Religion : Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

As we dive into Gandhi's world together I am going to cover key topics to better your understanding

To others, Religion is one condition among so many other countries, but to the Indian people it is one great sustaining force, pertaining to all the spheres of their lives. Mahatma Gandhi who was born and brought up in India could not escape this strong influence of religion in all his activities.

Throughout modern history, Britain’s exponential growth inevitably affected the future of many nations in the contemporary world- in particular, the culturally intertwined state of India. Even in the initial stages of colonisation, India was forcefully occupied by the British East India Company; however, it was not until 1858 that a dictatorship was officially announced and the nation was forced to regard England as 'the true homeland'. Amidst societal unease and a growing discontent with the British rulers by the poor peasants, India's emancipation seemed inevitable in order for the nation to truly progress. In effect, a revolutionary leader spawned; Mohandas Gandhi. His great philosophical mind held innovative ideas which were instrumental in the achievement of Indian Independence- with his thoughtful ideologies and beliefs paving the way for oppressed Indians to ultimately unite against British imperialism. Consequently, this resulted in the monumental Satyagraha campaign that triumphed successfully against the British authorities.

In 1757, Great Britain extended its empire into India. This occupation would not fully end until 1947. In the time between, there were many movements by the Indian people to gain independence from the British. The movement that finally succeeded in winning India’s independence was led by one of the most influential figures of the 20th century, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Gandhi’s methods for fighting against the occupation of the British were very different from those of any of the freedom movements before. And that was why it worked. Gandhi did not agree with the general reasoning of the time: that conflicts could be solved through negotiation and forceful resistance.1 Rather, his faith led him to go

Mohandas Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar India to a Hindu father and Jainist mother. His very religious mother was a practitioner of Vaishnavism (worship of the Hindu god Vishnu). Influenced by his mother's beliefs Gandhi was governed by self-discipline and nonviolence. He soon got married and sailed off to study law. When Gandhi returned he was in shock of what had happened to India, in just 1 year. Gandhi's beliefs never changed and he still strongly believed in self-discipline and nonviolence. He wanted to make a change in India’s cultures. And that’s exactly what he did, he made the change he saw in the world. Gandhi used many tactics to get India's independence, such as Civil disobedience, embracing the enemy, and acceptance of jail time.

Mohandas Gandhi is one of the most popular and influential figures in the world. His political work, religious beliefs, values and morals captivated millions internationally. His path to become such a respected person is shaped by his religion and experiments occurred throughout his life. His relationship to food becomes a powerful fixation that allows him to form a greater connection to God as Truth, while leading him to express controversial disagreements during certain health issues.

The famous Mahatma Gandhi and Malcolm X left behind legacies that still influence the world today. One of the major factors that impacted these two historical figures was religion. The characteristics of Hinduism definitely had an effect on Gandhi’s peaceful and nonviolent views, just like the Islamic religion guided Malcolm X’s beliefs of by any means necessary. Their religious affiliations were not only deciding factors in their lives, but also played a key part in their deaths

As I talked about earlier in this paper Gandhi was immersed in his culture and in his family traditions. They played a huge part in the journey of his life and in even planning significant parts of his journey like his marriage, career path and moral development. His life experiences also played a big role in how he developed his moral reasoning such as when he encountered prejudice on the train and as a result

Aroused by the massacre of Amritsar in 1919, Gandhi devoted his life to gaining India’s independence from Great Britain. As the dominant figure used his persuasive philosophy of non-violent confrontation, he inspired political activists with many persuasions throughout the world (Andrews 23). Not only was Mahatma Gandhi a great peacemaker, but also his work to achieve freedom and equality for all people was greatly acknowledged. Gandhi’s unconventional style of leadership gained him the love of a country and eventually enabled him to lead the independence movement in India.

It urged social compassion—which was useful because it spread the word of his ideas while helping the poor— because those that had an excess were urged to give away to those in need. Gandhi launched a Non-cooperation Movement in 1920; since the colonial state owed its relevance to the operations of the subjects, it would be destroyed if they withdrew support. It was practiced in multiple stages and was promised independence within a year: involved resignation from government services, refusal to use courts and schools, pay taxes, serve in the military, and the burning of foreign clothing. Although some of these methods, such as refusal to court and schools, were taken too far; I believe that it showed his persistence. Effective, but not necessary. In 1924 when he was released from prison— which was thrown in for disrupting the apparent peace— he became wary of the Hindus and Muslims of India, who has increasing tension them. Thus, this led Gandhi to embark on a 21-day fast to create ‘mutual respect and tolerance’ between them; his fast was for naught and placed the subject only higher on the national agenda. Not effective and not necessary in the slightest, and it only further damaged his frail body. With this

In studying the Christian world view, there are people who, do not share this view, yet contribute such a great amount to human kind that recognition is deserved. Mahatma Gandhi is one such person. Gandhi’s development and utilization of Satyagraha; (“which literally means holding firm to reality or truth firmness”) non-violent form of protesting, impacted Indians, the world and inspired other civil rights leaders. (Richards, 1995). Gandhi desired improved treatment of Indians who worked and lived in South Africa. He also desired that India seceded from the rule of Great Brittan. Who Gandhi was is demonstrated in his struggle for social issues, the simplistic lifestyle (shunning money and career), and his devotion to his Hindu.

When it comes to religion Gandhi has a big belief in God and that we were created by Him, that we are all His children (Kripalani, 88). Gandhi’s worldview includes three things, Satyagraha which is his fundamental truth, Syadvad his factual dimension and then there is Ahimsa his normative dimension. Ahimsa, according to Gandhi means not to harm people, that all

Since he was young, Mahatma Gandhi was influenced heavily by his religious affiliation to Vaishnavism. His mother was completely immersed in religion and would often alternate between time at home and time at the temple. Most of his life he had spent in the practice of worshiping Vishnu, a rigorous moral religion whose main principles promoted nonviolence and universal eternity. These roots are the main ideas Gandhi adapted into not only his life, but within the movement. This was further propelled through his experiences in England as a vegetarian, he met several idealists who rejected the capitalist and industrial society and preached the cult of a simple life and the importance of moral superiority, as opposed to sustaining materialistic items. These values were essential to contributing to Gandhi’s personality and political views (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2017).

Gandhi was really concerned about the increasing divisions between the Hindu and Muslim's. He tried as much he could to prevent the partition between the Hindu and Muslim's. However the amount of success he had been trough this was very different and he did not achieve what he wanted. He was very disappointed about the separation between the Hindu and Muslim's. To prevent the

“We may stumble and fall, but shall rise again; it should be enough if we did not run away from the battle.” (Mahatma Gandhi) Mahatma Gandhi’s nonviolent protests did change India for the better. Mahatma Gandhi was a wise man born on October 2, 1869, in western India. Around 18, Gandhi started to study law in England, but couldn’t find good payment and went back to India and started a newspaper. This is a reason that the Indians Rebelled against the British.