He brought freedom to a nation - without ever resorting to violence !
In the annals of civilizations, probably the ONLY person who has never resorted to violence in gaining freedom is Gandhi - which makes him a wonderful inspiration
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement. A pioneer of satyagraha, or resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience — a philosophy firmly founded upon ahimsa, or total nonviolence — Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world.[2] Gandhi is often referred to as Mahatma ([məɦaːt̪maː]; Sanskrit: महात्मा mahātmā or "Great Soul," an honorific first applied to him by Rabindranath Tagore).[3] In India, he is also called Bapu (Gujarati: બાપુ, bāpu or "Father") and officially honoured as the Father of the Nation. His birthday, 2 October, is commemorated in India as Gandhi Jayanti, a national holiday, and worldwide as the International Day of Non-Violence.
Gandhi first employed non-violent civil disobedience as an expatriate lawyer in South Africa, in the resident Indian community's struggle for civil rights. After his return to India in 1915, he set about organising peasants, farmers, and urban labourers in protesting excessive land-tax and discrimination. Assuming leadership of the Indian National Congress in 1921, Gandhi led nationwide campaigns for easing poverty, expanding women's rights, building religious and ethnic amity, ending untouchability, increasing economic self-reliance, but above all for achieving Swaraj — the independence of India from foreign domination. Gandhi famously led Indians in protesting the British-imposed salt tax with the 400 km (250 mi) Dandi Salt March in 1930, and later in calling for the British to Quit India in 1942. He was imprisoned for many years, on many occasions, in both South Africa and India.
Gandhi strove to practice non-violence and truth in all situations, and advocated that others do the same. He lived modestly in a self-sufficient residential community and wore the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl, woven with yarn he had hand spun on a charkha. He ate simple vegetarian food, and also undertook long fasts as means of both self-purification and social protest.
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Click here for a documentary on Gandhi
Asserting without power
Probably the biggest lesson Gandhi taught the world is that power does not have to mean violence or political power - or even physical prowess. Being able to be ‘passively’ resistant was far more powerful than the entire might of the biggest empire at the time - and if this is not enough to prove that one cannot get what you want done without resorting to violence or immoral deeds, then, Gandhi has lived and died in vain !
Principles, Morals and Ethics
Probably one of the biggest legacies of Gandhi was to be able to remain true to his morals, Values and Ethics, and never falter in it. What he called ‘Truth’ was on the top of his list of priorities, and nothing was worth letting go of a principle he believed in devoutly. This is what offered Gandhi the ability to take on the British - with a far more superior footing - that of a battle between ‘right’ and ‘might.’ Being able to take the moral high ground enabled Gandhi to lead with pride and a massive advantage !
Walking the talk and impartiality
Gandhi did not differentiate or play favorites. His message was the same : his expectations were the same : and he treated everyone the same too. He also demanded of himself a lot more than what he demanded from others. This enabled him to have integrity at all times, thereby having a massive impact whenever he spoke - and even more impact when he threatened to perform ‘sathyagraha’ (refraining from taking any food or water until his demands were met.) The instance when he asks his wife to clean the lavatories is a classic example of his impartiality
Resilience and courage
Gandhi had tremendous resilience. He did not let anything disturb him, or his Vision for a free India. He was able to withstand being struck by policeman, be ridiculed, jeered and taunted - and finally, imprisoned for countless years - all in the name of the cause - and best of all, being able to remain unruffled and in no way angered. This amount of resilience and personal courage in being able to ensure his morals were upheld is extremely potent in being able to demand the same from his followers - without ever having to demand it - as such personal integrity naturally attracts followers.
Speaking from the heart
Gandhi was a great orator. He could rouse a population by talking to them, and had the uncanny ability to make it seem as if though he was speaking to just one person - so that everyone in the audience thought that he was speaking to him/her alone. This is because he spoke from the heart. There were no guiles, no pretenses, no bravado, no ego. It was just the Mahatma, and his message. This ability to speak so emotionally, invoking tremendous emotions within the audience enabled Gandhi to sway public opinion like no other. When he spoke, India was wrapped !
Click here to listen to one of Gandhi’s speeches
Grooming Successors
Gandhi selflessly groomed others. There were many whom he took under his wing - notably Nehru, to whom he was very much a mentor. The fact that Nehru would become Prime Minister was of no consequence to Gandhi - for he did not vie for glory or recognition for his efforts. It also made him a far better teacher, as he genuinely wanted his ‘pupils’ to succeed, and was not jealous of their success or deeds. This enabled him to spread his message with much more impact !
Understanding the followers
Gandhi upon his return from South Africa spent many years traveling the length and breadth of India getting ‘to know’ his fellow countrymen. This enabled him to get a good grasp of what ‘real’ India was all about : and this is what gave him the ability to truly speak to the masses. The fact that Gandhi understood the mood and sentiment of the wider population so well is what made him the powerful swayer of opinion he was - the key was that he honestly understood those whom he led. The fact that he knew things first hand, and experienced them with those he was to later lead made him an extremely sensitive leader too.
Personal Sacrifice
What many do not realize is that Gandhi had to make many personal sacrifices in order for him to be as effective as he was in ensuring the end objective was met. He had to ensure much abuse - both emotional and physical, he had to spend time in jail, he had to forego much of his personal life, and he had to also see one of his own sons commit suicide claiming ‘Gandhi was the father to the nation but no father to me !’ Sacrifices are required when one leads a nation - the difference with Gandhi was that he made them selflessly, with no personal gain what so ever.
Servant Leadership
What Mahatma Gandhi espoused is what is commonly known as ‘Servant Leadership’ today. The basic principle is that the Leader is a servant to others, and the duty and responsibility of a leader is to ensure that his/her followers achieve success/fulfillment. This is in stark contrast to the power and ego centric leadership that many leaders such as Alexander, Churchill, Caesar and Napoleon demonstrated. Though we are not in any form debating which of the different styles of Leadership is actually more suited, we have to give credence to the fact that Gandhi is probably the closest that humanity has seen to what each of the scriptures (in Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity) discussed as Leadership.
What Gandhi demonstrated is the essence of selfless leadership - certainly a lot more difficult to aspire to and live up to as compared to any other form !
The Leader the Servant
What is the role of a Leader ? In the eyes of Gandhi, the Leader’s only duty is to serve those whom he/she leads. Gandhi’s life is a great example of a leader being a true servant to the population he led. His only aim and objective was to gain freedom - and to ensure India was self sufficient. Ensuring the other’s needs was put to the fore ensured he led selflessly.
Duty and Responsibility
Gandhi believed in duty and responsibility above all else. He saw Leadership as a duty and a responsibility, not as a title or a privilege. This makes a huge difference in how we view leadership.
Ensuring that the duty is fulfilled was important to Gandhi - and this is why he was able to go through all the hardships in a placid manner - with a smile. Nothing was more important than ensuring his duty was fulfilled. This level of self sacrifice enables others to follow by sheer awe of demonstrated greatness of character
Love and Compassion
Love and Compassion were cornerstones of Gandhi’s life. He was able to show compassion and love even to those who sort to cause him harm - even to the person who shot him to death. Love and Compassion enables followers to bond to the leader with devotion and love in return. Gandhi stopped the violence that erupted after the secession of Pakistan simply by going on a hunger strike - the fact that he might die was enough for India to stand still, and listen.
In an age where violence has become the first resort, Gandhi’s examples shine even brighter !
Saint or Sinner ?
Gandhi was not perfect. His own son died a vagabond : distraught, broken and bitter - specially with his father. He certainly may have cast a great burden on his own family. His extreme focus on truth, duty and responsibility may well have weighed very heavily on his family. Gandhi is also blamed for the secession of Pakistan - and there are many who believe the independence India was was compromised because of Gandhi. There are also other more wild allegations against Gandhi.
Whether he was a saint or not is for history to decide. What is important is to understand the sheer example he led India with. There have been many leaders - but extremely few like Gandhi. His life and legacy is something many who are enlightened enough will try to emulate.
Probably the biggest impact Gandhi made on Leadership is to offer the POSSIBILITY to lead without ego and callousness - and without violance : something Nelson Mandela emulated.
Final thoughts
Mahatma Gandhi is probably one of the most influentials figures of our time. A towering symbol of compassion and love : and stalwart faith in Values and Ethics. The leadership lessons are difficult to mimic and emulate : but if one does, what would probably result in is a far more enlightened form of leadership than what prevails in todays society.
Credits and acknowledgements
This article was inspired by the movie Gandhi
It is impossible to go into the detail of a mammoth figure like Gandhi, and the article only aims to offer insights rather than details. The idea was to look at salient factors of Leadership, as seen through Gandhi’s life.
Click here to watch the movie on YouTube
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