On October 30, 1948, Mahatma Gandhi was shot in the chest by a man named Nathuram Godse. Even at a time when Gandhi was responsible for bringing India into the light of independence, there was a group of people who disagreed with him to the point of fanaticism. Today, if I am to stand before you and tell you about Mahatma Gandhi, I feel the need to show you why exactly we call this man Mahatma. Once convinced, only we can all appreciate his ideas and thoughts to the fullest.

Mahatma Gandhi set foot in India at a time when British rule was at its height. He resolved to drive the British out of India when he witnessed the British treat themselves above the law of their own land. Gandhi did not respond with violence to the brute force, oppressive violence, and relentless torture of English rule. He matched every stone thrown and every bullet fired at him with resilience. At a time when the colonial government was recruiting soldiers and importing battle gear in droves, here was a man who didn’t even raise a stick in self-defense, but managed to drive them out of India. For Gandhi, the ends achieved were only as good as the means used to achieve them. A country born of violence would not have a solid enough base to overcome the initial problems that it had to face later. The purpose of satyagra, as he put it, “was not to prove someone wrong, but to make the other person realize his mistake.”

Satyagrah, truth, non-violence may seem like tools to those who lack the physical ability to protect themselves from violence. But, strength doesn’t come from physical ability, it comes from indomitable will. Forgiveness is a weapon of the strong, the weak cannot forgive. All the methods of Mahatma Gandhi connected with the common man. He precipitated the cause of satyagrah, at the grassroots level by incorporating it into the daily struggle against British rule. “It is hard to believe that such a flesh and blood man ever walked the face of the earth.” However, in a country where he is revered as the Father of the Nation, I stand before you to prove his greatness. Gandhi’s satyagra was not a utopian idea of ​​independence, which is why it was so effective.

Gandhi did not give any particular message during his lifetime. His life is his message. We have to take little bits of life out of it and adopt it into our life and make it better. When Gandhi spoke of equality, he lived in equality. He adopted lepers from the streets all over the country and brought them to his ashrams. He took care of them and their ill health, when the whole society avoided them. He broke all traditions and barriers when it came to following his chosen path. Mahatma Gandhi gave a strong message and set an example by sheltering those unfortunate people. Through his actions, he pleaded with us to follow him and not deprive lepers of the basic rights of society. For him, equal rights transcended all boundaries of caste, creed, color, gender, and even disease. Just a little bit of skin pigmentation couldn’t deter him from granting equality.

This was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who was given the title of Mahatma by Rabindranath Tagore for his contribution to society in the above ways and many more. We can close to his ideas and thoughts at the end of this program, or sit and reflect on them. If we want, we can revive the Mahatma, he cannot be erased from the earth with only 3 bullets. Or maybe it can be, it’s our choice.