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INDIAN CIVILIZATION AND CULTURE, Mahatma Gandhi, , MOHAN DAS KARAMCHAND GANDHI (1869-1948), Popularly known as Bapu or, the Father of the Nation, was more a Spiritual leader than a politician. He successfully, used truth and non-violence as the chief weapons against, the British rule in India and helped India gain independence., From 1915 till 1948, he completely dominated Indian politics., He died at the hands of a fanatic on 30 January, 1948. His, autobiography, My Experiments with Truth, and the numerous, articles that he wrote for Young India and the Speeches that, he delivered on different occasions, reveal him not only as an, original thinker but also as a 8reat master of chaste, idiomatic, English. In the following extract ‘Indian Civilization and, Culture,’ Gandhiji talks about the sound foundation of Indian, civilization which has successfully withstood the Passage of time. The western, civilization which has the tendency to privilege materiality cannot match the Indian, civilization that elevates the moral being., , , , , , . Answer the following questions orally:, What do you know about Gandhiji?, What did Gandhi do for the farmers in Bihar?, What do you understand by civilization and culture?, What do our holy Scriptures tell us about universal human values?, , PwON=aAD, , , , , , , , INDIAN CIVILIZATION AND CULTURE, , 1. I believe that the civilization India has evolved is not to be beaten in the world., Nothing can equal the seeds sown by our ancestors. Rome went, Greece shared the
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RAINBOW, 6, , same fate, the might of the Pharaohs was broken, Japan has become westemized; of, China nothing can be said, but India is still, somehow or other, sound at the foundation., The people of Europe learn their lessons from the writings of the men of Greece or, Rome which exist no longer in their former glory. In trying to learn from them, the, Europeans imagine that they will avoid the mistakes of Greece and Rome. Suchis their, pitiable condition., | Inthe midst of all this, India remains immovable and that is her glory. Itis a charge, against India that her people are so uncivilized, ignorant and stolid, that itis not possible, to induce them to adopt any changes. It is a charge really against our merit. What we, have tested and found true on the anvil of experience, we dare not change. Many, thrust their advice upon India, and she remains steady. This is her beauty; it is the, sheet anchor of our hope., , Civilization is that mode of conduct which points out to man the path of duty., Performance of duty and observance of morality are convertible terms. To observe, morality is to attain mastery over our minds and our passions. So doing, we know, ourselves. The Gujarati equivalent for civilization means “good conduct”., , : If this definition be correct, then India, as so many writers have shown, has nothing, to learn from anybody else, and this is as it should be., , ‘We notice that the mind is a restless bird, the more it gets the more it wants, and still, remains unsatisfied. The more we indulge in our passions, the more unbridled they, become. Our ancestors, therefore, set a limit to our indulgences. They saw that, happiness was largely a mental condition., , Aman is not necessarily happy because he is rich, or unhappy because he is poor., The rich are often seen to be unhappy, the poor to be happy. Millions will always, remain poor. Observing all this, our ancestors dissuaded us from luxuries and pleasures., ‘We have managed with the same kind of plough as existed thousands of years ago., We have retained the same kind of cottages that we had in former times and our, indigenous education remains the same as before. We have had no system of lifecorroding competition. Each followed his own occupation or trade and charged a, regular wage. It was not that we did not know how to invent machinery, but our, forefathers knew that, if we set our hearts after such things, we would become slaves, and lose our moral fibre. They, therefore, after due deliberation decided that we, should only do what we could with our hands and feet. They saw that our real happiness, and health consisted in a proper use of our hands and feet., , They further reasoned that large cities were a snare and a useless encumbrance, and that people would not be happy in them, that there would be gangs of thieves and
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pe INDIAN CIVILIZATION AND CULTURE, =o own, , robbers, prostitution and vice flourishing in them and that poor men would be robbed, bytich men. They were, therefore, satisfied with small villages., , 8. They saw that kings and their swords were inferior to the sword of ethics, and, they, therefore, held the sovereigns of the earth to be inferior to the Rishis and the, Fakirs. A nation, with a constitution like this, is fitter to teach others than to leam from, others. This nation had courts, lawyers and doctors, but they were all within bounds., Everybody knew that these professions were not Particularly superior. Moreover, these, Vakils and Vaids did not rob People; they were considered people’s dependents, not, their masters. Justice was tolerably fair. The ordinary rule was to avoid courts. There, were no touts to lure people into them. This evil too was noticeable only in and, around capitals. The common people lived independently and followed their agricultural, occupation. They enjoyed true Home Rule., , , , , , B.1. 1.Complete the following sentences on the basis of what, you have studied :, a) India’s glory is that it ..., b) The charge against India is, c) We dare not change what ........, d) Our ancestors set a limit to our indulgences because, e) Our forefathers did not invent machinery because ...., , , , , , B.1. 2. Answer the following questions briefly :, , 1) How is Indian civilization different from European civilization?, , 2) Why does Gandhi say that ‘mind is a restless bird’? What, makes the mind restless?, , 3) Why did our ancestors dissuade us from luxuries and, pleasures? Did they do the right thing?, , 4) Why, according to Gandhi, have we stuck with the same kind of, plough as existed thousands of years ago? Should we do the, same thing even today?, , 5) How did our ancestors view large cities? Why were they, satisfied with small villages?, , 6) How did our ancestors enjoy true ‘Home Rule’?, , , , , , 9. The Indian civilization, as described by me, has been so described by its votaries., Inno part of the world, and under no civilization, have all men attained perfection. The, tendency of Indian civilizations is to elevate the moral being, that of the western, civilization is to propagate immorality. The latter is godless; the former is based on a
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10., , is, , 12., , 13,, , 14., , 15., , 16., , Ss RAINBOW <, —_ =, , 8, , helief in God. So understanding and so believing, it behoves every lover of India to, cling to the old Indian civilization even asa child clings to the mother’s breast., , Tamno hater of the West. lam thankful to the West for many a thing I have learnt, from Western literature. But I am thankful to modem civilization for teaching me that if, I want India to rise to its fullest height, I must tell my countrymen frankly that, after, years and years of experience of modern civilization, I have learnt one lesson from it, and that is that we must shun it at all costs., , What is that modem civilization? It is the worship of the material, itis the worship of, the brute in us— itis unadulterated materialism, and modem civilization is nothing, ifit, does not think at every step of the triumph of material civilization., , , , It is perhaps unnecessary, if not useless, to weigh the merits of the two civilizations., Itis likely that the West has evolved a civilization suited to its climate and surroundings,, and similarly, we have a civilization suited to our conditions, and both are good in their, own respective spheres., , The distinguishing characteristic of modem civilization is an indefinite multiplicity of, human wants. The characteristic of ancient civilization is an imperative restriction upon,, and a strict regulating of, these wants. The modern or western insatiableness arises, really from want of living faith in a future state and therefore also in Divinity. The, restraint of ancient or Eastem civilization arises from a belief, often in spite of ourselves,, ina future state and the existence of a Divine Power., , Some of the immediate and brilliant results of modern inventions are too maddening, to resist. But [have no manner of doubt that the victory of man lies in that resistance., We are in danger of bartering away the permanent good for amomentary pleasure., , Just asin the West they have made wonderful discoveries in things material, similarly, Hinduism has made still more marvellous discoveries in things of religion, of the spirit,, of the soul., , But we have no eye for these great and fine discoveries. We are dazzled by the, material progress that Westem science has made. [am not enamoured of that progress., In fact, it almost seems as though God in His wisdom has prevented India from
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17., , 18., , 19!, , 20., , 2, , 22., , 23., , , , progressing along those lines, so that it might fulfil its special mission of Tesisting the, onrush of materialism., , After all, there is something in Hinduism that has keptit alive up till now. It has, witnessed the fall of Babylonian, Syrian, Persian and Egyptian civilizations. Cast a, look around you. Where is Rome and where is Greece? Can you find today anywhere, the Italy of Gibbon, or rather the ancient Rome, for Rome was Italy?, , Go to Greece. Where is the world-famous Attic civilization? Then coming to India,, let one go through the most ancient records and then look around you and you would, be constrained to say, “yes, I see here ancient India still living”., , True, there were dungheaps, too, here and there, but there are rich treasures buried, under them. And the reason why it has survived is that the end which Hinduism set, before it was not development along material but spiritual lines., , Our civilization, our culture, our Swaraj depend not upon multiplying our wants —, self-indulgence, but upon Testricting wants - self denial., , European civilization is, no doubt, suited for the Europeans but it will mean ruin for, India if we endeavour to copy it. This is not to say that we may not adopt and assimilate, whatever may be good and capable of assimilation by us, as it does not also mean, that even the Europeans will not have to part with whatever evil might have crept into it., , The incessant search for material comforts and their multiplication is such an evil, and I make bold to say that the Europeans themselves will have to remodel their, outlook, if they are not to perish under the weight of the comforts to which they are, becoming slaves. It may be that my reading is wrong, but I know that for India to run, after the Golden Fleece is to court certain death. Let us engrave on our hearts the, motto of a Westem philosopher: “Plain living and high thinking”. Today itis certain that, the millions cannot have high living and we the few, who profess to do the thinking for, the masses, run the risk, in a vain search after high living, of missing high thinking., , Civilization, in the real sense of the term, consists not in the multiplication, but in the, deliberate and voluntary restriction of wants, This alone increases and promotes, contentment, real happiness and capacity for service., , Acertain degree of physical harmony and comfort is necessary but above a certain, level it becomes a hindrance instead of help. Therefore, the ideal of Creating an unlimited, ‘number of wants and satisfying them seems to be a delusion and a snare. The satisfaction, of one’s physical needs, even the intellectual needs of one’s narrow self, must meet at, a certain point a dead stop, before it degenerates into physical and intellectual, voluptuousness. A man must arrange his physical and cultural circumstances so that, they do not hinder him in his service of humanity on which all his energies should be, concentrated.
