The Nonviolence Handbook: A Guide for Practical Action by Michael N. Nagler

Author:Michael N. Nagler [Nagler, Michael N.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Published: 2014-04-13T22:00:00+00:00

The Importance (or Not) of Numbers

Because nonviolence is, after all, soul force, built primarily on the “person power” within an individual, the individual person plays a more central role in nonviolence than in other kinds of conflict-related action—especially military action, which actually tries to negate the role of the individual through uniforms, indoctrination, a strict chain of command, and so forth. There are times, of course, when numbers help. A Ferdinand Marcos or a Hosni Mubarak can brush off a few hundred people gathered in the square below, but he can’t ignore a couple of million—especially if they’re still there after he has unleashed his firepower against them.

During the successful Philippines insurrection, the term “people power” was coined to express the collective power of the aroused populace. But one participant, Cardinal Jaime Sin, made this insightful observation: “It was amazing. It was two million independent decisions. Each one said, in his heart, ‘I will do this,’ and they went out” (italics added).32 In other words, even people power is made up of what I call person power, the committed will of courageous individuals.

In nonviolence—which, wherever possible, relies on persuasion rather than on coercion—clarity of message can replace numbers. Even that great American, Henry David Thoreau, saw this. In speaking of slavery, he said, “I know this well, that if one thousand, if one hundred, if ten men whom I could name—if ten honest men only—ay, if one HONEST man … ceasing to hold slaves, were to actually withdraw from this co-partnership, and be locked up in the city jail therefore, it would be the abolition of slavery in America. For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be: what is once well done is done forever.”33

The fact is that such an individual with vision and determination will often gather numbers when they’re needed. This is part of a principle that Gandhi called the law of progression, and he illustrates it with a colorful image: “The Ganga [Ganges] does not leave its course in search of tributaries. Even so does the satyagrahi not leave his path, which is sharp as the sword’s edge. But as the tributaries spontaneously join the Ganga as it advances, so it is with the river that is satyagraha.”34

So, numbers are important in satyagraha—except when they’re not. And when they are important, the right person can often gather them. This is worth bearing in mind, because when we are not quite aware of our own strength (which is often), we naturally reach out for the strength in numbers. This is natural, but it should not distract us from exploring the power within.

While the British were preoccupied by World War II, Gandhi felt he could not suspend the freedom struggle, but at the same time he was reluctant to breach his principle of non-embarrassment, which we mentioned in relation to his struggle in the 1913 South African railroad strike. The solution? He appointed one person, his trusted follower Vinoba Bhave, who was widely regarded as his spiritual successor, to perform civil disobedience and to court arrest.

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