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1869-1948
More affectionately he was know as Bapu (father). Gandhiji's advocacy of nonviolence, known as ahimsa (Sanskrit, "non injury"), was the expression of a way of life implicit in the Hindu religion. By the Indian practice of nonviolence, Gandhiji held, Britain too would eventually consider violence useless and would leave India.
1910-1997
Because a frame so small encased a heart big enough for the world.
Because in a world where life is cheap and humanity discarded without thought, she found they were worth an idea and a mission.
Because the poor in soup kitchens of New York and wasting lepers in the soul kitchens of Calcutta think she is a saint, and will not wait for beatification by the Vatican to call her one.
Because when you say , "The Mother", people never ask whom you are referring to.
Because her questionable ideas about right to life did not slight her right to give.
Because a simple white sari with a blue border is among the best known uniforms in the world.
Because most of the time, Mother knew best.
India Today Dec 25,2000 (Special Edition)
Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge....At the stroke of midnight hour, when the world sleeps,India will awake to life and freedom.A moment comes,which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance.
Jawaharlal Nehru to India's Constituent Assembly,
New Delhi, August 14,1947