A Tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and my Mentors

A tribute to Gandhi | www.TheGhousediary.com

Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead 68 years ago on this day, January 31, 1948.

Mahatma Gandhi is one of my nine favorite personalities. I call them my mentors, meaning I think about them regularly and that they are; Jesus Christ, Prophet Muhammad, Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Pope Frances, and President Barack Obama. Of course, my father and mother top the list, I am who I am today because of them opening the windows of knowledge to me.

These are the men and women I have come to adore; their passion was to create cohesive societies where everyone can live without fear of the other.

By the time I croak my list may grow to be 10, as there is one more individual I am studying and he may become the 10^th favorite Pluralists, i.e., those who respect the otherness of others and accept the God given uniqueness of each one of us.

Every year, for the last 25 years, I have been writing a note about him on his death and birth anniversaries, this is my way of paying tribute and expressing the gratitude to a man who gave so much to India and the world.

By the way, I have seen Gandhi in my dream twice, way back in early 70’s and in the early 2000 – both the times he pats on my back and says, Son you have a lot of work to do, and that has remained my inspiration to do the work I do.

Gandhi’s Clothing

Why did he wear the loin cloth and not the suits? Indeed, he was a Law graduate of University College of London, a successful Lawyer in South Africa and he wore the three piece suits like all the Englishmen did during the period.

Do you remember one of his thousands of quotes – “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” What does it mean? One of the major social reforms he brought to India was ‘acceptability’ of the ‘untouchables’, it is a shameful part of history of civilizations where humans were dehumanized, including here in the United States.  He wanted the downtrodden and the poor masses to relate with him and he wanted to be one of them and not the elites who look down upon them.  Prophet Muhammad did similar thing – he gave Bilal, the slave whom he freed, the highest spiritual status among his followers, it was a jolt to the society, but it knocked their prejudices down. My father did the same, which I have written separately, you see the same trend with Jesus, Mother Teresa, Pope Frances and others – they had zero prejudice towards fellow beings. God bless them all.

Given what Gandhi stood for, two things are going severely wrong in India, a handful of extremists have taken over and mistreating the Dalits (Untouchables) and the shameful celebration of the man who shot Gandhi. They are building temples to Godify this man Godse who killed Gandhi. I hope the Indian Government on this day makes a commitment to follow the law, to treat all humans equally and to value the freedom of speech. It is a shame, if we don’t speak up against injustice and let the seeds of discrimination grow in a nation that is beacon of hope to many nations.

 Season of Non-Violence  

Season of Non-Violence begins today, January 30^th, on the day of Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated and concludes on April 4^th the day Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. It is a “64 Days of Daily Messages for Social Media
The site  http://www.agnt.org/season-for-nonviolence has beautiful graphics and daily messages in web format to inspire, create discussion, and hold in our thoughts each day during the 64 Days of the Season. Consider having your SNV campaign be to share these on Facebook or Twitter. Then, be sure to check back in with us to let us know how your social network is growing by sharing these graphics.”  I cannot forget my friend Len Ellis of Dallas for his dedication to this season and the messages he shares.

This year like the last few years, we talk about the peace makers of the world, in the beginning it was Gandhi and MLK, now Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela are added, and I have added Prophet Muhammad to the season.

Watch out for the day, I will be giving a talk about what these men did to build a cohesive society, where humanity can live in peace and harmony.

This is not complete, I will be adding more to this at TheGhouseDiary.com

 

Thank you,

Mike Ghouse, 

(214) 325-1916

Washington, DC 

Dr. Mike Ghouse is a community consultant, social scientist, thinker, writer, newsmaker and a professional speaker on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam,  politics, human rights, and foreign policy.  Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. More about him in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at TheGhousediary.com 

Interfaith sensitivity about Jews.

Interfaith sensitivity about Jews | www.InterfaithSpeaker.com   

The story I am about to share is the very reason I write, speak and broadcast the knowledge about interfaith, in particular “Festivals and commemorations of the world”

In 2011, one of my Christian friends Kristen was on my team to invite people to attend the “Holocaust and Genocides” event – I am blessed to be first Muslim in the world who regularly commemorates the event to develop understanding between people of different faiths, races and ethnicities. More at www.HolocaustandGenocides.com

Kristen lived in a Jewish neighborhood and grew up with many Jewish friends. When I called her up for updates, she was disappointed with the response she was getting, but I encouraged her to continue, as it is a difficult event to attend.

The following weekend, there was an art exhibit by a Russian artist and about 150 people came to the event, Kristen was there and was excited to call on her Jewish friends to attend the event, she came back disappointed for the silent stares she was getting.  She asked me to join her to invite another couple down in the corner sipping wine.

So here it goes, Kristen introduces me, “Rosie, this is Mike, and we are here to invite you to a celebration of the Jewish Holocaust event…” Literally, I fell off my chair, I had to cut her in, sorry Rosie, it is a Holocaust Memorial event, and it is a reflection on the cruelties within each one of us and how to put it off and learn to say Never again.  It is a somber event….’ There was a relief on the face of Rosie and her husband.  We carried the conversation forward and they did join us along with a few other friends.

Like Kristen most of us make the mistake, whenever there is a gathering of people, we associate it with celebration.  To understand this, it is like inviting a friend, “Please join me at the funeral home, and they are celebrating the death of our friend Mike, who passed away yesterday,” Personally, that is what I would want to happen upon my death, but most people including my wife, my kids and grand kids may not appreciate it.

There are three public events that I know, mind you, these are not celebrations – Holocaust commemoration (Jewish), Ashura /Muharram (Muslims) and the big one, Memorial Day, end of May. Please do not wish a happy…….. You can probably say I am sorry to hear the _____ Memorial event is coming up, I am with you, or my prayers are with you… or some such thing to show support.  I suggest you to visit the Holocaust Museum or attend our event in 2017 to learn about these.

As time permits, I will share different stories.

This is the first time in 10 years that I have not organized the Holocaust and Genocides commemoration event, it’s a difficult event for many to attend, yet an average of 300 brave souls have made it each time.  As a Muslim, why do I commemorate? The answer is in this article at Huffington Post called Holocaust and the Muslim Guy. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/holocaust-and-the-muslim-_b_4629509.html )

Why is it important to know about our neighbors and people of other faiths, races and traditions?  I let you imagine it and urge you to think about it, and if you are tempted write, please share it. I will publish it at www.interfaithspeaker.com and http://foundationforpluralism.blogspot.com -

"Festivals of the World" is an educational series published by Mike Ghouse since 1993. When we live in the same communities as neighbors, we might as well learn about each other. The best way to build cohesive societies is for its members to participate in festivities as well as commemorations of each other, or at least understand each other's' joys and sorrows. Please note the simplicity in writing is designed for people of other faiths to learn and to know, so we can function cohesively.  This is too elementary for the followers of the faith, but informational to those who are not aware of the tradition.

Since 1994, I am blessed to have published essence of many, but not all festivals, as the time has permitted.  You are welcome to plug the name of the festival with my name in the Google search, more than likely, you will find information on major festivals and commemorations.

www.interfaithspeaker.com
Dr. Mike Ghouse is a community consultant, social scientist, thinker, writer, news maker, and a speaker on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam, politics, terrorism, human rights, India, Israel-Palestine and foreign policy. He is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. Visit him in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net for his writings at TheGhousediary.com and several blogs listed there in. 

Interfaith Language (Shouting v Chanting)

Interfaith Language | http://FoundationforPluralism.blogspot.com

As a Pluralist (i.e., respecting the otherness of others) my ears are trained to be sensitive. In one of hte discussion we had going, a Professor wrote, “Thousands of them (Hindus) are "roaming" along the banks of the Ganges in Kashi/Gaya (India) shouting "Hare-Ram! Hare Ram!"

My response?

Dear Professor, I would prefer, “Chanting Hare Ram, Hare Ram” to the phrase “shouting Hare-Ram! Hare Ram!" Likewise, I would prefer Chanting Allahu Akbar rather than shouting Allahu Akbar.

We have do the best we can in choosing the words that would not hurt others. Words can change one’s attitude towards you.

Thanks
Mike Ghouse
www.InterfaithSpeaker.com

Interfaith Speaker

In Genuine interfaith dialogue, we respect the otherness of others and never claim our faith to be superior to the other, as that amounts to arrogance, and religion is about humility that builds bridges and communities and not arrogance which kills relationships and breeds conflicts.

All religions are about peace. 

I am blessed to be open with all faith traditions, and I treat them as systems that are meant to help an individual achieve his or her own peace.

Again, I am blessed to have written up about every faith tradition, you can Google search the following:

1. Atheist Mike Ghouse
2. Bahai Mike Ghouse
3. Buddhist Mike Ghouse
4. Christian Mike Ghouse
5. Hindu Mike Ghouse
6. Jain Mike Ghouse
7. Jewish Mike Ghouse
8. Native American Mike Ghouse
9. Pagan Mike Ghouse
10. Sikh Mike Ghouse
11. Wicca Mike Ghouse
12. Zoroastrian Mike Ghouse

You can also Google Search

1. Name of Festival Mike Ghouse

God has blessed me with the ability to stand up for every one, and I have to complete compiling the list, meawhile, you can check these out.

1. Standing up for Atheists - http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/04/speaking-up-for-atheists.html
2. Standing up for Christians - http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/01/standing-with-christians.html
3. Standing up for Hindus - http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/04/standing-with-hindus.html
4. Standing up for Jews - http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/02/standing-up-with-jews.html
5. Standing up for Sikhs - http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/08/standing-up-for-sikhs.html
6. Standing up GLBT - http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/05/standing-up-for-gays-and-lesbians.html
7. Standing up for Immigrants - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrjU0KULv-Y
8. Standing up for others - to be completed. 

Dr. Mike Ghouse is a community consultant, social scientist, thinker, writer, news maker, and a speaker on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam, politics, terrorism, human rights, India, Israel-Palestine and foreign policy. He is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. Visit him in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net for his writings at TheGhousediary.com and several blogs listed there in.