Origin
The Season for Nonviolence was established in 1998 by Arun Gandhi, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, with the support of Dr. Michael Beckwith (founder of the Agape International Spiritual Center) and Dr. Mary Morrissey. The launch was endorsed by Coretta Scott King, whose blessing tied the King side of the lineage to the calendar. Institutional partners at founding included the Association for Global New Thought and The Parliament of The World's Religions.
Arun Gandhi co-chaired the Season until his death in 2023. The Gandhi-King Center for Nonviolence was founded in the months that followed, in Dayton, Ohio, to carry the Season forward through both the Gandhi and the King family lines.
What it asks of you
The Season is built around a mission, a statement of principles, and individual and community commitments to live nonviolently for 64 days. The practice is daily, not heroic. The structure is simple: each day carries a theme, a teaching, and a small act. Participants observe individually, in classrooms, in congregations, and in civic settings.
How the center observes it
Each year on January 30 the Gandhi-King Center hosts or co-hosts a public kickoff gathering. Recent kickoffs:
- 2026 · Chicago, Illinois: with Tushar Gandhi at The Lightning Strike
- 2025 · Salisbury University, Maryland: with Dr. Brian Polkinghorn and the Bosserman Center
- 2024 · Dayton International Peace Museum, Ohio: the founding hometown kickoff
Each Season also carries a custom challenge coin, designed for that year's event and approved by representatives of the Gandhi and King families before production. The coin is a small annual ritual of mutual consent across both lineages, and it is given to participants and program partners.
Bring the Season to your community
The center actively supports communities that want to host their own Season kickoff or observance. We share the framework, can connect you to other participating organizations, and travel to selected venues with members of the board.