Posts by Stephanie Van Hook

“Mutual respect, mutual security”–Daily Metta

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May 30: “No propaganda can be allowed which reviles other religions.” –Gandhi (Young India, May 29, 1924, p. 180)   My spiritual teacher liked to tell a joke about two men from different religions sitting next to one another. One of them looks at the other and says, “You know, we both worship the same… read more

“One-Pointed Attention”–Daily Metta

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May 29: “I am content with doing the task in front of me.” –Gandhi (Harijan, September 7, 1935, p. 234)   We’ve all seen it: families and friends filling a room, and everyone is looking down at their devices. What would happen if we gave our attention instead to what–or who–is really in front of… read more

“The Power Behind the Khadi”–Daily Metta

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May 28: “The only real and reliable guarantee for khadi would be honesty, truthfulness and sincerity of khadi workers.” –Gandhi (Mahatma, vol. 7, p. 20) The khadi–or home-spun cloth–campaign was a key constructive program for the Free India movement. It meant that if you were part of the struggle, you would not only wear the… read more

“The greatest force at our disposal”–Daily Metta

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May 27: “Nonviolence is the greatest force at the disposal of humankind.” –Gandhi (Harijan, July 20 1931) Whenever anyone tries to tell me that violence works better than nonviolence, I like to tell them the story of Antoinette Tuff. Working as bookkeeper in a public school in Decatur, Georgia, Tuff had no special training in… read more

“Science of Nonviolence”–Daily Metta

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May 26: “I am a humble explorer of the science of nonviolence.” –Gandhi (Young India, November 20, 1924) Nonviolence: it’s a strategy for some, a moral imperative for others, a way of life for some more, but mainly for Gandhi, it was a science. Understanding that the fundamental basis of science is the spirit of… read more

“As long as thou canst”–Daily Metta

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May 25: “It is not possible to make a person or a society nonviolent by compulsion.” –Gandhi (Young India, September 13, 1928) Freedom–an opposite of compulsion– and nonviolence go hand in hand. Yet any society like ours that has dedicated itself through and through to the force of violence, aka compulsion, to resolve its problems… read more

“Nonviolence, not a negative”–Daily Metta

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May 24: “Language is at best a poor vehicle for expressing one’s thoughts in full.” –Gandhi (Young India, September 13, 1928) Arabic is said to have close to sixty words for the concept of love. Talk about precision. Words that express the beginning of love, the kind of love where you really like someone to… read more

“Teaching by example”–Daily Metta

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May 23: “On Tolstoy Farm we made it a rule that the youngsters should not be asked to do what the teachers did not do.” –Gandhi (Autobiography) Gandhi felt that the best method of education for children (ok, for everyone) was through personal example. Hence, when children “misbehaved” at the ashram, instead of punishment, he… read more

“Gandhi’s First Congress”–Daily Metta

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May 22: “Practice as a lawyer was and remained for me a subordinate occupation. It was necessary that I concentrate on public work.” –Gandhi (Autobiography, Chapter 19) Before Gandhi launched his work in India proper, he had a bit of training under his belt in the Indian community in South Africa (Ok, so he was… read more