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UPSC » Daily News Analysis ‘Influence of Leo Tolstoy on Gandhi’: 6 February

Daily News Analysis ‘Influence of Leo Tolstoy on Gandhi’: 6 February

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has been involved in copying important stone inscriptions from the walls of two temples at Srirangam and Manachanallur taluks onto maplitho paper, in Tiruchi district.

Table of Content

Key Points:

  • Gandhi first encountered Tolstoy’s philosophy in 1909 through A Letter to a Hindu written by Tolstoy.
  • Gandhi established Tolstoy Ashram in South Africa near Johannesburg as a self-sufficient communal settlement for Indian workers and activists.
  • Tolstoy’s advocacy for austere and self-sufficient living inspired Gandhi’s ashram lifestyle and emphasis on self-reliance (like khadi spinning).
  • Tolstoy’s ideas on non-resistance to evil by force deeply influenced Gandhi’s commitment to ahimsa (nonviolence) in his freedom struggle.
  • Tolstoy’s rejection of materialism and industrialization shaped Gandhi’s views in Hind Swaraj, where he criticized Western civilization.

Why in News?

The descendants of Mahatma Gandhi and Leo Tolstoy, Gopalkrishna Gandhi and Daniil Tolstoy highlighted the extraordinary legacy of Gandhi and Tolstoy at the Jaipur Literature Festival in February 2025.