Series A70. 2 a Study of Selected Social Thinkers Mahatma Gandhi

All R ights R eserved

d a nd u s R i a u . A b . a h . Printe P bli hed y . P S ,

a t n h n n P ess K a n . Si g Pri ti g r , pur Op i ni o n

' - of any w o r k in social thoughf o n o ther n s e i n a . ociological subj cts , systematic , simple and u derstan da b le a style , is extremely necessary as well suseful for an average studen t . There are m a ny diﬂi cu l t ies in performing such a es f co mm en task succ sfully, still every ef ort m this direction is

d a b le . In this light , I appreciate the hard work put in by R P Mr . . . Sinha . I hope that his work will be of considerable t n ” . beneﬁ to the stude ts of Sociology s

‘ F om i o S r e ies l l o . l r Sociol gical .

K N Sha n n a . . , Pli M IA , . D .

Hea d of ike Depa rtment f Svciologj, l q ﬂ

D . A . V. Colle e Ka n ur. g , p C O N T E N T S

M AH ATM A GAND H I

h if C . I L e Sketch II F actors Inﬂuencing Gandhian Phil osbphy

I I I A n alysis of .Gandhian Social Thinking IV Cri tical Estimate of Gandhian Thou gh t

K AR L M AR X f Ch. I Li e Sketch I I F actors Inﬂue ncing Marxian Thinking I I I Analysis of M arxian Social Thinking I V Critical Estimate ” Ka rl M a n : Co M a x Weber

Comparative Study of Gandhi Marx

Conclusion

Bibliography R eferences l . M AHATM A GANDHI

Ch a p t er I

L ife Sk etch 1 869— 1 9 48 O ( A . . )

K a r a mcha nd a Mohandas Gandhi , popul rly known as ‘ ’ — F n i n o O Bapu the ather of I d an ation , was b rn on ctob er 2,

1869 P n a . n , a t orbandar , I di He was e joying th e boy

o hi a r x hood days of his f urteenth year when Karl , aft er

n having at tai ed his climax , had breathed his last . Gandhi , as a boy , was unconcerned with the world affa irs th o ugh he - O was brought up in an anti British atmosphere . bviously , there was little in his e a rly life to show th a t he was destined to become one of the most magnetic personalities and most

’ n compelling leaders of our cou try s long history . 13 19 Gandhi was married at and at , when alread y a

L F o r father , he went to ondon to study law . three years he lived frugally in L ondon on 320 a month and then returned to

India as a qualiﬁed barrister a nd a member of Inner Temple . 1922 He was , later in , debarred from the membership of the Inner Temple on account of receiving a s e ntence of six

’ 1 m r 1so n me n t A years p by th e Indian courts . t the age of

23 A i n , he went t o South frica a law case and stayed there for twenty years , seeking to improve the status of his fellow Indians , who were discriminated against because of their dark skins . There he developed his philosophy of non violent civil disobedience as a means towards political ends. 1 14 He returned to India in 9 , gave away his property , and took to w eari ng a saintly dress of loin -cloth to symbolize his joining the repr essed millions who could a fford no more . He preached political and economic freedom from England and urged the wiping out of religious enmities among Hindus

v and Muslims . He launched a vigourous mo ement to attain

f fo r . political , economic , social and cultural reedom India He 2

m ff a ade e orts to uplift the untouchables , declared by him s ‘ ’ A ll victims of a system called as rotten excrescence . these and many other services of Gandhi elevated his position to a great reverence in the minds of millions of his countrymen who called him ‘the Mahatma ’ (great soul) or ‘Bapu ’ (the fa ther) and ‘ ’ ‘ ’ considered him as God or Super Man . Gandhi was in and ou t of prison during most of his life due c o n to his political , social and economic activities . He c du ted many fasts and hunger strikes , using them as means o f On calling attention to a particular injustice . e of his fasts

b e F 10 194 1 gan on ebruary , 3 and ended after 2 days . I t was i n protest of his internment behind barbed wire in the pa

o f A K P lace gha han a t oona , where he was he ld by the British govern men t after the ou tbreak of civil disobedience

’ following rejection of Sir Stafford Cripps plan for Indian

independence . In the early days of the second world war , Gan dhi refused to support Indian participation in the war on the side of Great Brita i n un t il the British would guarantee " Indian

independence at the close of the war .

a l Physically Gandhi was small bald , and in later years

On 30 1 948 1 n most toothless . January , , he was assassinated Delhi shortly after having concluded a fast in protest a gainst

communal strife between Hindus and Muslims . Whereas volumes after volumes have been devoted to the f h n li e istory and valuable works of Mahatma Ga dhi , we leave this aspect to the above ex fent and switch over to the influ e nces which were a t work in enabling him to make va luable contributions to social thought as a top -ranking thinker of

his time . Cha p t e r I I

F a ct o r s I nﬂ u enci n g G a ndhi a n Phi l o so p hy

Gandhian social philosophy is the out come of the inﬂuen

’ cc - of his fore runners thinking on him and also of political , socio -economic and religious conditions prevalent in India t before a nd during his life ime . These multifarious inﬂuences ranged from his parents and home to R uskin and Tolstoy .

I n ﬂ u en ce o f F o r e -r u n n er s

- o f The fore runners Gandhi , who conceived the idea of

- i social thinking on the basis of traditional non violence , der ved the origin of their thought mainly from Hind u scriptures of U C Vedas and panishads . Manu , Lord Buddha , Jesus hrist ,

Mohammed the Muslim prophet , who were all advocates of ‘Ah ’ imsa , exercised considerable inﬂuence on the thinking of C Mahatma Gandhi . Besides , the moral principles of onfucius

C a s an d the metaphysical thinking originating in hina , worked basic foundation of his thinking . Gandhi appears to have been

- partly inﬂuenced by his fore runners of the West , including E Hegel , Marx and ngels . But he did not agree with either of them in toto . The contrast between the Gandhian dialectic E and tha t of Karl Marx and H ega l is striking . ach of them has dealt with a differen t level of abstraction and by comparing them , the dynamic quality of Gandhian concept

I mme nce of Satyagraha is illuminated . was the inﬂ uence on Gandhi due to the impact of works of three writers namely C A Tolstoy , the hristian anarchist " Thoreau , the merica n w i n A r iter who inﬂuenced him , during his stay South frica , by his experiments of philosophy of non -violence and civil diso b e ‘ d nc R - U ie e John uskin , who, by his unique work nto This

’ Last , by his approach to a systematic political theory as

’ v i well as by his iews on industr alization , arrested Gandhi s

a ttention . 4

I n ﬂ u en ce o f R el i gi o u s So ci o -Eco n o m i c F a ct o r s

a nd The inﬂuence of mother conserva tive Hindu society , which his home strictly represen ted , was mainly responsible fo r

’ Gandhi s ideas about the law of life , morality and faith in religion . He imbibed in his own personal life what he was

a n d i tought a t his home in his rel gious environment . Here we are reminded of the vow which Gandhi ha d to take before his

— mother t he vow to lead a chaste and Stoic existence .

Gandhi was deeply inﬂuenced by the socio -economic conditions of Indian society and they along with political con dition were , to a very great exten t, responsible for the emer - gence of his valuable approaches to Satyagraha , Non violence,

Love Truth God , Trusteeship, Socialism etc . N e ev rtheless , when we say that Gandhi was inﬂuenced by the above factors, we never mean that all the ideas and concepts of his fore -runners were accepted and agreed upon in

h A s toto by im. Gandhi was more a practical man than a theorist , any theoretical formulation of his own philosophy and

‘ ’ “ its classiﬁcation under any Ism is not possible . He was in one sense a conser v ative in another a philosophical anarchi st" on one hand a socialist and on the other a capitalist"and yet

m mst again a primitive co m u . His writings and speeches show m so e evidence for each of these assertions . He belongs to all these camps and to none of them” 1 Every ‘Ism ’ in general and conservatism as well as anarchism in particular inﬂuenced

Gandhi no doubt , but none had anything to do with his own concept unless it was modiﬁed by his two main techniques

n- the techniques of Sa tyagraha and N o violence .

The practical approach to life as such and his own ex per i ments were in turn advocated by Gandhi in his preachings of the gospel of renunciation (which may not mean other world liness ), voluntary poverty , dignity of labour , equali ty of

o d An G . religions , brotherhood of man , force of etc y attempt to disturb the harmony of life by setting one class of the

- people against another , creating class consciousness and hatred , teaching the cult of violence in place of love, used to distress him deeply . He was adversely inﬂuenced by the Western

civilization , so he advocated the supremacy of Indian civili z a o n ti which , unlike that of West , was based on morality and b elief i n God . He was primarily a religious man . He has mentioned in his own words tha t “ Most religious men I have e met are politicians in disguise" I , howev r , wear the guise of a politician , am atleast a religious man . My bent is not political

” 2 but religious . This is from where Gandhi starts in his think

u b llc . ing and doing , whether in private or p life Cha p t er I I I

A n a l y s i s o f G a nd hi a n So ci a l T hi nk i n g

While en t er 1 ng i nto t he discussion of Gandhian social

necesa r thinking , it is y to be aware of the fact tha t he did not propound any systematic theory as such . In strict sense of m t he term Mahat a Gandhi was not a theorist . Truly , he had little or no interest in academic analy sis , nor he had time or patience for reducing his bulk of experie nce s into theoretical formulations .

’ The above fact i s evidently supp orted in G an dh i s own

n B a ndura nt reply to Jo e V . in regard to his approach to — “ Sa tyagraha But Satyagraha is not a subjec t for research . ” t a You must experience it , use it , live by i . Gandhian thinking comprises of a comprehensive analysis of socio-economic and politico -religious problems from

- individualistic as well as socio centric angles . There are certain fundamental principles on which Gandhian social thinking clusters, and Gandhi , like a practical idealist , holds rigidly to those principles .

(A)Co n ce p t o f So ci a l Or d e r I t has been said that an ideal society is that in wh ich every individual is able to live a life of progressively increasing wants with minimum output of labour . But Gandhi did h m c not agree to this type of society . I t appeared to i as fanta sti ‘ ’ as to expect a camel to pass through the eye of a needle . In this connection Mahatma Gandhi advocates the principle ‘ L i ’ 4 of Plain iving and H gh Thinking . He comments that high living means luxurious living which is an impossible proposition

‘ ’ for any society as a whole . The law of life according to

- Gandhi , is a condition under which a well ordered society can the be intelligible and life worth living . This cond ition

‘ ‘ ’ t he law of life is t a k en as the law higher th a n that of destru o o b s d ti n ecau e , as Gandhi says , life persists in the mi st of dest

All. ruction . well constructed societies are based on the law

- of non violence and law of love, which are like two wheels on ’ o o e. which life s charriot sh uld mov Besides , Gandhian c ncept of ideal society nee ds universal application of moral law which demands sympa thy and love for every human being , protection O ’ of poor by strong men and mutual oblig a tion of services . ne s duty in a society should be to do the right a n d leave the rest t o God without thinking about the result of actions .

Sa rvoday a Sa ma" The concep t of ideal socie ty is imbibed in Gandhi ’ s call ‘ ’ fo r . r Sarvodaya Samaj Sa vodaya , in Gandhian terminology , ‘ ’ i means the grea test good for all . This deal is better than the utilitarian ideal of the greatest good for the greatest number because suffering t o some is inevitably envolved in the latter .

F o r 5 1 i r 49 persons (representing major ty), the inte est of a (representing minority) is to be sacriﬁced . Hence G ndhi ‘ says the only ideal and digniﬁe d human doctrine is the greatest

' ’ good of all and this could be achiev ed by u t t er mo st sa cr iﬁce . ’ ‘ ’ ‘ ’ Gandhi s Sarvodaya and common good ideal of Green ,

- both are ethical ideals for self realization . But according to

’ ‘ ’ B . S . Sharma , Green s common good is not something which one man or set of men can gain or enjoy t o the exclu sion of others,but it is spiritu a l activi t y in which all may if i t partake and in which all must partake , is to amount to full ’ r a ealization of the faculties of the hu man soul . Thus G ndhi s

‘ ’ ’ ‘ use of word all looks to be better than Green s term , com

’ - t he mon , because of the mis interpretation t o which latter can be

Yet Gandhi remains sil ent on the future structure of “ a " delib e society b sed on his idea . He says When society is l ra tely constructed in accordance with the law of non vio ence , its structure will be differen t in material particulars from what

1 t is today . But I can not say in advance what the government , ” - ed . bas wholly on non violence , will be like f 8

‘ The chief requirements of Gandhian Sarvodaya’ a re

- - non cooperation , non violence and decent ralization of power .

(B ) G a n d hi a n D i a l e ct i ca l Ap p r o a ch The basic idea underlying Gandhian dialectic revolves t h around his emphasis on means ra her t an ends . Gandhian

. O f e technique lays stress on purity of means bviously , there or , w o wn hile giving us an idea of his concept of Socialism , Gandhi

r e says, that Socialism is as pure as crystal and , therefore , it ‘ a c n quires cryst l like means to a h ieve it . Impure mea s

t h resul t in impure ends . Hence e prince and the peasan t

’ o ff will not be equalised by cutting prince s head , nor the “ process of cutting o il can equalise the employer and the emp

. On n loyed e can ot reach truthfulness by untruthfulness . ’ 6 Truthful conduct alone can reach truth .

R easons for Gandhi ’ s emphasis on purity of means have ’ D r D ha w a n summed up by . as under .

We . 1 . have power over means and not over ends

End . 2. grows ou t of means

w 3. Accord in g to personal experience of Gandhi , ith

perverted means only perverted ends are realised .

4 . . n . The other course i e impurity of means to at tai

ends or giving priority to ends themselves , deadens

our ﬁner sentiments .

5 w e . I t sometimes so happens that regard means as

a nd ends , in tha t case , if means are bad , the resul t

will immediately be bad .

v e 6 . There is no certainty that the bad or iol n t means A ll are initiated by good motives . fascists speak of

laudable ends .

end 7 . I t i s dangerous ethics to make the as the

criterion .

end . 8 . Besides , who knows that the is going to be ending

- I t ma y be short lived one and passing away soon . 9

Corelating the theory of ends and means with concepts o f Tr u th N o n- A and violence , . Huxley ha s remarked tha t it ‘ ’ tends to produce a state of great est possible uniﬁc a tion I t .

n does not at all mean that , for Gandhi , e d is o n ly a secondary A . s t thing a matter of fact , he a tache s eq ual importance to

B ’ . F ‘ . o r n both oth are inseparable Ga dhi , Tru t h is end and ‘ ’ A - himsa m e or non violence is si ply m ans . There

, fore for the sake of Truth , he is c a pable o f sacriﬁcin Ahimsa g . l a Gandhi ys more emph a sis on non -vi o l e nce also because

Truth is related h - n wi t inﬁnite while non violence with ﬁ ite .

( C) G n d h a i a n d i a l e ct i c Po l i t i ca l t h e o r y

an A s a matter of fact , Gandhi did not proceed from y

t he i a speciﬁc political ideology . Yet s gniﬁc nce of political

e i nestim theory of his action in the practical ﬁ ld of politics , is

e - - able . Two essential requisites have , h re to fore , been taken a into consideration for the formulation of political t ho u ght

F 1 a nd irst was the reﬂection upon th e ends of political act on ,

n the second was of means for achieving them . Traditio al poli

ha s tical though t , assuming a separation of ends from means , “ proceeded to eclipse means by emphasising conc ern for ends . The dialectical approach of Gandhian technique of ‘Sa tya ’ graha serves as a possibility of reconc ili ng ends and means i through a ph losophy of action . The success of Gandhian e technique , however , depends considerably upon the mann r in which the essential elements are applied and me nifest ed during a given dynamic process o f his dialectic — action of 9 Satyagraha .

D ( ) G a n d hi a n Ap p r o a ch t o Pol it i c s a n d R e l i gi on The origin of Gandhian political philosophy can be traced from his religious background . He had not that narrow conception of religion which is held in popular ‘ mind partien la r l ’ y in West . I t is his religion w hich forces Gandhi s entry into

’ politics . The idea bears evidence from Gandhi s own remarks ‘I could not be leading a religious life unless I identiﬁed myself with the whole of mankind and tha t I could not do u ’ nless I took part in politics , 10

: b n m With the a ove reproduction of Gandhia re arks ,

, Dr . B . S . Sharma further evaluates the political philosophy by

‘ ’ an - e alysing the concept of non violenc , dharma and its a A dyn mic force and concept of Satyagraha . cknowledging the supreme importance of individual , as emphasised by “ - Gandhi , Dr . Sharma remarks , The application of non violent m ” 9 ethods to politics is the unique contribution of Gandhi .

F o r achieving political ends , Gandhi introduces the tools of Satyagraha backed by the elements of love and truth , non

- o violence , non c operation and civil disobedience .

( E) R eli gi o n co -r el a t ed w i th Econ o m i cs

According to Sam H egginb o t ha n religion bere ft of eco no “ R t o mics is unbelievable . eligion be worth of anything , must be capable of being reduced when necessary in terms of ” H e inb o economics . Gandhi endorses these remarks of S . gg

t he . han , ye t retains one signiﬁcan t mental reservation

’ “ Gandhi s mental . reservation , is tha t Whereas r eligion to be wort h anything must be capable of being redu e

eco no mies ed to the terms of economics , to be worth anyt hing must also be capable of b eing reduced to the terms of re lig ion

r e - -eco or spi ituality . Th refore , in the scheme of religion cum n o mics is A , there no room for exploitation or mericanization ,

” 1 0 as it is technically known .

A t , e ccording to Gandhian ideal , here is no room in tru economics , which is convertible with religion , for the owning of slaves , may they consist of human beings , cattle or machi nery . He further clariﬁes his stand by saying tha t application of laws of economics must vary with varying conditions .

(F ) G a n dhi a n So ci a l i s m

’ Gandhi s V i ew of Sociali sm is r eﬂected in o n e of his an swers which he gave before his d eath

s w r fa r S ociali m is a b eaut iful o d . So as I am aware ,

’ m t he rn r rn b s e n in Socialis , rs of oci ty are qual no e high none

I n n i i u a o e low . the i d v d l b dy the h ad is not high because it is t he t o p of t he body nor are the soles o f the feet low beca use

( I ? )

‘ ‘ ’ Ahirnsa right from co nnib a lism t o fcha se and h unt and then

t a h to agricul ure st ges . Gand i thus endorsed the Christian phi

o so h o a nd l p y of truth , harmony , brotherh od justice and con

ceiv ed a s t i - all these a tr butes of non violence .

“ ‘ He observes tha t Man as animal is violent , but as

‘ - i Spirit is no n violent . The moment he awakes to the spir t E within , he cannot remain violent . ither he progresses towards ’ ” ‘ ﬁAh msa i . or rushes to his doom He further says , If we believe A tha t mankind has steadily progressed towards himsa , it N follows t hat i t has to progress still further . othing in t his

r e . wo ld is static , ev rything is kinetic If there is no progression ,

then there is inevitable retrogression . No on e can remain

’

w . ithout the eternal cycle , unless it be God h imself

D octri ne of Sa tyagra ha Gandhi related Satyagraha with Socialism and said that

every worthy object can be achieved by the use of Sat yagraha . ‘ e Satyagraha is a forc , which , if becomes universal , would revolutionise social ideals and do away wi th despotism and evergr o w ing militarism under which the nations of the West are groaning and are almost b eing crushed to death and which fairly promises to overwhelm even the nations of the So Gandhi concludes t hat Socialism will not be

r reached by any other means . Saty ag aba can relieve society — from all evils political , economic and mora l .

Chief Cha ra cter istics t t h I n regard to the doc rine of Gandhian Sa tyagraha , e

following points of explanation arrest our atten t ion . 1 . The doctrine of Satyagraha is merely a n extension of

the rule of domestic life to the political . L 2. The law of ove , which silently but surely governs

the family for the most part throughout the civili zed world , is

On nothing bu t the law of Truth . this basis Gandhi says , ‘Satyagraha is a coin on whose face you read L o v e and on the

e reverse you read Truth . I t is a coin curren t every wher and ’ has indeﬁnite value . i é

- 3. Satyagraha is self dependent . I t does not require the assent of the opponent before it can be brought into play .

On O the ther hand , i t shines most when the opponent resists .

So i t is irre sistible . 4 ‘ ’ . Satyagraha is called the soul force because a deﬁ nite recognition of the soul within it is a necessity . A satya grahi believes that death does not mean cessation of the struggle, but a culmination .

Sa t a h r a ha - 5 . y g is twice blessed . I t blesses him who

practises i t and also him against whom it is practised . I t never injures his opponent and always appeals either to his reason

by gentle arguments or his heart by the sacriﬁce of the self.

. O 6 . Satyagraha can be practised by all nce its simple principle of adherence to truth and insistence upon it by self ff su ering is understood , anybody can practise it .

7 . Satyagraha largely appears as civil disobedience or

civil resistence . Thus Gandhi evaluates his doctrine of Satyagraha and ‘ concludes with the remarks I n my opinion , the beauty and efﬁ cacy of Satyagraha is so great and the doctrine so simple that it can be preached even to

Socia lism a nd B elief i n God

Gandhi has tremendous faith in God , and he conceives ‘ Socialism from that angle . I n his opinion , God is a living

who denies the existence of tha t great force , denies

to himself t he use of tha t inexhaustible power and thus t e mains socialism of such nature takes men ’

. nowhere , what to say of society in which they live

(G ) G a n dhi a n C o n cep t o f Cl a s s -St r u ggl e

- Gandhi does believe in the existence of class struggle . What he does not believe is the necessity of fomenting and

A r d . keeping it up . cco ding to him , thi s can be avoide The

in telli . real conﬂict , he says , is between g ence and unintelligence

He , therefore , considers it to be a folly to keep up such a con ( 14

‘ ’ ' ‘ U u d he s st r esses. ﬂiet . nintelligence m st be remove , When lab our is i ntelligent enough to organise itself and le arn to a ct f a s one man , it will have the same weight as money if not much

’ l a . a greater . Money has as much its use as bour So equ l consideration of money and labour does not affect the harmony .

ther fo r e Gandhian ideal regarding labour and capital is , , based on his concept t hat capital and labour should su pple ment and help each other . They should cooperate wi th each

n a nd other and , l ike the members of a family , mai tain unity harmony . Thus Gandhi aims at mending and not ending of

1 3 a - the capitalist class . The idea of cl ss war does not , a ppeal “ I n - to him . He says , I ndia a class war is not only not inevi

a table, but it is avoid ble if we have understood the message of ” - n non viole ce .

o So the problem , according to Gandhi , is not t set class

t o ed » against class but ucate labour to a sense of its dignity .

‘ ’ Here em erge s his concept of D ignity of L abour and the con ‘ ’ T No n-P s e he a s cept of o s ssion . moment l bour i educated and

‘

e i . recognis s its own dignity , money w ll ﬁnd its rightful place

i . e . i t will be held in trust for labour , for labour is more than

’ money , observes Gandhi . Gandhi s claim for avoiding class war is based on two way planning — ( l ) by imposing con di t ions on non -viol en t me t hods ( 2)by inviting capital is ts t o regard them as trust e es for th ose on whom they depend for the

a a nd t he i . m king , the retention ncrease of their capital

(H ) G a n d hi a n The o r y o f Tr u s t e e s hi p ‘ n o dcu b t a e t o t a m z lf Gandhi , , w nt d end capi alism l ost ’ e ven not quite , as much as the m ost adva nced socialists or

n he . t o e t commu ists But his me h ds , ven language of his

e theory , diff r .

- . a a l st Gandhi is against capitali sm b u t not against c pi t i s.

He wanted capitalists to wo r k as t r ustees for those who h elped

in the increase of capital . He wanted marriage be tween l abour

’ and capital a nd co nceiv ed capital to be labour s servant

a nd o t ow i -o f , n its master . He all s the priv leged class or me n ' 15 intellect even to ea r n more but their greater earnings must be

s used for the good of the State . Ju t as the income of all earning

i e o a - a sons of a father go s to the comm n f mily fund , so lso , these

e a o privileg d men or cl sses sh uld have their earnings as trustees .

e This was his objective of Trust eship .

s Gandhian Theory of Trusteeship , as uch , therefore is “E ‘ ’ a . r e that very thing belonged to Gop l i e . God , and was cei v ed f from God . There ore , it was for His people as a who le and not for a particular individual . When an individual had t more tha n his proportionate portion , he became a rustee of

’ ” that portion for God s people . The theory , thus , has the

o religious sanction behind it . N other theory is compatible

- with non violence .

Gandhi further says that God , who was a ll powerful , had

- - . to no need to store . He created from day day" hence men ‘ a lso sho u ld - - , in theory , live from day to day and not stock things . If this truth is imbibed by people in general , it would become legalised and Trusteeship woul d become a legalised in st it u t n io .

The Theory of Trusteeship maintains the mutual ity of ‘ interests . I t is not unilateral and does not , in the least , impl y s m f uperiority of the trustee . I t is perfectly a utual a fair and each — labour and capitalist— believes that his o w n interest is ” 4 best safeguarded by safeguarding the interest of the other . F ea tures of Trusteeship Gandhian formula of Trusteeship comprises of the fo llo wing main features 1 5 1 . Trusteeship provides a means of transforming the present capit a l ist ord er of society into an egalitarian one . I t

a gives no qu rter to capitalism , but gives the present owning

t r class a chance of reforming i ts elf. This fea u e is based on

’ Gandhi s b el ie f t ha t hum a n na ture is n ev er beyond r edemp t ion .

e o ni a n 2. I t does not r c g se y righ t to private ownership o f r o er t c a s i t e p p y , except in as m u h , may be permitt d by the society for its own welfare , ( 1 6

3 . I t does not exclude l egislative regulation of the sense of ownership of wealth .

4 - . Thus under state regulated Trusteeship a n i ndiv i dual will not be free to hold or use his wea lth for se lﬁsh satis f o r t action in disregard to the interes s of society .

' 5 . Similar to the proposal of ﬁxa tion of a decent mini

i a mum living wage , a l mit should be ﬁxed for the m ximum income that could be allowed to any person in society . The difference between such minimum and maximum incomes

s should be reasonable , equitable and a l o variable from time to time , so much so that the tendency would be towards obliteration of the difference . 5 . The character of production should be determined by social necessity and not by personal whim or greed .

Thus Gandi places the institution of kinship under"his theory o f Trusteeship of an ideal economic order . C h a p t er I V

Cr i t i ca l E s t i m a t e o f G a nd hi a n T ho u ght

’ A n D r . . . Sha n n a h ccordi g to B S , Gand i s beli ef in truth and non -violence summ a rises t he wh o l e phi lo so phy of Ma h a t ma ‘ N o n- i e n Gandhi . Truth and v ol ce are the t w in suns arou nd

’ e a n d t o u t which all the l sser planets of his life h gh revolve . ’ ‘ a lica l n n n - D r . t o o en . Sharma remarks The pp of viol t methods d ’ to Politics is the unique contribution of Gan hi .

G a n dhi a n C o n cep t i o n o f R e l igi o n

Gandhi ha s not that narrow con ceptio n of religi o n which A ' 18 es t . s a m a held in popular mind , particularly in W t ter o f

’ f is h e n e r act , it his religion t a t forc s Ga dhi s nt y into po litics

H e steppe d into t he ﬁeld of poli tics wi t h religious m o tivatio ns ‘ a o a s I b e and this f ct is supp rted by his own rem rk , could not leading a religious life unless I ident iﬁed my self with whole of mankind and that I could not d o u nle ss I took p a rt in

’ Politics .

‘ ’ A n alysing t he concept of religi o n or D h a rma as v isu a lis ‘ D r S a ma D h a ed by Gandhi , . h r says , arm for Gandhi is a

n very wide term a n d includes all e t hics plus somethi g more .

’ D r n a r e . It is not a static but dynamic thi g . Gandhi g e s with

R a D r no t S . adhakrishnan who says th t ha ma is a ﬁxed code of

i i n h s v mechan cal rules , but a l vi g spirit whic grow and mo es in

o e m . response to the d eve lop ent of s ciety I t is relative to tim ,

e . place , circumstances , sex , age , t mperament , vocation etc Satisfaction or conviction to conscience or ‘A tma ’ should be ‘ ’ Sa da cha r attained with the hel p of Veda s , Smritis and particularly by those who possess weak mind and are v a cilla t ing and indecisive by na ture .

an G dhi , therefore , gives supreme importance to indi vidual conscience but then he also prescribes intensive ethical ’ training and disci pli ne acco rdi ng to the la ws of D harma 18 b f e ore one is qualiﬁed to pass judgment on thier validit y . D harma is every thing that binds individual from all sides in every walk of life . f Some critics , however, eel an overtone of religious h l m element in Gandhian p i osophy . To the Gandhi appears more to be’ a ‘religious preacher’ or a saint than a social thinker . B Dr . G . N . hawan , in course of his elaborate analysis of “ Gandh ian philosophy says I n the realm of political th ought i t is easier to say what Gandhi was than what he was not . In one way he was a conservative , an anarchist , a s a n th ocialist , a liberal , economist and a politician , while , in e

’ other , he was none of the above . By this we simply mean that Gandhian ideology could ﬁt in any of the above theories but

No n- Sa t only when his own techniques of Truth , violence and ya gr a ha alon g w ith the concept o f spir itua l force are a cco mmo dated in them . He is prepared to embrace the concept of

s co nser v a t ism a na r chism m Marxian sociali m , , or even communis

w ff No n » but only ith due modiﬁcations e ected by his tools of .

a nd violence , belief in God , techniq ue of Satyagraha .

e Ther fore , to the scholar , seeking internally systematised

’ bodies of thought , the study of Gandhi s philosophy is simply t ff i elusive and unrewarding . The mos serious e orts to class fy

Gandhi in terms of any school of political theory have failed . Still in Gandhian development of though t l ies a contribu tion of great signiﬁcance for political philosophy . The unique contribution of Gandhi in the realm of political philosophy h ‘ ’ clusters around the role w ich Satyagraha , as a technique of

n action together with philosophy of co ﬂict lying behind it , may play in social and politica l systems based upon them .

’ ’ Gandhi s emphasis on individual s freedom and his po

’ ’ L H b hou se s t entia lit ies comes quite close to . T . o and Green s

‘ ’ concept of positive fre edom and the realisa tion of the indiv i dual ’ s fullest potentialities is possible only within the social

- structure . The idea of collective well being or the common ’ go od as under lying a ny claim to private right is again conge

( 20 )

’ I n ? : . Gandhi s approach to established insti tu tions a nd

n e t o n t raditio al approaches , especially with referenc religio an d r edo m n n property , unorthodoxy has emerged as the p i e t character istic . G a ndhi used traditional precepts but sought to chhn ge establish ed i n st itu tions to make them subservient to t he needs of the members of the society to the common good a S' de ﬁ ned a e in terms of individual welf re . He urg d abandon

' ing of a cus tom when i t proved detrimental to the social welfare .

G a n dhi a n d C o n s e r v a t i s m

‘ Conserva tism has been said to be an attitude towards

‘ poli tical institutions and philosophy of social relationships , w i — a h ch include ( ) a respect for religious institutions, espe c a ll s r s i y tho e concerned with religion and prope ty (b) “ trong h sense of continuity in the historical ch anges of t e. social system : " ( c) belief in the relative impotence of individual

l a nd wi l reason to deﬂect social change, from its course , and ( d) a keen moral satisfaction I n the loyal ty that attaches the 1 6 members of a society to their stations in i ts various ranks .

n o t s s Gandhi , doubt , agreed wi h t he view of conservative so far as they treated society as an organism in Which each

o r ' member had its own part to do , no one being smaller

ind endence bigger than the other . He believed in identical p .

Y e t . i n w i , he did not believe organic gro th of soc ety . By ﬂ e ua lit did t he d y, he not mean determined place of individual

d a i n social struc ture . He disregarde the conservative ide s about the quali t ies of leadership . ‘ Gandhi , in course of his biological analog y , decries dis

’ o r t ed s i i t notions of uper or ty and inferiority . Gandhi also values individual freedom but he , side by side , also keeps in n f mi d that man is essentially a social being , This act keeps ‘ ’ an G dhian ideas in accord with the new liberalism of T . H .

e a nd i H a l n Gr en parts with metaphys cal theory of eg . Ga dhi a ‘ s s ys , Man has risen to the pre ent status by learning to adjust

‘ ’ ‘ m U nr es his individualis to the requirements of social progress .

’ ' r d t icte individualism is the law of the beast of the jungle . We have to learn to strike the mean between individual fre e

’ do m and social restraint , is his opinion .

D r D ha a n a s . w s -A points out , Gandhi cannot be taken conservative think er also becau se of the fact tha t his civil dis o bedi ence policy was disti ngui shed more clearly by moral

i her a e e aspect than by political obl gations , w e s the pr c ding concept of civil diso bedience had, political obligation as the

o main distinction . Gandhi , no d ubt , used traditional precepts in regard to society and social order , yet he sought to change established institutions to make them subservient to the needs of the members of society — to the common good defi ned in terms of individual welfare . According to Gandhi “We must gladly give up custom ” i n a u . th t is against reason , j stice and relig o of the heart He ‘ ‘ said that Bad custom should be d iscarded as the ill -gotten

’

e. hoard of miser . "ua lities of L ea ders/zip Gandhi also does not agree w ith the conservatism so

fa r as its select ive nature of leadership is concerned . His criteria of lead ers lay less in birth or station than in personal ‘C f qualities . ourage , endurance , fearlessness and , above all , sel

’

ﬁc . sa cr i e are the qualities required for our leaders, he wrote Conservatives ’ distrust of the masses was also not favoured by him n . Had Ga dhi not taken experiments with truth , he would

have possibly remained a conservative . G a n d hi a n d A n a r chi sm

D r Dha w a n ha s s a . G . N . as erted tha t G ndhi was a d philosophical a narchist . He remin s us that Gandhi strove ‘ ’ for the greatest good of all and held tha t this end could be ‘ realised only in the c l a ssless and st a t e less democracy of auto no rno u s vi llage communiti es based on non -vi o lence instead o f

i i e o n coercion , on serv ce nstead of xpl oitation , renunciation

instead of acqui si t ive ness a nd on t he l a rgest measure of local

’ n a o f n a i a n and individu a l i nitiative i ste d ce tr l z tio .

D r D ha w a n u e e . has f rth r point d out that Gandhi condoned a d egree of sta te -organisa ti o n o n ly because he be lieved that t anarchial socie t y was id eal b u u na ttainable . ( 22

C . D ha w a n in riticising the a bove views of Dr , asserted one of the few analy tical work s on Gandhian Political T V hought , Joan . Bondurant , says that while showing the

D ha w a n anarchist trend in Gandhian thought , overlooks the ‘ ’ key to Gandhian a narchism and fail s to formulate the signi ﬁca nce of the Gandhian modiﬁcations that work upon a fami

D ha w a n lier political approach , according to Bondurant , errs ﬁrstly in not recogn i si ng the relative unimportance of end struct u re of Gandhian approach to the state " secondly , he errs when he suggests that “ Gandhi ’ s democracy would b a sed on non -violence instead of Bondurant

’ c D r D ha w a n s raised this riticism of . remarks on the basis that , r according to her , an element of coercion is etained and is

- n distinguished by character of non violence in Gandhia ideal .

‘ ’ Pe r fe ct Ahi m sa i s R a r e

A - s . . e N o n e or Dr . B S Sharma has mention d , viol enc ‘ ’ A n n himsa of Ga dhi is not a word of literal interpretatio . I t ' ‘ n ds means avoiding of i jury to any one through thought , wor

’

i . or deeds , w th anger or an intention of causing pain

D r G . B . Shaw has, according to . Sharma , wrongly cri t ici sed the Gandhian N o n-violence by characterising it as ’ mer el a ne a tiv e . y g aspect of his (Gandhi s) philosophy Dr . Sharma says tha t N o n -violence for Gandhi is not only a negative aspect but a lso a positive one because it invol ves

love etc . To Gandhi it is a positive and dynamic force . I n

i ts active form , it has goodwill towards all , even for the evil

doers . I t is not , however , submission to the evil doer bu t ’ ” putting one s whole soul against the will of the tyrant .

Gandhi is , however , conscious that the state of perfect ‘ ’ A is a r a r e himsa thing and comes when spirit , mind and

body are in complete accord . Moreover, it is rare because ‘ ’ some H imsa or violence is involved in life itself.

Thr e e L e v el s o f Ahi m s a

‘ ’ Gandhi distinguishes between three levels of Ahimsa

in the following ma nn e r . 23

‘ ’ A - ( l ) himsa of the brave , who adopts non violent

o s meth d with conviction . ‘ ’ 2 A s a o f e ( ) him a as measure exp diency .

‘ ’ ’' 3 A efri n a ( ) himsa o f coward and mi t e . Gandhi prefers the ﬁrst level of ‘A himsa ’ and is ready to f ‘A ’ . . pre er even violence to the third level i e himsa of cowards .

- s He says that non violence , being uperior to v iolence , requires higher type of courage and inner strength . Simetimes people t think hat violence is necessary for crushing down the evil .

- But , according to Gandhi , it is so because non violence , being

u n- natural , is not noted while violence , being natural , is noted openly and laudably . Sir A u r ther Moore regards non -violence as mental viole nce n , a method of fighti g which is open to unarmed people . C f C . M . ase dif erentia tes between persuasive suffering and coercive suffering and calls Gandhian Sa t v a gr a ha as coercive

’ er su suffering . Gandhi accepts Case s differentiation between p a sive a nd coercive cat egories but he is not ready to pu t Satya

e e graha in coercive category . He shows the diff rence betwe n passive resistence of the West (boycotts and strikes) and his

s own satyagraha . In other word , Gandhi means to say tha t wh ereas i n the West physical violence is avoided on the ground of expediency , in his system the same is avoided on mora l con s iderations .

Ga n dhi s D i sa gr e em en t w i t h C o m m u n i s m

- Gandhi believed in non violent communism . In his opi ‘ R s nion , communism of u sian type , which is imposed on a ‘ m n . co mu people , would be repug ant to India He said , If

‘ o e i t w o u ld s nism came without any vi l nce , be welcome becau e ,

t r e in hat case , no prope ty would be held by any body xcept on behalf of the p eople a nd for the p eople . A millionaire ma y have his millions but he will hold them for the people . The State could take charge of them when ever it would need

’ t h em for the common cause .

He does not agree with the views of utilitarians , who

a ustif the use of iolence or force eve n in an ideal stat e, t j y v , ( 24 )

e least to prevent a gr ater evil . Gandhi , as an idealist , always

f er su a t o n pre ers p i instead of the use of force . F orce does not play any part in his ideal .

G a n dhi a s Pr a ct i ca l I d ea li s t We have to remember that G andhi was an idealist as well as a practical man . So, as a practical man , he accepted that the use of force or violence does play its role in actual d o f life . n con itions I ts existence in actual conditio s of life, according to Gandhi , cannot be rooted out because , he says, ‘ n ’ ideal ceases to be an ideal whe it is realised . This means ' that G a ndhi a s an idealist does not recommend the use of

i n ra c violence but , as a real ist , he does realise its necessity p

‘ ' tical politics and refers i t as u na v io da b le o r inev it a b le because

‘ ’ ofhuman imperfections .

D r D ha n . w a in his book on Gandhian Political Philo ‘ e i sophy , has characteris d Gandhi as a practical dealist He says that Gandhi was not a dreamer or vision a ry but V i sualised human nature in the backgr o und of the metaphysical and moral conditions . Gandhi saw not only the physical aspects

’ H e of his personality bu t also his true self, the inner self.

’ touched not only good side of man s nature b u t h a d ‘ o n also . To speak in the words of Gandhi , There is no e

o with ut faults , not even men of God . They are men of God not because they are faultless but because t hey k now their ’

. own are even, ready to correct themselves

With this psychological background , Gandhi places more reliance and emphasis on i nd v idu a ls than on group from moral

e point of view . He does not consider man to be mer ly a bru te but em pha sis es th a t hu ma n soul has got i mm en se po t en t ia lities

r i i m a n r ha s o t t for s ng , and , by na tu e , g capaci y for hi ghest

i l n i s po ss b e developme t . Gandhi , however , conscious that a ve r y ha rd labour is need e d for a cquiri ng c o mpl e te mastery ‘ over body and the e thical discipline of life . He says , If for mastering the physical sciences you devote a whole life time ,

' how ma ny lives may be needed for mastering the greatest spi ritual f orcethat mankind has known The ethical disciplin e ( 25

of a e s . G ndhi does not involve any elem nt of suppres ion , but on

, a o e o f su b lima contrary involves essenti lly a pr c ss tio n . Gandhian

‘ ’ i e e ‘ ’ ideal is to at ta n p rf ctibili t y and n o t p erfection b ec a use , ’ ’ i Gandhi says that perfection can be ach eved only w hen t he

body is dissolved .

ea o f e a , e a Tagore criticised this id l lif dvocat d by G ndhi , e n ‘ a a s n , and characteris d livi g with such id e l dull , egative

’ a s a s H . o w incomplete , unsound and gain t rt of l ife ever , a cco r i ’ D D ha w a n r . i a d ng to , Gandh s ide l is nei t her psychol o gically

un a i nﬁ r m - sound nor pr ctically lik e .

D iffe r en c e b e t w e e n N eh r u a n d G a n dhi

A signiﬁcant distinction between the concept o f G a ndhi a h f S P L t . a l N h n ocialism and that of Jawahar e ru , may be mentio

cd here brieﬂy . Gandhi had clariﬁed his stand in his reply t o a ‘ ’ h a . F e b 1 . 3 question in this regard , publis ed in Harij n of ,

1937 iff t he . The d erence between the views of two was that

’ P w a s o f t . N emphasis on means . ehru s em phasis on results

n A P t . w hile Gandhi emphasised on mea s . lthough Nehru - i ‘ believe d on non violence , he would l ke to have Socialism by

i - ’ s a . n o n other means if it was impo s ble to h ve i t by violence .

s e n o n - Gandhi , on the other hand , empha is d only on violence

E r a on the basis of principle . ven if he was assu ed th t he could ‘ e e have indep nd nce by means of violence , he would refuse to

’ ‘ ’ ’

e e en . have i t because , for him , it won t be r al ind pend ce

Pt . N i n ehru , thus , did not favour Gandhi putting an over

- n emp hasis on non viole ce .

A Pt . L a l N e w ho part from this , Jawahar hru , appears

s to rely more on intellect than character of human being , further criticised Gan dhi saying t hat latter n eglects intellect

before character . But , as a matter of fact , Gandhi does not

do so . He gives due cognizance to character as well as intellect .

He simply gives secondary impor tance to intellect .

Co n ce p t o f N o n -v i ol e n t St a t e

‘ ’ A s a practical idealist , Gandhi feels that the use of ’ s f force I S inevitable in actual life becau e , he says , li e s very [ 26

existence involves violence . However , Gandhi , always and

- n every where , advocates non viole ce .

A : ccordingly , Gandhi does not approve of the author ‘ t a r ian state because actual state is a process in which use of

F r a f e . o orc is inevitable him , st te is a violence in concentrated a nd a - e organised form . I t is a neg tion of non violence and henc

a n - it c not attain his ideal of non violence .

The purpose of state , according to Gandhi , is to estab lish

his co nditions under which man may realise , to the fullest ,

o and e it s p tential , the state should secure obedienc from

n members in retur . When the state fails to achieve thi s

n . o bjective , the individual must challe ge its authority This cha llenge should b e in the order of disobedience of t he

- - sta te au thority and should be based on the " action technique f o Satyagraha .

non- d The structure of violen t ideal state , as visualise b — a y Gandhi , comprises of three aspects ( ) stateless demo c a b - - s r cy , ( ) federation of satyagrahi village communitie , c - ( ) non existence (in perfect society) of heavy transport ,

. a nd d n a d courts , lawyers , medicines etc , ( ) eed for happy

fr eedo m a nd e . justment of individual , social r straint Gandhi , A however , does not conceive the society of Golden ge but he does believe in the possibility of free and . dominantly non violen t society . G a n d hi a n Wo r k i n g Pl a n

o f With this structure his ideal sta te in mind , Gandhi ,

in course of his entire preachings and a ctions , focusses his concentration on the followin g a spects

1 . Working against the theory of absolute sovereignty .

: ‘ “Value of manual labour . ‘ ’ s S triving for the greatest good of all . e R d e uced funct ions of the state . ﬁ i U se n e e n of coercio to be xercis d o ly in crimes .

n t o e d jails be convert into reformatories .

T he u sy stem of Police fo r ce to b e t ra nsfo rme d 50 that

i n i e r en f it c u u o t he e . o ld f nct o l k f i d peo pl ,

( 28

ff worried by what appears to him to be a di used s pirituality , l ife impu te to Gandhi obscurantism and thereby to den y the

’ pertinence of his contribution .

‘ t e A e n She fur h r says , gain f aring that Ga ndhian otions i of pol tical economy necessarily issue in primitive agrarianism ,

’ the Westerner tends summarily to r ej e ct Gandhi s imp ort as

’ unmea ningful in the cur rent circumstance . She ﬁnally commends Gandhian philosophy of action

‘ and dep r ica t es such respons es saying tha t Such responses tend to emerge from the Gandhian experience and to o bstruct ' ’ n E an und erstandi g of Gandhi s total impact . ven more i important , these a ttitudes serve as a barrier to further exp o ration o f the potentiali t ies of the technique which Gan dhi ” introduced . C o m p r o m i s e b e t w e e n E n d s M e a n s ‘ ’ n The challenge of Gandhian Satyagraha , accordi g to

” u s Bondurant , centers pon the neces ity of reconciling ends and

“ o -o f means thr ugh a philosophy of action . The success ‘ c Gandhian technique , she says , depends onsiderably upon the ma nner in which the essential elements are app lied and mam

' la u pu ted d ring the course of a given Satyagraha action . The ‘ n ' i tegral part of Gandhian Satyagraha , according to her , is ‘ ’ " c co nﬂ ct ne essarily a philosophy of i .

‘ ’ I n regard to Satyagrah a and the relative scope of r compromise , advocated by Gandhi , some critics do not ag ee

a h B u t with the re diness of Gand i for compromise . Gandhi holds that readiness fo r compromise is an essential part of “ ’ . E s e Satyagraha agerness for compromise hould not , howev r ,

“ S he mar the very mode of the atyagraha . When , and if, t

a a r t s ff r n ppe l , to reason fails , one should appeal to hea by u e i g ‘W a ‘ ’ s T a a . hich Gandhi c l l great p sya According to him , it l ’ inﬂu ences H o mo a thic l unconsciously , like p medicine , ong b ut su re . ‘ M e a n s of Sel f-p u r i ﬁ ca t i o n

F n - u riﬁ ca t io n asti g , according to Gandhi , is means of self p

t ca r ih and also of resis ing evil . I t n only be esorted to by di du a ls v i or groups but not by masses . Mr . Geor ge A r u nda le ha s criticised this V iew of Gandhi and has ca ll ed fasting as a so rt of terrorism. He says that the a ction of an Opponent has no alternative between surrender and the fasting “ individual ’ s ” On suicide , hence it is sort of terrorism . the occasion of ‘ Y a r v a da d fast of Gandhi , Tagore escribed it as the ul timatum

’ o r t iﬁca t io n of m to God for his scheme of things .

F i n a l E v a l u a t i o n

' ’ F D r D ha w a n s inally we may agree with . remarks that a ’ G ndhi s philosophy deserves consideration on so many grounds .

Fi rstly i t is in accordance with the needs of time . Secondl y ,

' " it is ‘the most original contribution of Gandhi to the modern

‘ ’ poli tical theo r yl Emerson has said tha t there are three kinds of great — men knower, thinker and doer . Gandhi combines all the three

in his personality . He is practical as well as idealistic . 2 . KAR L M AR X

C ha p t e r I

- L ife Sk et ch 1 8 1 8 1 883 A .D ( . )

K n arl Marx, the originator of modern Socialist moveme t ,

ma 5 was born of jewish parents at Treves , Germany , on y ,

1818 . f h r st His at er , who was a lawyer and had become a Ch i i

in an , was deeply inte rested philosophy and history. He encouraged Marx to prepa re fo r the career of a university

e t acher . But Marx , after completing his education in the u nive r sit ies f a sm of Bonn and Berlin , entered the pro ession of journ li because he soon found that his radical views made him n uacc

l n e ept a b e i the educational field in Germany of his day . Ev n then his radical views were so strenuously opposed by t he n 1 government that he left the country and went to Paris i 843.

In Paris Marx was influenced by F rench Socialism a nd

Pr o udha n 1845 . f P a nd its leader . In he was expelled rom aris went to B russels and developed deep acquaintance with a n o ther

F E ' n c s. w a s s o ci Germa So ialist , riedrich ngel With Engels he a s a ted fo r the rest of his life .

I n 1848 Marx a nd Engels issued a joint M enifesto of Communism which became the creed and programme o f i 1848 m e Social st revolutionaries . The liberal revolution of ad it possible for Marx to return to Germany for a short time .

He established a paper in which Engels served as editor . B ut with the revival of reactionary political co nditions he w a s f i n 1849 . n o exiled again Thereafter , he becam e a corresponde t I t a paper in London and lived there up to the end of his l ife . was during these later years that he did much of his w ritings. 14 1 He died in London on March , 883.

The teachings of Karil M a rx served as the b asis fo r the

o o R a n 7 eco nomic and political rev luti n in ussi i 19 1 . They 31 were duly embraced by Nicolai L enin which resulted in the R formation of t he U nion of Soviet Socialist epublics .

~ 1867 1885 1895 In , and appeared the three volumes of ‘ ’ D a s K apital in chronolog i cal order and brought worl d-wide fame to Karl Marx . In these volumes he used his unique and elaborate historical method and laborious style in analysing the social evolution . Cha p t er I I

F a ct o r s I nﬂ u enci n g M a r x i a n T hi nk i n g

Heg a li a n Phil o s o p hy

K ‘ H e a l ‘ wa s arl Marx was originally influenced by g , who entirely an intellectual and was merely concerned with theo

r tica l n o n- e or the empirical study of developments in history .

H e a lia n Indeed , Marx owes to g philosophy wherein dialectical

e system of logic describes inh rent natural process . He can be

H a l taken even to be the direct descendant of eg . But apart

- H e a l from the non empirical influence of g , Marx developed

his own practical thinking on concrete facts of li fe . His move ment from F rance to Germany and later to England enabled

him to study the societies of several countries . By dint of his

H e a l a n n t ll empirical work , he modified the influence of g i i e e

ctu a l approach in the realms of historical processes , involving

- socio economic and political condi t ions . M a rxian phil osophy sidetracks H ega lia n philosophical system when his empirical appr oach projects beyond the real m

N n of logic . evertheless , Marx retai s , though partially , the dyna

H e a l mic quality of the dialectical process . Both g and Karl

Marx , took the human development in their analysis as a single

A H e a l process . ccording to g , each stage was visualised as

higher to the previous one and , therefore , a link between the

various stages was observed by him . Marx , on the other hand , visualised that each stage was the outcome of the previous stage

but was contra dict ory to it in nature . This was the main

distinguishing factor between the thinking of the two . Process of Aliena tion ‘ ’ A n H e a l The concept of lienatio , laid down by g , w a s also adopted by Karl Marx and w a s expl a ined by him in his analysis of the productive units . The workers , in the capi

a t list ic system , do the labour but that labour is transferred to

1a . the other class i . e . employers The transfer of work and ho ur to the emp loyers gives rise t o the transfer of power a nd ( 33 a u i thor ty . This process of giving power to the other group

‘ ’ (employers), was conceived as the process of A lienation by

Marx .

I nﬂ u e n ce o f Ot her F a ct o r s

The other factors responsible for ex er crsmg the inﬂuence on the social thinking of Marx may be summed up in brief as under

w 1 . His own radical nature was at the root which al ays worked as incentive for seeking a solution to the socio-economi c problems that had emerged out of the conﬂict between t he class of property -holders and property-less section of the Eu t c t m h op an society . Wi h the develop ent of the idea of wealt

s-a and technology in industrial sphere , this conﬂict was tran ‘ ’ - ’ formed as old wine in new bottle and prevailed deep rootedly. between the capitalist class and the industrial workers class P Bourgeoise and roletariat .

— a nd 2. The personal knowledge about socio economic i pol tical conditions of various societies helped Marx , to a great extent , in visualising the social bond of men in re lation to ‘ society and in propoundi n g the theory of economic deter

’ a t minism , aimed the greatest good for all in the socialistic pattern of society .

3. Equally Sign i fican t was the inﬂuence of historicism and empirical study which worked as the basis for Marxian dialectical method . 4 . The Marxian description of historical evolution of ‘ society was also greatly inﬂuenced by his approach as a pa r tl ’ ci a nt p observer and l eader of the Socialist movement . Marx

e described the soci ty as he saw it . He was participant observer

" ’ in the sense that he participated in the pla ns for the organi

1 7 sation of all labourers for their common good .

All so cia l t hinkin these factors , inﬂuencing the i g of Marx , ultimately enabled him to arrive at a solution of the entire a nd prob lem that solution was Socialism . Cha p t er I I I

Ana ly si s o f M a r x i a n S o ci a l T hi nk i n g

I n the e s e pr sent analy is of Marxian social thinking, th d ma s m K c og of Social is advocated by arl Marx , and his e o no

mic e F o r theori s have got nothing to do . estimating

a r a s a M x social thinker , we have to consider only their socio l i a og c l generalisations .

The essence of the theory of K arl Marx is given in his ‘ ’ C i e 1 9 r n l r tiqu of Poli tical Economy published in 85 . I ts t a s a ‘ tion has been done b y Stone in his work A Contribution to ’ t he C e P ritiqu of olitical Economy .

(A) So ci et y a n d So ci a l C o n sci o u sn e s s

A f t o ccording to Marx , society re ers individuals in their

n e - - i t r relations . The most important of i nter actions , which

take place in their relationships , are those which are concerned m with aterial production .

‘ ’ D a s Ca In the words of Stone , who transla ted pital , the

the original work of Marx , we ﬁnd that when men carry on , in

t a re social production , they enter into deﬁnite relations tha

indispensable and independent of their will . These relations of production correspond to a deﬁnite state of development of

e their material power of production . The sum total of thes relations of production constitutes the economic structure of

— society the real foundation , on which all legal and political super-structures rise and to which deﬁnite forms of social con

s i n s u c o us es correspond . The mode of prod ction of material

e life determines the gen ral character of the social , political I t and spiritual process of life . is not the consciousness of the

n men that determi es their existence but , on the contrary, their ‘9 social existence determines their consciousness .

(B ) Theo r y o f Eco n o m i c D e t er m i n i s m In course of his analysis of social evolution in historical

a the A a t he i the perspective , M rx designates si tic, anc ent ,

( 36 )

i to I n IO ment i m . h s deve p , nstru ents of capital show a tendency t l a the . h s a ssimila te . ln a decreasing numb er of and , where s ‘ ’ n - l e er umber of property less , the so called Proletariat c ass, v increases .

' (D )R o l e o f Ca p i t a li s t i c Cl a s s

I t h a s been discussed above as to how the capitalistic cla ss

i s L et t he w a s comes nto exi tence . us here consider i y it exerci es a magnetic inﬂuence in controllin g the capital and also the ff s e ect s of the growth of this tendency in a capitalistic ociety .

' 1 i i c i . In course of time the capitalist class acqu res n reas ng

i i . ndustrial , pol tical and social powers

A s n b e 2. the capitalist class causes increase i the num r

P s of roletariats, this tendency , together with the increa e in

- i . populat on , crea tes super abundance of labour

amo n s 3. This in turn creates competitiv e tendency g

m a n a s workers in com ercial m rket . I t mea s that the l bourer a re compelled to enter into comp eti tion among themselves and l se l their labour to the highest bidd er in the mark e t . 4 i . Capitalism thus forces the wages to a mere subs stence

n Pr o let a rl level, with the result that misery a d suffering of the

s e a ts are exceedingly increased . There comes a tage wh rein superabundance of labour and competitiveness a mongs labour class renders the employment possible only to those labourers

' lob ou r e who sell their for the least wages . This wag level is jus t

. o r equal to even less than subsistence level of wages .

5 . ca ita list cla ss _ I n this way the p through its"tool of the ‘ ’ 2 0 a n Iron law of wages on one hand , crushes the worker , d

on t he n other hand , concentrates i appropriating to itself an i n a s ncreasi g mount of earnings of labour class . Thi appropri ‘ ' ated amount ha s been called by M a rx as the Surplus V alue

6 . i t s fmi ht a nd s The capitalist class by virtue of i g Z hrewd ‘ ’ ness increases this Surplus V al ue i n course of various methods

’ of exploitation of labour cl a ss for ta k ing p ossession of as large

r o f a s a u a p oportion the e rning of l bo r as can b e possi b le. ( 37

This brings us to the stage where the elemen ts of class

- struggle and . class consciousness deserve our a ttenti on .

Cl a s s -s t r u ggl e a n d Cla s s-co n s ci ou sn e s s

o f i n t er est s The conflict among the two classes , capitalist and t labour , lies a t the core of the emergence and grow h of class-consciousness which in turn is followed by struggle A ’ between these two classes . ccording to Marx , the employer s s r class give ise to another class , employees , for i ts o wn existence

F r and development . o their own functioning the employers

’ create the employees class and, in course of tim this class takes conﬂicting position and threatens destruction of the employers class .

hist o tica l In other words , at a certain stage of d evelop ment the material forces of production in society come in

i s u conﬂict w th the existing relation of prod ction , w ith the pro

ha d perty relations , within which they been at work before .

F u rom forms of development of forces of prod ction , these

2 1 relations turn into their fetters .

a I n course of his i mpartial evaluation of M rxian theory , P ‘C - rof. Bogardus has analysed Marxian concept of lass cons

’ ciou sness . He explains that the growth of capital ism causes a class-consciousness to develop among the memb ers of Pr oleta r ia t ' cla ss C . onsequently , labour organisations are fo rmed and , in course of time , they acquire vast power . This gra d ual P strength acquired by roletariat class , through their labour

in u organisations , resul ts the str ggle between them and the capitalist cla ss .

Here Marx, with an optimistic at titude , goes ahead to e ‘ obs rve that By force of numbers , the Proletariat class is bound

ﬁnally to Wi n and to overthrow the capitalist class which is now

' in power"it will seize the means of production and manage ” 2 them fo r thegood of all .

- While analysing the Marxian theory of class struggl e , we are reminded of the contents of Commu nist Manifes t o wherein it has b een stressed th a t t he hi story of all hitherto ( 38

“ i s is s s u F n a nd ex isting societ e the hi tory of clas str ggle . reema

i a nd s er a nd slave, patric an and plebeian , lord erf, guild mast in n journeyman , oppressor and oppressed , were co stant oppo

u s sitio to each other and carried on , some times open ome

m n o r ti es hidde ﬁght , which ended either in a rev lutionary e construction o i society a t large or in the common ruin of t he contending modern Bourgeoise has but established new classes , new conditions of oppression , f new orms of struggle in place of the old Society , as

‘ r a whole , is splitting up more and mo e into two great hostile — ca mps , into two great classes directly facing each other Bour P ” 2 3 geo ise and roletariat .

( E)Pl a n o f M a r x i a n So ci a li sm

U ltimately while attacking the problem of his times, with

K s the sole weapon of Socialistic movement , arl Marx suggest “ the latter as a solution and advocates the following measures to be adopted when Proletariat government starts funct ioning

1 A . . bolition of all rights of inheritance A 2. bolition of proper ty in form of lands" rent to be

used for public purposes . 3 - . Progressive income tax .

N . 4 . ationalisation of means of transport and commerce

5 . E xtension of productive enterprises by the S tate . C 6 . ompulsory labour .

7 . F ree education and child labour .

8 . E n limination of distrust between tow n and cou try .

x Thus Mar ian socialism includes all people. I t leads to d n equal istribu tio of weal th , meaning thereby , that the ear n ings from the industry shall be distributed to the workers in

proportion to their achievements . I t also holds tha t a class co n ﬂ ict is inevitable and that workers must overthrow capit a lists

together with the government which they control, forming their

s own governmen t to erve as their trustee . C h a p t er I V

Cr i t ica l E st i m a t e o f M a r x i a n S o ci a l T hi n k i ng

The F ollowing points deserve our attention for critically examining the social thinking of Karl Marx

l . The Marxian concept of Socialism does not put any emphasis on means . The first and the last effort of Marx is concentrated to wards the end .

O 2. . n t The use of violence is not discarded the con rary , n it is advocated as a means to attai the goal .

3. The capitalist class is aimed to be ended and not mended .

4 c n . The centralisation of power and authority is o cent r P . a . ated a t the top i e . State , controlled by roletari ts 5 . The Marxian theory ca n be explained from the point of view of social determinism rather than economic d eter mi

o f nism . The en tire doctrine Karl Marx , though explained by him on the basis of economics , is indeed , social in nature beca use Marx takes the society and the social conflict into his entire analysis . This unquestionably enables us to classify him as a sociological thinker with no less success .

6 Views o P o B o a rdus ( ) f r f . g

P . According to rof Bogardus, who appears to have

n analysed Marxian thinki g quite impartially , the name of Karl

Marx is supreme on the list of socialists . However , Bogardus

e is of t h opinion that Marx was , on one hand optimistic about the success of Proletaria t class in seizing the means of production ‘ ’ and managi ng them for the good of all but , on the other hand , he did not outline a utopia . Besides , Marx described the historical evolution of society only as he saw it as a parti cipa n t observer and leader of Socialist movement . ( 40 )

K 7 . Some of the ardent followers of arl Marx and even some of the prominent academic writers have characterised him ‘ ' ’ ‘ ’ a s a eus exma clzina and proclaimed him to be the Galileo ‘ ’ or the D arwin of the Social Sciences .

’ (8)Sorokin s Criticism

A n w admirer of Karl Marx will , ho ever , be somewhat P o . confronted to face the bitter criticism made by rof, S rokin h Prof. Sorokin observes t at , firstly , from a purely scientific

i fa s o point of v ew , as r as its ound elements are c ncerned , there is nothing in Marxian theory that was not laid by earlier a s n uthor , secondly , what is really , original, is far from bei g s a nd t he cientific, thirdly, though theory deserves the merit of generalising the ideas given before the time of Marx in a some

‘ s i n a n what tronger way , the general formulas are expressed obscure and ambiguous form and they are not so much the results of any inductive or factual study as of speculativeand dogmatic deduction .

’ N . k evertheless , Prof Soro in s criticism of Marxian social thinking appears to be impregnated w i th prejudiced and unsound ideas .

K AR L M AR X AN D M AX WEB ER

A r . P r s D . ccording to T a sons , bureaucracy plays the ame

- role fo r Max Weber a s class struggle played for Karl Marx . Both these concepts — the concept of bureaucracy and the con ‘ cept of class -struggle— are conceived by Max Weber as ideal

’ types but both , a t the same time , are concrete phenomena , actually existing in the society and studied by the socie ty . Max Weber ' s ‘spirit of capitalism ’ is based on three main

— a b characteristics ( )conspicuous traits , ( )consequen tial traits ,

t e and (c)additional traits . These raits merge out of the Max ’ Weber s theory of a ctions in rela tion to society . In course of

- his analysis of ca pitalism, he points ou t that the capitalistic society flourishes better if it accepts bureaucratic system .

o - t n or c l x e n However , no c rela io ausa connection e ists betw e them. ( 4 1

The Marxian analysis of capitalism ‘ is based on purely. ec onomic conditions and factors of production . 1

S imil a rity qf Apprca ch A comparative study of the phenomenon of capital i sm reveals a close agreement between the approaches of Karl Marx n “ a d Max Weber . This agreement lays emphasis on compulsive a A spect of the capitalistic sv stem . ccording to M a x Webe r"

’ ’ i a ctio n w ithin i d r ndividual s course of , such a system , s ete m ined in the first i nstance by the character o f si tu a t io n i n which the i ndiv d a l l i i u is p aced . But according to Karl Marx such a

‘ ’ si tuation is determined i n terms of conditions of production . tOnce s - u such a sy tem develops i n society , it becomes self s stai

" r s ning by virtue of its compulsive power ove individual .

Poi nts of D zjference There is also a marked difference between the approaches of Marx and Weber in rela tion to their study of capitalism . 1 K . arl Max , as a matter of fact , tried to draw specific

l . . aws on the basis of which such a system , i e capitalism , would lead to self destruction , whereas Max Weber did not refer to a ny such self-destructive process of capitalistic system any w here .

‘ ’ o f ca ita l ism 2. Max Weber explained the spirit p in terms

- of a system of ultimate values and value attitudes , whereas K arl Marx explained the system entirely on b asically economic understanding and determined the value system by economic

system of production . The historical researches of Max Weber were concerned

mainly with the present . He studied the conditions of his R own country , Germany , as well as of other countries like ussia

e and America . His study was focussed a t the xpanded version

’ of Marxist theory . Weber s conclusive opinion was that it was only the West where the phenomena of C apitalism along with

a liz d highly sepci e bureaucracy , comprised of technica l experts

and jurists , was found . Weber, it may be pointed out , had ‘ ’ o ld Studied wirtschaﬂsethik (economic e thics of religion) of six r — C u C eligions onfucianism , Hind ism , Buddhism , hristianity , Islam and Judaism and considered the effects of each of t hem o n t he t a nd t h economic organiza ion of life of people , ereby,

- a ttempted to co relate religion with economics .

Marx saw in the soci e ty of his times a means of u nder standing the nature of every society and o f the whole history u ema mcr a pto revolution which , according to him , would p te

a a m nkind . He pplied the economic and materialistic factors to his study of all historical periods .

the th Weber , on other hand , emphasised on e origina l f r a t temted actors of the society and , the eby , to account fo r t he h s n o t t he i torical uniqueness . He did accept Marxian claim o f providing t he total explanation of history in terms of eco ‘ nomic phenome na and considered it only a s a naive justiﬁca ’ t o n c a i of metaphysi al ssumption withou t any scientiﬁc value .

‘ Besides , Weber did not believe that ideas rule the world He supported his contention by presenting the exa mple o f ‘ ’ Protesta ntism as a social fact which helped in understa ndi ng the o f a s in role ide history . ti ons of a na tion are responsible as to how its people conceive n " o f the ideal of Socialism and the means to at tai that idea .

ff n a So i t is quite natural if we ﬁnd some di erence , even fu d mental in the approaches of Marx and Gandhi .

I nspite of some similarity between the Marxian and Gan dhi a n views on Socialism , the violence as a means , advocated

e ff . by the former , mak s all di erence Marx treats men merely

n n h as means for achievi g certai ends e . g . Socialism and e a pproves the us e of violence for ach ieving them . But Gandhi

ns does not approve violence . He says that violent revolutio can succeed only in that country in which government is disorganised .

The problem fo r Gandhi Wa s as practical as it was for

r F o r n Ma x . both the criterion of truth l ay in meeting huma

a s needs . Both Marx and Gandhi probed in to the problem participant observers and leaders of their respective move

w we x m e nts . But the distinction emerges hen ﬁnd that Mar accepted the philosophy of History which deﬁned the con ten t of those needs and indicated their satisfaction . Gandhi , on the n other hand , perceived the necessity for developing a a o sub ppr ach , a tool and a form , whereby th e content , i . e .

Sta ntia l a nd human needs , could be met the truth ( the relative tr uth in terms of substantial huma n needs ) of any situation c h ould emerge . We ﬁnd that Gandhi rej ected also t e

He a l a n g i concept of reality and reason . H e agreed with F ‘ ’ euerbach saying that man is the measure of reason .

D i a l ect i ca l D iffe r e n ce The contrast between the Gandhian dialectics and that - E of Marx or his fore runner , Hegai , is striking . ach deals with a different level of abstraction and by comparing them t he n dy amic quality of Satyagraha may be illuminated .

s a Sidney Hook , while analy ing the criterion of dialectic l “O thinking remarks , nly when that whol e or unit of conti n l u ty , which has been destroyed by the presence of conﬂicting fa ha s r e- i n ctors, been restored or estab lished another i ” 2 6 we claim val dity of our procedure . 45

On this basis S . Hook defines the heart of Marxian dialectics in the following words

‘ F o r m w ’ Marx any aterial , hich is the subj ect o fma n s

s activity , generate its own normative ideals in relation to the

n f way it succeeds i ful illing human need s . F ro m the reciprocal influence and interaction between the ideal and the actual a new subject matter is produced out of which in turn are born a ’ the me ns by which it will be changed .

Marx was critical of the H ega lia n dial ec tical method because i t did not allow for the empirical approach . According

‘ he to his interpretation , t dialectical process con trols both the t thou gh and the action . He retains the dialectics as a system o f logic and applies to the human activity solely as an i nt er pre ration . The i n teractio n is expressed in terms of soci a l enviro n men t on the one hand and human needs on the other, and it

- results in the class struggle . In other words , Marxian develop ment of dia lectic is directed to predetermine the content of

t - bo h thesis and antithesis , crea ting the class struggle , and a nticipates a synthesis in the realization of a classless society . H ere lies the end of Marxian dialectical process . The content o f Marxian dialectics is supplied through the dogma of class

t he struggle . I t is a t this point , where Marx introduces content , the Gandhian dialectics of Satyagraha strikingly

r d na m departs . Marxian metho d thusl o ses its t u e y icand creative quality by getting entangled with historicism .

Gandhian dialectic, which is quite distinct from that of Marx describes a process resulting from the application of a

a i n fl techniq ue of action to any situ t o u of human con ict , a process essentially creative and inherently constructive .

P ‘ O its Karl opper , in his book , The pen Society and ’ ‘ nemies fo r e g , writes , Marx is responsible the d vastating influ ences of the historical method of thought within rank s of those who wish to advance the cause of open i s a purely historical theory , a theory which aims a t predict

u , ing , the future co rse of economics an d powe r of political 2 7 developments and especially of r ev o lu tions . ( 46

Gandhi agrees with Marx that beliefs can be tested th t hrough action alone . But he goes further to supply e empirica l control w hich is sacriﬁced by the historicism of

t u he Marx . Marx in roduces the s bject and conten t , where

r predetermines the structu e and direction of conﬂict . But Gandhi has no such pre-determination s abou t structure or

a nd direction of conﬂict . He insi sts on process the techniques ‘ ’ F o r him to only . techniques , such as Satyagraha , onl y lead sol utions yet unknown .

i a I t can , therefore , be nferred that Gandhian Satyagra h assumes the rationality of man — rationality i n the sense that

to man is endowed wit h reason , that man can u tilize reason dir ect his actions and that a technique for conducting a nd " 8 resolving the conﬂict can appeal to the rationale in man .

R e li gi o n in G a n d hi a n So cia l i s m

sm Gandhi aims at the unit y of religion and sociali . H Socialism devoid of religion does not appeal to him at a ll . e

u says that in terms of religion there is no d ality in Socialism.

- I t . L is is all unity ooking a t society all the world over , there t nothing bu t duali y or plurality . U nity is conspicuous by its ‘ . m a n lo w s n absence This man is high , tha t is , that i a Hi du,

C P s that a Muslim , third a hristian , fourth a ar i , ﬁfth a Sikh ,

- . E I n sixth a Jew ven among these there are sub divisions . _ the unity of my conception , there is perfect unity in plurality

e of designs . Socialism begins with the ﬁrst convert . I f ther

e t he is one such , you can add z ros to one and ﬁrst zero will account for ten and every addition will accou nt for ten times

’ the previous number .

Gandhian concept of socialism imbi b es a strong belief in

God . Marxian socialism has no such belief. I t preclud es c religion all together . I n onnection with the uni ty of religion i and social sm , as advocated by Gandhi , two questions ha ve been levelled 1 ? . Does i t mean that no socialist believes i n God If there be any , why have they not made any visible progress ( 47

2. Many Godly persons have lived before now , but why ha ve they not succeeded in founding a socialistic state Gandhi answers tha t it has perhaps never occurred to a b elieving socialist that there is any connection between his socialism and belief in God . I t is equally safe to say that

- Godly men , as a rule , never commended socialism to masses .

Gandhian socialism is also related with Satyagraha . Gandhi says that every worthy object can be achieved by the use of s atyagraha , and emphasises tha t socialism can not be achieved

by any other means .

As regards the birth of Socialism , Gandhi has his own ff views, di erent than those of Marx or other Western socialists. A writer has mentioned the similarity between the birth of ‘ democracy and socialism saying that when a few , who ought to hold the economic power in trust for the others from whom

self a r a ndiz ement they derive i t , use it for their own gg and to the detriment of the rest , the inevitable result is the deprivation

i e . of the few of the means of economic power by many . birth ’ of socialism . But Gandhi differs with this view and says that socialism was not born with the discovery of the misuse of A n capital by capitalists . ccording to Gandhi , socialism , eve ‘ e communism , originated from the op ning verses of the Isho

’ pa nisha d ‘ ea r a rei ﬁrq are fe w Gra eme w e l

mu serum aches: r eefer sitar ﬁrst r far:

a? ea ses d wner rrr s : $5311 m o (i — I ho a n isha d 1 . s p ,

‘ ’ I sh a n ha This extract of Op is d explains that God , the R uler provides all those in this universe . So , renounce and dedicate all to Him and then enjoy or use the portion that

’ ma . y fa ll in your lot . Never covet any body s possession

This is , therefore , the root from where the socialism ,

n according to Gandhi , was born . He further says tha t whe so me reforms lost faith in the method of conversion , the tech ‘ ’ nique of w ha t is known as scientiﬁc socialism was born .

Her e Gandhi introduces his theory of Tr usteeship . i 48

No d b e ou t , there p revails, almost at every st p of Gandhian social thinking an overtone of religion but we

’ a lso observe that Gandhi s concer n for human needs lies a t t he

core of his teachings and experiments .

’ Ga n dhi s D i s a gr ee m en t w i th We s t er n So ci a li s t s Gandhi disagrees with the socialists ’ belief that the centralization of the necessaries of life w ill co ndu ce to the common welfa re when the centralized industries are planned and owned by the state .

Gandhi dis a grees also with the environment of violence in which the conception of West ern socialism takes birth . The motive lying behind the Western and Gandhian conception of so s - o f t h cialism is, no doubt , the ame the greatest welfare e

hediou s whole society and the abolition of the inequalities, ‘ ’ resultin g in the existence of millions of have-nots and handful ‘ ’ o f . n ff . haves The mea s to a ttain this end are , however , di eren t A ccordin g to Gandhian belief this end can be achieved onl y ‘ - o f with non violence . He declares tha t coming into power _ the Proletariat through violence is bound to fail in the end b eca use what is gained by violence must be lost b efore su perior ’ e viol nce .

E s s mphasising his point of difference with the Sociali t , f ‘U Gandhi urther says , nder my pl an the state will be there to carry ou t the will of the people , not to dictate to them or force

it s them to do will . Whereas socialists and communists of the We st say they can do nothi ng to bring about economic equality t t he today . When they get control over the s ate , y will

’ enforce equali ty .

Marxian soci a lism and even communism of the West a r e based o n certain conce ptions which are fundamental ly different

One from those of Gandhi . of their conceptions is their belief

s in essential selfi hness of huma n nature . But Gandhi does not agree with this conception and emphasises that essential diffe rence be tween m an and the brute is that former can respond l ns to the ca l of spirit in him , can rise superior to the passio ( 49

the e tha t he owns in common with brute and , ther fore , can be

o u superi r to selﬁshness and violence . This is the f ndamental con G cept of Hinduism and it is advocated in andhian Socialism . ‘ O r With this conception in mind , Gandhi declares , u s r ocia lism and communism should , the efore , be based on non violence and harmonious co -op erati o n of l a bour and

’

a d a . capital , l n lord and ten nt C o n s t r u ct i v e Pr o g r a m m e o f G a n dhi

e t he - Therefor , for the acquisition of power o f no n violent

d o resistance , Gan hi adv ca tes the only way of honest working ‘ ’ ’ ‘ o r C P me f the onstructive rogram . Gandhi s Constructive

’ Programme for an ideal non -violent state consisted o f the following items

1 . C 2 R e h ommunal unity , . moval of untouc ability ,

P 4 . U se 5 o . O e 3. r hibition , of Khadi , th r village industries,

6 n 7 . a s 8 . A . Village sanitatio , B ic education , dul t education ,

E ca t U t 10 . du io n i n 9 . plif of women and their education ,

1 D e of n i 1 . health and hyg ene , evelopm nt provi cial languages ,

1 E , N 3. 14 . P 12. ational language , conomic equality . ros 1 L er it 5 . a 1 6 . C t p y of peasants bour , ondi ions of

’

A 1 7 . L 1 8 . C . divasis , epers condition , and are of students El e m e n t o f S a c r iﬁ ce

The el ement of sacriﬁce be a rs a common feat u re in the

o h a . I n x o approaches of b t , G ndhi and Marx Mar ian S cialism , the elemen t of s a crifice emerges with the v iolen t conflict k h n between capitali sts and the wor ing class . T is co flict calls

i . e fo r a violen t r evoluti o n wherein the highest sacrifice . ma nd d r e de e . sac ifice of life i t s lf, is Sacrifice in G a n dhian no n -vi o l ent technique requires ’ e t n a s v o e o n o en n the same pr para io , does i l nt c flict , for fi g the highest sacrifice of life i tself a s a possible o utcome of using the dh u w l s technique . A Saty a grahi of Gan ian tho ght il tick to his own posi tion so lo n g as he holds i t to be true . Tha t deter mination may le a d him to extreme endurance and even to death .

o h r Marx was , h wever , opposed to t is type of sac ifice yet he called for sacrifice in the circumst a nces of class -struggle: He calls for sacrifice of the i ndividual life t o the irrevocable mar ch of history towards predetermined goals . 4 Co n lusi o n . c

The comparative study of K arl Marx and Mahatma n ' Ga dhi , brings us now in a position to evaluate their socia l th inking and give a conclusive opinion about both . 1 . Both Gandhi and Marx conceived Social ism on their o wn i respective soc al , economic and political background . Ma rx ‘ ’ ca me forward with Socialism as a solution to the problems co f E ’ n ronting the uropean society of his time and , wi th Engel s a s f s istance , laid down a comprehensive programme in the orm ‘ ’ o f C r ommunist Manifesto , which served as a preparato y

r u for f g o nd radical revolution and ood for a theory , later deve

o F ed l ped by ascists . Gandhi , on the other hand , advocat ‘ ’ . Socialism of his own conception as a dynamic means to a ttai n

an end i . e . welfare of human society and ultimately laid down ‘ ’ a Constructive Programme for attaining his ideal of the

so - cialistic pat tern of non violent society .

f 2. Marx believed in the potentialities of orces of pro duction whereas Gandhi believed more i n the potentialities of man ’ s nature and aimed at ‘perfectibility ’ of human behaviour

i n particular and society in general .

As 3. we have already a ttempted to examine the socio ‘ lo gical implications o f Marxian theory of economic deter mi ’ n s ca n v i m , we ob iously assert that his theory can be better l explained in terms of socia conditions , which are no less impor

a F a n t nt in governing the economic conditions . rom such

angle of social determinism , Karl Marx can very well be treat

t a e ted , ra her claimed , as sociologic l think r . Gandhi , on the

e other hand , is bett r claimed by many as a social philosopher b ecause his social and poli t ic a l thinking is u nder l ined by spiri R tual unity with a religious background . eligion of Gandhi is,

n however, u iversal and his spiri tual unity comprises of truth ,

~ n o n v io ience . k and belief in God In any case , it will be a mista e o n t due h i the part of hose who , to t eir nadeq uate understanding , se cond best society as a concession to human perfection .

n o a nd no c Decentralisatio of p litical eco mi powers , reduction

u in f nctions and impor tance of Sta te , growth of voluntary

a su r ﬁc a associations , remov l of dehumanizing poverty and p e i lit - y , the new education and tradition of non violent resistance

- t o . in ust ice j all these , according to Gandhi , will bring life withi n the understanding of man and make society and S t at e d O emocratic . ver and above , Gandhi never fails to remind u s

n again and again that his philosophy has no ﬁ a lity . I ts dyna mic quality is aimed at searching for and exp erimenting with th e truth .

6 . Gandhi was a true Indian nationalist . There was

- E no room for race hatred in his concept of nationalism . very th n h . s i g of India attracted him I ndia , according to Gandhi , a

e a very thing that a hu m n being , within the highest possible as ‘K pirations , can want . To him , India appeared to be arma ’ ‘ ’ bhumi ( land of duty) in contradict ion of B ho gb hu mi

(land of enjoyment).

’ 7 t i n . Gandhi s pa riotism was subservien t to his relig o ,

a d f wa s rel i gion which h no geographical limitations . His li e

- dedicated to service of I ndia throu gh religion of non violence .

T f r l he orce of spiritual u nity , derived from religious and cul tu a

o f d heritage India , was so miraculous on Gandhi that he sai , ‘ ‘ ’ I cl n n m e i g to I dia l ik e a child to its oth er s breast , becaus I t feel that she gives me spiritual nourishmen t I need . She has he

environmen t that responds to my highest aspiration . When

that faith is gone, I shall feel like an orphan withou t hope of

8 0 ever ﬁnding a guardian .

no n 8 . Therefore , according to Gandhi , India , with ‘ ’ violence as her creed and Satyagraha as a technique 0 .

o f . I n , action , is ﬁtted for religious supremacy E the world N regard to the ational Government , Gandhi was all out adoption of n o n-violence to the utmost extent possible because

’ the that , he thought , will be I ndia s great co ntribution to

peace of the world and the establishment of a new world order. A 9 . mbition of Gandhi was much higher than his desire for I ndian independence . Through the deliverance of

- t he .so India , he sought to deliver called weaker races of the

e o earth from the crushing heels of the W stern expl itation .

10 e . I n so far as survival and progr ss of mankind de

o u - i pends non violence , which , accord ng to Ga ndhi , is the law

d a t of life , Gan hi , as the most u horitative exponent of non violence in contemporary world , has made an invaluable con

3 1 trib u tio n to social and political thought . ’ ‘A To express in Gandhi s own words , himsa is one of the world ’ s greatest principles which no power on earth can wipe

b ut out . Thousands like me may die to vindicate the ideal Ahimsa will n ever die and gospe l of Ahimsa can be spread

’ only through believers dying for the cause .

‘ v If India makes violence her creed , and I ha e survived , 3 2 d t r m I w o u ld not care to live in I ndia . Such was the e e i f U nation o Gandhi and he maintained it upto the last . lti 30 1 4 a n . 9 8. th mately he met his irony of fate on j , Gandhi , e

- I ndian patriot and the exponent of non violence , fell fatal

victim of violence and became India n martyr . ’ 5 B ibili o gr a phy

‘ ’ - 1 . . . : C V Oh V J V Bondurant onquest of iolence . P Gandhian Political hilosophy .

‘ ’ . . G . N . D ha w a n: a P M Ga 2 Dr The Politic l hilosophy of . ndhi .

‘ ’ 3. . . C t C e sa t on J V Bondurant onques of Violence , onv r i with Gandhi

’ ‘ R - P 5 . E thical eligion . 6

— ‘ ’ B . P 5 . 3 . S S harma Gandhi as olitical Thinker

‘ ’ 6 Socialism of My C onception — Bhartiya V idya b ha wa n

Publications .

‘ ’ D ha a n — P N . w . a G . The Political hilosophy of M G ndhi

‘ ’ — s C h C . V . Bondurant onque t of Violence . V I ‘ a d ’ F o r other det ils refer to Gan hi as Political Thinker ,

B . . S . Sharma

‘ ’ - 3 19 4 . 1 2 . Young India Nov ,

— 1 1 . c Tripple Message of Spinning Wheel Economi , Cul ‘ ’ M e to ho r ica l — D ec tural and p See Young India . 8, 1927 .

’ ‘ — - . l 5 19 19 1 2. Young I ndia Nov ,

‘ ’ — c 1 7 1 927 . 13. Young India Mar h ,

‘ ’ 14 . By Labour G andhi means industrial labour .

’ ‘ — O t 5 c . 2 1952. 1 5 . Harijan ,

- a l 30 3 . a o f S oci c . P. 2 16 . Encyclopedi S iences , Vol IV , 2

‘ ’ 17 - D ev S )cia l -M x c . Bogardus . of Thought ar and"Socialisti School I n 1864 Marx availed the long cherished o ppo r t uni ty of organising the workers of the world into o ne “ n 19 8 r O . e large association Sept 2 , he initiated the Int

’ ” national Wo r k ingmens A ssociation in L ondo n

’ n in St . Martin s Hall with an object of organisi g n n the societies of worki gmen , which had the commo

a im n n o , namely the emancipatio of the working class , i t ( 55

w co - a orld of international union for operative purposes . 186 9 Besides , in , Marx organised in Germany the Social L P Democratic abour arty . This organised movement L ’ got strength , receiving the support of assalle s movemen t 1875 U F D and , in , the nited ront of German Social emo

cracy was at face to face position against capitalism . C onsequently , Bismark was forced to acknowledge its power and condescended t o inau gurate a system fo f

social insura nce in order to appease its rank and ﬁle . — ‘C ’ E 18. Sorokin ontemporary Sociological Theories conomic S 5 3. chool P . 2

19 . F o r M cl ver further discussion on Marx refer to Page, ‘ ’ 2 5 6 . Society P . — ‘ ’ — Bogardus Dev . of Social Thought Marxian Socialistic

School Theory of Wages . S tone ’ s analysis of Marxian Theory in Sorokin ’ s ‘ ’ Contempo rary Sociological Theories . M t — Communist enifes o referred to by Bogardus Dev . of o ’ Social Th ught . C M 1 9 1 3 1 3 1 . ommunist enifest o P . 2 published in Eight -point programme announced by Marx and Engels ‘ ’ C M n if o ommunist e est .

’ F o r de tailed study refer to Max Weber s Social Thinking

Sociological Series N o . 3 ‘ Studies in the Intellectual Development of Karl Marx,

P . 72. ‘ ’ K O E . arl Popper , The pen Society and its nemies , Vol I I , 7 P . 8 . ‘ ’ V I 8 e Ch. . 2 . J . V . Bondurant Conquest of Violenc Theory D t of ialec ics . — ‘ ’ Ch. V I 29 . . C e . J V . Bondurant onqu st of Violence ‘ - i - d Marx Hega Gandhi ialectical approaches . 3 ‘ D ’ 0 . . M K Gandhi , India of My reams ‘ ’ 3 r B P . 1 . D P s . hawan , The olitical hilo ophy of M Gandhi

‘ ’ 32 . K n D . M . Gandhi , I dia of My reams . R efer ences

‘ P h ’ S . Dr . Sharma , B . , Gandhi as a olitical T inker ,

A 1956 . llahabad , ‘ r ha a n N P P D . D w , Gopi ath , The olitical hilosophy of

’ N a v a iv a n A Mahat ma Gandhi , j Press , hmedabad 14 1 57 , 9 . ‘ ’ Pr a sa d So cia l Philo so h a Mahadeo j p y of Mahatma G ndhi ,

a d a la a Pr a k a sha n . V ishw v i y y , Gorakh pur ‘ a S E Dr . R adhakrishn n , . , Mahatma Gandhi ssays

’ L N a v a iv a n P R eﬂections on his ife and Works , j ublishing

A . House , hmedabad ‘ A n Autobiography or The Story of My Exp eriments with

’ D a 2 . A Truth , Tr . by esai , M hadeo, Vols , hmedabad, 7 1929 192 , , ‘ ' ’ : M K . d a i M C . Socialism of y onception By Gan hi , Bh rt ya

Pr a k a sha n Vidya Bhawan . K ‘ d ’ C 1 4 N . . a 9 7 . Bose , , Stu ies in Gandhism , a lcutt ,

‘ ’ K u ma r a a B . C V pp , , apitalism , Socialism and illagism ,

M a 1938. adr s , ‘ ’ hru w a la G M a s . . A , K , Gandhi and Marx , hmedabad ,

.1954.

‘ ’ ’ C P - onstruct ive rogramme, Its Meaning and Place , A a 194 1 . hmedab d ,

‘ ’ ' N N New 1948. ehru , Jawaharlal , ehru on Gandhi , York , ‘ ’ N A n A L 1936 . ehru , Jawaharlal , utobiography , ondon ,

‘ ’ 19 44 . Munshi , K . M Ga ndhi , The Master , Bombay , E ‘ ’ Marx K . ngels E . The Communist Manifesto ( Ed .

R a z a no v C 1 4 y ), alcutta 94 . ‘ ’

K . C i A 1938. Marx , , ap tal Vol . I , llen U nwin , ‘ P ’ K f he . P C 1936 . Marx , , overty of hilosophy , alcutta,

‘ ’ P. C Sorokin , , ontemporary Sociological Theories "

New L 1 York ondon , 938.

‘ ’ L e M i P a nin , arx Marx sm , Ed . by Sinha , B . . , G nga

G ra n tha a r L 1 46 g , ucknow , 9 . E S ‘ f a Bogardus , . . , History o D evelopment of Soci l

’ Thought .

Periodicals and Journals included in our Bibliography .

P‘M M M M M M W W M M M M M M M M M M W

330 a g ti q u i ei eo Go u l a ct g g SOCI OL OGI CAL B UR EAU g i " New Co lo n s y , g B a k a rma ndi 5 , g

5 KA NPU R . 5 g

R s 1 Price .

R ETU R N CIR CU LATION DEPA RTM ENT 6 42- 3: LOA N PER IOD l

DU E A s STAM PED B ELOW DEC 1 31976

JANI ' GZ OOS

U NI ERSIT OF CALIFOR NIA BERKEl F RM 6 40 m V Y , O NO. DD B ERKELE CA 947 20 Y,