A SIMPLE SOUL

 

A SIMPLE SOUL 2nd Oct 2009

The 20th century has produced many great men. But the man who will be remembered for ages to come, is the father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi.

Born on 2nd Oct 1869 in Porbander, Gujarat, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was one of 6 children. His father was rich as well as educated. He sent the young Gandhi at the age of 19 to England to study law. In 1892, Gandhi returned to India to practice law and the next year was called to South Africa on professional business. 

This was the turning point for him and for India. The few Indian settlers in South Africa were often at the mercy of the whites and Gandhi suffered great insult and injury to bring liberty and dignity for them. 

His inspiration was the famous philosopher Leo Tolstoy whose non-violent movement to free the Russian serfs gave Gandhi the idea of resisting evil with good.

Back in India, Gandhi began to organize the nation to face the British with the demand of home-rule. Non-cooperation and satyagraha were his weapons against the mighty British. He became the leader of the freedom struggle.

The Partition drained the energies of the Mahatma. During a speech he made when riots broke out in Calcutta soon after Independence, he said, “I will never again enjoy peace and joy in my life.” When the whole of India and Pakistan rejoiced at Independence, Gandhi was in prayer at the house of a Muslim friend. 

The communal riots that broke out after Independence were heart-breaking for him. Just as Jesus went around the villages of Galilee and Judea doing good, Gandhi went around the villages of Bengal bringing peace and love to the tragedy stricken families of both Hindus and Muslims.

As killings continued in the streets of Calcutta, Gandhi returned to the city and stayed in a Muslim house. When the Hindus demanded that he move out into a Hindu home, he said, “You can remove my corpse.” Within a week, he brought calm to the violent city.

There were many Hindus who thought that it was the duty of every Hindu to build a strong Hindustan against Pakistan. They made up their minds to eliminate the Mahatma. On January 30, 1948, as Gandhi was making his way to the ground where people were waiting for him to begin the prayer meeting, a Hindu fanatic Nathuram Godse came up to him and said, “Namaste Bapuji. Today you are a little late.” Then he shot Gandhi repeatedly. Gandhi smiled at his assassin and uttered the words, “Hai Ram, Hai Ram.” before falling to the ground.

That night the Indian Prime Minister, Pandit Nehru spoke to the world: “The light has gone out of our lives. Bapu has left us. Yes, our Mahatma is dead. We will never see him again, as we knew him. Yes, the light is out. Yet even after centuries, this light will shine in the world and millions will walk in the path he has lighted.”

My all-time favourite movies on Gandhi are Richard Attenborough’s ‘Gandhi’ and ‘Lage Raho Munnabhai’. Gandhi’s repeated advice to the ‘Tension Nehi Leneka’ hero not to lie even for a good cause is the true essence of this great man. He spoke the truth with such courage that even the British were in awe of him. 

Gandhi also had a great sense of humor and jokingly once said, “If I had no sense of humor, I should long ago have committed suicide.” 

He was a true son of the soil and had respect for the poor. “A nation may do without its millionaires and its capitalists but it can never do without its labourers.” he said.

He even displayed his unconditional love for his enemies when he said, “When the British leave, I want to see them off as friends.”

With the Viceroy of India Lord Mountbatten

I’d like to end with the opening tribute given at his funeral in the movie ‘Gandhi’:

"He died as he always lived - a private man without property, without official title or office. Mahatma Gandhi was not a commander of armies, nor a ruler of vast lands. He could not boast any scientific achievement or artistic gift. Yet, men, governments, dignitaries from all over the world have joined hands today to pay homage to this little brown man in a loin cloth who led his country to freedom. In the words of G. C. Marshall, the American Secretary of State, Mahatma Gandhi has become the spokesman for the conscience of all mankind. He was a man who made humility and simple truth more powerful than empires. And Albert Einstein added, “Generations to come will scarce believe that one such as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.”

The two walking sticks of Gandhi