Gandhi on Non-Violence, Thomas Merton. New Directions, 1964
As fear of others diminishes, the essential connectedness of all
man becomes clearer. The idea of “fighting others” starts to be like
“fighting ourselves.” Violence and manipulation become less and less
appropriate or effective means for settling disputes and
misunderstandings. As a person who changed history by living his life
in accordance with the principle of “oneness” of all man, Mahatma
Gandhi provides us a real life example of the power of not attacking
others while still resisting and righting wrongs.
From The Back Cover: For many
throughout the world, Mohandas Gandhi stands as the greatest figure of
the 20th Century. In his long introduction to this book - and we
believe it to be one of his most challenging essays - Father Merton
shows how Gandhi linked the thought of East and West in his search for
universal truth, and how, for him, non-violence sprang from realization
of the spiritual unity in the individual.