Mahatma Gandhi News Digest, Germany : Issue for May 28 – June 3, 2007
Do you ever forgive?
Morganton.com – USA – by W.F. McIntosh – June 8, 2007
It is far better to forgive and forget than to hate and remember. We do not know who said this, but it is just beautiful to the soul. The kindest people are those who forgive and forget. Here we are in the Lenten season. This is a great time to clean up our acts by forgiving.
Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness. One of the prime reasons that we are having so much grudge dominating our lives is because we have not subscribed to the practice of forgiving. Many wise men and women have preached to us down through the years about the act of forgiveness. It is hard to do, but it is a must in the life of a mature person.
Alexander Pope advises us: To err is human; to forgive divine. The great Mahatma Gandhi observed, The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attitude of the strong. Henry Ward Beecher came forth with this one: I can forgive, but I cannot forget, is only another way of saying, I will not forgive. Forgiveness ought to be like a cancelled note – torn in two and burned up, so that it never can be shown against one.
There are folks that are torn asunder today because they have not been able to forgive. Oscar Wilde took another look at forgiveness by saying, Always forgive your enemies – nothing annoys them so much.
It would help us very much if we made a list of the people that we hate and the reasons that we hate them. Then you will see how stupid you are for being in this sinful drama.
The lack of ability to forgive can cause many problems. We will spend time trying to figure out ways to get even with someone. What we should do in these cases is try forgiveness first. Life can be so sweet when we do not have to worry about people we hate and have not forgiven. Yes, we all know that there are those who will do awful things to hurt you.
Some families are on the brink of destruction because a member of the clan has not learned the value of forgiveness. When you have problems in families over what mama and daddy left for the children, lifetime warfare will fall in place and folks will be angry at each other for years to come. Forgiveness could solve the problem.
Adjust yourself to the fact that somewhere in the journey of life, people will lie on you, spread gossip about you, talk about you, try to turn others against you, dip into your personal business and even turn their backs to you when you are in need. Many times these are the people that you went out of your way to help at some period in your relationships. What will you do when this comes up in your life? Will you seek revenge?
When people mistreat you, this is the time when you display that you can take it on the chin. The world is full of people that will do you in at any given time. There are those who will cause you harm at the flick of the bic. These are testing times in your life, and believe it or not, when these thorns start working their way into your life, you must stand up and be tough about it.
You come forth and ask, Why are people like this? The simple answer is SIN. Some people are a deposit shelter for evil thinking and doings. And they have nothing else to do but bring hardship and problems for others.
When these trying times come into your life, relive the life of Jesus in our memories. What did he do in spots like these? He sought forgiveness and we must do the same. Be friendly to those that hate you. Forgive them over and over again.
Please believe that You will reap what you sow. In due time, the liars will be lied about. The tide will turn on your evil deeds. Those people that do evil things against you are in need of Christian guidance.
In the meantime, let us remember that we cannot overcome evil with evil. We must respond to evil acts against us with love and forgiveness. We must never submit to the god of revenge and practice retaliation. We must remember always that forgiveness is not an occasional act, it is a permanent attitude. When we learn the act of forgiving, then we can say, I have arrived.
W. Flemon McIntosh Jr. is the senior columnist for The News Herald and is pastor of Green Street Presbyterian Church, USA.
Freedom struggle’s rare pictures exhibited
NewKerala.com – India – June 8, 2007
Indore, June 8: In contrast to popular photograph adorning many galleries showing him twisting his moustache, a rare picture of revolutionary freedom fighter Chandra Shekhar Azad lying in state after attaining martyrdom was prominently displayed at a photo exhibition here.
The exhibition, organised by the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity to mark the 150th anniversary of Indian freedom struggle, was formally inaugurated at the Gandhi Hall here yesterday by Indore Mayor Uma Shashi Sharma and freedom fighter Bhalchandra Pathak.
The photographs mesmerising the onlookers to recollect the trials and tribulations of the freedom fighters pertain to the 1857-1947 period.
Rare pictures on the exhibition also included those of Zeenat Mahal, Tatya Tope after his arrest, Champekar brothers and the famous trio Lal-Pal-Bal. Historical pictures of Mahatma Gandhi in conversation with Subhash Chandra Bose and the Netaji with the Indian National Army were also on display.
The historical photograph of Jawaharlal Nehru addressing people from the ramparts of the Red Fort after the ‘freedom at midnight’ was prominently displayed.
Vital information about many crucial events during the freedom struggle in Madhya Pradesh between 1857 and 1874 were also furnished.
Freedom fighter Pathak was honoured on the occasion.
Climate change threat real, change lifestyle: PM
Hindustan Times – India – June 6, 2007
Ahead of his trip to Germany to attend the G-8 summit where global warming is expected to be a key issue, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday voiced concern over climate change threat and said unless people change their lifestyles, “our future will be at peril”.
“The threat of climate change is real and unless we alter our lifestyles and pursue a sustainable model of development, our future will be at peril”, he said in a message on World Environment Day.
Recalling Mahatma Gandhi’s words that “our planet has enough to meet everyone’s need but not everyone’s greed”, Singh said it was incumbent upon all to think of future generations and the very future of the planet each time people undertook an act of consumption.
India was committed to pursuing environmentally sustainable development strategies, he said adding “while we have a long way to go in meeting the aspirations of our people and while we must rid our country of the scourge of poverty, ignorance and disease, we should do so in a manner that is environmentally sustainable”.
The challenge before the people is to protect the environment and ensure the well-being of future generations, “even as we seek to accelerate the pace of economic growth, pursue industrialization and the modernisation of agriculture and improve the quality of life of our people”.
The Prime Minister urged the people to come forward with creative and innovative ideas on how to meet this challenge.
Tacoma priest arrested at Nuclear Weapons Base in Faslane, Scotland
Times of India – India – by Sonia Sarkar – June 1, 2007
Jesuit Father Bill Bichsel, a co-founder of the Tacoma Catholic Worker community and “the American Gandhi” Bernie Meyers of Olympia were arrested yesterday at the Faslane Naval Base near Glasgow. The demonstration was part of an 86 day International Interfaith Peace Walk organized by Footprints for Peace and the ongoing Faslane 365 yearlong blockade of the homeport of the UK’s nuclear weapons. Thousands of people from across Europe, Asia and Africa have participated in the blockades with more than 750 arrested. Others arrested were from Japan, Australia, Scotland, and Ireland.
Footprints for Peace Interfaith Peace Walk trekked from Dublin to Belfast, stopping to speak to the Environment minister at Stormont. After continuing from Glasgow they were prevented from entering the Faslane Trident submarine base. Fr. Bichsel sat down in the entrance to the base and linked arms with a group singing “We shall overcome” before being arrested for Breach of the Peace and carried away by police. Fr. Bichsel, who last year was awarded an honorary degree by University of Puget Sound for his work with the homeless of Tacoma said “The power of people gathering in non-violence is more powerful than this nuclear pile of death. Our action is to free us from nuclear bondage.” Bernie Meyers, dressed as Gandhi stood staff in hand preaching words spoken by Gandhi on the last day of his life: “Unless humanity destroys the atom bomb I do not see much future for the human species.” They were detained in jail over night. Bichsel and Gandhi are both active in Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action which organizes resistance to the US Pacific fleet of Trident submarines, one of the largest concentrations of nuclear weapons in the world.
One of the organizers of the peace walk, Kerry Ann Garlick, of Australia, who was also arrested said “We are walking from Dublin to London stopping at many nuclear facilities to raise public awareness about the suffering inflicted on local communities and the environment through out the world by the nuclear industry- from the mining of uranium, transportation, enrichment, reprocessing, nuclear power plants, weapons and dumping of radioactive waste.” Yu Kiyota, a teacher from Hyugo, Japan said as a child she became aware of the horror of Hiroshima, and Nagasaki on school visits there.
Marcus Atkinson a Footprints organizer said “We are here from around the world to voice our opposition to the double standards set by the United Nations Security Council. These nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction. These types of weapons are the same as the ones that have caused wars and sanctions to be imposed on other countries. Where is the public out cry when the UK, America and others do the same thing on a much larger scale?”
Since 1 October groups Scottish and Dutch Members of Parliament, Lawyers, Health Professionals, Clergy, University Professors, and many others have demonstrated at the base in the Faslane365 year-long blockade. 76% of Scots and the Scottish National Party elected last month is anti-Trident. But Scottish Parliament does not have jurisdiction over defence.
The walk will continue on to Chapelcross, Sellafield, Menwith Hill, Aldermaston and other nuclear sites before arriving in London on August 6th for the anniversary of Hiroshima.
For more information call Marcus on (44)7881425531 or Brian (44)1436 671845
For further background see: http://footprintsforpeace.tripod.com/ and http://www.faslane365.org/
Photographs of “the American Gandhi”, Bernie Meyers:
Indian unit organises exhibition on Gandhi in Lebanon
The Times of India – India – June 6, 2007
JERUSALEM: Aiming to promote Gandhi’s principle of non-violence among the youths of war-ravaged Lebanon, Indian contingent of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has organised an exhibition based on his teachings.
“In today’s world, where due to personal interests and petty gains, humans are increasingly taking up arms and killing brethren, perhaps Mahatma Gandhi’s teachings of austerity, peace and non-violence are even more important than before,” Commanding Officer of 15 Punjab Infantry, part of UNIFIL, Col Advitya Madan said at the exhibition.
“Bapu showed the world that by practising non-violence and keeping a high moral conduct, one could not only move the masses but also create respect in opponent’s mind,” he said.
Sector commander of UNIFIL (East) Brig Gen Ramon Martin Ambrosio Merino, the chief guest of the function, visited the Mahatma Gandhi Park at Ebel Es Saqi in south Lebanon and garlanded Gandhi’s statue on the occasion.
The park, in Ebel Es Saqi, is the symbol of the bonds of friendship between India and Lebanon and their common dream of lasting peace for Lebanon, spokesman of Indian contingent, Maj Sumit Sharma, said.
The exhibition particularly aims at Lebanese youth, who are seen as the foundation of a strong nation, he added.
The Indian contingent has been celebrating Gandhi Jayanti in south Lebanon for the past few years when a series of programmes are organised to make the people aware of his teachings.
Akshaye Khanna plays Gandhi’s son
APunkAChoice.com – India – by Aparajita Ghosh – June 5, 2007
In Anil Kapoors home production Gandhi My Father , Akshaye Khanna plays the son of Mahatma Gandhi.
Something like this hasnt been tried on the Indian screen before. Theatre artist Feroz Khan is directing a film that explores the relationship between Gandhi and his sons.
The film has Akshaye Khanna playing Gandhis son Harilal. This is also Akshayes first period film.
Gandhi My Father depicts the life of Harilal Gandhi from the age of 18 to 60. Harilal was the eldest of Gandhis four sons. He had a very troubled relationship with Gandhi. Against his fathers wishes Harilal converted from Hinduism to Islam, thereby deeply offending his father who eventually disowned him.
Akshaye says it was a very challenging role and he learnt many things while working on the project with director Feroz Khan who is a renowned theatre actor and director.
Intensive research has gone into the making of the film. The movies story is based on facts.
Producer Anil Kapoor has been very secretive about the film. He has made sure that not even a single still from the movie is leaked to the media before the official promotion of the film begins.
Gandhi My Father is set to release in August.
A new, global tribute to Gandhi
The Times of India – India – June 5, 2007
NEW DELHI: Brand Gandhi is about to get bigger on the global stage. As many as 114 UN member-countries joined hands on Monday to support India’s resolution to declare Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday on October 2 as the ‘International Day of Non-Violence’.
The move to get the international community to pay tribute to Gandhi’s ideology was a follow-up to the Satyagraha conference organised by the Congress early this year and a subsequent campaign launched by the government.
Speaking at the conference, titled Peace, Non-Violence and Empowerment Gandhian Philosophy in the 21st Century, Congress president Sonia Gandhi had called for steps to get the Mahatmas birthday marked as the International Day of Non-Violence.
Anand Sharma, minister of state for external affairs who was Sonias point person for the conference, welcomed the outpouring of global support to the campaign. Its great to see the global response to the declaration adopted at the Satyagraha conference.
Sharma, who was confident that the resolution would be adopted at the UN, said it also reflected the respect Gandhi commands universally and the enduring relevance of his philosophy.
After a resolution was adopted at the Satyagraha meet, Sonia wrote to UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon requesting him to make it a UN declaration. It was followed up by a similar request by PM Manmohan Singh to the UN chief and letters by the two to president of UN General Assembly Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa.
Singh and Sonia also wrote to several world leaders, including Nelson Mandela, British PM Tony Blair, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Spains PM Jose Luis Rodriguez and South African President Thabo Mbeki to secure support.
Rare letter from Mahatma surfaces
Hindustan Times – India – June 5, 2007
One of the greatest collections of historical letters, including a plea urging tolerance by Gandhiji written 19 days before his assassination, were found tucked away in a filing cabinet in a laundry room in London.
The 572 letters collected over 30 years by the late Austrian banker Albin Schram records almost 500 years of history and includes letters by Winston Churchill to his mother when he was 16, Peter the Great, Alexander Pushkin, John Donne, Queen Elizabeth I, Sigmund Freud, Sir Issac Newton, Oscar Wilde and a rare love letter from Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine where he blows three kisses to her the morning after a furious argument, among others.
Called the Albi Schram Collection of Autograph Letters, the extensive collection is expected to fetch £2 million when Christies auctions it on July 3. Christies spokesman Matthew Paton told HT: We are offering the most comprehensive collection of hand-written manuscripts to be seen in the market in a generation.
Catalogue details of the Mahatmas letter say it is expected to fetch around £12,000, but not less than £9,000. In the letter, Gandhi discusses the Urdu script, and Hindu treatment of Muslims in newly independent India, where he expresses regret at having to discontinue the publication of his mouthpiece Harijan in the Urdu script, though he sees it as inevitable because of dwindling demand.
The dwindle was to me a sign of resentment against its publication… My view remains unalterable, especially at this critical juncture in our history
It is wrong to ruffle Muslim or any other persons feeling when there is no question of ethics, Gandhi wrote.
Palestine needs a Gandhi to lead struggle: envoy
Yahoo! India – India – June 4, 2007
New Delhi, June 4 (IANS) Palestine needs a leader in Mahatma Gandhi’s mould to lead its struggle against Israel’s occupation of its territory, its envoy here said Monday, admitting that the current pattern of resistance was counterproductive.
‘We have to make experiments and tests to explore ways to achieve our aims through peaceful methods. So, we hope we will find a leader like Gandhi in Palestine,’ Ambassador Osama Musa said at a press conference here.
‘We were stupid enough to play into Israel’s hands,’ he admitted of the violent clashes in Gaza and the West Bank between armed Palestinian groups and Israeli defence forces, adding: ‘The Gandhian way is the only way to the struggle in Palestine.
‘We hope we will find a leader of the stature of Gandhi,’ Musa maintained.
The press conference was called on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the June 5, 1967 war launched by Israel and which saw its occupation of large swathes of Palestinian territories. Ahmed Salem Al-Wahisti, the ambassador of the League of Arab States, was also present on the occasion.
Lauding New Delhi’s support for the Palestinian cause, Musa said: ‘India has stood beside us and we are very happy to have India stand by us.’
In this context, he noted that India had initiated a $30 million project to construct a school and a hospital in the Palestinian territories. This apart, India had allotted a large plot of land at a throwaway price in the Chanakyapuri diplomatic enclave here for constructing a Palestinian embassy and was also providing political and economic assistance, the envoy added.
Indicative of their close ties, Palestinian Foreign Minister Ziad Abu Amr is to visit India later this month, while Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is to travel here in July or August, Musa stated.
Earlier, Arab League envoy Al-Wahisti demanded immediate Israeli withdrawal from the territories it had occupied post the 1967 war in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jerusalem, the Syrian Golan Heights ‘and what is left from the Lebanese territories’.
Further, the ‘continuing build up of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, the utilisation of its water, polluting its environment and the attacks on its sacred worship places, in particular, the Aqsa Mosque (are) unilateral actions that hinder the efforts of regional and international communities in their quest to establish a just and lasting peace in the region.
‘In the light of all this, the Arab side reaffirms the necessity to exert all efforts of the international community to work toward ending the Israeli occupation of Arab territories and to achieve peace in the region,’ Al-Wahisti maintained.
Satyagrah and Worldwide blood appeal campaign for Tibet Freedom reaches Paris
Phayul.com – India – June 4, 2007
Paris, France June 2 – Dr. Mahesh Yadav, founder convener of Mahatma Gandhi Tibet Freedom Movement (MGTFM), reached France’s capital on Saturday under his 18 days long Europe tour. He will present a memorandum to newly elected French President Sarkozy and foreign minister. He will write the memorandum by his own blood.
On Friday, Dr. Yadav has presented a blood written memorandum to German President, Dr. Horst Koehler, and Federal Chancellor, honorable Dr. Angela Merkel.
During a conversation on phone, Dr. Yadav said that is getting tremendous support from European people for the freedom of Tibet.
“Tibetan people have separate culture, beliefs than Chinese people therefore Tibet should be free from hand of China,” he said. “I appeal to international community to put pressure on China for organizing a referendum for Tibetan people.” he continued.
“Gandhian ideas of non-violence are basis of my movement,” Dr. Yadav, who has been working for Tibetan cause since last two decades, said.
Dr. Yadav is now committed to visit 100 countries to generate a massive worldwide support for the cause of Tibet.
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