Gandhiji developed these ideologies from various inspirational sources vis Bhagvad Geeta, Jainism, Buddhism, Bible, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Tolstoy, John Ruskin among others. Tolstoy’s book ‘The Kingdom of God is within you’ had a deep influence on Mahatma Gandhi.

Gandhi probably took the religious principle of ‘Ahimsa’ (doing no harm) from his Jain neighbours, and from it developed his own famous principle of Satyagraha (truth force) later on in his life. Gandhi hoped to win people over by changing their hearts and minds, and advocated non-violence in all things.

Books, of course! Gandhi read innumerable books during his lifetime and was inspired by numerous authors. His ideas for non-violence and rural development are also said to have been influenced by the works of authors such as Leo Tolstoy and Friedrich Max Muller.

Mahatma Gandhi drew inspiration from beliefs in both Hinduism and Jainism (via his devout mother); these included vegetarianism and the ahimsa, “do no harm,” concept. He was also influenced by Buddhism and Christianity.

The twin cardinal principles of Gandhi’s thought are truth and nonviolence. It should be remembered that the English word “truth” is an imperfect translation of the Sanskrit, “satya”, and “nonviolence”, an even more imperfect translation of “ahimsa”.

Gandhi was not just an ardent critic of urbanisation but also a strong advocate of rural life. Gandhi adopted this principle from the theories of US thinker Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), whose philosophy revolved around the principle of self-reliance and moral enhancement.

Ruskin, the English thinker, was perhaps the most powerful source of inspiration when Gandhi himself described Ruskin’s book, “Unto This Last” as “the magic spell”. Gandhi was offered Ruskin’s book by Gandhi’s intimate friend Mr. Polak and Gandhi read it on his train journey from Johannesburg to Durban.

As an ESFJ, Mahatma Gandhi tends to be empathetic, warm-hearted, and supportive.

As the article itself states, Gandhiji’s name is Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. While it is true that he is commonly known as Mahatma Gandhi what would the community feel about changing the name of the article to Mohandas Gandhi, Mohandas K.

Both Mohandas and Mahatma Gandhi refer to the very same person. Mohandas is a name. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) was the man who led India to independence from Britain. In the process, the land was divided in two: Muslim Pakistan, with the remainder becoming the new Hindu-dominated India.

Gandhi first conceived satyagraha in 1906 in response to a law discriminating against Asians that was passed by the British colonial government of the Transvaal in South Africa. In 1917 the first satyagraha campaign in India was mounted in the indigo-growing district of Champaran.