Gandhi discovered this spiritual identity in South Africa which became embellished in his message of Swaraj. Gandhi believed in Swaraj and used this philosophy of passive resistance to produce Hind Swaraj in 1908. This became an act of independence from external markets and foreign economic pressures. Gandhi's critique is an attempt to uncover the discrepancies of western civilization. .
Machinery is viewed as the destruction of Indian society, as well as the obstruction of ancient civilization's body. Industrial capitalism is subservient to Gandhi's society, and it perpetuates colonial imperialism. It is a chief representation of western civilization, as Gandhi sates, "Now thousands of workmen meet together and for the sake of maintenance work in factories or mines. Their condition is worse than that of beasts. They are obliged to work, for the sake of millionaires, but by reproducing Manchester in India, our moral being will be sapped, and I call in support of my statement the very mill-bands as witnesses" (Gandhi Chapter 19). It is inherent that Gandhi's perception of society is one without industrial capitalism. .
He saw machinery and materialism as greater representations of manipulation. The British had, like any imperialist civilization, a perpetuating greed to control natural resources for profit. Ultimately, in Gandhi's eyes, the British wanted to have complete sovereignty over political bodies in their colonial parts. Village life was on the verge of distinction, thus Gandhi's ideology gave light to India's grim vision of being truly independent. Gandhi, as Metcalf states, "[Gandhi] believed in true independence. He envisioned it in Hind Swaraj (1909). It was not a simple matter of Indians replacing Britain's in the seat of government. It involved a wholesale transformation of society from the bottom up, as people realize spiritual worth" (Metcalf 72). Gandhi wanted Indians to share a unique identity, albeit the British.