Nonviolent Soldier of Islam: Badshah Khan: A Man to Match His Mountains

by Eknath Easwaran

Book Overview

The story of the great Muslim peacemaker Badshah Khan, who joined Mahatma Gandhi in nonviolent resistance to British rule in India.

Khān Abdul Ghaffār Khān (Badshah Khan or Bacha Khan) came from a Pathan society that was steeped in a tradition of blood revenge, but Khan raised a nonviolent "army" of 100,000 men and joined Mohandas Gandhi in civil disobedience to British rule in India.

Easwaran's biography of Khan...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1888314001
• ISBN13: 9781888314007
• Release Date: November 1999
• Publisher: Nilgiri Press
• Length: 274 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

The Best Book on Badshah Khan - 5stars ++

I love everything Eknath Easwaran writes and this book exceeded my expectations. The stories and information are priceless - buy this book if you want to know about the life of Badshah Khan.

Please, read Arif H. Akhunzada's Review with caution!

I request customers and other visitors to read the article by Arif H. Akhunzada titled "Bacha Khan legacy is Questionable" with caution because in Pakistan objective interpretation and description of history is mostly marred by the official stand on history enshrined in the so-called "Pakistan Ideology". Pakistan Ideology i.e. the Idea that sparked the struggle for Pakistan is a highly communal, theocratic, and Pan-Islamist view of history that considers the people of the Subcontinent to be divided into two religious communities-Hindus and Muslims-with entirely different ways of life and very little in common to live in a single state or society. According to this ideology, the Idea of Pakistan was born when the first Arab Muslim invader i.e. Mohammad Bin Qasim invaded India (Sindh) and converted some of its inhabitants to Islam. This divisive and jingoistic philosophy very well serves the interests of the military bureaucracy that has been ruling Pakistan since inception and the allied religious and fudal classess. As Abdul Ghaffar Khan aka Bacha Khan espoused a non-communal approach to life in which the highest spiritual act and worship was the "service of humanity" irrespective of religious affiliation and practically upheld what he thought as the true purpose of life ( evident from his personal life and joint struggle with Hindus, Sikhs, etc. for freedom), he, therefore, is an anathema to Pakistani national elite. This elite, through a systematic campaign, has tried its best to malign Abdul Ghaffar Khan, mispresent him to the world and his own people i.e. Pashtuns, make him controversial, and permanently erase him from history and the memories of the successive generation of Pashtuns. These elite want Pashtun society to evolve the Taleban way. There is also another dimension to all this. The political, bureaucratic, economic, and intellectual elite of Pakistan predominently comes from two communities; Punjabis and Muhajirs. The other three communities of Pakistan i.e. Sindhis, Baluchis, and Pashtuns have only peripheral rule in Pakistan. The Punjabi-Muhajir elite wants to build a Pakistani nation based on Islam and Hindustani Muslim Culture. Therefore, any thing that gives these marginalized communities (i.e. Baluchis, Pashtuns, and Sindhis) a sense of identity, pride, self-esteem, and confidence is virtually unbearable for the Punjabi-Muhajir elite that dominate Pakistan. I will request the world not to forget Bacha Khan. The values and the view of life he upheld are eternal and humanistic. His legacy belongs to the entire humanity rather than a specific community. As a Pashtun, I believe that my people i.e. Pashtuns can achieve spiritual and material success only if they follow Bacha Khan's philosophy of non-voilence and peaceful struggle for personal and collective development. Unfortunately, initially British and later Pakistani state ruthlessly suppressed his movement and philosophy. The politics of the Cold War, in which radi

Wonderful Overview of Badshah Khan's life and teachings

This is a sweeping portrait of Badshah Khan, a courageous Muslim figure. I felt inspired as I read this touching work, though I wanted more. I wish that Khan's autobiography, My Life and Struggles would be more readily available. Also, a more detailed biography would be helpful. This book is wonderful as an overview but one who wants to dive deeper should investigate further. This book is an excellent introduction to Badshah Khan. It shows how one can use the bismillah (in the name of God the infinitly compassionate and merciful) as a means to internalize compassion and mercy in ourselves. This is the core of Islam and of the utmost importance today.

...if you are seeking a role model look here.

Courage has to do with "big heartedness." I have read about many courageous people but few as courageous as this man. If you are a seeking a role model, a template for bringing meaning to life, then read this book. It made me realize the essence of non-violent living, gave me a clearer picture of Gandhi, helped me to see how little wisdom is exhibited in our leaders today.....and offered a hope for a new way of being. A way for bringing deep meaning to life. This is an important book and an important man. I intend to use it as a text in the class I teach at WPI.

Should be a bestseller now!

This is an awesome book. I read it before 9/11/2000. I have always been interested in non-violence, and revere Gandhi and MLK Jr. We need the message of this book now, more than ever. This is "must reading" for Americans, westerners and Christians. Islam means peace. Here is a man who put his life on the line to LIVE his faith. Like Gandhi, his teacher, he suffered persecution and imprisonment for his efforts to bring a peaceful interpretation of Islam to Afghanistan and Pakistan. He is a saint who should be revered by all the people of the book.