Gandhi Jayanthi (Gandhiji's birthday) is being celebrated today not only in India but all over the world. The world is slowly realizing the relevance of Gandhiji and the magnitude of his greatness. However, the younger generation, who are the makers of tomorrow's history, don't seem much aware of his life and greatness. It is a sad fact.
Today in commemoration of Gandhi Jayanthi, I pay tribute to the Mahatma by reading his writings and also by posting a few passages from him.
* "I am but a poor struggling soul 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 painful climb, but the pain of it is a positive pleasure to me. Each step upward makes me feel stronger and fit for the next."
* "To see the universal and all-pervading spirit of Truth face to face, one must be able to love the meanest of creation as oneself. And a man who aspires after that cannot afford to keep out of any field of life. That is why my devotion of Truth has drawn me into the field of politics; and I can say without the slightest hesitation, and yet in all humility, that those who say that religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion means."
* "The instruments for the quest of Truth are as simple as they are difficult. They may appear quite impossible to an arrogant person, and quite possible to an innocent child. The seeker after Truth should be humbler than the dust. The world crushes the dust under its feet, but the seeker after Truth should be so humble himself that even the dust could crush him. Only then, and not till then, will he have a glimpse of Truth."
* "Experience has taught me that silence is a part of the spiritual discipline of a votary of truth. Proneness to exaggerate, to suppress or modify the truth, wittingly or unwittingly, is a natural weakness of man, and silence is necessary in order to surmount it. A man of few words will rarely be thoughtless in his speech; he will measure every word."
* "What a great thing it would be if we in our busy lives could retire into ourselves each day for at least a couple of hours and prepare our minds to listen to the Voice of the Great Silence."
* "Silence is a great help to a seeker after Truth life myself. In the attitude of silence, the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness. Our life is a long and arduous quest after Truth, and the soul requires inward restfulness to attain its full height."
Courtesy: "TRUTH IS GOD" (Selection from the Writings of Mahatma Gandhi), Published by Navajeevan Press, Ahmedabad-380014. Grateful thanks to the Navajeevan Press.
