A Tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and my Mentors

A tribute to Gandhi | www.TheGhousediary.com | www.InterfaithSpeaker.com 

Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead 68 years ago on this day, January 31, 1948.

Mahatma Gandhi is one of my nine favorite personalities. I call them my mentors, meaning I think about them regularly and that they are; Jesus Christ, Prophet Muhammad, Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Pope Frances, and President Barack Obama. Of course, my father and mother top the list, I am who I am today because of them opening the windows of knowledge to me.

These are the men and women I have come to adore; their passion was to create cohesive societies where everyone can live without fear of the other.

By the time I croak my list may grow to be 10, as there is one more individual I am studying and he may become the 10^th favorite Pluralists, i.e., those who respect the otherness of others and accept the God given uniqueness of each one of us.

Every year, for the last 25 years, I have been writing a note about him on his death and birth anniversaries, this is my way of paying tribute and expressing the gratitude to a man who gave so much to India and the world.

By the way, I have seen Gandhi in my dream twice, way back in early 70’s and in the early 2000 – both the times he pats on my back and says, Son you have a lot of work to do, and that has remained my inspiration to do the work I do.

Gandhi’s Clothing

Why did he wear the loin cloth and not the suits? Indeed, he was a Law graduate of University College of London, a successful Lawyer in South Africa and he wore the three piece suits like all the Englishmen did during the period.

Do you remember one of his thousands of quotes – “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” What does it mean? One of the major social reforms he brought to India was ‘acceptability’ of the ‘untouchables’, it is a shameful part of history of civilizations where humans were dehumanized, including here in the United States.  He wanted the downtrodden and the poor masses to relate with him and he wanted to be one of them and not the elites who look down upon them.  Prophet Muhammad did similar thing – he gave Bilal, the slave whom he freed, the highest spiritual status among his followers, it was a jolt to the society, but it knocked their prejudices down. My father did the same, which I have written separately, you see the same trend with Jesus, Mother Teresa, Pope Frances and others – they had zero prejudice towards fellow beings. God bless them all.

Given what Gandhi stood for, two things are going severely wrong in India, a handful of extremists have taken over and mistreating the Dalits (Untouchables) and the shameful celebration of the man who shot Gandhi. They are building temples to Godify this man Godse who killed Gandhi. I hope the Indian Government on this day makes a commitment to follow the law, to treat all humans equally and to value the freedom of speech. It is a shame, if we don’t speak up against injustice and let the seeds of discrimination grow in a nation that is beacon of hope to many nations.

 Season of Non-Violence  

Season of Non-Violence begins today, January 30^th, on the day of Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated and concludes on April 4^th the day Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. It is a “64 Days of Daily Messages for Social Media
The site  http://www.agnt.org/season-for-nonviolence has beautiful graphics and daily messages in web format to inspire, create discussion, and hold in our thoughts each day during the 64 Days of the Season. Consider having your SNV campaign be to share these on Facebook or Twitter. Then, be sure to check back in with us to let us know how your social network is growing by sharing these graphics.”  I cannot forget my friend Len Ellis of Dallas for his dedication to this season and the messages he shares.

This year like the last few years, we talk about the peace makers of the world, in the beginning it was Gandhi and MLK, now Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela are added, and I have added Prophet Muhammad to the season.

Watch out for the day, I will be giving a talk about what these men did to build a cohesive society, where humanity can live in peace and harmony.

This is not complete, I will be adding more to this at TheGhouseDiary.com

 

Thank you,

Mike Ghouse, 

(214) 325-1916

Washington, DC 

Dr. Mike Ghouse is a community consultant, social scientist, thinker, writer, newsmaker and a professional speaker on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam,  politics, human rights, and foreign policy.  Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. More about him in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at TheGhousediary.com 

Barack Obama: Religious intolerance in India would have shocked Mahatma Gandhi

My dear fellow Indians, you are, yes, everyone of you is an Indian and that is all it matters to me, as your Prime Minster, I am here to make sure, you have equal access to justice, employment, schooling, loans, housing, health care, food, places of worship and retirement.” You can count on me, and together let's build an India where every one of you is comfortable with the other regardless of what you speak, believe, eat or wear. " and, "I will not tolerate any harassment of any Indian by fellow Indians"

I have a few of my Indian Christian and Hindu friends along with Muslims who are willing to sign a letter condemning the harassment of Christians - I will collect a few more names and write letter to PM Modi.

thanks for sharing your comments.

Mike Ghouse

In a message dated 2/5/2015 9:19:26 P.M. Central Standard Time, xxxbagh@gmail.com writes:
On Thursday, at the high-profile National Prayer Breakfast, Obama said, “Michelle and I returned from India — an incredible, beautiful country, full of magnificent diversity — but a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other people of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs — acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation.”

Modi kept mum when the delegation of Indian Christians recently met him and asked him to speak out against attacks on churches and religious intolerance. It was a shocking answer to citizens asking for him to open his mouth and speak out against communal behavior of his party and his RSS affiliates. Now Modi's ears will prick when he hears Obama repeat his comments, and he will wonder where he stands with Obama and the US. India has been mentioned before as a place of religious intolerance by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom before. I hope their mentioning India in the new report will have demoralizing effect on Modi and his friends.

http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/religious-intolerance-in-india-would-have-shocked-mahatma-gandhi-barack-obama/99/
Barack Obama: Religious intolerance in India would have shocked Mahatma Gandhi

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White House had refuted allegations that Obama’s remarks in India were aimed at the BJP.
Written by Lalit K Jha | Washington | Posted: February 6, 2015 3:37 am | Updated: February 6, 2015 8:24 am
US President Barack Obama on Thursday said “acts of intolerance” experienced by religious faiths of all types in India in the past few years would have shocked Mahatma Gandhi.
The comments came a day after the White House refuted suggestions that the US President’s public speech in New Delhi, in which he touched on religious tolerance, was a “parting shot” aimed at the ruling BJP.
Hours before winding up his three-day visit to India on January 27, Obama had said, “Every person has the right to practice his faith without any persecution, fear or discrimination. India will succeed so long as it is not splintered on religious lines. Your Article 25 says all people are equally entitled to the freedom of conscience and have the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion. In both our countries, in all countries, upholding freedom of religion is the utmost responsibility of the government, but also the responsibility of every person.”
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On Thursday, at the high-profile National Prayer Breakfast, Obama said, “Michelle and I returned from India — an incredible, beautiful country, full of magnificent diversity — but a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other people of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs — acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation.”
However, he did not name any particular religion and said the violence is not unique to one group or one religion.
“Humanity has been grappling with these questions throughout human history. And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember  that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow (racial segregation state and local laws) all too often was justified in the name of Christ,” he said, addressing a gathering of over 3,000 US and international leaders.
“There is a tendency in us, a sinful tendency that can pervert and distort our faith. In today’s world, when hate groups have their own Twitter accounts and bigotry can fester in hidden places in cyberspace, it can be even harder to counteract such intolerance. But God compels us to try. And in this mission, I believe there are a few principles that can guide us, particularly those of us who profess to believe,” he said.

On Wednesday, the White House had refuted allegations that Obama’s remarks in India were aimed at the BJP, saying that the speech in its entirety was about the “core democratic values and principles” of both the US and India.