Great Soul

The author asserts that the greatness of Mahatma Gandhi was not simply that he freed India, but that he himself grew toward truth. As a lawyer in South Africa, Gandhi could have won great wealth, but he eschewed it to serve the oppressed. He roused his fellow countrymen and led them to non-violent victory. Home in India, he taught truth in a community of all races and faiths, practiced it locally, and made ready to fight with it nationally. After the British jailed him, he temporarily abandoned politics, travelling across India. During the years of travelling, he taught three things: truth, non-violence, and simplicity. Gandhi continued to lead by word and example, and eventually India became free. But the country freed by a man of non-violence feel into violence, and Gandhi died from the power of a bullet.