Gandhi

Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is more commonly called Mahatma Gandhi; mahatma is an honorific meaning "great-soul" or "venerable" in Sanskrit. He is also called Bapu in India (for "father"). Gandhi was one of the most important people involved in the movement for the independence of India. He was a non-violent activist, who led the independence movement through a non-violent protest.

His life

Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar, Gujarat, India. When Gandhi was 18 years old, he went to study law in England. After he became a lawyer, he went to the British colony of South Africa where he experienced laws that said people with dark skin had fewer rights than people with light skin.

When travelling through South Africa, Gandhi was also kicked out of a first class train because of his skin color. Then Gandhi started protesting against segregation. He decided to become a political activist, so he could help change these unfair laws. He created a powerful, non-violent movement. During Gandhi's life, India was a colony of the United Kingdom, but wanted independence.

M.K. Gandhi, center, with his secretary, Sonia Schlesin, and his colleague Polak in front of his Law Office, Johannesburg, South Africa, 1905.

On 9 January, 1915 when Gandhi returned to India, he decided to lead a march against a law called the Rowlatt Act.* But then the protest turned violent and people started to kill the protesters. On 12 March, 1930 Gandhi led the Salt March.

* The Rowlatt Act was a law passed in 1919 by British India. Under this law, the government got many powers, including the ability to arrest people and keep them in prisons without a trial.

The Salt March

The Salt March was a non-violent protest against the salt tax by British government. The Indians were upset that the government increased the price of salt. Mahatma Gandhi led the march. It started on March 12, 1930. The march spanned 240 miles (390 km). Marchers took a handful of salt from the shore. They then announced that they had broken the law by making salt. This move enraged the British and called for his arrest. Over 60,000 Indians were jailed.

Gandhi's Philosophy = Satyagraha

Satyagraha (often translated as "way of truth" or "pursuit of truth") is a form of nonviolent resistance . Gandhi often said that his values were simple, based upon traditional Hindu beliefs: truth and non-violence. Satyagraha theory influenced Martin Luther King Jr.'s campaigns during the Civil Rights Movement in the United States, as well as Nelson Mandela's struggle against apartheid in South Africa

India's Indipendence

He helped cause India's independence from British rule. People of many different religions and ethnic groups lived in British India. Many people thought that the country should break into separate countries so that different groups could have their own countries. Many people thought that Hindus and Muslims should have separate countries. Gandhi was a Hindu, but he thought that people of all religions should have the same rights, and could live together peacefully in the same country.

Gandhi and Nehru during the All India Congress in Bombay on 6 July 1946.

On 15 August 1947 British Indian Empire became independent, breaking India in two, India and Pakistan.

His death

On 30 January 1948 Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead by an Hindu activist who thought that Mahatma Gandhi was too respectful to the Muslims.

VIDEO I

Comprehension activity 1 Why is Gandhi an important person? 2 Where and when was he born? 3 Where and what did he study? 4 What did he work for in South Africa? 5 When did he become a political activist? 6 What did his movement want? 7 What was the Salt March? 8 What was Britain's plan in 1947?

Thank you!

Maria Arduino