World War I finally ended. But the peace, instead of bringing us relief and progress, brought us repressive legislation and martial law in Punjab. People felt humiliated and were angry. Yet what could we do to change this vicious process? We seemed to be in the grip of some powerful monster. Our minds and our limbs were paralysed. There were many people without any employment and there was extreme poverty. They did not know where to look for help. Neither the old leaders nor the new ones gave them any hope.
The big question was how to pull India out of this bad situation. For many years our people have been offering their ‘blood and toil, tears and sweat’. Now the body and soul of India were in bad shape. Every aspect of our life was poisoned.
And then Gandhi came. He was like a powerful current of fresh air. He was like a beam of light that pierced the darkness de was like a whirlwind that upset many things, especially the minds of the working-class people. He did not come from top. He emerged from the millions of India. He spoke their language.
He asked the exploiters to get off the backs of the peasants and workers. He asked them to remove the system that produces poverty and misery. Political freedom took a new meaning. Many of the things Gandhiji said were not accepted by all people. The essence of his teaching was fearlessness and truth. He always kept the welfare of the masses in view. Our great ancient books tell us that fearlessness is the greatest gift for an individual or a nation. Fearlessness does not mean just bodily courage but absence of fear from the mind. The British ruled India through putting fear into us – fear of the army, the police, the secret service, the official class, laws, prison, landlord’s agent, moneylender, unemployment and starvation. Gandhi wanted to remove this fear. He told the people not to be afraid. It was not easy to free the people from fear.
However, Gandhiji was able remove the fear from the mind of the people to a great extent. Fear is a close companion to falsehood. But truth follows fearlessness. It is not that all the Indians became truthful overnight, but there was visible change in their behaviour. It was a psychological change and people did not need the support of falsehood any more.
There was also a psychological reaction among the people. They were ashamed they were ruled by foreigners who degraded and humiliated them. They had a desire to free themselves from this shameful situation, whatever might be the consequences. Gandhi was always there as a symbol of uncompromising truth.
What is Truth? Truth seems to differ from person to person. My truth may not be your truth. Absolute truth is beyond any one of us. Different people take different views about truth and each person is influenced by his background, training and feelings. We can however say that for an individual truth is what he himself feels and knows to be true. I do not know of any person who holds to the truth as Gandhi does.
Gandhi influenced millions of people in India in varying degrees. Some changed completely; others were affected only partly. Different people reacted differently and each one had his own answer about the change.
His call for action was two-fold. One involved in challenging and resisting foreign rule. The other was fighting against our own social evils. The principal aims of the Congress were freedom through peaceful means, national unity, solution of minority problems, improvement of the depressed classes and the ending of untouchability.
The main supports of the British rule were fear, prestige, the co-operation of the people and certain classes that benefited from the British rule. Gandhi attacked these. He asked the title-holders to give up their titles. Only a few responded. But the popular respect for the British-given titles disappeared. New standards and values were set up. Suddenly the luxury and the glory of the viceroy’s court looked very ridiculous. Rich men became reluctant to show off their riches. Many adopted simpler ways and in their dress they were almost undistinguishable from the ordinary people.
He sent us to the villages and countryside with many new messages of action. The peasants began to come out of their shells. The effect on us was also great. For the first time we saw the villager in his mud-hut, with poverty always following him. We learnt Indian economics more from these visits than from books. The emotional experience was great and there was no going back to our old life and our old standards.
What kind of India did Gandhiji want? He said he would work for an India where the poorest shall feel that it is their country. In its making they will have an effective voice. There will be no high classes and no low classes here. All communities should live in harmony. There will be no untouchability. There will be no intoxicating drinks and drugs. Women will enjoy the same rights as men. Although he was proud of his Hindu inheritance, he tried to make it universal which would include all religions within its fold. He said Indian culture is neither Hindu, Islamic nor any other, completely. It is a mixture of all. He wanted the culture of all lands to be blown about his house as freely as possible. But he refused to be blown off his feet by any. He said he refused to live in other people’s houses as an intruder, a beggar or a slave. Although he was influenced by modern thoughts, he never let go his roots.
Gandhiji was full of vitality and self-confidence. He had an unusual kind of power. He stood for equality and freedom for each individual. He fascinated the masses of India and attracted them like a magnet. For the people, he seemed to be a link between the past and the future making the bad present a stepping stone for a future life of hope. He brought about a psychological revolution not only in his friends but also in his enemies and even the neutrals who would not decide what to think and what to do.
