ABSTRACT
In each period of history, a few human beings change the course of events not by political machination or military conquest but through leading lives of absolute purity and resoluteness of moral purpose. Such a one was Gandhi, who altered the direction of Indian history with no weapon beyond an inflexible adherence to his moral, political and economic goals. Gandhi did not claim to be either a philosopher or a mystic, but there can be no doubt that behind his programme of action there lies a comprehensive world-view. Though this system of ideas does not follow exactly any of the classical patterns of Indian thought, it is clear that Gandhi's deepest insights tend towards Advaita (nondual) Vedanta, blended with a profound admiration for the ethics of the Bhagavad Gita. On the basis of these beliefs, Gandhi formulated an ethical, political and economic programme which touched every aspect of life. Though he wrote and spoke in favour of this programme extensively—his Collected Works run to over seventy volumes—he never simply preached it at others. Everything he advocated he did: he believed firmly that the best recommendation for a philosophy or a religion is not a book, but the life it inspires. 1
