Post Prayer Speech 1947-10-23

By

Mahatma Gandhi

BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

Two persons have written to me: “We are refugees. We are living under the protection of our friends. We are very much troubled on account of the cold weather. Kindly let us know from where we can get blankets and quilts. Is there any such provision for refugees?” They say they belong to Rawalpindi. Like that there are innumerable people. However, the quilts and blankets are actually being collected for the people accommodated in the refugee camps, and who, as is very evident, have nothing to cover themselves with. Hence provision is being made for them. Quite a large stock has been distributed and more will be distributed. These are not just a handful of people. They are there in thousands. Quite likely, there are lakhs and lakhs of such people who should get these things. One of the camps at Kurukshetra has been taken over by the Central Government. A large number of people are accommodated there and many more keep coming.

There are many such camps even in the city of Delhi. At least three, perhaps four, camps are in East Punjab. In those camps also the people should receive the things provided in the camps here. They too are refugees. But in my view, it is for the friends with whom the refugees stay to arrange for those things. Very likely those friends may be managing blankets or quilts for their own families with great difficulty. Then, how can they provide them to those whom they have given shelter? I don’t say such a thing is not possible. But it seems to me we will not be able to give quilts to all who need them. Moreover, I do not think that everyone who asks for these things is honest about it. It is not as if people asked for these things because they needed them. I have seen several camps. I have always been engaged in this type of work. I had to do these things even when I was in South Africa, and so I am familiar with the difficulties of such work. I have heard no complaints against the two persons who have written to me, and I have nothing to say against them. But I have no doubt that these things should reach the people who are really needy and who do not have them. But how would I know about these people? I do try to find out. It is not as if I am not trying to get any information at all. Nor do I presume that no one would ever deceive me. And it is not that anyone can have things from me for the asking. Can these friends point out any such instance to me? I cannot send those things myself; but I think these persons will somehow get them from somewhere. I do have blankets with me. But they are all meant to be sent to Kurukshetra. Other people are collecting these things too. They can send the blankets to these two people.

People are still coming here every day. They go to the Birla Mandir and that place is all full. Now there is no room for any more people. The people in the temple have taken as many people as they can. They have always shared the sorrows of others. They are working day and night. They go to meet people and collect blankets and food from them which they distribute among the needy. But as people pour in day after day, they too get tired. How long can they go on giving things to them? The same is the problem for us. I would only tell these people that they should do something for themselves. It is true that when these things are done for everybody they should be done for these persons also. The same rule should apply to all. We cannot carry on work on a large scale if we have one rule for some people and another rule for others. And we have to work on a large scale. That is why I have taken so much time in explaining these things. How shall we face the cold which is increasing every day? I do not wish that anyone should suffer from it even for a day. This is one thing I wish to say.

I heard another thing today. Since many shops were open today a poor Muslim thought he would also open his shop, and so he started out to open his shop. He used to repair spectacles. Such persons must be hardly earning a few rupees a day. I do not know who he was. I do not even know his name. He was murdered as he was about to open his shop. It is a matter of shame for the whole of Delhi. Who could have committed that murder? Was it one person or two who did it? But how could two persons do it? Where had the military and the police disappeared? The shop was not in a lonely corner. Nor did the incident take place at night. No shop can be run secretly. People keep coming and going. Why did no one try to stop the killing? How did the assailants dare to commit that murder? People are just indifferent and quiet their conscience with the thought that a Muslim has been done to death. They feel that if the Muslims kill the Hindus and the Sikhs, why should they not kill the Muslims? Their hearts are possessed by such thoughts of revenge. This must be stopped. If we do not stop it, Delhi will lose all its character. Do you think that only the Hindus and the Sikhs will be living in Delhi? In that case that will be the end of Delhi. The world will not accept such a situation. Delhi has a long history behind it. It would be madness even to try to erase that history.

Today I wish to say something about the people who have become victims of leprosy. There are quite a number of such people even in India. They are not found on the roads because they arouse a feeling of repugnance. It is not as if people having leprosy are sinners and others suffering from other diseases are not. It is true that those who suffer from a disease must have violated some law of nature, but that is another matter. I feel I have violated nature’s law because I am suffering from persistent cough. And I do believe that violating nature’s law is being sinful. Everybody is prone to cough. But I am not prepared to agree that there has been no mistake on my part. So whatever rules I make for myself would be applicable to the whole world. Leprosy is a skin disease. How it is caused is a long story. I believe it is a disease of the body and there is no difference between leprosy and cough. A victim of leprosy suffers more pain and when he starts losing his thumbs, hands and nose, he becomes really very ugly. But it is not that he suffers more pain because he becomes ugly. I would say that we should have greater contempt for people who have wicked hearts. A person who has an unclean body which is the result of an unclean mind and who has a perverse outlook, instead of listening to the bhajans is interested in listening to the stories of wicked men, is a real leper. There are countless people suffering from this disease, and nobody ever bothers about them. But since everybody does not contract the disease of leprosy, we are repelled by those who have it. We used to have a number of Christians amongst us. All the leprosy hospitals were and still are in the hands of the Christians. They serve the lepers out of sheer philanthropy. Today there are some people in India also who work for the lepers out of a feeling of altruism. One such philanthropist is Manohar Diwan. I should like to call him a mahatma. He lives at Wardha and is a great disciple of Vinoba Bhave. Vinoba is a very great man indeed. Manohar felt that he also should do something. He chose to serve the lepers. Vinoba also inspired him to do that work. He remains detached. He is not bothered about money. He is no doctor, but he has made sufficient study of the disease. Many people seek his help. A small conference is being organized at Wardha very soon through a committee. People engaged in this work will be meeting there on the 30th of this month. Dr. Sushila Nayyar too is going there for the same purpose. Actually Dr. Jivaraj¹ and Rajkumari were to go there. Rajkumari is even more familiar with this work because she has lived with me at Sevagram. But as she is deeply involved in the work here she cannot go there. No one can compel her to go there. And who would insist? It is a matter of rendering service. Anyone who chooses to go can go there. But they cannot go because they are hardpressed for time. There is a man called Jagadisan². He is himself a victim of leprosy. He belongs to Madras. He is a very good man and a great scholar. He is a great follower of Srinivasa Sastri. He has devoted himself to this work. He is also attending the conference along with many others. It is a tragic and at the same time an interesting story. Many people are involved in that work. There is a very big leprosy hospital in Calcutta. It functions on a large scale. All this work is being done in the spirit of altruism and is growing day by day. When I was in Calcutta I was taken there and asked to write some comments. But I was making arrangements to come here. There are many other leprosy hospitals in different parts of the country. But this work is not being carried on on as large a scale as it should be. I do not suggest that everybody should take interest in this work. But let us at least know that when we have so much idle time we may as well engage ourselves in such type of work. Shall we remain busy only destroying each other? I would say that this is the worst type of disease, the worst type of leprosy. We disregard good work and destroy ourselves in mutual fighting. The Hindus kill the Muslims and the Muslims kill the Hindus and the Sikhs. How long shall we continue to indulge in mutual killing? How much better it would be if we made good use of our time and devoted ourselves to activities that would promote feelings of love!

[From Hindi]
Prarthana Pravachan-I, pp. 452-6

Notes

  • 1. Dr. Jivaraj N. Mehta, Director-General of Health Services in India
  • 2. T. N. Jagadisan, who was looking after leprosy work sponsored by Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust

Notes

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