Was Politics Essentially Religious For Gandhi?

G. Veerraju

Gandhi's ideas about society are closely and integrally related to his philosophy of spiritualizing social problems, politics and the activities of man.  Some of his important ideas affecting the society as a whole are the concept of Ramarajya, Swaraj, Sarvodaya and Trusteeship.  His thought pervades economics, sociology and politics while deriving inspiration from metaphysical and ethical values.  Gandhi himself proclaimed that all social activities were interconnected and had their basis in religion:

The whole gamut of man's activities today constitutes and indivisible whole.  You cannot divide social, economic, political and purely religious work into watertight compartments.  I do not know any religion apart from human activity.1

Fundamentally, he believed that all men were equal, whether born in the East or the west.  He fought against the British rulers who encouraged the doctrine of racial superiority, and the Brahmins who delighted in their caste superiority.  He believed in inherent equality of all men and asserted that the final goal of all religions was to realize this essential oneness or advaita.

Doctrine of Trusteeship 

According to Gandhi, all men should have a right to equal opportunity, though they are not equal in their capacities.  People with talents utilize their skills and earn more.  Gandhi said that talented people who become rich should be the trustees to the wealth.  In other words, major parts on one's earnings must be used for the welfare of the society.  It is like the earnings of all sons going to the common family.2

Gandhi believed that in a village, for example, a zamindar has to take up the welfare of the people.  He has to help the farmers to get their children educated by establishing schools.  Some of the unnecessary buildings owned by the zamindar may be given for the welfare of the village in order to start schools and hospitals.  Gandhi wanted villages to be abodes of peace and effort.  That is why he wanted the zamindars to take care of the entire village by advising the farmers to clean their roads, well and tanks.  He was of the opinion that the farmers of the land have equal share as that of the zamindars.  The entire village should be maintained as a family and clashes between the farmers and the zamindars, or any class war will not arise.  Gandhi referred to a popular saying that all land belongs to God.  Therefore, land does not belong to any particular people but to all people and to the State.  He pointed out that farmers should own land cooperatively and it should be tilled and cultivated collectively and everyone should enjoy the fruits to labour.

The doctrine of trusteeship advocates self-reformation of the landowning class.  It does not believer in private ownership of property, even admist the power of the State in regulating the ownership of property.  Consequently, an individual will not be free to use his property for selfish interest.  Similarly, a minimum living wage is to be given to the workers and the maximum income that is to be allowed to a person should be fixed.  Lastly, the doctrine of trusteeship asserts that the production of various goods should be in accordance with the needs of the society.

The doctrine of trusteeship has its basis in Indian tradition influenced by the Upanishadic saying that the universe is pervaded by God, the Almighty, renunciation is the way to enjoyment and, therefore, one should not covet the wealth of another.3 

Gandhiji says:

Words like aparigraha (non-possession) and sambhava (equality) gripped me.  How to cultivate and preserve that equality was the question……..My study of English law came to my help.  Snell's discussion of the maxims of equity came to my memory.  I understood more clearly in the light of the Gita teaching the implication of the word 'trustee'.4

Swaraj 

The idea of 'Swaraj' or self-rule is one of the philosophical principles that motivate man for attaining a complete individuality and also for the reorganization of the society.  Dadabhai Naoroji and Balgangadhar Tilak used the term Swaraj for the attainment of national Independence.  Gandhi felt that self-rule or 'Swaraj' was nothing but self-determination of the individual while taking decisions without depending upon others.  The notion of 'Swaraj' first dwells in the individuals and will be manifested in his actions.  Then an individual will be free to become what he desires; similarly, the 'Swaraj' of a people determines their destination.  Thus, his idea of 'Swaraj' though has a political meaning is grounded in the individual.

According to Gandhi, an individual should be simple and without selfishness to guide others.  Gandhi compared this as follows:

A Sannyasi having attained Swaraj in his own person is the fittest to show us the way.5

According to Gandhi, this is nothing but the assimilation of individual self-role into communal self-reliance.  The word 'Swaraj' is different from independence.  Independence may mean to do anything one desires.  But Swaraj is a self-disciplined role.  It is moral autonomy of the individual depending upon self-purification, which gives the strength to make our claims practical outwardly.  Gandhi writes at one place how the sense of Swaraj is based upon the change in the people.  Buddhadeva Bhattacharya traces out this doctrine from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad wherein Swaraj or self-rule is originally mentioned as the autonomy of moral self in controlling the senses.6

Gandhi also stated that it is a Vedic word, which indicates self-rule and self-restraint.  The concept of Swaraj in the hands of Gandhi is transformed into a way of inward thinking and outward action.  It is not a gift but a result of self-awareness, which is gained through self-effort.  Therefore, an external threat to our freedom is to be explained by recognizing our own weaknesses.  If we are able to know our weaknesses we can remove them.  The Government controls us if we were weak.  Gandhi's analysis of the concept of Swaraj intended to emphasize national freedom or collective self-rule on the basis of individual self-rule.  Though there was the concept of Swaraj before Gandhi's emergence in the national movement, he insisted on individual Swaraj because after independence he found that the real Swaraj has not been attained.  On this point Raghavan Iyer is of the opinion that Gandhi b3eleived that the individual liberty might be safer under foreign rule.7

To sum up, for Gandhi, Swaraj did not mean getting India freedom from English rule, but educating the masses to a sense of their capacity to regulate and control authority.8 

It is not to be the monopoly of the wise and the wealthy but for all including the farmer and the starving millions.  Nor it should be the rule of a particular religious community but the rule of all, safeguarding the interests of all people including the poor.

Ramarajya 

The Swaraj of Gandhi indicates a free state where there is no government control.  Especially the minorities' rights should be protected with a secular motive.  It is a democratic state in which even manual labour is recognized and every opinion respected.  Gandhi says:

Democracy is not a state in which people act like sheep.  Under democracy individual liberty of opinion and action is jealously guarded.9

Gandhi's idea of State represents a moral and spiritual standpoint and the political is essentially religious and without religion politics is like a corpse.  Therefore, base on his belief Gandhi has shown the way of unification of politics and religion.  Incidentally, Gandhi wants a State, which suits to our country and described Ramarajya as follows: 

We must have ours suit suited to ours.  What that can be is more that I can tell.  I have described it as Ramaraj, i.e., sovereignty of the people based on pure moral authority.10

The concept of Ramarajya is the political vision of Mahatma Gandhi, which was based upon the classical Indian myth of Ramarajya, in ideal polity, ascribed to Satya Yuga or Krita Yuga, the Golden Age lost in the mists of antiquity and pre-history.  The story was found in classical scriptures like Valmiki's Ramayana in which Rama defeated Ravana who represented the forces of evil.  After that Rama established a kingdom of righteousness and justice.  Thus in his struggle against the British Empire, Gandhi wanted to educate the people with the terms known to them. 

According to Gandhi, Ramarajya is nothing but the kingdom of God on earth; and a perfect democracy without caste, colour, class and religious prejudices.  Ramarajya is a State where there should not be inequalities between the rich and the poor.

Doctrine of Sarvodaya 

Doctrine of Sarvodaya has often been referred to as non-violent socialism.  Gandhi visualized the establishment of a new system of moral sanctions in the society based on the idea of the universal harmony.  Society and nature are both subject to justice and unity.  A society cannot exist in space without nature.  Gandhi believed that every social order should be maintained with collective pursuit based upon tolerance and ahimsa or non-violence.  After understanding the values of different economical principles by various political orders, Gandhi tried to formulate a new type of action for the existing social order and political system.  This was found in his doctrine of Sarvodaya.

Sarvodaya means the welfare of all; Gandhi developed this idea after studying Ruskin's Unto This Last, a book given to him by Mr. Polak in South Africa.  In his autobiography he writes:

I determine to change my life in accordance with the ideals of the book……the one that brought about an instantaneous and practical transformation in my life was Unto This Last.11

According to Gandhi's idea of Sarvodaya,12 (a) and individual is good who seeks the good of all, (b) as every man has the right to live by the earning from his work, the lawyer and the barber have the same value, (c) both the lives of the tiller of the soil and the handicraftsmen are worth living.  In the later days of his life Gandhi used the term Panchayat Raj for Sarvodaya.13

Acharya Vinoba Bhave and Jayaprakash Narayan later popularized his doctrine of Sarvodaya.

Source: Anasakti Darshan; Volume 2 No. 1; January – June 2006