Rev. Jayne Howard Feldman’s
Angelic Newsletter
Fall 2007 Newsletter Part l
Dear Angel Friends:
Angelic Blessings of Peace Eternal to you.
Yesterday morning as I was reading The Baltimore Morning Sun, the angels directed my attention to a small announcement of an upcoming event posted by a local community college. CCBC Essex hosts a Spotlight Speaker Series and the announcement was that Dr. Arun Gandhi, grandson of the late Indian spiritual and political leader Mahatma Gandhi would their guest speaker this month. Dr. Gandhi is an Advocate for Nonviolence and Understanding. As an “earthangel4peace,” I knew that the angels were giving me the angelic assignment for me to attend this lecture and share with you in my fall newsletter Dr. Gandhi’s uplifting and inspirational words.
Arun was born in 1934 in South Africa. Growing up in apartheid South Africa as a person of Indian heritage, Arun experienced racial confrontations with both blacks and whites. As a young boy, Gandhi was beaten up by black youths for not being black and by white youths because he was not white. Filled with anger and plotting to avenge his beatings, he subscribed to Charles Atlas bodybuilding magazines so he would have the physical strength to fight back. When his parents discovered the reason for their 12-year-old son’s sudden fascination with exercise and bodybuilding, they decided that a visit to his grandfather in India was in order.
What followed was an 18-month stay with one of the world’s great leaders that would give him the keys to the powerful philosophy of nonviolence, and help shape the foundation for his life’s work. It was a dangerous and exciting time, as Mahatma Gandhi was leading the people of India in their revolutionary, nonviolent struggle for independence from British rule.
After leading successful projects for economic and social reform in India, Arun Gandhi came to the United States in 1988 to compete research for a comparative study on racism in America. In 1991, Gandhi and his wife, Sunanda, founded the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence. Dr. Gandhi announced at lecture that a new website will be accessible in about a week: www.gandhiinstitute.org. His institute has recently moved to The University of Rochester and the address is Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence, 510 Wilson Commons, Rochester, New York 14627. Phone No.585-276-3787. Note: website should be up by end of September 2007.
The Institute’s mission is to foster understanding of nonviolence and to put that philosophy to practical use through workshops, lectures and community outreach programs.
Dr. Gandhi shared the lessons he learned from his grandfather.
Lesson One – We have to learn how to deal with our anger.
Prior to living with his grandfather, Arun wanted an eye for an eye. He wanted to make people pay; he wanted revenge. If someone hurt him, he wanted to hurt them back.
His grandfather taught him that we all need to learn how to channel our anger into positive action. More violence will never end violence. Reacting with hatred to hatred deepens and multiplies the hatred. It doesn’t help to resolve the problem. Gandhi taught his grandson that just like electricity, anger can be channeled for a useful purpose or it can be deadly. We are here to learn how to deal with our anger and channel the energy for the good of humanity. We cannot overcome darkness with darkness. We can only overcome darkness with light. We are here to be light.
Dr. Gandhi gave the technique of keeping an Anger Journal. As you write in your journal, you are writing what you are angry about; however, you are writing with the intent of finding a solution, a healing to your anger. The anger journal’s purpose is not to remind you of the incident and stir you up and get you angry all over again. It is to be used as a textbook in which you are learning how to resolve anger. We are to read over the things that make us angry with an openness to resolution of our anger.
This technique was given to Arun by his grandfather. He decided he would test his grandfather to see if his grandfather really practiced what he was telling him to do, i.e. not get angry. He decided to test his grandfather’s anger. At that time,his grandfather, Mahatma Gandhi need to raise money for his non-violence cause, and the British controlled all the money in India. Mahatma Gandhi had to be creative and raise his own funds. He recognized that people were willing to pay for his autograph. This was something he had that people wanted to purchase. So at his appearances, he would sell his autograph. Arun was given the task of collecting the autograph books that were to be signed along with the money requested by Gandhi for the autograph. Arun decided he wanted an autograph and he didn’t want to pay. When Gandhi saw the lone autograph book with no money, he asked about it. Arun replied that it was for him; he was Gandhi’s grandson and he should have an autograph for free.
Gandhi told him in no way was he doing this. Arun would have to pay and Arun would have to first earn the money in order to pay for the autograph. Arun said, “No Way!” And Gandhi added, “Well then,let’s see who wins.”
Arun then made it his point of focus that any time Gandhi was having an important meeting, he would run into the meeting, loudly interrupt the meeting with his demand for an autograph from his grandfather. He demanded that his grandfather sign in his autograph book right then and there. Arun’s thinking was that by being an annoyance, Gandhi would succumb to the pressure and sign the autograph book just to be rid of him. That didn’t happen. Gandhi would lovingly put his hand over Arun’s mouth to quiet him; hug him close to his chest and continue the meeting hugging Arun. Arun soon recognized that Gandhi never got angry and never gave Arun the autograph either. Dr. Gandhi shared that if we each achieve just 50 percent of the commitment and integrity of Gandhi, we would bring down the violence on the planet.
Lesson Two - Understand that there is physical violence and passive violence.
Just because there is no physical violence, i.e. fighting, killing, beatings occurring, does not mean that there is an environment of non-violence. It’s not that simple. Because there is no war happening does not mean we have achieved non-violence.
Arun told the story of how he owned a pencil. He had used the pencil to where it was short in size, about 3 inches in length. He decided he deserved a better pencil. He felt his grandfather would give him a new pencil. So he threw the pencil away. He went to his grandfather and asked for a new pencil. Rather than give him a new pencil, his grandfather asked him numerous questions, ie. : Why did he feel he should through his pencil away when there was 3 inches of lead left in the pencil? Where was the pencil? Gandhi sent Arun out into the dark with a flashlight to find the discarded pencil. It took Arun over 2 hours of searching, but he did find the pencil and he did continue to use it.
Gandhi taught his grandson that the pencil represented the world’s natural resources. When we discard things that are still useful with the attitude, “Oh, I’ll get a new one,” we are acting violently against nature; we are acting violently against people in the world who have nothing. When we over-consume; when we waste food, energy and products, we are passively violent by the choices we are making. We need to look at our own lives and see how we are wasting the world’s natural resources. He shared that millions of people in the USA do not have enough to eat.
Dr. Gandhi asked that we each draw a tree. It is a tree of violent acts. Dr. Gandhi encouraged us to examine our lives and our experiences every day and analyze all of our choices. One side of the tree we record violent physical acts. On the other side of the tree we record passive violent acts. Passive acts may be non-physical; however they hurt people. We hurt the earth and other members of humanity sometimes knowingly; and other times unknowingly. Passive violence involves no physical force but we still harm the environment and humanity.
If we truly want peace on earth, we cannot be performing acts of passive violence. We have to be accountable to ourselves for the choices we make as consumers. We must be the change we want to see by looking with eyes wide open to how we are wasting resources in our own lives.
Dr. Gandhi shared that every city he visits he hears the same concerns. People want peace; peace acknowledge growing violence in cities; people want change. The change begins with each of us being accountable in making choices for peace – peace to the earth; peace to ourselves and others.
Lesson Three – Building Relationships
Dr. Gandhi inspired us to end labeling, i.e. labeling people by gender, age, color, religion, economic status. We are to build peaceful relationships through
Respecting others
Understanding others
Accepting others
Appreciating others
Dr. Gandhi emphasized the importance of respect. He disagrees with the promotion of the idea “Teach Tolerance.” He believes we should be teaching respect. He shared that we want to go beyond tolerance and learn how to respect each other, treasure each other, appreciate each other. He repeatedly emphasized the importance of respect. Too often our relationships are built around what we are going to get.
In the late 60’s, Dr. Gandhi lived in India and received a letter from someone who wrote him from South Africa and indicated that he was coming to India; this individual didn’t know anyone in India but Arun; he was coming on a cruise ship from South Africa to India, and would it be possible for Dr. Gandhi to help him make arrangements for his visit during India. Dr. Gandhi agreed that he would.
When he went to the cruise ship to meet the individual, Dr. Gandhi quickly recognized that the South African was a white man who was a member of parliament and was responsible for a lot of the hatred and apartheid in South Africa. Dr. Gandhi’s first reaction was to throw him in the water. As he shared with us, that would have given him a few minutes of joy. However, he remembered his grandfather’s teachings and so he responded in friendship. Dr. Gandhi and his wife spent the next four days being gracious to this man and his wife and when they had the opportunity they would talk about apartheid in South Africa. Sometimes the dialogue got intense, and they would need to change the conversation to discussing the weather. However, they continued being gracious, helpful and friendly and also continued attempting the dialogue on their differences.
At the end of the four days, this gentleman embraced Arun. He welled up with tears and openingly shared his remorse for his past decisions and behavior. He said that Arun had opened his eyes to the evil of his past choices. This man went back to South Africa changed in his attitude. The man took a stand against apartheid and as a result of this he lost his seat in parliament; he was thrown out of the political party that he belonged to.
If Dr. Gandhi has insulted him, it would not have helped this man to understand Dr. Gandhi’s beliefs. Arun treated him with understanding, kindness and equality and the man was transformed.
Dr. Gandhi shared that his grandfather taught him to sit quietly in a room. To shut out all noise and focus for a moment on a candle or on a flower. Then he shut his eyes and saw how long he could hold the vision of the candle or the flower in his mind’s eye. He found when he first started, as soon as he closed his eyes , he couldn’t picture the flower or object. The more you practice this stillness exercise, the more you are able to hold the image in your consciousness. It is so important to train our minds because if we want to hold a new consciousness of non-violence, we need to develop and train our minds to be supportive of this commitment to change.
Dr. Gandhi ended his lecture with an ancient story. A king was curious about how to achieve and maintain peace in his kingdom. He asked many great intellectuals how is peace achieved; however none of their answers satisfied the king’s searching. He learned of a sage that lived outside of the palace. He went to the wise man and posed his question of how could he have peace in his kingdom. The elder gave him a box that contained one single grain of wheat. The king took the box without asking anything further. The king felt that the grain would speak to him and share it’s wisdom. Every day he would open the box, look at the grain, and nothing occurred. Finally the king went back to the elder and asked, “How will this grain of wheat bring about peace?”
The wise man shared that as long as he kept the grain in the box, it would rot and perish and that would be the end of the grain of wheat. However, if he took the grain and let it interact with the elements, the grain would sprout and grow and eventually a whole field would come forth.
The story shares the message that if you have peace inside of you, inside the body of you, and you keep it to yourself, it will not sprout and grow and be abundant. It’s up to each of us to share our grain with the elements – our life experiences - and let it be fruitful.
Dr. Gandhi shared that it is his belief that if we keep on going the way we are going, there will be no human civilization in 100 years; however, we can change.
In Dr. Gandhi’s book LEGACY OF LOVE he shares:
“As we contemplate the world around us, it may seem that we have inherited a legacy of social injustice and domestic and international violence that has sunk to irretrievable depths. One may reasonably ask, “Will it ever be possible to build a world free of hate and prejudice?
Grandfather’s answer to this question could not be simpler or more sincere: “CHANGE IS POSSIBLE IF WE HAVE THE DESIRE AND THE COMMITMENT TO MAKE IT HAPPEN.”
We are surrounded by many things that were once considered to be impossible, things that we now take for granted. These things have become part of our lives because someone refused to accept the common wisdom. If this is possible in material and technological sense, it is equally possible in the moral sense.
Grandfather said “We must be the change we wish to see in the world.” Beginning with others, we must cause positive change to radiate out into the world. We need a change of heart, a change of perceptions, and a change of attitude, which we can then pass onto others through education, enlightenment and love.” – A LEGACY OF LOVE, My Education in the Path of Nonviolence – Arun Gandhi – A Memoir
Mahatma Gandhi Quotes:
Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.
Fear is not a disease of the body. Fear kills the soul.
The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.
We must become the change we want to see.
The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.
An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.
When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall- think of it, ALWAYS.
Faith is not something to grasp, it is a state to grow into.
The only tyrant in this world is the still voice within.
Note: If you would like a free BE A PEACEMAKER bumper sticker, send me a SASE. Let peace prevail on earth.
Love, Jayne
Jayne Howard Feldman
44 years of communing with angels
www.earthangel4peace.com * earthangel4peace@aol.com *
Angel Heights Healing Art Center
Creating Sacred Space for
Scientific and Spiritual Dialogue
/PO Box 95/Upperco, MD 21155 * 1-866-peace2u (1-866-732-2328)
Newsletter Copyrighted September 2007.
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