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available written material and discovered that one way the movement contributed in promoting peace was by holding multiple national and international conferences on peace and nonviolent action. The conferences were held in Ladnun and Rajsamand in Rajasthan, India and the participants were representating more than 20 countries. These conferences could create a theoretical atmosphere of peace among the intellectuals but what about the practical implications upon individuals? To answer my own question, I found an article helpful, from the yearly special issue of the Anuvrat magazine titled In Pursuit of Peace. The author of the article states: "To achieve peace means to change both individuals and systems."3 In the same article, the author further quotes a British peace-leader: There is only one person in the world I can disarm - myself.94 Views obtained from such quotations re-emphasize Tulsi's unwavering confidence in human potentiality for cultivating an atmosphere of peace.
Vow Three: I will not take part in violent agitations or in any destructive activities.
This third vow, once again in the category of ahimsa, reflects another modern social concern in India's pluralistic, post-Independence society. When I inquired about the meaning and significance of this vow from my respondents, one female Anuvrati with a PhD in Anekantvada (Jainas doctrine of non-absolutism) responded in the following way: "The burning of police vehicles or buses on the road, breaking of tables and chairs in the college are a few examples of such violent agitations. It is an outcome of extreme emotional disturbance. Tomorrow these people will need buses to travel and chairs to
93
John Ferguson, "In Pursuit of Peace," Anuvrat, 2000.
94
Ibid.
46
