GANDHIJI'S PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION AND IT'S

APPLICABILITY IN OUR EDUCATION

Uisscrtation submitted in fulfilment of the requirement

for the Degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN

PHILOSOPHY

BY

MATHEWS 1. JACOB

Under the Sup#rvision of

Dr. TS GIRISHKUMAR

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SClENCES MAHATMA GANDHI UNIVERSITY

KOTTAYAM

Cen$ed that this thesis mtitbd '~andli j i 's ~hPlftlbsop$ of

@@ion a d I t ' s 3ppliur6zlit-y in our ~ducatbn'is an authentk

research w o k done 6y $ h i M a t h I Jam6 under my

superuim07t. l l i i s has not 6een su 6mzt ted t o any other University

for any degree and no part this has 6een pu6lidied in an^ fom

prezllbus~. In character and canduct Shri Mathews T-6 i~ a

fit andproper penon to receive t lie degree of ~ o a o r of fiihsophy

in Philbsopfry.

Place : Kottayam Dr. TS. ~irishkurnar Reader School of Social Sciences Mahatma Gandhi University Kottay am.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In coinpletit~g this thesis, I have drawn a lot of inspiration

from my guide, Dr. TS. Girishkumaw, who, by his patient and

able guidance equipped me with sufficient knowledge and skills in

the conduction of this research. I express my sincere thanks and

great appreciation to him.

I 'express lnany thanks to the Manager and Principal of

Basalious Marthoma Mathews 11 Training College, Kottarakkara

for permitting me to undertake this research.

Many thanks also go to the Director and Staff of School of

Social Sciences, Pullarikunnu, Mahatma Gandhi University for

Co-opmating with me in all my endeavors associated with this

research.

!f,- ha., +i., L $f&3 .--

Mwthews T Jacob Thengumtharayil House Pathanamthitta

Date: 1 8 - o r - 2 a B h

Contents Page

Chapter I: Introduction

1.1 Gmdhij i - The 'Mahatma' 1.2 Need of the Present Study 1.3 Gandhiji's World View 1.4 The Mahatma and Religion 1.5 Gandhiji's Philosophy of Education 1.6 Gandhiji - A Transforming Personality

References

Chapter I1 : Mahatma and Spiritualilty

2.1 Mahatma - The Great Soul 2.2 Religion Defined 2.3 Essentials of Religious Beliefs 2.4 Hindu (1ndian)View of Religion 2.5 Background of Gandhiji's Ideas on religion 2.6 Concept of God 2.7 Relation of Man to God 2.7.1 Individual self 2.7.2 M8kp or Liberation

References

Chapter I11 : Gandhiji's Spirituality m Pmdce

3.1 Gandhiji - A Practical Idealist 3.2 Gandhiji's Rules for Life 3.2.1 Truthfulness 3.2.2 Non-Violence (Ahimsa) 3.2.3 Satyagraha 3.2.4 Trusteeship 3.2.5 Bread Labour 3 -2.6 Removal of Untouchability 3.2.7 Brahmacharya or Chastity 3-23 Control of the Palate 3.2.9 Non-Stealing 3 -2.10 Non-Possession or Poverty 3 -2.1 1 Fearlessness 3 -2.12 Tolerence 3.2.1 3 Humility 3.3 Gandhiji's Practical Religion 3.4 Morality - The Rock-Bottom Unity of All Religions

References

Chapter - IV: Gandhiji's Philosophy of Education

4.1 Ideal education for India 4.2 Gandhiji's Definition of Fducation 4.3 Meaning of Education 4.4 Aims of Education 4.5 Gandhij i'sViews on Eduction 4.5.1 Views on Existing System of ~du$on 4.5.2 Basic Education and it's Salient Features 4.5.2.1 Free And Compulsory Education 4.5.2.2 Education to Centre Round Craft 4.5.2.3 Self-Supporting Aspect of Education 4.5.2.4 Emphasis on Mother-Tongue 4.5.3 The Fate of Basic Education 4.5.4 Education in the Home 4.5.5 Women's Education 4.5.6 A Gocd Teacher 4.5.7 Religious Education 4.5.8 Gandhiji's Advise To Students 4.6 Gandhiji - Naturalist, Idealist Or Pragmatist

References

Chapter - V Applicability Of Gandhim Values In Our Education

5.1 Introduction " 5.2 Whatge Values ?

5.3 Need For Value Education 5.4 Present Education and Changes Needed 5.5 Oficial Policy On Value Education And Need Of

The Hour 5.6 What Values to Inculcate '! 5.7 Potentid Causes for Conflicts 5.8 Value Conflicts in Education 5.9 Methods To Inculcate Values 5.10 Major Challenges Facing The World 5.1 1 New Responsibilities 5.12 Value Orientation In Teacher And Teacher Training Colleges

Chapter - VI : Conclusion And Recommendations

6.1 Gandhiji and His Religious Philosophy 6.2 Gandhiji's Social Philosophy 6.3 Gandhiji And Education 6.3.1 Gandhian Education For Human Development 6.3.2 Education And Character Development 6 -3.3 Value Education 6.4 Gandhian Vaues For Social Transmomation

6 -5 Recommendations 6.5.1 General Recommendtions 6.5.2 Recommendations Specific To This Study

Recommendations

Bibliography

313

i - xii

Chapter - I

Introduction

Mohandas Karam Chand Gandhi, the Father of our Nation, whom we call 'Bapu' out

of reverence, dominated the Indian Scene well over one hundred years. Gandhiji stands far

apart from other national and political leaders in that he never aspired to wield any political

power or desired any place in the government of the country. His place was in the hearts of

the people, and he was able to mobilize the common man more than any politician in history.

Perhaps his place in history is aptly expressed by the last Viceroy to India, Lord Mount

Batten who wrote:

"MaIjStma Gandhi will go down in history on a par wfth Buddha and Jesus Christ" 1

Gandhism could have grown out of Gandhiji's teachings, had he not persuaded his

followers to desist from mystifying his life and work. Foliowing the footsteps of ancient

seers, the seers for whom knowledge was experiential j?ha (not vijfiha), who had lived

renunciation and philosophical resignation transforming ego, and naturally going beyond

names and fames; Gandhiji never wanted his name to survive in association with any

religion. Therefore, Gandhiji repeatedly used to say to his followers that there is nothing like

'Gandhism'. Yet his ideas and ideals survived and gained strength with the passage of time.

This was because Gandhiji taught and showed us that in this harsh, violent and materialistic

world,Truth and Non-violence could be a tremendous force, greater sometimes than guns

and bombs, in achieving justice, decency, peace and freedom for the vast masses o f

suffering, downtrodden men and women. At a time when lndia was reeling under foreign

rule, and when its leaders were groping in the dark, Gandhiji appeared to save the country.

William L.Shirer, a long-time Gandhi observer noted:

"Then came Gandhi. chasing out of his country, almost single-handedly, the greatest military power on earth. He taught the world that there are higher things than force, higher even than life itself'2.

To his contemporaries, Gandhiji remained an enigma; but it was Sarojini Naidu, a

long-time close associate of Gandhiji who tried to shed some light on him. Thus she writes:

"With Christ he shares the great Gospel that atox is the fulfilling of the law. With the great Muhammad he shares the gospel of the brotherhood of man, equality of man and oneness of man. With Lord Buddha he shares the great evangel that the duty of life is not self-seeking but to seek the truth, no matter at what sacrifice. With the great poets of the world, he shares the ecstasy of the vision that the future of man is great, that the f h r e of man can never be destroyed, that all sin will destroy itself; but that love and humanity must endure, grow and reach the star. Therefore, today, a broken world ruined by wars and hatred, a broken world seeking for a new civilization honours the name of Mahatma GandhiM.3

Mrs. Naidu continues:

"In himself, he is nothing. There are men of learning, greater than his, and there are men of wealth and power, and men of fame, but who is there that combines in one frail body the supreme quaiities of virtue enshrined in him, courage indomitable, faith invincible, and compassion that embraces the entire world ? This transcendental Iove of humanity that recognizes no limitation of race, or barriers of country but gives to all, like a shining sun, the sane abundance of love, understanding and service. Everyday - today and yesterday and tomorrow - every day is the same story of the miracle of Gandhi in our own ageW.4

Mahatma Gandhi, though not a Christian himself, he was the greatest Christian of

our age. He not only showed the other cheek to the one who struck him, but also loved him

and showed that one's neighbour is not another person, but oneself. At the end, he died for

the good of the country, and in fact, for all humanity. In this, he was not less than Jesus of

Nazareth. There could not have been any better end for a life that was all devotion, all

sacrifice, all abnegation and full of love. Romain Rolland, a long time Gandhi friend and a

historian, on different occasions described Gandhiji as the 'Christ who only lacked the cross';

and 'St. Paul of our own days'. In fact, he wrote in his 1924 biography of M@'itrna:,

"Gandhi is too much of a saint; he is too pure, too free from the

animal passions that lie dormant in man"5

Indeed, there could IE nothing strange at all with this phenomena of saintliness in a national

leader. Anyone who is authentically spiritual can be equated with any spiritual leader the

world had witnessed; and in reality, we must realize the fact that spirituality transcends

frameworks of various religions to remain spirituality as such; where religions are mere

media. Gandhiji transcended religion because of the simple fact that Gandhiji was spiritual

in the complete sense of the term. The lesson we must take from the father of our nation in

today's context is simple, categorical and unambiguous. We ought to become really and

authentically spiritual instead of becoming merely religious, where religiocity is often

presented very narrowly to the point of fundamentalism. Given the culture, tradition and

history of India, Indians are spiritual and are to be spiritual; the spirituality that naturally

transcends particular' faiths; for there had always been multiplicity and plurality of faiths in

this land.

There is no doubt about the greatness of the Mahama. The name' M+lmal, he

rightly deserves; the status 'father of the nation' he richly deserves. Undoubtedly, Gandhiji

belongs to the category of 'AhSva&ast, he becoming very near to a 'Piir~ivatara'.

1.2 Need Of The Present Study

Gandhiji being the greatest Indian in our modern history, it is my strong conviction

that, there would be great interest generated in learning about Gandhiji's modes of thought

and his messages to humanity. In order to thoroughly understand Gandhiji's thoughts and

teachings, we have to intimately acquaint with the facts of his life, because it is undoubtedly

true that the acts of a man's life are, as a rule, guided and regulated by his inner feelings. If a

man's thoughts and teachings are thoroughly sincere, even the minor incidents of his life

reveal the deeper meaning and purpose of his teachings and the inner springs of his conduct.

For indeed, there is an invariable correspondence between his words and his actions, and on

many occasions his actions i l tustrate his words.

Though Science and Technology has brought about tremendous progress in the

development of our society, Gandhiji has illustrated to us that human beings have not moved

forward, but backward, in the field of morality and spirituality. This moral breakdown is

evident in all spheres of life, and, in fact, people have become untrue to themselves. The

present tragic condition in our society is that the more one is educated the more one becomes

deceptive and untrue to oneself. But Gandhiji, despite being a lawyer by profession, was

completely committed to truth and was uncompromising at all times and in all

circumstances. This trait he even maintained in the sphere of politics too. Albert Enstein,

recognizing Gandhiji's gift to posterity had this to say at the time of his assassination:

"in our age of moral decay he was the only statesman who represented

that higher conception of human relations in the political sphere."6

Clever and great ones are there in history, but Gandhiji was different from them. With him,

there were no tactics or plans to be hidden from the adversary, no calculated attempt to

spring surprises on anyone or catch the opponent unawares. For him what he preached was

what he practised, and what he practised was what he believed. There was no double - speak,

no pretense and no double - standards. It was this sterling integrity of Gandhiji that marked

him out from the rest of the successful or great one's in history.

E.M. Foster, comparing Gandhiji with contemporary politicians,was of the opinion

that Gandhiji had a 'mature goodness' about him while others were like 'blustering'

Schoolboys'. Foster writes:

" Gandhi was not only good, He made good, and ordinary men all over the world now look upto him in consequence ... 'A very great man' 1 have called him. He is likely to be the greatest of our century" 7

When statesmen and other leaders all over the world applaud 'Gandhisrn' a s a way

for a hture world, we cannot but pay attention to the ideals and programmes recommended

by Gandhiji for the creation of a peaceful Indian society. Martin Luther King prescribed

'Gandhism' as the only way for the continuing existance of human beings on this planet.

"If humanity is to progress Gandhi is indispensable" 8

Gandhiji had drawn out a master plan for the governance of India at the time of

independence. But the fact remains that none of the governments, neither the central nor the

states; have earnestly tried to follow the programmes chalked out by Gandhiji. With regard

to this ignoble situation, Jayaprakish NGrkyan expressed his sentiments thus:

"Western observers should often ask if there is anything left of Gandhi now

in this country"9.

The reason for such a sorry state of affairs is that no serious attempt had been made to

understand Gandhiji and to interpret his teachings, ideas and policies rationally; and to

discover the truth. Though it appears natural that Gandhiji's ideas should have formed the

blue-print for development of free India, it remains a sad fact that it suffered the most in its

natural habitat. Now that people in the West appears to appreciate and try to practise many

of Gandhiji's ideas to solve the mess that they got into, we in India cannot ignore Gandhiji

and his teachings. In such a context it is imperative of thinking how we can rekindle the

interest of the present and future generations of India in the teachings of Gandhiji. This can

only be done by introducing 'Gandhian Teachings' in the curriculum of our schools and

colleges. At this juncture, it is worth mentioning that the National Council for Teacher

Education (NCTE) in 1978, as a first step, recommended that the Teacher education

institutions should strive to produce teachers who should develop 'Gandhian Values' in

them. Many Universities, both national and international, have introduced at undergraduate

level courses in Gandhian studies, and in some universities there are Post-Graduate

Departments for 'Gandhian studies'. It is high time that we seriously start thinking about

introducing courses in 'Gandhian studies' at School and College level.

Introducing 'Gandhism' in the curriculum would be an appropriate way to

disseminate Indian wisdom to the masses, because Gandhiji's life, work, teachings and

ideologies represent the crystallization of our ancient culture and traditions. In Indian

epistemology it is categorically stated that knowledge must not be cognitive alone, but

should be affective also. This is what Gandhiji also recommended when he said we should

have education of 3H1s (Head,Heart and Hand). The greatness of Indian wisdom can be

dissipated effectively through introducing 'Gandhisrn' in our curriculum through meticulous

planning. But then, even after 58 years of freedom, nothing worthwhile had been done in this

regard.

1.3 Gandhiji's World View

Tt is generally accepted that Gandhiji had a healthy and holistic world view. He

believed that we are not just human beings having occasional spiritual experiences, but

spiritual beings having human experience. This reversal is indeed a very great contribution

from the M+%tma. A human existence with occasional spiritual experience is one thing, but

a spiritual existence with human experience is an entirely different phenomena. With this,

the focus is now shifted from materialism to spirituality, from the mundane to the

transcendental. Given this, progress or development of man becomes an evolutionary

upgrowth from mundane to transcendental, from materialism to spirituality. Whatever

material development man may achieve is only catering to the mundane level, but man ought

to go beyond the mundane to the transcendental in order to really develop and progress as

human being, into authentic human existence.

Gandhiji also believed that man is potentially and essentially divine. Thus, for

Gandhiji, man is of supreme importance because he is the manifestation of God. All of

Gandhiji's concepts and values of life are roo*ted deeply in this realization, and therefore he

considered service to humanity as service to God. 'Minava sEvat thus becomes 'Miidhava

Gva' to Gandhiji. Gandhiji never liked to view different issues differently,but as part of an

overall plan as he liked to see life as a unity. Gandhiji was in total agreement with the

ancient Indian world view which considered man as a part of the universe and being guided

by a trans-individual authority. For him there is no dichotomy between the spiritual and the

temporal realms; the spiritual law gaining expression through the ordinary activities of life.

According to Gandhiji, one's everyday life is never capable of being separated h spiritual

living. The real human progress, according to Gandhiji, is the progress of the inner being of

man rather than an expression of his power over materials or other human beings and

territories. To him man is superior to the system.

The UpanigMic 4 a t i Marltra' becomes very significant here.

which means: this (self) is a complete whole and that (B+mq) is a complete whole. From

that complete whole comes this complete whole. Even when this complete whole is taken

away from that complete whole, there still remains the complete whole. Such is the nature of

relations between man and the transcendental, 'Atman' and 'Braema?', they are never

separate, the separation is only an illusion. xtrnan, in reality is Br&mq itself; and there is

no question of any dichotomy at all.

Gandhiji says that the real test of any civilization is to raise man to a higher moral

level; but the tools of modem civilization - Science and Technology has not achieved this

objective. It has helped man materially but not an inch to his spiritual upliftment. He feels

that science and Technology are important forces of civilization, but they are only means,

but not ends. Neither railways nor hospitals are a test of high and pure civilizations. At best

they are necessary evils.

With the emergence of Science and Technology the holistic world view suffered as

science started analyzing man's relationship with the outer world. This dichotornisation of

man's inner and outer world brought about a world view in which nature is considered as an

object for dissection and management for man's use, as the founder of modern science,

Fransis Bacon put it:

"Nature had to be hounded in her wanderings, bound into service

and made a slave. She was to be put in constraint; and the aim of the scientist was to torture nature's secrets from her"'0

It is this tendency of science to present a fragmented world-view which prompted

Gandhiji to call modern civilization 'satanic' as it succeeded in breaking up the holistic

world-view. It is this 'broken-totality' that stands in the centre of the predicament of modern

man. This scientific man is set on winning over material benefits,and his reason is being

relegated to the instrumental role. In this process, the Cartesian dictum ' I think,therefore I

am' is transformed into 'I own, therefore I am'. Here the 'self turns out to be pure ego, an

acquisitive and possessive ego. The 'I' is totally represented in 'mine', and it is this 'mine'

that becomes the guiding principle of individual's interaction with the outer world.

It is against this 'broken totality' world view that Gandhiji fought and tried to restore

the fullness and who~esomeness of human being as having ethico-religious pursuits. He

believed that man, while he is rooted in and springs fiom the animal world, has also the

capacity to rise above it, and can, only if he recognizes and wills, set on a journey to give

free play to his moral and spiritual propensity for selfdevelopment.

Gandhiji was against indiscriminate industrialization because this also has a tendency

to bring about divisions in the society such as capitalist and the working class, exploiters and

the exploited etc. According to Gandhiji, industrialization inevitabily leads to capital

accumulation with a few, with the resultant impoverishment of large number of labourers.

He was in full agreement with English poet Goldsmith's dictum that 'as wealth accumulates

men decay'. Gandhiji's own view is expressed in the following words:

"Wealth and Truth have always been in conflict with each other and will remain so till the end of time" I

Like Karl Marx, Gandhiji also believed that industrialization and accompanying

regimentation brings about an alienated workforce whose status is worse than that of slaves.

In tiandhij i's own words:

".....formerly men worked in the open air only as much as they liked. Now thousands of workmen meet together and for the sake of maintenance work in factories or mines. Their condition is worse than that of beasts. They are obliged to work, at the risk of their lives, at most dangerous occupations, for the sake of millionaires. Formerly, men were made slaves under physical compulsion. Now they are enslaved by temptations of money and of the luxuries that money can buy. There are now diseases of which people never dreampt before, and an army of ductors is engaged in finding out their cum, and so hospitals have increased. This is a test of civilization'I2

Urbanization is a direct outcome of industrialization and Gandhiji was against this

too, as can be seen from his following passage:

" .... large cities were a snare and a useless encumbrance and that people would not be happy in them, that there would be gangs of thieves and robbers, prostitution and vice flourishing in them and that poor men would be robbed by rich menM.13

Advent of Science and Technology paved the way for the invention of many

machineries which could produce finished products, such asclothes, instruments, vehicles

and many other things in large quantities. Gandhiji was opposed to 'labour-saving' machines

because these could take many labourers out of their job market. With regard to this,he often

used to say that we do not need mass-produced products but products produced by the

masses. Gandhiji believed that work or employment is an unavoidable condition for human

existence. Gandhiji's opposition to machinery stemmed from this principled stand. In a

country abundant with labour, machines lead to unemployment. Gandhiji used to say that

machinery is like a snakehole that may contain large number of snakes.

Another area where Gandhiji tried to maintain unity was in connection with the

concepts of 'means' and 'ends'. Gandhiji stressed that the means adopted are as important as

the ends to be achieved. We cannot achieve a good thing through wrong means. Gandhiji

compared the means to a seed and the end to a tree and stated that there is just the same .

unavoidable connection between the means and the end as there i s between the seed and the

tree. The basic idea inherent in this concept is that wrong means will not lead to right results

and this is not simply an ethical doctrine but a practical preposition. Explaining the

philosophy of purity of means, held by Gandhiji, Louis Fisher observes:

"Actually there are no ends; each apparent end is a means to another means. Life consists of only means, and if the means are cormpt and ugly,alloflife becomescorrupt and uglyandsodoesman himself'.14

Looking at some of the above Gandhian concepts we can undoubtedly understand

that the central Gandhian values are not derived from any metaphysical system but are

derived from his own philosophical ideas which he derived as a result of his historical,

spiritual and material background, knowledge and experience. Gandhiji's values thus retlect

his understanding of human nature, of social and production relations, of man's constant

struggle against forces which tried to push him down into one kind of oppression or another,

and of his attempt to rise abve his existentialist situation.

Today Gandhiji becomes all the more significant, especially in social, scientific and

academic resemhes, curriculum etc. of universities in Kerala. The scientific euphoria of the

Western world from 19th century Europe gave birth to 'sciences' of society, that became

'social sciences'. They gave primacy to sciences and scientificity, and they want to create

sciences out of social studies. Such scientific tenets, Positivism, Marxism, and

Existentialism etc. presents the socalled 'Modernism', 'Structuralism' and further Post-

Modernism and Post-Structuralism, Post-Positivism and the like. They are upheld as the

'in-thing' in research and analysis by the Social Scientists, Writers, Media etc. in Kerala,

whereas from Europe, such things are long gone in majority of their centres of learning. But

in a country like India when a society, makes a celebration of such things, it, indeed becomes

anachronism par excellence.

1.4 The Mabitma and Religion.

Gandhiji's Philosophy of Religion is based on his unflinching belief in the superiority

of spirit over matter. Gandhiji maintains that he would not sacrifice his religious faith for

any worldly gain. Religion for him was not mere observances or rituals, but was a matter of

inner life, private life. Spirituality is something which man achieves as a result of his

over-all life, as can be understood from what Gandhiji says:

"I do not believe that spiritual law works on a field of its own, it expresses itself only through the ordinary activities of life. It thus affects the economic, social and political fields". 15

The idea which emerges from this is that one's religion should not be something that one

makes a public show of or flaunts, for this implies vanity, and vanity is irreligious. Gandhiji

also spoke of secularism as the proper framework for regulating inter-relationship between

reiigians. 'Secularism' for Gandhiji means 'equal respect far all religions', which imply unity

and equality of all religions. Equal respect for all religions must be contrasted with equal

distance from all religions, a s they both are termed secularism in ordinary language. The idea

of equally distancing from all religions to call oneself secular is just the way the materialist

acts. But that is a very negative position and perspective, from the point of view of religion.

Religious secularism is unconditionally equal respect to all religions3 and if one has to

experience equal respect to all religions, he must be authentically and spiritually religious.

Without such spirituality, secularism becomes a dark hole in black air. Gandhiji says that

God has created different faiths just as he has created the votaries of different faiths. Such an

understanding, Gandhiji says:

'"Will give one a grasp o f the rock-bottom unity of all religions and afford a glimpse also of the universal and absolute truth which lies beyond the dust of creeds and faiths". 16

With reference to religion, Gandhiji was a non-conformist in the sense that he did not

blindly follow the scriptural precepts. In many cases he tried to find his own interpretation as

he did it with regard to ~:ta. The theme of G%, according to Gandhiji, was the perpetual

conflict taking place in human mind between good and bad - the Phdav'is standing for good

and the Kauravk standing for bad or evil forces. The arbitrator in this conflict is one's own

soul represented by Lord K p a . 'G:& according to Gandhi' is a good example of how

Gandhiji translated religious teachings into everyday practices. Gandhiji's non-conformism

with regard to scriptural writings can also be seen in his approach to the issue of caste

system and untouchabiIity that existed in Hinduism. Though he supported caste system with

regard to specialization in trade m, he decried untouchability and fought against it. This,

Gandhiji was able to do as he was a true Hindu, and wanted to purify Hinduism so that it

.could be acceptable to the common masses. Gandhiji implicitly believed in divine guidance

and submission to divine will so much so that the general public unquestionably believed

and followed him.

Unlike other politicians who go down to any depth to get things done, Gandhiji was

an exception in that he was able to l iR even political works to the level of a religious calling.

This was possible to him because there was nothing in his politics which partakes of

pretense, duplicity, diplomacy or hypocrisy. The ultimate objective of his political work, was

in fwt, to serve fellow Indians. For this Gandhiji adopted his political mentor's

(Gopalakrishna Goghale) dictum 'Let us spiritualize politics' and provided his own

explanation for this:

"All of us can surely cultivate the virtue of fearlessness, truthfulness, courage, neatness, fairness, straightforwardness, firmness, and such like, and devote them to the service o f the country. This is the meaning of the great saying, 'Let us spiritualize politics' ". 17

Gandhilji's political work was part of his endeavour to serve humanitys and,not for any

personal embellishment. This is why George Onvell, in 1 949, after writing an essay sharply

critical of Gandhiji, could nevertheless conclude it on this note:

"regarded simply as a politician, and compared with the other leading political figures of our times, how clan a smell he has managed to leave behind".

That clean smell endures even today.

Though Gandhiji stood for spiritualizing all aspects o f life, he did not favour any

exclusivist religious teaching. He says:

"Hinduism, Islam, Zoroastrianism, Christianity and all other religions teach that we should remain passive about worldly pursuits and active about godly pursuits". 19

By' godly pursuits' Gandhiji did not mean conformity to the outward forms of religion. He

believed in the essential unity of all religions as they all have one essential feature in

common, 'to do good to mankind'. Rev. Doke observed that no single religion can claim

him:

"I question whether any religious creed would be large enough to express his view, or any church system ample enough to shut him in. Jew and Christians, Hindu, Mohammedan and Parsi, Buddhist, Confucian, all have their places in his heart as children of the same fatherW.*0

One of the outcomes of Gandhiji's strong religious belief is the establishment of

Truth as Absolute, and no one, even atheists, dare to dispute this view. Gandhiji had been in

search of Truth throughout his life as can be evidenced from titling his autobiography as

"The Story of My Experiments with Truth'. Herein he writes:

"for me, truth is the sovereign principle, which indudes numerous other principles. This truth is not only truthfklness in word, but truthhlness in thought also, and not only the relative truth of our conception, but the Absolute Truth, the Eternal Principle, that is God ... I worship God as Truth

only .... He alone is real and all else is umal".21

Gandhiji believed that one cannot find this Truth by intellectual inquiry alone,

because it is an all-inclusive process in which man's intellect plays only a part. Man has to

search for Truth with his whole personality - Heart included. Harmony, or co-operation

between thought, word and deed is an essential feature in the search for Truth. To think one

thing, to speak a second and to do a third is a lie. Untruth leads to discord in personality,

whereas '1'111th results in harmony. Only a person who is in harmony with himself and his

environs would be successful in realizing Absolute Truth of Gandhiji's conception,

Harmony is a Philosophical Concept of Gandhiji,which, h m the point of view of

the individual, means concordance between thought, word and deed. Harmony is not only a

question concerning the individual, but also has wider applicability in the social context.

Social and National harmony could only be achieved when individuals live in harmony

within the society. In order to be in h m o n y with society, one need to be developed in a

balanced way both in cognitive and affective domains. Indian Epistemology gave due

weightage to this aspect and therefore our seers had both vij%na and j&a. VijGna comes

from intellectual training whereas j&a or wisdom comes from emotional tempering or

experiencing. Western Epistemology does not have a methodology to understand the

affectivity in knowing, and they therefore wander in the intellectual realm of cognitivity and

reality, that is cognitive alone. Such one-sided development of the intellectual domain does

not enable one to be in harmony with nature or society. The root cause for today's trouble is

the one-sided attention given in training of intellect only in our education system.

A corollary of Gandhiji's concept of Truth is Non-Violence or 'Abimsaj. Truth and

Non-Violence, are the twin concepts, which seem fundamental to the whole of Gandhian

Philosophy of Religion. Truth has greater importance in life than non-violence. According to

Gandhiji Non-Violence is the means and Truth is the end, and the two, therefore, cannot be

equatd. Gandhiji feels that non-violence is the sole means of realizing Truth. This intimate

relationship between Truth and Non-Violence follows from Gandhiji's own belief regarding

the nature of God and man. Gandhiji believed that there was an essential unity between God

and human self and also between one self and another. As a matter-of-fact, he believed in the

essential unity of aH beings, because God or Truth is present in all of them. Based on this

Gandhiji advises us not to do any harm to another person, because the other person is you.

It must not be forgotten that the concept of 'Abiihsa' essentially belongs to Buddha.

'Ahimsa' which is translated as 'Non-Violence' is not just abstaining from violence as the

term may imply, on the contrary, violently and relentlessly working against violence can

only amount to what is non-violence as 'Ahimsa'. A concept of Ahimsa has contexts and

connotations etc. of values such as Satya, Dharma, Tyirga etc. Gandhiji has created a social

action programme out of this, which indeed is his contribution to humanity.

The concept of social Non-Violence is a contribution of Gandhiji in the field of

human relationship. Gandhiji himself says that this is not a new concept, but existed

ever-since man emerged in this universe. Gandhiji's novelty lies in his ability to transform

this into a social phenomenon on a global scale. On fiflh October 1945 Gandhiji declared:

"I hold that without Truth and Non- Violence there can be nothing

but destruction for hurnanityM.22

Martin Luther King used Non-Violence in America, Nelson Mandela used it in South

Africa, Benigno Acquino used it in Philippines, Petra Kelly of Greens Movement used it for

protecting environment, against forces of violence.

Along with non-violence, goes the love for life. One cannot love unless one does not

believe in non-violence. Therefore love and non-violence are two sides of the same coin.

Luve for all living beings will help in realization of the fundamental basic unity that exist

between all. We are members of the same universe, and the universe does not exist only for

living beings but also for inanimate objects. Such a realization wouid permit a fuller and

richer life for the individuals, establish rapport &tween the individual and his environment,

enable the individual to earn his livelihood with ease and mental poise, reduce drudgery

associated with work and labour, make work pleasurable, extinguish the possibilities of

exploitation of nature and society, and of future generation by the present generation. Such a

situation would favour conservation of natural resources and do away with the problem of

exploitation of resources and pollution, ecological imbalances and the like.

One of the means Gandhiji advocated for eradicating violence in society is by getting

rid of hierarchical class or caste units. He wanted the caste system continued with respct to

job specialization but without hierarchy or economic disparity. He wanted to achieve

economic equality by abolishing class-conflict between ialmur and capital. Thjs is because

Gandhij i believed that non-violence and economic inequality are incompatible. He wanted

the rich to be trustees of their wealth to be used for the gcwd of the society; and warned them

that a bloody revolution is a certainty if they do not voluntarily give up their property and

share with others.

Trusteeship concept of property is the outcome of Gandhiji's notion that God creates

enough for everyone's needs, but not enough for satisfying his greed. Gandhiji calls for the

creation of a 'need-based' society rather than a 'want-based' one. This concept is meant for

bringing up a society without much economic inequality. Gandhiji considered economic

inequality to be one of the causes for social strife, as did Marxists, but Gandhiji advocated

sharing of property rather than forceful appropriation. Out of this trusteeship concept sprang

Gandhiji's concept of non-possession or aparig&a.

Gandhiji realized that possessions are m encumbrance, as Christian in John

Banyon's 'Pilgrims Progress' realized. Moreover it is a general law of secular world that an

encumbered life is a hindrance to self-realization or 'nirvana'. Examples of this can be

ev idend in all scriptural teachings. Gandhiji believed that when one loves another person

or the poor, possessions would be an impossibility. With perfect love for everyone perfect

non-possession is possible.

Sarvaaya and Anthy6daya are twin concepts of Gandhiji to ensure social justice.

Gandhiji's Sarvaya Philosophy is conceived after he read Ruskin's book 'Unto this Lastt.

According to SarvGdaya philosophy, it is the poor and the weakest that need immediate

societal attention.

Tolerance is another Gandhian concept which emerged from Gandhiji's respect for all

religions and his conviction that Truth is God. Since realization of Absolute Truth is very

dif'ficult for erring human beings, we have to satisfy ourselves with relative truth which is

different for different people. Relative truth means that there is always some measure of

untruth or error in relative truth. And because of this error factor nobody's relative truth is

acceptable to others. Because of this lack of hundred percent correctness we have to tolerate

other's points of view - or we have to give up exclusivism and develop an attitude of

inclusivism. Gandhiji was a very tolerant person who listened to other's point of view

patiently or tolerantly. Tolerance involves the recognition that one's point of view is as

fragile as everybody else's.

Bread-labour is another Gandhian concept based on Gandhiji's conviction that every

able-bodied person should involve in physicallmanual labour. Gandhiji maintained that

physical needs of the body should be satisfied with one's own physical labour; intellectual

work is for the empowerment of the soul. He insisted that if anybody does not earn his daily

bread through physical labour he/she is simply stealing from others. There is ample evidence

that all religious scriptures extol the virtue of manual labour for earning one's bread.

To Gandhiji, fearlessness is the .sign of liberation. Fearlessness means to feel

liberated - economically, intellectually, spiritually etc. and also freedom frm fear of disease,

fear of death, injury etc. Gandhiji believed that b enjoy life one should be fearless, and this

is mentioned in all religious scriptures. Fearlessness is a divine attitude.

Gandhiji feels that humility is one of the outcomes of fearlessness. In ancient times

our &?is and Guriis were very humble in behaviour. In Gurukula system of education

humility was inculcated in the educands through a period of compulsory mendicancy. This

was also followed during the Buddhist period. Islam also teaches people to be humble in

behaviour. But in modem India this is not the case. The more one is educated, the more they

are proud of themselves. Gandhiji says that it is a curse among our people to be proud of

many things in life. Gandhiji recommends that we should have simple life and high thinking.

There are many more values which could be attributed to have their origin in

Gandhiji's philosophy of religion, but mentioning all o f them would make this introduction

disproportionately large. Gandhiji was of the opinion that once people realize the ultimate

value, that is, Absolute Truth, they will automatically attain aH other virtues of life.

Therefore Absolute Truth is the basic value from which all other values are derived.

1.5 Gandhiji's Philosophy of Education.

The Educational Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi is a harmonious blend of Indian

spiritualism, pragmatism and social realism. In the redm of spiritualism.he sincerely worked

for the establishment of Truth and AQihsa throughout his life. In the realm of Pragmatism,

he spoke of God appearing in the form of work in front of starving people. Work is the only

God who could bring about all-round liberaion from suffering. Eradication of untouchability,

Caste system, Alcoholism , Drug abuse and other vices, Hygiene, environmental protection

and other related issues claimed Gandhiji's attention in the socio-educational realm.

Commenting on the contribution of Gandhiji to Education in India, Prof. John Dewey, an

internationally reputed educationist remarked that Gandhiji's education was:

"One step ahead of all other systems and is full o f immense potentialities".23

About Gandhiji's contribution to Education in India, he, himself says that, of all the

things he did for India, his contribution to Education is the most important one. Here

Gandhiji's genius is reflected in the remarkable way he integrated education with

development of both the individual and the community. Gandhiji's education of children in

his &ams was the extension of the traditional Indian system of education in the Gurukulk.

The GurukuEs were total educational experiments in the sense that besides mastering the

secrets of life, philosophy, literature, science and arts, the students and their Guriis were

making earnest efforts to live in the open, live in harmony with nature, which would be

possible if only the learners and their masters tried to respect Nature. Gandhiji's xiram

system of education thus was aimed at fostering an unbreakable bond with nature. British

education, Gandhiji painfully realized, on the other hand was instrumental in alienating man

from nature and also from ordinary Indians.

Gandhiji's educational philosophy is the direct outcome of his personal involvement

in education of children in his as'rams in South Afiica and in India, and therefore,it had

pragmatic orientation rather than theoretic appeal. When Gandhiji came back to India in

I91 5, Mamulay's colonealising experiment of education of the people through a foreign

medium had been in progress for over nearly eighty years. Imparted through the medium of

English, it was alienated from the needs and problems of the country; and strengthened the

traditional upper caste avertion to manual work. Moreover Gandhiji found an educated elite

out of touch with its indigenous culture, unable, in the most literal sense, to speak to the

people in their own language. He felt that the national movement had been unable to reach

the masses because of the English educated leader's inability to communicate with ordinary

masses of India. Gandhiji proclaimed that lndia could not be free till she had freed herself

fmm the bondage of the English language and that the question of vernacular as the medium of

instruction was of national importance; the neglect of one's mother tongue being equivalent

to 'national suicide'. It was an essential feature of the Gandhian faith that English should give

way to the regional languages in Education.

Gandhiji firmly believed that education divorced from the needs of the country was a

burden on the society. Therefore he argued for replacing British system of Education with

- / Asrarn system of Education. He recognized the educational value of coqerative and

purposeful manual work to fulfill some needs of the community life; the importance of

, simplicity of life and observance of rules of health and hygiene in personal and collective

life; the reverence for mother nature, for all religions and races. The fact that his educational

programme was conducted not within four walls of a school divorced from life, but was an

integral part of every-day living without injustice and oppression of childhood liberty, gave

his educational experiment significance and vitality.

The programme of education, Gandhiji presented to the nation, to solve the problems

created by the compulsory imposition of an exotic system of education, is known as the

Wardha scheme of Education or 'Nai Talim'. He praised this new scheme as 'education for

life and through life'. It covered all aspects of life - work and worship, health and

clean1 iness and helping one's parents at home. Under Gandhiji's Basic Education scheme,

fi-ee and compulsory education was to be given to all children from age seven to fourteen

(seven years), craft was to be at the centre of the curriculum, mother-tongue was to be the

medium, and the schools were to be self-supporting.

Gandhiji believed that we should rearganize our educational system so as to

promote new values and new relationships so that the children behave morally and ethically.

Instead of teaching the child what he loves to learn we are teaching him those subjects which

will get him better-paid jobs or the highest appreciation in society. So he learns to pursue not

what i s his own natural urge or talent, but that which the society demands of him. Gandhiji

says that a utilitarian society which value people according to the return which they will

subsequently give back can only make people egoistic, ruthless and ambitious. Anything that

stands in his way, he gushes it aside, thereby he has become violent. Gandhiji says that we

are not educated according to our tradition but according to Western Utilitarian outlook; and

therefore, it is no wonder that our educational system is pducing people whose ego has

been increased, who are proud of their own achievements in the name of self-esteem, who

would compete with each other without observing any rules of morality, who would exploit

fellow-beings for personal gain without my scruples. Gandhiji says that in our ancient

education, people had been taught about their 'dharma' which guided their life in the society.

Violence, egoism, ruthlessness, exploitation, hubris, selfishness, competition etc. had been

decried. Gandhiji believed that through proper planning, training and education, individuals

and groups can be motivated towards altruistic attitudes. Real education, Gandhiji says,

should train us to serve humanity.

Gandhiji gave great importance to the aspect of character building in education.

Education should help to develop values, to live as whole human persons wisely; with

wisdom. Thus Gandhiji says, the objective of education is not to turn out just good

individuals, but socially conscious and socially responsible men and women. All education

would remain incomplete until this important aspect is achieved. Thus, team work,

discipline, cultivation of a social sense from childhood are essential ingradients of true

education. Such a truly educated person would promote the pratice of '@imsar and pursuit

of truth. Therefore the ultimate aim of Gandhiji's educational programme is the creation of a

'Satyligrabi' - a truthful, non-violent person. Gandhiji envisioned true education coming

about primarily through a particular pattern of life in a community (%ram), and not merely

through formal instructions in classes.

In Gandhiji's scheme of Education, the teacher plays a very prominent role - he is to

be a lamp-post, a sign-board, a dissolvent, or a processor - one who saves the pupil h m the

tyranny of words. Gandhiji wanted education to revolve around a teacher and not books,

because, as he says in his autobiography:

"I have always felt that the true text book for the pupil is his teacher. I remember very littie that my teachers taught me from books, but 1 have even now a clear recollection of the things they taught me independently of booksqt.24

For Gandhiji, the teacher was the most respected and most spiritual man in the society. More

than cleverness, the teacher should have character. His faith in the influence of the teacher

on learners comes out strongly as he wrote:

"It is possible for a teacher situated miles away to affect the spirit of the pupils by his way of living. It would be idle for me, if I were a liar, to

teach boys to tell the truthn.25

From all these we can see that the type of education Gandhiji envisioned was based on the

tacit assumption of intimate interaction between the teacher and the students.

Looking at the state of education in India today, both at the national and state level,

we can observe that due attention has not been given in the implementation of Gandhiji's

recomniendations on ducation. As a result, we have more educated unemployment today .

than at any time in history, our country is more divided internally than at any time, more

violent, more cormpt, more exploited and polluted; that we are forced to confess that the

root cause for our failure lay in the negligent approach we have taken in implementing

Gandhiji's recommendations in education. At this juncture,it is worth remembering what

Kothari Commission has said about education: 'The future of India is being shaped in her

classrooms.' If we want a better India for our coming generations, let us implement

Gandhiji's programme of education, with its emphasis on character education, as soon as

possible. There should be no doubt at all in the mind of any Indian that Indian education

must immediately seek refuge in Gandhiji's educational programme if the nation must exist

as meaningful India. Gandhiji had thought and worked out the details of how education

ought to be in India. With so many so-called Gandhians and much of Gandhism in

precipitation, why this could not be put into practice ?

1.6. Gandhiji - A Transforming Personality.

The object of Education is to transform an individual, who is born with animal

instincts, into a morally developed rational human being who could live happily and

harmoniously with his environ. Gandhiji believed that human beings are born with two

elements - animality and spirituality. The natural course of human evolution, he thus thought

is:

"from beast, through man, to ~od"26

Animality encourages one to compete, to quarrel, to be violent, to be egoistic and possessive;

whereas spirituality inspires one to co-opemte,to be peacefbl, to be non-violent, to share with

others, and to be altruistic. Thus, according to Gandhiji, education should help in reducing

our animality and transforming us into spiritual beings. That is why Gandhiji said that man is

divine. Thus education is a tool for transforming individuals, and consequently society. This

transforming ability is also inherent in some individuals, who, by their exemplary

characteristics, are able to change others positively.

Gandhiji, speaking about our Western orient4 education system, felt that it has

promoted the development of animal tendencies at the expense of spirituality. 1'0 this aspect

of education, Gandhiji attributes all the blames for the present moral deterioration in India.

Education has not helped us in becoming better human beings. According to Gandhiji the

real human progress is moral and spiritual - that is the progress in the inner being oP man.

Speaking about the transforming ability of individuals, we had a few of them in

1 - human history - Sri Buddha, Jesus Christ, Socrates, Gandhiji, all of whom helped in

awakening human conscience. All of them taught us that in the process of awakening people,

if they have to give up what is dear to them, they should be ready and willing, even to give

one's own life for the cause. Gandhiji, Jesus Christ and Socrates - all did that, and their

willing sacrifice helped in transforming large masses o f people.

'Transforming effect' means the ability of somebody to raise people to a higher level

of moral and spiritual field. Most of the leaders are only able to connect with people at a

particular level of moraiity but not able to raise them to a higher level. Gandhiji, on the other

hand was able to deal with people of different levels of development and raise them to a

higher level. This ability to transform people is called transforming leadership. During this

transformation process, both the leader and the led are positively transformed. Bums, a

sociologist, writes that transforming leadership:

"raises the level of human conduct and ethical aspiration of both leader and led, and thus it has transforming effect on both. Perhaps the besi modern example is Gandhi, who aroused and elevated the hopes and demands of millions of Indians and whose life and personality were

enhanced in the process"27

Taking this quality of Gandhiji into consideration, R.C.&chner describes Gandhiji not

primarily as:

"the architect of Indian independence from British rule but as the liberator of the lndian spirit from the fetters of greed and anger, hatred

and despair"28

Gandhiji's ability to transform people had been vividly expressed by Jewaharlal

Nehru thus:

"And then Gandhi came. He was, like powerful cumnt of fresh air that made us so fresh and take deep breath, like a beam of light that pierces the darkness and removes the scales from our eyes, like a whirl-wind that upsets many things but most of all the working of people's rnind"29.

A few weeks after Gandhiji's assassination, Nehru addressed the constituent

assembly speaking thus:

"A glory has departed and the sun that warmed and brightened our lives has set and we shiver in the cold and dark. Yet,he would not have us feel this way. ARemll, that glory that we saw for all these years, that man with the divine fire, changed us also- and such as we are, we have been moulded by him during these years: and out of that divine fire many of us also took a small spark which strengthened and made us work to

some extent on the lines that he fashioned"30.

Not only Indians, but foreigners too had been transformed by Gandhiji. Needless to

say, Gandhiji had become an idol to too many including: Albrt Einstein, Aldous Huxley,

Roger Balduein, J.H.Holmes, Nelson Mandela, Petra Kelley, Professor Taynnbee, and many

more. Holmes, in his book, 'My Gandhi' writes:

"...In my extremity, I turned to Gandhi, and he took me in arms, and never let me go. Away across the globe he cared for me, and taught me, and reassured me. In London, in 191 3, 1 met him and foun d him indeed my saint and seer ...Had the Mahatma not come into my life:I must sooner or later have been lost. As it was, he saved me. He gave me a peace of mind and serenity of soul which will be with me to the last"31

Vincent Sheehan, an American author, who wanted to escape Western materialism,

writes in his book titled 'Lead kindly Light' about Gandhiji's transforming influence on his

life. He was so much influenced by Gandhiji that at the time of Gandhiji's assassination he

lamented thus:

"I have lost my only Guru, 1 will never learn anything now"32

In addition to these, Gandhiji helped in the tsansformation of many world leaders,

who led their people to freedom through non-violent path chalked out by Gandhiji. Among

them are Jamo Kenyatta of Kenya, Martin Luther King of America, Benigno Aquino of

Philppines, Adolfo Perez Esquivel of Latin America et.el. to name a few.

Gandhiji's influence in guiding the course of independence movement in India along

non-violent path had been commendable. h the absence of Gandhiji to guide us anymore, it

is imperative that we be guided by his teachings and ideals. For this, it is essential that we

introduce a subject in the name of 'Gandhian Education' in our schools and colleges to bring

about positive attitude development in our future generations. Gandhiji believed that through

proper planning, training and education individuals and groups can be transformed

positively. How many of us realize, that we have not been educated and brought up properly,

that our ego has been pumped up, that we have been taught to think big of ourselves and to

belittle others, that our self had been unduly commandeered by the social norms, that we

had been squandering our natural resources and impoverishing our future generations, that

we had been polluting nature to a level intolerable to good heath etc., all in the name of

economic development. It is high time that we take remedial measures by following

corrective measures chalked out by Gandhiji for rejuvenating our lost splendour. By

following Gandhian teachings, a future world can be filled with millions of problem-solving,

selfdiscipfined, empathetic, helpful, and pure-hearted people, able to meet challenges and

difficulties with intelligence and compassion. And also by adopting Gandhiji's ideals such as

non-violence, respect for all religions, faith that God is within all of us, simplicity of

life-style etc. human beings would be able to achieve peace, the well-being of all, restore our

planet's health, and raise their character and conduct to the noblest and happiest possible

level.

1 . Shirer William L., 'Gandhi - A Memoir' in 'Preface' Rupa and Co., Calcutta., 1993.

2.Ibid., Introduction.

3. Tandulkar, D.G.'Mahatma', Vo1.8 of Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India, New Delhi, 1974, p. 144.

4. lbid.

5 . Fisher Louis, 'The Life of Mahatma GandhiBhamt Vidya Bhavan, Bombai, 1983, p.373.

6. Dalton Dennis, 'Non-Violence in Action - Gandhi's Power', Oxford India Paperbacks, New Delhi, 2001, p. 198.

7. Dalton Dennis, 'Non-Violence in Action - Gandhi's Power', Oxford University Press, New Delhi,1999, in Preface.

8. Mani P. ' The Secret of Mahatma Gandhi -'The Harmonio Counterpoint', Arnold publishers, New Delhi, 1989, p. 12.

9. Mathur J .S ., 'Peace, Non-Violence and World Order' - (Gandhian Perspective) Vo1.2., Vohra Publishers and Distributors, 1990, p.385.

1 0. Staff, Madrai Kamaraj, University 'The Newtonian World Machine', M. K. U. Press, Madurai 200 1 , p.67.

1 1 . Tercheck, Donald J . 'Gandhi Struggling for Autonomy' Vistaar Publications. New Del, hi, 2000, p. 1 73.

12 .Swaminathan K. and Patel C.N.(Ed):'A Ganchi Reader', Orient Longman, Madras, 1983, pp. 1 1-1 2.

1 3. Tbid., p. 1 5 .

14. Jain J.C.'Gandhi - TheForgottenMahatma', Mittal Publication, Delhi, 1987, p. 1 73.

I 5. Rasdhakrishnan N.(Ed.) 'Gandhian Perspectives of Nation Building for World Peace', Konark Publications Pvt. Ltd.,5-Tees Jannay Marg, New Dethi, 1 992, p. 19.

16. Ibid., p.24.

17. Prabhudas B. Patwari, 'Reflections Through Gandhian Angle', Navjivan Publishing House, Ahmadbad, 1982, p. 11 .

18. Dalton Dennis, 'Non-Violence in Action - Gandhi's Power, Oxford India Paperbacks, Jai Singh Road,New Delhi, 2001 ,p. 1 99.

19. Gandhi M.K., 'Selected Works of Mahatma Gandhi', Vo1.4, Navjivan Publishing House, Ahmadbad, 1968,~. 127- 1 28.

20. Jose P.K., 'Foundation of Gandhian Thought,'Gandhian Peace Foundation Trust, Calcutta, 1985 p.80.

2 1. Gandhi M.K. ' An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments With Truth' Navj ivan Publishing House,Ahmadabad, 1 927, p.XI.

22. Bhamthi, K.B.,'Mahatma Gandhi - Man of the Millennium' S-Chant and Co.Ltd., New Delhi, 2000, p.35.

23. Sethi, J.D.,'Gandhi Today', Vikas Publishing House, Pvt-Ltd., New Delhi, 1978, p. 1 20.

24. Gandhi M. K. ' My Exoeriments With Truth' , Navjivan Publishing House, Ahmadbad 2001, pp.281-282.

26. Dr.Ram Rattan, 'Gandhi's Thought and Action'Kalinga Publishers, Delhi, 1991, p.12.

27. Dalton Dennis,'Non-Violence in Action - Gandhi's Power,' Oxford India Paperbacks, New Delhi, 200 1, p. 1 92.

28.Ibid., p.245.

29. Radhakrishnan N. and Subrammian R.'The complimentarity of Gandhi and Nehru' Gandhigram Rural Institute, 1990, p.XIX.

30. Ibid., p. 19.

3 1. JainJ.C.,' Gandhi-The Forgotten Mahatma', Mittal Publications, New Delhi, 1987, p. 172.

32. lbid, p. 173.

Chapter -11

Mahatma And Spirituality

2.1 'Mahztma' - The Great Soul.

In a forward Gandhiji wrote for 'The Sayings of Mohammad', on 24th March 1938 in

Calcutta , he expressed his feelings about spirituality thus:

"I am a believer in the truth of all the great religions of the world. There will not be no lasting peace on earth unless we learn not merely ta talerate but even to respect the other faiths as our own. A reverent study of the sayings of different teachers of mankind is a step in the direction of such mutual resptxtq'1

Such an esteem feeling could only come from a person whose soul has become

one with the Universal soul. For such a person, there is no difference between religions,

cultures, nationality, caste, gender or in m y form of creation; the created and the creator are

one and the same. Overall, Gandhiji spread the supreme messages of Unity and equality, the

dignity of labour and the supremacy of spirit over matter, and exhorted everybody to shed

Gandhiji claimed himself to be a 'Sangtani Hindu'. He says:

(i) 1 believe in the Vaas, the Upanipds, and all that goes by the name of Hindu Scriptures, and therefore in Avata6s and rebirth;

(ii) I believe in the Vapk'ma dharma in a sense, in my opinion, strictly V a i c but not in its popular and crude sense;

( iii) I believe in the protection of the cow in its much larger sense than the popular; and

(iv) 1 do not believe in idol -worship.

In addition to the above, in an article Gandhiji wrote to an american friend, 'Why I am a

Hindu'. He further writes:

"On examination I have found it to be the most tolerant of all religions known to me. Its freedom from dogma makes a forcible appeal to me in as much as it gives the votary the largest scope for self-expression.Not being an exclusive religion, it enables the followers of that faith not merely to respect all the other re1 igions, but it also enables them to admire and assimilate whatever may be good in other faithsV.2

True to the Indian spirit and tradition, Gandhiji consihred all religions to be

different paths to the same goal - God. Gandhiji had studied Christianity and Islam, and had

many Christian and Muslim friends. He tells us in his autobiography how certain aspects of

Christianity - the life and death of Jesus, the Sermon on the Mount, and the crystalline purity

of some christians, appealed to him. Similarly he read a translation of the Koran and the life

of the pmphet, and was struck by the courage with which he and his followers had faced the

humiliations and hardships heaped upon hem. Many years later, he advised his English

disciple, Miss Slade (Mirabhen) to read Koran and to find out 'gems' in it. Gandhiji, though

believed in the sacred scriptures of many religions, declined to be bound by any

interpretation, however learned that might be, if it was repugnant to reason or moral sense as

can be seen f b m his declaration that 'untouchabilityf is an ineffaceable blot which Hinduism

carries with it. He strongly questioned the Iatter day religious authority for sanctioning caste

system in Hinduism as he believed that VEdic Hinduism had no such social stratification

whezin a group of humans are classed as 'untouchables' and denied of basic human rights.

He strongly believed that there cannot be any moral argument in support of such a social

evi I . Gandhij i rightly declared:

"It is irreligious, not religion, to give religious sanction to a brutal custom"3

2.2. Religion Defined.

Every attempt to define religion will k futile as it is something which is to be

realized, lived and experienced. From the time immemorial religious thinkers have been

trying to define religion, but there are few definitions on religion which throw light on all the

important aspects of religion. To quote Dr. Ftadhakrishnan:

"Religion is a growth which is perennial and its evolution has gone on obeying h e primary Jaws of human progress. As religion is still in the process of growing and until the growth is completed an adequate defini- tion cannot be foundd.

Thus we can see that religion is a growing, dynamic and personal affair. Gandhiji

says that:

"For me every, the tiniest, activity is governed by what I consider to be my religionM5.

Hence religion is not what one gets after d i n g the scriptures of the world. It is not

what is grasped by the brain, but what the heart grasps. It is worth mentioning here t M the

concept of religion as handled in popular English today is drasticaily different from how

Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism etc. handled in the past. The Sanskrit term is

' D h m a ' for all these; which is a concept entirely different from the concept of religion.

Today we call them religion just for want of another word; and the term religion is indeed

unable to represent accurately what the word 'Dharma' stands for.

Let us now turn to discuss the etymological meaning of the term religion and certain

attempts made by certain thinkers to define religion. There are two versions about the

etymological meaning of the word 'religion'. One version holds the view that the word has

originated from the Latin word 'Religionis' where 're' means 'back' and 'Ligare' means 'to

bind'; so religion according to this view is something which unifies and harmonizes human

being into a community. Another meaning of the word 'religion' is that it originated from the

Latin word 'religm' meaning 'to restrain'. B d on this, we can assume that religion's

fundamental task is to restrain man born resorting to unacceptable thought, speech and

deeds. To achieve these aims. i. e., to 'unify' or 'to 'restrain ' human beings different

religions have developed different sets of beliefs which need to be adhered to by its

followers. Unquestioning, unswerving trust is expected in these revealed or enunciated

beliefs. The belief system of different religions assume 'sacredness' because of this

inviolability.

There had been various attempts to defjne religion thmugh different times.

According to lames Martineau:

"Religion is the belief in an everlasting living God, that is, in a divine mind and will ruling the universe and holding the moral relations with mankind"

Herbert Spencer defines religion thus:

" Religion is a recognition that all things are manifestation of a power which transcends our knowledge"7.

J.B.Frazer understands religion as:

"a propiation or conciliation of powers superior to man which are believed to direct and control the mume of nature and human lifen.$

According to Bradley:

"Religion is rather an attempt to express the complete reality of goodness

through aspect of our beingV9.

And, according to Mathew Arnold:

"Religion is ethics hcightmed, enkindled and lit up by feeling" 10.

Karl Marx developed the materialistic view point of religion and considered it a s an

instrument for the exploitation of the masses. For Marx, God and religion were the creations

of capitalistic mode of production to usurp the workers of their fare share. He accused the

capitalist of using religion to keep the workers 'druggdt so that they could be pacified by

mere promises of future happiness afkr death, in place of just wages for their work in this

life. He condemns religion and calls it the 'opium' of the masses. Karl Mam enumerates

many instances of unholy alliances between the religious authorities and people at the helm

of political power to exploit the working class. Accordingly, the whims and fancies of the

ruling class were expressed in the form of regulated religious prescriptions so as to be

believed by the oppressed class who become slaves, not only to the ruling class but also to

their conveniently arranged concepts of religion. Marx pointed out that throughout the

human history one constant factor was the exploitation of one class by another; and he

believed that once the exploitation ends God and religion also would come to an end.

From a Psychological point of view, religion is partly intellectual, partly emotional

and partly an act of the will. Sigmund Freud called religion as an illusion, as it incorporates

certain characteristic feelings and emotions such as wonder, awe, and reverence. According

to Freud, it is only the inherent human weakness which always look for an external support

system in the form of religion and God. He says, like a foetus, we need the womb of the

God; and like a child, we need a father ; like a teenager we need somebody with whom we

could fuse: and like helpless old people, we need somebody to look after us. Fraud feels that

once we get over our weaknesses and feel self-confident and independent, we would not

look for any God.

From a Sociological point of view, refigion is a creation of society to fulfill our

sociological needs. Emile Durkheim, a sociologist went to the extreme to assert that all

sacred values are in content social-collective and all profane values are individualistic. For

him, God is nothing but a metamorphic or symbolic expression of the collective values. Max

Weber tries to explain that the various aspects of religion arise to fulfil sociological and

historic needs, This means that religion has no independent existence of its own. Peter

Burger is of the opinion that religion is a world construction and plays the role of a sacred

canopy providing a shelter of security like the modern insurances do.

Looking at the various definitions and explanations about religion from different

view-points we can find that not sr single explanation is sufficient enough b explain all the

necessary elements of religion. They stress only one aspect or another excluding the other

aspects of religion. For example, Martineau has failed to recognize certain polytheistic

religions. Similarly Bradley and Arnold have identified religion with morality, They believe

that moral consciousness has an autonomy of its own and religion springs out of morality;

and in the hatwe of our moral consciousness there is direct eviden~e for the existence of

superhuman spirituality.

The greatest thmtt to religion comes from Marxism and it found many foIlowers

throughout the world. But Marxism is on retreat now and spirituality is gaining ground in

many areas of the world. Marx wanted to maintain materialism as the metaphysics of

marxism; and to a great extent, hc borrowed heavily h m Ludwig Feurbach to support his

theory. Marxian attempt of seeing the society through a sub-structure super-structure thesis,

where the economic substructure determines all other super-structure amount to gross

reductionism. Marxism struggles in vain to reduce everything ta economic stubstructure

where there is only one - way relation from sub-structure to super-structure.

The most formidable attacker of religion is not Karl Marx, but Sigmund Freud.

Freudian atheism is psychoanalytical in nature, so let us call it 'Psycho-analytical atheism'.

But even Freud's Psycho-analytical atheism suffers from major internal contradictions and

eventually collapses. In Mam. one could see the forerunner of 1% century positivist

tendencies. The Positivist Swial Scientists suffered from the 'euphoria ' of science. They

believed that one day, science would replace God. What happened to all these theories is a

matter of common sense to any average observer. They all eventually failed. No sciences

wodd either replace God or Religion as an institution of any given society because it is

co-existing and co-terminus with man.

As no satisfactoiy definition of religion is possible, we must remain satisfied with

certain elementary definitions of religion. A survey of numerous definitions and viewpoints

about religion would be more informing than any new definition or explanation that might

be given. That there are many religions in the world: and that all of them contain certain

essential characteristics to qualify being named as religion, is a fact. W e must be in a

position to draw a broad distinction between what is essential and what is not, between the

eternal and the ephemeral, between divine and human in every religion. Every religion has

some mission to fulfill and in all instances they aim at socio-collective harmony and welfare.

Dr. lPadhakrishnan observes that for religion to play a positive role in our life, we must

invariably realize the oneness of all religions.

"In order that religion may be perennial living force, one should esteem all the different creeds, doctrines and theories and realize that they are

like so many radii proceeding to the same centre"

If the above view is accepted, then surely we are in a position to describe (not

define) religion by assimilating all the essential ideas h m different religions. Hastings has

this to say:

"Religion is the individual's aspiration for the realization of an ideal intuitively felt. An analysis ofthe intuitive feelings would reveal that this is just another name for the numerous elements in our religious consciousness. It can be further shown that this is the non-rational counterpart of our idea of the infinite, This idea of the infinite comprehends everything, thus creating in the individua1 a sense of his unity or oneness with all. It is this that acts as a binding force among all, and probably is at the

basis of many of our higher social and political institutions" l 2.

Man is a finite-infinite being. He is never satisfied with what he gets through

ordinary experience in this mundane world. There is an 'inner cryi which impels him to

move onwards and to fmd out the means to achieve his goal i.e. redimtion of God within

himself. Thus:

"religious ideas and practices are consequences of this religious consciousness and not the cause reIigiousnas or of religion. In other words, religious consciousness is prior to religious ideas

and practicts"l 3.

Mainly studies on religion was conducted by philosophers and then the social scientists:

Positivistic social scientists. Though they did some very intense researches, both philosophy

and social sciences alike failed to do full justice ta religion. Philosophy created a philosophy

of Religion, which happened to be philosophy of one religion, namely Christianity. The

problem taken for philosophizing gives ample evidences to this. Philosophy looks for the

essence of all religions, which shaII not be study of religion. What is required is philosophies

44

of Religions. Social scientists on the other h d collected and edited volumes of information

on religion, but their approaches often failed to grasp the spirit of religion.

Modern studies on religion show that religion is something fundamental to the very

human existence itself. PvOrmn, by his very being as man has a fundamental longing towards

the supernatural,the transcendental. This fundamental longing for what is beyond is

co-existing and conterminous with man

Man had come through varying existential situations and knowledge societies during

his long journey through civilizations. During such journey of man from primitive man to

modern man, he had experienced various existential situations. And depending on different

such existential situations, his fundamental longing towards the transcendence.

As a matter of fact all the religious ideas, moral ideas etc. can be traced back to religious

consciousness indicating the primacy of ~ligious consciousness. In otherwords as Rudolph

Otto has c o d y said:

"The subject of religion involves the problem of personality and the deeper vicissitudes of life and thoughtw14.

Following the footsteps of Rudolph Otto, Cassian Agera of Harward says that

Religion is the fundamental intentionality of man towards the sacred. From day one of mm's

existence, this fundamental intentionality towards the sacred was an integral part of his

45

existence, no matter how different his existential situation used to be. This intentionality

manifested itself in many forms; depending on different existential situations in which man

found himse t f in. Given the epistemology of each stage, ihere formed religions, be it archaic,

ancient or Modern. Naturally therefore Religions are all the same in essential spirit.

23 Essentials Of Religious Beliefs.

A &lief in transcendental could be termed as one of the central principtes of religion,

though this belief assumes different forms. For some religions, it is an explicit and

straight-forward belief in a personal God who is the Creator, the supreme being atc, Some

religions are not much concerned about a God as such, they dimtly keep transcendence as

their goal, desideratum. Some treat the transcendental just as the ultimate reality, not

venturing to describe the infinite in a finite manner. However, common folks, no matter

which religion that they follow, do carry some kind of a common concept of God, for JI -

practical purposes. The famous hdian saying is significant here: "Ekam Sat, Vipra Bahudh'

Vadanti"- The tmth is only one; Scholars speak about it in different terns.

(i) Thus, different religions call Him by different names, but the underlying concept is One

Single Supreme Being who created the world and controls every a s p i of it. His attributes

are many - He is all-mighty, ail-knowing and all-pervasive. He is embodiment of power as

well as mercy; He rewards and punishes, He gives and takes life. He is beyond our

comprehension, and sometimes His ways are mysterious and inscrutable. h spite of all these,

His existence cannot be demonstrated. His existence is based on unswerving faith and those

who doubt about His presence will never be able to realize Him.

(ii) The belief in God is essentially a belief in the Unity of God. According to German

philosophers like Fitche, Kmt, ScheIIing and Fraubel, and also the teachings of Upanipds,

#

Sankara and Koran, there is one eternal law - The Law of Unity , that governs all

things, men and nature. Law of Unity states that in everything there works and stirs 'One

Life' given by God. God is one Ground or Substratum of all things. God is

all-comprehending, all-sustaining and is tht e s m e and meaning of the world. All things,

animate or inanimate, originate from One God. Man and nature are one. They are simply the

different forms of the Unity - which is God. There is Unity in diversity and diversity in

Unity.

"All things have come from Divine Unity (Gd) and have their origin in the Divine Unity" 15.

Ancient Indian sages were aware of this Unity of the Universe and they expressed it as

'Vasudhaiva Kuturnbakam'.

(iii) The third basic religious belief is that death is not the final end of man's life. It is only

the body that dies, and the body is not everything that constitutes a human being. According

to ancient hdian and Greek concepts, the body is but the temporary abode of the soul (spirit)

which is immortal and survives the dissolution of the body. The body is also often figured as

a garment which the soul puts on for its earthly sojourn and discards before its flight to its

heavenly home where it enjoys an everlasting life. The nature of man's afterlife, whether it is

going to IE one of bliss or of suffeting, depends entirely on his actions in this life.

(iv) The fourth basic religious belief is the belief in the scriptures as divine guidance to man.

Such a divine guidance has indeed been bestowed on man at a11 times and in all countries. It

is enshrined in the scriptures, the sacred books of religions, revealed to different people at

different times. Belief in Scriptures as part of God's beneficence to man is basic to all

religions. In the absence of such belief men will have nothing to guide them through the

trials and temptations of life. The source of all these scriptures being God himself, it is but

natural that their teachings are in essence the same with regard to beliefs and practices.

One could bring out three basic concepts which .could be treaied ss general to all

religions. They are concept of God, concept of suffering and concept of liberation or

salvation. In spite of finding the wmmonaIities, the study of religion has miles and miles to

go forward. Both philosophers and sociaf scientists failed to do justice to Religion. Social

sciences were out to collect data and they tried to make religion as fitting into their varying

perspectives, thus reducing reiigion into something quite different. They did commit the

fallacy of reductionism. On the other hand, the philosophers tried laoking for the essence of

all religions to generate a universal notion of religion thus missing the point and swapping

the spirit of religious pluralism. The contemporary world, both Chicago school and Haward

School make this mistake in spite of their much serious religious studies. What one need to

realize from the study of religions is the fundamental essence of all these religions and not

the possible commanalities among various religions. We must look at it as the fundamental

intentionality of human being towards the sacred. We ought to treat religion as autonomous,

dynamic and unique.

2.4 Hindn (Indian) View Of Religion

In the previous few pages a brief idea about the general nature of religion has been

given, let us now look at the Hindu (Indian) view of religion. The term Hindu itself is much

mis I d i n g today, especially in the eyes of Western Scholars, the term 'Hindu' may stand for

a religion, though it really is a pointer towards people living in entire India. The term

Religion is also an alien concept to Indian spirituality. One may argue that Indian society

never had a religion as such. India was always a land of plurality of faiths, multiplicity of

customs, rituals, practices etc.; so different from one another, but strangely, very harmonious

and coexisting. It is because of this harmony and co-existence of such plurality of faith,

rituais, religious practices etc. that the outsiders thought it to ix one religion, a religion so

strange and different from the experiences of their own. The not at all contradicting

d i h c e s were termed different Dharmas within Indian society, but they all had the

essential substratum of deep spirituality and the desideratum transcendence.

Thus, for an Indian, religion is the central heme of his life, and this can be seen very

clearly from Swhi ~iv&band2s declaration:

"Each Nation, like each individual, has one theme in life, which is at its centre. I f any nation attempts to throw off its national vitafity, that nation dies. In India, religious life forms the centret'16.

Dr-Radhakrishnan also brings this idea out through the following words:

"Religion is a thing not dien to us: it has to be evolved out of us. It is always within us: with some consciousfy so, with others unconsciously. But it is always thereflf

The word 'Hindu' is most likely of Persian origin and is not found in any of the religious

books. To trace the origin of the word 'Hindu', we have to go back in history to the invasion

of India by the outsiders fiom the North and North-East. The outsiders used the word 'Hind'

to name the great river 'Indus' to the West; of course, the Vedic literature used term 'sindhu'

as appallative known for rivers in general throughout Indian History. So it is quite possible

that the word 'Endus' or ' Sindhu' became the common name used by outsiders for the land

they conquered.

Again, under the title 'Hinduism' is included diverse classes, views, beliefs, rituals, modes of

life etc. Raju P.T. notes that:

"There was no religion called Hinduism just as there were no Indians belonging to the same race or nationality regardless of their being inhabitants of America, the East Indies, West lndies or India" 18.

Hence it is dificult to define Hinduism. Some recent writers have defined 'Hindu' as:

"All natives of India who do not belong to Mussalman, Jain, Buddhist, Christian, Parsi, Jew md other known religions of the world and whose theology is written in Sanskrit Language"19.

This definition is not satisfactory, for it ignores the fact that Hinduism is not a religion in the

sense of the word as understood by Western Thinkers. An Indian thinker observes Hnduism

thus:

"Hinduism is that which a Hindu does, in other-words, it is a question of ritualistic and social obsewance"2O.

d. Hastings defines a Hindu:

"as a man who has not fallen from Hinduism, that is taken up the membership of any community like Christian or Muhammadan. The distinction &een Hindu and a non-Hindu is merely a provisional one ... Hinduism is an ever- changing society which may expand and take in races and peoples irrespective of their religious beliefs. What smieties it will absorb, depends entirely on the circumstancesQ1.

From the above quoted lines it becomes clear that the word 'Hindu' had only a

territorial significance. It only implied residence in a particular geographical area. Naturally

all the people like aboriginal tribes, savages, half-civilized people, the cultured Dravidans

and the Vedic people were all 'Hindust as they were sons of the same mother. Hinduism

came into existence due to the subtle unification of the different masses by a bond of

spiritual thought and realization. It is a collection of names for a variety of beliefs born in

India inclusive of both Buddhism and lainism.

Another word which is unique to lndian culture and philosophy is the word

' Dharma', which some Western thinkers mistakenly take synonirnousiy for 'religion' which

is not true. In India the word 'Dharma' is pregnant with deep rooted significance connoting

several senses.

Etymologically the word 'Dharma' is derived from the Sanskrit root, 'Dhar' meaning

'to support'. It is the all-supporting principle making for integrity and harmony in every

context. It is also defined as the established order, usage, institution, custom, prescription,

rule, dignity, virtue, moral spirit, good works, right, justice, law etc. According to Mahq?i

Manu;

"The whole Veda is (first) source of the sacred law,next the hditions and the virtuous conduct of those who know (veda further), as the

custom of the holy men and finally self-satisfactionW22.

Dharma as duty is the obligation on the part of every individual towards other members of

the society in which he is placed without any attachment to its fruits. D h m a as virtue is

universal and eternal. It means individual's will to cultivate a number of virtues such as

A$iriisa (non-violence), aparigrha (non-possession), ~arnabhsva (equability), Niskarn K m i

(detached activity), K & p a (tolerance) etc. as prescribed by lndian tradition.

Thus there is a difference between Hindu conception of Dharma and the European

conception of religion. 'Hindu' is a definite body and 'Hindu Dharma' is an indefinite thing

which the Hindus consider as their Dharma. Indian commentators have explained it as:

52

"denoting an act which prduces the quality of the soul called 'apurba', the cause of heavenly bliss and final liberationd3

Monior Wiliiams, on h e other hand, defines D h m a as:

"a particular body of traditional doctrines handed down through succession of teachers and also ' ~ & a ' or 'Mata' - that is particular views or opinions on religion and philosophy"24

But m f u l study of Hindu religion reveals that the word 'ma&' for religion cannot be used.

'Mata' means opinions, doctrine, theory, view etc. Monier Williams admitted a mistake in

identifying 'mata' for religion. But the Indians regard 'Dharma' as a t h q of reality guiding

our life. They make a clear cut distinction between the two. If this distinction is not

maintained, then people may think that Indian philosophy grew out of beliefs or dogmas

formulated by some ancient religious teacher. Keeping in view this distinction it will help us

to understand why Indian Philosophy still keeps religious bias, a bias towards spirituality.

Indian religion is a reflective way of life, and hence, ernMies philosophy also.

Dharma, is therefore, the law of life, the way of life, and that keeps running union

with the foundation of our beings. In this sense Dharma is the way of lilfe in accord with

reality. In hdian tradition religion and philosophy are not divided into watertight

compartments. They are regarded as the two states of the same human rtctivity. The aim of

both religion and philosophy is to uplift man and society to higher and nobler level and to

seek unity through diversity.

53

Commenting on the development of Indian religion P.T.hju observes that:

"The elements of Indian religion can be traced back to the pre-Aryan Mohanjadaro civilization in the Indus valley to about 3000 B.C or even earlier times which had a script but that had not been deciphered. Excavations reveal that people of that time had a meditative religion and

worshipped some mother ~oddess"25.

This view has been confirmed by Ernest Mackay:

"The worship of the mother Goddess is a very n w l y Indian cult and pmbabiy existed in the country long before the arrival of the Indus valley people. It is probably true also of tree worship. Animal worship is also inherent in most primitive communities and has existed in lndia or elsewhere for so long that its origin is untraceabledd.

Dr. S. Radhakrishnan also writes:

"There is hardly any height of spiritual insight or rational philosophy attained in this world that has it's parallel to the vast stretch that lies between the

early Vedic Seers and modern ~ t t i ~ a ~ i k a s " 2 7

Hence, we may come to the conclusion that the Indian religion is the oldest raion of

the world. But the Western attitude towards this fact is quite surprising.

Now, we may sum up our discussion on Hindu view of religion in the words o f Dr.

S. Rdhakrishnan:

"While fixed inteltectual beliefs mark off one religion fiom another, Hinduism sets itself no limits. Intellect is subordinate to intuition, dogma to

experienw, outer expression to inward realization. Religion is not the acceptance of academic abstractions or celebration of ceremonies, but a kind of life and experience. It is insight into the nature of reality (darsana) or experience of reality (anubhava). This experience is not our emotional thrills or a subjective fancy; but is the response of the whole personality , the integrated self to the centml reality. Relilgion is a specific attitude of the self itself and no others, though it is mixed up generally with intellectual views, aesthetic norms and moral valuationW28.

2.5 Background of Gandbiji's I d w on Religion

'The man who became one with the Universal Being' - this was the sub-title of

Roman Rolland's book, 'Mahatma Gandhi', published in 1924. Rolland wrote:

"One thing is certain, either Gandhi's spirit will triumph, or it will manifest itself again as were manifested centuries before, the Massiah and the ~uddha"29.

Twenty years later Albert Einstein could write of Gandhi:

"Generations to come, it may be, will scarcely believe, that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earW"'0.

Let us now look at the backround which helped in evolving such a 'Mal$ma'.

Mohandas Kararnchand Gandhi wets born in the complex Vaishcavite tradition of

Kathiawrtd in 1869 just twelve years after the suppression of 1857 revolution. The country

was, at that time mentally suffering the humiliation of the defeat. It was a period of subdued

resentment against the British Imperialism. The agony was still prevailing in the hearts of the

people who find no way to fight against the Britishers to make India fiee. In the mean-time

55

many public-spirited men started thinking that spiritual decline of their men was responsible

for political subjugation. Several religious institutions like Br@ma-samFij, Arya-sam5j and

Theosophical societies came into being to reform the mind of the people with a view to

making them aware of their rich ancestral religious traditions. This was a period of religious

renaissance. The gem of religious sentiment spread a11 over lndia by the time Gandhiji was

born.

Again, Kathiawad was the centre of Vai!~ava sect founded by Vallabhkh-qa.

Gandhij i's family followed this traditiond theistic faith of Vaishqavism. Ganhi's father Kaba

Gandhi and mother Puthlibhai were stern believers in God and used to visit temples and

saints. This might have imprinted religious impressions on the mind of Gandhi from his

very childhood. His grand-father, Oh-Bapu, apart from being a follower of Vallabhkh'&ya,

was also a- to '&-Charit Mkasl written by TulsidZs. This attraction passed on to

Kaba Gmdhi and ultimately to Gandhi, Gandhi studied 'Rimcharit MGas' too deeply and

this book created an indelible impression on him towards 'Remi from his very childhood.

Porbandur was also a meeting place of the people belonging to ail major religions of

the world. Eclecticism has k a m e a way of life and men worshipped as they pleased

without any interference from others. Kaba Gandhi had many friends among them and most

oRen these people belonging to various religious faiths held religious discussions in

Gandhi's residence. Gandhi listened to them. Gandhi also studied some Gujarati religious

books like RhZiyan, Bhagavad ~Tta and Manusmfl from the library of his father. Gandhi

l emt from his mother the Indian maxim - 'There is nothing higher than Truth'. He also

learnt that non-violence is the highest value (eimsa parama dharm*). Though this latter

was universally acknowledged mong the Hindus in all parts of India, it is most rigidly

practiced by the Vaishnava and particularly the Jains; the combined influence of all these

turned his native place Gujarat into the land of strictest vegetarianism. Gandhi grew in that

mosphere. It was Puthlibai's spirit of devotion, saintliness and unorthodoxy in regard to

religion that gave Gandhi's broad-minded religious spirit.

1

Gandhi was also influenced by two Hindu mythological dramas 'Sravqa Kurniiri'

and 'Wmish Chmd1-3, the morals of which Gandhi considered as of eternal value. He writes:

,' "Still both 'Hari~h Chands and 'Sravm K w t G ' are living qudities for me and I am sure I should be moved as before, if I were to read these plays again todayS 1.

Gandhi also got by heart two valuable religious books - 'Rim R d q a Stotra' and ' V i g u Piija'.

Rambai, a religious lady who used to look afier Gandhi during his childhood asked

him to repeat 'Ramnht in order to make himseif free from the fear of ghosts. This created

in Gandhi an ardent faith in &a so much so that he became fearless throughout his life.

Gandhiji learnt the art of practicing socid virtue from his fmily. For example, on

'untouchability' he writes:

"This idea was brought home to me by my bitter experience in South African struggle, it is not the fact that I was once a agnostic. It is equally wrong to think that T have taken my views from the study of Christian religious literature. These views date as far back as the time when I was

neither enamoured for nor as acquaintd with the ~ i b l e " ~ 2 .

On his own confession they date to the time when his mother asked him not to touch a

scavenger who came to clean his latrine.

In London Gandhi studied Edwin Arnold's translation on the Bhagavad ~ i t a - 'The

Song Celestial'. This book left immediate and life-long effect on-dhi. He writes:

"It opened to me a new view of life. It touched my spirit as perhaps it can only touch a child of the ~ast"33.

In another place Gandhiji writes about the deep attachment he had for ~ T t a :

"It is (the &ta) my mother. I lost my earthly mother who gave birth to me. But this eternal mother completely filled her place by my side ever since. She has never failed me. Whenever I am in difficulty or distress, I seek refuge in her bosom"34.

From the GL, Gandhi derived the eternal message of selfless action i.e. Nishkha

karma. His philosophy of life and religion were rooted in the Bhagavad ~yta. ~lta taught him

the idea that self-realization is possible only through righteous action and nonviolence.

Service to God also accompanies service to humanity. Every devotee must devote himself to

action in order to establish righteous and spiritual universe. Gandhi did not interpret the

Kurukshetra War as historical event, but:

"Under the guise of physical warfare, it described a duel perpetually going on in the hearts of mankind and the physical warfare was brought into make the description of the internal duel more thrilling. This preliminary intuition became more confirmed on close study of religion of ~ita"35.

Truly speaking, the ~ T t a taught him to be Karma=yGgi, non-violent and to cultivate the spirit

of self-surrender to God.

Gandhiji studied about all the major religions of the world. To him Buddha and

Christ were never theorists, they were activists, they were for direct action in accordance

with their ends. These two prophel never advocated force as a means of conquest. They

were never afraid of using moral force to fight against evil. He took them as apostles of love

and gentleness. Edwin Arnold's 'The Light of Asia1 gave him touching impression regarding

the life and teaching of Buddha. He followed the teachings of Buddha because Buddha was

opposed to caste-distinctions, sacraments, rituals etc. the practice of which brings forth

differences in individuals. Buddha was a source of inspiration to him because Buddha tried

to evolve new social values and accepted cosmic view of salvation. Gandhiji fully acceptsd

the eight-fold path of salvation of mankind enunciated by Buddha, particularly non-violence

as most appealing.

Gandhi studied the old 'Testament and also the new. He was much impressed by its

messages, especially the 'Sermon on the Mount'. The ideals of detachment to worldly

possessions, non-violence and universal love he derived from this. He was so impressed by

the 'Sermon on the Mount' that he expressed:

"Today supposing I was deprived of the ~ T t a and forget all its content but had a copy of the Sermons, I should derive the same joy from it as I do from the ~ h " . 3 6

Gmdhiji was aIso acquainted with Islamic Religion. He regarded it as a religion of

peace. Islam means in its way denial of selflannihilation of the self. This religion also

preaches complete surrender to God. The ideals of Islamic religion such as universal

brotherhod, self-sacrifice, social justice etc. influenced Gandhiji to a great extent. Islamic

religion appealed to him because this religion preaches that a Muslilm is one who performs

righteous actions, puts his life into danger and is over-powered to dedicate his life for truth.

During his stay in England he dso came into contact with Theosophists and their

literature dating to the movements for the Unity of all religions. Practically these

Theosophists persuaded him to study more about Hiduism- like the works of G?@ Ve'danta,

YGga, Jainism, and the books of S w h i VivZkananda who virtually preached the ideas of

V h t a in the West.

Gandhiji had been influenced immensely in developing his philosophy of religion

through contact with three contemporaries who captivated Gandhi by their social views on

religion. Raichand Bhai by his living contact, Tolstoy through his book 'The Kingdom of

God is Within You', and Ruskin through his b m k 'Unto This Last'.

Raichand Bhai, was a remarkable man, a jeweller, a poet and a saint rolled into one,

whom Gandhiji had known in Bombay. Gandhiji narrates about this man , who became a

Guru to him as follows:

"During the two years I remained in close contact with him, 1 felt in him every moment the spirit of vairagya (renunciation). One rare feature of his writing is that he always set down what he felt in his own experience. There is in them no trace of unreaIity. I never saw him being tempted by objects of pleasure or luxury in the world. There was a strange power in his eyes; they were extremeiy bright and free from any sign of impatience or anxiety. They bespoke of single-minded attention. Those qualities can exist only in a man of self-control. He disproved the prevalent idea that a man who is wise in the sphere of dharma will not be wise in the affairs of practical life. A student of philosophy of religion, he tried to practice what he be1ievedtf37.

These qualities which Ciandhi admired in Raichand were the qualities he himself

tried to portray.

Gandhiji was influenced by Leo Tolstoy. The seed of thought and action, philosophy

of non-violence and the importance of manual labour was implanted by Tolstoy to germinate

in the mind of Gandhi. Gandhi says:

"The law that to live man must work first came to me upon reading Tolstoy's writing on 'Bread hbour"'38

He learnt that to towe humanity man must work and share in the production of the country.

Tolstoy's exhortation,'to get off the shoulders of our neighbourG greatly impressed him.

Tolstoy's "The Kingdom of God is Within You' questioned the traditional notion of

religion as concentrating on the rituals and not giving enough attention to inner spiritual

growth and social uplibent. According to Tolstoy 'religion' should manifest in one's

political, economic as well as social actions. He condemned the Church, for it perpetuated a

religious fraud in the name of Christ. He uses the expression 'The dead Church'. Tolstoy's

teaching influenced Gandhiji to the extent h i t he had this view about religion:

"religion which took no account of practical affairs and did not help to solve them was no religionM39

Referring to Ruskin's book 'Unto This Last', Gandhiji says that this was the book that

affectd him more than any other book. On a train journey in South Africa,fEom Durban to

Johannesburg he was so much hooked to this book that he was not able to sleep after

finishing it. The messages in the book kept on coming back to him and made him to decide

to change his life. Ruskin had argued that the me wealth of a community lay in the

well-being of a11 its members, the good of the individual being contained in the good of all,

'unto this last as unto thee1; that ail work had the same value, the barbers' no less than the

lawyers'; that the life of one who worked with hand, in the soil or at a craft, was the most

useful life. Later when Gandhiji translated the book into Gujrati, he narnd it Sarvzdaya

(meaning welfare of all), a word which has now gained wide currency in India as embodying

the Gandhian ideal of Socio-economic reform.

Gandhiji was influenced by the philosophy of Ruskin, particularly that aspect of the

philosophy which dealt with the synthesis of thought and action, of aim and ends, of

62

harmony attained between words, beliefs and action. Gandhiji found striking similarities

between his conviction and that of Ruskin. He says that he discovered some of his deepest

convictions reflected in the great book of Ruskin . Without doubt, we can say that Gandhiji's

social philosophy 'SarvEdaya' had its origin as a result of his reading of Ruskin's book 'Unto

This Last'. Gandhiji says that a vague idea of 'Sarvo'dya' (welfare of all) had been with him

ever since he got exposed to the teachings of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, but

concretization of this idea took place only after reading Ruskin's book.

It is true that Gandhiji was influenced by teachings of Western philosophy and

Religion, But we must note here that Gandhiji already had these ideas in his mind. The

living contact with these ideas only Sewed to strengthen his convictions. The inquisitive

mind of Gandhiji tried to learn and assimilate ideas from different religions and personalities

so as to make his philosophy more appealing to the whole world. The universal applicability

of Gandhiji's philosophy is evident fiom its successful use by many liberation movements in

Africa, South America and Martin Luther King in North America to empower blacks.

One could say that Gandhiji was a real Indian, a real Hindu: an archetype. An

authentic Indian accepts and assimilates whatever he is convinced of. Such acceptance and

assimilations are in the right spirit of Hindu Dharma; and precisely this is the greatness with

Hindu Dharma and Indianness. Naturally, then it becomes a real task for one to be

functioning as an Indian and Hindu culturally. Here, Hindu does not stand for religion, but

for culture. For the great mind of the Mwtma, the task of becoming and being the archetype

Hindu and Indian could be carried out with relative ease. For the vast majority, this is indeed

a tough terrain. But then, the very fact that M@'itma could personify the archetype gives

tremendous moral strength to many who are charmed by the desideratum, but who fear that

they might stumble: and skepticism lurks within them whether they could ever approximate

the desideratum. It is here that the Mal$tma functions as a living model to many: after all

not long before there lived a man who had practically demonstrated the archetype Indian.

Indeed it is a very comforting and soothing thought that the Mal@tma was not a legend; after

all it is not long before that he walked on this very earth.

2.6. Concept of God - The most outstanding fact about Gandhiji was that he was a man-god. He

had unshaken faith in himself. He was guided by this will, "The voice of inner conscious".

Gandhij i can be called a God-intoxicated man. He writes:

"lf 1 do not feel the presence of G d within me I feel so much misery and disappointment every day that I would be a raving maniac and

my destination would be the ~ o o ~ l e ~ d o

Mahatma Gandhi had an immovable faith in the existence of God. Faith in God was

the guiding star of dl his actions in any field; life without faith in god was unimaginable for

him. Gandhiji declared:

"1 am SurerofHisexistence than ofthe fact that you and Iare sitting in this room. Then I can also testify that I may live without air and water but not without Him. You may pluck out my eyes, but that cannot kill me.You may chop o f f my nose, but that will not kill me. But blast my belief in God, and I am deaddl.

Regarding the concept of God, D.M. Datta observes that Gandhiji assimilated his

idea of God from different religions, no doubt, but this only enriched his basic belief in

divinity he acquired from the Vaigqava family in which he was born. Datta says:

"Gandhi was rather a theist than an advaitinV4*

As Gandhi himself says;

"J am an advaitist and yet 1, support Dvaitism (dualism).The world is changing every moment and is therefore unreal, it has no permanent existence. But though it is constantly changing, it has something in it which persists and it is therefore to that extent real. I have therefore no objection to calling it real and unreal, and these king called anekanta vada or syadvada" 43

From the above statements Datta concludes that"

"His own words clearly show that he is not the advaitist in the sense of Sankarite who would neither support dualism nor the logic of syadvada" *.

But there are some statements made by Gandhi that lead us to think that he had

affirmed his faith in Vedanta. for example:

"I believe in Advaita, I believe in the -ntial unity of man and for that matter ofall that lives"45.

Again, Gandhi writes:

" I believe in the absolute one-ness of God and therefore also of humanity. Though we have many bodies, we have but one soul. The rays of the sun

are many through refraction but they have the same sourcet'46.

P.T. Raju in his book 'Idealistic Thoughts of India' writes:

"There is no doubt a b u t M&3tma Gandhi being an Absolutist and a Monist. For him God is the only Truth. He alone exists. Everything else is MZya. So we are all Sparks of Truth. The sum total of the sparks is indescribable as yet unknown truth, which is ~ o d " ~ 7 .

T.M.P. Mahadevan also holds that:

"The expressions that Gandhi use to indicate the nature of plenary reality is closely similar to those that are employed in advaita. The vaas describe Br@mq, says Gandhiji, "as not this, not this; but if He or It is not this, He or It is ... God is that indefinable something which we feel but I do not knowv4&

This controversy is based on certain misunderstanding about the

religio-philosophical basis of Indian tradition particularly of Advaita. If the function of

philosophy is to know the universe as a systematic unity, then advaitafs speculations are

designed in bringing about a spiritual conversion of the finite into the infinite by means of

knowledge. The finite here is asked to overcome its limitations in order to realize its time

nature through systematic knowledge. Advaita has prescribed the method of training

faculties of knowledge gradually through a number of defrnite stages in order that it may be

led towards what yet fail outside the scope. Human reasoning has necessarily to pass through

a series of tentative conclusions, each reasoning is valid for a particular stage, but they come

into conflict with each other when conditions under which they are valid is ignored. The

terms like Truth, Reality etc. that we find in advaita have always reference to particular

contexts, but indiscriminate use of them leads to serious difficulty. The right estimate of the

place of God in Advaita lies in its classification of experience into different level of

perfection - like Vy&+arika and Paramamarthica level of experience. If we do not try to

understand this distinction, the correct assessment of Advaita spirit of teaching is not

possible.

Transcendence of duality with all its forms is the fundamental characteristic of

Paramahica experience. This experience destroys the very recognized cannon of human

knowledge because in paramkthica level of experience the subject-object duality is not

there. It is absolutely non-dual or ultra-relational experience. Human knowledge always

involves subject-object relation i.e. relational and discursive. As reality transcends

subject-object duality, it cannot be known through discursive knowledge. So to bridge over

the wide difference between finite and infinite Advaita prescribes the method of gradually

training the finite faculties though different stages of approximation to what is yet beyond

their scope. Hence, our relationd knowledge undergoes transmutation leading ultimately to

the absolute experience. The aim of this methd is not to remove the defects of discursive

knowledge but it suggests a rigomus intellectual scrutiny as an indispensable generative

condition of Absolute experience where reality alone stands self-revealed.

"The rigorous intellectual scrutiny is like temporary scaffolding which has an indispensable function while the construction is not completed, the discursive knowledge prepares the path to intuitation and is therefore an important propaedeutics to Absolute experiencet*49.

Advaita never dismissed the world of experience as wholly unreal. It is unreal only

from the Pararnirthica level of experience. It is not real means it is not as real as Brahman. . . However it has its phenomenal reality.

From the above discussion we can ascertain the place of God in Advaita.

"God as an Omniscient and Omnipotent Being possessing personality and perfection and as such inspiring and satisfying religious sentiments of humanity has a genuine place in it. Such a God is also real as the individual centre of experience, or as the world of common experience, our moral striving, our aspirations, our happiness and misery. Neither He nor the minds and the material things are mere illusions. The fact that they are absolutely non-existent from the standpoint of higher experience, does not mitigate against the genuine relativity of our experience as it is now"50.

"That reality is ultra-relational, above all determinations, is the central point of advaita. But at the same time it is also conscious of the relational character of dl thinkings. It follows from these two propositions that ultra-relational is inconceivable to us. Yet logical thought, being an indispensable stage in the process of raising the ultra-relational Absolute, the unthinkable has to be brought under the condition of thought by means of attributing to it what does not really belong to it i.e. super-imposition. The Bmlpap thought absolutely distinctless is to be conceived as MEya, Sakti, Prdqiti of the Omniscient Lord, Thus super-imposition, what is but another name for accommodation to the conditions of discursive thought, occupies a prominent place at the Advaita method of stimulating thought to go beyond itself5 1.

It is not proper to think that V a i ~ ~ a v a theism is incompatible with advaita. Among

/ Advaitans even we find Vai~gavas, SaivZs and others. Vaishnava Advaitans believe that

ultimate reality is nondual but prefer Vishqu for their personal deity. T.M.P. M W e v a n

observes that:

/ "To the Advaitan Niri ana is God, even as Siva is. The heads of Monastic orders established by g ahkara even to this day conclude that messages etc. that they issue with NhEyana smtiti ... many a classical workers of Advaita begins with an invocation to ~ishqu-~&&ana or to one of his ~vatiirs"52.

Gandhiji described his Riima as the eternal, unborn, the one without a second.

"To him R h a is not sectarian. Because R h a and Krishna are regarded as avatk, both belong to the Indian cultural tradition as a whole. Even Saikara recognizes the greatness of Rha-name. I repeatedly adore that name ( R h a ) which is the nature of T a r k a - B W q gnd which Lord giva

whisper K h a , h a , Rha in the root of the one during the lmt /.,I53 moments of one's life at Kasl .

So it is clear that even a Vai*qava can be an Advaitin. It i s not the case that one who

believes in personal deity or God cannot convince that ultimate reality to ncmdual. But

Advaitin seeks to go beyond theisms. The absolute reality appear as personal in order to

explain the Universe and as the object of adoration of man.

The concept of God in Advaita is quite pertinent and precious for advaita experience. There

is also great need for grace and prayer, olnd is quite consistent with Advaita conviction.

4.kara also holds that:

"It is by knowledge caused by God's w e that release. is gained. He who has resorted to God as the sole refuge gains the eternal Vai5~ava status through God's grace"54.

It is true that Gandhi started his life as a conventional believer in personal God but later on

as he grew up he came to be convinced of the highest truth of nondual spirit. Gandhiji was

an dvaitin is proved when he says:

"I do not regard God as a person ... In truth there is no being as B*ma or &a. The only reality is newer B r a m q . This is one total and all-embracing Absolute, indescribable, Truth is God. The other things are relatively trueN55.

2.7 Relation Of Man To God

Man has occupied a unique position in Gandhiji's Philosophy. He bet ieved that man

has a great future and is evolving towards a higher and noble destiny. He knew the power of

69

man. Man is not only endowed with physical M y which is liable to decay according to the

law of nature, but also consciousness, will, emotion rtnd similar other mental qualities which

are the expressions ufthe indestructible spirit or sou1 present in him. So Gandhiji declared it

to be a rare thing to be born as a man. Hence, to make best use of his human life, he

dedicated his life to raise human beings into a higher spiritual plane and to remove the

suffering of humanity in general.

Gandhiji dealt with the problem of the relation of Man to God not from his own

perspective but h r n the traditional and progwssive Hindu thought pwhlar ly Advaita

stmghmd by Christianity and Islam. But D.M. Datta observes that:

"G-i h+es to keep his conception of man and God mobile and dynamic by thinking of God as force, as life etc, as if to make him &nit of divergent lines of manifestation, incamtion and inspirationd6.

To be precise Gandhiji never entered into the intricacies of the exact relation &tween man

and God. He shows a decis'ive preference for simplicity as against mmpkxity. He triwJ to

solve the problem in ar Migious way. He regarded the individuals Med@ 'together in an

inseparable relatiun. Gmdhiji says, on the one hand the IndlvkU is the supme

consideration and on the dw hand:

"I believe in om abdrrte wlenesbi. of God and therefore of humanity. Though we have m y bodies we have one soul. The rays of the sun are many through ernion, but they have the same source"57.

This statement of Gandhi is perfectly in accordance with the positivistic vkdktic view.

Gandhiji measured and appreciated the greatness of human nature. To him it is only

man who is able to reconstruct his inner being to attain supreme power. Advaita also

acknowledges the greatness of man in recognizing the power of intuition to attain salvation.

It is not the 'egot that is identical with Brahman. 'I m Bralpa?' means there is no '1' but

there is B r w q alone. So Gandhi declares:

"TO feel that we are something is to set up a banier between God and ourselves, to cease feeling that we are something is to become one with ~ o d " 5 8 .

Gmdhiji made certain statements as to the relation of man to God having striking

similarity with Vaishqavite theistic thoughts. But he was mostly influenced by VivEkGnanda

in consonance with the modern Western Monists who emphasized that 'all this is nothing

but Bralpant. He was mostly influenced by the humanitarian attitude of Christianity and

inculcated the idea of Man-God mar-NGyq) and regarded the service to suffering

humanity as the best worship of God md as the path of salvation. Gandhiji also accepted this

idea wholeheartedly and practiced it throughout his life.

Religion in India is a life to be lived, not a thing to be accepted or beliefs to be

adhered to. Gandhiji accepted this idea and as a practical idealist followed the service to

humanity as an approach to the divine. Gandhiji utilised this new positive ideas to modem

India by assimilating them in thought, living them in life and giving them social and political

shape.

According to Gandhiji:

"God resides in human form, in every particle of this creation, every-thing that is on earth59.

This presence of God implies that man has reason, morality and freedom of will. But these

help only to a certain extent in his march towards his goal. So it is through intuition or 'inner

voice' that supreme power can be attained. Therefore, he asked man to lead his life listening

to the dictates of his conscience (i.e. the inner voice of God). To Gandhiji man is the

architect of his own fate. He must be able to understand his particular nature and try to

perfect it. With a view to attaining perfection he must not ignore truth, neglect conscience

and indulge in animal passions. He must try to cultivate the quality of love, goodness and

abiding joy believing that 'the divine power within us are infinite'. So he asked the people to

follow the ideals of the ~ y t a - Raise yourself, by yourself, do not depress yourself, you are

your friend, you are your foe. Man is free to choose m y path, either the path of degradation

or the path of upliftment. Gandhiji advised man to remove bad impulses in order to raise

himself above brutish life.

"The brute by nature knows no self-restraint. Man is man only because he is capable of and only in so far as he exercises self-restraintdo.

2,7.1 individual Self- The problem of self is most persistent and one of the difficult

problems of philosophy. This persistent interest is borne out of the fact that there is nothing

so dear to man as the self. Man being a finite-infinite being his moral problem cannot be

solved kfore the true nature of self is discovered. In fact knowiedge of the self is the key to

attain knowledge of the universe. Hence, the wisest people of Greece declared 'Gnoti

senation ', which means 'know thyself. In India Brhdmyaka Upanishad puts it - Atmba

dra$avy+ st6vya-niddidhyz-sivyah' (verify the self, 0 Moitreyi should be realized and for

this purpose it should be heard about, thought about and constantly dwelt upon). It is the

duty of every man to know the nature of the self with the help of experience. Gandhiji, being

a religious man, could not but try to understand the nature of the self with the help of

experiences and thinkers of the past and the present. His conception of 'swaraj' is a

testimony to this. Gandhiji defined it as 'the complete disciplined rule from within'.

Awrding to Gandhiji an individual is composed of body and soul. While the body

is subject to decay being the victim of natural law; the soul is indestructible and immortal. It

is unborn in time, eternal and all-pervasive. Gandhiji defines soul as that through which we

come into being and through which we exist. The so-called individual souls are only fake

appearances due to identification with the minds and badies. To him just as,

"rings and chains are but gold, 'I' and 'You' are identical. Name and form are no more real than a mirage. That into which things merge when they

cease to have name and form is ever the same61.

It is due to our ignorance that we see many souls. But to the awakened, one eternal principle

which runs through all the individual's is alone real. Individual souls are identical with god

when the element of '1' completely disappears and the cause of the world-appearance is

'Gya'. in his own words:

"lndividual soul or '$vat though ignorance i s regenerated with false notions of 'I' and 'Mine'. It is viewed as something different from the eternal and self-luminous consciousness which in it's immanent, inner controller as that reflection of that consciousn ss, is identical with mind and it's states are i associated with the seds,~gnorance. So long as this 'ego' or 'I' exists rebirth will take place. A man who is convinced that really one God done exists, becomes one with God, and is liberatedM62.

According to Gandhiji individuality is due to Karma which is the pduct of Avidya.

The'Law of Karma' that has been substituted by God governs the world and God does not

interfere with its operations. Individual is responsible for his acts and God is the assisting

medium conceiving the fruits of action. He does not oblige my one to do this or that - Works

of a single existence have to be atoned for several succeeding ones. Even when the

atonement for the past is completed, fresh 'Karma' may accumulate and lead to the cycle of

births and death. Moral life is an un-remitting flow of activity which knows no exhaustion. It

may take endless terms due to the variety of the demands of the conditions of human life.

This process goes on for ever until the perfect knowledge is gained which consumes the

seeds ofkarma'and makes rebirth impossible. Those guilty of wicked deeds take birth in the

evil order of beings. By 'Karma' Gandhi means the merits and demerits of past deeds. It

means also body as long as the body is connected with the soul. So long as the man cannot

get rid of cycle of births and deaths he is subject to the law of Karma, total renunciation of

Karma is not possible to him.

According to Gandhiji, the human soul is independent of the M y . Our body may be

shattered to dust, still there is something in us which survives and it is this which determines

our future life. Death is a final transformation of this entity, an indispensable transformation

of the present state. Birth is also a sign of the same process of change. This change belongs

to the body only but not to the soul. Birth and death merely refer to the union of the soul

with the body and separation from it. Individuals will have to change the endless circuit of

birth and death, until they rise from eternal life by spiritual insight. The supreme end or

ultimate realm of human life rests on deliverance from these cycles of birth and death.

"Man should aspire to realize the self and therefore be concerned only with the activities that promote spiritual welfaret'63.

2.7.2 M6ba or Liberation.

Moksa or liberation form the pivot to all teachings of Gandhiji. In his autobiography

he emphatically says that his entire mission of life is to attain salvation. To him human

beings can grasp only a part of the meaning of MGkga, the rest only can be experienced.

Indian philosophers also differ in regard to their conception of the ultimate state. Except the

Ciirv5kas they all agree on the point that reality of such a state cannot be denied.

"Philosophers of lndia have differed in their conception of ultimate state in which the highest end is realizdt'64.

75

Gandhiji accepted this philosophical notion on simple faith, thinking that:

"so long as the finite is still in the stage of discipline, the eternality of liberation remains a mere article of faith or sastredrstiM65

Gandhi defined M6k5a or liberation in a traditional way:

"MGkq means deliverance from having to assume the endless succession of various bodies from the resulting sufferingM66.

Now means freedom from birth, escaping the cycles of birth and death md

deliverance from evil. Gandhiji writes:

"As a Hindu 1 believe that MGk* is kedom from birth by breaking the bonds of flesh by becoming one with ~ o d " ~ 7 .

Indian Wisdom had prescribed more than one path to attain m'okp. They could be

termed as te~hniques of transcendence in philosophical terms. Bhakti, YGga, Tantra, Karma,

Jfigina etc. are some such 'mkgis' or techniques of transcendence. The four values of

Purusharthiis are yet another means of attaining m6kp - Among the four values - Dharma,

Artha, Kama and M 6 k ~ - the last value is an automatic one. If one persues the first three

values,then the fourth value is automatically achieved.

According to Gandhi, there are two kinds of Iiberation.

"One is destruction of one's body after which, however, the necessity of born again and again remains for ever. The other Nirv'tna is Br*ma- Nirv'ana, which is state of void. But this void is in regard to the external world, within it all bliss of illumination"68.

Gandhiji believed in VidEba mukti i,e. deliverance after death. It means freedom

from birth. The question of release from bondage exists as long as the soul is connected with

body. It is attained through rigorous intellectual discipline leading to the destruction of the

intellect. In this state the ego ceases to exist, hence no survival of the body. We realize

Bratpan in the Br+mi-state and once we attain this state we become free from ignorance.

In this state our world view of experience becomes trarnsfigured in the institution of

B d p a n . This is Bdrna-Nirv* or liberation. A man who attains this state is described by

Gandhi as a Y5gi. Th is knower of the self is one having the sky as the only roof, living in a

jungle and looking upon snakes and scorpions as his friends. To Gandhi a YCgi i s one who

has attained freedom, who has controlled his mind, is completely free from ail desires, sees

the Atman through h a n , lives for ever content in the Ztman. These descriptions of Gandhi

,' remind us of Sarikara who said: M&p is not the dissolution of the world but only

disappearance of false outlook.

According to Gandhi, it is not possible for a man to realize absolute Truth. Gandhiji

holds this view because humanitarian attitude makes him to think so. To him individual

salvation is not possible until the entire mankind does not attain it. As there are infinite

number of selves it i s not possible for all of them to attain salvation at a time. He holds the

view:

"I do not believe that individual may gain spiritually and those that surround him suffer. I do believe in the essential unity of man and for that matter of all lives. Therefore, I believe that if one gains spiritually, the whale world gains with him and if one falls, the whole world falls to that extentU69.

Elsewhere he expresses the same conviction:

"Man will ever remain imperfect and it will be his part to try to be perfect. So that perfection in love or non-possession will remain an unattainable ideal as we are alive but towards which we must ceaselessly strive" 70

Gandhiji holds that whatever be the functioning of our mind or capacity,each of us

has some limited ideas of Truth as he sees it. He has to act upon it regardless of

consequences and with unselfish motive and not compromising with what he himself

considers as opposition to truth. At first he must be satisfied with relative truth. And if he

goes on working following this principle then this will serve him as beacon light and assist

him in the realization of the supreme Truth. Relative truths must be regarded as stepping

stones towards the realization of the Supreme Truth. Gandhiji advises everyone of us to

strive for perfection though we may fall short of it. To him man should derive satisfaction

from the effort to realize his idealpot in the attainment. He says:

"The goal ever recedes from us, the greater this progress, the greater the recognition of our unworthiness. Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainrnentf71.

This idea of Gandhi is similar to the view of Advaita where we find that :

"God has neither to be expressed in speech, nor in written discourse though we have to rationalize on Him in order to direct the souls to Him and stimulate it to rise from thought to vision1'72.

To Gandhiji M 6 k ~ or liberation is not a mere concept. It is a fact to be realized here

in this life and if not possible then one should strive for it in some other births. He is

optimistic about the fact that only man, being a spiritual being, has got the capacity for

striving to attain perfection in life. So the mission of human life should be perfection in life,

i.e. salvation. The way of freedom is neither by object entreaty nor by revolting violence.

Freedom does not descent upon people as a gift fiom above, but they have to raise

themselves to it by their own effort.

Gandhiji holds that man's ultimate aim is realization of God, and all his activities,

social, political and religious, have to be guided by this ultimate aim, for he accepts the

metaphysical position of the identity of God and the self. The immediate service of all

human beings becomes a necessary part of the endeavour simply because the only way to

find God is to see Him in His creation and become one with it. This can be done only by

service to all. Being part and parcel of the whole, one cannot find Him apart from Humanity.

And Gandhiji's God is myriad-formed; he never fails to see God in any situation in which

man places himself. Gandhiji saw Him in the people around, so all departments of life, all

walks of life are filled with Iiis presence. No part of life is devoid of relevance for

redemption, no compartment purely profane. One's everyday life is never capable of being

separated from one's spiritual being. Gandhiji felt that he could save ordinary man through

his involvement in politics. As he says:

"I felt compelled into political fiekl because 1 found 1 could not do even social work without touching politicsM73.

References

1 .Suhrawardy Abdujla, 'The Sayings of Muhammed', Forward by Gandhi,Gdword Books, New Delhi, 1997.

2. Gandhi Smiriti Darshan Samiti - 'Gandhi and Glob1 Non-Violent Transformation' 1994, p73.

3. Anupam Sengupta,'TwoGreats'Me~ublishin&ornpany, Ghaziabad, 2001, p.94.

4. Dr.Radhakrishnan R.S., 'Glimpses of World Religion' Jayco Publishing House, Bombay, 1966, p.9.

5. Krishna Kripalini, 'Gandhi: A Life', National Bcak Trust, India, 1991 ,p. 139.

6 , Hastings James, 'Encydopedia of Religion md Ethics' Vol.VI1.p. 140.

1 1 .Radhakrishnan R.S., 'Glimpses of World Religions' Jayco Publishing House,Bornbay 1966, p. 1 .

12. Hastings James, 'Encyclopedia of religion and Ethics' Vol.VI,p.699.

1 3. Kutty M.S. 'Philosophical Interpretation of Religion' 3rd Session, Indian Philosophical Congress, Patiala 1 978,p. 122.

14. Hastings James, 'Encyclopedia ofReligion and Ethics' Vo1.10,p.662.

1 5. Aggarwal J.C. 'Theory and Principles of EducationYikas Publishing House Pvt.Ltd., - ( 19th ed.) New Delhi, 1995,~. 144,

16. Jagmohan, ' Waiting for a Vivekananda', Indian Express, 9th August, 1 998.

8 1

17. Radhakrishnan S.'Mahatma Gandhi: Essays and Reflections', Jayco Publishing House, 1995, p.23 1.

18. Raju P.T.' Philosophical Traditions of India',George Af lan, and Unwan, 1971, p.31.

19. Hastings J. 'Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics', Vol.VI, p.698.

20. Ibid, p.699.

2 1. Ibid. p.699

22. Raju P.T. 'Philosophical Traditions of India', George Allen and Unwan, 197 1 , p.26.

23. Hastings J,'Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics' Vol.VI,p.699.

24. Ibid, p. 699.

25. Ibid, p. 699.

26. Raju P.T. 'Philosophical Traditions of India', George Allen and Unwan, 197 1, p.28.

27. Dr. Radhakrishnan R.S . 'Eastern Re1 igion and Western Thought', ( z ~ ed.),Oxford Univ-Press, 1940,p.28.

28. Radhakrishnan R.S. 'Hindu View of Life', George Allen and Unwan, 1974, p.13.

29. Nanda B. R. 'Gandhi and His Critics', (Preface), Oxford Univ.Press, Delhi, 1985.

30. Nanda B. R. 'Gandhi and Global Non-Violent Transformation', Gandhi Smiriti and Darsana Samiti, New Delhi,1994, p.79.

3 1. Vyas R.N.'Mahatma Gandhi - His Philowhy of Devotion' Asian Publishing Service, New Delhi, 1985. p.57

32. Shmashru Rajan 'Gandhi: The Man and The Mahatma', 'Rajan, Chandigarh, p.7.

33. Vyas R.N. 'Mahatma Gandhi - His Philosophy and Devotion' Asian Publishing Service, New Delhi, 1985, p. 11.

34. Lekshmi Kumari M. 'Mother, Upon Thee I Mediatel,lndian Express, No. 20, 1 999, Trivandrurn, p.6.

35. Desai Mahadev, 'Gita According to Gandhi', (4th ed.,) N.P.H. Ahmedabad, 1956, p.127.

36. Ibid. p. 127.

37. Nan& B.R. 'Gandhi and Global Non-Violent Transformation' Gandhi Smriti Darsan Samiti, New Delhi, 1994, p.62.

38. Madhavan T.M.P and Saraja C.V. 'Contemporary Indian Philosophy', Sterling Publishers, Pvt.Ltd.,New Delhi, 1993, p.72

39. Nanda B.R. 'Gandhi and Global Non-Violent Transformation' Gandhi Smriti Darsan Samiti,New Delhi, 1994, p.69.

40. Verma K.M.P. 'Philosophy of Religion', Classical Publishing Co., New elhi, 1982, p.66.

4 1. Shutri Prabha S h m a 'Gandhian Holistic Economics', Concept Publishing Co., New Delhi, 1992, p.70.

42. Datta D.M. 'The Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, University of Calcutta, 1968, p.35.

45. Sreevmv R.S. 'The Contemporary Indian Philosophy' Sterling Publisher Pvt-Ltd., New Delhi, 1983, p.22.

46. Ibid. p.22

47. Raju P.T. 'Idealist Thoughts of lndiaf,George Allen and Unwan, Ltd., London, 1952, p.252

48. Sreevastav R.S. 'Contemporary lndian Philosophy, Sterling Publishers Private Ltd., New Delhi, 1983.

49. Kalidas Bhattacharya 'Recent Indian Philosophy', Vol.1, Progressive Publishers, Calcutta, 1 968, p.373.

52. Sreevastav R.S. 'The Contemporary Indian Philosophy', Sterlig Publishers Pvt.Ltd., New Delhi, 1983, p.381.

5 5 . Collected Works of Mahatma gandhi, Vol.12,Publication Division of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. Of India, 2 nd Edition, 1969, p. 162.

56. Datta D.M. 'The Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhil,University of Calcutta, 1968, p.70.

57. Bose N.K. 'Selections From Gadhi', Navjevan Publishing ouse,Ahmedabad, 1948, p.25.

58. Sreevastav R.S, 'The Contemporary Indian Philosophy', Sterling Publishers Ltd., New Delhi, 1983, p.3 1.

59. Removal of Untouchability, Vol. 12, Publiction Division of Min. Of Information and Bmadcation, Govt. Of India, 2nd Ed., 1969, p. 106.

60. Gandhi M.K. 'An Autobiography' - My Experimenl with Truth, NPH Ahmedabad, 1 95 l , p.387.

6 1. Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Vol. 12, Publication Division of Min. of information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India,2nd Ed., 1969, p. 189.

62. hid. Vo1.13.p.487

64. Mukherjee A.G. 'Self, Thought and Reality', The Indian Press Publication Pvt. Ltd., Allahabad, 2nd ed. 1957, p.367.

66. Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Vol,l2,p.92,Publication Div. of Min. of Information and Broadcasting, Go-of India, 2nd ed., 1969, p. 189.

67, Dr.Shanna N. '20th Century Indian Philosophers', Banarus Hindu University Press, pp.52-53.

68. Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi', Vo1.32, Publication Division of Min. of Information a d Broadcasting, Govt. of India,2nd Ed., 1969, p.233.

69. Varma K.M.P,,'Philosophy of Religion' Classical Publishing Co.,New Delhi, 1982, p.67.

70. Bose N. K. 'Selections from Gandhi', Navjeevan Publishing House, A hmedabad, 1948, p 20 .

72. Mukherjee A.C. ' Self, Thought and Reality', The Indian Press Publication Pvt-Ltd., Allahabad,2nd Ed., 1957, p. 380.

73. Chacko K.C. 'Metaphysical Implications of Gmdhian Thought', Mittal Publications, Delhi, 1986, p. 15.

Chapter liJ1

Gsndhiji's Spirituality In Practice

3.1 Gandhiji -A Practical Idealist

Gandhiji could be termed a practical idealist given his interest in that part of

lndian concepts which could be ethically translated into practice. When Gandhiji brought

certain religious concepts into the acid test of practical affairs he never deviated from the

very spirit of those concepts, but he preserved them. He changed only those concepts

which were ethically and scientifically unsound. wmsa Inon-violence) was considered

to be an individual virtue from vedic times but nobody thought of practicing that virtue

in social and political life. The concept of Qiihsa, though developed by

BuddhqGandhiji's novelty lies in transforming it from an individual virtue into a mode

of social action. Simila~ly Truth is a traditional individd value in India which he

applied in dl spheres of his life, and insisted on practicing absolute truth but not relative

truth. Truth to him was above dl gods. He also proved how ethics can he transformed

into good politics and good economics. Standing from traditional indian spiritual and

religious background, Gandhiji was concerned with finding out how these could be put

into practice and proved beyond doubt their applicability in practical life. To Gandhiji

religion must be cultivated consciously in order to make it a way of life. His aim was to

live religion -in thought, in action, in speech; and not simply to discovering it. 'To him a

m o d action is equivalent to thousands of mystic thoughts and spiritual discourses.

According to Gandhiji, action is the foundation for human life. Self-sacrifice, non-

violence, brotherhood, renunciation, Love, Truthfulness, B-acarya, N on -hoarding

etc. serve the datum of a model man's philosophy. For him, conduct is the acid test from

which we have to construe philosophy and religion. Gandhi himself writes:

-'if 1 had only to discuss academic principles, I should clearly not attempt an autobiography. But my purpose being to give an account of various practical implications of these principles, 1 have given the chapters I propose to write the title of 'The Story of my Experiments with Truth'. This will, of course include experiments with non -violence, celibacy and other principles of conduct believed to be distinct from Truth-1

Indira Rathmound, referring to Gandhiji's practice of age old Indian ideas observes thus:

"The principles of transcendence and immanence is the core of Indian Philosophy, but its implications to political and social ethics is Gandhiji's creation"2.

Thus we can see that the M&"atma was not an academic, and he had no need to

any academic polemics. He really demonstrated unity of thought and action: for indeed,

what is thought if it does not have m y bearing on action. The M@iitma really makes a

great contribution to humanity through his views regarding how Religion and Philosophy

ought to be constructed through one's living life; by what he names as experimenting

with truth.

3.2. Gandhiji's Rules for Life

From his experiments with Truth, Gandhiji derived a few rules to guide human

behavi our and relationship. The rules suggested by Gandhij i are: Truth, N on-violence,

Nan-stealing, nor+possession, Fearlessness, Bdynacarya, Control of Palate, Removal of

Untouchability, Bread Labour, Tolerance, Humility, swad6ii and Trusteeship. The first

six are important part of almost all the religions in the world. Gandhiji had proposed the

rest of the principles himself in the light of his own experience keeping in view the

special social, economic and political conditions in India. From dl these, it can be

noticed that Meztrna Gandhi is the symbl of the unity between personal morality and

public action. He admonishes every Indian to do whatever they do with full dedication

and sincerity. He says that when conscience dwells at home but not in the workshops,

office, classroom and market place, the road is wide open to corruption and cruelty and

to dictatorship. Now let us see how Gandhiji has shaped the abovwrnentioned rules for

life to fit his personal life.

3.2.1 Truthfulness

Truthfulness is one of the most important virtues recognized by the Indian

philosophical system. Even Manu, the greatest and also the first of the Indian Law-

givers, also mentioned Truthfulness as a great virtue. Gandhiji accepted this virtue and

interpreted it in the light of his own experience to suit the needs of the days he lived. And

in doing this, he accepted the general Indian formula of truth in thought, in speech and in

action (Man- Vaca . and Karmqa).

The Sanskrit word 'satya' (Truth) means not only Truth but also truthfulness.

There is an intimate relation between Truth and truthfulness, while Truth is the end,

truthfulness is the means. Gandhiji asserted that means and ends are convertible terms in

his philosophy of life. One who tries to realize Truth must be truthful in thought, speech

and in action. Truthfulness in thought means sincere devotion to facts, which consists in

earnest search to discover truth. Truth must be understood against a particular

background. Gandhiji profoundly believed in God for a long time, and for almost three-

fourth's of his life he used to say God is Truth. But later he changed and said 'Truth is

God'. If God for Gandhiji was truth and later he deliberately changed the definition and

said, 'Truth is God', then apparently, in his mind, this word Truth was more unassailable

and comprehensive and included God. To quote N e h :

"so long as Gandhi was talking about God,I did not fully know what he meant. But now when he says that Truth is God,I understand him better"3.

To Gandhiji, reason is the voice of God (inner voice) within man. It is best to try

and satisfy only one's conscience and let the world form its opinion, be it approving or

disapproving. Gandhiji did not value public opinion at all if it was in the wrong. There is

no reason either to accept any individual as an authority without criticism. Truth is what

our inner voice says to us. When an individual has done his spiritual training, his inner

voice is infallible. So with a view to solving any problem, it is our duty to follow the

dictates of reason. Gandhiji says:

"Truth is by nature selfievident. As soon as you remove the cob-webs of ignorance that surround it, it shines clear"4.

I f a man fails to follow the principles of reason then the search for Truth will

automatically set it right. But discovery of truth is not an easy task for it requires self-

analysis and self-purification i.e. to get rid of deadly enemies like lust, anger, greed,

infatuation etc. In his own words:

"For the quest of Truth involves Tapas - self-suffering, even unto death. 1n such self-less search for Truth nobody can loss his baring for long. Directly he takes the wrong path he stumble and is thus redirected to the

right path. Therefore, the pursuit of truth is the true Bhakti (devotion). It is the path that leads to god"5.

Acwrding to Gandhiji, truthfulness in speech and action is the natural outcome of

the truthfulness of thought. That 'Truth alone prevails' (satyam eva jayatE) should be the

nucleus to the votary of truth. 'Asatya' or untruthfulness can never help man to attain

success' .

"Even when falsehood momentarily succeeds, it does so by passing under the garb of truth. So the strength of falsehood ultimately is derived from its simulating truth. Truth thus can make it prevail. Falsehood has no legs of its own to stand upon. It is doomed by its own nature to ultimate destruction"6.

Gandhiji always emphasized on the perfect harmony of thought, speech and action.

Harmony is one of Gandhiji's philosophical concepts. Gandhiji believed that our sincere

love for our fellow beings has given rise to truthfulness in speech and action. True love

and act of deceiving others are always incompatible in character. According to Ganaji

the ideal of vow of truthfulness generates true love which is a matter of heart. This vow

is to speak what is true, good and pleasant, which Gandhiji practised in life.

The greatness of Gandhiji is in part due to his ceaseless efforts to ascertain the

facts of a situation before acting. According to Gandhiji, Truth as a means is always

within our reach. If we take care of the means, we are bound to reach the end sooner or

later. Whatever dificulties we may face, we should not give up the quest for truth. I f we

sincerely strive to attain Truth we are sure of attaining perfection in life. With this hope

in mind Gandhij i made ceaseless striving. He says :

"1 am but a poor struggling sod yearning to be wholly good wholly truthful and wholly non- violent in thought word and deed, but ever failing to reach the ideal which I know to be true. It is a painfid climb, but pain of it is a positive pleasure to me. Each step forward makes me feel stronger and fit for the nextt'7

For Gandhiji, Truth is the goal of life and no~violence is the means to realize it.

3.2.2 Non-Violence (Ahimsa)

Gandhiji says that:

"Nowviolence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is the law of our species, as violence is the law of the brute"8

If we look at history, we find sufficient proof for the practicability of the principle of non-

violence. Man has been steadily progressing h m violence to non-violence. Man was

first a cannibal, then he became a hunter and later he took to agriculture. From being a

wanderer, he settled down to a civilized stable life, founded villages and towns and from

a member of a family he became member of a community and a nation. Thus the history

of mankind is a history of evolution of man. Gmdhiji holds the view that all these are:

"signs of progressive a m s a and diminishing himsay

Gandhiji was a votary of Truth, but in searching for truth he discovered non-violence. He

says:

"In fact it was in the course of my pursuit of Truth that I discovered non-violence" 1 0.

He further says that 'I'mth and non-violence are interdependent, inseparable and

indistinguishable; and:

"without &imsa it is not possible to seek and find truth. Mimsa and Truth are so intertwined that it is practically impossible to disentangle and separate them. They are like two sides of a coin, or rather of a smooth unstamped metallic disc. Who can say, which is obverse, and which is reverse ?" 1 1 .

Elsewhere Gandhiji says:

"A@iisa is my God, and Truth is my God. When I look for mmsa, Truth says, 'Find it out through me.When I look for Truth, Wmsa says, 'Find it out through me" 12.

Gandhiji further says that as long as one is attached to worldly things and works for one's

own selfish interest, one can neither practice truthfulness and aljri?sa nor can be able to

realize truth. The first step in the path of non-violence is shedding all hatred in any shape

or form and abstaining from hurting any living being in thought, word and deed.

Gandhij i warns:

"the principle of dyrhsa is hurt by every evil thought, by undue haste, by lying, by wishing ill to anybody. It is also violated by our holding on to what the world needs"l3.

Self-purification or selflessness is essential condition for the practice of non-violence.

Identification with a11 that exists, or universal love, which is the source of nonuiolence,

cannot develop without purification of the self.

In ordinary sense non-violence means the ideal of non-killing or nowinjuring any

form of life under any circumstances, not even thinking or speaking of killing or injuring

others. This meaning was made more elastic by Manu. He allowed killing of animals for

sacrifice and food or in self-defence. But Gandhiji's conception lies in between these two

extremes. For his chief objective of life was to make this ideal practical, positive and

dynamic in character. Gandhiji instead of interpreting non-violence negatively in the

sense of physical and mental injury, interpreted it in the positive sense as the greatest

love and greatest charity. Nonl3riolence is borne out of love and the true criteria of non-

violence is the inner feeling of the heart that lies implicit in no=violence. It reveals itself

as love in the waking state. One who cling to this inner feeling cannot but remain non-

violent. The more one practices non-violence the more he is elevated to understand

Truth.

To be nonuiolent, one must restrain from all impulses. Gandhiji has shown that

non-violence is impossible without self abnegation. In Buddhism, wisdom is never

associated with violence, hatred or ill will. Gandhiji was a devoted and sincere follower

of Buddha and his teachings. He followed Buddha's teachings not as a scholar, but as a

devout follower and practitioner. Gmdhiji believed that non-violence is not meant for the

weak but for the strong. He says:

"my creed of nonviolence is an extremely active force, it has no room for cowardice, even weakness" 14.

Violence is the expression of an inner sense of weakness. But a non-violent man goes on

observing it even at the cost of his life. The capacity for self-sacrifice develops

fearlessness in the non-violent individual. Gandhiji says that one must learn the art of

dying in the training of non-violence. It is the art of discovering the cause of fear. ?he

non-violent fias to cultivate the capacity for self-sacrifice of the highest order to free

oneself from fear.

Non-violence is the positive spirit of treating all beings as one's own self. A

votary of non-violence grants maximum convenience to others even at the maximum

inconvenience to oneself.

"Non-violence is not the mechanical performance. It is the finest quality of heart and comes by training" 1 5.

It requires arduous course of training to attain this mental state. In ordinary life it must be

taken as the course of discipline of life. According to Gmdhiji, while violence is

required for protection of external things, non-violence is required fbr the protection of

the Xtman.

The spirit of nonwiolence further connotes that work is worship. Work is not for

building up the ego or to get any reward out of it. Work is done in the spirit of selfless

service in utter humility and meakness, totally renouncing the fruits of action. Selfless

service is rendersd like yagna performed without any desire, Gmdhiji, following the

ni@.kha kanna y6ga of the dilta, emphasizes the path of service for God-realization. He

says:

"The immediate service of all human beings becomes a necessary part of the endeavour simply because the only way to find God is to see Him in his creation and be one with it. This can only be done by service to all"16.

Man's capacity to serve being limited, it is impossible for him to serve the whole of the

world's creations. Gandhiji, therefore, suggests that service should be inspired by a

' s w a d ~ i ' spirit; the service of our neighbors being our first and foremost duty. Ignoring

the neighburs and seeking to serve people living far away is nothing but 'self in

operation. As the power to serve increases, the field and circle of service may be

increased accordingly. Further, Gandhij i has specifically emphasized the service of

'Daridran'irZyea', that is God appearing in the form of the poor, underprivileged and the

downtrodden. He says:

"There is no worship purer or more pleasing to God than selfless service of the paor. The rich in their arrogance and intellectual pride, often forget God and even question his existence. But God dwells among the poor, as they ding to Him as their sole refuge and shelter. To serve the poor is therefore to serve Him". 1 7

See the Ma&ttma's concept of the 'Daridra NZympt. N=yap, a term he uses to

represent the supreme being is present in everything. For him, everything is

manifestation of the ultimate reality, so everything is 'It' or God. He suggests that the

divine can be more present in the commoners, the poorer and the ignorant ones as their

visions are not clouded by the luxury of richness, arrogance of intelligence and

obstinance of information disguised as knowledge. The poorer and ignorant one's

manifest more of the Divine; to serve them becomes morc proper; and hence he called

them Daridra NkZyaqas.

Non-violence, in its most active form as Truth-force, does not stand anything

contrary to the unity of life. There is a determined positive, forceful action in order to

resist dl untruth, evil, injustice and exploitation in any field of life. To Gandhiji, non-

vioIence is the force of human evolution. All human action must spring from non-

violence and non-violent structure must be created in all walks of life for peace,progress

and prosperity. Non-violence is sod-force which is capable of eradicating all that is evil

in the world. In its most active form, non-violence becomes 'satyagr@at. According to

Gandhiji, kataya&af is the firm and fearless adherence to Truth, even in the face of

death, without bearing any illwill towards the evildoer.

From the above-mentioned we can deduce that for Gandhiji, non-violence is the

supreme ideal of life. It is supreme because Truth cannot be attained without non-

violence. Gandhij i being a practical idealist believed that non-violence prepares the way

of life to be followed equally at all times in the domain of economics, politics and day-to-

day life. It is not meant for the Rishis alone, but for the common people as well.

Professor Toynbee observed:

"In this hurricane of annihilating material power mankind will not be able to save itself from self- destruction unless we, all of us, manage to practice non- violence in our relations with our fellow-men" 1 8

It is nonviolence or +msa that manifests as satyagraha. Satyagraha is actually

another vision of N i 5 k h Karma; one is only standing for Truth and standing against

evil. To do this is simply his D h m a alone: as the very nature of any man who is

searching for and experimenting with Truth. On the first place, a man in order to be

authentic and genuine ought to be true,nonuiolent etc. Thus it is only spontaneous for

him to be a satyZ&i. These ideas may appear to be very lofty and difficult for common

people to achieve; it may seem that only selected few people and Rsis are capable of

performing them. But Gandhiji is very confident that every common man is capable of

them, because it comes naturally from the very nature of authentic human existence. A

satygmi only protests against the evil and most certainly not against the evil-doer.

Saty'&a is a technique used by Gandhiji to gain political freedom. But this

was not an end. Satyiigr+a has a deep rooted meaning. For him political freedom is

necessary to attain spiritual freedom. Gandhiji says:

"my patriotism is for me in my going to the land of eternal freedom and peace" 1 9.

Satysgralp means nonviolent action combined with truth and love. Gandhiji

termed it as loveforce or soul force. It is a means of fighting injustice by voluntarily

submitting oneself to suffering. SatyH&a is always unflinching adherence to Truth.

Satyzgraha implies the vindication of Truth not by inflicting suffering on the opponent,

but to one's own self.

The word ' satyagrahaf originated from two Sanskrit words ' satya' (truth or right)

and 'Z@ ( firmness or determination). The term 'passive resistance' which Gmdhiji

used first as a technique was subsequently changed by him as 'satyzgraa. This change

was made because the word 'passive resistance' suggests s negative sense, whereas the

word satyZgralp suggests the active principle of love. Gandhiji always believed that love

is the only means for realizing tnrtb. SatyZgralp is a truthforce as opposed to violence or

armed struggle. It excludes the use of violence because as man is capable of knowing

Absolute Truth, he is not to punish anybody. To Gandhiji beauty and efficacy of

satyZgraJ?a is very great but at the same time it is too simple to be preached even by a

child. Gmdhiji emphatically states,

"In brief the sign of satyigraha consists in the quest for the principle of life"20. '

According to Gandhiji, SatyZgmIp is like an all-sided sword that can be used

everywhere and at any time. It blesses him who uses it and against whom it is used. It

can attain a far-reaching result without shedding a single drop of blood . Satyggraa is

not a weapon of the weak. It requires rigorous physical and mental training. S a t y i b a

depends only on Truth and one's capacity to suffer for truth. For, where there is no

strength of mind, then, there cannot be any strength of soul. Therefore, a satyZ&j who

wants to serve the country has to cultivate certain moral qualities like perfect chastity,

poverty, truthfulness and fearlessness.

Gandhiji deduced the principle of S a t y a ' m from the teachings of Bhagawad

gta which exhorts its followers to go on working without attachment to the fruits of

work. Gandhiji says:

"He who is h e from such attachment will not kill enemy but rather sacrifice himself. Killing any enemy proceeds from impatience and impatience proceeds from attachmentt'2 1.

And he continues:

"As far as 1889, when I had my first contact with the ~T ta , it gave me a hint of SatyZgr&a and, as 1 read it more and more,

the hint developed into a full revelation of SatyZgraan22.

According to Gandhiji, there cannot be Sa@Zgr&a for an unjust cause. Even

for a just cause it may fail to achieve the end if the s a t y a m s are not having strong

determination and capable of fighting and suffering to the end. A Satyzgrai must

exclude the use of violence in any form whether in thought, speech or action. If the

cause is just one and the S a t y w i s retain the capacity for endless suffering avoiding

violence, then victory is a must. A satyZgrahi must always remain calm and unperturbed

even under any kind of provocation.

The method of satyZgraIp is possible only when people by nature are fearless,

lovers of poverty, and cultivate the spirit of tolerance. He can be a SatyEmi who has

the heart to sacrifice his property and even his own family, whenever necessary. To such

a SatyZ@, God's help is assured, as Gandhi says:

"I see that SatyEgr&a is assured of divine help, and that in testing a SatyEgM, the Creater imposes on him at every step only as much burden as he can W ' 2 3 .

Gandhiji considered that suffering undergone in the purest form of satyagraip is tapasya

or penance.

Gandhiji mentioned three principles regarding the goal, means and results of

s a f w a The first implies that the original demand for saty@alp should not be

increased, the second implies that whatever is gained by satya"gmlp should be retain4

by satyKgral;la done, and lastly, whatever is not attainable by satyZgr@a c m t be

retained by any other means. It knows no defeat on either side. From the lower point of

view the aim of satyzgralp is the service of humanity and from the higher standpoint it is

mGkga or liberation. The result of satyzgraha is always good if the principles are strictly

followed. Gandhiji says:

"The purpose of satyZgral;la is not to save our face but to instill courage into the people and make them independent in spirit. If, because of fear, or distrust of us,peopfe loss heart and pay up, they deserve to pay (compulsorly). We on our part, should exert ourselves still more to be worthy of their trust. This is the royd road to satyggn@a"24.

SatyZwa should be practiced without thinking of the result and it should make

no difference whether the expected goal is reached or not. Gandhiji says:

"The extraneous factors cannot affect satyZgr&a.. .the victory of a single member may be taken to mean victory of al1,but the defeat of the side as a whole does not spell defeat for the person who has not himself yielded"25

Satyagraha pre-supposes the ultimate victory of Truth, it incites the freedom of the soul.

Gandhiji compares Satyiiwa to a banyan &ee in which Satya (truth) and Abiinsa (Non-

violence) represent the parent bmk with innumerable branches of which civil

disobedience is one.

In conclusion, we may say that Satyiigdp is not a new word. Gandhiji wed it

only to give new meaning to human life in its multifarious activities. Ultimately he used

it as a technique for the realization of soul-force in man, because it is based on the faith

in the inherent gwdness of man. Hence, the sole aim of Gandhiji was to make aware of

this point and to make best u~ of it for bringing about peace with an earnest zeal and for

the sake of realizing truth. Thus we can see that Gandhiji succeeded in devising yet

another method for achieving moksha through his theory of saty&alp. In addition, by

attributing a transcendental connotation to the theory of saty;gr+a, the Mt@itma was

able to popularize this method in India for achieving political liberation from the

oppressors.

3.2.4 Trusteeship:

Gandhiji's concept of 'Trusteeship' is an aspect of Gandhian socialism. This

concept is based on the notion that man is responsible for, but not the owner of,

economic goods and treasures of nature. Gandhiji said that we should consider ourselves

responsible as trustees for all the goods and the riches, the facilities and the good things

that have been given or entrusted to us by a greater cosmic will or providence. These

resources are not really ours but everyone's. Just like Marxists, Gandhiji did not believe

in the idea of private property; but unlike Marxists, he did not recommend its forced

expropriation. We was of the opinion that the society has to be based on love and mutual

trust and not on hate and antagonism as Marxists believe. He said that the wealth in the

possession of rich people is the fruit of the labour of poor people. This realization would

make the rich feel that the good of the society lies in using the riches for the good of

others. The rich, according to Gandhiji, shodd function as 'trustees' for the country's

wealth.

The profound truth upon which the principle of 'Trusteeship is based is that God

never creates more than what is strictly needed for the moment. Therefore> whoever

appropriates more than the minimum that is realiy necessary for him is guilty of theft. I f 1

take anything that I do not need for my own immediate use, and keep it, I thieve it from

somebody else. if you have the opportunities for earning crores, do it by all means,

"but understand that your wealth is not yours; it belongs to the people. Take what you require for your legitimate needs, and use the remainder for the society"26.

Gmdhiji says, God, who is dl powerful had no need to store. He created from day to day

and not stock things. If this truth is imbibed by the people generally, it would become

legalized and trusteeship would become a legalized institution. As to the successor, the

trustee in office would have the right to nominate his successor subject to legal sanction.

Working for economic equality means abolishing the eternal conflict between

capital and labour. It means the leveling down of the few rich in whose hands is

concentrated the bulk of the nations wealth on the one hand, and a leveling up of the

semi starved, naked millions on the other. A non-violent system of government is clearly

an impossibility so long as the wide gulf between the rich and the hungry millions

persists. The contrast between the palaces of New Delhi and the miserable hovels of the

poor labouring class nearby cartnot last one day in a free India in which the poor will

enjoy the same power as the richest in the land. A violent and bloody revolution is a

certainty one day, unless there is a voluntary abdication of riches and the power that

riches give and sharing them for common good. According to Gandhiji,

"economic equality did not mean that everyone would literally have the same amount; It simply means that everybody should have enough for his or her need"27.

Gandhiji did not taboo the riches of the wealthy but he was of the opinion that these

should come only after the essential needs of the poor are satisfied. Every Indian should

reduce his wants to a minimum karhg in mind the poverty of India.

Gmdhiji believed that love for the poor and exclusive possession can never go

together. Theoretically when there is perfect love, there must be perfect non-possession.

So a man can only exercise perfect love and be completely dispossed, if he is prepared to

embrace death and renounce his body for the sake of human service. But that is true in

theory only. In actual life, we can hardly exercise perfect love, for the body as a

possession will always remain with us. Man will ever remain imperfect, and it will

always be his part to try to be perfect. So that perfection in love or non-possession will

remain an unattainable ideal as long as we are alive, but towards which we must

ceaselessly strive.

Those who own money now, are asked to behave like trustees holding their riches

on behalf of the poor. You may say that 'trusteeship' is a legal fiction. But if people

meditate over it constantly and try to act up to it, then life on earth would be governed far

more by love than it is at present. Absolute trusteeship may be an abstraction, and is

equally unattainable, but if we strive for it we shall be able to go further in realizing a

state of equality on earth by any other method.

Gandhiji approved a practical trusteeship formula put forward by his close

assaciates, and the final draft read as follows:

1. "Trusteeship provides a means of transforming the present capitalist order of

society in to an egalitarian one. Et gives no quarter to capitalism, but gives the present

owning class a chance of reforming itself. It is based on the faith that human nature is

never beyond redemption.

2. It does not recognize any right of private ownership of property except so far

as it may be permitted by society for its own welfare.

3. It does not exclude legislative regulation of the ownership and use

of wealth.

4. Thus under the stateregulated trusteeship, an individual will not be free to

hold or use his wealth for selfish satisfaction or in disregard of interests of society.

5. Just as it is proposed to fix a decent minimum living wage, even so a limit

should be fixed for the maximum income that would be allowed to any person in

society. The difference between such minimum and maximum incomes should be

reasonable and equitable and variable from time to time so much so that the tendency

would be towards obliteration of the difference.

6. Under the Gandhian economic order the character of production will be

determined by social necessity and not by personal whim or greedt'28.

Gmdhiji's concept of trusteeship is a direct outcome of Mian World View.

Gandhian Socialism as the concept of equality is essentially spiritual in nature. All and

everything is essentially divine; and so an essential or fundamental hierarchy cannot be

thought of. It is fiom this knowledge of spirituality that Gandhian socialism shapes up.

Sharing of resources then becomes 'Dharrna'; and accwnulating at the cost of others is

'~dharma: The concept of tmskeship further perfects Gandhian socialism. Nobody owns

anything as everything is owned by that ultimate reality. The very self is owned by God

and then how can man 'own' anything at all ? Man is actually only a trustee of this world

where he temporarily comes to stay; he has to preserve it in good shape and add to it ; so

that he can hand over things to the next trustees who would come in future.

[Inlike Gandhian socialism, the Mamian socialism is artificial and synthetic. It

lays its foundation on forcefd distribution of economic property to make equality

possible, Naturally, such equaiity if-at-all could ever be practised, shall just be very short-

living, and even for such a short time, it requires tremendous force in terms of power for

its being maintained.

3.2.5 Bread Labour:

The law, that to live man must work, first dawned on Gandhji upon reading

Tolstoyrs writing on 'Bread Labour'. Ruskin's 'Unto This Last' also influenced him in

this respect to a reasonable extent. The divine law, that man must earn his bread by the

sweat of his brow is mentioned in Bible, as well as in all religious scriptures. h

gmdhiji's view, this:

" same principle has been set forth in the third chapter of the c;lfta where we are told, that he who eats without offering sacrifice eats stolen food. Sacrifice here can only mean Bread Labourt'29.

From th is we can see that Gandhiji had a theological approach to labour. Elsewhere he

highlights the same view as follows:

"God created man to work for his food, and said those who eat without work are thieves"30.

Reason also leads us to an identical conclusion. How can a man who does not

work has a right to eat ?, Gandhiji asks. He was of the opinion that those who take

exercises for inducing hunger could better use their energy in some form of production,

i.e. bread labour. If such is the case, these people could be much happier, healthier, and

the world would be more peaceful and wealthier.

Gandhiji placed high priority on manual labour, and he advocated every able-

bodied person to do his fare share of manual work. He believed that India codd escape

from abject poverty if all the population engaged in some sort of manual labour to

produce enough food for feeding themselves. He advised people not to stay away from

manual work simply b u s e they codd purchase the food they need. Not only that

manual labour helps in productivity, but it also helps in maintaining good body hedth.

h d h i j i believed that the doctrine of bread labour could help in eradicating

social inequalities, He was of the opinion that if everybody did some type of manual

work, this would to a great extent help in eliminating the prejudices associated with the

caste system in our county. When Gandhiji was asked why bread should not be earned

by intellectual work alone, he replied:

"Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's, perhaps applies here as well". He further added, "mere m e n d that is, intellectual labour is for the soul and in its own satisfitction. It should never demand payment. In the ideal state, doctors, lawyers and the like will work solely for the benefit of society, not for self'3 I .

Gandhiji feels that bread labur need not only be in agricultural production. A

person can spin, weave or take up carpenby, or smithing, instead of tilling the soil;

however, agricultural production would be the ideal. Gmdhiji says that everybody

should do all the menial work in relation to their living e.g. scavenging. There need not

be a special group of people to do this. In this way the evil of 'untouchability' could be

wiped out from our society.

3.2.6.Removal of Untouchability:

One of the most obnoxious social evils that our nation had experienced is the

phenomenon of Untouchability. In the days of Gandhiji untouchability used to be a daily

affair in our nation. Unfortunately, those who benefited from the system tried to sanctify

the practice by illicitly relating it to the Van$rama Dharma and Manusmi itself. It is

indeed an unfortunate fact that we and the world alike seriously misunderstood much of

our ancient concepts and philosophy. Partly this is due to the vested interest of

Europeans who made India their colony, but largely it is due to the social decadence of

our own. Since ~an&rama Dharma, which is indeed a scientific stratification of Indian

society on the basis of individual ability as well as capacity, is grossly misunderstood

and misinterpreted, it needs some cl&cations.

The ~arq~;rnma Dharma

The Greek philosopher Plato stratifies his ideal society which he calls the Utopia.

He makes the division of the society into four on the basis of his theory of soul.

According to Plato, soul has three parts. The top part is reason, middle part is spirit and

lower part is appetite. But the different parts of the soul are developed differently in

different individuals and this amounts to differences among individuals on the basis of

which he is differentiated in the society. In whom reason is developed more and the other

two dormant, becomes philosophers. Where spirit part is developed more, they become

soldiers. If appetite is more developed, then such people become traders, cultivators,

artisans etc. Now there would be some in whom no part is developed at all, all parts are

dormant. Such people can only be slaves or helpers.

A striking parallel can be seen between Plato's Utopia and our ~art&hrama

Dharma. ~ ~ h r a m s primarily declares that all are born ~ u &

/

J m a n Z Jiy5te SGdra Karma@ J5yatE Dvija

Which means that by birth everyone is a &&a -- the lowest of the social structure

irrespective of parentage. One becomes vaigya, K@ya or a Brtag'ana by virtue of

what quality he develops and achieves.

The four vq&, again are applicable to the '&as'. 'Arya' again is a much

misunderstood and misinterpreted concept. Like v m ' h a ' is also a q d i t y concept

only, any person irrespective of language or nationality with stipulated quality is an

ban; the one who does not have &ya quality is an *a; and the one with negative

quality is a 'chandlila'.

So, Vaqa division was applied to the civilized society; i.e. of 'xryas'. The not

so civilized people,the 'Aniiryas' , lived outside the city fringes or city walls, away from

the mainstream civilization. In general they were called the fifth vaqm or the P&cmk.

Among P&carnk there were again different people: the 'ChandXk' with negative

qualities,' KiEt?is' who were evil and the like.

Thus in the beginning, the vaFa system was actually a scientific division of civil

society on the basis of acquired individual capacities. But later, through social decadence,

v q g s degenerated into castes and caste became hereditary. Then B*mqa, Ktatriya,

~a i&a , Siidra etc. became hereditary, and many castes got firmed under each groupings,

under different names in different parts of the country. The ~&cam'ls who lived away from

the mainstream society also were given caste names on the basis of their profession which is

often hereditary. Normally a group o f people did one profession and lived together as a

village away from the mainstream. Some of them who did some unattractive profession such

as Tanning of leather etc. looked down as lower castes-people who are unclean and thus

untouchables. Slowly untouchability became a very rigid phenomenon and social evil to the

extent that however a man progressed or educated in life, he continued to be untouchable

just by virtue of his caste. It was this untouchability that the wilatma was fighting against

with all his might.

It would be wrong to think that vaqa system operated as a rigid and universal system

throughout India. The ancient Tamil literature presents no such rigid vaqa system.

Tiruvalluvar talks of the highest position being given to poets and scholars, they being

followed by peasants. For him peasants were the centre of the social system. All others go

behind the tillers in social ranking. He further says that BrGmins are those who achieve

exceilence through ethical living and penance. From this we can assume that the Xvidans

had a social system which was b a d on the merits of the individuals and not on heredity.

The Hindu notion of 'untouchability' means pollution by touch of certain persons by

reason of their birth in a particular state or family. Untouchability is the most cruel tragedy

of the vaqa system. Those who labour for the entire humanity's welfare were oppressed and

boycotted. It bars active human contact and interaction, and thus attempts to dehumanize the

oppressed section. When people are isolated and kept under acute poverty, they tend to be

isolatd from the centre and main currents of the society. Make them weak and backward

and then blame them for their weakness and backwardness. Use: of theology to suppress and

pwpetuate such oppression are prevalent even today.

As a ~gdantin, Gandhiji believed in the oneness of life, and was fundamentally

opposed to untouchability and considered its removal as an issue of transcendental value. He

believed that no one can be born untouchable, as all are sparks of one and the same Fire. It is

wrong to treat certain human beings as untouchables because of birth. Gandhiji says:

"Untouchability is not a sanction of religion, it is a devise of Satan. The devil has always quoted scriptute.But scriplures cannot traFnscend reason and truth"32

Elsewhere he d e c l d :

"I decline to be bound by any interpretation of dhma, however learned it may be, if it is repugnant to reason and to moral sense. Untouchability is

an ineffaceable blot which Hinduism carries with it'i33

Gandhiji had insisted that it be abolished.

Gandhiji advised every devoted Hindu to consider it a sacred duty to fight against

untouchability so that they could prove that it is not part and parcel of Hinduism.

"Removal of untouchability means love for, and service of the whole world and thus merges into &imsa, Removal of untouchability spells the breaking down of barriers between man and man, and between the various orders of Being. We find such barriers erected everywhere in the world"34.

3.2.7 BraFmacarya or Chastity

According to Gandhiji, 'Br?macarya' is the basic principle of life. It is complex in

character which can be derived only from Truth and non-violence. Literally it means to walk

in God's way, or complete surrender of body and soul to God. In simple meaning it is

chastity, or control over the sense organs, particularly the organ of regeneration. In

Gandhiji's opinion, '~+rnacarya' means control over all senses and freedom from lust,

thought, word and deed. Without B@rnacarya one will have no lustre, no inner strength to

stand unarmed against the whole world.

BrGmacarya, to many people, simply mean control of sexual organs only. Their

understanding is in the narrow sense of the term. In the wider sense, it means, total control of

all sense organs, including the control of mind also. We are told in the ~?ta , and also

experience will support the statement that it is foolish of anybody to appear to control the

body but allow the mind to wander around. Where the mind wanders, the body must soon

follow. It is one thing to allow mind to harbour impure thoughts; but it is a different thing

altogether if it strays among them in spite of ourselves. Victory will be ours in the end, if we

non-co-operate with the mind in its evil wanderings.

Let us remember the root meaning of 'Bralpacarya'. 'Carya' means course of

conduct; br&macarya - conduct adapted to the search of Br&ma i.e. Truth. From this

etymological meaning arises the special meaning, viz. control of all senses. We must entirely

forget the incomplete definition which restricts itself to the sexual aspect only.

3.2.8 Control of the Palate:

Control of the palate is very closely connected with the observance of bdpacarya.

Gandhiji through his d i e m experiments has wme to the conclusion that the observance of

celibacy becomes comparatively easy if one acquires mastery over palate. He says that a

Bra@&i's food should be limited, simple, spiceless, and, if possible, uncooked. Gandhiji

says that a br+mac%i's ideal food is fresh fruits and nuts because these are helpful in

reducing human passions.

Food has to be taken as we take medicine, that is, without thinking whether it is

palatable or otherwise, and only in quantities limited to the needs of the body. Just as

medicine taken in too small a dose does not take effect or the full effect, and as too large a

dose injures the system, so it is with food. It is therefore a breach of this observance to take

anything just for its pleasant taste. It is equally a breach to take too much of what one finds

to one's taste. Dieting on these lines, we find that we have to give up many things that we

have been enjoying, as they are not needed for nutrition. And one who thus gives up a

multitude o f eatables will acquire self-control in the natural course of things. Most of us,

instead of keeping the organs of sense under control, become their slaves. The body is

injured every time that one overeats and the injury can be partially repaid only by fasting.

Fasting, as an aid to BraQmacarya is as necessary as selection and restriction of diet.

So overpowering are the senses that they can be kept under control only when they are

completely hedged in on all sides, from above and from beneath. It is common knowledge

that they are powerless without food, and so fasting undertaken with a view to control of the

senses is very helpful. With some, fasting is of no avail, because as their bodies are kept

without food, their minds feast upon all sorts of delicacies. Such fasts help them in

controlling neither palate nor lust. Fasting is useful, when mind co-operates with starving

body, that is to say, when it cultivates a distaste for the objects that are denied to the body.

Mind is the root of aH sensuality. Fasting, therefore, has a limited use, for a fasting man may

continue to be swayed by passion. But it may be said that extinction of the sexual passion is

as a rule impossible without fasting, which may be said ta be indispensable for the

observance of b*macarya.

3.2.9 Non-Stealing (AsGya):

From Truth and Abimsa Gandhiji derived the next cardinal virtue of non-stealing.

To him stealing is the breach of truth, In the widest sense stealing includes spending more on

oneself than one needs. It also includes wastage of time which can be devoted to human

service. To Gandhij i, waste in any form is stealing.

It is impossible that a person should steal, and simuitaneously claim to know Truth or

cherish love. Yet everyone of us is consciously more or less guilty of theft. We may steal not

only what belongs to others, but also what belongs to ourselves, a s is done, for instance, by a

father who eats secretly, keeping his children in the dark about it. It is also theft to take

anything &longing to another without his permission, even if it be with his knowledge. It is

equally theft to take something in the belief that it is nobody's property.

It is theft to take something from another even with his permission if we have no real

need of it. We should not receive any single thing that we do not need. Theft of this

description generally has food for its object. It is theft for me to take any h i t that I do not

need, or to take it in a larger quantity than is necessary. We are not always aware of our real

needs, and most of us improperly multiply our wants, and thus unconsciously make thieves

of ourselves. I f we devote some thoughts to the subject, we shall find that we can get rid of

quite a number of our wants. One who follows the observance of non-stealing will bring

about a progressive reduction of his own wants. Much of the distressing poverty in this

world has arisen out of breaches of the principle of non-stealing.

Theft, thus far considersd, may be termed external or physical theft. There is besides

another kind of theft subtler and far more degrading to the human spirit. It is theft mentally

to desire acquisition of anything belonging to others, or to cast a greedy eye on it. One who

takes no food, physically speaking, is generally said to be fasting, but he is guilty of theft as

well as breach of his fast,if he gives himself up to mental contemplation of pleasure, when

he sees others taking their meals. He is similarly guilty, if during his fast he is continually

planning the varied menu he will have after breaking the fast.

One, who observes the principle of non-stealing, will rehse to bother himself about

things to be acquired in the future. This evil anxiety for the future will lx found at the root of

many a theft. Today we only desire possession of a thing; tomorrow we shall begin to adopt

measures, straight if possible, crooked when thought necessary, to acquire its possession.

ldeas may be stolen not less than material things. One who egotistically claims to

have originated some good idea, which really speaking, did not originate with him, is guilty

of a theft of ides. Many learned men have committed such theft in the course of world

history, a d plagiarism is by no means uncommon even today.

Gnadhiji feels that we are all thieves in a way. If we take anything that we do not

need for our immediate use, and keep it, we thieve it from somebody else. Gandhiji goes on

to say:

"I venture to suggest that it is the fundamental law of Nature, without exception, that Nature produces enough for our wants from day-today, and if only everybody took enough for himself and nothing more, there would be no pauperism in this world, there would k no man dying of starvation in this worldt'35

One who takes up the observance of non-stealing has therefore to be humble,

thoughtful, vigilant and in habits simple; and also must not wish for anything on this earth

which the meanest or the lowest of human beings cannot have.

3.2.10 Non-Possession or Poverty (Aparigraba):

As a corollary to Truth and Abimsa is the ideal of non-possession. According to

Gandhiji, if we develop sympathetic attitude and love towards our neighburs, we cannot

possess more than what we actually need. We cannot hanker after superfluities at the cost of

our fellow neighbours. Non-possession signifies complete surrender of oneself as we1 l as

worldly goods to the service of humanity. To Gandhiji, what we actually possess are only

gift of God and we must be satisfied with treating us as the custodians of these worldly

things.

Non-possession is allied to non-stealing. A thing not originally stolen must

never-the-less be classified as stolen propem, if we possess it without needing it. Possession

implies provision for the future. A seeker aRer Truth, a foHower of the Law of Love can not

hold anything against tomorrow. God never stores for the morrow; He never creates more

than what is strictly needed for the moment. If therefore we repose faith in this providence,

we should rest assured, that he will give us every day our daily bread, meaning everything

that we require. Saints and devotees, who have lived in such faith, have always derived a

justification for it from their experience. Our ignorance or negligence of Divine Law, which

gives to man from day-today his daily bread and no more, has given rise to inequalities with

all the miseries attendant upon them. The rich have superfluous store of things which they do

not need, and which are therefore neglected and wasted; while millions are starved to death

for want of sustenance. if each retained possession only of what he needed, no one would be

in want, and all would live in contentment. As it is, the rich are discontented no less than the

poor. The poor man would fain become a millionaire, and the millionaire a

multi-millionaire. The rich should take the initiative in dispossession with a view to a

universal diffusion of the spirit of contentment. If only they keep their own property within

moderate limits, the starving will be easily fed, and will learn the lesson of contentment

along with the rich. Perfect fulfilment of the ideal of non-possession requires, that man

should, like the birds,have no roof over his head, no clothing and no stock of fd for the

morrow. He will indeed need his daily bread, but it will be Gctd's business, and not his, to

provide it. Only the fewest possible, if any at all, can reach this ideal. We ordinary seekers

may not be repelled by the seeming impossibility. But we must keep the ideal constantly in

view, and in the light thereof, critically examine our possessions, and try to reduce them.

Civilization, in the real sense of the term, consists not in the multiplication, but in the

deliberate and voluntary reduction of wants. This alone promotes real happiness and

contentment, and increases the capacity for service.

From the stand point of pure Truth, the body too is a possession. It has been truly

said, that desire for enjoyment creates bodies for the soul. When this desire vanishes, there

remains no further need for the body, and man is free from the vicious cycle of births and

deaths.

We thus arrive at the ideal of total renunciation, and learn to use the body for the

purpose of service so long as it exists, so much so that service, and not bread, becomes with

us the staff of life. We eat and drink, sleep and wake, for service alone. Such an attitude of

mind brings us real happiness, and the beatific vision in the fullness of time. k t us all

examine ourselves h m this standpoint.

We should remember, that non-possession is a principle applicable to thoughts, as

well as to things. A man who fills his brain with useless knowledge violates that inestimable

principle. Thoughts, which turn us away from God, or do not turn towards Him, constitute

impediments in our way. In this connection we may consider the definition of knowledge

contained in the 13th chapter of Gh. We are told, that humility (amhitvam) constitute

knowledge, and all the rest is ignorance. I f this is true, - and there is no doubt that it is true, -

much that we hug today as knowledge is ignorance pure and simple, and therefore only does

us harm, instead of conferring any benefit. It makes the mind wander, and even reduce it to a

vacuity, and discontent flourishes in endless ramifications of evil. Needless to say, this is not

a plea for inertia. Every moment of our life should be filled with mental or physical activity,

but that activity should be Gbika, tending to truth, One who has consecrated his life to

service cannot be idle for a single moment. But we have to distinguish between good activity

and evil activity. This discernment goes naturally with singleminded devotion to service. A

man must arrange his physical and cultural circumstances so that they may not hinder him in

his service of humanity,on which all his energies should be concentrated.

Gandhiji practised the ideal of total renunciation as we can see from the following

passage:

"I own no property and yet 1 fee1 I am perhaps the richest man in the world. 1 have never been in want either for myself or for my public concern. God has always and invariably responded in time. I can recall several occasions when almost the last penny had been spent for my public activities. Money then came in h r n the most unexpected quarters. These responses have made me humble and filled me with a faith in God and His goodness that will stand the strain of utter distress if it ever becomes my lot in life. It is open to the world, therefore, to laugh at my dispossessing myself of all property. For me the dispossession has been a positive gain. I would like people to compete with me in my contentment. It is the richest treasure I own. Hence it is perhaps right to say that though I preach poverty, I am a rich mant'36.

Fearlessness heads the list of divine attributes enumerated in the sixteenth chapter of

~'1ta because it is indispensable for the growth of other noble qualities. To be free in life,

and also to enjoy life in its fullness, one need to be fearless. The brave are those armed with

fearlessness, not with the sword, the rifle and the like. These are taken up by those who are

fearful.

Fearlessness connotes freedom from all external fear, - fear of diseases, bodily injury

and death, of dispossession, of losing one's nearest and dearest, of losing reputation or giving

offence, and so on. One who overcomes the fear of death does not surmount all other fears,

as is commonly but erroneously supposed. Some do not fear death, but flee h m the minor

ills of life. Some are ready to die themselves, but cannot bear the death of loved ones. Some

misers will put up with all this, will part even with their lives, but not their property; others

will do any number of black deeds in order to uphold their supposed prestige. Some will

swerve h r n the straight and nmow path, which lies dear bfore them, simply because they

are afraid of incurring the world's odiums. The seeker after truth must conquer all these

fears. He should be ready to sacrifice his all in the quest of Truth.

Perfect fearlessness can be attained only by him who has realized the Supreme, as it

implies freedom from delusions. One can always progress towards this goal by determined

and constant endeavour, and by cultivating self-confidence.

Even after conquering all external foes, one is left with the mighty task of conquering

internal foes. External foes are those which revolve round the body and will gradually

disappear as soon as we get rid of attachment for the body. Thus external fear is the baseless

fabric of our own vision. Fear has no place in our hearts, when we have shaken off

attachment for wealth, for family and for the body. 'Enjoy things of the earth by renouncing

them' is a noble precept. Wealth, family and body will be there, just the same; we have only

to change our attitude towards them. All these are not ours, but God's. Nothing whatever in

this world is ours. Even we ourselves are His. Why then should we entertain any fear? The

Upanipd therefore directs us to give up attachment for things, while we enjoy them. That is

to say, we must be interested in them, not as proprietors, but only as trustees. He, on whose

behalf we hold them, will give us the strength and the weapons requisite for defending them

against all usurpers. When we thus cease to be masters, and reduce ourselves to the rank of

servants, humbler than the very dust under our feet, all fears will roll away like mists; we

shall attain ineffable peace and see SatymBn~yan (the God of Truth) face to face.

3.2.12. Tolerance:

Gandhiji says that he does not like the word 'Tolerance', but could not think of a

better one. He says this because the word 'tolerance' imply a gratuitous assumption of the

inferiority of other faiths to one's own, whereas 'ahimsa' teaches us to entertain the same

respect for the religious faiths of others as we accord to our o w , thus admitting the

imperfection of the latter. This admission will be readily made by a seeker of Truth, who

follows the Law of Love. I f we had attained the full vision of Truth, we would no longer be

mere seekers, but would have become one with God, But being only seekers, we prosecute

our quest, and are conscious of our imperfection. And if we are imperfect ourselves, religion

as conceivd by us must also be imperfect, We have not realized religion in its perfection,

even as we have not realized God. Religion of our conception, being thus imperfect, is

always subject to a process of evolution and re-interpretation. Progress towards Truth,

towards God, is possible only because of such evolution. And if all faiths outlind by men

are imperfect, the question of comparative merit does not arise. All faiths constitute a

revelation of Truth, but all are imperfect and liable to error. Reverence for other faiths need

not blind us to their faults. We must be keenly alive to the defects of our own faith also, yet

not leave it on that account, but try to overcome those defects. Looking at all religions with

an equal eye, we would not only not hesitate, but would think it our duty, to blend into our

faith every acceptable feature of other faiths.

Then the question arises: Why should there be so many different faiths? The soul is

one, but the bodies in which it animates are many. We cannot reduce the number of bodies;

yet we recognize the unity of the Soul. Even as a tree has a single trunk, but many branches

and leaves, so is there one true and perfect Religion,but it becomes many, as it passes

through the human medium. The one religion is beyond all speech. Imperfect men put it into

such languages as they can command, and their words are interpreted by other men equally

imperfect. Whose interpretation is to be held to be the right one ? Everybody is right from

his own standpoint, but it is not impossible that everybody is wrong. Hence the necessity for

tolerance, which does not mean indifference towards one's own faith, but a more intelligent

and purer love for it. Tolerance gives us spiritual insight,which is as far from fanaticism as

the north pole from the south. True knowledge of religion breaks down the barriers between

faith and faith. Cultivation of tolerance for other faiths will impart to us a truer

understanding of our own.

Tolerance obviously does not disturb the distinction between right and wrong, or

good and evil. The reference here throughout is naturally to the principal faiths of the world.

They are all based on common fundamentals. They have all produced great saints.

Gandhiji says that when he studied the sacred books of different faiths he

unconsciously developed equimindedness towards all these faiths. With great reverence he

studied all these sacred books and found the same fundamental morality in all of them. He

says that some things he did not understand, but experience has taught him that it is a

mistake to hastily to imagine that anything that we cannot understand is necessarily wrong.

Equimindsdness helps us to be tolerant towards different religions and promotes humility

and courtesy among people.

3.2.13 Humility:

Humility cannot be an observance by itself. For it does not lend itself to being

deliberately practised. It is however an indispensable test of * i r k . ln one who has aihsa

in him it becomes part of his very nature. There was a suggestion that humility also be

included as one of the observances of the Saty-5 Asram, but Gandhiji objected to it

because this is something which one cannot cultivate as one does with regard to truth and

Love. Gandhiji says that humility has never come to anyone by practice; and to cultivate

humility is tantamount to cultivating hypocrisy. Humility must not be here confounded with

mere manners of etiquette. One man will sometimes prostrate himself before another,

although his heart is full of bitterness against him; this is not humility, but cunning. A man

may chant Rb-anmama, or tell his beads all day long, and move in society like a sage; but if

he is selfish at heart, he is not meek, but only hypocritical.

A humble person is not himself conscious of humility. Truth and the like perhaps

admit of measurement, but not humility. Inborn humility can never remain hidden, and yet

the possessor is unaware of i ts existence. Humility should make the possessor realize, that he

is nothing. When we imagine ourselves to be something or somebody, there is egotism. I f a

man who keeps observances is proud of keeping them, they will lose much, if not all of their

value. And a man who is proud of his virtue oRen becomes a curse to society. Society will

not appreciate it, and he himself will fail to reap any benefit from it. Only a little thought

will suffice us to convince us, that all creatures are nothing more than a mere atom in this

universe. Our existence as embodied beings is purely momentary; what are a hundred years

in eternity ? But if we shatter the chains of egotism, and melt into the ocean of humanity, we

share its dignity. The fact that we are something is to set up a barrier between God and

ourselves; to cease feeling that we are something i s to become one with God. A drop in the

ocean partakes of the greatness of its parent, although it is unconscious of it. But it is dried

up, as soon as it enters upon an existence independent of the ocean. We do not exaggerate,

when we say that life on earth is a mere bubble.

A life of service must be one of humility. He who would sacrifice his life for others

has h d l y time to reserve for himself a place in the sun. lnertia must not be mistaken for

humility, as it has been in Hinduism. True humility means most strenuous and constant

endeavor entirely directed towards the service of humanity. God is continuously in action

without resting for a single moment. If we would serve Him or become one with Him, our

activity must be as unwearied as His. There may be momentary rest in store for the drop

which is separated &om the ocean, but not for the drop in the ocean, which knows no rest.

The same is the case with ourselves. As soon as we become one with the ocean in the shape

of God, there is no more rest for us, nor indeed do we need rest any longer. Our very sleep is

action. For we sleep with the thought of God in our heart. This restlessness constitutes true

rest. This never-ceasing agitation holds the key to peace ineffable.

True humility, therefore, requires us to dedicate ourselves to the service of all living

creatures. When we have surrendered our all in this manner, no day in the week is a day of

rest for us. This supreme state of total surrender is difficult to describe, but not beyond the

bounds of human experience. It has been attained by many dedicated souls, and may be

attained by ourselves as well. We shdl reach it someday all unawares if we have truth in us.

Jt is unattainable if we wnsciously strive for it.

Humility cannot be learnt through formal training, but it grows of itself as one

cultivates the spirit of non-violence. Outward humility of behavior which we find in royal

families, can be learnt in a formal manner. It is, however,not true humility, but is only a part

of cultured manners. In the 'humility' which Gandhiji advises, one has to forget the sense of

'I' and become a mere cipher. Can that be learnt through any lesson? But one who has

realized the bodies transitoriness and has in some measure become aware of the self,soon

becomes humble.

3 3 Gandhiji's Practical Religion:

Gandhiji claimed himself to be a sdatani Hindu. To him a Hindu is one who is:

"born in a Hindu family in India, accept Vedas, Upanishads and the P w a s as holy book, who has faith in the five ylmZs of truth, non-violence etc. and practices them to the best of his ability, who believes in the existence of Xtman and Paratn-b~an and believes further that the xtman is never born and never dies, but through incarnation in the body passes from existence to existence, and is capable of attaining rnGkqa, who believes that rnzksa is the supreme end of human striving and believes in the ~m+iibrama and cow protection"37

It is Hindu religion that he prizes above all other religions, but was never shy of calling

himself a sanstani Hindu. In another occasion he writes:

"I can no more describe my feeling for Hinduism than for my wife - an indissoluble bond is there. Even so I feel for Hinduism with all the faults and limitations ..... I know the false that is going today in all Hindu shrines. I am a reformer through and through. But my zeal takes me of any of the essential things in ~induisrn"38

Gandhiji was aware of the fact that many evil practices, superstitions, and social injustices

crept into Hinduism during the course of its development through a long per id of time

under diverse influences. Still he believed that it was sound at its source and in its essentials

which preached highest ethical principles. To Gandhiji,

"Hinduism is like the Ganges, pure unsullied at its source, but taking its course the impurities in the way. Even like the Ganges it is beneficent in its total effect"39.

But he was impressed with Hinduism because, unlike other religions, it is free from dogmas

and it gives the votary the largest scope for self-expression. It helps its followers not only to

pay respect to other religions, but also inspires to assimilate whatever may be good in other

religions. Gandhij i states:

"For me, Hinduism is self-sufficing. Every variety of belief finds protection under i ts ample folddo

Further in the same vein he states:

"Hinduism tends to regard all religions as containing the elements of truth in them and enjoins attitude of respect and reverence towards a11"41.

Hinduism appealed to Gandhiji most because it is the most tolerant of dl religions

known to him. Though non-violence and @ifisa is common to all religions, he found its best

expression and application in Hinduism.

"The most distinctive and largest contribution of Hinduism to India's culture is the doctrine of Abihsa. It has given a definite bias to the history of the country for the last three thousand years and over and it has not ceased to be a living force in the lives of India's millions even todayW42.

Hinduism believes in oneness of all that lives, i.e. Advaita. This helped Gandhiji to

develop cordial relation to all human beings. Unlike other religions, Hinduism has no central

book of reference, no particular concept of God-head and it suggests of different ways of

God-realization. It provides utmost freedom to its votaries to choose their paths in

accordance with their respective faiths. Gandhiji states:

"Hinduism is a mighty tree with many roots and capable of unlimited developmentd3

Within Hinduism, though different beliefs are unfolded,still all of them are rooted in

spirituality. Being a Hindu, Gandhiji felt that Hindu religion offered him the opportunity to

foster within him the horizon of rational, spiritual and moral outlook. The dynamic aspect of

Hinduism appealed to him the most. He writes

"Hinduism could be reformed and has been reformed in all ages according to the best lights of the time ... Hinduism is a living organism liable to growth and decayU44.

Gandhiji praised Hinduism Iike anything and boasted himself of being a Hindu due to its

universalistic and humanitarian outlook.

C;andhijiis firm belief in Hinduism intensifted his respect for other religions of the

world. After a long and detailed study of all religions, he came to certain conclusions, and

they are:

(a) a1 I re1 igions are true,

(b) all religions have some error in them, and

(c) all religions are almost dear to me as my own Hinduism.

In consistancy with the great spiritual tradition of India, he declared,

"The Allah of Islam is the same as the God of the Christians and ~6war i of the ~ i n d u d 5 .

Elsewhere he declared:

"Religions are different roads converging to the same point. What does it matter that we take different roads, so long as we reach the same goal ? In reality, there are as many religions as there are individudsW46.

Gandhiji's attitude to other religions is not negative toleration but of positive

appreciation. Ofcourse, the Mab'atrna knew very well that religion is not a nonsense to be

'tolerated'. As a matter of fact, what one tolerates is a 'nonsense': one tolerates a nonsense

for some other consideration. Naturally religion is not a nonsense. The M*Gtma himself

makes it very clear that the term 'tolerance' is not at all a proper one to be used in the context

of religion. Nonetheless, Gandhiji uses the term tolerance only for want of a better term. He

meant religion not in the sectarian sense, but Religion which transcends all other religions,

that changes man's very nature and which bind all indissolubly to the Truth. He believed that

all great religions of the world, however, they may differ, are absolutely one on this

fundamental thing that no man or woman with an impure heart can possibly appear before

the 'Great White Throne'. To him man is responsible for the appearance of different

religions but they are all one in regard to their hdamental principle. Gandhiji says:

"Man, whatever religion they may belong, care only for the external aspects of religion and give good-bye to all its fundamental principles"47.

Hence, it is man's failure to grasp the very spirit of religion that has led to the appearance of

different religions.

"Even as a tree has single trunk with many branches and leaves, so there i s one true and perfect religion but it becomes many as it passes through human rnediumn48.

According to Gandhiji, it is necessary for us to grasp the rock-bottom unity of all religions

that afford a glimpse of universal and absolute Truth. The fundamental truth about all

religions is that they are all God-given, and as such these are necessary for the people to

whom they are revealed. Everyone should learn to respect each other's religion with the

strength of conviction that different religions are different roads leading to the same point.

Gandhiji however, did not believe that there would be One Universal Religion on

earth. Though God is one to all religions, but in practice no two persons hold identical

conception of God. Hence, different religions will continue to exist appertsing the various

religious aspirations of the people. Gandhiji writes:

"I do not foresee a time when there would be only one religion on earth in

practice .... Therefore, there will perhaps be different religions answering to

the different temperaments and climatic conditions"49.

Gandhiji simply expected from the people of different religions to have mutual

understanding for peaceful co-existence. He hoped only unity in diversity.

Gandhiji did not accept proselytization under the cloak of humanitarian work.

Because, religion to him is deeply personal matter which touches the very heart of man. He

writes:

"We must help a Hindu to become a better Hindu, Musalman to become a better Mudman and a Christian to be a better Christi an... We must eradicate from our midst the sacred pride that our religion is more true and that another's less, Our attitude towards other religions must be clear and sincere" 50.

Refening to Jesus, Gandhiji admitted that :

"Jesus occupies my heart the place of the greatest teachers who have made considerable influence on my lifeu5

Gandhiji looked upon Jesus' life and work as the supreme example of the principle of

non-violence. He found no difference in regard to the essential teachings of the Bhagavad -

Gita and the Sermon on the Mount. To express in his own words.

"1 have not been able to see m y difference between the 'Sermon on the Mount7 and the 'Bhagavad ~yta'. What the Sermon describes in graphic manner, the Bhagavad Gta reduces it to a scientific formula. It may not be a book in the accepted sense of the term but it has argued about the law of love, the law of abandon as I called it in scientific manner"52.

Gandhiji accepted Jesus as an embodiment of self-sacrifice and suffering. He regarded Jesus

as divine as Rim, K y a , Muhammad and Zoraster. Referring to the Bible, Gandhiji says:

"The Bible is as much a book of religion with me as the ~ T t a or the ~oran"53.

To Gandhiji, Jesus belongs not solely to Christianity,but to the entire world - to all races and

people. The cross is the symboi of Self-sacrifice. Jesus' spirit of self-sacrifice served impetus

to Gandhiji in strengthening his faith in non-violence. S.K. George, has once remarked on

Gandhiji thus:

"that it was Gandhi who carried on the principle of self-suffering to prove it to be principle of Universal application"54-

Gandhiji paid equal respect for Islam also. He says:

"I do regard lslarn to be a religion of peace in the same sense as Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism. No doubt there are differences in degree but the object of religion is the sameH55.

Gandhiji found similarities between the teachings of Koran and the Bhagavad ~ % a for both

these scriptures teach self-denial, self-sacrificx and surrender of ego to God. Koran also

advocates, like Hinduism, not to use force for conversion.

3.4 Morality-The Rock-Bottom Unity of All Religions.

The very aim of religion is to bind together the heart of all human beings to each

other, and to God. Realization of self in all as God in all is the principal teaching of all

religions. And all religions also klievs that service of all is the service to God and this is the

path for attaining perfection in life. All religions believe in supernatural beings,

transcendental, but not indifferent to his creation. All religions also believe that this Supreme

imposes its all-pervading and all-embracing unity upon the countless multitudes. It is found

from comparative study of dl major Religions of the world that, save some differences in

regard to nonessential or superficial elements, they teach the same fundamental Truth. All

religious practices are the expressions of the inward desire for realizing the Supreme. The

founders of different religions agree in hiding that, underlying differences there is essential

unity. All religions believe in One Supreme Spirit as the source from which the world

proceeds, by which it i s maintained and ends. This ultimate Reality manifests itself and

conceived in various ways, which all can be considered as different paths to perfection. In

fact,no founder of a religion does preach absolutely new truth, That there is no dii'terence in

regard to fundamental truth and different prophets preach the same fundamental truth in

varied languages at different times is found in almost all religions of the world. In the

Bhagavad ~Tta, the Lord Krsna . . . says to Arjuna-

"The royal saints, the kings, the philosophers of ancient days, from one unto the other did pass this Wisdom from age to age, that same eternal yoga, ancient wisdom, here I declared to this day to strengthen thy mind and heart of life's perpetual strife"56.

Buddha and Iaina speak respectively of the past Buddhas and ~h?rthaikaGs as they admit

that they have revivified and codified the same Truths taught by them. In christianity, Christ

(i-e. anointed with divine wisdom) says:

"I came not to destroy the Law of the prophets, but to fulfill them"57.

Similarly in Islam, Muhammad says:

"This, that 1 now telling unto you, the Holy Koran, it is to be found within the ancient sears tm1'58.

Kung-Du-Tu(Confucious) declares:

"I could hand on; 1 cannot create new thingsn59.

The Sufis declare that:

"Just it is lustre of One Sun that shines in the different sea waves and bubbles,so it is one Truth that is expressed under the cover of different forms"60.

When we study all religions, we find that each religion appeals to an ethical ideal.

Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism- a11 of them advise their followers to be aware of the

operation of the inexplicable Moral Law of K m a and to follow the path of righteousness

and wisdom to get rid of bondage. The path that Buddha taught categorically is known as

'Majjhima partipada; , is the middle path. Confucianism primarily teaches:

"Commit no excess, do nothing injurious, there are few who will not then take you for their pattern. The will should not be gratified to the full; pleasure should not be carried to the excessdl .

The Bhagavad G& also teaches:

"He who avoids extremes in food and fast, on sleep and waking, and in work and play, He winneth Y @a, balances, peace and joyM62.

Taoism also teaches five moral principles and puts much importance on moderation.

"Continuing to fill pail after it is full, the water will be was kd... He who possesses moderation is lasting and enduring. Too much is always a curse, most of all in wealth"63

Shintoism teaches its followers certain moral offenses and advises them not to practice those

offences, for it. leads to displeasures of God. Zorastrianism is ethical and it also asks its

followers to follow these principles:

"Think Good, speak and do Good"64.

It teaches its followers to follow Ahura Mazda (the principle of light, justice md good) in

order to reap the benefits of righteousness. Christianity which is primarily a religion of Love,

preaches to follow the golden path and to establish the kingdom of God on earth following

the path of righteousness. The Bible says:

"Be not righteous over much neither make thyself over-wise, be not over-wicked, neither be thou too foolish"65

Islam also asks its followers to develop a cdm resignation to the Almighty God for guidance

of the right path and to form one Brother-hood.

"Only those acts are g o d and safe to do, the golden mean, which studiously to pursued6

Sikhism asks us to have simple faith in God and to have plain living with high moral spirit.

All religions believe:

"Every question has two inevitable sides. Wisdom consists in reconciling the two, but just compromise between them in accord with the requirements, time-place circurnstancest'~7.

It is, however, to be noted that,the ethical ideas to be persued by the followers are

not individualistic but social in outlook. It is the principle of all religions. Bhagavan D k has

pointed out that:

"all these religions aim at binding together anew the hearts of all to each other and back again to God"68

In Hinduism this universal outlook has been found since the period of Rig Vae ,

"United be the thought of all, that, may happiness reignt'@).

This implies universal salvation. Jains conception of Abimsa is nothing but another name for

universal love. 7~rastrianism believes that:

"The soul of the faithful of both sexes, in the Aryan countries -- in all countries, all these do we venerate"70.

Islam and Christianity teach the brotherhood of man under the common faith in God. In fact

all religions teach us to rise above selfishness and to develop a spirit of universal love. In

this bed-rock religion there was no scope for exclusiveness or narrowness. In Gandhiji's

view, the beauty of Hinduism was that in it there is room for the worship of all the prophets

of the world. Hinduism tells everyone to worship God according to his own faith or

'Dharma' and so it lives at peace with all religions.

Every religion advises its followers to make attempts for reaching forward to

something supernatural which transcends the physical world. Every religion believes in some

stable character of the inner personality called the soul. And this soul is believed to be in

kinship with the spirit. Thus, soul has destiny of its own even after death. It may be absorbed

137

in the supreme soul or continue in ever-lasting communion with Him. The supreme spirit

dwells hidden in the hearts of all and makes possible for man to understand and help each

other in the difficulties of life. It is the one soul force of whatever unity there is in dl human

thought. The realization of 'It' alone as eternally present in oneself and in all selves brings

deathless happiness and peace. The suffering to which the soul is subject and at the same

time show that possibility of liberation or salvation. All religions give importance to

suffering and the problem of escape from them, and suggest means of overcoming the

suffering.

Hinduism looks upon liberation as the highest goal of life. For Hinduism liberation

ultimately means the Union with God or God-realization. The Upanies declare:

"'me One God is hidden in all living beings, the living witness binding all hearts. The wise who seek and find them in themselves, to them, none else, is eternal joy"71.

The idea of salvaion is bound up with christian conception of God. It regards,

"the spirit of man as candle of Lord, and which has to be lit up with

divine flame"72.

and advises its followers:

"Be ye,therefore,perfect even as your heavenly father is

lslarnic religion also declares;

"Every child is born in Islam, it is their parents who make them Jew or

c hristiant'74.

From the above discussion it follows that the new religions are only re-proclamation

of the same essential Truths in different languages, new forms amidst new settings and new

conditions of life. They are new,

"in the sense that after each reclaiming, reform, his followers have gradually built up new faiths, new rites, ceremonies, forms around the core teaching in consequence of new conditions of times"75.

Gandhiji believed in the rock-bottom unity of all religions,and to him religion is the

basis of all life structure. For Gandhiji Religion is a synthetic whole which cannot be divided

into separate watertight compartments-religion, moral, political, economic, social,cultural,

individual and collective. They act and react upon one another. Gandhiji says, to understand

my religion,

"You must watch my life, how I live, eat, sit, talk behave in general. The sum

total of all these inone is my religionW76.

For Gandhiji, religion and morality were the same. They were interchangeable terms.

For him the basic principle of this morality were truth and non-violence. These two

principles were elaborated into eleven principles and a verse containing them was recited

every morning and evening at his prayer:

"Abimsa, Satya, AsetZya, Bwacarya, Asahgraha, ~acT&'hrama,~swada, Sarvatra-bhaya-varjana, Sawad h m a sarn'matra, ~wades/i, Sparsa bh~vana"77.

Gandhiji believed that no man can live without religion. Thus he says:

"religion should pervade every one of our actions. Here religion does not mean sectarianism. It means a belief in ordered moral government of the universe. This religion transcends Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, etc. It does not supersede them. It harmonizes them and gives reality"78.

It is a remarkable fact that Gandhiji adapted traditional ideas and symbols to modern

needs, and transformed them in the process. He transmitted the centuries-old idea of an

- I asram as a haven from worldly life for pursuit of personal salvation; his &hams at

Sabarmati and Sevagram were not merely places for spiritual seeking, but offered training in

social services, rural upliR, elementay education, removal of untouchability, and the

practice of non-violence. The ease with which Gandhiji blended traditional Indian ideas and

values with modern materialistic culture deserves unstintd accolade from everyone.

Gandhiji's fundamental convictions constitute a world-view of far-reaching dimension. They

cannot be proved, but if these ideals were practised with sincerity and humility, aimed not at

the applause of the world, but at the support of the soul, they would gradually prove to be

self-validating, helping the individual painhlly but assuredly, to mature into a joyous state

of spiritual freedom and self-mastery.

It is heartening to know that Gandhiji's study on religion and God had been

continusd in many universities the world over. Some Universities have departments for

religion exclusively. The Chicago School and Harward School did some commendable work

in the area of religion. Some of the findings of these researches are very informative.

Mainly studies on religion were conducted by philosophers and then the Social

Scientists: Positivistic Social Scientists. Though they did some very intense researches, both

philosophy and social sciences alike failed to do full justice to religion. Philosophy created a

philosophy of Religion, which happened to be philosophy of one religion, namely

Christianity. The problem taken for philosophizing gives ample evidence to this. Philosophy

looks for the essence of all religions, which shall not be study of one religion. What is

required is philosophies of Religions. Social Scientists on the other hand collected and

edited volumes of information on religion, but their approaches often failed to grasp the

spirit of religion.

Modern studies on religion show that religion is something fundamental to the very

human existence itself. Man, by his very being as man, has a fundamental longing towrtrds

the supernatural, the transcendental. This fundamental longing for what is beyond is

co-existing and co-terminous with man.

Man had come through varying existential situations and knowledge societies during

his long journey throu'gh civilizsttions. During such journey of man from primitive man to

modern man, he had experienced various existential situations. And depending on different

such existential situations, his fundamental tonging towards the transcendental manifested in

different ways. All religions of the world, whether archaic, ancient or modem, are such

manifestations, depending on each existential situation in which man found himself from

time to time. Thus there is no difference among religions in an essential manner. In all world

religions, whether archaic, ancient or modern,the basic human longing towards the

transcendental remain4 one and the same. Given this, there is no real difference among all

world religions.

The findings of modern scholars of religion as stated above is consistently present in

the thoughts of the M&Ztma. He was neither an academic nor a scholar, but definitely his

vision contained both.

References

I . M.K.Gandhi I, An Autobiography, p.6

2. Rathmond Indira, Philosophy of Restraint ,p.32

3. M.K. Gandhi, 'Man of th Millinium, K.B. Bhamtha p.35

4. Datta, D.M., Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, p. 105

5. Mahadevan T.M.P & Saraja C.V Contemporary Indian philosophy,p.222

6. Datta D.M., Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi,p. 106

7. Boss N.K., Selection fiom Gandhi,p.l3

8. Hans Staffner S.J. Baba Amte, 'A Vision of New India, p.74

9. Sharma Shastri., Gandhian Holistic Economics, p. 86

10.Boss N.K.,Selection from Gandhi, p.49

1 1 .Sharma Shastri ,Gandhian Holistic Economics,p. 86

12. Young India, 4th June, 1 925, p. 19 1

1 3. Sharma Shastri,Gandhian Holistic Economics, p.86

14. Datta D.M,Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, p.99

15.Boss N.K,Selection from Gandhi, p.42

16.Sharma Shastri, Gandhian Holistic Economics, p.87

18 . Mathur J . S. 'Peace, Non-Violence and World Order' Ghmdhian Perspective, Vohra Publishers and Distributers, Allahabad, 1990, p.298.

19. Gandhi M.K. 'Hindu Dharmai,NPH Ahmedabad, 1950,p. 14

20. Gandhi M.K, Collected Works, Vol. 1 3, p.287

2 1. Sriman Narayan (ed) 'The Selectedorks of Mahatma Gandhi,Vol.S p.393.

22. Ibid., p.393

23. Gandhi M.K, Collected Works, Vol .9 ,~ . 240

24. Gandhi M.K, Collected Works Vol.XIV, P.179

25. Gandhi M.K, Collected Works Vol. 9, p.224

26. M. K. Gandhi, 'Trusteeship1,p.4,NPH , Ahmedabad, 1960.

28. Ibid pp.39-40

29.Gandhi M-K, The Selected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Vol.IV,p.238

30.Anupam Sen Gupta, TWO GREATS, Metro Publishing Co., Ghaziabad, 2001 ,p. 105

3 1 .Shastri Prabha S h m a 'Gandhian Holistic Economics', Concept PublishinCom.,New Delhi, 1992, p.112

32. Young India, 19th Jan., 01 ,p.22

33. Staffner Hans, Vision of New Indisp.73

34. My Religion, M.K. Gandhi,(Ed.by Bharatan Kurnarappa,)~. 1 5 1 .

36. Ibid., p. 1 17

37. Gandhi M.K, Collected Works, Vol. 19,p.328

38. Prabhu R.K & Ravu H.R, The Mind o f Mahatma Gandhi, Nph, Ahmedabed, 1967,~. 16

39. Verma,K.M.P. 'Philosophy of Religiont,p.76

40. Prabhu R.K & Ravu H.RThe Mind of Mahatma Gandhi,~. 16.

4 1 . Verma K.M.P 'Philosophy of Religion', p.76

42. Prabhu R.K & Ravu H.R, The Mind of Mahatma Gandhi, p. 100

1 44

43. Datta D.M,The Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi,p. 1 00

44. Ibid., p.52

45. Dr. Radhakrishnan,'Mahatma Gandhi', Essay & Reflections p. 152

46. M.K. Gandhi, 'My Religionf,p. 19

47. St.N.B.'Glorious Thoughts of Gandhi',p.234

48. Ibid., p.23 1

49. Ibid.,p.226

SO. Datta D.M, Philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi,p. 49

5 1 . Dr. Radhakrishnan'Mahatma Gandhi'(Essays & Reflection),p.2

52. Ibid,pp.2-3

53.Prabhu R.K & Raw H.R, The Mind of Mahatma Gandhi,p. 107

54. Gandhi's Challenge to Christianity,p.33

55. Pravu R.K. & Rau, 'The Messages of Mahatma Gandhi',~. 106

56. Mohm Rao U.S.'The Messages of Mahatma Gandhi,p. 106

57. Das Bhagavan 'The Essential Unity of All Religions' p.54

58. Ibid., p.55

59. lbid.,p.54

60. Bhagavan Das, Comparative Religion, p. 407

61 .Bhagavan Das, Essential Undity of All Relilgions,p. 32

62. Ibid.,p.3 1

63. Ibid.,p.3 I

64. Bhagavan Das, Comparative Religion, p.408

145

65. Bhagavan Das, Essential Unity of All Religions,p.32

66. Ibid.,p.32

67. Ibid.,p.34

68. Bhagavan Das, 'Comparative Religion', p.409

69. Ibid., p.409

70.S. Radhakrishnan, Religion and Culture,p. 36

71. Bhagavan Das, Essential Unity of All Religions,p.l

72, S. Radhakrishnan, Religion and Culture,p.39

73. Ibid.,p.43

74. Bhagavan Das,Comprtraative Religion, p.218

75. lbid.p.2 1 8

76. Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi,vo1.85,p.328

77. Ibid.p.338

78. M.K. Gandhi,'My Relilgion', p.3

Chapter - XV

Gandhiji's Philosophy Of Education

4.1 Ideal Education For India.

The significance and importance of education can never be exhausted. It is delicate,

and if not carried out meticulously it can be extremely disastrous. What is primarily and

basically needed for any programme of education is a clear and distinct sense of direction. In

other words, an educational planner ought to have very clear and indubitable ideas and

visions as to where he wants to take tomorrows generation of civil society. In the context of

Indian society and Indian nation, the direction ought to be clear to all sane minds as it is

self-luminant in unambiguous terms.

Ours is a great nation with great culture, the culture that had made definite and very

significant contributions to the world. Our cultural past is not free from shadows of

yesterday and today. No one can think in terms of living on the past glory alone. The past

glory is a definite reality with us: but our present do not have much of the lefi+vers from

yesterdays. To my mind, there shall not be my difference when I say that we must try to

make our future glorious on the basis of the past glory; a task which is difficult and easy at

the same time. It is easy because our goals are set by the past, our desideratum is

unambiguous. Obviously this is not any going back; on the contrary it is going forward. It is

dificutt because one really have much work to do and go a long way in shaping our

desideratum to the requirements of the future, and great work need to be done in this

direction.

The strength of Indian nation comes from our heritage, culture, philosophy and

above-all spirituality. The archetype lndian mind is one of the most amiable in the entire

world, which bases itself in spirituality and expresses itself through brotherhood of man as

well as love and respect to the all living beings and non-living things of the entire world. A

model Indian mind treats the entire world as one fmiiy, incIuding living beings and

non-living things ('Vasudhaiva kutumbakain'). Indeed, when the world is becoming a

global village, India's contribution to the world society shall be such things, and if one looses

them, then the world misses them permanently.

Thus any education programme in India ought to be for national resurgence through

cultural resurgence. One must not mistake Indian culture as the culture of the Hindu religion.

Hindu or any other religion is only a matter of faith and transcendental aspirations for the

followers of such faiths. Through out history, the Indians were not homogenous in terms of

faiths, rituals and transcendental aspirations. We always had plurality of faith and other faith-

related aspects. Throughout history we coexisted amicably by accepting each others faiths.

Thus, when other faiths came from other lands it was only natural for our ancestors to accept

and revere them, though such faiths came with the attitude that their's is the only right faith.

But then, when such faiths took rmts in Indian soil, they too became lndian culturally, and

left far behind the attitude of 'I am only right'. Thus, the secuIarism that other societies or

nations practice for the sake of social w-existence and other prudential considerations had

always been an essential and internal ingradient to a model mind.

An education programme in India must have this objective of making the model

Indian mind a reality for the future generations, Thus we can ensure a glorious future far our

great nation. lf one does not move in the right direction, our education woujd only be able to

produce people who are skilled in producing material goods ignoring spiritual well-being.

Above all, the requinement of global market shdl compel us to keep changing our education

programme as per the job requirements of the international Business; prduction and trade.

Thus our mastas shali always come from far flung lands. Indeed, the Mal@itma's thoughts in

terms of education was to create model Indian minds.

Gandhiji's Philosophy of education is a product of his general philosophy of life

which is broadly based on Truth, Non-Violence and non-exploitative Sarvaaya way of life.

Spirituality, which forms the core of Gandhian philosophy finds its full expression in his

educational philosophy. In formulating his educational philosophy he drew extensively from

his practical experiences in educating children who were under his care in his Asrams;

therefore, his educational philosophy attains practical applicability, when planned and

applied properly. The failure of ~asic\wardha scheme of education was not due to its

impracticability, but due to the poor planning and implementation of those who were

involved in these processes.

The educational philosophy Gandhiji propounded was in tune with Indian tradition

and therefore completely acceptable to dl those who had inkling of Indian traditions. It

might have been unpleasant to a few, who having tasted the sensual appeal of Western

materialistic culture, have found all types of faults with Gandhian education. Gandhiji

himself has this to say abut his programme of education:

"1 have given many things to India, but this system of education 'together with its technique is, I feel, the best o f them. I do not think 1 will have anything better to offer the country" I .

Now let us take a detailed look at the different aspects of Gandhian philosophy of education.

4.2 Gandhiji's Definitiou of Educatiou

Though many have attempted to give a definition for education, educational process

is so wide-ranging and all-embracing that a clear verbal definition is an impossibility; yet

Gandhiji has given one of the best definitions for 'education', and it runs thus:

"By education I mean all-round drawing out of the best in child and man-body, mind and spirit"'.

This definition is pregnant with ideas, and word-by-word explanation shows the deep

understanding Gandhiji had about education. Here the term 'all-round' means that man is

neither mere intellect nor the gross animal body, nor the heart or soul alone; but a proper and

harmonious combination of all these constituting a whole man. The term 'drawing out'

implies that God has endowed man with all the abilities he needs, from birth, but it only

needs to be developed or drawn out by providing necessary outside factors. This also shows

that education is a drawing out pracess and not a 'pouring-in' process as envisaged in

traditional education. Gandhiji believed that true education is that which draws out and

stimulates the spiritual, intellectual and physical faculties of children. 'Drawing out' again

implies that tremendous capacity is coiled inside the child like a spring and it only needs

somebody (teacher) to bring it out. This shows that nothing is newly created in a child, but

whatever is needed is already put in its proper place by the Creator. ' In child and man'

implies that education does not merely stop when the child leaves the formal school system,

but is a continuing process during the whole life of the individual. According to Gandhiji,

education starts from birth or rather at conception, and ends only in the grave, that is,

education is life-tong. 'Best in Child and Man' means all the different aspects- body, mind,

and spirit, needed for the harmonious development of a whole person. Gandhiji believed that

individuals should develop into 'whole' beings, and not into fractured personalities.

When we look at the definitions of education given by a few other philosopher -

cum-educationists, then we can perceive the beauty and wholeness of Gandhiji's definition.

For example:

Aristotle : Creation of sound mind in a sound body - Spiritual aspect remains neglected here.

Dewey: ' Increasing Social efficiency' Spiritual aspect remains neglected here too.

Erasmus: 'ControIling the mindt :Spiritual and Physical aspects are not mentioned here at all.

Herbart : ' Developing moral ityt: Physical and intellectual aspects remain unclear here.

William James: 'Fitting the individual to his physical and social environment: Spiritual aspect is neglected here.

Krishnamurthy J.: ' Helping the individual to flower greatly in love and goodness'. Physical aspect is not mentioned here.

Nehru : ' Enabling the individual to be producer, as well as a good citizen': Spiritual aspect is neglectd here.

Plato: ' Developing in the body and the soul of all the perfection which they are capable of : Akin to Gandhij i's definition.

Dr. Radhakrishnan S. : *Training the intellect, refinement of the heart and discipline of the spirit' : Physical aspect is neglected here.

Spencer: Preparing for complete living': The term 'complete living needs clarification as to whether it includes aspects of soul also; but Spencer being a Naturalist it is doubtful.

Vivekananda: 'Manifestation of the perfection already in man': akin to Plato's definition and also approximates Gandhiji's definition.

Zakir Hussain: 'Helping the mind of the educand to realize the absolute moral and intellectual values' : Physical aspect is neglected here.

4.3 Meaning of Education.

From a broader point of view, aIf life thoughtfully lived is education. Thus

'Education is life and life is ducation', as Lodge and Raymond have expressed. it includes

every aspect of our life, social, cultural, re1 igious, political, domestic, economic,

geographical, international, environmental, etc. The bite of a mosquito, tasting of orange,

listening to the sounds of birds and other animals, taking note of weather variations - all are

educational experiences; and one only stops being educated when all life activity ceases.

With regard to acquisition of knowledge, the traditional Indian belief is that an individual

gets one-fourth of his education from his teacher, another fourth from his own intellectual

efforts, another fourth from his fellow students and the rest in the course of time through life

and experience. Gandhiji believed that the educational process should be integrated and

correlated to different aspects of life. He has taken a broad view of education, thereby

freeing it from organid institutions and throwing it open for common man throughout his

whole life. As a social reformer Gandhiji wanted to use education for implimenting his

philosophy of Sarv6daya and non-violence for realizing Truth.

4.4 Aims of Education.

The aim of education vary from philosopher to philosopher and also amongst

educationists depending on their particular angle of viewing at education. Those who desire

societal good draw out favorable social outcome as the aim of education; whereas those who

favour individual good draw out favourable individual outcome as the aim of education. For

some,material achievement may be the priority, whereas for others spiritual achievement.

So the aim of education would depend on the philosophical outlook of the individual.

As befitting Gandhiji's Sarvodaya philosophy, his most important aim of education

was service to the society. Indian mystics of various schools have also been emphasizing

this aspect of social service for a very long time. In his New Education or 'Nai Tdim',

Gandhiji aims at the harmonious development of the individual in dynamic interaction with

the environment, in a spirit of educated service. Gandhi believed that the social aim of

education did not come into conflict with the individual aim of education. He said that man

is to serve society and society is to help man. So the relationship is complementary ; truely in

line with the Indian concept of education as ensuring harmony between the individual and

social aims. Gandhiji opined that:

"The end of all education should surely be service, and if a student gets an opportunity of rendering service even whilst he is studying, he should consider it a rare opportunity and treat it not really as a suspension of his education but rather its comp1ernent"3.

On the individual level Gandhiji gave great importance to character development.

There is an ancient aphorism which says, 'if wealth is lost nothing is lost; if health is lost,

something is lost; but if character is lost,everything is lost'. Gandhiji was in hundred percent

agreement with this statement as we can perceive from his following observation:

"All our learning or recitation of vcdas, correct knowledge of Sanskrit, Latin, Greek and what not will avail us nothing if they do not enable us to cultivate absolute purity of heart. The end of all knowledge must be building up of c h m e r " 4 .

Reiterating this conviction Gandhiji writes in his autobiography thus:

"I had always given the fmt place to the culture of the heart, or the building of character.. 1 regarded character building as the proper foundation for their education and if the foundation was firmly laid, I was sure the children could learn all the other things themselves or with the assistance of friend@.

This idea of character-building is also emphasized by Sw-mi V i v E b d a when he says that

the end of all education, all training should be man-making.

Character-building aspect of education also gets prominence in Rousseau's

naturalistic programme of education:

"It matters littie to me, whether any pupil be designed for the army, the bar, or the pulpit. Nature has destined us to the office of human life ... To live in the profession 1 would teach him. When I have done with him i t is true, he will be neither a lawer, a soldier, nor a divine. Let him fist be a man, he will on occasion as soon become anything else, that a man ought to be, as any other person whatever. Fortune may remove him from one rank to another as she

pleases, he will be always sound in his

Character has two aspects: the .one that is personal, and the other which manifests

itself in our relationship with miety. Both these aspects should be pure and unsullied. Right

from the ancient seers down to the great personalities of our modem timesall those whom

we consider as standard-bearers of our philosophy and culture, have been wholly pure-their

thought, word and deed,all in tune with the highest truth.

Character is the product of innate endowment, influence of environment and constant

introspection. Good acts and habits are the basis of good character and therefore character

formation is a continuous process from life to death. Gandhiji has observed that character

building must come from within. In our education system,character building is given great

importance as can be seen fiom the secondary Education Commission's report:

"Character is forged on the anvil of action - of every kind of action, academic, social, manual, or moral - and the way in which the student performs his manifold duties in school, or at home leaves an indelible impression on himtq7.

From the Spiritual/Religious plane, Gandhiji's ultimate aim of education is

self-realization. This concept of self-reaiization or moksa is ingrained in the Indian psyche

and could be attained, according to Gandhiji, by serving the smiety and not by withdrawing

from it. The concept of miiksa, in Gandhiji's view, gets merged with Dharma and has no

independent existence. Mo- can only be achieved if one does his dharma i.e. playing

whatever role he has to play in order to maintain the universe. Gandhiji's ideal in this respect

is Buddha who assumed the role of BXhisZitwa so as to oversee the m&qa of every living

atom in this universe. A serious philosopher, or a rigorist may object to Gandhiji's way of

handling the concept of self-realization, M 6 k s Dharma etc. Indeed Gandhiji uses many

philosophical and religious concepts very loosely, mostly to suit communicating his ideas to

the common man.

I would like to make one thing very clear at this point. Gandhiji never had any

training at all in philosophy, and above all he was no academic. He was also not a trained

educationist, but his educational ideas are the outcome of his practical knowledge in

imparting education to the children of his A&ams. Gandhiji was a very down-to-earth

practicai man; he simply was doing things,and wanted things to happen in the right way.

Philosophy, Religion, Education, Culture, law, and all other things in which he involved

were with the good intention of making real changes to improve the society-

There is also another aspect to this. Undoubtedly, the M a l @ a was an original

thinker. As an original thinker, it becomes natural for him to coin new words, concepts,

change meanings of already existing concepts etc. Thus it becomes our duty to find out new

meanings and concepts as they get used. And precisely, this is what makes philosopher out

of the personality of the MMtma.

According to ancient Indian wisdom,bondage to sensuality arises due to attachments

to mundane world. This bondage and attachment is due to ignorance. Here,ignorance means

ignorance of the true nature of the self-soul. The soul, in reality is that ultimate reality itself.

Knowledge here ultimately means knowledge of the true nature of the self or soul. Soul or

Atman, and the ultimate reality or B d p y are one and the same. It is due to 'avidya' or

ignorance that they are looked at as separate. The UpaniFic &%ti Maitra

amply demonstrates this principle. The highest knowledge is seen as the knowledge of the

self, which means the knowledge that the self or soul is the ultimate reality. The concept of

self-realization, realizing the self, or 'Itmajfiha simply means this. Through such

knowledge, one realizes the illusory nature of attachment, bondage and separate identity etc.

The Sloka 'Asatoma Sat garnaya' says about what is education in this spirit.

Dr. Radhakr i sh , the eminent Indian Philosopher also agrees with this aim of education.

"The aim of education is neither national efficiency nor world solidarity, but making the individual feel that he has within himself something d e w than intellect, call it spirit if you likew8.

Gandhiji, in allotting great importance to spiritual development in education, is so

oRen being accused of attempting to spiritualize the field of education as he was accused of

spiritualizing politics. Gandhiji said that to develop spirit means to work towards a

knowledge of God and self-realization. To bring about spiritual regeneration of humanity,

we must start with the education of the child. Present-day materialistic world promotes

prideful, argumentative and acquisitive tendencies in children which is not conducive for

spiritual development. Topics which are suitable for the development of spirit should have a

place in our education. Through this type of education the animal and base instincts in man

can be curbed, thus enabling him to realize his potential. It is thus a process of sublimation

or a process of self-realization or emancipation,

Another aim of education, corollary to the above one, according to Gandhiji

is liberation. Here liberation simply does not mean liberation of lndia from foreign

domination alone, but liberation of whole man: freedom from egoistic passions, freedom

from hate, anger, avarice, sloth, liberation from the slavery to what Indian tradition calls the

six enemies of man: K h a r h (lust), Kr6dhai (anger), l6bhaii-1 (greed), mGharh (avarice),

ahatink-ii (pride) and ilasyah (sloth). The struggle for liberation, in the Mahatma's mind,

was a struggle for the freedom from sin, not merely freedom from the British. Freedom from

fear can be considered as a prereqisite for achieving all other aims of education. The term

'fearlessness' implies that we should neither fear anything, nor in anyway inflict fear on

others.

To be fearless is to be self-respecting, and to be self-respecting is to be cultivating

and acquiring all positive connotations of manhood. Respecting the self in any authentic

form must be respecting the qualities that the self possesses, which stand to test in

day-tday life constantly on a regular basis. Through the experimentations on a day-today

and regular basis, the Self can directly know how distinct and better is it from others and

aY=r close ords tt from great personalities who function as models. Thus self-respect is far flung

from commonly experienced egocentrism which is baseless and spurious.

it is difficult to say which aspect of a person's character is the most important one,

but in the G T ~ the Lord names it as Fearlessness. Therefore our whole education should be

based on fearlessness, and so should the whole social and political structure of the country.

4.5. GANDHUI'S VIEWS ON EDUCATION.

4.5.1 Views on Existing System of Education,

Gsndhiji was very critical of the education system introduced by Macaulay because it

was instrumental in enslaving Indians.

"It is my considered opinion that English Education in the manner it has been given has emasculated the English-sducated Indians, it has put a severe strain upon the Lndian students' nervous energy, and has made of us

imitators. No country can become a nation by producing a race of imitatorsM9.

Gandhiji was highly critical of the literary education imparted in the primary schools

under the British. According to Gandhiji character-building should be the foundation of

primary education and further education built on this strong foundation would Iast fox ever.

He says:

"My experience has proved to my satisfaction that literary training by itself adds not an inch to one's moral height and character-building is independent of literary training. 1 am firmly of the opinion that Government schools have unmanned us, rendered us helpless and Godless. They have filled us with dis- content, and providing no remedy for the discontent, have made us despondent. They have made us what we were intended to become, clerks and interpreters" 1 0.

Gandhi further laments that:

"Higher education makes us foreigners in our own country" I 1 .

M&5tma believed that the use of English has created a permanent bar between the

highly educated few and the uneducated many. it had prevented knowledge from percolating

to the masses. Teeming millions of Indians were wrought in ignorance, superstition, inertia

and illiteracy. What-ever education given to a small fraction of children was a waste as it

was given in a passive manner. The chiId was a mere listener. Some smattering information

was pumped into the child, without his realizing the value of the knowledge given to him.

Education was not related to life. No training was given in developing the power of

observation. Practical work was conspicuous by its absence. No sense of citizenship was

developed. Gandhiji was convinced that the prevailing system of primary education was not

only wasteful but positively harmful. He remarked:

"Most of the boys are lost to the parents and to the occupation to which they are born. They pick up evil habits and affect urban ways and got a smattering of something which might be anything but education"l2.

Gandhiji, as we have seen, gave great importance to wholesome

spirituality-spirituality which gave due consideration to all religions depending on the merit

of their teachings; whereas the British in their zest to popularize Christianity, wherever they

gave lessons in religion,irnparted a one-sided view of religion favouring Christianity and

neglecting local ones. This created disharmony among the native Indian population, thereby

bringing disunity among the people. This was quite agreeable to the British as they were

masters in the policy of 'divide and rule'. As a direct result of British education and

administrative policy, the harmony and brotherhood which existed among Indians by virtue

of their tradition of tolerance was destroyed.

Another point of criticism leveled against British education was that by encouraging

English language, they blocked the development of indian languages. Before the Britishers

came, Hindustki, Urdu and Arabic used to be. the medium of education in local schools; but

due to the Government policy that only English-educated persons could secure government

jobs, people started gravitating towards English schools resulting in the closure of vernacular

schools, thereby bringing about neglect and decay of Indian languages.

Another defect of the British education was the over-emphasis on literacy in

educational institutions which paved the way for the creation of educated unemployment

among the youths who became parasites on the society. The Gurukula' , Monastery, and

Madrassa- System of education, which existed before the Britishers came, equipped the

children with practical knowledge in li fe-supporting crafts and vocations which made them

employable and independent, though at a lower self-sustaining level. The young people in

these local systems of education had thorough grounding in Agriculture, Dairying, farming,

gathering of forest products etc., which the bglish-educated youths Iacked.

Gandhiji believed that the English Education which gave priority to the development

of intellect priced mental effort or intellectual labour much higher than manual labour. As a

result, manual and skilled labour was looked down in the society whereas white-collar jobs

and other intellectual work was placed at a higher level. This intellectual/manual labour

distinction paved the way for social stratification which adversely affected manual labourers,

skilled workers, and agricultural workers. Traditionally people belonging to the

producer-class were given a higher status in lndia than the other classes. But the British

education helped in impoverishing and lowering the status of the rnanuaWskilled labourers in

the society and raising the income and status of intellectual workers to inordinate levels

resulting in severe social stratification. Hence, English Education further helped in

disuniting the society. It is common knowledge that Britain subjugated India, not because of

their might, but because of the disunity among Indians.

The visionary in the Mahama is amply demonstrated through his objections to

English education of Macaulay. At that point in time nobody knew anything about

Macaulay's real intentions of spreadig English education in hdia and the nexus between

Macaulay, Max Muller, the British rule in India and the -wan invasion theory of Max

Muller. Even SwZimi VivEkanaida mistook Max Muller as a great Sanskrit scholar and

revered him as a sage. Swai VivGkananda thought that Max Muller is doing a great service

to India through his translation of Sanskrit texts. But the joint intention of Macaulay, Max

MuIler, and the British government was to legitimize British rule in India through their

European superiority theory. But then M e h a saw through their ploy and resisted against

English education saying that it is oniy good for making Indians foreigner in their o m

country.

Taking into account all the above-mentioned defects of English System of education,

Gandhiji drew out an educational programme, which he hoped would solve India's problem

of educated unemployment and social inequalities. He called this system of education Basic

education or Nai Tilim. Basic education is the result of Gandhiji's experiments and

experience spread over a long time and in different geographical areas. Now let us take a

closer look at Gandhiji's Basic Education, which he said is his best contribution to India.

4.5.2 Basic Education and Its Salient Features.

Keeping in view the defects of the existing system of education in India under the

British, Gandhiji evolved a new system of education which could cater for the needs of an

emerging nation. He said that literacy should never be the end of education, but it should

merely be a tool in the learning pracess to produce whole men and women. A whole man or

woman is considered one, who has harmonious development of all four aspects of the human

persondity- body, heut,mind and spirit. Any scheme of education which developed only

one, or excludes any one, of these aspects is lopsided education. This was one of the defects

he observed in English education as it promoted development of intellect only. Here no

effort was made to adjust the child intelligently and actively to his environment.

Gandhiji's system of education is called 'Basic Education' because it dealt with all

aspects which are basically needed for future life. Gandhiji felt that Basic Education would

provide a strong foundation on which a prosperous, hmonious and joyful life could be

built. In Basic Education, Gandhiji envisaged the proper correlation of various components

of education like theory, method and goals etc. to everyday life; and he wanted education to

be grounded on a strong foundation of Gandhian values like Truth and non-violence so as to

contribute towards character formation and ultimate self-realization. Salient features of

Basic Education are given below:

4.5.2.1 Free and Compulsory Education for Seven Years

Mahitma Gandhiji wanted children aged seven to fourteen to be wmpuisorily in

school; and believed that by the age of 14, i.e. after seven year of learning, they would have

education equivalent to matriculation, minus Englia plus a vocation or craft. Gandhiji was

of the opinion that children spend a lot of energy in unnecessarily filling up English which

would come to no use in their future; and if this English learning aspect is taken off from

schooling , within seven years they could learn all things n d e d for leading a normal life

including a bread-earning craft. This belief was based on his conviction that children get

nothing more in the high school than a half-baked knowledge of English besides a

superficial knowledge of mathematics, history and geography. If English along with other

unnecessary literary aspects are cut off the curriculum, Indian students would be able to

complete matriculation level of learning within seven years instead of ten or eleven years.

He believed that India as a p r country cannot afford any wasteful activity at the tax-payers

expense and whatever they do with public money should be aimed at alleviating the abject

poverty of the masses. So Gandhiji's Basic Education or primary education as it is called, is

not primary schooling alone, but in fact up to metric level knowledge being taken in within

seven years, minus English, plus a craft.

Many-a-times Gandhiji had been unfairly accused of being against higher education,

but this is not the fact. He was only against the tax payers money being used for higher

education which inordinately benefited the individual and not the society. About higher

education he had given his opinion in Harijan dated 9-7-'38, the gist of which is as follows:

(i) 1 am not opposed to education even to the highest type attainable in the world.

(ii) The State must pay for it wherever i h efinite use for it. 14 (iii) I am not opposed to a1 I higher education being paid from the general revenue.

(iv) It is my firm conviction that the vast amount of the so called education in arts, given in our colleges, is sheer waste and has resulted in unemployment among the educated classl3.

Further he writes in the 'Harijan' of 3 1-7-37:

"I would revolutionize college education and relate it to national necessities. There would be degree for mechanical and other engineering. They would be attached to the different industries which should pay for the training of the graduates they need. Thus the Tatas would be expected to run a college for training engineers under the supervision of the state, the mill association would run among them a college for training graduates whom they need" 14.

Thus we can see that Gandhiji was not against higher education, but only against its

being financed by Tax-payers money. He wanted the state to accept also the responsibility

for providing pre-school education as and when their finances permitted.

4.5.2.2 Education to Centre Round Some CraftNocation

Gandhiji was of the opinion that teaching of all subjects should be centered round a

locally applicable craft or vocation. He believed that the highest development of all faculties

of human beings is possible when children are taught through a craR. The physical aspect of

manual work compliments and supports the development of aH inborn abilities in children.

Through craft-based activities every school could be made, at least to some extent,

self-supporting. Gandhij i says that craft should not just be one subject among other subjects,

but all subjects taught in the school should centre round that craft which has Iwl

applicability. For example, Gandhiji believed that 'Fowl-keeping' can k taught as 3 abject

in agricultural areas of the country. The child would learn about this subject in detai1,ming

with taking care of day-old chicks till the production time. All sciences, mathematics,

history, geography etc. would be taught in connection with this vocation so that the child

becomes an expert in this vocation at the end of his learning. He will learn the biology of

feeding the animal, digestion of the f d s , different metabolic processes involved in egg

production, meat production, chemistry of processing the food, compounding of feeds, decay

of feeds and other products of the industry ek. ; similarly mathematics of the expenses,

profit etc. could k taught tdthe child. In future if he has the interest to pursue higher studies,

he could do that also in relation to his a m of interest. Hence Gandhiji believed that we

wuld produce Scientists, engineers;anagers ctc, who would be experts in their chosen field;

the only thing is that, all would start from a craft and centre round that craft, thereby

enriching the applicability and progress of that craft. Gandhiji belived that production

of such people is essential for the progress of the nation. About Basic education Gandhiji

writes in Harijan of 3 1-07 -37:

"I would therefore begin the child's education by teaching it a useful handicraft and enabling it to produce from the moment it begins its training. 1 hold that the highest development of the mind and soul is possible under such a system of education. Only every handicraft has to be taught not merely mechanically as is done today but scientifically, i.e. the child should h o w the why and wherefore of every process'1 5.

Gandhiji never believed that the vocational bias will make education dull or cramp

the child's mind. Children are sure to be brigh,t and joyful if they receive v c ~ a t h l

inssuction under competent teachers. Their intellectual, physical, emotional and spiritual

development would be harmonious when they actively involve in the different aspects of

their vocation. So, for example, their joy at observing the chicks hatching out of the eggs, the

pecking and chirping actions of the chicks, the care given to sick birds, the agony shared

among fiends when a chick dies- all these experiences pave way for the development of a

whole personality and not a fractured asymmetrical personality as would result from

lop-sided literary learning. Gandhiji wanted stress to be given to the principle of

co-operative activity; planning accuracy, initiative and individual responsibility in the

learning process. He wanted the craft or vocation to be learnt systematically and

scientifically to serve as a means for intellectual work and aconornic self-sufficiency. The

blame for the failure of such a well thought out and planned system of education could only

be placed on those who were involved in planning and implementation of basic education,

but not on the originator.

4.5.2,3 Self-Supporting Aspect of Education.

Gandhiji realized that if education were to depend completely on Government funds,

all our population could not achieve primary education. Moreover the money for education

at that time came kom excise duty. Gandhiji, who prized both ends and means, did not

f m r the use of money derived from drinks to fmance education of the country. Therefore

he was greatly in favour of introducing self-supporting system of ducation. Crores of

children cannot wait until the government found the necessary finances. It was his klief that

handicraft, besides developing the pmunality of the child could make education

self-supporting and also instil in chiidren dignity of labour. The manual labour involved in

craft or voc&ioml education would help in narrowing the gap between intellectual work and

manual work, thereby helping in bringing about unity among people.

Manual labour or craft work during the education of the child in India is not a new

concept because this was practised during the Gurukula system. Here the children used to do

all the manual work which need to be done in the guru's &ram with total obedience and

dedication. Even children of royal families were u& to doing service to the guru in ali

aspects of his -&ram life. Today children help their parents in farming and other jobs, and

this instils in them a feeling that they belong to the family, to parents, to the village and to

the country in large. This fkeling of belonging is very essential for creating patriotic ferver in

children. Above al1,Gandhiji believed that:

"Without the use of hands and feet, the brain would be atrophied, and even if it worked, it would be the home of satan"16.

When Gandhiji said that children should be self-supporting in their primary

education he did not meanhat during the first year of a seven-year old child's education, he

should be made to labur for his education, but meant that the school should be

self-supporting; and the child should gradually be introduced into the crafVvocation starting

from the first year and by the end of seven y e m should be more than self-supporting at the

age of fourteen. So the school as a whole should be =if-supporting. According to the

Mahatma, this is the ideal education because the wlossrll illiteracy cannot solely be solved

by using government funds only. Gandhiji believed that self-supporting education only can

sumive in India. In this self-supporting system he wanted the State to provide the expenses

for x h w l buildings, books and dl apparatuses and tools required for craft-work. The

working capital should be generated by the student's activities.

Gandhiji wanted to make Basic education useful in the life of the child by relating it

with the daily life. It aimed at all-round development of child's personality so that he could

become a useful member of the society at large. In short, it was instruction in three H's -

Hand, Heart and Head.

By advocating self-supporting aspect, he did not want it be-all and end-all of

instruction, thereby sacrificing the educative and cultural objectives of education. He

believed that if education is imparted through right kind of dedicated teachers, learning

through craft could be made lively and the children could be made not to feel that they are

learning, but enjoying the activities of living.

Basic education or Nai TBlim is founded not only on the principle of knowledge

through work but also on the great principle of bodily labour for one's livelihood. We can

live rightly only when we earn our livelihood by bodily labour, and Gandhiji belived that, it

is not an ideal arrangement that W i l y food be earned by intellectual work. It i s certainly a

possible arrangement, but nevertheless it is not the ideal way. The body ought to be fed by

the work of the body, and this is the meaning of the phrase 'bread labur'. In Blqpvad ~<ta

it is called a yajfIa, a sacrifice; and in the Bible it is referred to as "earning one's bread by the

sweat of one's brow'.

4.5.2.4. Emphasis w Mother-Tongwe

Gandhiji emphasized the importance of mother-tongue, both as a subject of study

and also as medium of instruction. He says that the greatest impediment in the filed of

education is that learning is being imparted t h g h the medium of English. Th is hindered

the development of understanding and precision of thought and clarity of ideas.

Mother-tongue, he blieved, would enable the children not only to understand clem1y the

rich heritage of people's ideas, emotions and aspirations but would aim enable the children

to express themselves effectively, clearly and lucidly. They would, thereby appreciate and

enjoy literature, which helps to a great extent in the transmission of culture.

Gandhiji decried the use of foreign language in education as it:

"caused brain fag, put an undue strain upon the nerves of our children, made them crammers and imitators, unfitted them for filtrating their learning to the farniIy or the masses. The foreign medium has made our children practically foreigners in their own landt*17.

Gandhiji says that one of the evils of foreign rule was the imposition of foreign language

upon the youth of the country.

He says:

"It has sapped the energy of the nation, it has shortened the lives of the pupils, it has estranged them from the masses, it has made education unnecessarily expensive. If this process is still persisted in, it bids fair to rob the nation of its soul"l8.

Gandhiji says that a student who passes matriculation by the age of sixteen years

through the medium of English has wasted a large part(nearly six years) of his time in trying

to master the language itself. One could have matriculated in one year itself if it was given in

mother-tongue. So Gandhiji says that if he was given dictatorid powers, he would abolish

English and ask the teachers, under the threat of dismisd, to teach in vernacular. He WAer

recommended:

"the medium of instruction should be altered at once at any cost. the provincial languages being given their rightful place. t. would prefer temporary chaos in higher education to the criminal waste that is daily accumulating" 19.

Gandhiji was so fond of this idea of mother-tongue being used as the medium of instruction,

the extent of which can only be realized from what he says:

"I must cling to my mother-tongue as to my mother's breast, inspite of its shortcomings. It alone a~ give me the life-giving milkdo.

The importance of mother-tongue was stressed by many others also. The Italian

revolutionary, Antonio Gramsci was against his children getting educated in Italian language

instead of his mother-tongue - Sardinian language. He wrote to his wife to this effect h r n

prison (Quaderni) and argued that educating in a language other than the mother-tongue

cannot enable the hll blossoming of the child's mind and thoughts.

Ludwig Wittgenstein, the philosopher of language, gives the theory of 'stage

settings', or background of a language. Any language has the stage settings typical to that

language, which is essentially cultural, social etc. A person who does not own this typical

stage settings can not by definition understand presentations through that language.

The celebrated Bengali writer, Shashti B r a indeed laments upon himseif getting

educated in England that had destroyed his natural self. Shashti says that he had become

good for nothing as he cannot use English language in its proper sense since he being an

Indian; and at the same time he also cannot use his mother-tongue Bengali sin= he was

transplanted to England.

At1 these are clear instances of how right the M*5tma was, and how great a

visionary the w ' r t m a was. How unfortunate is that our other leadership wuld not live up to

the expectations of the father of the nation, and did not implement much of his ideas.

4.5.3 The Fate of Basic Education :

Gandhiji's system of education, though formulated after long and extensive practical

experimentation in two continents and nearly over forty years of critical study, failed to lift

off when it was tried in many parts of India. The All India National Conference held at

Wardha on 22nd October 1937, which was attended by the State Education Ministers from

all states, along with eminent scholars from all over India took part in frankly discussing all

the points regarding the new education system. Gandhiji was present at the occasion and at

one time he stressed that in discussing about the education system he proposed, the needs of

the villages of India should be taken into consideration. By giving one craft or vocation to

the boys in the villages irrespective of the caste to which he belonged, Gandhiji wanted the

hture generations in India to break off from the caste mout d in which they found themselves

in. So this was a bold move on the part of the father of the nation to abolish one of the

causes of inequality in India. Basic education would be common to all, Hindus, Christians,

Sikhs, Muslims, Parsees, and to all van@ and castes in hdia. His idea was to take charge of

every child in lndia at the age of seven and return himher to the parents at around the age of

fourteen as an earning member of the family. Dr.Zakir Hussain, though did not completely

support Gandhiji's views on Basic education, agreed that it could be ideal for a

non-exploitative non-violent rural civilization.

Prof. K.T.Shah criticised Gandhiji's views on education a d stressed that the

self-supporting aspect of Basic education is an Utopia just like Plato's scheme of education

in 'The Republic'. He pointed out that the expenses incurred in teaching a craft would be

much higher than what wuld be obtained by selling imperfect products of children.

Gandhiji, on this occasion emphasized the fact that the state should shoulder the expenses

incurred in Basic education as it is equivalent to seven years of primary education which is a

state responsibility. Dr. Syed Mohammed expressed his idea that Gandhiji's scheme of

education is very original and fit for Indian culture and civilization. Shrirnati Ashadevi of

Wardha stressed the point that in order to create a new social order in lndia, a new type of

education is required a d Gandhiji's Basic education could be such one. B.G. Kher, Premier

of Bombay Presidency called Gandhij i's scheme epoch-making because it introduced

non-violence in the field of education. Dr. Subbaroyan, Minister of Education, Madras,

remarked that education based on craft could be made adaptable and relatable to different

localities. Mahadev Desai related the self-supporting aspect of education with the ideologicd

background of non-violence and stressed that the new scheme would be helphl in founding

up a society; without class and communal hatred because of its non-exploitative nature. Dr.

Viswanath Das, Minister of Education in Orissa said that the education in a country is not

worth its name if it is not national and usefiband thanked Gandhiji for presenting a system

of education which could be truly national.

After a thorough discussion of Basic education scheme, a resolution was adapted on

23rd October 1937 and constituted a committee for overseeing the implementation of the

scheme. Dr. Zakir Hussain, was the chairman of the Committee and within a month the

committee came with the following recommendation that education in the country should be

imparted through some craft. Tbis is the desirable method because it relieves the child from

the tyranny of a purely academic and theoretical instruction and it balances the intellectual

and practical elements of experience. The committee stressed that the craR chosen should be

rich in educative possibilities and stress should be laid on co-operative activity, planning,

accuracy, initiative and individual responsibility in learning. The ideal of good citizenship is

inherent in the new educational system because it is unlikely to produce social parasites.

The New Education, upon implementation, found a rough ride following certain

hitches it encountered, and they were:

(1) The scheme was criticized by many at different levels accusing it being against

industrialization and only aimed at taking the society to a primitive state as it did not meet

the requirements of modern times.

(2) The products of children were mere heaps of rubbish material which was not in

demand, and therefore accumulated in Basic Schools.

(3) Lack of Teachers who could absorb the spirit or Basic education. As it involved lot

of hard work many shied away from it and startad going back to academic exercises.

(4) The stress on manual work was so great that the theoretical aspect suffered. Usually

in professional and technical colleges students proceed from theory to practice.

( 5 ) There is general belief, supported by education psychology, that children should have

a general level of knowledge, unto at least seven years, before being able to absorb technical

aspects of any craft. Otherwise it would simply be playful activity and not learning.

After independence, the Government of India, implemented Basic Education as a

national programme, but because of many misconceptions, the scheme did not achieve its

expected results.

It is not unusual for any theory or programme to have drawbacks or short-comings.

Indeed, a perfect theory, plan or programme is only a myth in ra l i ty . hfellectually there

ought to be a team constantly engaged in rectifying the drawbacks of a theory or programme

during its implementation from time-to-time. Perhaps one of the best examples for this may

be that of V.I. Lenin, who for the first time had gone ahead implementing the theories of

Marx. Later this was followed by the Chinese, Mao. They both seemed to have accepted the

theory of Marx as a plausible one, and had worked towards putting it into practice.

My question here is, could any Indian do something similar in case of the

Ma@ma's ideas of education ? This question becomes more emphatic when we learn that

world renouned educationist Prof. John Dewey expressed his feeling towards Gandhiji's

scheme of education as being far ahead of all other programmes of education, the world

over. Paulo Freires 'Education of the oppressed' in Latin America comes closer to Gandhiji's

scheme of education, sans its spiritual content. The Mahatma expressed many fiagrnents of

thoughts; we ought to have created a system out of them, a theory out of them and put them

into practice; correcting and rectifying it from time-to-time to make it functional. In a word

let me accuse: we lacked the initiative, courage and prescience.

4.5.4 A Education in the Home:

Gandhiji placed p a t importance to the home and its environment in the education

of children. He says;

"Young children should not be separated from their parents. The education that children naturally imbibe in a well-ordersd household is impossible to obtain in h o ~ t e l s " ~ -

Gandhiji further adds:

"Under ideal conditions, true education could be imparted only by the

parents, and that there should be minimum of outside helpM22.

In Tolstoy Farm in South Africa, and in Sevagmm and Sabannati k6hrams in India,

Gandhiji established schools where the children grew up in the company of their parents.

Gandhiji was as a father to every one of the children, and he, along with a few others,

imparted lessons to children centered around a m R or vocation. Gandhiji says that there was

scarcely any illness in these places as the children were able to get good air and water and

also regular doses of food. In these schmls he prescribed syllabus which included

elementary principles of sanitation, hygiene, nutrition, of doing their own work and helping

parents at home. Emphasis was given on c h m development rather than on literacy.

From home, children derived security and love and they got ample leisure time and

recreation in the form of celebrations of different festivals and fairs. In the company of large

numkr of members in the family including grand-parents, uncles, aunts and cousins, they

picked up behavioral paaerns in the society. Boys helped their parents on the farm and girls

helped their mothers in the kitchen and in doing other domestic works. In this way they were

introduced to useful activities in life. During all these processes children were not made to

feel that they were learning anything,but in fact they got natural learning through life. This

type of education is what many called 'education through life'. In a way this part-time

learning prepared the children for future life and to a great extent vocational training was not

a problem for these children.

The parents are in reality, the first teachers. Indeed the mother provides the first

learning experiences for the child. The first three years of the child's life is spent in the

learning environment that the home provides. Early experiences of a child form the

foundation on which the concepts of the world as perceived are constructed. Many studies

have shown that it is these early experiences and the quality of the activities that have been

made available to the child in these early years, which significantiy contributed to the

shaping of the child's personality and its capacity to learn with meaning. It is at home that the

foundation of a caring family and community is being laid. To care, to love and be

empathetic are qualities one gets from home. Parental time spent in play with children and

their answers to children's questions can stimulate creative thinking in chiidren. So home is

the first school of the children.

Gmdhiji believed that all the varied types of experiences the child gets from home

will influence the development of character of the child. The importance of Early childhood

education is shown in Gandhiji's following comments:

"We labour under a sort of superstition that the child has nothing to Iearn during the first five years of its life. On the contrary the fact is that the child never learns in after life what it does in its first few years. The education of the child begins with

The significance of parentage and home in education i s indeed 'the great'

contribution of India to the world. The very foundation of lndian society, culture and the

very notion of Indianness..rests here. It is only from an integrated home that an integrated

individual is groomed and shaped out of a child. This gives rise to an integrated society and

thus an integrated nation. Unfortunately, the Western society in general is unable to

comprehend this, and, I should say that this one thing is the root of all social problems of the

West. They give more stress on the independence of an individual at the cost of

interdependence that paves way to a coexistence. When the individuals are isolated in

watertight compartments, how can families exist ? How can children get groomed into

interned citizens of an integrated society of tomorrow? This indeed is the Western problem

and it is slowly invading our society as well. The Ma.l@atma had rightly understood this in

unconditional terms and tried to give us the knowledge of its importance and significance.

To what extent we could take his lessons remains an open question.

4.5.5 Women's Education:

Women played a central role in ancient India, and was always respected. Indeed,

woman was not seen any different from man; man and woman are seen as complimentary to

one another. One cannot be separated fiom the other and at the same time one cannot replace

the other. They are distinct with independent functions that makes a whole as totality. By

definition they are equal; through playing their distinct role or part in life, society and nature.

The concept of '~rthanarsara' may be actually designed to exemplify this principle.

Though this was the situation, the social decadence that took place in Indian society

drastically inverted many things. One of the reasons that sent lndian women behind the

purdah and created practices like Sati and Johar could be the Mughal invasions and Mughal

rule which made our hdian women insecure, but the general social decadence is more to be

blamed.

Strangely, Manusrnci started getting quoted against women, but a sincere reading of

ManusrnGi only proves the opposite. Mmu was indeed for protection of women and never

for their enslavement. It is a matter of simple logic that Manu naturally supports women,

given the ancient way of our seeing women. Unfortunately Mmusmfli is misinterpreted and

misquoted by the decadent lot.

But in modern India, women really needed emancipation in many aspects. The model

lndian attitude to women had suffered much changes due to many reasons. During the 19th

century many social reformers, especially the B+a SarnZj founders fought for women's

rights for equality. But M e t m a Gandhi was foremost among the social reformers who

espoused the women's cause. And. as in everything he preached, he began the reform in his

own home. The moment he realized that he was a 'slave holder: as he has called himself, his

attitude to his wife changed, and with that change began his work for the emancipation of

women as a whole. He has spoken fearlessly against enforcd widowhood, purdah, child

marriage. dedication of girls to temples, prostitution, dowry system, the economic bondage

and marital slavery of women. He declared that 'man and woman are equal in status' and

women should not labour or live under no legal disability not suffered by man. With

reference to education he said:

"As for women's education,l am not sure whether it should be different from men's ... But I am strongly of the opinion that women should have the same facilities as men and even special facilities where n e ~ e s s a r ~ 2 ~ .

Gandhiji says that men had been unfair to women throughout the history in

considering her as an object of pleasure, instead of regarding her as his helpmate and 'better

half. He exhorts men to undo the great wrong done to her and to regard her as mother of the

race. S w h i Vive&&da also exhorted Indians to treat women fairly, and warned:

" That country and that nation which do not respect women have never become great; nor will ever be in future. The principal reason why your race is so much degraded is that you had no respect for these living images of Shakti. I f you do not raise the women who are the living embodiments of the Divine Mother, don't think that you have any other way to rise"25.

Eventhough Gandhiji attributes equality of women with men, he was of he opinion

that women's education should be in conformity with her role as a mother in the society. But

he did not object women in pursuing any field of study if she has a genuine interest for it. He

says:

"Man i s supreme in the outward activities of a married pair and therefore it is in the fitness of things that he should have a greater knowledge thereof. On the other hand, home life is entirely the sphere of women and therefore in domestic affairs, in the upbringing and education of children, women ought to have more knowledge"26.

In his fight for Justice, liberty and human dignity it might be worth remembering that

Gandhiji brought women to the forefront. He says that the saying of Manu which prohibits

freedom of women is not sacrosanct to him. He has paid the best tribute to women by

saying:

"Women is the embodiment of sacrifice and sufferingW27.

4 S.6 .A good Teacher.

To define 'a good teacher' would be as difficult as to define education, but an attempt

could be made to explain who a good teacher is. A quotation fiom Annie Besant would give

a fair picture about whadwho is a good teacher:

"The educationist has to find out the best ways of co-operating with the inner self of the child, of enabling the faculties already there to manifest themselves and to grow, to strengthen all that is good and to starve out all that is bad, to work on the plastic material of the new brain from without, while the soul of the child works at it from within. This is the high o@ce of the Teacher, his great responsibilityQg.

As can be seen from this quotation, a teacher of this nature should have a number of

qualities in himher; and they are succintly expressed by Prof. V. Sukhonlinsky in his book

First of all it means some one who loves children, who finds joy in contact with

them and who believes that every child can become a worthy man or woman, some one who

is able to make friends with children, who takes children's joys and sorrows to heart,

understands the workings of their minds and never forgets that he himself was once a child

too.

Secondly, a good teacher is someone who has a good grasp of the Science of which

the subject he teaches is a part, is really in love with that subject, and keeps upto date with

its development - new discoveries, research and achievements. A good teacher knows far

more than what he needs to teach the children. Profound knowledge, a wide perspective and

interests in current problems of his field are all essential for a teacher in order that he might

present as attractive to his pupils the knowledge as such,his subje.ct in particular, Science

and the processes of study.

Thirdly, a gmd teacher must be well-versed in psychology and science of education; he must

understand that it is impossible without grounding in the science of education to work with

children.

Fourthly, a good teacher must be completely at home in some type of handicraft or

manual work.

A good teacher is preparing for good lessons for as long as he lives ... such is

the intellectual and philosophical foundation of his profession and the techniques of his

work; in order to give pupils a spark of knowledge the teacher must imbibe a whole sea of

light.

A good teacher - to be honest - does not know how a lesson with all its details and

off shoots will develop: this is not because he is working in the dark, but because he knows

quite well what a good lesson involves.

When a teachers' range of knowledge i s infinitely wider than the school curriculum,

when his grasp of the syllabus materid is not of central interest to him but a side-issue of his

mental activity, so to speak, then and only then is he a true master of his profession, an artist,

a poet of the classroom- a master of the tersching profession knows the elementary steps of

his science so well that at lesson-time, while that elementary material is being studied, his

attention i s concentrated not on the content of what is being studied, but on the pupils, their

mental activity, their thought processes and the difficulties they encounter in their mental

activity. A good teacher would be extremely patient with children and treat them with love,

whether they are progressing nicely with their studies or not, and will never gel angry when

they misbehave in class.

How a teacher ought to be; who a teacher could be; how is the teacher related to the

student and what exactly shall be the process of teaching and learning is best exemplified

through the 'Invocation of Peace' from 'Saanthi Paatha Kathopanishad' before the process of

teaching - learning starts. T k prayer goes like this:

"Let the Supreme Being guard both of us, nourish us both even (the teacher and the taught), let us work and achieve together, let our study be purposeful a d enlightened, let us not ever disiike or 'hate' each other, let there be

sustained harmony between us always. Om Peace, peach, peace"30.

Here the teacher is praying to the ultimate Reality to make him capable of imparting

knowledge, to give him strength to c m y out his mission; while the student prays for his

ability to receive knowledge properly and to put it to the welfare of the whole world. They

both pray that the knowledge may never be misused. At the practical level of application, it

must only promote peace, for they both nre aware of the power of knowledge. In addition,

the peace Invocation 'calls for the continuous , undisturbed harmonious rapport between the

learner and the teacher'.

The teacher - student relationship should be one of affection, respect and discipline,

with the teacher imparting of highquality education. And the pupil receiving it dedicatedl y.

The 'peace hvocation' stresses: 'let there be no hostility between us' - 'MZ Vidvi@v4ai',

'Let us energise each other (teacher and shtdent) purposefully - 'sa ha vTryari? karav'ivabail,

'May we both become illurninad by this sharing of knowledge' - '~Gjasvina avadTtamastul.

Without any doubt, there cannot be a more dynamic, noble and realistic expression,

sentiment, to highlight the relationship between the teacher and the pupil.

About the process of education, ancient Indian Wisdom had very definite ideas. It i s

like lighting several lamps from a source lamp, who is the teacher. Through education, one

moves from 'Asat' to 'sat', from 'Tamas' to 'Jyofis' and from 'Mritva' to 'Arnartva'.

The M&%tma's conception of a model teacher is very consistent with the Indian

model. He says that a teacher should be an object of lesson to the students and a practitioner

of what he teaches:

''A cowardly teacher would never succeed in making the boys valiant, and a stranger to self-restraint could never teach his pupils the value of self-restFaint. I saw, therefore, that I must be an eternal object-lesson to the

boys and girls living with me"3 -

Gandhiji says that the teacher is the true text-book of children:

"I remember very little that my teachers taught me from books, but 1 have even now a clear recollection of the things they taught me independently of books"32.

From his extensive relationship with students for over forty years in his and also

from different parts of the world he realized:

"If I was to be their real teacher and gumdim, I must touch their hearts, 1 must share their joys and sorrows, I must help them to solve the problems that fixed them, and 1 must take along the right channel the surging aspirations of their youth "33.

Realizing the great role teacher plays in the education of children, the Education

Commission reviewing the status of teacher education programmes has pointed out that:

"Of ail the different factors that influence the quality of education and its contribution to national development, the quality, competence and character of teachers are undoubtedly the most significant"34.

So the need of the hour for national development is the preperation of quality teachers in our

teacher training institutions,

Religion and education are intimately related because both are involved in

enlargement of our horizons; the former spiritually and the latter both spiritually and

materially. However, there is great controversy regarding the teaching of religious education

in our institutions because of the secular nature of our constitution. The constitution of India

wys that all persons have equd freedom to profess, practise and propagate their religion,

provided no one hurts the feelings of another, nor propagate his faith by dubious means. The

constitution also lays down that religious instruction shall not be given in schools maintained

solely at government expense. When ask4 why Gandhiji did not include religion in the

Wardtla Scheme of Education, he replied:

"We left out the teaching of religion fcom the scheme because we are afi-aid that religion, as they are taught and practised today, l e d to conflict rather than uni ty... I regard it fatal to the different faiths if they are taught either that their religion is superior to other or that it is the true re1igion"35-

In spite of the above, Gandjhji still advocated the need for spiritual education:

"Just as physical training was to be imparted through physical exercise, and inteHectual through intellectual exercise, even so the training of the spirit was possible only through the exercise of the spirit. And the exercise of the

spirit entirely depended on the life and character of the teacher"36.

Gandhiji warned the nation that:

"If India is not to declare spiritual badmptcy, religious instruction of i ts

youth must be held to be atleast as n e s s a r y as secular education"37.

Then the question arises as to how religious education could be imparted without

offending any religious group. Gandhiji answered thus:

"Fundamental principles of ethics are common to all religions. These should certainly be taught to the children and that should be regarded as adequate religious instruction as far as schools under Wardha Scheme are

concerned"38.

Ganhiji's opinion about the need for religious instruction is echoed by Sw-mi ~ive?r&&

in his following warning:

"Each nation, like each individual, has one theme in life, which is at its centre. If m y nation attempts to throw o f f i ts national vitality, that nation dies. In India, religious life foms the centre"39.

Therefore, without doubt, to keep the flame of spirituality alighted, we have to

introduce religious education in our schoots and colleges.

A b u t the need for religious education, James S. Ross, a noted educationist has this

to say:

"It is through religion that the youth can be set on the road to the pursuit of three absolute values i.e. truth, beauty and gdness"40

The University Education Commission, 1948, was very emphatic in its

recommendation on this vital issue. It made the following recornrnendatims:

(i) all educational institutions start work with a few minutes for silent mediation.

(ii) In the first year of the degree course, lives of the great religious leaders like Gautama the Buddha, Confucius, Zoroaster, Socrstes, Jesus, iaikara, R b i u j a , Mahava., Mohammad, Kabir, Nan&, Garidhi& taught.

(iii) In the second year some selections of a universalist character from the scriptures of the world be studied.

(iv) In the third year, the central problem of the philosophy of religion be taught.

The Education Commission 1964-'66 has this recommendation about religious education:

"A serious defect in the School curriculum is the absence of provision for education in moral and spiritual vaiues. In the life of the majority of Indians, religion is a great motivating farce and is intimately bound up with the formation of character and the inculcation of ethical values, A national system of education that is related to the life, needs and aspirations of the people cannot &brd to ignore this purposeful fork. We recommend, therefore, that conscious and organized attempts be made for imparting education in social, moral and spiritual values with the help, wherever possible, of the ethical teachings of great religionsdI -

Realizing the fast deterioration of moral and spiritual values in India, the former

Minister for Human Resource Development, Dr. Murali Manohar Joshi, called on National

Council for Education Research and Training to introduce lessons m Moral Education as

early as possible, starting from standard one to the university level, and to prepare relevant

text-books for these subjects. To inculcate religious values and morals in schools and

colleges now would mean that we are preparing the hture generation to be in tune with

India's spiritual tradition, and paying due respect to the advise given by intellectual and

spiritual giants of the past. indeed a nation like lndia cannot shy away from teaching religion

and training the future generations spiritually to save a 'soulless' condition tomorrow .

4.5.8 Gandbiji's Advise to Students.

MGatma Gandhi had high regard for students, and from time to time, whenever they

had doubts regarding any issues, used to refer to Gandhiji for his advice. AII these advices

given to students were collect4 and published in a book collated 'To Students' by Bharatan

Kumarappa 42 . Some of the advises are given below with the page number:

(1) A proper religious spirit is the greatest and most immediate need. We.5

(2) The first step to a true education is a pure heart. page.6

(3) More book reading will be of little help to you after life. page.6

(4) The greatest men of the world have always stood alone. But they had living faith in themselves and their God; and believing as they did that God was on their side, they never felt bnely. page.7

( 5 ) My own experience has led me to the knowledge that fu1Iest life is impossible without an immovable belief in a Living Law in obedience to which the whole universe moves. page.9

6 For me morals, ethics, and religion are convertible terms. A moral life without reference to religion is like a house built upon sand. And religion divorced from morality is like 'sounding brass' good only for making a noise and breaking heads. ~ w . 9

(7) Modern education tends to turn our eyes away from spirit. The possibilities of the spirit force or soul force, therefore do not appeal to us, and our eyes are consequently rivetted on the evanescent, transitory, material force. page. 1 1

(8) Any tradition however ancient if inconsistent with morality, is fit to be banished h m the l a d . e.g. Untouchability, child-widowhood, child marriage, sati etc. page. 15 & 16

(9) The Gita contains the gospel of work, the gospel of Bhakti or Devotion and the gospel of JK.a or Knowledge. Life should be harmonious whole of these three.

me. 1 6

(10) I have found that boys imbibe more from the teacher's own lives than they do fiom the books that they read to them. ~w.17

(1 1) A curriculum of religious instruction should include a study of the tenets of faiths other than one's own. For this purpose the students should be trained to cultivate the habit of understanding and appreciating the doctrine of various great religions of the world in a spirit of reverence and broad-minded tolerance. page. 1 8

(1 2) The Hindu system of philosophy regards all religions as containing the elements of truth in them and enjoins an attitude of respect and reverence towards them all.

p. 18 ( 1 3) 1 have come to the conclusion, in my own experience,

that those who, no matter to what faith they belong, reverently study the teachings of other hiths, broaden, instead of narrowing their own hearts. page. 1 9

(14) If we are to be non-violent we must then not wish for anything on this earth which the meanest or the lowest of human king cannot have. page.23

( 1 5 ) There are two types of human being - Rationalists and believers. Rationalist says:"Let me be convinced and I shall believe". The other says:"Believe and conviction will come". page.29

( 16) Just as matter misplad becomes dirt, reason misused becomes lunacy. page.32

To give up religious instruction is like letting a field lie fallow and grow weeds for want of the tillers knowledge of the proper use of the field. page.33

I be1 ieve that prayer is the very soul and essence of religion, and therefore prayer must be the very core of man. page.34

It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart. page.35

There is an eternal struggle raging in men's breast between the powers of darkness and of light, and he who has not the sheet anchor of prayer to rely upon, will be a victim to the powers of darkness. page. 36

(21) The end of all knowledge must be building up of character . page.39

(22) A boy who does not observe personal purity of mind and body and action is a boy who should be driven out of any school. page.39

(23) Every religion enjoins a student to build a life on a sure foundation of stoic simplicity and self- restraint. page.42

(24) All the great religions of the world are absolutely one on this thing that no man or woman with an impure heart can possibly appear before the Great White Throne. page.43

To have no control over the senses is like sailing in a rudderless ship bound to break to pieces on coming into contact with the very first rock. page.45

A school or a college is a sanctuary where there should be nothing that is base or unholy, Schools and colleges are factories for the making of character.

page.5 1

It is my conviction that our schools and colleges, instead of making us rnanly,make us obsequious, timid, IrPdecisive and ballastless. page.60

(28) Professors and teachers, if they are to be popular with their pupils, have to identify themselves with their activities and aspirations so Iong as they are not unhealthy or immoral. page. 67.

Our shastras lay down unequivocally thafa proper observance of truth, chastity, scrupulous regard forall life,as abstention from coveting others' possessions and refusal to hoard anything but what is necessary for our daily wants is indispensable for a right life; that without it a knowledge of the divine element is an impossibility

page. 7 1

No one chained a slave without chaining himself. And no nation kept another in subjection without itself turning into a subject nation. page. 75

It is gross superstition to suppose that knowledge can be obtained only by going to schools and colleges. The world produced brilliant students before schools and colleges came into being. page. 80

(32) While studying, the only occupation of students must be to increase their knowledge. page. 92

(33) 1 am certain that the children of the nation that

receive instruction in a tongue other than their own commit suicide. Zt robs them of their birth-right. A foreign medium means an undue strain upon the youngsters , it robes them of a11 originality. It stunts their growth and isolates them from their home. Page. 103

Education in three R's is as nothing compared to a sound grounding in the elements of hygiene a d sanitation

page. 1 46

(35) The modern girl dresses not to protect herself from wind, rain and sun but to attract attention. She improves upon nature by painting herself and looking extra-ordinary. I have a fear that the modern girl loves to be Juliet to have a dozen Romeos. page. 1 8 1

That education alone is of value which draws out the Faculties of a student so as to enable him or her to solve correctly the problem of life in every department. page. 1 89

I have never been an advocate to our students going abroad. My exprience tells me that such, on return, find themselves to be square pegs in round holes. That experience is the richest and contributes most to growth which springs h r n the soil. paged 1 3.

The above comments and opinions show that Gandhiji touched on every aspect of a

student's life. It will also reveal that his greatest emphasis was on Religion, Character and

Sewice. He knew the great importance of youth, and more especially of studentship and saw

the vital need to direct its perplexities, its enthusiasm rtnd energy along Iines which will

bring the greatest happiness to it and to the nation and the world.

4.6 Gandhiji - A Naturalist, An Idealist or a Pragmatist.

When one Iooks for the philosophical basis of Gandhijits views on education, one

undoubtedly comes to the conclusion that the MqZtma synthesized from all these three

philosophies his philosophy of education that has applicability under lndian conditions.

When he says that the children be taught in a free atmosphere in a natural setting without any

super-imposed restrictions, he is a true naturalist. But he does not advocate unrestrained

freedom to children as Rousseau did in that his 'freedom' is not a license for the child to

follow his natural inclinations; but restricted so as to 'discipline' and direct them through a

path of virtuousness. Gandhiji believed that children should develop 'sef fdisciplinet, and

considered that time and money spent on education would be a waste if they did not learn

discipline in school; and the discipline, he believed, should come from within, not from

outside. There should be an inner urge to the individual to obey the laws and regulations

prescribed by the group, community or society. It is in this conception of discipline that he

synthesized naturalism and idealism. He wanted the children to have sufficient freedom so

that they may grow and develop, but at the same time they must accept discipline and

training if they wanted to develop their powers to the fullest. As a naturalist he believed in

the inherent g d n e s s of children and recognized that by nature they are active. This aspect

should be made use in programming instruction for them i.e. it should be activity-centered.

Gmdhiji wanted children to avoid verbalism and to cultivate the virtue of action. In his

advise to children to discard text-books and to learn from action; and also from their natural

surroundings, : . . Gandhiji was a naturalist. Unlike the other naturalists, Gandhiji did not

belittle the role of the teacher in the education of the child, but exalted his position by saying

that children learn everything from their contact with the teacher.

In over-emphasizing the role of education in spiritual development and character

transformation, Gandhiji aligned himself with the idealists. In keeping the ultimate aim of

education as self-realization, Gandhiji, wanted the child to purify himself through education;

and through a life of service to society to achieve oneness with God. Spiritual realization, in

his view, should be the ultimate aim of education. Self-realization, according to Gandhiji,

could be achieved through seeking after Truth, practicing non-violence and continence. By

including 'spiritual development' as an aspect of his definition of education,Gandhiji sided

himself along with the idealists.

One of the prominent features of Basic education is the prominence given to creative

activity in the education of the child, which is the hallmark of the philosophy of pragmatism.

Gandhiji's Basic education ought to be implemented through craft work and not through

literary discussions or meditative reading. Gandhiji says, by nature children are active, and

this quality of children should be beneficially exploited in their learning process. By using

their physical activity for production of socially usehl products, their self-esteem can be

promoted, and they would not feel that they are mere parasites on the society. Like the great

pragmatist Dewey, Gandhiji wanted his school to be doing and thinking school instead of a

listening school.

Gandhiji wanted that all teaching to be carried out through concrete life situations

relating to industry or to social and physical environment, so that whatever the child learns

becomes assimilated into his growing activity. His was a school which was a p l m of work,

experimentation and discovery instead of being a p !ace of passive absorption of information

imparted through books. Like the curriculum of pragmatist's, Gandhiji's was an activity

curriculum, through the practice of which the child acquires knowledge and utilizes it for the

understanding and control of his social environment. This enabled the child to inculcate

social responsibility-which is the crying need of democratic India

As p a the teaching of ~Tta - an ideal life is to be a life of knowledge, devotion and

action; Gandhiji's philosophy of education is also a ~ornbination of these for realizing the

ultimate. Hence we can say that Gandhiji, absorbing the essence of all the schools of

philosophy, synthesized an educational system keeping true to Indian tradition. Dr. M.B.

Patel, a noted educationist, very aptly concludes about Gandhiji's phiiosophy of education

as:

"Naturalistic in i ts setting, idealistic in its aim, and pragmatic in its method and programme of work"43.

References

I . Gandhi M.K. 'The Problems of Education' Ahmedabad, 1949 p.5

2. Aggarval J.C. Theory and Principles of Mucagtion', Vikas publishing House, Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1985 p.7

3. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Education' (ed) Bharathan Kumarappa, Navaj ivan Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 19534~35.

4. Ibid, pp. 34-35.

5. Gandhi M.K 'An Autobiography', Navajivan Pubnlishing House, Ahmedabad, 2001, p.279.

6. Aggarwal J.C. 'Theory and Principles of Education' Vikas Publishing House, Pvt.Ltd., New h l h i , 1985,p. 126.

7. Ibid. p.30

8. Taneja V.R. 'Educational Thought and Practice', Sterling Publishers, Pvt.Ltd., New Delhi, 1993,p.35.

9. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Education', p.7-8

10. Ibid. ,p.3

1 1. Ibid,, p.4

12. Shanna K.D. 'Impact of Gandhi on Rural development and social Change', Mohit Publication, New Delhi, 1997,p. 160.

13. '~ov@ds New Education' p.86.

14. Ibid., p.85

15. Ibid., p.48

1 6. Taneja V.R.' Educational Thought and Practice', p. 1 86

17. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Education', p.54

18. Ibid, p.55

19. Ibid, p.59

20. tbid, p.6 1 -62

2 1. Gandhi M. K. 'An Autobiography', p. 167

22. Ibid., p.278

23.Kripalini Krishna 'Gandhi's Life in His Own Words', Navjivan Publishing House, Ahmedabad 2002, p.30.

24. Aggerwal J.C.p.242

25. Gankhi M.K. 'Women and Social Injustice' , Navajivan Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 2002, p.9

26. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Educationf.p.79

27, Gandhi M.K. 'Women and social In jus t i ce t ,Fod .

28.Besant Annie, The Theosopohisst, Oct. 2002,p.8

29. Sukhomlinsky V. 'On Education', Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1977,p. 175-1 80

30. R.S.,Religion, New Indian Express, 10.6.1999

3 1. Kripalini Krishna, 'Gandhi's Life in His Own Wordst,p.44

32. Gandhi M.K. 'An Autobiographyi,p.283

33. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Education',p.21

34. Council for Teacher Education, 'Sovenier 2000' Kerala State Centre, Trivanthapuram, June 2002, p.2 1

36. Kripalini Krishna 'Gandhi's Life in His own Words', p.44

37. Richards Glyn, 'Gandhiji's Philosophy of Education', Oxforduniversity Press 2001, p.58

38, Aggarwal J.C., p.276-277

39. Jay Mohan,'Waiting for Vivekananda', lndian Express

40. Aggarwal J.C.,p. 276

41. Ibid., p. 279

42. Gandhi M.K.'To Students' (Ed.) Bharatan Kumarappa, Navjivan Publishing House, 1 998

43. Taneja V.R.'Educational Thought and Practicet,p. 188.

Chapter -V

Applicability Of Gandhian Values I n Our Education

5.1 Introduction

One of the distinguishing and essential feature of Indian life is its spiritual leaning,

and as such, lndia can never be true to herself without it. Gandhiji feels that,though it is

fashionable among Western-educated, 'worldly' people to live without spirituality, for an

Indian to do so would be highly impossible as the blood which runs through his M y is

infused with spirituality from time immemorial. But to inculcate values associated with

spirituality in our children through the instrument of ducation has become a complex

problem in India because the secular aspect of our constitution has been either

misunderstad or wrongly comprehended by different denominations of religions making it

apparently impossible to intruduce 'religious teachings' because of its inherent divisive

nature. Different committees and Commissions have tried to bye-pass this problem by

wining different terms such as 'moral education', 'Value education' 'Spiritual

education','character education' etc. The compulsory inculcation of any dogma and

associated ethical lessons had been avoided by all the governments and Departments of

Education because of misconceived sensibilities of people. Gandhiji himself excluded

religious education from his Basic Scheme of Education because:

-'Religious instruction in the sense of denominational religion has been deliberately omitted. Unless there is a state religion it is very difficult, if not impossible, to provide religious instruction as it would mean providing tbr

every denomination" 1.

Yet Gandhiji further adds:

"l'he question of Religious Education is very difficult, yet we cannot do without it. lndia will never be godless. Rank atheism cannot flourish in this land"2.

But to my mind religious education need not pose any possible threat of controversy

as to the fact that the essence and existence of Indianess is Indim spirituality. Spirituality is

the central theme itself within the Indian culture. To my mind spirituality in Indian context

mans much more than mere transcendental aspirations towards a supreme reality or

ultimate Ontological being; it practically ought to mean authentic human existence on a

value-virtue basis. Indeed, Indian culture also includes the fikgyatas and Ckik'as; who

may not agree with the idea of a supernatural as the central point; and to this extent wc must

also remember that Indian religions are manatered and not God-centred. There is no

doubt that the transcendental longing plays a very vital aspact in Indian spirituality, but, the

spirituality also has very definite translations in the mundane plane as well. 1 would like to

emphasize the point that Indian spirituality must be understood in this wider sense that also

includes the lokayatas.

ARer giving the wider meaning to Indian spirituality, we ought to proceed into

making a distinction between narrow understanding of religion; wide understanding of

religion (Religiocity-Religion), Theology and spirituality within a given religion, surface

religion and deep religion etc. From this, it must not be very dimcult for us to create a

curriculum that shall impart spiritual education to Indian students. An Indian must

understand his respective religion, his duties and responsibilities as a good religious person.

Similarly he must also understand other religions and about how they too function at

practical level. An lndian ought to transcend the narrow interpretation of religion that erects

fences around his world, and the only way to really transcend narrowness of religion i s to

know one's own and other's religion equally.

Therefore, the fear that religious education would create religious conflicts is totally

unfounded; on the contrary, it wit1 pave ways for religious co-existence through mutual

respect in a meaningful manner. I have to give just one caution here; the responsibility of

religious education must never be given to religious leaders or elders; they should never be

allowed to interfere; it must exclusiveiy be the right of pure academics. Religious and

spiritual leaders must only be allowed to interact with people who already have considerable

knowledge in the area of religion.

Given this, 1 wonder why we cannnot make training in spirituality a compulsory

phenomenon to Indian students. All, educationists, philosophers, politicians, Religious

leaders, unanimously agree that religious education, if imparted properly, could help in

character development. The supreme need for character was well explained in our epics such

as RhByqa, Ma@bh'aata etc, In 'R'lm'ytup'', R4m is depicted as an ideal person because

of his exemplary character. Valluvar, in ancient Tamil literature dating back to nearly two

thousand years ago, also emphasize the need for having good character:

"Character alone produces happiness, Good character sows, the seed, out of which happiness sprouts forth, but bad character will give eternal sorrowu3.

Gandhiji considered education as a tml for character development, habit formation

and a source of nourishment for M y and mind. He maintained that literacy is not the end of

education nor even the beginning. lt is only one of the means for education. He would

therefore begin a child's education by teaching it a useful craftwork, not merely mechanically

as is done today, but scientifically, i.e. by teaching the child the why and the wherefore of

every process. Burtrand Russell who considered that education should foster the four virtues

of vitality, courage, sensibility and intelligence also echaes this view. Ganhij i believed that

values can be instilled in a person only through conscientious practices, and in the case of a

child, unless it is woven in his education p m s s it will be of no consequence; and colleges

founded by M&itma Gandhi aimed at developing these aspects of the child-the mind, the

heart and the skill to use one' hands. The child knows with his mind, lives with his heart, and

creates with his hands. Unless we provide training in these three areas, the child's education

remains incomplete.

According to NPE (National Policy on Education) 1986, one of the key roles of

education should be the creation of a work culture at all stages o f education so that the

individuals develop into swially useful human beings with respect for the welfare of all

living beings (sarva bhGta hita). Above all else, critical appreciation and concern for the

cultural and artistic heritage of the country has to be instilled amongst the students. It is this

package of values which will help the creation and sustenance of an enlightened and humane

society in the country.

5.2. What are Values ?

Values are those standards or d e s of conduct conditioned by one's cultural tenets,

guided by conscience, according to which one is supposed to conduct himself and shape his

life-pattern by integrating his beliefs, ideas and attitudes to realize the cherish4 ideals and

aims of life. 'Value' literally mearts something that has a price, something precious, dear and

worthwhile; hence something one is d y to suffer and sacrifice for. That is, values are a set

of principles or standards of behaviour.

Values are regarded desirable, important and held in high esteem by the society. Thus

values give meaning and strength to a person's character by occupying a central place in his

life. Values reflect me's personal attitudes and judgements, decisions and choices, behaviour

and relationships, dreams and visions. They influence our thoughts, feelings and actions.

They guide us to do the right things.

Values are guiding principles of lifqhich are conducive to all-round development.

They give direction and firmness to life, and bring joy, satisfaction and peace to life. Values

are like the rails that keep a train on track d help it move smoothly with direction. In fact

they bring quality to life. High values lead to objective, fair, correct decisions and actions

and ensure welfare of all concerned. Low values do exactly the opposite.

5.3 Need for Value Education.

One of the noticeable changes that tcak place in lndian society since independence is

the breakdown of spiritually-oriented traditional values without appropriate substitutes. The

materialistic value system which was promoted in tbe name of 'modernization' has only

helped in making people greedy in terms of power and wealth. In all spheres of life - politics,

economy, religion, education etc. we lack proper role models to guide the hture generation

as everybody practices 'doublespeak' as a way of life. Words no more spring out from the

depth of one's heart,but are intelligently manipulated to suit personal motives. It has become

possible to 'buy' mybody, only question is about the extent of payment. Bureaucracy,

politics and even religion are no more above the influence of market forces. Yet one often

hears the cry for values and morality h r n ali sides; in fact it bas become incumbent on

public men to talk of values and morals in public and to practice the opposite in private. It

seems that everybody wants the " other" to have values and virtues, but not for himself.

Thus we can see that over fifiy years of education after independence did not make

us better human beings. The question which arises is 'at whose doorsteps can we place the

blame for the decadence of character of our population as a whole'? It was Plato who for the

first time noted that the system we get is what we deserve. Do we not deserve a better India

in terms of morality and values ? In Economic, Scientific and Technological terms lndia has

progressed a lot but we seem to have paid for this progress with values and moral terms. The

root cause for the depreciation of values may be traceable to the disregard we paid to the

advises of our religious leaders and educationists who clamoured for man-making, and

character-building education instead of pursuing a trpe of education which promoted

economic development at the cost of human development. Through 'Value Education' we

should teach our children to feel for others, to love their own country and people, and to

respect their superiors. In addition, 'Value Education' should awaken in the students the

appropriate moral, aesthetic and cultural sensibilities, should enhance their ability to reflect

with an open mind on moral issues and to develop concern for and commitment to live by

the values. In spite of all academic achievements among our people, what is essentially

lacking in most of them is emotional maturity.

"In the opening pages of the Annual Publication of the United Nations

Children's Fund - The Progress of Nations, 1997, the foilowing passage appears :

"The day will come when nations will be judged not by their military or economic strength, nor by the splendour of their capital cities and public buildings, but by the well-being of their peoples; by their levels of health, nutrition and education; by their opportunities to earn a fair teward for their labours; by their ability to participate in the decisions that affect their lives; by the respect that is shown for their civil and political likrties; by the provision that is made for those who are vulnerable and disadvantaged; and by the protection that is afforded to the growing minds and bodies of their childrenM4.

Like in a family, where the parents have a direct bearing on the values and morals of

the children; in any society, the Government, being the highest institution, has direct

209

inf luem on the value system of the country as all the other organisatiuns in the country

have to have a direct or indirect link with the government. The materialistic attitude of the

people and the mad scramble for luxuries in life had led invariably to corruption in society.

People resort to any means of accumulating wealth and fame. The result is the decline in

morals of the people or growing corruption in society. The corruption at the top has a

definite way of filtering down through dl the levels of society, and becomes a way of life for

all. Macaulay's 'Filtration Theory' worked very well in this respect. Paying bribes and getting

one's work done is becoming increasingly acceptable to everyone. Our entire value system

appears to betaking a tumble. Tn such a scenario, an obvious conclusion would be that in

order to survive or progress, one must bend one's principles.

Just as strong roots sustain a tree against dl natural hazards, a valuebased education

would q u i p an individual to face the vicissitudes of life with courage and equanimity.

Moral Science should not just seep into the m i d ; but it should spill into the heart artd touch

the very being. All Mim educatiofiists extolled the virtue of character development in their

schemes of education as can be see fim what Gandhij i had said:

"Literacy is not the primary goal of true education: it is the cultivation of character, and the development of the spirit; it is the education of the heart

not the head"5.

Swhi VivEkEnqda also echoedthe same conviction when he proclaimed :

"We want that education by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, the intellect i s expanded, and by which one can stand on one's own feet"'?

210

'%rough education, Tagwe had called on the individual to be in h m o n y with nature:

"The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with existence. This harmony is possibk through the realization of our kinship with ail the forces and phenomena of the universet'7.

Swumi Day%& echoed that true education should build up character so that man may

aIways walk in the path of righteousness.

t' Character or righteous living is the highest virtue. This i s the b a l l and

end-all of all reading and reciting, teaching and prw&ing"8.

For VinobZ Bhzve:

"The only right kind of educatiun is that which strengthens the forces of love and pWe"9.

BhagvZn Satya S i i B a a has this to say about the aim of education:

"Education must instill the fundamental human values; it must broaden the vision, to inclttde the entire world 4 all mankind. Education must equip man to live happily, without making others unhappy, to evaluate things, pleasure and possessions Gorrectly and without prejudice, and fix me's attention ever on the highest and the most precious achievement of all, the spiritual victory. The spiritual stream must flow in the hart as the source and spring of dl endeavour" 10.

Thus we can see that all Indian educationists, in keeping with their spiritual tradition,

rscomrnendsd inculcation of values as an integral part of education.

5.4 Present Education and Changes Needed.

The present formal method of ducat& lays too much stress on e~onomic

development of an individual ignoring the basic aspects of human development in a suciaf

milieu. This is because of the irtflt~rtce of Western Darwinian ideology of 'struggle fbr

existence and survival of the fittest' which has replaced the Eastern philosophy of mutual

caqaat ion for mmof i weal. To r;orrect this malady, we have to m k n t our educational

environment so as to provide the students with proper opportunities and resources for the

deveiopment of community-sense and habits of gmu-tion so that they rnwnot

become self-centered and care only f& their own good, but should shoulder their

responsibilities in activities meant for the collective good. Thus the interests of the

individuals and the needs of the society can be fully harmonized in the process of ducation.

To achieve this basic object of education, two changes will have to be introduced in

the entire system of education. The first of these is the change in the whale orientation of our

education away from the Macrtulian &wive of creating a 'class Indian in blood and colour

but English in taste, in opinion, in morals and intellect' who would ke interpreters b e e n

the British and the teeming millions over whom they ruled. If, as we know well, the

individual rn ind can be educated only by the cultural goods adequate to its own structure, it

is evident that the cultural goods of the group to which one belongs, in which orte is born

and W, must be the best means of its development and culture. Thus it is essential to

lndQize our whole educational system. It is essential to put an end to the recruitment of

young men to the ranks of the s+calM educated who are blind to the beauties of their own

art, deaf to the h~rriuriies of their own music, ashamed of their own language a d literature,

to whom all that is theirs i s m e . and ignoble, all that is foreign is as such noble and

sublime. It is essential so to change education as to render it irnpossibb that young men

should be d m n e d to live as foreigners in their own land, unable to speak in their own

tongue and impable of thinking their own thoughts; with h w e d speech on their lips,

with borrowed desires in their hearts.

The second thing that will have to be done is to do everything to make the an

instrument of character formation. It will not help us much if we change the subject matter

of instruction, and replace exotic instructions by our own cultural goods as instruments of

educatim. For a mere knowledge of cultural vdues is not emgh; our educational

institutions should give opportunities for practicing what they preach. They should provide

oppoftunities for strengthening the will, in its passive forms of diligence, patience,

perseverance and constancy by insisting on thoroughness in work and in its active

manifestations, m m l courage and practical initiative, by allowing as wide a f i ld as possible

of free activity of the pupils. We shall have to set abwt the difficult task of changing our

institutions of mere W-lemming into centres of coqmative activity where a sense of

social and political responsibility could be engendered in the ywnger generaions of our

country. It is time we gave to uur educational effort more edifying ideals of personal and

national existence; the ideals of justice and Fairplay, ideals of service for the good of the

whole of which one is a part, ideals of national solidarity, ideals of mperative endeavour,

subscribed to by our young men, healthy in M y a d M t h y in mind with a trained strong

wilt, a sound judgment, refined feelings, honest and frank, yet ~~s and tolerant, truthful

and trustwmthy. To this end we shall have to set about the task in dead e a s t of

transforming our educati~lal institutions from places of individual s e l f d i n g to places of

devotion to m i a l ends, from seats of themetical o~te -sdedmss into those of practical,

human many-s'hiedness, from centres of mere acquisition of krtowiedge to those of its right

use. With a view to m i e n t our edwtiortd system so as to inculcate values and to promote

character development amongst the products of the system, various committees and

oomrnissiuns have bscn constituted from time to time by the government and, at this

juncture,it would be appropriate to take a glance at the various recommendations of these

committees and commissions with reference to value education.

5.5 OK~ciltl Pdicy oe Valtle Edueatbu and Need of the Hour.

After India became independent, the Indian constitutiun in its Article 28 stated that

no religious instruction shall be provided in any educational institution wholly maintained

out of state W s . Cansidering this article and the secular character of the state, it became

difficult for state and aided institutions to have lessons in religious education.

The idea that rel igks education should be kept away from state-funded educatiunal

institutions strangled the spiritual aspirations of young Indians. Further it implicitly

permitted unaided agencies to carry wt religious education in any way they liked. This

indeed had catalyzed fundamentalism and narrow ways of W i n g at religion. The state of

India had sinned by staying away h r n religion in the name of secularism; what the st&

ought to have done was to involve itself in all religims equally by treating secularism as

equal respect to all religions instead of equal distance from all religions.

Further the article 28 of the constitution put a &boo on various committees appoint4

by Government of Mia to make explicit recommendations fw religiws instruction in uur

educational institutions. So these committees have made their recommendations under

concepts like 'Moral', 'Spiritual', 'Ethical', 'Social', - etc. values to be imparted, though these

values could be derived from various religions. k g h the need for value education has

been recognized by all, there is no msensus on content sutd methdulogy to be used for the

purpo=

Prim to independence, the Wardha Education Committee of 1939 considered the

questiun of Value Education and mmmmended that the State s h M provide facilities for

every community to give religious teaching when desired, but not at the cost of the state. The

Committee's guiding person, MaI@na G d h i msidered values as an inseparable

component in the full flowering and development of personality.

The M e d u m on Post-War Educational D e v e b p e n t (Sergant Report of 1944)

agreed that religion in the widest sense sftould inspire all education and stated that a

curriculum devoid of an ethical basis will pfove barren in the end. The Religious Education

Committee of the Central Advisory Board of Education, 1945, recornmended that spiritual

and moral teachings common to all religions s b M be an integral part of the curriculum,

and provisiun for instruction therein shoukl be the responsibility of the state.

After irtdepemknce, the University Education Comrnissiun of 1948, chaired by Dr. S.

Radhakrishnm, stressed that religion was a fundamental part of education and recommended

that ways and means be found to introduce s~lte form of religious education in sdmols and

colleges. He was strongly in favour of the opinion that religiws and mwal tewhing 4

practice were necessary to stop the current drift of India's ducated youth towards

indiscipline and immorality, skepticism and cynicism, atheism and nihilism. In the opinion

of the Committee's chairman:

"True religion is in the heart of man, not in man-made creeds. It believes in the spiritual nature of man, the essential divinity of the human soul. This is the basis of OW dem0~~8~y '* ] 1.

The University Education Commission emphatically stated thrtt:

"If we exclude spiritual training in our institutions we would be untrue to our whole historical developmentt'12.

The Secondary Educath Commission (1952-1953) considered the issue as a

sub-section under the main title of 'The Education of Character' saying that Religious and

moral instruction dm play an irnportstIlt role in the growth of character.

in the year 1959, Sri-Prakasa Cornmitte on Religious and M m l Instructiun was

appointed to deal with the subject afresh. The Committee recommanded that the

term'Religion' be replaced by 'Spiritual' so that it does not conflict with Article 28 of the

constitutbn. The Committee made thorough study of the issue and made recommendations

specifLing content and m e W for imparting spiritual values in educational institutions. The

Committee affirmed that:

"Many ills that our world of education and Society as a whole is suffering today, resulting in widespread disturbance and dislocation of life are mainly due to the gradual disappearance of the hold of the basic principles of religiun on the hearts of the people. The old bonds that kept men together, are fast loosening, various new ideologies that are coming to us and which we are outwardly accepting withait inwardly digesting their meanings, are increasingly worsening the situation. The only cure, it seems to us, is in the deliberate inculcation of moral and spiritual values from the earliest years of our lives. If we lose these, we shall be a nation without a suulf'13.

With this consideration the Committee gave a broad h m w o r k for instruction in mom1 and

spiritual values at different stages of education viz. Elementary, Secondmy and University.

The subject was again dealt with by the Indian Education Commission of 1964-'66,

also known as Kdhrtri Comrnisslon. I& report says:

"A serious defect in school curriculum is the absence of provision for education in moral and spiritual values. In the life of the majority of Indians, religion is a great motivating force and is intimately bound up with the formatk of character and the inculcation of values. A national system of education that is related to the life, needs and aspirations of the people cannot a f f d to ignore this purposeful f a . We recommend, therefore, that conscious and organized attempts be made for imparting education in social, moral and spiritual values with the help, wherever possible, of the ethical teachings of great religimst'~4.

It can be noted that the Indian Education Commission made a distinction between 'religious

education' and 'Education about Religions'. The fwmer is largely concerned with the

& d i n g s of tenets and practices of a particular religion in a particular fwm, a d it would not

be prxticable to provide this type of 'Religious Education' in respect of any religion to

pupils belonging to different religious faiths, given article 28 of the constitution. On the

other hand, 'Education about Religions' i s cmcerned with a tolerant study of a1 l religiuns so

that its citizens can understand each other better and live amicably together$ and this is

absolutely necessary in a muttireligious democratic state. The Education Comrnissiotl

recommended that such a course S A M highlight the fundamental similarities in the great

religions of the world and emphasis should be on the cultivation of certain broadly

comparable mwal and spiritual values. The Comrnissim observed:

"There will tx natural points of correlation between the moral values sought to be included artd the teachings of great religions ... All religions stress certain fundamental qualities of character, such as honesty and truthfulness, msideratiun for others, reverence for old age, kindness to animals and compassion for the needy and the sufferingWl5.

National Council of Educational Research and TrainingfNCERT) in its Curriculum

Framework (1975) made the Recommendation that the school currIculurn should have a cure

centering d the objective of character-building. The best way to do this is to help the

child to find the right road for his self-actualization and encourage him to follow it,

watching, suggesting, helping but not interfering.

The first National Moral Education Conference (198 1) organized in our country

adapted the following resolutions:

(i) A course on moral education in all classes up to high school stage in all schools should nm inculcating moral and human values in students to make them better and more useful members of the society;

(ii) M m l education should be a separate subject;

(iii) The content of moral education should include common ethical teachings of all great religirms highlighting their unity;

(iv) The syllabus for moraI education should include stories, Illustrations and events mainly frurn our own country and its litmatme from various religions, so that it leads to national inkgratlon;

(v) In higher classes, a course in comparative religion should be intduced as it wit l promote social harmony, a liberal attitude and a less fanatical attitude to religion.

The National Policy on Education W E 1986) approved by the Pariiament of India

highlighted the urgent need for value educatkm in view of the growing erosion of essential

values and increasing cynicism in society, With a well-designed curriculum content and its

transaction, it is possible to make education a fofceful tool for the cultivation of social arid

moral values.

The Rammurthi Committee Report (1990) recommeMled that imparting of value

educatiun should be an integral part of the entire educational process. The Report says:

''In recent times, there has been perceptible universal decline of basic moral values. The phenomem q u i r e s a special poignancy fur us in India considering our great civilizath and heritage" 16.

Report of the Core group on Value Education (1 992) has reiterated:

"Lack of serious and systematic effort on the part of the government to implement value-based education, in educational institutions could be traced to the confusion about the definition of values, no clarity abut the cormptual frame work, and the absence of a working model with its significance" 17.

In 1999 Prof. Murli Manohar Joshi, the Human Resource Development Minister had

constituted a panel to introdwe textbodrs for moral education for all classes &om standard

me to twelve. In 2'002 during a National Seminar on Philosophy of Value-oriented

Education, Prof. Joshi lamented that s k 18th century three factors contributed to the

decline in moral and spiritual values, and these three factors are 'Maucaulay', 'Materialism'

and 'Mercantile barbarism' which promoted unrestrain4 cmsumerism. During his speech he

reminded everybody about the contributims of M+qphi Daykanda Samwati, S w h i

VivEandada, Ma@tma Gmdhi, Gurudev ~avkdra Ngth Tagwe, 6; Aurobinda et. d. in

invigorating Indian Educational arena with spiritualism , paving the way for

character-building. He admonished the Educationists of the country to ensure that

knowledge does not get lost in information, and wisdom does not get lost in knowledge.

Prof. Joshi made it clear that valueoriented education should ultimately make one possible

to realize the 'Treasure Within' - the all-embracing Self and Universal Reality.

From this survey of Indian official documents belonging to post-i&pemknt era, it

is evident that no educationrtl expert has dismissed the necessity of 'religious' or 'moral' w

'spiritual' education in one form or other; though they, with the exception of a few have at

times used these terms in an inconsistent and ambiguous manner. It was only Dr. S.

Radhakrishnan who unhesitatingly and unambiguously used the tern 'Religious Education' in

his report of the University Education Commission (1948) without using such subservient

terminology such as ethics, Character, humanity, tolefance,social values etc. The reason was

that he fully understood that:

"any ethical theory must be grounded in metaphysics, in a philosophical conception of relation between human conduct and ultimate reality"l8.

As far as Indian Culture and heritage are concerned &re is an inseparable relationship

between what we call as 'religion', 'moral', 'social' or 'spiritual'. In Dr. Rrtdhakrishnm's

words:

"Religion is the soul's attitude, response and adjustment in the presence of the supreme realities of transcendent order; ethics deal with the right adjustment of life on earth, especially in human society. Both are rnotivatsd by a desire to live in the light of ideals. If we are satisfd, there is no meaning in 'ought'; if we are a species of passing phenomena there i s no meaning in Religion. Religion springs from the conviction that there is another world beyond the visible and the temporal with which man has dealings, and ethics require us t+t in this world with the winpelling vision of anothert119.

Dr. Radhakrishnan further reiterated:

"If goodwill, pure love and disinterestedness are our ideals, then our ethics must be deep-rooted in other-worldIiness. This is the great classical tradition of spiritual wisdom"20.

It is still high time for our educatimal experts, planners, administrators and

politicians to be impartial and fearless and rising above vested interests and prejudices to

rethink over the whole issue. More bookish knowledge of objective subjects is no bemr than

a machine, which though produces but cannot function on its own. This is why the

l3hagawadZ ta emphasized ' ~K&am vij&a sahitah' i.e. knowledge with wisdom (IX. I). It

implies that knowledge of objective subjects without initiation into higher objects of life is

incomplete. We must keep in mind that tempemmentally all segments of Indian population

are wedded to spiritualism, which i s again part of our national culture. The teaching and

mindfulness of such human values as patience, forgiveness, self-control, honesty, purity,

restraint of senses, wisdom, knowledge, mthfblness and abstention fiom anger pmpmded

by Manu as ten-fold attributes ( l a k ~ a s ) of religion have to find proper place in our

educational system; Mia's most urgent and immediate educational need is to adapt her own

early ideals of education to the modern changing condition.

5.6 What V a b s to Incnicate ?

Ancient India was a land of values as every one gave importance in life to

traditionally and culturally transmitted ideals and ideologies. The term 'right living' or

'Dh-mic life' as found in the four values of the Punt&th% @hama, Artha, K&rt and

Molcsa) meant to live doing one's d h m a in life, for which arth (wealth) and k-ma

(attachment) were of instrumental value, resulting in 'maksa' or liberation. M 6 k e is the

stage when one realized who he is or the stage wherein one identifies oneself with the

Universal Soul. For such a perm life is divine and he loves everything in this world as

himself. This type of love i s the universal love wherein parochial considerations disappear.

For attaining this stage man's thinking mind has to take a franscendentul leap which carries

him into a higher stage of consciousness wherein he wmes face to face with the realization

of all that has remained a dream throughart the ages. When the human mind is tethered to

wofMliriess this transcendental leap is impossible, and as a result people very rarely

experience mZkp or salvation. This meaning is conveyed in the Bible when Jesus said that

for a wealthy man to enter paradise would be as dimcult as a camel going through a

needlehole. So material wealth and attachment to it is a hindrance in achieving the supreme

virtue of m a p . Sri Krisna, . Sri Buddha, Sri Aurobindo, Swami Vivekanda, Gandhiji,

Ramakrishna Pmmhmsa - all have taught us that material wealth or worldly life does not

condw for m6kp or self-realization. Gandhiji can be considered as a person who had

achieved this state of human evolution as can be seen h m President Trumants comment at

the time of Mahatma's assassination:

"a giant mong men had fallen. The little man, so frail in appearance was a giant among men, measured by the greatness of his swl"21.

At a time w k n everybody is clamouring fm v a l d u c a t i o n , and at the same time

rejecting outright inculcation of sectarian religious values as per Article 28 of the

constitution, it is the humble opinion of this r emhet that we could introduce character

education in schools under the tit.le 'Gandhian values' since the M ~ ' a t m a lived by those n

values which he preached. 'Gandhian Values' are not sectarian and divisive, but universal

and unifying as they are derived not from any particular religion but synthesized fitom dmost

223

all major religions of the world so arto have a 'whole-life' world view. When one mentions

about 'Gandhian values', it would include all other values the different committes and

commissions had been using to bye-pass the sectarianism involved in them. 'Garidhian

values' are true to our cultural and bditiunal milieu and would be acceptable to every

section of Indian population.

When someone asked Gandhiji about the most important goal of education, he

replied:

"Character-building. I would try to develop courage, strength, virtue, the ability to forget oneself in working towards great aims. This is more important than literacy, academic learning is only a means to this greater end"22.

T h i s means that character is destiny. Character is that on which the destiny of a

nation is built. One cannot have a great nation with men of small chamcter. About this

aspect of character and character development, we can find mple leaming materials with

proper examples from all religious textbooks. In addition to these, Gandhiji had also spoken

and written extensively on every aspect of chareacter and values in life.

'Gandbian values' introduced in our educational system would help in infusing in

children an attitude of religious tolerma as Gandhiji's evening prayer included verses such

as:

Isvara Alla tera naam Mandir masj id tera d h m a Sabko sanmati de Bhagavm.

This, taught to children in its true spirit could help in fostering religious tolerance and also

love for other's religion.

Gadhian Values' included pragmatic principles for economic development also

which are in tune with our ancient Indian socio-philosophical tradition. His trusteeship

principle taught to children supported by old Mian saying 'all land belongs to Govinda'

could lay a strong foundation for equibable sharing of our countq's wealth. His principle of

bred- labour and his insistence that everybody should practice some sort of manual labur

for at least two burs a day could pave the way for a healthier and wealthier India. G d h i j its

pronouncement that those who do not work manually ace really thieving &om those who

work physically is a good lesson to students so as to instill dignity of labour in children.

'Gandhian value' of frugality in the use of natural resources is a value worth

instilling in this world which prides in extravagawe as a symbol of ecurmrnic prosperity but

not of humaneness. As Gandhiji pointed out India has enwgh for everybody's needs but not

fw everybody's greed. Those who share inordinate share of world's resources are really

stealing from the p o r who are not able to afford it. Gmdhiji's practice of sharing the

poverty o f the people,by renouncing things unattainable to ordinary people is worth

inculcating and emulating in ail spheres of m o m i c life in India. His economic principle

was 'we should not use things which our brothers are not able to affwd' is a value worth

instilling in every Indian who got a taste for uncontrolled consumption. At present, it seems,

market forces but not spiritual powers from above control us, W e are proud of being

'connected to the world' as the mobile phone companies run their advertisement.

It is high time that we pay ample attention to 'Gandhim Values' before we are

washed off from our moorings by strong currents of materialistic temptations. India is fast

becoming one of the most corrupt countries in the world where wealth is power, not virtue.

The spectere that hdia presents today can be well described by what Will Dumt says:

"Our culture is superficial today, and our knowledge dangerous, because we are rich in mechanisms and poor in purposes. The balance of mind which once came of a warm religious faith is gone; science has taka from us the supernatural bases of our morality, and all the world seems msumed in a disorderly individualism that reflects the chaotic fragmentation of our chamter. We face again the problem that harasssd %mates; how shall we find a natural ethic to replace the supernatural sanctions that have ceased to influence the behaviour of men? ... We are being destroyed by our knowledge, which has made us drunk with our power. And we shall not be saved without w isdomn23.

The Kothari Commission Report published in 1966 laid the highest stress on the

need for moral and spiritual education;and it has rightly pointed out that modernization of

education has to derive its strength from the strength of the spirit:& that the many social

and ethical conflicts that are caused now-adays in society, on accaunt of the weakening of

the social and moral values in the younger generations, can be remedied only by balancing

the knowledge and skills which science and technology bring with the values and insights

associated with ethics and religion at its best.

inculcation of 'Gandhian Values' in children would be sufficient enough as it would

include all other sub-ordinate values such as 'ethical values', 'cultural values', ' spiritual

values' etc. Ethical values help in character building and developing discipline in the

students. Cultural values enable the s t d e n t s to transcend the bounds of narrow sectarianism,

and develop equal respect for all faiths. Similarly spiritual values open the students vision to

the 'One Spirit', dwelling in dl and thereby u n i t e m with the whole mankind as one

family.

In addition to these traditional value systems 'Gandhirtn Values' are also quite

adequate to inculcate newly emerging values such as hygiene consciousness, campaign

against drugs, environmental conservation, Human rights issues, sharing of off-shore and

space wealth, solving issues associated with intemat~onal relationship and war-related

problems such as ethnic cleansing, ethics involved in proxy-wars, Euthanasia, Suicides, war

adventures in foreign countries, testing of newly invented high-tech weaponry etc.

Gandhiji believed that education in hygiene should form a major part of primary

schooling. He says that the teacher should be constantly watching the poor harijan children

whose nose, ear, nails, head, teeth, hair, eyes are dl full of dirt because many do not know

how to wash. Their education should consist in teaching manners, good speech and good

conduct. Teaching cleanliness should form the basic item in their education. ln connection

with hygiene, Gandhij i believed that the poor could not be liberated until they are fked from

the social evils like drug abuse and gambling. Gandhiji observed that:

"Opium and such other intoxicants and narcotics stupefy a man's soul and reduce him to a level lower than that of beasts. Trade in them is demonstrably sinfuln*4.

Gandhiji compared drugs and drinks to the spirit of devil:

"Drugs and drinks are the two arms of the devil with which he strikes his helpless slaves into stupefaction and intoxicationt'25.

So lessons in hygiene and social welfare can be included under the 'Gandhian

Values' incorporating examples from our contemporasy perid. One only need to take

Newspapers or cuttings from them to teach these lessons to the children.

Environmental conservation is a new value, which need to be emphasized in the

present situation as man's greed for wealth has resulted in over-exploitation of nature

disregarding sustainability of biological balance. The advancement in Science and

Technology along with the Baconian dictum that 'nature must be hunted down in to

228

submission' for human enjoyment and welfare paved the way for indiscriminate exploitation

and destruction of nature. This Western attitude to nature was contradictory to Indian

tmdition which regarded nature with utmost respect and called Earth the mother. Gandhiji

was in total agreement with Ruskin who advocated a type of education wherein:

"Every child, whether boy or girl, should learn the properties of pure air, clean water and pure earth, and should also learn how to keep air,water and earth pure or clean and know their benefitsM26.

J-Krishnamurthy, the famous Indian Educationist and Philosopher feels that our

attitude towards nature and its objects need to be changed. He says:

"Most of us are not aware of our relationship to nature. When we see a tree we see it with a utilitarian view- how to get to its shade, how to use its wood. Similarly we treat the earth and its product. There is no love of the earth, only a usage of earth. We have lost a sense of tenderness and sensitivity. Only in the renewat of that can we understand what is relationship. That sensitivity does not come by hanging a few pictures or by putting flowers in your hair. It only comes when the utilitarian attitude is put aside. Then you no longer divide the earth, then you no longer call the earth your or rnine"27.

Gmdhiji had similar views about nurturing a relationship with nature, and, keeping in tune

with this approach, insisted that we should only take minimum required things from nature

emphasizing the need for nature conservation.

In connection with Environmental Conservation, David Frawley speaks of the

problem connected with aggressive use of natural resources for economic purposes. He

speaks about the ignoble position man is in because he has allowed Technology to occupy

the driving seat. Technology or 'Machinery' in Gandhian terminology used for the purpose of

unlimited economic growth leads to the fast depletion of the non-renewable world resources,

pollution and problem of ecology. It also leads to the widening of the gap between the rich

and the poor because technology promotes enrichment of the few who have it by taking

wealth from the poor who do not have access to technology. Gandhiji argued that human

progress should be measured in overall horizontal growth and not based on unequal vertical

growth of the few at the expense of the poor majority. Frawley says that in this modern age

we extol the cult of consumerism but not producerism. We speak of economic costs but not

of biotic costs of producing things. Every unit of food that we produce really costs less in

human l abur but very much more in natural resources such as water, soil and air, about

which we even do not mention at all. We only come to notice about these 'unnoticeable

elements' of nature only when they do not shed their bounty on us. Frawley asks us whether

we cannot have a more viable and sustainable economic system. Perhaps application of

Gandhian Values and Ethics in our economic sphere could help in solving our environmental

and economic problems.

Another 'Gandhian Value' which is highly extolled and practised by Maatma was

the value of physical labour enunciated in the principle of bread-labour. According to the

principle of bread-labour, each individual must earn his bread by labourig with his own

hands and it is not an ideal arrangement that bodily food should be earned by intellectual

work. The body ought to be fed by the work of the body and this is the meaning of the phrase

'bread-labour: Gandhiji says:

"Render unto Caesar that which i s Caesar's, perhaps applies here as we1 ln2&.

Elsewhere he said:

"God created man to work for his food and said that those who are without work were thievesW29.

Gandhiji had this to say about those who earn their living by intellectual work:

"Mere mental, that is, intellectud labour is for the soul and i s its own satisfaction. It should never demand payment. In the ideal state, doctors, lawyers and the like will work solely for the benefit of the

society, not for self'30.

The value of manual labour or physical activity is extolled in Bible, here it is referred

as 'earning one's bread by the sweat of one's brow', and in the Bhagwad ~I t a it is called a

'yajfia' - a sacrifice. Valluvar, the ancient Tamil Poet who lived nearly two thousand years

ago praises manual work and says:

"They alone live who live by tilling the ground, all others but follow in their train and eat only the bread of dependencet'31.

Elsewhere in Tirukkural it is said:

"Ploughmen are the earth's axle-pin; They carry a1 1 the world "32.

This ancient Indian Value of Physical Work need to be compulsarily introduced in

our schools so as to generate dignity of labour among educated people who abhor physical

labour on the pretext that it is below their status to do manual labour. This attitude need to

23 1

be eradicated from the mind-set of our people if the country is to progress. Besides, physical

work helps in keeping the body healthy also. This value can be inculcated through

introducing 'Gandhian Values' in our educational institutions. On one occasion Gandhiji has

mentioned that a Barber's and a Farmer's job are as good as a Doctor's job because all these

activities help them to e m their bread - or help them to be independent in society. ~: ta

teaches us that any activity will have a liberating effect if done with detachment. in this age

where everybody is bargaining for better living conditions for the work they do to the society

this value of detachment can be taught along with value of physical activity.

The National Seminar on Value Inculcation (Nov. 2000 at Bhopal) made the

following recommendation:

"Work education emphasizing value education should be provided in one form or the other through all the liberal educative courses like Science, Social studies and hguages at all levels of educationt'33.

In addition to the value of work, other values can also be inculcated through work

Experience and they are:

(i) Dignity of Labour (respect for manual work and regard for manual workers) and work ethics.

(ii) Punctuality, reguf arity, sincerity, diligence, dedication, discipline, honesty, integrity etc.

(i i i) Self-reliance, coaperation, team work, perseverance, tolerance.

(iv) Deeper wncern for the environment, safety, health, hygiene and sustainable development.

(v) Quality consciousness, excellence and sense of perfation for production of globally competitive quality g o d s and services.

(vi) Self esteem through achievements in productive work and services.

(vii) Judicious use of the raw material and care of tools.

(viii) Sense of belonging, responsibility and commitment for the society and nation.

All these values can be subsumed and taught under 'Gandhian Values' with appropriate

examples taken &om Gandhijiklife or fiom our epics.

The lynchpin of 'Gandhian Values' is the principle of the subordination of the flesh

to the spirit. To Gandhiji, when he decided to do something on m o d ground, the body had

no veto. I f the flesh was weak it suffed or even died; it could not say no. Many a times

when Gandhiji rwrtsd to satyigdp on the prodding of his inner voice, no pressure on him

from outside or from his own health reasons was able to dissuade him from it. The Great

Socrates had also the same trait as Gandhi had. When the time for his death approached,

Socratest friends started to grieve and then Socrates advised them not to grieve as it is his

body that the rulers are killing, not the real person of Socrates as it is a soul which is beyond

the grasp of the Sophists.

"Death, Socrates contended, was nothing more than the separation of the soul from the body. Socrates tells his friends that those who rightly loved wisdom, practiced dieing md death to them was the least terrible thing in the world. A man who fretted h u t death was not really a philosopher, but a philosoma, not a wisdom-lover, but a

b0d~-lover"3~

The traditional Indian belief about death is given by gri Aurobind6:

"The self is not born and does not exist in the body; rather, the body is born and exists in the self. Even what we call the individual soul, is greater than its body and not less, more subtle than it and therefore not confined by its grossness. At death it does not leave its form, but casts it offt35.

The same argument is used by i r i Krishpa . . to persuade Arjuna to fight the KauravBs:

"Why do you worry; Fear what; Who can kill you; the soul neither takes birth nor it diest'36.

Gandhiji practiced this virtue of fearlessness as can be seen from the comment of Professor

Murray with regard to Gandhiji's strength:

"Be careful in dealing with a man who cares nothing for sensual pleasures, nothing for comfort or praise or promotion, but is simply determined to do what he believes to be right. He is a dangerous and uncomfortable enemy because his body which you can always conquer gives you so little purchase over his soul"37

Winston Churchil, the war-time British Prime Minister who had great dislike for

Hitler's Germany and Mahitma Gandhi vowed to destroy both. He ultimately triumphed over

Hitler's Germany but M.K. Gandhi's soul force succeeded in defeating and chasing away the

British born India. Gandhiji's idea of liberation or m b w also includes likration from all

types of fears and this is a value . ... . . wich need to be inculcated in students through education.

Socrates, ~ u r o b i n 6 , Gandhi, The G&, all ask us to be free from fear and this is in line with

the Indian psycho-philosophy which is 'I am the spiritlsoul which has a M y ' 'Aham

B W 2 r n i ' and'You are like that' - 'Tat t v h &in as against the Western thought ' 1 am the

body which has a soul'.

Another value which need to be inculcatd among students in this age of mass

consumerism is the traditional value of renunciation which was practiced by Gandhiji to

show his solidarity with the dispossessd. According to Gandhiji, possessions are an

encumbrance in the process of self-realization and therefore we have to renounce everything

for achieving the ultimate goal of life. Buddha renounced everything in life and self-realized,

Gandhiji kept only bare minimum of worldly things to sustain his small frame. All religions

extol the virtue of non-possession exactly the same way the Railway Bill Boards proclaim

'less luggage more comfort,' This is true even in our spiritual progress as shown by John

Banyan in his Pilgrims Progress. Jesus advised his followers either to choose between God

and Money.

"You cannot serve two masters; God and Money. For you will hate one and love the other, or else the other way roundM3*.

Spirituality and materialism are as immiscible as oil and water. Science and technology has

created so much material wealth that God's place in the life of ordinary people is taken over

by material goods. Everybody, even those who do God's business, is encumbered so much

that they are bogged down in this marshy world and make very little progress in the spiritual

realm. All types of heinous crimes are done for acquiring private property which prompted

the archenemy of private property, the French Anarchist Pierre Joseph Proudhorn to

proclaim that 'property is theft'. The Socialists wanted to transform society and looked at

private property as the main source of social evil. Gandhiji wanted the rich to be 'trustees' of

property given to them by God to be used for the welfm of all, Condemning the exploitative

character of modern economics Gandhiji said:

"An economics that inculcates m m o n worship,and enables the strong to amass wealth at the expense of the weak is a false and dismal science. It spells death"39.

Another point worth-noting at this juncture is that Happiness and contentment in life

for which everybody crave need not be completely dependent on wealth only. Materialists

believe that wealth would make one happy and contented in life. If this is so, the most

happiest people should be living in North America and Europe which are comparatively

richer countries. In a recent survey on Levels of Happiness in 65 countries by World Values

~urve#O shows that some of the p r e s t countries like Nigeria has the highest percentage of

happy people followed by Mexiw, Venezeuela, El Salvador. Peuto Rim etc, while Russia,

Armenia, and Romania have the fewest. The happiness index of U . S .A. is 1 6 , New Zealand

is 1 5, Australia is 20 and Britain 24th. In another survey conducted by Professors h r n

London School of Economics found that Bangladesh, one of the poorest countries in the

world has the happiest people followed by countries like Ghana, Latvia, Croatia, Estonia

and India-which m k s as high as 5th. In this survey U.S,A. ranked 46th and Britain 32 on the

list. This finding is further supported by the findings that countries iilke Japan, Netherlands

and Canada believed to be economically advanced countries have also failed to make their

people happy. The entire findings point to the fact that riches bring misery and that the poor

236

I are the blessed ones who represent God (Daridra NGyana). The 'Gandhian Value' of

renunciation ar non-possession finds ample support from these findings. Gandhiji believed

that love of God does not go along with luxurious way of life. The Indian tradition from time

immemorial had recommended renunciation as a way of life for self-realization. Support for

this view also comes horn the Tamil poet Valluvar:

Their greatness alone shines bright who, knowing both, choose renunciation"41.

Knowing both here means pleasures of worldliness and rigors of renunciation.

*Happiness' is a positive state of mind and it is wrong to assume that people of

immense rich are always happy. Happiness lies only in man's getting peace of mind and joy

flowing out of contentment in whatever he does. This means that peace and contentment of

mind are the real indicators of happiness. It was Goethe, the great German poet and

philosopher who gave nine requisites as his recipe for contentment and happy living:

"Health enough to make work a pleasure; Wealth enough to support your needs; Strength enough to battle with difficulties and overcome them; Grace enough to confess your sins and forsake them; Patience enough to toil until some good is accomplished; Charity enough to see some good in your neighbur; Love enough to move you to be useful and helpful to others; Faith enough to make real the things of God; Hope enough to remove all anxious fears concerning the futured2.

Another 'Gandhian Value' which need to be cultivated invariably in all is humility. It is a

curse among most of the learned men in India to be too proud of their scholarship and

assumption of omniscience and infallibility. This lack of humility among educated is a

cosmic tragedy as Prof-Whitehead observed:

"What 1 am objecting to is the absurd trust in the adequacy of our knowledge. The selfanfidence of learned people is the cosmic tragedy of civilization"43.

Similar example of pride or lack of humility can be found in the Upanishadic story of

Swetaketu and his father sage Uddalika, who taught one of the 'mahIWdqaa' or great saying

'That art thou' which made Swetaketu a humble person. Humility is also extolled by

Valluvar nearly two thousand years ago:

"Humility will place you among the Gods but the lack of it will engulf you in the deepest darknesst144

We should cultivate a sense of humility and cast off pride and egoism, both

individual and collective. The root evil in human history is pride, that we are the chosen

people called upon by providence to educate others and save them by converting them to our

own way of life. This type of attitude that 'we are right and our opponents are wrong' or the

attitude that we know we are not perfect but we are certainly better than our enemies. This

type of attitude certainly leads to fundamentalism and ultimate destruction. According to the

Greek poets, Hubris, the insolence of pride, is the root of all tragedy, personal as well as

national. History tells us that it is the nmesis of pride that brought down the Pharaohs of

238

Egypt, the rulers of Greece, the Emperor of Persia, the Caliphs of Bhagdad, the Popes of

medieval Rome, the Talaban of Afghanistan, Saddam of Iraq, Shah of Iran. Only the

arrogant believe that they have enough wisdom and virtue to rule the rest. Providence has a

way of punishing those who ignore the great realities of the world - the dignity of man, the

sense of human equality and the right of all people to fredom. Once these p a t realities are

properly understood one would be humble in behviour. For inculcating the value 'humiliry',

during the Vedic and Buddhist education the 'ii.Tyk' had to undertake compulsory period of

begging for their own food and foad for the master. The vows undertaken during the period

of mendicancy were sufficient enough to instill humility in students. During this period of

material profligacy, nobody feel the need far this value of humility. Moreover the

advertisements in TV and other news media, such as 'Enniturn unde chmkuttarn' ( I too am

courageous), pave the way for inculcation of vices such as hubris.

Another 'Gandhian Value' worth inculcating in schools is the religious inclusiveness

of Gandhiji. Reverence for all religions, the desire to understand the best in each and an

almost intuitive realization of the essential unity of them all were planted in Gadhi is mind

right from his childhood. His religious inclusiveness went all the way as can be seen f h m

his statement:

"If a man reaches the heart sf his own religion, he has reach4 the heart of others too. There is onty one God, but there are many paths to ~irn"45

The Indian tradition had been that of inclusiveness in matters of religion as

can be seen h m the ve'dic verse:

"That which is one Truth the sages teach in various waysn46

An epitome of religious inclusiveness can be seen in the following ~Ttas teaching: 'Even

those who worship other Gods worship me'.

Respect for different religions has no real meaning in religions today. Hatred for

others is a theological requirement of these ideologies. That not all their followers are good

haters is another matter; it only shows that men are often better than their received doctrines.

The teaching 'Sarva dharma samahbgva' teaches us a high degree of inclusiveness, and its

source and sustenance is the Sanztana Dharma which advocates us to see God and goodness

and friends in all.

The religions which came to India brought with them elements of religious

exclusivism which paved the way for fundamentalism and religious intolerance. For

example:

"There is no God but Allah and Mohammed is the final prophet"

Or

"Jesus is the only son of God" 47.

Both these religions believe that their's is the only true religion and aggressively seek to

convert the world to their beliefs. The adherents of such religion is taught from i ts cradle that

my religion is the only true religion; that my scripture is the only true word of God, that my

prophet is the only genuine messenger of God; the rest are frauds. Every religion is intolerant

of apostasy. ln the words of Dr.S. Radhakrishnan:

"we have enough of religion to hate one another, but not enough to love one anothert'48.

The m e d y for religious exclusivism and fundamentalism lies in teaching Gandhiji's

approach to different religions as different paths leading to the same God! A comparison of

the moral and ethical teachings of different religions show that the basic concepts in all of

them are similar. A Great Master of Wisdom states:

"Once unfettered, delivered from their dead-weight of dogmatic interpretations, personal n m e s anthmprmorphic conceptions and salaried priests, the fundamental doctrines of all religions will be proved identical in their esoteric meaning - Osiris, Krishna, Buddha, Christ, will be shown different names for one and the same royal highway to find bl iss:~irv&a"~~.

Living in this age of globalization and in the ever-shrinking global village, it is necessary for

humanity to have an understanding of comparative religion as this would lead to universal

spirituality. Love, compassion and selflessness are common teaching of all major religions

of the world. If peace is to be brought in this world, these teachings should pervade the

world transcending religious, cultural and national boundaries . Teaching 'Gandhian values'

to our students in educational institutions will conduce this.

The National Council for Educational Training and Research (NCERT 1979)

suggested a list of 84 values to be included in the curriculum of schools for value.

incul~tion, These values in the alphabetic order are:

Assistance 2.Appreciation of Cultural values of others,

Anti-untouchability, 4. Cause, 5. Citizenship,

Consideration for others, 7.Concern for others.

Co-operation, 9. Cleanliness, 10. Compassion,

Common Cause, 12. Courage, 13. Courtesy, 1 4. Curiosity,

Democratic decision-making,lli. Devotion, 17. Dignity of the individual,

Dignity of manual work,

Duty, 20. Discipline, 2 1 . Empathy. 22. Endurance

Equality, 24. Friendship, 25 .Faithfulness

Fellow-feeling, 27. F d o m , 2 8 . Forward look,

Good manners, 30, Gentlemanliness, 3 1. Gratitude

Honesty,33.Helpfulness, 34. Humanism, 35. Hygienic living.

Initiative, 37. Integrity, 38. Justice, 39. Kindness

Kindness lo animals, 4 1. Loyalty to duty, 42. Leadership

National Duty, 44. National Consciousness 45. Non-violence,

National Integration, 47. Obedience, 48. Peace,

Proper utilization of time, SO.Punctuality, 5 1. Patriotism,

Purity, 53. Quest for knowledge 54. Resourcefulness

Regularity, 56. Respect for others, 57. Reverence for old age,

Sincerity 59. Simple living 60. Social justice,

Self-discipline, 62 .Self-help, 63. Self-respect,

Self-support, 65. Self-confidence, 66. Self-study

Self- reliance, 68. Self-control 69. Self-remint,

Social-Service, 7 1. Solidarity of mankind,

Sense of social responsibility, 73. Sense of discrimination between god and bad,

Socialism, 75. Sympathy,

Secularism and Respect for all religions.

Spirit of inquiry, 78. Teamwork,79.Team spirit

Truthfulness , 8 1 . Tolerance, 82. Universal Truth

Universal love, 84. Value for National and Civic property.

Later, in 1986, National Policy on Education suggested ten additional values:

1 . History of India's freedom movement

2. Constitutional obligation

3. Classical content essential to nurture national identity

4. Indian common cultural heritage

5. Equalitarianism

6. Equality of sexes

7. Protection of Environment

8. Removal of Social barrier

9. Observance of small family norms

l0.hculcation of Scientific trends.

It can be seen that d l the 94 values mentioned above can be subsumed under

'Gandhian Values' and examples for these values can be found h r n Gandhiji's life itself or

from our puranas or other religious texts. Gandhiji's life was comparable to that of Socrates,

Buddha, Jesus Christ, Mahavire and Gandhism would have achieved the status of religion,

had Gandhiji not advised his followers from mystifying his life. Unlike Christian Values,

Vedic Values, Buddhist Values, Sikh Values etc. which have m e elements of ex~lusivism

in them, Gandhian values speak of indusivism and Universalism in its very broad sense.

Gandhiji's Universalism gasped in its full extent would enable one to have a whole-life

view of the world which conduce for perfect bliss in life. 'Gandhian Values' are socially

desirable values to promote the country's socio-cultural identity and to contribute to national

cohesion,promote tolerance, scientific temper and the concerns enshrined in the constitution.

5.7 Potential Caum for Conflicts.

Human beings around the world have many different systems of values, but four such

systems are noteworthy as being part of the causes of present strife or part of a potential

solution to that strife. Those value systems and their characteristics can be summarised as

follows, each named by the dominant valueldisvalue the system identifies:

(i) Obedience./Revolt- These are the primary value and disvalue of the Abrahamic Semitic

religious tradition, exemplified by Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Specific examples in that

tradition are many:

* Adam & Eve disobeyed by eating a forbidden fruit in the Eden Garden

* Satan revolting against God and being thrown out of Heaven.

* Abraham's sacrifice of his son-obedience

* Israelites disobedience of Moses Codes by worshipping golden calf.

'Islam' - means 'submission to God'; 'Muslim' means one who has submitted to God.

(ii) FreedornlBonda~e - These are the primary value and disvalues of the Modernist

tradition, which is expressed in such philosophical views and movements as deism, secular

humanism, and Democracy. The modernist tradition has its roots in ancient Greece,

exemplified there by the willingness of Socrates to die by drinking hemlock rather than to

give up his freedom to inquire into the nature of things and freely to teach others. In more

recent times,the Four Freedoms enunciated by Franklin D. Rossevelt during WWlI asserted

the right of every person in the world to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom

from want, and freedom from fear.

In the Western world, the Modernist valuation of freedom largely replaced the

Abdamic valuation of obedience. But in the Middle -,the valuation of obedience

continue to be primary in most Muslim culture. These two valuationsare practically

opposites- and it was therefore inevitable that these two wme into conflict.

(iii) Knowledgeflgnorance - These are the primary value and disvalue of that part of

Indo-European tradition that stretches from India to ancient Greece. The value of knowledge

is exemplified in the Upanishadic story of SvGtakEtu, the Brahmin's son who learnt much in

his formal ducation - but failed to learn that, (tat) knowing which, it is not necessary to

know anything else- and whose father then instructed him in what is most important to

know, namely his own identity and nature, by the aphorism 'tat tvarn asi' (Thou art That'),

the ground of all being. Similarly, Buddha's quest for enlightment about the reality of old

age, illness and death ended under the B6dhi Tree, the tree of knowledge, when he gained

clh

insight into life and what is greater than life. Enlightenment in the indktradition is attained

by acquiring 'jiiina'(know1edge) and overcoming ajBha(ignorance).

Greek culture likewise valued knowledge. It is said that over the portal to the shrine

of Appollo at Delphi was inscribed the injunction 'Know Thyself. And Greek Philosophy,

which became the basis of all the philosophies of the West, was concerned with arriving at

True Knowledge- not so much knowledge about particular things, but knowledge about the

nature of reality. So knowledge remained as a high value in ancient and modern India as well

as in Western thought.

(iv) Harmonyfdiscord-These are the primary value and disvalue of the Far Eastern Sinitic

culture of China, Korea and Japan. They are illustrated in Confucianism, Taoism, Zen and

Shinto. This valuation of harmony can be seen in all the philosophies, religions, and

practices that developed in Sinitic culture. The Sinitic tradition is least like the other three

because it values the aesthetic above the intellectual or the active, the yin above the yang. It

recognizes that order and beauty are the same thing (a recognition also implicit in the Greek

word cosmos, which means 'the universe', 'order' and'beauty').

Gandhij i highly cherished all the values mentioned above - obedience, freedom,

knowledge and harmony; and worked very hard to avoid the corresponding disvalue-revolt,

bondage, ignorance and discord. Gandhiji believed in resolving conflict situations through

dialogue which paved the way for a win-win situation. Examples of the use of dialogue for

conflict resolution can be seen in many instance throughout Gandhiji's life.

5.8 Value Conflicts in Education.

Even though we have reached a consensus regarding the values to be inculcated

through education, during the actual process of education what we wnvey is, in most of the

time, in variance with what we teach. For example, Gandhiji believed in a society which

works on the principle of co-opemtion and sharing. This value, if we have to teach, we all

should practice. We should work co-operatively in society and also share with others what

we have. But in the real life situation, what we experience are competition and thieving.

Students are competing for grades, and awards, adults are competing for promotion jobs,

fame etc.; instead of sharing wealth, everybody is accumulating it. We may name the first set

of values, that is what we teach, as "normative value system" and what we practice as

"pragmatic value system." The variance between these two sets occurs because the social

environment exerts great influence. We are taught not to lie, but during the course of life we

lie a lot. Those teachers who teach one thing and do another thing are not respected. For

somebody to teach values, they should have those values in action i.e. there should be unity

between speech and practice, i.e, a unity of thought and actions.

Now let us look at the i'Normative Values" which people in India used to practice

from ancient times. We had been advised by Manu to practice stoic values of patience,

forgiveness, self-control, honesty, purity, restraint of senses (winning over senses) wisdom,

knowledge, truthfulness and abstinence from anger-a ten -fold attributes (lakpqa). These are

the values, which are supposal to be inculcated in children through education, observing

which one should live his entire life to attain the ultimate aim of life. But after the

introduction of foreign ideologies and value systems into our land, especially the Darvinian

concept of 'survival of the fittest' along with the advent of industrial revolution, market

economy etc., these values were found incompatible with the materialistic attitude fostered

by them. This led to a value conflict in the society and the children were more influenced by

what is socially practised (hidden curricu1um) than what is taught in he classrooms according

to the official curriculum. When the educational content attempted the reinforcement of

VEdic values, the forces of social life gave emphasis to the materialistic values. Another area

of value conflicts is in the area of scientific rationalism which conflicts with many of the

theological concepts. So what is needed in our educational system is to resolve the value

conflicts, and this would bring about harmony between speech and practice a3 advised by

Gmdhiji. Herein comes the importance of imparting 'Gandhian values' to our students. The

content of education should be brought in harmony with the present world we live in i.e. we

should contextualize the content of education, if education is to be effective in tramforming

society. For this, people of Gandhiji's stature ace needed to evolve practical concepts fmm

theological precepts to inculcate social values such as friendliness, co-operation,

compassion, selfdiscipline, courage and love for social justice. Truth, righteous conduct,

peace, love and non-violence are the core universal values. They are the foundation for

building any value based education programme. These five values represent the five domains

of human personality intellectual, physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual - and are

co-related with the five major objectives of education viz. knowledge,skill, balance, vision

and identity.

5.9 Methods to Inculcate Values

According to Plato's Theory of Knowledge, early education and training places

over-emphasis on sense perceptions and thinking or reasoning based on these perceptions,

resulting in a fragmented view of nature. In doing this the mind works a lower level. To have

perfect knowledge would require the mind to grasp the inter-relationship of everything else;

that it should see the unity of the whole reality. Perfect intelligence represents the mind

working at a higher level, independent of sense objects. It is by the power of dialectic that

the mind moves towards its highest level, whence it gains the power of seeing at once the

relation of all things in the universe. Perfect intelligence, to Plato means the attainment of

synoptic view of reality and implies the unity or interconnectedness of knowledge. What it

means is that the mind is able to work at different tevels in grasping concepts of different

natures such as scimces, mathematical derivations, value concepts, absolute perfection etc.

Hence there cannot be any single specific effective method for teaching values, but a whole

lot of methods wu1d be effectively used for this, as stated Mow:

"The educative process for value-orientation will be effective and efficacious only through multi-pronged Whing &ategiesdO.

In tune with the recommendations of Sri Prakasa Committee (1959), The Education

Commission(l964) also recommended certain ways and means to implement the social,

moral and spiritual values in the education system through indirect aswell as direct methods.

The School Assembly, The Curricular and co-curricular activities, the celebrations of

religious festivals of all religions, Work Experience, team games and sports, subject clubs,

Social Sewice Programmes etc, were recommended to prove as indirectly helpfhl in

inculcating the values of co-operation and mutual regard, honesty and integrity, discipline,

and social responsibility. Under direct methods it was recommended that one or two periods

a week should be set aside in the schwl time-table for instruction in moral and spiritual

values according to the tastes and standards of the students at the primary stage and the

seconday stage. Another line of action could be on the assumption that values are better

caught than taught, to consciously plan and structure the various programes, activities,

procedures, human interactions and the Campus Culture in general in such a way as to

breathe and manifest wholesome values which the college community would hopefully

imbibe and assimilate through self-learning by means of the hidden curriculum of the total

cojlege experience. And yet another important strategy could be to facilitate the exploration

and discovery of values in and through the study of various academic subjects, preferably on

inter-disciplinary basis, by ethical inquiry and critical evaluation. Fox, example, in case of

Science, values such as integrity, reverence to truth, accuracy, thoroughness, objectivity,

open-mindedness, sensitivity to and awareness of possibilities of bias and of errors in

observation and recording of facts. Social studies aims at developing Socialism, Secularism,

nationalism, equality, social justice etc. The teachers should understand the values inherent

in the subjects and try to highlight those values while tmhing.

Regarding the forces of education in value-formation, much clear thinking is

required. In the task of vdusfomation of students there are two distinct steps that have to

be taken by an educational institution, One is making available to the students appropriate

reading material eg. biographies and views of great men who had before them certain values

and ideals of life and who practiced them against ail odds and making all sacrifices including

in some cases even their very life. The other and the most important thing is to make

education, as far as possible, an effective agency of value-orientation in the institutional

ethos and personal examples provided by the teachers. 'The institutional ethos is huilt up

primarily by the values that the organizers and the heads of the institutions actually practice

while running the institution. The teachers and other workers working in the institution will

naturally be influenced by the values practiced by the organizers and their heads who, by

personal examples, would be able to do a lot in developing a right type of institutional ethos.

The students would also have a role to play. It is a wrong concept of 'education' to treat the

students only at the receiving ends, and the faculty at the giving end. Educational process

involves an exchange of personality at both the ends, the students on the one and the teacher

on the other.

The values can be taught through traditional methods such as lecturers, text-books,

epics and several co-curricular activities and the young mind does catch them. But when he

finds elders and leaders in the society going the other way, he suffers from moral conflicts.

These conflicts may turn him into a morally debased person or a hypocrite who bears the

facade of morality and does everything immoral. Value inculcation can only be effective in a

society which is pervaded by values and this is the reason why Gandhiji insisted that all

spheres of one's life should be lived religiously. He advocated this and practiced it.

New Methodologies can be used for value education such as: symposia, case studies,

panel discussions, simulation games, dramatization (role plays, skits, mimes), surveys,

library research, field trips, interviews, photo language session, project work, debates, hat

speeches, nature walks, games, talent contests, organized career day, College and montages,

film shows, word association, seminars, using problem songs, creative writing, analytical

critical incidents, preparation of scrap books etc.

5.10 Major Challenges Faciug the World

(i) Gmupism/Division- Perhaps the greatest single cause of insecurity we are facing today is

that human kings are divided into groups - racial, national, religious, linguistic, economic,

political and professional - each group fighting the other for dominance.

(ii) The power unleashed by science and Technology - Today with our atomic, nuclear,

chemical and biological bombs we can decimate a whole nation in a matter of minutes; thus

no war is a local war anymore.

(iii) The environmental catastropbie - Depletion of the ozone layer, global warming,

industrial pollution, deforestation, soil erosion, nuclear fallout and overpopulation are some

of the serious catastrophies. The root cause of most of these is the attitude we have

developed towards Nature as a resource meant to be exploited for our benefit. Animals are

not looked upon as fellow kings, but merely as raw material for the meat industry.

(iv) Dictatorships - Most of the governments in the world, especially in the Third World

countries, are still dictatorships - military, communist, religious, or in the garb of democracy.

The very basis of dictatorship is the exploitation of the weak by the powerful. Not only at the

government level, but all dictatorship is evil, whether in an organization, a business or in the

family.

(v)Breakdown of family - The human child needs to be looked after and helped to learn for

a number of years. That is the responsibility a man and a woman share when they produce a

child. Today this co-operation between man and woman is breaking down in modern society.

Consequently, juvenile crime is on the rise.

(vi) The inertia in society - Society tends to replicate itself prejudices and illusions tend to

continue from one generation to the next, and so do the problems associated with them like

religious hatred, for instance.'

(vii) Role of Knowledge and Education- The major challenge facing humanity today are

not -due to a lack of education. They are created by highly educated and professional minds,

lawyers, business administrators, scientists, economists, military commanders, diplomats

and so on. We are producing lopsided human beings who are very clever, very capable in

their intellect, but Etlmast primitive in other aspects of life; top scientists and engineers who

can send people to the moon, but who may be brutal with their spouses; those who have a

vast understanding of the way the universe operates, but little understanding of themselves

or their lives. Scientific knowledge of the psycho-spiritual principles constituting the human

being is a necessary pre-requisite to ensure the emerging globalization phenomenon is

nonviolent, tolerant and coaperative. The knowledge of these principles has been preserved

and documented in the esoteric teachings of all the great religions of the world. Like

scientific theories corroborated by empirical and experimental findings, these great truths

about man and the universe have been repeatedly tested and established by generations of

seers with fully awakened possibilities and powers of consciousness. We shall attempt to

introduce some of these important truths of the ancient Wisdom in the light of modern

scholarship. Any amount of planning aimed at upliftingthe social conditions, however

adroitly engineered, cannot be operationally successful without an understanding and

appreciation of these underlying governing principles. It would merely tinker with the

symptoms, not eliminate the maladies.

5.1 1 New Responsibilities - Education in the 21st century must concern itself not with

greater 'progress' but with the transformation of the human consciousness so as to achieve

the following objectives.

(i) Crate a Global Mind, not a Nationalistic One - We are all citizens of the world and

share the earth as our habitat. We may work for local problems, but it is important to do so

with a global understanding.

(ii) Emphasize Human Development, not only Economics - we must not regard children

as raw material for achieving the economic progress of the nation. mucation must concern

itself primarily with the development of all aspects of human being - physical, emotional,

intellectual and spiritual - so that he or she lives creatively and happily as part of the whole.

(iii)Encourage Inquiry, not conformity - The child must be free to make mistakes and

learn for himself without the constant fear of being rebuked by an adult. Such a mind is

rational, flexible and open to change and not irrationally attached to an opinion or belief.

This implies the absence of all propaganda. The attitude 'Our country is the best country, our

culture is the best culture' is not desirable - it is propaganda, which divide people.

(iv)Cultivate C ~ p e m t i o n - Teamwork and the ability to work harmoniously with others is

more important than individual achievement. It is important that each individual does his

best, but it is not essential that it be better than another's best. The sense of competition that

we are encouraging in children today leads to envy, jealously and rivalry, and destroy love

and friendship. Therefore, it is evil.

(v) Create a Learning Mind Instead of an Acquisitive Mind - The awakening of

intelligence is more important than cultivation of memory, both in life and academia. The

feeling of love, respect, beauty and friendship cannot be taught, but like sensitivity, can be

awakened; this is an essential part of intelligence. It is important to create a mind that neither

accepts nor rejects an opinion or a view too readily, but can stay with the question, 'is it true'?

(vi) Create a Mind that is both Scientific and Religious in the True Sense - By

mistakenly equating religion with belief we have created an antagonism between science and

religion. Actually, they are both quests for truth in two complementary aspects of a single

reality which is composed of both matter and consciousness. A mind that is purely rational

and scientific can be extremely cruel and devoid of love and compassion. One that is only

religious (in the nmow sense) can be overtly sentimental, superstitious, and therefore

neurotic. Without this undeniable balance between emotion and the intellect, a mind is not

truly educated.

(vii) The Art of Living- We have equated quality of life with standard of living and we

measure this in terms of the GNP (Gross National Pruduct) or per capita income of people.

When we educate not for economic development but for human development, we concern

ourselves with the happiness of the individual as a whole, in which physical well-being and

comfort are a small but necessary part. The art of living consists in enjoying everything one

does, irrespective of the resuIts it offers.

(viii)Holistic Development of All Facnltie - Specialization must not be at the cost of

understanding what it means to live fully as a human being. Not only should thought-based

intelligence be developed, but also intuition-based intelligence.

5.12 Value Orientation in Teachers and Teacher Training Courses

The Education Commission reviewing the status of teacher education programme has

pointed out that:

"Of all the different factors that influence the quality of education and its contribution to national development, the quality, competence and character of teachers are undoubtadly the most significantM51.

The education imparted to children cannot be, in any way, better than the teachers.

So any large-scale programme of value education should begin not with students, but with

teachers, with motivational and training programmes for the teaching community and

educational administrators. Teaching of values is different from teaching other subjects such

a Sciences, Mathematics, Languages etc. Here the teacher himself has to practice the values

he teaches. His life can be a great message. A good teacher i s a friend, a guide and a

philosopher who could stir the minds of the children with new ideas, thoughts and

philosophy. In fact, the teacher's life should be the example and his way af living should be a

source of inspiration. It goes without saying that without good teachers, no amount of

theoritic education would prove effective.

The most important value a teacher should possess is to have a positive attitude. A

teacher with positive value has all the potentid to develop into a great teacher. A teacher

who lives by values exercises a profound influence on students. Prof. Kireet Joshi

emphasizes:

"The secret of teaching values is to inspire and kindle the quest among the students by means of one's own example of character and mastery of knowledge. It i s by ernbcdying values within ourselves that we can really radiate values to our students"fi2.

Teachers must embed in their mind that their behaviour, their dress and their habits

affect the students. Gandhiji seQa few rules to be observed by his teachers and they are:

(i) The vow of truth

(ii) The vow of ahirnsa

(iii) The vow of celibacy

(iv) The contrul of palate

(v) The vow of non-stealing

(vi) The vow of non-possession

(vii) SwadESi

(viii)Fearlessness

With reference to value education, a question which existed for long time had been:

Can values be taught ? William Bennet (I991), a prominent educationist echoed his

sentiment that character and values can be taught:

"If we want our children to possess the traits of character we most admire, we need to teach them what those traits are"53.

Despite this finding, Bennett laments that Teachers' Training Courses do not give needed

attention to character imparting methodologies.

"One of the stumbling blocks preventing schools from embracing character education is that few teachers have been prepared for this work ... Charactler

259

education is far more complex than teaching maths or reading; it requires personal growth as well a s skills development. Yet teachers typically receive almost no pre-service or in-service training in the moral aspects of their craR. Many teachers do not feel comfortable or competent in values dornaid"'4.

Tagore's aphorism that 'only a burning light can kindle other lilghts' is also true with regard

to value education; only a teacher who has values can only impart values to children. At

present,wide gap exists between the teaching competencies needed for value inculcation and

the competencies he possess. So our main solution would be to strengthen our teacher

education programmes in relation to value education. The NCTE, in its Teacher Education

Curriculum Framework (1978) gave a fairly good and comprehensive set of guidelines for a

functional valus-orientation of our teacher-education programmes and called for developing

'Gandhian Values' in the teacher-trainees.

1. A. Biswas & Agganval J.C. 'Seven lndian Educationists', Arya Book Depot, New Delhi, 1998 p.155.

2. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Education', Navjeevan Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 1953, p.50.

3. Gopinath Jdajah, 'Ethic Literature in World Language and in Tirukkural', M .K. University Pub1 ications, Madurai 2000, p.8 5 (Kural No. 1 3 8)

4. Joy Vazbayil, 'Reflections on the Philosophy of Education', National Council of Educational Research and Training, 200 1, p.20.

5. Glyn Richards, 'Ganhiji's Philosophy of Mucation', Oxford University Press, 2001, p* 1 2.

6. Aggarwal J.C.'Theory and Principles of Education', Vikas Publishing House, Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi, 1985, p.206.

7. Teneja V.R. 'Educational Thought and Practice', Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1993, p.165.

8. Aggarwal J.C. 'Theory and Principles of Education; Vikas Publishing House, Pvt. Ltd, New Delhi, 1985, p.185.

9. Vinoba Bhave, "Thoughts on Education', Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan, Vamasi, 1996, p.38.

10. Chitkara M.G. 'Education and Human Values', APH Publishing Corporation, New Delhi, 2003 p. 1.

1 1 Aggarwal J.C. 'Theory and Principles of Education', Vikas Publishing House, Pvt.Ltd, New Delhi, 1985, p.275.

12. Ruhela S.P. 'Human Values and Education', Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd., Banglore, 1986, p.56.

1 3. Aggarwal J .C.'Theory and Principles of Education', Vikas Pub. House,Pvt.Ltd, New Delhi, 1985, p.283.

16. Biswal Ashutosh, 'Value Orientation in Teacher Education' in Value Education (ed)Venkatatan N .D. 1 998, p. I 8 1.

17. Bharat Singh Negi, 'Educational Institutions and Human Valuest ,Employment News, Feb 14-20, p. I .

18. Ruhela S. P., 'Human Values and Educationf,sterling Pub. Pvt.Ltd, Banglore 1986 ,p.59.

19. Ibid p.59

20. Ibid p.59

21.Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, 'Mahatma Gandhi- Essays and Reflections , Jaico Publishing House,New Delhi 1995, p.337

22.Ramjee Singh 'Gandhi and Modern World', Classical Publishing House, New Delhi, 1988, p.223.

23. Joy Vazhayil, 'Reflections on the Philosophy of Education', National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2001, Preface ix. 24. Anupam Sengupta, 'Two Greats', Metro Publishing Company, Ghaziabad, 200 1 ,p. 1 1 1

26. Raghavan Iyer (ed) 'The Moral and Political Writings of Mahatma Gandhi', Clarendon Press, Oxford 1986, p. 104.

27. Pupal Jayakar, 'J.Krishnarnurthy - A Biography', Penguin Books, Calcutta, 1986, p. 154.

28. Shastri Prabha sharma, 'Gandhian Holistic Economics', Concept Publishing Company, New Delhi, 1992, p.112.

29. Romain rolland, 'Mahatma Gandhi', Publications Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Govt.of India, 1924, p.85.

30. Shastri Prabha Sharma,'Gandhian Holistic Economicst, Concept Publishing Company, New Delhi, 1992, p. 1 12.

3 1. Jalajah Gopinath, 'Ethic Literature in World Languages and in Tirukkural', M.K. Univ. Publications,Madurai, 2000, p.47.

32, Sundaram P. S. 'Tiruvalluvar - The Kural' , Penguin Books, Delhi, 1990, p.124.

33. Singh D.P. 'Value Education Through Vocational Education', lndian Journal of Vocational Education, NCERT, New Dlhi, 200 1, p.56.

34. Kamath, M.V. 'Philosophy of Life and Deathf, Jaico Pub. House, Kolkata, 2002, p.75.

35. Ibid. p.70

36. Sharma O.P., 'Gita-In-Action-Indian Insight in to the Management of the Self ', University Book House, New Delhi, 2001, p. 12.

37. Radhakrishnan S. 'Mahatma Gandhi - Essays a d Reflections' Jaim Pub1 ishing House, 1995, p.20 1.

38. Shastri prabha Sharma, 'Gandhian Hosistic Economics', Concept Publishing House,New Delhi,1992, p.25.

39, Ibid. p.60

40. Business Line 3.10.2003 p.2

42. Chitkara M.G.,'Education and Human Values', APH Publishing Corporation,S Ansari Rd., New Dlhi, 2003, p. 1 63.

43. Radhakrishnan S. Dr. 'The Present crisis of Faith' , Orient Publishers, New Delhi, 1 983, p.7 1

44. Jalaja Gopinath, 'Ethic Literature in World Languages and in Timkural', M.K. Univ.Publications, Madurai,2000, p.84.

45. Kripalini Krishna, 'Gandhi- A Life' , National Book Trust, India.

46. Frawley David, 'Awaken Bharatha: A call for India's Rebirth', Voices of Lndia,New Delhi, 1998, p.261

47. Ibid p.261

48. Kothari, M.M. 'The Calls for National Debate', Critique Publilcations, Jhodpur 2000, p.46.

49. Vora Bhupendra R., 'Common Ground of the Great Religions' Theosophist, April 2002, p.275

50. Ruhela S.P. 'Human Values and Education' , Sterling Publications Pvt., Ltd. Bangalore, 1986, p. 160

5 1 . Council for teacher Education, Kerala state Centre, Souvenir 2000, Tiruvananthapuram, June 2002, p.2 1

52. Sanvaru V.K. 'Need for Value Educationt,Edutracks, Vo1.2 No. 1 2, August 2003, p.11

53. Milson A..J. & Mehling L.M. 'Elementary School Education', Educational Research Vo1.96,No. 1,2002, p47

54. Ibid, p.52

Chapter - VI

Conclusion And Recommendations

M@tma Gandhi's life is an illustrious example of a mortal being achieving the

highest aim of life through constant striving. While placing each step carefully and

cautiously in the evolutionary process, he made sure that he is progressing towards

perfection. He believed that human beings can only achieve their ultimate aim of life by

service to humanity, and this formed the core of his philosophy. Gandhiji knew well that

only in a social medium the individuality can be fostered and personality exalted. He

emphatically said;

"I value individual freedom, but you must not forget man is essentiallv a social being. We have learnt to strike the mean between individual freedom and social restraint . Willing submission to social restraint for the sake of well-being of the whole society, enriches both the individual and the society of which one is a member ... for Gandhiji God lives in the temple of humanity and man becomes great exactly in the degree in which he works for the welfare of his fellow ment'l .

This outlook Gandihiji developed from his earliest days as an outcome of his religious

upbringing which taught him to see welfare of the individual in the welfare of all. In this

concluding chapter I would strive to clarify Gandhiji's social and Religious philosophy and

how these influenced his education programme, which he said is his single most important

contribution to India.

6.1 Gandhiji and His Religious Philmpby

Gandhiji did a great job in reconciling spiritualism with social service, and religion

with morality. Ofcourse, he was not alone in this. Modern Indian thinkers like Swini

VivZk'anailda, Da@ahda Saraswaty, Tagore, to name a few, also did the m e very

meritoriously. But Gandhiji's speciality lies in the fact that he did not bring about the

reconciliation only in theory, rather he gave it a concrete shape by practicing it in actual life

also. He always devoted himself to the acts of social service and believed that through this

kind of service he was actually realizing his real self or God. Gandhiji said that he believed

in advaida, and Nivftti rnarga.

Advaita, meaning nondualism, which is actually a theory of Monism has primarily

two forms - 'Unqualified Monismt as propounded by SarikhcZrya and 'Qualified Monism'

of ~inuja'cCZya. Qaikara VEda6ta is called 'Advaita' and Rb'anuja VEdahta is

'vihs&vaitat. In both, there is only one ultimate reality; the 'BraIpah'. Sahkara calls

B+man 'Nirguna, Pdif%kh, Ne-iti' etc. in the sense that 'Bern+' is beyond qualities,

beyond shape, beyond being this and that etc. BrGrnq can be realized through knowledge,

knowledge of the self (JgEna MBga), as Atman and the B*m% are one and the same. Man

is ignorant about this truth and therefore ignorance or 'Avidyat creates hindrance or darkness

between $tinan and B+m. Once the truth is realized, to know Brahman . . is to become

Brahman, one becomes self-redized. To such rt realized soul, the teacher proclaims . a

'Tattvam-asi' to mean 'Thou art Thatq, and he realizes ' I am that'and further meditates on

'Aharh Br+mkrni'. Since everything is ultimately B-q itself, and B*man_ is the only

truth, everything else is temporary (Brahma satyam, Jagat Midhya'-- ). What is existing now

was not there before, and will not be there tomorrow. Thus 6ahkara calls everything an /

illusion, which is famous 'Miiyi v-&' of Saikacarys.

I Ramhuja, on the contrary does not accept 'MiyG v-ada' of Skkara. Rammja says

that B m a n is 'Sagu~a, S k a , iti iti' etc. To him Bmlpan is full of qualities, thus making

his interpretation of the Upanishads '~idistadvaita' or 'Qualified Monism'. In Rkn'uruja, the

relationship between B+an and t h i s world is a real one, because B+mm is really

manifesting as everything. Since everything is real manifestation of B r w a n , temporary

though, everything is real and 'everything is B r d p q and everywhere is Brahman'. . For

Ramanuja, the path to reach Brahman is the path of devotion md worship, or Bhakti-Mkga.

As we know, Gandhiji had no training in philosophy. The Gandhian philosophy that

one constructed later is based on Gandhiji's words and deeds; which came from his own

personally being an Indian. His 'Experiments with Truth' is an experience of a traditional

Indian striving to live authentically. Indian culture, tradition and spirituality had been the

teachers of Mahatma; and Indian culture, tradition, as well as spirituality are only super

structural phenomena to a base-structure or substructure of Indian Metaphysics which is

largely Upanigic, and Indian Philosophy. Thus Gandhiji was influenced by Indian

philosophy through Indian culture, traditions and spirituality. Further, he relentlessly tried to

put everything into practice. Undoubtedly, no other lndian had attempted to put so many

things into practice single handedly. Thus Megtrna Gandhi becomes a practical guide to

lndianness for Indians as well as non-Indians. Gandhiji could be treated as a ready reckoner

by our planners and Policy makers which unfortunately had hitherto never been, and not

being done.

Gandhiji brought the philosophy of advaita on a very practical level and interpreted

its metaphysics in somewhat practical and ethical manner. Advaita implied for him that the

basic Truth was only One and the entire -tion was the expression of the same truth. There

was no difference, therefore, between one being and another. All were basically one. There

was an identity between God and Self and there was a basic unity in the entire existence.

M6ky or liberation, therefore, did not require one to go to jungle by renouncing the world

for saihana or meditation. The best sltdhana was to love the entire creation. It is in and

through love that God or self could be realized. So B+mq or God-realization was nothing

else than the realization of the basic unity underlying all existence, and that could be done

only by realizing oneself into others and others into oneself. This again could be done by

sincere love for all beings, i.e. by the adoption of the path of true eihsa. Working for

sarvklaya was therefore working for the attainment of miike or the realization of God. Thus

for Gandhiji the social and the spiritual goals were not different. They were basidly one

and the same. In the true spirit of the ~ 7 % Gandhiji taught not the renunciation of the world

but renunciation in the world. It is only by selfless, service of others that one could realize

God or B+man. There was no other way out. What was necessary for rn6ksa was not the

giving up of the world, but the giving up of selfish motives. There was nothing Iike narrow

egoistic self. All selves were bound in an essential bond of unity and therefore egoism was a

blatant illusion. Social service and love towards all were the only means of self-realization,

God-realization or m6k!a, whatever that might be cdled.

Quite in line with his above views, Gandhiji redefined religion in his own way. He

took religion not as something which the individual does with (or in) his solitariness, but as

that which he does amongst his fellow beings. According to him religion is a way of life and

therefore it consists in the activities that one does in every moment of his daily life and not

in certain special actions that he does at certain special moments at certain special places.

Religion is life-orientation and such a life-orientation for Gandhiji consists mainly in a life

of love, sacrifice and suffering. Ofcourse, a way of life is not rootless. It has a firm

foundation in some kind of vision, some kind of inner experience. That may be taken as the

mystical side of religion, and with respect to that aspect religion is in a sense individualistic

too. Gandhiji here, quite in tune with the great Indian scholar Dr. Radhakrishnan, seems to

believe that vision and action, mysticism and ethics go together. There can thus be no hard

and fast distinction between religion and morality. In the vision, we have a glimpse of the

Reality of Truth which is absolute but this glimpse by itself is atways relative. The vision of

one man therefore will naturally differ from the other. All the great religions of the world are

the results of the original vision of some or other prophet or saint like the Buddha,

Mohammed or Jesus Christ. But any one's vision of Truth can only be relative. Hence all the

religions of the world are relatively true, all of them express the same absolute Truth in their

own relative ways. All are therefore imperfect in one sense and true in another sense. None

can claim superiority over the other.

All religions have something to teach us, and we should be willing to accept what

they had to offer us, as advised by Annie Basant:

"While recognizing the difference of religions let us recognize them that we may learn, rather than we may criticize. Let the Christian teach us what he has to teach, but let him not refuse to learn from his brother of Islam or his brother of any other creed, for each has something to learn, and something

also to tea&.

Religious tolerance, therefore, is a natural and spontaneous necessity. We must have

respect and regard for each other's religion, because everyone's religion reveals to him the

nature of the absolute Truth in his own relative and practical way. The basic truth behind all

the religions, however, is one and therefore there is an underlying unity between them.

Quarrel in the name of religion has thus got no meaning. Also conversion from one religion

to another by the use of force or material inducement is immoral and undesirable. Annie

Besant has this to say about religious conversions:

"All the great truths of religion are common property, do not belong exclusively to any one faith. That is why nothing vital is gained by changing from one religion to another. You do not need to travel over the whole field of the religions of the world in order to find the water of truth. Dig in the field of your own religion, and go deeper and deeper, till you find the spring of the water of life gushing up pure and fu118.

However, voluntary conversion is an individual's choice and nobody need to worry about

that. If one felt that he would get greater spiritual satisfaction by adapting some other way or

other religion, he was free to do so and nobody had the right to check him or criticize him.

There was no need for any universal or world religion. What was needed was a true sense of

tolerance towards other religions which meant love and respect for them, because a11

religions at the bottom spoke of the same Truth.

Gandhiji also did a great job in emphasizing, perhaps for the first time in modem

Indian thought, upon the purity of means as a necessary condition for the attainment of a

good end. In this also Gandhiji's deep sense of respect and regard for the moral and religious

way of life was speaking from within him. Apart from a moral and religious way of life in

which ahimsa or love had to play the most prominent role, no desirable end wuId be

achieved. GandMji was so convinced about the necessity of the purity of means by his

study of religions like Jainism, Buddhism and Christianity that even for the attainment of

such ends for which the path of violence was necessary in the eyes of people, he practised

the path of non-violence, satyg&a and self-suffering and achieved dazzling results out of

them. By introducing religion into politics he wanted to achieve rarest political goals through

the means of eimsa or love and his immediate politid goal, the 6wa&j was really attained

by him though such means. About the greatness, purity, and efficacy of good means,

Gandhiji was so much convinced that he was not ready to make any compromise over it in

any situation. He, in the perfect spirit of ~Tta, believed that we as human beings had our

control only on the means and never on the end. The end was beyond our control. So, we

should make every effort for maintaining the purity of means. Gandhiji did not believe in the

doctrine that means was after all means. For him means was after all everything. One wuld

never achieve a pious goal by adopting a foul means; and he used to say that we could not

expect a rose by planting a noxious weed.

Gandhiji was a thoroughly religious man, and all his concepts have been formed

under the impact of his deep religious convictions. His religious conviction and his concept

of religion were basically formed under the idea drawn h m Hinduism; but he has no less

been influenced in his thought by the essential elements of other religions of the world such

as Buddhism, Jainism, Christianity and Islam. In fact, Buddhism and Jainism he never took

as practically different from Hinduism; and an echo of the essential elements of these

religions can be marked everywhere in his thoughts. He also loved Christianity and Islam in

their original, unadulterated forms and these also, especially Christianity, had certain turning

effects on his thought. Just as Rousseau exhorted everymy to 'return to nature' Gandhiji

asked everybody to return to their inward life and know their inner being. So did Socrates

and KieFkegaard in their own ways asked people to 'know thyself. In the same spirit

Gandhiji argued that it is immterial to have wealth if you do not 'know thyself'. Gandhiji

had very high opinion about man in his mind and he wanted man to be man in the true sense

of the term. If his conception of man is understood in its real spirit and everyone in the

present world realizes the dignity of the individual man, dl acts of suppression, tyranny,

discrimination, etc, will automatically go away. Similarly, if one understands the real spirit

of his philosophy of advaita, the rivalries between man and man, between one society and

the other, between nation and nation will automatically vanish. A great many of the quarrels

on the national level and wars and fights on the international level which have made the life

of a great majority of people miserable, are due to religious differences between people. If

Gandhiji was ever needed most, it is in the modem world in which people in spite of their

great scientific and material achievements have not been able to achieve real peace of mind;

and as a result,all sorts of dissension, bickering, mutual f w and cold wars are prevalent all

over the universe. Einstein's tribute of Gandhiji speaks well of the relevance of Gandhian

thought today:

"The veneration in which Gandhi has been held throughout the world rests on the recognition, for the most part unconscious, that in our age of moral decay he was the only statesman who represented that higher conception of human relation in the political sphere to which we must aspire with all power. We must lean? the difficult lesson that the future of mankind will only be tolerable when our course in world affairs, as in all other matters, is based

upon justice and law rather than the threat of naked powert'4.

6.2. Gandhiji's Social Philosophy.

One of the great contributions of Gandhiji for the well being of the society is his

concept of Bread-Iabour. This is his attempt to spiritualize physicd work in the light of

religious teachings. Gandhiji here seems to be very much influenced by the Bib!ical sermon

'Earn thy bread by the sweat of thy brow'. In Gita this principle has been set forth in the third

chapter, whei-e we are told, that he who eats without offering sacrifice, eats stolen food.

Sacrifice here can only mean bred-labour. So, unless one labours with his own hands, he

has no moral right to eat his food. Thus, according to Gandhiji, the sermon of the ~ I t a and

273

that of the Bible are alike. Gandhiji took agriculture to be the true symbol of breadlabour,

but he realized the fact that everybody could not take to agriculture. Therefore he advised

people to take up any kind of physical labour, such as spinning, weaving, carpentry,

scavenging etc. In fact, through his concept of breadlabour, Gandhiji intended to bring about

a sense of equality amongst all men by making them to realize the dignity of labour and

consequently the dignity of man. He tmk this as a $me and effective method of

self-realization. Self-realization is God-realization, and God-realization is possible only

when we identify ourselves with the lowest in the society, Bm.d-labour effects that identity

in a very significant and impressive manner. Thus the importance of the concept of

bread-labour in Gandhian thought cannot be over-emphasized- He wanted to effect a silent

revolution in the structure of the society through it by bridging the gap between the rich and

the poor, between the highly educated intellectuals and manual labourers. In fact, he wanted

to obliterate a1 1 distinctions of rank through it.

Quite in accordance with his principle of unity of mankind, Gandhiji very much

deplored the economic inequality prevalent among people of India. Some were so rich that

they had no legitimate use for their riches and again some were so poor that they could not

have even one full meal every day. This,Gandhiji took as a real example of tyranny and

injustice. He believed that there could be no economics devoid of morality and the latter

demanded that the poor had as much right on the property of a nation as the rich had. It was

a gross morai injustice that the rich lived so lavishly and the poor did not possess even that

much which could satisfy their minimum needs. Gandhiji felt that there must be an equal

distribution of the wealth of the world amongst the rich and the poor alike. Hut Gandhiji

fully realized that equal distribution of the wealth of the world could only be an attractive

idea! and never a practical proposition. Gandhiji recommended 'Need-based' distribution

instead of 'want-bad' one.

To overcome rich people's reluctance to share their wealth with the poor, Gandhiji

invoked the ancient Indian Ideals of non-possession (aparigriiha) and non-stealing (astEya)

which constituted essential parts of cardinal virtues laid down in Hinduism, Jainism and

Buddhism. According to these ideals everything belongs to God and therefore we should

have the spirit of complete detachment towards the riches of the world. Gandhiji wanted to

teach this lesson to the rich so that they may have the wisdom to share their wealth with the

needy without needing to resort to violence for the expropriation of wealth as advocated by

Marx. The name Gandhiji gave for this voluntary sharing of riches was Trusteeship, The

essence of the doctrine of trusteeship is that a rich man be allowed to keep his riches to be

used for his needs as well as the needs of the needy; thereby acting as trustee of his

god-given wealth. Implementation of the doctrine of trusteeship and renouncement of wealth

by the rich is the only way to avoid a revolution at present where the rich get richer and the

poor get poorer. Perfect renunciation is a key message Gandhiji derived from ~ < t a and he

tried to link it with @iksa, as can be seen from:

"Perfect renunciation is impossible without perfect observance of $imsa in every shape and form"5.

The concept on which Gandhiji's reputation rests is on his theory of non-violent

resistance or what he calls 'satyagrea' or 'truth force'. The concept of Satyigr*a is a

concrete expression of the intimate relationship between Truth and non-violence. For

Gandhiji Truth was the end and @hsa the means. SGtyada is the relentless search after

Truth through the means of +iriSlsa. The concept of SatyZNa, therefore, represents a real

synthesis between the twin concepts of Satya and aimsa. It is a symbol of the practical

application of the two concepts in real life. Agraha for Satya means holding on to Truth

relentlessly, fearlessly and tenaciously. This Zgraha for Truth must be non-violent, according

to Gandhij i. Wherever and whenever there is an attempt of holding fast to truth in the face of

even the most cruel oppression without any desire to resist the oppression through violent

means, and by bearing endless suffering upon one's own self, there is an example of

satyi-a. Gandhiji took Jesus Christ as the 'apostle' of saty5gMa His ungrudging

suffering on the cross combined with the words of love and sympathy for even those who

were responsible for his crucification is the most glaring example of s a t y 6 d a . The

sit!yiigr+a of Gandhiji's conception came to mean Truthforce, love-force or soul-force. It

proved to be a force generated out of love to conquer or realize Truth. It was not a physical

force, but the force of the soul. When the satyimi inflicts voluntary self-suffering for the

cause of Truth, his soul-force generates a potency which affects the opponent. There is a

bond of spiritual unity between one man and another, according to Gmdhiji, and therefore

the potency generated by the genuine self-suffering of a man upsets the moral balance of the

opponent that prompts him to realize the mistake of his approach. Suffering, said

Gandhiji,will melt the stoniest heart of the stoniest fanatic. Gandhiji realized that even if

men are rational by nature, they do not come to understand the nature of Truth due to long

cherished prejudices. The appeal of reason therefore does not always work. In such cases, it

is the self-suffering which is the most effective weapon for arousing gmd sense and justice

from within a man. It touches the heart of the opponent and opens his inner eyes of

understanding. As Gandhi said:

"1 have come to this fundamental conclusion that if you want something really important to k done, you must not merely satisfy the reason, you must move the heart also. The appeal of reason is more to the head, but the penetration of the heart comes from suffering. It opens up the inner understanding of men. Suffering is the badge of the human race, not the sword "6.

In case suffering fails to make a direct appeal to the soul of the oppressor it would muse

public opinion, which the oppressor would have to honour at last. I f the suffering fails to do

even that, it would at least purify the sufferer. Suffering i s therefore a means of

self-purification. It brings its own joy which surpasses all other joys. Moreover, in

accordance with his belief in the law of karma, Gandhiji believed that one's suffering in the

present life for the cause of Truth would result in hture gain. So self-suffering in the true

spirit of love devoid of anger and hatred never failed to produce results. It was really the

Another contribution of Gandhiji is his doctrine of SarvGdaya (i.e. welfare or

upliRment of all). In the tight of his philosophy of Advaita - a belief in the unity and quality

of all lives, Gandhiji believed that even when only one man suffered in this world, our

purpose was defeated and we proved a failure. Gmdhiji's philosophy of man holds that every

man has a soul within him, which is really the light of Gad within him. In this being of the

soul or &an, men are all essentially one, because they partake of the same reality or Truth.

As Gandhiji very clearly stated:

"I believe in absolute oneness of God and therefore also of humanity. Whar though we have many bodies ? We have but one soul. The rays of the sun are many through reflection. But they have the same source"7.

Hence, sarv6daya seem to be the logical outcome of the metaphysical beliefs of Gandhiji

regarding the nature of man and God.

From a different angle, the concept of sarv6daya seems to be a direct outcome of

Gandhiji's philosophy of Truth and *imsa. We have seen that Gandhiji took Truth as the

end and *iinsa as the means. By Truth he actually meant God himself and as God is

absolutely one, Truth is also absolutely one, But there are various refractions or

manifestations of God or Truth, everyone of which represents Truth in its own partial way.

None is to be regarded as more or less valuable in comparison with the other. AII are equally

valuable or equally true. Therefore, the welfare or good of a11 should be our necessary

concern. And that can be achieved only through the path of self-suffering, self-sacrifice and

universal love, which are all the ingredients of @imsa. Thus a votary of +imsa cannot but

pursue the ideal of sarvaaya, because his love for every one of God's manifestation wit{

compel him to work for good of all. We have seen that Truth and $irhsa according to

Gandhiji can never be possible without the path of +$sa. Thus a lover of Truth will

naturally be a lover of abimsa and the combined result of the two pursuits will be good of

all- Sarvkiaya.

In strict conformity with the Indian tradition channalized through Hinduism,

Buddhism, and Jainism, Gandhiji took the 'Pdcamah5qt (five great vows) as essential

moral vows to be observed by every man. These are - Satya, Abimsa, B-acarya, AstZya,

and Aparigraha. Satya and Abimsa, as we have already seen, constitute the very essence of

satyEgra@. But, for a real pursuit of Truth and true observance of @imsa complete

non-possession and control over the senses are also necessary. In other words, for a true

observance of 4irhsa in the pursuit of Truth, the observance of the virtue of B-acarya,

A&ya and A p a r i w a are necessary. Astzya and aparigralp can both be seen

simultaneously for all practical purpose, because both of them are concerned broadly with

non-possession, which in Gandhiji's conception means not having or willing to have in one's

possession things more than what are required for satisfying the minimum n d s of a man as

a physical being. Complete non-possession is an ideal which cannot be fulfilled as long as

man has an emphemeral body. 'Adya' literally means non-stealing, i.e. not taking things

belonging to others without their consent. But considered broadly, astZya implies not

possessing material things disproportionate to one's requirements. And here it comes very

close to aparigralp. So Gandhiji has mainly laid emphasis upon non-possession as a

condition for s follower of Mmsa or satyiigr*a. For inculcating the virtue of love in its true

spirit, non-possession is necessary. So long as one does not give up lust for possession, he

will not be able to renounce selfishness and so he can not love others in the true sense. So,

for a satyigrabi, the observance of the vow of non-possession is absolutely necessary. 'I'he

ideal is complete non-possession, but as it is not possible, practically, Gandhiji advised

minimum of possession which could satisfy the minimum essential needs of the body. ,411

these ideas of Gandhiji reflect not only the impact of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism

upon him, but also of Christianity in which poverty or non-possession has been regarded as a

condition for spiritual growth as well as for cultivating true love with one's fellow beings

and God. The Sermon on the Mount declared that it is the poor and the needy who will attain

the kingdom of God; they, therefore are blessed.

Besides non-possession, the virtue, which according to Gandhiji, must be cultivated

by a Satysgrahi is what has been generally known as 'brahrnacarya' in the Indian tradition.

'Brdynacarya' literally means the discipline or the way of life which leads to BraIpna or

God. Gandhiji believed that 'Bralpacarya' is the condition which enables one to achieve

direct communication with God; and further pointed out that such a condition consists in

having the fullest control over all the senses. Popularly it has come to mean mere physical

control over the organ of regeneration. In fact control over the organ of regeneration is

impossible without proper control over all other senses. Br*macarya must be observed in

thought, word and deed. Thus 'B@macaryat according to Gandhiji, means an overall

control of the senses, and such a control must be brought about not forcibly on the physical

plane only, but also on the plane of thought by gradually taming and controlling the mind.

'Brahrnacarya' forms the first ghrama of the &rama-system of

Hinduism. It refers to the life-stage of studentship which requires a life of celibacy,

complete control over the senses and total devotion to the acquisition of knowledge

at the feet of the Gum. This life of studentship has no social obligation to discharge

and it is a pre-marriage stage of life. By means of chastity, a large stock of high-grade

power is collected and conserved. By employing such power, one can make

tremendous progress in the intellectual and spiritual spheres. In 1906, during the Zulu

revolt in Natal, Gandhiji realized that he would need all energy derived from

maintaining chastity if he is to succeed in the two spheres - self-realization and the

service of humanity, Gmdhiji took the vow of Brahmacharya in 1906 at the age of

37; and afterwards he writes in his autobiography:

"The W o r n and joy that came to me after taking the vow had never been

experienced before 1 906"8.

Gandhiji found that the practice of br&macarya would k made easier if one

followed vegetarian diet without spices. Six years of dietary experiments showed him that a

br&macZri's ideal food is fresh fruit and nuts. Gandhiji throughout his life remained a

vegetarian and promoted vegetarianism to a great extent, thereby standing for the cause of

dumb creations of God and Abimsa.

Gandhiji through his life showed the world that it is not material wealth which brings

happiness and peace in life but contentment. It can be seen that human psyche is conditioned

for domination and the urge for acquisition; and Gandhiji believed that human beings have

to undergo progressive evolution so that they could renounce these traits which encumber

them to this world. For this he advocated simple living and high thinking which was in total

agreement with traditional Indian way of life of &$and sages. Modernism has increased our

wants and if not satisfied these needs would consume our selves. This is why all religions,

all seers, and all philosophers, unanimously agree that wealth and peace of mind do not go

together. Limitation of wants is one of the fundamental principles of Wdhian social

philosophy. Our effor&s to satisfy the ever-increasing wants may lead to violence and over

exploitation of our precious and limited natural resources. Voluntary control of wants is

more advisable than any kind of external restriction.

The idea of simplicity or deliberate and voluntary restriction of wants or

non-possession is a coro I lary of the Gandhian concept of stealing. For Gandhij i, 'stealing' is

not just the taking away of one's belonging without his knowledge but also the taking or

using of anything without the actual need for it. According to gandhiji, it is theft to take

something from another even with his permission, if we have no real need for it.

Non-stealing means not only the restriction of present wants but also not bothering for hture

wants. I'hrough the concept of non-stealing Gandhiji wanted to reduce present wants to the

minimum, not accumulating things for the future use and keeping the already acquired

surplus things under the trusteeship of the society. '

Non-possession is actually part and parcel of the concept of non-stealing. No one is

actually entitled to hold a thing that is not required at the moment. It is a crime to hoard

things because at any time there are thousands who need them. The golden rule is 'the less

you possess, the less you want, and the better you are'.

Gandhiji says that it is the responsibility of your Creator to provide you with

whatever you need. In front of this Creator dl are equal and possessing more than your

immediae requirement is a crime against humanity and a sign of disbelief in the ability of the

Creator.

Animating all of Gandhiji's work and politics is an abiding commitment to the

integrity and autonomy of everyone. He believed that everyone should take hold of their own

self and be free enough and courageous enough to give full expression of their inner

feelings. Fearlessness is a quality which can only come out of a person when he is absolutely

free of guilt. As the Crator is responsible for your needs you need not worry or fear anything

in life. As history shows, Gandhiji was a fearless man who single-handedly opposed the

mightiest power in this world. Fearlessness does not mean that one is proud of his own

ability but means that he is sure of God's help whenever it is needed. This belief makes such

a person very humble in life.

Gandhiji taught us that humility is one of the traits of a real learned man. Humility is

possible only for a person who has annihilated his ego. There is not a single trace of '1'-ness

in him but only 'soul' filling in his heart. When somebody completely destroys his ego, he

becomes an embodiment of Truth. Humility is an indispensable part of ahiksa and truthful

living. True humility means constant endeavour to uplift human beings from their sufferings.

Sri %na, through ~Tta, taught us to be active throughout life as he himself is always active

so as to teach the world that life is activity. Gandhiji was a karmayogin and was unwetuied

of action because he was performing for God. True humility therefore quires us to be

always active and to dedicate oneself to the service of humanity.

The eradication of the evil of untouchability was another area for which Gandhiji

devoted much of his energy. The vow regarding untouchability follows from the principle of

spiritual unity of all life. In Gandhiji's view untouchability is an excrescence of Hinduism

and as an atonement for this past mistake he would have liked himself to be reborn as an

untouchable so that he could share the sorrows and suffering of this socially ostracized

group. He endeavoured to restore their due place in the society, as equal citizens and resisted

the British attempt to sanction separate electorate for untouchables, because he believed that

this would isolate them h r n the mainstream politics. For this cause of total integration of

untouchables in the Indian society, Gandhiji was willing even to fast unto death.

The concept of SwadGi a d Swaraj, though from the surface purely economic and

political concepts, for Gandhiji, these represented ideals of universal love and brotherhood.

So in this sense, there was nothing un-natural in Gandhiji's bringing his concept of Swadesi

very near to the concept of m8ksa or self-realization. Self-realization was for Gandhiji the

realization of the absolute oneness of all beings at bottom. And the ideal of self-realization

was to be achieved by following the path of universal love and brotherhood which is a

natural consequence of the doctrine of swadesi. Similarly, Swarlij as ordinary people

understood it, meant nothing more than the removal of the British from lndia and bringing in

self-rule over the counby, but for Gandhiji, it never meant merely this. It meant self-restraint

and self-purification as a pre-requisite for self-realization or m6kgrt. As Gandhiji said:

"Man's ultimate aim is the realization of God, and all his activities, social, religious have to be guided by the ultimate aim of the vision of God. The immediate service of a11 human beings becomes a necessary part of the endeavour, simply because the only way to find God is to see Him in His creations and be one with it. This can only be done by service of all@.

We have thus seen that all through out his thought and practice, Grtndhiji had been a

thoroughly religious man and all his important concepts have been formed under the impact

of his deep religious conviction. His religious conviction and his concept of religion were

basically formed under the ideas drawn from Hinduism, but he has no less been influenced

in his thought by the essential elements of other religions of the world such as Buddhism,

Jainism, Christianity and Islam. Similarly, Gandhiji imbibed the true spirit of the philosophy

of advaita and believed that once peopie rtre made aware of this, the rivalries between man

and man, between one society and the other, between nation and nation will automatically

disappear. if Gandhiji's guidance was ever needed most, it is in our modem world in which

people, in spite of their great scientific and material achievements, have not been able to

achieve real peace of mind.

6.3. Gandhiji and Education.

After over fifty years of independence, educational problems of real India could not

be solved, although many commissions were appointed and many educational policies were

announced by the Government of India. But the problems remained as they were or even

worsened and quality education is not available for all. Socio.economic order, race,

residence, region, language etc. are the determining factors which decide the type of

education an individual will receive in Free India. The core problems of Indian education

like, mass illiteracy, education of weaker sections of the society, women's education,

development of constitutional and traditional values, scientific temperament, incongruence

between education and life, equal educational opportunity for all, quality education, free and

compulsory education up to the age of fourteen years, Educated unemployment, Indiscipline

in schools, callousness towards social and national problems etc. are still unresolved. The

forces of casteism, communalism, regionalism, status-quoism etc. are still powefil barriers

in the path of the education1 development of the masses.

Among the radical alternatives to the present system of education that have been

proposed, none was more promising than Gandhiji's Basic education or 'nai tilirn'.

Unfortunately, Gandhjji's system was out of step with the prevailing educational system

established by the colonial masters. Academic doubts and bureaucratic hesitation stymied it

from the start. Neither was any effort made to promote a popular movement in its favour.

Eventually, after half-hearted implementation 'Basic Education' has been relegated to the

benign neglect that is the fate of so many innovative reforms of education in this country.

Gandhiji placed great importance to the role of a well-ordered house-hold in the

education of children. The significance of parentage and home in education of the child is

indeed great and this had been realized in India from the time of Gurukula system of

education wherein the home of the Guru was the school for the children, and the Guru

himself treated the pupils as his own children. The very foundation of Indian society, culture

and the very notion of indianness rests here in the Gurukulah. The principle that it is only

from an integrated home that an integrated individual is groomed and shaped is

well-understood by our seers. The training they imparted in the Gurukula to the children

helped in creating an integrated society and an integrated lndia in ancient times. Gmdhiji

was well-aware of this principle and insisted that we should have Ghram-system of

education, and he himself established many -%hams in India for the education of children.

Unfortunately, the system of education brought in by the foreigners upset the indigenous

education system which was developed through ages in harmony with our culture and

tradition. British Education in lndia promoted asymmetrical development of personality as

intellectual development was over-emphasized and education of the heart was neglected.

The Ma@tma was well-aware of the harm done to our nation by British education and

recommendd an appropriate system of education which would be in tune with our culture,

be1 iefs, and tradition. About the type of education Gandhij i himself writes:

"I had always given the fmt place to the culture of the heart or building of character, and I felt confident that moral training could be given to all alike, no matter how different their ages and their upbringing, 1 decided to live amongst tfiem ail the twenty four hours of the day as their father. 1 regarded character-building as the proper foundation for their education and, if the foundation was firmly laid, I was sure that the children could learn all the other things themselves or with the assistance of fxiends"10.

6.3.1 Gandhian Edncation For Human DweIopment:

Gandhiji believed that the system of education of a country must correspond with

the model of development one has adopted. Our development model which we inherited

from the West has focused much on growth rather than equity, on capital not on labour,

centralization not on devolution, consumption not on production, exploitation not on

conservation, bureaucracy not on participation. Correspondingly, our education system is

preoccupied with training people who would fit into this developmental model i.e. for

bureaucratic service and technical competence, and not for self-reliance and

self-employment. This developmental model benefits the richer sections of the people rather

than the poor. Gandhiji proposed an alternative model of development for India, which gave

importance to human development rather than economic development, all-round horizontal

growth rather than asymmetrical vertical growth of the few, labour intensive production

rather than capital intensive ones, devolution of power to the grass-roots level (such as

PdcZyati Mj) rather than centralization, participatory and co-operative administration

instead of bureaucracy, conservation instead of consumption and exploitation. Gandhiji's

Sarv6daya-oriented development would favour bottom-up development paradigm that would

privilege the poor, rather than the topdown one we have adopted that knefits the upper

classes and higher castes.

To suit this development model, Gandbiji proposed radical changes in the

educational system with the following basic principles:

(i) Bridging the schooI with the world of work;

(ii) Imparting an activity orientation to the curriculum and

(iii) hculcating a sense of self-reliance.

Bridging school and work implies a school-community linkage in order to be

effective and productive. Subject taught in the school should be those subjects for which

there is a demand in the community. A community which is agrarian h nature should have

agriculture oriented courses in the school. An activity orientation demands an integration of

actiodexperience with classroom learning. i.e. learning should not simply be literal. In a

country where majority live in rural villages, where most are dependent on agriculture,it is

very important to inculcate a culture of manual work habit in the population. Therefore

Gandhiji insisted that every school-going child should be given training in some form of

manual work. As a result the child would not shy away from any form of work. This would

cultivate the habit of self-reliance in every sphere of life of the child. Self-reliance or

independence requires the development of the pupil's autonomy and resourcefulness.

The pedagogical methodology of Gandhiji thus focuses on the following guidelines:

(i) The child's immediate milieu must serve as a resource for the rediscovery of accepted knowledge;

(i i) Children must have the freedom to create their own models of knowledge;

(iii) Learning must provide opportunities for children to be physically active; and

(iv) Class-room activities must resonate and extend the child's life at home and in its surroundings.

The pedagogy suggested here derives from and operationalises the educational principles

indicated earlier. Thus the environment as the milieu and resource for learning wiH link the

school to the community. An activity orientation arouses best and retain longest the curiosity

of the pupil. It is well served when the learner has both the W o r n and the opportunities to

learn in a supervised environment. These are further strengthened when class-room activities

become the extension of home experience. Moreover, the opportunity to learn in a

supportive environment will develop the resourcefulness of the learner and make for

self-reliance.

Gandhiji's concern for the masses distanced him from the elitism of the traditional

education in India, Certainly his pedagogy was closer to the artisan-apprentice relationship in

a working context than the guru-shishya one in an ivory tower. This model of education is

similar to that proposed by Paulo Freire in Latin America. Paulo Freire's 'pedagogy of the

oppressed' is directly opposed to the passive 'banking' theory of education, so prevalent in

our society; for this distances arid alienates, rather than enables or empowers a learner;

whereas Gandhiji's 'nai tllim' is geared to making the student self-reliant and resourceful.

In integrating learning with environment and the culture context of the Ieamer,

Gandhiji expresses a faith in the ability of the students to be self-reliant citizens in the

community. In integrating the school with the community, and the teaching and learning at

school with the knowledge and skills of that community ; Gandhiji is in fact proposing an

education that will make for the development of a self-reliant community that draws on its

own resources, where local knowledge and skills of the subalterns, the peasants, the artisans,

etc. are affirmed and valued, and bewrne the foundation of further learning and higher

knowledge. Centering education around vocational skills as the basis for learning, and

further integrating this with income generation activities, is already a crucial step that orients

students to becoming selfemployed rather than being employees. This is an empowerment

at the grass roots that should not be easily undervalued or dismissed.

63.2 Education aud Character Development.

As we have seen previously, Gandhiji gave top-most priority in education for

character development, or as he himself called as the culture of the heart. His theory of

education is firmly rooted in higher values of truth and non-violence which forms the basis

for strong character. Gandhiji believed that in modern education we should focus on

developing 3H's(Head, Hand and Heart) rather than 3R's which caters predominantly for

intellectual / head development.. Training of the 3H's helps in co-ordinakd integration of the

working of Head, Hand and Heart which favours development of character.

(a) Training of Head ia Character Formation:

Gandhiji attached great importance to intellectual development through manual

training. Me wanted every aspect of our daily life to be performed intelligently and

scientifically by knowing the why and wherefore of these processes. This would help in

inculcating scientific attitude and also promotes intellectual development. The training in

handling a variety of raw materials and tools intelligently helps the child to satisfy his

curiosity and create a sense of involvement. Gandhiji believed that an intelligent use of the

bodily organs in a child provides the best and the quickest way of developing one's intellect.

Knowledge is not the sole end of education but education is not possible without acquiring

knowledge, knowledge has instrumental value in character development. Knowledge about

our epics and ancient teachings would greatly influence character development.

(b) R d e of Hand in Shaping of Character:

Gandhiji held that true education of the intellect can only come through a proper

exercise and training of W i l y organs. It aims at integrating first the individual as a single

entity and then to integrate him in home, school, society, nation and ultimately with the

whole universe. T h i s process of integration is achieved through the integration of various

subjects of knowledge with crafi. Scientific teaching of a useful craft promotes the

development of the mind of the child. Montessori had established that those who are good

and skillful in using bodily organs are good intellectually also. Skillful and inteiligent use of

bodily organs promote self-confidence in children which favours character development. So

the role of limbs in character development cannot be neglected.

(c) Heart-the co-ordinating factor in character development:

In the formation of character, an awakening of the soul (heart) , co-ordinates the

development of mind and body (head and hand) that goes hand-in-hand. Spiritual training, to

Gandhiji, is the training of the heart. For the formation of character, the heart has to play an

important role to bind head (knowledge) and hand (action) with the power of values. Thus

strengthening of values by means of intelligent action is a prsrequisite for training of heart.

The culture of heart should be based on positive and practical ethics that are deep and

comprehensive. Gandhiji believed that no education can build character unless it insists in

spiritual training so as to develop knowledge of God which ultimately leads to character

development and set f-realization.

63.3 Value Education.

In every country in the world, great teachers, religious leaders, educationists, social

reformers and all humanists have been, in one voice, emphasizing the need for value

education; but unfortunately no country, including India, has been able to implement value

education as it ought to be. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, our great philosopher and teacher observes

thus:

"The troubles of the whole world including lndia are due to the fact that education has become a mere intellectual exercise and not the acquisition of moral and spiritual values" 1 1.

As a result, values which had k e n evolved during thousands of years of human evolution,

are gradually being eroded. This erosion of values has been exasperated by modernism or the

drive for materialism. This concern had been officially raised by Acharya Ramarnurthi

committee report; Towards an Enlightened and Humane Society;. NPE 1 986 ' A Review' ,

(1 990) in the foilowing lines:

"In recent times, there has been perceptible universal decline of basic moral values. The phenomena acquires a special poignancy for us in India, considering our great civilization and heritage. Our educational institutions which have not escaped the impact of its pervasive value decline, have a special responsibility to respond to the situation with great concern and subtlety, playing a vital role in value education ... It should become an integral part of the entire educational process and school climateMi2.

Education only can save us by inculcating in our upcoming generations eternal values such

as Truth, Beauty, and Goodness which would enable them to see the universe as a whole,

and they themselves as harmoniously fitting parts of it. Until this can be achieved, man

would be. striving for peace and contentment without realizing that what he is looking after is

within him. As the UNESCO Report of 1996 says Education in the twenty-first century

294

should enable him to find the treasure within him. This is the most important aim of

education which enables one to live in harmony with nature. This sentiment is expressed

clearly by the Famous English writer, Oliver Wendell Holrnes, thus:

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matter compared to what lies within" 13.

The picture that our society presents today is one of reckless, restless individuals

dissatisfied total 1 y with themselves because everyday presents them with new problems and

new challenges that precipitate insideout incongruence in individuals. Harmonious and

peaceful existence of the past has been replaced with greed and consequent disharmony with

the environment. In their attempt to satisfy their greed they over exploit an already feeble

nature, degrading it to the brink of collapse. In this, we are like that idiot who killed the

golden goose. Long-term welfare of the society is sacrificed for short-term gains. Every

human being remains in peril of a slow death through poisoning and desiccating of the

environment in which he lives, and by which he is sustained. It is a great challenge to

educate every one about our natural resources and how to conserve them for posterity,

If we want to make our society more responsible towards itself and to the

environment we must start educating our youth in socially desirable pursuits. There is an

urgent need for building up a new and awakened youth with political, moral, social,

environmental, and religious values to mould their character. In this context Gandhiji is

emerging as a possible answer to the global crisis of value erosion and numerous other

unresolved contradictions such as between amuence and poverty, freedom and repression,

technology and man, social relations and alienation, renunciation and greed, centralization

and devolution etc. Talking of relevance of Gandhiji's teachings in modem times, Louis

Fisher, a long-time tiandhij i observer, writes:

"The more I have thought of his life the clearer becomes his relevance to the

worries af the Western world today" 1 4.

lt is a great irony of history that when the rest of the world is seriously examining Gandhian

concepts and values and its suitability in solving the problems they got into, we in lndia are

engaged in debates about the suitability or adaptability of foreign-originated concepts in

solving our value-related problems. At this juncture, it is worth re*mphasising that

education is an activity that takes place in a society, and as such, it should be in harmony

with the culture and traditions of that society. Transplanting of value systems which are not

in harmony with the traditions and culture of a country would automatically be rejected as

our body rejects foreign objects which are incompatible with its own system. So let us

persue with full vigor for the introduction of 'Gandhian Values', which are in harmony with

Indian culture and tradition, in our education system at all levels. Studies in many countries

have shown that only by introducing 'value education' purposefully and forcefully in the

cu~~iculum, we can bring about desired effect in value inculcation.

It is a pity that the secular nature of our constitution precludes the possibility of

inclusion of religious education in our educational institutions because of the inherent

divisive nature of our popular religions. Only acceptable solution would be to teach

'Gandhian Values' to children because these values are universally acceptable, and as such,

are capable of inculcating universal attitudes and broad-mindedness among children. It can

safely be noted that the central 'Gandhian Values' are not derived from any single

metaphysical system, but from his own philosophical ideas which he derived as a result of

his historical, spiritual and material knowledge and experiences. 'Gandhian values', thus

reflect his understanding of human nature, of social and production relation, of man's

constant struggle against forces which tried to push him down into one kind of oppression or

another, and his attempts to rise above his existentialist situation. Gandhiji was able to

transform the so-called eternal values of religion into relative truths of ethical principles and

put them together as ethical religion. By doing so, he removed the distinction between

religions as such and the projection of ethical laws through morally justifiable social

instruments in to the realms of social action. Gandhiji's ethical religion was a religion of

moral actions.

The strongest element in the Gandhian approach was the unity between the theory

and action, i.e. he was able to objectify concepts. In theory, Gandhiji held that the difference

between mental and physical labour should ke removed or at least narrowed, and in practice

he took up spinning proclaiming solidarity with the ordinary labouring folks. Through this

action, and also through advocating bread-labour to every able-bodied person, he effectively

demonstrated human equality and challenged the caste system. Non-violence and Truth were

fundamental doctrines for Gandhiji, and he objectified these concepts by launching

'Saty5grahat. Brotherhood was a universal principle; he formulated it into action by serving

poorest of the poor. Equality and simplicity are laudable principles as an answer to poverty,

and he put these principles into action by wearing only loin cloth. He advocated renunciation

as a way for attaining self-realization and in Iife he did possess only the bare minimum for

human existence. Thus, what we need to appreciate is that Gandhiji not only brought unity

between precepts and practice but dso showed that with out right action there is no right

precept. The cynicism and intellectual pessimism that we see in our present society is due to

the lack of right action even when the principles and precepts are quite clear. Gandhiji, on

the other b d , provided a revolutionary synthesis between the word and act. This revolution

was extra-ordinary and incomparable in human history.

The Gandhian transformation of religious beliefs into set of ethics has become more

relevant today as we can see large number of people, both in capitalistic and communist

countries, return to religion as a sure way to escape human agony and alienation which could

lead to forces of reaction and terrorism. Gandhiji's clarion call 'Return to Religion', just like

Rousseau's 'Return to Nature' is yielding results abundantly in communist countries largely

as a reaction to the absence of moral political orders; and in the capitalist countries either to

vulgar consumerism or to perpetuation of poverty.

When one looks at Gandhian social philosophy, we can see that many of Gandhiji's

views are similar to Marxian views, but this similarity is only on the surface. For a

communist, 'End' was supreme, and as long as it is justifiable any 'means' also become

justifiable. For achieving equality in society, Mamists do not mind using any violent means,

but not Gandhiji. For him both 'means' and 'ends' are sacrosanct. Without right means there

cannot be any right ends. For bringing equality in society, Gandhiji would prefer using the

principle of trusteeship in relation to wealth. Similarly, Non-violence and Truth do not

merely stand in relationship of means to end, but merge with and transform dialectically in

to one another. Thus non-violence is Truth and Truth is non-violence, both thus becoming

values as well. So Truth, the inter-changeability of 'Ends' and 'Means', Non-violence, and

satyigraha are fundamental Gandhian Values which simultanwusly embody method, thus

establishing unity of theory and action. In addition to these core values, there are more

additional basic Gandhian concepts such as Swadeshi, Bread-labour, Equality, Humility

etc.; all of which taught to children can transform their character. Transformation of

character is what we need today and this can only be brought about through education; and

introducing 'Gandhian Values' could be the first step in the right direction.

'Gandhian Values' as well as Gandhiji's practice of these are embodied in the Hindu

Philosophy according to which man's action is guided by four principles - Dharma, AI-tha,

K h a and M 6 k ~ - this being the ultimate aim or end of life and the other three are

instrumental or means. Thus 'Gandhian Values' are deep-rooted in Indian tradition and

culture, and these need to be included in the curriculum of our schools. Gandhiji gave a big

twist to these four principles by making Dharma stand even above m o b . He made D h m a

the beginning as well as the end by saying that rn6k:a and dharma can be interpreted as

being the same. According to Gandhiji ma@ benefits the individual whereas dharma is

altruistic. Gandhiji suggested thus:

"Man must learn to strike the mean between individual freedom and his social restraint, the willing submission to social restraint for the sake of the well-being of the whole society of which he is a rnernbex"l5.

Gandhiji, here points out man's social nature and says that he would not be able to achieve

happiness removed from society because he is a part only of the whole. Realizing this and

living in accordance with this would make him value-loaded and contented in life.

Contentment in life of individuals in a society is not measured by material possessions of the

individual in the society, but as Taitariipanisad declares:

"the number of youth who are weH educated and thereby have secured profound knowledge, who are of sterling character, and who are healthy and physically fit, constitute the measuring rod of happiness. In the absence of any one of these, a person is likely to become a liability to his parents and the society, instead of being an asset"l6.

Thus education should enable individuals to develop along all the three dimensions -

intellectual, Morallspiritual and physical; so as to be of any use to the society. In the modern

Indian system of education, 'Head' has attained precedence over 'Heart' i.e. development of

Intelligence quotient (IQ) has become the primary concern. But this extreme emphasis on

academics has resulted in ignorance of Emotional Quotient (EQ) and hence in the relegation

of spiritual Quotient (SQ) that used to be the hallmark of ancient Indian system of education.

Danah Zohar, who did some crucial studies on human intelligence concluded that spiritual

intelligence is the foundation for an effective EQ and IQ. He further suggested that the

'Indian system of Thought' should be mandatory at school and college level as it has k e n

found to be conducive to the well-being of body, mind and soul. 'Gandhian Values', being

the essence of Indian Values, could be introduced in our educational system without much

controversy.

'Dhannat, for Gandhiji means the law of living. He calls on each and everyone to

contribute in his own way to the preservation of this cosmos. Basic Education of Gandhiji

lends itself well in imparting work-centred learning and income generation which enables

* one to perform his dharma effectively. In an ideal 'Gandhian society', everyone would be a

prducer and there would not be any exploitation. Every kind of work would be adequately

remunerated according to the need of the individual, and nobody would be allowed to

accumulate wealth. Basic education empowers everybody to become self-employed rather

than being employees, thereby enabling them to fulfill their dharma.

While emphasizing self-reliance through vocational education (Basic education),

Gandhiji did not neglect the importance of value education. Along with work children would

be introduced to values such as integrity, honesty, service, patience, humility etc. which are

fundamental truths of universal application. Gandhiji deplored the nature of education under

the British which catered for intellectual development alone at the expense of development

of the heart. He lamented:

"As for the faculties of the heart, they are simply allowed to run to seed or to grow anyhow in a wild undisciplined manner. The result is moral and spiritual anarchy" 17.

The question we must ask now is whether we could ignore, at this juncture, the importance

of value education. It is my strong submission that we encourage value education in our

schools and colleges immediately.

6.4 Gandhian Values for Social Transformation.

As we look at the present education system we can see that things are not in any way

different now as the education of the heart is being neglected totally in the pursuit of

intellectual andtor vocational skill development. As a result our youths, as well as our

present population, lack moral and spiritual maturity. A large majority of them are involved

in rat race and cut-throat competition with a view to amassing wealth and power. In their

pursuits, they throw away moral and spiritual values, and principles into the air as these

make the going tough. As a result, progressive destruction of the complex network of

relations based on respect, trust, close mutual interdependence, is taking place all over the

world. This alters the social structures through which people relate to each other. The family,

which was the primary source of social, ethical and cultural values, is no more capable of

performing these tasks the way it did in the past. Complexities of life leave little time for

parents to take care of their children, their intellectual, emotional and aesthetic well-being.

Moreover, children are being subjected to conflicting or contradictory sets of values from

different sources such as TV, Sports and entertainment heros, unscrupulous public officials

and politicians, hippocratic religious leaders, fundamentalists and above all infatuated peer

groups. To add to these, there are no steadying forces in the society such as wc had in the

great personalities of Ma-atrna Gandhi, VivEkananda, Tagore, Dr. Radhakrishnan etc.; and

those few we have now are unjustifiably being vilified by unscrupulous, self-serving

messiahs. As a result, the societies and nations as a whole are experiencing an inevitable

collapse of values. Moreover people increasingly concentrate on cognitive functions needed

for living in a complex society. This leads to decreasing emphasis on the affective processes

through which people express their feelings and emotions. As a consequence, materialistic

values grow so abundantly at the expense of the spiritual and aesthetic values that people

find themselves less capable of satisfying their emotional and aesthetic needs. No wonder,

then, pupils who hail from these societies, are directly or indirectly affected by the collapse

of values. Teachers cannot remain indifferent and be mute spectators to all these

developments. They have to rise to the occasion and inspire pupils to pick up a value system

that is sound and wholesome lest the country should go to the dogs before long.

Let us take time to think; just what is educating and what is the purpose of education

at all ? Education in India, even after 58 years of independence is still on the track that

Macaulay and company started off. Now we know at least something about Macaulay's

nefarious intention of intellectually legalizing British colonial domination over India, but still

we are more on track with Western models and mcdules only. This is much more in Keraia

society, to the extreme that it becomes suicide for an Indian. Such Western epistemology and

methodologies negates tradition and concentrate on context specificities, and have the

object of training the inteIlect only. Such mere intellectual trainings can only create

intellectual monsters and Frankensteins only, who have training in de-construction to

destructions. Further they are subjected to a self-created false consciousness of subjective

intellectua1 superiority and academic excellence. Majority of academics, writers etc. of

Kerala society fall in this category of intellectual Frankesteins. The more they are intellectual

Frankensteins, the more they become emotional illiterates.

It is on such experience that Prof. S. Siddharthan started an "Emotional Literacy

Mission" at Alapuzha after retiring as Professor of Philosophy. His relentless endeavour is to

make people emotional literates, as he pinpoints all swid problems to one factor of

emotional illiteracy. Whether divorces, or breaking-up of families or official corruptions;

they all are, basically phenomena arising out of emotional illiteracy. Fortunately, we do not

have to run around or search for an alternative or solution. lndian tradition had experimented

with all these and more; they are all in the texts; we only have to read and reiterate according

to the requirements of time. Education ought to train man both emotionally and

intellectually. Man is both matter and spirit; mind and body as Descartes says, also as Plato

says. Education must create spiritually and emotionally integrated citizens, who are

intelligent and knowledgeable. This type of education is what traditionally used to be called

" f i h a i n ~ij'i-ana sabitain". Only such knowledge and wisdom can be of good use to society,

nation and to mankind ultimately, Emotionally insecured people can only spread

discomfort, chaos and confusions by way of their anarchic existence. The story of

Bhasmisura is not just a joke; they could be great destroyers, given opportunities.

At the stage where we stand today, the recent advances made in the field of

knowledge provide us sound foundations for the philosophy of value and philosophy of

value-laden education. Already great scientists and philosophers of science have begun to

acknowledge the need to bridge the gulf between science and value, just as there is a need to

bridge the gulf between art and value. It is recognized that the development of science

should be supplemented by enormous development of the value of human kindness.

Burtrand Russell has pointed out that there are two ancient evils that science, unwisely used,

may intensify: they are tyranny and war. His counsel to mankind is to avoid:

"Cruelty, envA:y, greed, competitiveness, search for irrational subjective certainty, and what Freaudians call Death-wish"l8.

Ma&?ma Gandhi had put much thought into value-inculcation through education and drawn

out detailed programmes for this. He had done these to implement them soon after the Indian

independence and not merely to make textual Gandhism out of them for students to read,

write examinations and to get degrees. Soon after 1947, partition of India had taken most of

Gandhiji's time and he could not concentrate on anything else. Before India did survive the

agony and sorrow of the extremely painful division of India, the M+3tma was assassinated

also. Otherwise, Gandhian model of education could have been in practice, at least in five to

ten percent of Indian schools.

But that could not be done, because our planners and policy makers must have been

obsessed with pleasing Nehru, who had political policies. As a result everything required to

start from the beginning itself: indeed a herculean task by way of Indianising education.

However, this Herculean task of Indianising education can be very much simplified

and made easy through 'Gandhism: Gandhism can be a 'Ready Reckoner' towards Indian

education and recreating a new education pattern. Perhaps this will save not only India, but

the entire humanity itself.

6.5 Recommendations

The recommendations which emanate out of this study are quite in Iine with the

recommendations evolved from the four weeks All India Workshop on 'Methods and

Techniques for Value Development' in 1 988 for teacher education programmes. Necessary

changes have been made on these to suit the present study.

6.5,l. General Recommendations.

I . in an effort to inculcate values in children directly, a subject in the name of

'Gandhian Values' be introduced at all levels of education so that children get familiarized

with Indian culture and traditions which Gandhiji keenly observed.'Dh-mic Values' can be

taught to children through 'Gandhian Values' because Gandhiji embodied all the best we

have in Indian culture. Truth, Beauty and Goodness should serve as the guiding lights for

Indians in their lives. With D h m a (right conduct) as the base, artha and k-ma are

instrumental values. The purpose of education in ancient India had been to teach young

people these values.

2. In addition to the introduction of 'Gandhian Values' in our educational system; value

education should permeate all curricular and co-curricular work in schools and colleges.

3. Manual work in the form of compu1sory Campus cleaning or Fann work be

introduced in schools and colleges for at least two hours per week.

4. Every institution and each teacher could think of utilizing the 'Thought for the day',

morning assembly, meditation, story telling, prayers, community singing, festivals, days of

national importance, social activities etc. for ensuring a loving environment that would be

conducive to the education for and internalization of human values. While organizing

activities in institutions, it has to be ensured, that in all programmes, celebrations, gatherings

and significant occasions, no religious or cultural group is neglected or isolated. The

institutional response to emerging situations like floods, fire, droughts also make learners

realize the need for co-operative action and combined efforts in life.

5. Research in *Gandhian Values' and appropriate methodotogies for inculcation of

them should be given priority.

6. lJse of technology should be adopted in inculcating values to children.

7. Literature in 'Gandhian Values' should be made available to all institutions free of

charge with the help of state and Central Governments and also NGQ's interested in

promoting the development of a humane society.

8. Parents and elders in society should actively involve in value education programmes

in schools and colleges.

9. For inculcation of values, the school management should be transparent, honest and

sensitive. The conduct and behaviour o f key hnctionaries should be such that it inspires

others to practice desirable values.

10. school libraries should have enough relevant books on value education including

biographies of great national and international personalities.

1 1. Organize value-based literary and cultural activities such as plays, debates, essays

and poem competitions, story writings, folk songs and dances etc. which should emphasize

respect for manual work as well as social cohesion and national integration.

12. Celebration of important national days, birthdays of great national leaders and fieedom

fighters and festivals.

13. Organize competition in production of quality goods or in rendering quality services

to develop confidence, skills and value for time, excellence and perfection.

14. Organize activities to develop leadership qualities,service mindedness, teamwork and

co-operation among students.

15. Arrange visits to industrylwork situation to observe not only performing skills but

also values inculcated in relation to the work.

16. Identify and reward various behaviours and attitudes of students which depict

desirable values. Same may be suitably recognized and appreciated during curricular and

co-curricular activities in the school.

17. Parents should be involved in value education programmes at all levels. They should

also be informed about various value activities/programmes to be undertaken at the college

and University.

18. Value education kits should be prepared for each important value and should be

validated scientifically. These should be distributed free of cost to the colleges and

universities. The teachers should be encouraged to make use of these kits effectively.

U.G.C., AIU, NCERT etc., should be called upon to organize training courses for preparing,

adopting and using these kits effectively.

19. Whatever relevant is there in ancient system of Indian education, may be adopted in

modem context as guidelines, and base for value development programmes in the country,

20. Detailed guidelines, uniform throughout the country,related to value teaching and

value development programmes should be prepared and made available to the teachers who

should be motivated to use these guidelines effectively at higher education level.

21. Evolutionary nature of values should be kept in mind while organizing value

development programmes. Value education should be viewed in the context of present

situation of man and his changing environment.

6.5.2 Recommendations Specific to this Study are:

1. Service to humanity was Gandhiji's means to achieve the ultimate goal of self-realization. Cultivate service-mindedness in children.

2. Purity of heart and character building should be given appropriate attention in education.

3. Cultivate Fearlessness through education.

4. Environmental protection and Resource conservation should be included in curriculum at all levels.

5. Importance of Home environment in education of children should be emphasized in educational planning.

6. The idea of 'Education through life' should be popularized and implemented urgently.

7. Women should have equal opportunity with men for education at all levels; but their education should focus on their special biofogicaI functions and responsibilities.

8. A good teacher should be an object lesson to the students and a practitioner of what he teaches.

9. In Teacher Training Institute emphasis should be on producing quality teachers.

10. Religious education should be imparted to children for spiritual development. But it should not be sectarian one.

1 I . Education should emphasize acquisition of hygienic way of life and right dietary habit.

12. Creation of work-culture should be encouraged through education.

13. Emphasis in education should be on Human development rather than on economic development. Horizontal growth of the whole population should be given priority rather than vertical growth of few.

14. Necessary steps should be taken to Indianize our education system.

15. Eradication of social evils should be given priority in education and the general public need to be conscientized about this.

16. Compulsory introduction of physical work in school is a sure way of promoting many values among children and also a solution to unemployment problem.

17. Gandhian philosophy of subordination of the flesh to spirit should be taught to children along with the concept of 'soul-force'.

18. Humility is the sign of wisdom and this need to be cultivated among our students.

19. To bring about human transformation through education, the life and teachings of great men in human history should be taught in schools.

20. Teacher Training institutes should equip prospective teachers with needed skills and competence in value inculcation. Teachers should be role-models for effective value inculcation.

References

1 . Biswas A. & Aggarwal, J.C., 'Seven Indian Educationists' , Arya Book Depot, New Delhi, 1998, p. 128.

2. Besant Annie, 'The Theosophist', The Theosophical Publishing House, Chennai, April 2005, p.259.

3. lbid.

4. Mani Mahajan P.: 'Foundations of Gandhina Thought', Dattson's Publishers and Distributors, J . Nehru Marg, Sadar Nagar, 1 987, p.222.

5. Gandhi,M.K., 'The Message of the Gita', Navajeevan Publishing House, Ahmedabad 1 959, pp. 1 6- 17.

6. Tivari, K.N., 'world Religions and Gandhi', Classical Publishing Company, New Delhi, 1988, p. 10 1.

8. Gandhi, M.K. , 'An Autobiography', Navjivan Publishing House, Ahmedabad, 2001, p.174.

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10. Gandhi M.K. 'Towards New Education', Navjivan Publishing House, ahmedabad, 200 1, pp. 1 4- 1 5.

1 1 . DulI lndira & Sheorans Anile, 'Helping Children Develop Values' EDUTRACKS, Vo1.4, No.8,Neelkarnal Publication Pvt.Ltd., Hyderabad, p. 10.

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I 8. Joshi Manohar M, 'Inaugaral Address7, Indian Council of Philosophical Research Jan. 18, 2003, p. 17.

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NAME

Age & Date of Birth

Permanent Address

Educational Qualifications

Work Experience

Present Employment

Marital Status

Telephone

MATHEWS T.JACOB

Thengumthamyil House, Pahanamthitta

M.Sc. Botany M.A.Philosophy & Religion M.Ed. Cognitive Psychology

20 Years at Higher Secondary Level in Africa. 10 Years in B.Ed College.

Lecturer, BMM LI Training College, Kottarakara.

Married; 3 Children.

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