Inspiring Stories From Gandhiji

7/28/2019 Inspiring Stories From Gandhiji

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INSPIRING STORIES FROM GANDHIJI'S LIFE

- Uma Shankar Joshi(For all ages)

I

The night was very dark and Mohan was frightened. He had always

been afraid of ghosts. Whenever he was alone in the dark, he was

afraid that a ghost lurking in some dark corner would suddenly

spring on him. And tonight it was so dark that one could barely see

one's own hand. Mohan had to go from one room to another. As he

stepped out of the room, his feet seemed to turn to lead and his

heart began to beat like a drum. Rambha, their old maidservant

was standing by the door. "What's the matter, son?" she asked with

a laugh.

"I am frightened, Dai," Mohan answered.

"Frightened, child! Frightened of what?"

"See how dark it is! I'm afraid of ghosts!" Mohan whispered in a terrified voice.

Rambha patted his head affectionately and said, "Whoever heard of anyone being

afraid of dark! Listen to me: Think of Rama and no ghost will dare come near you. No

one will touch a hair of your head. Rama will protect you." Rambha's words gave

Mohan courage. Repeating the name of Rama, he left the room. And from that day,

Mohan was never lonely or afraid. He believed that as long as Rama was with him, he

was safe from the danger. This faith gave Gandhiji strength throughout his life, and

even when he died the name of Rama was on his lips.

II I

Mohan was very shy. As soon as the school bell rang, he collected his books and

hurried home. Other boys chatted and stopped on the way; some to play, others to

eat, but Mohan always went straight home. He was afraid that the boys might stop him

and make fun of him. One day, the Inspector of Schools, Mr Giles, came to Mohan's

school. He read out five English words to the class and asked the boys to write themdown. Mohan wrote four words correctly, but he could not spell the fifth word `Kettle'.

Seeing Mohan's hesitation, the teacher made a sign behind the Inspector's back that he

should copy the word from his neighbour's slate. But Mohan ignored his signs. The

other boys wrote all the five words correctly; Mohan wrote only four. After the

Inspector left, the teacher scolded him. "I told you to copy from your neighbour," he


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said angrily. "Couldn't you even do that correctly?" Every one laughed. As he went

home that evening, Mohan was not unhappy. He knew he had done the right thing.

What made him sad was that his teacher should have asked him to cheat.

III

In South Africa Gandhiji set up an ashram at Phoenix, where he

started a school for children. Gandhiji had his own ideas about how

children should be taught. He disliked the examination system. In

his school he wanted to teach the boys true knowledge knowledge

that would improve both their minds and their hearts. Gandhiji had

his own way of judging students. All the students in the class were

asked the same question. But often Gandhiji praised the boy with

low marks and scolded the one who had high marks. This puzzled

the children. When questioned on this unusual practice, Gandhiji one day explained, "I

am not trying to show that Shyam is cleverer than Ram. So I don't give marks on that

basis. I want to see how far each boy has progressed, how much he has learnt. If a

clever student competes with a stupid one and begins to think no end of himself, he is

likely to grow dull. Sure of his own cleverness, he'll stop working. The boy who does his

best and works hard will always do well and so I praise him." Gandhiji kept a close

watch on the boys who did well. Were they still working hard? What would they learn if

their high marks filled them with conceit? Gandhiji continually stressed this to his

students. If a boy who was not very clever worked hard and did well, Gandhiji was fullof praise for him.

IV

This incident occurred when Gandhiji was practising law in

the city of Johannesburg in South Africa. His office was

three miles from his house. One day a colleague of his, Mr

Polak, asked Gandhiji's thirteen-year old son, Manilal to

fetch a book from the office. But Manilal completely forgot

till Mr Polak reminded him that evening. Gandhiji heardabout it and sent for Manilal. He said, "Son, I know the

night is dark and the way is long and lonely. You will have

to walk nearly six miles but you gave your word to Mr

Polak. You promised to fetch his book. Go and fetch it

now." Ba and the family were upset when they heard of


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wouldn't be right for me to be the only one to wear a kurta." "How many Kurtas do you

need?" the boy persisted. "I'll ask my mother to make as many as you want. Just tell

me how many you need." "I have a very large family, son. I have forty crore brothers

and sisters," Gandhiji explained. "Till every one of them has a kurta, how can I wear

one? Tell me, can your mother make kurtas for all of them? At this question the boy

became very thoughtful. Forty crore brothers and sisters! Gandhiji was right. Till every

one of them had a kurta to wear how could he wear one himself? After all the whole

nation was Gandhiji's family, and he was the head of that family. He was their friend,

their companion. What use would one kurta be to him?

VII

One day Gandhiji and Vallabhbhai Patel were talking in the

Yaravada jail when Gandhiji remarked, "At times even a dead

snake can be of use." And he related the following story toillustrate his point: Once a snake entered the house of an old

woman. The old woman was frightened and cried out for help.

Hearing her, the neighbours rushed up and killed the snake.

Then they returned to their homes. Instead of throwing the

dead snake far away, the old woman flung it onto her roof.

Sometime later a kite flying overhead spotted the dead snake.

In its beak the kite had a pearl necklace which it had picked up

from somewhere. It dropped the necklace and flew away with

the dead snake. When the old woman saw a bright, shining object on her roof she

pulled it down with a pole. Finding that it was a pearl necklace she danced with joy!

When Gandhiji finished his story, Vallabhbhai Patel said he too had a story to tell: One

day a bania found a snake in his house. He couldn't find anyone to kill it for him and

hadn't the courage to kill it himself. Besides, he hated killing any living creature. So he

covered the snake with a pot and left it there. As luck would have it, that night some

thieves broke into the bania's house. They entered the kitchen and saw the overturned

pot. "Ah," they thought, "the bania has hidden something valuable here." As they lifted

the pot, the snake struck. Having come with the object of stealing, they barely left withtheir lives.

VIII

Gandhiji went from city to city, village to village collecting funds for the

Charkha Sangh. During one of his tours he addressed a meeting in Orissa.

After his speech a poor old woman got up. She was bent with age, her hair


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was grey and her clothes were in tatters. The volunteers tried to stop her, but

she fought her way to the place where Gandhiji was sitting. "I must see him,"

she insisted and going up to Gandhiji touched his feet. Then from the folds of

her sari she brought out a copper coin and placed it at his feet. Gandhiji

picked up the copper coin and put it away carefully. The Charkha Sangh funds

were under the charge of Jamnalal Bajaj. He asked Gandhiji for the coin but

Gandhiji refused. "I keep cheques worth thousands of rupees for the Charkha

Sangh," Jamnalal Bajaj said laughingly "yet you won't trust me with a copper

coin." "This copper coin is worth much more than those thousands," Gandhiji

said. "If a man has several lakhs and he gives away a thousand or two, it

doesn't mean much. But this coin was perhaps all that the poor woman

possessed. She gave me all she had. That was very generous of her. What a

great sacrifice she made. That is why I value this copper coin more than acrore of rupees." IX

This incident occurred in Noakhali. After the Hindu-Muslim riots Gandhiji toured the

area on foot to reassure and comfort the people. He would set off from a village soon

after dawn and arrive at the next village after sunset. On arrival he would first attend

to his work then he would take a bath. Gandhiji used a rough stone to clean his feet.

Miraben had given this stone to him many years ago and Gandhiji had kept it carefully

ever since. He took it with him everywhere. One evening after they had arrived at a

village and Manu was getting Gandhiji's bath ready, she noticed that the stone was

missing. She looked everywhere but could not find it. She told Gandhiji that the stone

was lost and added, "It must have been left behind at the weaver's where we stayed

yesterday. What should I do now?" Gandhiji thought for a moment. Then he said, "Go

and fetch the stone. If you suffer once, you'll not forget another time." "Can I take

someone with me?" Manu asked. "Why?" questioned Gandhiji. Manu was silent. She did

not want to admit that she was frightened to go alone. The road to the village lay

through forests of betelnut and coconut and it was easy to lose one's way. Besides,

Manu was barely sixteen years old and she had never gone anywhere alone. But shecould not think of an answer. So Manu took the path they had taken earlier in the day.

Carefully following the old footprints she managed to reach the village and find the

weaver's house. The old woman who lived there recognised her and welcomed her

warmly. Tired and rather irritated Manu told her why she had come. But how was the

old woman to have known that that bit of stone was so valuable? She had thrown it


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away with the rubbish. They both began to search for it. At last much to Manu's joy

they found it. Many had left the house at 7.30 in the morning. By the time she

returned it was past one in the afternoon. She had walked nearly fifteen miles. Worn

out, hungry and irritated she went straight to Gandhiji and put the stone in the lap.

Then she burst into tears. "This stone was a real test for you," Gandhiji told her gently.

"Do you know that this stone has been with me for the last twenty-five years. It has

gone with me everywhere, from jails to mansions. I can easily get another stone like it,

but I wanted you to learn that it is bad to be careless." "I've never prayed as hard as I

did today," said Manu. "I want to make women brave and fearless", Gandhiji said.

"Today not only you but I too learnt a lesson." Manu did not say anything but she must

have thought Gandhiji's methods were very unusual.

MAHATMA GANDHI

-By Jyoti Solapurkar(For 5 to 7 Year Old Children)

: 1 :

Children, there is not a single country in the whole world where thename of Mahatma Gandhi is not known. Do you know why Gandhijibecame so famous? It was because he dedicated his whole life to theservice of the motherland, and service of humanity. Today, I am goingto tell you in brief, the story of Mahatma Gandhi, the father of theNation, or Bapuji, as he is affectionately called. In the early days ourcountry was made up of a large number of small Princely Kingdoms.

Porbandar in Gujarat was one such Princely Kingdom. Gandhiji's fatherKaramchand Gandhi, popularly known as Kaba, was a Minister there.

Kaba Gandhi was an honest, upright man, a strict disciplinarian, and very hottempered. His wife Putlibai was a extremely religious person. She would not haveher meal until she had worshipped the sun. Hence sometimes in the rainy season,she would go hungry for two-three days at a stretch. She was a very loving person,and immensely hard-working. To these parents a son was born on October 2nd,1869. He was their youngest son. He was called Mohandas. He was our Gandhiji.The strict discipline of his father, the religious bent of mind of his mother, allinfluenced Gandhiji greatly. He was deeply attached to his parents and brothers. Thevalues of truthfulness, honesty, integrity were instilled in him from the verybeginning. As a child he was not very brave. He was mortally afraid of the dark, of ghosts and spirits, and also of snakes and scorpions. At night he would cry in fear.The maid who looked after him scolded him very often. "You should be ashamed of yourself" she would say. "What will you do when you grow up?" She then told himthat everytime he was frightened he should take the name of God Rama. Gandhijitook her advice, and gradually he overcome his fear. Soon it was time for him to goto school. As his father was in Rajkot at that time, he attended the school there.Being extremely shy, he did not mix with the other children. Most of the time hekept to himself. In the beginning he did not like some of the subjects that weretaught to him, but with encouragement from his teachers he studied them, and


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his studies would be affected.

***

: 3 :

After qualifying as a Barrister, he set up his practice as a lawyer, in Rajkot. As hedid not get much work there, he came to Bombay. Even in Bombay he did not getany cases. Finally, he got one case. He prepared well for it, but in court he wasunable to present it satisfactorily. Disappointed, he felt he would never make asuccessful lawyer. Just at that time Gandhiji's elder brother managed to get him acase. He was asked to represent Mr. Abdulla, a rich businessman in South Africa.After much deliberation, Gandhiji agreed to accept the case. He left his homelandand set sail for Africa in 1895. Although there were many Indians staying in Africa atthat time, all the power was in the hands of the British people. They consideredthemselves superior, and treated the Indians and the natives in a most insultingmanner. Gandhiji undertook Abdulla's case and handled it very well. The Indianswere very much impressed, and wanted Gandhiji to stay on in Africa. In connectionwith his work, Gandhiji travelled a good deal. However, he was treated very badlyby the British people. Wherever he went, he had to face insults and rudeness. Attimes, he was even physically assaulted. One day, when he was travelling fromDurban to Pretoria in the first class compartment of a train, a Britishman boardedthe compartment. On seeing Gandhiji, the Britishman got furious. He called theRailway officer, and both ordered him to get out of the train. Since Gandhiji hadpurchased a first class ticket, he refused to do so. However, they paid no heed tohim. Gandhiji also did not budge. Finally the police were summoned. They pushedhim out of the compartment and threw his luggage out of the window. Gandhiji hadto spend the whole night on the platform. This was only one of the many humiliatingexperiences Gandhiji had to face. He had decided to return to India on thecompletion of his work in Africa, but the plight of the Indians there disturbed him

greatly. He resolved to stay, and fight the unjust and inhuman laws that wereimposed on them. For everywhere there was discrimination. There was one set of rules for the Indians and natives, and a different set for the British people.

***

: 4 :

Gandhiji gave considerable thought to the matter. He realised that to fight againstinjustice it was vital for the people to have unity amongst themselves. He tried veryhard to bring about this unity. He organised many meetings, and made the peopleaware of the situation. In reply, the people appointed him as their leader, andagreed to be guided by him. Since all the power was in the hands of the Englishpeople, Gandhiji realised that to fight them it was necessary to use an entirelydifferent method. It was then that he thought of the novel idea of `Satyagraha'.Satyagraha insistance on truth, a non violent protest against injustice. Hismovement aimed at fighting the many unjust laws that were imposed on them, andfor it to be successful, he was prepared to face all hardships and obstacles. It wasno easy task. He suffered much humiliation, faced many problems, but he did notgive up. It was during this time that a war broke out between the British and theDutch settlers in Africa. It was known as the Boer War. Gandhiji and other Indians


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gave whatever help they could to the British. The British won the war, and takinginto consideration the help Gandhiji had rendered to them, they gave the Indiansmore privileges. They also agreed to abolish the unjust laws that were imposed onthem. Gandhiji felt very happy that his stay in Africa had served some usefulpurpose. Thinking that his work was now over, he decided to return to hismotherland. The people were very reluctant to let him go back. They were verykeen that he should settle down in Africa itself. Finally Gandhiji told them that hewould go to India, but come to Africa whenever they called him. Only then did thepeople agree to let him go. They gave him a grand farewell, and showed him withmany expensive gifts. However Gandhiji did not accept anything. He donatedeverything to the local organisations. During his long stay in Africa, Gandhiji visitedIndia sometimes, where he met many important leaders and sought their advice.Gopal Krishna Gokhale was one such leader who rendered assistance to Gandhiji inmany ways. Gandhiji admired him tremendously, and looked upon him as hismentor. It was largely due to him that Gandhiji joined the mainstream of Indianpolitics.

: 5 :

By the time all these developments took placein Africa, it was 1914. Gandhiji had spentalmost 20 years in that country. He returned toIndia, for he had made up his mind to fight forthe freedom of India. He decided that he wouldnot miss a single opportunity that would helphim in serving his country and countrymen. Assuch he toured the whole of India, and broughtan awakening in the people living in villagesand towns. North of the Ganges, near theboundary of Nepal, was a small place called Champaranya. It was noted for itscultivation of Indigo dye. Unfortunately, the British planters in Champaranya treatedthe local workers most cruelly. Worse still, the Government paid little heed to theworkers cries. With the result that they were utterly disgusted with their employers.Gandhiji heard of this and went to Champaranya to do something for them. He wasunable to bear their miserable plight. He began a satyagraha against the injusticedone to the workers. Finally the British were compelled to stop their inhumantreatment of the workers. This satyagraha came to be known as the `ChamparanyaSatyagraha'. After the success of the `Champaranya Satyagraha', Gandhiji felt thathe should settle down in one place. He selected a site near the banks of theSabarmati river in Gujarat, and established his Ashram there. He decided thatthereafter he would devote all his time to the service of humanity, and work for thedowntrodden. He preached what he practiced. He picked up the cause of theHarijans who were treated most atrociously all over the country. He raised his voice

against the inhuman and unjust treatment meted out to them. He started twonewspapers `Harijan' and `Young India', and through them he expressed his viewsand spread social awareness in the people.

: 6 :

In the meantime all over India agitations and uprisings against the British rulewhere on the increase. In 1920, Lokmanya Tilak died, and Gandhiji became the


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leader of the Freedom Movement. Under his guidance, the people went onSatyagraha to fight against injustice. He was arrested and imprisoned many times,but that did not deter him and his loyal followers. They continued their fight forfreedom with even greater fervour. Gandhiji was greatly respected for his simpleliving, high thinking, and fearless attitude. The British too were greatly impressed byhim, and called him for negotiations regarding India's freedom. Since it had beendecided that the freedom struggle would not stop until full freedom was granted, thenegotiations did not serve any purpose. Various forms of Satyagraha and CivilDisobedience movements took place at that time. The `Swadeshi Movement' (to uselocal made goods) was one of them. Gandhiji advised and encouraged the people touse Indian goods and use Khadi (hand spun cloth). He himself wore Khadi clothes,and would sit to spin on his Charkha (Spinning wheel). People stopped buyingBritish made goods. Instead, they lit bornfires of these goods. The Government,with the help of the police and the army, tried its best to put an end to all thesedemonstrations and agitations, but these were unsuccessful. On the contrary, theybecame more intense. The Government had imposed a tax on salt, and Gandhijistarted the `Salt Satyagraha'. He and many other leaders were imprisoned, but thestruggle for freedom continued with greater intensity. While India fought for

freedom, in Europe, the second world war had begun. The British looked towardsIndia for help, but Gandhiji started the Non-co-operation Movement. JawaharlalNehru and many other Indian leaders joined the movement because they all hadimmense faith in Gandhiji. The British Government thought it would please theIndians by granting them partial freedom. Once again they began negotiations withGandhiji, but Gandhiji made it clear that he and his people wanted nothing less thancomplete freedom (Independence). To make this demand stronger, the IndianNational Congress passed the Quit India resolution in 1942, wherein they demandedthat the British leave India immediately. Angered by this resolution, the Britishagain imprisoned him and his wife Kasturba. Kasturba died in jail. She was alwaysbehind him in his freedom movements and the other leaders. Many secretorganisations were formed as a result, and they put a number of obstacles in theregular functioning of the Government. Around this time Netaji SubhashchandraBose formed his `Azad Hind Fauj' in Japan. Many Indians who were in the BritishArmy, left it and joined the Indian Netaji's Army. The British Government realisedthat it was now impossible for them to continue their rule in India, They releasedGandhiji and other leaders from prison, and once again began negotiations withhim. Finally, on 15th August 1947, India attained freedom, and for the first time theIndian tri-colour National flag fluttered on the Red Fort in Delhi. However, in its fightfor freedom, India had to pay a heavy price. What was once a large singlegeographical unit, now comprised of two new nations - India and Pakistan. It wasduring this period that Hindu Muslim riots took place all over the country. People of both communities were killed brutally, and there was large scale bloodshed allaround. Gandhiji put his life in danger, pleaded with the people and made ceaselessefforts to stop this senseless killing. After Independence, Gandhiji concentrated his

attention on the betterment of the Downtrodden people. He went from village tovillage and advised the people that for the good of the country it was necessary foreveryone to work together in unity and harmony. Equal opportunities and equalstatus was what he wanted. Although Gandhiji strived so hard for unity, there weresome people who were under the misconception that Gandhiji favoured the Muslims.On 30th January 1948, in Delhi, when Gandhiji set out to attend a prayer meeting,he was shot dead by an assailant. His last words were `Hey Ram'. People all overthe world paid rich tribute to Gandhiji. The great Mahatma's life had come to anend! The news shocked everyone. Not only India, but the whole world mourned the


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death of the great man a real Mahatma, who had dedicated his entire life to theservice of humanity, and had taught the importance of truth, brotherhood, peace,non-violence, equality and simplicity. The most befitting tribute that we can payhim, is to follow the path he has shown us.

All for a Stone

Many people know that instead of soap, Gandhiji used a stone to scrub himself. Veryfew people, however, know how precious this stone, given by Miraben, was toGandhiji.

This happened during the Noakhali march, when Gandhiji and others halted at avillage called Narayanpur. During the march, the responsibility of looking after thisparticular stone, along with other things, lay with Manuben. Unfortunately, though,she forgot the stone at the last halting place.

"I want you to go back and look for the stone," said Bapu. "Only then will you notforget it the next time." "May I take a volunteer with me?" "Why?"

Poor Manu. She did not have the courage to say that the way back lay throughforests of coconut and supari, (betel nut) so dense that a stranger might easily losehis way. Moreover, it was the time of riots. How could she go back alone?

But go she did, and alone; after all she had committed the error. LeavingNarayanpur at 9:30 in the morning, Manu trudged along the forest path, taking thename of Ram as she went.

On reaching the village she went straight to the weaver's house that had been theirlast halt. An old woman lived there. And she had thrown the stone away. WhenManuben found it after a difficult search her joy knew no bounds.

Carrying the precious stone, she returned to Narayanpur by late afternoon. Placingit in Bapu's lap she burst into tears.

"You have no idea how happy I feel. This stone has been my cherished companionfor the past twenty-five years. Whether in prison or in a palace it has been with me.Had it been lost it would have distressed me and Miraben as well. Now, you haveseen that every useful thing is worth taking care of, even a stone."

Manuben said, "Bapu, if ever I took Ramanaam with all my heart it was today."Bapu laughed and replied, "Oh yes, one remembers the Lord only when one is introuble."

A Car and a Pair of Binoculars


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Here's how a close friend of Gandhiji came to give up two of hispossessions. This friend, a German named Kallenbach, was anengineer-architect whose earnings had made him rich. Kallenbachshared the beliefs and principles of Gandhiji and worked closelywith him in the struggle against the white South Africangovernment. This, however, was not always easy.

It was 1908. Gandhiji was being released from jail, having servedhis sentence for the Satyagraha struggle. At the gate he realisedthat his friend Kallenbach was so happy at his release that he had

actually bought a new car to take him home. Gandhiji refused to enter the car. "It isstupid to spend so much money on a car when other people are suffering. You mustreturn it to the seller before doing anything else."

On another occasion, Kallenbach and Gandhiji were returning to South Africa fromEngland by ship. Kallenbach had a well-crafted and expensive pair of binoculars.This led to a serious discussion. What exactly is essential for a good and simple life?And if non-essentials are not required, shouldn't they be discarded? The binoculars

were costly, but not essential. Persuaded by Gandhiji, Kallenbach threw them intothe sea. And felt greatly relieved.

K. S. Narayanaswamy

My Master's Master

Gandhiji inspired many, but who inspired him? Here's a story that giveshint towards this.

This story has to do with Dr. Kumarappa, who had decided to live in ahut in Kallupatti in Madurai District of Tamil Nadu. It was a hut he hadbuilt himself. On the inner walls of his hut hung a photograph that

would attract anyone's attention. It was a picture that showed acommon farmer, with a turban on his head. What was this photograph doing here,in the house of a man such as Dr. Kumarappa? Many an important visitor would askDr. Kumarappa about this mysteriously unimportant looking man.

"Oh, he's my master's master." Dr. Kumarappa would say. "Master's master?"

"You see," Dr. Kumarappa would explain to the puzzled visitor, "my master isGandhiji, and this villager, indeed every poor person in the land, is his master."

Enter the Monkeys

Of course you've heard of the three monkeys that are alwaysmentioned along with Gandhi's name. But have you alsoheard of how they came to be with him in the first place? Findout from this recollection by someone who worked with bothTagore and Gandhi.

Most of the people who came to see Gandhi sought his advice on something or theother. But one day came a party of visitors from China. "Gandhiji, we have broughtyou a small gift," they said. "It is no bigger than a child's toy, but it is famous in ourcountry." To Gandhi's delight it was a set of the three monkeys that were later to


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become so well-known and to be kept carefully by him for the rest of his life.

(Majorie Sykes was born in 1905, and obtained a Teacher's Diploma fromCambridge in 1927. She came to India to teach at Madras, then went on toShantiniketan during 1938-47.

She came to Sevagram in 1948 to work in the Nai Talim School. Later she worked atHoshangabad. She passed away in April 1996 in England.)

Premchand Quits his Job

Did you know that, inspired by the Non-cooperation Movement, the Hindi writerPremchand decided to give up his job? But it wasn't such an easy decision. Here'show it happened, narrated by his wife.

It was 1920. Non-cooperation was in the air. Gandhiji came to Gorakhpur. He(Premchand, that is) was ill. Even then, our two sons, Babuji and I went to themeeting. Both of us were deeply affected by Mahatmaji's speech. Of course therewas illness. There were compulsions. But from that very time he lost interest incontinuing in his government job.

When he had recovered from his long illness he said to me one day, "If you agree Iwill leave this government job."

I asked for two to three days time to think it over. We had thought that he wouldbecome a professor, that our days would pass in comfort. More so, because hishealth had not been very good. And now this idea of simply letting go whatever hadbeen attained.

At that time he got an overall amount of around Rs. 125. And because he taught ina school, he also got time at home. I kept thinking: what will we do once he givesup his service. Looking at our needs, his prolonged illness, the fact that we had nohouse of our own, all this made me feel like telling him not to resign.

Four to five days later he asked me what I had decided. I thought, now that he isbetter, I will not worry about his giving up the job. In just those days, too, everyonewas seething with anger at the gruesome massacre at Jallianwala Bagh. Perhaps Iwas too.

By the next day I had braced myself to face all those difficulties which were boundto come in the wake of his resignation. I said to him, "Give up the job." I hadthought it would be painful leaving a job he had had for twenty-five years. But no,compared to the oppression being wreaked on the country, it was almost no pain at

all.Returning his Medals

In South Africa, Gandhi had worked shoulder to shoulder with the British onoccasions and even received awards for this. However, as soon as he felt he couldno longer accept the British government, he returned the awards bestowed uponhim. This was how his letter to the Viceroy ran, quoted from Young India dated 4thAugust, 1920:


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It is not without a pang that 1 return the Kaisar-i-Hind gold medal granted to me byyour predecessor for my humanitarian work in South Africa, the Zulu War medalgranted in South Africa for my services as officer in charge of the Indian volunteerambulance corps in 1906 and the Boer War medal for my services as assistantsuperintendent of the Indian volunteer stretcher-bearer corps during the Boer Warof 1899-1900. I venture to return these medals in pursuance of the scheme of non-cooperation inaugurated today in connection with the Khilafat movement. Valuableas these honours have been to me, I cannot wear them with an easy conscience solong as my Mussalman countrymen have to labour under a wrong done to theirreligious sentiment. Events that have happened during the past one month haveconfirmed me in the opinion that the Imperial Government have acted in theKhilafat matter in an unscrupulous, immoral and unjust manner and have beenmoving from wrong to wrong in order to defend their immorality. I can retainneither respect nor affection for such a Government.

Boer and Zulu Wars

Like the British Boers were white Europeans who had settled in south Africa. the

Boers had come from Holland. In his autobiography, Gandhi writes thus on this war:

When the war was declared, my personal sympathies were all with the Boers, butmy loyalty to the British rule drove me to participation with the British in that war. Ifelt that, if I demanded rights as a British citizen, it was also my duty, as such toparticipate in the defence of the British Empire. so I collected together as manycomrades as possible, and with very great difficulty got their services accepted asan ambulance corps.

In 1906, the Zulu Rebellion broke out in Natal. This was actually a campaign againsttax being imposed by the British on the Zulus, who were demanding their rights intheir own land. However, the whites declared war against the Zulus.

Again, Gandhi's sympathies with the Zulus but he considered it his duty to help theBritish and he volunteered to form an Indian Ambulance Corps. This Corps hadtwenty-four men, and was in active service for six weeks, nursing and looking afterthe wounded.

Basic Pen

Most people have lost a pen at some time or theother. So did Gandhi. He had a costly fountain penwhich was pilfered. The pen was immediatelyreplaced but the theft pained him. Henceforth, hedecided, he would not use anything so attractivethat it would tempt someone to steal it.

He began using a pen-holder and a nib. (Do you know what this was like? Ask yourparents if YOU don't.) But even this did not last forever. For the nib once got bentand he had to send Manubehn to get a new one.

This was a loss of time when every moment was precious. Even a few minutes'delay could upset a whole day's schedule. When Manubehn returned, she foundBapu sharpening the other end of the wooden holder. "Why"' she wanted to know.


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At which Gandhi said, "Now the point of my nib will never get curved. In olden days,people used such kittas for writing purposes. Using them made the handwritingbetter, and they did not cost a paisa." So he now had a pen that would neither bestolen or spoilt. And do you know to whom the first letter to be penned with thiskitta was addressed--Lord Mountbatten.

Prisoner No. 1739When Gandhi was a prisoner of the South African Government in November 1913 inBloemfontein Gaol, his jail card bore the following among other details:

No. : 1739

Name : Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

Religion : Hindu

Age : 43

Trade : Solicitor

Date of Sentence : 11-11-13

Date of Discharge : 10-11-14

Sentenced : Pounds 20 or 30 months (on each of four counts).

Gandhiji was awarded 50 marks for good conduct. As he did not pay the fine, hehad to serve the full sentence. The card bears his thumb impressions.

About the prison diet supplied to him the card says:

"Allowed vegetable diet owing to religious scruples. Diet : 12 bananas, 12 dates, 3tomatoes and 1 lemon each, 2 ounces of olive oil, and 3 selected groundnuts."

Gandhi's White Brother

In the vegetarian restaurant where he took his food, Kallenbachwould often see a young barrister. This was an Indian lawyer whodressed like an Englishman and had taken up the cause of Indianlabourers in South Africa. It was not long before the Germanengineer and M. K. Gandhi became friends.

They had a great deal in common a deep attraction for simple lifeand working for the good of their fellow beings. At the timeGandhi was struggling for the rights of Indians and Africans in aland dominated by white men.

The form of resistance that Gandhiji used was unique:satyagraha. He would patiently appeal to the good sense of the

whites while also refusing to follow their laws that he regarded evil. He was willingto suffer punishment for breaking these laws but refused to hate the white men.


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Kallenbach was attracted by this method. He and Gandhiji worked together for thepoorest of the poor. They changed their own life style and honoured every usefulwork. They said that a lawyer or an engineer was not superior to a cobbler or ascavenger. In fact they went to a Chinese cobbler in Johannesburg and learnt tomake footwear. And they undertook to clean their own latrines, something mostpeople would not do in these days.

From Ruskin's book Unto This Last, Kallenbach and Gandhi laid down threeprinciples for themselves: (i) the good of the individual is in the good of all; (ii) allwork is noble and all are equal; and (iii) a life of labour is worth living.

In 1903 Gandhi's family came over to South Africa. Though Kallenbach became adear uncle to his three children, Gandhi would not let him buy costly toys for them.They must not feel that they are different from poor people, he would say.

In 1910 Kallenbach, who was a rich man, donated to Gandhi a thousand acre farmbelonging to him near Johannesburg. This was a very great gift indeed and wasused to run Gandhi's famous 'Tolstoy Farm' that housed the families of satyagrahis.

With the satyagraha campaign in full swing, Gandhi would often go to prison. Duringsuch times, Kallenbach would take up the work of editing Indian Opinion, a weeklypaper started by Gandhi. Being white, he could not be punished under the SouthAfrican laws. This angered the white rulers no end, but Kallenbach carried on as aco-worker with Gandhi.

When Gandhi started the Phoenix Ashram near Durban, living as a farmer andlabourer, Kallenbach gladly joined in this new life. He built the simple sheds for theinmates, working as a mason and carpenter.

In 1915 Gandhi returned to India. The First World War had broken out. England andGermany were at war with each other. Being a German, Kallenbach was refusedentry into India and had to return sadly to South Africa, where he continued hiswork as a satyagrahi.

Kallenbach did come to India in 1936, when he visited Gandhi's ashram atSevagram near Wardha. He was ill at that time. Gandhi nursed him back to healthhimself.

In 1937 the Second World War broke out, Kallenbach was again put into jail by theSouth African Government.

When Kallenbach died of illness a little after this, in 1938, Gandhiji felt he had

indeed lost a brother.Who Saw Gandhi?

Sometimes old words acquire new meanings, as happened in this incident.

Gandhi had arrived at the Harijan Ashram in Delhi. In this ashram ran a workshop totrain boys in various vocational skills.


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tomatoes to keep the march going.

Along the way, one of the Indian marchers lost his camera. Later, when he returnedhome after the march, he was delighted to receive the news that his camera hadbeen found and an English lady was taking the trouble to send it back to him.

Prof. Ramjee singh

Inspiring Stories From Gandhiji

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