a philosophical inquiry into the wisdom of mahatma gandhi – fractal enlightenment

8/10/2019 A Philosophical Inquiry Into the Wisdom of Mahatma Gandhi Fractal Enlightenment

1/7

Philosophical Inquiry into the Wisdom of Mahatma Gandhi

Gandhi was a paragon of virtue, an icon of iconocl

He was the type of person who took the world for

was, took inventory of his own personal power, an

did his absolute best to be the change he wished to

the world. He was a shining example of living by

example, and he was not afraid of challenging the

powers-that-be.

In this article we will break down seven juicy nugg

Gandhian wisdom through a philosophical lens. M

by standing on the shoulder of this giant we can se

further than he did. And maybe we too can becom

change we wish to see in the world.

1. Be the change you wish to see in the wor

The inner world is the world of your requirement

ur energies and your structure and your possibilities that meets the outer world. And the outer wo

e field of your incarnation. Thats where you are. Youve got to keep both going. As Novalis said, T

at of the soul is there where the inner and outer worlds meet. Joseph Campbell, The Power of M

ing the change you wish to see in the world is no walk in the park. It requires ruthless courage in tce of steadfast cowards. It requires being healthy, honest and proactive. We all, for the most part, w

e world to be a healthy place to live. We can all mostly agree that wed like to live among people wh

ving, caring, and compassionate. So when it comes down to it, being the change we wish to see in t

rld means being healthy, honest, proactive, loving, caring, and compassionate people. A tall orde

deed, but being the walking personification of change is not (and never has been) a small order ta

s each of our task, and our task alone, to find the seat of our own soul. There, where the inner a

ter worlds meet, we can begin the much needed work of being the change we wish to see in the wo

ere, where ego meets soul, where finitude meets infinity, where mortal meets God, we can begin t

fficult task of being the walking personification of healthy, honest, proactive, loving, caring,

mpassionate change. Or, we can just continue to hit the snooze button of our lives and keep going

rough the same old unhealthy habits of our forefathers. The choice is ours. Gandhi can show us th

or, but were the ones who have to walk through it.


2/7

What you think, you become

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. Aristotle

ndhi knew the power of the mind. More specifically, he knew the power of habits. Like Aristotle h

king of good habits. When faced with an unhealthy way of doing things, the only way to change the

ngs are done is to become healthy, and that requires healthy habits.

we can cultivate healthy habits (mind, body, and soul) then we can become a beacon of health in a

healthy world. If we think we can make a difference, then we will make a difference. But we must

ake it a habit. Things dont just happen magically. They take hard work and a nose-to-the-grindsto

itude toward life. They take proactive perseverance, especially in an inactive and inert society.

a world dominated by sheep there are people who can wear wolf masks and people who cannot. G

s a gentle wolf amidst herded sheep. He knew when to be a wolf in sheeps clothing and when to s

s sheep clothes and unleash the wolf within. Like Tom Robbins said, There are people in this wor

n wear whale masks and people who cannot, and the wise know to which group they belong. In o

come the type of person who knows to which group they belong, we must make a habit out of ou

oughts, and we must make our thoughts healthy.

Learn as if youll live forever

you would be a real seeker after truth, it is necessary that at least once in your life you doubt, as f

ssible, all things. Rene Descartes
http://fractal.fractalenlighten.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/henry-ford.jpg


3/7

ubt is the key to learning as if youll live forever. Certainty only leads to a closed mind. That does

ean we cannot be mostly certain about things, but leaving room for doubt, and having a healthy

derstanding of how probability works, is the secret to open-mindedness.

e important thing is to keep learning, to remain circumspect with our knowledge, to not becomeagnant in our thoughts and ideas about how the world works in relation to how we think it works.

nstein said, The important thing is not to stop questioning.

n a long enough timeline there are infinite timelines. Or so it would seem to us finite beings percei

infinite reality using finite brains. And so, as French critic Charles Du Bos said, we should be ab

y moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become. And what we could become is noth

ort of everything.

deed, learning as if well live forever could eventually lead to us living forever. Maybe it already ha

that, and were just not directly aware of it yet; or maybe not. The key is healthy doubt, and the ab

nsider things without prematurely placing all our eggs into just one basket.

Your health is your true wealth

ealth is the constant movement of all things from emotional climate to physical condition. This is

stemic view of life that emphasizes the circular interconnections that link and sustainably regulate
http://fractal.fractalenlighten.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/gandhi-wisdom.jpghttp://fractalenlightenment.com/27749/spirituality/the-secret-of-open-mindedness


4/7

embers of a system. -Bradford Keeney

ealth cannot be stressed enough. It is the essential concept agreed upon by wise men since time

memorial. Health is not only true wealth dwarfing any amount of stopgap money or makeshift

ccess, it is also the cornerstone of happiness. Indeed, without health there could be no genuine

ppiness. Healthy mind, healthy body, and a healthy soul: these are the critical ingredients in the r

true wealth and happiness. The healthier we are in each, the more our wealth will grow and the hi

r happiness will ascend. The healthier we become in each, the more likely we are to become, likendhi, the change we wish to see in the world.

Have a sense of humor

umor must not professedly teach and it must not professedly preach, but it must do both if it wou

rever. Mark Twain

good sense of humor is the saving grace of any philosophy or worldview, even bad philosophy. Ind

long as your philosophy isnt overly serious, humorless, and you dont take yourself too seriously,

ilosophy can be saved from mediocrity. It is only when our philosophies are overly serious and wi

mor that our philosophies become mediocre. Like Ludwig Wittgenstein said, A serious and good

ilosophical work could be written consisting entirely in jokes.

hy is this? Because the universe is constantly changing and evolving. A philosophy or worldview th

kes itself too seriously and becomes too certain of itself, kills itself simply because it is attempting

geonhole the universe into a static and fixed thing, which it can never be.

t all we have to do is add the crucial element of humor to the equation and our philosophy or wor

suddenly saved from itself. It goes from a snake eating its own tail to a snake laughing at its own t
http://fractal.fractalenlighten.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/snake-eating-itself-om-nom-wait-funny-picture.jpg


5/7

d a laughing snake is infinitely more tolerable than an eating snake. Is it not?

Our greatness is being able to remake ourselves

ive up defining yourself, to yourself or to others. You wont die. You will come to life. And dont be

ncerned with how others define you. When they define you, they are limiting themselves, so its th

oblem. Whenever you interact with people, dont be there primarily as a function or a role, but as

ld of conscious presence. You can only lose something that you have, but you cannot lose somethi

at you are. Eckhart Tolle

e secret to greatness is flexibility: in mind, body, and soul. The greatest thinkers are the most

gnitively plastic. The greatest athletes are the most physically flexible. The greatest sages are the m

iritually elastic. Remaking ourselves is no easy task, but thinking of it as a game of flexibility can b

ry effective strategy. Like Picasso said, It takes a long time to become young again. The self is

nstantly changing anyway. The important thing is to become adaptable to, and not fearful of, such

ange.

ke Julian Baggini wrote, I is a verb dressed as a noun. Picture yourself verbing through the co

the speed of light, dressing and undressing, losing and unlosing, all the nouns and pronouns that

the universe bursting all around you like a kaleidoscope. Indeed, you are not merely a human

nnected to God, you are an infinite connection forever Godding, forever remaking yourself, since

eginning of the universe.

Find yourself in the service of others

Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it. Gandhi

cape the linear. Discover the cyclical. Remove yourself from the dead-stare of coercion, victimizat

d the subliminal urge to bend others to your will. Move instead into the open countenance of cohe
http://fractal.fractalenlighten.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/keep-your-coins-i-want-change.jpg


6/7

mpassion, and the holistic desire to bring people together. We need more than heroes who simply

ths for others to follow; we need heroes (like Gandhi and MLK) who leave guidance on how other

eate their own paths the more paths the better.

versity is the key to healthiness within nature as well as within culture. When we disclose the wor

e purpose of freedom it leads to further disclosure, and by the same action we free others from enc

o disclosure.

rsonal freedom leads to the need to empower and free others which leads to other free people whi

ads to accountability which leads to sustainability which leads to a healthy community for all.

fore we know it we are living in a community of people whose foundation is the maintenance of h

ationships. People who stand up, in resistance, to people whose foundation is the primacy of mon

oduction. Economics must be secondary to the primacy of relationships in order for a healthy,

stainable, happy society to emerge. Like George Lichtenberg said, In each of us there is a little of

Indeed, we find ourselves by helping our fellow brothers and sisters discover liberty and freedom

emselves. We free ourselves by showing others that the healthier way is always a relationship-bas

estyle over an ownership-based one.

age source:

ndhi

enry Ford quote
https://tonyevansdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/20140529-082821-30501903.jpghttp://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LCrrjmNYTGU/TtoAMHrfltI/AAAAAAAACy4/ao3rStDr29o/s1600/Mahatma+Gandhi.jpeghttp://fractalenlightenment.com/24256/life/adopting-a-relationship-based-lifestyle-as-opposed-to-an-ownership-based-one-becoming-the-tipping-point-part-3http://fractal.fractalenlighten.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/img_3836.jpg


7/7

lileo quote

m nom snake

ep your coins

e planet does not need more successful people
http://jasonmherrington.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/img_3836.jpghttp://www.elodge.com.au/etax-au/scripts/timthumb.php?src=http://www.elodge.com.au/etax-au/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Changes-to-2014-Australian-tax-return.jpg&w=685http://memefun.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/snake-eating-itself-om-nom-wait-funny-picture.jpghttps://bomarasay.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/img_20131118_000370.jpg?w=645

a philosophical inquiry into the wisdom of mahatma gandhi – fractal enlightenment

Documents