Important people of India

1
Important people of India

• Emperor Ashoka

• Mahatma Gandhi

2
Mahatma Gandhi

• BIOGRAPHY OF MAHATMA GANDHI Mohandas Karamchand
  Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar,
  India. He became one of the most respected
  spiritual and political leaders of the 1900's.
  GandhiJi helped free the Indian people from
  British rule through nonviolent resistance, and
  is honored by Indians as the father of the Indian
  Nation.
• The Indian people called Gandhiji  'Mahatma',
  meaning Great Soul. At the age of 13 Gandhi
  married Kasturba, a girl the same age. Their
  parents arranged the marriage. The Gandhis had
  four children. Gandhi studied law in London and
  returned to India in 1891 to practice. In 1893 he
  took on a one-year contract to do legal work in
  South Africa.

3
More about Gandhi
He developed a method of action based upon the
principles of courage, nonviolence and truth
called Satyagraha. He believed that the way
people behave is more important than what they
achieve. Satyagraha promoted nonviolence and
civil disobedience as the most appropriate
methods for obtaining political and social goals.
In 1915 Gandhi returned to India. Within 15 years
he became the leader of the Indian nationalist
movement. Using the principles of Satyagraha he
led the campaign for Indian independence from
Britain. Gandhi was arrested many times by the
British for his activities in South Africa and
India. He believed it was honorable to go to jail
for a just cause. Altogether he spent seven years
in prison for his political activities.
4
Emperor Ashoka

• Emperor Ashoka
• The great Indian emperor, Ashoka, was born in 265
  B.C. The grandson of the great Changragupta
  Maurya, Ashoka ruled over an empire that covered
  two-thirds of the Indian continent. He was the
  most famous of the Mauryan kings and was one of
  the greatest Hindu rulers of India, who later got
  embraced Buddhism.A very brave ruler and a good
  administrator, Emperor Ashoka was the younger son
  of the King Bindusara and was given the throne
  soon after the kings death because he was loved
  and respected by his subjects and by his
  ministers. His grandfather, Chandragupta, had set
  out to conquer the weaker kingdoms around his
  kingdom to expand the territory of his people in
  324 BCE, and was the first to rule over a unified
  India. It was in 268 BCE, when Ashoka was crowned
  the king of Magadha.

5
More about Ashoka

• The Turning PointAfter 8 years of his rule, King
  Ashoka decided to annex Kalinga (Orissa) into his
  kingdom. This was the first and last battle that
  Ashoka ever fought. Though Ashoka won the battle
  he was horrified by the loss of life and death of
  so many soldiers. This incidence changed him
  and it was then he pledged that he would never
  wage war again. He embraced Buddhism, and he
  promised to practice only righteous actions in
  the future. Under the guidance of many Buddhist
  gurus of the Buddhist community, Ashoka began to
  be like an ideal leader, spreading peace
  prosperity within society. He religiously
  followed the principles of Buddhism - that of
  truth, charity, kindness, purity and goodness.
  A firm believer of non-violence, King Ashoka
  banned the sacrifice of animals and asked his
  followers to take the path of virtuous action.
  Besides all these, he opened clinics for birds
  and animals too. It was his good works, which
  earned him the name of Devanamapriya Priyadarshi.
  During the rule of Ashoka, India reached
  achieved numerous heights in the history of the
  world.