They used to call him the spiritual heir of Mahatma Gandhi, while Jawaharlal Nehru was called the political heir.
The lasting part of Gandhi’s Mission grew through the person of Vinoba. That is where he stood, head and shoulders above others. He had drunk at the fountain-head of Indian thought. He had gone deep into the roots of India. He struck his roots in the Upanisads, Vedas and the Gita. He travelled through every part of India and imbibed it basic spiritual base. He knew English well, but he was not westernised in any way. He remained till the end a true son of the soil. (bhoomiputra).
More about it in my-next letter.
With love,
Yours, L.N. Godbole
20th May, 1990 My dear Pranav,
Being a true son of the soil, Vinoba’s perceptions of problems affecting India were totally different from those of others who were modernised or Westernised, the looked at India with the eyes of a westerner. British ideas, the English language, and Western modes of thinking formed their base. Our political system, laws, rules and administration were a legacy of the British rule. They were in favour of continuity. We, in India, are largely continuing the same ideas and the same mind-set even today.
Gandhi was a revolutionary. He wanted to change India but you cannot have major changes unless you look at things with a like those of gandhji view-point. Vinoba’s views were radically different from those of other Indian leaders.
The first thing Vinoba wanted to change was Education. After all, education is the basic industry which provides men for
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