E-Book - Mahatma Gandhi

178 Contextualising Gandhian Thoughtcorrected or substituted by efforts from outside, or by acombination of efforts from within and from without. Theefforts from outside the institutions of the system have to comethrough the intervention or action of the masses. It is thisintervention by the masses that we have come to identify asdirect action. In theory, direct action can be armed or violent, ornon-violent I have used the word 'non-violent' because unarmedaction need not necessarily be non-violent, and I want tounderline the non-violent nature of the alternative to violentvariants. It may be possible for non-violent action to combineaction from without with action from within. This is, however,difficult, almost impossible, in violent action.Now, we must examine why violent variants of directaction cannot repair or replace the system.In the centuries that have followed the IndustrialRevolution, the induction of sophisticated technology hasbrought about massive changes not only in the fields ofproduction and communication, but also in the field ofdestruction, often euphemistically called ‘defence.' Onceviolence is made the arbiter in an encounter, victory goes to theside that can deploy superior force, and not necessarily to thosewho can claim logic or justice on their side. All thosecontemplate the use of force either as the first resort, or as thelast resort will therefore have to take into account: (a) thenature of the weaponry, and the likely tactics and friends of theprospective enemy; (b) the need to acquire superiority in thequantum of force at one's command and to be one step or manysteps ahead in the competition to stay superior; and (c) theinherent danger of obsolescence of the weapons on which onerelies. These basic factors have to be taken into account bynations that want to settle disputes by military encounters aswell as by citizens' groups that want to prepare for violent,armed encounters against other groups that they regard as