Autobiography
The life of Gandhi, in his own words
150th Anniversary Edition with a New Introduction by Pankaj Mishra
'Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this walked the earth in flesh and blood' Albert Einstein upon the death of M. K. Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born in western India in 1869. He was educated in London and later travelled to South Africa, where he experienced racism and took up the rights of Indians, instituting his first campaign of passive resistance.
In 1915 he returned to British-controlled India, bringing to a country in the throes of independence his commitment to non-violent change, and his belief always in the power of truth. Under Gandhi's lead, millions of protesters would engage in mass campaigns of civil disobedience, seeking change through moral conversion of the colonizers.
For Gandhi, the long path towards Indian independence would lead to imprisonment and hardship, yet he never once forgot the principles of truth and non-violence so dear to him.
Written in the 1920s, Gandhi's autobiography tells not only of his struggles and inspirations but also speaks frankly of his failures. It is a powerful and enduring account of an extraordinary life.
'Christ gave us the goals and Mahatma Gandhi the tactics' Martin Luther King Jr.
'I have the greatest admiration for Mahatma Gandhi. He was a great human being with a deep understanding of human nature. His life has inspired me' The Dalai Lama
'Gandhi's ideas have played a vital role in South Africa's transformation and with the help of Gandhi's teaching, apartheid has been overcome' Nelson Mandela
M. K. Gandhi was born in 1869 in Porbandar, India. He studied law in London and was admitted to the Inner Temple in 1891. He worked to improve the rights of immigrant Indians in South Africa and returned to India in 1915 to take up the struggle for independence from Britain. Gandhi never wavered in his belief of non-violent protests and in 1947, he succeeded in uniting India with a national movement. In January 1948, Gandhi was assassinated as he walked to take his evening prayers.
Pankaj Mishra (Introducer)
Pankaj Mishra is the author of From the Ruins of Empire and several other books. He is a columnist at Bloomberg View and the New York Times Book Review, and writes regularly for The Guardian, the London Review of Books, and the New Yorker. A fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, he lives in London.