Non-violence really rests on the reservoir that you have to create in yourself of patience; not of being patient with the problems, but being patient with yourself to do the hard work.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Non-violence requires inner patience, specifically the patience to do hard personal work. It is about self-discipline rather than tolerating external problems.
- In plain terms
- Peace needs you to be patient with yourself as you do difficult work.
- What can you take from it?
- Self-discipline fuels non-violent resistance.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you sustain patience under pressure?
- What hard work does change require?
Another view
Inner patience alone may not stop external violence.
More from Cesar Chavez
Non-violence means people in action. People have to understand that with non-violence goes a hell of a lot of organization.
Permalink to quote #76 Non-violence, which is the quality of the heart, cannot come by an appeal to the brain.
Permalink to quote #78 Non-violence is very weak in the theoretical sense; it cannot defend itself. But it is most powerful in the action situation where people are using non-violenc…
Permalink to quote #75
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