Mahatma ( Mohandas) Gandhi - Philosophy and Leadership
Mahatma ( Mohandas) Gandhi (1869-1948)
Successfully ended British rule in India through non-violent action(pictured right).
Much respected worldwide and inspired Martin Luther
King’s (pictured right below) non-violent fight against racism in America.
Born Mohandas, Gandhi was re-named Mahatma, meaning the great soul.
Killed by a Hindu fanatic.
Why was he a great leader?
1. Non-violent, civil resistance (satyagraha)
He change people's hearts by:
a) peacefully and selflessly disobeying unjust laws
(like racism and British rule in India) .
b) fighting violence with love
Because violence leads to more violence. Or, as Gandhi put it:
“An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind”.
2. Self-improvement
He was always trying to become a better person through:
a) self-examination
“Turn the spotlight inward”, he advised i.e. look inside yourself and find wisdom.
Gandhi:
His biggest weakness was his domination (sometimes cruel) of
others, including his wife and children.
b) self-discipline
He never did something wrong again, particularly after seeing how upset his father was after confessing to
helping steal gold from his brother’s armlet.
c) sacrifice
He gave selfless devotion to others, particularly the poor and disadvantaged.
His aim was “desirelessless”, resisting temptation and the love of
material possessions.
After the birth of his children, he chose to be celibate.
d) equanimity
He treated success and failure the same.
e) reflection and tranquillity
He did nothing without prayer and criticized the speed of modern life.
He span wool to
- give him time to reflect.
- learn patience and hard work.
f) love
He lived for others and fought hatred with love (see point 1).
g) honesty
He hated telling lies.
3. Devotion to truth, wisdom and learning
Why was he so wise?
a) great love of learning and wisdom
His life’s ambition was to:
- wipe away every tear from every eye.
His Hindu religion came first, even before India.
b) open to other people’s ideas
He accepted other people’s religions like Christianity, and learned from them.
He was inspired by:
- Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount
(particularly the principle of turning the other cheek).
- the Hindu holy poem, the Bhagavad Gita, (particularly about the destructiveness of
desire).
- John Ruskin, pictured
right (about love and the importance of physical work).
c) action after reflection
He thought about solutions to people’s problems and then put them into
action.
d) duty
“Rights that do not flow from duty well performed are not worth having”, Gandhi said.
e) love of God
He believed that God isn’t a person but represents the eternal
principles of truth, love and purity of heart.
4. Courage
He was extremely courageous, successfully using non-violent resistance against
a) racism in South Africa
(where in 1894 he was beaten up by the white driver of a stagecoach, because he wouldn’t give up his seat for a
white passenger, as the law then required).
b) British rule in India
For example, he organized:
- the Salt March in 1930 (pictured right with Gandhi in the
middle) - mass opposition to a tax on salt (which was
particularly important for the poor)
5. Inspiration
He inspired people by
- his integrity and character (see point 3).
- listening to and responding to their needs.
He believed that change will only happen, if people change their attitudes.
6. Respect and reconciliation
He encouraged Indians to:
- hate prejudice (particularly against the Untouchables, the lowest
and segregated social class).
- practise non-violent resistance (despite the killing of nearly 400 Indians by the
British at a protest meeting in 1919).
His biggest disappointment was his failure to unite India’s Hindus and Muslims (who left
to form Pakistan).
7. Humility and integrity
Gandhi's humility and integrity won people’s respect, including his political opponents like:
- Lord Mountbatten (the British leader in India, pictured right).
- Jan Smuts, (the South African leader, pictured right below).
In prison he made Smuts a pair of sandals which he wore with great affection.
8. Purpose
He dedicated his life to:
- his principles (justice, freedom, love and non-violence).
- independence from the British.
- peace between all Indians.
- protection of the environment (from greed and profit)
He wanted to destroy what he described as the seven social sins:
“Politics without principle, wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character,
commerce without morality, science without humanity and worship without sacrifice”.
9. Support
He received great support from:
- his wife, Kasturba, (pictured right in 1902 next to Gandhi) and parents.
- Jawaharlal Nehru (India’s first prime minister, pictured together below in
1946)
Key quote on
change
We need to be the change we wish to see in the world.
Key quote on
success
Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.
Key quote on leadership and
management
Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent than power derived from fear of
punishment.
Key quotes on
love
The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.
An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.
Key quote on
customers
A customer...is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business.
He is part of it.
Key quote on nature and climate
change
Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need but not every man’s greed.
Key quote on God and
religion
God is conscience.
Key quote on business
ethics
Organizations, like men, if they are to command respect and grow, must have a sense of honour and must fulfil
their promises.
Key quote on
society
A nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people.
Key quote on fear and
anxiety
Fear kills the soul.
Key quote on influencing
people
Truth never damages a cause that is just.
Key quote on
careers
A burning passion coupled with absolute detachment is the key to all success.
Key quotes on
ethics
Rights that do not flow from duty well performed are not worth having.
Non-co-operation with evil is as much a duty as is co-operation with good.
Key quote on stress and peace of
mind
There is more to life than increasing its speed.
Key quote on peace of
mind
Turn the spotlight inward.
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