NON-VIOLENCE
In
Hinduism non - violence (ahimsa) is regarded as the highest virtue.
DeeEnmee Hejcees Oece&:~
It
believes in non-violence in thought, word and deed. According to Hinduism,
all forms of life and non living matter are but different manifestations of
the Supreme Reality; the universe has been created by the same Supreme Lord;
the same Lord which is in my body as Self is also present in other bodies,
therefore one should not be indifferent to the sufferings of others. Injury
to any living being is sin against all the creation. Hinduism preaches, “You
must not use your God-given body for killing God’s creatures, whether they
are human, animal or whatever.”
True
Ahimsa is life of non-violence but not of inaction, tolerance but not
fearfulness, love but not attachment, strength but not ill will, peace but
not cowardice. It is total freedom from greed, hatred, anger and enmity.
The
Hindu sages have stressed the practice of non-violence. Mahatma Gandhi was
the greatest exponent of this doctrine. He extended the application of non-violence
from the conduct of individual to the conduct of communities and nations.
According to him, ‘Observance of Ahimsa is heroism of the highest type
with no room therein for cowardice or weakness.’ He fought successfully
the struggle for India’s independence with the weapons of truth and non-violence
as he was convinced that the solution of the problems of the entire human
race lies in the practice of these two virtues-truth and non-violence.
When
sage Vyasa was asked to summarise in a nutshell the message of the scriptures,
he said,
“If you assist and help others, you earn merit.
On the other hand, if you trouble or harm others, you commit a sin.”
HejesHekeÀej:HegC³ee³e HeeHee³e HejHeer[veced ~
TRUTHFULNESS
Truth
is another important value cherished in Hinduism. Truth does not change with
the time and space. The Shatapatha Brahmana and the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
state that truth should be meditated upon as Brahman (Shatapatha Brahmana
X/4/5/3 cf Brihadaranyaka Upanishad V/4/1). The Taittiriya Aranyaka declares
truth as the Self of an individual. The Mundaka Upanishad states that one
realises the Self by adhering to the truth.
mel³esve ueY³emleHemee ¿es<e Deelcee ~
In
the sense of normal value of conduct, truth is truthfulness, integrity, and
is known as Satya, but in the metaphysical sense, it symbolizes the
Supreme Reality which is an object of realization and vision and is known
as Sat. Hence, the seer in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad prays,
“From
falsehood, lead me to truth, from darkness (of ignorance), lead me to light
(of enlightenment), from death lead me to immortality.”
Demelees cee meod iece³e ~ lecemees cee p³eesefleie&ce³e ~
ce=l³eescee& Dece=leb iece³e ~~
The
Hindu sages have emphasized that truth must be practised in thought, speech
and action. The Taittiriya Upanishad exhorts that one should not swerve from
truth.
mel³eeVe ÒeceefoleJ³eced~
According
to the Ramayana, the society is polluted by those who utter falsehood. Manu
makes it clear that one should speak pleasing truth but should not speak false
to please others.
mel³eb ye´t³eeled efÒe³eb ye´t³eeled, ve ye´t³eeled mel³eceefÒe³eced ~
efÒe³eb ®e veeve=leced ye´t³eeled S<e Oece&: meveeleve: ~~
The
same is reiterated in Mahabharata and Vishnupurana. Ramayana, Mahabharata
and other scriptures describe the rewards of speaking truth; viz., worldly
gains, such as, fame, success, wealth, happiness in this world and happiness
in the other world.
Harivamsha
states that the three virtues, righteousness, penance and truth unfailingly
lead to victory :
Oece&mleHe½e mel³eb ®e ³e$e le$e pe³ees Oe´gJeced ~
The
best and the surest way to realize the Ultimate Reality is to be truthful
in thought, word and action, Harishchandra, the famous king is regarded as
a great hero because he donated his kingdom to Sage Vishvamitra to keep his
promise that he had given in dream.
In short, Hinduism emphasizes that truthfulness leads to true knowledge and
bliss. Mahatma Gandhi the beloved and great leader of Modern India who was
a staunch supporter and devotee of truth, explains this beautifully, “Where
there is no truth (Sat), there cannot be true knowledge. That is why the word
Cit or knowledge is associated with the name of God. And where there is true
knowledge, there is always bliss (Ananda). Sorrow has no place there. And
even as Truth is eternal, so is bliss derived from it. Hence we know God as
Sat-Cit-Ananda, one who combines in Himself Truth, Knowledge and Bliss.”
(Young India, September 17th 1925 edited
by Gandhiji).
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