அறநெறிச்சமயம்

 Book Condensation

Ethical Religion by M.K.Gandhi.

 The Higher Law 

There are some acts which are good and some which are bad. Sometimes certain bad acts may benefit us, or we may have sympathy for the wrong doer. This does not alter the fact that a certain act is bad.

Moral laws are immutable. Sometimes, in the absence of proper light on the facts, we may consider a bad act as good. But once we have information, we will understand that the act is bad. So our opinions do not change the nature of an act.

  Generally men lack objectivity. Often prompted by personal considerations, people may classify an immoral act as moral. We are yet to find a disinterested student of morality, patient and painstaking, who, setting aside his earlier superstitious notions, devotes his life to seeking only the ideal good.  We may not, for a time, arrive at unanimity of opinions regarding moral laws. This does not however mean that we cannot distinguish between what is right and what is wrong. Thus, we see that in spite of individual’s likes and wishes, there is a moral standard which is called moral law. This has to be obeyed. A man may protest against a State Law and choose to disobey it and accept punishment. But there is no question of protesting against the moral law, and saying it is not necessary to adhere to truth and one may lie. Even a man practicing immorality is bound to admit that what he is doing is immoral (even though he may not openly concede it.)

 A moral law does not change   because of custom or public opinion. A moral man may continue to be moral even though the public opinion is totally against him.  Even if the State passes an act making an immoral act moral, it does not change the Divine Law. As Robert Browning said, “If ever Satan proclaimed the law of hatred and untruth in the world, even then justice, goodness and truth will continue to be divine.” Thus the moral law is Supreme and Divine.

No people or individual can violate this law to the end of time.  There are instances of States having been broken and destroyed due to immorality.

The mysterious moral law brings prosperity to the man who observes it; it sustains the family that obeys it; and the community that lives by it ever flourishes. Freedom, peace and happiness are the lot of the nation that lets itself be ruled by this highest law.