Personal and Social Transformation: Gandhi’s Psychology of Nonviolence

Abstract

The last chapter is devoted to an account of the life history of Mahatma Gandhi as an illustration of the personal and social transformation through the “yoga of nonviolence” which he developed, preached and practiced. After sketching Gandhi’s historical and personal background, we first discuss in some detail Gandhi’s views of human nature and human development. We note how Gandhi’s thinking was deeply influenced by spirituality of the Bhagavad-Gītā and its ideal of sthitha-prajñatā. Gandhi’s view of human development is explained as a form of dialectic between the divine and devil embedded in human nature. We note that, aside from the Gītā, Gandhi’s thinking was influenced by the Jaina philosophy of anekantawada, which emphasizes the idea of one truth construed differently by wise men, and thus lays the foundation from mutual understanding and dialogue among opponents. Then we present a detailed discussion of the two main principles of Gandhi’s philosophy: satya or Truth, and ahimsā or non-violence. The development of satyāgraha or nonviolent action to resolve social and political conflicts is Gandhi’s most important contribution to modern social psychology. Placing Gandhi’s work within the context of psychology, the concept of satyāgraha is examined in relation to psychoanalytic theory, reviewing in particular the work of Erik Erikson and Sudhir Kakar. The work of several other psychologists is also briefly reviewed along with a discussion of Gandhi’s style of leadership and organizational issues.