148-473: The online Gandhi Heritage Portal preserves, protects, and disseminates original writings of Mohandas K. Gandhi and makes available to the world the large corpus of "Fundamental Works" which are useful for any comprehensive study of the life and thought of Gandhiji. Gandhiji was 24 years old in South Africa "Natal Indian Congress " made in 1894. The Government of India and its Ministry of Culture, acting on
296-524: A "doctrine of liberation" taught by Hinduism, while Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888–1975) stated that the Bhagavad Gita teaches a universalist religion and the "essence of Hinduism" along with the "essence of all religions", rather than a private religion. Vivekananda 's (1863–1902) works contained numerous references to the Gita, such as his lectures on the four yogas – Bhakti, Jnana, Karma, and Raja. Through
444-578: A Gujarati translation of the Bhagvad Gita . These eight texts form the section Key Texts. These are Hind Swaraj , Satyagraha in South Africa , An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments with Truth , From Yervada Mandir , Ashram Observances in Action , Constructive Programmes: Their Meaning and Place , Key To Health , and Gandhi's translation of the Gita as Anasakti Yoga . These are arranged in
592-678: A cash crop for Indigo dye whose demand had been declining over two decades and were forced to sell their crops to the planters at a fixed price. Unhappy with this, the peasantry appealed to Gandhi at his ashram in Ahmedabad. Pursuing a strategy of nonviolent protest, Gandhi took the administration by surprise and won concessions from the authorities. Bhagvad Gita The Bhagavad Gita ( / ˈ b ʌ ɡ ə v ə d ˈ ɡ iː t ɑː / ; Sanskrit : भगवद्गीता, IPA: [ˌbʱɐɡɐʋɐd ˈɡiːtɑː] , romanized : bhagavad-gītā , lit. 'god's Song'), often referred to as
740-547: A chronological order. The section also provides a history of their printing and translations. Hind Swaraj , which Gandhiji considered as a "seed text", illustrates this. The Portal provides a facsimile edition of his manuscript, which was written on board the steamer SS Kildonan Castle between 13 and 22 November 1909. This is followed by the first Gujarati edition printed in the two issues of Indian Opinion (11 December 1909 and 18 December 1909). Gandhiji translated this into English as Indian Home Rule in 1910, subsequent to
888-414: A clerk in the state administration and had an elementary education, he proved a capable chief minister. During his tenure, Karamchand married four times. His first two wives died young, after each had given birth to a daughter, and his third marriage was childless. In 1857, Karamchand sought his third wife's permission to remarry; that year, he married Putlibai (1844–1891), who also came from Junagadh, and
1036-547: A collection of 14 texts with teachings that the tradition believes to include the essence of the Vedas , the Quran and the Bible . Gandhi was deeply influenced by his mother, an extremely pious lady who "would not think of taking her meals without her daily prayers... she would take the hardest vows and keep them without flinching. To keep two or three consecutive fasts was nothing to her." At
1184-457: A couplet, thus the entire text consists of 1,400 lines. Each shloka has two-quarter verses with exactly eight syllables. Each of these quarters is further arranged into two metrical feet of four syllables each. The metered verse does not rhyme. While the shloka is the principal meter in the Gita, it does deploy other elements of Sanskrit prosody (which refers to one of the six Vedangas, or limbs of Vedic statues). At dramatic moments, it uses
1332-631: A detailed site specific chronology is being prepared at the Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust. The classification framework includes place, persons, principles and events which will be linked to the source and presented on the Portal. The Portal at present provides approximately 500,000 pages of material in electronic format. In case of CWMG and the Key Texts both archival and enhanced black and white images are provided. In addition to
1480-494: A few parts can be put as late as 400 CE", states Fowler. The dating of the Gita is thus dependent on the uncertain dating of the Mahabharata . The actual dates of composition of the Gita remain unresolved. According to Arthur Basham, the context of the Bhagavad Gita suggests that it was composed in an era when the ethics of war were being questioned and renunciation to monastic life was becoming popular. Such an era emerged after
1628-577: A field hospital since the terrain was too rough for the ambulances. Gandhi and 37 other Indians received the Queen's South Africa Medal . In 1906, the Transvaal government promulgated a new Act compelling registration of the colony's Indian and Chinese populations. At a mass protest meeting held in Johannesburg on 11 September that year, Gandhi adopted his still evolving methodology of Satyagraha (devotion to
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#17328838712891776-402: A great impact on Gandhi in his childhood. In his autobiography, Gandhi states that they left an indelible impression on his mind. Gandhi writes: "It haunted me and I must have acted Harishchandra to myself times without number." Gandhi's early self-identification with truth and love as supreme values is traceable to these epic characters. The family's religious background was eclectic. Mohandas
1924-486: A harmony" between these three paths. It does this in a framework addressing the question of what constitutes the virtuous path that is necessary for spiritual liberation or release from the cycles of rebirth ( moksha ), incorporating various religious traditions, including philosophical ideas from the Upanishads samkhya yoga philosophy , and bhakti , incorporating bhakti into Vedanta . As such, it neutralizes
2072-558: A law practice in Bombay failed because Gandhi was psychologically unable to cross-examine witnesses. He returned to Rajkot to make a modest living drafting petitions for litigants, but Gandhi was forced to stop after running afoul of British officer Sam Sunny. In 1893, a Muslim merchant in Kathiawar named Dada Abdullah contacted Gandhi. Abdullah owned a large successful shipping business in South Africa. His distant cousin in Johannesburg needed
2220-508: A lawyer, and they preferred someone with Kathiawari heritage. Gandhi inquired about his pay for the work. They offered a total salary of £105 (~$ 4,143 in 2023 money) plus travel expenses. He accepted it, knowing that it would be at least a one-year commitment in the Colony of Natal , South Africa, also a part of the British Empire. In April 1893, Gandhi, aged 23, set sail for South Africa to be
2368-550: A means of both introspection and political protest. Bringing anti-colonial nationalism to the common Indians, Gandhi led them in challenging the British-imposed salt tax with the 400 km (250 mi) Dandi Salt March in 1930 and in calling for the British to quit India in 1942. He was imprisoned many times and for many years in both South Africa and India. Gandhi's vision of an independent India based on religious pluralism
2516-619: A mob of white settlers attacked him, and Gandhi escaped only through the efforts of the wife of the police superintendent. However, Gandhi refused to press charges against any member of the mob. During the Boer War , Gandhi volunteered in 1900 to form a group of stretcher-bearers as the Natal Indian Ambulance Corps . According to Arthur Herman, Gandhi wanted to disprove the British colonial stereotype that Hindus were not fit for "manly" activities involving danger and exertion, unlike
2664-488: A moral movement and that Allinson should therefore no longer remain a member of the LVS. Gandhi shared Hills' views on the dangers of birth control, but defended Allinson's right to differ. It would have been hard for Gandhi to challenge Hills; Hills was 12 years his senior and unlike Gandhi, highly eloquent. Hills bankrolled the LVS and was a captain of industry with his Thames Ironworks company employing more than 6,000 people in
2812-466: A project unmatched in its aspiration. This was to provide an authentic documentation of all available writings of Gandhiji. The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi is a result of this meticulous and conscientious effort, which concluded in 1994. It was decided that Gandhiji writings should be made available in three languages: Gujarati, English and Hindi. Consequently, Gandhiji No Akshardeha (Gujarati) and Sampoorna Gandhi Vangmaya (Hindi) were created based upon
2960-474: A public speaking practice group and overcame his shyness sufficiently to practise law. Gandhi demonstrated a keen interest in the welfare of London's impoverished dockland communities. In 1889, a bitter trade dispute broke out in London, with dockers striking for better pay and conditions, and seamen, shipbuilders, factory girls and other joining the strike in solidarity. The strikers were successful, in part due to
3108-498: A selection of journals published by institutions and movements, which seek to interrogate Gandhi's ideas and practices or record, documents and chronicle movements. These include Gandhi Marg (Hindi & English), Bhoomi Putra, Pyara Bapu, Kasturba Darshan and that unique handwritten journal of the Sataygraha Ashram Madhpudo. Full, unabridged texts of these journals are made available. This section would become an archive of
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#17328838712893256-459: A state of things we should have the ability to defend ourselves, that is, the ability to bear arms and to use them... If we want to learn the use of arms with the greatest possible despatch, it is our duty to enlist ourselves in the army." However, Gandhi stipulated in a letter to the Viceroy's private secretary that he "personally will not kill or injure anybody, friend or foe." Gandhi's support for
3404-501: A volunteer mixed unit of Indian and African stretcher-bearers to treat wounded combatants during the suppression of the rebellion. The medical unit commanded by Gandhi operated for less than two months before being disbanded. After the suppression of the rebellion, the colonial establishment showed no interest in extending to the Indian community the civil rights granted to white South Africans . This led Gandhi to becoming disillusioned with
3552-488: A vow in front of his mother that he would abstain from meat, alcohol, and women. Gandhi's brother, Laxmidas, who was already a lawyer, cheered Gandhi's London studies plan and offered to support him. Putlibai gave Gandhi her permission and blessing. On 10 August 1888, Gandhi, aged 18, left Porbandar for Mumbai, then known as Bombay. A local newspaper covering the farewell function by his old high school in Rajkot noted that Gandhi
3700-501: A warrior. Krishna persuades him to commence in battle, arguing that while following one's dharma, one should not consider oneself to be the agent of action, but attribute all of one's actions to God ( bhakti ). The Gita posits the existence of an individual self ( jivatman ) and the higher Godself (Krishna, Atman/Brahman) in every being; the Krishna-Arjuna dialogue has been interpreted as a metaphor for an everlasting dialogue between
3848-494: Is "intrinsically superior or inferior", rather they "converge in one and lead to the same goal". The Bhagavad Gita contains 18 chapters and 700 verses found in the Bhishma Parva of the epic Mahabharata. Because of differences in recensions , the verses of the Gita may be numbered in the full text of the Mahabharata as chapters 6.25–42 or as chapters 6.23–40. The number of verses in each chapter vary in some manuscripts of
3996-619: Is a Brahmanical text that uses Shramanic and Yogic terminology to propagate the Brahmanic idea of living according to one's duty or dharma , in contrast to the ascetic ideal of liberation by avoiding all karma. According to Hiltebeitel, the Bhagavad Gita is the sealing achievement of the consolidation of Hinduism, merging Bhakti traditions with Mimamsa , Vedanta , and other knowledge based traditions. The Gita discusses and synthesizes sramana- and yoga-based renunciation, dharma-based householder life, and devotion-based theism, attempting "to forge
4144-652: Is a section that takes into account the commentarial and memoire literature. The Life and Times section is under development, and will provide information that could lead the reader to explore the data. The Gallery will provide audio, visual, and film material as well as images of caricatures, paintings and postage stamps. The Portal provides a sample of each of these. The Gandhi Heritage Sites, under development and verification, will provide multiple layers of information regarding places that Gandhiji visited. The information will contain references to primary sources about these visits as well. In 1956 Government of India initiated
4292-549: Is also the traditional compiler of the Vedas and the Puranas , texts dated to be from different millennia. According to Alexus McLeod, a scholar of Philosophy and Asian Studies, it is "impossible to link the Bhagavad Gita to a single author", and it may be the work of many authors. This view is shared by the Indologist Arthur Basham , who states that there were three or more authors or compilers of Bhagavad Gita. This
4440-546: Is among admirers of Gandhi's efforts to fight against racism in Africa. The general image of Gandhi, state Desai and Vahed, has been reinvented since his assassination as though Gandhi was always a saint, when in reality, his life was more complex, contained inconvenient truths, and was one that changed over time. Scholars have also pointed the evidence to a rich history of co-operation and efforts by Gandhi and Indian people with nonwhite South Africans against persecution of Africans and
4588-477: Is distressed and in sorrow. The issue is stated Arvind Sharma , "Is it morally proper to kill?" This and other moral dilemmas in the first chapter are set in a context where the Hindu epic and Krishna have already extolled ahimsa (non-violence) to be the highest and divine virtue of a human being. The war feels evil to Arjuna and he questions the morality of war. He wonders if it is noble to renounce and leave before
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4736-399: Is evidenced by the discontinuous intermixing of philosophical verses with theistic or passionately theistic verses, according to Basham. J. A. B. van Buitenen , an Indologist known for his translations and scholarship on Mahabharata , finds that the Gita is so contextually and philosophically well-knit within the Mahabharata that it was not an independent text that "somehow wandered into
4884-508: Is found in the sixth book of the Mahabharata manuscripts – the Bhisma-parvan . Therein, in the third section, the Gita forms chapters 23–40, that is 6.3.23 to 6.3.40. The Bhagavad Gita is often preserved and studied on its own, as an independent text with its chapters renumbered from 1 to 18. The Bhagavad Gita manuscripts exist in numerous Indic scripts. These include writing systems that are currently in use, as well as early scripts such as
5032-461: Is increasingly recognized by scholars that the extraordinary prominence of the Bhagavad Gita is a feature of modernity despite disagreement over the date at which it became dominant." According to Eric Sharpe, this change started in the 1880s, and became prominent after 1900. According to Arvind Sharma, the Bhagavad Gita was always an important scripture but became prominent in the 1920s. With its translation and study by Western scholars beginning in
5180-420: Is modern, advocated by Swami Vivekananda from the 1890s in his books on Jnana Yoga , Karma Yoga , Bhakti Yoga and Raja Yoga , emphasizing Raja Yoga as the crowning achievement of yoga. Vivekananda, who was strongly inspired by the Gita, viewed all spiritual paths as equal. Yet, Vivekananda also noted that "The reconciliation of the different paths of Dharma, and work without desire or attachment — these are
5328-418: Is not distorted. While Hinduism is known for its diversity and the synthesis derived from it, the Bhagavad Gita holds a unique pan-Hindu influence. Gerald James Larson – an Indologist and scholar of classical Hindu philosophy , states that "if there is any one text that comes near to embodying the totality of what it is to be a Hindu , it would be the Bhagavad Gita." Yet, according to Robinson, "it
5476-631: Is often written as Shrimad Bhagavad Gita or Shrimad Bhagavadgita (श्रीमद् भगवद् गीता or भगवद्गीता) where the Shrimad prefix is used to denote a high degree of respect. The Bhagavad Gita is not to be confused with the Bhagavata Puran , which is one of the eighteen major Puranas dealing with the life of the Hindu God Krishna and various avatars of Vishnu . The work is also known as the Iswara Gita ,
5624-481: Is one example. It is difficult to understand and fully appreciate the striving of Gandhiji in absence of the works of his interlocutors. This section would eventually include either full texts or bibliographic information on writings on Gandhi and his endeavours in academic journals. This will facilitate a more comprehensive access to the contemporary scholarship around these issues. This section provides selections, slivers of information arranged for easy reference. All
5772-469: Is opened by setting the stage of the Kurukshetra battlefield. Two massive armies representing different loyalties and ideologies face a catastrophic war. With Arjuna is Krishna, not as a participant in the war, but only as his charioteer and counsel. Arjuna requests Krishna to move the chariot between the two armies so he can see those "eager for this war". He sees family and friends on the enemy side. Arjuna
5920-422: Is supported by a few versions of chapter 6.43 of the Mahabharata . According to Gita exegesis scholar Robert Minor, these versions state that the Gita is a text where "Kesava [Krishna] spoke 574 slokas, Arjuna 84, Sanjaya 41, and Dhritarashtra 1". An authentic manuscript of the Gita with 745 verses has not been found. Adi Shankara, in his 8th-century commentary, explicitly states that the Gita has 700 verses, which
6068-571: Is to make available as many translations of the key texts as possible, either in full or with complete bibliographic information. Fundamental Works are those works, which form the source of the CWMG. These include diaries, memoires, selections from compilations of letters and biographies. It is not possible to imagine the CWMG without the extraordinary diaries of Mahadev Desai , Gandhiji's closest companion from 1917 to 1942. The Fundamental Works provide three language editions of Mahadev Bhai Ni Diary. Similarly,
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6216-557: The Ananta Gita , the Hari Gita , the Vyasa Gita , or the Gita. The text is generally dated to the second or first century BCE, though some scholars accept dates as early as the 5th century BCE. According to Jeaneane Fowler, "the dating of the Gita varies considerably" and depends in part on whether one accepts it to be a part of the early versions of the Mahabharata , or a text that
6364-613: The Apartheid . In 1903, Gandhi started the Indian Opinion , a journal that carried news of Indians in South Africa, Indians in India with articles on all subjects -social, moral and intellectual. Each issue was multi-lingual and carried material in English, Gujarati, Hindi and Tamil. It carried ads, depended heavily on Gandhi's contributions (often printed without a byline) and was an 'advocate' for
6512-464: The East End of London . Hills was also a highly accomplished sportsman who later founded the football club West Ham United . In his 1927 An Autobiography, Vol. I , Gandhi wrote: The question deeply interested me...I had a high regard for Mr. Hills and his generosity. But I thought it was quite improper to exclude a man from a vegetarian society simply because he refused to regard puritan morals as one of
6660-562: The Gita ( IAST : gītā ), is a Hindu scripture , dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the Epic Mahabharata . It is a synthesis of various strands of Indian religious thought, including the Vedic concept of dharma (duty, rightful action); samkhya -based yoga and jnana (insight, knowledge); and bhakti (devotion). It holds a unique pan-Hindu influence as
6808-525: The Indian National Congress in 1921, Gandhi led nationwide campaigns for easing poverty, expanding women's rights, building religious and ethnic amity, ending untouchability , and, above all, achieving swaraj or self-rule. Gandhi adopted the short dhoti woven with hand-spun yarn as a mark of identification with India's rural poor. He began to live in a self-sufficient residential community , to eat simple food, and undertake long fasts as
6956-530: The London Vegetarian Society (LVS) and was elected to its executive committee under the aegis of its president and benefactor Arnold Hills . An achievement while on the committee was the establishment of a Bayswater chapter. Some of the vegetarians Gandhi met were members of the Theosophical Society , which had been founded in 1875 to further universal brotherhood, and which was devoted to
7104-448: The Mahabharata , and therefore the Gita, must have been well known by then for a Buddhist to be quoting it. This suggests a terminus ante quem (latest date) of the Gita be sometime before the 1st century CE. He cites similar quotes in the dharmasutra texts, the Brahma sutras , and other literature to conclude that the Bhagavad Gita was composed in the fifth or fourth-century BCE. In
7252-568: The Punjab and Bengal . Abstaining from the official celebration of independence , Gandhi visited the affected areas, attempting to alleviate distress. In the months following, he undertook several hunger strikes to stop the religious violence. The last of these was begun in Delhi on 12 January 1948, when Gandhi was 78. The belief that Gandhi had been too resolute in his defence of both Pakistan and Indian Muslims spread among some Hindus in India. Among these
7400-472: The Upanishads and samkhya yoga philosophy . While praising the benefits of yoga to release man's inner essence from the bounds of desire and the wheel of rebirth , the Gita propagates the Brahmanic idea of living according to one's duty or dharma , in contrast to the ascetic ideal of liberation by avoiding all karma . Facing the perils of war, Arjuna hesitates to perform his duty ( dharma ) as
7548-457: The tristubh meter found in the Vedas, where each line of the couplet has two-quarter verses with exactly eleven syllables. The Gita is a dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna right before the start of the climactic Kurukshetra War in the Hindu epic Mahabharata . Two massive armies have gathered to destroy each other. The Pandava prince Arjuna asks his charioteer Krishna to drive to the centre of
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#17328838712897696-437: The 13-year-old Gandhi was married to 14-year-old Kasturbai Gokuldas Kapadia (her first name was usually shortened to "Kasturba", and affectionately to "Ba") in an arranged marriage , according to the custom of the region at that time. In the process, he lost a year at school but was later allowed to make up by accelerating his studies. Gandhi's wedding was a joint event, where his brother and cousin were also married. Recalling
7844-460: The 2nd or 3rd century CE. Kashi Nath Upadhyaya dates it a bit earlier, but after the rise of Buddhism, by which it was influenced. He states that the Gita was always a part of the Mahabharata , and dating the latter suffices in dating the Gita. based on the estimated dates of Mahabharata as evidenced by exact quotes of it in the Buddhist literature by Asvaghosa (c. 100 CE), Upadhyaya states that
7992-411: The Bhagavad Gita as containing the essence of Hinduism and taking the Gita's emphasis on duty and action as a clue for their activism for Indian nationalism and independence. Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838–1894) challenged orientalist literature on Hinduism and offered his interpretations of the Gita, states Ajit Ray. Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856–1920) interpreted the karma yoga teachings in Gita as
8140-613: The British Colonial Secretary, to reconsider his position on this bill. Though unable to halt the bill's passage, Gandhi's campaign was successful in drawing attention to the grievances of Indians in South Africa. He helped found the Natal Indian Congress in 1894, and through this organisation, Gandhi moulded the Indian community of South Africa into a unified political force. In January 1897, when Gandhi landed in Durban,
8288-463: The British responded by imprisoning him and tens of thousands of Congress leaders. Meanwhile, the Muslim League did co-operate with Britain and moved, against Gandhi's strong opposition, to demands for a totally separate Muslim state of Pakistan. In August 1947, the British partitioned the land with India and Pakistan each achieving independence on terms that Gandhi disapproved. In April 1918, during
8436-562: The Empire and aroused a spiritual awakening within him; historian Arthur L. Herman wrote that Gandhi's African experience was a part of his great disillusionment with the West, transforming Gandhi into an "uncompromising non-cooperator". By 1910, Gandhi's newspaper, Indian Opinion , was covering reports on discrimination against Africans by the colonial regime. Gandhi remarked that the Africans "alone are
8584-503: The Fundamental Works. Also included are works of Gandhi's associates like C F Andrews and Mirabehn. This section also includes various translations of the Key Texts. The aspiration is to provide authoritative selections of Gandhiji's writings in various languages in this section. The Fundamental Works would also include all available volumes of translations of the CWMG in other Indian languages, for example Marathi. Gandhi's endeavour
8732-478: The Gandhian imagination and scholarship. The Portal plans to provide an ever expanding list of such journals. Other works is a broad category, which seeks to provide either full, unabridged texts or complete bibliographic information on the vast and ever expanding scholarship on Gandhiji and allied movements and institutions. This section also includes works of those who are crucial interlocutors of Gandhiji; C F Andrews
8880-482: The Gita as Anasakti Yoga . The Fundamental Works are those through which The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (CWMG) was created, for instance the Mahadevbhai Ni Diary. Over time the Portal plans to provide all the collected works. The Journals provide electronic versions of Indian Opinion , Navajivan , Young India , Harijan , Harijan Bandhu , and Harijan Sevak . A sub-section provides some of
9028-421: The Gita discovered on the Indian subcontinent. However, variant readings are relatively few in contrast to the numerous versions of the Mahabharata it is found embedded in. The original Bhagavad Gita has no chapter titles. Some Sanskrit editions that separate the Gita from the epic as an independent text, as well as translators, however, add chapter titles. For example, Swami Chidbhavananda describes each of
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#17328838712899176-410: The Gita is set in the context of a wartime epic, the narrative is structured to apply to all situations; it wrestles with questions about "who we are, how we should live our lives, and how should we act in the world". According to Huston Smith, it delves into questions about the "purpose of life, crisis of self-identity, human Self, human temperaments, and ways for the spiritual quest". The Gita posits
9324-496: The Gita rejects the shramanic path of non-action, emphasizing instead "the renunciation of the fruits of action". According to Gavin Flood, the teachings in the Gita differ from other Indian religions that encouraged extreme austerity and self-torture of various forms ( karsayanta ). The Gita disapproves of these, stating that not only is it against tradition but against Krishna himself, because "Krishna dwells within all beings, in torturing
9472-694: The Indian National Congress declared the independence of India. The British did not recognise the declaration, but negotiations ensued, with the Congress taking a role in provincial government in the late 1930s. Gandhi and the Congress withdrew their support of the Raj when the Viceroy declared war on Germany in September 1939 without consultation. Tensions escalated until Gandhi demanded immediate independence in 1942, and
9620-599: The Indian cause. In 1906, when the Bambatha Rebellion broke out in the colony of Natal , the then 36-year-old Gandhi, despite sympathising with the Zulu rebels, encouraged Indian South Africans to form a volunteer stretcher-bearer unit. Writing in the Indian Opinion , Gandhi argued that military service would be beneficial to the Indian community and claimed it would give them "health and happiness." Gandhi eventually led
9768-473: The Indian community organised a farewell party for Gandhi as he prepared to return to India. The farewell party was turned into a working committee to plan the resistance to a new Natal government discriminatory proposal. This led to Gandhi extending his original period of stay in South Africa. Gandhi planned to assist Indians in opposing a bill to deny them the right to vote , a right then proposed to be an exclusive European right. He asked Joseph Chamberlain ,
9916-462: The Indian people primarily by Gokhale. Gokhale was a key leader of the Congress Party best known for his restraint and moderation, and his insistence on working inside the system. Gandhi took Gokhale's liberal approach based on British Whiggish traditions and transformed it to make it look Indian. Gandhi took leadership of the Congress in 1920 and began escalating demands until on 26 January 1930
10064-501: The Indian tradition, the Bhagavad Gita, as well as the epic Mahabharata of which it is a part, is attributed to the sage Vyasa , whose full name was Krishna Dvaipayana, also called Veda-Vyasa. Another Hindu legend states that Vyasa narrated it when the lord Ganesha broke one of his tusks and wrote down the Mahabharata along with the Bhagavad Gita. Scholars consider Vyasa to be a mythical or symbolic author, in part because Vyasa
10212-547: The Muslim " martial races ." Gandhi raised 1,100 Indian volunteers to support British combat troops against the Boers. They were trained and medically certified to serve on the front lines. They were auxiliaries at the Battle of Colenso to a White volunteer ambulance corps. At the Battle of Spion Kop , Gandhi and his bearers moved to the front line and had to carry wounded soldiers for miles to
10360-640: The Natal Indian Congress. According to Ashwin Desai and Goolam Vahed, Gandhi's views on racism are contentious in some cases. He suffered persecution from the beginning in South Africa. Like with other coloured people, white officials denied Gandhi his rights, and the press and those in the streets bullied and called Gandhi a "parasite", "semi-barbarous", "canker", "squalid coolie", "yellow man", and other epithets. People would even spit on him as an expression of racial hate. While in South Africa, Gandhi focused on
10508-491: The Nation in post-colonial India. During India's nationalist movement and in several decades immediately after, he was also commonly called Bapu , an endearment roughly meaning "father". Gandhi's father, Karamchand Uttamchand Gandhi (1822–1885), served as the dewan (chief minister) of Porbandar state. His family originated from the then village of Kutiana in what was then Junagadh State . Although Karamchand only had been
10656-411: The Portal team has developed. It allows one to move between the three languages and search the same item. This would enable the user to compare and study their texts and explore questions of translation. The search criteria for these are as defined in volumes 98 and 99 of CWMG. The Portal is committed to provide a searchable ebook of the CWMG, based on the first edition. Gandhiji wrote seven books and did
10804-503: The Self in the Self By the Self through meditation; Others by the discipline of Sankhya And still others by the yoga of action. [25] Yet others, not knowing this, Worship, having heard it from others, And they also cross beyond death, Devoted to what they have heard. Bhagavad Gita, chapter XIII, verse 23-25 While the Upanishads refer to yoga as yoking or restraining the mind,
10952-525: The Vedic Sanskrit language, such as aorists and the prohibitive mā instead of the expected na (not) of classical Sanskrit. This suggests that the text was composed after the Pāṇini era, but before the long compounds of classical Sanskrit became the norm. This would date the text as transmitted by the oral tradition to the later centuries of the 1st-millennium BCE, and the first written version probably to
11100-597: The age of 24, prepared a legal brief for the Natal Assembly in 1895, seeking voting rights for Indians. Gandhi cited race history and European Orientalists' opinions that "Anglo-Saxons and Indians are sprung from the same Aryan stock or rather the Indo-European peoples" and argued that Indians should not be grouped with the Africans. Years later, Gandhi and his colleagues served and helped Africans as nurses and by opposing racism. The Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela
11248-587: The age of nine, Gandhi entered the local school in Rajkot , near his home. There, he studied the rudiments of arithmetic, history, the Gujarati language and geography. At the age of 11, Gandhi joined the High School in Rajkot, Alfred High School . He was an average student, won some prizes, but was a shy and tongue-tied student, with no interest in games; Gandhi's only companions were books and school lessons. In May 1883,
11396-549: The autobiography was issued in 1940 with a new title: An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments with Truth . The edition of the autobiography placed on the Portal is not only the first English edition, it is that copy on which careful revisions from the point of view of language were suggested by Rt. Hon. Sir V. S. Srinivasa Sastri . The Portal also provides translations of these texts in other languages. At present we have An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments with Truth available in thirteen languages. The aspiration
11544-402: The basic structure around which the Portal has been developed. The key texts provide first editions of the Key Texts of Gandhi. These are: Hind Swaraj , Satyagraha in South Africa , An Autobiography or The Story of My Experiments with Truth , From Yervada Mandir , Ashram Observances in Action , Constructive Programmes: Their Meaning and Place, Key To Health , and Gandhi's translation of
11692-438: The battlefield so that he can get a good look at both the armies and all those "so eager for war". He sees that some among his enemies are his relatives, beloved friends, and revered teachers. He does not want to fight to kill them and is thus filled with doubt and despair on the battlefield. He drops his bow, wonders if he should renounce and just leave the battlefield. He turns to his charioteer and guide, Krishna, for advice on
11840-438: The body the ascetic would be torturing him", states Flood. Even a monk should strive for "inner renunciation" rather than external pretensions. It further states that the dharmic householder can achieve the same goals as the renouncing monk through "inner renunciation" or "motiveless action". One must do the right thing because one has determined that it is right, states Gita, without craving for its fruits, without worrying about
11988-698: The catalogues of the Sabarmati Ashram archives. The Portal will collaborate with other national institutions such as the National Archives of India and the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library to make the variorum as comprehensive as possible. Mohandas K. Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi ( ISO : Mōhanadāsa Karamacaṁda Gāṁdhī ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist , and political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead
12136-558: The cheapest college he could afford in Bombay. Mavji Dave Joshiji, a Brahmin priest and family friend, advised Gandhi and his family that he should consider law studies in London. In July 1888, Gandhi's wife Kasturba gave birth to their first surviving child, Harilal. Gandhi's mother was not comfortable about Gandhi leaving his wife and family and going so far from home. Gandhi's uncle Tulsidas also tried to dissuade his nephew, but Gandhi wanted to go. To persuade his wife and mother, Gandhi made
12284-488: The committee agreed with Gandhi, the vote was lost and Allinson was excluded. There were no hard feelings, with Hills proposing the toast at the LVS farewell dinner in honour of Gandhi's return to India. Gandhi, at age 22, was called to the bar in June 1891 and then left London for India, where he learned that his mother had died while he was in London and that his family had kept the news from Gandhi. His attempts at establishing
12432-448: The day of their marriage, Gandhi once said, "As we didn't know much about marriage, for us it meant only wearing new clothes, eating sweets and playing with relatives." As was the prevailing tradition, the adolescent bride was to spend much time at her parents' house, and away from her husband. Writing many years later, Gandhi described with regret the lustful feelings he felt for his young bride: "Even at school I used to think of her, and
12580-542: The early 18th century, the Bhagavad Gita gained a growing appreciation and popularity in the West . Novel interpretations of the Gita, along with apologetics on it, have been a part of the modern era revisionism and renewal movements within Hinduism. According to Ronald Neufeldt, it was the Theosophical Society that dedicated much attention and energy to the allegorical interpretation of the Gita, along with religious texts from around
12728-487: The editorial architecture determined for the CWMG. At present there are 100 volumes of the CWMG, 82 volumes of Gandhiji No Akshardeha and 97 volumes of Sampoorna Gandhi Vangmaya. These volumes provide information about the source of these writings as also the language in which they were originally written. Volumes 1 to 90 of the CWMG follow chronological order, while volumes 91-97 are supplementary volumes created to accommodate new material that came to be acquired subsequent to
12876-547: The eighteen chapters as a separate yoga because each chapter, like yoga, "trains the body and the mind". He labels the first chapter "Arjuna Vishada Yogam" or the "Yoga of Arjuna's Dejection". Sir Edwin Arnold titled this chapter in his 1885 translation as "The Distress of Arjuna". The chapters are: Translators have variously titled the first chapter as Arjuna Vishada-yoga , Prathama Adhyaya , The Distress of Arjuna , The War Within , or Arjuna's Sorrow . The Bhagavad Gita
13024-474: The epic". The Gita, states van Buitenen, was conceived and developed by the Mahabharata authors to "bring to a climax and solution the dharmic dilemma of a war". According to Dennis Hudson, there is an overlap between Vedic and Tantric rituals within the teachings found in the Bhagavad Gita. He places the Pancaratra Agama in the last three or four centuries of 1st-millennium BCE, and proposes that both
13172-457: The existence of two selves in an individual, and its presentation of the Krishna-Arjuna dialogue has been interpreted as a metaphor for an eternal dialogue between the two. The Bhagavad Gita is a synthesis of Vedic and non-Vedic traditions, reconciling renunciation with action by arguing that they are inseparable; while following one's dharma, one should not consider oneself to be the agent of action, but attribute all one's actions to God. It
13320-574: The first editions. The Trust is also working on a comprehensive compendium on the Gandhi Heritage Sites, which would be made available on the Portal. The Portal plans to place about a million pages of information in multiple languages. These will include Journals, Fundamental Works, and Other Works. The Trust is also in the process of developing an on-line variorum of Gandhiji's manuscripts, and will make available about 150,000 pages of original manuscripts. The variorum will be searchable through
13468-445: The issue of 3 February 1929 of the same magazine. Mahadev Desai's English translation of it commenced with 3 December 1925 issue of Young India and continued till that of 3 February 1929. The first edition of the English translation The Story of My Experiments with Truth was published in two volumes: the first containing three parts was issued in 1927, and the second, containing parts IV and V, in 1929. The second revised edition of
13616-548: The journals which make for a fuller archive of the Gandhian imagination and scholarship. At present the Portal has placed as representation Gandhi Marg (Hindi & English), Bhoomi Putra , Pyara Bapu and the unique handwritten journal of the Satyagraha Ashram Madhpudo, which among other things carried Prabhudas Gandhi's Jivan Nu Parodh and Kakasaheb Kalelkar's Smaran Yatra . The Portal hopes to include many more journals as it acquires these overtime. Other Works
13764-519: The latter part of World War I , the Viceroy invited Gandhi to a War Conference in Delhi. Gandhi agreed to support the war effort. In contrast to the Zulu War of 1906 and the outbreak of World War I in 1914, when he recruited volunteers for the Ambulance Corps, this time Gandhi attempted to recruit combatants. In a June 1918 leaflet entitled "Appeal for Enlistment", Gandhi wrote: "To bring about such
13912-434: The lawyer for Abdullah's cousin. Gandhi spent 21 years in South Africa where he developed his political views, ethics, and politics. During this time Gandhi briefly returned to India in 1902 to mobilise support for the welfare of Indians in South Africa. Immediately upon arriving in South Africa, Gandhi faced discrimination due to his skin colour and heritage. Gandhi was not allowed to sit with European passengers in
14060-498: The meaning of Vishnu to be the 'pervading actor'. In the Bhagavad Gita, similarly, ' Krishna identified himself both with Vāsudeva , Vishnu and their meanings'. The ideas at the centre of Vedic rituals in Shatapatha Brahmana and the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita revolve around this absolute Person, the primordial genderless absolute, which is the same as the goal of Pancaratra Agama and Tantra. The Bhagavad Gita manuscript
14208-498: The mediation of Cardinal Manning , leading Gandhi and an Indian friend to make a point of visiting the cardinal and thanking him for his work. His vow to his mother influenced Gandhi's time in London. Gandhi tried to adopt "English" customs, including taking dancing lessons. However, he didn't appreciate the bland vegetarian food offered by his landlady and was frequently hungry until he found one of London's few vegetarian restaurants. Influenced by Henry Salt's writing, Gandhi joined
14356-539: The message of the Gita, Vivekananda sought to energise the people of India to reclaim their dormant but strong identity. Aurobindo (1872–1950) saw the Bhagavad Gita as a "scripture of the future religion" and suggested that Hinduism had acquired a much wider relevance through the Gita. [23] He who in this way knows the Spirit And material nature, along with the qualities [guna], In whatever stage of transmigration he may exist, Is not born again. [24] Some perceive
14504-658: The most prominent sacred text and is a central text in Vedanta and the Vaishnava Hindu tradition. While traditionally attributed to the sage Veda Vyasa , the Gita is probably a composite work composed by multiple authors. It is set in a narrative framework of dialogue between the Pandava prince Arjuna and his charioteer guide Krishna , an avatar of Vishnu , at the onset of the Kurukshetra War , incorporating teachings from
14652-441: The now dormant Sharada script . Variant manuscripts of the Gita have been found on the Indian subcontinent Unlike the enormous variations in the remaining sections of the surviving Mahabharata manuscripts, the Gita manuscripts show only minor variations. According to Gambhirananda, the old manuscripts may have had 745 verses, though he agrees that “700 verses is the generally accepted historic standard." Gambhirananda's view
14800-465: The objects of the society A motion to remove Allinson was raised, and was debated and voted on by the committee. Gandhi's shyness was an obstacle to his defence of Allinson at the committee meeting. Gandhi wrote his views down on paper, but shyness prevented Gandhi from reading out his arguments, so Hills, the President, asked another committee member to read them out for him. Although some other members of
14948-400: The original inhabitants of the land. … The whites, on the other hand, have occupied the land forcibly and appropriated it for themselves." In 1910, Gandhi established, with the help of his friend Hermann Kallenbach , an idealistic community they named Tolstoy Farm near Johannesburg. There, Gandhi nurtured his policy of peaceful resistance. In the years after black South Africans gained
15096-444: The path of knowledge ( jnana yoga ), the path of devotion ( bhakti yoga ), the path of action ( karma yoga ), and the path of meditation ( raja yoga ). Medieval commentators argued which path had priority. According to Robinson, modern commentators have interpreted the text as refraining from insisting on one right marga (path) to spirituality. According to Upadhyaya, the Gita states that none of these paths to spiritual realization
15244-530: The prejudice against Gandhi and his fellow Indians from British people that Gandhi experienced and observed deeply bothered him. Gandhi found it humiliating, struggling to understand how some people can feel honour or superiority or pleasure in such inhumane practices. Gandhi began to question his people's standing in the British Empire . The Abdullah case that had brought him to South Africa concluded in May 1894, and
15392-500: The proscription imposed upon the Gujarati edition by the Government of Bombay in March 1910. The English translation is followed by a Hindi translation. Similar order is followed in case of all other texts, albeit facsimile editions of other key texts are not available. An attempt has been made to provide first editions of all the works, including translations. Gandhi was acutely sensitive to
15540-412: The publication of the series. Volumes 98 and 99 are Index of Subjects and Index of Persons respectively. Volume 100 is the compilation of Prefaces to the preceding volumes. The Gandhi Heritage Portal provides unabridged, complete sets of these. These are available in two options: archival version and enhanced version, which is a black and white version. These volumes are interlinked through a database that
15688-450: The published works of Manubehn Gandhi also form part of the Fundamental Works. There is a rich and long biographical tradition of recounting Gandhiji's life, which commenced with Rev. Joseph Doke's M K Gandhi: An Indian Patriot in South Africa and include such magnificent works as Pyarelal's The Early Phase and The Last Phase , D G Tendulkar's eight-volume biography Mahatma and Narayan Desai's Maru Jivan Ej Mari Vani . These form part of
15836-436: The question of translation. The translations of his Key Texts were done by his closest associates including Mahadev Desai and Valji Govindji Desai. Gandhi read, revised and authenticated these translations. The Portal also provides rare copies of some of these key texts. The Navajivan of 29 November 1925 carried the first instalment of Gandhiji's autobiography; Satya Na Prayogo, and the last chapter "Farewell" were published in
15984-568: The racial persecution of Indians before he started to focus on racism against Africans. In some cases, state Desai and Vahed, Gandhi's behaviour was one of being a willing part of racial stereotyping and African exploitation. During a speech in September 1896, Gandhi complained that the whites in the British colony of South Africa were "degrading the Indian to the level of a raw Kaffir ." Scholars cite it as an example of evidence that Gandhi at that time thought of Indians and black South Africans differently. As another example given by Herman, Gandhi, at
16132-422: The rationale for war, his choices and the right thing to do. The Bhagavad Gita is the compilation of Arjuna's questions and moral dilemma and Krishna's answers and insights that elaborate on a variety of philosophical concepts. The compiled dialogue goes far beyond the "rationale for war"; it touches on many human ethical dilemmas, philosophical issues and life's choices. According to Flood and Martin, although
16280-620: The recommendation of the Gandhi Heritage Sites Committee headed by Shri Gopal Krishna Gandhi, gave the responsibility of conceptualising, designing, developing and maintaining the Gandhi Heritage Portal to the Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust. The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (100 volumes), Gandhiji No Akshar Deha (82 volumes) and Sampoorna Gandhi Vangmaya (97 volumes) form
16428-658: The results, loss or gain. Desires, selfishness, and the craving for fruits can distort one from spiritual living. The Bhagavad Gita is part of the Prasthanatrayi , which also includes the Upanishads and the Brahma sutras , the foundational texts of the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy. The Gita is a revered text in the Vaishnava tradition, mostly through the Vaishnava Vedanta commentaries written on it, though
16576-426: The right to vote in South Africa (1994), Gandhi was proclaimed a national hero with numerous monuments. At the request of Gopal Krishna Gokhale , conveyed to Gandhi by C. F. Andrews , Gandhi returned to India in 1915. He brought an international reputation as a leading Indian nationalist, theorist and community organiser. Gandhi joined the Indian National Congress and was introduced to Indian issues, politics and
16724-464: The rise of Buddhism and Jainism in the 5th century BCE, and particularly after the semi-legendary life of Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE. Thus, the first version of the Bhagavad Gita may have been composed in or after the 3rd century BCE. Winthrop Sargeant linguistically categorizes the Bhagavad Gita as Epic-Puranic Sanskrit, a language that succeeds Vedic Sanskrit and precedes classical Sanskrit. The text has occasional pre-classical elements of
16872-518: The selections are made from the "Chronologies" that are given as a separate section and other Fundamental Works. Information about tours, marches, Satyagrahas, imprisonments, fasts and assaults are arranged in tabular form. For instance the Dandi March is presented through four subsections: "Background to the Salt Satyagraha", "The Marchers", "The March" and "Events post March". A virtual tour mapping
17020-627: The small princely state of Porbandar in the Kathiawar Agency of the British Raj . In 1874, Gandhi's father, Karamchand, left Porbandar for the smaller state of Rajkot , where he became a counsellor to its ruler, the Thakur Sahib; though Rajkot was a less prestigious state than Porbandar, the British regional political agency was located there, which gave the state's diwan a measure of security. In 1876, Karamchand became diwan of Rajkot and
17168-532: The sole degree-granting institution of higher education in the region. However, Gandhi dropped out and returned to his family in Porbandar. Outside school, Gandhi's education was enriched by exposure to Gujarati literature, especially reformers like Narmad and Govardhanram Tripathi , whose works alerted the Gujaratis to their own faults and weaknesses such as belief in religious dogmatism. Gandhi had dropped out of
17316-425: The stagecoach and was told to sit on the floor near the driver, then beaten when he refused; elsewhere, Gandhi was kicked into a gutter for daring to walk near a house, in another instance thrown off a train at Pietermaritzburg after refusing to leave the first-class. Gandhi sat in the train station, shivering all night and pondering if he should return to India or protest for his rights. Gandhi chose to protest and
17464-733: The study of Buddhist and Hindu literature. They encouraged Gandhi to join them in reading the Bhagavad Gita both in translation as well as in the original. Gandhi had a friendly and productive relationship with Hills, but the two men took a different view on the continued LVS membership of fellow committee member Thomas Allinson . Their disagreement is the first known example of Gandhi challenging authority, despite his shyness and temperamental disinclination towards confrontation. Allinson had been promoting newly available birth control methods , but Hills disapproved of these, believing they undermined public morality. He believed vegetarianism to be
17612-481: The successful campaign for India's independence from British rule . He inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. The honorific Mahātmā (from Sanskrit , meaning great-souled or venerable), first applied to him in South Africa in 1914, is now used throughout the world. Born and raised in a Hindu family in coastal Gujarat , Gandhi trained in the law at the Inner Temple in London and
17760-523: The tantric and vedic, the Agama and the Gita share the same Vāsudeva-Krishna roots. Some of the ideas in the Bhagavad Gita connect it to the Shatapatha Brahmana of Yajurveda . The Shatapatha Brahmana , for example, mentions the absolute Purusha who dwells in every human being. According to Hudson, a story in this Vedic text highlights the meaning of the name Vāsudeva as the 'shining one (deva) who dwells (Vasu) in all things and in whom all things dwell', and
17908-515: The tension between the Brahmanical worldorder with its caste-based social institutions that hold society together, and the search for salvation by ascetics who have left society. Knowledge is indeed better than practice; Meditation is superior to knowledge; Renunciation of the fruit of action is better than meditation; Peace immediately follows renunciation. Bhagavad Gita, chapter XII, verse 12 According to Gavin Flood and Charles Martin,
18056-644: The text itself is also celebrated in the Puranas, for example, the Gita Mahatmya of the Varaha Purana . While Upanishads focus more on knowledge and the identity of the self with Brahman, the Bhagavad Gita shifts the emphasis towards devotion and the worship of a personal deity, specifically Krishna. There are alternate versions of the Bhagavad Gita (such as the one found in Kashmir), but the basic message behind these texts
18204-455: The textual material it has over 1000 photographs, 21 films and 78 audio recordings. While most of the data is interlinked and searchable, at present the search criteria are those which have been determined by Volumes 98 and 99 of CWMG, that is the Index of Subjects and Index of Persons. The Portal plans to make available a searchable electronic edition of The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi based on
18352-493: The thought of nightfall and our subsequent meeting was ever haunting me." Gandhi later recalled feeling jealous and possessive of her, such as when Kasturba would visit a temple with her girlfriends, and being sexually lustful in his feelings for her. In late 1885, Gandhi's father, Karamchand, died. Gandhi had left his father's bedside to be with his wife mere minutes before his passing. Many decades later, Gandhi wrote "if animal passion had not blinded me, I should have been spared
18500-411: The topic of BG chapter 6, the Bhagavad Gita introduces "the famous three kinds of yoga, 'knowledge' ( jnana ), 'action' ( karma ), and 'love' ( bhakti ). BG XIII verse 23-25 famously mentions four kinds of yoga, or ways of seeing the self, adding meditation to the three yogas. Yet, the practice of dhyana (meditation), is a part of all three classical paths in Hinduism. Knowledge or insight, discerning
18648-632: The torture of separation from my father during his last moments." Later, Gandhi, then 16 years old, and his wife, age 17, had their first child, who survived only a few days. The two deaths anguished Gandhi. The Gandhis had four more children, all sons: Harilal , born in 1888; Manilal , born in 1892; Ramdas , born in 1897; and Devdas , born in 1900. In November 1887, the 18-year-old Gandhi graduated from high school in Ahmedabad . In January 1888, he enrolled at Samaldas College in Bhavnagar State , then
18796-414: The true self ( purusha ) from matter and material desires ( prakriti ), is the true aim of classical yoga , in which meditation and insight cannot be separated. Furthermore, the Gita "rejects the Buddhist and Jain path of non-action, emphasizing instead renunciation of the fruits of action" and devotion to Krishna. The systematic presentation of Hindu monotheism as divided into these four paths or "Yogas"
18944-566: The truth), or nonviolent protest, for the first time. According to Anthony Parel, Gandhi was also influenced by the Tamil moral text Tirukkuṛaḷ after Leo Tolstoy mentioned it in their correspondence that began with " A Letter to a Hindu ". Gandhi urged Indians to defy the new law and to suffer the punishments for doing so. His ideas of protests, persuasion skills, and public relations had emerged. Gandhi took these back to India in 1915. Gandhi focused his attention on Indians and Africans while he
19092-785: The two special characteristics of the Gita." Similarly, Cornille states that the Gita asserts that the path of Bhakti (devotion) is the foremost and the easiest of them all. According to Huston Smith , a notable neo-Vedantin , referring to BG XIII verse 23–25, the Gita mentions four ways to see the self, based on the Samkhya-premise that people are born with different temperaments and tendencies ( guṇa ). Some individuals are more reflective and intellectual, some are effective and engaged by their emotions, some are action-driven, yet others favour experimentation and exploring what works. According to Smith, BG XIII verse 24-25 lists four different spiritual paths for each personality type respectively:
19240-552: The two. Numerous classical and modern thinkers have written commentaries on the Gita with differing views on its essence and essentials, including on the relation between the individual self ( jivatman ) and God (Krishna) or the supreme self (Atman/ Brahman ). The Gita famously mentions, in chapter XIII verse 24–25, the four ways to see the self, interpreted as four yogas, namely through meditation ( raja yoga ), insight/intuition ( jnana yoga ), work/right action ( karma yoga ) and devotion/love ( bhakti yoga ), an influential division that
19388-465: The walk to Dandi is also provided. The information is also linked to the sources in the CWMG to enable further study. Gandhi moved across the Indian subcontinent and other parts of the world to carry his message of freedom, truth, nonviolence , Satyagraha , Swadeshi and equality for all. This was his way of inhabiting the land and being one with her people. The Gandhi Heritage Sites Committee has designated thirty-nine locations as core sites. At present
19536-681: The war campaign brought into question his consistency on nonviolence. Gandhi's private secretary noted that "The question of the consistency between his creed of ' Ahimsa ' (nonviolence) and his recruiting campaign was raised not only then but has been discussed ever since." According to political and educational scientist Christian Bartolf, Gandhi's support for the war stemmed from his belief that true ahimsa could not exist simultaneously with cowardice. Therefore, Gandhi felt that Indians needed to be willing and capable of using arms before they voluntarily chose non-violence. In July 1918, Gandhi said that he could not persuade even one individual to enlist for
19684-530: The world war. "So far I have not a single recruit to my credit apart," Gandhi wrote. He added: "They object because they fear to die." Gandhi's first major achievement came in 1917 with the Champaran agitation in Bihar . The Champaran agitation pitted the local peasantry against largely Anglo-Indian plantation owners who were backed by the local administration. The peasants were forced to grow indigo ( Indigofera sp.),
19832-551: The world, after 1885 and given H. P. Blavatsky, Subba Rao and Anne Besant writings. Their attempt was to present their "universalist religion." These late 19th-century theosophical writings called the Gita a "path of true spirituality" and "teaching nothing more than the basis of every system of philosophy and scientific endeavour", triumphing over other "Samkhya paths" of Hinduism that "have degenerated into superstition and demoralized India by leading people away from practical action". Neo-Hindus and Hindu nationalists have celebrated
19980-513: Was Nathuram Godse , a militant Hindu nationalist from Pune , western India, who assassinated Gandhi by firing three bullets into his chest at an interfaith prayer meeting in Delhi on 30 January 1948. Gandhi's birthday, 2 October, is commemorated in India as Gandhi Jayanti , a national holiday , and worldwide as the International Day of Nonviolence . Gandhi is considered to be the Father of
20128-559: Was called to the bar at the age of 22. After two uncertain years in India, where he was unable to start a successful law practice, Gandhi moved to South Africa in 1893 to represent an Indian merchant in a lawsuit. He went on to live in South Africa for 21 years. There, Gandhi raised a family and first employed nonviolent resistance in a campaign for civil rights. In 1915, aged 45, he returned to India and soon set about organising peasants, farmers, and urban labourers to protest against discrimination and excessive land-tax. Assuming leadership of
20276-467: Was allowed to board the train the next day. In another incident, the magistrate of a Durban court ordered Gandhi to remove his turban, which he refused to do. Indians were not allowed to walk on public footpaths in South Africa. Gandhi was kicked by a police officer out of the footpath onto the street without warning. When Gandhi arrived in South Africa, according to Arthur Herman, he thought of himself as "a Briton first, and an Indian second." However,
20424-456: Was born into a Gujarati Hindu Modh Bania family. Gandhi's father, Karamchand, was Hindu and his mother Putlibai was from a Pranami Vaishnava Hindu family. Gandhi's father was of Modh Baniya caste in the varna of Vaishya . His mother came from the medieval Krishna bhakti-based Pranami tradition, whose religious texts include the Bhagavad Gita , the Bhagavata Purana , and
20572-550: Was challenged in the early 1940s by a Muslim nationalism which demanded a separate homeland for Muslims within British India . In August 1947, Britain granted independence, but the British Indian Empire was partitioned into two dominions , a Hindu-majority India and a Muslim-majority Pakistan . As many displaced Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs made their way to their new lands, religious violence broke out, especially in
20720-581: Was excommunicated from his caste. Gandhi ignored this, and on 4 September, he sailed from Bombay to London, with his brother seeing him off. Gandhi attended University College, London , where he took classes in English literature with Henry Morley in 1888–1889. Gandhi also enrolled at the Inns of Court School of Law in Inner Temple with the intention of becoming a barrister . His childhood shyness and self-withdrawal had continued through his teens. Gandhi retained these traits when he arrived in London, but joined
20868-514: Was from a Pranami Vaishnava family. Karamchand and Putlibai had four children: a son, Laxmidas ( c. 1860 –1914); a daughter, Raliatbehn (1862–1960); a second son, Karsandas ( c. 1866 –1913). and a third son, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi who was born on 2 October 1869 in Porbandar (also known as Sudamapuri ), a coastal town on the Kathiawar Peninsula and then part of
21016-416: Was in South Africa. Initially, Gandhi was not interested in politics, but this changed after he was discriminated against and bullied, such as by being thrown out of a train coach due to his skin colour by a white train official. After several such incidents with Whites in South Africa , Gandhi's thinking and focus changed, and he felt he must resist this and fight for rights. Gandhi entered politics by forming
21164-406: Was inserted into the epic at a later date. The earliest "surviving" components therefore are believed to be no older than the earliest "external" references we have to the Mahabharata epic. The Mahabharata – the world's longest poem – is itself a text that was likely written and compiled over several hundred years, one dated between "400 BCE or little earlier, and 2nd century CE, though some claim
21312-519: Was likely a deliberate declaration to prevent further insertions and changes to the Gita. Since Shankara's time, "700 verses" has been the standard benchmark for the critical edition of the Bhagavad Gita. The Bhagavad Gita is a poem written in the Sanskrit language. Its 700 verses are structured into several ancient Indian poetic meters , with the principal being the shloka ( Anushtubh chanda ). It has 18 chapters in total. Each shloka consists of
21460-518: Was popularized by Swami Vivekananda in the 1890s. The Gita in the title of the Bhagavad Gita means "song". Religious leaders and scholars interpret the word Bhagavad in several ways. Accordingly, the title has been interpreted as, "the song of God"; "the word of God" by the theistic schools, "the words of the Lord", "the Divine Song", and "Celestial Song" by others. In India, its Sanskrit name
21608-435: Was succeeded as diwan of Porbandar by his brother Tulsidas. Karamchand's family then rejoined him in Rajkot. They moved to their family home Kaba Gandhi No Delo in 1881. As a child, Gandhi was described by his sister Raliat as "restless as mercury, either playing or roaming about. One of his favourite pastimes was twisting dogs' ears." The Indian classics, especially the stories of Shravana and king Harishchandra , had
21756-594: Was the first Bania from Kathiawar to proceed to England for his Barrister Examination. As Mohandas Gandhi waited for a berth on a ship to London he found that he had attracted the ire of the Modh Banias of Bombay. Upon arrival in Bombay, he stayed with the local Modh Bania community whose elders warned Gandhi that England would tempt him to compromise his religion, and eat and drink in Western ways. Despite Gandhi informing them of his promise to his mother and her blessings, Gandhi
21904-494: Was to reach out and communicate with as many people and opinions as possible. Publication of periodic journals published in multiple languages was one such mode of communication. The Portal provides complete sets of the journals that he owned, edited or published. These include: Indian Opinion , Navajivan , Young India , Harijan , Harijan Bandhu and Harijan Sevak . Gandhi's ideas and practices have inspired many movements and academic inquires. "Journals by Others" presents
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