The next chapter will compare Gandhian thinking to revolutionary socialism, as it is advocated in the writings of Tariq Ali. Ali is a contemporary intellectual who was born in India and spent his childhood there, although the city he came from later became part of Pakistan.

* Jayaprakash Narayan, letter of resignation from the Praja Socialist Party. 1957, reprinted as Chapter 18 of Bimal Prasad (ed.) A Revolutionary’s Quest, Selected Writings of Jayaprakash Narayan. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1980. p. 196.

 

(1) Jayaprakash Narayan, in chapter 3 of Why Socialism?, as extracted in Bimal Prasad (ed), A Revolutionary’s Quest: Selected Writings of Jayaprakash Narayan. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1980. pp. 49-50. This work is hereafter cited as Selected Writings. I have corrected a misprint where “are” should have been “or.” I will sometimes refer in the singular to the inter-related set of problems Narayan poses as “the problem,” even though in another context I might use the plural and make a list of what the separate problems are. I do not share the bias of those who consider it to be always or nearly always more scientific to speak of a series of distinct problems. I agree with those who see capitalism as having a central contradiction, which can be named as the contradiction between the accumulation of profits and the production of use values. It creates obstacles to solving many problems. Hence one can also speak of a single problem containing sub-problems, inasmuch as each sub-problem is exacerbated and partly caused by the same central contradiction.

(2) Karl Marx, Critique of the Gotha Programme. New York: International Publishers, 1938. p. 7.

(3) See Peter Drucker’s study of Hitler’s economy, The End of Economic Man. Drucker explains in detail how Nazi Germany was not run on the basis of investment for profit, but nevertheless was made to run by enlisting other motives. Hitler demonstrated that an economically successful alternative to capitalism is possible, although he did not demonstrate a desirable alternative to it. Peter Drucker, The End of Economic Man.. New York: John Day, 1939. Amritananda Das has argued that a Gandhian economy must appeal to nationalism, which is perhaps neither the best nor the worst of human motives. Foundations of Gandhian Economics. Delhi: Center for the Study of Developing Societies, 1979. p. 72. Das thinks historical experience shows that a desire to benefit the poor is not a strong enough motivation for the sacrifices necessary to secure the benefit of the poor.

(4) Alfred Marshall, quoted by John Maynard Keynes, in The General Theory of Employment Interest and Money. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1936. footnote 2 on page 19.

(5) Keynes, General Theory pp. 29-30 and 30-31.

(6) John Maynard Keynes, “National Self Sufficiency,” The Yale Review June, 1933, p. 765.

(6B) “The marriage between interests and values that liberalism neatly underwrote in the nineteenth century, with its simple but elegant view of the world, is in the process of being repeated –a process perhaps embraced with more fervour in Britain than anywhere else.” Will Hutton, The Revolution That Never Was: an assessment of Keynesian economics. London: Longman, 1986. p. 15. ”In the middle 1940s, the Keynesians felt superior and triumphant. During the 1950s they were mostly losing their confidence … In 1963 I thought that the clear academic retreat from Keynesianism had already been accompanied by a retreat in policy.” William H. Hutt, The Keynesian Episode. Indianapolis: Liberty Press, 1979. p. 415, p. 419; Sheila Dow and John Hillard (eds.), Keynes, Uncertainty, and the Global Economy (Beyond Keynes, Volume Two). Cheltenham UK: Edward Elgar, 2002;

 

(6C) e.g. Mark Latham, Civilising Global Capital: new thinking for Australian Labor. Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 1998; Robert Reich, The Work of Nations. London: Simon and Schuster, 1991.

(6D) A.M. Huq, “Welfare Criteria in Gandhian Economics,” in Romesh Diwan and Mark Lutz (eds.) Essays in Gandhian Economics. Delhi: Gandhi Peace Foundation, 1985. p. 68. ) Although developing nations after World War II generally accepted the idea of macroeconomic planning of a more or less Keynesian sort, they often did not accept the idea that in poor country contexts Keynes’ concept of effective demand being an obstacle to growth was valid. See Amartya Sen, Employment, Technology and Development. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1999.

(7) Gandhi, Young India, June 18, 1931.

 

(8) The resignation letter cited in the first footnote above, p. 205.

(9) The gradual shift of Narayan’s thought from Marx to Gandhi is recounted by his close friend Minoo Masani in Minoo Masani, Is J.P. the Answer? Delhi: Macmillan, 1975. pp. 10-33.

(10) Jayaprakash Narayan, “A Plea for Reconstruction of the Indian Polity,” in Selected Writings pp. 218-219. Narayan gives an explanation of the meaning of dharma: “The concept of dharma was of great importance in ancient India. It prescribed and regulated individual and group behavior in all walks of life. This concept of dharma and its role in Indian polity and the wider life of society is another example of that synthetic, organic, communal organization of Indian society which has been discussed above. Communities, territorial or functional, had developed laws and codes of behavior to regulate the internal life of their communities and groups and their relations with the rest of society. There were in addition codes and laws that were common to and excepted by all of them that made up the universal social ethics. The ensemble of these social ethics exercised a powerful influence over the State.” Selected Writings p. 217.

(11) “Those who are engaged in this voluntary organization not only derive no pecuniary advantage from it but are expected, if they can, to give their labour free of any hire.” M.K. Gandhi, Economics of Khadi. Ahmedabad: Navajivan Press, 1941. p. 542.

(12) J.P. explains his concept of total revolution in Selected Writings pp. 369-371. “There are four aspects for the work for total revolution: struggle, construction, propaganda, and organization. In the present situation we should concentrate on the constructive aspect. …. Total revolution is permanent revolution. It will always go on and keep changing both our personal and social lives.” Selected Writings p. 369. The concept is analyzed by the Gandhian economist Romesh Diwan in “Total Revolution and Appropriate Technology,” which is chapter 12 of Romesh Diwan and Mark Lutz (eds.) Essays in Gandhian Economics. Delhi: Gandhi Peace Foundation, 1985.

 

(13) Paul Sweezey, “The First Quarter Century,” in Robert Lekachman (ed) Keynes’ General Theory. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1964. p. 305. “…his greatest achievements were freeing economics from the tyranny of Say’s Law and exploding the myth of capitalism as a self-adjusting system which reconciles private and public interests.”

 

(14) “Fifty million tons of foodgrain are rotting while people cannot afford to buy food. Stocks of rice have increased from 13 million tons to 22 million tons, while wheat stocks have gone up from 8.72 million tons to 24.11 million tons between 1994-95 and 2000-01.” Vandana Shiva, in Vandana Shiva and Gitanjali Bedi (eds.) Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security. Delhi, Sage, 2002. p. 460.

 

(15) Richard Cyert and James March, A Behavioral Theory of the Firm. Oxford: Blackwell, 1992. The authors show that business people in practice often do not follow the precepts of classical economic theory. Instead of maximizing returns, they “satisfice” by finding solutions to problems that do not leave anybody terribly unhappy.

(16) Clifford Geertz, Local Knowledge, further essays in interpretive anthropology. New York: Basic Books, 1985.

(17) Gandhi in Masur and Masur (eds) Economic Thought of Mahatma Gandhi. Allahabad: Chaitanya Publishing, 1962. p. 491.reprinted from Harijan November 2, 1934, p. 301.

(18) Economic Thought p. 291. reprinted from Harijan August 31, 1934, p. 229.

 

(19) Economic Thought p. 475-6. reprinted from Young India November 13, 1924, p. 378. [interpolations added]

 

*** On Bhoodan’s accomplishments see T.K.N. Unnithan, Gandhi and Free India. Groningen, Holland: J.B. Wolters, 1956. pp 127-31.

(20) David Selbourne, “A Political Morality Re-examined,” in David Selbourne (ed.), In Theory and in Practice: Essays on the Politics of Jayaprakash Narayan. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1985. p. 181. The phrase quoted expresses an attitude the author attributes to his former self, of which he later repented.