MAHATMA GANDHI & MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.   Term Paper ID:25338 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Compares non-violent philosophies & strategies of leaders in their struggle, respectrively, for self-rule for India & civil rights for African-Amer.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Compares non-violent philosophies & strategies of leaders in their struggle, respectrively, for self-rule for India & civil rights for African-Amer. Paper Introduction: Both Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. were goal-oriented leaders. Gandhi desired self-rule for India. King wanted first class citizenship for African Americans. Instead of separating religion and politics, both men mixed the two. Both leaders chose nonviolence as their strategy, partly because it was the only practical solution capable of achieving their objectives. Gandhi's goal for India was swaraj, a self-rule based on complete independence from Great Britain. Gandhi believed that self-rule was only possible if his country was empowered to overthrow the "fourfold disaster" that centuries of British rule had imposed on the economic, political, cultural, and spiritual life of India (Shirer 30). Gandhi realized that only the most practical of weapons would prevail. For this reason, he chose Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. . Inspired by this text,Gandhi sought truth, rejecting anything hypocritical or false. The Trumpet of Conscience. Kingcame to believe that satyagraha, the peaceful defiance of government, wasthe best and ultimately the only moral avenue open for the Civil Rightsmovement. Obeyingthe rules of nonviolence, the Indians did not defend themselves. Gandhi's goal for India was swaraj, a self-rule based on completeindependence from Great Britain. Economics was an important component of Gandhi's nonviolent campaign. Gandhi frequently preached thevirtues of the spinning wheel and the handloom, likening the wheel to arestful prayer. King, on the other hand, wasthoroughly commited to nonviolence, partly because of his status as aChristian minister. Nonviolent civil disobedience was often used by Gandhi as a tactic toembarrass the British government. The end to racial segregation meant, in part, changing pervasivediscriminatory practices: "The policy-makers of the white society havecaused the darkness: they created discrimination; they created slums; theyperpetuate unemployment, ignorance, and poverty" (King, Jr. New York:HarperSanFrancisco, 1967.Moon, Penderel. He claimed that success and failure were irrelevant,because the means could not be separated from the ends. He hated violencein all forms, and refused even to kill deadly animals, such as poisonoussnakes. He taught the Hindus proper pride in their own culture andtraditions: "Gandhi devoted his energies to renewing Hinduism from within"(Green 161). When we rise to love on the agape level, we rise to theposition of loving the person who does the evil deed, while hating the deedthat the person does" (Washington 88). Another difference was that Gandhi, unlike King, was prepared toforego the principle of nonviolence if it meant that his goal of India self-rule would be achieved. This involved radicalchanges in lifestyle: diet, family relations, money management, etc.Gandhi often said that anyone could achieve what he had through effort,hope, and faith. 8). As Gandhi oftentold his followers, "We need not consider the Englishmen as our enemies . "For Gandhi, Prayer Preceded Politics." NationalCatholic Reporter, 34 (March 13, 1998): 23.Green, Martin (Ed.) Gandhi in India in his Own Words. Hanover, NH,1987.King, Jr., Martin Luther. I want to convert them and the only way is the way of love" (Green 139). The horror of the confrontation was published in more than athousand newspapers, which resulted in stirring the conscience of Britainand the world about the atrocities in India. The Sermon on the Mount, from the Christian Bible, was especiallyinfluential to him in the development of his philosophy on nonviolence. Works CitedBaldwin, Lewis. . Instead of separating religion andpolitics, both men mixed the two. Gandhi corresponded with Tolstoy until the Russianauthor's death, and even named one of his ashrams "Tolstoy Farm." Gandhisaw that engagement in social justice could have a transformative power onthe human soul: "It was a political fundamental, a universal love thatwould transcend the distinctions between 'good' and 'bad' people"(Fitzgerald 23). African Americans lacked thefinancial resources to overthrow their oppressors. Both Gandhi and King understood that nonviolence was vital tocreating new social systems to replace traditional systems of oppression.They were unique among political leaders because they advocated the powerof love and insisted that any protest against the oppressors be peaceful.They believed that through love the enemy would be redeemed, and would seethe error of their ways. In his sermons, King attempted to rouse thechurch into taking a more active part in resisting segregation. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1991.Clement, Catherine. Gandhi urged Indiansto boycott British cloth and instead to wear khadi, or homespun cloth. Both Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. He became known by thebeloved term, "Mahatma," which means "great soul." Ahimsa, or nonviolence to all living things, is another greatprinciple of Hinduism. Gandhi desired self-rule for India. apparently took Gandhi's prophecy to heart. King was heavily influenced by the teachings of the Bible. It is a tangible form of showingone's displeasure at the acts of one's government" (Clement 62). He believed that it was the great British textile mills and the Indiancities that had impoverished the Indian countryside. Gandhi realized his statusas role model, and taught by the example of his own courage andfearlessness. The police methodically and mechanically beat each succeeding column ofIndians. Because Gandhi believed that spiritual principles were useless unlessput into action, he assumed the leadership of the Indian nationalistmovement. . Satyagraha was succeeding. Tolstoy wrote essays that criticized war and violence,as well as governments and organized religions that failed to follow theprinciples of truth and justice which they professed to believe. African Americans encountered difficulty in maintaining theirdignity and self-worth because they were treated as second-class citizens.Municipal laws in the South made it illegal for blacks and whites tofraternize, and most of the African Americans in Alabama, where King lived,seemed resigned to their faith. . Nonviolence was Gandhi's chosen method onlybecause he did not believe that there was any other means capable ofsetting India free: "This aim [freedom] meant so much to him that inpursuing it he was ready to run the risk of violence, and he even said thathe would prefer to 'see India freed by violence than enchained like a slaveto her foreign oppressors'" (Moon 285). King realized, as did Gandhi, that it would be impossible to mobilizemasses of people based on a philosophy of violence. The more unjust and cruel theBritish were, the more they played into Gandhi's hands. Gandhi realizedthat, practically speaking, no government could withstand multitudes whononviolently refused to obey laws and who exhibited no fear of being beatenand arrested. Thewounded were simply dragged away by sympathizers and replaced by newcolumns of protesters who willingly submitted themselves to physical abuse. our chief legacy to thefuture will be an endless reign of meaningless chaos" (Washington 148). Bybuying khadi, the townspeople would help the peasants. Both leaders chose nonviolence as theirstrategy, partly because it was the only practical solution capable ofachieving their objectives. King wanted first classcitizenship for African Americans. In studying Gandhi's tactics, King recognized that there were vastdifferences between India and the United States. Avegetarian, Gandhi would not eat animals or hurt them. Gandhi studied many religions in his search for the ultimate meaningof life. Thoreau himself had beenjailed for refusing to pay a poll tax to a government whose policies heconsidered unjust. Gandhi wasoften accused of homespun fanaticism, but he persisted because he realizedthe importance of building India's economic base. Gandhi readThoreau's Civil Disobedience while in prison. As aChristian minister, and the son of a minister, church activities played acentral role in his life. Indians used satyagrahato gain self-rule, complete independence from Britain. Another component of Gandhi's nonviolent campaign was the preparationof Indians for independence. He taught self-respect where before, under the yoke of theBritish empire, there had only been submission. Ahimsa means noninjury to everything that lives. For example, in protests followingGandhi's imprisonment after flouting the British Salt Tax, Indianprotesters were viciously attacked and beaten by British soldiers. One of the differences in the philosophy of Gandhi and that of Kingwas Gandhi's insistence on individual growth and development. And King astutelysurmised that if African Americans worked as closely within the system aspossible they would succeed in embarrassing Southern whites, once thespotlight of the worldwide media was activated: "The nonviolent resistermust often express his protest through noncooperation or boycotts, but herealizes that noncooperation and boycotts are not ends themselves; they aremerely means to awaken a sense of moral shame in the opponent" (Washington8). Gandhi'ssatyagraha lifted people to a higher plane of existence. Norton, 1969.Shirer, William. Gandhi realized thatonly the most practical of weapons would prevail. Homespun was to bethe link between town and country, rich and poor, and became the badge ofthe nationalists and the Congress Party. As Jawaharlal Nehru oncestated, "if this congress, or the nation at any future time, comes to theconclusion that methods of violence will rid us of slavery, then I have nodoubt it will adopt them" (Moon 284). Kingbelieved that African Americans had a destiny, the deliverance of themessage of nonviolence to the world. New York: Simon and Schuster,1979.The Bible. Apassage that profoundly affected Gandhi was one in which Jesus Christinstructed his followers in a method of passive resistance, "But I say untoyou, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on they rightcheek, turn to him the other also" (Matthew 5:39). Tolstoygave up his material possessions in order to live a simple, vegetarian,nonviolent way of life. A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings of Martin Luther King, Jr. Gandhibelieved that nonviolence was only possible if the masses were physically,spiritually, and mentally disciplined to accept it. New York: W.W. African Americans,however, were fighting for the right for equal opportunity. Most of the members of Gandhi'sIndian National Congress held the same view. Before Gandhi joined it, the Indian National Congress (India'sparty for independence) was an organization that lacked definite goals.Gandhi breathed new life into it by giving it direction: "Congress wastransformed from little more than a decorous upper-middle-class debatingsociety into a compact and effective political organization" (Moon 114).Gandhi believed strongly in taking action; he was a true agitator forpeace. Violence and terrorismtend to be short-lived. Gandhi and Modern India. Besides, these avenues would have only led todisaster for the members of the movement. Gandhionce predicted, "it may be through the Negroes that the unadulteratedmessage of nonviolence will be delivered to the world" (Baldwin 232).Martin Luther King, Jr. As hebecame involved in mass demonstrations for equality, King always urged hisfollowers to pursue a nonviolent revolution: "King consistently keptbefore his people a vision of black messianism as a way of motivating orinspiring them to greater heights in the struggle" (Baldwin 233). Gandhi believed that self-rule was onlypossible if his country was empowered to overthrow the "fourfold disaster"that centuries of British rule had imposed on the economic, political,cultural, and spiritual life of India (Shirer 3 ). Kingbelieved that a person must stand up to oppression and even be willing todie in the effort, but that there was more power in changing the enemythrough love than in attacking with hate and violence: "Love in thisconnection means understanding good will as expressed in the Greek wordagape . Authorized (King James) Version.Washington, James. While Gandhi labored for self-rule in India he was aware of thestruggle of African Americans for equality in the United States. Kingrealized that, to be successful, his movement would have to bring about achange in the hearts and minds of the oppressor. Hecultivated love and tolerance of others and was himself usually loved anddeeply respected, even by the people he opposed. Like Gandhi, King sought to instill a sense of cultural pride in hispeople. For this reason, hechose the Hindu principle of satyagraha, or soul-force, "I know that it isthe right of the citizen to withdraw his cooperation from the state whenthat cooperation means his degradation. All his life he taught truthfulness andcleanliness. One ofGandhi's biographers writes, "I count the days with Gandhi the mostfruitful of my life. were goal-orientedleaders. Armed revoltwould never win the type of equality King sought, so this method was nevera viable option. No other experience was as inspiring and asmeaningful and as lasting" (Shirer 244). One of King's critical strategies was toempower blacks by selling them on the merits of nonviolence: "We mustnever become bitter nor should we succumb to the temptation of usingviolence in the struggle, for if this happens . The teachings ofChristianity helped Gandhi understand the target of India's wrath was notthe British themselves but their imperialistic policies. Many who got toknow Gandhi were never quite the same again: his example moved some tolive differently, others experienced a change in certain attitudes. There is a Balm in Gilead: The Cultural Roots of MartinLuther King, Jr. New York: HarryAbrams, 1989.Fitzgerald, Paul. Every day, Gandhi himself would spin a quota of twohundred yards of yarn, regardless of where he was at the time. The principle of satyagraha is found in the Hindu sacred text, theBhagavad-Gita, which contains lessons in discipline and selflessness,mercifulness, and freedom from greed or jealousy. Like Gandhi, King's philosophy of nonviolence was not passive. New York: HarperSanFranciso, 1986.----------------------- 1 Gandhi: A Memoir. Gandhi and King engaged in enormous socialundertakings that left the world with important legacies of peace. .. Besides, the Civil Rights movement had strong Christianroots. Nonreligious authors such as Henry David Thoreau and Leo Tolstoylikewise influenced Gandhi's philosophy on nonviolence. Gandhi: The Power of Pacifism. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.