"A man who believes in the efficacy of this doctrine finds in the ultimate stage, when he is about to reach the goal, the whole world at his feet"

"Literally speaking, ahinsa means non-violence. But to me it has much higher, infinitely higher meaning. It means that you may not offend anybody; you may not harbour uncharitable thought, even in connection with those who consider your enemies. To one who follows this doctrine, there are no enemies. If you express your love - Ahinsa - in such a manner that it impresses itself indelibly upon your so called enemy, he must return that love. This doctrine tells us that we may guard the honour of those under our charge by delivering our own lives into the hands of the man who would commit the sacrilege. And that requires far greater courage than delivering of blows." M.K. Gandhi

Dennis Dalton explains that Gandhi variously translated Ahinsa as "non-violence," "love," and "charity". Gandhi read the novels of Leo Tolstoy, a Slav aristocrat, who had given up high society. These books expounded the virtues of love for humanity, non-violence against oppressors, and renunciation. In a letter to Tolstoy, Gandhi presented himself as "a humble follower of yours" Dalton points out that Gokhale, who played an important part in the Indian freedom struggle, was the person who came closest to being Gandhi's political guru.

The philosophy of nonviolence, as practiced by Gandhi, is based on the assumption "we are not governed by logic and, therefore, some violence may be necessary in our lives. However, if we are progressing towards civilization we should be able to reduce violence to the bare minimum."

"It is not obvious that the national security of a country demands a conventional armed defense. Nonviolence requires the same strategic thinking and courage as armed conflict does. But instead of weapons different social, political, psychological and economical means are used to defend the nation. The purpose of this campaign is to achieve a comprehensive popular support for nonviolent based conflict resolution", M.K. Gandhi