“True ahimsa should mean a complete freedom from ill-will and anger and hate and an overflowing love for all.” ~ Gandhi, D.G. Tendulkar, Mahatma, vol. 2, p. 420

What Gandhi called “the nonviolence of the strong” (or brave) and today we call principled nonviolence does mean the attempt (he would say, “prayerful attempt”) to eliminate ill-will even from the mind, from thought; and that is just about impossible unless we, or to the extent that we arouse positive good will towards, well, even our opponents. He has just claimed that Tolstoy had achieved that degree of “freedom from” but he goes on to add that Tolstoy’s life should serve as a “never-failing source of inspiration” because of the love and compassion he showed to all. (Isn’t this similar to our preference for constructive program over protest or other forms of obstruction—necessary, to be sure, but secondary?)

Thanks for sharing a comment below.

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.

Enjoy more Daily Metta: See the  archives

Get Daily Metta by email: Subscribe