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Mr Narendra Modi gifted president Obama a special edition of Geeta
written by Mahatma Gandhi. He also gave a copy of martin Luther king’s
speech that he delivered in 1959 in India. The recording was obtained
from All India radio archives......
Leaders in and out of government, organizations, particularly the
Gandhi Smarak Nidhi and the Quaker Center, and many homes and families
have done their utmost to make our short stay both pleasant and
instructive. We have learned a lot. We are not rash enough to presume
that we know India, vast subcontinent with all of its people, problems,
contrasts and achievements; however, since we have been asked about our
impressions, we venture one or two generalizations. First we think that
the spirit of Gandhi is much stronger today than some people believe.
That is not only the direct and indirect influence of his comrades and
associates, but also the organized efforts that are being made to
preserve the Mahatma’s letters and other writings, the pictures,
monuments, the work of the Gandhi Smarak Nidhi and the movement led by
the sainted Vinoba Bhave. These are but a few examples of the way
Gandhiji will be permanently enshrined in the hearts of the people of
India. Moreover, many governmental officials who do not follow Gandhi
literally apply his spirit to domestic and international problems.
Secondly, I wish to make a plea to the people and government of
India. The issue of world peace is so critical, that I feel compelled to
offer a suggestion that came to me during the course of our
conversations with Vinoba Bhave. The peace-loving peoples of the world
have not yet succeeded in persuading my own country, America, and Soviet
Russia to eliminate fear and disarm themselves. Unfortunately, as yet
America and the Soviet Union have not shown the faith and moral courage
to do this. Vinobaji has said that India, or any other nation that has
the faith and moral courage, could disarm itself tomorrow, even
unilaterally. It may be that, just as India had to take the lead and
show the world that national independence could be achieved
non-violently, so India may have to take the lead and call for universal
disarmament. And if no other nation will join her immediately, India may
declare itself for disarmament unilaterally. Such an act of courage
would be a great demonstration of the spirit of the Mahatma, and would
be the greatest stimulus to the rest of the world to do likewise.
Moreover, any nation that would take such a brave step would
automatically draw to itself the support of the multitudes of the earth,
so that any would-be aggressor would be discouraged from risking the
wrath of mankind.
May I also say that, since being in India, I am more convinced than
ever before that the method of non-violent resistance is the most potent
weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for justice and
human dignity. In a real sense, Mahatma Gandhi embodied in his life
certain universal principles that are inherent in the moral structure of
the universe, and these principles are as inescapable as the law of
gravitation. Many years ago, when Abraham Lincoln was shot – and
incidentally, he was shot for the same reason that Mahatma Gandhi was
shot for; namely, for committing the crime of wanting to heal the wounds
of a divided nation. And when he was shot, Secretary Stanton stood by
the dead body of the great leader and said these words: “now, he belongs
to the ages.” And in a real sense, we can say the same thing about
Mahatma Gandhi, and even in stronger terms: “now, he belongs to the
ages.” And if this age is to survive, it must follow the way of love and
non-violence that he so nobly illustrated in his life.
Mahatma Gandhi may well be God’s appeal to this generation, a
generation drifting again to its doom. And this eternal appeal is in the
form of a warning: they that live by the sword shall perish by the
sword. We must come to see in the world today that what he taught, and
his method throughout, reveals to us that there is an alternative to
violence, and that if we fail to follow this we will perish in our
individual and in our collective lives. For in a day when Sputniks and
explorers dash through outer space and guided ballistic missiles are
carving highways of death through the stratosphere, no nation can win a
war. Today we no longer have a choice between violence and non-violence;
it is either non-violence, or non-existence.
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