The spirit of non-violence necessarily leads to humility. Non-violence
means reliance on God, the Rocks of ages. If we would seek His aid, we
must approach Him with a humble and a contrite heart.
Non-co-operationists may not trade upon their amazing success at the
Congress. We must act, even as the mango tree which drops as it bears
fruit. Its grandeur lies in its majestic lowliness. But one hears of
non-co-operationists being insolent and intolerant in their behaviour
towards those who differ from them. I know that they will lose all their
majesty and glory, if they betray any inflation. Whilst we may not be
dissatisfied with the progress made so far, we have little to our
credit to make us feel proud. We have to sacrifice much more than we
have done to justify pride, much less elation. Thousands, who flocked to
the Congress pandal, have undoubtedly given their intellectual assent to
the doctrine but few have followed it out in practice. Leaving aside the
pleaders, how many parents have withdrawn their children from schools?
How many of those who registered their vote in favour of
non-co-operation have taken to hand-spinning or discarded the use of all
foreign cloth?
Non-co-operation is not a movement of brag, bluster, or bluff. It is a
test of our sincerity. It requires solid and silent self-sacrifice. It
challenges our honesty and our capacity for national work. It is a
movement that aims at translating ideas into action. And the more we do,
the more we find that much more must be done than we have expected. And
this thought of our imperfection must make us humble.
A non-co-operationist strives to compel attention and to set an example
not by his violence but by his unobtrusive humility. He allows his solid
action to speak for his creed. His strength lies in his reliance upon
the correctness of his position. And the conviction of it grows most in
his opponent when he least interposes his speech between his action and
his opponent. Speech, especially when it is haughty, betrays want of
confidence and it makes one's opponent sceptical about the reality of
the act itself. Humility therefore is the key to quick success. I hope
that every non-co-operationist will recognise the necessity of being
humble and self-restrained. It is because so little is really required
to be done because all of that little depends entirely upon ourselves
that I have ventured the belief that Swaraj is attainable in less
than one year.