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Distinguished guests, fellow speakers, ladies and gentlemen, it is a great honour to address this World Peace Forum among such esteemed company. I have been asked to speak on Mahatma Gandhi as the father of India and his relevance today. We meet during trying times, amidst military operations in Iraq. Each day, we watch horrific images of war flash across our screens, sadly, almost like a cricket commentary. We hope this operation ends swiftly, to halt the hardship, suffering, loss of life, and destruction. In this context, I cannot help but recall Gandhiji's words: "I am prepared to die, but there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill." He was an heir to the ancient Indian tradition of Gautama Buddha and Mahāvīra, and was popularly known as Mahatma, the noble soul. Having won his political spurs agitating against apartheid in South Africa, he infused new energy into the Indian freedom struggle. His methods were based on the principle of refusing to submit to wrong or cooperate with it in any way, including civil disobedience to correct political injustice. Despite brutal repression, he never let the movement deviate from the path of non-violence. Thus, for the first time in history, the power of a mighty global empire was challenged and overcome by the moral might of a people armed only with ideals and courage. While known as the father of the Indian nation, his appeal as an apostle of peace is universal. As Martin Luther King said, "Gandhi was inevitable. We may ignore Gandhi at our own risk." In today's world, where intolerance and deadly weapons destabilize our peace, Mahatma Gandhi's ideals shine like a guiding light, as does his message of compassion and tolerance. Compassion is not pity, but involves helping the downtrodden regain self-respect. He considered intolerance a form of violence and an obstacle to true democratic spirit. Truth and non-violence were the twin pillars of his philosophy. He stated that Truth was God, and non-violence was the means of realising Him. This non-violence was not passive, but a positive principle. It meant not only refraining from physical or mental injury, but winning over the heart of the perpetrator through suffering the fault of the unreasonable. Gandhiji advocated fearlessness as the first prerequisite of spirituality. This did not mean arrogance, which is itself a sign of fear. True liberation comes from freeing ourselves of the fears that control our lives. Where there is fear, there is no religion. The essence of all religions is one; only their approaches differ. He offered simple solutions for happiness: no joy compares to doing one's duty quietly, and happiness depends on what you can give, not what you can receive. He was a visionary who dreamed of a society where every tear would be wiped from every eye, where the poor would be the most important rung in the social order, leading to an end of oppression. His messages were not empty platitudes; he lived them. A small anecdote illustrates this: a mother once brought her son, who was eating too many sweets, to Gandhiji. He asked her to return in two weeks. When she did, he simply advised the boy to stop eating sweets, as it was bad for his health. The mother asked why he hadn't said so immediately. Gandhiji replied, "Two weeks ago, I too was eating sweets." He did not preach what he did not practice. He enumerated seven social sins to be avoided: politics without principle, pleasure without conscience, wealth without work, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, science without humanity, and worship without sacrifice. These remain profoundly valid today. Mahatma Gandhi's life and message live on as a profound source of inspiration for all striving to build a better, peaceful world. As the Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore said, he will be remembered as the one who made his life a lesson for all ages to come. Thank you. Recording location: Australia, Sydney, World Peace Forum 2003