Sharishrama (bread labour)

By Sharishrama, Gandhi meant the importance of bread labour or physical activity.Gandhi liked to say that physical labour is as important as intellectual labour in the overall personality development of an individual. In his doctrine of Nayi Talim, Gandhi stressed upon the fact that physical activity and intellectual activity complements each other and they are not to be viewed in isolation. Gandhi used to frequently quote what the holy Bible had mentioned “ Earn thy labour by the sweat of the brow”. He said that most of the life-style diseases prevalent in today’s society is a product of neglected or minimum physical activity and giving undue importance to mental labour.

Moreover, the urge not to earn more than necessary and dedication physical activity to the cause of the poor is intrinsic to the notion of sharishrama or bread labour. By earning what is deemed sufficient, the resources are distributed equitably.Also, dedicating a modicum of physical activity for social cause , the lesser abled and disabled are also benefitted, which gives meaning to the notion of overall development of the nation and society.