Gandhi information

Bhagavad Gita

A reading where Krishna says Arjuna must fulfill his duty as a warrior and fight his cousins. Gandhi interpreted it as a good vs. evil struggle. This metaphorical reading allowed him to look past the violence and promote nonviolence.

Background

Gandhi grew up in India, went to London to study to be a lawyer, and used his Satyagraha in South Africa in the Apartheid. Had a Hindu/Jainism/Christian upbringing.

Beliefs

He believed in nonviolence and karma, and believed that a violent end to an oppressor would only result in more violence.

Mohandas / Mohammed / Mahatma Gandhi

Indian nationalist leader who practices Satyagraha and nonviolence. October 2, 1869-1948.

Satyagraha

Roughly "holding firmly to truth", this is what Gandhi called his fighting weapon: nonviolence and civil disobedience.

Assassination

Shot by a Hindu fundamentalist in Delhi in January 1948.

UN influence

The United Nations now has an "International Day of Nonviolence" dedicated to Gandhi; this is celebrated on his birthday, October 2nd.

Salt March

This is when Gandhi led a march to the coast of India to protest the British monopoly on salt, and to produce his own salt as a form of civil disobedience. 1930.