Courageous Compassion

[Dover]

Quotes from Gandhi about the fundamental principles of nonviolent advocacy/resistance
With explanatory

Satyagraha: holding on to (being guided by) deeply true principles and
feelings of compassion for all in the face of injustice and violent oppression

“The path of Satyagraha is to hold on to the truth as you know
it in the depths of your soul and stand up for it through one’s
own suffering…”

“Nonviolence in its dynamic condition means conscious suffering.
It does not mean meek submission to the will of the evildoer, but
it means the pitting of one's whole soul against the will of the
tyrant. Working under this law of our being, it is possible for a
single individual to defy the whole might of an unjust empire to
save (their) honour, (their) religion, (their) soul and lay the
foundation for that empire's fall or regeneration.”

“Truth resides in every human heart, and one has to search for it
there, and to be guided by truth as one sees it. But no one has a
right to coerce others to act according to (their) own view of
truth.”

“Non-violence is the greatest force (we have) been endowed
with. Truth is the only goal (we have.) For God is none other than
Truth. But Truth cannot be, never will be, reached except through
non-violence…”


Love and Ahimsa (non-injury, including not demeaning opponents):

“Where there is love, there is life.”

“Whenever you are confronted with an opponent, conquer (that
opponent) with love.”

“Whenever you have truth it must be given with love, or the
message and the messenger will be rejected.”

“Nonviolence is based on the assumption that human nature ...
unfailingly responds to the advances of love.”


Civil Disobedience:

“Civil disobedience becomes a sacred duty when the state
becomes lawless or corrupt.”

“Non-cooperation with evil is as much a duty as cooperation with
good.”


Living Simply as an Act of Compassion:

“The earth provides enough to satisfy every needs,
but not every greed.”

“Live simply that others may simply live.”

“Sat” in Hindu spirituality has several exalted and interwoven meanings:
“true,” “truth,” and “Ultimate Being” (an aspect of the Divine Essence --
Brahman -- which is also the source of each person’s soul.) “Graha” is a
Sanskrit word meaning to grasp or hold on to.


Personal Embodiment of Principles and Ideals:

“We must become the change we want to see in the world.”

“(Our own personal) Practice is the best speech and the best
propaganda.”

“My life is my message.”


Listening (especially to our opponents):

“Three quarters of all disagreement and misunderstandings
would disappear from the world, were we able to put ourselves
in the shoes of our opponents and understand their views.
Either we would come to an agreement with them or we would
think charitably of them.”

“The evolution of democracy is not possible if we are not
prepared to hear the other side.”

“It is good to see ourselves as others see us. Try as we may, we
are never able to know ourselves fully as we are, especially the
evil side of us. This we can do only if we are not angry with our
critics but will take in good heart whatever they might have to
say.”


The Futility of Violence:

“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”

“To answer brutality with brutality is to admit one's moral and
intellectual bankruptcy.”


Consistency of Ends and Means: bad means create bad end

“However much I may sympathize with and admire worthy
motives, I am an uncompromising opponent of violent methods
even to serve the noblest of causes.”

“The means may be likened to a seed, the end to a tree; and
there is just the same inviolable connection between the means
and the end as there is between the seed and the tree.”


Power:
“Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of
punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love
is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one
derived from fear of punishment.”

'Others' embraces not only humanity, but all life.”


From the following web sources:
http://library.thinkquest.org/26523/mainfiles/influences.htm
http://www.ieer.org/latest/oct2quot.html
http://www.sfheart.com/Ghandi.html
http://www.dadalos.org/int/Vorbilder/vorbilder/Gandhi/zitate.htm
http://www.dadalos.org/int/Vorbilder/vorbilder/gandhi/satyagraha.htm
http://bahai-library.org/books/gandhi/node9.html


http://www.peaceworkersus.org/media/documents/courageous_compassion_gandhi_on_nonviolence.pdf

[Dover]

1. I think our understanding of what power really is and how to wield it is shifting

as we are tested in the realm of raw experience. And the testing ground for these lessons we're learning will only intensify.
We've only just begun. We don't come to know ourselves and what we're made of until we show up and put ourselves on the line.