Gandhian Ethics - Connect Civils

Meera Bai was called a great Satyagrahi by Mahatma Gandhi because her life reflected the core principles of Satyagraha:

Truth (Satya): She upheld her spiritual truth fearlessly — ‘’Mharo to Girdhar Gopal, Dujo na koi” — showing absolute devotion to Krishna, just as a satyagrahi clings to truth.
Non-violence (Ahimsa) : Meera resisted social and royal pressures peacefully. Despite persecution, she never responded with violence — a hallmark of non-violent resistance.
Willing Suffering (Tapasya) : She embraced suffering and humiliation with love and grace — “Ya Badnami Mithi lage” — embodying the satyagrahi’s readiness to suffer for a just cause.
Discipline and Devotion: Her steadfast daily worship, singing, and spiritual practices showed inner strength and discipline — essential traits of a satyagrahi.
Detachment (Vairagya): She renounced royal luxury to live a simple, devoted life — reflecting the satyagrahi ideal of sacrificing personal gain for higher truth.

It was precisely because of all these qualities—truth, non-violence, asceticism, discipline, and detachment—that Gandhiji called Mirabai a true Satyagrahi.

Gandhian philosophy is the result of his interaction with his mother, professional colleagues, western people and books he read in his lifetime.

Amalgamation of Western and Indian Philosophy	Universal and timeless
Principle of nonviolence – Influenced by Buddhism and Christianity both The idea of nonresistance to violence by Tolstoy	Used in the American freedom movement, African freedom movement, and even the Indian freedom struggle In recent time, non-violent protests like Anti-corruption movement, Candle march, black wrist band, etc
Tolerance towards different viewpoints – Inspired by Anekantwad of Jainism and Western thinkers	Social media community guidelines for cyber tolerance Religious tolerance in medieval times to modern time
Concept of truth – Called socrates a ‘Satya Veer’ Hinduism Dharma [Righteousness]	Sacrificing life for the sake of truth (Examples across time and space) – Socrates Satyendra Dubey (IES officer) Kaalibaai Bheel
Service attitude – Hinduism’s concept of Peed Parai The concept of Sarvodaya from John Ruskin’s unto this last	People like mother teresa, kailash Satyarthi, Baba Amte, Vinoba Bhave, etc
Concept of Duty – Svadharma by Geeta Duty and rights are two different sides of a coin – Inspired by John Austin	Fundamental duty as included in the constitution by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act 1976 Japanese culture holds this concept of duty very dear SC in State of Rajasthan V Union of India – legal rights are correlatives of legal duties
Concept of god – Ishaa Vaasyam Idam Sarvam Christianity – God is believed to be the one supreme being who created and sustains all things	Positive science – God particle, one who is omnipresent but difficult to detect Even Jainism also believed that every soul is equal [As part of the god] and hence should be respected

Intro –

Background – Mahatma Gandhi’s 11 vows are the result of Gandhi’s contact with diverse philosophies of the Indian and Western world
Facts – Out of 11 vows, the first 6 are concerned with self-development and self-restraint, and the rest 5 are concerned with social welfare
Definition – Each individual possesses Rama and Ravana, God and Satan, good and evil, and it is important to restrain Ravana and Satan in each individual, which can be accomplished through a vow or ‘Vrata’. Gandhi gave 11 such vows to restrain evil in a man.
Current – The Government of India while Celebrating the 150 Years of The Mahatma (Birth anniversary), must consider 11 vows as founding principles in effective and inclusive policy making [हाल ही में, भारत सरकार द्वारा गांधी जी की 150वीं वर्षगांठ (जन्मदिन) मनाई गयी। गाँधी जी के 11 प्रतिज्ञाओं को प्रभावी और समावेशी नीति निर्माण की नींव के रूप में देखना ही उनको सच्ची श्रदांजलि होगी ]

11 Vows	Policy making
Satya – Coherence in thought, Speech and action.	There must be coherence in political manifesto, policy making, and policy implementation Policymaking for climate change – Thought – Prakriti rakshati rakshitaha, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, Paryavaranam hi jeevanam Speech – Panchamrita cop26 Action – International solar alliance, recently launched PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana (Budget 2024-25, new rooftop solar scheme)
Ahimsa	Policy for Surrender-cum-rehabilitation of Naxalites Policies for Yoga and meditation program in Tihar jail by Ex IPS Kiran bedi Use of persuasion, Negotiation, Emotional intelligence to nudge behavior of people for effective policy implementation [Ex – The changing habit of people for toilet use] NDMA act 2005 guidelines Policy-making for Welfare state [Rather than police state]
Brahmacharya	Policy for family planning [Self restrain as advocated by Gandhi ji] Sexual harassment of women at workplace – Vishakha guidelines Increasing consumption of pornography – IT Rules and new IT Act 2023 amendment Sexual violence with women [Marital rape] – Policy to ensure dignity of women
Asteya	Benami transaction act 2016 Policy against Scams like PNB, ICICI, Harshad Mehta, Vijay Mallya etc [RBI guidelines, Mission Indradhanush, etc] Prevention of corruption act 1988
Aparigraha	To reduce the inequality [Progressive Tax policy] Land celieng act CSR Policy etc
Asvada	Eat Right India (Initiative by FSSAI) Indira rasoi Yojana [Annapurana Rasoi]
Sharira Sharama	Food for work program [1977-78] MGNREGA (Unskilled and semiskilled work) Indira gandhi Shahri Rojgaar Yojana Shrm daan [Paani foundation]
Swadeshi	Make in India Aatmanirbhar bharat Prime Minister Narendra Modi invoked the ‘Swadeshi’ spirit by urging people to buy products that are produced domestically and requested the local industries to build a strong supply chain National handloom corporation Khadi and Village Industries Commission (1957)
Abhaya	The Whistle Blowers Protection Act Right to information act 2005
Asprishyaatanivarana	The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 National Commission for Safai Karamcharis Article 17 – Abolition of untouchability Protection of civil rights act 1955
Sarva Dharma Sambhava	Secularism in Preamble Policies for religious minorities like Seekho Aur Kamao, Naya Savera, Nai Manzil, Jiyo Parsi..

Conclusion –

Summary – Gandhi ji’s 11 vows are more relevant today than ever and hence should be followed in letter and spirit
Target – All these principles of Gandhi are necessary to hold the Indian administration accountable in Amrit kaal and make India a developed nation by 2047
Link with Intro – These vows would invoke the Rama within every citizen and envisage the dream of Ram Rajya.