Non-Violent Resistance
NON-VIOLENT RESISTANCE (SATYAGRAHA)
BY MAHATMA K. GANDHI
Print ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-4990-2
eBook ISBN: 978-1-4209-4991-9
This edition copyright © 2014
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CONTENTS
EDITOR'S NOTE
NON ENGLISH WORDS WITH THEIR MEANINGS
SECTION FIRST: WHAT SATYAGRAHA IS
1. SATYAGRAHA, CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE PASSIVE RESISTANCE, NON-CO-OPERATION
2. DOMESTIC SATYAGRAHA
3. SATYAGRAHA
4. MEANS AND ENDS
5. SATYAGRAHA OR PASSIVE RESISTANCE
6. EVIDENCE BEFORE THE HUNTER COMMITTEE
7. THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF SATYAGRAHA
SECTION SECOND: DISCIPLINE FOR SATYAGRAHA
8. SATYAGRAHA ASHRAM VOWS
9. YAJNA OR SACRIFICE
10. PROTECTING HINDUISM
11. MORAL REQUIREMENTS FOR SATYAGRAHA
12. CONDITIONS FOR SUCCESSFUL SATYAGRAHA
13. NON-RETALIATION
14. COURAGE AND DISCIPLINE NECESSARY
15. THE NEED FOR HUMILITY
16. WORK IN JAILS
17. A MODEL PRISONER
18. SATYAGRAHI PRISONER'S CONDUCT
19. PRE-REQUISITES FOR SATYAGRAHA
20. MY POLITICAL PROGRAMME
21. LIMITATIONS OF SATYAGRAHA
22. A GREAT SATYAGRAHI
23. NEILL STATUE SATYAGRAHA
24. A HIMALAYAN MISCALCULATION
25. QUALIFICATIONS FOR SATYAGRAHA
26. SOME RULES OF SATYAGRAHA
27. FULL SURRENDER
28. TO WEAKEN COMMUNALISM
29. POLITICAL POWER v. SATYAGRAHA
30. FOR 'FOLLOWERS'
31. MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE
32. A NON-VIOLENT ARMY
33. TO VOLUNTEERS
34. REQUISITE QUALIFICATIONS
35. QUALIFICATIONS OF A PEACE BRIGADE
36. THE NECESSITY OF TRAINING
37. PHYSICAL TRAINING FOR THE SATYAGRAHI
38. BRAHMACHARYA FOR SATYAGRAHA
39. DISCIPLINE—SATYAGRAHI AND MILITARY
40. SCORCHED EARTH
41. TRAINING FOR A NON-VIOLENT ARMY
42. CONSTRUCTIVE PREPARATION
SECTION THIRD: NON-CO-OPERATION AND CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
43. THE NATIONAL WEEK
44. THE SATYAGRAHA WEEK
45. JALIANWALA BAGH
46. NEITHER A SAINT NOR A POLITICIAN
47. THE LAW OF SUFFERING
48. HOW TO WORK NON-CO-OPERATION
49. HOW AND WHEN TO ACT
50. AT THE CALL OF THE COUNTRY
51. THE FIRST OF AUGUST
52. WHO IS DISLOYAL?
53. NON-VIOLENCE AND SWADESHI
54. PROGRAMME FOR SATYAGRAHA
55. THE DOCTRINE OF THE SWORD
56. RENUNCIATION OF MEDALS
57. NON-PAYMENT OF FINES
58. NON-PAYMENT OF TAXES
59. NON-PAYMENT OF TAXES
60. BOYCOTT OF COURTS AND SCHOOLS
61. EMPIRE GOODS BOYCOTT
62. SOCIAL BOYCOTT
63. SOCIAL BOYCOTT
64. SYMPATHETIC STRIKES
65. MORE OBJECTIONS ANSWERED
66. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
67. NON-CO-OPERATION EXPLAINED
68. LOVE
69. THE POET'S ANXIETY
70. WHAT IT IS NOT
71. THE NON-CO-OPERATION OF A SATYAGRAHI
72. CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
73. CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
74. THE RIGHT OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
75. AGGRESSIVE v. DEFENSIVE
76. MY FAITH
SECTION FOURTH: VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
77. VYKOM
78. VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
79. VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
80. VYKOM
81. VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
82. VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
83. VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
84. SATYAGRAHI'S DUTY
85. VYKOM
86. TRUE SATYAGRAHA
87. VYKOM SATYAGRAHA
88. SATYAGRAHA v. COMPULSION
89. RELIGIOUS SATYAGRAHA
SECTION FIFTH: KHEDA AND BARDOLI
90. THE KHEDA SATYAGRAHA
91. BARDOLI'S DECISION
92. BARDOLI ON TRIAL
93. NON-CO-OPERATION OR CIVIL RESISTANCE?
94. LIMITATIONS OF SATYAGRAHA
95. ALL'S WELL
96. A SIGN OF THE TIMES
SECTION SIXTH: SALT SATYAGRAHA
97. "NEVER FAILETH"
98. TO ENGLISH FRIENDS
99. WHEN I AM ARRESTED
100. LETTER TO THE VICEROY
101. SOME QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
102. ON THE EVE OF THE MARCH
103. ASHRAM DISCIPLINE DURING THE MARCH
104. DUTY OF DISLOYALTY
105. SOME SUGGESTIONS
106. TURNING THE SEARCHLIGHT INWARD
107. NOTES ON THE WAY TO DANDI
108. REMEMBER 6TH APRIL
109. HINDU-MUSLIM QUESTION
110. BARBAROUS
111. THE INHUMAN TAX
112. A SURVEY
113. THE BLACK REGIME
114. PURITY IN ACCOUNT KEEPING
115. CALM HEROISM
116. MAHADEV DESAI AND HIS SUCCESSOR
117. GOONDA RAJ
118. MESSAGE TO THE NATION
119. THE SECOND LETTER
120. THE GREAT ARREST
121. MORE ABOUT THE SETTLEMENT
122. THE CONGRESS
123. LET US REPENT
124. POWER OF AHIMSA
125. GOONDAISM WITHIN THE CONGRESS
126. CONQUEST OVER BODY
SECTION SEVENTH: INDIAN STATES SATYAGRAHA
127. SUSPEND CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
128. RAJKOT SATYAGRAHA
129. ABOUT THE RAJKOT AWARD
130. SUSPENSION OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
131. ITS IMPLICATIONS
132. NON-VIOLENCE v. VIOLENCE
SECTION EIGHTH: INDIVIDUAL SATYAGRAHA AGAINST WAR
133. NO SUPPRESSION
134. EVERY CONGRESS COMMITTEE A SATYAGRAHA COMMITTEE
135. THE CHARKHA AND SATYAGRAHA
136. CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
137. NOT YET
138. TO THE READER
SECTION NINTH: MISCELLANEOUS
139. FASTING AS PENANCE
140. THE SATYAGRAHA WAY WITH CHILDREN
141. SATYAGRAHA—TRUE AND FALSE
142. FAST AS AN ELEMENT IN SATYAGRAHA
143. FAST AS PRAYER
144. IS FAST COERCION?
145. FAST AS THE LAST RESORT
146. FAST AS SELF-SURRENDER
147. REQUIREMENTS FOR SATYAGRAHA FAST
148. COERCIVE FASTS
149. FASTING
150. FASTING IN SATYAGRAHA
151. FASTING IN THE AIR
152. TO THE WOMEN OF INDIA
153. WOMEN IN CONFERENCE
154. MEN'S PART
155. NOTES
156. HOW TO DO THE PICKETING
157. SOME PICKETING RULES
158. A STERN REPROOF
159. PICKETING
160. WHEN IS PICKETING PEACEFUL?
161. PICKETING AND LOVE
162. STUDENTS' NOBLE SATYAGRAHA
163. LIMITS OF SATYAGRAHA
164. SATYAGRAHA AGAINST THE COLOUR BAR BILL
165. THE JEWS
166. THE SATYAGRAHA WAY WITH CRIME
167. SOCIALISM AND SATYAGRAHA
SECTION TENTH: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
168. SOME QUESTIONS
169. ON NON-VIOLENCE
170. WHAT ARE BASIC ASSUMPTIONS
/> 171. BELIEF IN GOD
172. NOT GUILTY
173. QUESTION BOX
174. QUESTION BOX
175. FIVE QUESTIONS
176. THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT
177. WHAT CAN A SOLITARY SATYAGRAHI DO?
178. NON-VIOLENT NON-CO-OPERATION
179. SABOTAGE AND SECRECY
180. SATYAGRAHA IN FACE OF HOOLIGANISM
181. THE NON-VIOLENT SANCTION
SECTION ELEVENTH: CONCLUSION
182. MY FAITH IN NON-VIOLENCE
183. THE FUTURE
EDITOR'S NOTE
Satyagraha means literally 'clinging to truth', and as Truth for Gandhiji was God, Satyagraha in the general sense of the word means the way of life of one who holds steadfastly to God and dedicates his life to Him. The true Satyagrahi is, accordingly, a man of God.
Such an individual in this world finds himself up against evil, which he cannot but resist. He comes across injustice, cruelty, exploitation and oppression. These he has to oppose with all the resources at his command. In his crusade his reliance is on Truth or God; and since the greatest truth is the unity of all life, Truth can be attained only by loving service of all, i.e. by non-violence. The weapon of the Satyagrahi is therefore non-violence. Satyagraha, in the narrower sense in which it is ordinarily understood, accordingly means resisting evil through soul-force or non-violence.
For the required soul-force the individual has to discipline himself in self-control, simplicity of life, suffering without fear or hatred, recognition of the unity of all living beings, and whole-hearted and disinterested service of one's neighbours. The vows which Gandhiji elaborated for members of his Satyagraha Ashram at Sabarmati are of interest from this point of view. They were truth, non-violence, brahmacharya, fearlessness, control of the palate, non-possession, non-stealing, bread-labour, equality of religions, anti-untouchability and swadeshi.
Gandhiji derived his doctrine of Satyagraha from many sources. It can be traced essentially to the Gita ideal of the karmayogin, and also to Jesus' Sermon on the Mount; and recently to the writings of Thoreau, Ruskin and more especially Tolstoy. But his practical application of it in the social and political spheres was entirely his own.
Satyagraha, in the narrower sense, takes many forms. Primarily it is a case of appealing to the reason and conscience of the opponent by inviting suffering on oneself. The motive is to convert the opponent and make him one's willing ally and friend. It is based on the idea that the moral appeal to the heart and conscience is, in the case of human beings, more effective than an appeal based on threat of bodily pain or violence. Indeed violence, according to Gandhiji, does not ever overcome evil; it suppresses it for the time being to rise later with redoubled vigour. Non-violence, on the other hand, puts an end to evil, for it converts the evil-doer.
But the non-violence which thus overcomes evil is not the passive resistance of the weak. The non-violence of a Satyagrahi is unflinching. It is the non-violence of the brave. It will lead the Satyagrahi to die with a smile on his lips and with no trace of hatred in his heart. It presupposes a disciplined character, selflessness and unswerving devotion to duty. The passive resister, or the one who adopts non-violence as policy, on the other hand, is really not non-violent, for he would be violent if he could, and is non-violent only because he does not for the time being have the means or the capacity for violence. It is a far cry, therefore, from passive resistance to Satyagraha.
Satyagraha may take the form of non-co-operation. When it does, it is not non-co-operation with the evil-doer but with his evil deed. This is an important distinction. The Satyagrahi cooperates with the evil-doer in what is good, for he has no hatred for him. On the contrary, he has nothing but friendship for him. Through cooperating with him in what is not evil, the Satyagrahi wins him over from evil.
Satyagraha may at times take the form of fasting, When it does, there is to be no trace of self in the motive. The fast should be prompted by the highest devotion to duty and love for the opponent. It should aim at purifying oneself, for lack of capacity to convince the opponent shows defect in oneself. It should seek to influence the opponent by converting him, not by coercing him to do something against his conviction. Fasting should be undertaken, according to Gandhiji, only when one is thoroughly convinced of the Tightness of one's stand, when all other methods have failed, and as a last resort, and never for personal gain. It should be in the nature of prayer for purity and strength and power from God.
Satyagraha in the political sphere assumes the form of Civil Disobedience. It is for this form of Satyagraha that Gandhiji came to be most reputed. It means mass resistance on a non-violent basis against the Government when negotiations and constitutional methods have failed. It is called 'civil' because it is non-violent resistance by people who are ordinarily law-abiding citizens; also because the laws which they choose to disobey are not moral laws but only such as are harmful to the people. It is civil also in the sense that those who break the law are to observe the greatest courtesy and gentleness in regard to those who enforce the law. They are even to seek not to embarrass the opponent if possible.
Gandhiji organized such Satyagraha for the first time in South Africa against humiliating laws enforced by the South African Government on Indians in that country. With the experience so gained, he organized successfully peasant Satyagraha in Champaran, Kheda, and Bardoli to remove specific local grievances.
But Satyagraha can also be on a nation-wide scale to resist an entire Government when that Government is corrupt and demoralizes the people. It may then take the form of non-co-operation with the Government, as it did in Gandhiji's Civil Disobedience movements of 1920-22, 1930-34 and 1940-44 in India. Non-co-operation may express itself in giving up titles and honours bestowed by the Government, resignation from Government service, withdrawal from the police and military, non-payment of taxes, boycott of courts, schools and legislatures, and running parallel institutions to perform these functions. Gandhiji, however, was very cautious in regard to some of these forms of non-co-operation, as they were likely to bring down on the people the wrath of an indignant Government, and he did not want the people to suffer more than was necessary from Government repression.
Such Civil Disobedience demands on the part of the people disciplined group action, infinite capacity for suffering without retaliation, and strict obedience to leaders. As this discipline and obedience are not, as in the case of the military, based on force, the leaders have to be men of character and public service, whom the people respect and willingly obey. This implies that the leaders are men who generally carry on various forms of constructive service for the people. Gandhiji, therefore, emphasized working of his Constructive Programme as essential for Satyagraha; and not only for this reason, but also because discipline and group action need to be built up steadily among the people. They have to be taught, for example, cooperation, communal unity, fearlessness, consideration for the social good, self-help and resourcefulness, and have to have physical, mental and moral strength. All this can be done only through various forms of constructive endeavour advocated by Gandhiji, such as working for economic self-sufficiency in villages; education, abolition of drink and untouchability, communal concord, uplift of women, sanitation, hygiene, improved diet, child welfare, and so on. Satyagraha in the political sphere is not, therefore, a plan of action adopted merely for a time, wound up thereafter, and requiring no further effort; it presupposes day to day non-political constructive work aiming at the all-around development of the individual from the cradle to the grave.
In this respect Satyagraha or non-violent resistance, as conceived by Gandhiji, has an important lesson for pacifists and war-resisters of the West. Western pacifists have so far proved ineffective because they have thought that war can be resisted by mere propaganda, conscientious objection, and organization for settling disputes. Gandhiji showed that non-violence to be effective requires constructive effort in every sphere of life, individual, social, economic
and political. These spheres have to be organized and refashioned in such a way that the people will have learnt to be non-violent in their daily lives, manage their affairs on a cooperative and non-violent basis, and thus have acquired sufficient strength and resourcefulness to be able to offer non-violent resistance against organized violence. The practice of non-violence in the political sphere is not, therefore, a mere matter of preaching or even of establishing arbitration courts or Leagues of Nations, but involves building up brick by brick with patience and industry a new non-violent social and economic order. It depends ultimately on banishing violence from the heart of the individual, and making of him a transformed disciplined person. Gandhiji's contribution lay in evolving the necessary technique and showing by example how all this can be done.
There can be no doubt that in developing Satyagraha in its various forms as a practical means of overcoming violence, more especially in group life, Gandhiji established a new mile-stone in the history of the human race in its march towards peace on earth and goodwill among men. He himself did not claim finality for his methods, as after all he was a pioneer in the field and a humble experimenter. The science of Satyagraha is therefore still in the making. But his teachings and experience are invaluable for all future students and makers of this science. The purpose of this volume is to help in the process by making available for the reader Gandhiji's findings in his own words and in as comprehensive a form as possible.
Bharatan Kumarappa
Bombay, August, 1950
From my introductory note to Section Eighth the impression is created that the Harijan after its suspension in November 1940 was permitted to be published again only in February, 1946. This is wrong. As a matter of fact it was restarted in January, 1942, after a lapse of about 14 months. It was published in three separate languages (English, Gujarati and Hindi) by the Navajivan Press from Ahmedabad till August of that year when the press was confiscated by the Government after the arrest of Gandhiji and other leaders. Since that time the press remained in the custody of the Government and the publication of the Harijan weeklies could be resumed only in February, 1946.