Third Class in
Indian Railways is the essays and letters written by Mahatma Gandhi in the year
1917. The six essays are :
1. Third class in Indian Railways
2. Vernaculars as Media of Instruction
3. Swadeshi
4. Ahimsa
5. The Moral basis of Co-operation
6. National Dress
Not much have
changed about the hygienic condition in the railways. Gandhi mentions about
bribes given by the passengers and their behaviour. He finally asks that the
fares paid by third class passengers were not offered even 1/10th of what the
first class passengers enjoy.
Apart from other
essays I liked Ahimsa, Swadeshi, the moral basis of Co-opreation and the
National Dress (his dress been mocked by Irwin) the fitting reply he had given.
I like to quote
from his book:
I do not believe
that religion has nothing to do with politics. The latter divorced from
religion is like a corpse only fit to be buried. (Swadeshi)
We, the educated
classes, have received our education through a foreign tongue. We have
therefore not reacted upon the masses. We want to represent the masses, but we
fail. (Swadeshi)
Well, India is a
country of nonsense. It is nonsensical to parch one's throat with thirst when a
kindly Mahomedan is ready to offer pure water to drink. And yet thousands of
Hindus would rather die of thirst than drink water from a Mahomedan household.
(Swadeshi)
There is a verse
in the Bhagavad Gita, which, freely rendered, means, masses follow the classes.
(Swadeshi)
Our Shastras
seem to teach that a man who really practises Ahimsa in its fullness has the
world at his feet; he so affects his surroundings that even the snakes and
other venomous reptiles do him no harm. This is said to have been the
experience of St. Francis of Assisi. (Ahimsa)
Ahimsa requires
deliberate self-suffering, not a deliberate injuring of the supposed
wrong-doer. (Ahimsa)
I believe that
our copying of the European dress is a sign of our degradation, humiliation and
our weakness..( Reply to Mr. Irwin's criticism of his dress in the Pioneer)
Sounds interesting. I've read books about Gandhi but have never read any of his own writings - one day I really must. You've chosen some excellent quotes. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment Leah.
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