Dezs Szenkovics, PhD student, Babe-Bolyai University, Cluj-Naoca

!he "elevance o# $ahat%a &andhi's Philosohy #or the ()

st
Century
)
*!he roble% o# hu%an con#lict is erhas the %ost #unda%ental roble% o# all ti%e+
,-oan ./ Bondurant0
*$y li#e is %y %essa1e/+
,$/ 2/ &andhi0
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi, one o# the 1reatest and 3ell-kno3n ersonalities o# the (4
th
century, had a very dee in#luence on the second art o# the last century, 3hich is
incontestable and beyond any disute/ !hen a1ain there are voices 3hich roclai%, that even
in our 1lobalized 3orld the &andhian siritual herita1e still has its actuality and relevance/
5hat this aer tries, is to 1ive an ans3er re1ardin1 the relevance o# the &andhian thou1ht
in the ()
st
century/ !hus 6 3ill try to de%onstrate that the &andhian siritual herita1e 7 3ith
accent on the concets o# satya ,!ruth0, ahi%sa ,non-violence0 and satya1raha ,as &andhi
loosely translated, holdin1 on to truth or 89!:he #orce 3hich is born o# !ruth and ;ove or
nonviolence+
(
, 3hich in #act is the hilosohy and ractice o# the nonviolent resistance0 7
should have or %ust have an i%ortant role in dealin1 3ith the real roble%s o# our
1
!he resented aer is the result o# a research 3hich 3as ossible due to the #ollo3in1 roject<
Investing in people!
Ph/D/ scholarshi, Project co-#inanced by the S=C!>"?; >P="?!6>N?; P">&"?$ @>" AU$?N
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Babe-Bolyai University, Cluj-Naoca, "o%ania/
2
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< Satyagraha in South Africa/ in/ C5$&, vol/ CK, LC/
1lobalised 3orld/ 6n order to do this, #irst o# all 6 3ill have to outline the %eanin1s o# the
three above %entioned cate1ories, and a#ter bein1 done, 6 3ill try to e%hasize those asects
o# the &andhian concets 3hich 6 think that could be considered relevant in our ti%es or
could be use#ul and hel#ul in %ana1in1 so%e o# the real challen1es o# the ()
st
century, such
as the roble% o# ar%ed clashes, 1lobalizin1 terroris% or the %oral crisis o# the hu%anity/
?t the be1innin1 6 think 3e can a1ree that 3e are livin1 in a 3orld 3hich is divided day by
day increasin1ly by 1lobal unrest, #ear, an1er, hatred, discontent, desair, i%%orality etc/,
and the nu%ber and intensity o# ethnic and reli1ious con#licts see%s to 1ro3 and 1ettin1
hi1her and hi1her intensity all around the 3orld/
6n %y oinion &andhi's olitical and social hilosohy in 1eneral and his aroach to the
concets o# !ruth, non-violence and satya1raha in articular, could be the startin1 oint o#
the re1eneration or rebirth o# non-violent or less violent cultures and societies/ !he 3hole
non-violent hilosohy o# the $ahat%a based on the t3o core concets o# the &andhian
herita1e, aren't ne3 roositions/ &andhi hi%sel# is sayin1 that 86 have nothin1 ne3 to teach
the 5orld/ !ruth and non-violence are as old as the hills/ ?ll 6 have done is to try
eDeri%ents in both on as vast scale as 6 could/+
C
/ 6n other 3ords 3e can say that the
$ahat%a just tried to revive and to %ake %uch %ore understandable #or the 3hole 3orld
those old teachin1s, to %ake the% usable in the ne3 social and olitical conteDt/
&andhi ictured to hi%sel# ho3 an ideal society, based on love, truth and non-violence %ust
to look and #unction, and he tried to realize it as %uch as ossible in the real li#e/ Ais
atte%ts and results in %akin1 this oerable have had echoes and #ollo3ers all around the
3orld/ @or eDa%le =d3ard !ho%son in his aer &andhi< ? Character Study, 3rote< 8he
3
$/ 2/ &andhi< My Non-Violence, Navajivan Publishin1 Aouse, ?h%edabad, )LI4, iii/
3ill be re%e%bered as one o# the very #e3 3ho have set the sta%s o# an idea on an eoch/
!hat idea is Mnon-violence' 3hich has dra3n out o3er#ully the sy%athy o# other lands/+
K
?s 6 said be#ore, one o# the %ost i%ortant #unda%ental concets o# the &andhian thou1ht
should be considered the concet o# satya or !ruth/ !he i%ortance o# satya is underlined
too by the #act that the $ahat%a's ?utobio1rahy 3as entitled by hi%sel# 8!he story o# %y
eDeri%ents 3ith !ruth+, 3hich let us deduce the i%ortance o# !ruth in his everyday li#e/
?s a sel# state%ent o# the $ahat%a re1ardin1 the i%ortance o# the !ruth in his li#e, 6 3ill
Nuote a art #ro% one o# his letters addressed to Narandas &andhi/
8&enerally seakin1, 9observance o# the la3 o#: !ruth is understood %erely to %ean that 3e
%ust seak the truth/ But 3e in the ?shra%
F
should understand the 3ord satya or !ruth in a
%uch 3ider sense/ !here should be !ruth in thou1ht, !ruth in seech and !ruth in action/+
I
?s 3e can conclude #ro% this Nuotation, #or &andhi the concet o# !ruth has a %uch deeer
sense as it is understood by the %ajority in the everyday li#e/ >ver and above o# truth-sayin1
or abstention #ro% lies, #or &andhi the ter% o# satya has eDtensions in every levels o# the
everyday li#e, such as the level o# thinkin1, o# talkin1 and even the level o# actin1, 3hich
%eans that !ruth is the cate1ory 3hich has to be er%anently resent in our li#e and, at the
sa%e ti%e, is the %easure o# our thou1ht, seech and acts/
6 think it isn't necessary to %ake a detailed resentation re1ardin1 the role and the
i%ortance o# the satya in the %ajor 6ndian reli1ions, such as Ainduis%, Buddhis% or
-ainis%/ 6 consider that it is enou1h to state that the above %entioned ter% 7 just like the
another core concet, the ahi%sa 7 has a central role in every 6ndian reli1ion 3hich
4
=d3ard !ho%son< Gandhi: A Character Study, in/ Sarvealli "adhakrishnan ,ed/0< Mahatma Gandhi
!ssays"#eflections $n %is &ife and 'or( -aico Publishin1 Aouse, $u%bai, (4)4, (LB/
5
!raditionally the 3ord's %eanin1 is siritual her%ita1e, a lace #ar a3ay #ro% oulated areas suitable #or
%editations and rayers/ !oday the sense o# the 3ord has chan1ed and could be described as a teachin1 or
cultural sace, a kind o# school/
6
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< &etter to Narandas Gandhi/ in/ C5$&, vol/ KL, CHC/
in#luenced the thou1ht o# the $ahat%a/ 5e have just to re%e%ber the 8Satyannasti aro
dhar%ah+ or 8there is no Dhar%a hi1her than !ruth+ ahoris% 3hich is 3ell-kno3n in every
villa1e in 6ndia and 3hich roa1ates the sueriority o# the !ruth above all/ But eNually
kno3n is the ostulate 8?hi%sa ara%o Dhar%ah+ or the 8Non-violence is the sure%e
reli1ion or en1a1e%ent+/ !hese ter%s can be easily #ound in the reli1ious teDt o# Ainduis%
,such as the Uanisads, Bha1avad &ita, the $ahabharata, !he ;a3s o# $anu, etc/0 and, at
the sa%e ti%e it could be considered basic concets both in -ainis% and Buddhis%/
6n the neDt art o# the aer 6 3ill try to sketch 3hat &andhi 3as thinkin1 about these
concets/
?s 3e could #ind in his 3ritin1s 7 esecially in his ?utobio1rahy 7 &andhi, eDcetin1 a
short eriod o# his youth, 3as deely reli1ious/ 6n his ?utobio1rahy he states< 85hat 6 3ant
to achieveO3hat 6 have been strivin1 and inin1 to achieve these thirty yearsOis sel#-
realization, to see &od #ace to #ace, to attain %oksha/+
B
Ao3ever, his iety doesn't %eans
that he is si%ly a #ollo3er o# Ainduis%/ Durin1 his studies in =n1land and his 3ork in
South ?#rica, he continuously and thorou1hly studied the %ajor reli1ions o# the 5orld, such
as -ainis%, Christianity, Buddhis% or 6sla%/ Puotin1 ;ord Bhikhu ParekhQs 3ords<
+?lthou1h he 3as ro#oundly in#luenced by Ainduis%, Christianity and -ainis%, his
reli1ious thou1ht cut across all o# the% and 3as in a class by itsel#/ Belie# in &od 3as
obviously its basis/+
H
Ais reli1iosity, accordin1 to ?keel Bil1ra%i 3as 8eclectic and
individual+
L
, a %iD bet3een 3hat 3as 1iven to hi% as a child by his %other and 3hat he
achieved #ro% other reli1ions and hilosohies durin1 his study in =n1land and his stay in
7
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< An Auto)iography or *he Story of My !+periments ,ith *ruth/ in/ C5$&,
vol/ KK, L4/
8
P?"=2A, Bhikhu C/< Gandhi -.ast Masters Series/, >D#ord University Press, )LLB, (I/
9
B6;&"?$6, ?keel< &andhi's reli1ion and its relation to his olitics/ in/ B">5N, -udith $/ and P?"=;,
?nthony< *he Cam)ridge Companion to Gandhi, Ca%brid1e University Press, (4)), LC/
South ?#rica, such as -ainis%, Buddhis%, 6sla% and even Christianity/ Due to these
in#luences, his reli1iosity beca%e a very %averick %iD and that is 3hy he 3as considered
very o#ten Christian or even -ain a%on1 the Aindus/
!he $ahat%a hi%sel# %akes a state%ent re1ardin1 his oen-%inded and oen-hearted
interest sho3n in other reli1ions than Ainduis%/ Ae says that 8$y reli1ion enables %e,
obli1es %e, to i%bibe all that, is 1ood in all the 1reat reli1ions o# the earth/+
)4
?nd to have
an idea ho3 the $ahat%a 3as selectin1 all the 1ood thin1s #ro% a reli1ion, 3e have to Nuote
hi% a1ain/ 6n one o# his 3ritin1s entitled 8Sanatana Aindu+, he states< 86 a% not a literalist/
!here#ore, 6 try to understand the sirit o# the various scritures o# the 3orld/ 6 aly the test
o# !ruth and ?hi%sa laid do3n by these very scritures #or interretation/ 6 reject 3hat is
inconsistent 3ith that test, and 6 aroriate all that is consistent 3ith it/+
))
6t is very i%ortant to observe, that the attitude o# &andhi re1ardin1 the %ajor 3orld
reli1ions 3as rather an interretative-eDlanative attitude, than a do1%atic and %ystic one/
!he $ahat%a 3as concerned about the siritual, hilosohical %essa1e o# a reli1ion and not
about the 3ritten revelation o# the sacred books/ !his kind o# attitude allo3ed &andhi to
#or%ulate critical re%arks and disarobative observations and to oose so%e ele%ents o#
his o3n reli1ion ,#or eDa%le children-%arria1e, the status o# the harijans or untouchables
etc/0/
!his kind o# interretative-eDlanative attitude characterizes his hilosohical aroach
to3ards to the concets o# ahi%sa and satya too/ ?ll these t3o concets has been develoed
and i%roved in its %eanin1s and beca%e the core concets o# the &andhian herita1e/
10
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< Am I a Messenger of God0 in/ C5$& vol/ BB, (B
11
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< *Sanatana1 %indu/ in/ C5$& vol/ C(, CCF
!he concet o# ahi%sa 3as used as synony% o# the Brah%an ,&od0 in the ancient reli1ious
literature o# the Ainduis%/ ?ccordin1 to this reli1ious tradition, the $ahat%a considers that
the !ruth %ust be %ore than a %oral idea or an ethical de%and/ Ae states that &od is !ruth<
8$y reli1ion is based on truth and non-violence/ !ruth is %y &od/ Non-violence is the
%eans o# realizin1 Ai%/+
)(
?s a direct conseNuence o# this state%ent is that in his early
eriod &andhi is thinkin1 about truth as one o# the %any other Nualities or attributes o# the
&od/ ?t the sa%e ti%e the concet o# &od enjoys lo1ical riority to3ards ahi%sa, because
the last one only describes or characterizes the #irst one/
? #e3 years later, due to his eDeri%ents 3ith truth, the $ahat%a reconsiders his vie3 and
he decides that it is %uch %ore eDact and correct to say that !ruth is &od than &od is !ruth/
?bout this rocess o# enli1hten%ent he 3rote< 86 3ould say 3ith those 3ho say &od is
;ove, &od is ;ove/ But dee do3n in %e 6 used to say that thou1h &od %ay be ;ove, &od is
!ruth, above all/ 6# it is ossible #or the hu%an ton1ue to 1ive the #ullest descrition o# &od,
6 have co%e to the conclusion that, #or %ysel#, &od is !ruth/ But t3o years a1o 6 3ent a ste
#urther and said that !ruth is &od/ Jou 3ill see the #ine distinction bet3een the t3o
state%ents< &od is !ruth and !ruth is &od/ ?nd that conclusion 6 ca%e to a#ter a continuous,
relentless search a#ter !ruth 3hich be1an so %any years a1o/ 6 #ound that the nearest
aroach to !ruth is throu1h love/ But 6 #ound also that love has %any %eanin1s, in the
=n1lish lan1ua1e at least, and hu%an love in the sense o# assion beco%es a de1radin1 thin1
also/ 6 #ound too that love in the sense o# ahi%sa and nonviolence has only li%ited nu%ber
o# votaries in the 3orld/ ?nd as 6 %ade ro1ress in %y search, 6 %ade no disute 3ith M&od
is love'/ 6t is very di##icult to understand M&od is love' ,because o# a variety o# %eanin1s o#
12
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< .residential Address at 2athia,ar .olitical Conference3 4havanagar/ in/
C5$& vol/ C4, I)-I(/
love0 but 6 never #ound a double %eanin1 in connection 3ith !ruth and not even atheists
have denied the necessity or o3er o# !ruth/ Not only so/ 6n their assion #or discoverin1
!ruth, they have not hesitated even to deny the very eDistence o# &odO#ro% their o3n oint
o# vie3 ri1htly/ ?nd it 3as because o# their reasonin1 that 6 sa3 that 6 3as not 1oin1 to say
M&od is !ruth', but M!ruth is &od'+
)C
5e have to %ention, that as a Aindu, &andhi understood satya to be synony%ous 3ith the
ste% sat, 3hich is reality itsel#, 3hich %eans bein1/ 6n this 3ay !ruth beca%e &od and not
only an attribute o# &od/ !hus Satya ,!ruth0 and Sat ,Bein10 beca%e deno%inations o# the
very sa%e substantial, because in the ne3 de#inition 1ave by &andhi !ruth is described as
Bein1/ 6n a letter 3ritten to P/ &/ $atthe3 &andhi hi%sel# eDlain that in the !ruth is &od
state%ent the truth has to be interreted as &od and not as an attribute o# &od/ ?t the sa%e
ti%e the one and only bein1 is &od, &od is, besides hi% nothin1 else eDists, 3hich %eans
that 8there#ore the %ore truth#ul 3e are, the nearer 3e are to &od/ 5e are only the eDistent
that 3e are truth#ul/+
)K
?s 3e could see in &andhian interretation the !ruth 7 in addition to its ethical or %oral
di%ension 7 1ets a ne3, ontolo1ical di%ension too, because the !ruth denotes Bein1, the
co%leD entirety o# all bein1s, includin1 those 3e kno3 and those 3e didn't or couldn't
kno3/ !hus the !ruth 1ets a transcendental %eanin1 and beca%e synony%ous to &od,
takin1 &od's role in the li#e o# $ahat%a and beco%in1 aroriate as the subject o#
reli1ious ractices, o# unconditioned hu%an adoration and devotion/ ?ccordin1 to his idea
to3ards ?bsolute !ruth &andhi 3as able to consider not only the satya as the real basis o#
every bein1 and in such a 3ay the basis o# the 3hole hu%an society, but at the sa%e ti%e he
13
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< Speech at Meeting in &ausanne/ in/ C5$&, vol/ FK, (I)/
14
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< &etter to .G Mathe,/ in/ C5$&, vol/ FI, )(H/
de#ined every hu%an bein1 as 8truth-seekers+/ Ae could do this, because the direct
conseNuence o# the #aith in the ?bsolute !ruth is that every hu%an bein1 3ill share in this
?bsolute !ruth or &od/ ? hu%an bein1 could re%ain a %oral one only i# e%bodies and
continuously seeks the truth, because the truth is the substratu% o# %orality, 3here %orality
%eans not only the #orbearance #ro% lyin1 or the conviction that 3e %ust to say the truth
because this is the %ost adeNuate and ro#itable attitude on lon1-run, but it has to %ean that
our 3hole li#e %ust be subordinate to the la3 o# truth, even in cases 3hen such a situation
can have an undesirable conseNuence/ &andhi clai%s that the abstracted and un3orldly truth
has its 3orth only in case that it is e%bodied in hu%an bein1s 3ho are ready to die #or the
truth/ @or this 5estern art o# the 3orld could be hard to understand 3hat &andhi %eans,
because in our %inds the truth is an eiste%olo1ical Nuestion and not an ontolo1ical one or a
Nuestion o# ractical hilosohy/ 6n &andhi's 3ay o# thinkin1 the truth in his narro3
eiste%olo1ical sense is only a art o# 3hat satya %eans/ !his could be called latent truth,
because accordin1 to &andhian thou1ht the truth is realized or %aterialized only 3hen it is
enacted, 3hen is e%bodied in action/
?ccordin1 to Ainduis% a hu%an bein1 isn't able to realize the ?bsolute !ruth 3hile is
i%risoned in the cycle o# rebirths, 3hich %eans that 3e have to accet that everythin1 3e
can 1ras is only relative/ Because o# this, every hu%an bein1 has a #ra1%entary 1ras o#
truth and in order to be able to 1et closer to the ?bsolute !ruth 3e have to reco1nize the
artiality o# our ercetion o# truth and to act oen-%inded in to3ards the truth that co%es
#ro% other eole/ !hat is 3hy is 3ise to not i%ose one's truth on another/ ?nd i# 3e could
accet and understand that not one sin1le %an can be the ossessor o# the ?bsolute !ruth,
3e eDclude the violence #ro% our lives, because 3e 3ill be able to reco1nize our artial
ercetion o# truth, to listen to others and to accet their oint o# vie3 to3ards truth/
?t the sa%e ti%e the relativity o# truth led &andhi to teach the necessity o# %akin1 the
%eans continuous 3ith the ends sou1ht/ 6# a hu%an bein1 could see only artially the truth,
then he or she has to #ocus on the urity o# %eans/ Payin1 attention to the %eans is very
i%ortant, because accordin1 to &andhian thou1ht only 1ood %eans lead to 1ood ends/ 6t is
i%ossible #or eDa%le to obtain eace throu1h violence or violent actin1/ &andhi reeated
several ti%es that 3ho so3 violence, 3ill rea violence, but 3ho so3 eace and non-
violence, 3ill rea eace/
?s in the case o# the satya, the roots o# the &andhian concet o# ahi%sa could be #ound in
the reli1ious tradition o# 6ndia, bein1 8a cardinal virtue o# the Ainduis% throu1h the
centuries+
)F
/ 6n addition to satya, the ahi%sa can be considered the second #unda%ental
cate1ory o# the &andhian hilosohy/ ?ccordin1 to his reli1ious thou1ht he 3as rejectin1
violence #ro% early be1innin1/ Ae 3as roud that the reli1ious tradition o# the Ainduis% and
o# 6ndia in 1eneral 3as re#usin1 the use o# violence/ 8!he %ost distinctive and the lar1est
contribution o# Ainduis% to 6ndia's culture is the doctrine o# ahi%sa/ 6t has 1iven a de#inite
bias to the history o# the country #or the last three thousand years and over and it has not
ceased to be a livin1 #orce in the lives o# 6ndia's %illions even today/ 6t is a 1ro3in1
doctrine, its %essa1e is still bein1 delivered/ 6ts teachin1 has so #ar er%eated our eole
that an ar%ed revolution has al%ost beco%e an i%ossibility in 6ndia, not because, as so%e
3ould have it, 3e as a race are hysically 3eak, #or it does not reNuire %uch hysical
15
!erence -/ "ynne< Gandhi " 5esus *he Saving .o,er of Nonviolence >rbis Books, Ne3 Jork, (44L
stren1th so %uch as a devilish 3ill to ress a tri11er to shoot a erson, but because the
tradition o# ahi%sa has struck dee roots a%on1 the eole/+
)I

Besides his reli1ious belie#, he declined violence because o# historical eDeriences and
observations/ Ae 3itnessed the on1oin1 carna1e that resulted #ro% the ractice o# retaliation
durin1 the years he sent in South ?#rica, in the @irst and Second 5orld 5ar, in the Aindu-
$usli% con#licts, bet3een individuals/ Ae 3as readin1 and kno3in1 history, but at the sa%e
ti%e he eDerienced too the destructive o3er o# the violence several ti%es/ !hat is 3hy he
states< 8$y eDerience daily 1ro3in1 stron1er and richer tells %e that there is no eace #or
individuals or #or nations 3ithout ractisin1 truth and nonviolence to the utter%ost eDtent
ossible #or %an/ !he olicy o# retaliation has never succeeded/ 5e %ust not be con#ounded
by the isolated illustrations o# retaliation, includin1 #rauds and #orce, havin1 attained
te%orary and see%in1 success/ !he 3orld lives because there is %ore love than hate, %ore
truth than untruth in it/ !his is a roosition caable o# bein1 veri#ied by everyone 3ho 3ill
take the trouble to think/ @raud and #orce are diseases, truth and non-violence is health/ !he
#act that the 3orld has not erished is an ocular de%onstration o# the #act that there is %ore
health than disease in it/+
)B
Durin1 the Second 5orld 5ar he declared that Aitler, Stalin and $ussolini 3ill de%onstrate
once a1ain the e%tiness o# violence, 3hich %eans in his ercetion that all the violence
used by the above %entioned eole has an i%%ediate e##ect 3hich is, as a %atter o# #act,
transitory and 3ill leave behind hatred and devastation/ @ro% his oint o# vie3 only the
8non-violent action ersist and are likely to 1ro3 3ith a1e/+
)H
16
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< Intervie, ,ith 6r 5ohn Mott/ in/ C5$&, vol/ KF, )KC/
17
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< Indictment in/ C5$&, vol/ K), (L/
18
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< Intervie, ,ith .rof Mays in/ C5$&, vol/ B4, (I)/
?s he did in the case o# the concet o# Satya, he oerates i%ortant %eanin1 chan1es in the
sense o# the ?hi%sa too/ Desite o# its ne1ative re#iD ,ahi%sa or non-violence0 &andhi 3as
able to %ade #ro% this #unda%ental concet an active #orce and to char1e it 3ith ositive
ener1y and sense/ ?hi%sa vent beyond its usual understandin1< re#usal to do har% and
beca%e a Nuality or attribute o# a satya1rahi, 3hich enables hi% in con#lict situations to act
in 8a ositive, non-jud1in1, creatively #orbearin1 and lovin1 3ay/+
)L
?hi%sa has to be %ore
than a rejection o# everythin1 3hich needs violenceR it is not a assive status or condition/ 6n
&andhian hilosohy is one o# the %ost active #orces o# the 3orld 3hich could be
understood as love or charity in the ositive, biblical sense o# the 3ord, 3hich is eDosed in
the Ser%on on the $ount or in a oe% o# a &ujarati oet, 3hich sounds like this< 8!here is
no %erit in returnin1 1ood #or 1ood/ $erit lies in returnin1 1ood #or evil/+
(4
?s 3e could see, in the &andhian siritual herita1e the concet o# ahi%sa 1ets a ositive
sense and it is understood as a 8universal la3 actin1 under all circu%stances+
()
, as 8one o#
the 3orld's 1reat rinciles 3hich no o3er on earth can 3ie out+
((
/ 6t is considered by the
$ahat%a as a ne3 3eaon in olitics 3hich is in the rocess o# evolution/ 6ts vast
ossibilities are yet uneDlored and this eDloration can take lace only i# it 3ill be ractised
on a bi1 scale and in various #ields/
6n the &andhian siritual, herita1e as 3e could see, there is a %utual relationshi bet3een
satya and ahi%sa, bet3een !ruth and non-violence/ !his %utual relationshi could be use#ul
to treat the ne1ative asects o# the 1lobalization such as the ethnic and reli1ious con#licts are
or the eDistin1 %oral crisis, 3hich is the source o# econo%ical and #inancial crises/ Usin1 the
3ords o# $ar1aret Chatterjee, &andhi has 8inointed violence as the chie# %alady o# the
19
!erence -/ "ynne< Gandhi " 5esus *he Saving .o,er of Nonviolence >rbis Books, Ne3 Jork, (44L, FH/
20
>/ cit/, I4/
21
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< *o the .rincess in/ C5$&, vol/ BI, LC-LK/
22
$ohandas 2ara%chand &andhi< %o, Can Violence 4e Stopped in/ C5$&, vol/ L4, CBK/
%odern ti%es/+
(C
>ne o# the #ails o# our %odern ti%e is that its tryin1 to %ana1e those
violent acts 3e can see all around the 3orld and al%ost day by day 3as unsuccess#ul till
no3/
6# this state%ent is true, it re%ains a very lo1ic Nuestion to ask< i# the 1lobalization 3hich is
sustained on several levels all around the 3orld 3asn't able to coe 3ith this violence, i# the
history o# the last t3o decades sho3s us that our e##orts in violent #i1htin1 had as 1oal the
do%ination o# the other, the olitical and econo%ic control o# the other, 3hat 3e are 3aitin1
#orS ? do%ination o# the other 3hich 3as obtained by usin1 brute #orce and violence isn't a
1uarantee o# less violence #ro% those 3ho are do%inated, and in this 3ay the do%inant arty
could beca%e very easily into a do%inated one and at the sa%e ti%e the su##erer o# the
resultin1 violence/
>ur Nuestion %ust be 3hat 3e have to do to cure 3ith results this %aladyS ?nd the ans3er
could be< to listen to 3hat &andhi says about ahi%sa and satya, about non-violence and truth
and to #ollo3 his teachin1s/ 5e have to understand to be a3are o# usin1 violence a1ainst
others, because violence leads to violent resonses and at the sa%e ti%e concentrate o3er
in the hands o# a #e3 eole, 3hich is contrary o# 3hat de%ocracy %eans/ ?nd #inally the
violence leads to hysical and sychical su##erin1s and de1radation, 3hich are oosite to
the hu%an di1nity/
5e have to re%e%ber, that the &andhian 3ay o# non-violent resistance a1ainst the brute
#orce o# the colonialis% 3as success#ul/ ?t the sa%e ti%e 3e have not to #or1et that the
social re#or% and civil ri1hts %ove%ent o# $artin ;uther 2in1 in the US? or the anti-
aartheid resistance o# South ?#rica under the leadershi o# Nelson $andela beca%e
e##ective a#ter the leaders %oved their ca%ai1ns on the basis o# the &andhian satya1raha,
23
!erence -/ "ynne< Gandhi " 5esus *he Saving .o,er of Nonviolence >rbis Books, Ne3 Jork, (44L, FB/
3hich relies on the concets o# ahi%sa and satya/ !he sa%e story haened in Poland in the
late seventies 7 early ei1hteens 3ith the anti-co%%unist %ove%ent o# Solidarity and the
result is 3ell-kno3n< Poland beca%e the #irst de%ocratic country in the #or%er =astern bloc
o# co%%unist countries/
?ll these are obvious and sel# evident eDa%les o# the #act, that the &andhian olitical
hilosohy, the so called 8%oral jiu-jitsu+ could have real and concrete results in cases 3hen
violence and brute #orce aren't e##icient/ Ais %ultidi%ensional social and olitical thou1ht is
derived #ro% 6ndia's thousand years old reli1ious and hilosohical traditions, but it 3as
rethou1ht and develoed accordin1 to the real challen1es o# the %odern ti%es by his o3n
eDeri%ents durin1 his non-violent #i1ht a1ainst the colonialis% in South ?#rica and 6ndia/
Aonourable ?udienceT ?t the #inal o# %y aer let %e Nuote t3o character-dra3in1s
concernin1 the $ahat%a/ !he #irst one is #ro% an 6ndian thinker and #or%er resident o#
6ndia, the second one #ro% a &er%an, one o# the #irst Christian leaders arrested by the Nazis/
Sarvealli "adhakrishnan< 8Since Buddha, &andiji 3as the 1reatest %oral #orce in 6ndian
history/ @or the acco%lish%ent o# liberty, justice and eace, he rediscovered the old
techniNues o# ?h%isa and Satya1raha/ Ae revealed to the %asses a o3er not o# ri#les and
%achine 1uns, but the o3er innate in each individual, a o3er 3hich this 3ar-haunted
3orld can eDloit #ully in %akin1 3ars i%ossible/+
(K
$artin Nie%oeller< 85hen the Christian church and Christian 3orld did not do anythin1
e##ective about eace%akin1, &od #ound a rohet o# nonviolence in $ahat%a &andhi 9///:/
6n our days &andhi has sho3n this to a 1reat art o# the 3orld, and 6 3ish that Christians
24
"?DA?2"6SAN?N, Sarvealli ,ed/0< Mahatma Gandhi !ssays " #eflections -aico Publishin1 Aouse,
(4)4
3ould not be the last 1rou o# %en and 3o%en to learn the lesson that &od is teachin1 us
throu1h this rohet/+
(F
?#ter all these bein1 said, the only Nuestions #or %e re%ains that are 3e, the eole o# the
()
st
century enou1h %oral, oen-%inded and 3ise to understand the &andhian teachin1 and
to aly it in our everyday li#e, irresective o# the #act that 3e are olicy %akers, states%en,
business %en or si%le 3orld citizens/
Biblio1rahy<
9): Bil1ra%i, ?keel< &andhi's reli1ion and its relation to his olitics/ in/ Bro3n, -udith $/
and Parel, ?nthony< *he Cam)ridge Companion to Gandhi, Ca%brid1e University Press,
(4)), LC-))I/
9(: =d3ard !ho%son< Gandhi: A Character Study, in/ Sarvealli "adhakrishnan ,ed/0<
Mahatma Gandhi !ssays " #eflections $n %is &ife and 'or( -aico Publishin1 Aouse,
$u%bai, (4)4
9C: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< $y Non-.iolence, Navajivan Publishin1 Aouse, ?h%edabad,
)LI4
9K: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< .residential Address at 2athia,ar .olitical Conference3
4havanagar/ in/ !he Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 30, 53-67.
El!troni! "ook on htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access<
Nove%ber F, (4)40
9F: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< *Sanatana1 %indu/ in/ !he Collected Works of Mahatma
Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 3(, 335-3)0. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< Nove%ber H, (4)40
9I: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< Satyagraha in South Africa/ in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 3), 1-(7*. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch (C, (4))0
25
Puoted by !erence -/ "ynne in !erence -/ "ynne< Gandhi " 5esus *he Saving .o,er of Nonviolence >rbis
Books, Ne3 Jork, (44L, / )IL/
9B: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< An Auto)iography or *he Story of My !+periments ,ith *ruth/
in/ !he Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol/ KK, HH-KB4/ =lectronic
Book on htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< -anuary )I, (44L0
9H: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< Indictment in/ !he Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi
(vol. 1100), vol. )1, (7-31. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch ((, (4))0
9L: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< Intervie, ,ith 6r 5ohn Mott/ in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. )5, 1)(-1)7. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch ((, (4))0
9)4: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< &etter to Narandas Gandhi/ in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. )+, 3*1-3*). El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< Nove%ber F, (4)40
9)): &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< Speech at Meeting in &ausanne/ in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 5), (67-(76. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch )), (4))0
9)(: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< &etter to .G Mathe,/ in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 56, 1(*-1(+. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch )), (4))0
9)C: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< Intervie, ,ith .rof Mays in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 56, (61-(6). El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch )(, (4))0
9)K: &andhi, $/ 2ara%chand< Am I a Messenger of God in/ !he Collected Works of
Mahatma Gandhi (vol. 1100), vol. 77, (6-(*. El!troni! "ook on
htt#$%%&&&.'andhisrv.or'%!&m'%!&m'.html ,last access< $arch )4, (4))0
9)F: Parekh, Bhikhu C/< Gandhi -.ast Masters Series/, >D#ord University Press, )LLB/
9)I: !erence -/ "ynne< Gandhi " 5esus *he Saving .o,er of Nonviolence >rbis Books,
Ne3 Jork, (44L
,s-m
!he central Nuestion e%hasized by the aer is, that in the ()
st
centuries 1lobalised 3orld,
the &andhian %essa1e still has or could have any actuality in %ana1in1 our century's real
challen1es, such as terroris% or the deeenin1 %oral crisis o# the hu%anity/
6n order to be able to doin1 this, the aer 3ill #irst o# all resent, analyze and co%%ent the
%ost i%ortant concets 6 consider the &andhian thou1ht is based on, such as satya ,!ruth0,
ahi%sa ,non-violence0 and satya1raha ,as &andhi loosely translated, holdin1 on to truth,
3hich in #act is the hilosohy and ractice o# the nonviolent resistance0/ 6 have to ad%it
that in %y aer 6 3ill consider &andhi as a hilosoher or a thinker, even i# he 3ould not
a1ree 3ith %e or even i# it 3ould be hard to consider hi% a hilosoher accordin1 to
=uroean traditions, =uroean canon re1ardin1 hilosohy/ ?s 3e kno3, he ersonally
declared that is beyond his o3er to 3rite an acade%ic teDt and he is not built #or such kind
o# 3ritin1s/
Secondly, the aer 3ill e%hasize those asects and concets o# the &andhian thou1ht
3hich could 1ive an ans3er to the core Nuestion o# the aer, tryin1 to rove that at least
t3o o# the resented concets could be considered relevant and use#ul in our ti%es, even i#
at a #irst i%ression all o# these key-concets o# the &andhian thou1ht see%s to be a utoia
and useless/ 6t see%s that &andhi, throu1h his ideas and thou1hts, 8is still alive+ and is
a%on1 us a#ter %ore than I4 years o# his death/ 6t see%s that 3e all hu%an bein1s still have
to learn #ro% the ideas, #ro% the 3ritin1s and acts o# the $ahat%a/
2ey3ords
&andhi, $ahat%a, truth, satya, ahi%sa, satya1raha, relevance
Szenkovics Dezs, PhD student at Babe-Bolyai University Cluj-Naoca
Ao%e address< K444BK Cluj-Naoca, .asile PUrvan street L?, Cluj, "o%ania
!el< VK4-B(H-LLILKI, @aD< VK4-(IK-FLCIL4, e-%ail< szenkovicsW1%ail/co%