Mahatma Gandhi was born as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. He traversed a long journey from Mohandas to Mahatma, the messenger of the millenium. Today we view, October 2, the day when new chapters of history had begun to unfold, merely as a national holiday but we tend to forget what lies behind the picturesque display at Rajghat, chanting of bhajans and exuberant speeches of our leaders.
Some men changed the times but one man changed the world for all times. With his lean body clad in dhoti and a stick in his hand, Gandhiji spread the message at an unprecedented scale that all the philosophers and thinkers throughout history tried to spread. He was just an ordinary man who created something extraordinary by his relentless efforts. His teachings have been subjected to various debates and discussions as to whether they can stand the tests of time or not.
“Gradually number of such people is decreasing who saw him, worked with him and followed him. The time will change, the situations will change and the world will face new challenges. If this happens that the new generation will forget all about him, we will lose our most precious treasure.” said Dr Zakir Khan.
But his charismatic life and confidence is something that can never be forgotten as it had impact not in only India but in the world. Whether knowingly or unknowingly we tend to resonate the essence of the ideals of Gandhiji in our day to day lives. Be it Passive Resistance or Non-Violence, our lives are surrounded by these enlivening ideals.
For instance, when we tend to convince our lecturers to not take or postpone an assignment or a test, we are non co-operating with what the teacher says. We protest for what we feel is right fearlessly, no matter what are the odds of getting success. We passively resist the changes, making the world shake with all the steps that we take. Legacy of non-violence is what we had inherited unknowingly since we all have a tendency to lose our temper at the earliest but when we are conversing with our friends or any other person we meet daily we tend to pacify as no one can have the same opinions and as Gandhiji said, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.” With our increasing efforts to spread cleanliness, we are following Gandhiji.
Gandhiji was an apostle for peace. The distinct feature that sets him apart is that he practised what he preached. He broke the status quo and led by example. This attracted the eyes of the world to this ‘saintly figure’ as people call him. His relevance is increasing day by day. He is slowly marching from past to our future preaching people in the present. His prophetic voice continues to echo and inspire young minds and leaders the world over.
