ASWATH RAM ADAYAPALAM SRINIVASAN
TechNews Writer
Mar 07, 2022
I want to conclude that it is not just about being called the father of the nation, it is more about the power that a single man adorned in khaki wielded. He was too much of a human rather than how he was perceived, and his presence must not be the reason for overshadowing the fight and hardships of other fighters who fought for freedom. Religion, caste, sexuality, the color of our skin are not how we are separated, but by the people whom we choose to follow and their political ball game. Hitting a target called Gandhi on a newspaper might end me up with a sentence in jail if I ever did this in India, but I think the freedom of speech and freedom of the press is still a freedom that every human being can enjoy. I am not being biased into a fact that the entirety of Gandhi was wrong, but all I am saying is that the teachings of a person and the knowledge imparted are not bad, it is how we perceive and worship them, and that is the perspective with which I saw Gandhi. Not as Mahatma but as a teacher who had his own qualms in life, but chose to teach good and spread nonviolence. Who are we to bestow a title on someone who wielded so much power that Gandhi himself despised the moniker and its sainthood overtones. He was acutely aware of his numerous failings, as he openly admitted in his autobiography, "The Story of My Experiments with Truth." He was more accepting of the honorific title conferred upon him later in life: Bapu (Beloved Father). Fathers can be kind, understanding, kind, and sympathetic — but they are not supposed to be perfect, as saints are.
Appears in
2022 - Spring - Issue 7