My Experiments with Truth – Mahatma Gandhi

Detailed Description of the Book

My Experiments with Truth is Mahatma Gandhi’s spiritual and moral autobiography, not written to glorify achievements but to honestly document his ethical failures, doubts, self-discipline, and moral evolution. Gandhi treats his life as a series of “experiments” to discover how truth (satya), non-violence (ahimsa), self-restraint, duty, and moral courage can be practised in real life.

The book is deeply introspective and shows that ethical leadership is not about perfection, but about continuous self-correction. Gandhi links personal morality with public action, arguing that political freedom is meaningless without moral freedom. He emphasises:

• Truth as a way of life, not a slogan

• Non-violence as active moral courage, not weakness

• Self-discipline as the foundation of public ethics

• Means being as important as ends

• Willingness to admit mistakes publicly

The following extracts may be used in OPSC answer writing:

“Truth is God.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Moral absolutism, truth as highest value in public life

“My life is my message.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Leadership by example, integrity, congruence between word and deed

“I claim to be a simple individual liable to err like any other fellow mortal.”→ GS-4 Ethics: Humility, ethical leadership, admission of mistakes

“The seeker after truth should be humbler than the dust.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Ethical humility, servant leadership

“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Integrity, coherence of thought–speech–action

“Non-violence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Moral courage, peaceful conflict resolution

“Means are after all everything.”→ GS-4 Ethics: Ethical means in governance, rejection of expediency

“Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.”→ Essay / GS-4: Moral resilience, leadership under adversity

“A man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Attitude formation, moral psychology

“There is a higher court than courts of justice and that is the court of conscience.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Conscience vs legality, ethical whistleblowing

“Self-restraint is the essence of freedom.”→ GS-4 Ethics / Essay: Moral self-control, responsible liberty

“Rights that do not flow directly from duty well performed are not worth having.”→ GS-4 / GS-2: Duty-based ethics, responsible citizenship

“To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest.”→ GS-4 Ethics: Ethical hypocrisy vs integrity