Mohandas Gandhi is a man known around the world who symbolizes civil rights. As a person who believed in Hinduism, he stood for peace and nonviolence. He planted the idea in people that nonviolence will prevent war and conflict. With peace, we will have a better world with less disagreements and disputes, and our world will not only be better, but safer too. Even after two imprisonments for noncooperative behavior, he continued his journey by standing up for what he believed in, gaining many new followers along the way. While he attained many supporters, he also generated enemies. Though few, there were still people who thought Gandhi’s beliefs and actions were unnecessary. They abhorred him to the extent that several attempts were made to kill this revolutionary figure.

After five brutal attempts to put a stop to his civil movements, his disbelievers finally succeeded in assassinating him. Gandhi was assisted in crossing the gardens because of his weakened state from fasting. While he was going to a meeting place for an evening prayer, Nathuram Godse was plotting his attack. Just as Gandhi placed his foot on the last stairstep, Godse suddenly lunged forward, and bowed in honor before viciously shooting Gandhi.

Nathuram Godse shot Gandhi three times in total, all with a pistol and within three feet of range. The shots were fired square in Gandhi’s chest and stomach. When hit, Gandhi raised his hands in a famous gesture with a smile on his face, as if greeting his death in the immediate future, symbolizing that his work on Earth was finished. After the murder, nobody thought to seek help or get a doctor to look and Gandhi’s wounds. In under half an hour, Gandhi was dead.

Police officers seized Godse while people in the crowd screamed with rage. Many wanted Godse to be lynched and suffer. In May, he was hanged for the murder of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. All the while, Gandhi’s corpse was placed on the terrace of the Birla House with a white cloth over him. The next day, Gandhi’s body was wrapped in the Indian flag for the million people that mourned over his grave.

Mahatma Gandhi was a respected man known all around the world. Even with the hardships of others wanting him dead and the punishment of imprisonment, he was determined to fight for his views. Gandhi influenced many others to think the same way as himself to make the world a better place. He had a great impact on where we are today. Now, every January 30th, people worship his grave in honor of the great man that changed the world. Gandhi’s mark imprinted on the world will be everlasting even after he died, as he once said, “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”