LIFE LESSONS OF GANDHIJI

LIFE LESSONS OF GANDHIJIrn(Vinod Anand)
The first lesson one could imbibe from MK Gandhi’s life is to resolve to do away with platitudes. Language, communication and discussion have become a complex labyrinth of context, nuances and sophistication, dependant on who is articulating. Today, very few take cognizance of the wise words that directed leaders, managers and public officials earlier: “What is right and not who is right.” For, a society based on truth and non-violence, affirms a living belief in God. Second, Gandhiji gave great importance to belief in the right values. He was a plain-speaking person without artifice; he never minced his words. Sarvodaya or universal uplift, trusteeship and principled leadership—these three made up his tripartite vision for taking India forward. He was not interested in statues in his name or highways and parks named after him. Gandhiji hoped that the ideals of his vision would be like the tiny spring that gushes forth from the Gangotri glacier high up in the Himalayas and which flows down to the level plains as the mighty Ganga, nurturing, serving and also sharing in the lives of the people. Gandhiji believed in a decent standard of life for all unlike the concept of standard of living which is a material quotient. Standard of life suggests an integrated flowering of spiritual, cultural and material values so that an individual is not afflicted by the seven deadly sins: wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce (business) without morality (ethics), science without humanity, religion without sacrifice and politics without principle. Third, Gandhiji’s attitude to life was that everyone ought to share and care. The following story illustrates Gandhiji’s concept of sharing without ownership: In the cool climes of a rural village, dawn was about to break as 20 men were moving between the flower beds in the nursery. They were carefully plucking the bloom buds without bruising the flowering miracle that was nesting within. The long stems were laid in rows in long cardboard boxes ready for travel to the metropolis in a few hours. Festive lights burned bright on storefronts and Leela was anxiously organizing the engagement party of her daughter and her child hood sweetheart. The couple had waited for years to settle down and Leela wanted the evening to be a perfect setting for their betrothal. Flowers were in profusion with their heady fragrances. The evening was a success and Leela was generously complemented on all the arrangements. Laden with the flower arrangement she returned home. Next morning she made a list of persons and requested her friend to help her distribute the flowers to an elderly aunt, a school mate, neighbours and to her own staff. The flowers glowed in radiance in the soft lights of each new home, they had traveled over 800km, been seen by over a thousand persons, witnessed a happy occasion, graced an ordinary home. All this mattered little to any of the roses, lilies or orchids. They would gently fade and drop, their presence a lingering memory of all that is wholesome, good and true. Whom does one thank for the flowers, who are the owners? Trusteeship, serving people, sacrificing for them and thus contributing to the standard of life was advocated by Gandhiji who would say: “A person cannot do right in one department whilst attempting to do wrong in another department. Life is one indivisible whole.”