Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948), known as Mahatma ('Great Soul'), was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful campaign for India's independence from British rule.

Born in Gujarat, Gandhi studied law in London and first employed his philosophy of nonviolent civil disobedience in South Africa, where he lived for 21 years fighting discrimination against Indians. Returning to India in 1915, he took leadership of the Indian National Congress.

His campaigns - the Non-Cooperation Movement (1920), the Salt March (1930), and the Quit India Movement (1942) - mobilized millions through nonviolent means. The Salt March, a 240-mile walk to protest the British salt tax, became a defining moment of the independence movement.

Gandhi's philosophy of satyagraha (truth-force) and ahimsa (nonviolence) influenced civil rights leaders worldwide, including Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela. He advocated for self-sufficiency (symbolized by his spinning wheel), religious harmony, and the upliftment of India's poorest citizens.

He was assassinated on January 30, 1948, by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu nationalist who opposed Gandhi's tolerance toward Muslims. His death was mourned worldwide, and his birthday (October 2) is now observed as the International Day of Non-Violence.