Conviolence is often described as means of resolution of conflicts. The choice of nonviolence is a strategic choice, and like all strategic formulations, it must be adapted to situations in which it is deployed. We may describe nonviolence as a strategy for attainment of a state of Love and Peace in a society. As a strategy, nonviolence has been proven as an effective means through which a number of societies have achieved Love and Peace among their citizens and institutions. Love and Peace are the primary goals of socio-politico-cultural life in social entities, both institutions and beings. Both, Love and Peace are terms that have been defined in many different ways. As a socio-politico-cultural concept, Love may be defined as a state in which each individual or institutional member of a society can coexist with others, cooperating and facilitating to enhance the full potential of each member's existence or purpose. Love includes caring for and identifying with fellow beings or societal institutions. It evokes a feeling of social unity with appreciation for the worth of the essential elements that constitute a robust society. Peace may be defined as a social state of friendship, harmony and tranquility among the members of a society, either within a region or among various regions. It is a state of the society and of relations or mutual interactions in which conflict, war, and even fear of violence between individuals, groups, institutions, or nations is absent. The concepts of both, violence and nonviolence are deeply rooted in attitude, and therefore in the culture of the people involved. It is common for individuals and social institutions to express their preference for Love and Peace, as defined above, through Protests against conditions that diminish them. For instance, when conditions are imposed on people that preclude them from exercising their free will, they express their preference to be free through communications and actions that demonstrate their desire to restore Love and Peace. A protest may be described as an expression of dissent or disapproval of some state of affair. It could take the form of a statement or action expressing disapproval or objection to something, or display of unwillingness to comply with an idea or a course of action. A protest may be of a political nature. The protest can also take on a personal characteristic, One may protest against the state of a relationship or against some undesirable development. In its broadest sense, a protest seeks a change. Chapter 1 traces the evolution of various thoughts that has led to the prevailing practice of nonviolence. The history of lack of violence among humans is as long and ancient as the history of violence and conflict. For instance, the teachings of the Buddha and of Socrates offer excellent examples of deliberately shunning violence through ancient times. However, the present-day understanding of nonviolence may be described by tracing its evolution from (i) de la Boétie's "noncompliance", through (ii) "civil disobedience" of Percy Bysshe Shelley, (iii) living in harmony with nature as per "transcendental movement" subscribed to by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, (iv) "pacifism" of The Quakers, (v) "passive resistance" of Lev Nikolayevich 'Leo' Tolstoy, to (vi) the practice of the modern concept of "nonviolence" as an active positive force, articulated by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, and followed by Vinoba Bhave, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Desmond Mpilo Tutu, Leymah Gbowee, and many others. In this book we describe this evolution, describe how nonviolence differs from mere lack of violence, and further identify the prerequisites that ensure effective deployment of nonviolence as a strategy to achieve Love and Peace.
KRISHNA S. DHIR, a graduate of Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, earned a PhD from the University of Colorado. Born in a Punjabi family in Bengal, he schooled in Uttar Pradesh, married in Kerala, and worked in Australia, Hungary, India, Switzerland, UK and USA, in the cement, plastics, and pharmaceutical industries; and also in the academia. He taught at various universities, including the University of Denver, The Citadel, and Pennsylvania State University, and served as Dean at Berry College and the University of Hawaii in Hilo.
NONVIOLENCE A South Asian Perspective: The author offers a South Asian perspective on the evolution of the modern concept of nonviolence as a political strategy. In the 15th century, Étienne de La Boétie questioned 'voluntary servitude' by the masses to the will of a single individual, King Francis I of France, and promoted noncompliance. In late 17th century in UK, Percy Bysshe Shelley suggested civil disobedience for the farmers to counter the power of land-owners. In the 19th century USA, Henry David Thoreau, through the Transcendental Movement, saw divine revelations in nature. Joseph John Gurney shifted the pacifism of The Quakers towards evangelism. By mid-19th century, The Quakers arrived in India. About that time, Leo Tolstoy, having witnessed the horrors of the Crimean War and a public hanging, promoted passive resistance to tyranny. He read a German translation of the ancient book, Thirukkral, and became familiar with the Hindu concept of ahimsa. In the 20th century, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi developed innovative approaches to enhance the effectiveness of nonviolence as a political strategy.
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