Making of Mahatma

Anuradha Ray

Description

The author of 'The Making of MAHATMA', Anuradha Ray completed her Post Graduation in International Relations from Jadavpur University, Calcutta. She has been associated with publishing for the last many years, and has been involved with compilation and editing of a number of books, both descriptive and analytical. She has also been associated with the organising of seminars of various institutions and publications of papers.Anuradha has travelled considerably in the last five years all over the country and found the experience rather enriching.The Making of Mahatma A is a chronological narration of the events in the life of Mahatma Gandhi.

Sujets

• Lettres et linguistique

Informations

• Publié par: Diamond Books
• Date de parution: 01 janvier 0001
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9789350830178
• Langue: English

Extrait

There are many works on the life and times of Mahatma Gandhi. Yet one more work on this great man would, not at all look redundant. In the age of moral decadence, the shining example of Mahatma Gandhi will be followed by at least a few people who have valued the positive qualities in fife.
The book is both informative and emulative in that it is a chronological narration of the fife of Mahatma Gandhi with emphasis on those episodes of his fife which revolutionised the whole world and exalted him to the ‘Mahatma’ stature.
The Making of
MAHATMA
(A Biography)
 

 
eISBN: 978-93-5083-017-8
© Publisher
Publisher: Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd.
X-30, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-II New Delhi-110020
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Website: www.diamondbook.in
Edition: 2012
T HE M AKING OF M AHATMA A B IOGRAPHY
By - Anuradha Ray
Introduction
M ohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Perhaps there has not been as many works on the life and times of any other statesman like M. K. Gandhi, yet we are sure, in the times to come, there will be still many more such books on him. In that light, it is essential to explain the necessity to write one more book on Mahatma Gandhi.
Gandhi’s whole life has been a unique example. In the days of decaying values and moral struggles to choose between the right and the wrong—where often we find the wrong coming out better, we feel the life of Gandhi can be a shining example of truth, prevailing over its opposite, right winning over wrong, honesty and compassion getting the better of whatever is opposite to them and necessarily evil. Throughout his life, Mahatma Gandhi had never deviated from the path of truth. Yes, there have been disputes on the merit of some of his judgements, actions and decisions, but nothing can take away the fact that whatever he did was beyond his personal interest and gain and he only pursued those issues which he thought would benefit the general public. It is not only in India, but also wherever he had been, starting from South Africa, where he had lit his first candle in the quest of truth.
The efforts put in this book, we are certain will not go in waste and the shining example of Gandhi which has stood the test of time and is likely to be followed by people who have valued all the positive qualities in life, will help set a lot of small things right. At the moment the decadence in public life has gone to such a low that it is not possible to get it correct overnight and we need to start from correcting the smallest wrongs that we do everyday. And who else than Gandhi can show us the way in this search, who had given up all his worldly belongings to fight for humanity, till his last breath, which also was a sacrifice at the altar of violent feelings.
We hope the book serves its purpose in its efforts to send a message to our morality and conscience. If that happens, it will be worth the efforts which have gone in making this book.
* * *
Contents
Introduction The Early Years - Beginning for the Better The Tempering of the Steel The Tireless Crusader of Human Rights The Homecoming The Mahatma in the Making Gandhi Fights for Freedom The Beginning of the End
A Replica of Dandi March
THE EARLY YEARS—THE BEGINNING FOR THE BETTER
M ohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 at Porbandar, a small town on the western coast of India. Porbandar was then one of the many princely states in Kathiawar, now better known as Saurashtra about half way between the mouth of the Indus and the city of Bombay. The Gandhis belonged to the Merchant ( Bania) caste, and to the Vaishnava side of the Hindu religion. The ancestors were said to have been originally grocers, but the family had steadily risen in social status when Mohandas’s grandfather Uttamchand became the Prime Minister or Dewan to the Rana of Porbandar.
Uttamchand was a man of principles. State intrigues compelled him to leave Porbandar, and to seek refuge in the neighbouring state of Junagadh. There he saluted the Nawab with his left hand, explaining the discourtesy by saying that his right hand was still pledged to Porbandar. The Nawab was generous, and appreciating the bold reply, not only let him off with a nominal penalty but conferred a special favour on the brave refugee, and later used his influence to have him welcomed back to Porbandar when the new Rana ascended the throne.
Uttamchand’s fifth son Karamchand Gandhi in turn, became the Dewan of Porbandar. He too, like his father, had little formal education but was truthful, courageous and of a stem character. He was an extremely able man in the practical sense; dealing with all the intricate clan questions and disputes that arose in his jurisdiction. But he was short-tempered. He had great faith in his religion and he used to frequent temples, and was a regular reader of religious books, the Gita being his most favourite.
Karamchand alias Kaba Gandhi married four times in succession, having lost his wife each time by death. He had two daughters by his first and second marriages. His last wife Putlibai bore him a daughter and three sons, of which Mohandas was the youngest.
Mohandas was the fourth and last child of his father’s last marriage. The year he was born, 1869 was a year full of historic events all over the world. The Suez Canal was opened that year, Thomas A Edison patented his first invention, France celebrated the hundredth anniversary of the birth of Napoleon Bonaparte, and Charles W. Eliot became president of the Harvard University. Karl Marx had just published Capital the same year and Bismarck was about to launch the Franco-Prussian War. Queen Victoria ruled over England and India at that time.
Mohandas was born in the dark, right-hand comer of a room, 11 feet by 19½ feet and 10 feet high, in a three-storey humble house on the border of the small town of Porbandar.
Gandhi’s homelife was cultured and the family, by Indian standards was well-to-do. There were religious and mythological books in the house. Mohandas played tunes on a concertina, purchased especially for him. Karamchand wore a gold necklace and a brother of Mohandas had a heavy, solid gold armlet. Karamchand once owned a house in Porbandar, a second in Rajkot and a third in Kutiana. But in his last three years of illness he lived modestly on a pension from the Prince of Rajkot. He left behind a little property at his death.
Mohandas’s elder brother Laxmidas practiced law in Rajkot and later became a treasury official in the Porbandar Government. Karsandas, the other brother served as sub-inspector of Police in Porbandar and ultimately of the princeling’s harem. They had a sister, Raliatben, four years senior to Mohandas.
Moniya, as the family affectionately called Mohandas, received the special treatment often accorded to the youngest of children. A nurse, Rambha was engaged for him and he formed an attachment to her which continued into mature life. But his warmest affection went to his mother Putlibai.
Putlibai too was deeply religious, gentle and devout, and unrelenting in her observance of the prescribed ritual of fast and prayer. She left a deep impression on the mind of her son, who almost worshipped her. Years later, in the Yeravda Jail in Poona, Gandhi said to his secretary- companion Mahadev Desai, “If you notice any purity in me, I have inherited it from my mother, and not from my father… The only impression she ever left on my mind is that of saintliness”.
Mohandas started his elementary schooling in Porbandar, where he found it difficult to master the multiplication tables. Soon after, the family moved to Rajkot, another small state in Kathiawar, where his father became a member of the Rajasthani Court. In Rajkot, Mohan attended a primary, and later a high school named Alfred High School. Though conscientious, he was a mediocre student, extremely shy and timid, difficult in company and averse to games. The only incident of his otherwise drab school career which might be deemed significant as indicating his moral sensibility occurred when the Education Inspector visited his class and set a spelling test. Seeing that Mohan had spelled ‘kettle’ wrong, the class teacher prompted him with his toe to copy the correct spelling from his classmate’s slate, but Mohan obstinately ignored the hint and was later chided for his stupidity. ‘I never could learn the art of copying’ recalled the Mahatma later.
On the whole, the boy was not remarkable and he showed no great aptitude for study. One episode of his childhood seems to have made a great impression: it was a performance he saw by a travelling dramatic company of the play Harishchandra. It narrates the sufferings of a king of old, who sacrificed everything for the sake of truth and went through almost endless ordeals before his redemption. The play captured his heart, and as a child he used to act out Harishchandra to himself times without number. The idea of the truth was thus early implanted, and seems to have grown naturally in him.
At the age of thirteen, while still in school, Mohandas was married to Kasturbai, the daughter of a Porbandar merchant named Gokuldas Makanji and was of the same age. The newly-weds were ‘married children’ and behaved accordingly. He was jealous and therefore she could not go anywhere without his permission. When she wanted to go out to play she had to ask Mohandas and he would often say ‘no’. And Kasturbai was not the girl to brook any such thing. She made it a point to go out whenever and wherever she liked. The little husband got ‘more and more cross’. Sometimes, they did not speak to each other for days. Despite all these, his delight in his wife was extreme and in later years, he regarded this premature sensuality with sorrow and shame. It may have contributed to his strong views on child marriage, which he regarded later as one of the greatest evils of India. Although his conscience in later years troubled him greatly, he found Kasturbai th