The popular perception of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose is that of a warrior-hero and revolutionary leader who led a life of suffering and sacrifice and who during the Second World War waged a great armed struggle for the freedom of India. What is often forgotten is that the warrior paused between battles to reflect on and write about the fundamental political, economic and social issues facing India and the world during his lifetime. Distilled out of a twelve-volume set of his Collected Works, this centenary edition of his Essential Writings is designed to provide a single-volume introduction to the thought of India's foremost militant nationalist.