Non-violence was the smartest concept known to man. But nobody truly realises exactly why Gandhi was such a genius.
Firstly, Gandhi shaved his head because he claimed to be in mourning for the soul of India. In India, where my parents come from, when a parent dies, the sons shave their heads. (However, my grandfather made an exception to this rule for my father and uncle before he died.)
Secondly, passive resistance was NOT what Gandhi used. He said it lacked moral fibre. What he used was “Satyagraha”, a new form of non-violent resistance where one willingly submitted to police brutality and prison time, fought cases in court, and refused to co-operate with the government measures like paying taxes and buying foreign goods.
Thirdly, satyagraha has a greater moral angle because it involves speaking directly to a person’s conscience. Satyagraha comes from the Sanskrit ‘satya – truth’ and ágraha – holding on’, so it literally means holding on to the truth. Truth and the strength of the soul was Gandhi’s greatest weapon in his fight against injustice.
Fourthly, Gandhi was entirely against the use of violence because he found it dehumanising and thus worthless and ineffective, and it violated one’s moral integrity by forcing another’s views on him.
Fifthly, satyagraha was no laughing matter. It involved great strength of character and the ability to suffer willingly. Satyagraha was not for everyone. It could be a mass movement or an individual movement. But it required publicity. LOTS of publicity.
Sixthly, satyagraha succeeded because people followed the laws and Gandhi used their own laws against them to expose cracks in their behaviour that went against their laws. That was the only way he could make it work.
In conclusion, Martin Luther King was the first American to use satyagraha when he led his civil rights movement. Satyagraha is a potent tool for social change and it needs to be revived. It is the only way things can really go ahead. Gandhi was centuries ahead of his time when he conceived satyagraha.
The sad thing is, satyagraha will no longer work because nobody believes in anything strongly enough anymore. We really need another Gandhi.
Karl – Thank you for putting all that into words. What hope is there for a country where you have to buy a permit to be allowed to picket inside a fence that is blocks away from where anybody interested might see you?
Well, Gandhi also relied on the quality of British rule. One wonders how well his tactics would have worked in most other countries? China? Russia? Japan? Riiiight … he would have been “disappeared” at best.
It’s not a crack. It’s the truth. Try to break the law there and see what happens to you. I read someone who was in prison for 2 years for getting into a fistfight with a cabbie. They told him to wet his hair with the water. He did that and also his face. They stripped him and strapped him into a chair with a hole in the bottom for TWO DAYS because he didn’t do what they told him to.
In a country like that, you’d get disappeared mighty fast. “ah, so sad, he died of a bad influenza. Too bad.”
did anyone else think it was odd that Gandhi was portrayed by a white actor? isn’t that a little like having a movie about MLK with the lead part played by a white guy in blackface?
This is a complete reversal of the political spectrum in Bloom County: Milo the left-leaning pacifist doesn’t seem to know Gandhi and wants “standard” Hollywood movies, and Steve Dallas wants to listen to a movie about Gandhi bad enough to issue threats. Steve’s handling of Opus, though, is true to character…
Yes, but what would Gandhi do if he were stuck on the lost planet of co-ed shower stalls? Reach for the giant space sponge? Then, what would he do if Tootsie was in that shower stall….Tootsie IS co-ed! Gandhi meets Tootsie in the shower! A Thriller!
vwdualnomand over 11 years ago
gandhi is a good movie. attenborough and kingsley did a magnificent job. and, it is much better than twilight.
Michael Thorton over 11 years ago
Non-violence was the smartest concept known to man. But nobody truly realises exactly why Gandhi was such a genius.
Firstly, Gandhi shaved his head because he claimed to be in mourning for the soul of India. In India, where my parents come from, when a parent dies, the sons shave their heads. (However, my grandfather made an exception to this rule for my father and uncle before he died.)
Secondly, passive resistance was NOT what Gandhi used. He said it lacked moral fibre. What he used was “Satyagraha”, a new form of non-violent resistance where one willingly submitted to police brutality and prison time, fought cases in court, and refused to co-operate with the government measures like paying taxes and buying foreign goods.
Thirdly, satyagraha has a greater moral angle because it involves speaking directly to a person’s conscience. Satyagraha comes from the Sanskrit ‘satya – truth’ and ágraha – holding on’, so it literally means holding on to the truth. Truth and the strength of the soul was Gandhi’s greatest weapon in his fight against injustice.
Fourthly, Gandhi was entirely against the use of violence because he found it dehumanising and thus worthless and ineffective, and it violated one’s moral integrity by forcing another’s views on him.
Fifthly, satyagraha was no laughing matter. It involved great strength of character and the ability to suffer willingly. Satyagraha was not for everyone. It could be a mass movement or an individual movement. But it required publicity. LOTS of publicity.
Sixthly, satyagraha succeeded because people followed the laws and Gandhi used their own laws against them to expose cracks in their behaviour that went against their laws. That was the only way he could make it work.
In conclusion, Martin Luther King was the first American to use satyagraha when he led his civil rights movement. Satyagraha is a potent tool for social change and it needs to be revived. It is the only way things can really go ahead. Gandhi was centuries ahead of his time when he conceived satyagraha.
The sad thing is, satyagraha will no longer work because nobody believes in anything strongly enough anymore. We really need another Gandhi.
rayannina over 11 years ago
Milo Bloom must love Hollywood today!
artybee over 11 years ago
Karl – Thank you for putting all that into words. What hope is there for a country where you have to buy a permit to be allowed to picket inside a fence that is blocks away from where anybody interested might see you?
Sisyphos over 11 years ago
None of the Bloom County gang seems to appreciate Opus’s more refined taste in cinema. But, then, Opus is a penguin.
Ravenswing over 11 years ago
Well, Gandhi also relied on the quality of British rule. One wonders how well his tactics would have worked in most other countries? China? Russia? Japan? Riiiight … he would have been “disappeared” at best.
el_flesh over 11 years ago
It’s not a crack. It’s the truth. Try to break the law there and see what happens to you. I read someone who was in prison for 2 years for getting into a fistfight with a cabbie. They told him to wet his hair with the water. He did that and also his face. They stripped him and strapped him into a chair with a hole in the bottom for TWO DAYS because he didn’t do what they told him to.
In a country like that, you’d get disappeared mighty fast. “ah, so sad, he died of a bad influenza. Too bad.”
person918 over 11 years ago
did anyone else think it was odd that Gandhi was portrayed by a white actor? isn’t that a little like having a movie about MLK with the lead part played by a white guy in blackface?
skeeterhawk over 11 years ago
How about David Carradine as Caine in “Kung Fu”? Or am I missing something?Anyway, nice material on notable people.
jamestipton222 over 11 years ago
How about Zorro?
Sir Osis of Liver over 11 years ago
This is a complete reversal of the political spectrum in Bloom County: Milo the left-leaning pacifist doesn’t seem to know Gandhi and wants “standard” Hollywood movies, and Steve Dallas wants to listen to a movie about Gandhi bad enough to issue threats. Steve’s handling of Opus, though, is true to character…
Vonne Anton over 11 years ago
Yes, but what would Gandhi do if he were stuck on the lost planet of co-ed shower stalls? Reach for the giant space sponge? Then, what would he do if Tootsie was in that shower stall….Tootsie IS co-ed! Gandhi meets Tootsie in the shower! A Thriller!