Born in India as Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, he later was given the name Mahatma Gandhi--Mahatma meaning "great soul." Architect of Indian independence, he truly was a great soul. At a time when his country was ruled by British, he wanted to change things and did so, differently than anyone else ever had. Many consider Gandhi the most influential non-politician of the 20th century. Although he often got involved in politics, as he said: "I am …showed first 75 words of 1249 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1249 total…King's leadership led to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The inspiration of a great man like Gandhi led to the successful leadership of many great people. Mahatma Gandhi is different from many powerful political leaders of the 20th century and the most influential of non-politicians. Gandhi today is called the Father of India. However, Gandhi was not the leader of a country, as politicians are. Gandhi was the leader of a people.