“I wholeheartedly detest this mad desire to destroy distance and time.”
~ Gandhi, Mind of Mahatma Gandhi, p. 233

In order to see life as it is, to see people as they are, not to mention ourselves, we have to slow down. Instead of long walks or journeys, we fly from one place to the other or drive as fast as we can. Instead of writing letters, we are texting or emailing at all moments of the day as though it were a compulsion. Where there was room for silence before, for waiting, for reflecting, now, thanks to our technologies, we are obligated to make split decisions from everything to how I feel about your opinions to how I feel about the latest statement from a political candidate. It’s hard to hear our hearts in the midst of this chaotic, incessant effort, as Gandhi said, “to destroy distance and time.” If Gandhi had patience with people who opposed him, could even love and admire them, that was partly due to his efforts at slowing down, at honoring distance and time, which ironically leads to prioritizing, not neglecting, our relationships with others and our planet.

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About Daily Metta

Stephanie Van Hook, the Metta Center’s executive director, launched Daily Metta in 2015 as a way to share Gandhi’s spiritual wisdom and experiments with nonviolence.

Our 2016 Daily Metta continues with Gandhi on weekdays. On weekends, we share videos that complement Michael Nagler’s award-winning book, The Search for a Nonviolent Future: A Promise of Peace for Ourselves, Our Families, and Our World. To help readers engage with the book more deeply, the Metta Center offers a free PDF study guide.

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