Satyagraha facts for kids
Satyagraha (Sanskrit: सत्याग्रह satyāgraha) is the idea of nonviolent resistance (fighting with peace) started by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (also known as "Mahatma" Gandhi). Gandhi used satyagraha in the Indian independence movement and also during his earlier struggle in South Africa. Satyagraha helped shape Nelson Mandela's struggle in South Africa under apartheid, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s campaigns during the civil rights movement in the United States, and many other similar movements. Someone who does satyagraha is a satyagrahi.
Idea of Satyagraha
What is winning
In most conflict, the goal is to defeat the enemy, to stop him from meeting his goal, or to meet a goal that the enemy is trying to stop. But in Satyagraha, these are not the goals. The goal, Gandhi said, is to change the mind of the wrong-doer, not to force him. Winning means getting along with the enemy to make what is wrong right again, which they might not realize is wrong. For this to happen, the enemy's mind must change to realize that he is stopping a goal that is right.
Rules for Satyagrahis
Gandhi asked those who did satyagraha (called "satyagrahis") to follow these rules:
- Nonviolence (ahimsa)
- Truth — this includes honesty, but also means living fully for what is true, and agreeing with it
- Not stealing
- Chastity (brahmacharya)
- Non-possession or nor owning (not the same as being poor)
- Body-labor or bread-labor
- Not eating much that is not good
- Not being afraid
- Equal respect for all religions
- Fighting with boycotts (not spending or buying from those who are a problem)
- Freedom from untouchability, or the idea of a caste (a group of people with the same amounts of money and power) that is so low that it "cannot be touched".
Another time, Gandhi gave seven important rules: A satyagrahi:
- must have a living faith in God
- must believe in truth and non-violence, and have faith in the goodness of human nature
- must be leading a chaste (moral) life, and be willing to die or lose all he owns
- must be a khadi wearer and spinner
- must stay away from alcohol
- must follow all other rules of discipline he gave them
- if he is put in jail, he must obey the jail rules, unless they are specially made to hurt his self-respect
Images for kids
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Gandhi leading the famous 1930 Salt March, a notable example of satyagraha.
See also
In Spanish: Satyagraha para niños
