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Is Mahatma Gandhi still inspires today's youth


"I don't have a message. My message is my life." - Mahatma Gandhi

BIRTH AND ASPECTS

Born on October 2, 1869, in Porbandar, India, Mahatma Gandhi studied law and advocated for the civil rights of Indians, both at home under British rule and in South Africa. Gandhi became a leader of India's independence movement, organizing boycotts against British institutions in peaceful forms of civil disobedience.

On reading extensively about him, several qualities immediately stood out. One was his sheer determination to press on with his ideas on persuading the British to 'Quit India.' He was able to achieve freedom for hundreds of millions on the subcontinent. This was something that had never been tried before in the British Colonial world. He won with the power of his ideas and inspired people in other countries to fight for their freedom. In India, he was able to persuade so many people to follow him, and he led them to freedom through nonviolence. This is a great achievement because oppressed people naturally turn to violence. Mahatma Gandhi later also influenced Martin Luther King in the United States to fight for civil rights and South Africans to press for freedom from apartheid.

WHY HE IS A HERO

Gandhi, was a hero, as well as a political and spiritual leader of India. He was of the Hindu faith, of which I am too. Mohandas brought India to independence by using non-violent resistance.

I think it is difficult to say that people will have only one hero in their lifetime because, in time, they may change their mind and notice that what this person embodies is no longer what is the most important to them. So, I would like to say my hero is Mahatma Gandhi.

WHY AM INSPIRED

"Whenever you are confronted with an opponent, conquer him with love."- MAHATMA GANDHIJI

I admire Gandhi for all that he did and the risks that he took. He was jailed many times. He was also a precursor when he defended women's rights, and it is mainly thanks to him that women have an important social and political role in India. The only thing that he didn't manage to avoid is the civil war between Muslims in Pakistan and Hindus in India. Can non-violence prevent the world from religious wars? I don't really know, but it is an alternative to armies. Many world leaders, including Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela, have successfully employed Gandhi's technique of non-violence to achieve extraordinary success in their own political struggles. That is why I can say that Gandhi is not only a real role model for me, but for the world.

- SARAVANA KUMAR S

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