hind swaraj or indian home rule-- part I

[vivek claire]

Hind Swaraj or Indian Home Rule
M.K. Gandhi
1910
Translated into English by M.K. Gandhi
Being a Translation of 'Hind Swaraj'
(Indian Home Rule), published in the
Gujarat columns of Indian Opinion.
11th and 18th Dec., 1909
Preface to the English translation
It is not the without hesitation that the translation of 'Hind
Swaraj' is submitted to the public. A European friend with whom I
discussed the contents, wanted to see a translation of it and, during
our spare moments, I hurriedly dictated and he took it down. It is not
a literal translation but it is a faithful rendering of the original.
Several English friends have read it, and whilst opinions were being
invited as to the advisability of publishing the work, news was
received that the original was seized in India. This information
hastened the decision to publish the translation without a moment's
delay. My fellow-workers at the International Printing Press shared
my view and, by working overtime – a labour of love – they have
enabled me to place the translation before the public in an
unexpectedly short time. The work is being given to the public at
what is practically cost-price. But, without the financial assistance of
the many Indians who promised to buy copies for themselves and
for distribution, it might never have seen the light of day.
I am quite aware of the many imperfections in the original. The
English rendering, besides sharing these, must naturally exaggerate
them, owing to my inability to convey the exact meaning of the
original. Some of the friends who have read the translation have
objected that the subject matter has been dealt with in the form of a
dialogue. I have no answer to offer to this objection except that the
Gujarati language readily lends itself to such treatment and that it is
considered the best method of treating difficult subjects. Had I
written for English readers in the first instance, the subject would
have been handled in a different manner. Moreover, the dialogue, as
it has been given, actually took place between several friends,
mostly readers of Indian Opinion, and myself.
Whilst the views expressed in 'Hind Swaraj' are held by me, I
have but endeavoured humbly to follow Tolstoy, Ruskin, Thoreau,
Emerson and other writers, besides the masters of Indian
philosophy. Tolstoy has been one of my teachers for a number of
years. Those who want to see a corroboration of the views submitted
in the following chapters, will find it in the works of the above
named masters. For ready reference, some of the books are
mentioned in the Appendices.
I do not know only 'Hind Swaraj' has been seized in India. To
me, the seizure constitutes further condemnation of the civilisation
represented by the British Government. There is in the book not a
trace of approval of violence in any shape or form. The methods of
the British Government are, undoubtedly, severely condemned. To
do otherwise would be for me to be a traitor to Truth, to India, and
to the Empire to which I own allegiance. My notion of loyalty does
not involve acceptance of current rule or government irrespective of
its righteousness or otherwise. Such notion is based upon the belief -
not in its present justice or morality but -in a future acceptance by
governments of that standard of morality in practice which it at
present vaguely and hypocritically believes in, in theory. But I must
frankly confess that I am not so much concerned about the stability
of the Empire as I am about that of the ancient civilisation of India,
which, in my opinion, represents the best that the world has ever
seen. The British Government in India constitutes a struggle
between the Modern Civilisation, which is the Kingdom of Satan,
and the Ancient Civilisation, which is the Kingdom of God. The one
is the God of War, the other is the God of Love. My countrymen
impute the evils of modern civilisation to the English people are bad,
and not the civilisation they represent. My countrymen, therefore,
believe that they should adopt modern civilisation and modern
methods of violence to drive out the English. 'Hind Swaraj' has been
written in order to show that they are following a suicidal policy,
and that, if they would but revert to their own glorious civilisation,
either the English would adopt the latter and become Indianised or
find their occupation in India gone.
It was at first intended to publish the translation as a part of
Indian Opinion, but the seizure of the original rendered such a
course inadvisable. Indian Opinion represents the Transvaal Passive
Resistance struggle and ventilates the grievances of British Indians
in South Africa generally. It was, therefore, thought desirable not to
publish through a representative organ, views which are held by me
personally and which may even be considered dangerous or disloyal.
I am naturally anxious not to compromise a great struggle by any
action of mine which has no connection with it.
Had I not known that there was a danger of methods of violence
becoming popular, even in South Africa, had I not been called upon
by hundreds of my countrymen, and not a few English friends, to
express my opinion on the Nationalist movement in India, I would
even have refrained, for the sake of the struggle, from reducing my
views to writing. But, occupying the position I do, it would have
been cowardice on my part to postpone publication under the
circumstances just referred to
M. K. Gandhi
Johannesburg
March 20th, 1910