GANDHI, NON-VIOLENCE, AND THE STRUGGLE FOR INDIAN INDEPENDENCE: RELIGION AND REVOLUTION, A STUDY IN COMPARATIVE POLITICS AND RELIGION.

The report begins with an analysis of the character and the intellectual origins of the Gandhian doctrine of Satyagraha. The dominant force in Gandhis life, it is concluded, was Hinduism. His appeal to the Indian masses rested upon his standing as a Hindu holy man. Gandhis role in the Congress struggle for independence is discussed. The tension between Gandhis functioning as a prophetic figure, following what he considered to be the voice of God within him, and his role as a national leader paying heed to political realities, accounts for many of the mistakes committed by the Congress it probably delayed the achievement of Indian independence. Author