I remember reading his auto-biography in my school days, that I had borrowed from my uncle.A true practitioner of Gandhi-ism himself,my uncle was elated to lend me the book. Not to forget the 1st prize, I got in a fancy dress competition in my first grade depicting Gandhi-ji . . . And the high school history books did the rest.
As the world goes by, I took science and maths in my further studies leaving behind my passions - History and Literature; Nature loves cycles and about 8-10 years after, I turn back to live my passions, only after becoming financially independent.
Porbandhar was the first place, that I had visited related to Gandhi's life.I am recollecting my memories of that trip, way back in mid 2005 .
Our journey to Porbandhar, Gandhi's birthplace and an old port town in the western coastline of the Kutch penisula, started from Dwarka in a mini van( Note that buses do not run for short distances in this part of the world).We travelled under scorching summer heat along an Utopian desertic coast -line.It was dry horizon to horizon,deserted from people and vegetation leaving alone some xerophytes and the exaggeratedly dressed Kathiyawadi populace.It was a nice ride, although --yeah, we reached Porbhandar.
The images of Porbandhar were not so appealing - It was desertic, dry, dusty, filthy with congested market places, old buildings that had not seen a white-wash for years together, an unused tram track and it seemed devoid of any development, at least 15-20 years behind mainland India.We headed straight to Kirti mandir (the birth place of Gandhi).
It was just a 10 min walk from the so called bus station.We were asking for the way all along,just as if we were visiting our friend's house and not a tourist place.We reached a chowkdi where an old Gandhi statue still stands amid surrounded by fruit vendors-just a right turn will lead you to Gandhi's house.The street was very much congested and narrow,everything else is as such.
Porbhandar today
On the contrary, the memorial was very clean , maintained by the ASI.The place was de-peopled at that mid-hour of the day; I remember one of my friends remarking that it was deserted even on the 2nd of Oct, Gandhi's birth anniversary.The old house, where Gandhi was born in 1869 has been renovated and extended to today's "Kirti Mandir".The birth place and the rooms of the house are maintained as they were...its a three storied house. It was truly astonishing to accept the fact that a boy born into a rich family in one of the isolated regions of India had become such a powerful personality, widely acclaimed in world history.The memorial has a rich museum and a book house selling "Gandhi-ism". Kasturbha Gandhi's house is just a few yards behind Gandhi's house."
I had read an article in "The Hindu" where-in the author travels to Sabarmati ashram in Ahmadabad.That was years ago when I was in college; Thanks to 'The Hindu Archives', I could get the link pretty easily http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mag/2004/03/14/stories/
2004031400200700.htm
I longed to go there since. . .It was last Saturday, that I got a chance to feel the simplicity of the life, this great man has lived;This had been the place where he has transformed from a man to a Mahatma.
The ashram faces the Sabarmati river with the prayer grounds in front. The cottage, where Gandhi lived from 1919 to 1932 is called 'Hridayagunj' and is maintained as such for years. Time has not invaded much into the serenity of the place. This makes one feel the spirituality and peace of the ashram. The only distrubing fact is the pollution of the Sabarmati river overlooking the ashram.
Despite the cottages,the ashram has some newly built structures housing a museum, a library and some rare photographs. Life was not stand-still in the ashram,it was neither frozen in time - there were a bunch of kids playing cricket, bullying over the sand, making noises outrightly disturbing some young budding artists, who were hand-sketching the ashram, sitting in front of them.
The visitors to the ashram were quite a mixed bunch to one's astonishment. There were many foreigners, some history students, a class of kinder-garden school children, a handful of Gandhians clad in khadi and it would be unjust, not to mention a lover couple who had sneaked into the ashram to spend some quality(?) time in peace.
Sabharmati Ashram Today
2 comments:
thanx budddy for taking us on a tour to porbandar, sabarmati ashram, a chettinad veedu and to cdm. the four gopuram shot was amazing, i had always longed to capture that.... the laziness that contracts on our holidays back home made me giggle, particularly the family updates part,...btw has the bridge been completed?
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