Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869–1948)

Abstract Mohandas K. (Mahatma) Gandhi placed high priority on the application of ahiṁsā (nonviolence) in relation to animals. This chapter maps Gandhi’s thought and practice with respect to animals onto his overall vision for human well-being. A fourfold foundation of Gandhi’s thought—the principles of truth, nonviolence, austerity, and self-governance—points to the breadth and depth of his concern for animal care, with implications for the whole range of his vision for human and world flourishing. Such flourishing may come especially through the specific practical process of caring for and protecting bovines. Through this practice, humans put themselves in the most favorable position to act rightly in relation to all living beings, with the environment as a whole, and in service to God. This understanding and vision is sustained in a conception of ahiṁsā as an affirmative practice that all human beings are called upon to undertake.