Born in 1828, Tolstoy was a Russian writer, philosopher and political protagonist. Tolstoy was a master of realistic fiction and is widely considered one of the world’s greatest novelists. He is best known for two long novels, “War and Peace” (1869) and “Anna Karenina” (1877). Tolstoy is equally known for his complicated and paradoxical persona and for his extreme moralistic and ethical views, which he adopted after a spiritual awakening in the 1870s, after which he also became noted as a moral thinker and social reformer.

His literal interpretation of the ethical teachings of Jesus, centering on strictly adhering to Jesus’ teachings as read in the Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount, caused him in later life to become a devout Christian anarcho-pacifist — believing that humans should adhere to the doctrines of self-governance & respect-full peace for all living kind. His ideas on nonviolent resistance had a profound impact on such pivotal twentieth-century figures as Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and James Bevel.

Indeed, in 1908, Tolstoy wrote “A Letter to a Hindoo”, wherein he outlined his belief in non-violence as the most effective means for India to gain independence from British colonial rule. In 1909, a copy of the letter fell into the hands of Mohandas Gandhi, who was then working as a lawyer in South Africa. Tolstoy’s letter moved Gandhi immensely, and led to the two men engaging in further correspondence. Reading Tolstoy’s “The Kingdom of God Is Within You” also convinced Gandhi to avoid violence and espouse nonviolent resistance, a debt Gandhi acknowledged in his autobiography, calling Tolstoy “the greatest apostle of non-violence that the present age has produced”. Besides non-violent resistance, the two men also shared a common belief in the merits of a plant-based diet, which happens to be the primary subject of several of Tolstoy’s essays.

“When you love someone, you love the whole person, just as he or she is, and not as you would like them to be … Love is life. All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I Love. Everything is, everything exists, only because I Love. Everything is united by it alone” ~ Leo Tolstoy

“The vocation of every man and woman is to serve other people … Truth is communicated to men only by deeds of truth.” ~ Leo Tolstoy

“A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral … Thus, if a man aspires towards a truly righteous life, his first act must be an abstinence from injuring animals.” ~ Leo Tolstoy

P.S. For those interested, this is a lovely children’s book based on a Tolstoy work bearing the same name … It is truly delightful, for young & old alike … so enJOY!

 

Filed under: In LOVE with Humanity by Scaughdt