The Wisdom of Gandhi

Mohandas Gandhi (1869–1948), also known as Mahatma Gandhi, was the inspiring and unstoppable political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement. He advocated and practiced total non-violent mass civil disobedience, which led India to independence from the British and inspired civil rights movements around the world. He is officially honored in India as the Father of the Nation.

Gandhi said:

You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.

We must become the change we wish to see in the world.

An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation, nor does truth become error because nobody sees it.

An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.

Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real must be unaffected by outside circumstances.

God has no religion. Each one prays to God according to his own light.

Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth.

Everyone who wills can hear the inner voice. It is within everyone.

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.

Healthy discontent is the prelude to progress.

I am prepared to die, but there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill.

If we are to teach real peace in this world, and if we are to carry on a real war against war, we shall have to begin with the children.

It is easy enough to be friendly to one's friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business.

It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.

Man lives freely only by his readiness to die, if need be, at the hands of his brother, never by killing him.

Nobody can hurt me without my permission.

Peace is its own reward.

The only tyrant I accept in this world is the still voice within.

There is more to life than increasing its speed.

Those who say religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion is.

Though we may know Him by a thousand names, He is one and the same to us all.

Coping With Loss, Grief, and the Fear Of Your Own Mortality

Coping With Loss, Grief, and the Fear Of Your Own Mortality
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

I first became aware that death - for anyone - is never far away when a sixth grade playground chum committed suicide. I had been aware that old people died - but "old" had seemed very remote to my twelve year old self. Instantly death became very real - something that could, and did, happen to anyone.

Having reached my sixties, death is becoming a more and more familiar companion - it is no longer something that happens to grandparents or parents - it is now something that often happens to peers. A surprising number of my friends have also lost children to various calamities.

How to cope with loss and grief... How to cope with the fear of our own mortality...

Here are the pillars that support me as I confront the specter of death. For me, these affirmations proclaim the joy and purpose of life. May they also serve you well.

1. Life is what I make of it. Whether I have hours or decades remaining, I can choose to focus on living a happy and compassionate life - unencumbered by fears of future dangers, including death.

2. Once someone has "passed on," they are no longer suffering. Whether or not I believe that they are now "in a better place," I can be sure that they are no longer suffering. While, I certainly feel compassion for the grief and loss of the departed one's family and friends, my sympathy is for the living, not the dead.

3. Whenever I die, my life will be complete and a finished work. If I believe that the purpose of my life is preordained by a higher power, it is logical to believe that my life is also preordained to fulfill that purpose - however much time I am on this earth. However, if I believe that I have free-will, the only demand upon my earthly time is that I do my best - whatever the result.

4. I choose to overcome my instinctive fear of the unknown. All humans naturally fear the unknown. I will fight that fear every day - and I will win. In winning my battle with fear, I win my freedom and my happiness.

5. I am one with Spirit - Spirit is my strength. Whatever the details of my beliefs, and however I choose to commune with my Higher Power, it is my rock and my Pillar of Life.