Sunday, March 13, 2005

Everything Gandhi

I must confess that I have been anti-Gandhi to the point of being militant in my views.But, fortunately or unfortunately, that is as far as it ever went. I havent really translated those thoughts into any action. I have, for the past couple of years, very much adored Bhagat Singh. Not just for his deeds,but most for his ideas...ideas that came at the young age of 22. If you read his essay on atheism, you will realize what I am trying to say...his thoughts on why Punjabi was being passed over for urdu and English are path breaking.

But this was supposed to be about Gandhi....the Mahatma. A lot has been said, mostly by the right, about how Gandhiji ruined our post Independence celebrations. He is blamed for partition, for the 47 riots, for kashmir...basically for each and every ill that this country faces. I am of the view that the Right is right...I have held that view for long...for far too long, I figure.
For far too long, we have run down a man who is way above us. This man was magic....something else. Sure, his judgement wasnt entirely based on reality...his motivations were on a different plane from the rest of the Hindu heartland...by the "Hindu heartland" I dont mean the north Indian plains..I mean the Hindu heart. King Yudhisthara was blamed too for this "tunnel vision" commitment towards truth and benevolence. It probably is more of a vice than a virtue...who knows! I for sure dont...not anymore anyway! For years, I used to think that Gandhiji was a fool...a mind that could not see outside of his own ethics.
Today, I realise that this very "tunnel vision" commitment towards your ethics is what makes a person great.

I will stop here....

1 comments:

Murali... said...

I dont know but for some reason I also started hating (may be this is strong) Gandhi since my raduation days. Why the hell you should show second cheek if someone slaps you. If someone slaps you for no reason what I feel is you should cut off his hands so that in future he wont repeat it and hence anyone else.

I also being militant, or should I use revolutionary, am a very big fan of Bose, Bhagat Singh, and Alluri Sitarama Raju.

I am waiting with bated breath to watch the movie Bose, The Forgotten Hero. I donno why he is called as Forgotten Hero. Is it bcoz of absence of statues and that no (or very few) streets are named after him. I strongly disagree with that title.