E-Book - Mahatma Gandhi

58 Contextualising Gandhian Thoughtperson. Gandhi expanded its meaning and added quite a fewdimensions to it. To quote him:‘In its negative form it (ahimsa) means not injuring anyliving being whether by body and mind. I may not, therefore,hurt the person of any wrong-doers, any ill will to him and bearcause him mental suffering. In positive form, ahimsa means thelargest love, the greatest charity. If I am a follower of ahimsa, Imust love my enemy or a stranger to me as I would my wrongdoingfather or son.’ 11On another occasion, he further dilated upon themeaning of ahimsa in the following words:‘Ahimsa is not the crude thing it has been made toappear. Not to hurt any living thing is no doubt a part ofahimsa. But it is its least expression. The principle of ahimsa isnot to hurt by evil thought, by undue haste, by lying, by hatred,by wishing ill of anybody. It is also violated by holding on towhat the world needs’. 12It is clear from the above that for Gandhi ahimsa meantmuch more than non-injury to the other person. Any onetaking ahimsa as a creed would have to go through a totaltransformation of his personality. He had to overcome certainhuman weaknesses like greed, fear, possessiveness and had toimbibe certain positive virtues like love, truthfulness,fearlessness, patience, forbearance and forgiveness. In otherwords, he will have to subdue and overcome his devilishproclivities and develop godly qualities. But such a personcannot remain cut off from social and political affairs. He hadto work for what the Bhagavad Gita call Loksangraha. Onewho is working for Loksangraha could not lead a cloistered lifebut would have to plunge into the worldly affairs in the serviceof the poor and the deprived. In the process, he may have toconfront even the mightiest of the perpetrators of injustice,