In Gandhiji's presence by K Madhavan Nair
To be able to spend time with a great man is a privilege but getting a chance to spend three days in the presence of one of the greatest men?
That was what my grandfather did on May 15, 16, and 17 of 1924. He spent three days with Mahatma Gandhi and wrote about it (below).
My grandfather K. Madhavan Nair had a long-standing relationship with Gandhiji and all the other national leaders as a member of the All India congress committee and as the primary leader of the Kerala Provincial congress committee. They communicated with each other regularly through telegrams and letters and he used to translate Gandhiji's speeches at all gatherings instantaneously to Malayalam when Gandhiji visited Kerala. Gandhiji came to Calicut after my grandfather passed away in 1933 and gave a very touching, heartwarming speech about him.
Vaikom temple was one of the temples amongst many in Kerala that was prohibiting members of lower castes from entering the temple or walking on the road next to it. On March 15th, 1924, K Madhavan Nair was selected as the director of the Kerala untouchability Committee and Kelappan its secretary. On March 30th Vaikyom Satyagraha began. As the people who were protesting were facing many hurdles, a delegation that included K Madhavan Nair was sent to meet Gandhiji in Juhu, Bombay to ask for assistance. A 20-page memorandum titled Vaikom struggle signed by K Madhavan Nair and Kurur Namboodiripad was handed over to Gandhiji. They invited Gandhiji to come for a visit to Vaikom to support the endeavor. Gandhiji agreed and gave his full support.
In Gandhiji’s presence
Observations by Shri K. Madhavan Nair
(On the advice of Swami Shraddhanananda, the then Untouchability and Unapproachability Committee had decided to send a delegation to Gandhiji to explain to Gandhiji the situation regarding the Vaikom Satyagraha and to persuade him not to prohibit the Satyagraha Committee from accepting assistance from other states.
This group consisting of K. Madhavan Nair, Kurur Neelankandan Namboothiripad, and N. Kumara Pillai visited Mahatmaji in Juhu, Bombay in May 1924. This article written by Shri Madhavan Nair describing the visit was published in Mathrubhumi on 5th July 1924. After being released from prison, Gandhiji had not fully recovered his health at that stage-------Editors Souvenir. K Madhavan Nair Janmashatabdi Smaranika)
In his own words. Translated from Malayalam.
We came to Bombay and immediately got to know the news that " even though Mahatmaji has not fully recovered, he has no time off, he can not be seen all the time." We wrote down everything we had to say on the way, in case there is not enough time to speak to him. When we reached Bombay, we immediately typed and corrected it. We reached Bombay on the morning of 15th May.
Our friend Kunhikannan Nair went to Juhu that evening where Mahatmaji was staying to get an appointment. He met Mahatmaji who said that C R Das, Abdul Kalam Azad, etc. were coming to see him however he could use all his free time to talk to us.
Mahatmaji lived in a beautiful bungalow situated on the edge of the sea at a distance of two and a half miles from Villeparle station, seven eight stations from the city of Bombay. Dadabhai Navroji's house is right next to it. There are no bungalows or houses to speak of in the area except the huts inhabited by a caste of fishermen. The house where Mahatmaji lived belonged to a rich Bombay man facing the sea in the middle of a very tidy coconut grove and was not affected by the extreme heat of summer. Dense palm trees separate this Bungalow from the beach as a fence on the western side. During the day Mahatmaji sits on the second-floor porch of this bungalow which has three spacious rooms, a large porch, and verandahs downstairs. It had been decided that he should not be seen without permission due to his ill health and busy schedule.
His youngest children named Ramdas and Devdas stay with him to take care of him. The very compassionate Mr. C. F. Andrews also lives with Mahatmaji to look after him. Wearing only a dhoti with no coat or shirt, half-naked like an ordinary Indian, without socks or boots on his feet, with just a hat on his head, the white gentleman Andrews was collecting the clothes that were left to dry outside, one by one.
The household chores were done by his sons and some noble Gujarati women. Very few guests were seen there.
As Mahatmaji wanted goat's milk readily available, several large milking goats were seen roaming freely within the house. We saw many current newspapers lying unread on the table on the lower porch, which these goats were eating with great relish. Perhaps the secretaries did not bother to give these papers to Mahatmaji as the essence of it was entering into Mahatmaji’s stomach through the milk?! Many brought gifts and were feeding and entertaining the goats perhaps using these same principles! Mahatmaji's ashram also seemed to fit many things that poets of the past had described about the ancient forests of penance that Rishis used.
We left the Nair Samaj Hostel at half past seven and reached Gandhiji's bungalow at half past nine. As soon as we informed Mahatmaji about our arrival, he immediately gave us permission to see him. In half a second we reached that glorious presence. There appeared before us a slim and radiant gentleman who was sitting in an armchair without any other clothes on his body, wearing a khadar robe that barely reached his knees. We are convinced by experience that when the beautiful rays of the two idols of compassion and love, which reside within him, flow out in the form of a smile and through the words of Mahatmaji, who has only one or two teeth left, the hearts of the people of the world expand and make them happy. For a moment we gazed absorbed in ecstasy, at the eyes that shone with a spirit that was clear, the long flaring nose, the broad forehead, broad chests, and the pure feet. He commanded us to "sit down". As we began to sit down on the lower ground, he motioned for us to sit on the nearest chairs by pointing them to us.
As we felt we were not deserving of such equality and tried to sit on the floor again, he softly scolded us by saying that chairs are for humans to sit on. In our panic, we regret to say that we forgot to do the usual pleasantries.
He started answering our questions about Vaikom Satyagraha with the preface that we should not follow any of his opinions unless we are convinced that they are correct and that he is ready to change those opinions if we can convince him that his opinion is wrong. He begins to chuckle when we change questions that we think are difficult to answer. His face would light up when we asked him questions that we thought he might find offensive. When the questions are over, he will begin to answer in sweet language, in a clear manner. He will interrogate us until he is convinced that we have fully understood the matter. Doubts about it were resolved immediately.
After talking like this for about an hour, he left us for a while to attend to a girl who was lying sick on the upper verandah. No doubt, any nurse would be envious to see how Mahatmaji was attending to the girl so carefully and slowly, without causing any pain to the patient, bandaging her wounds with the cloth that he himself had examined and fixed. After this service was completed, the conversation continued with us.
By then it was time for his meal. His food consisted only of two or three kinds of ripe fruits and goat's milk. He enjoyed his meal slowly while talking to us. At that moment Abdul Kalam Azad arrived to see him, so we took his permission and went downstairs. And we could not meet Mahatmaji again that day. But with the strength of the scorching sun outside, I had to stay there till five o'clock. From two o'clock to three o'clock in the afternoon, Mahatmaji teaches Devidas's younger brother Ramadas his school work (he does not let his work interfere with his fatherly duties). The rest of the time is used to write, talk to the visitors and do his other activities. There are many types of people who come to see him. But as stated earlier, it is possible for the public to see him only after 5 o'clock. At about six o'clock he would go down for a walk on the beach. Waiting for this opportunity, a large number of people had come and assembled in the courtyard and the field of the bungalow. Most of them are women and children and those who have come to bring him various gifts. Mahatmaji loves children very much. No matter how much he plays with them, Mahatmaji is never satisfied. It is a common practice for many women to touch the feet of Mahatmaji with their young children in the belief that the very touch of Mahatmaji is auspicious.
Mahatmaji's secretaries were Krishnadas and his beloved son Devidas. A Christian, a member of the Servant of India Society, was staying there to perform services for the Mahatmaji as requested by Srinivasa Shastri. Monday and Wednesday are the days when Mahatmaji observes silence. No one visits him that day. It is during these two days that he writes articles for the newspapers he runs, Young India and Navjeevan.
We were able to meet Mahatmaji for three days. He talked to us for two hours every day.
I have been able to meet some of the Mahatmas (great men) in India, but when I saw some of those great men, I used to get the impression that they did not have as much greatness as we thought they had. My experience with Mahatmaji was just the opposite. The more I got to know him and talked to him, the more I am convinced that people have not been able to fully understand his greatness.
"The world is my home
Plants, grass, and worms are my family
Sacrifice is my gain
Humility is my success."
It is not at all surprising to see a difference between the great soul who lives with this motto and other great people who are a little proud of themselves that they are great people!
************************************************************
The rough copy of first and last page of the 20 page memorandum he presented to Gandhiji named Vykom Struggle. (From Sabarmati Ashram Archives)
First page of the document (rough draft)
Source: Gandhi Heritage portal. The collected works of Mahatma Gandhi
 |
| Page 1 |
Narayanikutty k
ReplyDeleteWell done. Hope the present politicians will come to know how sincere and trustworthy were the leaders of the past thru these types of articles