Gandhi Paper

Sierra Fernandez
11-9-12
Anthropology 113

Gandhi Mahatma What I find most interesting about Mahatma Gandhi and his life and work is how he was a very spiritual leader to many people and people looked up to him as one of their hero’s. Mahatma Gandhi was considered a father of the Indian Independence Movement and believed in non-violence. I find it very interesting how Mahatma Gandhi went on a Salt March for 24 days and walked 241 miles with his satyagrahis to the coast where they had picked up salt. This Salt March happened in 1930 and Gandhi proposed his non-violence march protesting for the British Salt Tax and to help free India from the control British had over them. This lead into a protest closing many shops down in Britain and lead into war but Gandhi and satyagrahis believed in non-violence so they didn’t fight back to the police. This lead to many of them being killed immediately and because they didn’t fight back the world embraced their non-violence, which had caused them to gain their freedom back from Britain. Another thing I thought was really interesting about Mahatma Gandhi’s lifestyle was how he believed that Muslims had equal value to Hindus and that no one was better than any body else that everyone was equal to each other. This reminded me of Martin Luther King Jr. and how he wanted equality to make Blacks and Whites become one and I feel as if that’s what Mahatma Gandhi had wanted but for Muslims and Hindus to be as one and have equal values towards each other. Since for Gandhi India was like a home to him, to diverse religions and cultures among themselves including Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Jainism. This was to provide unity between men who believed in different faiths and the conflicts regarding harmony and co-operations. “All religions are more or less true” (The Essentials Of Gandhi 29) Gandhi had believed that he was only seeking god’s truth and that he had no one to fear but god himself and also that he didn’t fear of man. There are, of course different race and beliefs but religions are just different roads leading to the same point. Some solutions Gandhi proposed and recognized were that there are various kinds of conflicts looking over many confirmed problems as an opportunity to resolve them and make peace. This was very easy for Gandhi to do because his attitudes towards life and the way he viewed things were very positive and put into consideration to his philosophy of peace in the world. Gandhi’s approach had always been universal to human life as a whole, which can’t be divided into the weight of religious, social and political life. India is a serious problem in the world today and is a very diverse place with people from many background beliefs and religions. Muslims and Hindus have had conflict for many years now and the hatred they have towards each other is very hard to get rid of and make a compromise. If they don’t resolve their conflict and war between each other they will all end up dying. Hindu-Muslim relations have shaped the history of India by how their unity is applicable to the unity among different political groups. “We must tolerate each other, and trust to time to convert the one or the other to the opposite belief” (The Essentials Of Gandhi 33). This means that they need to tolerate each other whether they believe the same thing or not for them to be able to tolerate each other and be around each other again. For this being the way it was Gandhi stopped the violence by going on a hunger strike which he had called “Fasting” which had led the Hindu people to stop fighting. The impact Gandhi had on this was he ended up being assassinated after the whole violence between Hindus and the Muslims had stopped. Gandhi said that “people often become what they believe themselves to be...and children often become what their parents and society believe them to be” (Call for global child development initiative 2000). I believe that this is true because if people believe in themselves they can become anything they want to be in life. I also believe that when someone has someone to fall back on or look up to they become inspired by them and want to be just like them. Gandhi’s strategy is the combination sacrifice, truth and non-violence. According to Gandhi a person should be brave and not be a coward. Gandhi stated that, “there is no god higher than truth” (History of modern India 2003-2005). He should prevent his views as suggestions and thoughts with out being violent about things. According to Gandhi’s thoughts and beliefs non-violence is the ultimate solution to every kind of problem in the world today. Violence separates people, but to find the truth people have to work together, as one. What I find very interesting about this is how Gandhi is just one person but yet he’s changed so many peoples life’s and I see him as another Martin Luther King Jr. because he wanted equality and not to have anymore violence in the world. Its crazy to think that he’s been through so much trying to get people to stop being violent and fighting in wars and has moved through people and ended up getting shot just like Martin Luther King Jr. I relate this back to both of them because they have inspired people and were good people who ended up being assassinated for the wrong reasons. Gandhi’s ideas have helped tremendously by helping free India from Britain through various amounts of protests and non-violent interactions he had done. Gandhi was also imprisoned for about 7 years due to his political views. Overall I had learned a lot from this research and seeing all of the great things Gandhi has done and his beliefs towards non-violence and believe that everyone should feel this way and we shouldn’t have violence in America or anywhere to this day.

Bibliography:

http://www.unicef.org/newsline/foege.htm

Chand Hukam, History of modern India, Anmol Publication Pvt. Ltd (2005)

Chand Hukam, History of Modern India, Anmol Publication, 2003.

The Essentials of Gandhi sections (22 and 33)

www.ppu.org.uk/learn/infodocs/people/pst_gandhi.html

Life Of Gandhi-YouTube (Abridged)

1012 Words

Bibliography: http://www.unicef.org/newsline/foege.htm Chand Hukam, History of modern India, Anmol Publication Pvt. Ltd (2005) Chand Hukam, History of Modern India, Anmol Publication, 2003. The Essentials of Gandhi sections (22 and 33) www.ppu.org.uk/learn/infodocs/people/pst_gandhi.html Life Of Gandhi-YouTube (Abridged) 1012 Words