“Let the Gita be for you a mine of diamonds, as it has been to me; let it be your constant guide and friend on life’s way.” ~ Gandhi, Mahatma 2, p. 307 A young friend who had been having trouble with her meditation once said to me, “But I still think the Bhagavad Gita… read more
Tag Archives: michael nagler
Kindness: Daily Metta
“My experience teaches me that truth can never be propagated by doing violence.” ~ Gandhi, The Mind of Mahatma Gandhi, p. 117 Two things stand out in this short sentence: while he drew heavily from and was greatly inspired by the Gita, the Isha Upanishad, and other scriptures (including the New Testament), Gandhi would accept… read more
Restorative Justice as CP: Daily Metta Weekend Video
In this video, Michael Nagler explains the key nonviolent concept called “constructive program” and contextualizes restorative justice within the framework of a workable constructive program strategy. Please add your comments 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… read more
Sweat Labor: Daily Metta
“If everyone lives by the sweat of his brow the earth will become a paradise.” ~ Gandhi, The Mind of Mahatma Gandhi, p. 200 Why this emphasis on manual labor? Surely this is an exaggeration? Well, no. Spiritual as he was, Gandhi felt that the disconnect between the human being and her or his physical… read more
High Standards: Daily Metta
“Still the community stood unmoved; only the weaklings slipped away. But even the weaklings had done their best. Let us not despise them.” ~ Gandhi, Satyagraha in South Africa, p. 206 Our Mahatma treads a fine line between demanding the best of everyone around him and compassion for them when they did not rise to… read more
Virtue: Daily Metta
“All virtue ceases to have use if it serves no purpose in every walk of life.” ~ Gandhi, Harijan, July 26, 1942 p. 248 What Milton called a “cloistered virtue,” or a mere philosophical idea that had no practical outcome in real life, can be at best useless and at worst an ideology that furnishes… read more
A Presence: Daily Metta
“My presence acted as a check upon petty bickerings.” ~ Gandhi, Satyagraha in South Africa, p. 216 There is a famous sutra in The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, a classic text on meditation and its effects from somewhere around the Second Century BCE, that states (and I paraphrase): “In the presence of one in whom… read more
Self-respect: Daily Metta
“I cannot conceive of a greater loss to a man than the loss of his self-respect . . .” ~ Gandhi, Satyagraha in South Africa, p. 266 Gandhi goes on, “and it is a matter of deep satisfaction to me that the labourers have realized this fundamental principle.” This conversation took place during the later… read more
At the root of restorative justice: Daily Metta Weekend Video
In this talk about Search for a Nonviolent Future, Michael Nagler gives some examples to show that human beings cannot function equally in a system that maintains punishment as a way to treat each other. Anytime we break human beings into groups like this, we make violence inevitable. When we go beyond those roles and… read more
Leadership: Daily Metta
“It has been my constant experience that much can be done if the servant actually serves and does not dictate to the people.” ~ Gandhi, Satyagraha in South Africa, p. 268 In this US election year, nothing could be more restorative and more challenging than Gandhi’s concept—and actual practice—of “servant leadership.” Of course, you have… read more
