Mahatma Gandhi
Introduction:
- Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, a well-known politician and supporter of freedom. He significantly aided the peaceful Indian independence struggle, which ultimately resulted in the end of British authority in the nation. Other names for him include Bapu, Mahatma, and the Father of India (Great Soul). He had an impact on the lives of the poor in India as well. He had an impact on two people, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King Jr., both of whom were committed to the truth and nonviolence. He is an active politician, author, lawyer, and activist (he studied law in London in 1888).
Early Stages of Gandhi’s Life:
- Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born to Karamchand and Putlibai on October 2, 1869, in Porbandar, India. When he was only 13 years old, he entered into an arranged marriage with Kasturba Kapadia. She had four boys and supported Gandhi’s causes right up until her death in 1944.
- In September 1888, Gandhi, who was 18 years old at the time, flew by himself to London to pursue a legal education. Gandhi was exposed to Leo Tolstoy and Henry David Thoreau by the London Vegetarian Society, whose educated membership also convinced Gandhi to become a vegetarian. He was greatly influenced by the Shravana and Harishchandra stories, the Bhagavad Gita, and Thirukkural (early Tamil literature), which emphasised the importance of truth. His subsequent beliefs were built on the concepts presented in these literature.
- On June 10, 1891, Gandhi passed the legal exam and went back to India. He attempted to practise law for two years, but lacked the knowledge of Indian law and confidence necessary to succeed as a trial lawyer. Instead, he made the decision to take on a year-long South African case.
Gandhi’s principles:
- Gandhi first created a system of moral and ethical principles in India before going to South Africa, where he lived from 1893 to 1914. These ideas were modelled after those of the Bhagavad Geeta, Jainism, Buddhism, the Bible, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Tolstoy (whose book The Kingdom of God is within you had a significant impact on Gandhi), John Ruskin (whose work Unto the Last Gandhi adapted as Sarvodaya), and other writers. Later Gandhians, including Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, and others inside and outside of India, as well as Vinoba Bhave and Jayaprakash Narayan in India, adopted similar views. Here is a list of some of Gandhi’s key philosophical tenets.
- Gandhian philosophy is based on two pillars: truth and nonviolence.
- Gandhi believed that being honest required speaking the absolute truth both in words and acts.
- Pure reality is the only thing that exists. The ultimate reality is God (as God is also Truth). The foundation of morality is made up of its tenets and regulations.
- Nonviolence, commonly referred to as active love, is the exact opposite of violence. Many individuals think that love or nonviolence is the highest kind of human law.
- Securing rights via one’s own suffering as opposed to hurting other people is known as satyagraha.
- It indicates that every incidence of injustice, exploitation, and oppression is fought with the purest soul-force.
- The notion of satyagraha has its roots in the Upanishads, the Buddha, Mahavira, and other famous authors like Tolstoy and Ruskin.
- The word “Progress of All” or “Universal Uplift” is the abbreviation Sarvodaya.
- It was the name Gandhiji gave to his translation of the political economy text Unto the Last by John Ruskin.
- Gandhiji gave the word “swaraj,” which previously meant “self-rule,” the additional meaning of an all-encompassing revolution that touches on all facets of life.
- A person’s swaraj, according to Gandhiji, is the sum of their individual swaraj (self-rule).
- His most violent neighbours are allowed to roam free.
- More crucial than being free from all restraints, and possibly even comparable to moksha or salvation, are self-rule and self-control.
- In his imagined Ram Rajya, the populace established swaraj for their own gain.
- Swadeshi: The word swadeshi is made up of the words swa, which means one’s own or one’s own, and desh, which denotes country. Thus, “one’s own nation” is the precise meaning of the word “Swadesh.” It can, however, commonly be understood to mean “self-sufficiency.”
- It strongly emphasises getting involved in local politics and business.
- It is the mutually beneficial interaction between individualism and community.
- Gandhi believed that independence would come about because the British had long dominated India’s domestic economy (swaraj).
- In Mahatma Gandhi’s creative vision, the charkha, or spinning wheel, represented Swadeshi, the “centre of the solar system.”
- Gandhi promoted the socioeconomic trusteeship concept.
- It provides a means for the wealthy to act as the trustees of Trusts responsible for guaranteeing the welfare of the entire population.
- Gandhi believed that education should be a lifelong endeavour.
- He started the Nayee Taleem educational programme.
- He put a lot of emphasis on courses in social forestry, nursing, home science, and handicrafts as well as “earn while you learn.”
