What were Gandhi's religious beliefs and his attitude towards violence?

Gandhi worked very hard to unite the Hindus and Muslims as he believed that they were one people who had a shared history, ate the same food, wore the same clothes and spoke the same language within a particular region. He grew up with Hindus and Muslims and had a very close Muslim friend. He worked very hard to achieve a united India and was totally against Partition. However, he realised in the end he could not force his views on Congress (who made up the government of an independent India) as there were continued riots where there were many hindus and Muslims being killed by each other and unless and until he had proved that they could live together, he could do no more.