“Generations to come…will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.” Albert Einstein.Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was late for afternoon prayers. There was an eager crowd in the garden outside his New Delhi quarters waiting to see the “great soul” and pray with him.
Nathuram Godse was also there, but he bore no love for the Indian liberator, the father of the nation. When he saw Gandhi, he moved closer, bowed, then pulled out a Beretta revolver and shot him three times at point-blank range. Godse was unrepentant with no remorse for his action. At his trial four months later Godse denounced Gandhi as “a political and ethical impostor” and a “curse for India, a force for evil', quite the opposing view of millions in India who had deified him, and millions more across the world who respected and admired Gandhi for his decades of struggle for freedom and equality based on his philosophy of truth and non-violence.
Gandhi’s death came within months of the partitioning of the subcontinent and the creation of two independent states – India and Pakistan. The shock was evident when Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru told an incredulous nation, "The light has gone out of our lives and there is darkness everywhere."
In reflection Nehru concluded, "The light that shone on this nation…will illumine this country for many more years, and a thousand years later that light will still be seen in this country, and the world will see it and it will give solace to innumerable hearts. For that light represented the living truth, and the eternal man was with us with his eternal truth reminding us of the right path, drawing us from error, taking this ancient country to freedom."
In that eulogy, Nehru summarized the life and mission of the Mahatma. World leaders who didn’t even know Gandhi expressed horror and a deep sense of loss at the passing of this apostle of peace.
The American Secretary of State, General George C. Marshall said, "Mahatma Gandhi has become the spokesman for the conscience of all mankind. He was a man who made humility and simple truth more powerful than empires."
The Supreme Allied Commander, General Douglas MacArthur, said, "In the evolution of civilization…all men cannot fail eventually to adopt Gandhi's belief that the process of mass application of force to resolve contentious issues is fundamentally not only wrong but contains within itself the germs of self-destruction."
And in an editorial, The Times of London wrote, "No country but India and no religion but Hinduism could have given birth to a Gandhi."
Today, more than half a century later Mahatma Gandhi is still respected for his vision, leadership and his philosophy although modern India seems to be distancing itself from some of Gandhi's basic principles.
Economic reforms have turned the country into more of a consumer society, exacerbating differences in wealth between the middle classes and the rural poor, whose cause Gandhi constantly championed.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869. He went to England to study law when he was 19. As he a young lawyer, he could have adopted an elite lifestyle but it seems destiny had other plans for him.
He went to South Africa where circumstances caused him to challenge the racist policies of the British colony. Through the Natal Indian Congress he agitated for Indian rights by developing his politics of peaceful protests.
With major successes there, Gandhi returned to India in 1914 and began campaigning for the rights of ordinary Indians and the reconciliation of all classes and religious groups. He fought for a relaxation of Britain’s iron grip on the colony and for an independent India.
In 1919 he and his colleagues formed the Indian National Congress party, which became the political vehicle to carry the lengthy battle of non-cooperation against the British.
Gandhi urged Indians to boycott British courts and government, and spin their own fabrics to replace British cloth. In spite of the worst provocations, the Mahatma lived with the creed that made him great; while he was prepared to die for his cause he wasn’t ready to kill for it. It was a policy that brought him in conflict with some of his colleagues.
Sporadic emotional mob violence was the greatest threat to his peaceful struggle, but Gandhi always managed to overcome the hurdles by his self-sacrifice through fasting and prayers.
Gandhi became Britain’s biggest post-war problem. This little, brown man in a loincloth whom Winston Churchill called “a half-naked fakir” challenged the mighty British Empire and its army without lifting a finger in violence.
It caused his imprisonment several times, created a greater national and international awareness of his struggle and gave England its most frightening political nightmare.
To do nothing was to accept Gandhi’s victory; to attack and jail him was to create a martyr. Either way, Gandhi was the victor.
Perhaps one of the most profound instances of civil disobedience was his historic salt march. Gandhi and thousands of Indians walked 320km to the Indian Ocean to make their own salt and demonstrate to the British that the salt of the earth belonged to no one and that Indians could make their own.
Gandhi and followers arrive at Dandi beach to make saltThe salt march symbolized India’s declaration of independence and was the ultimate humiliation for the imperial government.
Gandhi lived through one of the most tumultuous periods of Indian history. India was Britain’s most important jewel and its rulers were determined to keep it at all costs. Gandhi challenged their claim and their methods and insisted that he would settle for no less that the departure of the British from India.
Few at the time thought this could be possible and fewer still believed it would happen. India, the British pointed out, was not a homogenous society. What about its Muslim minority? Who would look after their rights in an Indian nation?
That was the seed of discontent the British planted in the minds of those who were willing to listen. It took root with the Muslim leader, Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
Once the divide-and-rule factor entered the political equation, Gandhi’s task became even more difficult. Not all Muslims were convinced that they would be second-class citizens in a Hindu India, but there was enough suspicion to cause a division.
For Gandhi, Independence from Britain became his own nightmare. In a way, even in defeat the British had their revenge; they robbed Gandhi of a united India.
In order to save and preserve the single Indian state, Gandhi was ready to consider offering the Prime Ministership to a Muslim, but his Congress colleagues rejected the idea. They told him his pacifism had already gone too far, that Hindus would never accept it.
Gandhi was faced with the most unpleasant choices: partition or civil war. His dilemma was this: How could a mother choose between her children?
"Before partitioning India, my body will have to be cut into two pieces," he said. His philosophical approach was not practical for the decision at hand.
In the end he agreed to create two nations and make India a secular state. On August 15, 1947 the Union Jack came down on two capitals instead of one. And the flags of India and Pakistan replaced the symbol of British dominance in India.
The events that followed were horrendous. Civil war broke out. Muslims and Hindus slaughtered one other as the infant nations took their first steps to managing their respective destinies. Nearly one million people died in the riots. The hatred never abated and the scars remain today.
In the 60 years since Gandhi died, much has changed, yet so much remains the same.
The tensions between India's different religious and social communities are still as noticeable today as they was when Gandhi came to the forefront of Indian politics in the 1920s. Communal tension which Gandhi deplored remains.
Independent India and Pakistan have fought three wars defending their interests. Today there is a glimmer of hope for peace between the two children of the same Mother India. Most Indians still regard Gandhi as one of the most notable figures of Indian history. Gandhi's legacy to India is a multiparty democracy that for the most part functions peacefully in comparison to many other Asian countries that are far smaller.
Nearly everything Gandhi wrote and taught about - prayer, service, non-violence, economic justice and humility - still retain relevance in today's world.
Today, more than ever, Gandhi’s message of non-violence and peaceful co-existence is what the world absolutely needs.
Perhaps Gandhi’s life and deeds bear a message for U.S. President George W. Bush and all world leaders who believe war is the answer to the world’s problems. It isn’t.
In the words of Gandhi, "Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary."
Gandhi’s death came within months of the partitioning of the subcontinent and the creation of two independent states – India and Pakistan. The shock was evident when Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru told an incredulous nation, "The light has gone out of our lives and there is darkness everywhere."
In reflection Nehru concluded, "The light that shone on this nation…will illumine this country for many more years, and a thousand years later that light will still be seen in this country, and the world will see it and it will give solace to innumerable hearts. For that light represented the living truth, and the eternal man was with us with his eternal truth reminding us of the right path, drawing us from error, taking this ancient country to freedom."
In that eulogy, Nehru summarized the life and mission of the Mahatma. World leaders who didn’t even know Gandhi expressed horror and a deep sense of loss at the passing of this apostle of peace.
The American Secretary of State, General George C. Marshall said, "Mahatma Gandhi has become the spokesman for the conscience of all mankind. He was a man who made humility and simple truth more powerful than empires."
The Supreme Allied Commander, General Douglas MacArthur, said, "In the evolution of civilization…all men cannot fail eventually to adopt Gandhi's belief that the process of mass application of force to resolve contentious issues is fundamentally not only wrong but contains within itself the germs of self-destruction."
And in an editorial, The Times of London wrote, "No country but India and no religion but Hinduism could have given birth to a Gandhi."
Today, more than half a century later Mahatma Gandhi is still respected for his vision, leadership and his philosophy although modern India seems to be distancing itself from some of Gandhi's basic principles.
Economic reforms have turned the country into more of a consumer society, exacerbating differences in wealth between the middle classes and the rural poor, whose cause Gandhi constantly championed.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869. He went to England to study law when he was 19. As he a young lawyer, he could have adopted an elite lifestyle but it seems destiny had other plans for him.
He went to South Africa where circumstances caused him to challenge the racist policies of the British colony. Through the Natal Indian Congress he agitated for Indian rights by developing his politics of peaceful protests.
With major successes there, Gandhi returned to India in 1914 and began campaigning for the rights of ordinary Indians and the reconciliation of all classes and religious groups. He fought for a relaxation of Britain’s iron grip on the colony and for an independent India.
In 1919 he and his colleagues formed the Indian National Congress party, which became the political vehicle to carry the lengthy battle of non-cooperation against the British.
Gandhi urged Indians to boycott British courts and government, and spin their own fabrics to replace British cloth. In spite of the worst provocations, the Mahatma lived with the creed that made him great; while he was prepared to die for his cause he wasn’t ready to kill for it. It was a policy that brought him in conflict with some of his colleagues.
Sporadic emotional mob violence was the greatest threat to his peaceful struggle, but Gandhi always managed to overcome the hurdles by his self-sacrifice through fasting and prayers.
Gandhi became Britain’s biggest post-war problem. This little, brown man in a loincloth whom Winston Churchill called “a half-naked fakir” challenged the mighty British Empire and its army without lifting a finger in violence.
It caused his imprisonment several times, created a greater national and international awareness of his struggle and gave England its most frightening political nightmare.
To do nothing was to accept Gandhi’s victory; to attack and jail him was to create a martyr. Either way, Gandhi was the victor.
Perhaps one of the most profound instances of civil disobedience was his historic salt march. Gandhi and thousands of Indians walked 320km to the Indian Ocean to make their own salt and demonstrate to the British that the salt of the earth belonged to no one and that Indians could make their own.
Gandhi and followers arrive at Dandi beach to make saltThe salt march symbolized India’s declaration of independence and was the ultimate humiliation for the imperial government.
Gandhi lived through one of the most tumultuous periods of Indian history. India was Britain’s most important jewel and its rulers were determined to keep it at all costs. Gandhi challenged their claim and their methods and insisted that he would settle for no less that the departure of the British from India.
Few at the time thought this could be possible and fewer still believed it would happen. India, the British pointed out, was not a homogenous society. What about its Muslim minority? Who would look after their rights in an Indian nation?
That was the seed of discontent the British planted in the minds of those who were willing to listen. It took root with the Muslim leader, Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
Once the divide-and-rule factor entered the political equation, Gandhi’s task became even more difficult. Not all Muslims were convinced that they would be second-class citizens in a Hindu India, but there was enough suspicion to cause a division.
For Gandhi, Independence from Britain became his own nightmare. In a way, even in defeat the British had their revenge; they robbed Gandhi of a united India.
In order to save and preserve the single Indian state, Gandhi was ready to consider offering the Prime Ministership to a Muslim, but his Congress colleagues rejected the idea. They told him his pacifism had already gone too far, that Hindus would never accept it.
Gandhi was faced with the most unpleasant choices: partition or civil war. His dilemma was this: How could a mother choose between her children?
"Before partitioning India, my body will have to be cut into two pieces," he said. His philosophical approach was not practical for the decision at hand.
In the end he agreed to create two nations and make India a secular state. On August 15, 1947 the Union Jack came down on two capitals instead of one. And the flags of India and Pakistan replaced the symbol of British dominance in India.
The events that followed were horrendous. Civil war broke out. Muslims and Hindus slaughtered one other as the infant nations took their first steps to managing their respective destinies. Nearly one million people died in the riots. The hatred never abated and the scars remain today.
In the 60 years since Gandhi died, much has changed, yet so much remains the same.
The tensions between India's different religious and social communities are still as noticeable today as they was when Gandhi came to the forefront of Indian politics in the 1920s. Communal tension which Gandhi deplored remains.
Independent India and Pakistan have fought three wars defending their interests. Today there is a glimmer of hope for peace between the two children of the same Mother India. Most Indians still regard Gandhi as one of the most notable figures of Indian history. Gandhi's legacy to India is a multiparty democracy that for the most part functions peacefully in comparison to many other Asian countries that are far smaller.
Nearly everything Gandhi wrote and taught about - prayer, service, non-violence, economic justice and humility - still retain relevance in today's world.
Today, more than ever, Gandhi’s message of non-violence and peaceful co-existence is what the world absolutely needs.
Perhaps Gandhi’s life and deeds bear a message for U.S. President George W. Bush and all world leaders who believe war is the answer to the world’s problems. It isn’t.
In the words of Gandhi, "Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary."
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