Gandhi Birthday 2011 - Gandhi the soldier of peace

He did what he preached and preached only what he does

October 2^nd 2011 is the 142^nd birthday of Mahatma Gandhi and this year marks the 63^rd. 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 lived among the masses and who did what he preached and preached only what he did.

 

This was interestingly illustrated by the following incident of the in his life.

One day a mother came to Gandhi with her little boy for help. She asked Gandhi, “Please, Bapu, will you tell my little boy to stop eating sugar. He simply eats too much sugar and will not stop.” Gandhi told the mother to leave and come back with the boy in three days.

The mother returned with her son and said to Gandhi, “We have come back as you asked.” Gandhi turned to the boy and said, “Young boy, stop eating sweets. They are not good for you.”

The mother then asked Gandhi, “Bapu, why didn’t you tell my son that when we first came to see you? Why did you ask us to leave and come back in three days? I don’t understand.”

Gandhi said to the woman, “I asked you to return with the boy in three days, because three days ago, I, too, was eating sweets. I could not ask him to stop eating sweets so long as I had not stopped eating sweets.”

This is one the virtues that is badly lacking in us especially our political and religious leaders who do not do what they preach neither do they preach only what they do. Even parents and teachers seem to be failing to live up to the expectations of their children and students respectively. This is the most common cause of the decline in moral values in our society.

Gandhi may be best remembered for his role in his country’s independence but to many around the world he means much more than just a freedom fighter because he fought without anger and hate and without violence and weapons. By his peaceful and non-violent struggles those who were unjust he won the hearts of many including those against whom he fought. By doing so he became the conscience in the hearts of many till today.

 His form of fight was indeed unique but surprising it succeeded. Many who adopted his ways of fight later also similarly succeeded and it is interesting to realize that in our small ways we too can likewise succeed in dealing with people in our society if only we adopt his ways.

Mahatma Gandhi refused to submit to unjust laws, spoke and acted strongly against racism and stood firmly to defend truth and justice whenever and wherever they were breached. He was not a ruler of vast lands nor was he man of great power and wealth but was one who had great will and courage to do the right at all times.

On this 142^nd birthday of this great man, I would like to share something that was so dear to him – peace.

This is what he had to say of peace, “If we are to reach real peace in this world and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with children and if they will grow up in their natural innocence, we won’t have the struggle, we won’t have to pass fruitless idle resolutions, but we shall go from love to love and peace to peace, until at last all the corners of the world are covered with that peace and love for which consciously or unconsciously, the whole world is hungering.”

He struggled for peace, a peace that was so badly lacking in his own country and the world. He called himself a soldier of peace not war and this is his fervent prayer for that peace in the world among people of diverse origins and believes. 

 At a time of great turmoil and hate among peoples in the world and the increasing racial and religious polarization in our own country, Gandhi’s prayer for peace has becomes very relevant to us today. As his prayer goes we must offer peace, love and friendship to others especially those of different race and creed. We must see their beauty, hear their needs and feel their feelings. Our wisdom comes from God whom we must see in them to be saluted. It is with these attitudes in us that we work together for lasting peace with one another.

 This prayer of Gandhi should be adopted by men all over the world. It is in offering our peace and appreciating the inner beauty and needs of others, especially our adversaries that leads to peace in a world torn apart by hate, jealousy and vengeance.

Mahatma Gandhi may be gone but the legacy he left behind for mankind should continue to live in us and the generations to come. He might not have realized fully the peace he envisaged for his country but the teachings he left behind will definitely bring some inner peace within us.  

Famous Quotes From Mahatma Gandhi

Malaysia Day 2011

Making it truly meaningful for Malaysians

September 16 2011, was a historic day for us as it was the first time ever our National Day and Malaysia Day were celebrated simultaneously not just in in the peninsula but in Sabah and Sarawak as well. 

Moreover we celebrated the historic day with very encouraging news from the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who promised drastic changes towards greater democratisation of the nation. Many were taken by surprise especially the members of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat and those who were highly critical of his lack of commitment to introduce reforms.

The SIX  drastic changes to be introduced by him are:


1.The Internal Security Act (ISA) 1960 will be repealed. In its place, two new laws will be enacted to safeguard peace and order the detention period will be reduced and can only be extended by the courts, except in cases involving terrorism.
2.Three remaining emergency proclamations to be lifted are: Emergency 1969, Emergency 1966 (Sarawak) and Emergency 1977 (Kelantan).
3.Banishment Act 1959 will also be repealed.
4.The annual licence renewal requirement for newspapers and publications will be replaced with a one-off permit by reviewing the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984.
5.Reviewing the Restricted Residence Act 1933.
6.Allowing greater freedom to assemble by reviewing Section 27 of the Police Act 1967 by taking into consideration Article 10 of the Federal Constitution which guarantees every citizen with the right to freedom of speech and assembly

Of major significance was his pledge to repeal the ISA which has been a thorn on the side of the BN government for many decades and by willing to abolish it he has indicated his willingness and boldness to listen to the people,the vast majority of them wanted it abolished. However the 2 new laws to be enacted to replace the ISA is a cause for concern which should be allayed by the government quickly if it wants to to earn the trust of the people.

The other major breakthrough is the doing away of mandatory annual renewal of printing licenses which has been a deterrent for the freedom of information. We hope the move to amend the controversial Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984, which will do away with the annual renewal of their licenses will be first step leading to the final abolishing of the Act itself  which is seen to impede the freedom of the press.

The review of the Police Act to allow greater freedom of peaceful assembly by the people to express their views on controversial issues will enhance the freedom of speech and assembly that are so vital in a thriving democracy.

Najib may have made an unprecedented bold move to give in to the demands of the people but there are still many who are sceptical of his motives and his ability to bring about the changes that he has pledged. Past experiences show that promises are easy to come by but not real changes which require a great deal of courage and unselfish commitment on the part of the Prime Minister and his cabinet which is clearly lacking with the present administration.

Malaysians are watching whether the PM will be able to push through with his plans to make the nation more democratic and at par with other advanced democracies in the world. These drastic reforms to be more meaningful should be introduced before the 13GE to dispel the suspicion that the promises made by Najib are not mere political rhetoric but sincere efforts to bring real change.

Besides acting to move towards greater democratization there is still plenty more to do to address the deteriorating race relations in the nation, as Malaysia turned 48 on this September 16.Najib and his government should do more to more to take the nation forwards in line with his 1Malaysia policy that is the most poorly understood of his policies creating a lot of confusion among the various ethnic communities. He should be bold enough to act against those out to create inter-racial and inter-religious conflicts. Racial politics must be thwarted at all costs regardless of who perpetrates them. Malaysians must not be distinguished by the color of their skin, the language they speak or the faith they profess but by their contribution to the development of the nation.

Every citizen regardless of his race, creed, political belief or social status has some thing unique to contribute to the nation, which many do with great passion and dedication. Unless they are rewarded accordingly in a truly fair and just manner, National Day will be meaningless to the ordinary man on the street, who calls himself Malaysian.