My uniform experience has convinced me that there is no other God than Truth. And if every page of these chapters does not proclaim to the reader that the only means for the realization of Truth is Ahimsa, I shall deem all my labour in writing these chapters to have been in vain.
Ahimsa is the Sanskrit term used by Gandhi to describe his philosophy of non-violence.
... a perfect vision of Truth can only follow a complete realization of Ahimsa.
To see the universal and all-pervading Spirit of Truth face to face one must be able to love the meanest of creation as oneself. And a man who aspires after that cannot afford to keep out of any field of life. That is why my devotion to Truth has drawn me into the field of politics; and I can say without the slightest hesitation, and yet in all humility, that those who say that religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion means.
... To conquer the subtle passions seems to me to be harder far than the physical conquest of the world by the force of arms. ... So long as a man does not of his own free will put himself last among his fellow creatures, there is no salvation for him. Ahimsa is the farthest limit of humility.
Gandhi was one of the most amazing men I've ever come to know. Though I don't know him well, reading his autobiography has given me a glimpse into the man's soul and it has been humbling. I would like to be a man as pure in heart as I believe Gandhi to have been. God bless the man. He did a great deal of good, but did not seek the praise of the world or rich compensation for the work he did. He sought for truth. And in that, I feel a sense of kinship to him because that has become my primary quest in life too.In bidding farewell to the reader, for the time being at any rate, I ask him to join with me in prayer to the God of Truth that He may grant me the boon of Ahimsa in mind, word, and deed.
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