Gandhi Message Winter 2016

Volume XXXXIX - Winter Issue - 2016

The Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation The Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation, Incorporated, was founded in the United States of America in 1959 by Swami Premananda of India.

The purpose of the Foundation is to disseminate the philosophy, ideal, life, service and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. The Foundation is a legally independent, nonprofit cultural and educational organization.

Gandhi Memorial Center

Dedicated to the life and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, the Gandhi Memorial Center seeks to offer a broad representation of authors from many cultures and times, as well as displays, recordings, lectures and demonstrations of cultural and educational value. The Library of the Gandhi Memorial Center is open on Fridays and Saturdays from 10am to 4pm (except during July and August).

Our Appeal

For the expansion of its ideals and activities the Foundation will gratefully receive donations of funds and contributions of books, publications and memorabilia pertaining to Mahatma Gandhi and his associates. Please make checks payable to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation, Inc. or contribute online at our website: www.gandhimemorialcenter.org/contribute/ The Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation is a 501c(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. The staff of the Foundation and Gandhi Center are dedicated workers who serve without any remuneration throughout the year.

Your contribution is an offering towards the services and activities of the Gandhi Center. Your contribution is tax deductible.

Gandhi Memorial Center 4748 Western Avenue Bethesda, MD 20816 301-320-6871 Email: info@gandhimemorialcenter.org Web: www.gandhimemorialcenter.org Facebook.com/GandhiMemorialCenterUSA Š 2016 Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Foundation, Incorporated.

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Content “Lead Kindly Light “ Artwork by Kanu Desai..........................front cover Gandhi Jayanti - October 2015.........................................................2-9 Noble Thoughts..............................................................................10-11 “Gandhi’s Influence” A Presentation at Allegany College of Maryland............................12-13 Visitors to Gandhi Center .............................................................14-15 Recent Events....................................................................................16 Children’s Book Page.........................................................................17 “On to Prayer” Artwork by Ranendra Nath Chakravarty......back cover

“There is nothing in this world so purifying as knowledge. He who is perfected by yoga (discipline) finds it in himself in the fullness of time. He who has become fit for moksha through the practice of yoga comes to this knowledge in the course of time by his own effort. That knowledge is realization of the self.”

- Mahatma Gandhi

1

“Gandhi Jayanti” 146th Birth Anniversary Observance of Mahatma Gandhi October 2, 2015 at the Gandhi Memorial Center On Friday, October 2, 2015 the Gandhi Memorial Center in cooperation with the Embassy of India observed the 146 birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi with special remarks, musical offerings and dance invocation.

Ambassador Arun K. Singh delivered the keynote address for this very distinguished gathering. The following is an excerpt from his remarks.

“It is an honor for me to join all of you here today to mark the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. In celebrating this day to honor a great man, in a sense we make an attempt to bask in his glory, being a part of that tradition and legacy. Much has been written about his character, his courage, his achievements; his contribution which has enabled all of us to realize our potential in freedom.

Gandhiji has often been described as a paradox. He respected tradition but he was an iconoclast. He was deeply religious but his was a religion that drew from every faith, that was inclusive by nature.

He was a revolutionary. He brought down a mighty empire. He worked to bring about social change but he was also a realist. The practical methods he adopted to achieve his aims were effective and based on ground realities. He was a visionary. He saw ahead of his times. He sought to build a new society, a new way of life, a new framework for interaction between people’s.

But he was also a person of details: attention to the individual, to the individual spirit, to the principles behind actions, and firm in his faith that the end never justifies the means.

He based his actions on three guiding principles: ahimsa (nonviolence), satyagraha (force of truth) and sarvodaya (upliftment of all).”

2

Photos Above: Charu Narasimhan, Supriya Dutt, Srimati Kamala with Ambassador of India - Arun K. Singh, and Carrie Trybulec.

Below: Fred Dixon, Jeff Bauer, Steve Bauer, Supriya Dutt and Debu Nayak.

3

“Gandhi and Yoga�

Remarks by Carrie Trybulec, Director Gandhi Memorial Center at Gandhi Jayanti October 2, 2015 According to Mahatma Gandhi, for one who aspires to master yoga, the only means is dedicated effort.

For one who has established himself in yoga, who has attained a state of spiritual equipoise, whose mind has become steadfast. For such a person, the right means of continuing in this state is: LIVING peace.

Gandhiji gave a great deal of thought toward spiritual, mental and bodily health. He believed that there is an inevitable connection between mind, body and soul.

If we possess of a healthy mind, we would shed all violence.

Naturally obeying the laws of health, we would have healthy bodies without effort.

He said the fundamental laws of health are simple and easily learned. The difficulty is in the observance of these laws. The following are some examples Gandhiji offered for our reflection: 1. Think the purest thoughts and banish all idle and impure thoughts.

2. Breathe the freshest air day and night.

3. Establish a balance between bodily labor and mental work.

4. Stand erect, sit erect, and be neat and clean in everyone of your acts, and let these be an expression of your inner condition.

These are simple practices. They focus our attention on our thought, speech and action, whereby we outwardly express our inner state of consciousness.

Our dedicated effort is to bring balance to our lives. We are then able to prepare ourselves for the ideal of Yoga, the enlightened realization of human dignity, and the eternal desire for self-liberation.

All of us are capable of seeking such perfection because it resides within us.

4

In the words of Mahatma Gandhi: “One who is perfected by yoga finds true knowledge within himself, in the fullness of time. He who has become fit for moksha or self-liberation through the practice of yoga (discipline) comes to this knowledge in the course of time by his own effort. That knowledge, or Truth, is realization of the self.”

Gandhiji also said: “Truth to be real must incarnate in human life.”

This knowledge is divided into three types: the Active, the Emotional, and the Reflective. Yoga has accordingly taken the three forms of Work, Love, and Knowledge – Karma, Bhakti, and Jnana, and of course, the motive force of all three is Raja Yoga.”

We all know Gandhi as a Karma Yogi, (the yoga of action and service) but what about the other aspects of Yoga that pervaded Gandhi’s life? Was he not also a Bhakti Yogi, a Jnana Yogi and a Raja Yogi?

Gandhiji realized the four forms of Yoga: Love, Action, Knowledge and Energy, and he maintained a balance among them.

From the Bhagavad Gita (which Gandhiji translated as the Gospel of Self-less service) we learn that: “When consciousness is illumined by the transcendental perfection of the Self, when determination is inspired by devotion to the spiritual ideal, and when the heart is purified by love, the mind constantly thinks, acts and feels in the divinity of the Self.”

“Only by cultivating the spirit of forgiveness can one reach the state of a yogi, whom no actions bind, the one of even-mindedness, the one skilled in action.”

Pratap Das, Fred Dixon, Steve Bauer and Jeff Bauer

5

Ron Dicus performs Violin.

Mithila Samak provides introductions.

“With senses, mind, and reason, held in check; rid of longing, fear and wrath; and intent on freedom. One who finds happiness only within, rest only within, light only within – that yogi, having become one with nature, attains to oneness with all.”

Yoga is a way of being. Remember, Gandhiji said, “My Life is My Message.”

“The seeker has attained inner silence and his action is a meditation. He will glimpse that even meditation can be an action; whether he be dressing or setting his affairs in order, the force passes, he is forever tuned in... And he will see at last that his action becomes more clear-sided, more effective, more powerful, without in the least encroaching upon his peace.”

The substance of the mental being is still, so still that nothing disturbs it. If thoughts or activities come, they cross the mind as a flight of birds crosses the sky in a windless air. It passes, disturbs nothing, leaving no trace. Even if a thousand images of the most violent events pass across it, the calm stillness remains as if the very texture of the mind were a substance of eternal and indestructible peace. A mind that has achieved this calmness can begin to act, even intensely and powerfully, but it will keep its fundamental stillness.

Yoga is precisely that point of our development when we pass from interminable meanderings toward conscious and self-directed concentration.

If properly carried out, this will not deprive us of our hold on the external world but will rather strengthen it because the same allpervading truth rules everywhere.

6

We then find a perfect balance among the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of life as a whole. We live life as Satyagrahis, as seekers of truth.

Our life is a long and arduous quest after Truth. Life is an aspiration.

Its mission is to strive after perfection, which is self-realization. The ideal must not be lowered because of our weaknesses or imperfection.

- Mahatma Gandhi

Jacki Rockwell and Vasanthi Athavale sing with Jeff Bauer and his music student, Zaara Ahmed.

7

Above: The Golden Lotus Temple Bell Choir performed “Jibon Jokhon” directed by

Below: Sitar students of Sitar Niketan, school of Indian Classical Music founded by paniment by Debapriya “Debu” Nayak for Gandhi Jayanti. (Photos courtesy of Ton

8

y Jeffrey Hallam Bauer with Mrs. Supriya Dutt singing and Mr. Ron Dicus on violin.

y Alif Laila, present a composition based on “Ram Dhun� along with tabla accomny Ventouris Photography)

9

Noble “Yoga is to live in sacred communion with God with our total being, within and around us. To become a yogi does not mean that we go into seclusion in the forest or live in a little shack. That is not yoga. One of the greatest yogis that ever blessed this Earth of ours was Moses. Did he not lift humanity into the freedom of life, into the freedom of the knowledge of God? ... Can you realize the strength and the power and the inspiration of that man? What was the secret? Because he was a yogi, he recognized not only his personal union with God, he also recognized that there was godliness in every individual that was with him.”

Swami Premananda “The solution to the problem of the day is the awakening of the consciousness of humanity to the divinity within.”

Hazrat Inayat Khan “The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of men when they realize their relationship, their oneness, with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize that at the center of the universe dwells Wakan-Tanka, and that this center is really everywhere, it is within each of us.”

Black Elk “An illumined soul lives in the holiness of spiritual consciousness. By the illumination and divinity of soul the entire being is spiritualized and all expressions of life become the adoration of the all-pervading and everabiding God. That is the most blessed fruit of meditation and the supreme grace of Yoga.”

Shyamacharan Lahiri “By the grace of the Guru The disciple discovers the secret, In his heart God dwells.

He becomes one with God As water with water.”

Deljeet Singh 10

THOUGHTS “In this ‘Not-two’ nothing is separate, and nothing in the world is excluded.

The enlightened of all times and places have entered into this truth.

In it there is no gain or loss, one instant is ten thousand years.

There is no here, no there, infinity is right before your eyes.”

Seng-Ts’an “Then the soul neither sees, nor distinguishes by seeing, nor imagines that there are two things: but becomes as it were another thing, ceases to be itself and belonging to itself. It belongs to God and is one with Him ... in this conjunction with the Deity there were not two things, but the perceiver was one with the perceived.”

Plotinus “I can say that the eternal world is like the white light of the sun, in which all the colors of the rainbow are present and in which each retains its own distinctive character. Or I can say that it is like a symphony in which all notes are heard in a single perfect harmony, but in which each has its own particular time and place ... Or going deeper, I can say that it is like a communion of persons in love, in which each understands the other and is one with the other. ‘I in them and thou in me, that they may become perfectly one.’ This is as far as human words can go.”

Bede Griffiths “The aim of the yoga is to open the consciousness to the Divine and to live in the inner consciousness more and more while acting from it on the external life, to bring the inmost psychic into the front and by the power of the psychic to purify and change the being so that it may become ready for transformation and be in union with the Divine Knowledge, Will and Love.”

Sri Aurobindo

11

“Gandhi’s Influence” A Presentation

Director of Gandhi Memorial Center, Carrie Trybulec, offered a presentation on “Gandhi’s Influence” for the students, faculty, staff and community members of Allegany College of Maryland in Cumberland, Maryland on October 15, 2015.

Pictured here are Mrs. Sandhir with family and friends, President of Allegany College - Dr. Cynthia Bambara, Vice President of Advancement and Community Relations for Allegany College - David Jones, and Director of Gandhi Memorial Center - Carrie Trybulec.

12

At Allegany College of Maryland

Following the remarks a tree of “humanity and peace� was planted in the serenity garden of the college campus with Mrs. S.L. Sandhir and her sons, Carrie Trybulec, and members of the Allegany College of Maryland community.

This unity among all is no new love with me. I have treasured it, acted up to it from my youth upward. Love so deep seated as it is in me will not be sacrificed even for the realm of the whole world.

-Mahatma Gandhi

13

Visitors to the Gandhi Center:

A visit by members of the Society of Women Geographers to the Gandhi Memorial Center took place on October 17, 2015.

The Society of Woman Geographers is a non-profit association designed to provide a medium of intellectual exchange among traveled women engaged in the study of geography and its allied arts and sciences; to further geographical work in all its branches; to spread knowledge of the world and its people; to encourage geographical research; and to support financial fellowship programs that provide aid to outstanding women graduate students in geography and related fields.

The Society of Women Geographers has approximately 500 members across the U.S. and in 28 foreign countries, who include anthropologists, journalists, archaeologists, oceanographers, diplomats, explorers and many other professions. Four exceptional women founded SWG in 1925.

Marguerite Harrison, Blair Niles, Gertrude Shelby, and Gertrude Emerson Sen - all recognized explorers - created a group to bring together women who shared ambitions and interests in exploration and achievement. No women’s organization then existed to share experiences, exchange knowledge derived from field work, and encourage women pursuing geographical exploration and research.

In the Society’s early years, there were still many unknown places and populations to be visited and studied, and Society members were in the vangaurd of courageous explorers. Air transportation was just beginning when one of the first SWG members, Amelia Earhart, made her solo flight across the Atlantic. Margaret Mead pioneered much of modern anthropology. For more information: www.iswg.org

14

On October 16, 2015 members of “Live and Learn Bethesda” visited the Gandhi Memorial Center. LLB is a non-profit organization whose mission is to enrich the community through interesting, informative and stimulating classes for people of all ages. During their visit members enjoyed an enriching and enlightening presentation on the life and message of Mahatma Gandhi by Director, Carrie Trybulec.

American University students from Professor Bram Groen’s CrossCultural Communication class visited the Gandhi Memorial Center on Wednesday, November 4, 2015 for a presentation on Mahatma Gandhi.

15

Recent Events at the Gandhi Center:

On November 14, 2015 a sarod concert by Arnab Chakrabarty with Shahbaz Hussain on tabla and Aftab Datta on tanpura was presented at the Gandhi Memorial Center.

(Photos by Tony Ventouris)

16

Children’s Book Page: “Grandfather Gandhi”

By Arun Gandhi and Bethany Hegedus Illustrated by Evan Turk Children’s Book Review by: Mithila Samak We all know Mahatma Gandhi as the leader of India’s non-violence resistance movement against the British. But what kind of wisdom did he impart as a grandfather?

“Grandfather Gandhi” is the personal account of 12-year-old Arun Gandhi’s relationship with his grandfather, Mohandas K. Gandhi.

At the start of the book, young Arun and his family arrive in Sevagram, India, the village where Gandhi resides. They all greet their highly respected relative, as he sits at his spinning wheel. Arun recalls that his grandfather “smelled of peanut oil,” a personal detail that displays his fondness for “Bapu.” The next day, Arun partakes in the daily chores but finds himself restless and occupied by other thoughts. He laments the fact that he is struggling to learn Gujarati and that he is unable to watch any of his favorite movies. Arun’s true test of patience comes when an older boy pushes him during a soccer game. As his anger bubbles to the surface, he becomes embarrassed that, as a Gandhi, he has lost control of his emotions.

But Bapu instead tells Arun that anger is something we all feel. It is like lightning that can slice a tree in two. Or, “it can be channeled, transformed.

A switch can be flipped, and it can shed light like a lamp.” Even through a simple situation, Gandhi’s message rings true.

Throughout the book, Gandhi’s spirit is always present. Arun emphasizes that Gandhi inspired him to lead a life of purpose, just as he inspired an entire nation. Turks’ vibrant, textured collage-like artwork helps bring to life the story of a young boy looking for approval and guidance. Highly relatable and beautifully illustrated, “Grandfather Gandhi” encourages young readers to think of how Gandhi’s message applies to their own lives.

17

18