“He then went on solemnly to declare in the name of God that he would never submit to that law, and advised all present to do likewise.” We are, of course, in the Empire Jewish Theater in Johannesburg, South Africa. The date is September 11 (!), 1906, and the speaker being quoted is one Seth… read more
Tag Archives: gandhi
Being Human: Daily Metta
“Unless the mind and the body and the soul are made to work in unison, they cannot be adequately used for the service of mankind.” ~ Gandhi, The Gita According to Gandhi, p. 208 What is a human being? Gandhi answers: Mind, body and spirit. Work that lasts, that uplifts and ennobles, needs to have… read more
Habit: Daily Metta
“Habit is not nature.” ~ Gandhi, The Gita According to Gandhi, p. 187 If our nature is good, then why do we do things that harm ourselves and others? Because there is a difference between habit and nature. We might acquire a negative habit—of judgment rather than mercy; of condemnation rather than forgiveness; of self-centeredness… read more
Charitable Acts: Daily Metta
“A man of charity does not even know that he is doing charitable acts, it is his nature to do so, he cannot help it.” ~ Gandhi, The Gita According to Gandhi, p. 185 Gandhi firmly believed that our nature is good. We do not need to prove it to ourselves by having others affirm… read more
Beyond crisis-mode–Daily Metta
“We are lurching from crisis to crisis.” In today’s video, Michael, continuing on from February 6, underscores how our common way of thinking has no way to understand the dynamic of Karen Ridd’s heroic act and its effect. He adds a contemporary example of how the prevailing worldview, or “old story,” prevents us from acknowledging… read more
War is Ruin: Daily Metta
“The author of the Mahabharata has not established the necessity of physical warfare; on the contrary he has proved its futility.” ~ Gandhi, The Gita According to Gandhi, p. 128 The Bhagavad Gita is a chapter out of the great Indian epic, the Mahabharata. Seemingly, it is a book about a great war; even the… read more
Living the Gita: Daily Metta
“It has been my endeavor, as also that of some companions, to reduce to practice the teachings of the Gita as I have understood it.” ~ Gandhi, The Gita According to Gandhi, p. 126 In Gandhi’s religious tradition, not just anyone offers a commentary on the Bhagavad Gita. Usually, this task is reserved for someone… read more
Enemy #1: Daily Metta
“No man could look upon another as his enemy unless he first becomes his own enemy.” ~ Gandhi, Mahatma Vol. 7, p. 204 We make no apology for revisiting this quote from a Daily Metta in April of last year because of its inexhaustible profundity. After all, 1500 years earlier Augustine had said, “Imagine someone… read more
Being Zero: Daily Metta
“My mission is to convert every Indian, even Englishmen, and finally the world to nonviolence for regulating mutual relations, whether political, economic, social, or religious.” ~ Gandhi, Mahatma Vol. 5, p. 2 We can’t fault Gandhi for lacking ambition! His greatest ambition, however, in his own opinion, was quite different: “to make myself zero.” What… read more
A life-affirming orientation–Daily Metta
“It’s through discovering our capacity for nonviolence–our ability to offer it and our ability to respond to it– that we discover something absolutely fundamental about human nature.” In today’s Daily Metta video, Michael suggests that the nature of our task is to discover our capacity for nonviolence, which lies at the basis of our nature. Our… read more
