Gandhi’s lesson for Malaysians

He remains a conscience in the hearts of men

Mahatma Gandhi's 139th birthday on October 2nd 2008 passed by qietly without many of being aware of it.This year also marks the 60th anniversary of his death. Gandhi is one of the greatest personalities of recent times and he can be considered the saint of non-violence who did what he preached and preached only what he did which is a valuable lesson for all especially political leaders.

Unfortunately our children in schools today are totally ignorant of not only this great man but of many great personalities who have helped shape the destiny of mankind. They are well aware of the rich, famous and glamorous celebrities who are poor role models but totally ignorant of those who had great courage to stand up for truth and justice.

Religious conflicts are the most common cause of violence in the world today. Not a day passes without the news of some tragic incident somewhere in the world causing deaths of innocent people. We say that we are all the children of one God and that that all religions lead to that same God why then are we fighting and killing each. Aren’t we all brothers and sisters?

Mahatma Gandhi had a very simple but useful lesson for us all in inter-faith relations. At the height of Hindu-Muslim riots, Gandhi decided to fast unto death if the fighting and killing did not stop. A militant Hindu, who admitted killing a Muslim child in revenge for the murder of his own son came to Gandhi, laid down his weapons and persuaded him to break his fast, saying he did want to carry the sin of his death. The Mahatma listened attentively and very calmly told him of a way to repent for his past sins against Muslims.

“You go back, find a Muslim child whose parents were killed and bring it up as your own, not as a Hindu but a Muslim”.

This advice of Gandhi was so full of meaning and remains relevant till today and will remain so for ages to come. Although he was a devout Hindu he was also had great respect for all other religions. When asked whether he was a Hindu, he replied said “Yes, I am a Hindu but I am also a Muslim, Christian and a Jew”.

We all profess different faiths, unfortunately each of us are brought out to regard our own as the only true religion and all others are inferior. This egocentric religious attitude had been the cause of the numerous conflicts throughout the history of man. Today we may have developed and progressed tremendously but our myopic view of religion has changed very little.

We are so intent in fighting one another to claim superiority over our adversaries, man against man, race against race, religion against religion and nation against nation. We resort to all the resources at our disposal; powerful arms, violence and war, to achieve victory over our enemies. We justify the use of violence to protect our perceived rights.

But to the great man of non-violence “Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary.”

Gandhi believed in the universality of God,he says “The Allah of Islam is the same as the God of Christians and the Ishwar of Hindus.” This concept of the universality of God as envisaged by Gandhi is something, which is badly needed in today’s world where violence in His name is so rampant. It is also a lesson for us Malaysians of diverse believes; despite belonging to different faiths we are in fact all children of one God.

In our own country of late racial and religious differences have begun to threaten the peace and harmony that was once a pride of the nation. Despite the various programmes to promote racial unity, genuine unity among the races has been elusive and I am afraid we are increasingly more and more polarized by the day.

Malaysians have been urged to develop greater tolerance for faiths different from theirs.Is religious tolerance alone the answer to our inter-faith misunderstanding? What is needed in a world today that is bitterly torn by racial and religious divide is not just tolerance but respect for each others religion. This respect can only develop if we are taught from young the good of all religions and not just the good of our own over the others.

Although a devout Hindu, Gandhi was a follower of all religions. His actions proved that one does not need be a formal member of any institutionalized religion to be devoted to God who is one and the same for all. We can claim to love God but we can only be a good Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist or for that matter any religion, if we also love fellow men regardless of the faith he professes.

Many of us today find it difficult to believe how a small, timid and frail looking man like Gandhi could dare to challenge the mighty British Empire. Just after sixty years we are finding it difficult to believe how Gandhi could have brought down the British Empire. As Albert Einstein, another great man and genius said 'Generations to come will scarcely believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.

Mahatma Gandhi may have left this world but his memories remain very much with us, alive and relevant. He did not possess power, position or wealth but his simplicity, integrity and a heart for fellow men had touched many and he will remain a conscience in the hearts of men for generations to come.


Dr.Chris Anthony