This autobiography shows us a man whose strength, resilience, largeness of heart, and unshakeable belief in social equality encompass a pan-Indian and international message much larger than Chipko: had Mahatma Gandhi been reborn in the Garhwal Himalaya, he could not have taken better shape than Chandi Prasad Bhatt. Born into a poor Brahman family of temple priests, Chandi Prasad began life as a peasant who herded cows, tilled fields, and attended village schools. Though he learned Sanskrit to follow the family profession, he soon switched to becoming a ticketing clerk in a private bus company. From the start, however, he felt his calling lay elsewhere, and hearing the Sarvodaya messages of Vinoba Bhave and Jayaprakash Narayan he renounced the security of a salaried career in favour of full-time social work.