52. A Different Kind of Non-violence

The monkeys who came to the fields and destroyed the crops were driven away by the villagers with the help of slings. The stones hurled with the slings were sure to strike hard. So the monkeys turned to the fields of Gandhiji's non-violent Ashram thinking that at least there would be no risk of being hit. The radish, tomato, papaya, oranges etc were grown in the Ashram-farm. The monkeys savoured on them resulting in a loss for the Ashram. A complaint was lodged with Gandhiji. He was a practical man. He knew that the crops are produced by hard work only. He too considered it unwise to grow the vegetables and allow the monkeys to feast on them. This man, who propounded non-violence, sent for the archers from Panchmahal and asked them to guard the fields. He even allowed them to aim at the monkeys if needed. This non-violence of Gandhi was quite different from his 'love for all organisms' (jeevdaya) approach.