Dear young friends, I have spoken to you of idealism, simplicity, service and sacrifice.
Let me say to you, simplicity and service, sincerity and sacrifice are not easy. They demand courage and conviction. And therefore we need volunteers who are children of Shakti — and the Shakti I speak to you is the power of the spirit. For this is our true heritage; this is our ancient ideal.
When I talk to you of courage, I do not refer to the courage of an Alexander or Julius Caesar, who came and saw and conquered. I hold up as role models before you Sri Rama, Gautama the Buddha and Mahavira, who had the moral, spiritual courage to walk the way of truth and stand up for what they believed in. Buddha's message is a message of hope and courage. Strive with desires! Conquer trishna! Be a hero in the strife! And who are the real heroes of humanity? They who, like Asoka, turn from war to peace. When he accepted Buddha, Asoka turned his back on war and sent missionaries of peace, far and wide; and Mahinda, Asoka's son, went to Lanka and laid there the foundation of a new civilisation of brotherhood and peace. Buddhism is not a pessimistic faith that dwells on suffering and misery; rather, it insists that zest is essential to overcome suffering and attain liberation. It teaches us to empower ourselves to eradicate suffering through wisdom and right actions. That, my friends, is true courage.
Courage is the key. To live a full life, to live according to God's plan, to live life purposefully and meaningfully, requires courage.
Life demands of us that we live with courage. Without the courage to endure, faith and hope would not flourish.
Each one of us is called upon to fulfil our tasks in life. To fight the good fight, as I have said repeatedly. Evil is within us, evil is outside us. Everywhere, there are wrongs to be righted, weaknesses to be fought and conquered. We cannot say, “I will not fight!”
The Lord tells us, even as he tells Arjuna: “Stand up and fight! For life is a battlefield.”
Stand up and fight evil! Stand up and fight injustice! Conquer the ego! Vanquish your weaknesses!
*Indian Republic Day - January 26, 2024
Dada J P Vaswani is a humanitarian, philosopher, educator, acclaimed writer, powerful orator, messiah of ahimsa, and non-sectarian spiritual leader
