 A continuity of the Previous article Altruism - Is This Gandhism, by Tintin as on June 25th, 2008
Dr Martin Luther King Jr. once said - "Like most people, I had heard of
Gandhi, but I had never studied him seriously. As I read I became deeply
fascinated by his campaigns of nonviolent resistance. The whole concept of
Satyagraha was profoundly significant to me."
Mahatma Gandhi was a messenger of peace and one of
the most powerful leaders in the last two centuries. His language nourished reconciliation, and
his actions encouraged co-existence. Whether it is the conflict between Hindus
or Muslims or with the British, his words mitigated conflicts and directed
one's thoughts and actions towards solutions. Mahatma Gandhi's non-Violence
movement is a model that will last for centuries to come. Recalling the historical
significance Mahatma Gandhi's accomplishments give rise to thoughts of
introducing non-violent resistance and the power of civil disobedience to the western
world.(Tomms, 2007) The paper discusses the major psychological
developments in the life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, focusing on the inner
experiences that accompanied and influenced the Mahatma’s political decisions.
Factors
effecting Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma
Gandhi was born on October
2, 1869 into a typical middle-class family in the city
of Porbandar,
India.
He was extremely shy and somewhat of an average student, not a genius that some
would think. Gandhi’s family believed in a religious mix of Vaishnavism and
Jainism. His religion helped to form a strong belief of non-violence and gave
him a respect for all living creatures. It also taught him the strict custom of
vegetarianism, which Gandhi used as a source of confidence during his schooling
in London, England.
Gandhi was married at age thirteen to Kasturbai. (Norton, 2002) He
studied law in London
and graduated from the Inner
Temple
as a barrister and accepted to do legal work in South
Africa
during 1893. In Natal,
Gandhi immediately recognized the hatred and harsh prejudices, which the
British colonists held for the native South Africans. It affected him in a way
that absolutely infuriated him and made him reach out to those suffering
injustice. Gandhi decided that the best way to help the people was by becoming
a good attorney, later he suspended his career in law to go to war and Natalbecame
the battlefield that transform Gandhi to a Mahatma. (Norton, 2002)
His most important influence came when serving on the killing fields of South
Africa. In 1915 Gandhi returned to India
and within 15 years he became the leader of the Indian nationalist movement and
using the tenets of Satyagraha he lead the campaign for Indian independence
from Britain.
(Norton, 2002)
where countless innocent Zulu were slaughtered by the British army. Starting
with small protests and opposition to unfair South African laws, Gandhi
organized the Indian community. At the same time, he began to read religious writings
and scriptures, which helped to improve his protests with new tactics. Probably
another biggest influence to his whole lifestyle was the Baghavad Gita - a
religious book of Hindu culture
Some theorists emphasize that emotions occur during events involving self and
environment, but that events must be cognitively appraised before an emotion is
experienced and this appraisal occurs with reference to one's goals. The social
constructivist approach focuses on emotions as social products based on
cultural beliefs, whereas Differential Emotions Theory asserts that
different emotions are already present at birth. Parent’s positive emotional
expression and experience, accepting and helpful reactions to children's
emotions, and emphasis on teaching about emotions in the family, contribute to
young children's more sophisticated emotional competence. For example,
Kasturba, wife of Gandhi, played a significant role becoming a source of
inspiration for Mohandas and showed him that true strength comes from having
faith and being loyal to the ones that you love. (Goswami, 2008) Jean Piaget and Lawrence Kohlberg's theories
considered the role of the human being as agent in the moral process, where
they focused on moral judgment on the knowledge of right and wrong.where
countless innocent Zulu were slaughtered by the British army. Starting with
small protests and opposition to unfair South African laws, Gandhi organized
the Indian community. At the same time, he began to read religious writings and
scriptures, which helped to improve his protests with new tactics. Probably
another biggest influence to his whole lifestyle was the Baghavad Gita - a
religious book of Hindu culture. In 1915 Gandhi returned to India
and within 15 years he became the leader of the Indian nationalist movement and
using the tenets of Satyagraha he lead the campaign for Indian independence
from Britain.
(Norton, 2002)
Some theorists
emphasize that emotions occur during events involving self and environment, but
that events must be cognitively appraised before an emotion is experienced and
this appraisal occurs with reference to one's goals. The social
constructivist approach focuses on emotions as social products based on
cultural beliefs, whereas Differential Emotions Theory asserts that
different emotions are already present at birth. Parent’s positive emotional
expression and experience, accepting and helpful reactions to children's
emotions, and emphasis on teaching about emotions in the family, contribute to
young children's more sophisticated emotional competence. For example, Kasturba,
wife of Gandhi, played a significant role becoming a source of
inspiration for Mohandas and showed him that true strength comes from having
faith and being loyal to the ones that you love. (Goswami, 2008) Jean Piaget and Lawrence Kohlberg's theories
considered the role of the human being as agent in the moral process, where
they focused on moral judgment on the knowledge of right and wrong.
Gandhiji’s father
was a middle ranking minister of agriculture and farming
concerns, placing the family in a high social status in the village. The father
was careful to instill a strong sense of personal discipline, familial piety,
honesty, and integrity into his all children, in an effort to set an example of
those under his administrative care. But Gandhiji had a conflict in his
formative years, which was about his father's multiple marriages.
How could a father, who himself did not adhere to the moral principles, preached
his children about moral values? On the other hand Gandhi's mother instilled
compassion by displaying her religious devotion as she adhered to the vows and
fasts prescribed for self-purification. Thus, combined
factors of his mother's devotion, father's commitment to the community, and the
state’s caste system, one could argue Gandhi's principles and ideals could not
have developed any other way. (Tomms, 2007)
Theory
of Self Psychology
According to many
researchers, Mahatma Gandhi’s life reflects Kohut’s theory of self psychology,
which is concerned with the formation of values, initiative and a cohesive
self. Kohut’s theory of development stresses the importance of idealized others
who, under optimal circumstances, become internalized as self-objects and serve
as inner sources of self esteem and psychic balance throughout life. Mahatma
Gandhi had mentors that influenced his self-development, challenging and
sustaining his political and personal identity. The self development in
Gandhi’s early childhood and youth, his marriage, education in London, his
failed efforts as a barrister in Bombay, and his experiences in South Africa, claims
his transformation from a shy and frightened boy into a great leader, that
gathered strength and wisdom from people in whom he could never become
immersed. (Meckel, 1998)Erikson’s
psychosocial theory of personality development and identity formation
emphasizes the mutually formative interplay between the developing individual
and the cultural and historical forces of society. Erikson believes that
childhood is very important in building a person’s character and personality
development. The formative and early years of Gandhi played a vital role in
forming his personality, trust and integrity which helped him in his later
years and leading three million people against the British government. Erikson’s
seventh stage of adulthood describes that adults are obligated to care for the
next generation through personal deeds and words. In the case of
Gandhi, his contribution to the next generation was his militant nonviolence as
a means to address social injustice. (Gredler, 2008) The major
difference in both the theory is that Kohut’s theory of self psychology deals
with self esteem that caused transforming Gandhi from a shy boy to a leader
whereas Erikson’s theory of personality describes how early development played
a major role in Gandhi’s formation of trust, dignity, integrity and leading the
world.
Achievements
Mahatma Gandhi’s
nonviolence is based on religious principles, particularly drawn from a
diversity of scriptures the Bhagavad Gita, the Bible, and the Koran. Gandhi tells us that we can in
our own lives test the fact of God's presence by a living faith. Since faith
cannot be proved by evidence outside the act of faith, the safest course is to
believe in the moral government of the world and therefore in the supremacy of
the moral law, the law of truth and love. Working like a scientist on the
hypothesis that God as truth and love ruled the world and united all human
beings and thus he behaved with love and trust with all his fellow beings in
his private and political life. The response of love and trust which he
obtained from others strengthened his faith and sustained him even when some of
the others would not respond to his life of non-violent resistance against
social and political evils. (O'Meara, 1997)
Conclusion
Whether we may regard Mahatma Gandhi as the greatest
human being of the twentieth century or not, but social activists or
revolutionaries cannot deny the fact that he has made unique contribution to
the science of revolution and implementation. After Karl Mark it was Gandhi who
revolutionized the process of revolution and gave it a touch of art. The Indian independence movement lasted over a period of
almost three decades, and involved thousands of Indians from all walks of life.
Despite its size and duration, it remained almost uniformly nonviolent.
Bibliography
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