Sunday, March 01, 2009

Why Mahatma Gandhi didn’t find History Very Useful

Historian T S Shejwalkar त्र्यंबक शंकर शेजवलकर (1895 - 1963) argued that Mahatma Gandhi didn’t have much use of history. (Preface to “Panipat 1761”, 1968)

I always wondered why.

After reading John Gray's "Straw Dogs" (2002) I have found a likely reason.

"...If we truly leave Christianity behind, we must give up the idea that human history has any meaning...In India, it was a collective dream, endlessly repeated. The idea that history must make sense is just a Christian prejudice."


Artist: George Price, The New Yorker, 14 August 1948