A BOOK THAT SIGNIFICANTLY INFLUENCED GANDHIJI

   

Gandhi Jayanthi is celebrated the world over today marking the birthday of Gandhiji- the father of our nation.

During Gandhiji's boyhood, two books inspired him greatly: Shravan Pitribhakti Natka and Harish Chandra. According to Gandhiji, the purest form of repentance is a clean confession accompanied by a pledge never to sin again.

The works of many notable personalities influenced Gandhiji's ideas. Leo Tolstoy's work inspired him, 'The Kingdom of God is within you', John Ruskin's, 'Unto this Last' and Henry Thoreau's, 'Civil Disobedience'.

Gandhiji mentioned in his autobiography, a short book, Unto the Last, by English author John Ruskin (1819-1900), which formed his political ideology was given to him by Leon Polak, an Englishman living in South Africa.

 Unto the Last

In 1904, Mahatma Gandhi had an unforgettable encounter with John Ruskin's book 'Unto the Last', which created a lasting impact on Gandhi. He was highly influenced by Ruskin's work which worked as a basis for his political philosophy and actions. Unto This Last is an important mid-19th-century economic essay written by social critic John Ruskin.

Unto This Last is an essay critical of economics by John Ruskin, who published the first chapter between August and December 1860 in the monthly journal Cornhill Magazine in four articles.

On a deeper level, the book's emphasis on respect for others, equality for all, concern for one's neighbors, and an insistence on justice for all are directly connected to Christian values. Despite this, Unto This Last was highly controversial when first published.

SARVODAYA:

Unto This Last by John Ruskin was first published in 1860 as a series of articles in Cornhill Magazine. In 1908 Gandhi serialized a nine-part paraphrase of Ruskin's book into Gujarati in Indian Opinion and later published it as a pamphlet under the title Sarvodaya (The Welfare of All).

The term Sarvodaya was the title of Gandhi's 1908 translation of John Ruskin's book, Unto This Last. Later into his life, the concept of Sarvodaya became a central part of his political philosophy.

Thus for Gandhi, 'Unto The Last' would mean only the uplift of the last (Antyodaya). Ruskin's Unto The Last had directly or indirectly had a profound influence on Gandhi in adopting the ideal of Sarvodaya as his life's mission.

Sarvodaya means 'progress of all' or 'Universal uplift'. Gandhi started this Sarvodaya movement, and people consider it an addition to his efforts in his non-violent movement.

THE MOVEMENT:

The Sarvodaya Movement was a social movement in India that was inspired by Gandhi's ideals. It was founded by Vinoba Bhave in 1951 and aimed to promote social justice and economic equality through nonviolent means. The movement was particularly focused on land reform and rural development.

By the concept, Sarvodaya Gandhi means universal uplift or the welfare of all men and women and not just the welfare, or greatest happiness, of the greatest number. Sarvodaya is the name Gandhi gave to the new society embracing the betterment of the entire humankind and the world at large.

Gandhiji paraphrased Ruskin's book 'Unto This Last' as 'Sarvodaya', which meant the upliftment of all. The goal of Gandhi was to change society and each individual using the values of honesty and nonviolence. These ideas were further developed by many followers of Gandhi who proudly called themselves “Gandhians”.

 

Thus, John Ruskin's book Unto This Last significantly influenced Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy, focusing on social justice, economic equality, and manual labor. Gandhiji incorporated Ruskin's principles into his teachings and activism, shaping his approach to nonviolent resistance.