Gandhi: 'Hind Swaraj' and Other Writings (Cambridge Texts in Modern Politics)

Satyameva Jayathe (Truth always wins)


excellent new edition of Hind Swaraj   October 14, 1997
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

This excellent new edition of Hind Swaraj fulfills the needs of all readers, either for private and academic purposes. Extraordinary is especially the introduction which covers all major subjects which should be taken into account for understanding "Hind Swaraj", e.g. wesetern and eastern influences on Gandhis thoughts, the London & South African years etc. The text itself is issued with a lot of explaining footnotes which also refer on the original (written in Gujarati). It's so far the first edition I know which compares between the english and gujatati text ! The only, minor manko might be the fact that the South African years are treated rather short, but the bibliography and advices for further reading lead the ambitious reader to new sources.


Gandhi's Masterpiece   September 12, 2008
J. J. Stewart (Australia)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This is an excellent edition of Hind Swaraj. It includes several important letters between Gandhi and such important political figures as Nehru. It also includes Gandhi's very own reading list recommendation (for example, he suggests that his readers consult Thoreau and Tolstoy amongst other things).

Swaraj, for Gandhi, does not merely entail Indian sovereignty but rulership over one's own self. This inner svaraj is the condition for the possibility of external national independence. Therefore, to achieve national independence one must first achieve personal independence. For Gandhi, this meant that - given the fallenness of Britain - even the colonists were not free. In this respect Gandhi thought that the British must be pitied and not hated. These are some of the central arguments in Hind Svaraj.
Much of the book is taken up with a description of the fallen state of 'modern civilization' which Gandhi views as being like a disease in need of curing. The cure is through improved religiosity. The symptoms of modern civilization involve the development of railways, industrial infrastructure and the intervention of doctors and lawyers. On the face of things, Gandhi seems to be rabidly anti-technological and anti-modern. This is not entirely accurate however: Gandhi is not against technology but is against the "fetish" (or "craze" as he also calls it) of technology. This fetishization is symptomatic of the degeneration of modernity for him. Likewise, he is critical of doctors and lawyers not because doctors and lawyers are inherently bad, but because of the cynical industry that they are grounded in.

A great book, and much misunderstood.


Gandhian Politics   December 10, 1999
Jane Ashley Cain (Cincinnati, Ohio)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful

Gandhi explains in Hind Swaraj some of his fundamental ideas on how to obtain Home Rule in India. One aspect of Indian society Gandhi criticizes is the relationship between Muslims and Hindus. Gandhi tries to convey the idea that religious identity does not constitute for nationality. He feels that in order to obtain swaraj, India's people must unify themselves as a nation. By disbanding disagreements between the two religions, with acceptance and without imposition, Gandhi implies that what is important- Mother India- can be saved. Both Hindus and Muslims should stop seeking concessions from the British, begin the swadeshi movement (Indian-made goods), and that a universal language (Hindi) would also help the cause. Another factor which will lead to swaraj is passive resistance. (Gandhi launched the Civil Disobedience Movement 1931-34). Unlike Nehru, Gandhi opposed modernization/industrialization. These views, as well as views about education and economic reform are also included.