Book review
Mahatma Gandhi was a good man by leading a life centered on purified mind and body, thought and action. He sought essential truths in all situations throughout life, and faced challenges essential to human senses as the universe is a university for spirituality. Gandhi’s relentless pursuit of truth enabled him to lead a predominately purified life.
Gandhi didn’t want to write an autobiography, knowing how fluid a person is throughout one’s life, but rather wanted to write a story about his experiments with truth. Gandhi defines truth as what is accepted by both reason and heart. He also deals with other principles and conduct of life. In other words, absolute truths. God is absolute truth, Ghandi admits he has not yet found God but continues to seek. God is known differently to all because God is manifested in so many different ways. Until we reach absolute truth, we must operate via relative truth.
During his childhood, Ghandi became obsessed with telling and worshipping the truth. He does not remember ever telling a lie during primary school. Ghandi unhappily admits he got married at age 13. Ghandi explains how marriages such as these are common among Hindus and perverted by parents for materialistic and enjoyment purposes. God helps those whose motives and intentions are pure. Ghandi developed the habit of taking walks from an early age.
Ghandi was impressed by his brother’s athletic ability, which convinced him to eat meat, not because of its taste. Ghandi regarding woman as the embodiment of tolerance when he was suspicious of her for acts she hasn’t committed, which usually would drive any individual away. After Ghandi started smoking, he resolved to commit suicide when deciding between killing oneself as opposed to being ruled by elders and parents. After the pain of contemplation, Ghandi gave up smoking forever. Ghandi also stole once and decided the mental pains weren’t worth ever stealing again. A true confession paired with a promise to never commit an act again is real repentance. Ghandi came to believe morality as the basis of all things, and truth to be the substance; made his mission to seek truth in all cases. Both health and religion is what led Ghandi to vegetarianism. Modest living in England both harmonized Ghandi’s inner and outer life, and helped in pass his exams. Biologically, Ghandi found the human body to be better as a fruitarian and vegetarian. Ghandi was extremely loyal to his parents, and followed his vow to his mother to never eat meat, thus he never ate the fresh of any living being as well as other products derived from animals. Ghandi explains how sometimes vows and pledges are twisted and turned based on various interpretations, giving rise to strife.
Ghandi’s trouble with speaking publicly helped him develop a habit of thinking deeply about what he says before saying anything. Ghandi learned that the Eiffel Tower was a representational humankind’s faulty addictions toys as it was constructed via cigarette funding. Ghandi rememberers reading a book on Hindu law during his exam studies. He learned laws but realized a difference between practical laws. The practice of law turned out to be much different. Honesty and industry made for the best lawyers, rather than knowledge and aggression. Spiritually, one gets the guru one deserves. Ghandi eventually learned he needed to learn Indian law too. Ghandi’s further personal experience taught him to never exploit his friendships with others. Ghandi confronted many radical Christians in Europe. He was also told truth can only be found in spirituality, never in business, but Ghandi did not agree with this.
During Ghandi’s law work in South Africa, he found himself thinking about how racial conditions and relations could be improved. Ghandi resolved to adhere to facts supported by truth, which should allow law to come to aid naturally. Ghandi believed service would lead him to self-realization. He sought to find God by serving others. Ghandi began to learn of the infinite possibilities through love when learning from yogis in India. Permanent funds for an institution causes the moral fall of that institution. It took Ghandi six weeks and true faith in his vow to give up sexual acts in the name of public service. Renunciation without aversion is not lasting. Ghandi vow empowered him with self-discipline that spread to other areas of his life. Control of dieting and taste is the first step. Ghandi achieved self-sufficiency regarding washing, cooking and cutting his own hair. Service presupposes the will and experience follows. Ghandi believed there are no certainties in life, except for God. Ghandi believed all good action is bound to bear fruit in the end. Ghandi regarded non-possession as an attitude, rather than a lifestyle. There can always be as many as seven correct points of view on the same issue at any point in time.
Disease is more so a case of dieting and self-care than anything else. Ghandi has, however, never found a true substitute for milk. Hate the sin and not the sinner, because this is not followed, this is why hatred is spread throughout the world. But harming a being, we harm the whole world. A person is always separate from one’s deed. The sole aim of journalism should be service. Ghandi made a rule of going on light diets during epidemics and disease-ridden times. Ghandi wished he could’ve spent more time raising his children, however, admits he sacrificed this time in the name of public service. Before one can develop restraint for sexual passions, one must be able to control taste and types of food consumption. Ghandi took on a fruit diet mixed with intermittent fasting. Ghandi found fasting to be both a great indulgence and restraint. Food is used best as energy, rather than indulgence. Ghandi found a salt-free and pulseless diet to be more healthy. Ghandi found milk to stimulate animal passion, but experienced difficulties giving it up. Ghandi held Buddha’s self-restraint in high esteem. There is an intimate connection between the mind and body, and one must cleanse the mind to benefit from the cleaning of the body. Some Indians fast by only eating fruit and milk. Complete fasting involves the consumption of only water. More caution and restraint are necessary when breaking a fast when compared to keeping it.
Ghandi believed true education is imparted by parents, and that experience and exploration is superior to the traditional format of education. Ghandi regarded moral and character training as the foundation of all education, to be build on by a literary education thereafter. Ghandi found that teachings worked best when an adult never asked a youngster to do what they wouldn’t do too, making all tasks cooperative and delightfully engaging via collaboration. Ghandi never tried to disguise his ignorance to his pupils, which nurtured community love and respect. Kids take in more from ears than eyes, and when the teacher is the textbook, education works best. Reading was a task, but listening was a pleasure, leading to higher powers of understanding. Ghandi found spiritual and academic training to be separate types of learning and practice. Ghandi found training of the spirit ineffective via books, and direct spiritual training to work best as modeled by one’s teacher. Ghandi hit one of his students on the farm on one occasion, the damage to the relationship hurt the student more than the blow, and Ghandi regretted the blow and never resorted to it again. Ghandi found when good and bad upbringings of children are mixed there is no damage done to the good ones, however it is the teacher who is put to the true test.
As a lawyer, Ghandi never lied nor acted immorally. Many wonder how this was possible, and it was because Ghandi only accepted “clean” cases, and rejected and refused all and any immoral work. In other words, he was a lawyer for the law, not for money. He took little money and only ask for payment for out-of-pocket expenses. There were also times where if his client didn’t have the funds, he’d pay for these out-of-pocket expenses himself. Ghandi understood confession to those wronged was the best course of action following wrongdoings. Persistence and frankness allowed Ghandi to help even guilty clients to be let free from imprisonment.
Ghandi believed spiritual relations to be far more precious than physical. And physical relations without spirituality is body without soul. Ghandi disproved of any religious symbolism and representations that only served to render one’s religion as superior to others. While creating observances for an ashram, Ghandi was asked to consider “humility” as one, but thought that treating humility as a required observance would be self-defeating. Before going bankrupt, Ghandi had trusted his consistent experience of how God always sends help at the last minute, if right action is followed. God always sends help when it is needed most. Ghandi said the conditions of a successful strike: remain nonviolent, never molest blacklegs, never rely on oms, and remain firm even if relying on alternative income for sustenance by honest labor. Ghandi found that people change with their circumstances. Instead of looking for food, beggars should look for work, and instead of providing food, philanthropists should provide work.
Government officials should not be viewed as masters but rather servants of the people. Salvation of a people always relies on themselves, and their capacity for suffering. Doubt is simply a result of want and weakness of faith. Ghandi pointed out to a police officer who ordered lancers on a crowd that the nature of the people in the crowd was violent, Ghandi responded that in fact, the natural state of people is nonviolent. Justified relative action is made possible via reflection through a retrospective convex lens. Civil disobedience requires a requisite of civil obedience. In other words, citizens need to be able to distinguish moral from immoral laws before organized civil protests can be effective and nonviolent.
Ghandi took steps to revitalize the rebirth of the spinning wheel to boost civil, rather than economic prosperity. He worked for the people, not money. Money might make people work harder, but not happier. Ghandi’s goal was to provide meaningful work for the semi-starved men and women of India to promote their wellbeing. He wanted to cloth the men and women of India. Something so small, he wanted to represent solid gain. Ghandi cut many parts of his life in this autobiography to protect others identities and to ensure he never infringed on untruths. Ghandi moves on to lead and politically persuade nonviolent, noncooperation movements in India. He had established himself as an unyielding truth-worthy person across the country to both friends and opponents. Ghandi understood, to safeguard democracy, the people must have a keen sense of independence, self-respect and unity by choosing representatives who are good and true. Ghandi explains the obsession with number measures led to democratic corruption, between both people and government representatives.
Ghandi closes by saying the remainder of his life has been entirely public and recorded elsewhere. He says the closest humanity comes to God is through truth, which has always remained his highest hope and goal. There is no other God than truth. Ghandi believed in purification in all walks of life, and that religion truly does have a place in politics, as true and rightly moral politics demands purification of the heart. One also must be able to love the meanest of creation as oneself. God can only be realized by one who is able to identify with all that lives. Purification of oneself necessarily leads to the purification of One’s surroundings. Purification must be absolute via thought and action, making the path hard and steep, free from passions. Rising above attachment and repulsion is the truest and most pure form of freedom one can attain in life.
- Goodreads rating – 4.10
- REVIEW – Nate