*The views expressed in the blog are those of the author.
According the autobiography ‘The Story of My Experiments with Truth’, Mahatma Gandhi himself was influenced by the following.
Gandhi ji was first impressed by the political views of Gopal Krishan Gokhale. He considered him as his political mentor. He adopted non-violence from Jainism. He learned from the study of the Bible that one should not hurt the feelings of any person. He also learned, love everyone and do good to all. The Bhagwat Gita taught him the lesson of ‘Nishkam Seva’. He received the idea from American scholar David Thoreau that it is appropriate to run a civil disobedience movement against a bad government. Mahatma Gandhi learned from Leo Tolstoy that all problems can be solved with love and cooperation.
Gandhiji’s Ideology
My life is my message.
Be the change which you want to see in the world.
Mahatma Gandhi was the priest of truth and non-violence. He firmly believed in them. He said that non-violence is the principle of mankind. This is the theory of heroes not of weaklings. According to him, there is God in Truth. Truth can be attained through love and non-violence.
Gandhi ji used Satyagraha to face evils and achieve political objectives. Its purpose is to suffer oneself but not to hurt the mind. Through this the mind of opponent is won and it awakens his soul. Gandhi ji has mentioned various methods of Satyagraha as non-cooperation, civil disobedience and fasting, etc.
Gandhi ji wanted to bring transparency in political life. According to him there is a close relationship between goals and means. If the goal is noble, then the means should also be ethical. Gandhi ji strongly believed that sacred means are very important for achieving political objectives.
Gandhi ji believed strongly in democracy. He wanted representative institutions. He suggested that government should govern only according to the wishes of the people.
Gandhi was a staunch opponent of untouchability. He worked tirelessly for the upliftment of Harijans. He himself lived in their localities. He used to sit and eat with them. Gandhi ji was a great social reformer also. He campaigned against use of liquor, child marriage and dowry system.
Gandhi ji campaigned for Swadeshi and also followed it. He motivated all the followers to wear Khadi. He made Charkha national symbol to dignify hand labour. He boycotted foreign goods and picketed such shops.
Gandhi ji strongly believed in the brotherhood of mankind. He loved all. He considered Hindu Muslim unity essential for the success of the nation.
Mahatma Gandhi always emphasised on vocational education. He believed that everyone should be skillful to contribute in GDP. He wanted that there should not be mass production, but production should be by masses.
– Ashok Kumar Maru, TGT (Social Science)
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