There Are Ties Between Us — All Men and Women
Let Us Turn Our Thoughts Today To Martin Luther King
“Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
I was fourteen years old in 1982 when the movie Gandhi was released. The epic historical drama went on to win eight out of the eleven Academy Awards for which it was nominated, including best picture, best director and best actor.
Have you seen it?
Thirty-six years ago, my awareness of the movie, Gandhi, and maybe even India, was shaky at best. To this day, there is a mountain of information I don’t know — even though the famous Gandhi quote — Be the change you want to see in the world— is everywhere.
Last weekend, I chose to grow my understanding. My husband and I sat down over the course of two nights and watched the 1983 award winning film. It offered us opportunity to discuss Gandhi, what he stood for, his philosophy of non-violence, and how his methods might (or might not) work in today’s world.
The movie is an incredible three hours and eleven minutes long. Despite its length, there is much history that did not make the reel. I’m left wanting more information about the great leader, India, and their transition to self government.
So — I find myself at the beginning of an exploration, but I won’t let that stop me from reflecting on what I’ve learned so far.
I’ve paraphrased the scene from Gandhi that spoke to me the loudest:
After the British left India, there was great conflict between the Hindu and Muslim populations. Much violence was happening between the groups and Gandhi was fasting — on a hunger strike — in an effort to stop the fighting.
A group of men entered the room where a starving Gandhi rested on a bed. They told him both sides had agreed to stop the violence. They symbolically laid down their weapons by his bed. One man threw a piece of bread onto Gandhi’s stomach and said, “Eat! I am going to hell. I killed a child. I smashed his head against a wall. They killed my child.”
Gandhi looks at the man and replies, “I know how you can solve this. You will find a child whose parents have been lost and you will raise that child as your own. It must be a Muslim child — and you must raise it as a Muslim.”
The man was a Hindu, as was Gandhi.
Time and time again throughout the movie, Gandhi acted from a place of love — not fear. He was never portrayed as a man against people, but rather as a man who stood fearlessly to champion the morals he believed in — which applied equally to all sides.
I did not know how extensively Martin Luther King, Jr. studied Gandhi’s philosophy and playbook. Below are several excerpts from King’s Essay — My Trip to the Land of Gandhi. The entire essay can be found here.
It was a marvelous thing to see the amazing results of a non-violent campaign. The aftermath of hatred and bitterness that usually follows a violent campaign was found nowhere in India. Today a mutual friendship based on complete equality exists between the Indian and British people within the commonwealth. The way of acquiescence leads to moral and spiritual suicide. The way of violence leads to bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers. But, the way of non-violence leads to redemption and the creation of the beloved community.
Non-violent resistance does call for love, but it is not a sentimental love. It is a very stern love that would organize itself into collective action to right a wrong by taking on itself suffering.
Although Gandhi and King are respected worldwide, I wonder how many of us have sought to understand their principles beyond quotes and soundbites. History is a skilled teacher.
I wonder:
Can we look into our minds and hearts, and choose to act from love instead of fear?
Can we seek to understand before passing judgement?
Can we look away from drama — toward truth and reason?
Can we look back so that we can move beyond?
Can we serve by shedding a little light on the ties between us — all men and women?
Show your heart full of grace — your soul generated by love.
Months ago, I read two essays here on Medium about Gandhi. I revisited them recently with a greater understanding of their context. You might enjoy this piece by Abhishek Labhe and this one by Rushabh Mehta.
