[vii]
personal letters—of which there are more than a hundred in the volume—provide intimate glimpses into Gandhiji’s mind, the agony as well as the sense of calm surrender. For example, in the letter to M. A. Ansari, he confesses: “I am sick unto death over the unreality and untruth that surrounds us at the present moment. Please therefore forget me for any other work than the humble work of khadi and untouchability and the unpopular method of protecting the cow. I confess my utter inability to tackle successfully any other problem” (p. 284). Beside this cry of despair, there is a letter to Satis Chandra Das Gupta expressing affectionate concern and tenderness for others: “I want your promise not to fret about khadi, no matter what happens to it. Who are we? God will surely make it prosper if it is a good thing. We are but instruments in His hands. We have deserved well if we keep pure and keep the door ever open for Him to enter. Let Him have the reins and drive us how He will” (p. 446).
Among Gandhiji’s many descriptions of his religion, the following must hold a high place: “I want to take the whole world in the embrace of my love. My anekantavada is the result of the twin doctrine of Satya and Ahimsa. . . . He is one and yet many; He is smaller than an atom, and bigger than the Himalayas; He is contained even in a drop of the ocean, and yet not even the seven seas can compass Him. Reason is powerless to know Him. He is beyond the reach or grasp of reason. . . . He is merciful, and compassionate. He is not an earthly king needing an army to make us accept His sway. He allows us freedom, and yet His compassion commands obedience to His will. But if any one of us disdain to bow to His will, He says: ‘So be it. My sun will shine no less for thee, my clouds will rain no less for thee. I need not force thee to accept my sway’” (pp. 411-2).
