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Why is Gandhi Wise? A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Gandhi as an Exemplar of Wisdom

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Abstract

This study explores cross-cultural differences in why Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi is nominated as an historical exemplar of wisdom. We compare the answers of emerging adults (aged 18–30) from three populations: Indian citizens, Canadian citizens, and Indian immigrants to Canada. Chi-square analyses showed that these groups emphasize significantly different aspects of Gandhi’s wisdom: Canadian citizens see Gandhi’s wisdom as practical and intellectual; Indian citizens see Gandhi’s wisdom as practical and benevolent; Indian immigrants to Canada consider Gandhi to integrate benevolent, intellectual, and practical aspects of wisdom; they also differ significantly in attributes associated with their implicit theory about his wisdom. Participants who know more about Gandhi also claim that he had a greater impact on their own lives. These findings suggest that historical exemplars of wisdom are filtered through the sociocultural contexts of each participant’s own lived experience, but that they still can be an inspiration in personally meaningful ways.

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Notes

  1. The term Mahatma means ‘great soul’, a title given to him for his selfless services to the nation.

  2. Shravana Kumara was the only son of blind parents, whom he carried on a pilgrimage to holy places in two baskets attached to a pole slung on his shoulder, personifying the ideal of duty.

  3. Harishchandra was a king and made enormous sacrifices to keep his word, personifying the ideal of devotion to truth.

  4. For a more complete account of Gandhi’s life and work, see the Gandhi Heritage Portal (https://www.gandhiheritageportal.org).

  5. The principle of nonviolence toward all living things in the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain tradition.

  6. A term coined by Gandhi from the Sanskrit: “Truth (satya) implies love, and firmness (agraha) engenders and therefore serves as a synonym for force” (Gandhi 1968).

  7. Moksha means freedom from being reincarnated repeatedly in the mundane world where one is under the grip of one’s passions. According to Hindu beliefs, Moksha is one of the fourfold goal of human life.

  8. While we generally share her assessment of this remarkable person, as with virtually all wisdom figures, her choice is not without its critics [see Larivée et al. (2013)].

  9. An entire tradition of psychobiography has explored other figures without claiming that they are wise. And while Erikson himself does not specifically claim to be writing about wisdom, since wisdom is integral to his theory of psychosocial development, it seems a fair inference to consider his psychobiographies as addressing this theme.

  10. Participants in the larger study included 50 Indian citizens from Tamil Nadu recruited from Chennai (formerly Madras) and 25 Indian citizens from Baroda (formerly Varodara), in Gujarat (Gandhi’s home province), recruited through the Maharaja Sayajirao University in Baroda; 50 native-born Canadian citizens and 17 Canadian immigrants from India recruited through the University of Toronto.

  11. The traditional Hindu practice of a widow throwing herself onto her husband’s funeral pyre.

  12. Swatantra is a Sanskrit word composed of two parts, swa and tantra: Swa means self or personal; the meaning of tantra includes (1) governance, rule, or control, (2) support or maintenance as a family, and (3) happiness.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported in part by a grant from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Room 9123, 252 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON, M5S 1V6, Canada

    Michel Ferrari, Yasmine Abdelaal, Shonali Lakhani, Sargam Sachdeva & Samia Tasmim

  2. Faculty of Family and Community Sciences, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Varodara, India

    Divya Sharma

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  1. Michel Ferrari
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  2. Yasmine Abdelaal
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  3. Shonali Lakhani
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Correspondence to Michel Ferrari.

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Ferrari, M., Abdelaal, Y., Lakhani, S. et al. Why is Gandhi Wise? A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Gandhi as an Exemplar of Wisdom. J Adult Dev 23, 204–213 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10804-016-9236-7

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