Gandhi’s Hinduism was unique in that he took certain teachings and principles from all religions, yet remained a devout Hindu his entire life. He saw the idea of organized religion as hypocrisy, and regularly criticized Hinduism as such. He had many friends of many beliefs, as seen in the movie with the Reverend Charles and Muhammad Ali Jinnah, some of his best friends and Christian and Muslim respectively.
Although it is not shown in the film, Gandhi grew up with plenty of Jain neighbors, and he most likely took his principles of ‘Ahimsa’ (doing no harm) from Jainism. He believed religion is a means of bringing people closer, by opening ourselves to the world spiritually, rather than a means of discrimination and prejudice. At one point in the movie, he even goes so far as to say he is of many different religions; Muslim, Hindu, Christian, Jewish, and Sikh.
Gandhi’s beliefs were exemplified many times in the film, with one in particular: “A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks; he becomes.” Gandhi abandons most of his clothing and earthly possessions early on, in an attempt to become more modest and selfless. He wishes India to become more self sufficient, and so he himself attempts to do so, making most of his own clothing. He believes everyone is equal, and to demonstrate this he takes on every job in a community, even those of the “untouchables”. These are just many examples of how a line of thought can dictate a person’s actions.
