Page:Speeches And Writings MKGandhi.djvu/929

 FROM BATYAGRAHA I0 NON-COOPERATION 839. lust of man turned brute for the while. And I thought I clinched my argument by saying that if, in spite of all the defence: the unexpected happened, and the physical force of the tyrant overpowered his victim, the disgrace would not be that of the woman but of her assailant and that both she and her brother, who died in the attempt to defend her virtue, would stand well before the Throne of Judgment. I do not warrant that my argument eon‘ vinoed my listener or that it would convince the reader. The world I know will go on as before· But it is well at this moment of self-examination to understand and appreciate the implications of the powerful movement of non-violence. All religions have emphasised the highest ideal, but all have more or less permitted departures as sc many concessions to human weaknesses. I now proceed to summarise the explanation I gave of the various terms, It is beyond my capacity to give accurate and terse deinitions. Satyagrah, then, is literally holding on to Truth and it means, therefore, Truth-force. Truth is soul or spirit. It is, therefore, known as soul·force. It excludes the use of_ violence because man is not capable of knowing the absolute truth and, therefore, not com- petent to punish. The word was coined in South Africa to distinguish the non-violent resistance of the Indians of South Africa from the contemporary ° passive resistance ’ of the suifragettes and others. It is not conceived as a weapon of the weak. Passive resistance is used in the orthodox English sense and covers the suffragette movement as well as the resistance of the Norhconformists. Passive re- sistance has been conceived and is regarded as a weapon of the weak. Whilst it avoids violence, being