Nationalism for Mahatma Gandhi meant much more than just freedom from a foreign power. He believed in the concept of greater good. Though freedom for India was vital and almost all his life was dedicated toward this end, his mission was the brotherhood of man. His ambition was that, India would serve as a model for the rest of the world - A country that would sacrifice itself so that the human race could live and thrive, without prejudice, without frontiers and without imperialism.This essay will study in-depth his idea of nationalism, his critique on civilization and how these concepts were developed in Hind Swaraj or Indian home rule.
Nationalism was a subject close to Gandhi’s heart. Something that he felt very strongly about. His knew that his idea of nationalism differed from what it meant to other people. Gandhi further clarifies: “The conception of my nationalism is nothing if it is not always, in every case, without exception, consistent with the broadest good of humanity at large.Not nly that, but my religion and my patriotism derived from my religion embrace all life. I want to realize brotherhood or identity not merely with the beings called human, but with all life, because we claim descent from the same God, and that being so, life in whatever form it appears must be essentially one.
” Gandhi wanted freedom but not at the expense or exploitation of others and not so as to degrade other countries. His idea of nationalism was that his country may become free, “that if need be, the whole country may die, so that the human race may live. ”In fact Gandhi’s nationalism could be called intense internationalism. He stressed that “our nationalism can be no peril to other nations in as much as we will exploit none, just as we allow none to exploit us.
” Mahatma Gandhi’s final word on nationalism was that it is, “not exclusive, aggressive or destructive in any manner. It is health-giving, religious and therefore humanitarian. "The Mahatma disliked the phase of civilization brought about by the industrial revolution – which he termed the “modern” civilization. He felt that anything that made amassing great wealth a priority was a regression of sorts and not something that must be followed by the people anywhere in the world. He always stressed that, “Civilization is that mode of conduct which points out to man, the path of duty and morality. Performance of duty and observance of morality are convertible terms.
To observe morality is to attain mastery over our mind and our passions. ” His take on civilization was always clear cut.If it did not support the idea of mind over matter then it was fundamentally a faulty one. Acknowledging the shortcomings with the Indian civilization, Gandhi defends it. He feels that in no part of the world, and under no civilization, have men ever attained The mahatma further points out that the tendency of Indian civilization has always tended toward the elevation of the moral being, while that of the modern civilization is to propagate immorality.Still, Gandhi was fair enough to acknowledge that the West had positive things to offer.
“I do not think that everything Western is to be rejected. I should think myself unfortunate if contact with and the literature of the West had no influence on me. ” After his condemnation of the Western civilization in no uncertain terms, Gandhi further clarifies that it is not exactly Western or European civilization that he is against, but the modern civilization, that they have adopted, which is “purely material. ” He feels that the people of Europe, before they were touched by modern civilization, had much in common with the people of the East.He also says that Europeans who are not touched by the modern civilization are far better able to mix with the Indians than the offspring of modern civilization. “The East and the West can only and really meet when the West has thrown overboard the modern civilization, almost in it entirety.
They can also seemingly meet when the East has also adopted modern civilization.But that meeting would be an armed truce. ” Gandhi’s respect for and belief in the ancient civilization of India is well known. He has said, “I believe that the civilization India has evolved is not to be beaten in the world. He felt that nothing could match the seeds of civilization sown by his ancestors.
He analyzes that great civilizations like “Rome fell, Greece shared the same fate, the might of the Pharaohs was broken, Japan has become Westernized and of China nothing can be said, but India is still, somehow or other, sound at the foundation and that is one of her greatest strengths. ”Gandhi criticizes the fact that the people of Europe are trying to learn their lessons from the writings of the men of Greece or Rome, because they imagine that they will avoid the mistakes that led to the fallof these civilizations. “In the midst of all this, India remains immovable, and that is her glory. What we have tested and found true on the anvil of experience, we dare not change. ” For Gandhi, every civilization was inspired by a distinct conception of human beings.
If that conception was mistaken, it corrupted the entire civilization.In his view, that was the case with modern civilization. Although it had many achievements to its credit, it was fundamentally flawed. Gandhi thought that this was because modern civilization neglected the soul, privileged the body, misunderstood the nature and limits of reason, and had no appreciation of the individual.
Gandhi felt that if the Hind Swaraj was to be a success, then it was necessary that the concept of Swadeshi (of ones own country) be at its centre.Swadeshi, he says is the “spirit in us which restricts us to the use and service of our immediate surroundings. Going by this definition, Gandhi felt that one must stick to one’s ancestral religion and the perceived defects in the thus adopted religion must be purged. Moving on to indigenous politics, Gandhi stresses that the political institutions must be developed to suit the needs of the immediate society and any defects must be cured as and when they comeGandhi’s discovery of an inner spiritual dimension to his personal identity also informed his perspective on the struggle for Indian independence and the need to achieve swaraj or "self-rule. " But for Gandhi, swaraj did not simply mean the acquisition of home rule or political independence from England, it also meant achieving "inward freedom" and an "outward freedom" to think, and feel, and move about freely and independently.
To achieve this freedom, he emphasized the need to look back and rediscover the true meaning of Indian culture as a means of charting a new course for India's spiritual and social revolution. Since Gandhi believed that the instrument for social transformation would be the Indian peasant farmer, his populist politics enabled him to make contact with the masses. Consistent with his principles, he chose to lead by example and established an ashram, in which his ascetic example rejected untouchability, practiced social equality, took pride in Indian culture, and served as a beacon for national revival.His intense preoccupation with "mastering" the details of his daily life served as an industrious, self-sufficient example for his followers.
Gandhi felt that true swaraj or independence could never be obtained by force of arms. He believed that brute-force was not natural to Indian civilization and therefore one had to rely strictly on “soul-force” in the mission, without accounting for violence at any stage of the mission. Neither Gandhi’s idea of nationalism, nor his belief in the Indian civilization allowed for violence as a means to an end.
