In the annals of Indian history, few figures loom as large or command as much reverence as Mahatma Gandhi. His name is synonymous with the ideals of nonviolence, civil disobedience, and social justice. Born Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi on October 2, 1869, in Porbandar, Gujarat, he would later be affectionately known as the Mahatma, meaning “Great Soul.” Through his unwavering commitment to Satyagraha, or the pursuit of truth through nonviolent resistance, Gandhi led India to independence from British rule, leaving an indelible mark on his nation and the world at large. His life and teachings continue to inspire generations, serving as a beacon of hope and a timeless reminder of the power of peaceful protest and moral courage.
1. Nai Talim
In 1937, Mahatma Gandhi seeded an important idea to revamp the education system, at a conference in Wardha,B Maharashtra through Nai Talim. Gandhi felt a need to nullify what education at the time of British Raj was trying to create – distinctions between knowledge and work, teaching and learning, among others. He also considered education as a medium to combat the dominant societal malice of ‘untouchability’ associated with caste-based vocations, such as spinning, weaving, basket-making, leather-work, and pottery.
He envisioned his scheme of education as the one that would lead to silent social revolution by eradicating poisoned relationships between classes. He was a believer in the power of education and wanted education to be accessible to all. This, he thought, would then help changing the dominant mindset that considered:
- manual work as inferior to mental work
- education to be a prerogative of upper castes alone
“By education, I mean an overall, all around drawing out the best in child and man, in body, mind, and spirit,” Gandhi said. He wanted an education system in which education and labour are complementary and felt this move in turn would help in eliminating unnatural division between ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’, rural-urban divide through equitable balances. The dignity of labour and skill-based learning were the hallmarks of the Gandhian approach.
2. Swaraj
Swaraj for Gandhi was not freedom from the British. He said, clearly, “Real swaraj will come, not by the acquisition of authority by a few, but by the acquisition of the capacity by all to resist authority when it is abused. In other words, swaraj is to be attained by educating the masses to a sense of their capacity to regulate and control authority.” Although the word swaraj means self-rule, Gandhi gave it the content of an integral revolution that encompasses all spheres of life.
- At the individual level, swaraj is vitally connected with the capacity for dispassionate self-assessment, ceaseless self-purification, and growing swadeshi or self-reliance.
- Politically swaraj is self-government and not good government (for Gandhi, good government is no substitute for self-government) and it means continuous effort to be independent of government control, whether it is foreign government or whether it is national. In other words, it is sovereignty of the people based on pure moral authority.
- Economically, poorna swaraj means full economic freedom for the toiling millions.
For Gandhi, swaraj of the people meant the sum total of the swaraj (self-rule) of individuals and so he clarified that for him swaraj meant freedom for the meanest of his countrymen. And in its fullest sense, swaraj is much more than freedom from all restraints, it is self-rule, self-restraint and could be equated with moksha or salvation.
Swaraj means vast organising ability, penetration into the villages solely for the services of the villagers; in other words, it means national education i.e., education of the masses. And in the Gandhian discourse, education of the masses means conscientization, mobilisation and empowerment, making people capable and determined to stand up to the powers that be.
3. Sarvodaya
Sarvodaya is a term meaning ‘Universal Uplift’ or ‘Progress of All’. The term was first coined by Gandhi as the title of his 1908 translation of John Ruskin’s tract on political economy, “Unto This Last”, and Gandhi came to use the term for the ideal of his own political philosophy. Later Gandhian, like the Indian activist Vinoba Bhave, embraced the term as a name for the social movement in post-independence India which strove to ensure that self-determination and equality reached all strata of Indian society.
Inspirations from Ruskin’s Book:
- That the good of the individual is contained in the good of all.
- A lawyer’s work has the same value as the barber’s in as much as all have the same right to earn their livelihood from their work.
- That is a life of labour, i.e., the life of the tiller of the soil and the handicraftsman is the life worth living.
Objects of Sarvodaya Movement:
The Sarvodaya Movement has as its target the establishment of a whole network of such self-supporting village communities.
- The family relationships which are confined at present to the blood group will be extended to cover the whole village where distinctions based on race, creed, caste, language and so forth will completely be eliminated.
- Agriculture will be so planned that all the people will have enough to consume. Industry will be conducted on a cottage basis till all the people in the village are gainfully employed.
- The needs of the village will be determined by the people of the village themselves, through the Village Council, representative of the whole village.
Principles of the Sarvodaya:
- Politics will not be the instrument of power but an agency of service and Rajniti will yield place to Lokniti.
- All people will be imbued with the spirit of love, fraternity, truth, non-violence and self-sacrifice. Society will function based on non-violence.
- There will be no party system and majority rule and society will be free from the evil of the tyranny of the majority.
- The Sarvodaya society is socialist in the true sense of the term. All calling will be the same moral, social and economic values. The individual personality has the fullest scope for development.
- The Sarvodaya society is based on equality and liberty. There is no room in it for exploitation and class hatred.
- Sarvodaya stands for the progress of all. All individuals should do individual labour and follow the ideal of nonpossession. Then it will be possible to realize the goal of: each according to his work and each according to his needs.
- There will be no private property, the instrument of exploitation and the source of social distinctions and hatred.
- The gain to the individual would be small. The development of each quality depends upon every other. If all the qualities are improved a little, then the individual would gain more.
Sarvodaya Movement:
Gandhi’s ideals have lasted well beyond Indian independence. His followers in India (notably, Vinoba Bhave) continued working to promote the kind of society that he envisioned, and their efforts have come to be known as the Sarvodaya Movement. Anima Bose has referred to the movement’s philosophy as “a fuller and richer concept of people’s democracy than any we have yet known.” Sarvodaya workers associated with Vinoba, J. P. Narayan, Dada Dharmadhikari, Dhirendra Mazumdaar, Shankarrao Deo, K. G. Mashruwala undertook various projects aimed at encouraging popular selforganization during the 1950s and 1960s, including Bhoodan and Gramdan movements. Many groups descended from these networks continue to function locally in India today.
4. Satyagraha
Gandhi called his overall method of nonviolent action Satyagraha. This translates roughly as “Truth-force.” A fuller rendering, though, would be “the force that is generated through adherence to Truth.” Nowadays, it’s usually called non-violence. But for Gandhi, non-violence was the word for a different, broader concept-namely, “a way of life based on love and compassion.” In Gandhi’s terminology, SatyagrahaTruth-force was an outgrowth of nonviolence.
Satyagraha, when used as a tool for social and political change, aims to win over an opponent. There are three stages in this
process:
- The first stage is that of persuasion through reason.
- The second stage is characterized by persuasion through suffering. The satyagrahi, at this stage, dramatizes the issues at stake by willingly undergoing self-suffering instead of inflicting suffering on the opponent as a test for the truth element in his cause.
- If neither persuasion through reason nor self-suffering does succeed to win over the opponent, the satyagrahi resorts to non-violent coercion characterized by tools such as non-cooperation or civil disobedience.
According to Gandhi, “Satyagraha is literally holding on to Truth, and it means therefore Truth-force.” Truth, for Gandhi, was God. Gandhi defined his personal goal as to “seeing God face to face.” Gandhi, in his experiments with satyagraha, both in South Africa and in India, became more and more aware of the relative character of truth as an operative principle. The relative character of truth became evident to Gandhi as each time the social and political problems he took up for reform differed. In this respect, satyagraha is not a dogma. It is neither static nor substantial. For Gandhi, holding on to truth in satyagraha is a dynamic concept and satyagraha is a technique of action.
In satyagraha, self-suffering is willingly accepted by the satyagraha himself with the specific intention of the moral persuasion of the enemy. Self-suffering is neither an inability to win over the opponent through violence nor a meek submission to the will of the evil-doer. It is a fight against an evil system and a tyrant with one’s soul force. In other words, self-suffering is the way of the strong. Gandhi says, “Non-violence cannot be taught to a person who fears to die and has no power of resistance.”
Emphasizing on the inseparableness of truth and nonviolence in satyagraha, Gandhi considers truth and nonviolence (love) as the two sides of the same coin. Ahimsa and Truth are so intertwined that it is practically impossible to disentangle and separate them. Nevertheless, ahimsa is the means; Truth is the end. Means to be means must always be within our reach, and so ahimsa is our supreme duty. If we take care of the means, we are bound to reach the end sooner or later.” In short, in the satyagraha movement for Gandhi, truth is the ultimate goal and non-violence is the means to it.
Satyagraha as a technique for social and political change, has certain definite characteristics and features among which adherence to truth, non-violence and self- suffering have paramount importance.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: Who was Mahatma Gandhi and why is he important?
A: Mahatma Gandhi, born Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, was a prominent leader of the Indian independence movement against British colonial rule. He advocated for nonviolent resistance and civil disobedience as powerful tools for social and political change. His principles of truth, nonviolence, and Satyagraha inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world.
Q: What were Mahatma Gandhi’s key contributions to India’s independence movement?
A: Gandhi’s contributions to India’s independence movement were profound. He led numerous campaigns against British rule, including the Salt March, the Quit India Movement, and various boycotts. His philosophy of Satyagraha, or nonviolent resistance, mobilized millions of Indians to challenge British authority peacefully, ultimately leading to India’s independence in 1947.
Q: How did Mahatma Gandhi influence the world beyond India’s independence?
A: Gandhi’s influence extended far beyond India’s borders. His philosophy of nonviolence inspired numerous movements for civil rights, social justice, and freedom around the globe. Figures like Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, and Cesar Chavez drew inspiration from Gandhi’s teachings and applied them to their own struggles for equality and justice.
Q: What were Mahatma Gandhi’s views on religion and spirituality?
A: Gandhi’s spirituality played a central role in his life and philosophy. He believed in the unity of all religions and emphasized the importance of religious tolerance and understanding. Gandhi’s concept of Sarvodaya, or the welfare of all, was rooted in his belief in the inherent goodness of humanity and the interconnectedness of all beings.
Q: How did Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy continue after his death?
A: Gandhi’s legacy continued to inspire movements for social change and nonviolent resistance long after his death. His principles of truth, nonviolence, and Satyagraha remain relevant in today’s world, influencing activists, leaders, and ordinary people striving for a more just and peaceful society. Gandhi’s teachings serve as a timeless reminder of the power of compassion, courage, and moral integrity in the face of injustice and oppression.
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