Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869–1948), also known as “Mahatma,” or “great soul,” originated satyagraha, the famous movement of nonviolent resistance that won India independence from the British raj. Born on October 2, 1869, in Porbandar, a town in what is now the Indian state of Gujarat, he was assassinated by a Hindu nationalist in New Delhi on January 30, 1948. The assassination was a reaction to Gandhi’s efforts to end Hindu–Muslim religious violence during the 1947 partition of British India into what are now India and Pakistan. Gandhi’s thought and social activism were momentous not only for the liberation of India, but have had profound effects on nonviolent movements worldwide. His views continue to influence global peace-making activities in the twenty-first century.
Early Life and Experiences
Gandhi’s Autobiography (1993) is full of reflections on his childhood in India and early life in England and South Africa. Gandhi was a shy child, not good in school, aloof from sports,...
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Erikson E (1969) Gandhi’s truth: on the origins of militant nonviolence. W. W. Norton, New York
Gandhi M (1993) An autobiography: the story of my experiments with truth (trans Desai M). Beacon, Boston
Gandhi M (1997) Hind Swaraj and other writings, ed. Parel A. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Gandhi M (2001) Non-violent resistance (Satyagraha), ed. Kumarappa B. Dover, Minneola
Gandhi M (commentator) (2002) Bhagavad-Gítá: the song of God. Axiom, Hoo
Hardiman D (2003) Gandhi in his time and ours: the global legacy of his ideas. Columbia University Press, New York
Iyer R (2000) The moral and political thought of Mahatma Gandhi. Oxford University Press, New Delhi
Lal B (1978) Contemporary Indian philosophy. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi
Tähtinen U (1976) Ahimsā: non-violence in Indian tradition. Rider, London
Verma S (1970) Metaphysical foundations of Mahatma Gandhi’s thought. Orient Longmans, New Delhi
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this entry
Cite this entry
Snow, N.E. (2011). Gandhi, Mahatma. In: Chatterjee, D.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Justice. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9160-5_692
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9160-5_692
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-9159-9
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-9160-5
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law