SEVENTY FIRST DAY REPORT GANDHI SWARAJ PADYATRA by Jeff Knaebel
SEVENTY FIRST DAY REPORT
GANDHI SWARAJ PADYATRA
by Jeff Knaebel, sojourner stateless freedom
28 October 2009
“I have not the slightest doubt that, but for the pair, truth and non-violence, mankind will be doomed. We can have the vision of that truth and non-violence only in the simplicity of the villages” ~ Mahatma Gandhi
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Gandhi’s internationalism was a sociological and political application of the great norm of Ahimsa, which means universal non-hatred and non-violence. Buddha and St. Francis show the most tender care for the meanest creatures of the world. Their love extended also to the animal kingdom.
Gandhi, like them, believed in the doctrine of absolute and universal compassion for all living beings. A believer in god naturally has the feeling of identity with all creatures because all are the creatures of God. Gandhi was never tried of repeating that men could receive divine grace and affection only if they loved their brethren.
He said: “We are all tarred with the same Brush; we are all members of the vast human family.” Hence love of the human kind was only an aspect of his ahimsa, and internationalism is a concrete means to realize at the political level, the universal love for humanity. (Garg, Journal Gandhian Studies, 2006)
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MAHATMA GANDHI ON INDUSTRIALIZATION
Compiled by Sri V. K. Desai, Rajkot
“Industrialization is, I am afraid, going to be a curse for mankind. Exploitation of one nation by another cannot go on for all time. Industrialism depends entirely on your capacity to exploit, on foreign markets being open to you, and on the absence of competitors . . . India, when it begins to exploit other nations-as it must if it becomes industrialized-will be a curse for other nations, a menace to the world.
The future of industrialism is dark.
In the course of a few years the Western nations may cease to find in Africa a dumping ground for their wares. (12-11-1931)
I do not believe that industrialization is necessary in any case for any country. It is much less so for India. Indeed, I believe that Independent India can only discharge her duty towards a groaning world by adopting a simple but ennobled life by developing her thousands of cottages and living at peace with the world.
High thinking is inconsistent with complicated material life based on high speed imposed on us by Mammon worship. All the graces of life are possible only when we learn the art of living nobly.
Whether such plain living is possible for an isolated nation, however large geographically and numerically, in the face of a world armed to the teeth and in the midst of pomp and circumstance is a question open to the doubt of a sceptic. The answer is straight and simple. If plain life is worth living, then the attempt is worth making. (1-9-1946)
God forbid that India should ever take to industrialism after the manner of the West. The economic imperialism of a single tiny island kingdom (England) is to day keeping the world in chains. If an entire nation of 300 millions took to similar economic exploitation, it would strip the world bare like locusts.” (20-12-1928)
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Our water bucket was again frozen this morning. We break camp amidst curious onlookers from the all-night puja, and share chai within the circle around our fire.
At 0805 we depart without breakfast, and Jeff is weak with a bit of vertigo from also having had no supper. We take a short cut down a very steep and slippery slope.
At 0955 we find water and halt for breakfast in a lovely alpine meadow above a fenced area of medicinal herbs. To the north can be seen Sarahan and the Himalaya with lens clouds building over them. We shuck peas together and discuss nutrition. From above in the woods, the sound of children’s voices.
Bumble bees cruise the meadow.
Soon after starting again, we reach a good dirt road. We cut down off it and pass below the fields and orchards of Village Dharnagaon. Above Village Dofda a retired Army Leftenant offers us to stay in his house, but we decide to press on.
Reaching Mashnu we find clusters of ostentatious houses and Devendrabhai finally succeeds in getting an offer from a very nice teacher named Jeetram at his house about one km down the road. In the course of his introductions and queries, Devendrabhai led a group discussion of our ideas among about 20 villagers who gathered around us at the chai daba.
Sri Jeetram hosts us in an under-construction room on his incomplete terrace below the main house. There we cook on our mountain stove and sleep on the floor. Jeetram’s children – a brilliant girl of seven and her younger brother – entertain and involve all of us in singing and chanting and games of count ten, tag and sing. The youngsters also build a fire in their bukhari for us.
Today we walked 13 km – tally 1,091.
— END OF DAY 71 REPORT —
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