Gandhi Today: A Report on India's Gandhi Movement and Its Experiments in Nonviolence and Small Scale Alternatives (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

Clear-headed, comprehensive. -- Mark Juergensmeyer, Coordinator of Religious Studies, University of California at Berkeley, and Professor of Ethics and Comparative Religion, Graduate Theological Union

Here's a book full of connections, as traveling reporter, Gandhian supporter, and American Friends Service Committee member Mark Shepard travels to India to bring us up to date on what has become of the Satyagraha of "Truth-force" movement Gandhi founded more than fifty years ago. The story begins, much like the popular film "Gandhi" at the time of Mahatma Gandhi's assassination in 1948. Instead of flashing backward, though, we move forward over four decades carefully tracing the progress of a nonviolent philosophy of living. In a dramatic and personal narrative, Shepard provides an historical panorama of the events focusing on the people and passions that have allowed the movement of noncooperation and civil disobedience to thrive in a struggle for political justice and "constructive work." The search for Gandhi's legacy which Shepard began in 1977 leads to telling portraits of the two chief heirs: the humble and meditative Vinoba Bhave and the political activist Jayaprakash Narayan---"the Sait and the Socialist." We also trace the ideas of these men as they practice Gandian principles in their work for land reform and for political and social restructuring, or "Total Revolution." It's a very peaceful book, however, as we witness a scenario of confrontation of injustice with a practice of active nonviolence. This is clear in the chapter on Narayan Desai, "Soldier of Peace," as we see his application of nonviolent resolution to conflict on the local and national levels-strikes, demonstrations, and negotiation. Shepard allows enough personal detail about his subjects and his own experience to make his portraits of the "Hug the Trees" movement and the "People's Court" practices engaging and informative. In its progress for a "Society for the Service of All," Gandhi's movement has spread through all parts of the world, and Shepard suggests the range of such work in Brazil, France, Sicily, England, and the United States. He closes with a short bibliography and list of movements Erom around the globe. Gandhi Today is a highly readable book and one that provides an historical grounding for study and for peace and justice groups today. More than conviction, Shepard brings perspective and understanding to an essential movement that remains alive today. -- From Independent Publisher

Important and heartening. -- Shalom (Jewish Peace Fellowship), Spring-Summer 1987

Inspiring. -- Wilmington College Peace Resource Center Newsletter, Summer 1987

Mark Shepard has brought Gandhi out of the realms of myth and history.... Upbeat, enjoyable reading. -- Eco-News, Apr. 1987

Very fair and remarkably complete in his concise treatment.... I recommend this book highly. -- Michael Sonnleitner, Asst. Professor of Political Science, University of Northern Iowa

Product Description

What became of the Gandhian tradition in India following the death of Mahatma Gandhi? Did it quietly die away? Or were there still Indians who believed in his philosophy and methods, committed to continuing his work?

These were the questions that sent journalist Mark Shepard to India in 1978-79, where he found that the tradition begun by Gandhi was very much alive in such individuals, groups, and movements as:

-- an acclaimed saint who collected over four million acres in gifts of land for the poor

-- a leader of a nationwide protest movement that helped topple India's ruling party in the mid-1970s

-- a Peace Army that fought riots with nonviolence

-- a "Hug the Trees!" movement that physically blocked excessive logging in the Himalayas

-- a People's Court that even tried cases of murder and government corruption

-- a development center that was helping 400 villages rise from poverty

-- a nationwide movement of villages in which all land was held in common and decisions were made by unanimous consent --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Simple Productions (February 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0938497049
• ISBN-13: 978-0938497042
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,905,168 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Living Proof that Gandhi's ideas live on, April 29, 2004

By	economist "economist" (Berkeley, CA United States) - See all my reviews

I grew up and was educated in India with little knowledge or understanding of Gandhi life, work, and deep international influence. My teachers, most of whom were Christians, looked down on what they considered Gandhi's unsophisticated ways.

College in India was no better than school, with the exception of a gentle Physics professor who introduced me to Gandhi's ideas on Economics. I went on to study Gandhi's ideas more closely, read his autobiography, and most recently came upon this book. Reading it has made me very very happy!

Mark Shepard has done a wonderful job visiting with, interviewing, and summarizing the efforts of Gandhian activists in India (with a last chapter taking a quick look at activities of Gandhians worldwide). Whether it is the Peace Army preventing religious riots, or the New Dawn community pooling resources and getting rid of moneylenders and other abusers of authority, each account brilliantly and vividly informs and inspires.

Great reading!