Two shout outs to Gandhi today

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First, check out the daily Google image:

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p> Second, President Obama made the time to commemorate Gandhi ‘s birthday even as he hopped a plane to Denmark (I bet he wishes he’d stayed home and done community service instead now):

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On behalf of the American people, I want to express appreciation for the life and lessons of Mahatma Gandhi on the anniversary of his birth. This is an important moment to reflect on his message of non-violence, which continues to inspire people and political movements across the globe.

We join the people of India in celebrating this great soul who lived a life dedicated to the cause of advancing justice, showing tolerance to all, and creating change through non-violent resistance.

Americans owe an enormous measure of gratitude to the Mahatma. His teachings and ideals, shared with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on his 1959 pilgrimage to India, transformed American society through our civil rights movement. The America of today has its roots in the India of Mahatma Gandhi and the nonviolent social action movement for Indian independence which he led.

Tomorrow, as we remember the Mahatma on his birthday, we must renew our commitment to live his ideals and to celebrate the dignity of all human beings.

35 thoughts on “Two shout outs to Gandhi today”

  2. And let the “Let me tell you about the real Gandhi” comments begin……….NOW!

  3. I have nothing to say further on the topic. I just wish there was a “Like” button.

  5. Wished they had a better drawing. The eyes look weird. The cloth background was a nice touch.

    As for Obama.. bleh. Saying such things only makes him look like a hypocrite and hurts his credibility — the breaking news today is that US just made a commitment to increase military assistance to Pak to “unprecedented levels” (Pakistan Daily Mail). Not really appropriate for Gandhi Jayanthi :-).

  6. The Guardian had an excellent editorial (http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/oct/02/gandhi-sale-montblanc-pens-india) this morning on the commercialism and materialism that has spread to india, noting how contradictory it is to Gandhi’s beliefs, even citing this Google illustration to reflect how well “Gandhi sells.” While I don’t think that India (or Indians) necessarily have to follow Gandhi’s teachings, I do find it rather distasteful that, e.g. his name and likeness are chosen to sell a £15k pen (limited edition no less).

  7. Obama better watch out with the Gandhi thing…I dont think the majority of americans agree that he was a great guy.

  8. .I dont think the majority of americans agree that he was a great guy. in the sense that they ridicule his clothes or his fasts (largely, this is what people in this country refer to when mentioning gandhi), or something more? what i mean is, do most americans object to his views on e.g. non-violence and civil protest?

  9. Not much to say, except in my youth saw him as hero after watching Ben Kingsley film, since learnt a lot more…Could be seen as someone who betrayed the Punjab now…and maybe large parts of Indian society…my vote is for Bhagat Singh or Chandra Bose

  10. Could be seen as someone who betrayed the Punjab now…and maybe large parts of Indian society…

    He didn’t betray anyone. Only people who need a lightning rod for their resentments load them onto him.

    In a century marked by tyranny, genocide, war, hate-spitters, violence, and horror upon horror upon horror visited by men upon innocents, he was a good man who showed humanity a better path. That his life, message and example still shines after all this time, and has continuously been the example for men and women across the world, in every continent, from Martin Luther King to Nelson Mandela to Aung Saan Su Kyi and beyond, is testament enough to his achievement and moral standing.

    I think Gandhi’s message speaks for itself, beyond the kinds of hatreds that ultimately killed him, and beyond the haters in the present day too.

  11. Not much to say, except in my youth saw him as hero after watching Ben Kingsley film, since learnt a lot more…Could be seen as someone who betrayed the Punjab now…and maybe large parts of Indian society…my vote is for Bhagat Singh or Chandra Bose

    I think the Google/Obama thing is about impact on the world rather than just South Asia, but if we are talking about freedom fighters, I would be happy if the rest of the world also heard about Rani Laxmibai, Sarojini Naidu or Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, and learned that womanhood in India is not just limited to oppression, child-marriage and dowry deaths.

  12. Aww. This made me happy.

    Don’t care about the cynics, or if Obama is indeed being hypocritical. I’m just so proud that India has a hero like Mahatma Gandhi, someone who really did set a good example (whatever mistakes he might have made), and is now renowned around the world for the right reasons. He’s not famous for sacking cities, conquering distant kingdoms, or creating empires…he famous for being an enlightened member of humanity. I’m so proud of him. I’m so proud that India produced him.

  13. I admire Gandhi “The master politician and strategist” more than Gandhi “The Non-violent preacher”

  14. I remember being really surprised when I heard from some family members that they felt that Gandhi was a British puppet, gave them too much and should have done more for the resistance fighters who chose a more militant stance. He was a human guy like any other ‘heroes’ in history – they all had their good sides and bad sides. Churchill is admired by some as a savior of Europe while others consider him a mass murderer for his policies in the east (hell, if it was up to him, Gandhi would have starved in jail). The same goes for many other leaders.

    But he has had a lasting effect on history; he shamed the world and an Empire to give up its policies and occupation – all through a movement of non-violence, humility and discipline. He has influenced so many other leaders and movements. Let him be judged by his legacy and the change he helped create.

  15. Gandhiji made some grave mistakes–not allowing for population exchange before partition, mopplah massacre rationalization, etc–and India may have achieved Independence sooner under a Nationalist Revolution through force of arms, but there’s no question that Gandhiji was instrumental for fusing together the modern Indian nation. More than anything else, it is his spirit of self-sacrifice and conscience that gives a common vision for the possibilities of the Indian state and unifies her diverse peoples. As Clement Attlee snidely and perhaps accurately remarked, Gandhi may not ultimately have been critical to achieving independence (he did after all stand on the shoulders of numerous giants who preceded him, and Netaji and the INA are marginalized in the official histories. Apparently Attlee credited Subhash Chandra Bose’s efforts as the main factor in eroding the loyalty of the Indian Army to the British Empire, which made their position in India untenable. I assume the post WWII cash shortage and the American unwillingness to Bankroll British Colonialism had something to do with that as well), but he was instrumental in defining us, organizing us, and unifying us after independence–therein lies his true greatness and contribution. A nation is built upon a shared history a perceived future destiny–the Mahatma was instrumental in shaping and giving voice to the latter. His legacy has been a tremendous asset for India on the international stage and has endeared it to millions across the globe. While I don’t espouse his notions of universal pacifism (Si vis pacem, para bellum), his ideals of common humanity and conscience remain a goal that all humanity (whether realist or liberal internationalist) should work towards.

  16. I don’t think I’d want to critique Gandhi now, but to be fair, Obama has a way with words much better than any other US politician in recent history.And this homage to Gandhi may seem hypocritical to many (with justifiable reasons), but it is beautiful and should touch the hearts of ordinary Americans who believe in their Prez.

  17. my vote is for .. Chandra Bose

    Chandra Bose?! Oh like Hussein Obama I guess.

    Why, do you really like ‘Das Deutschlandlied’ so much more than ‘Jana Gana Mana’? 🙂

  18. Second, President Obama made the time to commemorate Gandhi ‘s birthday even as he hopped a plane to Denmark (I bet he wishes he’d stayed home and done community service instead now):

    hey. dont kick the guy. he showed up for his town, his colleagues and most likely his wife despite it being a no-win situation for him politically or personally. manly stuff.

  19. Gandhi was ahead of his time, and ours as well. He forced us to question many of the tenets we base regional or national policy upon. Classical Indian political thought is intensely realistic and begins with an appreciation of the human being as yet another animal or organism competing for resources. Gandhi is the only politician to have ever questioned that. To some extent although very small we have now realised that given the impact on the environment, if every country were to pursue only its own national interest, there is no gain for humanity at large. That clever worded ideologies such as “conservatism” or “liberalism” are still methods of compromise. Gandhi went well beyond such blinkered thinking, not as an intellectual, but by questioning himself in public. His collected works – the largest such compendium by any person ever – and the number of books written about him – again the largest ever written about any person – show us how to interrogate ourselves and lay bare every assumption and dogma we hold. It is very powerful stuff. Gandhi for the first time helped an oppressed people free themselves without exterminating their oppressors. An example which has since been put into practice by the two other great people of 20th century – MLK and Mandela. Gandhi’s life and work encompasses far far more than the Indian movement for independence. What he worked on was for as some say “swaraj” or the freedom to be your own (wo)man. Independence was a means to that. India produced him only to the extent that his birthplace happens to lie within the boundaries of India today.

    What Lincoln’s war on slavery could not achieve – total integration of the nation – MLK’s Gandhi inspired movement did 100 years later.

  27. The discussion on Gandhi leads me to the ongoing UN resolution to declare the ‘caste system’ as a human rights violation- seems appropriate to make that announcement around the same time as the Mahatma’s birthday.

  28. Loved the touch of Khadi in the logo. Also, Badar – Sorry, I couldn’t hear you clearly. Can you please speak up a bit more.

  32. BIG BIG WORDS. Glorious words and Glorious ideas, indeed. It’s brave of him to embrace these ideas. I hope that manifests in a plan that gets for more rights for the people of Tibet when Obama meets with the Beijing government in November. Cuz god knows that the non violence resistance of countless Tibetans cannot continue to be crushed by iron fists again and again.

    If Obama really feels strongly about Gandhi’s actions in this kind of way, then he must at least understand the struggle of the Tibetan people.

  33. Yo, Obama. I’m really happy for you; I’ll let you finish. But Gandhi had one of the most peaceful lives of all time! One of the most peaceful lives of all time!

  35. Gandhi is the only politician to have ever questioned that. To some extent although very small we have now realised that given the impact on the environment, if every country were to pursue only its own national interest, there is no gain for humanity at large. That clever worded ideologies such as “conservatism” or “liberalism” are still methods of compromise.