May God Help – Mahatma Gandhi

[Prof. Dr. Yogendra Yadav]

Prof. Dr. Yogendra Yadav

Senior Gandhian Scholar, Professor, Editor and Linguist

Gandhi International Study and Research Institute, Jalgaon, Maharashtra, India

Contact No. – 09404955338, 09415777229

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May God Help – Mahatma Gandhi

 

After much prayer, after much heart-searching, and not without fear and trembling, I have decided to accept the honour of presiding at the forthcoming Congress. I am to preside at a time when a gulf seems to be yawning between educated India and myself with some notable exceptions, and, save for a few young educated Indians of little fame, the intellect of the country seems to be ranged against my ways of thought and action and yet as I seem to be popular with the masses, and as many educated countrymen believe me to be as good a lover of the country as themselves, they want me to direct the Congress at this critical juncture in the history of our country. I feel that I must not resist them. On the contrary, I must let myself be used, as I hope, for the benefit of the country. I was waiting, before coming to a final decision, for the verdict of the All-India Congress Committee. At its meeting the Swarajists were eloquent by their silence.

I know that many of them are not enthusiastic about the proposed alteration of the franchise. But for the sake of peace and unity, they gave their vote in silence in favour of the change. The No changers were despondent, chafing at the surrender, as they felt it to be, of their cherished ideals. They protested, but they did not cast the vote against the agreement. This reflects credit on both the Swarajists and the No-changers, but it is no encouraging atmosphere to work in, especially when much is expected from one. But this is just the occasion for putting my faith in ahimsa to the test. If I have equal love in me for No-changers, Swarajists, Liberals, National Home Rulers, and Independents and for that matter Englishmen, I know that it is well for me and well also for the cause. I must not deceive the country. For me there is no politics without religion not the religion of the superstitious and the blind, religion that hates and fights, but the universal Religion of Toleration. Politics without morality is a thing to be avoided then says the critic, “I must retire from all public activity.” Such however is not my experience. I must try to live in society and yet remain untouched by its pitfalls. Anyway, for me to run away from the Congress at the present moment would be cowardice for me not to accept the Presidentship would be to run away, especially when everybody is trying to make the path smooth for me. I have abundant faith in my cause and humanity. Indian humanity is no worse than any other; possibly it is better. Indeed the cause presumes faith in human nature.

Dark though the path appears, God will light it and guide my steps, if I have faith in His guidance and humility enough to acknowledge my helplessness without that infallible guidance. Though I remain a confirmed non-co-operator and civil resister, I recognize that there is no atmosphere for non-co-operation or civil disobedience on a national scale. My attempt will therefore be in the direction of bringing all parties together without distinction of race, or colour or creed on the ground of mutual toleration and thus to demonstrate if possible that the Congress non-co-operation was not conceived in or based on hate or malice. I would throw the burden on all the parties of making non-co-operation and civil disobedience impossible, not by criticism or repression, but by achieving swaraj. I venture therefore to ask representatives of all the parties to respond to Maulana Mahomed Ali’s invitation to attend the Congress as visitors, when they cannot attend as delegates, and give the latter the benefit of their advice.

There is a heavy duty resting on the shoulders of Congressmen, whether Swarajists or No-changers, Hindus or Mussalmans, Brahmins or non-Brahmins. They have to show their programme on their persons and in their daily conduct. They will attend the Congress as servants and not as masters demanding service. They will show their faith in khaddar which they have been preaching for the past four years by wearing it to the exclusion of all other cloth. They will show their faith in unity between different religious sects and denominations by exercising the greatest forbearance against one another and showing respect for one another’s religious observances. Hindus will show their faith in the removal of untouchability by going out of their way to be attentive to those of than who may attend the Congress. Delegates and visitors will no doubt expect me to prescribe remedies for our many ills, for Hindu-Muslim distemper, for the Bengal repression, for the relentless persecution of the Akalis, for the Vykom campaign on behalf of unapproachable and above all for the attainment of swaraj. I have no patent remedy. The remedy is to be found with the delegates and the visitors themselves. Like the finger-post, I can but point the way, it will be for Congressmen to take or reject it. May God help us all!

 

Reference:

Young India, 27-11-1924