Mahatma Gandhi showed us how one can internalise peace, sustainability and empathy in one’s thoughts and actions
A morally worthy end, according to Mahatma Gandhi, could be achieved only by adopting morally pure means. He did not agree with those who believed that means were after all means. For the Mahatma, means were everything. According to him, the problem with not prioritising or undervaluing means, in contrast to ends, are many. First, a person is always anxious about the result of his/her action (end).
The Mahatma often said, “If our means are pure and our course is just and clear, all anxieties are removed. This way a man can also develop an attitude of detachment from the fruits” of labour and attachment with actions as the Bhagavad Gita teaches us. Second, a person may think fulfilment of ends is the real reward. Ends will, after all, justify the means. The Father of the Nation always maintained that a moral means is almost an end in itself because virtue is its own reward. Third, all focus and energies may get disproportionately concentrated on the end, which is unforeseeable. According to Gandhi, means are foreseeable, ends are not. Thus, means can be controlled, managed and guaranteed. “If one takes care of the means, the end will take care of itself.”
Last, but not the least, more often than not, the end changes in character as a result of the means adopted in its attainment. Gandhi, therefore, stressed on the “organic connection” between means and the end. Now, there are many worthy and aspirational ends or goals which mankind strives for. Still, there are a few, which are critical to the sustenance and welfare of mankind. These are peace, sustainability and empathy. In all three, we need a convergence of means and the ends. Unless ends are “mainstreamed” as means, the ends will remain as lofty ideals and their real realisation will either be distant or elusive.
Peace, as an end, is hugely worthy and aspirational. As the Dalai Lama points out, “Emotional disarmament is the dire need of the hour to cleanse us from evils of rage, anger, vengeance and selfishness and foster happiness, harmony and brotherhood.” Yet, we cannot attain peace unless it is reflected in our day-to-day thoughts and actions, public policies and doctrines of sovereign governments.
“There is no way to peace, peace is the way,” Gandhi ji often asserted. Peace has to be mainstreamed in emotions, actions and mindsets at all levels: At home, in schools, institutions and nations. Just having a discourse on peace or setting it as a worthy goal will never bring or ensure peace. Eleanor Roosevelt, a noted human rights advocate, rightly remarked, “It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.”
Sustainability is a profound goal which would ensure that nobody is left behind in our planet. But it would be tough to attain the goal if it is not mainstreamed in the design and implementation of every developmental project, policy instruments, institutional programmes and mechanisms, governance and, indeed, every aspect of human lives and lifestyles.
Our global challenges relating to hunger, poverty, disease, the environment, energy, water, biodiversity may soon become disasters if all our means — choices, actions, practices — are not chosen carefully, prudently and wisely. In doing so, we can set off a virtuous cycle and thus create more. As the late CK Prahalad, a visionary on corporate strategy, was fond of saying, “We need to move from seeing sustainability as a cost or hindrance to realising that it’s a key driver of innovation.”
Empathy is the base of compassion, a highly cherished dharma. But moral virtue should not find occurrences and be confined to only scriptures, texts and preaching. Empathy must be revealed in all our motives and actions. Unless we place empathy, as a universal value, at the centre of everything we pursue and make it a driving force in all our endeavours, we cannot hope to transform the world. Indeed, this unique quality is all the more required in the new knowledge economy and the human-Artificial Intelligence (AI) world. In his book Hit Refresh, Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s CEO writes, “If we hope to harness technology to serve human needs, we humans must lead the way by developing a deeper understanding and respect for one another’s values, cultures, emotions and drives.” Thus, empathy needs to be mainstreamed as a crucial ingredient in development of designs of all products, services, public policies and all corporate actions, to earn trust and serve humanity in the true spirit. Working ceaselessly on a path of non-violence, selfless service, compassion and caring for the environment, Gandhi ji in fact demonstrated to the world by his glorious personal examples how one can internalise peace, sustainability and empathy in one’s thoughts and actions. It is not without reason that he famously said, “My life is my message.” On the eve of Gandhi ji’s birth anniversary, let us absorb that message and make it a part of our lives.
(The author is a former bank executive and writes on education, learning and spirituality.)
