by Donald G. Groom

Editor’s Preface: This article is taken from The War Resister, issue 92, Third Quarter 1961. We have posted a number of other articles on Shanti Sena, which may be accessed via our search function. Notes about the author, references, and acknowledgments are found at the end. JG

“Shanti/Peace” in Sanskrit; courtesy palmstone.com

In my view there are two main aspects of the World Peace Brigade, that of individual and group action carrying out service or direct peace action; the other the supporting action of thousands and millions who have heartfelt sympathy with its purposes. All will have faith in the revolutionary power of love and compassion in all spheres of human activity and in the innate goodness of man, even though the upholding of this faith may involve suffering and death. But those people who are chosen for direct involvement in the problems of human suffering, tension, fear and all forms of violence would have to function at a different level and demonstrate the power of nonviolence for peacemaking which could only come through a high quality of life and discipline. What is expected therefore from such volunteers?

Discussion about this will go on for a long time to come and we may never be satisfied. We may go to many sources for guidance and inspiration, but perhaps for the moment I may be allowed to limit myself to Mahatma Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave.

The nonviolent power to which I referred Gandhi called Satyagraha (insistence on Truth). “The word was coined”, he said, “as a complete substitute for violence . . . It excludes every form of violence, direct or indirect, veiled or unveiled, and whether in thought, word or deed . . . It is the direct opposite of compulsion.” So when he suggested the formation of a Peace Brigade, he mentioned such qualifications for its members as the following: He or she must have a living faith in nonviolence. This is impossible without a living faith in God. The messenger of Peace must also have an equal regard for all the principal religions of the world. He must have a character beyond reproach and must be known for his strict impartiality.

As an explanation of faith in God Gandhi wrote, “Far be it from me to suggest that you should believe in the God that I believe in. Maybe your definition is different from mine; but your belief in that God must be your ultimate mainstay. It may be some Supreme Power or some Being indefinable.” And Gandhi also wrote, “God may be called by any other name so long as it connotes the living Law of Life, in other words the Law and the Lawgiver rolled into one . . . I said that Truth is God. This God is a living Force. Our life is of that Force. That Force resides in but is not the body. He who denies the existence of the great Force, denies to himself the use of that inexhaustible Power and thus remains impotent.”

In 1940, on the question of discipline, he wrote: “True discipline gives enthusiastic obedience to instructions even though they do not satisfy reason. A volunteer exercises his reason when he chooses his General; but, having made the choice, he does not waste time and energy in scanning every instruction and testing it on the anvil of his reason before following it.”

Vinoba Bhave emphasises the importance of discipline. “The discipline of the violent should look pale before that of the nonviolent.” Then he added: “Some people think that there is no discipline in the conception of nonviolence. But it would be true to say that the very meaning of nonviolence is discipline. In nonviolence the discipline stems from within, from one’s own understanding of the need. Often so-called believers in nonviolence do not understand this and they think that they should be allowed to do as they please. Their strength is, therefore, never brought out. The strength that is readily visible in armed force is not so visible amongst the votaries of nonviolence.”

Vinoba goes on to assert that “the most important characteristic of a volunteer in the Peace Brigade is compassion. This quality is never ineffective. The other main characteristics will be his readiness to build up equal relationships with all, and pure, transparent humility.” Then again he said that “peace volunteers must be absolutely non-partisan, non-attached and selfless.”

It seems quite obvious that Mahatma Gandhi was and Vinoba is on the path of discovering a complete alternative to war and violence, something that could add a new dimension to human action, calling upon innate powers, which have as yet rarely been tapped. It is revolutionary and calls for dedication and the utmost spirit of adventure. Yet it is the individual who is the vehicle for this and this nonviolence demands a new quality of being.

Are we aiming too high or are these qualities essential for the Peace Brigade volunteers?

It is undoubtedly true that the vast majority have begun to have doubts about the efficacy in the modern world of the use of violence. The instruments of violence are uncontrollable. But it is not true that the majority have gained a faith in the alternative to violence, by whatever words we describe it. The power of nonviolence has still to win its place in the hearts of men and women everywhere. It has to be proved effective in ensuring peace, in giving security and in redressing injustice and wrong.

What is wanted, therefore, is quality in those whom we may call peace activists. In so far as their action is dependent upon their possession of the highest human virtues, they can gain support from men and women everywhere who may act, in however small degree, on the basis of those virtues.

If what I have said is true, then the World Peace Brigade will have to select its activists very carefully and provide the means for training. At least it must make more widely known the attributes expected of a nonviolent army so that those who are concerned may turn their minds in that direction.

A right attitude towards discipline will have to be developed amongst those who wish to be directly associated with the Brigade in service work or peace action. Vinoba is surely right that the discipline of the soldier should look pale before that of the nonviolent volunteer. This will come partly through humility, partly through spiritual training and partly through the depth of the group fellowship within the Brigade.

Mahatma Gandhi has emphasised right attitudes. Vinoba has linked service with peace action. So it is very important that the World Peace Brigade links service with peace action and has the right attitude to service. It is not a service for one country or another. It is a service related to the building of a universal nonviolent society. The one-world vision must be ever before us. Individual units must be international in content. They must function in all countries alongside local efforts (such as the Sarvodaya movement in India) to improve conditions of life and the quality of community effort within which all may share. It must never show sectarian or party political bias and never bolster private ownership. Such services must strengthen community responsibility for the welfare of all. It will be the World Peace Brigade’s concern to secure the widest participation of those in all countries who can forego something for the common good. There are many in so-called backward countries who can do this, as well as the vast majority of those in more wealthy countries.

If this is to be a revolutionary world movement, the need for those who are completely identified with it to have some outward symbol seems to be desirable. Is a badge enough or can some special form of dress be contemplated? We have much to think about.

Reference: IISG/WRI Archive Box 117: Folder 3, Subfolder 1.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Donald G. Groom was an English Quaker and devoted follower of Vinoba Bhave. He wrote a number of important pamphlets published in India and not widely known, including Sarvodaya in Cities; Shanti Sena, and With Vinoba: A Diary, We are grateful to WRI/London and their director Christine Schweitzer for their cooperation in our WRI project.