A Letter to a Hindu

“Love is the only way to rescue humanity from all ills,

and in it you too have the only method

of saving your people from enslavement.”

A Letter to a Hindu was Leo Tolstoy’s response to letters from Tarak Nath Das – an Indian revolutionary and international scholar. Das wished to know the Russian author’s views on how India could gain Independence from the British.

Tolstoy’s response elaborates on how India and Indians have love in their very roots, and they could use the methods of non-violence, protests and peace to win independence. When Mahatma Gandhi came across the letter, he translated it and published it with his Introduction. It holds insights from some great minds from the pre-independence era and is a reflection of India’s rich heritage and cultural roots.