouse, children, friend...) then our conduct becomes one of inclusive, pro-life by nature. With them we upkeep highest level of tolerance, patience, understanding, forgiveness, trust, sharing, sacrifice...

That only shows that we are not strangers to nonviolence. We only choose to apply them selectively. We are now in a global village; we have chosen to lead a life that requires global cooperation. Every individuals every part of life is collectively determined by the rest of the world.

In such a life, behaving individualistically amounts to total callousness. It is violent disregard, violent

negligence.

The present life calls for greater awareness and consciousness, for we are no more ‘local guys’ we are ‘global citizens’

Is UN a failure:

The very idea that we can have a global forum to address human concern is a phenomenal development.

Historically speaking till the beginning 20th century, it was beyond human imagination that such a body would be feasible.

Gandhi said, ‘human civilization is one continuous experience of us progressing on the path of nonviolence.’

From small clan we progressed to include fellow clans and became communities, societies, nations, international federations and now global citizens. It only shows that our ability to recognize the otherness , include people of all diverse orientation, has steadily progressed to global maturity.

UN by and large is a success because, it has not lost its hope, yet. We as people are yet to grow at individual level in our global perspective in order that our UN will be successful to that extent.

We get the leader we deserve: in a democratic world we are ll stake holders to our national governmentsand the UNO thereby.

If we nurture at our individual level, negative emotions such as anger, hatred, enmity, suspicion, and are functionally exclusive, then our governments too behave that way.

Micro touch to macro problem:

In order for the world to stop weaponization, and warfare, we at the local level have to nurture human perspectives, inclusive values, ability to recognize the otherness however diverse that may be.

Optimization:

Optimization is one of the key principles of Mother Nature. We see in the Creation, in the Universe, theprinciple of ‘Optimization’ governing the very existence, very life.

Optimization employing appropriate level of energy to achieve the best possible result. Optimum is understood as a ‘no-more-no-less’ formula.

Life and all its actions are experienced only at their optimum level.

For example, we need to eat in order to live. Food gives us energy. However there is limit to it. Over eating does not give us excessive energy.

The law of diminishing return comes into effect when we cross the upper limit in any of our action.

The earth lives by being optimum in its speed, velocity, mass and distance from the sun. more speed, or less speed of earth revolution would lead to spin off the orbit. That will be the end of earth.

Our bike speed is to be maintained no more no less. Either way it is a loss. More speed is fatal, less speed is waste of time, waste of petrol. Only at an optimum speed, we gain best possible result.

If we cross the limit it is violation, it hurts our life or other’s life. Breaking optimum level is violence.

Gandhiji’s nonviolence is all about taming ourselves to stay within our optimum level. We need an economy, an earning, however excessive earning (wealth creation) is violence because, in a limited economy, if we take more, somebody else would be getting less. Our wealth becomes the cause of poverty in the neighborhood.

Absolute self-denial too is violence, for it leads to death. Optimum pursuit of material needs is the right way to ensure best possible life.

Compiled by D John Chelladurai, Prof. and Head, Dept. of Gandhian Studies, Mahatma Gandhi Mission University,Aurangabad, MS, India – 431003

 

Gandhian Humanism 

A Comparison of Gandhian Humanism and Capitalism / Socialism

Dimension	Gandhian-humanism (Actor-oriented)	Capitalism and socialism (Structure-oriented)
Basic unit	Actors (individuals, states, others)	Structures (positions and relations between them)
Basic dimension	Intention (good vs. evil) Capability(weak vs. strong) Presence (passive vs. active)	Repression vs. freedom Exploitation vs. equality Penetration vs. autonomy
Problems and locations of evil	Actors that are evil, strong, active	Structures that are exploitative, penetrating
How to cope	Make actors good	Make structures free and equitable
Basic approach	Focus on evil actors; building institutions to contain actors	Focus on wrong structures; transforming structures through revolutions
Time cosmology	Focus on act i.e. on events	Focus on structures i.e. permanents
Social Change; basic approach	Individual change and social reform	Capitalism on constitutional methods and socialism on revolution

 

            This classification suggests that the theoretical construct Gandhian  humanism is different from the main discourses of our time-capitalism and socialism in terms of focus, dimensions, basic approach and time cosmology.

The Praxis Dimension of Gandhian thought and Humanism

It is important to point out here that individual ethical dimension of Gandhian thought and modern humanist model have many commonalities. In other words, it is possible to interpret Gandhian thought in terms of modern ethical humanism. Besides this individual ethical dimension, Gandhian social programmes can also be juxtaposed with their corresponding modern humanistic elements in the following way.

 

Gandhian Individuals Ethics (Eleven vows)	Ethical Humanist Elements
Truth(experiential and experimental)	Truth, facticity, experiential and experimental
Nonviolence	Non-killing to human being and respect to other species
Brahmacharya or chastity	Control of desire, sexual morality
Non-possession	Limited use of local natural resources
Non-stealing	Individual commitment
Control of palate	Controlled consumption
Removal of Untouchability	Fight against indiscrimination
Equality of all religions	Acceptance of plurality and respect to all religion
Swadeshi	Use of local resource to help neighbours
Bread labour	Dignity of labour, self-respect
Fearlessness	Fearlessness against any authority political (State) or religious

 

     Summary of presentation made by Prof. Prem Anand Mishra, Dean, Faculty of Gandhian Studies, Gujarat Vidyapith, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India   

      

 

 

 

 

Gandhi in Digital Society

                 

  Gandhi in Digital Society

Gandhi is physically no more, his ideas are still interpreted and debated among us as they intervene in our existing reality. How does he intervene in the contemporary digital society?
The digital society offers both 'promises ' and 'problems' to us.

On the one hand, it promises us a convenient, comfortable and speedy lifestyle through the digitalization of data that affects all areas of human activities including economy, politics, communication, and healthcare. On the other hand, it has generated complex and unprecedented questions concerning human relations.  

In digital society human beings are reduced to a set of digits. At the macro level, our relationship with other institutions is guided and regulated by certain unique fixed digits. For example, for economic relations we have Bank account number, PAN number, ATM, Credit Card, Debit Card no. and so on.  For other governmental work, we have Aadhar no., Mobile no. Vehicle no. Passport no. Election Card no. and so on. In short, every individual is a set of digits that one uses for one's specific purpose in daily life. This has generated a height of impersonalization of society where neither any structure nor any individual is in direct contact with the other individual.

In the digital society,  micro-level relations or interpersonal relations are being mediated by technology. Facebook and WhatsApp are fine examples of it. Through such a techno-mediation, reality is transformed into 'hyper-reality'-  a concept  popularised by  French Sociologist  Jean Boudrilard.  Such a techno-mediated relation which is 'hyped', 'unreal' and 'indirect' cannot be the basis of 'true' relationship which every individual wishes. The digital society provides us unrestricted data and information and claims they are knowledge. The perpetual inflow of data and information stops our 'thinking to decide' and we are always 'uncertain' about everything. In short, digital society has made our macro-level relation 'impersonal', micro level relation 'unreliable', and intrapersonal relation 'undecidable'. If it is so, then, what is the meaning of being called ' being human'?

It is here Gandhi's idea of human dignity and individual freedom intervenes. Gandhi argues that the individual is over and above the structure he/she has developed. For him, being human means to be 'disciplined' enough to guard oneself against any technology which sweeps us away. It also means to 'think' clearly what is right and wrong and differentiate between data, information, and knowledge. For him, instead of giving responsibility to other devices to decide our destiny, we need to take 'responsibility' ourselves and come forward boldly. It was his Swaraj or self-rule. Further, instead of living in impersonal, abstract, 'unseen' and non - immediate world we need to physically and mentally live in 'proximity' which is immediate, personal and concrete. It is this space that gives us a sense of being called 'human'. It was, as we are aware,  his notion of Swadeshi. Finally, in inter-personal relations, Gandhi would have suggested 'face to face society' than indirect, techno -mediated 'Facebook society'.

In today's WhatsApp culture Gandhi must have pointed out to know 'what is appropriate for us'. He would have informed us that the chat and calls that we make,  must be 'open' with no 'encryption', which means one can always read and listen to them. This was his 'open society' based on a moral basis.

  Based on the presentation made by Prof. Prem Anand Mishra, Dean, Faculty of Gandhian Studies, Gujarat Vidyapith, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India   

 

Tributes to Shri Pradeep Khelurkar

Second International Online Fellowship Program on Nonviolence & Peace (IFPNP-II ) paid  rich tributes  to Shri Pradeep Khelurkar on October 26, 2023. Shri Pradeep Khelurkar was serving as the Secretary of  Sevagram Ashram Pratishthan Wardha, MS, India. He passed away on October 23, 2023 in an accident. Dr. Siby K. Joseph,  Director IFPNP informed about the sad demise of Shri Pradeep Khelurkar   and gave a brief introduction about the departed soul who was  one of the finest persons engaged in dissemination of Gandhian Thought and action. He informed about his  the close involvement and active of support  for IFPNP-II  organized by Sevagram Ashram Pratishthan Wardha, MS, India; in association with  Gandhi International,  France ;Academic University College  for Non-violence and Human Rights- AUNOHR, Lebanon and MGM University, Chh. Sambhajinagar,Aurangabad, MS, India.  All the fellows observed silence for a minute and offered prayer for the departed soul. He mentioned about the messages received from IFPNP fellows who had the privilege of meeting him. Today’s session  was dedicated to the loving memory of  the departed soul. 

"God Is" M. K. Gandhi

 "God  Is"  

M. K. Gandhi 

Mahatma  Gandhi at   Columbia Broadcasting Company, London for recording his speech on God on October 20, 1931

There is an indefinable mysterious Power that pervades everything. I feel It, though I do not see It. It is this unseen Power which makes Itself felt and yet defies all proof, because It is so unlike all that I perceive through my senses. It transcends the senses.

But it is possible to reason out the existence of God to a limited extent. Even in ordinary affairs we know that people do not know, who rules or why and how he rules. And yet they know that there is a power that certainly rules. In my tour last year in Mysore I met many poor villagers and I found upon inquiry that they did not know who ruled Mysore. They simply said some god ruled it. If the knowledge of these poor people was so limited about their ruler, I, who am infinitely lesser than God than they than their ruler, need not be surprised if I do not realize the presence of God, the King of kings. Nevertheless I do feel as the poor villagers felt about Mysore that there is orderliness in the Universe, there is an unalterable Law governing everything and every being that exists or lives. It is not a blind law; for no blind law can govern the conduct of living beings and, thanks to the marvellous researches of Sir J. C. Bose, it can now be proved that even matter is life. That Law then which governs all life is God. Law and the Law-giver are one. I may not deny the Law or the Law-giver, because I know so little about It or Him. Even as my denial or ignorance of the existence of an earthly power will avail me nothing, so will not my denial of God and His Law liberate me from its operation; whereas humble and mute acceptance of divine authority makes life’s journey easier even as the acceptance of earthly rule makes life under it easier.

I do dimly perceive that whilst everything around me is ever changing, ever dying, there is underlying all that change a living Power that is changeless, that holds all together, that creates, dissolves and recreates. That informing Power or Spirit is God. And since nothing else I see merely through the senses can or will persist, He alone is.

And is this Power benevolent or malevolent? I see It as purely benevolent. For I can see that in the midst of death life persists, in the midst of untruth, truth persists, in the midst of darkness light persists. Hence I gather that God is Life, Truth, Light. He is Love. He is the supreme Good.

But he is no God who merely satisfies the intellect if He ever does. God to be God must rule the heart and transform it. He must express Himself in every the smallest act of His votary. This can only be done through a definite realization more real than the five senses can ever produce. Sense perceptions can be, often are, false and deceptive, however real they may appear to us. Where there is realization outside the senses it is infallible. It is proved not by extraneous evidence but in the transformed conduct and character of those who have felt the real presence of God within.

Such testimony is to be found in the experiences of an unbroken line of prophets and sages in all countries and climes. To reject this evidence is to deny oneself.

This realization is preceded by an immovable faith. He who would in his own person test the fact of God’s presence can do so by a living faith. And since faith itself cannot be proved by extraneous evidence, the safest course is to believe in the moral government of the world and therefore in the supremacy of the moral law, the law of truth and love. Exercise of faith will be the safest where there is a clear determination summarily to reject all that is contrary to Truth and Love.

But the foregoing does not answer the correspondent’s argument. I confess to him that I have no argument to convince him through reason. Faith transcends reason. All I can advise him to do is not to attempt the impossible. I cannot account for the existence of evil by any rational method. To want to do so is to be coequal with God. I am therefore humble enough to recognize evil as such. And I call God long-suffering and patient precisely because He permits evil in the world. I know that He has no evil in Him, and yet if there is evil, He is the author of it and yet untouched by it.

I know too that I shall never know God if I do not wrestle with and against evil even at the cost of life itself. I am fortified in the belief by my own humble and limited experience. The purer I try to become, the nearer I feel to he to God. How much more should I be, when my faith is not a mere apology as it is today but has become as immovable as the Himalayas and as white and bright as the snows on their peaks? Meanwhile I invite the correspondent to pray with Newman who sang from experience:

Lead, kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,

Lead Thou me on;

The night is dark and I am far from home,

Lead Thou me on;

Keep Thou my feet, I do not ask to see

The distant scene; one step enough for me.   

Young India, 11-10-1928

 

The above text was recorded on October 20, 1931, by the Columbia Broadcasting Company, London, during Gandhi’s stay in Kingsley Hall excluding the last part and the  well known stanza from Cardinal  John Henry Newman (1801-1890). This text was written in answering the question raised by a correspondent which is given below:

 https://youtu.be/kBsUwIfL8kU?si=T6rjDVyfARWZKXtn

Question of the Correspondent

I read your Young India of May 12, 1927, p. 149, where you write, “I think it is wrong to expect certainties in this world, where all else but God that is Truth is an uncertainty.”

Young India, p. 152: “God is long-suffering and patient. He lets the tyrant dig his own grave, only issuing grave warnings at stated intervals.”

 I humbly beg to say that God is not a certainty. His goal ought to be to spread truth all round. Why does He allow the world to be populated by bad people of various shades? Bad people with their unscrupulousness flourish all round and they spread contagion and thus transmit immorality and dishonesty to posterity.

Should not God, omniscient and omnipotent as He is, know where wickedness is by His omniscience and kill wickedness by His omnipotence there and then and nip all rascality in the bud and not allow wicked people to flourish?

Why should God be long-suffering and be patient? What influence can He wield if He be so? The world goes on with all its rascality and dishonesty and tyranny.

If God allows a tyrant to dig his own grave, why should He not weed out a tyrant before his tyranny oppresses the poor? Why allow full play to tyranny and then allow a tyrant, after his tyranny has ruined and demoralized thousands of people, to go to his grave?

The world continues to be as bad as it ever was. Why have faith in that God who does not use His powers to change the world and make it a world of good and righteous men?

I know vicious men with their vices living long and healthy lives. Why’ should not vicious men die early as a result of their vices?

I wish to believe in God but there is no foundation for my faith. Kindly enlighten me through Young India and change my disbelief into belief.

Young India, 11-10-1928

 

 

 

 

                        Logic of Nonviolence

 

Brainstorming:

What is Non violence?

Is 100% non violence possible ?

Non = Negation i.e. Negation to violence is nonviolence. Everyone wants to preserve life: Hurting, injuring , hampering any life is violence. This violence can be physical , verbal , emotional , institutional , structural. Retaliation is not a solution every time.

Attitude , behavior matters while acting as a non violent. Primary quality of God is Love and Primary quality of supreme is compassion. We are custodian of our own life first.

Natural cycle of living is also a fact. Non-violence in daily life is towards myself and the living beings around. Positively self talk

Be more accepting and flowing with life.  Keep my body healthy. Be more compassionate

Be more observing than judging.  communicating without violence

 

Notes from the Presentation

अहिंसा परमो धर्मःahimsa paramodharma’

(Nonviolence is the supreme religion)

‘Truth is the supreme principle. Gandhi says, ‘Truth is God’. And nonviolence or ahimsa is paramodharma’ (supreme religion).According to Gandhi, ‘Truth is the ultimate purpose (goal) and nonviolence is the way to achieve it.’  That is why he wrote in his Autobiography “Ahimsa is the basis of the search for truth". 

For Gandhi, nonviolence is ‘love’.He said, it is ‘largest love and greatest charity’; It is a pro-life attitude

 

I.     Meaning of Nonviolence:

a.      Nonviolence means: ‘not killing’, ‘not hurting’, ‘not injuring’ any. 

b.      For Gandhi, nonviolence is positive ‘love’.

   He said, it is the ‘largest love and greatest charity’; pro-life attitude

 

 

               Individually : abstaining from wrongdoing; not hurting any life; and

                  adhering to righteousness;  to upholding positive values

            Interpersonally / Socially : Opposing wrong : Protest against wrong (satyagraha); and                                                                        renovate systems and improve    life prospect for all, especially                                                                                 the poor (constructive  renovating systems and improve life prospect for all,                                                            especially the poor (constructive interventions)

 

II.                Levels of Nonviolence: passive non-violence and active nonviolence.

 

a.       Passive non-violence: It means abstaining from acts of violence; avoidance of violence of all kinds.

                     i.      not to hurt, injure, impede  anyone: 1.  in thought, word and deed

a.        knowingly or unknowingly

b.      directly or indirectly

c.       actively or passively

d.      Structurally

 

Structural violence. Society operates through the structures and the systems it is made of. For example, markets, banks, railways, schools, colleges, hospitals are structures and their function is streamlined by a well stipulated system. Bank has a building, infrastructure and it has an operating system (procedures to deposit and withdraw money, get loan and repay it... that is the system. School is a structure (building) as well as an educational (curriculum, syllabus, pedagogy…) system. Culture is an operating system by which society functions.   These structures and systems are essentially meant to support the people.   By its own arrangement, if these structures stand against the interest of its people by any way, then such conduct is called structural violence. Cumbersome (too complicated) procedures at the bank, hospitals keep the poor away from getting services; market arrangement resulting in the exploitation of poor producers; religion and culture permitting discrimination against fellow humans (gender discrimination for instance) as examples of structural violence.  Gandhi in his seminal Hind Swaraj reflected on the violence associated with modern industrial civilization. While modern science and technology has made human life sophisticated, it has also created an unbridgeable gap between poor and rich, humans and the rest of the ecosystem in the biosphere, making life perilously unsustainable.

 

Then there is unconscious / mindless violence. What is mindless violence? The violence that we commit carelessly to others is of this kind. Pollution (especially greenhouse gases, plastic and toxic waste)  unrestrained consumption, rash driving ... are examples of mindless violence. Being conscious of our actions and their implications or in other words, mindfulness is an aspect of nonviolence, or its absence an aspect of violence.

 

All these forms of violence hamper, imperil life of fellow beings, hence life calls for the avoidance of these violence.   Absence of violence is generally termed as peace.  However, in hindsight it is stated as a ‘peace of the graveyard.’   Absence of violence may at best lead to no suffering, but by itself will not guarantee life.  Life requires positive values.

That is the reason ‘absence of  violence’ is called ‘passive non-violence.’

 

 

b.      Active Nonviolence:

                      i.      Not allowing anyone to hurt any

1.  in thought, word and deed

a.       knowingly or unknowingly

b.      directly or indirectly

c.       actively or passively

 

                        ii.      Not being a mute witness to acts of hurting by any against any

1.  Not being a mute witness to occasions of suffering of neighbours (Acting against occasions of suffering) of fellow beings.

2.  Resisting any thought or conduct that is against life

3.  Negating anything that is not in keeping with ‘protecting, promoting or preserving life.’

 

 

 

 

“Ahimsa is not the crude thing it has been made to appear. Not to hurt any living thing is, no doubt, a part of ahimsa. But it is its least expression. The principle of ahimsa is hurt by every evil thought, undue haste, by lying, by hatred, by wishing ill to anybody. It is also violated by our holding on to what the world needs. (M K Gandhi, ‘From Yeravda Mandir’, p. 7).

 

Gandhi says,  “Ahimsa is not merely a negative state of harmlessness, but it is a positive state of love, of doing good even to the evil-doer.”(Young India, August 25, 1920, p.2)

Ahimsa means “love” in the Pauline sense, and yet something more than the “love” defined by Paul...Ahimsa includes the whole creation, and not only humans. Besides, “Love” in the English language has other connotations too, and so I was compelled to use the negative word. But it does not, as I told you, express a negative force, but a force superior to all the forces put together.  (Harijan, March 14, 1936, p. 39)

He termed “Nonviolence is soul force or the power of the Godhead within us. We become Godlike to the extent we realize nonviolence.” (Harijan, 12-11-1938, p.326).

“it is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of man”

 

Society needs pro-life values, pro-life practices.  The presence and practice of such values in the society is called dynamic nonviolence.

I.              Basis of Nonviolence:

 

a.      Three pragmatic reasons for not to hurt anyone:

  i.      Every individual is primary (has the right to live as much as ‘I’ do).  “You are an ‘I’ to me”

    ii.      Being an image of God, every individual deserves a chance to live a complete life.  ‘Individual is essentially good’.

  iii.      Our life is indispensably dependent on the life of others (ecosystem / community).  Hurting others amounts to hurting our own support system.  ‘Hurting others is self-infliction’.  ‘Any killing is suicidal’

 

b.      Three philosophical reasons for not to hurt any

    i.      The purpose of life is to live in all its fullness

     ii.      Life is a team game. Team requires a norm to pursue (to live)

  iii.      And the norm has to be cohesive, inclusive, mutually enriching, and never discriminatory and debilitating.

 

c.       Creational reason for not to hurt

   i.      Who am I to judge: God / Creation alone is absolute, humans are relative, finite. We cannot be offensive (punitively) violent towards anyone whom we do not understand fully / sufficiently

 

d.      Gandhi’s nonviolence emanates from his understanding of the foundational belief that

        i.      Truth is God, and

          ii.      Nonviolence is the means to realize that Truth.

I.              The logic of nonviolence

 

“Non-violence is not a mere philosophical principle. It is the rule and the breath of my life.” (YI, 13-9-1928, p. 308)

  Though there is repulsion enough in Nature, she lives by attraction.  Mutual love enables Nature to persist.  Man does not live by destruction.  Self-love compels regard for others..  – MK Gandhi, Young India, 02-03-1922, p.130

1.      If life is the central principle, then what ever we do must be prolife.

2.      If we do anything that is a departure from life, away from life or against life, then such act is called violation. 

3.      Violation is anti-life, and it hurts one and all.                         

  4.Violation is what is called as violence, for, it hurts the prospects of life

I can see that in the midst of death life persists, in the midst of untruth truth persists, in the midst of darkness light persists.  – MK Gandhi, Young India, 11-10-1928

Violence, which is divisive and destructive can never be the law of life. (If violence were the law, humanity would have come to an extinction long ago – M K Gandhi)

There is no other way than nonviolence for life (to live)

5.      The purpose of life is to live a complete (holistic) life.

6     Humans are social beings; life is a team game; ought to live / play together.

7     Togetherness is possible only if we follow a norm that is intrinsically cohesive, unifying and mutually sustaining.

8     In other words the norm has to be one of nonviolative in nature

 9.      Every life is primary, every individual is primary because every life is an image of God / manifestation of the Truth.

 10 I would like to live, so does my neighbor like to live 

11.      My life is dependent on my neighbor. In the same way,

12 My neighbour’s life is dependent on me.  Human life is bound by mutual dependence.

13 .    I can take his/her serviceto realize my life only by helping him/her to realize his/her life

14 This attitude of reciprocity is called nonviolence (seeing the other in the same way one sees oneself).

15.  Consciousness of ‘the other too being primary’ gives rise to sense of ‘Equality’;

16.  And ‘not to hurt anyone’ leads to a sense of ‘Justice’;

 

17  Social life is governed by a set of norms

                                                              i.      We call it ‘culture’ ; and politically

                                                            ii.      we call it ‘law and order’

18.  Non-violation of all these  norms of life is called nonviolence.

 

I.              Ahimsa / Nonviolence is a social Principle:

a.      Nonviolence according to Gandhi, means,  positive love (compassionate action)

  i.      Recognizing the primacy of every individual, especially of those we are in contact with

 ii.      Recognizing every individual in our neighbourhood as a partner (stakeholder

  iii.      Justice, Equality and Freedom, opportunity, dignity… of all are essential positive values. They are together called positive love or ahimsa.

 

b.      Nonviolence is acting in a manner of protecting, promoting and preserving life.

 i.      Recognizing the prevalence of social, economic and political impediments and 

ii.      Striving to remove them

 iii.      Functioning in a manner of upholding the social principles of Justice, Equality and Freedom of all

c.       Nonviolence is resistance against wrong (satyagraha) to uphold life

 i.      Part of nonviolence is protesting against wrong systems (of the society) that deny individuals or a section of the society the opportunity to life a complete life.

d.      Nonviolence is constructing a social order that upholds life of one and all (Sarvodaya)

                             i.      Part of the nonviolence is, renovating social structures and systems in a manner that                                                 facilitates everyone to realize one’s life in fullness

                            ii.      Building structures and systems for people to realize the new facets of life.

 

II.           Way of life

Nonviolence is to understand the way of  is life and its conduct (it is called pursuit of Truth of life), and

a.       Endeavoring to live upto it and never against it;

b.      Reducing the gap between understanding and action. 

c.       Harmonizing all our actions with life. Eightfold noble path (Astangamarg) of Lord Buddha talks about such harmonizing:

                                                              i.      Right understanding

                                                            ii.      right thought

                                                          iii.      Right speech

                                                          iv.      Right action

                                                            v.      Right livelihood

                                                          vi.      Right effort

                                                          vii.      Right mindfulness

                                                      viii.      Right concentration

              

III.        Utility of Violence?

 

Does violence too help in life?

 

While nonviolence is the law of life, it is generally believed that, violence is unavoidable in some situations such as: when we are attacked by others. There is a scriptural saying in Indian religions:

अहिंसा परमो धर्मःahimsa isparamodharma’

(Nonviolence is the supreme religion)

And

धर्म हिंसा तथैव च

‘Violence’ too serves in upholding Dharma / life

 

Fighting in defense of one’s life, or the honor of one’s people, the community, the nation, is an essential way of social living.   That is not called violence, but aggression.

 

Gandhi says, ‘life lives upon life’.  

Tiger eats deer.  It is created to live that way.  Tiger cannot have compassion over deer and stop eating.  That will be suicidal for tiger.

 

Tiger becomes aggressive when hungry and hunts its prey (deer).  They are nonviolative (of the law of nature) therefore they are not violence.  Hunting is called aggressive action.

 

Army is trained to be an aggressive force.  Their purpose is to ‘protect’ ‘defend’ the nation.  ‘Killing’ would never be their objective.   However in their fight to defend the nation, the opponent happens to die (collateral damage).  Such an act is called  non-violative aggression.

 

Violence is essentially a human phenomenon.   Any act of intentional killing hurting or damaging others / others’ livelihood is essentially violence.

 

Tiger does not intend to kill a deer.  It only intends to sustain its life, and deer happens to be its designated food.   That is why, tiger do not kill any animal when it is not hungry.

 

Nonviolence is the law of life

Violence is anti-life.

There is no place for violence in life.

Aggressive action is inevitable in life threatening situations.

 

Compiled by D John Chelladurai, Prof. and Head, Dept of Gandhian Studies, Mahatma Gandhi Mission University, Aurangabad, MS, India – 431003