It was in South Africa that Gandhi raised a family, and first employed nonviolent resistance in a campaign for civil rights.
After two uncertain years in India, where he was unable to start a successful law practice, he moved to South Africa in 1893 to represent an Indian merchant in a lawsuit. The honorific Mahātmā (Sanskrit: "great-souled", "venerable"), first applied to him in 1914 in South Africa, is now used throughout the world.īorn and raised in a Hindu family in coastal Gujarat, western India, Gandhi trained in law at the Inner Temple, London, and was called to the bar at age 22 in June 1891. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (/ˈɡɑːndi, ˈɡændi/ 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethicist, who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful campaign for India's independence from British Rule, and in turn inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. Office President of the Indian National Congress GandhiĪlma mater University College London (LL.B.) Other names Mahatma Gandhi, Bapu ji, Gandhi ji, M. Porbandar, Porbandar State, Kathiawar Agency, Bombay Presidency, British India For other uses, see Gandhi (disambiguation).
For the third prime minister of India, see Indira Gandhi.