Literature and Apostles

You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them. ~ Mohandas Gandhi

Right now I am still amazed by what my job leads me to. Recently, it led me to an apostle of freedom. This man, who has been installed as one of the persons of the 20th century by the Times magazine, is none other than Gandhi.
I must admit I had almost zero knowledge about this man. Besides the fact that he walked around in white loincloth, leading India to independence, I had no idea what is it about him that appealed to the Indian nation. What more to the entire world. Since one of the literary texts I covered in class had a lot to do with this skinny frail man’s revolutionary ideas, I had no choice but to read up on him (not that I mind). Much to my delight, I discovered so many interesting facts about him, which rendered me speechless. For he is the apostle of not only freedom but also so many other things that other leaders might have forgotten in the course of their mission. Indeed, he is the apostle of so many things that everybody should uphold but do not or cannot. Individual freedom. Political liberty. Social justice. Nonviolent protest. Passive resistance. Religious tolerance. These are the embodiment of Gandhism that have greatly impacted India in the 20th century. And this impact is felt till today, in many great literary works from India; some of which I happen to teach. Don’t I just love my job? I wonder which apostle will it lead me to next :-)
Originally posted on http://izzyz7/reciter.com on 27 August 2007

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