Gandhi

The Effects of a Nonviolent Approach In the late 1800s people of Indian nationality confronted discrimination in all parts of South Africa, and someone affected by this was Mahatma Gandhi, known as the “great soul”. Gandhi was an activist and philosopher who used nonviolent resistance, he was the controlling figure who struggled along with all the Indian population to gain independence from Great Britain. Gandhi introduced passive resistance, a concept also known as “satyagraha,” which was a method to abstain from cooperating with authorities and that trained followers to allow themselves to be punished by the unjust government without using any violence to retaliate (Austin 332). The nonviolence movement created by Gandhi was known all over the world, his political and spiritual standing reached international recognition in the modern politics, he inspired many who were marginalized. His legacy came to the ears of a young, black student who studied in a theology college and was fighting for equality. The Civil rights movement, led by Martin Luther King Jr., could not have been passive or nonviolent but an outrage of bloodshed if it had not been by Gandhi and his philosophies. One of the most famous passive resistance events by Gandhi was the salt march, in 1825 Britain abolished its own salt tax, nevertheless the tax still existed in India, where it was illegal to collect even natural deposits of salt. “On the morning of March 12, 1930, Gandhi and his followers decided to change the oppression of the British government. People started marching from the Sabarmati Ashram toward Dandi on the Arabian Sea, when they arrived to the seashore Gandhi grabbed a portion of salt, which was against the law. The act motivated a crime wave of illegal salt collection and thousands of arrests” (Mcgrath par. 3). The nonviolent act defied the law and for the first time the people suffered the punishment for committing a crime, no questions asked and no retaliation. Instead of presenting violent measures, Satyagraha was respected and used by the Indians. “ Satyagraha’s is not only a strategy for passive approach but also a way of reconstructing society, using love and striving for truth” (Gandhi par. 12). Gandhi wanted to end injustice, to fight oppression, he wanted to make people of his race equal to any other and he reached this by working with his people to obtain their rights. He was positive that nonviolent approach would convert British people, that it would open the eyes of the British in order for them to see the injustices and the wrong done to India. “These acts led to a seven-year struggle in which thousands of Indians were jailed, including Gandhi, flogged or even shot, for striking and engaging in non-violent resistance” (Warrior of life). Independence was achieved in 1947 due to Gandhi’s struggle and faith in his tactics, perseverance was what helped him most to achieve justice in Britain. Eight years after India gained their independence Martin Luther King Jr. gained exposure as a civil rights leader in 1955. “He led a boycott against city’s bus lines that resulted in their desegregation the following year” (Austin 202). King’s inspiration was mainly Gandhi; he said that the application of the nonviolent philosophy was to powerfully apply civil disobedience publicly while accepting the consequences of that same rebellion. “In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: (1) collection of the facts to determine whether injustices are alive, (2) negotiation, (3) self-purification, and (4) direct action” (King 204). He explains further how he followed the philosophy and how it worked, in order to retaliate without violence they first examined the problem. It was true that injustice was being made, and King wanted equality. After resuming both nonviolent approaches, we must also contemplate the background of each civil rights leader. Both Gandhi and King were Christians, they based their philosophies on God and they knew that Jesus was the prophet of nonviolence. “An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind." This reference to the Old Testament, points to Gandhi’s philosophy that using violence to achieve revenge, or even justice, simply will not work - it will only produce more violence and suffering without finding the actual solution. The centerpiece of Jesus lessons of nonviolence was Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount, which lists the life of discipleship: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the reign of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons and daughters of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for justice 's sake, for theirs is the reign of heaven. Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so people persecuted the prophets who were before you (King James Version Mt 4:3-12). Jesus explains that the life of nonviolence will transform the world’s violence, and all injustices and oppressions will eventually stop just as Gandhi’s and King’s did. Martin Luther King said, “God gave us the goals and Gandhi the tactics,” saying so he implied how he lead his way of life and his nonviolent campaign to accomplish freedom of injustice. He inculcated the civil rights movement with a greater moral and philosophical purpose, which lead to the dream of true equality for all races. Works Cited
Gandhi, Mohandas K. “Economic and Moral Progress.” Reading the World: Ideas that Matter. 2nd ed. Ed. Michael Austin. New York: Norton, 2010. Print
"Gandhi." Peace Pledge Union. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2013.
Michael Lewin. “Writing From The Heart." Martin Luther King Jr, The Civil Rights Movement and Gandhian Philosophy, N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2013.
The Holy Bible: King James Version. Dallas, TX: Brown Books Publishing, 2004. Print.
Warrior of Life. "Mahatma Gandhi (1893-1914)." Mahatma Gandhi, Pigeon Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2013

Cited: Gandhi, Mohandas K. “Economic and Moral Progress.” Reading the World: Ideas that Matter. 2nd ed. Ed. Michael Austin. New York: Norton, 2010. Print "Gandhi." Peace Pledge Union. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2013. Michael Lewin. “Writing From The Heart." Martin Luther King Jr, The Civil Rights Movement and Gandhian Philosophy, N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2013. The Holy Bible: King James Version. Dallas, TX: Brown Books Publishing, 2004. Print. Warrior of Life. "Mahatma Gandhi (1893-1914)." Mahatma Gandhi, Pigeon Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2013