Gandhi	


Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar, Gujarat, Indian. Then he died on January 30, 1948 in New Delhi, India. He was the spiritual and political leader of India who led the struggle for Indian independence from the British Empire, empowered by tens of millions of Indians. Throughout his life, he rejected any form of terrorism or violence. His philosophy of nonviolence, have influenced national and international nonviolent resistance movements to this day.

Using nonviolent civil disobedience also known as pacifism, Gandhi helped bring about India's independence from British rule, inspiring other colonial peoples to work for their own independence resulting in the break up of the British Empire. Gandhi's principle of satyagraha which in english means the "way of truth" or "pursuit of truth". Gandhi’s principle has inspired other freedom activists such as Martin Luther King, Jr., the Dalai Lama, Lech Wałęsa, Stephen Biko, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Nelson Mandela. Even though they followed this principle they did not believe so strongly in Gandhi’s strict principle of nonviolence and nonresistance. Satyagraha is based off Ganhdi’s traditional hindu beliefs.

At age 13, Gandhi was married through his parents' arrangement to Kasturba Makharji. He then went on with his schooling and barely passed the matriculation exam for the University of Bombay in 1887, where he joined Samaldas College in Bhavnagar. He did not stay there long, however, as his family wanted him to become a lawyer. Unhappy at Samaldas College, without second thoughts he jumped at the opportunity to study in England. During his time in England he studied and tried to make himself fit in with English culture but he soon went back to India. While in India lawyers were not really needed as there were already a plethera around. He decided to run a business where he drafts petitions for people but that ended as he got in trouble with the imperial law. It was because of this he accepted a one year contract to an Indian firm in Natal, South Africa.

During his time in South Africa he was the target of intolerence. This place had changed Gandhi dramaticly. During one day in court the magistrate asked Gandhi to remove his turbon. Gandhi refusing to do this stormed out of the court room. Then when he was on a train, he was told to move from first class to third class, Gandhi refusing was literally thrown off the train. It was because of this Gandhi started to question the Indian status in South Africa. During the Zulu Rebellion, Gandhi organized one of the only medical units to serve wounded black South Africans, as racist white doctors refused to take care of them. Gandhi gained great respect because of this. When he was about to return back home to India he noticed in the paper that the Natal Legislative presented a bill that would deny Indians to vote. Though he was unsuccessful in stoping the bill, he was successful in drawing attention to the grievances of Indians in South Africa. His supporters convinced him to stay in Durban.