REVISITING PHILOSOPHICAL AND SPIRITUAL ASPECTS OF MAHATMA GANDHI ON HIS BIRTH ANNIVERSARY

 As the nation observes the Mahatma Gandhi Birth Anniversary on October 2,. It would be pertinent to revisit the philosophy of life Gandhiji lived by. Though, he had clarified that there was nothing like Gandhism, since he lived by certain ideals picked up through study of scriptures and inspiration drawn from the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita.

Here, I have summarized the precepts and principles on which he had lived his life and acted in the world.

ABC POEM ON GANDHI JI'S PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE

A: Acceptance of unity of thought, speech and action as Truth

B: Brahmacharya viewed as control of senses, non-transgression and simplicity

C: Concept of non-violence and non-violent resistance for liberation from subjugation and being prepared to die rather to kill

D: Deeming fasting as a method of controlling baser desires and instincts as well as a penance device

E: Ethical economics of simple living and self-sufficiency through Swadeshi products and a life based on the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita

 

Ode to Gandhi Ji

O man of quiet, spinning wheel,

Who showed the world how wounds could heal,

You walked a path of simple dress,

And asked for nothing, needed less.

No hidden crack, no secret lie,

Between the hand, the heart, the eye.

You held the self with gentle rein,

And washed it clean of want and stain.

To see, to taste, to touch, to own,

Was not a king upon a throne,

But senses held in calm control,

A simple, unpossessing soul.

You taught the fist to fall away,

And found a stronger light than day.

You spun your cloth, you made your salt,

And found the wealth in every fault.

To live with less, to need the plain,

To break the heavy, foreign chain,

You held  the Gita’s quiet lore,

Of work, and nothing asked for more.

So spin your wheel, and let it hum,

A song of all that you’ve become.

A light that simple men could see,

The truth that sets the spirit free.