| Revision as of 03:34, 20 September 2008 editRoadahead (talk | contribs)Rollbackers1,543 edits →Scholarly: Williams is not scholar; please stop misleading wikipedia readers← Previous edit | Revision as of 03:35, 20 September 2008 edit undoRoadahead (talk | contribs)Rollbackers1,543 edits →General comments by other readers: its not Original Research, its Williams own words in plain English; please read the review again.Next edit → | ||
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| == General comments by other readers == | == General comments by other readers == | ||
| Another reviewer Xavier William {{Verify credibility|date=September 2008}} accused the author of ] and compared it to another anti-Gandhi piece written by ] and hinting that G. B. Singh has done this work because he is a Sikh as well |
Another reviewer Xavier William {{Verify credibility|date=September 2008}} accused the author of ] and compared it to another anti-Gandhi piece written by ] and hinting that G. B. Singh has done this work because he is a Sikh as well. William provides perspectives from his own life that belie the claims made by the book. While William agreed that Gandhi "had his faults", he wrote, "the mud slung at Gandhi by G.B.Singh only adds to the greatness of the Mahatma. In the same review, Williams reduces his own credibility on the subject by saying that he himself is "no Gandhi expert".<ref>{{cite journal | ||
| | last = William | | last = William | ||
| | first = Xavier | | first = Xavier | ||
Revision as of 03:35, 20 September 2008
 Cover page by Prometheus Books. | |
| Author | Col. G. B. Singh |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Non-Fiction |
| Publisher |  Prometheus Books |
| Publication date | April 2004 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print Hardcover & Paperback |
| Pages | 356 |
| ISBN | 978-1573929981 |
Gandhi Behind the Mask of Divinity is an English language book written by US Army Colonel G. B. Singh. The book challenges the image of Gandhi as a great benevolent non-violent leader, and attempts to present what the author calls "real" Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, through Gandhi's own writings and actions over the course of his life. The book claims that Gandhi had a racist attitude towards the Blacks of South Africa and the Indian untouchables. It also claims that he instigated racial hatred against the Whites, and was involved in covering up the killing of American engineer William Francis Doherty. The book claims that the portrayal of Gandhi as a great leader is the work of "Hindu propaganda machine" and the Christian clergy with ulterior motives, and is based on irrationality and deception which the modern historians have failed to notice.
Book organization
The author, Colonel Singh, states that he spent 20 years collecting Gandhi's original writings, speeches and other documents for this research book. An earlier article by the author, Would the Real Gandhi Please Stand Up in AAH Newsletter (publication of African Americans for Humanism) had resulted in protests by an active Black group in South Africa, when a statue of Gandhi was unveiled in central Johannesburg.
The is organized into 7 parts and 30 chapters. It starts by presenting a majority of earlier publications on Gandhi and the interactions and exposure (if any) of the authors of those publications to Gandhi and his ideology. In the first part, the author starts by explaining the reason for yet another book on Gandhi and then continues by presenting the major previous literary work done on Gandhi including the Gandhi movie in the first part of the book. The book claims that the Christian clergy first started "the Gandhi myth" -- they wanted to elevate Gandhi to a 20th century messiah and then convert him to Christianity, something that would open the floodgate for evangelizing Hindu masses.
The second part deals with Gandhi's activism during the Bambatha Rebellion (Zulu war) followed by part 3 of the book which talks about the subtle dangers involved in Gandhi's Satyagraha methodology. Later parts 4, 5 and 6 attempt at analyzing Gandhi form racism point of view and his politics before and after the Boer War in South Africa. The author tries provides many examples for Gandhi's alleged racist attitude towards the Blacks. He states that racism was an integral part of Gandhi's Satyagrah in South Africa, and he never fought for the rights of the native people. He further discusses how Gandhi actively encouraged the British to raise an Indian regiment for use against the Black Zulus, contrary to his image of a non-violent leader. He also says that Gandhi had accepted the superiority and predominance of the white race, and believed that the upper-caste Indians shared with the Europeans a common heritage.
The last part of the book contains Gandhi's activism revolving around the murder of an American Engineer William Francis Doherty and Gandhi's point of view about ethnic cleansing. The book claim that Gandhi was involved in covering up th emurder of Doherty. It also presents the content of original sworn on oath affidavit filed by William Francis Doherty's wife Annette H. Doherty in which she testified that Gandhi resorted to bribery to cover up the murder.
Reviews
Political
United States Congressman Edolphus Towns called the book "definitely controversial" but worth reading to broaden perspective on Gandhi and understand the foundations of India. Towns, a noted critic of India and a supporter of the Sikh extremist Khalistan secessionist movement in India, mentioned the book in his Congressional debate during the Proceedings and Debates of 110th United States Congress (First Session). He stated that since Gandhi is considered as father of India, its important to understand his character to understand India.
Scholarly
A comprehensive, Annotated bibliography on Mahatma Gandhi-related literature briefly mentions the book as a "Highly critical account. Every move by Gandhi is interpreted by the author to be racist, which argument is very questionable”.
Thomas W. Clark, who reviewed the book for American Humanist Association's The Humanist, stated that most readers will find the book "overwrought and unnecessarily inflammatory". As for Singh's accusations of Gandhi destroying incriminating documents to cover up his racist views, Clark labeled them "unsubstantiated hypothesis" and "simply speculation". Clark instead recommended B. R. Ambedkar What Gandhi and the Congress Have Done to the Untouchables (1945) as a "more substantial and balanced account of some of Gandhi's shortcomings". Katie Violin of The Kansas City Star also criticized the book and stated that "Gandhi as a racist doesn't add up."
Professor Manfred Steger, author of Gandhi's Dilemma: Nonviolent Principles And Nationalist Power, wrote a review of the book in the December 2005 issue of The Historian. He stated that the author doesn't offer hard evidence for the first thesis in the book - the alleged "Hindu propaganda machine", and found Singh's "eagerness to accuse" without raising or answering relevant questions "deeply disturbing". At the same time, Steger said that the author offers "much better evidence" for the second thesis - Gandhi's racist attitude. He stated, "Perhaps one of the strongest sections of the book is the author's examination of pertinent primary and secondary literature revealing Gandhi's attitude toward black Africans during his two decades in South Africa". Steger noted that numerous other "balanced" critiques of Gandhi exist, such as the works by Ved Mehta, Partha Chatterjee, and Joseph Alter. In comparison, Steger concluded, that the book was a "one-sided attack" on Gandhi, without offering the larger, more complex picture of Gandhi's ethical and political engagements, thus turning it into a "strident polemic".
Alan Caruba, the editor of Bookviews.com mentioned the book in its December 2004 issue, and stated "We need to remember that even great men had their flaws and Col. Singh, a career military officer and student of Indian politics, Hinduism, and of Gandhi, presents his facts in a compelling way."
In his book, Gandhi's Philosophy and the Quest for Harmony, the author Anthony Parel termed Singh's book as "scurrilous", "crude bias" and "deplorable ignorance".
General comments by other readers
Another reviewer Xavier William accused the author of mud slinging and compared it to another anti-Gandhi piece written by Khushwant Singh and hinting that G. B. Singh has done this work because he is a Sikh as well. William provides perspectives from his own life that belie the claims made by the book. While William agreed that Gandhi "had his faults", he wrote, "the mud slung at Gandhi by G.B.Singh only adds to the greatness of the Mahatma. In the same review, Williams reduces his own credibility on the subject by saying that he himself is "no Gandhi expert"..
See also
References
- "Gandhi Behind the Mask of Divinity". Retrieved 2007-12-17.
- Singh, G. B. (Fall, 2002), "Would the Real Gandhi Please Stand Up?", AAH Examiner, vol. 12, no. 3
{{citation}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)CS1 maint: date and year (link) - "An Interview with Col. G. B. Singh". Retrieved 2007-12-17.
- ^ Extensions of Remarks - December 13, 2005 by HON. EDOLPHUS TOWNS OF NEW YORK IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. Proceedings and Debates of 109th Congress (First Session)
- Comprehensive, Annotated Bibliography on Mahatma Gandhi By Surendra Bhana, Ananda M. Pandiri, Uma Dhupelia-Mesthrie,ISBN 0313302170 P495
- ^ Clark, Thomas W. (2006). "Gandhi in question.(Gandhi: Behind the Mask of Divinity)(Gandhi As We Have Known Him)(Book review)". The Humanist. American Humanist Association. ISSN 0018-7399.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - Violin, Katie (2005-01-02). "Gandhi as a racist doesn't add up". The Kansas City Star. p. 7.
- ^ Steger, Manfred B. (2005-12-05). "Gandhi: Behind the Mask of Divinity (Book review)". The Historian. 67 (4). Phi Alpha Theta: 781. ISSN 0018-2370.
- Caruba, Alan. "BookReviews.com". Retrieved 2008-02-11.
- Parel, Anthony (2006). Gandhi's Philosophy and the Quest for Harmony. Cambridge University Press. p. 114. ISBN 978-0521867153. OCLC 69484298.
- William, Xavier (2004). "Gandhi: Behind the Mask of Divinity.(Book Review)". Reviewer's Bookwatch. Midwest Book Review.
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