"Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man whom you may have seen and ask yourself if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him.

In other words, will it lead to Swaraj for the hungry and spiritually starving millions?"

The Swaraj which was achieved at independence in 1947 was not true swaraj, and in a number of respects. The greatest disaster was that the cultural unit of the sub-continent was split asunder. People who had been neighbours and friends became enemies. Gandhi's free India was to be a tolerant and pluralistic one, externally working for the good of all countries. Its partition, and along religious lines, was a disaster then, and the consequences of which Pakistan and India live with even today. Gandhi's reaction at the time was to refuse to attend the independence celebrations. One of the new states, India, did emerge as a basically democratic, pluralistic society but with little economic autonomy for the majority of its population, too many self-seeking politicians, and a high expenditure on armaments.

True Swaraj?

What would a society based on true swaraj look like? Gandhi gave some idea for a rural society like India. It would be characterised by a relatively weak central government but a strong base of nearly self-sufficient, self-governing villages containing independent, well-educated individuals. All adults would elect a small body (panchayat) to deal with disputes and crime, and also relevant political and economic matters. Villages would be grouped into districts, districts into provinces, provinces into states, each administered by representatives elected from its constituent units and not directly by the whole electorate. Higher education, certain industries and services which are desirable but are unable to be provided at village level would be provided by the larger units.

Today most societies are urban, and increasingly so around the world. In the foreseeable future it seems unlikely that there will be a return to the village as the centre of life for most people. However, the administration of towns and cities could be devolved to smaller units having real local power. The increasing size of private companies whose power extends around the globe and whose purpose is primarily to perpetuate their own existence is one that Gandhi surely would have been highly critical of. Bringing these large corporations under more democratic control, and at the same time encouraging smaller, local units whenever possible would be a way forward. The enviromental impact of economic activity has become much greater in the 50 years since Gandhi's death, but a low impact lifestyle is implicit in Gandhi's approach and this can readily be transferred to the present.

Gandhi's starting point was the individual. What applies to the individual can be extended to groups of increasing size up to the whole world community. Freedom - swaraj - for the individual can through nonviolence to freedom for all humanity.