Mahatma Gandhi Whose Real Name Was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

8/4/2019 Mahatma Gandhi Whose Real Name Was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

1/9

Mahatma Gandhi whose real name was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, was born in 1869 at

Porbandar in the state of Gujarat in India. His fathers name was Karamchand Gandhi and his

mothers name was Putlibai. He was the youngest in the family of one sister and t hree brothers.

Both his parents were deeply religious and frequently visited temples and took their meals only

after daily prayers. In school Gandhi was a mediocre student who was quite an introvert. He

was even afraid to talk to any student in the class as he thought that they would poke fun athim. However, he always upheld his honesty and truthfulness. He believed in respecting his

elders and was always blind to the faults of the elders. Gandhi was married in 1882 at the age

of thirteen to a girl named Kasturbai. He passed his matriculation exams in 1887 and then soon

returned to Porbander as he found the studies of his college very tough. Then later on he went

on to the University of London in England to pursue the study of law after a lot of opposition

from his mother and some other people .He vowed not to touch woman, wine and meat. He

passed the London matriculation exam in the second attempt. At last he sailed back to India in

June, 1891.later on, he went to Bombay to study Indian Laws. In spite of getting a case, he

went to South Africa in April 1983. Gandhi sailed for South Africa in April 1893 and reached

Natal at the close of May. It was in South Africa that Gandhi had a lot of experience in laws,handling cases and many other fields. He observed the pitiful conditions of the Indians and

other colored people and also experienced it when on his way to Pretoria from Natal, he was

thrown out of a train because he was the only colored person in the first class compartment.

During this time Gandhi became deeply interested in religion. In spite of his Christian friends

tries of converting him to Christianity, he kept his faith. He helped the Indentured Indian

laborers and fought for their rights. After three years in South Africa, Gandhi returned to India

in 1896. Gandhi had a lot of shortcomings in his personal life. He was a very suspicious

husband and kept an eye on all the movements of his wife, Kasturbai. This resulted in bitter

quarrels becoming the order of the day. But in his autobiography, Gandhi says that he did all

this because he wanted to make his wife an ideal wife and make her live a pure life. Somemore of his shortcomings were that at a young age he had started smoking and eating meat in

company of a cousin and a friend. He stole money from his servants pocket and bought

cigarettes. At last he gave up all the malpractices and became a strict vegetarian and stuck to it

all his life. He educated his children and the child of his widow sister. He also became a very

religious person and was greatly influenced by the saintliness of his mother. He practiced

Ahimsa (non-violence), Brahmacharya (celibacy) and Aparigraha (non-possession). In his public

life, Gandhi was very successful. When he went to South Africa, he came in contact with many

people and went through many experiences. He protested against the color bar and helped all

those who were neglected During the Boer War he participated with the British. He and some

other people joined to form the Ambulance Corps who took care of the wounded fighters.Gandhi awakened a sense of duty to the Indians settled in South Africa, so that they sent

money for the famine relief during the famines in India in 1897 and 1899. In 1917, he got the

Indentured Emigration from India, abolished. After returning to India, he set about reforming it.

His campaign in India started from Champaran, a small place in the state of Bihar. There he

fought for the rights of Indigo farmers. He upheld the principles of Swaraj (self rule), Swadeshi

(self sufficiency) and Satyagraha (truth as a medium of protest). He instructed the people not


2/9

to wear foreign clothes or use foreign goods. He told them to make their own clothes using

handlooms and the cloth that they wore was known as Khadi. Even Gandhi made his own

clothes by using a Charkha (spinning wheel), which became the symbol of prosperity and

integrity of India. Gandhi created a number of Ashrams or communities where men, women

and children from all backgrounds and nationalities came to learn from his daily example on

how to make non-violence and love the basis of their lives. One of the ashrams was theSabarmati Ashram in the state of Gujarat. He understood the problems of the untouchables

who were thrown out of society. He called these people Harijans or people of the lord.

Wherever he went, he collected money for the Harijans. He traveled in the third class of the

trains, which were dirty and meant for the low caste Indians. When someone asked him why,

he simply said, Because there is no fourth. Gandhi faced many challenges towards the end of

his life. In 1930, the British government levied tax on salt, which was the primary ingredient of

every households meal. Gandhi collected some followers and marched to a small, coastal town

of Dandi, situated near the Arabian Sea, 240 miles away, where he proposed to produce salt

from the sea water. Thousands of people joined the march on the way. This was known as the

DANDI MARCH. Gandhi was arrested after this incident. But this did not hinder his courage. Hestarted the NON- CO-OPERATION MOVEMENT. Nobody was to co-operate with the British,

which would lead to their leaving India. On the 8th of August 1942 the QUIT INDIA MOVEMENT

started. This non-violent protest disrupted and destroyed the British Government and their

system of governance and added nationalistic fire to every Indians heart. On the eve of

independence, Hindus and Muslims in India were in the throes of civil war. All the government

forces were powerless to stop the massacres. The bloodshed and destruction touched the very

depths of Gandhi. He went straight to the heart of the violence and walked barefoot through

the remote, ravaged villages as a one-man force for peace. He who trembles or takes to the

heels, the moment he sees two people fighting, is not non-violent, but a coward. A non-violent

person will lay down his life in preventing such quarrels said Gandhi and he truly justified it. Itwas on the evening of 30th of January 1948, that the final tragedy took place. Mahatma Gandhi

was in Delhi, requesting for Hindu-Muslim unity. When the time for prayer meeting came, he

walked briskly with his arms on the shoulder of two of the ashram girls. As he walked to the

platform through the huge crowd, he held his palms together in front of him. Suddenly, a young

man placed himself in Gandhis path and fired a gun point-blank into his heart. Such was the

greatness of Gandhi that as his body fell, he called out Rama, Rama, Rama which meant I

forgive you, I love you, I bless you. The killer was later identified as Nathuram Godse, a Hindu

fanatic. This 30th day of January, is known in India as the Martyrs Day.


3/9

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, better known as Mahatma Gandhi and the Father of the Indian Nation, was born on

the 2nd October, 1869. The day is a national holiday marked by a series of cultural events organised each year to

commemorate the birth of one of Indias greatest political beacons. On this day, bhajans, or devotional songs are

sung at his samadhi, or memorial, in Delhi called Raj Ghat. The key figures of contemporary Indian politics take time

off from their usually packed schedules to visit his memorial and silently go over the Mahatmas life and its impact on

the destiny of India.

Gandhiji Also Knowan As Father of India

For the average Indian, it could be just another holiday. But the average

Indian lives in a country where every town and city has at least one road,

one market, one statue and one park named after Gandhi. The average

Indian has written essays on the Mahatma in school, and pored over his

contribution to Indias independence in History classes. While most

historical personalities in Indias checkered history, no matter how dynamic,

could inspire only a fraction of the population, Gandhi connected with

Indians at their own level, their caste, creed, sex or status notwithstanding,

and was aptly christened bapu or father. To strike a cord in the heart of an

average Indian, when the average Indian is classified as a Brahmin,Kshatriya or Shudra, (levels of castes in Hinduism established as early as

the pre-Vedic era), or is a Tamilian, Punjabi or Marathi, a speck in a nation

that spouts at least 17 different languages, is no mean feat. Perhaps no

other historical figure in India has enjoyed such a rare distinction. This was

Gandhis forte, alone.

This is not to say that hagiographers could be summoned, and Gandhi is above criticism. In fact, the man attracted

criticism, and continues to do so, like a bee is drawn to honey. But few would have beheld the man and his

philosophy, without yielding both a reaction.

Gandhi hardly needs an introduction. A voluminous literature has gone into studying the man who became the

Mahatma or great soul. His personal writings add up to ninety large volumes.

A Brief History

Born in 1869, in Porbandar in the state of Gujarat into a Vaishya (merchant class) family, Gandhi was married at the

age of 13 to Kasturba. He was an average student who studied law in England from 1888 to 1891. Before leaving

India, his mother made him promise that he would abstain from meat, alcohol and sex. The years passed soon and

Gandhi was back in Mumbai. It was time for his first and only case as a lawyer in India, and the man stood ineptly

tongue-tied in court. The writing was on the wall, and Gandhi lost the case. His uncles packed him off to South Africa

in 1893 to work for an Indian merchant involved in a civil suit.

The Beginning of Struggle In Africa

The turning point in Gandhi's life begin in South Africa. He found himself in the midst of an intimidated and oppressed

Indian community that was the butt of racial discrimination. Only too aware of his own shortcomings, Gandhi

struggled to overcome his personal inhibitions, and worked towards uniting the South African Indians to protest

against discrimination and racial bias. After a few brief spells in prison, he succeeded in getting the local governance

to relax its laws for the first time in 1908, then again in 1914.

He withdrew his children from a regular school and established a farm at Phoenix in 1904 where he endeavored to

build a community based on the combined philosophies of John Ruskin, Leo Tolstoy and Henry Thoreau whom he


4/9

called a true American. Around the same time, he started a correspondence with Tolstoy. In 1906 he took a vow of

celibacy. He lived in South Africa for 20 years and it would not be out of line to believe that the nature of his work in

South Africa inspired him to achieve the near impossible back home, where Gandhi was already a name to reckon

with.

Gandhi's Fight For Indian Freedom

He finally returned to India in 1915. Instead of breezing into Indian politics, he thought it necessary to travel across

India, and had the first adult up-close-and-personal experience of his country. What he saw was an India crippled by

poverty and ignorance, and the apathetic handling of the countrys affairs by the British. Appalled by an abject India,

he set up the Sabarmati Ashram near Ahmedabad and went on to live there in quest of his Holy Grail. But peace was

hard to come by when his country folk were at the mercy of feudal lords, and colonisation as a phenomenon was

rearing its ugly head in various pockets of the world. His quintessential need to see the world at peace spearheaded

him into the whirlpool of politics, after which there was, of course, no looking back. and the once tongue-tied lawyer

would kindle a nations imagination and shape its history.

The Swadeshi Movement

That he was an ace economist, theologian, politician and sociologist is evident from his mastery and handling of each

of these branches of knowledge. and his dialogue with the Indians and the British was based on a personal discourse

that emerged at the crossroad of these disciplines. With an unparalleled understanding of the needs, wants and

beliefs of the neglected and forgotten Indians, 80% of whom lived in villages, Gandhi was ready to make a difference.

The Swadeshi Movement that exhorted the people of India to wear khadi (home-spun cotton) and shun Europeangoods as the first step towards self-reliance, is just one of the numerous revolutions he engineered successfully. But

the remarkable quality about Gandhi, and perhaps the reason of his sorrow, was that in spite of his obvious practical

good sense, he ached for the ideal. His standards proved to be, more often than not, too high for the world around

him.

A Great Philosopher

He increasingly tended towards asceticism, and believed in Thoreaus philosophy of complete self-reliance and the

dignity of labour, wearing a khadi loincloth and a shawl that he had woven himself. The spinning wheel that he

worked on religiously every day is profoundly symbolic of the Mahatma and his beliefs to this day. Deeply aggrieved

by the unyielding caste system in his country, he worked all his life for the upliftment of the ones he called Harijans

(Children of God). His innate belief in the goodness in life and the spirituality enshrined in each human being was

unshakable. He dreamt of a free and self-reliant India, where Christians, Hindus, Muslims and Harijans would live in

harmony and work towards a better world.

Perhaps the most profound of his philosophies was his quest for truth, an untainted non-sectarian truth, universal in

appeal. He found this aspect in ahmisa, roughly translated as non-violence. He believed in and practised ahimsa in

thoughts, words, and actions that sprung from a love for mankind that lay beyond the continent of calculations andrewards a personal philosophy inspired by the Bhagavad Gita considered as perhaps the most lucid representation

of Hinduism, and by many as the most sacred book of the Hindus.

End of The Legendary Hero

Gandhi led the Congress for a period of 25 years, and during this time the party truly came to represent united Indias

struggle for freedom. Gandhis charisma caught the imagination of millions. Villagers and city dwellers, men, women


5/9

and children rallied behind the Congress as it led Indias march towards freedom from the British. Freedom came, but

at a price. A nation was partitioned to yield a Hindu-dominated India and a Muslim-dominated Pakistan. Gandhi

opposed the partition that left millions dead, mutilated and homeless, bitterly till the end. By upholding the cause of

the Muslims and Harijans, he alienated himself from the Hindu majority. and on January 30th

1948, in an India that

was finally free, a Brahman named Nathuram Godse walked right upto Gandhi and shot him at point-blank range.

Both India and Pakistan continue to be plagued by the repercussions of partition till this day. That Gandhi wasassassinated by a man who regarded him as a saint but could not live with his ideals, and that Gandhi hankered after

the ideal in a practical world far-removed from ideality, shall forever remain a paradox.


6/9

This is about Gandhi. He was a great man who led his people to independence. He helped people to

realize how to fight without violence. Gandhi was very Christ like in his teachings and was a genius when

it came to weaknesses in others as well as himself. Gandhi was a man who would never give up and just

take fate as it was. He was willing to give up his English ways as a lawyer, and fight for what he believed

was right. This is his story.

Mohandas K. Gandhi was born in Porobandar, India on October 2, 1869. His mother aught him the Hindu

ways and told him to make something of himself. He became interested in law. He went to England to go

to law school, and became a lawyer. He was very shy in court. So his friends saved his neck by giving him

an assignment in South Africa.

On a train in South Africa, Gandhi had an experience that changed his life. He was riding in the first class

car when someone noticed that he was colored. They told the conductor and he came to see what was

going on. When he saw Gandhi, he told him that he would throw Gandhi off at the next station if he didnt

go sit in third class.

Gandhi decided right then and there that it must be fought, but he didnt want to hurt anyone. First he

wrote a letter to the press. Then he told every Indian to gather in a square to burn the passes that every

Indian had to have. Gandhi got beat for burning the passes; nevertheless he kept on burning them until he

couldnt move. The British arrested him for sedition. This news spread around, and that made more

people come to the next meeting, after Gandhi got out of jail.

In that meeting, Gandhi told everyone not to obey the British laws that were unjust. This method called

civil disobedience, or passive resistance was very effective. Gandhi claimed that by using this method they

could not lose. He said, They cannot take away our self-respect unless we give it to them. He said that

the Indians would receive many blows, but that they should not give any. Through our pain we will makethem see their injustice, he proclaimed.

Then he led a march to the prison to try to convince the British to let their friends out. When the police

officers charged at them with their horses, they just lied down in the road so the police officers couldnt

get through. This was another way to fight back.

Gandhi took his methods of passive resistance back home with him to India. He wore Indian clothes from

then on to show defiance against the British government. He took a train around India to see what it was

like. If I want to be like them I have to live like them, he said. His travels taught him of Indias extreme

poverty. He told people to wear home-spun clothes and to burn all of their English made clothes.

We can write a custom essay on Gandhi for you!He was invited to an Indian National Congress meeting, and inspired the congress as well as all the

listeners who were there. They started calling him Bapoo, or father. The British started to arrest Gandhi

under the charge of sedition. One British general went so far as massacring a large group of Indians that

were meeting together. This was called the Massacre of Amritsar. The general who was responsible for

this was severely punished. The British had always kept the Hindus and Muslims fighting. During their
http://www.essaylib.com/essay.phphttp://www.essaylib.com/essay.phphttp://www.essaylib.com/essay.php


7/9

struggle for independence, riots broke out between these two religions. Every time one of these riots

occurred, Gandhi would fast until the violence stopped.

Gandhi had some wonderful ideas of how to fight nonviolent battles against the British Empire. One way

was to set up a day of prayer and fasting. No work would be done that day, and as a result the whole

country would stop. He also had the idea of leading a march to the sea to get salt. This way, Indians

wouldnt have to pay tons of taxes on salt. They could just get it for a minimum price.

The end of World War II was also the end of the British Empire in India. India was finally free. The

controversy and riots over religions caused India to split up and become India and Pakistan. They both

thought that the other would gain more power and they both had very different ideas of what their civil

rights should be. There were many riots. Again Gandhi fasted until the fighting stopped. After this final

fast, that almost caused his death, he was going to go to Pakistan to settle some issues. He was going to

make a speech before he left, but he didnt make it that far. Right there, in that garden, a Hindu

antagonist shot Gandhi dead in front of everyone. Many riots broke out over Gandhis death. Many of

Gandhis followers, such as Nehru, mourned greatly over the tragedy.

Gandhi ironically died in bloodshed, but lived his life preaching against it. His life of nonviolence left his

mark upon the world and has impacted my life as well. Learning about Gandhi has stressed to me the

truth that one person can make a difference. He taught that it is more productive to take time to think

things through and use creative, powerful methods such as his march to the sea to make salt, encouraging

home spun clothes, and establishing a day of fasting and prayer than to use violence. By these acts of

courage, he was able to make great strides in achieving his goals. Mohandas K. Gandhi spent his life

fighting for what was right. His choice to sacrifice his life for the benefit of others is an example for us all.


8/9

Summary: A biography of Mahandas Gandhi, the famous leader of the

nonviolent movement to uproot British control of India.

A heroic person can be considered as one who is willing to stand by his

principles regardless of the consequence, is a leader or apioneer in his field, andis looked upto by people and sets an example for others to follow. One great

man who possessed all these great qualities was Mohandas

Karamchand Gandhi. At, an outer appearance, he was a man of simple means,

but later turned out to be an individual with great principles. This great man

took his first breath in this world in the year of 1869, in a wealthybusiness

class family. The roots of Gandhi principles can be found in his early life, when

Gandhi learned and adhered the consepts of non-injury to living beings,

vegetarianism, fasting for self-purification, and mutual tolerance between

members of various creeds and sects.Gandhi believed that everyone should have equal treatment, and this can beseen in one incident that occurred when he was in England to pursue his

education. In those times non-white men were not allowed the same priveleges

as them. Gandhi believing that all men are equal, got on a train from which he

was promptly told to depart, he even tried to reason with the gentleman and

almost got arrested for sticking to his beliefs. Gandhi founded a political party in

South Africa, that tried to get Indian people their rights in South Africa. Later,

after seeing the oppresion of Indians by the British in India, he decided to fight

for their cause. He was a wealthy man in his own way, so he did not really need

to worry about the poor people, but he stuck to his beliefs. When the country

was immersed in bloodshed and turmoil Gandhi stepped in and guided them to

the path of non-violence. Like a true hero he led the people onto the right track

for achieving their goals.

There were many other freedom fighters in Indi at that time, but they all took

the route of non-violence. But in the end, it was Gandhi's method of non-

violence that succeeded in establishing India's freedom. He visited villages, that

were deterioraing in condition, he talked to the villagers, listening to their

grievance and helping in any ways possible, he built schools and hospitals. He

championed the cause of poor and exploited people. But most inportantly he

empowered the, he made them realize that the power of getting freedom and

independance was in their hands. Gandhi believed that India, should not be

exploited for their rich resources, and the profits that came from the hard work

of Indian workers belonged to the indians, and to deal with this issue Gandhi

told the indians to boycott British goods that were made on their hard work.

Gandhi himself followed this principle, by spinning his own clothes and giving up

clothes sold by the British. This method of non co-operation was a success.

Gandhi's methods helped many violent individuals in finding the right path to

freedom. Whatever principles he preached, he made sure he himself and his


9/9

whole family followed them too. Gandhi also believed that women too should

join in this endeavour of acquiring freedom. Gandhi was a man of peace and

many times he had to go even go to jail, for supporting his cause, but he did

not give up. It was Gandhi's movement, "Quit India," that was finally successful

in uprooting the British control from India. Before Gandhi entering the scene,

there were many freedom fighters fighting for the cause individually, but theseminor outbursts were overlooked by the British. But it was Gandhi that united

all these freedom fighters together and showed them the way to success.

Gandhi's life was filled with ups and downs and many crisis like the death of his

wife in the year 1940, but like a great man that he was, he still continued on for

the sake of others. This great phenomena, took his last breath in the year 1948,

but not before he achieved what he had set out to do. Gandhi left behind a

legacy or an example for others to follow in the form of their freedom. Gandhi

will be remembered by all the Indians for his great contribution to their society

and their country.

Documents

Mahatma Gandhi Whose Real Name Was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi