# The Birth of Satyagraha explained — The Story of My Experiments with Truth > Chapter companion for The Story of My Experiments with Truth by Mahatma Gandhi. ## What happens Gandhi reflects on how his personal experiments with truth and self-purification, including the vow of brahmacharya, prepared him for the principle of satyagraha. He describes the inadequacy of the term 'passive resistance' and the coinage of 'satyagraha' by Maganlal Gandhi, which became the defining concept of the Indian struggle in South Africa. ## Themes in this chapter ### Truth and Self-Experimentation Gandhi frames satyagraha as the culmination of his experiments with truth and self-purification. ### Nonviolence and Satyagraha The chapter details the birth of satyagraha as a distinct principle of nonviolent resistance, contrasting it with passive resistance. ## Character check-ins ### Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi Narrator and central figure, reflecting on the origins of satyagraha and his personal experiments. ### Maganlal Gandhi Coined the word 'Sadagraha' which Gandhi later refined to 'satyagraha'. ## Key lines > The principle called satyagraha came into being before that name was invented. The concept of satyagraha existed in practice before it was given a formal name. _Gandhi emphasizes that the idea preceded the terminology._ > Maganlal Gandhi coined the word 'Sadagraha' (Sat = truth, Agraha = firmness) and won the prize. But in order to make it clearer I changed the word to 'satyagraha'. Maganlal Gandhi created the term 'Sadagraha', which Gandhi modified to 'satyagraha' for greater clarity. _The evolution of the term reflects the collaborative and iterative nature of Gandhi's thought._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_story_of_my_experiments_with_truth_se/chapters/part-iv-xxvi-the-birth-of-satyagraha - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_story_of_my_experiments_with_truth_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_story_of_my_experiments_with_truth_se/chapters