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At his Ashram sevagram Gandhi kept small statuettes of the three
wise monkeys.
Of the monkeys one has its hands over its ears, another has its hands
over its mouth, and the third holds its hands over its eyes. The trio
represents the proverb 'Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil'
The monkeys have come to be associated with Gandhian thought. But did
you know that Gandhi didn't invent the monkey statues?
The monkey trio represents an old Sino-Japanese tradition dating back to
the 7th century. The Three Wise Monkeys were introduced into Japan by a
Buddhist monk of the Tendai sect, probably in the 8th century A.D. Their
gestures of covering their ears, eyes and mouths with their paws was a
way of conveying the command of the god. The depiction is part of the
teaching that if we do not hear, see or talk evil, we ourselves shall be
spared all evil. A famous carving of the Three Monkeys can still be seen
on the sacred stable in the Toshogu Shrine in Nikko, Japan.
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