ABSTRACT
Mahatma K. Gandhi metaphorically described a practitioner of satyagraha as "the seeker of truth has a heart tender as lotus, and hard as granite." Gandhi's "heart as tender as lotus" is close to Christian "brotherly love," but there is an oriental touch to it. For Gandhi, a lie is loveless. It is also a stain, a moral impurity. A lie is a sign of one's pollution and moral confusion. This is why purification and the quest for truth are so essential. We live in the midst of moral confusions, lies, and violence. At various times in his life, Gandhi claimed that his first lessons in satyagraha came from his mother, Putlibai Gandhi. Gandhi also frequently mentioned his wife, Kasturba, as his teacher of satyagraha. Gandhi especially trusted Sarojini Naidu, a gifted poetess, who for the most part abandoned her artistic career to support his cause.
