A Civil Exchange: How Exchanges Between American and Indian Philosophers Led to the Birth of Mass Civil Disobedience

Transcription

1 1 A Civil Exchange: How Exchanges Between American and Indian Philosophers Led to the Birth of Mass Civil Disobedience Amogh Bhatnagar Individual Paper Junior Division 2,463 Words

2 2 "In the morning I bathe my intellect in the stupendous and cosmogonal philosophy of the Bhagavad Gita" Thoreau in A Week on the Concord and Merrimack River. "I have profited greatly by the writings of Thoreau and Emerson" Gandhi in his letter to President Roosevelt (Tendulkar 1951). Introduction During the 18th and early 19th century, American and Indian philosophers led journeys of exploration into each other s philosophical traditions. The resulting exchange of ideas occurred between individuals born centuries and continents apart. These remarkable journeys of exploration were undertaken not by fearless sailors sailing upon strange seas, or intrepid adventurers marching through forbidding forests, but by philosophers sitting in the comfort of their homes. Still, the consequences for mankind were no less profound, as the resulting exchange of ideas led to the development of a revolutionary new way of fighting unjust wars: mass civil disobedience. The main explorers in these extraordinary journeys were Henry David Thoreau and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, and together they created the basic principles of mass civil disobedience, that has since brought civil rights to millions of people around the world. Thoreau and Civil Disobedience Henry David Thoreau, a noted author, poet, philosopher and Transcendentalist, was born in Concord, Massachusetts in After graduating from Harvard, Thoreau returned home and met Ralph Waldo Emerson, leader of the Transcendentalist

3 3 movement, and the two soon became close friends. Upon Emerson's request, Thoreau moved into Emerson s household and served as children s tutor, office assistant, and general helper (Thoreau 1-4). Thoreau explored the Transcendentalist world of philosophy and absorbed many of its traditional ideas. Transcendentalists believed in the inherent goodness of individuals, and that society and its institutions ultimately corrupt the purity of individuals (Nojem 24-25). Indian philosophy and scriptures deeply influenced Transcendentalists. Emerson was a man of means and his library contained many ancient Indian philosophical texts (Meerukani 1-2). These books exposed Thoreau to new perspectives and had a profound impact on him. In an interview, Jeff Cramer, the head librarian for the Walden Woods Project, explained, [What] Thoreau most identified [with] in the texts was the sense that the world is to be contemplated, slowly, deliberately, and spiritually. The ideas resulting from the collision of eastern and western philosophies can be seen throughout Thoreau s works. While Thoreau read many books on Hinduism, he was most influenced by the Bhagavad-Gita, one of Hinduism s central books, written around BC. In fact, he carried a copy of Gita with him during his sojourn at Walden Pond (Friedrich 140). The opening chapter of Gita tells the story of Arjuna, a famous mythical warrior, throwing down his weapons on the battlefield when he saw that he would have to fight his unjust uncles and cousins. The rest of the book is about the subsequent conversation that took place between Arjuna and Lord Krishna, a Hindu God, about why he should pick up his weapons and fight. Lord Krishna s argument is that it is Arjuna s

4 4 moral duty to fight injustice and, by extension, that of every human being (Gita 2.3). However, Gita does not prescribe a method to fight injustice. Arjuna ultimately fights and attains a famous victory, but his victory comes at great personal cost because in the end he kills all his evil uncles and cousins. Thus, Gita creates a moral dilemma for every conscientious man, for while the book declares fighting injustice to be every man s moral duty, it does not explain how to do so in a way that is consistent with one s conscience (Miller 58-63). Thoreau was soon confronted with his own dilemma of how to fight injustice morally when he found his own government committing injustices by sanctioning slavery and pursuing the Mexican-American War (Thoreau 3). In July of 1846, he came across the local tax collector, Sam Staples, who asked him to pay his taxes due from the time spent at Walden Pond. On his refusal, the tax collector arrested him and put him in the local jail. The following day, after someone, most probably his aunt, paid the tax in his name, he was released (Thoreau 40-41). None of his friends, including Emerson, could understand his refusal to pay taxes. Thoreau explained the reasons behind his refusal to pay taxes in an essay called On the Duty of Civil Disobedience. He first discussed the complicity of the US government in the injustices inflicted upon Blacks and Mexicans, and then argued that since the US government is elected, every citizen should be blamed for these injustices. Thoreau stated that we are supposed to fight injustices with the aid of the political system and obey the law while it is in force. Then he asked rhetorically: what if the law itself is unjust? In Civil Disobedience he inquired, Must the citizen ever for a moment,

5 5 or in the least degree, resign his conscience to the legislator? Why has every man a conscience then? I think that we should be men first, and subjects afterward (Thoreau 7). He then concluded that when laws are unjust they should not be obeyed. Thoreau refused to pay taxes because he realized that his taxes would, most likely, be used to finance the Mexican War, and the institution of slavery. He called this method of protest Civil Disobedience. Thus, Thoreau found a solution to the ancient Indian quandary of how to fight injustice in a moral way: disobey unjust laws. However, his solution is incapable of affecting the behavior of an unjust oppressor, as his act of civil disobedience had no impact either on the practice of slavery or the prosecution of the Mexican-American War. All his act of civil disobedience succeeded in doing was landing him in a prison that he managed to escape after a night s repose because he had a doting aunt - an advantage not available to every person fighting injustice. The next step in the evolution of non-violent struggle was taken half a century and an ocean away by a young Oxford-trained Indian lawyer who was confronted with his own moral dilemma. Gandhi and Mass Civil Disobedience Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was the preeminent leader of the Indian independence movement in British-ruled India. While growing up in an orthodox Hindu home in Porbandar, India, Gandhi read and studied most of Hinduism s religious books,

6 6 including the Bhagavad Gita. Gandhi travelled to London to study law at the Inner Temple, and was called to the bar in In 1893, he accepted a year-long contract from an Indian firm in South Africa to represent it there. At that time, South Africa like India, was part of the British Empire (Tendulkar 36-40). While traveling to Pretoria by train to take up his job, Gandhi personally experienced the racism and humiliation that were part of everyday life of all people of color in South Africa. Even though Gandhi had a first class ticket, the train conductor asked him to move to the second class and upon Gandhi s refusal, the conductor threw Gandhi off the train (Fischer 22). The next part of the journey occurred by stagecoach, where the conductor brutally beat him for refusing to move to make room for a European passenger (Gandhi 19). Moreover, he was refused admission by several hotels. These experiences exposed him to the plight of Indians in South Africa, where they were treated as second-class citizens. These experiences forced him to confront his moral duty: should he stay back in South Africa and fight for the rights of his people, or return to India? The suffering of his fellow Indians moved him greatly and he decided to stay back and fight for justice. After Gandhi resolved to stay in South Africa, two bills were passed by the South African government that placed severe limits on the freedom of Indians, but not on any other race. The Indians in South Africa were outraged and appealed to Gandhi for help. As a British-trained lawyer, he first tried to fight by writing well-crafted petitions to government officials stating his arguments in perfect British legal language. His petitions, however well argued, inevitably resulted in being summarily rejected (Reddy

7 7 41). After this initial failure, he concluded that if many people signed the petition it might be more effective, and as a result decided to organize the Indians. He set up an organization, the Natal Indian Congress, to organize the Indian community, and started a newspaper, Indian Opinion, to educate the Indians. He would first write the petition stating his case, get it signed by thousands of people, and then respectfully submit it to the government, who would equally respectfully deny it. He then tried to embarrass the government by writing letters to newspapers in UK, India, and South Africa. However, the South African government ignored Gandhi and his letters (Power 13-15). In search of a better strategy, Gandhi started reading books by other philosophers, and read many books about this subject. The biggest challenge was that he belonged to one of the most orthodox Hindu sects, Jains, whose central tenet is nonviolence (Wolpert 35-37). As such, he could not bring himself to use violence to seek justice. He began to explore new methods of fighting injustices that would reconcile these two deep impulses surging inside him; the impulse to fight injustice and the impulse to adhere to nonviolence. Leo Tolstoy, a famous Russian author, and Gandhi s friend asked him to read the writings of Thoreau (W.Miller 7-8). Following this advice, Gandhi read Thoreau s Civil Disobedience and was convinced by his arguments. He decided to follow Thoreau s approach, but called it Satyagraha, a Sanskrit word meaning devotion to truth. Gandhi applied this approach in South Africa, but before he could perfect his strategy, he was expelled from South Africa (Mehta 1-5). In 1906, Gandhi returned to India and got involved with India s independence movement. Around 1925 he withdrew from politics to focus on issues of social injustice.

8 8 In 1927, the British Government created the Simon commission, under the chairmanship of Sir John Simon, to identify the political rights that could be transferred to Indians. Despite the presence of several well-qualified Indians educated at Harvard, Columbia, Oxford, and Cambridge, the British government did not include a single Indian in the Simon commission (World s Affairs Institute 1-2). The Indians found this omission humiliating, and the Indian National Congress, the chief political party, passed a resolution demanding India s complete independence from the British Empire. However, as the Indian political leaders were not soldiers but rather civil professionals, they did not know how to compel the British government to accept their resolution. As a group, they appealed to Gandhi to come out of his retirement and assume the leadership of the fight for freedom (Tendulkar 1951). Gandhi realized that it was his moral duty to fight the injustice of colonial rule and agreed to fight the British to obtain complete freedom for his people. Gandhi instinctively believed that civil disobedience offered the best strategy; however, while fully convinced of Thoreau s approach, he was also aware of the fatal weakness of this strategy. Gandhi knew that Thoreau ended up in prison and if he followed civil disobedience, he too would end up being imprisoned. While he was not afraid of going to jail, he realized that his incarceration will not get freedom to his people, just as Thoreau's imprisonment did not end slavery. He realized that to make civil disobedience work, he would have to involve the masses, and the masses would be involved only if the issue was close to their heart (Webb 67). Moreover, he knew the British government held the reins of power, so any violent conflict would result in the government winning. He modified

9 9 Thoreau s strategy by arguing that it should be a mass civil disobedience and should be completely non-violent to gain the moral upper ground. Gandhi realized that India s independence was an abstract concept for most Indians, who lived in extreme poverty and were completely consumed with their daily struggle to survive. To involve the masses, he needed an issue that affected them deeply. In India, salt had been historically sold tax free. After taking over India, the British government assumed control of all salt sources and imposed a high salt tax to increase colonial revenues. The salt tax was extremely unpopular, as most of the poor Indians could no longer afford salt. The salt tax was also highly immoral because in hot tropical climates people perspire a lot, and salt is essential to stay healthy. To involve the masses in India s freedom movement, Gandhi urged them to make salt without paying taxes (Gandhi 11-12). He led a group of Indians to the sea, where they made salt in the presence of British police. The police brutally beat the Indians making salt, but the Indians refused to retaliate. As reports of this event spread throughout the country, the people were electrified and thousands of Indians across the country started making salt and courting arrest. As the momentum built up, people started breaking many other unjust laws. The British prisons ran out of space and the colonial government out of ideas to control this protest movement. Finally the British government capitulated and invited Gandhi to London to meet the King and discuss the terms of India s freedom. After a series of steps, the British Parliament passed the Indian Independence Act of 1947, transferring power to Indians - the first time in the history of mankind that a powerful empire voluntarily yielded power to the powerless (Singh 21). This exchange of power was monumental. Other people fighting unjust wars wondered

10 10 How could the strongest empire in the world yield power without a shot being fired? All of this would never have happened if not for the exchanges and encounters between the philosophers of two cultures, America and India. Without Thoreau, and without Gandhi, none of the subsequent non-violent protests would have taken place. Conclusion The ancient Indian sage who wrote the Bhagavad Gita made it mankind s moral duty to fight injustice, but he failed to realize that fighting a violent war is inherently immoral as it involves violence against fellow human beings. Two thousand years later, and half a world away, an American philosopher discerned this fundamental contradiction and offered a better way to fight injustice: non-violent civil disobedience of unjust laws, no matter what the consequences be. However, this strategy was guaranteed to fail as it was unsuccessful in bringing about societal change, something Thoreau probably realized while sitting in the jail. A century later, an Indian freedom fighter realized how to transform Thoreau s strategy into a successful one by involving the masses and committing explicitly to non-violence. Commenting on this exchange of ideas, Miller (2010) wrote, "It would seem, that Gandhi received back from America what was fundamentally the philosophy of India after it had been distilled and crystallized in the mind of Thoreau"(35-36). For the first time in the history of warfare, a method of war has been developed where there are no losers, only winners. The oppressed win their rights, and the oppressors their humanity. In the process, mankind has been elevated to a higher plane of morality. Dr. King called mass civil disobedience the only logical and moral approach

11 11 in the struggle for justice and progress (Webb ). Thus, ancient Indian sages, American philosophers, and Indian freedom fighters exchanging ideas across centuries and continents created a revolutionary new way of fighting injustice, mass civil disobedience. The impact of mass civil disobedience has been felt worldwide; notable successes are the Civil Rights movement in the US and the Anti-Apartheid movement in South Africa.

12 12 Influence of Thoreau s Civil Disobedience on Gandhi's Satyagraha Amogh Bhatnagar Junior Division Individual Paper Primary Sources CNN: Obama speaks to Indian Parliament (Full Speech). Youtube. N.p., 8 Nov Web. 10 Oct < N4>. This video is of President Barack Obama addressing the Indian Parliament during a tour of India. President Obama talked about seeing the place where Gandhi grew up, and quoted Dr. King who said Gandhi s philosophy of nonviolent resistance is the only logical and moral approach in the struggle for justice and progress". I used this quote in my conclusion. CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTION IN INDIA. CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTION IN INDIA. Advocate of Peace through Justice 91.3 (1929): Web... This is a journal written by the British company Advocate of Peace through Justice about issues discussed at the Indian Natal Congress in I learnt that even though Gandhi ultimately succeeded, when he proposed his strategy, many Indians were opposed to it. The president of the Indian National Congress, Jawaharlal Nehru, did not want to combine politics and religion, whereas for Gandhi politics and religion were the same. Not every Indian wanted to fight nonviolently. A large number of Muslims were also opposed to Gandhi and they had their own party. Even Gandhi misjudged the time it will take to gain

13 13 independence. He thought it will take one year, but the struggle lasted for another 18 years. Gandhi, Mohandas K., and Louis Fischer. The Essential Gandhi: An Anthology of His Writings on His Life, Work and Ideas. 2nd ed. New York: Vintage, Print. This is a collection of essays about Gandhi's opinions on different subjects. These were written by Gandhi and compiled by Louis Fischer. I really like the duality of the book because it showed me how Gandhi was as a man, and then as a revered man. One fact I took from this book is that changing from a lawyer to a freedom fighter was extremely difficult for Gandhi. While as a lawyer, he was trained to respect laws, as a freedom fighter, he had to break laws. Gandhi, Mohandas. The Story of My Experiments with Truth. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. This is an autobiography about Gandhi's early life. I really liked the personal part of the book because it showed me how Gandhi first encountered the idea of Civil Disobedience. One fact I took from this book is that his original reason to pursue Civil Disobedience was to achieve purity in the eyes of god. One more important fact is that Gandhi believed that one has to be educated to get good results with Civil Disobedience. This is because one needs to know which laws are just and which are not in order to know which laws should be disobeyed. Gandhi, Mahatma. Freedom's Battle. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. This is a collection of essays written by Gandhi. I really liked this book as it showed me how Gandhi s idea of Civil Disobedience evolved with time, and how he was influenced by Thoreau. I also learnt that Gandhi firmly believed in dharma

14 14 (ethics), which meant he would never use violent means to fight. Gandhi felt that Indians, like every other people are born free, and should live free. "September " Indian Opinion: n. pag. Gandhi Museum. Web. 9 Oct < 363.jpg>. This is an article written by Gandhi in the Indian Opinion, where he reflects upon Thoreaus s On the Duty of Civil Disobedience. The Indian Opinion was a newspaper started by Gandhi to educate the people about the injustices being committed against Indians. This is a very interesting article where Gandhi openly acknowledges his debt to Thoreau. Even though Gandhi started his Civil Disobedience campaign in 1929, this article shows that he had started thinking about civil disobedience way back in It took him 22 years to convert Thoreau s approach into a successful strategy. Thoreau, Henry David. "The Laws of Menu." The Dial: n. pag. Print. This is a newspaper article where Thoreau discusses the Laws of Manu, an Indian religious book. I really like the fact that this was an actual translation of one of the most influential Hindu scriptures by Thoreau. One fact I learnt from this article is that many of the ideas and moral values discussed in the Laws of Manu are echoed in Thoreau's On the Duty of Civil Disobedience. This helped me show the exchange across centuries by repeating that statement in my paper. Another fact I took from this article is that the Laws of Manu are about what one s duties are to one s father, mother, society, etc. Many of these

15 15 statements are found in Thoreau's Civil Disobedience, for instance one of the main lessons in Civil Disobedience is what one s duty is to the society. Thoreau, Henry David. The Journal of Henry David Thoreau. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, Walden. Web. 5 Oct < 906/07Journal01/Chapter9.pdf>. This is a journal written by Thoreau. I really liked the personal nature of the book because it showed me what Thoreau was thinking at this time. Mr. Jeff Cramer said that he would originally use the journal with a cut and paste strategy. These pieces would come from other lectures and speeches. One fact I learnt from this diary is that Thoreau was always asking questions, such as how does one fight an injustice in a moral way. This helped me learn that the idea of Civil Disobedience first emerged by asking questions at the Walden Pond. One more important fact that Thoreau provides is that he felt that a man has to do things alone, as he believed in the power of individuals over society. Here Thoreau differs from Gandhi because Gandhi believed in involving the masses Letter. N.d. Walden.org. Web. 5 Sept < dence/lettersblake.pdf#page34>. These are letters written by Thoreau to his friend HGO Blake when Thoreau was at the Walden Pond. One of the most important facts is that at first Thoreau himself did not realize why he was doing this experiment. He was confused at first but overtime; he fell in love with the simplicity of the world around him. He

16 16 realized that the world around him can be more like this if the government was not involved in his personal life A Plea for Captain John Brown. Raleigh: Alex Catalogue, Print. This book, as the title suggests is a plea for the release of the abolitionist John Brown. This was directly after the events of Harpers ferry in which John Brown raided a Marine warehouse to arm his small militia. John Brown was later captured by some marines, tried and then hung in Virginia. Thoreau says that, unlike the opinion of many other northern newspapers, John Brown was not insane. Rather Brown was the man most dedicated to ending slavery. Thoreau explained that John Brown had fought against the Constitution because the Constitution itself is unjust. Thoreau fervently defended Brown because Brown displayed some of Thoreau's principles in Civil Disobedience "Preaching of Buddha." (The) Dial Jan. 1844: n. pag. PDF file. This is a newspaper article about the preaching of Buddha. I really like this article because it showed me how much the ancient Indian scriptures mattered to Thoreau. Another fact I learnt from this article is that many American scholars at this time were interested in Indian scriptures. Elizabeth Peabody, a transcendentalist, helped compile these translations. One more important fact that Thoreau provides is that his sojourn at the Walden Pond was influenced by Buddha's search to find the meaning of life "Resistance to Civil Government." Aesthetic Papers. Comp. Elizibeth P. Peabody. New York: G.P. Putnam, Digital file.

17 17 This is an actual original copy of the paper Civil Disobedience written by Thoreau and compiled by Elizabeth Peabody. One fact I took from this book is that Thoreau was heavily influenced by The Laws of Manu as well as the Bhagavad- Gita. This helped me show the influence and exchange of information over centuries between scholars of US and India Walden. Columbus: C.E. Merrill, Print. The book is a documentary record of Thoreau s sojourn at this pond. This is important because it was at this pond that his ideas of Civil Disobedience first took shape. It was here that he started to think about the society he was in and how it could, ultimately, become more perfect. "A Yankee in Canada, with Anti-slavery and reform papers." Editorial. Archive.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Sept < Thoreau described himself as a mystic, Transcendentalist, and natural philosopher. He is a writer of essays about nature---not of facts about nature but of his ideals and emotions in the company of nature. In this book, he discusses his trips to Canada and how it changed his way of thinking. At that time Canada had already abolished slavery. Secondary Sources Albert, David H.. Thoreau's India: The Impact of Reading in a Crisis. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society (1981): Web...

18 18 This is a journal about how Thoreau perceived India. I really liked the direct quotes of the journal because it provides clear evidence of how Thoreau's writings could be traced back to Indian writings. "Bibliography." The Thoreau Society. Edward O. Wilson, n.d. Web. 4 Oct < This is a bibliography of Thoreau's life. He was born in Concord, Massachusetts on July, 12, 1817 and died in He died fairly young in his 40s. He went to Harvard in order to study Math and Philosophy. After that he returned to Concord and met Ralph Waldo Emerson. Emerson, a great philosopher in his own right, decided to take Thoreau under his wing. This was soon after Thoreau's father had died. Emerson engaged his young friends mind by debating with him how to fight injustices. Emerson also introduced Thoreau to most of the other Transcendentalists. All these men and women helped Thoreau develop the idea of Civil Disobedience. Cramer, Jeffrey S. interview. N.d. Mr. Cramer is a writer and librarian for the Princeton Review. One main point I learnt from this amazing interview is that Thoreau s ideas of civil disobedience the idea that one can resist wrong without succumbing to it greatly influenced and inspired Gandhi. Mr. Cramer also stated that Gandhi was probably going to develop the idea of Civil Disobedience on his own. However, when Gandhi found Thoreau's essays they reaffirmed and reestablished his ideas. Mr. Cramer also stated that Thoreau learnt from the Indian texts that he had to contemplate the world, slowly and deliberately.

19 19 "Front Page." The Walden Woods Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct < This site, Walden.org, has the largest amount of publicly available information on Thoreau. Also, this organization has contact information of many noted scholars on Thoreau and other Transcendentalists. One of them, Mr. Jeff Cramer was contacted and interviewed for this essay. Hendrick, George. "The Influence of Thoreau's 'Civil Disobedience' on Gandhi's Satyagraha." New England Quarterly 29.4 (1956): All. Print. This is a short journal article about how Gandhi was influenced by Thoreau written by George Hendrick. I really like the primary quotes from both Gandhi and Thoreau in the paper because it showed me explicitly how Gandhi and Thoreau's ideas were related. One fact I took from this Journal is that Thoreau's ideas influenced Gandhi at a very important time in his life. This helped me show the direct influence of Thoreau on Gandhi. Another fact I took from this journal is that Gandhi wrote several articles that contained works of Thoreau which influenced Gandhi. One more important fact that I learnt from this book is that Gandhi, while in prison, read Thoreau's book every night. Lachs, John, and Robert B. Talisse. American Philosophy: An Encyclopedia. New York: Routledge, Print. This is a book about how ancient Hindu scriptures influenced Thoreau. I really liked the Encyclopedia part of the book because it showed me how important Thoreau is in American Literature and History. One fact I took from this Book is that Thoreau read many Hindu scriptures. Thoreau on 11 September, 1849

20 20 borrowed Mahabharata, Hariwamsa, On Historic de la famille, and Garcin de Tassy's Histoire de la literature Hindoui. In 1850, from January 28th to April, he read Wilson's translation of the Vishnu Purana, Icvara Krsna's The Sankhya Karika, The Samveda Samhita translated by Stevenson, Rammohan Roy's Translation of passages of the Veda; and vol. IX of the works of Sir William Jones. This volume contains Sacontala, or, the Fatal Ringand Sir Jones' translation of Kalidasa's Abhijyana Sakuntalam, Charles Wilkins' translation of the Bhagavad-Gita -Bhagvat-geeta, or, Dialogue of Kreeshna and Arjoon was borrowed by Thoreau on 9th October, Meenakumari, V. "Thoreau's India - Outsider's View." IRWLE 7.2 (2011): n. pag. Print. This is a journal about how Thoreau first encountered India. I really like the details in the book because it showed me exactly which ancient Hindu scriptures he read from both Emerson's and Harvard's libraries. Another fact I took from this journal is that Thoreau's Walden experiment came from Indian Yogis or hermits, who used to live in forests. One more important fact that Meenakumari provides is that Thoreau always sought meaning in life, and these scriptures gave it to him. Mehta, Usha. GANDHI AND THOREAU. The Indian Journal of Political Science 23.1/4 (1962): Web... This is a journal about how Thoreau influenced Gandhi. I really liked the part of the journal where it discusses the positive and negative aspects of Mass Civil Disobedience because it showed me that Mass Civil Disobedience was hardly an

21 21 infallible system. One fact I took from this journal is that both Thoreau and Gandhi thought the industrial revolution was a bad thing. This helped me to see these two philosophers as people who were not perfect, but instead flawed people like the rest of us. Another fact I took from this journal is that Gandhi did not believe in total freedom. He believed that sometimes some freedoms do need to be withheld from the public, such as the right to bear arms. Miller, Barbara Stoler. The Bhagavad-gita: Krishna's Counsel in Time of War. New York: Bantam, Print. This is the Bhagavad-Gita, one of the main Hindu scriptures and a big influence on Thoreau. It describes the conversation between Krishna and Arjuna on the battlefield regarding the moral duty of all human beings to fight injustice. Miller, Webb. I Found No Peace: A Journey through the Age of Extremes. London: DeCoubertin, Print. This is a book about the evolution of Civil Disobedience over the years. One quote I took from this book is on page 238 and is about Gandhi s first reading of Thoreau's Walden. Another fact I took from this Book is that both Thoreau and Gandhi believed God to have the answer to how to fight injustice morally. Murti, Ramana. "Buber's Dialogue and Gandhi's Satyagraha." Journal of the History of Ideas 29.4 (1968): All. Print. This is a journal about how Gandhi's satyagraha influenced future philosophers. One fact I took from this journal is that Gandhi proved that one man has the power to take on an empire, using both ethics and intelligence. Other peaceful resisters such as Martin Luther King Jr. during the 1960s civil rights movement

22 22 and Tibet's Dalai Lama have emulated Gandhi s methods in years since, shaking up the dynamic of world politics in the process. Power, Paul F.. Gandhi in South Africa. The Journal of Modern African Studies 7.3 (1969): Web This is a journal about Gandhi in South Africa. One fact I took from this journal is that Gandhi did not despise the South Africans who were being racist to him. He just thought of them as racist because they were ill-educated. This helped me show Gandhi's outlook on life. Another fact I took from this journal is that many people in South Africa are influenced by Gandhi today. Reddy, E. S., and Gopalkrishna Gandhi. Gandhi and South Africa. Ahmedabad: Navajivan Publishing House, Print. This is a book about Gandhi's satyagraha in South Africa. One fact I took from this book is that Gandhi first came into contact with Thoreau's books on the recommendation of Tolstoy. After he read Thoreau's work he realized that Thoreau and himself were on the same page, more or less. This increased Gandhi's confidence in his movement. One more important fact is that Gandhi first realized he needed to practice Civil Disobedience is when he sees some poor tenant worker laboring in a field. He realized that if he did not help these men then he himself would be part of the injustice. Schock, Kurt. Civil Resistance Today. Cambridge: Polity, Print. This is a book about how civil resistance works today. I really like the contemporary part of the book because it showed me how civil resistance works today. Another fact I took from this book is that Civil resistance is the most used

23 23 method to fight injustices in the world. If a person feels something is not right, then he can organize a street rally without someone thinking of them in a strange way. Singh, Hoshiar, and Pankaj Singh. Indian Administration. New Delhi: Pearson, Print. This is a book about how Gandhi's Civil disobedience differed from Thoreau's Civil disobedience. One fact I took from this book is that Thoreau's Civil disobedience did not succeed because he did not involve the masses. This helped me show how Gandhi's Civil Disobedience accomplished more by comparing the two ideas. Another fact I took from this book is that Gandhi involved the masses by focusing on issues that were important to common man. This is important because a government can ignore one man protesting outside their door. However, they cannot ignore 100, or a 1000 people protesting outside their door. Tendulkar, Dinanath Gopal. Mahatma; Life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. N.p.: n.p., PFF file. This is a book about the life of Gandhi. One fact I took from this book is that Gandhi first started thinking about Civil Disobedience from a very early age. This helped me learn that it took many years to develop a procedure such as Mass Civil Disobedience. Another fact I took from this Book is that Gandhi's ideas were first rejected by almost everyone. However Gandhi was determined to see Mass Civil Disobedience to the very end.

24 24 Thoreau, Henry David, and Raymond R. Borst. The Thoreau Log: A Documentary Life of Henry David Thoreau, New York: G.K. Hall, Print. This is a book about Thoreau's life. One fact I took from this book is that Civil Disobedience is in part a response to William Paley s The Principle of Moral and Political Philosophy. This helped me show the contrast of philosophers at that time by comparing the two essays. Another fact I took from this book is that Civil disobedience was not very practical. Thoreau practiced his form of civil disobedience, and the only effect it had was on Thoreau being thrown into jail. Wolpert, Stanley A. Gandhi's Passion: The Life and Legacy of Mahatma Gandhi. Oxford: Oxford UP, Print. This is a book about Gandhi's exploits in South Africa. One fact I took from this book is that Gandhi really suffered at the beginning of his time in South Africa. This helped me realize the racism and discrimination he faced at the hands of the South Africans. Another fact I took from this book is that many people in both South Africa and India vehemently rejected Gandhi's ideas of nonviolent protest. They argued that this form of protest works only when there is mutual respect between the parties. But the South Africans did not respect the Indians. POWER, S.A.. GANDHI'S READING OF THOREAU. The Thoreau Society Bulletin 189 (1989): 5 6. Web... This is a newspaper clipping about what Gandhi's thoughts were after reading Thoreau. This helped me show the way Gandhi interpreted Thoreau's teachings by comparing what Gandhi understood from the essays and what the essays actually say. Another fact I took from this journal is that after an Indian library was

25 25 constructed by Gandhi, he filled it up with books and a large number of them were of Thoreau's essays. One more important fact that Power provides is that Gandhi believed that every person is born with at least a little bit of good in them. Gandhi says this kernel of justice in every man is the reason why Civil Disobedience works. Nojeim, Michael J. Gandhi and King: The Power of Nonviolent Resistance. Westport: Praeger, Print. This is a book about comparison of Gandhi and Martin Luther King's forms of conducting Civil Disobedience. I really like the comparison part of the book because it showed me how MLK s method was slightly different from Gandhi s. One fact I took from this book is that MLK was more like Gandhi than Thoreau. This is because MLK involved the masses on a massive scale. Another fact I took from this book is that MLK, like Thoreau, had a fascination for ancient Hindu scriptures. MLK even took a pilgrimage to India to learn more about Indian philosophy.

26 26 Appendix A A page from A Week on the Concord and Merrimac Rivers (1911), where Thoreau states the wisest conservatism is that of the Hindoos.

27 27 Appendix B Letter that Gandhi sent to Franklin D. Roosevelt. In this letter, Gandhi wrote that he is connected deeply to America and had profited deeply from the writings of Thoreau and Emerson.

28 28

29 29 Appendix C Schematic Graph of the Exchange of Ideas between Indian and American philosophers Ancient Indian Sage: It is every man's moral duty to fight injustice Ancient Indian Sage: It is every man's moral duty to fight injustice Henry David Thoreau: One should fight injustice by disobeying unjust laws Ancient Indian Sage: It is every man's moral duty to fight injustice Henry David Thoreau: One should fight injustice by disobeying unjust laws Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi: One should fight injustice by involving the masses in disobeying unjust laws