Hind Swaraj, written by Mahatma Gandhi in 1909, unfurled his epic war of freedom from British imperial rule and his struggle to achieve swaraj. It is the most comprehensive presentation of Mahatma Gandhi's vision of the nature of freedom unique to Indian civilization. In one word it is known as Swaraj. It is the highest form of democracy. Hind Swaraj a political, cultural and spiritual manifesto for our times, because we know what is democracy in modern terms, but we don't know a form of democracy in which justice and freedom both can attain their height. Therefore it is menifesto not only for Indians but also for all those who strive to honour the dignity of human being and of nations.

Mahatma Gandhi wrote Hind Swaraj while returning from London in late 1909 on the ship Kildonon Castle. Mahatma Gandhi wrote as if he was possessed by some spirit. Hind Swaraj was written in 9 days. He was so possessed that he had to use both his hands to write; when his right hand got tired he started writing with the left. He wrote it in Gujarati, his mother tongue. On 22nd November 1909 he finished writing with giving an introduction to the Gujarati text. In the 11 December issue of 'Indian Opinion' the first 12 chapters were published while the remaining chapters were published in the 18 December 1909 issue of 'Indian Opinion'. The book was proscribed by the British Colonial Government due to its unconventional, thought provoking, radical view on the Western civilization in particular and civilization in general.

As Mahatma Gandhi discovered and efficaciously employed the power of nonviolence in the form of Satyagraha against the British colonial rule in South Africa, he also conducted dialogue with the extremists, the school of violence, engaged in Indian freedom struggle. Gandhiji explained the meaning of true freedom in terms of Swaraj as different from independence. "The word Swaraj is a sacred word, a Vedic word, meaning self-rule and self-restraint, and not freedom from all restraint which 'independence' often means." Only Swaraj empowers the lowliest of the low. Swaraj is that state of an individual and a nation in which freedom of some does not exceed the limits to cause injustice to others. Justice and freedom are harmonized because Swaraj is nonviolence maximized in economic, political, cultural and moral spheres of life. Such a state of a nation can not be attained except through the means of nonviolence. Gandhiji explained how nonviolence is coextensive with the entire life as the hub of Indian civilization or for that matter, for any civilization. He defines civilization thus "Civilization is that mode of conduct which points out to man the path of duty. Performance of duty and observance of morality are convertible terms. To observe morality is to attain mastery over our mind and our passions. So doing, we know ourselves. The Gujarati equivalent for civilization means good conduct".

Through violent extremism independence can be won; one set of rulers can be replaced by an another set of rulers. But, it can not transform the governance, the rule. Modern rule is so designed as to ruin people morally, spiritually and materially. It survives on the exploitation of the week by the powerful. It converts with the means of modern science, technology, institutions and 'ideologies' industrious and sovereign people and nations into cheap labour. Rule that oppresses the masses and which is intrinsically immoral would only change hands and not its nature. To remind the anglicized Indians what self-governance, true democracy or Home-rule means to India and how therefore the ideal of Swaraj has been cherished by Indians since time immemorial; and, what the new-fangled notions of progress and advancement actually means, he wrote Hind Swaraj in 1909. Gandhiji alerted us against the internal and external forces that would enslave people if people lost the ideal of 'Swaraj' or Self-governance, good governance and moral conduct. He unfurled his manifesto as he unfurled his struggle - the epic war of the good against the evil. Following what he wrote in Hind Swaraj, Gandhiji laid a path that led India to its freedom and showed light to the entire world.

Chairman of Hind Swaraj Centenary Committee of Swarajpeeth, Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche, Prime Minister, H. H. Dalai Lama's Tibetan Govt in Exile, explains:

At the foundation of all the spiritual and philosophical works everywhere in the world, there is always a root text, a thesis. Rest of all works, literature and even scriptures is only an extension or interpretation of that fundamental text. It would not be inappropriate to consider Hind Swaraj as the comprehensive root-text or thesis of Mahatma Gandhi's thought. In this small book the core issues concerning truth, civilization, swaraj, nonviolence and satyagraha are defined and analyzed in a simple language. It is in Hind Swaraj that the symbiotic connections among all our private and corporate economic, political, cultural and spiritual dimensions of life are found in a profound vision and philosophy of a moral order of life. Hind Swaraj states, in major parts of it, perennial truth. Its relevance is universal, for all times and all people. If we can properly grasp the meaning and the motive of its subject we can find, with an unbiased vision, solution to all our personal, social, national, and global problems. In an era when the globalization of blind materialism has proven its destructive propensity the key to real peace, harmony and prosperity lies in Gandhi's conception of Swaraj. The study and deeper contemplation on Hind Swaraj is essential to salvage humanity.

Mahadev Desai, Mahatma Gandhi's Secretary, notes:

When Lord Lothian was at Segaon (Sevagram) he asked me, if he could give him a copy of Hind Swaraj, for, as he said, all that Gandhiji was teaching now lay in the germ in that little book which deserved to be read and re-read in order to understand Gandhiji properly.

Writing about Hind Swaraj Gandhiji said:

In my opinion it is a book which can be put into the hands of a child. It teaches the gospel of love in place of that of hate. It replaces violence with self-sacrifice. It pits sole-force against brute force.

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