Examining The Philosophers Mahatma Gandhi And Socrates Religion Essay

As philosophers Mahatma Gandhi and Socrates have approached a moral life otherwise because of different perceptual experiences held by each. Socrates was one of the great Athenian philosophers. In childhood he worked as a sculpturer because he did non belong to a rich household. He is described as an ugly, hapless, and common adult male who was more concerned with moral pureness than external visual aspect. Some of the features of Socrates include ignorance, and thoughtful. Socrates was one of the influential minds in the 5th century whose enthusiasm to careful concluding changed the full endeavor. Socrates in his mid-fortiess, tried to reply some of the hard inquiries about the universe around him. Some of the inquiries he asked such as “ what is virtuousness? ” “ What is justness? ” and “ what is truth? ” Socrates looked at these inquiries with a different position compared to other people. Socrates believed in civil obeisance. On the other manus, Mahatma Gandhi believed in civil noncompliance. Mahatma Karamchand Gandhi was from a little province in western India Porbandar, besides known as Sudamapuri. Due to the forfeits Gandhi made for Indians the people in India called him Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma means great psyche and Gandhi means grocer. Grocer was Gandhi ‘s household business in the early yearss. Gandhi belonged to the faith Hinduism. Some of the features of Mahatma Gandhi include forbearance, tolerance, and honestness. He was a diffident individual and ne’er talked to anybody in his school. He was an honest individual, as exemplified by a school incident. One twenty-four hours, the pedagogue inspector came to his school to inspect the pupil ‘s instruction. He gave some spelling words to compose down on paper. Since Gandhi misspelled the word the teacher asked him to copy the right reply from person else. However, Gandhi did non like to copy. He ne’er did copying in his life ; these incidents represented his honest and true nature. Socrates and Mahatma Gandhi non merely differed in personal features but they besides have a different position in seeking to reply hard inquiry about the universe around them. For case, in order to derive rights Socrates follows civil obeisance and in contrast Mahatma Gandhi follows Civil noncompliance.

In comparing to Mahatma Gandhi Socrates tried to reply the hard inquiries about the universe in different ways. Socrates questioned people about the universe around them and on the other manus Gandhi made some philosophical quotation marks in order to assist Indian people gain their rights in India. For case, Socrates has a foundational topographic point in the history of thoughts in malice of non holding written anything. He is considered one of the philosophers who have altered how the doctrine itself is envisaged. Socrates did non compose anything because he believed that cognition is something which is populating and a thing that can be shared by interacting with people. The method of Socratic philosophical enquiry consisted in oppugning people and turn outing to them that their original averment is incorrect and doing them work through inquiries into a contradiction on the places they have asserted. Plato was the pupil of Socrates who has written the book “ The Apology of Socrates ” . In Grecian the rubric is called “ Apologia Socratous ” . It is the oldest existing papers of Grecian Philosophy. With the rubric, many readers refer to it as an apology nevertheless the rubric is equivocal because in Greek apology means defence. Socrates merely defends the manner he lived his life but does non apologise for anything he has done during his life-time. In the text “ The Apology of Socrates ” the Socrates says

First, so, its right for me to do my defence, Athenians, against the first of the false accusals made against me and against my first accusers, and so against the ulterior 1s and the ulterior accusers. Many have accused me before you, and have done so for a long clip now, though they did n’t state anything that ‘s true ( 43b ) .

In 399 BC Socrates was charged of declining to acknowledge the Gods which was recognized by the province and for perverting the immature Athenians. In other words, people believed that Socrates was seeking to pervert immature Athenians about God. He was stood before a jury which consisted of five 100 people of his fellow Athenians.

In the text, he is supporting himself in forepart of 500 Athenians stating that many people have accused me, but no 1 said anything which was true. With the Socratic Method he offended many great powerful Athenians. Since he created a batch of powerful enemies they brought him to test believing that they could do him implore for clemency. It did non work out but alternatively Socrates ended up dissing the jury by clarifying how nescient they are, Socrates was average, ugly, and outspoken but like Mahatma Gandhi he ever wanted to be true. Socrates looked at the things in the universe otherwise compared to other people. In the test for the life of Socrates he astounded the hearers by being found guilty and destined to decease in malice of his energetic defence. In the text “ The Apology of Socrates ” the Socrates says

And so, members of the jury, you should be optimistic about decease and believe about this one truth, that no injury comes to a good adult male in life or in decease, and his jobs are non neglected by the Gods ( 65d ) .

Since Socrates held different perceptual experiences about the universe. He says that nil can harm a good adult male neither in life and decease. After hearing both sides the jury asked the members to vote on the guilt of Socrates. Since a batch of people voted for him that he was guilty he was sentenced to decease. Socrates was given a opportunity to find his punishment but Socrates wanted to be punished for his actions. Therefore, the jury sentenced him to decease. Harmonizing to Athenian jurisprudence, they prescribed him to imbibe a cup of hemlock. Hemlock is like toxicant. While deceasing he believed that deceasing now and get awaying from the jobs was good for him.

On the other manus, Gandhi was non similar Socrates. He was unagitated, thoughtful, and observant. After completing his surveies, he returned to India for a short period of clip. Again he went to South Africa because he was unable to obtain a occupation in India. At first, he traveled in the train, because he was non prepared for the racial intolerance. Since his colour was black he was thrown out of the train. An incident in the train shaped his actions for old ages. During that period of clip British controlled South Africa. He was abused, and all Indians suffered similar intervention. Gandhi stayed in South Africa for 20 one old ages to contend for his civil rights and won many grants for his fellow Indians. He believed that if they can derive rights with passive resistance so why be violent and harm others and ourselves. In order to contend for truth and addition rights he gave rise to Satyagraha. Satyagraha is divided into two words which Satya and agraha. Satya means truth and agraha agencies to follow the rules of truth. Satyagraha was a tool used for passive resistance and civil defiance which is the appropriate methods for obtaining political and societal ends. In the text “ Mahatma Gandhi- Selected Political Writings ” the Gandhi says

Satyagrahi does non bring down hurting on the antagonist ; he does non seek his devastation. A Satyagrahi ne’er resorts to pieces. In the usage of Satyagraha, there is no ill-will whatever. Satyagraha is pure soul-force. Truth is the really substance of the psyche. That is why this force is called Satyagraha ( 52 ) .

Harmonizing to Mahatma Gandhi a individual who is Satyagrahi does non harm the opposition with force. Since Mahatma Gandhi believed in non-violence he gave rise to satyagraha and ahimsa. In the book “ Mahatma Gandhi-Selected Political Writings ” Mahatma Gandhi besides says “ Our shastras seems to learn that a adult male who truly patterns ahimsa in its comprehensiveness has the universe at his pess, he so affects his milieus that even the serpents and other deadly reptilians do him no injury ” ( 40 ) . The word Ahimsa symbolizes non-violence. In the psyche of every human being there are many things that we have to contend against such as fright, ignorance, anxiousnesss, and emphasis. But harmonizing to Gandhi the outer battle should be avoided. In the Bhagavad-Gita the sanctum book which belong to the faith of Hinduism. Lord Krishna asked Arjuna to contend in order to uproot ignorance. However, contending is necessary merely on some occasions when it is the explicit will of God. Harmonizing to the text any individual who patterns ahimsa with truthfulness nil can harm them non even harmful animals such as serpents and reptilians. If a individual is a follower of ahimsa so the individual should love their enemy. Ahimsa is non-violence but besides includes truth and bravery.

During the life-time of Socrates he questioned people about the universe around them and died because of his nescient behaviour. Socrates chose decease because he did non wanted to interrupt the jurisprudence of the metropolis and besides held a belief that since he was a good adult male nil can harm him. On the other manus, Mahatma Gandhi fought for the rights of Indian people without distributing force and practising Satyagraha and Ahimsa. He did non decease of ignorance alternatively he was assassinated by Nathuram Godse. He killed Gandhi because harmonizing to him Gandhi was bewraying India by dialogues with Pakistan to halt the war which was traveling on. He was the great psyche that will populate among Indians.

Both Socrates and Mahatma Gandhi non merely differed in personal features but besides they have a different position in seeking to reply hard inquiry about the universe around them. Socrates was nescient but he ever believed in truthfulness as Mahatma Gandhi. Both philosophers approached a different moral life. Gandhi died for the people and Socrates died because he wanted to without interrupting the jurisprudence of the metropolis.