Man sees only the world. Death is to him, then, a cruel blow, removing him from the land of his dreams. But if he were to see the world beyond death, he would realize that it is that eternal world of infinite blessings that should be worked for. What “new lease of life” can there be when the spectre of death lies in wait? Those who seek new life will find it only in the world that lies beyond death.
When you stand in the Himalayan foothills, you will see torrents of water sent down by the ice melting on the mountaintops. On the way, the fast-flowing water repeatedly meets obstacles in the form of boulders. These hamper the flow of the water, but it does not attempt to break the stones in order to follow a straight course. On the contrary, what it does is avoid the stones and find its way around their sides, and eventually reaches the plains. This is the way of non-violence.
Generally, non-violence is seen as an absence of war. That is, eschewing the way of violent encounter in favour of a peaceful approach. But, this is a very limited definition of non-violence. For, the attitude of non-violence relates to man’s entire life, beginning from the moment he steps into this world. The non-violent way is valid in all ambits, right from hearth and home to the sphere of international affairs.
Just as morning is always followed by night, so does success inevitably follows failure. However, just as the earth must revolve unceasingly if morning is to follow night, so must man be unremitting in his struggle to reach his final goal.
