Mark Lindley, whose authoritative study of the first Gandhian economist, J.C. Kumarappa, has earned accolades in India and abroad, has now written the definitive biography of Gora (1902-1975), a social reformer whose thought and practice Mahatma Gandhi described as superior to his own.
Gora, though himself born high-caste, worked ceaselessly for the upliftment of the oppressed and for economic justice. He was an atheist, but a positive one who believed that men and women do not really need the support of religion to gain self-confidence and achieve social equality. Vinoba Bhave paid him the ultimate compliment of declaring publicly that he was a philosopher of the category of Adi Shankara.
Mark Lindley has put into rich historical context the saga of a remarkable man whose work has gone unsung by Indian historians.
Prof. Mark Lindley, born in Washington DC, has taught at Universities in Western Europe, Turkey, India and China as well as the USA. His writings on Gandhiji include ‘Gandhi and the World Today’, Gandhi and Humanism’ and ‘Gandhi as We Have Known Him’.