They gathered in front of Gandhi and advised him to seek a compromise, a reconciliation on issues rather than waste his life fighting a hopeless battle.
Gandhi very calmly replied to them, “My life gets meaning only in seeking complete freedom of the country from the Britishers, so that we can have self-rule. I do not stand for reconciliations, settlements or compromise with violence, subjugation or enslavement. Give your advice to the weak who doubt my way.”
On another occasion, some other people asked Gandhi, “What are the chances of your non-violent struggles to succeed?”
Gandhi smiled and said, “Honestly, I don’t know. No one has ever experimented with non-violence as a tool for a national movement in human history.”
“So, why do you pursue such a struggle that you are not sure of succeeding?”
“I do not work so that I succeed. I work because it is the correct thing to do, because it gives meaning to my life. It gives me the dignity to my existence even in its failure. A life without a cause has no purpose.” Gandhi responded.