WAIKIKI (HawaiiNewsNow) – The grandson of spiritual and political leader, Mahatma Gandhi, is carrying the family's message of peace and non-violence to Hawaii. Arun Gandhi says the world is being consumed by too much violence, and it's time to break down barriers.
Arun Gandhi stood underneath his famous grandfather's statue in Waikiki - to talk about transformation in an era of turmoil. "The time has come when the world needs to look at alternate ways of resolving the conflicts that we face," says Gandhi.
With violent protests sweeping through the Middle East, an on-going tit-for-tat in the Koreas, and the U.S. fighting two wars, Gandhi points out: we're living in a time of international instability.
"We cannot secure our nation here in this corner of the world, if the rest of the world is going down the tubes. So, we have to ensure that the whole world lives in peace and harmony," explains Gandhi.
Mohandas "Mahatma" Gandhi pioneered the civil disobedience movement in India during the early half of the last century - based on his philosophy of peace and non-violence.
At age 12, Arun Gandhi went to live with his grandfather who taught him the principles that he now teaches today. Arun's first test of forgiveness, rather than revenge, came just two years later, when Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated. His parents reminded the young Arun: change had to begin within.
He says about his grandfather, "Gandhi's very famous quotation is: that we must become the change we wish to see. And I have added onto that: and I said, we must not only become the change we wish to see, we must also become the agents of change that we wish to see."
The 76-year-old Gandhi, who now lives in the U.S., is carrying on the family name and message through his lectures, on his Washington Post blog, and through the Gandhi Worldwide Education Institute.
He'll be in Hawaii through Monday - speaking at various venues across Oahu. For more information, here is a link to a website with the list of events.
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