Rating: 
Summary: A Message for Today
Review: Gandhi's words have never been so pertinent as they are today. This is an anthology of his writings, edited by topic in chronological order. It's an autobiography revealing Gandhi's evolution from a fearful young man, afraid of the dark, to a fearless leader who feared no rebuke by an empire. More than an aesthete in a modern world, Gandhi's complexity is revealed in each passage as he penitently reveals his transformation into selfless service and living simply. His words and actions inspired others to follow without fear of retaliation and could guide today's leaders to a peaceful resolve. The book reads like a primer on non-violence.Eknath Easwaran's 18 page Preface is worth the price of the 339 page paperbound book.
Rating:
Summary: A Message for Today
Review: Gandhi's words have never been so pertinent as they are today. This is an anthology of his writings, edited by topic in chronological order. It's an autobiography revealing Gandhi's evolution from a fearful young man, afraid of the dark, to a fearless leader who feared no rebuke by an empire. More than an aesthete in a modern world, Gandhi's complexity is revealed in each passage as he penitently reveals his transformation into selfless service and living simply. His words and actions inspired others to follow without fear of retaliation and could guide today's leaders to a peaceful resolve. The book reads like a primer on non-violence. Eknath Easwaran's 18 page Preface is worth the price of the 339 page paperbound book.
Rating:
Summary: Best Gandhi book available.
Review: I have read every Gandhi book i could get my hands on, such as all his autobiographies, and this book is by far the best and just as accurate. With this book and the writings that are on his official website, you will have all the information you will ever need. One thing to keep in mind, that many people seem to forget, is that Gandhi was a normal man like you and me. He made mistakes just like every other man, but had the courage to always follow his 'inner voice' even in his unperfectness. This is a life changing book for those who dare to look within themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to Read Impossible to Forget
Review: The best anything I've ever read about Gandhiji! I read this over 6 weeks when I was visiting India in the Fall of 2000 to see my mother for the last time. Every night I was so eager to read the book from the place I left the night before. At the end, the book was in several pieces but I still remember the highlights. A great author to write a great book about a unique soul!
Rating:
Summary: Mind Over Matter
Review: The Essential Gandhi presents important spiritual and politial concepts from Gandhi's concise, prophetic speeches and writings. Editor Louis Fischer accurately frames Gandhi's quotes, often explaining the political or cultural environment in South African and India as it was in Gandhi's time.. This book is a difficult read because it is a collection of quotes that have been organized by subject, albeit somewhat poorly. Nevertheless, it offers tremendous insights. I recommend The Essential Gandhi highly to those seeking spirituality and truth, and do not recommend it to those interested in a casual intellectual read.
Rating:
Summary: Mind Over Matter
Review: The Essential Gandhi presents important spiritual and politial concepts from Gandhi's concise, prophetic speeches and writings. Editor Louis Fischer accurately frames Gandhi's quotes, often explaining the political or cultural environment in South African and India as it was in Gandhi's time.. This book is a difficult read because it is a collection of quotes that have been organized by subject, albeit somewhat poorly. Nevertheless, it offers tremendous insights. I recommend The Essential Gandhi highly to those seeking spirituality and truth, and do not recommend it to those interested in a casual intellectual read.
Rating: 
Summary: Read Gandhi's autobiography aswell
Review: This book is a collection of Gandhi's writings linked together by a biographer. The writings are taken from many different sources (including his autobiography) which I found produced a slightly disjointed reading experience.
I found his autobiography (called The Story of My Experiments with Truth) worked much better for me. In this book, which is written entirely in his own words, we join Gandhi on a journey of self-discovery as he relates experiences and learning lessons which were important during his life. His mission was to seek truth, which he achieved through conducting experiments on himself and then appraising the results.
Gandhi was one who never followed the crowd. He felt they didn't know where they were going. He preferred to trust his own judgement and soul, rather than blindly following other people or their beliefs. This did not mean he rejected all commonly held beliefs but he always cross-examined them fully before finally accepting them. He urges us not to follow him, rather to seek the truth for ourselves through our own experimentations. After all seeing is believing.
He found that uncovering the truth was not always popular as many people are resistant to change, preferring instead to maintain the existing status quo either because of inertia, self-interest or misguided beliefs. However once the truth is on the march nothing can stop it. All it takes is time to achieve traction and gain momentum. As Gandhi says "The truth is far more powerful than any weapon of mass destruction".
His autobiography confirms to us that the most important battle to fight is in overcoming one's own demons, fears and insecurities. It is all too easy to blame people, governing powers or enemies for our actions and wellbeing. The solution to our problems can normally be found just by looking in the mirror. The path to enlightenment (see www.feeltheforce.org) is a journey to be travelled alone and requires us to open our hearts, our minds and our eyes.
In addition to Gandhi's autobiography I would also recommend the film Gandhi by Sir Richard Attenborough plus the books The Kingdom of God is Within You by Leo Tolstoy and Fit for Life II by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond.
Rating:
Summary: Must Read For All
Review: This book is one of my favorite non-fiction books. The beauty of this book is that the main points are in Ghandi's exact quotes while the flow of the arguments are edited by his biographer, Louis Fischer, to give a great feel of direction. Because Ghandi edited his own newspaper his life-changing views are abundant and easily accessible. If only this book were read by all leaders of people.
Rating:
Summary: Must Read For All
Review: This book is one of my favorite non-fiction books. The beauty of this book is that the main points are in Ghandi's exact quotes while the flow of the arguments are edited by his biographer, Louis Fischer, to give a great feel of direction. Because Ghandi edited his own newspaper his life-changing views are abundant and easily accessible. If only this book were read by all leaders of people.
Rating:
Summary: Great Thoughts from a Great Man
Review: This is a mind opening, life changing book. The thoughts and writings, spaning over the entire course of Gandhi's life, offer a glipse into the mind and habits of one of God's greatest followers. His peaceful approach to life and his undying love for friend and foe alike will motivate any reader to the highest level. This is a must read for anyone, regardless of nationality or creed, who wishes to see the potential all humans have within them.
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