Author: Prince Luthra Sir (UPSC CSE AIR 577)

Who Was Mahavira? Vardhamana Mahavira (599–527 BC) was the 24th Tirthankara (spiritual teacher) of Jainism and is considered the founder of Jainism as we know it today. Born into a royal family in Vaishali...

Who Was the Buddha? Siddhartha Gautama (c. 563–483 BC), who became known as the Buddha (“the awakened one”), was an Indian prince who renounced his luxurious life to seek answers to the fundamental questions...

Who Was Deen Dayal Upadhyay? Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay (1916–1968) was an Indian thinker, political leader, and philosopher who articulated one of India’s most original contributions to political and social thought — Integral Humanism...

Who Was Mahatma Gandhi? Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869–1948), revered as the “Father of the Nation,” was not just a political leader — he was one of the most original moral thinkers of the 20th...

Who Was Immanuel Kant? Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) was a German philosopher who is widely considered the most important modern philosopher. His ethical theory — known as deontological ethics or duty-based ethics — revolutionized moral...

Who Was Aristotle? Aristotle (384–322 BC) was a student of Plato and the tutor of Alexander the Great. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest thinkers in human history, making groundbreaking contributions...

Who Was Plato? Plato (428–348 BC) was a student of Socrates and the teacher of Aristotle — making him the central link in the greatest chain of philosophers in Western history. He founded the...

Who Was Socrates? Socrates (470–399 BC) is often called the father of Western philosophy and ethics. He never wrote anything himself — everything we know about him comes from his students, especially Plato. What...

Who Was Rousseau? Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778) was a Genevan philosopher whose ideas about freedom, equality, and the social contract profoundly influenced the French Revolution, modern democracy, and educational philosophy. While Hobbes saw human nature...

Who Was Thomas Hobbes? Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) was an English philosopher best known for his masterpiece Leviathan (1651). He is considered one of the founders of modern political philosophy and the social contract theory....

Who Was Machiavelli? Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527) was an Italian diplomat, philosopher, and writer, best known for his political treatise The Prince. Often misunderstood as a champion of immorality, Machiavelli was actually one of the...

Who Was Saint Augustine? Saint Augustine of Hippo (354–430 AD) was one of the most influential Christian philosophers and theologians in Western history. Born in Thagaste (modern-day Algeria), Augustine’s journey from a life of...