GANDHI AND THE POLITICS OF MASS ACTION
As outlined in Chapter 16, "The Struggles for Asia, 1920-1945" Mohandas Gandhi appears to be an unparalleled leader and inspirer of human political motivation. The book implies that Gandhi was responsible for the transformation of the demand for independence into a nationwide mass movement that mobilized every class of society against the imperialist forces of Britain. As is often the case, the free India that came into being, divided and committed to a program of modernization and industrialization, was not the India of his dreams.
The highlights of his life show a man of action. Born Oct. 2, 1869, in Porbandar, India, in 1893 he went to South Africa to battle for the rights of Indians, an event which would influence his initial struggle in 1915 for India's independence. A proponent of non violent civil resistance, he brought his case to the world press in 1930 when he led hundreds of natives and reporters on a long Salt March to Dandi to protest a tax on salt. This led to a nationwide strike in support of him, and in 1947 he negotiated an end to 190 years of British colonial rule in India. In 1948 he was killed by a fanatic opposed to Gandhi's tolerance of other religions (Popham, 1997, 3).
India has one of the oldest civilizations in the world. Excavations trace the Indus Valley civilization back for at least 5,000 years. Paintings in the mountain caves of Ajanta, richly carved temples, the Taj Mahal in Agra, and the Kutab Minar in Delhi are among relics of the past (Encarta, 1998, Online).
Asoka ruled most of the Indian subcontinent in the 3rd century BC, and established Buddhism. But Hinduism revived and eventually predominated. During the Gupta kingdom, 4th-6th century AD, science, literature, and the arts enjoyed a "golden age." Arab invaders established a Moslem foothold in the West in the 8th century, and Turkish Moslems gained control of North India by 1200. ...