Tuesday, July 23, 1968
THE SUMMER SESSION KANSAN
Gandhi: non-violence symbol
By TIM CLINE Journalism Camp Reporter
It was Sunday, Jan. 30, 1948. The place was New Delhi, India. About 500 men and women were waiting around a small wooden platform for a prayer service to start.
At 5.10 p.m, a little old man dressed only in loincloth emerged from a hut and made his way to the platform. The crowd rose and then bowed before him. He was the man who had caused them to conduct a successful non-violent revolution against British rule. He was the man many of them regarded as their 20th Century prophet and savior. He was Mahatma Gandhi.
Ghandi was only a few steps away from the platform when a young Hindu stepped in front of him and bowed. Someone tried to brush him aside but was shoved away.
IN THE TWENTY years since Gandhi was assassinated, many changes have occurred in politics, ethics and virtually every aspect in the "modus operandi" of the world, but his teachings and methods of controlling and influencing people seem at least relevant to current events. In many cases it seems as if he is speaking directly to people and races of today.
The Hindu stood directly in front of Gandhi, leveled a gun and fired three shots. The smile faded from Gandhi's face and his arms fell to his sides. "Oh, God," he murmured and was instantly dead.
As a young man, Gandhi was sent to London to study law. He had gradually developed a distaste for his native religion, Hinduism. But, he realized his leaning toward atheism and immediately tried to change.
He said later that he had traversed "the Sahara of atheism" and emerged thirsting for religion.
He was gradually being reconverted to Hinduism when he read the New Testament: "... resist not evil, but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the left, also . . . Blessed are the meek . . . Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you . . . Agree with thine adversary quickly . . . Forgive men their trespasses . . . Lay not for yourself treasure upon the Earth . . . for where your treasure is there will be your heart also . . ."
These sayings by Jesus were Gandhi's favorites, and he tried to live by them as flawlessly possible throughout his life. Just one man's obedience to a few Christian postulates affected the history of the Indian sub-continent and the world.
GANDHI SUMMARIZED all the good qualities to be found in a man in one word: "Desireless-
Europe hosts KU students
Nine KU students will attend universities in England, France and Germany during the academic year 1968-69 under KU's direct exchange scholarship program with those universities.
Under the direct exchange scholarship program doctoral candidates at KU engage in foreign study and research which strengthens their programs. An equal number of European students spend a year in graduate study in the United States.
Each of the nine has been awarded a grant covering tuition, fees and maintenance from his host university. A similar grant is offered by KU to a student from that institution to do graduate study here.
Students holding direct exchange scholarships are eligible for Fulbright Travel Grants, and those not receiving Fulbright or private grants have received awards from KU for travel.
ness." He surely must have followed his own principles as well as any man ever could.
But Gandhi did not even hint or know in any way that he would be a great man who would affect history until long after he was out of college.
He returned to India and failed miserably as a lawyer. In Bombay once he had a $10 case but he was too shy to present it. After a while, though, it looked as if he had a good government job secured when a crooked politician stole it.
GANDHI WENT to the government offices to protest and after much heated argument he was thrown from the building.
The shock of this, Ghandi said,
"changed my entire course of life." Till then he had never had any direction or plan for life—now he at least had a negative direction: he knew what he did not want to do.
That incident intensified his abhorrence of the "petty intrigue, palace pomp, subservience, and snobbery which pervaded the government."
Just then he was offered a job as lawyer for a firm in South Africa. Upon arriving there he bought a first class train ticket to Pretoria. After the train had left the station he was told he would have to accept third class because of segregation. He had them stop the train and let him off. Thus began his historic and successful fight for integration for Indians in South Africa.
WITHN A WEEK of the train incident Gandhi called a meeting of the Indians in Pretoria and gave a speech on white discrimination.
He did not call for fighting in the streets or guerilla warfare but
he told the people to "tell the truth in business, adopt more sanitary habits, forget religious and caste differences and learn English."
Since his aim was fair treatment for the Indians of South Africa, the Indians, who were the means of achieving that end, first had to improve themselves and discard their own bad habits.
Often it seemed that Gandhi was more interested in improving the human means than in attaining means. He believed, what does it benefit a man if his status is raised when he himself is not raised?
It was a long, hard-fought battle for Gandhi, that fight for integration in South Africa, and the other side often got brutal and in some cases uncivilized.
But he and his supporters never resorted to violence. They accepted persecution without violence and soon won their peaceful battle. Blood was shed, but not nearly so much as if an armed revolt had taken place.
The British were ruling in India with more power than even a dictator would have. In a vague way the state of India then could be comparable to the state of the United States before its revolution. But the independence of India was achieved in a much more desirable way.
GANDHI NEVER was a leader in the political sense of the word; he never held any political job or governmental office of any kind, but he was much more influential than in any other way possible.
To make the story short: Gandhi began a peaceful revolution. His followers did not resort to violence (some cases of their resorting to violence did occur but he denounced them and prayed
it would remain peaceful) even when attacked.
In their revolution, Gandhi's followers simply did not support the British government in any way and disobeyed unjust laws. This followed the age-old concept that a government can't exist without the support of the majority of the people.
Whenever violence broke out as a result of his efforts, Gandhi would fast until it was discontinued. The Indians regarded him so highly that they would do anything to keep him alive, and the British knew the effect his dying would have on the Indian people. There would be much bloodshed.
TO BE SURE, there was bloodshed; such as in one instance when the British opened machine gun fire on a crowd of Indians. But many fewer were killed altogether than if there had been open warfare.
Gandhi's revolution had practically met success when fighting broke out between the Hindus and Islams, giving the British the permanent advantage.
Indian independence was finally granted, but unfortunately, because of this Indian split, it was not a direct result of Gandhi's efforts.
IT IS INTERESTING to note one of Gandhi's reflections here . . . one that perhaps every citizen of the free world should keep in mind: "The West, perhaps, is so frightened of Bolshevism, or Stalinism, or Sovietism, because it feels the germ of the same disease within itself."
In his lifetime, he was frequently reminded that he would say one thing one day and then not long after change his stand. In reaction to this, he wrote: "My aim is not to be consistent with my previous statement on a given
question, but to be consistent with the truth as it may present itself to me at a given moment. The result is that I have grown from truth to truth . . ."
Coach-
Continued from page 1 Rodger's father two days before the designated date. "He just got a head start on everybody," Rodgers said. Due to this violation Rodgers lost 15 scholarships, cutting KU to 35 this year.
Rodgers said he thought KU's most difficult competition this year would be Oklahoma University. He said the team was good but "if we don't continue to improve we won't get anywhere." He said he expected some problems because the team lost some good offensive linemen. He also added that the team has good throwers and receivers.
In closing the conference, Rodgers said, "This is one of the roughest times to be a football coach. The questions of the athletes and the young people are hard to answer. Not all the answers come out the way they were meant to.
KU Summer Theatre Rep. '68
presents
CAVALCADE OF COMEDY
University of Kansas—Murphy Hall
"YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU"
by Kaufman and Hart July 23 "In - The - Round" Main Stage
"ONCE UPON A MATTRESS"
Music by Mary Rodgers and Book by Jay Thompson July 24 "In - The - Round" Main Stage
"LA PARISIENNE"
by Henri Becque
July 26
Experimental Theatre
"A THOUSAND CLOWNS"
by Herb Gardner
July 25, 27
Experimental Theatre
KU STUDENTS .75 PLUS CURRENT CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION