Part 10, Chapter 55 : 
Trusteeship: Economic Equality
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Author : Gandhi

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55. ECONOMIC EQUALITY

 
Inequalities in intelligence and even opportunity will last till the end of
time. A man living on the banks of a river has any day more opportunity of
growing crops than one living in an arid desert. But if inequalities stare
us in the face, the essential equality too is not to be missed. (YI,
26-3-1931, p. 49)

My Idea of Society

 
My idea of society is that while we are born equal, meaning that we have a
right to equal opportunities, all have not the same capacity. It is, in the
nature of things, impossible. For instance, all cannot have the same
height, or color or degree of intelligence, etc.; therefore, in the nature
of things, some will have ability to earn more and others less.

People with talents will have more, and they will utilize their talents for
this purpose. If they utilize their talents kindly, they will be performing
the work of the State. Such people exist as trustees, on no other terms.

I would allow a man of intellect to earn more, I would not cramp his
talent. But the bulk of his greater earnings must be used for the good of
the State, just as the income of all earning sons of the father go to the
common family fund. They would have their earning only as trustees. (YI,
26-11-1931, p.368)

For I want to bring about an equalization of status. The working classes
have all these centuries been isolated and relegated to a lower status.
They have been shoodras, and the word has been interpreted to mean an
inferior status. I want to allow no differentiation between the son of a
weaver, of an agriculturist and of a schoolmaster. (H, 15-1-1938, p. 416)

Removal of Disparity

 
Economic equality of my conception does not mean that everyone will
literally have the same amount. It simply means that everybody should have
enough for his or her needs. …The real meaning of economic equality is
“To each according to his need.” That is the definition of Marx. If a
single man demands as much as a man with wife and four children, that will
be a violation of economic equality.

Let no one try to justify the glaring difference between the classes and
the masses, the prince and the pauper, by saying that the former need more.
That will be idle sophistry and a travesty of my argument.

The contrast between the rich and the poor today is a painful sight. The
poor villagers are exploited by…their own countrymen- the city-dwellers.
They produce the food and go hungry. They produce milk and their children
have to go without it. It is disgraceful. Everyone must have a balanced
diet, a decent house to live in, and facilities for the education of
one’s children and adequate medical relief….

Under my plan the State will be there to carry out the will of the people,
not to dictate them or force them to do its will. I shall bring about
economic equality through nonviolence, by converting the people to my point
of view by harnessing the forces of love as against hatred. I will not wait
till I have converted the whole society to my view, but will straightaway
make a beginning with myself. It goes without saying that I cannot hope to
bring about economic equality of my conception if I am the owner of fifty
motor cars or even of ten bighas of land. For that I have to reduce myself
to the level of he poorest of the poor. (H, 31-3-1946, p. 63)

All must have equal opportunity. Given the opportunity, every human being
has the same possibility for spiritual growth. (H, 17-11-1946, p. 404)

Accumulation [of capital] by private persons is impossible except through
violent means, but accumulation by the State in a nonviolent society is not
only possible, it is desirable and inevitable. [No man has the] moral right
[‘to use any material or moral wealth accumulated only through the help
or cooperation of other members of society mainly for personal advantage.
(H, 16-2-1947, p. 25)

Today there is gross economic inequality. The basis of socialism is
economic equality. There can be no Ramarajya in the present state of
iniquitous inequalities in which a few rolls in riches and the masses do
not get even enough to eat. (H, 1-6-1947, p. 172)

Doctrine of Equal Distribution

 
We want to organize our national power. This can be done not by adopting
the best methods of production only but by the best method of both the
production and the distribution. (YI, 28-7-1920, p. 5)

What India needs is not the concentration of capital in a few hands, but
its distribution so as to be within easy reach of the 7 1/2 lakhs of
villages that make this continent 1900 miles long and 1500 miles broad.
(YI, 23-3-1921, p. 93)

My ideal is equal distribution, but so far as I can see, it is not to be
realized. I therefore work for equitable distribution. (YI, 17-3-1927, p.
86)

The real implication of equal distribution is that each man shall have the
wherewithal to supply all his natural needs and no more. For example, if
one man has a weak digestion and requires only a quarter of a pound of
flour for his bread and another needs a pound, both should be in a position
to satisfy their wants.

New Social Order

 
To bring this ideal into being the entire social order has got to be
reconstructed. A society based on nonviolence cannot nurture any other
ideal. We may not perhaps be able to realize the goal, but we must bear it
in mind and work unceasingly to near it. To the same extent as we progress
towards our goal we shall contentment and happiness, and to that extent too
shall we have contributed towards the bringing into being of a nonviolent
society.

It is perfectly possible for an individual to adopt this way of life
without having to wait for others to do so. And if an individual can
observe a certain rule of conduct, if follows that a group of individuals
can do like wise. It is necessary for me to emphasize the fact that no one
need wait for anyone else in order to adopt a right course. Men generally
hesitate to make a beginning if they feel that the objective cannot be had
in its entirety. Such an attitude of mind is in reality a bar to progress.

Through Nonviolence

 
Now let us consider how equal distribution can be brought about through
nonviolence. The first step towards it for him who has made this ideal part
of his being is to bring about the necessary changes in his personal life.
He would reduce his wants to a minimum, bearing in mind the poverty of
India. His earnings would be free of dishonesty. The desire for speculation
would be renounced. His habitation would be in keeping with his new mode of
life. There would be self-restraint exercised in every sphere of life. When
he has done all that is possible to preach this ideal among his associates
and neighbor.

Indeed, at the root of this doctrine of equal distribution must lie that of
the trusteeship of the wealthy for superfluous wealth possessed by them.
For according to the doctrine they may not possess a rupee more than their
neighbors.

How is this to be brought about? Nonviolently? Or should the wealthy be
dispossessed of their possessions? To do this we would naturally have to
resort to violence. This violent action cannot benefit society. Society
will be the poorer, for it will lose the gifts of a man who knows how to
accumulate wealth. Therefore the nonviolent way is evidently superior. The
rich man will be left in possession of his wealth, of which he will use
what he reasonably requires for his personal needs and will act as a
trustee for the remainder to be used for the society. In this argument,
honesty on the part of the trustee is assumed.

Change in Human Nature

 
As soon as a man looks upon himself as a servant of society, earns for its
sake, spends for its benefit, then purity enters into his earnings and
there is ahimsa in his venture. Moreover, if men’s minds turn towards
this way of life, there will come about a peaceful revolution in society
and that without any bitterness.

It may be asked whether history at any time records such a change in human
nature. Such changes have certainly taken place in individuals. One may not
perhaps be able to point to them in a whole society. But this only means
that up till now there has never been an experiment on a large scale on
nonviolence.

Applicability of Ahimsa

 
Somehow or other the wrong belief has taken possession of us that ahimsa is
preeminently a weapon for individuals and its use should, therefore, be
limited to that sphere. In fact this is not the case. Ahimsa is definitely
an attribute of society. To convince people of this truth is at once my
effort and my experiment.

In this age of wonders no one will say that a thing or idea is worthless
because it is new. To say it is impossible because it is difficult is again
not in consonance with the spirit of the age. Things undreamed of are daily
being seen, the impossible is ever becoming possible. We are constantly
being astonished these days at the amazing discoveries in the field of
violence. But I maintain that far more undreamed of and seemingly
impossible discoveries will be made in the field of nonviolence. The
history of religion is full of such examples….

If, however, in spite of the utmost effort, the rich do not become
guardians of the poor in the true sense of the term and the latter are more
and more crushed and die of hunger, what is to be done? In trying to find
out the solution of this riddle, I have lighted on nonviolent
non-cooperation and civil disobedience as the right and infallible means.
The rich cannot accumulate wealth without the cooperation of the poor in
society.

Man has been conversant with violence from the beginning, for he has
inherited this strength from the animal in his nature. It was only when he
rose from the state of a quadruped (animal) to that of a biped (man) that
the knowledge of the strength of ahimsa entered into his soul. This
knowledge has grown within him slowly but surely. If this knowledge were to
penetrated to and spread among the poor, they would become strong and would
learn how to free themselves by means of nonviolence from the crushing
inequalities which have brought them to the verge of starvation. (H,
25-8-1940, pp. 260–1)





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     Part 10, Chapter 55 -- Added : January 05, 2021

     Part 10, Chapter 55 -- Updated : January 17, 2022

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