Mahatma Gandhi’s core

values should inspire youth

today
Let us pause for a moment to rededicate ourselves to the core values which
Bapu stood for — most importantly, the need to rise above casteism,
communalism, regionalism and provincialism of any kind — and commit
ourselves to the ideal of non-violence.
Written by M Venkaiah Naidu | Updated: January 30, 2021 9:51:41 am

Mahatma Gandhi
On the solemn occasion of Martyrs’ Day, I, along with my fellow-countrymen, pay homage
to the sacrifices made by Mahatma Gandhi and countless other revered nationalists, whose
names remain etched in gold in the annals of history for their heroism and courage in freeing
India from British rule. Today, let us pause for a moment to rededicate ourselves to the core
values which Bapu stood for — most importantly, the need to rise above casteism,
communalism, regionalism and provincialism of any kind — and commit ourselves to the
ideal of non-violence.
It is worth repeating that Mahatma Gandhi, as he spearheaded the freedom struggle, drew
inspiration from and acted with conviction on the principle rooted in our ancient tradition —
ahimsa or non-violence. This ideal inspired great men across the world, including Martin
Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela. Gandhiji also served as an inspiration to Albert
Einstein, Barack Obama, Pearl Buck and Steve Jobs, among others. Bapu successfully
weaponised truth, satyagraha and peace in his helmsmanship of India’s struggle for
independence, marked by tidal waves of peaceful protests.
On the occasion of Martyrs’ Day, duty impels me to recall the names of some of the front-
ranking patriots of our great nation, nationalists who sacrificed their lives to liberate the
country from the shackles of colonial rule — Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru and
Chandrashekhar Azad. What is the common thread that binds these great sons of India who
marched to the gallows with a smile and an unwavering commitment to the cause of the
country’s freedom? They, along with thousands of their compatriots, placed the nation before
the self, valued freedom over slavery and oppression, and rose against the might of the
British empire. Their lives stand as a testament to their indomitable will and the courage to
practise the ideals which they preached, embodying Bhagat Singh’s immortal words that “the
sword of revolution is sharpened on the whetting stone of ideas”.
India today is poised at the cusp of an unprecedented trajectory of growth. Therefore,
utilising the opportunities at hand to translate their dreams into reality and drawing
inspiration from the past, today’s youth must harness their energy to power the country
forward. They must transcend narrow sectarianism and other divisive social barriers and be
guided in their life’s journey, in a manner of speaking, by Swami Vivekananda’s stirring call,
“Arise, awake and do not stop until the goal is reached”.
For one’s life to acquire substance, one must be driven by a purpose larger than oneself.
Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak had wisely counselled that “each one of us will have to
subordinate himself to the larger good”. There is no higher task than that of nation-building to
which each individual must seek to contribute in his own way, however modest it may seem.
The freedom which we enjoy today is the result of the toil and countless sacrifices made by
thousands of sons and daughters of this great nation. In committing themselves to this
mission with spirit and grit, they rose above all other social divisions and barriers. This fact
serves as a reminder to us that for centuries, India has been a repository of wisdom, anchored
in the conviction of vasudhaiva kutumbakam (The whole world is one family). With
resilience and resolve, they carried forward the torch of our great nation’s guiding
philosophy, which has been the underlying message of the Rig Vedic verse, “Ekam sat,
vipraah bahudhaa vadanti (Truth is one, but the sages call it by many names)”.