Satyagraha Essay ⋆ Political Science Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

Satyagraha translates from Hindi as “zeal for truth.” The term is an Indian political philosophy developed by prominent Indian politician and spiritual leader Mohandas Gandhi during the 1920s, which emphasized nonviolence to overcome political repression. Gandhi rejected political violence and instead drew on traditional indigenous forms of protest as part of the Indian nationalist movement to end British occupation of India. Satyagraha emphasizes the search for truth and the concurrent effort to convert political opponents to the righteousness of one’s cause rather than coerce or force one’s goals on an opponent. Unlike conventional armed struggles, the ultimate goal is a cooperative solution in which the opposing party does not perceive itself to be the loser of the struggle, nor is the opposition harmed.

Gandhi argued that nonviolence was part of human nature and violence was an aberration. Satyagraha was both a political and personal philosophy that aimed to improve an individual’s life. Gandhi initially promulgated Satyagraha in an address in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1906 as a part of an opposition movement to the racial policies of the British colony toward Indian immigrants. Satyagraha later formed the core of the Indian independence movement and employed tactics such as boycotts. Gandhi’s philosophy would influence later nonviolent movements, including the 1960s civil rights movement in the United States and in South Africa under Nelson Mandela protesting apartheid in the 1950s and 1960s.

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