Mahatma Gandhi |
||
|
|
||
 |
Mohandas
Karamchand Gandhi, popularly known as 'Mahatma' (Great Soul), was born
on October 2, 1869 at Porbandar, a small town on the western coast of
India. His father, Karamchand Gandhi, the Diwan of Porbandar was a strict man with an honest character. His mother, Putlibai was a gentle and deeply religious woman. The boy was named Mohan and his mother lovingly called him Moniya. |
 |
|
The great
man was once an ordinary boy. Gandhi stole, smoked, ate meat, lied
and was bad at studies as a young boy. However, he regretted all his
wrongdoings and tried to make amends for them.
At the age of thirteen, while still at school, Mohan was married to Kasturba. He continued his studies and went on to college in Bhavnagar, but he found the course too tough for his liking. On a friend's suggestion he decided to study law at England. As a young man Gandhi was at first taken in by the fashionable English life. He brought tailor-made new clothes including an evening dress made in Bond Street, a silk hat, and a double watch-chain of gold and even took lessons in elocution (public speaking), French and ballroom dancing! |
 |
 |
Later, under
the influence of Annie Besant and the Bhagvad Gita and other Hindu
scriptures Gandhi turned to Indian religion for a deeper source of
strength.
On his return to India, Gandhi found out that his choice of career was wrong for him! He came to Mumbai to practice law. While fighting his first case in a Small Causes Court, he became nervous as he rose to cross-examine a witness. He sat down in confusion and returned the fees to the client. He never went to that court again and even had a mind to give up law. Then, in 1893 a firm of Kathlawar, offered to send him to South Africa for helping them in a legal case. Gandhi happily sailed for Durban. |
|
In South Africa, Gandhi found that the 'whites', British and Dutch, treated native Africans and Indians as less than human. Once while traveling in a train Gandhi was ordered by a railway official to shift to the 'van compartment'. On his refusal a constable pushed him out of the train. He sat shivering in the waiting room, thinking whether he should stand up for his rights. He decided to fight it out. The next time while traveling on a coach Gandhi was asked by to sit on a dirty sackcloth on the footboard. He refused. The conductor started hitting him to push him out but Gandhi clung on to the brass rails. He had decided to put up a fight against injustice. From then on, Gandhi became actively involved in the affairs of the community and campaigned against a move to deny Indians the right to vote. He earned a reputation as a fearless leader of the Indian community. When he returned to India, he was given a warm welcome as the man who had stood up for Indians abroad. Back in India, Gandhi decided to work for the rights of his fellow countrymen suffering under colonial rule. In 1917,
he launched an agitation in Champaran, a small town in Bihar, full of
indigo plantations. His work for the farmers forced the British
government to accept his demands for improving their condition. His
victory established him as a national leader. |
|
The title
'Mahatma' was first used for Gandhi by Nobel winner author Rabindranath
Tagore whom in turn Gandhiji fondly referred to as Guruji.
In 1920, Mahatma Gandhi launched the nation wide Non-Cooperation Movement. It involved giving up government titles, boycotting government service, legislatures, schools, colleges and non-payment of taxes. The movement was successful but one small incident of violence at Chauri Chaura in Uttar Pradesh forced Gandhi to call the whole thing off. |
 |
 |
On April 6,
1930 Gandhi started his second Civil Disobedience movement with his
historic Dandi march to break the Salt Law imposed by the British. The
movement spread to all parts of the country. It ended with the
Gandhi-Irwin Pact in 1931.
In 1931 Gandhi sailed for London to attend the Second Round Table Conference as a delegate of the Congress. In London, he became famous as the 'half-naked seditious fakir'. When he went to meet the King in his dhoti and chuddar a British journalist asked him "Mr. Gandhi, don't you think you are somewhat under clad?" 'Well", Bapu quipped, "the King had enough clothes on his person sufficient for both of us"! In 1942 the Congress party launched the quit India movement under his guidance. The growing popular support for Gandhi and his movement and the changing world situation after the Second World War made the British realize that they could not continue to rule over India for long. They decided to free India. |
 |
Although many jokes are made about Gandhi's belief in non-violence - Bapu did not believe in non-violence at any cost. He always maintained, "where there is only a choice between cowardice and violence I advise violence." |
|
Gandhiji was
happy with the decision to free India but hated the division of the
country into India and Pakistan and the riots, which followed. He even
observed a fast unto death, which helped in controlling the riots. On January 30, 1948, Bapu was shot by Nathu Ram Godse while he was going to attend his daily prayer meeting in Delhi. His last words "Hey Ram" are written on his samadhi at Raj Ghat in New Delhi. |