Hind Swaraj Themes

Hind Swaraj is Gandhi’s political, philosophical, and economic manifesto for the Indian Independence Movement. When he first wrote this book in 1909, Gandhi had been living in South Africa for more than 15 years and was virtually unknown in his native India. However, this would all change over the next decade, as his ideas became the driving philosophy behind the massive popular campaign to free India from British rule. In Hind Swaraj, Gandhi lays…

In Hind Swaraj, Gandhi emphasizes that Indians will not become truly independent—or achieve Swaraj (home-rule)—by simply overthrowing the British. This is because he blames India’s misery on modern civilization, not colonialism. This distinction is essential for understanding Gandhi’s argument: the Western way of life is responsible for India’s oppression, not just the British government. Because Gandhi thinks that modern civilization’s focus on material goods is the root cause of Indians’ poverty and misery…

In Hind Swaraj, Gandhi speaks to a profoundly fractured population. Largely because of English colonialism’s divide-and-conquer strategy, Indians have started to define themselves as separate groups based on differing religious, linguistic, regional, political, caste, class, and cultural identities. When they start turning against each other instead of working together to fight for independence, Gandhi thinks, Indians are letting these artificial divisions get the best of them and indirectly helping the English maintain power. While…