Gandhi/MandelaGandhi/Mandela

By Matthew SeymourBy Matthew Seymour

Gandhi – The Anti-ModernistGandhi was in fact not very fond of modernism. He valued a simple village life as opposed to the atrocities that industrialization had produced in Europe.

He believed India could achieve independence & solve unemployment issues by nurturing home-based trades such as weaving, pottery, art, and other crafts, though these goods could not be made at the same speed or cost as in an industrial society.

He found modern society to be limited by rationality, individualism, and hedonism.

Gandhi - Religious Pluralism

Gandhi believed that there could be more than one path to God. He especially believed that it was not up to man to pass judgment on those who sought spirituality out differently as he believed each human swabhava (personality) had its own unique shape and its own unique way of understanding and relating to the world.From this perspective, Gandhi saw himself as not only a Hindu, but also a Muslim, a Jain, and a Christian. He saw the strengths and weaknesses of each of the world’s major religions and incorporated many of their aspects into his spiritual understanding. He made friends (as well as enemies) with a diverse group of religious individuals.

Mandela – Wearer of Many HatsMandela grew up in a largely pluralist society, though heavily segregated. He grew up in black territory, but had an elite education from missionary schools that imprinted on him the idea of equality between blacks and whites. His life was balanced between modernized European culture and remnant tribal African society. His associates included communists, socialists, capitalists, and dictator, though he never proved to be any of these himself. It was his ability to “wear many hats” that garnered his ability to loosely unite so many opposing sides to work together against the apartheid.

Mandela – ANC & Anti-ApartheidMandela became involved in politics when the National Party came to power in 1948 and enforced racial segregation. At first he and the ANC practiced peaceful demonstrations, civil disobedience, and other forms of resistance taught by Gandhi. By 1961, the struggle for equality had achieved nothing and more militant activities began to take place. Mandela came to oversee armed resistance against the government and aimed to do so with as little loss of life. Most attacks were done to damage property or disrupt activity, not to harm life. His involvement in this organization is what got him into prison, and on an international terrorist list for decades, until his release and eventual election as president of South Africa.