Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.
To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to upgrade your browser.
2019, International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development
India gained its independence in 1947 and the pivotal role played by Gandhi in snatching its own people's liberty is indispensable and still thrives to be a landmark in the Indian history. This paper examines attempts to quantify the significance and relevance of Gandhian principle in post colonial period.
A standout amongst the most prominently examined and yet many-a-period dubious figure of Indian politics is Mahatma Gandhi. There is not really any zone in the pre or post-independence period that he had left untramplled for Indian improvement and independence. He is such a socio-political figure who is scarcely incomprehensible for somebody to overlook or disregard. He has impacted each part of human awareness and there is not really any discipline that he has left uncommented. Maybe a couple would debate the idea that Mahatma Gandhi was one of the twentieth century's transformative political and spiritual leaders. Among his numerous prominent commitments, Gandhi is appropriately credited with pioneering Satyagraha, protection from oppression however mass common rebellion and vocalizing an otherworldly message that helped the Indian National Congress procure independence from the British in August 1947. In Gandhi's glorified state, there would be no representative government, no constitution, no army or police constrain; there would be no industrialization, no machines and absolutely no modern cities.
Today majority of the countries across the world happens to be under democratic system of Government. Theoretically, this system is considered to be the best so far. It is the best because people are connected with it directly or indirectly at every level and it ensures popular participation horizontally and vertically. Also it provides maximum opportunities of public progress and development. People can themselves decide in this system the mode of their welfare. However, even though being theoretically the best system of government, if we peruse the democratic nations, we first of all find that there is non-equal development of the citizens and socioeconomic and political disparity among individuals and nations. They are under clutches of regionalism, terrorism and communalism. There is degradation of moral and ethical values. There are other vivid problems akin to mentioned above and peace is far away so long as these problems exist. If these nations want to get rid of these problems in a holistic way, all citizens of them must have equal development and they should have communal harmony towards making all citizens collective and unified partners in progress. But, reality is far from these wishful ideals to be achieved. Though, now people are more aware of their rights than ever before. They are essential so Indian polity theoretically recognizes the prime importance of the concept of human rights. However, from the practical aspect of our political system, the Indian society is known for its inequality, social hierarchy and the rich and poor divide. Here in this context Gandhiji's outlook towards human beings deserve great attention. He believed they must equally accept and respect each other without having any discrimination based on caste, colour, creed, tribe, sex. Gandhian non-violence is immensely significant in system of today's governance, especially in a democratic system. Mahatma Gandhi said in this context, " If they are to be truly made democratic, they must be valiantly non-violent ". In case of absence of this attribute, democracy shall be there for namesake only and it would be better for it to…clearly be supporter of dictatorship. Polity must be fearless, full of equality, providing protection to all eternal values and only then it can be pro-people. Man can contribute to world peace only in such a system of government along with gaining his goal. Gandhism calls upon modern polities to march in this direction and to make them habitual to non-violence. This is really welfaristic. We cannot at all minimize significance of Gandhian non-violence in modern polity. Today the problem of falling standards of morality in public life accentuated by inequalities, violations of human rights, corruption, terrorism, communalism, regionalism need for " a new moral leadership " guided by reassertion of " Gandhian values and ideals " for rejuvenating the Indian Polity.
Indian politics is Mahatma Gandhi. There is not really any zone in the pre or post-independence period that he had left untramplled for Indian improvement and independence. He is such a socio-political figure who is scarcely incomprehensible for somebody
There is absolutely no need to introduce Mohandas Karmachand Gandhi as he is the world-reputed personality. He was a political leader whose influence on government polity, policy, programs and politics is eternal. As a social reformer, his ideas are reflected and displayed in literature of India. Even the makers of movies in India do not spare themselves from Gandhian influence. His life and ideas have been a significant influence to many leaders and socio-political reformers of the world. In India, the influence of his ideas and ideologies is directly or indirectly seen in most of the socio-political areas. His ideas regarding many issues are debated and discussed in Indian academia. Though some scholars find out contradictions and drawbacks of Gandhi in his speeches, lectures and writing, none can ignore his influence on Indian politics. His concepts are used by the politicians as well as policy-makers with a purpose to introduce and implement their ideologies, initiatives and socio-economic programmes. The present chapter analyses how Indian Government under the leadership of Shree Narendra Modi has made attempts to use Gandhian concepts and ideology in its plans, policies, missions and programmes.
Printing Area International Research Journal, 2015
Mahatma Gandhi, the father of the Indian nation is regarded as a versatile personality not only in India but also the world at large. The uniqueness of Gandhi's personality is largely attributed to the fact that he was not only a man of words but also a man of action. He himself used to practise whatever he used to preach to his close associates and millions of Indians. It is because of his personal charisma that he was able to influence and mobilise the common masses to lead the struggle for India's freedom from the mighty British Empire. His elixir of simple living helped him to identify himself with the common man and understand the prevalent dynamics and complexities of the Indian society. So, keeping in view the unique socioeconomic conditions of India and the nature of colonial rule, he came out with his own ideas on the nature of post-independent Indian polity and society. A close look and thorough examination of some of his social, political and economic ideas lead one to rethink and ponder over their relevance even today, in this era of globalization.
American Historical Review, 2010
The 21 st Century is identified as the age of growth and development. In midst of all the developments, it is the acceptable hour to stand still and think 'Is India really developing?' and 'Is humaneness present in human life?' An inquest into these two questions, reminds a lot about our charismatic leader Mahatma Gandhi, his philosophy and his teachings. This article envisages the facts behind the relevance of Gandhiji and his philosophy in today's sociopolitical environment.
Until recently, the concept of a non-western international relations (IR) theory was something unheard of among the mainstream international academic community. The domination of western thought in the development of modern IR theory as a discipline is undeniable, as the field of study has been a product of western academia building on the intellectual capital and history of the European academic traditions spanning across centuries. This has helped to develop a coherent and robust theory that has enjoyed unquestioned acceptance within the global intelligentsia. Key regions that can be said to hold authority over the discipline include the US, Britain with the English School academics along with a few others, and Australia. Having said the same, the past few years have seen a revival in the efforts to theorize and develop aspects of non-western IR theory with a special focus on Asia (Acharya, Buzan 2007). The IR community has been successful in creating a critical mass of scholars that have been able to conceive a wide range of region specific theories building on similar historical attitudes, events, and norms that have made western IR theory so widely accepted. One such attempt at the development of a regional IR theory has emerged from India, where a number of scholars have tried to build on Indian modern history to theorize strains of an Indian IR theory, incorporating concepts of religion, identity, influential figureheads from the independence movement, and Indian mythology. Some of these ideas include elements from the Hindutva tradition, policies of Nehru, and ideologies of Gandhi (Bajpai 2003). Given India's rich historical and cultural capital, it can be said that there is a long way to go before the quantum of the intellectual output with respect to the domain of IR in India reaches a steady state comparable to western IR. Gandhi is one of the most well-known figureheads of the Indian independence movement. His philosophies have been widely read and scrutinized to develop applications spilling over to other fields of study, making Gandhian thought a well-established academic discipline in social sciences. Focusing on its relationship with modern IR theory, there have been some attempts to find linkages between the two domains (Cohen 2002), with many relevant parallels with western IR theory emerging out of these efforts. In this paper, I attempt to summarize and add to these efforts, and try to build a set of coherent ideas related to Gandhi's philosophies that can be relevant to the domain of IR theory. I will start with my preferred approach to developing a non-western IR theory, following it up with a quick overview of the current state of Indian IR theory and the reasoning behind choosing Gandhi as a contributor to IR. I will then elaborate on his multiple philosophies and their relevance to the discipline. The paper will also try to analyse the significance of Gandhian thought through a critical lens, in an effort to analyse currents in the ideology that can be termed critical of the mainstream IR theories.
2021
Published by Indira Gandhi National Open University ,New Delhi
The Indian Journal of Political Science Vol. LXXX, No. 1, January-March, 2019, pp. 165-174 (ISSN NO. 0019-5510), 2019
This paper discusses the philosophy of Gandhi as applied to the Ancient Indian principle of purusharthas which are the root goals of life and their inter-relationships, dependence and independence from each other. The eternal path to be pursued by each individual may vary but our destination remains the same. Gandhi brought this mundane philosophy to public discourse which was otherwise neglected and considered as parochial that even while fulfilling our responsibilities we can pursue the blissful state of moksha and we need not renounce the worldly affairs. Politics, for Gandhi was his path and while engaging in it as a means he envisioned to attain world peace and utter non-violence as an ecstatic end.
This paper examined the nature of Gandhian political ideas. The concept of state, politics, democracy, leadership, decentralization, freedom, rights and duties, what were these meant for Gandhi and his future vision for India. Further, the paper studied Gandhi’s political contributions such as secularism, panchayats, abolition of untouchability, freedom of speech etc. in the Indian constitution and their relevance in the present age. In last, briefly, I had made some understanding of recent emerging challenges in present society and hope to resolve them in the light of Gandhian principles, so that true democracy could be prevail. Therefore, the focus of this paper was mainly on political ideas and political contributions of Gandhiji and their present relevance. His political ideas were stateless and partyless democracy, decentralization, freedom of speech, abolition of untouchability, moral politics, secularism etc. There is great relevance of Gandhian political ideas or values in the present age of increasing violence and intolerance.
2017
FD: Gandhi understood that self-interest, whether in its individual or collective form, represents the basic category of liberal politics. He also realised that it is not something given to us by nature but has to be set in place through considerable effort. Since interest conceived as ownership was tied to the regime of private property, however, it could only have a marginal existence in a place like India, where property and so ownership had not yet come to define all social relations. This meant that Indian social relations were often marked by modes of behaviour and practice, both violent and non-violent, that could not be accommodated within the logic of interest. Instead of trying to eliminate these altogether, which he thought an impossible task, Gandhi wanted to purify and expand them as forms of disinterest and altruism that deployed sacrifice in the cause of non-violence. He argued that all societies were in fact founded upon such sacrificial or disinterested relations, i...
Social Vision, 2024
Mahatma Gandhi, a legendary figure in the contemporary world He believed in truth, non violence, non stealment, brahmacharya etc. as the fundamental principles of human life. He initiated Non Cooperation, Civil Disobedience and Quit India movements to brought independence to Indians . He generated the feelings of sel f respect, dignity, swadeshi and swaraj among India n masses Besides, the political awareness and freedom movement, through Satyagraha a nd advocated for a fair, just, in clusive and harmonious society. In his Ideal State or Ram Rajya, decentralisation is the basis of both political and economic authority. Each and every village should be a self sustaining and autonomous u nit Democracy should prevail in all walks of our life. He considered hospitals and doctors as the symptoms of a physically ill State and the courts and jails as that of a mental sick state, hence these have no place in his Ideal State, which, made Gandhiji immortal. He made Indian National Congress as the party of mass followings and dominated Indian politics for more than three decades but w ithout any portfolio before and after independence. Despite a rich legacy of Gandhian philosophy, with passages of time and under the impact of materialism and opportunism in politics, his thoughts and values gradually eroded from Indian politics and socie ty. That's why corruption, opportunism, nepotism, rising number of court cases, caste and communal riots, regional disputes and unemployment etc. are the burning issues of the day. In this paper, attempt has been made to analyse the need and rationale of Gandhi an philosophy in Indian politics.
M. K. Gandhi was a prestigious leader of 20 th century and is often termed as the prognosticator of 21 st century. He was a greatest personality of 20 th century and had a heartfelt influence on world population in relation to many issues (Gupta et al, 2019). He had brought revolution in a nonviolent way of conflict resolution. His teachings imbibed values like truth, peace and non-violence. The aim of this paper is to analyse the importance of Gandhian philosophy during 21 st century, determine whether his teaching has the actual consideration in today's modern world. And also analyse his principles and its relevance in the globalised world of 21 st century. M. K. Gandhi was an ordinary person throughout his student life. His ordinariness began to disappear during his days in South Africa, and he moved upon the way of extraordinariness that made him like a supernal being. His philosophical thoughts emerged out of critical circumstances. He never tied himself with any single philosophical ideology. He imbibed various thoughts in accordance with time and space. His life began with the shyness of a kid and ended with an elevated man or in other words; we can say a super human being. His life attracts everyone in the world who has a feeling of humanity and none is untouched with the milk oh humanity. Each winner of the Nobel Prize for Peace is owed to Mahatma Gandhi. Someway or other Gandhian philosophical thoughts influenced them to act like him to win this prestigious prize for serving humanity. Life of Gandhi is packed with lessons and inspirations that leaves its indelible imprint upon the minds of the readers. He is such a legendary icon that people see him with reverence considering him a divine-like figure. This paper is an attempt to explore the significant Gandhian philosophical thoughts, their origin, impact, and utilization in getting independence and their relevance in this imperialistic and possessive world of the 21st Century. Once M. K. Gandhi was asked whether he was a Hindu? He answered very placidly, "Yes, I am. I am also a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist and a Jew." It is not an easy reply. Gandhi Ji lived his words. He never believed in pretentious and boastful life. He was an amalgamation of all existing religions. He never disregarded or criticised any religion. Though he was in favour that every religion has some shortcomings and it should be eliminated. All religion needs reformation in accordance with time, space and environment. No rule can be suitable for all times. He was a regular reader of the Bhagvad Gita. It was like a shelter for him in his agitated mood. He found solace as well as got power from the preaching of Lord Krishna.
2022
This paper examines Jawaharlal Nehru's vision of a free India and the challenges he faced in its execution during the early years of the Independence. From the 1920s onwards, Nehru's involvement with the Indian freedom struggle through the Indian National Congress gave him a unique opportunity and experiences to develop his ideas. Nehru's involvement in the non-violent mass movements led by M.K Gandhi, his arrests, trials and long internments in the British prisons, and his experience of directly negotiating with the British for India's freedom are reflected in his writings which includes his Autobiography (1936), and his Discovery of India (1946) and his many speeches, letters, and articles. My research methodology features an examination of the three major texts written by Nehru, all of which correspond to different periods of his life. These include Nehru’s Autobiography (1936), The Discovery of India (1946) and Nehru’s Letters to Chief Ministers (1947-50). India’s freedom struggle witnessed many phases from the 1930s-40s, and in the post-Independence era of the 1950s, Nehru faced enormous challenges in articulating his vision of nation building on the principle of secular democracy. Nehru’s thoughts reveal that he envisioned a nation based on equality regardless of religion, caste, language, or culture. Within this vision, he imagined a future free India based on the principle of international co-operation politically, economically, and culturally. Gandhi’s principle of non-violence, which played a key role in India’s freedom struggle was to guide this framework.
Loading Preview
Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.