"If I were asked to recommend two books to introduce the American reader to Gandhi's political thought
and activity, I would suggest his Autobiography and Conquest of Violence."
--D. Mackenzie Brown, Journal of Asian Studies
"Conquest of Violence has two merits: first, it gives us the clearest and most powerful statement
to date of the central ideas in Gandhi's political thought; second, it forces us to consider these ideas not as
a historical or cultural curiosity but as a challenge to the main body of Western political philosophy."
--W. H. Morris-Jones, Pacific Affairs
Summary
When Mahatma Gandhi died in 1948 by an assassin's bullet, the most potent legacy he left to the world was the
technique of satyagraha (literally, holding on to the Truth). His "experiments with Truth" were far from
complete at the time of his death, but he had developed a new technique for effecting social and political change
through the constructive conduct of conflict: Gandhian satyagraha had become eminently more than "passive
resistance" or "civil disobedience."
By relating what Gandhi said to what he did and by examining instances of satyagraha led by others, this book abstracts
from the Indian experiments those essential elements that constitute the Gandhian technique. It explores, in terms
familiar to the Western reader, its distinguishing characteristics and its far-reaching implications for social
and political philosophy.