Mahatma Gandhi on AHIMSA (non-violence)

Here are some of Mahatma Gandhi’s aphorisms about AHIMSA or non-violence:

• It is one of the highest principles of the world, which no power on earth can destroy.
• It’s the biggest ideal.
• Meant for the brave, never for the coward.
• It is the greatest known force.
• The highest form of religion (spirituality) has been defined by a negation: non-violence.
• It is an attribute of the brave. Cowardice and non-violence never “go” together, just like water and fire.
• It is the pinnacle of KSHATRIYA DHARMA (DHARMA of the caste of kings, nobles and warriors) because it represents the pinnacle of courage/daring.
• It is the attribute of the soul and that is why it must be practiced by everyone, in all situations/events of life.
• His principle is aggrieved by every evil thought, by exaggerated haste, by lying, by hatred, by wishing harm to anyone.
• It requires strength and courage to endure trials without the desire for revenge, to be able to receive “blows” without fighting back.
• It was preached to man when he was in the fullness of his power and was able to look his opponents directly in the face.
• It’s science. The word “failure” has no place in the vocabulary of science.
• It highlights our own flaws and minimizes those of the opponent. She looks at the speck in our eye as a beam and the beam in the opponent’s eye as a straw.

Below, some other aphorisms about non-violence, which, although they do not belong to Ghandi, are also very valuable :

• Tmust be put ahead of everything when practiced. Only then does it become irresistible.
• Thas to express himself through acts of selfless help to others.
• Nu tolerates the idea of giving free food to a healthy person who has not worked for it in an honest way.
• My errors were mistakes in appreciating people, not in appreciating the true nature of truth and non-violence or in applying them.
• All my experiences in the practice of non-violence have taught me that this, put into practice, means hard work (common labour) with the body.
• A proponent of non-violence always prays for ultimate liberation from the slavery of the body.
• Whatever powers people have, they are entirely due to non-violence, no matter how imperfect or defective they may be.
• The follower of non-violence cannot subscribe to the utilitarian formula (the greatest good for the majority). He will fight for the highest good of all and die in an attempt to achieve this ideal.
• The woman is much more apt than the man to carry out explorations and to carry out bold actions in non-violence.
• No power on earth can subdue you when you are armed with the sword of non-violence. It ennobles both the winner and the loser.
• The follower of non-violence has only one fear, and this is of GOD.
• The follower of non-violence must cultivate the habit of continuous toil, restless vigilance, unceasing self-control.
• The scriptures of Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism are full of the teaching of non-violence.

Abheda Yoga is an authentic yoga school that aims to embody non-violence in its deepest form, right in the middle of life.