Gandhi Journal Article-III ( JULY 2017 ) - Relevance of Gandhi in modern times

Gandhi Journal Article-III ( JULY 2017 )

Relevance of Gandhi in modern times

By Rajen Baura 

Looking at the present state of affairs in India, the birthplace of Gandhi, one would probably surmise that Gandhism, whatever the term may mean, cannot have any relevance in this twenty-first century. Gandhi is rightly called the Father of the Nation because he single handedly stood up against the mighty British Empire, without any arms, and brought her independence. However, today, Gandhi is mostly forgotten and his relevance questioned even by his ardent devotees. Today Gandhi is remembered in India mostly on his birthday which is celebrated as a national holiday rather as a ritual.

As a matter of fact, India is not following any of Gandhi's teachings which are mostly confined to text books. In fact, since independence, the country has witnessed many violent communal riots in this multi communal country. Gandhi's message of ‘swabalambi’, self-sufficiency with home spun ‘khadi’ cloth is not used now a days even as a social slogan. Statistics show that the country is definitely not following ‘sarvodaya’, a broad Gandhian term meaning 'universal upliftment' or ‘progress of all’ reaching the masses and the downtrodden. On the contrary, India today has the unique distinction of being the only country in the world which has the richest man in the world while at the same time more than 30 per cent of its population lives in dire poverty.

The above shows that today, Gandhism is a very confused ‘ism’ in India. Today many politicians in India use the term merely as a slogan and the common man make Gandhi almost out of reach of the younger groups by making Gandhi an unwilling ‘avatara’. That may be one reason why the only photo we see of Gandhi in India is always that of an old man which brings the image of a very simple and pious man who was meek and mild like Jesus Christ. While Gandhi was not a simple man to say the least, the above does not gives the right image of Gandhi and does not bring any inspiration to the younger group, the group most relevant for Gandhi.

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Gandhi Journal Article-III (March 2017) - Aung San Suu Kyi - In Gandhi's Footsteps

Gandhi Journal Article-III ( MARCH 2017 )

Aung San Suu Kyi - In Gandhi's Footsteps

By Dr. Anupma Kaushik

Introduction : Her life and family

Aung San Suu Kyi was born on 19 June 1945 in Rangoon. She derives her name from three relatives. Aung San from her father, Suu from her paternal grandmother and Kyi from her mother Khin Kyi. She is frequently called Daw Suu by the Burmese or Amay Suu, i.e. Mother Suu by some followers. (Gandhi was called Bapu by his followers) Suu Kyi is the third child and only daughter of Aung San considered to be the father of modern-day Burma. Her father founded the modern Burmese army and negotiated Burma's independence from the British Empire in 1947 but was assassinated by his rival in the same year. She grew up with her mother, Khin Kyi and two brothers, Aung San Lin and Aung San Oo, in Rangoon. Aung San Lin died at age eight, when he drowned in an ornamental lake on the grounds of the house. Her elder brother immigrated to San Diego, California, becoming a United States citizen. After Aung San Lin's death, the family moved to a house by Inya Lake where Suu Kyi met people of very different backgrounds, political views and religions. She was educated in Methodist English High School for much of her childhood in Burma, where she was noted as having a talent for learning languages.
 

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Gandhi Journal Article-II ( MARCH 2017 ) - The Power of Non-violence

Gandhi Journal Article-II ( MARCH 2017 )

The Power of Non-violence

By M.K. Gandhi

NON-VIOLENCE IN its dynamic condition means conscious suffering. It does not mean meek submission to the will of the evil-doer, but it means the pitting of one's whole soul against the will of the tyrant. Working under this law of our being, it is possible for a single individual to defy the whole might of an unjust empire to save his honour, his religion, his soul and lay the foundation for that empire's fall or its regeneration. (YI, 1-8-1920, p. 3)
 

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Gandhi Journal Article-III ( October 2016 ) - Relevance of Mahatma Gandhi in Canada

Gandhi Journal Article-III ( October 2016 ) 

Relevance of Mahatma Gandhi in Canada

By Dr. Neeta Khandpekar 

Gandhi's legacy is significant for both of them owing to have faced problems of separatism and secession in specific areas. Canada's accord of 1992 (though failed) was an act of political courage, an experiment at once educative and conciliatory which is perhaps the only way of fusing a multicultural society into a nation. Even today we read news headlines like "IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE MAHATMA, GLOBAL MAHATMA". And in fact Martin Luther King Jr, Dalai Lama, Aung San Suu Kyi, Nelson Mandela, Adolfo Perez Esquivel were inspired by Gandhiji's philosophy and practice and have been awarded the Nobel Prize across the world. Gandhi is now a global icon and a mystical figure rolled into one. In the twentieth century Non-violence has achieved many successes. The American Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's led by Martin Luther King Jr. culminated in political rights for African-Americans. Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe when confronted with non-violent resistance, led by forces like Solidarity in Poland and Charter 77 in Czechoslovakia. In 1986, a massive show of people's power toppled Ferdinand Marcos's dictatorship in the Philippines. The armies refused to fire on the people after being convinced by them-Photographs of girls offering roses to men manning the tanks are still etched in memory - to support the pro-democracy movement. Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu played a major role in South Africa's relatively peaceful transition from apartheid to a democracy that granted blacks political rights. Esquivel an Argentinean was the founder of Peace and Justice, a pan-Latin American civil rights movement in the 1970s that adopted non-violence as its credo at a time when the continent was gripped by violent conflict. This paper will focus on twenty first century issues especially in Canada and its solutions in Gandhian thought.

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Gandhi Journal Article-I ( October 2016 ) - Fighting for Peace: The Gandhian Way

Gandhi Journal Article-I ( October 2016 ) 

Fighting for Peace: The Gandhian Way

By Asha Gupta 

Peace does not imply simply ‘absence of war’. Rather, it implies justice, equity and ‘freedom from fear’. Gandhi, one of the apostles of peace, not only propagated peace at the world level but also understood fully. Since all plans of wars begin in the human mind, it becomes absolutely necessary to make it the abode of peace. Without inner peace and growth of spirituality at the individual level, there can’t be any peace and tranquility at the global level. For this to happen, individuals and civil societies would have to play a proactive role.

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Gandhi Journal Article-I ( September 2016 ) - Decentralized Political Order: The Gandhian Perspective

Gandhi Journal Article-I ( September 2016 ) 

Decentralized Political Order: The Gandhian Perspective

By  Ramashray Roy 

This paper discusses the rationale of local democracy by looking at the democratic discourse surrounding the usefulness and limits of the representative form. Stalwarts like Jefferson called for the creation of ‘elementary republics’ by dividing counties into wards. Such intimate communities are not only a more reliable means of addressing public problems, but also avenues of the inner growth of the citizens in self-responsibility. This means reversing the pyramid of authority and power. The Gandhian scheme of decentralized political order is more than a technical  device; it is, at one and the same time, an institutional strategy for facilitating and sustaining spiritual regeneration of human existence in the backdrop of a simple economy based on limitation  of wants.

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Gandhi Journal Article-III ( August 2016 ) - Forgiveness and Conflict Resolution

Gandhi Journal Article-III ( August 2016 )

Forgiveness and Conflict Resolution

By John Moolakkattu 

Conflict resolution deals with how people resolve their disagreements, often emanating from mutually incompatible goals. Such disagreements entail not only fights, but also negative emotions that persist. The resolution of conflicts through various rational strategies such as negotiations, mediation and facilitation might yield positive outcomes. But conflict resolution focused on the issues that give rise to conflict cannot often address the rupture in human relations that takes place. Failure to deal with this rupture might increase the likelihood of future conflict. Hence forgiveness can play a role in conflict resolution when the parties accept that the conflict is a relational phenomenon and is the result of failed interaction, that both sides have a role in reconstructing the relationships, and in so doing, reconstructing their identities, which results in the restoration of humanity of both. At an interpersonal level forgiveness is seen as a very useful virtue and it has led to the resolution of conflicts between those in intimate relationships such as married couples. But many would have reservations when this idea is applied to address group conflict.

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Gandhi Journal Article-I ( July 2016 ) - Gandhi is alive and still relevant

Gandhi Journal Article-I ( July 2016 ) 

Gandhi is alive and still relevant

By Dr. Kumarpal Desai 

Mahatma Gandhi had given a talisman or mantra to Nehru. It was really a yardstick to use before making any decision. He told Nehru that before starting any work, think of the poorest man and keeping him in view, think whether your actions are going to benefit him in anyway.

This idea of Gandhi to help the poorest of the poor has brought about a peaceful revolution in the world. He has shown a way to this extremely materialistic, acquisitive, narrow-minded and selfish world. Today Gandhi may not be among us, but he manifests himself through many individuals in our society. Organisations like the Radical Party or the Greenpeace Party openly acknowledge that Mahatma Gandhi is their guide and they follow his path. Their policies are based on Gandhian principles.

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Gandhi Journal Article-III ( May 2016 ) - Gandhian Trusteeship as an 'Instrument of Human Dignity'

Gandhi Journal Article-III ( May 2016 )

Gandhian Trusteeship as an 'Instrument of Human Dignity'

Gandhi's economic ideas were part of his general crusade against poverty, exploitation against socio-economic injustice, and deteriorating moral standards. Gandhi was an economist of the masses. His approach was rooted in human dignity. His economic philosophy is a result of innumerable experiments which he conducted in the course of his life. His pragmatic approach gave a new direction to the existing socio-economic problems in the process of protecting human dignity.

The fluid international conditions fraught with ideological tensions in the economic domain demanded a fresh approach to economic philosophy, with emphasis on the ideals of human rights like democracy, economic freedom, and social justice. Gandhism as a socio­economic philosophy suits not only to accomplish the higher ideals of democratic freedom and socialism but it was also thoroughly developed to meet the challenge of national and international forces of communism and capitalism.

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Gandhi Journal Article-II (May2016) - Gandhian relevance to environmental sustainability

Gandhi Journal Article-II (May2016)

Gandhian relevance to environmental sustainability

By Dr. Vaidehi Daptardar 

Environmental sustainability is the most burning issue with which every one of us is related very closely. Environmental Sustainability means to sustain ability, both the ability of the environment to regenerate and the ability of people to retain control over their living conditions (Kuhn 1998). In the terms of the 1987 Brundtland Report, sustainability is "Meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs." Sustainable development may be described as a process for improving the range of opportunities that will enable individual human beings and communities to achieve their aspirations and full potential over a sustained period of time, while maintaining the resilience of economic, social and environmental systems (Munasinghe 1994). The concept has evolved to encompass three major points of view: economic, social and environmental, as represented by the triangle.

Each viewpoint corresponds to a domain (and a system) that has its own distinct driving forces and objectives. The economy is geared mainly towards improving human welfare, primarily through increases in the consumption of goods and services. The environmental domain focuses on protection of the integrity and resilience of ecological systems. The social domain emphasizes the enrichment of human relationships and achievement of individual and group aspirations. In other words, sustainable development requires increase both in adaptive capacity and in opportunities for improvement of economic, social and ecological systems (Gunderson and Holling 2001). Improving adaptive capacity will increase resilience and sustainability.

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Gandhi Journal Article-III (January 2016) A man who lives without money

Gandhi Journal Article-III (January 2016)

A man who lives without money

Think you couldn’t live without money? Irishman Mark Boyle challenged this notion and here’s how he finds life with no financial income, bank balance, and no spending.

“If someone told me seven years ago, in my final year of a business and economics degree, that I’d now be living without money, I’d have probably choked on my microwaved ready meal.”According to Boyle, the plan back then was to ‘get a good job’, make as much money as possible, and buy the stuff that would show society he was successful.
 

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Gandhi Journal Article-II (November 2015)

Gandhi Journal Article-II (November 2015)

Gandhi on theory and practice of Islam

By Dr. Anupma Kaushik 

The word Islam means peace but today it invokes images of violence, totalitarianism and irrationality. (Afkhami, 1995, 33) Islam is one religion which of late has been associated with terrorism and fundamentalism worldwide. Names like ISIS, Boko Harem, Al Qaeda, Taliban, Al-Shabaab, have become synonym with fundamentalism and terrorism. (Times of India, 2015, 10) The troubled spots in the world today such as Pakistan, Iraq, Somalia, Yemen, Syria, Libya and Afghanistan where violence and fundamentalism have disturbed peace are mostly associated with Islam. (The Hindu, 2015, 12) This raises the question whether Islam is a peaceful religion or not? However this is not a new question for a country like India which had a huge Muslim population living with people of other religions at times peacefully but at others not so peacefully. Even in pre independence era leaders like Gandhi had to deal with this issue.

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Gandhi Journal Article-II (September 2015) : Schumacher on Gandhi

Gandhi Journal Article-II (September 2015) : Schumacher on Gandhi

By Surur Hoda  

Gandhi’s visions of Gram Swaraj (i.e. self-sufficient but inter-linked village republics with decentralised small-scale economic structure and participatory democracy) left him immediately at odds with many in the Indian National Congress and outside who sought to develop India as a ‘modern’ industrial nation state. To Gandhi, political freedom was merely the first step towards attainment of real independence which entailed achieving social, moral and economic freedom for seven hundred thousand villages. ‘If the villages perish India will perish’ he had said. But the majority of academically-trained, so-called modern economists called his vision ‘retrograde’. Some extremists even described it as ‘reactionary’ or ‘counter-revolutionary’ which aimed to put the clock back.

Many of those who admired his skill in leading the struggle for national liberation reluctantly tolerated his views as the price to pay for his political leadership. They were sold on the concept of large-scale urban industrialisation, mass production and economics of scale. They failed to understand Gandhi’s economic insight and criticised him by saying ‘Whatever Gandhi’s merit as “Father of the Nation”, he simply does not understand economics.’
 

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Gandhi Journal Article-I (August 2015) : Aung San Suu Kyi - In Gandhi's Footsteps

Gandhi Journal Article-I (August 2015) : Aung San Suu Kyi - In Gandhi's Footsteps

By Dr. Anupma Kaushik

 

Aung San Suu Kyi was born on 19 June 1945 in Rangoon. She derives her name from three relatives. Aung San from her father, Suu from her paternal grandmother and Kyi from her mother Khin Kyi. She is frequently called Daw Suu by the Burmese or Amay Suu, i.e. Mother Suu by some followers. (Gandhi was called Bapu by his followers) Suu Kyi is the third child and only daughter of Aung San considered to be the father of modern-day Burma. Her father founded the modern Burmese army and negotiated Burma's independence from the British Empire in 1947 but was assassinated by his rival in the same year. She grew up with her mother, Khin Kyi and two brothers, Aung San Lin and Aung San Oo, in Rangoon. Aung San Lin died at age eight, when he drowned in an ornamental lake on the grounds of the house. Her elder brother immigrated to San Diego, California, becoming a United States citizen. After Aung San Lin's death, the family moved to a house by Inya Lake where Suu Kyi met people of very different backgrounds, political views and religions. She was educated in Methodist English High School for much of her childhood in Burma, where she was noted as having a talent for learning languages.

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Gandhi Journal Article-III (July 2015) : Ecology and Lifestyle: A Gandhian Perspective

Gandhi Journal Article-III (July 2015) : Ecology and Lifestyle: A Gandhian Perspective

By M. P. Mathai
 

The ecological crisis we confront today has been analysed from various angles and scientific data on the state of our environment made available. Humanity has come out of its foolish self-complacency and has awakened to the realisation that over-exploitation of nature has led to a very severe degradation and devastation of our environment. Scholars, through several studies, have brought out the direct connection between consumption and environmental degradation.

The climate change experienced today has convinced many that unless we take urgent remedial measures life might be wiped out of the face of the Earth. There have been several international summits and important conventions have been signed. But to our great dismay, most of the provisions of these covenants have been blatantly violated, rather than scrupulously honoured and implemented. Awareness of the issues involved has become almost universal, but the determination to take corrective steps is sorely missing.

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Gandhi Journal Article-I (July 2015) : Gandhi's Persuasive Communication and Ideal Journalism

Gandhi Journal Article-I : Gandhi's Persuasive Communication and Ideal Journalism

By Dr. K. John Babu 

 

This paper attempts to equate Mahatma Gandhi's art of communication with Aristotle's three variables of communication or Rhetorica. It has highlighted Gandhi's ideal character, his logical thinking, and ability to rouse emotions among public. It throws light on Gandhi as an accomplished journalist and classifies Gandhian journalism into four kinds: Gandhi's Public journalism, Gandhi's Ethics in journalism, Gandhi's Peace journalism and Gandhi's Development journalism. It concludes by expounding the relevance of Gandhi's persuasive communication and objectives of journalism to the present day society.

 

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Gandhi Journal Article-III: Gandhian Economic order in the New Millennium

Gandhian Economic Order in the New Millennium

By By Prof. G. S. Shikhare

The Gandhian Economic Order is based on simplicity, decentralization, self-sufficiency, cooperation, equality, non-violence, human values, self-sufficient village units, and nationalisation of basic industries, Swadeshi and the theory of trusteeship. These, in turn, will solve the problems pertaining to labour, capital, production, distribution and profit etc. Since 1991, we are following market-oriented free economic system but the old problems are yet to be solved and higher growth remains to be achieved and hence there is an urgent need to find out some other alternative solution to present economic problems. “Various economists like Gunnar Myrdal and others are of the opinion that socio-economic problems of India and other developing countries can be solved to a great extent by following Gandhi's guidelines.

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Gandhi Journal Article-II: Gandhian Ethics of Fast-Nonviolence

Gandhian Ethics of Fast-Nonviolence

By By Maithili R. Gupte

Fasting is an institution as old as Adam. It has been resorted to for self-purification or for some ends noble as well as ignoble. Buddha, Jesus and Mohammed fasted so as to see God face to face. Ramchandra fasted for the sea to give way for his army of monkeys. Parvati fasted to secure Mahadev himself as her Lord and Master. In Gandhi's fast he follows these great examples, no doubt for ends much less noble than theirs. Even today this weapon of fasting used to fight against evils.

Non-violence is also old as human culture. Non-violence has occupies a pre-eminent position in Indian philosophy and religion. It has been the first among the five-fold virtues. Which form the essence of Hindu Ethics and are known by various names, such as pancayama, pancasila or panca-maha-vrata. Jainism placed it higher than truth (Satya). The Buddha identified it with universal compassion. It was regarded as equivalent to Dharma or the Moral Law - it was a necessary means to Moksa or salvation and vital part of the spiritual discipline prescribed by teachers of Yoga like Patanjali.

Now the question is - why does violence exist in us? Because we can't see ourselves as part of a universe, because we see ourselves as being separate. In that separation is violence. If we separate ourselves from everybody else, then of course, we have to fight for our own survival.

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