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What Gandhi said

Written by: Andrew Campbell-Watt

Article Overview: Gandhi (Mohandas Gandhi, 1869 to 1948) said that one of the seven deadly “sins” (as he described them) of the modern world was “Commerce without Morality”. What did he mean by this and is it true?

What Gandhi said

Gandhi (Mohandas Gandhi, 1869 to 1948) said that one of the seven deadly “sins” (as he described them) of the modern world was “Commerce without Morality”.
What did he mean by this and is it true?
We need first to ask ourselves two questions; what is morality? Is it important?

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) defines Morals inter alia, as “… of or pertaining to the distinction between right and wrong, or good and evil in relation to the actions, volitions, or character of responsible beings; ethical; …” ; and Ethics, inter alia, as “… the moral principles by which any particular person is guided; the rules of conduct recognized in a particular profession or area of human life”.
Ethics and morality then are the flip sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other. Someone who is moral must, by definition, be also ethical and be what we would call a ‘good’ person. Such a person we would consider trustworthy, someone we would like to deal with, to call upon for help, advice and guidance. Someone who’s word is their bond.

In the Analects of Confucius (551 BC to 479 BC) translated by Simon Leys, there is a quote about the importance, in ancient China, of the notion of the word ‘gentleman’.
“Originally it meant an aristocrat, a member of the social elite: one did not become a gentleman, one could only be born a gentleman. For Confucius, on the contrary, a ‘gentleman’ is a member of the moral elite. It is an ethical quality, achieved by the practice of virtue, and secured through education. Every man should strive for it, even though few may reach it.”
It is my contention that Morality is common to all peoples in all places and at all times. As human beings, we naturally, seldom continuously think about things we do not like, or try to do something we would not normally like doing. We normally try to do things which make us happy. We, through our actions, try to express ourselves, what we choose to be, in the eyes of our fellow beings, and at a deeper level, in our own eyes. We naturally try to do ‘good’ and to be true to ourselves. To do or be anything else is certainly stressful and will certainly reduce our chances of leading a harmonious life with a good work life balance.
In many respects what has been forgotten in today’s frenetic world is that there has been an impoverishment of the concept of MAN (homo sapiens) as a human being. For instance people who look for measurable success (e.g. a CEO always expected to maintain or increase earnings per share year on year) live only a one dimensional existence. There is a need to distinguish between succeeding for the sake of winning, and a desire for success that will enrich our lives and lead to fulfilment and a feeling of well being. We need a balance between success, as a human being and success at activities (not always the same thing).
Expectations of measurable success and the activities required to meet them, possibly even exploitative actions, diminish the perpetrators. Such people are reduced to a one-eyed perception of Life. This is what I believe Gandhi was thinking about when he made the statement that leads this article. The aim of life is the unfolding of man’s creative powers; the potential of Life’s process is a transformation of Society into one governed by justice and truth.

Those with long memories may recall a gentleman nicknamed “Chainsaw”, who, quite a few years ago now, was engaged to reinvigorate a large appliance manufacturing company in the USA. They may also recall his fate.
The need for moral and ethical conduct was well known in earlier times. People received instruction about the Natural Laws, by way of fables and myths. These highlighted, in often graphic detail, the consequences of irresponsible actions and the operation of cause and effect. This was well expressed by Aldous Huxley:
“So whole-hearted is the faith in technological idols that it is very hard to discover, in the popular thoughts of our time, any trace of the ancient and profoundly realistic doctrine of Hubris and Nemesis. To the Ancient Greeks, Hubris meant any kind of over-weening and excess. When men or societies went too far, either in dominating other men and societies, or in exploiting the resources of nature to their own advantage, this over-weening exhibition of pride had to be paid for. In a word, Hubris invited Nemesis.” (Aldous Huxley - Essay on ‘New Forms of Idolatory’, 1945).
[O.E.D. ‘hubris’ … Presumption; insolence (originally towards the Gods); pride; excessive self confidence. ‘Nemesis’ …The Goddess of retribution and vengeance].
Nemesis was (is?) said to be implacable in the pursuit of her cause - to track every wrong back to its perpetrator.
This may be more directly stated as in the old saying, “Take it! Take what you want from life, says God - and pay for it!” (Source unknown).
CASE STUDY.
You are a senior sales manager for a large international food company.
On a recent follow-up sales trip to a developing country, in your zone, you discover that most of the cans of baby formula in a large consignment ordered by the country’s major supermarket chain were either time expired or near the end of their shelf life. This is not what you had arranged when you had originally negotiated the sale.
You are appalled by the news, particularly when a store manager, in strict confidence, tells you that he has overheard conversations that indicate some fraudulent activity may be involved. You are fully aware of the intense competition in the baby formula industry, but when babies health, even lives are at stake, this for you is a ‘no go’ area.
What should you do?
What are your options?
Does it really matter? After all it is a developing third world country.
Note: Remember what Gandhi said!

For those interested the 'Seven Sins' according to Gandhi were:-

1. Knowledge without character.
2. Science without humanity.
3. Wealth without work.
4. Commerce without morality.
5. Politics without principles.
6. Pleasure without conscience.
7. Worship without self-sacrifice.

Related Articles
  Leadership 101: Integrity by Example
  What Change Do You Want To See?
  Follow-Me Leaders
  Seven Signs That Its Time For Change
  Who Would You Lunch With?

Article Tags: choice, ethical conduct, fraud, gandhi mohandas, mans creative powers, mohandas gandhi, moral conduct, morality, seven deadly sins, virtue



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