Standing The Test of Time
Mahatma Gandhi needs no introduction. Everyone knows about the man who led the Indian people non-violently to independence from British rule in 1947. His pearls of wisdom transcend all languages, cultures and times.
1. “You must be the change you want to see in the world.” —MG
Change yourself. If you change yourself you will change your world. If you change how you think, then you will change how you feel and what actions you take. And so the world around you will change.
2. “Nobody can hurt me without my permission.” —MG
You are in control What you feel and how you react to something is always up to you. You can choose your own thoughts, reactions and emotions.
3. “An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” —MG
Forgive and let it go. Fighting evil with evil won’t help anyone. Forgiving and letting go of the past will do you and the people in your world a great service.
4. “An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.” — MG
Without action you aren’t going anywhere. Without taking action very little will be done. However, taking action can be hard. And so you may resort to preaching, or reading and studying endlessly. But you have to take action and translate that knowledge into results and understanding.
5. “I do not want to foresee the future. I am concerned with taking care of the present. God has given me no control over the moment following.” — MG
Take care of this moment. Stay in the present as much as possible, and be accepting. When you are in the present moment you don’t worry about the next moment. And the resistance to action comes from imagining negative future consequences or reflecting on past failures.
6. “It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.” — MG
Everyone is human. When you start to make myths out of people, you run the risk of becoming disconnected from them. Keep in mind that everyone is just a human being no matter who they are.
7. “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” — MG
Persist. Be persistent. In time the opposition around you will fade and fall away.
8. “I look only to the good qualities of men. Not being faultless myself, I won’t presume to probe into the faults of others.” — MG
See the good in people and help them. If you want improvement then focusing on the good in people is a useful choice. It also makes life easier for you as your world and relationships become more pleasant and positive.
9. “Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.” —MG
Be congruent, be authentic, be your true self. When words and thoughts are aligned, that shows through in your communication. People tend to really listen to what you’re saying. You are communicating without incongruence, mixed messages or phoniness.
10. “Constant development is the law of life, and a man who always tries to maintain his dogmas in order to appear consistent drives himself into a false position.” — MG
Continue to grow and evolve. You can pretty much always improve your skills and habits, or re-evaluate your evaluations. You can gain deeper understanding of yourself and the world.
Adapted from Henrick Edberg’s Positivity Blog on May 9, 2008. Visit www.positivityblog.com for your daily dose of positive thinking and creative ideas.
