Gandhi’s Hinduism

What did Hinduism mean to Mahatma Gandhi? What shaped his understanding of God, religion, and humanity? And what might his ideas offer a world still struggling with violence, prejudice, and intolerance? Through Mahatma Gandhi’s own words, Gopalkrishna Gandhi explores the religious convictions that lay at the heart of the Mahatma’s life. The book explores themes ranging from Rama, the Gita, fasting, prayer, and pilgrimage to untouchability, conscience, his ‘inner voice’, truth, and the meaning of dharma. It also reveals Gandhi’s engagement with Christianity, Islam, Jainism, Buddhism, and other traditions, highlighting his conviction that genuine faith enlarges rather than narrows the human spirit. It reveals a man who believed that the truest expression of religion lay not in ritual or identity, but in the capacity to feel another’s suffering as one’s own. This book is neither a theological treatise nor a conventional biography. It is a nuanced portrait of Mahatma Gandhi as a seeker whose Hinduism remained open, self-critical, and deeply humane. In an age marked by polarization and conflict, Gandhi’s Hinduism offers a powerful reminder that faith can be a source of moral imagination, courage, and hope. It is an indispensable guide for anyone seeking to understand Mahatma Gandhi, the ethical foundations of his public life, and the enduring power of religion as a force for justice, empathy, and peace.