“Satyagraha is gentle, it never wounds.” ~ Gandhi, Harijan, April 5, 1933 At what point do we lose our gentleness as grown ups? A harsh word here, a resentful thought there, a cynical statement to follow. It’s not easy to be gentle, especially when others are not gentle to us. But Gandhi reminds us that… read more
Tag Archives: strength
A Challenge: Daily Metta
“Every murder or other injury, no matter for what cause, committed or inflicted on another is a crime against humanity.” ~ Gandhi, Harijan, July 20, 1925 There’s a sign for Army recruitment on the way out of Petaluma that I pass daily. A picture of a young woman, probably a recent high school grad (it… read more
Strength: Daily Metta
“Terrorism and deception are weapons not of the strong but of the weak.” ~ Gandhi, Mahatma, 2.20.1919 The conception one has of strength and power in nonviolence is often quite the reverse of how we conceive of them in ordinary parlance. There are numerous stories in the Indian epics of heroes who, when they need… read more
Strength to defy and forgive–Daily Metta
“The strength to defy and the strength to forgive are part of a single emotional package which makes a person capable of nonviolence.” In our Sunday video edition of Daily Metta Michael Nagler thinks about the moment when Nelson Mandela shook hands with his former opponent, De Klerk, in front of the world, saying that he… read more
“An indomitable will”–Daily Metta
November 16: “Strength does not come from a physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” –Gandhi (Mahatma, vol. ii, p.5) While he weighed in at a little over a hundred pounds in his physical body, Gandhi’s spirit was immeasurable. He was living proof that strength was a quality that transcends the body. Muscle is… read more
“Forgiveness and Strength”–Daily Metta
January 8 “A definite forgiveness would mean a definite recognition of our strength.” -Gandhi (Mahatma, vol 2. p. 5) (Gandhi and Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the man who ‘had a problem for every solution Gandhi came up with’) When it is not confronted with nonviolent resistance, violence always leads to more harm than any physical harm… read more
