The more I read about Mahatma Gandhi the more impressed I am regarding his influence upon hundreds of millions of citizens of the world. I firmly believe he was a man for his time and would be of equal influence today. Tragically he was assassinated on January 30, 1948 by a Hindu nationalist with ties to an extremist Hindu Mahasabha.
As an ardent practitioner of non-violence he was to the independence movement in India what Martin Luther King was to the non-violent agenda to end discrimination here in the United States. Gandhi’s leadership ended the British Colonial rule. Were Gandhi permitted to live a full life I am certain that many problems facing India and Pakistan today would be far more peaceful.
If you are interested, I urge you to read a very good analysis of his influence in the Wikipedia report on Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi at:
http://en.widipedia.org/wiki/Mohandas_Karamchand_Gandhi
Here are a couple of words rendered by Bapu (Father) as he was referred to by his followers:
“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall – think of it, always.”
“What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty and democracy?”
“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”
“There are many causes that I am prepared to die for but no causes that I am prepared to kill for.”
This last quote is confusing, because he urged his followers to join the British armed forces during World War II, yet he remained a proponent of non-violence. I certainly believe that the world would be significantly different today had Gandhi’s vast influences been permitted to further impact world events.
COMMANDER GRANGER
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