DAY TO DAY WITH GANDHI [ SECRETARY'S DIARY ] by Mahadev H. Desai Vol-2 ( From April 1919 To October 1920 ) SARVA SEVA SANGH PRAKASHAN RAJGHAT : VARANASI-221001 Publisher : Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan Rajghat, Varanasi -221001 Edition : First, June 1968 Copies : 1500 Printer : A.K. Bose Indian Press ( P. ) Ltd. Varanasi. Price in India : Rs. 40.00 in Foreign : 5.00 Dollars or 3.50 Pounds A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T The quotations from the writings of Gandhiji reproduced in this Diary have been taken with the kind permission of Navajeevan Trust, Ahmedabad. We are indebted to Navajeevan Trust for granting us this permission on a nominal royalty. -Narayan M. Desai No quotations or portions in parts of whole or any translation © thereof from this Diary can be published without the permission of Sri Narayan M. Desai, Shanti Sena Mandal, Varanasi. -Publishers ¶ãã½ã : ¡ñ -?ì -¡ñ ãäÌã©ã Øããâ£ããè (½ãÖãªñÌã ¼ãã?à ?ã?ãè ¡ã ¾ãÀãè) Ôãâ¹ããª?ã? : ¶ãÀÖÀãè ´ã. ¹ãÀãè?ã ?ã¶ãìÌããª?ã? : Öñ½ã¶¦ã?ãì?½ããÀ ¶ããèÊã?ãâ? ? ãäÌãÓã¾ã : ?ããèÌã¶ã ÔãâÔ½ãÀ¥ã ¹ãÆ?ã?ãÍã?ã? : ÔãÌãà ÔãñÌãã ÔãâÜã ¹ãÆ?ã? ãÍã¶ã Àã?ãÜãã?, ÌããÀã¥ãÔããè - 221001 ÔãâÔ?ã?À¥ã : ¹ãÖÊãã ¹ãÆãä¦ã¾ããú : 1500 ½ãì³?ã? : ?ã½ãÊã?ãì?½ããÀ ºãÔãì ?ã䥡¾ã¶ã ¹ãÆñÔã ¹ãÆã0 ãäÊã0, ÌããÀã¥ãÔããè-2 ½ãîʾ㠼ããÀ¦ã : Á 0 40.00 ½ãò ãäÌãªñÍã ½ãò : 5.00 ¡ãÊãÀ ¾ãã 3.50 ¹ããõ¥¡ Publishers' Note It is a matter of privilege for Sarva Seva Sangh to have the opportunity of publishing Mahadev Desai's Diary in Hindi as well as in English. The relation between Gandhiji and Mahadev Desai is well known to all. Both names are immortal in the history of our national freedom movement. Mahadev Desai joined Gandhiji in 1917 and remained with him till 1942 when Mahadevbhai breathed his last in the lap of Gandhiji in Agakhan palace while in detention. It is amazing to note that Mahadevbhai regularly wrote his day-to-day diary despite his busiest routine with Gandhiji. Gandhiji and Mahadev Desai had such an inseparable relation that they were like two bodies with one soul. Hence, Mahadev Desai's Diary means Diary of Gandhiji's activities. While reading this Diary one feels like actually witnessing the various incidents with Gandhiji. As there are authentic records of important interviews of Gandhiji with national and international leaders, we come across even the utterings of Gandhiji in his delirious condition side by side with excerpts from Gandhiji's most important historical as well as epic speeches, we also find here Gandhiji's typical crackling of jokes with small children. There is no other Diary in history of this kind except that of Bosswel, the learned English writer, who has noted the events of Dr. Johnson's life in his diary. But the difference between these two diaries lies in the difference of the life of Gandhiji and that of Dr. Johnson. Mahadev Desai had a knack of snatching some time out of his overcrowded daily routine for some extra reading. He had enriched his diary by jotting down some references out of that study. Mahadevbhai was a voracious reader and a deep thinker. As we find in his diary glimpses of a critical study of his reading, there are sprinkling of a lucid description of some new places he had visited or a running life-sketch of some new personalities he had met. In all these writings Mahadevbhai's supreme literary genius is amply revealed. The period between 1917 and 1942 was a glorious chapter of India's non-violent struggle for Independence. We get a peep into Gandhiji's innermost thoughts through Mahadevbhai's diary. This period was packed with Gandhiji's most important interviews, correspondence, whirlwind tours all over the country. A vivid picture of the social, political and spiritual atmosphere of our country in those days is graphically drawn by Mahadevbhai in this diary. It would not be an exaggeration to say that such a publication is definitely an enriching addition to the world's literature. It is an irony of fate that Mahdadevbhai could not live long to edit his diary himself. True to his devotion he died in harness. Late Shri Naraharibhai Parikh, Mahadevbhai's dearest and nearest friend, shouldered the responsibility of editing this diary as a labour of love for a departed friend. Naraharibhai himself was suffering from a serious disease. But he persevered relentlessly and completed the editing of about 3000 pages when he succumbed to the disease. It was a tremendous task to edit the voluminous matter, which would run into about 20 volumes of about 400 pages each. The remaining volumes are being edited by Shri Chandulal Bhagubhai Dalal. The original diaries are in Gujarati. First three volumes in Hindi, covering the period of 1932-33, were published by Navajeevan Trust. The publication work of these diaries was interrupted due to some dispute over the right of publication. Finally Shri Narayan Desai, son of Mahadev Desai, got the right of publication and he generously entrusted the publication of Hindi and English editions of the Gujarati Diary to Sarva Seva Sangh without claiming any royalty. Sarva Seva Sangh is deeply grateful to Shri Narayan Desai for this generous offer. Sarva Seva Sangh has brought out five Volumes of Hindi editions chronologically right from 1917. Sixth volume is expected to be out soon. The English translation of Mahadev Desai's Diary is being done by Shri Hemant Kumar Nilkanth. The first volume of English Diary was brought out in February 1968. We are happy to bring out the Second volume within a short period of 4 months. We propose to bring out the third volume on the auspicious day of 2nd Oct. 1968. ________ PREFACE This Diary covers the period of Rowlatt Satyagraha and Non-co-operation. Every page of it bristles with Gandhiji's Herculean efforts to rouse the country from its age-long sleep That was a period of exceptional, even marvellous, awakening and enthusiasm in the history of India's struggle for freedom. Owing to the novelty of the method, the people were imbued during the period, with an extraordinary vitality. Before we could gain independence, we have offered three mighty fights : This non-co-operation struggle of 1920-21, civil disobedience fight from 1933 to 1934, and the 'Quit India' fight of 1942 and after. All the three of them were momentous struggles, but the first fight of 1920-21 has a special significance of its own, owing to the fact that that was the first time when a method of fighting, original and very novel, not only in the annals of India but in those of the world, was adopted. Gandhiji was usually the very embodiment of gentleness in heart and hand. But on the occasion of a fight he used to be so possessed with Lord Shiva's all-devastating intensity of purpose and reckless disregard of his very life, that everyone who heard or saw him used to catch the contagion of his fiery spirit. "The sun never sets on the British Empire", that was what the Imperialists used to proclaim; and the Empire had dug its roots so deep into our mind that there was a class of educated men among us-and Gandhiji himself once belonged to that class-which believed that the country's progress was never more pheno-menal than under the British regime. But Gandhiji knocked the bottom out of that overwhelming prestige of the mighty British Empire by one single word 'Satanic'. How could the people, after this telling epithet, retain any respect or awe or fear of Government officers and the police? There remained in the country none so poor as to do reverence to these Government officers. Openly and loudly, the whole mass of Indian humanity including women and children, began to cry out, "We don't want this Government." In his charming language Mahadevbhai gives us in this Diary how Gandhiji performed this miracle of bringing about such a sweeping revolution in a country so vast as India. Hardly any other Indian might have rendered the British Empire as valuable services as Gandhiji had. Twice in South Africa he had raised, under his personal leadership, Ambulance Corps made up exclusively of Indians in order to serve disabled soldiers in the Boer and Zulu wars. Though his Ambulance Corps were not expected to go to the actual front and face a hail of shots, Gandhiji had many a time freely risked his own life and those of his men by taking them right to the hottest front and bringing the wounded soldiers from there to a place of safety. When the 1 st World War of 1914-18 broke out, Gandhiji was in England. There also he had formed a Red Cross made up of Indians. Owing to the extremely heavy work of organising the Corps, he had caught pleurisy there during the bitter cold of those days. Again, during same war, he had taken up the work of recruitment for the Army in the Kaira District in 1917. The severe strain which he put himself to at that time in scouring the whole district had brought him dysentery of such a severe form that it looked for some days that he would not survive the attack. He had, till then, the faith that the retention of British connection was a sine qua non for India's progress. It was this deep faith which had impelled him to serve the Empire with such costly zeal. But even during this period of single-hearted loyalty for the British Empire, he had not failed to offer grim fights against some of the injustices inflicted on India by the Empire. Over and above, the world-famous South Africa Satyagraha, he had offered in India, non-violent fights to stop the indentured labour system, the indigo exaction in Champaran, the revenue enforcement in Kaira and the imposition of the Rowlatt Act. Then happened two big events which shook his loyalty to its roots,?the Punjab atrocities and the injustice dealt to the Muslim community in the matter of the Khilafat. All the same he curbed his urge for resistance and kept patience till, for the Punjab atrocities, the Report of the Disorders Inquiry Committee appointed by the Government, and for the Khilafat, the final answer of the British Cabinet, were not out. Upto these last blows he had remained so loyal that, supporting the main resolution at the Amritsar Congress held in December 1919, he had declared that the Montford Reforms must be accepted unconditionally and the Government given unstinted co-operation in implementing the Reforms. Tilak Maharaj had sponsored an amendment in favour of Responsive Co-operation'. At the Subjects Committee meeting Gandhiji had then taken off his cap on the dais itself, fallen at the feet of Tilak Maharaj and entreated him to accept the original resolution and withdraw his amendment. Fortunately, a compromise with Tilak Maharaj had averted the need for taking votes in the open session. But ever since then the Congress had come completely under the sway of Gandhiji. Though Gandhiji's faith in the British Empire was deep, it was by no means over-indulgent. After he came to India in the beginning of 1915, he had resolved not to deliver a single speech for full one year in response to the earnest desire of Gokhaleji. That period ended in January 1916. The first lecture he then delivered was at Benares on February 4th (1916) on the occasion of the foundation of the Hindu University. As H.E. The Viceroy had attended the function. Many Indian Princes had come there, arrayed in their ceremonious Darbari attire and dazzling ornaments. Mrs. Besant and other national leaders were also present. In that very first speech which he made after coming to India, he said his say with stunning frankness and with it announced, as it were, his own plan of action. Speaking of the dross and refuse always found around the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, he called our dirty habits and the intolerable filth found all over the country as a national disgrace. Dealing with the costly and brilliant jewellery with which the Indian princes had bedecked themselves, he said that the lordly palaces of the princes and millionaires shamed the meanness of the miserable sheds of the millions around them and added that that grave economic inequality was a menace to the country. He also stated that the imposing retinue of body-guards and aides-de-camp and the very stringent precautions and police arrangements made en route for the protection of His Excellency the Viceroy, Lord Hardinge, betrayed nothing but a distrust of the people. He went on to say that the C.I.D. (Criminal Investigation Department) always kept a vigilant watch over all the movements of our national leaders and, as a matter of fact, they lived like prisoners in their own land. He also referred to the arrogance and the steel frame of the Civil Servants. He pointed out how, owing to the fact that our educated men had to learn through the medium of a foreign tongue, English, they lost all affinity for their families and the public. He showed how the tyranny and injustice inflicted upon India by the British rule was responsible for the growth of the terrorists. Declaring that he himself was a terrorist of a kind, but, with a difference in method, he asserted that there was no need to feel afraid of anybody on earth?-neither of the princes sitting there, nor of the Viceroy, neither of the C.I.D. nor of the Emperor George V himself,?if only we had faith in God and walked in fear of Him. And then, raising his voice, he publicly professed that if ever he found that for India's uplift it was necessary that the Englishman must go away from India or that he must be driven out, he was not going to feel the slightest constraint in proclaiming that conviction from, house tops and was fully prepared to accept death as a penalty. It was but natural that a speech of this kind would shock some leaders sitting on the dais and other members of the audience who prided themselves on being sober and moderate. Mrs. Besant even went to the length of asking Gandhiji to stop. But the young blood, the students, hailed his forthright statements and cried out, 'Go on' 'Go on'. The princes and potentates began to get up from their seats and leave the meeting and there was a great clamour. Gandhiji's speech remained unfinished at that point. But the situation which Gandhiji had envisaged arose within only four years of that unforgettable speech. When he received the final answer that the British Government was not in a position to get any change made in the decision arrived at about the Khilafat, Gandhiji advised the Muslims gathered at the Khilafat Conference in March 1920 that there was only one remedy against it, and that was total non-co-operation with the Government. At the same time he told Hindus that at a time when the religion of their compatriots had been attacked, it was their duty to stand by their aggrieved brothers. The Report of the Disorders Inquiry Committee for the Punjab and other disturbances was published on 26-5-1920. Its recommendations were anything but satisfactory. And even more dangerous than the Report itself was the Resolution, which the Indian Government framed on the basis of that Report.About Sir Michael O'dwyer, the Lieutenant Governor of the Punjab, who was the arch-culprit at the back of all the in human barbarities perpetrated in the Punjab, the Resolution stated that the Government of India fully appreciated the high courage and efficiency with which Sir Michael had conducted his administration in times of stress and storm. About General Dyer who had massacred hundreds of innocent men and women in the Jullianwala Bagh, the Resolution simply stated that he had committed an error of judgment in using more military force than necessary. He was made to resign, he was not only allowed to go scot tree, but was not even rebuked for his excesses. Some Englishmen, on the contrary, honoured him, in a public address as the 'Saviour of the British Empire' and raised a fund to help him. To crown it all, even before this Report was out, the Indian Government had by an Ordinance made it impossible for any case to be filed against any of the officers who had been charged by the public with atrocious crimes. Thus, besides that of the Khilafat, the grave injustice of the Punjab became the second issue for non-co-operation. In a letter to the Viceroy dated 20-6-1920 ( see pp. 166-68 ) Gandhiji informed him of his scheme of non-co-operation. As previously fixed, the programme of non-co-operation was put before the public on the 1st of August 1920, the date that synchronised with the day of the demise of Tilak Maharaj. Then, at the end of August 1920, the Gujarat Political Conference was held and the non-co-operation resolution was passed there. After that the Indian National Congress gave the non-co-operation programme its formal seal of approval by passing a resolution in its favour at the Special Session of the Congress held in Calcutta in the first week of September. Gandhiji declared at that Congress that if the people carried out successfully the boycotts of Councils, Courts, Government titles and honours, schools and colleges, and foreign cloth, the people could, within the short span of a year, win Swaraj outright. But people rarely pay much attention to the 'ifs'. What they did was to catch the slogan,'Swaraj in A Year'. Under the non-co-operation programme, the boycott of law-courts was to be carried out by the formation of national panchayats (arbitration boards), that of Government controlled schools and colleges by the foundation of national educational institutions and that of foreign cloth by the introduction of spinning-wheels and the production of Khadi. But as it was impossible to carry out all this big programme without a substantial fund, it was decided to collect a crore of rupees before the 30th June, under the significant name of 'Tilak Swaraj Fund'. Before the time limit expired, the fund came up, not to a crore of rupees merely (ten millions,), but to a crore and a quarter and Gandhiji was acclaimed as a 'miracle-worker'. Bonfires of foreign cloth were lighted not only in big cities but in countless villages also. According to the programme over and above these items, one crore of members were to be enrolled on the Congress register and twenty lakhs (hundred-thousand) of spinning wheels were to be set working. This programme had thus both a destructive and a constructive aspect. The former type of activities, such as bonfire of foreign cloth and boycott of courts and schools etc., was meant to sweep off old and hallowed cob-webs; while the constructive activities in the programme, such as the opening of national schools, the institution of Panchayats, the increase of Khadi production, the removal of untouchability and the implementation of unity between Hindus, Muslims and other communities were aimed at bringing about a new life through the country, increasing the power of the people and making the country self-reliant. It was on these constructive activities that Gandhiji laid greater emphasis. In no other subsequent fights could Gandhiji get the chance to raise the morale as well as the purity of the people to as high a pitch as in this fight, because he used to be in the later struggles arrested almost at their very start. But during this first battle the Government was so 'perplexed' and 'puzzled' that the then Governor of Bombay had even declared that, but for the fact that Gandhiji himself stopped the struggle owing to the Chauri Chora outrage, he would have won Swaraj, because the movement had already come to 'within an inch of success.' Gandhiji never rested content with preaching to the people that non-co-operation meant self-purification, self-reliance, sacrifice, courage etc. he saw to it that they imbibed these qualities in their life; and that was how Gandhiji roused the country from its long long sleep. A wave of self-purification and enthusiasm so big as to be beyond the wildest hope of any body, swept all over the country and the people braced themselves up for sa-crifice and suffering more staggering than they ever imagined they were capable of. In order to spread the message of non-co-operation far and wide workers, inured to the comforts and soft-living of cities, began to roam about on foot from village to village, both under the scorching heat of the day and the dreadful darkness of the night. In was during that period of wonderful awakening and self-sacrifice that most of our present leaders found themselves and were moulded into what they are. Leaving aside Deshbandhu Das, Pandit Motilal Nehru and some others, who were older in age than Gandhiji, it can be indubitably stated that Jawaharlalji, Sardar Vallabhbhai, Rajaji (C.Raja-gopalachariar), Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad, Rajendrababu and several others who now occupy the front rank were all trained under Gandhiji's leadership during this first fight. It is said that leaders must make some compromises in the matter of their principles and descend to the level of the people if they want to gain their full backing. If they do not do so, they are isolated and passed by. But Gandhiji never made any compromise in his principles and yet he was able to secure such solid popular support from all classes of men, as perhaps no other leader in the world had ever won. Not that Gandhiji was lacking in the spirit of compromise, but his way of treating the people was very different. He could very quickly discriminate between a point that involved a principle and was thus important and another which was not so fundamental. Hence, it was that though he remained firm as a rock in a matter where a principle was at stake, he had the spiritual power to identify himself completely with the people's view and, by agreeing in unessentials, raise them to a high level. This element has penetrated more or less into the leaders and workers also whom he had trained. And it is owing to this trait that though India is far behind some other states in point of armed force and wealth, she is enjoying a place of special importance in the comity of nations. The credit of this prestige of India goes to the powerful mantra of non-violence and self-purification which Gandhiji had given to India in 1920-21. Another marked feature of this fight lies in the fact that during that period we saw such heartening scenes of fraternity between Hindus and Muslims as have never been seen after the period. And it has become difficult to predict when we shall again see the same brotherhood. Today, at least, it seems as if the old faith and zest for Gandhiji's principles and programme have abated in the hearts even of his colleagues. All the same the deeds which he had sown are bound to sprout forth soon or late. This Diary gives us a picture of that period of unique awakening and virility among the people The only regret is that Mahadevbhai could not stay with Gandhiji all through the period. After the Punjab horrors of April 1919, Gandhiji got permission to go there as late as in October 1919. But Mahadevbhai was then laid in bed with typhoid and could not stir out for about four months. We are thus deprived of the description, from Mahadevbhai's charming pen, of the memorable scene between Gandhiji and Tilak Maharaj at the Amritsar Congress. Moreover, at Gandhiji's instance, Mahadevbhai stayed for sometime with Deshbandhu Das and for a much longer time with Pandit Motilal Nehru. A Bengali gentleman, Mr. Krishnadas, used to move about with Gandhiji at that time. He has written a book 'Seven Months with Gandhiji for that period. Another attractive feature of this Diary, as of others, is the excellent letters which Gandhiji wrote during the period. When Gandhiji had to suspend the Rowlatt Satyagraha owing to the outbursts of violence in Ahmedabad, Bombay and the Punjab, he issued leaflets to educate the public in the tenet of non-violent non-co-operation. These leaflets are reproduced in the Appendix. There are also some letters in it which explain to the public of Britain and others why Gandhiji was compelled to give up his loyalty to the British Empire and start non-co-operation. March, Narhari Parikh 1951. CONTENTS 1. Diary ? ? ? 17-310 2. Appendix I ? A. The Vow of Hindu-Muslim Unity ? 313 B. The Swadeshi Vowico?I ? ? 316 C. ,, ,, ?II ? ? 320 Appendix II A. Speech at the Satyagrahashram ? ? 323 B. Satyagraha Leaflet I ? ? 328 C. ,, ,, II ? ? 332 D. Satyagraha-Its significance ? ? 334 Appendix III A.'-K-Leaflets reb. Horniman's deportation ? 337 Index of Names ? ? ? 361 General Index ? ? ? 369?400 "Only that day dawns to which we are awake". ?Thoreau "There is no other choice left for a number of people except to resort to ascetic seclusion in a country which has been reduced to the helplessness of a widow, has been squeezed of all its valour and manliness, has been bled white and made a skeleton, has been robbed of its pristine glory and has, therefore, sunk into gloom and despair." 1-4 -'19 Letter to Miss Ferring : *"My dear child, My hand is still too shaky for steady and continuous writing. But I feel I must make the attempt to give you something in my own hand. I was so sorry I did not see you at the station. I felt keenly for you and poor Mahadev. Both of you are sensitive, almost cast in the same mould. I was shuddering as I looked through the window when the train steamed out. I felt that he would run to catch the train so madly that he would drop down in sheer exhaustion. I was glad to see him at Bezwada. I hope you wrote to the Collector as you had agreed you would. Please let me know whether he said anything in reply. Please tell the girls I am going to make daily use of the blanket sheet they have sent me. But I expect them soon to be able to weave handspun cotton and spin it themselves. The music of the spinning wheel is superior to any I know, for it is the music that finally can clothe the naked. Even when the machines will be rusting from disuse ( for man will some day get sick of the maddening speed of the machines ), posterity will still require the clothing and hand-spun yarn will be the fashion. I am asking Maganlal to send you some handspun yarn. Our train was late and we missed the connection here. So we have got an idle day. This enables me to write to you. I wish you could introduce Hindi in your school. You may consult the Superintendent about it. Have you read my plea for Hindi ? With deep love, Yours, Bapu" 5-4-'19 Letter to Mr. Andrews on the atrocities committed in Delhi on March 30th. : *"My dear Charlie, For 24 hours I was sad beyond measure over the Delhi tragedy. I am now happy over it to the same extent. The blood spilt at Delhi was innocent. It is possible that the Satyagrahis in Delhi made mistakes. But on the whole they have covered them-selves with glory. There can be no redemption without sacrifice. And it fills me with a glow to find that a full measure was given even on the first day and at the very seat of the Satanic government. I want to share the happiness with you if you can take it. I hope you received my letter answering your doubts. I have filed an appeal against you and here is a copy thereof. You can do what you like with it. But I must have Gurudev's opinion. With deep love, Yours, Mohan" To Sri Ravindranath Tagore : *"Dear Gurudev, This is an appeal to you against our mutual friend Charlie Andrews. I have been pleading with him for a message from you for publication in the national struggle which, though in form is directed against a single piece of legislation, is in reality a struggle for liberty worthy of a self-respecting nation. Charlie's description of your illness made me hesitate to write to you personally. Your health is a national treasure and Charlie's devotion to you is superhuman. It is divine. And I know that if he could help it he would not allow a single person, whether by writing or by his presence, to disturb your quiet and rest. But I find that you are lecturing in Benares. I have, therefore, in the light of this fact corrected Charlie's description of your health, which had somewhat alarmed me, and I venture to ask you for a message from you ?a message of hope and inspiration for those who have to go through the fire. I do so because you have been good enough to send me your blessings when I embarked upon the struggle. The forces arrayed against me are, as you know, enormous. I do not dread them for I have an unwavering belief that they are all supporting untruth and that if we have sufficient faith in truth it will enable us to overpower them. But all forces work through human agency. I am, therefore, anxiou to gather round this mighty struggle the ennobling assistance of those who approve it. I will not happy until I have received your considered opinion in regard to this struggle which endeavours to purify the political life of the country. If you have seen anything to alter your first opinion of it you will not hesitate to make it known to me. I value even adverse opinions from friends for though they may not make me change my course, they serve the purpose of so many light-houses to give me warnings of danger lying in the stormy paths of life. Charlie's friendship has been to me on this account an invaluable treasure, because he does not hesitate to share with me even such notes of dissent as have not yet been fully considered by him. This I count a great privilege. May I ask you to extend to me at this critical moment the same privilege that Charlile has been extending ? I hope that you are keeping well and that you have thoroughly recuperated after your fatiguing journey through the Madras Presidency. Yours sincerely, M. K. Gandhi" After the Delhi tragedy1 , Bapu issued a Press note : *"I venture to seek the hospitality of your columns to make a few remarks on the Delhi tragedy. It is alleged against the Delhi people who were assembled at the Delhi railway station, ????????????? 1. The Satyagraha against the Rowlatt Acts was to commence with the observance of a 24 hours' fast, prayer, general strike and a resolution to be passed at a public meeting declaring the people's opposition against the Acts. Sunday, the 30th of March, was fixed as the day of the commencement. But it was changed afterwards to Sunday the 6th of April, because it was feared that the whole country could not be intimated in time. But as the news of this change could not reach Delhi before the 30th the Opposition Day was celebrated there on that date. A complete hartal ( strike ) was observed. A procession was to start at 4 p. m. which was to convert itself into a meeting later on. As such, a perfect hartal was without a precedent in the annals of Delhi, the White Police Officials were alarmed at the strength of the demonstration. The morning, however, passed off quietly; but at 2 p. m. White soldiers, under one pretext or 1 that some of them were trying to coerce the swetmeatsellers into losing their stalls; 2 that some of them were forcibly preventing people from boarding tram-cars and other vehicles; 3 that some of the threw brickbats; 4 that the whole crowd that marched to the station demanded the release of the men who are said to be the coercers and who wwere for that reason arrested at the instance of railway authorities; 5 that the crowd declined to disperse when the magistrate gave the order to disperse I have read Sannyasi Swami Shraddhanandji's account of the tragedy. I am bound to accept it as true, unless it is authoritatively proved to be otherwise, and his account seems to me to deny allegations 1,2 and 3. But assuming the truth of all the allegations, it does appear to me that the local authorities in Delhi have made the use of a Nasmyth hammer to crush a fly. On their action however, in firing on the crowd, I shall seek another opportunity of saying more. My purpose in writing this letter is merely to issue a note of warning to all Satyagrahis. I would, therefore, like to observe that the conduct described in allegations 1 to 4, if true, would be inconsistent with the Satyagraha Pledge. The conduct described in allegation 5 can be consistent with the Pledge, but if the allegation is true, the conduct was premature, because the ??????????? another, fired machine guns near the Delhi station on persons proceeding to form the procession. About a dozen persons were wounded and some killed. A short time after, firing was again resorted to at Chandni Chowk, near the Clock Tower, with about ten persons wounded as the result. All the same the procession did start under the leadership of Swami Shraddhanandji and the meeting also was held. About forty thousand persons attended it. When, after the meeting was over, Swami Shraddhanandji was arranging to let the people go home quietly, one Gurkha soldier pointed a rifle at his chest and said, "I'll finish you." Nothing daunted, Swamiji replied, "Here I am. You can blaze away." Immediately eight or ten rifles were pointed straight at him. But as Swamiji stood his ground without flinching, the Gurkha soldiers felt ashamed of firing on an unarmed man and went away. committee contemplated in the Pledge has not decided upon the disobedience of order that may be issued by Magistrates under the Riot Act. I am anxious to make it as clear as I can that in this movement, no pressure can be put upon people who do not wish to accept our suggestions and advice. The movement being essentially one to secure the greatest freedom for all, Satyagrahis cannot forcibly demand the release of those who might be arrested, whether justly or unjustly. The essence of the Pledge is to invite imprisonment and until the committee decides upon the breach of the Riot Act, it is the duty of Satyagrahis to obey, without making the slightest ado, magisterial order to disperse etc., and thus to demonstrate their law-abiding nature. I hope that next Sunday at Satyagraha meetings, all speeches will be free from passion, anger or resentment. The movement depends for its success entirely upon perfect self-possession, self-restraint, absolute adherence to truth and an unlimited capacity for self-suffering. Before closing this letter, I would add that in opposing the Rowlatt legislation, the Satyagrahis are resisting the spirit of terrorism which lies behind it and of which it is a most glaring symptom. The Delhi tragedy imposes an added responsibility upon Satyagrahis of steeling their hearts and going on with their struggle until the Rowlatt legislatioin is withdrawn." 6-4-'19 Sunday was celebrated magnificently in Bombay. Nearly two lakhs must have gathered on the beach. Their march to Madhav-bag was so perfectly quiet and imposing as to astound the most sceptic. And this despite the fact that the mill-workers were not allowed by the mill-owners to join. But they were also not called upon to take a day off. The Muslims also rose wonderfully to the occasion. Bapu, Mrs. Sarojini Naidu and Jamnadas went to the Masjid near Peel House and delivered soul-stirring addresses. A resolution to take the Swadeshi pledge on the Ram-navami Day ( the ninth of Chaitra, a lunar month, celebrated all over India as Sri Ram's birthday ) was passed. Then here was another suggestion at the Masjid meeting to the effect that Hindus and Muslims must congregate at the Jumma Masjid and take the holy vow that they will behave as united members of a family with such sincerity and purity of heart that everyone would be convinced that they were never separate even in a dream and can never be separated. An excellent article entitled 'Day of Humiliation and Prayer' was published in The Indian Social Reformer. There were many exhilarating letters, but the best of them was from Borodada ( Dwijendranath Tagore ) : *"My most revered friend Mr. Gandhi, I wish with all my heart that you will go on unflinchingly with your work of helping our misguided people to overcome Evil by Good. At times it seems to me that the penance and fasting which you enjoin are not quite the things that are necessary and therefore may be dispensed with. But on the second thought I find that we are not competent to judge the matter aright from our stand-point. You are deriving your inspiration from such a high source that, instead of calling in question the appropriateness of your saying and doings, we ought to thankfully recognize in them the fatherly call of Providence full of divine wisdom and power. May the Almighty and All-merciful God be your shield and strength in this awful crisis. Your affectionate old Borodada, Dwijendranath Tagore." As he sent this letter to Mr. Horniman for publication ( in The Bombay Chronicle ), Bapu wrote to him : * Dear Mr. Horniman, The accompanying is a great letter. You know Dwijendranath. He is the eldest brother of Sri Rabindranath Tagore and is leading, like his father the late Devendranath Tagore, practically the life of a Sannyasi. I think he is over eighty years old. The letter therefore is, I think, worth reproducing. I would even suggest a photoprint of the letter. But the object of my writing is not merely to send the enclosed to you. It is to ask you, if I may, to dip your pen in the ink of love for tomorrow's leading article in the Chronicle. I know I have now come to know you enough to be able to understand that you are quite capable of writing such an article, and if you will accept my suggestion, I would like you also to make it a signed leader. Yours sincerely, M. K. Gandhi" 7-4-'19 The following was published today as an unregistered newspaper by way of disobedience of the Press Act : ( Please read, copy and circulate among friends; and also request them to copy and circulate this paper. ) No. 1 Price : One Pice SATYAGRAHI ( Editor : Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Laburnum Road, Gamdevi, Bombay ) Published every Sunday at 10 A. M. Bombay, 7th April, 1919 Notice to Subscribers This paper has not been registered according to law. So there can be no annual subscription. Nor can it be guaranteed that the paper will be published without interruption. The editor is liable at any moment to be arrested by the Government and it is impossible to ensure continuity of publication until India is in the happy position of supplying editors enough to take the place of those arrested. We shall leave no stone unturned to secure a ceaseless succession of editors. It is not our intention to break for all time the law governing publication of newspapers. This paper will, therefore, exist so long only as the Rowlatt legislation is not withdr OUR CREDENTIALS Our credentials are best supplied by answering the question, 'What will the Satyagrahi do ?' Satyagrahi has come into being for the sake of ensuring the withdrawal of the Rowlatt legislation. Its business, therefore, is to show the people ways of bringing about such withdrawal in accordance with the principles of Satyagraha. The Satyagraha Pledge requires the signatories to court imprisonment by offering civil disobedience by committing a civil breach of certain laws. This publication can, therefore, show the best remedy in one way and that is by committing civil disobedience in the very act of publishing the journal. In other forms of public activity the speaker is not obliged to act as he preaches. The object is to show that this contradiction is a fault. It is a wrong method of doing public work. The method of Satyagraha is unique. In it example alone is precept. Therefore, whatever ( measures ) are suggested herein will be those that have been tested by personal experience, and remedies thus tested will be like well-tried medicines more valuable than new ones. We hope, therefore, that our readers will not hesitate to adopt our advice based as it will be on experience. NEWS Yesterday many great events took place; but none was as great as the way how, owing to the ceaseless efforts of Satyagrahis, the mill-hands celebrated the National Day by working in their respective mills although they were unable to get permission of their employers. INSTRUCTIONS TO SATYAGRAHIS We are now in a position to expect to be arrested any moment. It is, therefore, necessary to bear in mind that, of anyone is arrested, he should without causing any difficulty allow him-self to be arrested and, if summoned to appear before a court, he should do so. No defence should be offered and no pleaders engaged in the mater. If a fine is imposed with the alternative of imprisonment, imprisonment should be accepted. If only a fine is imposed, it ought not to be paid, but that his property, if he has any, should be allowed to be sold. There should be no demonstration of grief or otherwise made by the remaining Satyagrahis by reason of the arrest and imprisonment of their comrade. It cannot be too often repeated that we court imprison-ment and we may not complain of it when we actually receive it. When once imprisoned, it is our duty to conform to all prison regulations, as prison reform is no part of our campaign at the present moment. A Satyagrahi may not resort to surreptitious practices, of which ordinary prisoners are often found to be guilty. All a Satyagrahi does, can only and must be done openly." 8-4-'19 Left for Delhi at night. Two leaflets, one on Hindu-Muslim unity and the other on the Swadeshi vow1 were written and sent to the Press before we started. 9-4-'19 In the evening Bapu was served with Government orders at a railway station called Palwal ( near Delhi ), forbidding him to enter the limits of Delhi and the Punjab provinces and asking him to reside within the limits of the Bombay Presidency. Bapu disobeyed the orders and he was immediately arrested. He asked me to proceed alone to Delhi and inform Sharaddhanandji2, who was requested to keep the people quiet. Hastily he dictated his message to the public on his arrest. I wired the news to Vallabhbhai. After meeting Shraddhanandji I left Delhi for Bombay, and called Maganlalbhai and Narhari to Bombay for mutual consultation. Here is the Message : *"To My Countrymen, It is a matter of the highest satisfaction to me, as I hope to you, that I have received an order from the Punjab Govern ment not to enter that province and another from the Delhi Govern-ment not to enter Delhi, while an order of the Government of ????????? 1. These are given in Appendix I, A, B and C. 2. See footnote on the Delhi tragedy appearing on page 19 and 20. India, served on me immediately after, restricts me to Bombay. I had no hesitation in saying to the officers who served the Order on me that I was bound in virtue of my Pledge, to disregard it which I have done and I shall presently find myself a free man, my body being taken by them into their custody. It was galling to me to remain free whilst the Rowlatt legislation disfigured the Statute-book. My arrest makes me free. It now remains for you to do your duty which is clearly stated in the Satyagraha Pledge. Follow it and you will find it will be your Kamadhenu,1 I hope there will be no resentment about my arrest. I have received what I was seeking, either withdrawal of the Rowlatt legislation or imprisonment. The departure from truth by a hair's breadth or violence committed against anybody, whether Englishman or Indian, will surely damn the great cause the Satyagrahis are handling. I hope the Hindu-Muslim unity, which seems now to have taken a firm hold of the people, will become a reality and I feel convinced that it will only be a reality if the suggestions I have ventured to make in my communication to the Press are carried out. The responsibility of the Hindus in the matter is greater than that of the Mohammedans, for the latter are in a minority, and I hope they will discharge their responsibility in a manner worthy of their country. I have also made certain suggestions regarding the proposed Swadeshi vow. Now, I recommend them to your serious attention and you will find that, as your ideas of Satyagraha become matured, Hindu-Muslim unity and Swadeshi are part of Satyagraha. Finally, it is my firm belief that we shall obtain salvation only through self-suffering and not by Reforms dropping on us from England, no matter how unstintingly they may be granted. The English are a great nation, but they try to suppress the weaker people if they come in contact with them. They are themselves very courageous and have borne untold suffering so they only respond to courage and suffering. Partnership with them is only possible after we have developed indomitable ??????????? 1. The heavenly wish-fulfilling cow. courage and a faculty for unlimited suffering. There is a fundamental difference between their civilization and ours. They believe in the doctrine of violence or brute-force as the final arbiter. My reading of our civilization is that we are expected to believe in soul-force or moral force as the final arbiter and this is Satyagraha. We are groaning under the sufferings, which we could avoid, because we have swerved from the path laid down for us by our ancient civilization. I hope that Hindus, Mohammedans, Sikhs, Parsees, Christians, Jews and all who are born in India or who have made India their land of adoption will fully participate in these national observances and I hope too that women will take therein as full a share as men." 11-4-'19 Bapu was brought to Bombay and released at 1 p.m. He intended to offer civil disobedience by going back to Delhi immediately, but on coming to Bombay, he learnt that the people were indulging in violent outbreaks. Bapu went to Pydhonie to pacify a large crowd that had collected there. He saw the mounted police posed for a charge on the crowd to disperse it forcibly. Some of the people began to throw brickbats at the police. Bapu appealed to the crowd to remain peaceful, but his voice could not reach far enough. In the end the lancers rushed upon the crowd and dispersed it. Bapu saw the Police Commisssioner, who said, "People are not going to remain under your control, and if we do not take stern measures, there would be a far greater loss of life and property." A public meeting was held in the evening on the Chawpatty beach. Bapu read his following written message to the public : " Brothers and sisters, This is not the moment for me to enter into the near past. I must refer to what has just happened. As you see I have been set free by the Government. The two days' detention was no detention for me. It was like heavenly bliss. The officials in charge of me were all attention and all kindness to me. Whatever I needed was supplied to me, and I was afforded greater comforts than I am used to when free. I have not been able to understand so much excitement and disturbance that followed my detention. It is not Satyagraha. It is worse then duragraha ( antonym of Satyagraha ). Those who join Satyagraha demonstration are bound at all hazards to refrain from violence, not to throw stones or to injure anybody in any way whatsoever. But in Bombay, we have been throwing stones. We have obstructed tram-cars by putting obstacles in the way. This is not Satyagraha. We have demanded the release of about 50 men who have committeed deeds of violence. Our duty is quietly to submit to being arrested. It is a breach of religion or duty to endeavour to secure the release of those who have committed deeds of violence. We are not, therefore, justified on any grounds whatsoever in demanding the release of those who have been arrested. I have been asked whether a Satyagrahi is liable for the results that follow from the movement. I have replied that he is. I, therefore wish to suggest that if we cannot conduct this movement without the slightest violence from our side, the movement might have to be abandoned or it may be necessary to give it a different and still more restricted shape. The time may even come for me to offer Satyagraha against ourselves. I would not deem it a disgrace if a Satyagrahi dies. I shall be pained to hear of the death of a Satyagrahi. But I shall consider it to be a proper sacrifice given for the sake of the struggle. If however, those who are not Satyagrahis, who have not joined the movement, who are even against it, receive any injury at all, every Satyagrahi will be responsible for that sinful injury. My responsibility will be a million times heavier. I have embarked upon the struggle with a due sense of such responsibility. I have even just heard that some Englishmen have been injured. Some may have died from such injuries. If so, it would be a great blot upon Satyagraha. For me Englishmen too are our brethren. We can have nothing against them. And for me sins such as I have described are simply unbearable. But I know how to offer Satyagraha against ourselves as against our rulers. What kind of Satyagraha can I offer against ourselves on such occasions? What penance can I do for such sins ? The Satyagraha and the penance I can conceive of can only be one and that is for me to fast and if need be by so doing to give up this body and thus to prove the truth of Satyagraha. I appeal to you that you will all quietly disperse, keep the peace and even refrain from acts that may, in any way, bring disgrace upon the people of Bombay. We need not consider the conduct of the police, nor is this the occasion for such consideration. We are beholden to H. E. the Governor and the police for the entire absence of rifle-fire, or gun-fire. But the one thing to be remembered is that we should learn how to observe perfect peace and how to undergo intelligent suffering. Without this there is no Satyagraha." ( From 12th to 20th April Mahadevbhai has written nothing in his diary. Bapu got the news of the disturbances in Ahmedabad on the 12th and he left Bombay for Ahmedabad the same night. When he reached there on the 13th morning he found the martial law in force. From the station he went straight to Mr. Pratt, the Commissioner ( of the Northern Division ). He expressed his grief at the events and asked for Mr. Pratt's permission to call a meeting to persuade the public to give up violence. The Commissioner gave the permission to hold a meeting at the Ashram, away from the city. But as it was felt that the people could not be informed in time for that same day's meeting, it was held in the afternoon of the 14th, so that the people could reach home before dusk after the end of the meeting. Bapu had specifically requested the Commissioner to see that there was absolutely no harassment from the soldiers to persons going to and from the meeting. It was a very successful meeting, and about two thousand persons were present. Mr.Vallabhbhai read out Bapu's written speech. The speech and the leaflets he thereafter issued to explain to the people the essence of Satyagraha are given in Appendix-II. Bapu observed a fast for three days as an act of penance on his part for the people's crimes. Then he began to see the rioters personally in order to wean them away from violence. With regard to this activity there was a friction between him and the C.I.D. ( Criminal Investigation Department ). The latter wanted him to disclose the names of those who had confessed their crimes to him and thus help the department in punishing the offenders. But Bapu said that he was a reformer first and last, that his business was simply to make on offender see his crime, repent of it and reform himself, and that he could not act as a reformer if he got the offenders punished by giving away their names to the police. After a few days' stay at the Ashram Bapu went to Bombay and had an interview with the Governor. Mahadevbhai has recorded his talk with Bapu on their return to Ahmedabad. -Editor. ) 21-4-'19 Bapu went to Ahmedabad today in response to Vallabhbhai's letter : 'All the private bungalows in the Shahibag area as also the Gujarat Club ( a lawyers' private club ) have been requisi-tioned by the military. Soldiers have been posted even around his own bungalow.' Then there was the news that the Court Martial Ordinance No. 4 has been applied to Gujarat. All this filled me with mixed feelings of anger, irritation and anxiety. I felt that these Government moves were only shadows cast by coming ominous events. Bapu entrained from Colaba ( starting station ) and I from Grant Road ( another Bombay station ). I had given a hint of this dire possibility to one or two friends. One of them got into my compartment. When the other was about to get into Gandhiji's, Bapu said, "Be prepared for any development." "Bapu, has there not been a serious development already ?" I put in. "Quite possibly," rejoined Bapu. Seeing my face somewhat fallen, Bapu asked, "Are you all a little uneasy and afraid ?" "Yes,"I replied; "don't you feel there is a cause for fear ?" "Not the least. There is not an iota of fear in me," Bapu said. "But I don't mean to say," I explained, "that you are afraid or that there is any reason for you to feel afraid. Who would ever say so about you? Bapu my question is, 'Don't you think we are justified in feeling worried' ?" "I know quite well what you mean," Bapu answered, "but I say that your worry is groundless." "How do you think so ?" I questioned. "What do the preparations described by Vallbhbhai indicate ? Don't you feel that it is only to get some breathing time for themselves, only to mobilise their resources, that the Government has set you free for a while ? All these maneuvers appear to me only as preparation for your re-arrest." Bapu smiled; "What are you talking, Mahadev ! Arrest me ? Pshaw! Preparations for my arrest ? Impossible. True, they will imprison others, perhaps many others. They will indeed isolate me, but me they will not touch". "Bapu," I objected, "say what you may. I cannot but feel they will have the courage to send you even to jail. May they not arrest you right tomorrow ? I assure you, not a tear will drop from my eyes this time also, as at the previous occasion, but I simply want to know your view." "And Bapu," I added, "may they not even shoot you outright ? If their days are numbered the Government may do even that." " Tut-tut, what a fancy! How could they summon up that courage ? It would be a tragedy too terrible for them," observed Bapu. "There are two devils in the Government, Pratt and Sir William Vincent, who will not feel ashamed to disgrace the Government and those two may give the order to blow off the tallest among us," I insisted. "You are right that far," Bapu agreed partly. "Those two are shameless, but the thing you fear will not happen. It is against the Brithsh tradition." "But are not the present atrocities themselves a departure from that tradition ?" I countered. "This Government is showing greater meanness even than the South African." "Agreed," Bapu rejoined; "but they will not carry it to the extent you say. Things may happen in their regime like their present deeds in the Punjab, but shooting me would be going too far. And don't you see they have not finished Savarkar1?not Ajit Singh also ? Would they then dispatch me ?" "Do you know, Bapu," I persisted, "What Reginald Craddock says about you ?" "No, I don't. What does he say ?" inquired Bapu."He says," I quoted, " 'a misguided saint is more dangerous than a hundred agitators'. These are his very words, and if they take you for an enemy would they ever stop at anything ?" Bapu said, "What's wrong with his remark ? Is not a misguided saint really more dangerous ? That I am not misguided is another thing. And what a happy consummation, if they shoot me ! But they won't. No, not me specially. But wait. After my interview with Governor the day before yesterday, one can't say what may happen." "Yes," I said, "It's exactly that interview which has been weighting in my mind. You have left nothing undone in inflaming the Governor. You have simply challenged him to do his worst. Could there be anything more provoking than what you told him ?" "But how could I help letting myself go ?" Bapu said, "I have certainly given him a bit of my mind." "So now," I said, "he must have already gone to Simla with the distorted version of all that you said in his pocket. Bapu, I tell you they will not hesitate to do the worst against you. In South Africa you were not only one but thousands in one. But here we are only a handful at your back. No wonder if they think they could crush us." "In South Africa." Bapu pointed out, "genuine Satyagrahis were few enough to be counted on one's fingers. There are many more of sterling worth here. Whatever that be I plainly see that the country's star has risen and it will rise to a height that will stagger one's imagination. If they shoot me, people are sure to rise in revolt. There would be a revolution, and I cannot be held the least responsible for any bloodshed that may follow." I said, "Bapu the question will appear queer and unbecoming, but let me out with it. If you are executed and your very devoted followers, in their blind fury, commit violent outrages, is not their action likely to distress your soul ?" "Undoutedly," Bapu said."If that happens, it would be an extremely ???????????? 1. Savarkar and Ajit Singh were sentenced to penal servitude for their violent political crimes. painful result. It would only mean that they had not learnt the A B C of Satyagraha. Satyagraha itself would be tainted and get a severe set-back. What you can do, however, is to resort to such extreme ( non-violent ) measures as would compel the Government to sentence you also to death." "Quite true," I said, "and your word, Bapu, shall be honoured." Then in a tone of finality Bapu asked me to go to sleep. But my mind still revolved round the same subject. How could I then keep quiet ? "Only one question, if you please", I pleaded. Bapu gave in with a titter : "Yes go on. "I continued," Bapu. you once told us that a man must be judged from his acts and not as an individual apart from them and that those who adored you must do so only on the basis of your acts; you have been repeatedly telling us, "If you really want to hold me in reverence, you must admire my acts and put them into practice." In that context, I cannot help asking myself what one remark which you made this morning really means. You said, "How can we hate anybody ? It is his deeds which we may hate." If your former precept is true, this latter view seems to be rather inconsistent and defective. If a man's actions are a prerequisite for basing our adoration for him, how can we isolate a man from his misdeeds and hate them only ?" Bapu said, "Why don't you see this simple psychological truth ? Hatred of an act elevates our character and that of an individual lowers it, whereas in adoring a man on the basis of his qualities and deeds only we uplift ourselves morally." I said, "I accept your argument from the moral angle, but psychologically it seems impossible to separate a man from his acts." "And it passes my understanding," rejoined Bapu, "how you find it so. You put down, as it were, the arithmetical rule of three : 'If we respect one man for his qualities and acts, we must hate another for his vices and misdeeds.' But that is not the right attitude. It is not always that a man admires someone else on the basis of his virtues or deeds only. For instance, Shastriar and Natesan consider many of my acts as worthless. But for me personally they have a very high respect. So just as they find it difficult to approve of my acts though they admire me, so does an ordinary man find it difficult to eschew hating a man for his misdeeds. I can, therefore, understand that you may think it psychologically impossible to set a man apart from his acts and condemn the latter only. But, personally, I do not find it at all difficult. Take only the most recent incident. The other day, when I interviewed the Governor, he gave vent to very exasperating remarks; but was I, therefore, in any way, angry with him ? Not the least. I for one would sincerely render him personal service if I got a chance. And why should I despise him ? There is no man on earth who commits a sin with the full awareness of his wickedness. Man acts but as he is impelled by the nature he is endowed with. Why should we then blame his person ? What's the reason for my feeling no hatred whatever for the Englishman ? I see that anybody who belongs to a ruling race would behave exactly as he does. What I should, therefore, do is to reform the rulers' mentality through my loving service. Then look at Mrs. Besant. Has anybody ever spat as much venom as she has been doing ? But is there a trace of hatred for her in me ? None at all. Should one condemn or pity her for the perversion of her intellect after growing grey with so many years' splendid service to the country ? To condemn her is to kick a falling person. That's why at the A. I. C. C. (All India Congress Committee ) meeting I specially saw to it that I should select the chair just beside hers and I kept a vigilant watch in order that none insulted her. Had anyone done so, he would have got a severe reprimand from me. The feeling of hatred in a man is a sign of his moral weakness. Only a weak man can be carried away by hatred. Call it love or charity, whatever you like, but that feeling indicates moral strength. Hatred shows the extinction of the religious spirit. Man's charity sprints from innate generosity. Generosity is not only the source but the product also of charity and the really brave are generous-minded." I was vanquished. I had nothing to say against this exposition. I only said, "Now I have caught your point. What I thought to be psychologically impossible for man now appears to be truly so only for me, in a way, in the sense that the attitude of hating the deed but not the doer is impossible for my present mentality. I have but to admit my spiritual weakness to that extent. I had submitted to that weakness today all the day long. I have been hating Mrs. Besant, Mr. Patel and the Governor, but that indicates only my own mental weakness. Let me say at the same time, I have shaken myself free from that feeling". Bapu remarked, "Yes, I can quite understand your mentality. But I know I am right in saying that there is no hatred whatever in my mind. I also know I invite by this assertion the charge of claiming to be extraordinarily large-hearted. But that doesn't matter. Why should there be any constraint in stating what I really am ? Though I am now fifty, shall I tell anybody that my age is forty-nine? I have but to tell the exact truth about my body, no matter if it grows better or worse. The same about the mind. I am everyday progressing in broad-mindedness. How can I deny the existence of this progress or the resulting state? If I did, it would be no modesty but simply its pretence. So I say that quality is at present in full bloom in me and it is an undoubted fact that there is nobody for whom I nurse any ill-feeling. Did I hate my brother though he was a drunkard, a pilferer and a smoker ? Never. I had told him, "Brother, I am going to have nothing to do with you-so long as you don't give up your bad habits. But I said al that out of nothing but a feeling of love for him." "But", I interposed, "in this instance, it could be argued that it was because he was your brother that you behaved so lovingly with him." Pat came the answer, "Quite true. That's just why in the Satyagraha Leaflet No. 3, I have said that a man who behaves lovingly towards members of his family has gone a step above the level of the beast. When that man experiences the same love for the men of his village, he rises a step higher. The man who loves his province is above him. In this scale of progress comes at the top the rare individual who, instead of hate and anger, returns love for the most venomous opponent living in any part of the world, and who is large-hearted enough to consider the whole world as his kith and kin.1 O ! the majesty and sublimity of such large-heartedness ! The man behaves in a manner more kingly than the Emperor of the world, no matter how hard he is struck by his opponents. You know, in Gulliver's Travels the Lilliputians used to sit on the palms of the Brobdingnagians and they often pinched them, struck them, even drew some blood out of them, but did the Brobdingnagians resent this behaviour ? They only took it for a little tickling; that's all. We have to treat others exactly in that manner. Believe me when I say that it was due to this attitude that I was not provoked in the least against Mir Alam when he rained blows on me and wounded me in South Africa. And it is due to this same feeling that I disregard completely the wounds the British Government inflicts on me. That is why there is no feeling of hatred in my heart against it." My heart was surcharged with awe and reverence towards this soul elevated to such high-mindedness. And I could not help giving vent in language to the feeling. I bowed before him and said, "Please forgive me. May I assure you that your talk has effaced the feeling of hatred that I was nursing ?" 26-4-'19 Deportation of Horniman. Message to the public about it. Many persons were sitting in the drawing room of Revashankarbhai's house eagerly waiting to hear Bapu's view on the event. Bapu dictated a leaflet on the subject addressed to the public and for several days thereafter Bapu issued such leaflets daily. He gave the public excellent education that way. ( All these leaflets have been reproduced in Appendix-III ) ( In connection with this matter, Mahadevbhai has written the following note on a loose piece of paper. It is undated, but the context indicates that it should belong to this period. It contains fragments of Bapu's talk with the Police Commissioner of Bombay. ) 1. Gandhiji quotes here a part?ÌãÔãì£ãõÌã ?ãì??ìâºã?ã?½ãá ?of the Sanskrit saying : ?ªãÀÞããäÀ¦ãã¶ããâ ¦ãì ÌãÔãì£ãõÌã ?ãì??ìâºã?ã?½ ãá ã The world itself is their family in the eye of the large-hearted. The Commissioner began with the bureaucratic air of wisdom. He said, "The Governor had asked me if any disturbance would ensue on the arrest of Horniman, and I had told him that the Hindus of the country would raise a storm if Gandhi were arrested since he is a religious-minded Hindu, but nothing of the kind would happen in the case of Horniman." Bapu answered back, "But for Satyagraha, you would have realized the vanity of your boast. You would have simply burnt your fingers, if he had been arrested any other time. There would have been violent outbursts in Bombay, mammoth meetings of protest all over the country and for one full year you would have known no peace. It is only due to Satyagraha that all this commotion has been kept down. Yes, it's true that it is Satyagraha which has kindled the conflagration in the country. But would it not have broken out even without Satyagraha sooner or later ?" The Commissioner asked Bapu, "Why did you not take up at once the suggestion for starting Satyagraha made by Horniman and others when they visited you at your Satyagrahasharam? Will you tell me all that happened at the meeting ?" Bapu stated all the facts from start to finish : "The fact is, it was I who suggested Satyagraha, from my sick-bed in Bombay. They hailed it. I told them at the time, " You see I am a disabled invalid. If you have the strength, gird up your loins. Horniman, Vallabhbhai, Mohanlal Pandya and many others declared forthwith their readiness for Satyagraha, but that was because they had faith in me." The Commissioner : "Do you know how worthless your colleagues are ?" Bapu : "Yes, I know." Then he began to discuss Horniman, Shankarlal, Vallabhbhai, Mohanlal Pandya and others. He was down upon everyone, but seemed to be deliberately avoiding any mention of Shankarlal. He said, "How did you happen to fall in with a man of no character like Horniman ? " Bapu stopped him and said, "I don't want to hear any scandal about him. Whatever be his private character, he has rendered yeoman service to the country." The Commissioner was a little subdued and tried to expostulate : "It's because I don't like that you should come in his contact when he returns here on his release, that I was speaking of him." "Thank you so much for your kindness, but I have nothing to do with such bazaar slanders." But even then the man would not keep quiet. Bapu, therefore, said, " All right. Go on." So he did his worst in blackening Horniman. Oomar also was not spared. "Oomar beats even Horniman in adventures of that sort. Jamnadas is clean, but he has no sense, etc. etc." Then he asked, " Had Vallabhbhai no hand in the Ahmedabad disturbances ? And Mohanlal Pandya ?" "None whatever", asserted Bapu. "You have no idea of their exertions for peace. Like Vallabhbhai, Mohanlal Pandya worked under me in the Kaira District. I have not seen a man who understands better than he the essence of Satyagraha." The talk reverted to Oomar. It seemed there was a deep-seated venom in his heart for Oomar. Bapu told him, "Do you want to hear my view of Oomar ?" He said, "Yes." Bapu continued, "A millionaire's son, quite young, may be a little too free with the other sex, but in sterling worth you can't find the like of him in Bombay. Draw out the sting against him, rather have a corner in your heart." "I can have it if you transform a man of his type." That brought Bapu to the talk about his principle. "There is no sense in talking to me in that strain. Unlike you I am a reformer, a man who gathers even terrorists around him. I will bring round a man who gathers even terrorists around him. I will bring round all of them to healthy ways of life, as I have already done with many." The Commissioner remarked, "Then according to you there is no need for the State to have a police force." Bapu replied, "I am sorry, I have to put up with the police force as a necessary evil, as I have to do with the railway and the telegraph departments. Our ideals are poles apart. There is no common ground between us. You are worshippers of brute force. You have made Mars your God. Were I a member of the League of Nations I would get all your machine guns and submarines and aeroplanes and what not destroyed and would carry a resolution that those who might be itching to fight could do so with lathis only." Commissioner : "Don't you think your men have deceived you ?" Bapu : "No. There was only one person who had deceived me and he was my friend in my unripe teens. All the otherswho tried to cheat me have found in the end that their attempts had recoiled upon themselves and have apologized to me. Andwhat does it matter to me if my friends play me false ? If Vallabhbhai is kidding me, let him. It is he who will have to suffer." Commissioner : "Did not the Kaira people take a material part in the Ahmedabad disturbances ?? ?Did not Sharma take with him 200 men to Ahmedabad ?" Bapu : "No part ? ?I don't know Sharma at all. But that he took 200 men with him is a canard." Mr. Curry, the Superintendent of the C. I. D., was sitting just by the side of the Commissioner. He said, "I should like to know your views on the Rowlatt Act." Bapu : "Bring me the text. I will explain." The volume was brought. Bapu fell upon the very object of the Bill. "Many of you have no scruples about doing anything. And many have no sense. Are such persons to be the judges as to which places are the hot-beds of crime and which are not ? And where men of no qualms and no intelligence take the field, what would they do except playing havoc ? Leopards may change their spots but not you, the bureaucracy, your ways. How is it possible to trust you ?" They were dumbfounded at this vehement attack and said, " We will continue our dispute on the Rowlatt Bills after studying it more carefully, but we are certain we will be able to convince you of your serious blunder in offering Satyagraha against the Bills." Bapu : "I am open to correction." "Yes," they agreed, "We know you don't hesitate to confess your error if you find it." Amidst laughter and good humour the meeting dispersed. Bapu infers from this talk that all those referred to in it will be arrested but he will be left free as a harmless lunatic. But if the mad man does some serious mischief, he too will be clapped. Only the future can show to what extent the government's object is realized. Bapu has agreed to be the editor of The Bombay Chronicle if the censorship orders against it are withdrawn. Panditji ( Malaviyaji ) has gone on a visit to the Governor in order to discuss the matter. But there is one difficulty. The security of the Chronicle has been forfeited and Bapu will never agree to giving a fresh security in order to conduct the paper. It is likely, therefore, that Bapu may turn Young India1 into a daily and be its editor. Letter from Chandrashankar Pandya dated 18-4-'19 from Agra : "I am sending herewith a little poem 'Gandhijine Charane'( At Gandhi's Feet ). It's too innocent to be a ' Black Act'. I take it that you are not going to do Satyagraha against it." AT GANDHI'S FEET At Gandhi's feet we bow our head; And our heart along with the head. Deaf to public appeals and woes, The rulers threw in agony's throes Through the Black Acts they passed In blackness unsurpassed- The suppressed millions. But now we find Courage from Gandhi's dauntless mind. In Britons our faith we put, and got But poverty by hermits sought; How long to them our knees to bend In silent suffering that has no end ? 1. The Young India was a weekly magazine conducted by a syndicate and published in Bombay. The management was largely in the hands of Messrs. Shankarlal Banker and Oomar Sobani. After Mr. Horniman's arrest they entrusted it to Bapu and it was decided to make it a bi-weekly in order to fill up to some extent the gap made by the supression of the Chronicle, From May to October the paper continued to be published in Bombay. On the 7th October, it was made a weekly and printed and published in Ahmedabad in the Navajivan Mudranalaya. Moderates failed, Extremists failed, Leaders, patriots out they sailed; One resort we have but now, Gandhi's Satyagraha vow. In the darkness of despair all round India at last a Star has found; The Star of Strength, of Hope benign ?Gandhi, blessed with grace divine. Bapu's reply : I was so glad to get a letter from you as I was anxious to know of your state of health. What sticky ailment could it be that you are still not recovering ? There is an institution in Agra which provides for Kuhne baths ( a nature-cure method ), Pandit Hridayanath Kunzru was all praises for it. Since you are at Agra, you may perhaps find the baths helpful to you, if you take advantage of the institution. I am returning your poem for revision by you. Your love distinctly peeps out from the lines, but I expect a still better creation from you - specially during your illness. I suggest you should use some other adjective than 'black' for the Acts. You may, if you like, call them 'stringent'. The word 'black' is indicative of anger. You will agree that the language must be such as adorns its theme-Satyagraha here. In that sense the sentence, 'We put faith in Britons' is out of place. We have done nothing wrong in trusting the Britishers, but it was in losing faith in ourselves that we stumbled. God helps only him who helps himself. And so do the British. Can they excel even God ? 'Silent suffering' is the very mantra ( potent charm ) of Satyagraha,-but undergone deliberately for relieving some distress. When I, for one, speak of Satyagraha I would not bring in the Moderates and others by way of a disparaging contrast. I am sending you my latest leaflet. I wish you to read it and then hope you will be inspired by Saraswati (Goddess of learning), so that you may gives us lines dilating upon the boundless power of Satyagraha and upon the superiority of civil disobedience over insolent and ignorant breach of law. On reading your letter again, I find that you had felt the fear of Satyagraha committed even against your poem. It has so happened that your fear has proved almost true. But what can the poor Satyagraha do ? He has but to say what he feels. I am sorry my wrist does not still give me satisfying work, otherwise I would have written the letter in my own hand. There is no need to hurry over giving me the revised version of the poem. Write it down only as and when your health permits. What a long time Keats took to compose that one single immortal line, "A thing of beauty is a joy for ever !" ( This seems to be the right place for insertion of the following undated summary of Bapu's observations jotted down by Mahadevbhai himself on a loose piece of paper. ) "A war is being waged between religion and irreligion? ? Horniman's service was unique. In spite of some acerbity in the articles of the Chronicle, I always used to say none could match Horniman's service to the country. He had picked up the right spirit of journalism. He had given free scope for initiative to all under him. What should we do by way of honouring his great service ? A fast. ( I trembled at the thought. ) We have but to exhort the people to carry on the good fight. As we go on doing so we will continue to rise to greater and greater heights. What does it matter if the Government, with careful scrutiny, packs off to jail everyone of us ? And if they belabour us, all the better. But that is not in the blood of the Britisher. They will not persecute Horniman. All they want to do is to assert themselves and have their way. We want to show them that they cannot afford to ignore the people's wish? ? It is the mental state that counts in fasting? ?Can anybody stand comparison with Horniman ? We are going through a period of intense training and discipline. We can certainly explain to the people that though we may have to suffer terribly, it is a holy war we are waging. In the onward rush of our movement the Rowlatt Acts will be swept off in a trice. We have to challenge the very existence of this Government. Before the ( All India ) Congress Committee also I put these three things : Before throwing the gauntlet we must convince the public that it has to maintain perfect peace, that there may not be any resolution about Hindu-Muslim unity, but individually everyone must cherish the mentality for it; and that we all must consider our sufferings as acts of prayer to God. Success is a certainty then? ? Fasting does not lie in mechanically going without a meal. Its essence lies in the propelling motive behind it, i.e. in the prayerful cry to God. What is the hallmark of our hoary civilization ? Peacefulness. Not that we did not fight, but we were not always thinking of and preparing for war as they are doing now. Even during the Mogul rule, there was not this modern craze for war-preparation. The Mogul sword was blunt, not sharp. Nobody then cared to go on inventing ever more powerful armory. We wanted, on the contrary, to come out of the barbarous belligerent mentality of man. Those people, on the other hand, regard it a sign of honour and greatness to be fully equipped with powerful arms. I can never forget Prof. Wilson's language.1 If India chooses to align with such people I, for one, would regard it as no better than alignment with animals." 4-5-'19 Bombay : Letter from Andrews : Protest against taking a vow. He had taken two vows in childhood and had to give them up. The fact pained him for some time afterwards. Vows are an impediment to self-development. Some other arguments besides this. Also an account of the situation in the Punjab. Bapu's reply : *"I can't get the time to send you a book-a mere letter gives me no satisfaction. I feel so confident that your view of vows can be shown to be wrong. Your interpretation of the action of Rama shows that you have not understood it properly. And what is he meaning of 'swear' in the passage from the Bible quoted by you ? May not your interpretation of that passage also be at ??????????? 1. See Bapu's letter to Andrew dated 25.2.'19 Vide Vol. I, page 299-300. fault ? To me the life of Jesus was one simple vow from which no earthly power could oust him. Your two vows mentioned in your letter were a parody. They were not subjects for taking vows over. Why should a man hesitate to stand before his Maker and say; 'Please, Sir, with your help I shall never tell an untruth' ? But I can't stand before my Maker and say 'I shall never forsake this sty or that.' I may not be clear enough, but you will admit I am frank enough and how can love help being that ? "Did you ascertain why the floggings were administered ? I should like to know. "As you know, The Chronicle has suspended publication by reason of the order of pre-censorship. Young India will, therefore, be turned into a bi-weekly. Later it may become a daily. It is to be published under my supervision. Can you find time to write for it ? You may write on swadeshi, Hindu-Muslim unity, Satyagraha, Rowlatt legislation etc. "We can't accept the Rowlatt Bill even under the reservation suggested by you, namely, it is not to be enforced without the previous sanction of the Legislative Council. Our objection is not merely that it may be misapplied, but we object also to the arbitrary procedure laid down in it, for the trial of offenses enumerated in it. I would not let even a supposed anarchist be tried summarily or under a special procedure of subversion of judicial checks and certainly not under an ordinary law giving extraordinary powers. Exceptional powers have been reserved for exceptional situations. Executive authority cannot be allowed to deal with exceptional situations in anticipation. "Do please remain by the side of Shraddhanandji as long as it is necessary. And when you are free I would so like you to come down so that we may review the situation. "Yes, in the midst of all the carnage, prosecutions, martial law, military dispositions, I find the law of Love answering fully and being abundantly proved. "With love to you and Swamiji, Ever yours, Mohan" A letter to Maulana Abdul Bari1 : *"? ?I think there is a lack of consolidated Mohammedan opinion on Islamic questions. Everybody feels keenly and nobody comes forward with a reasoned and representative statement. I wish there was one by the Ulemas. It would not matter a bit if it was presented in Urdu or Arabic. An accurate translation can be easily made. I immensely like your idea of a mixed Hindu-Mohammedan Commission to investigate causes of discord among the communities and to suggest remedies leading to permanent unity. I think, however, that this is not the proper time for it. The energy of everybody is, and must be, concentrated upon the Rowlatt legislation, Islamic questions and Reforms. Probably we shall come much closer together in the process of getting these questions solved to the satisfaction of the whole of India and at the end of a settlement of these questions, a Commission such as you have suggested can do much effective work." Wrote a letter today to Mr. Guider also re. the words2 he ( Bapu ) used in his speech at Ahmedabad. 5-5-'19 To Maganlalbhai : "The swadeshi movement will gather great momentum, but what burns my heart is the fact that we are not ready. After my talk with Sir Fazalbhai3, one thing is indelibly imprinted in my mind: the production of swadeshi cloth is the fundamental basis of any great swadeshi movement. Hence, I am all the more con-firmed in my original view that every Indian home must ply the spinning wheel and the hand-loom. I suggest that Santok ( Mrs. Maganlal ) should visit Vijapur and return well-trained in spinning. You should get all the yarn in stock with you woven into ?????????? 1. A Nationalist Muslim Doctor of Islamic theology who later on became well-known for his services to the country. 2. 'bhanela' and 'yojit', explained in Bapu's reply to Lord Hunter vide infra, d. 9-1-1920. 3. Sir Fazalbhai Karrimbhai, a leading businessman and owner of a group of cotton mills in Bombay. cloth as soon as possible. You must also see that the hand-looms in Ahmedabad weave the maximum mill-spun yarn they can. Deccan-style saries are woven in Ahmedabad, but chiefly from foreign yarn and foreign silk. Can we not get Deccani saries made out of indigenous yarn ? Avantikabehn assures me that Deccani women will not reject swadeshi saries even if they are thicker in texture. We have nothing to offer at present by way of swadeshi cloth to women. That is our miserable plight ! I wish you to exercise your brain as much as you can over this subject of swadeshi. You may show this letter to Kaka and others also. And you must bear in mind that dhoties from hand-spun yarn are woven for me at least in the expected time. Spinning activity in the Ashram is 'must'. It does not seem likely that I may see you all at least for some time more. "Do take care of your health." Letter to Harilal on the same day: "Your letter of Chaitra1 Vad 10 to hand. My health is going down a little. There is excessive pressure on the brain. God will maintain this body as long as He wants to take work from it. I have not read the particular issue of The Englishman, and we do not take it. It would indeed be a good idea if you could send me cuttings from it whenever necessary. "Mrs Besant is in a pitiable state. She cannot see her way to any course of action. "How could you even think of doubting whether the Government would withdraw in future the Rowlatt Bills ? As long as the Satyagrahis are alive and kicking, how is it possible for the Rowlatt Bills to remain for long on the Statute-book ? I for one am certain that, unless there is an outbreak of violence, they will be repealed within only a few months. I say so not from any inside information, but from my unflinching faith in Satyagraha." "I have never dissuaded bhai Pragji from any course of action. But he seems now to have come to the decision of going ????????? 1. Vad or badi dark half of a lunar month, Chaitra comes near about April. to Madras and of taking Parvati with him there. In that decision, too, I had had no part. "To me personally it does not seem advisable for you to go to South Africa. I for one would wish that since you people call yourselves Satyagrahis, you will content yourselves with a smaller profit and deal only in swadeshi goods. "The children are all O.K. They do not seem to me to be wistfully remembering Rajkot or Calcutta. I am glad they are quite acclimatised here in the Ashram. It seems Rami is recovering. 'Jivan' ( an Ayurvedic tonic ) of the best quality has been sent for her from here. "Madhavdas has talked to me of your want of money. He has accepted my advice. I have told him I wish you to raise your economic state by self-help, i. e., without getting any loan. Owing to his unstable mind Medh ( an Indian Satyagrahi during the South Africa struggle ) may be rash and incur too many debts to enable him to keep his promises of repayment; you are adventurous and seized with the ambition of becoming rich in a trice. Pragji cannot resist the temptation of plunging into politics. It would not take you long under these circumstances to be crushed under a heavy debt. I wish you, therefore, not to undertake business ventures on borrowed money. Moreover, I may be sent to jail or exiled any moment. When that happens, I take it as practically certain, that you cannot help giving up your business to join the fight. How, under these circumstances, can you do business with other people's money ? In the country where injustice is rampant, honour and nobility lie in voluntary poverty. It is impossible in India of the present day to amass wealth without directly or indirectly sharing in the prevailing injustice. Bapu's blessings" 6-5-'19 Chi. Nirmala1, "We have not yet come to grips in our fight, but the combat is bound to deepen in future. We are all going to observe a fast ?????????? 1. Daughter-in-law of Gandhiji's sister, Raliatbehn. on Sunday. I wish you did the same. Mr. Horniman, whose deportation is the cause of the fast, was a man of many good qualities and has rendered great service to our country. "No monetary help from me is now possible for any repairs in the house. That is Chi. Shamaldas's and Chi. Kaku's business. I have never laid any claim on patrimony. "Could there be anything dearer to me than pujya Behn's ( respected sister Raliatbehn's ) and your stay in the Ashram ? Pujya Behn had personal experience of everybody in the Ashram holding her in reverence and honouring her slightest desire. And for myself, at the holy sight of her face every morning I used to remember Mother's face as well as Father's and feel myself purified. I wish you both came to stay in the Ashram as early as you could. I long to see you proficient in spinning and weaving. I regard that work as worship itself and so a religious duty. Gifts of food and raiment are given an exalted place in our religion and I am convinced that the man or woman who produces clothes for the use of the public is doing a very meritorious deed? ?" 19-5-'19 In the train from Ahmedabad to Bombay. "Bhaishri 5 Sakarlal,1 "I write this letter a little later than I expected to. I am in the look out for Bhai Amritlal. I expect Mama ( Mr. Phadke, an Ashram inmate ) to go there in June, and he will, I trust do the work very well. We have but to be able to conduct that school2 very efficiently. "What delights me specially is the grammatical errors you have pointed out. Bhai Mahadev will write you in greater detail. I am indeed trying very hard to write faultless Gujarati. It is quite possible never the less that mistakes may creep in, since whatever command I have over the language has been gained out of my love for it. I have always been too busy to get any ?????????? 1. A gentleman known for his literary knowledge and taste. 2. The first school for 'untouchables' started by Gandhiji. time for a regular, systematic study of the language. The new meaning given to the root shak has been deliberate. The words nirbhaya etc. have not been purposely used in an unusual sense, but though Bhai Mahadev seems to defend the departure, I will accept the decision which you two may arrive at after mutual discussion. Where you differ from him, I will accept your veiw so long as I have not acquired any authentic knowledge because I believe there may be more detached judgment in your thinking. You may please continue to suggest improvements in my language and I am going to regard them as a sign of pure love. "Now about the Bhagwadgita. Had not my interpretation of its message arisen in my mind independently of my love for non-violence, I would have definitely declared that though the Bhagwatgita is opposed to ( non-violent ) Satyagraha, the latter alone is the correct principle of human conduct. It is only because the Gita has been very badly misinterpreted and misused, that I have put before the public this meaning which I had accepted many years ago. "I value Anandshankarbhai's1 view highly, and yet even if he disagrees, I would not change my own view of the Gita, based as it is on personal experience. It is quite true the Bhagwadgita enjoins the continued performance of one's allotted work without any attachment to results. But it is from that principle itself that I deduce Satyagraha as a natural corollary. Of all persons, that man at least who has no attachment for the fruit of his action will never kill anybody but will sacrifice himself. Killing others betrays impatience and impatience shows attachments. This is just a tiny fraction of my argument, but I do not wish to convince you or anyone else by argumentation. And even if I wished, I do not suppose I have the power to do so. I have with me, however, a far greater power and that is of self-experience. I had a hazy glimpse of this message of Satyagraha ?????????????? 1. A well-known Gujarati philosopher and literateur whose book " Primer of Hinduism" Gandhiji was never tired of eulogising. in the Gita as early as in 1889, when I had my first perception of the Book, and the more I read the Book, the more was this glimpse transformed into a clearer vision. That such a wonderful philosopher and wise man like Krishna should pour forth all his sublime teachings ( of 'the Gita' ) merely to prod a historical person in flesh and blood like Arjuna to fight his enemies arrayed in a battlefield would be like 'killing a buffalo to get a strip of leather'1. That view casts a slur on Krishna if He is God incarnate and does injustice to Arjuna if he was, a heroic and sensible veteran. "I am certain you will not dismiss these thoughts as chaff, but I wish you to even imbibe them. I am sure you will easily agree that the value of the interpretation, however erudite, of a religious precept is nothing before the one based on the real experience of that precept by a man of very common learning." "Dear Manibehn,2 "I came to know yesterday of the death of your respected father; but I could not run down to you to give you any solace. Separation from a dear one is always distressing. One of our poets says: "Relatives by blood, are selfish persons and at the end of life will keep aloof." I forget the poet's name. If we reflect deeply, we will find that the cause of our grief is not our love for the departed soul but our selfishness. Were it not so, how could we, who delight in leaving a dilapidated house for a brand new one, feel any grief when a beloved soul discards his old worn-out body and takes a new one ? This applies to all cases of death whether of old men or young. Only the Maker knows when a particular body becomes useless for the indwelling soul. It is not given to man to probe into that mystery. But I did not want to say all this to you. At present my mind is set on the deeper questions of life and hence all this came out from my pen. What I want to say is this: To have the sublime death your father met with is a desideratum for all. There are only a very ???????????? 1. Translation of a Gujarati proverb. 2. Mrs. Narahari Parikh, wife of the editor of these diaries. few men who, without having to take any service from others and to undergo any suffering themselves, die so unexpectedly. Your father will always be counted among those exceptionally lucky souls. To lament over any death is wrong and useless, but to grieve over this should be impossible. That is why it is not condolence I offer you, but congratulation." 20-5-'19 Letter from some friends from Surat putting some doubts on Satyagraha for clarification. Reply : "After some rambling, your letter came to my hands only today. You covert my signature, but I do not think you should entertain such a desire. I am physically so weak that I cannot .ign all my letters, nor can I dictate as many as I would like to "The doubts you have raised will continue to arise, so long as India does not grasp the true spirit of Satyagraha, and you, too, will have but to keep patience till then. "Once any Satyagraha starts, it ends only when it realizes its object. There may be periods during which it appears as if the Satyagraha has been snuffed out, but in reality it has not stopped even then. At the time when a Satyagraha is likely to be misinter preted as the very opposite of it ( duragraha ), its postponement itself is, in fact, the beginning of real Satyagraha. Satyagraha is such a sublime and subtle concept that only repeated contemplations and experiences can give us a knowledge of it even to a partial extent. According to my perception of the prevailing circumstances I see the possibility of starting Satyagraha, in its civil disobedience form in July. It may be begun even earlier, if new circumstances demanding the step arise. "It is possible that some of the items and forms of Satyagraha may have to be repeatedly dropped for a while. I find it some- what impossible to show to you what great spiritual power comes from fasting and other religious practices, because you have been fasting on specific occasions as a matter of routine for years past. But had there been the spirit of Satyagraha ( insistence on truth ) behind those fasts, here would have been no need to write to me apart from what you have done. If you have not been able to see any difference between the fast you observed for the Horniman case and the others you might have observed formerly, I must say you have deceived yourselves. It is my conviction that our fight is prolonged to the extent of the lack of the Satyagraha spirit in us. Physical renunciation without the spirit of vairagya ( apathy towards sense objects ) at its back is not real renunciation. If those of you who have given up their all, such as a paying job, have gained ( spiritually ) nothign out of your sacrifice, your renunciation was futile. Only he must give up his job who cannot feel at ease without giving it up. His action alone should be really called 'sacrifice of a regular service.' There should have been a sense of satisfaction and joy instead of reluctance and pain in tendering your resignation from your service. I see that those of you who have resigned their jobs have not had that uplifting experience. That is exactly why you now feel yourselves stranded like Trishanku.1 "Who am I to afford you an opportunity to offer Satyagraha ? The Satyagrahi is ever free and independent. But you can certainly consult me. It is indeed true that where a mass Satyagraha is going on, a Satyagrahi must follow the common discipline of the Satyagrahis. All the same everyone, on becoming a Satyagrahi, automatically gets an opportunity to offer Satyagraha. How can those who are uneasy and in a state of doubt be called Satyagrahis ? To be a Satyagrahi is as difficult as a sword-dance. "If even after all this explanation I am unable to resolve your doubts, I can only advise you to keep patience. If you think that the only true meaning of Satyagraha is to go to jail, one can then go to jail by disobeying any law he likes. If that is how Satyagraha can be offered, every prisoner now in jail is a Satyagrahi. ??????????? 1. A legendary king who remains suspended midway between heaven and earth, because the sage Vishwamitra wanted to send him alive to heaven by the power of his austerity and the gods by their power wanted to hurl him back to the earth. "Satyagraha can only mean purposeful civil disobedience of that law which has no bearing on moral conduct. If I could show you a disobedience of that type just at present, I would myself go in for it at once." 28-5-'19 To Miss Ferring from Bombay : *"My dear child, "Mahadev has made himself ill by his self-will. A self-willed friend, brother, son or secretary often fails at the critical moment. Mahadev is all these four rolled into one. At first, I thought I would revenge myself upon him by fasting. In that case you would have come down upon me with that remarkable text from the Bible, 'Vengeance is mine'. I am, therefore, adopting a less drastic method-doing the letter-writing myself. It is a pleasurable sensation for me to do continuous writing for any length of time. My hand too works fairly steadily. "I wish you would not torture yourself so, for not sharing the sorrows of those you love; for you to finish your agreement is severe enough self-restraint. It is absolutely necessary. If you have real love, as I know you have, it must silently, but none the less surely, affect your present surroundings. 'No thought, no act is lost', says the Bhagwadgita. You are, therefore, doing your duty to the full by patiently and conscientiously doing your present work. Even the fresh energy you will get on the hills is to be used for the sake of your work. Why then worry ? "The swadeshi vow extends to personal clothing only. I dare not ask you to deny yourself the use of Danish gifts from loved ones. It is enough if in future you buy only swadeshi cloth and let your other things also be swadeshi so far as possible. We shall discuss greater changes when we meet again. "Mr. Andrews passed a few days with me. He is now in Delhi. Do te Sundaram I was grieved to hear of his illness. He must make himself healthy and strong. With love, "Bapu" 1-6-'91 To Ramdas From Sabarmati : "Chi. Ramdas, "I have your letter. I have been regularly dictating letters for you. I don't think there has ever been a gap of a whole month. I am glad you have taken up a job under bhai Mohanlal. I am quite certain you must not be abusing his generosity, his goodness and love, which you so enthusiastically speak of, but I would like you to work there with double care and zest in order to give him some return for all his love etc. In a service under a relative or a friend, the disadvantages [nearly balance the advantages. Definitely we get some special facilities there which we do not in serving a stranger. But, owing to the leniency we enjoy at the former's service, there is also the disadvantage of falling into the temptation of abusing it and becoming dishonest in our work. I wish you, therefore, to keep a vigilant watch over your mind. I must, at the same time say that I have no fear about you on that score. I have seen that you deserve the love you are given and am certain you will only shine out in your work there. Serve the shop with all the sincerity of a proprietor. Never feel shy about admitting your ignorance and learn from others whatever you do not know. When I first went to South Africa, I had absolutely no idea as to what 'p. note' meant. For a few days hid my ignorance, but at the cost of increasing uneasiness. I realized that it was impossible for me even to understand Dada Abdulla's ( Gandhiji's first client ) case, so long as I did not know what the abbreviation 'p. note' stood for. I, therefore, declared my ignorance forthwith. When I came to know that this formidable 'p. note' meant only 'promissory note', I burst into a loud laugh, not at my ignorance but at my false shame, because no dictionary could have revealed this mystery of 'p. note' to me. So the straight thing is to immediately ask a knowing person whatever we are ignorant about. It matters little if we are dubbed fools, but it would be really harmful if, out of our ignorance, we commit a blunder. "I hope you are hale and hearty. Stick to the post and earn an honest penny out of it. And do open your heart to me unreservedly. Ba often tells me that you are now grown-up and must be called here so that your marriage could be arranged. I have given a definite 'no' to the proposal and have told her that if you wanted to marry you would be frank enough to tell me so. I have also told her that I have asked you to speak out plainly and without any constraint your feelings on the matter. That has kept Ba quiet. I have often declared that in these times of dire distress, when India is in a very adverse situation-in a miserable plight in fact-it is the special and emergency duty of every Indian not to think of marriage. Naturally, therefore, I would wish you also to lead to the last a life of self-restraint and brahmacharya (continence). In that life, increasingly as years pass, your passionate urges calm down, you grow in physical and mental strength and finally you forget the whole idea of marriage. But I must not judge you by my standards. I have given you a promise that, my views apart, if you think of getting married, I will do my best to help you. You will, therefore, trust me and declare your view without any fear of my disapproval. You may forget that I am your father. Regard me as a friend and put my friendship to a test. "I keep sufficiently healthy for the work I am putting forth. I take goat's milk twice a day and fruit thrice. There is still physical weakness, but I don't think there has been any slackness in mental vigour. I am always engaged in some work or other right from 6 a. m. to 10 p. m. But I cannot now do with out a midday nap of 30-40 minutes. In spite of this continuous work my brain does not seem to be over-exerted at 10 p. m. The fight ( Satyagraha ) is going on. Civil disobedience will be resumed in a short time. I meet with new experiences as well as repetitions of the old. There have been till now as many hopeful, as disappointing, features of the struggle. "I get letters from you fairly regularly, but Manilal seems to be rather lethargic. Neither he, nor you have given me any news about his case. I am anxious to know what defence Manilal put up. I do intend to write to him, but lest the idea slips from my mind, you will not fail to send this letter to him. I wish you, both the brothers, sent me a copy each of your photographs. Do you care to read books ? Do you offer the daily morning prayers ? If you don't, let me remind you once again that you should never fail to do them. The habit of reading good books is, I am quite certain, extremely beneficial and you will appreciate its value in times of great difficulties. And the worth of morning and evening prayers and other religious practices, one finds by experience, grows day by day. They are verily the nourishment of the soul. Just as the body becomes a skeleton without food, so does the soul wither without this spiritual sustenance." "Chi. Maganlal, "Only on coming here ( Sabarmati ) I came to know that you are at Vijapur. I am glad you have gone there, though I was eager to meet you. My remarks about yarn were not at all meant as a rebuke? how can I blame you ??but they were to make you more keen about the matter. It was meant to nudge you to give the priority I give to this yarn question. I wanted, and I still want, to say that you should direct your mind towards restricting other activities as much as possible. It is for you to say who can lay the axe and on what activities after reviewing the whole situation. Though certainly I used to believe that the Ashram should strive for a very large output of cloth from swadeshi yarn, on deeper consideration I found that my demand from the Ashram was misplaced and I repaired the mistake by my letter from Surat. We may reduce, or wind up, those of our activities one by one which, we may feel certain, others are going to take up. We must, on the other hand, expand that activity which is essential and yet slow to arouse faith in others. Hand-spinning is one such. Moreover, the more experience I gain the more I am convinced that machinery will keep us enchained in slavery for ever. I have been seeing ever more clearly that the views I have expressed in 'Hind Swaraj' on machinery are a hundred percent true. I have been making deeper researches into the domain of Satyagraha also.I realize that it is the cleanest weapon as well as the most suitable at once to the weakest and the strongest. On their own, many businessmen will get mill-yarn woven into cloth. I can, therefore, get that work done by outsiders in a short time, but, for ourselves, let us concentrate on the hand-spinning activity. The day before yesterday some Punjabis came to me. They informed me that their womenfolk, both of high and low status, spin their yarn at home and get it woven by the local handloom weavers. That means, the price of the yarn for their clothes equals that of the cotton used in them. This fact deserves to be chewed and digested. You have done well in taking Keshu with you there. If he returns an expert in hand spinning, he can teach us all and that is enough for our maintenance." *"Dear Miss Schlesin, "Ramdas advises me that you have passed your teacher's examination with some distinction. You do not want me to congratulate you, I know. I am simply anxious that you should get through your final examination, because I expect you one of these days to take your place in India. The summer months are trying enough, but the winter months give you sufficient compensation. I hope you had all you wanted without any inconvenience. You will not hesitate to come to me for more, if necessary. "Satyagraha is going on merrily. Civil disobedience is ex-pected to commence very soon. How I often wish you were here, for more reasons than one ! I must plough the lonely furrow. It often makes me sad when I think of all my helpers of South Africa. I have no Doke1 here. I have no Kallenbach2. Don't ???????????? 1. A kind-hearted missionary of Johannesburg. He was very sympathetic towards the Indian struggle in South Africa and even assisted it. It was he who carried Bapu to his home when Bapu fell down unconscious from the lathi-blows of a Pathan. Very lovingly both he and his wife nursed Bapu back to health. He has moreover the distinction of being probably the earliest biographer of Gandhiji. 2. Bapu's German friend. He was a flourishing architect in Johannesburg. Contact with Bapu gave him the healthy infection of 'plain living and high thinking.' When Bapu broke up his house in Johannesburg owing to the exigencies of the fight, he used to stay at Kallenbach's. The latter even joined the Satyagraha there and suffered incarceration. He gave away his extensive farm know where he is at the present moment. Polak1 in England. No counterpart of Kachalia2 or Sorabji3. Impossible to get the second edition of Rustamji4. Strange as it may appear, I feel ??????????????? for use of the families of the Satyagrahis sent to jail. It was this property that was entitled 'Tolstoy Farm'. At the end of the struggle he accompanied Bapu to England and fully intended to go with him to India also. But the first World War broke out just then and he was detained as a prisoner in England, because he was a German national. 1. Another very close friend and loyal colleague of Bapu in South Africa. He was formerly an Assistant Editor of a paper, The Critic in Transvaal, but left the job and joined Bapu's Indian Opinion. He went to England and travelled all over India to get support for the South African Satyagraha. His contact with Gandhiji began by his service under him as an 'articled clerk' and then he became a full-fledged lawyer. He also went to jail as a Satyagrahi. 2. Ahmad Mohammad Kachalia. A distinguished colleague. In his 'Satyagraha In South Africa' Bapu says in effect : "Neither in South Africa nor in India have I come across a man who could surpass him in bravery and sincerity of purpose. He had sacrificed his all for the service of the Indian community, Every time I had to deal with him I found him a man of his word. He was a strict Muslim, but was at the same time equally friendly with Hindus?..Throughout the long South African struggle Kachalia was always among the foremost most who kept their vows in letter and in spirit." 3. Sorabji Shapurji Adajania. A first rank Satyagrahi in the S. A. struggle. He had made a deep study of the principles behind the struggle and was able to give valuable advice to Gandhiji during the progress of the fight. Gandhiji says that his suggestions were always imbued with firmness, discrimination, generosity and peacefulness. After the end of the struggle Dr. Pranjivandas Mehta offered a scholarship to enable any really deserving Satyagrahi to proceed to England and return a barrister, so that he could take the place of Gandhiji and serve the South African Indians. Bapu selected him as his fittest successor. Sorabji had already caught the Hon. Gokhale's eye during his visit to S. Africa. In England he came in greater contact with Gokhale who was charmed with him. On his return to S. Africa as a barrister he started practice and also took up the thread of public service in Bapu's absence. His simplicity, his loving heart and unsophisticated manners as well as his sociability soon made him a very popular figure. But this promising career was cut short by the hand of death when he was still in the prime of youth, at the age of 35. 4. Parsi Rustomji. A leading businessman in South Africa, an old client and a personal friend of Gandhiji. He never stinted in giving monetary help for the fight in South Africa and courted jail also. Even after Gandhiji's return to India, he used to help him with money for the many activities Gandhiji sponsored in his motherland. lonelier here than in S. Africa. This does not mean that I am without co-workers. But between the majority of them and me there is not that perfect correspondence which used to exist in S. Africa. I do not enjoy the same sense of security which you all gave me there. I do not know the people here; not they me. This is all gloomy, if I were to brood over it. But I do not. I have not the time for it. I have a few moments of leisure just now. Ramdas's letter reminds me of your existence in S. Africa and I am giving myself the momentary pleasure of sharing my innermost thoughts with you. But now on more." 6-6-'19 Mrs. Naidu, Mr. Ramaswamy and Mr. and Mrs. Jinnah left for England. The following three letters were sent through Mrs. Naidu for personal delivery. They give in brief Bapu's views on the present situation, his reactions to Mr. Montagu's speech etc. "Laburnum Road, Bombay. *"My dear Henry ( Polak ), "I see you have been wrestling with Cotton. I think he has floored you with his quotation from The Servant of India. But both you and I have survived the fall. I rejoice ( almost ) in the wreckage about me. Shraddhanandji gone. Mr. Jamnadas has left. Some others may follow suit. These occurrences do not baffle me as does violence from the people. But I approach the 1st of July with confidence. The Government are prepared for emergencies. And I shall avoid all demonstration. Civil disobedience will be intensive, not extensive, this time. Please make it clear to Mr. Montagu that there can be no peace in India without the withdrawal of the Rowlatt legi-slation.1 He is badly served by the permanent officials here. Take the ?????????? 1. Though the outburst of violence compelled Gandhiji to suspend civil disobedience, time and again, his determined opposition to the Rowlatt Bill's succeeded to the extent that the "Black Acts" remained a dead letter and were never enforced. horrible misrepresentations about Mr. Horniman. The real reason for his deportation will probably be never given. Read Young India carefully. Most of the leading articles are mine. I am virtually editing it. See the Sind article. More revelations are yet to come. If Mr. Montagu wants to do justice, he has to do things with better eyes than those of the officials who, wishing to support a system to which they owe their present position, cannot be expected to give him an impartial version of affairs. Rowlatt Act must go. Mohammedans should be satisfied and substantial reforms granted. For the Punjab tragedy, an impartial committee with the power to revise sentences is an absolute necessity. Give these 4 things, and peace can be had in this unhappy land. There will be no plenty so long as India is exploited for Britain's sake. Take the second increase in the rate of exchange. It means a loss to India of crores of rupees without any corresponding gain. It means a bonus to Lancashire and to the Civilians. But these matters can be adjusted if people's minds are eased by the relief above mentioned. Rowlatt legislation represents the Government determination to defy public opinion. The attitude is intolerable on the eve of Reforms. "This will be presented to you by Mrs. Naidu. She is a wonderful woman. I have compared her to Mirabai1. I have seen nothing to alter that opinion. She will give all my messages of love to you and the family. Yours, BHAI" "P. S. : Will you contribute to Young India ? I wish you would." *"Dear Mr. Horniman, "I was much relieved to hear of your safe arrival. I was deeply hurt to read Mr. Montagu's reference to you. I daresay ?????????? 1. A mediaeval princess of Mewar, in Rajasthan, known for her hymns and her fearless devotion to Lord Krishna. you have vindicated yourself. You will see my reference to the matter in Young India. "Mrs. Naidu will tell you all about the situation here. There will be no peace in India until the Rowlatt legislation is withdrawn. Mohammedan sentiments must be appeased and the Punjab sentences revised. Will you write for Young India ? *"Dear Mr. Shastriar, "I would like you to glance at the leading columns of Young India. Most of the leading articles are either written by me or under my supervision. I can vouch for all the facts stated therein. The state of things revealed there shows the true official attitude. Rowlatt legislation is its embodiment. Hence, my unbending opposition. The Government do not need it to stamp out revolutionary crime. They need it to harass people. The administration of the Defence of India Act shows the way the people can be harassed. There can be - will be - no peace in the land unless that legislation is withdrawn. Mr. Montagu's defence of it is untenable. His remarks about Mr. Horniman are totally unjust and untrue. The Punjab horrors have produced a burning letter from the Poet1. I personally think it is premature. But he cannot be blamed for it. May I hope that you and other friends will refuse to take the Reforms if they are not given to a people made contented by removing substantial causes of discontent ? "I hope you have benefited the change." 7-6-'19 A severe castigation of a young journalist of Bombay : *"Dear? ? ? "It is dangerous to call me 'Revered Father' as you will see presently. I have no doubt about your prodigality. The very slovenliness of your writing is eloquent proof of it and it requires a prodigal son to write to his adopted 'Revered Father' ?????????? 1. Outraged at the atrocities in the Punjab. the Poet, Rabindranath Tagore, wrote a scathing letter to the Viceroy to announce his relinquishment of the title of knighthood. a letter containing almost as many corrections as there are lines in it written anyhow and unrevised. A son frugal in his adjectives, obedient in reality, would write to his father, especially when he is deliberately adopted, a careful letter written in his best hand-writing. If he has not enough time, he will write only a line, but he would write it neatly. "Your article on .. ? was ill-conceived and hurriedly written. It could not be printed in Young India, nor is it worth printing in any other paper. You will not reform him by letters of that character, nor will you benefit the public thereby. Your second article is not much better? ? You really lose yourself in the exuberance of your own verbosity. If you will give more attention to the thought than a mere lengthening out of your story, you will produce readable matter. "Why have you inflicted certificates on me ? How can they influence me when I know you so well ? I neither consider you 'well-informed' nor 'forceful' as a writer and Mr. Menon must know very little of journalistic capacity if he really considered that you were able to acquit yourself with credit in any journalistic capacity. Now you see how difficult it will be for you to please me and yet I will be easy enough. If you take pains in future, I would certainly take you as helper for Young India in spite of your many limitations as soon as you are free from your Ahmedabad obligation. I think you owe it to Mr. Chatterjee and the A. P.1 to finish the work you have : You can even help me from Ahmedabad by giving me bright and graphic notes on the trials, not in the nature of carping criticism of the Government or of the local legal agent. You should try to give pen-pictures of men and manners. Surely there must be many humorous touches about the proceedings; but probably you will have little time for writing anything at the present moment." "Chi. Chhaganlal, "I have your letter. I do not think anybody will send orders for our Khadi from Calcutta etc. There may be stray buyers ?????????? 1. Associated Press of India. from Bombay or Ahmedabad. I, for one, regard it as quiet improper to add 5% as our own charge. We must give our labour entirely free. Only then can we ask the Swadeshi Stores to rest satisfied with only a 5% profit. How can we take any profit for an article we want to be widely patronised ? And we get our maintenance from other sources already. Unless the goods have already been sent to Bombay, do not send them till I write to you. It would be good to do so only after I have a talk with Vithaldas. I have been told here that at the old Swadeshi Stores nobody cares to buy our Khadi. If it is really so, we will have to consider this question seriously. I trust you will take the assistance of any other person but never of Chhotalal or Jagannath. If you don't get any advance payment for our goods from the Swadeshi Stores, you will let me know and I will make some arrangement about it." 3-7-'19 Letter to Sri. Rajagopalachari re. the future of the Satyagraha movement : *"You must add to Kalinath Roy1 the South African question and again get together Mr. Natesan, the Diwan Bahadur (Vijayaraghavachari) and others representing different groups. I see that we will have to extend the scope of Satyagraha activity to all spheres of life and to all other questions. I am seriously thinking of altering the constitution of the Sabha to make it a permanent body. The whole thing is in a nebulous state. The South African question has compelled attention to this aspect of our activity. We who are representing no party must try wherever we can to bring the groups on a common platform where there are, or can be, no differences of opinion. "You will see my letter to the press on the South African question. We should hold meetings and pass resolutions calling upon the Government to do their duty. Cables should be sent ???????????? 1. Editor of The Tribune, sentenced to 2 years' rigorous imprisonment together with a fine of Rs. 1000/- or, in default, six months, further rigorous imprisonment by a Martial Law Commission. to the Secretary of State also. You will see, The Times of India has come right round to us. You should try on your side to get the English element to go with us in this matter. I am still in correspondence with the Viceroy on the Rowlatt legislation. Civil disobedience has, therefore, been delayed. I do not propose to attempt to go to the Punjab but cross the Bombay border at some other point. I hardly think it right to challenge prosecution formally regarding the Punjab. I ought to do so, if there was any doubt about my position. What I mean is any such challenge will appear theatrical and I abhor such display. The Punjab authorities have looked sufficiently foolish by naming me as a conspirator and yet leaving me alone. I would take away from that effect by committing the folly of saying, "why do you not prosecute me" when I know they do not want to and dare not. Do you follow my argument ? I am anxious to convince you that it would be wrong to adopt your suggestion." 4-7-'19 There was a letter from Mr. Arundale1 requesting Gandhiji to evolve a common platform where all political leaders ( including Gandhiji ) could join in working for the improvement of the Indian Reforms Bill proposed under the Montagu-Chelmsford Scheme. Gandhiji's reply : *"I have read and re-read your kind letter for which I thank you. I am publishing the letter in Young India together with this reply. Much as I should like to follow your advice, I feel that I am incompetent for the task set forth by you in your letter. I am fully aware of my limitations. My bent is not political but religious and I take part in politics because I feel that there is no department of life which can be divorced from religion and because politics touch the vital being of India almost at every point. It is, therefore, absolutely necessary that the political relations between Englishmen and ourselves should be put on a ???????? 1. Mrs. Besant's colleague and Editor, NEW INDIA. sound basis. I am endeavouring to the best of my ability to assist in the process. I do not take much interest in the reforms because they are in safe hands and because reforms-cum-Rowlatt legislation mean to my mind a stalemate. Rowlatt legislation represents a poisonous spirit. After all, the English civilians can, unless Indian opinion produces a healthy reaction upon them, reduce the reforms practically to a nullity. They distrust us and we distrust them. Each considers the other as his natural enemy. Hence, the Rowlatt legislation. The Civil Service has devised the legislation to keep us down. In my opinion, that legislation is like the coil of the snake round the Indian body. The obstinacy of the Government in clinging to the hateful legislation in spite of the clearest possible demonstration they have had of public opinion against it, makes me suspect the worst. With the views enunciated above, you will not wonder at my inability to interest myself in the reforms. Rowlatt legislation blocks the way. And my life is dedicated among other things to removing the block. Let there be no mistake. Civil resistance has come to stay. It is an eternal doctrine of life which we follow consciously or unconsciously in many walks of life. It is the new and extended application of it which has caused misgivings and excitement. Its suspension is designed to demonstrate its true nature, and to throw the responsibility for the removal of the Rowlatt legislation on the Government as also the leaders ( you among them ) who have advised me to suspend it. But if within a reasonable time the legislation is not removed, civil resistance will follow as surely as day follows night. No weapon in the Government armoury can either overcome or destroy that eternal force. Indeed, a time must come when civil resistance will be recognized as the most efficacious, if also the most harmless, remedy for securing redress of grievances. You suggest the desirability of unity. I think unity of goal we have. But parties we shall always have-and we may not find a common denominator for improvements. For some will want to go further than some others. I see no harm in a whole so-me variety. What I would rid ourselves of is distrust of one another and imputation of motives. Our besetting sin is not our differences but our littleness. We wrangle over words, we fight often for shadow and lose the substance. As Mr. Gokhale used to say, our politics are a pastime of our leisure hours, when they are not undertaken as a stepping-stone to a career in life. I would invite you and every editor to insist on introducing charity, seriousness and selflessness in our politics. And our disunion will not jar as it does today. It is not our differences that really matter. It is the meanness behind that is, undoubtedly, ugly. The Punjab sentences are inextricably mixed up with the Rowlatt agitation. It is, therefore, as imperatively necessary to have them revised as it is to have the Act removed. I agree with you that the Press Act requires overhauling. The Government are actually promoting sedition by high-handed executive action. And I was sorry to learn that Lord Willingdon is reported to have taken the sole responsibility for the-in my opinion-un-warranted action1 against The Hindu and the Swadeshi Mitram.By it, they have not lost in prestige or popularity. They have gained in both. Surely there are judges enough in the land who would convict where a journalist has overstepped the bounds of legitimate criticism and uttered sedition. I am not enamoured of the Declaration of Rights business. When we have changed the spirit of the English civilian, we shall have made considerable headway with the Declaration of Rights. We must be honourable friends, or qually honourable enemies. We shall be neither, unless we are manly, fearless and independent. I would have us to treasure Lord Willingdon's advice and say "no" when wemean "no" without fear of consequences. This is unadulterated civil resistance. It is the way to friendliness and friendship. The other is the age-worn method of open violence on honourable lines in so far as violence can be allowed to be honourable. For me the roots of violence are in dishonour. I have, therefore, ?????????? 1. The Government demanded a security of Rs. 1,000 from each of these Madras newspapers and banned The Hindu in the Punjab and in Burma. ventured to present to India the former, in its complete form called Satyagraha, whose roots are always in honour." 6-7-'19 A very impressive speech was delivered by Bapu at Nadiad. The following are noteworthy excerpts : "I have a special claim on the people of Nadiad in particular and of Kaira in general, as I lived for so long in your midst and was surrounded with so much love from you all. My largest experiments in Satyagraha were carried out in Kaira. It is no small matter for a law-abiding people to suspend the payment of land-revenue, but I had then taken upon my shoulders the very serious responsibility of advising you to do so. The actual working of that experiment showed that there was no cause for regret. It has been acknowledged by the officers concerned that it was a most peaceful, orderly and becoming demonstration of your grievance. It was this exemplary and successful act of civil disobedience which betrayed me into the miscalculation of April last. If I then considered my mistake to be as big as the Vindhya Range, now after longer experience I feel that it was a Himalayan miscalculation. Not only, however, is my claim upon the Kaira people based upon the revenue struggle, but also upon my recruiting campaign." x x x "As I may have to offer civil disobedience at a very early date, I thought I would speak to you today about the duty of Satyagrahis. It is hardly possible to understand this duty without a correct appreciation of the meaning of Satyagraha. I have already given its definition, but the mere definition often fails to convey the true meaning. Unfortunately, poular imagination has pictured Satyagraha as purely and simply civil-disobedience, if not in some cases even criminal disobedience. The latter, as you all know, is the very opposite of Satyagraha. The former, i. e., civil disobedience, is undoubtedly an important, but by no means always the main part of Satyagraha. Today, for instance, on the question of Rowlatt legislation, civil disobedience has gone into the background. As Satyagraha is being brought into play on a large scale on the political field for the first time, it is in an experimental stage. I am, therefore, ever making new discoveries. And my error in trying to let civil disobedience take the people by storm appears to me to be Himalayan be-cause of the discovery I have made, namely, that he only is able, and attains the right, to offer civil disobedience who has known how to offer voluntary and deliberate obedience to the laws of the State in which he is living. It is only after one has voluntarily obeyed such laws a thousand times that an occasion rightly comes to one civilly to disobey certain laws. Nor is it necessary for voluntary obedience that the laws to be obeyed must be good. There are many unjust laws which a good citizen obeys so long as they do not hurt his self-respect or the moral being, and when I look back upon my life, I cannot recall a single occasion when I have obeyed a law whether of society or the State because of the fear of punishment. I have obeyed bad laws of the society as well as of the State, believing that it was good for me and the State or the society to which I belonged to do so, and I feel that having regularly and in a disciplined manner done so, the call for disobedience to a law of society1 came when I went to England in 1888 and to a law of the State in South Africa when the Asian Registration Act was passed by the Transvaal Government. I have, therefore, come to the conclusion that civil disobedience, if it has to be renewed, shall be offered in the first instance only by me as being the fittest to do so and the duty of fellow-satyagrahis will be to assimilate, for the time being, the first essential just mentioned of civil disobedience. In the instructions I have drawn up, I have suggested that civil disobedience by the others should not be taken up for at least one month after I have been taken charge of by the Government. And then, too, by one or two chosen Satyagrahis, chosen in the sense above mentioned and only if it is found that no violence has been offered after my incarceration by the Satyagrahis so called or others ???????? 1. Caste rules forbade a voyage then. acting in co-operation with them. The next duty then is for the remaining Satyagrahis themselves to observe perfect calm and quiet and to see that others do likewise. You will, therefore, see to it that after I have offered civil disobedience, if I do, there is no hartal, no public meetings and no demonstrations of any kind whatsoever so as to give excitement. And I feel sure that if perfect peace is observed after my incarceration, Rowlatt Legislation will go by reason of that very fact. But it is quite likely that the Government may remain perfectly obstinate. In that event under the conditions I have already mentioned, it will be open to the Satyagrahis to offer further civil disobedience and continue to do so till every Satyagrahi has rendered a good account of himself." x x x "There is one more subject that I have to touch upon. Painful, as it were, in their consequences, the tragic events of the mad mob in Ahmedabad and Viramgam in April last, some of the doings in Kaira were, if possible, still more tragic if you contemplate what might have happened. I refer to the cutting down of the telegraph wires and the tearing down of the railway. The acts of the mob in Ahmedabad betoken mad frenzy. The acts in Kaira betoken deliberation. They were also done in anger but even in anger there can be thoughtlessness or thoughtfulness. The Kaira crimes, though far less disastrous in consequences than those of Ahmedabad, were from a Satyagraha standpoint more inexcusable, if there can be any excuse for any crime whatsoever. I understand that those who were responsible for the misdeeds of April have not all come forward to boldly confess the crime. It was a pity that Kaira which behaved so nobly during the revenue struggle should have forgotten itself during April, but it is a greater pity that the guilty ones should now try to hide themselves. It is, therefore, the plain duty of Satyagrahis to make an open confession if any of them is in any shape or form responsible for the crime and to persuade, if they have the knowledge, those who have committed the crime to make the confession. It is cowardly enough to tear down the railway and thus endanger the lives of soldiers who were proceeding to restore peace and order. It is still more cowardly not to come forward boldly and admit the wrong. A hidden sin is like poison corrupting the whole body. The sooner the poison is thrown off the better it is for society. And just as a bit of arsenic mixed with milk renders it none the less vitiating for the addition of pure milk, so also do good deeds in a society fail to cover unexpiated sins. I hope that you will strain every nerve to find out those whose mad grief betrayed them into unpardonable crimes and appeal to them to own up like men and thus purify the social, moral and political atmosphere of this district." 21-7-'19 Bapu suspended Satyagraha in April, but intended to resume it in July. The following letter sent to the Press today announced its further postponement : *"The Government of India have given me, through His Excellency the Governor of Bombay, grave warning that resumption of Civil Disobedience is likely to be attended with serious consequences to the public security. This warning has been enforced by His Excellency the Governor himself at interviews to which I was summoned. In response to this warning and to the urgent desire publicly expressed by Dewan Bahadur Govinda Raghava Iyer, Sir Narayan Chandavarkar and several editors, I have, after deep consideration, decided not to resume civil disobedience for the time being. I may add that several prominent friends belonging to what is called the Extremist Party have given me the same advice on the sole ground of their fear of recrudescence of violence of the part of those who might not have understood the doctrine of Civil Resistance. When, in common with most other Satyagrahis, I came to the conclusion that the time was ripe for the civil resistance part of Satyagraha, I sent a respectful letter to His Excellency the Viceroy, advising him of my intention to do so and urging that Rowlatt legislation should be withdrawn, that an early declaration be made as to the appointment of a strong and impartial committee to investigate the Punjab disturbances with power to revise the sentences passed, and that Bapu Kalinath Roy who was, as could be proved from the record of the case, unjustly convicted should be released. The Government of India should be thanked for the decision in Mr. Roy's case.1 Though it does not do full justice to Mr. Roy, the very material reduction in the sentence is a substantial measure of justice. I have been assured that the Committee of Inquiry, such as I have urged, is in the process of being appointed. With these indications of good-will it will be unwise on my part not to listen to the warning given by the Government. Indeed, my acceptance of the Government's advice is a further demonstration of the true nature of civil resistance. A civil resister never seeks to embarrass Government. He often co-operates and does not hesitate civilly to resist where resistance becomes a duty. He attains the goal by creating goodwill, believing as he does that unfailing exercise of goodwill, even in the face of unjust acts of a government, can only result in goodwill being ultimately returned by the Government. Further suspension of Civil Resistance is, therefore, nothing but a practical application of Satyagraha. Yet it is no small matter for me to suspend Civil Resistance even for a day while Rowlatt legislation continues to disfigure our Statute-book. The Lahore and Amritsar judgments make suspension still more difficult. Those judgments, read by me with an unbiased mind, have left an indelible impression that most of the Punjab leaders have been convicted without sufficient proof and that the punishments inflicted on them are inhuman and outrageous. The judgments go to show that they have been convicted for no other reason than that they were connected with stubborn agitation against the Rowlatt legislation. I would, if I had my way, have, therefore, preferred to court imprisonment to retaining the restricted liberty vouchsafed tome by the Government of India. But a Satyagrahi has to swallow ??????????? 1. His sentence was reduced from 2 years to 3 months. many a bitter pill and the present suspension is one such. I feel that I shall better serve the country, and the Governbent and those Punjabi leaders who, in my opinion, have been so unjustly convicted and so cruelly sentenced, by suspension of Civil Resistance for time-being. But this suspension, while it lightens my responsibility by reason of the feared outbreak of violence, makes it incumbent upon the Government and the eminent public-men who have advised suspension to see that the Rowlatt legislation is removed without delay. I have been accused of throwing lighted matches. If my occasional Civil Resistance be a lighted match, Rowlatt legislation and persistence in retaining it on the Statute-book are a thousand matches scattered throughout India, and the only way to avoid Civil Resistance altogether is to withdraw that legislation. Nothing that the Government have published in justification of that legislation has moved the Indian public from the attitude of opposition to it. I have thus suspended Civil Resistance to hasten the end of that legislation. But Satyagrahis will pay for its removal by their lives if it cannot be removed by lesser means. The period of suspension is for Satyagrahis an opportunity for further dis-cipline in an enlightened and willing obedience to the laws of the State. The right of Civil Resistance is derived from the duty of obedience voluntarily performed. And Satyagraha con-sists not merely, not even chiefly, in civilly resisting laws, but mainly in promoting national welfare by strict adherence to Truth. I would respectfully advise fellow-satyagrahis and seek the co-operation of all, great and small, in the propagation of pure swadeshi and promotion of Hindu-Muslim unity. Swadeshi is, I hold, a necessity of national existence. No Englishman or Indian can view with equanimity the huge enforced waste of labour of twenty crore peasants during half the year. That labour can be quickly and immediately utilized only by resto-ring to the women their spinning-wheels and to the men their handlooms. This means the elimination of unnatural Lancashire interest and the Japanese menace. The elimination of the unnatural Lancashire interest purifies the British connection and makes the position of equality possible. The elimination of the Japanese menace will avert a national and Imperial disaster. Extension of Japan's hold upon India through her commerce can end only in India's degradation or a bloody war. The Hindu-Muslim unity is equally a national and Imperial necessity. A voluntary league between Hindus, Mohammedans and Englishmen is a league in my conception infinitely superior to and purer than the League of Nations just formed. Permanent union between Hindus and Mohammedans is the preliminary to such Triple Union. That unity can be materially advanced by the Hindus whole-heartedly associating themselves with the Mohammedans in their very just aspirations regarding the Caliphate, holy Mecca and other holy places of Islam. The swadeshi propaganda and work for Hindu-Muslim unity require powers of organisation, honesty of purpose, integrity in trade and immense self-sacrifice and self-restraint. It is, therefore, easy enough to perceive that swadeshi propaganda on the purest lines and promotion of Hindu-Muslim unity cannot but have an indirect, though none the less effective, bearing on the movement for securing withdrawal of the Rowlatt legislation for which the Government can claim no justification-little as they can claim even now-when we give an unexampled demonstration of the qualities named above." 2-8-'19 The Mahratta, quoting from the judgment in the Hindwasi case, had suggested that Gandhiji should clear up the point raised by the magistrate in the passage quoted. Bapu responded to the suggestion by a letter to The Mahratta. The relevant quotation from the judgment in the Hindwasi case is first given here and then Bapu's reply : *"There is another aspect of Satyagraha in its political garb which shows as plainly as the events at Delhi, the inherent-the law-breaking-character of the doctrine. The substance of the Satyagraha vow is a matter of common knowledge. By the vow the individual claims the right to disobey civilly any laws which the Satyagraha Sabha decides should be disobeyed. Now "civil disobedience" has never been explained. In Bombay, it is well known, "civil disobedience" took the form of selling proscribed literature, an offence under secion 124-A, I. P. C., or in other words, an active disobedience of a criminal law. Furthermore "Civil disobedience" of any law which safeguards the right of others is plainly subversive of all law and order, and is ipso facto calculated to bring Government, as the guardian of law and order, into hatred and contempt. That is to say, this aspect of political Satyagraha is in essence and effect seditious." Reply : *"After quoting, from the magisterial judgment in the Hindwasi case, the dissertation of the magistrate on Civil Disobedience, you have asked me to clear the point raised in the judgment. I gladly respond to your wish. "It is difficult to crowd into a paragraph more misconceptions about a grand doctrine of life, or mis-statements of facts, than has been done in the paragraph you have quoted. The paragraph referred to begins : "There is another aspect of Satyagraha in its political garb which shows as plainly as the events at Delhi the inherent?the law-breaking?character of the doctrine." "Until the mystery about Delhi is cleared up by an impartial judgment, we shall never know whose fault it was for the events that happened at Delhi. Let it, however, be remembered that Civil Disobedience had not commenced on the 30th March last, nor on the 6th April. Swami Shraddhanand contends that the law was broken by the authorities and that the handful of Satyagrahis wers busy, even at the peril of their lives, restraining the fury, alike of the mob and the local authority. The judgment proceeds : "By the vow, the individual claims the rights to disobey any law that the Satyagraha Sabha decides should be disobeyed." "Now in this sentence there is the sin of commission and omission. The Vow gives the votary the right to disobey civilly, not any laws which the Satyagraha Sabha decides upon, but such laws as may be selected by the Special Committee to be appointed by the votaries. The distinction is important. The learned magistrate has omitted to mention that in committing Civil Disobedience the Civil Resister is pledged to truth and non-violence-not an unimportant qualification. The next sentence betrays ignorance that is unpardonable in a judge. He says, "Civil Disobedience has never been explained." If he proposed to convict on the grounds of Civil Disobedience, it was his duty to have understood it thoroughly. He had the whole of the Satyagraha Leaflet Series including Thoreau's Classic1 on Civil Disobedience at his disposal. "I must endeavour here to explain briefly what is meant by Civil Disobedience before I can show the absurdity of the sentences that follow. Civil Disobedience is opposed to criminal or immoral disobedience. Civil Disobedience can, therefore, be confined only to those laws which do not carry any moral sanction. Laws in themselves may be either criminal or civil. But a Civil Resister will not hesitate to commit a civil breach of artificial crime ( which a man-made law may create ), e. g., Section 124 A of the Indian Penal Code, under which anything according to the vagaries or the predilections of a judge may be termed sedition. He will not commit any attack upon the rights of others. He will never do an act which is calculated to bring any person or corporation into hatred or contempt, but he will not hesitate to disregard or expose, irrespective of consequences to himself, any hateful or contemptible act of such person or corporation; and by so doing he will protect such person or corporation from all undeserved hatred or contempt. The law of sedition could never mean that tyranny or high-handed-ness, even though they may be enshrined in a Statute-book, should ??????????? 1. Extracts from this famous article have already appeared in the preceding diary, Vol. I, d. 15.2 '18 ( Pages 36-42 ). They were published as Satyagraha Leaflet No. 1. be submitted to, for fear of the tyrant being held in contempt. A Civil Resister, therefore, will not impute motives but examine each act on merits. Civil Disobedience is, therefore, based upon love and fellow-feeling, whereas criminal disobedience upon hatred and ill-will. Civil Disobedience, therefore, is to criminal disobedience what light is to darkness; and when the spirit of Civil Disobedience permeates, as I hope, it will very soon permeate the people, of India, crimes or violence will be practically things of the past. "What has been urged by friends and the Government is that whilst Civil Disobedience as a doctrine of life is admirable in itself, unthinking people, not being able to distinguish between Civil and Criminal Disobedience and being mentally disobedient as to what they do not relish, are likely to mistake Civil Disobedience of the enlightened for any disobedience and thus resort to lawlessness. This is an argument which has appealed, but it has not disproved the necessity or the grandeur of Civil Disobedience. It emphasises the necessity of caution in one like myself trying to practise Civil Disobedience on a new and extensive plane. "Your readers now will be able to assess at their true value the following concluding passage from the paragraph in question: "In Bombay, it is well known that Civil Disobedience took the form of selling proscribed literature, an offence under Section 124-A, I. P. C., or, in other words, an active disobedience of a criminal law." "The sale of proscribed was literature was undertaken not for committing any active disobedience of criminal law but for questioning a prohibitory order of the executive authority and, as it has now turned out, the sale did not amount even to Civil Disobedience. For, it did not attack any law or order. The Civil Resister had misread the prohibitory orders. "The paragraph then proceeds : "Furthermore, Civil Disobedience of any law which safe-guards the rights of others is plainly subversive of all law and order and is ipso facto calculated to bring the Government as a guardian of law and order into hatred and contempt, that is to say, the aspect of political Satyagraha is in essence and effect seditious." "After the explanation that I have offered of Civil Disobedience, further comment is superfluous. And if Mr. Jethmal1 had been convicted upon a total misconception of the doctrine of Satyagraha, he ought to be set free without delay." 8-8'19 A Mr. Abdul Aziz of Peshawar wrote a letter to Bapu to the effect that as the civil disobedience movement was likely to cause bloodshed and disorders, specially in the Frontier Province, Bapu should drop altogether the idea of renewing it. Bapu's Reply : *"When Sir Narayan Chandavarkar wrote his open letter to me and the Government expostulated with me upon the then proposed renewal of civil-wrongly called 'passive-resistance', I respectfully responded by suspension for the time being, and, therefore, did not attempt any other reply. Your open letter, however, raises fundamental issues and requires a detailed reply to the various objections to civil resistance discussed in it. "At the outset, I wish to thank you for your kindness in thinking of me. You will be interested to know that I had stalwart Pathans from your district working with me as civil resisters during the eight long years of the struggle in South Africa. One of them was working in a Natal mine. He was severely beaten by his foreman apparently for no other cause than that he had joined the civil resistance movement. Being under the pledge not to resist the wrongdoer and yet to disobey his will, he meekly suffered the punishment for disobedience. He came to me and bared his striped back as he was saying, "I have suffered this for the sake of my pledge and you. I am a Pathan and the man who jail his cruel hands upon me would not have gone unscathed any other time." His suffering and that of ????????????? 1. Editor of the Hindwasi. thousands like him secured, among other things, repeal of the abominable poll-tax of £ 3 which our poor countrymen, their wives and the grown-up children had to pay annually as the price of freedom for the principal member to reside in Natal without indenture. "You ask me to give up 'the idea that wrought the freedom of the dumb labourers of Natal.' You wish me to give up the idea that has made Islam a living faith among the great faiths of the world. No evil followed my civil disobedience of the order of expulsion served upon me by the authorities in Champaran in 1917. I claim that my resistance laid the foundation for the partial awakening of the poor ryots of Cahamparan and the Government of Bihar. How shall I give up an idea which I have treasured for the past forty years and which I have consciously enforced in my own life with no mean success for the last thirty years ? "But you cite the awful experiences of April last. Have you really analysed the situation ? The sixth of April was observed from Cape Comorin to Peshawar and from Karachi to Calcutta by millions of men, women and children?an event the like of which has not occurred within living memory. I do not know what happened that day in Peshawar. But I do know that it passed off peacefully in all the chief cities and in thousands of hamlets of India. I suggest to you that it was a striking demon-stration of the possibilities of civil resistance. On the 6th, there was no civil resistance actually offered. It was a preparation day. Any other Government in the world would have recognized this incoming new force, would have courageously yielded to it and removed the causa causans?the Rowlatt Act. But the Punjab Government went mad. They "dictated' terms to the Government of India and the policy of ruthless repression was commenced. Two leaders were interned and deported. I was prevented from proceeding to what they knew was a mission of peace to Delhi and, if necessary, to the Punjab, arrested and brought under arrest to Bombay and there set free. And there was a conflagration. I submit that if the Punjab Government had deliberately and with malice aforethought planned an insurrection in the Punjab, they could not have taken more effective steps to do so. And yet such was the efficacy of Satyagraha that the whole of India outside the Punjab and three centres in Gujarat remained practically calm in the midst of the gravest provocation. I have admitted my mistake. What was it ? I miscalculated the capacity of the people to stand any amount of suffering and provocation. It was possible for the Punjab people to remain quiet in spite of the provocation offered by the arrests I have mentioned. But what happened was beyond endurance. The people of Amritsar could not restrain themselves and brook the deportation of their leaders. Neither you nor I can apportion the blame for what followed. Satyagraha apart, the question will have to be solved whether the people were provoked into madness by the firing or whether the military were provoked to action by the mob. "Be that, however, as it may, how can I abandon the idea of resuming civil resistance because people in April, in some parts of Hindustan, owing to special causes resorted to violence ? Must I cease to do right because some people are likely at the same time to do wrong ? I admit that the question is not quite so simple as I have put it. All action is controlled by a complexity of circumstances some of which are under the doer's control and the others beyond his control. He can, therefore, restrain himself only till he has obtained the maximum of control over the surrounding circumstances, and then trust to the Almighty to see him through. And that is exactly what I have done in suspending. I have shown that civil resistance is diametrically opposed to criminal resistance, that it is perfectly compatible with co-operation with and respect for the Government. "You cite Peshawar to show, I suppose, that the people unthinkingly, or actuated by mischievous people, joined the demonstration of the 6th April. They may have done so. My reading of the events is different from yours. Had there been no Rowlatt legislation, there would have been no demonstration and, therefore, no handle given to the mischievous elements. The wrong consisted not in the organizing of the demonstration or civil resistance, but in the Government so defying public opinion as to produce an agitation they had little anticipated. "Is not the moral obvious ? The Government must bow to the force of public opinion and retrace their steps. Assuming that the powers of the Rowlatt Act are necessary, they must patiently cultivate public opinion and adopt such means and powers that enlightened public opinion will tolerate. As it is, they have ignored the advice of their friends and held them up to ridicule by showing their incapacity for influencing the Government on matters of moment. In my humble opinion, your letters, open and private, and those of other leaders, should be addressed to the Government, asking them to right the wrong, not to me, tempting me away from the path of duty. I hope it is common cause between us that the Rowlatt Act which has roused such opposition and which has cost treasures of blood must be removed. If you have a remedy other than civil resistance, by all means apply it, and if you are successful, civil resistance falls away automatically. The period of suspension in the period during which you and all the leaders who dread or disapprove of civil resistance can work with all your might to bring about the desired result." 9-8-'19 Mr. Montagu, the Secretary of State for India declared in his speech that the powers conferred on the officials were necessary. Bapu wrote the following short but slashing reply in today's Young India : *"Mr. Montagu has spoken. He 'believes that the powers given to the executive by the Rowlatt Act are necessary'. And many friends ask whether, in view of this statement, the Act will be repealed. My answer is that the Rowlatt Act will be repealed in the same manner as Mr. Morley's 'settled fact'-the Bengal partition1-was unsettled. General Smuts had emphatically ??????????? 1. Bengal was partitioned in 1905. Intense public agitation, including boycott of British goods, ultimately led to the annulment of the Bengal partition in 1911. declared more than once that the Asiatic Registration Act would never be repealed. It had to go in the year 1914. Whilst, therefore, I am certain that the Rowlatt Act will go because of my belief in the power of suffering i.e. civil resistance, to overcome mountains, I cannot help feeling sad that even Mr. Montagu should have to support what is clearly insupportable, alike from the view of the evil in it and for the reason that public opinion has condemned it in unmeasured terms. Mr. Montagu has to resort to bad logic and distortion of facts to sustain his position. Surely the powers given to the executive are not necessary at present, for the simple reason that the Defence of India Act is still in operation and will be for some months to come. And if the powers are really necessary, they can be given in another and less offensive and more restricted manner. Mr. Montagu is the joint author with Lord Chelmsford of the reforms scheme such as it is. It lies ill in his mouth to defend a measure which can only neutralise what good the reforms may be intended to produce. "But the purpose of writing this is not to argue about the untenability of the position taken up by Mr. Montagu. My purpose is to show that if the Rowlatt Act is to be persisted in, the Government must prepare for civil resistance which shall be perfectly respectful but which shall be unbending. The issue is remarkably simple : Is the will of the people to prevail or that of the Government ? I venture to urge that a government, be it ever so powerful and autocratic, is bound to yield to unanimous public opinion. It is a bad outlook before us if truth and justice have to surrender to mere physical force, whether it is wielded by an individual or a government. My purpose in life is to demonstrate that the strongest physical force bends before moral force when it is used in defence of truth. If violence had not been offered by the people in April, notwithstanding provocation, the Rowlatt Act would have been withdrawn by now, as certainly as that I am penning these remarks. I still hope that Mr. Montagu, Lord Chelmsford and those who have the power, will perceive that true prestige lies in doing justice and respecting public opinion. But it may happen that they will think otherwise. In that event, I would like those who are interested in the speedy success of civil resistance to prepare the atmosphere for its smooth working. It will be a great trial of strength if we must engage in it. But the result is a certainty. That is the matchless beauty of civil resistance. A people that has no remedy in the last resort for securing redress perishes. The surest and the safest remedy is civil resistance. Europe furnishes a living warning against the method of violence. Peace has brought no rest to that continent. Wherever you look, there are strikes, there is violence and looting. England, the greatest perhaps of all the victors, is not free from turmoil. Victory has brought no satisfaction to the great mass of the people. India has her choice between the broken reed of violence and the unbreakable peaceful and elevating weapon of civil resistance, i. e., resistance by self-suffering." 18-8-'19 To an open letter by "Pennsylvanian" which appeared in The Times of India, Bapu wrote the following reply to the same paper : *"You will perhaps permit me to reply to "Pennsylvanian's" well-meant advice to me. I am aware that many Englishmen honestly hold the opinion "Pennsylvanian" does, and I thank him for providing me with an opportunity for removing some of the misunderstandings that exist about satyagraha. "Pennsylv-anian" has commended to me the example of his illustrious coun-tryman, Abraham Lincoln. I have endeavoured to the best of my ability to translate into my life one of his sayings, namely, "Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it." "Pennsylvanian" rightly insists on a "moral revolution." Now, Satyagraha is that and nothing else. Civil resistance is but a part, though a necessary part, of it. Its root meaning is "insistence on truth at all cost." Life-Satyagrahis are under the pledge of absolute adherence to truth, non-violence, poverty and chastity. An institution is at present in existence at which practically the whole of the programme sketched by "Pennsylvanian" is being carried our.1 English and American friends have visited it. I invite "Pennsylvanian" to visit it and report upon it to the public. He will find there that men and women belonging to all stations in life are living on terms of perfect equality, that the unlettered receive literary education in so far as the daily toil permits it, and that the lettered members do not hesitate to take up the pickaxe and the shovel. He will find there that, besides agriculture, the inmates are under the obligation to learn the art of spinning and weaving. By exploring the records of its past, he will discover that its members helped with medicine the people of the surrounding villages during the influenza epidemic, that they helped the famine committee to distribute grain among the poor, that they distributed again for the same agency several thousand rupees against manufacture by the needy weavers and thus added to the production in the country, that through their labour several women, who were but the other day earning nothing, are able, by spinning cotton during their leisure hours, to earn a few coppers daily. In short, he will find that some of the items in the comprehensive programme sketched by "Pennsylvanian" are being worked there to the utmost extent of the capacity of the Satyagrahis. This is the silent moral revolution going on in our midst. It suffers by advertisement and it is not without some hesitation that I have placed before the public the constructive work that is being done by life-Satyagrahis. "Let me add further that the advent of satyagraha has, to my knowledge, weaned many an anarchist from his blood-thirsty doctrine. He has found that secret societies and methods of secret murder have brought nothing but a military and economic burden on this unhappy land, that it has tightened the coil of the Criminal Investigation Department, and that it has demoralized and wrecked the lives of hundreds of youths who have been led astray by it. Satyagraha has presented the rising ????????? 1. Reference to the Satyagraha Ashram, Sabarmati. generation with a new hope, an open road and an infallible remedy for most ills of life. It has armed that generation with an indestructible and matchless force which anyone may wield with impunity. Satyagraha tells the youth of India, self-suffering is the only sure road to salvation-economic, political and spiritual. "For the most part, Satyagraha is "evil resistance" and "civil assistance." But sometimes it has to be "civil resistance." Here I must call to my assistance another illustrious countryman of "Pennsylvanian", Henry Thoreau. He asks, "Must the citizen ever for a moment, or in the least degree, resign his conscience to the legislators ?" He answers, "I think that we should be men first and subjects afterwards. It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law so much as for the right.1" "I think that the position taken up by Thoreau is unassaiable. The only question is that of the remedy to be applied for vindicating the rights of conscience. The remedy in vogue is that of inflicting violence on those who wish to wound your conscience. Thereau in his immortal essay shows that civil disobedience, not violence, is the ture remedy. In civl disobedience, the resister suffers the consequences of disobedience. This was what Daniel did when he disobeyed the law of the Medes and Persians. That is what John Bunyan did and that is what the raiyats have done in India from time immemorial. It is the law of our being. Violence is the law of the beast in us. Self-suffering, i. e., civil resistance, is the law of the man in us. It is rarely that the occasion for civil resistance arises in a well-ordered State. But when it does, it becomes a duty that cannot be shirked by one who counts his honour, i. e., conscience, above everything. Rowlatt Act is legislation that affects the conscience of thousands of us, and I respectfully suggest that an appeal should be addressed by Englishmen to the Government that they withdraw an Act that hurts the self-espect of the nation ??????? 1. Civil Disobedience, 1849 and that has roused such unanimous opposition, rather than that I should be asked to refrain from civil resistance in respect of it." Bapu's reply so delighted "Pennsylvanian" that he then wrote : *"Dear Mr. Gandhi, "You have greatly impressed me with your letter of the 20th inst. in The Times of India. "May I ask if you will kindly extend to me the opportunity to visit the institution you allude to ? I shall be very thankful. Yours sincerely, E. W. Feris." 20-8-'19 Wrote the following letter to Lalaji1 from Sabarmati : *"Dear Lala Lajpat Rai," "I was delighted to receive your letter2. I considered it to be so valuable that I have published it. It has served to remove misconceptions about you views. The letter was unsigned. I considered that it was an oversight. I would like you, if you ?????????? 1. Lala Lajpat Rai, one of the topmost Nationalist leaders who spent many long years in exile. He was twice elected President of the Congress and died of injuries inflicted by the police in a protest demonstration against the all-White Reforms Inquiry Committee presided over by Lord Simon. 2. Lala Lajpat Rai had written the following letter: *"Circumstances beyond my control have prevented my taking part in the great movement that you are leading for the uplift of our common motherland. I am, however, desirous of conveying to you my hearty admiration for your noble stand, and my unqualified appreciation of your high-souled patriotism. "During my absence from India, I have learnt and unlearnt a great deal. This is no place to make a full confession of faith. But I want to say that, although I do not fully agree with your line of thought, I am in substantial agreement with your conclusions as to what we should do. Never before have I been more convinced of the futility of attempts to bring about a forcible revolution in India. Terrorism, too, in my judgment, is not only futile but sinful. Secret propaganda and secret societies may have some justification in the Government's desire to prohibit and penalize all kinds of open work, but in the long run this ends in the demoralization of those who take part in them. I believe that no nation deserves or will win freedom which is not prepared to suffer for it. When I say that, I mean the suffering in pursuit of freedom, and will, to develop your views and give me a detailed letter for publication. It is to me intolerable that one like you should have to remain outside India at the present moment. In my opinion, the place of every true Indian is in India. The doctrine of Satyagraha, i. e., resistance without violence, requires as much strength as it can receive. In my opinion, it will not only solve India's problems but it will solve the world's problems. "I take it that you get Young India regularly." ????????? not for lack of it. In India we have plenty of the latter and not sufficient of the former. We have so far done precious little to deserve freedom and we have done still less to educate our people as to what constitutes real freedom. The sacrifices and sufferings we have so far undergone in our fight for freedom are too trivial to be crowned with success. I am, therefore, in full sympathy with the general spirit of your propaganda. I may be unable to sign the full pledge of a Satyagrahi, but if and when I return to India I shall sign the "pure Swadeshi Vow."1 "You will be pleased to learn that most of the young Indians in this country have a deep sentiment of reverence for you. One of them, at one time a faithful follower of Hardayal2, writes: "What we need now are the leaders of the type of Mahatma Gandhi. We do not want armed resistance. We do not want passive resistance. What we want is something super, and that is what Mahatma is advocating. I have concluded that the methods which Hardayal advocated are not wise and sane for any part of the world. We want to get away from murder, assassination, conflagration, and terrorism. The foundation in the past was laid upon bloodshed, and we have had enough of it, but now the foundation must be laid on justice and freedom to individuals, so that the same be palatable in the future, Hardayal has, by giving these ideas, degraded himself, and I am afraid it may affect some of the young men who always followed him blindly. It is our misfortune that our leaders instead of going up are going down. The crying need of India is leaders of the type of Gandhi, staunch in their principles, which can be applied to almost every part of the world." "How I wish I had been in India to share in full the misfortunes of my countrymen. My heart bleeds for them, but more for myself in having been deprived of the opportunity to serve and suffer." ????????? 1. See Appendix-I. B, C. 2. An Oxford graduate and erudite scholar. Also a leader of the Anarchists in exile. He founded The India Association in Berlin to co-operate with Germany during the First War of 1914-18 on the condition of Germany granting Independence to India after her victory. 21-8-'19 Gamdevi, Bombay. A Letter to Dewan Bahadur : *"Dear Dewan Bahadur,1 "During the suspension agitation of Civil Resistance, I feel that there should be sustained agitation to remove the Rowlatt Act. I suggest that a reasoned memorial may be sent by leaders either to the Viceroy or to Mr. Montagu. I am moving the leaders here. But some of them think that even to send a memorial may jeopardize reforms ! Will Madras lead ?" A letter to Lady Tata2 : *"Dear Lady Tata, "No apology was necessary regarding the spinning wheel. I am sorry you remained without one so long. If you would send your car about noon ( Friday ), I shall send one machine and some dressed cotton with Govind Baboo who will be able to give you a few tips about spinning and keeping the machine in order, if you could give him a little time. "I shall treasure the story about the Governor. It is too good to be hawked about. You need not, therefore, fear publicity. God willing, your prophecy shal come true." Extract from a letter to Devdas : "Why are some people sorry for my publication of Lala Lajpatrai's letter ? It was sent definitely with the object of publication. The publication only raises his reputation. All the same, we must quietly bear with any criticism we may have to listen to. "Lalaji's letter is certainly meant for publication. What has been written in it about Mr. Hardayal is a well-known story. People have grown such cowards that they are afraid of thei ???????? 1. C. Vijayaraghavachari, who became later on President of the Indian National Congress, held at Nagpur in December 1920. 2. Wife of a multi-millionaire industrial magnate. very shadows. Through the publication of the letter, I have simply opened-albeit partially-the door to his return to India. In a very short time satyagraha will cease to be a word confined to the Gujarati language only." 10-9-'19 In his speech at the opening session of the Imperial Legislative Council, His Excellency the Viceroy referring to the disturbances in April last said : *"Last session certain hon'ble members during the passage of the Rowlatt Bill gave me warnings of an almost minatory character that if that Bill passed into law there would be agitation of a serious nature. I think the hon'ble members will realize that no Government could deviate from a policy which is regarded as essential on account of any threat of agitation. However, there were those who thought that it was necessary to make good this threat, and as a consequence, the deplorable events occurred which are to be the subject of an enquiry. It is not my intention to discuss these events, but I would point out this that it is easy to minimize their gravity. After the disorders have been put down, no one who had the responsibility of dealing with them is likely to forget the issue which they had to face. Murders and arson were committed, telegraph wires were cut, railway lines were torn up, and for some days my only sure communication with the Government of the Punjab was by means of the wireless. Ocular proof of the gravity of the situation with which we were then faced and of the damage done is still manifest in many of the districts which suffered, and to anyone who would attempt to minimize the trouble I would say : "Go into these district and see for yourself the vestiges of senseless destruction which are still there." In his reply to this speech Bapu wrote in Young India : *"What does the Viceroy mean by "the minatory character" of the warnings given by the Indian Councillors ? Is a warning 'minatory' when it is actually carried into effect ? Is His Excellency not going too far in prejudging the issue that is to be submitted to the Commission of his own creation ? The warning was that of friends. It was open to the members to make good their warnings by creating an agitation in the country that could tell upon the Government and it would have done so already, had the Government hastily and foolishly not precipitated complications. Why does His Excellency tack the violence after the 10th of April on to the orderly, religious and clear agitation that culminated in the day of humiliation and prayer on the 6th of April ? Is it not permissible to us to retort that the Government found that their pet Act was slipping our of their hands, that they went mad and, setting aside their own previous knowledge and canons of propriety, resorted to disorderly acts which brought about the regrettable violence and consequent loss of innocent lives, both European and Indian ? It is for the Commission to judge the issue whether the Rowlatt agitation brought about the mob to violence or whether the Government incensed the mob to violence. I respectfully suggest that inasmuch as he, of his own showing, gave the Punjab Government a blank card and even issued orders on their recommendation, His Excellency stands in the same box as the Punjab Government to be judgeded by the Commission." Bapu then proceeds to deal with some other issues raised by the Viceroy in the same speech : *"His Excellency has done gross injustice to me by tearing from their context words of mine and applying them to a different situation altogether. His Excellency has not read the whole of my speech before the Ahmedabad audience on the 14th of April in which the passage quoted by him occurred. It was due from him to the public and me to have sent for the speech and read it. He would then have seen that my speech applied only to the events in Ahmedabad which I was able to investigate per-sonally. That speech would have shown to him, as it would show to him now, that my remarks refer to Ahmedabad and Ahmeda-bad alone, not even to Viramgam or Kaira, for of these I knew nothing then. I wish wholly to dissociate myself from holding the view imputed to me by His Excellency the Viceroy. I still know nothing difinite at first hand of the Punjab and of "educated or clever men" in that provience.1 Whilst, therefore, I alter nothing of my speech in Ahmedabad, I form no judgment about the Punjab. I have, however, received sufficient evidence from Punjab to show me that the Punjab Government have resorted to measures that nothing can condone. "The talk of clemency comes with ill grace, and comes upon a public that asks for no clemency, no mercy, but asks for simple justice. If there has been a plot really to wage war against the King or to overthrow the Government, let those who are found guilty by a properly constituted court be hanged. I have certainly no desire that Lala Harkishan Lal, Pandit Rambhuj Dutt Choudhri, Dr. Kitchlew, Dr. Satyapal and some other men of ripe years, being well-known public men, should be saved from the gallows, if they have incited directly or indirectly the mob to violence and plotted against constituted authority. Let the Commission decide, and there will be time enough to talk of clemency, if there is to be any. If the Government of India are sincerely desirous of doing justice, let them set all the political offenders free, save those men who were caught red-handed in the act of violence and have unquestionably been found guilty of the offence they might have committed. If His Excellency wishes really to see justice done, and nothing more, but nothing less, let him follow what was done by the Government of South Africa. When, as a result of the Satyagraha struggle in South Africa a Commission was appointed there, some of my fellow-prisoners and I were discharged from prison on the advice of the Commissioners, with the deliberate intention that they and I might be able to help the Commission to a right judgment byleading evidence on behalf of those whom we represented. I hope ????????? 1. The Viceroy had said in the course of his speech : "It is my desire now and it is that of His Honour the Lt. Governor of the Punjab to exercise clemency towards the unfortunate misguided men who were led away, by some 'educated and clever man or men,' to use Mr. Gandhi's words, to commit outrages." that if His Excellency cannot see his way to follow the South African precedent of his own accord, the Commission will strongly advise him to do so." 9-1-'20 ( Gandhiji's evidence given at Hathising's Wadi in Ahmedabad before the Disorders Inquiry Committee presided over by Lord Hunter to inquire into the disorders in the Punjab and Gujarat : ) Written Statement Definition of Satyagraha *"For the past thirty years I have been preaching and practising Satyagraha. The principles of Satyagraha, as I know it today, constitute a gradual evolution. Satyagraha differs from passive resistance as North Pole from South. The latter has been conceived as a weapon of the weak and does not exclude the use of physical force or violence for the purpose of gaining one's end, whereas the former has been conceived as a weapon of the strongest and excludes the use of violence in any shape or form. The term 'Satyagraha' was coined by me in South Africa to express the force that the Indians there used for full eight years and it was coined in order to distinguish it from the movement then going on in the United Kingdom and South Africa under the name of 'passive resistance.' Its root meaning is holding on to truth, hence truth-force. I have also called it love-force or soul-force. In the application of Satyagraha, I discovered in the earliest stages that pursuit of truth did not admit of violence being inflicted on one's opponent but that he must be weaned from error by patience and sympathy. For what appears to be truth to the one may appear to be error to the other. And patience means self-suffering. So the doctrine came to mean vindication of truth, not by infliction of suffering on the opponent, but on one's own self. But in the political field, the struggle on behalf of the people mostly consists in opposing error in the shape of unjust laws. When you have failed to bring the error home to the lawgiver by way of petitions and the like, the only remedy open to you, if you do not wish to submit to error, is to compel him by physical force to yield to you or by suffering in your own person by inviting the penalty for the breach of the law. Hence, Satyagraha largely appears to the public as civil disobedience or civil resistance. It is civil in the sense that it is not criminal. It applies to the breach of only those laws that have no moral background. The law-breaker breaks the law surreptitiously and tries to avoid the penalty; not so the civil resister. He ever obeys the laws of the State to which he belongs not out of fear of the sanctions but because he considers them to be good for the welfare of society. But there come occasions, generally rare, when he considers certain laws to be so unjust as to regard it as disgraceful to render obedience to them. He then openly and civilly breaks them and quietly suffers the penalty for their breach. And in order to register his protest against the action of the lawgivers, it is open to him to withdraw his co-operation from the State by disobeying such other laws whose breach does not involve moral turpitude. In my opinion, the beauty and efficacy of Satyagraha are so great and the doctrine so simple that it can be preached even to children. In was preached by me in South Africa to thousands of men, women and children commonly called indentured Indians, with excellent results. Rowlatt Bills When the Rowlatt Bills were published I felt that they were so restrictive of human liberty that they must be resisted to the utmost. I observed too that the opposition to them was universal among Indians. I submit that no State, however despotic, has the right to enact laws which are repugnant to the whole body of the people, much less a government guided by constitutional usage and precedents such as the Indian Government. I felt too that the oncoming agitation needed a definite direction if it was not to collapse or to run into violent channels. Sixth of April I ventured, therefore, to present Satyagraha to the country emphasizing its civil resistance aspect. And as it is purely an inward and purifying movement, I suggested the observance of fast, prayer and suspension of all work for one day-the 6th of April. There was a magnificent response throughout the length and breadth of India, even in little villages, although there was no organization and no great previous preparation. The idea was given to the public soon as it was conceived. On the 6th April there was no violence used by the people and no collision with the police worth naming. The hartal was purely voluntary and spontaneous. I attach hereto the letter1 in which the idea was announced. ??????????? 1.LETTER TO THE PRESS ON SATYAGRAHA MOVEMENT Satyagraha, as I have endeavoured to explain at several meetings, is essentially a religious movement. It is a process of purification and penance. It seeks to secure reforms or redress of grievances by self-suffering. I, therefore, venture to suggest that the second Sunday after the publication of Viceregal assent to Bill No. 2 of 1919 ( i. e., 6th April ) may be observed as a day of humiliation and prayer. As there must be an effective public demonstration in keeping with the character of the observance, I beg to advise as follows : (i) A twenty-four hours' fast counting from the last meal on the preceding night should be observed by all adults, unless prevented from so doing by consideration of religion or health. The fast is not to be regarded, in any shape or form, in the nature of a hunger-strike, or as designed to put any pressure upon the Government. It is to be regarded, for the Satyagrahis, as the necessary discipline to fit them for civil disobedience, contemplated in their Pledge, and for all others, as some slight token of the intensity of their wounded feelings. (ii) All work, except such as may be necessary in the public interest, should be suspended for the day. Markets and other business places should be closed. Employees who are required to work even on Sundays may only suspend work after obtaining previous leave. I do not hesitate to recommend these two suggestions for adoption by public servants. For though it is unquestionably the right thing for them not to take part in political discussions and gatherings, in my opinion they have an My Arrest The observance of the 6th April was to be followed by civil disobedience. For the purpose the Committee of the Satyagraha Sabha had selected certain political laws for disobedience. And we commenced the distribution of prohibited literature of a perfectly healthy type, e. g., a pamphlet written by me on Home Rule, a translation of Ruskin's Unto This Last, The Defence and Death of Socrates, etc. But there is no doubt that the 6th of April found India vitalized as never before. The people who had so far been fear-stricken now ceased to fear authority. Moreover, hitherto the masses had lain inert. The leaders had not really acted upon them. They were undisciplined. They had found a new force but they did not know what it was and how it was to be used. At Delhi, the leaders found it difficult to restrain the very large number of people who had remained unmoved before. At Amritsar, Dr. Satyapal was anxious that I should go there and explain to the people the peaceful nature of Satyagraha. Swami Shraddhanandji from Delhi and Dr. Satyapal from Amritsar wrote to me asking me to go to their respective places for pacifying the people and for explaining to them the nature or Satyagraha. I had never been to Amritsar and for that matter, to the Punjab before. These two messages were seen by the authorities and they knew that I was invited to both the places for peaceful purposes. ??????????????? undoubted right to express upon vital matters their feelings in the very limited manner harein suggested. (iii) Public meetings should be held on that day in all parts of India, not excluding villages, at which resolutions praying for the withdrawal of the two measures should be passed. If my advice is deemed worthy of acceptance, the responsibility will lie, in the first instance, on the various Satyagraha Associations for undertaking the necessary work of organization, but all other associations will, I hope, join hands in making this demonstration a success. M. K. GANDH I left Bombay for Delhi and the Punjab on the 8th April and had telegraphed to Dr. Satyapal, whom I had never met before, to meet me at Delhi. But after passing Mathura I was served with an order prohibiting me from entering the province of Delhi. I felt that I was bound to disregard this order and I proceeded on my journey. At Palwal, I was served with another order prohibiting me from entering the Punjab and confining me to the Bombay Presidency. And I was arrested by a party of police and taken off the train at that station. The Superintendent of Police who arrested me acted with every courtesy. I was taken to Mathura by the first available train and thence by goods train early in the morning to Sawai Madhopur, where I joined the Bombay Mail from Peshawar and was taken charge of by Superintendent Bowring. I was discharged at Bombay on the 10th April. Riots in Gujarat But the people of Ahmedabad and Viramgam and in Gujarat generally had heard of my arrest. They became furious, shops were closed, crowds gathered, and murder, arson, pillage, wire cutting and attempt at derailment followed. I had worked in the midst of Kaira ryots just before and had mixed among thousands of men and women. I had worked at the instance of and with Miss Anasuya Sarabhai among the mill-hands of Ahmedabad. The mill-hands appreciated her philanthropic work and adored her. The fury of the labourers in Ahmedabad reached its height when a false rumour was started that she too was arrested. Both of us had visited and interceded for the mill-hands of Viramgam when they were in trouble. And it is my firm belief that the excesses were due to the great resentment of the mobs over my arrest and the rumoured arrest of Miss Anasuya Sarabhai. I have mixed with the masses in practically the whole of India and talked to them freely. I do not believe that there was any revolutionary movement behind the excesses. They could hardly be dignified by the term 'rebellion'. Government Measures And, in my opinion, the Government erred in prosecuting the offenders for waging war. This hasty view has caused unmerited or disproportionate suffering. The fine imposed on poor Ahmedabad was heavy and the manner of collecting it from the labourers was unnecessarily harsh and irritating. I doubt the justice of inflicting on the labourers a fine so large as 1,76,000 (one hundred and seventy-six thousand) rupees. The stationing of additional police force and realisation of the cost from the farmers of Barejadi and from the Banias and Patidars of Nadiad was totally unjustified and even vindictive. I think that the introduction of Martial Law in Ahmedabad was also unjustified and its thoughtless administration resulted in the loss of several innocent lives. At the same time, and, subject to the reservations mentioned by me, I have no doubt that, in the Bombay Presidency, the authorities acted with considerable restraint at a time when the atmosphere was surcharged with mutual suspicion and the attempt at wrecking the train which was bringing the troops to restore order had naturally angered the authorities. Evidence Before Disorders Inquiry Committee Questions by Lord Hunter Q. Mr. Gandhi, we have been informed that you are the author of the Satyagraha movement ?1 A. Yes, sir. Q. I would like you to give us an explanation of what the movement is. A. It is a movement intended to replace methods of violence. It is a movement based entirely on truth. It is, as I have conceived it, an extension of the domestic law on the political field, and my own experience has led me to the conclusion 1. English translation of the editor, Sri Narharibhai Parikh's synopsis retaining at the same time the original language of the evidence as far as possible-Translator. that that movement and that movement alone can rid India of the possibilities of violence for the redress of her grievances. Q. You adopted it in connection with the opposition to the Rowlatt Bill and asked people to pledge themselves by the Satyagraha vow ? A. I did. Q. Was it your intention to enlist as many Satyagrahis as possible ? A. Yes, consistently with the carrying on of the movement in a proper way. If I found a million men capable of adhering to truth and non-violence, I would certainly be glad to have the million men. Q. Is not your movement antagonistic to Government ? A. Not in my opinion. This is not the spirit in which the movement has been conceived by me and understood by the people. Q. Look at it from the point of view of Government, Mr. Gandhi. If you are the Government yourself what would you say to a public movement started to disobey your laws ? A. If I was in charge of the Government and a body of men, who were determined to find out the truth, refused to obey certain laws in a perfectly non-violent manner, in order to seek redress in connection with unjust laws, I would consider that they were the best constitutionalists and welcome them because they would keep me in the right track. The Satyagrahi gives to the opponent the same right that he reserves to himself. Q. Would it be possible to continue Government if a body of men stood up for long against Government that way ? A. I think it would be quite possible, and I have found within my experience of 8 years of continuous struggle in South Africa that it was so. And at the end of the struggle General Smuts said that if all conducted themselves as the Satyagrahis had done, he should have nothing to say. Q. But in your present pledge you have gone a step further. It is not what laws the Satyagrahi considers unjust but it is what the Committee considers unjust that he has got to disobey ? A. Yes sir; and I wish to draw the attention of your Committee to the fact that it is that part of the pledge which is specially designed to be a restraint upon individual liberty. As I intended to make it a mass movement I felt that a check on self-willed disobedience was necessary. Q. We know the saying that doctors differ and I understand that even Satyagrahis differ occasionally ? A. I have not the slightest doubt about it and I have found it to my cost. Q. According to the terms of the pledge a Satyagrahi is bound to disobey even that law which he considers just ? A. Not as I have conceived and interpreted the pledge. If the Committee will say that my interpretation is faulty, all I can say is I should mend the error the next time I start Satyagraha. Q. No, no, Mr. Gandhi, I do not wish to give you any advice But don't you think this Satyagraha is a rather dangerous campaign ? A. I don't. And if you conceive the campaign as designed to rid the country of the school of violence you will agree that the campaign is rather helpful than dangerous. Q. We have been told that there was general widespread opposition to the Rowlatt legislation. Would you indicate briefly the essence of your objection to it ? A. My reading of the Rowlatt Committee's report convinced me that the legislation it foreshadowed was not warranted by the facts that the Committee produced. The debates in the Legislative Council on the legislation showed me that the opposition against it was universal. And when I found that opposition or that agitation flouted by the Government I felt that for me, as a self-respecting individual; as a member of a vast Empire, there was no course left open but to resist that law to the utmost. Q. Have you any doubt that the objects of that legislation were to put down revolutionary and anarchical crimes ? A. I have no doubt that the object was laudable. Q. Your complaint, then, must be about the methods adopted, about the greater powers given to the executive than they enjoyed before ? A. That is so. Q. The executive had these powers during the period of the European War under the Defence of India Act ? A. That is true. But that Act was an emergency legislation. It was, besides, with the greatest reluctance that the people really accepted the Defence of India Act, but the Rowlatt legislation was of a different character altogether : And now the experience of the working of the former Act has strengthened my objections to the Rowlatt Act. Q. You know, Mr. Gandhi, that nothing could be done even under the Rowlatt Act without the concurrence of the Local Government with the Government of India. Would you see any serious objection to it ? A. I would see most serious objection. I have known the executive Government in India to have run mad. I would certainly not arm a Government of that character with arbitrary powers. Q. Could you not have got the legislation remedied by any other method ? A. I tried to get that done. On bended knees I pleaded before Lord Chelmsford and placed my view-point before him and all other English officers I could meet, but all to no purpose. We exhausted all the resources open to us. Q. You cannot expect to satisfy an opponent of the rightness of your cause all of a sudden. Did you not take a rather drastic step ? A. I respectfully differ. When I find that even my father has imposed upon me a law which is repugnant to my conscience, I think that the least drastic course for me is to tell him, "Father, I cannot obey this." And I may say, without any disrespect to the Committee, that I have followed that course with the greatest advantage to all concerned in my domestic circle. If it is not wrong for me to say, "I cannot obey this law" to a father, there is nothing wrong for me to say so to a friend or a government. ( Lord Huner then turned to the subject of the general harta ) Q. Hartal means general cessation of business throughout the country ? A. Yes. Q. Will it not be productive of great harm to the people ? A. Yes, indeed-if the cessation is continued for a long period. ( Gandhiji then explained how it happened that the hartal was observed on the 30th March in Delhi and some few other parts and on the 6th April all over the rest of India. He said the irregularity in the timing was due to no miscalculation but to the fact that the news of the Viceroy's assent to the Rowlatt Act reached some parts of India earlier than others. ) Q. Is it your view that the abstention from business should be entirely voluntary ? A. Entirely; in the sense that on the day of the hartal there should be no active persuasion to stop business. But during the days that precede, I would consider it quite proper to create an atmosphere for the hartal through leaflets, speeches and other means of propaganda. Q. But you would disapprove any harassment of tonga-drivers and others who did not stop working on the day ? A. Completely. Q. And you have no objection to the police interfering with those who wrongfully obstruct others ? A. None, so long as the police acted with due restraint and forbearance. Q. But you do agree that it is highly objectionable if the people forcibly stop tongas from plying and commit other acts of coercion on the hartal day ? A. Certainly. To a Satyagrahi, use of physical force under any circumstances is nothing but a crime. Q. Your lieutenant in Delhi is Swami Shraddhanand ? A. I would hardly call him my lieutenant. I would like to call him my esteemed colleague. Q. That esteemed colleague, then, wrote to you to say that after the events in Delhi and the Punjab, it was manifest that a general hartal, without violence inevitably ensuing, was an impossibility ? A. I cannot recall the contents of that letter. But I think he went much further. He suggested that Satyagraha could not be carried on with impunity among the masses of people. When I suspended civil disobedience, there was really a difference between him and me. I suspended it because I realised that I had not obtained sufficient control over the people in order to prevent violence. He thought that mass civil disobedience became impossible if it had to be stopped every time there was fear of an outbreak of violence, since in a movement spread out over a big country, violence was certain to break our at some place or other. I could not agree with him there. I feel the suspension of civil disobedience is as much a necessity as prosecuting it. That necessity arose I thought on this occasion and I suspended the civil disobedience form of Satyagraha. It is also necessary to draw a sharp distinction between hartal and Satyagraha proper. Hartal may be Satyagrahic or may not be. The hartal ( against the Rowlatt Act ) had a two-fold purpose; one to strike the imagination of the people as also to strike the imagination of the Government; but the second (purpose) was to afford a discipline for those who had to offer disobedience. I had no method of understanding the mind of India except by some such striking thing. The hartal is a proper index to show how far I could carry my principle ( of Satyagraha ) in practice. Q. But do you not encourage the spirit of violence, if on the day of the hartal Satyagraha is preached at public meetings ? A. On the contrary, I promote peace. It was an amazing sight for me to see in Bombay on the 6th of April thousands of people behaving in a perfectly peaceful manner during the procession. That would not have been the case if the Satyagraha doctrine had not been preached in the right key. But as I have said already hartal and Satyagraha are two different things and I never intended to offer Satyagraha on the day of the hartal. ( Lord Hunter then began to put questions about Gandhiji's 'arrest' in the legal and real sense. ) Q. Were you formally arrested at Palwal and escorted back ? A. I was absolutely in form and substance arrested. There were all the simple ingredients of a proper arrest. I was not asked to go back to Bombay, I was taken under escort. The Government order was served on me when the train was pulled up at the border, i. e., between Mathura and Palwal. I declared my resolve to disobey the order and continued my journey. When the train reached Palwal the same police officer, with some others, came to my compartment again and, placing his hand on my shoulder said, "Mr. Gandhi, I arrest you." I was then made to get down on the platform and all my luggage was taken out by the police, I intended to go to the platform to clear my throat and the police even challenged me. I do not wish to blame them. They were but performing their duty, but I just point out that the policemen's action was a clear indication of my arrest. Q. Is it not true that all that the Government wanted was that you were not to proceed to Delhi or to the Punjab ? A. The question did not remain when I reached Palwal, since the order not to proceed was served on me prior to the train arriving there, and I had already disobeyed the order by continuing the journey. The only procedure remaining to be followed at Palwal was my formal arrest. That was done. Therefore, I was arrested in form and substance. And that was why I was taken to Bombay under police escort. Q. It amounts to this, that in consequence of an order of Government it was made clear to you that you would not be allowed to proceed to Delhi or to the Punjab, but if you remained at Bombay you would be allowed perfect freedom ? A. Certainly in the Bombay Presidency. Q. Of course, that is a little different from being taken and forcibly thrown into jail ? A. I do not know if anybody charged Government with forcibly throwing me into jail. The only complaint was that the Government had no business to turn me away from a mission of peace. Q. If the Government honestly thought that if you were allowed to proceed to Delhi in order to propagate the doctrine, riot might ensue, they would be justified in taking that action ? A. From their own view. From that standpoint I have absolutely nothing to say. Q. Subsequently to your arrest, serious unfortunate incidents occurred in Delhi and the Punjab and also in Ahmedabad here ? A. That's true. Q. The only matter we have to deal with here is as regards Ahmedabad itself. As we have been told, in Ahmedabad you enjoyed great popularity among the mill-workers ? A. Yes. Q. And your arrest seems to have created a great resentment on their part, and very unfortunately, serious incidents occurred on the 11th and the 12th at Ahmedabad and Viramgam ? A. They did. Q. You have no personal knowledge of these incident ? A. I have no personal knowledge. Q. I do not know whether there is any matter in connection with them which would be useful in enabling us to form our opinion ? A. I would venture to present this thing in their connection. I consider that the action of the mob, whether in Ahmedabad or in Viramgam, was totally unjustified, and I have thought their loss of self-control totally indefensible. At the same time, I would like to say that the people amongst whom, rightly or wrongly, I was popular were put to such severe stress by Government who should have known better. I do not mean to say that only the Government committed an error of judgment, but as I have already stated the mob too committed an error which was more unpardonable. ( Gandhiji then detailed what he did to mend the matters immediately on his return to Ahmedabad. ) A. I placed before the people as well as the Government what I was capable of doing in order to establish peace again. I had a very long interview with Mr. Pratt and other officers. Accordingly, I was to have held a meeting on the 13th, but then I thought that it would not be possible to hold it on that day and the meeting was held on the 14th. ( Gandhiji then explained as to what he meant by the Gujarati words 'bhanela' and 'yojit' which he had used in his castigation of the instigators and their methods. ) A. It happened that at that meeting I used the words 'organisation' and 'educated', both of which terms have been so much quoted against me and against the people. But Gujarati-knowing people know quite well and Sir Chimanlal also will attest me-that the word bhanela means nothing more than 'those who can read and write.' The Gujarati word for 'educated' is 'shikshit'. I have not included in that term persons having passed any degree examination. In the same way my use of the words yojit karya ( organised work ) has been misinterpreted. I have spoken not of "organisation." but I might have said : "done in an organized manner." In my opinion the thing was organised but there it stands. It was not possible for me even to think of a deep-laid conspiracy all over India or a deep-rooted organisation of which the Ahmedabad occurrence was a part. Let alone the Punjab, I had then no knowledge even of what had happened in Viramgam. I referred only to the events in Ahmedabad. I was not concerned with giving any information to Mr. Guider ( D. I. G. of Police, C. I. D. Bombay ). I know he has complained against me for not giving him the name of a single offender. But he is misunderstanding me because he does not know my method of service. I consider it my duty to wean the people from the error of their ways by making them realize their folly, repent of their misdeeds and resolve not to repeat them. It is impossible for the man who does this work of reform from within to report to the police the names of the offenders known to him, since such disclosure would simply undo all his work of reform. I know Mr. Guider differs from this view, but he could not convince me of its error. The people got all the more infuriated when the wicked rumour of Ansuyabai's arrest spread-among them. Then there were the half-educated raw youths. They possessed themselves with false ideas gathered from shows such as the cinema-photograph shows, from silly novels and from political leaders of all countries who believe in violence. I have mixed with these man and I have endeavoured to wean them. Many of them have lost their faith in methods of violence. The illiterate masses in Ahmedabad committed these serious crimes because they were instigated by these half-educated young men. I know also that even these young men were not many in number. By my statement, "The crimes were done in an organized manner", I have never meant anything more than what I explained just now. I have not suggested that it was educated men with university degrees who had organised the riots. I am not aware of a single university man having instigated these things. Q. Your view, in so expressing yourself, was apparently that there was common purpose among the people who created the disorders ? A. I would not say so, for that would be an exaggeration. But I think that two or three men have a common purpose and they instigated the people who then committed the misdeeds. Q. Do you consider the mob action anti-Government or anti-European? A. I think it was certainly anti-government. I have not yet been able to make up my mind whether it was anti-European also. I would like to believe that it was not anti-European. There were certainly silver linings to the cloud. But I have not been able to come to a definite conclusion in the matter. Q. According to Satyagraha doctrine, is it right that criminal offenders should be legally punished ? A. I am not prepared to say that it is wrong to punish them but there is a better method. Punishment of a crime has at its back the idea that infliction of hardship can reform a man. I do not think it can. It would be sufficient here to say that a Satyagrahi cannot possibly quarrel with any punishment that might be meted out to offenders and therefore he cannot be anti-Government in that sense. Q. You seem to imply that according to the principle of Satyagraha a Satyagrahi cannot supply information that may lead to the detection of an offence ? A. Yes, for the simple reason that a Satyagrahi cannot eat his cake and have it. Reform work and police work are contradictory and inconsistent. Both are helpful to the State but each has a way of its own. The Satyagrahi helps by making the people voluntarily more law-abiding and respectful to the authorities. The police claim to aid the state by hoping that their function of finding out culprits and getting them punished protects and reforms society. Both have laudable objects in view. Q. Supposing a Satyagrahi saw a crime actually committed, in his own presence, would there be no obligation upon him to inform the police ? You may answer the question only if you think it desirable to do so. A. Of course, I have answered that to Mr. Guider and I think I must answer that here also. I do not want to misguide the youth of this country by a single statement which is open to mis-interpretation. My answer to your question is, I am afraid likely to give rise to it. All the same I must say that as a principle, it can never be the duty of a man to bear witness against his brother, and when I say against his 'brother', there is not distinction here of race, religion or country. The Satyagrahi can never accept any such limited interpretation of the word 'brother'. I cannot cure my brother of his crime-habit, by informing the police of his offence. Before I can reason with him, I must, in order to draw out his confession, free him from fear of disclosure and consequent punishment. None, however, except a perfect Satyagrahi gets the privilege of refusing to give evidence of a crime which has been committed under his own nose. But since I have not become a perfect Satyagrahi, I cannot claim that privilege myself, even though I have mixed with criminals of the deadliest sort in South Africa and here and many of them have confessed their crimes to me and repented, while some have been entirely reformed. I am, therefore, unable to say that I would not give evidence even of a crime committed before my eyes. Q. Have you anything else to say about ? A. Yes, sir. The special Courts that were appointed to deal with riot cases have given their judgments fairly according to the laws of civilized justice. I am, therefore, loath to offer any criticism. However, I cannot help feeling that the sections under which the prosecutions were undertaken, viz., those regarding waging war etc., ought not to have been brought into use. Some persons have been unduly severely punished thereby. That was a hasty step. Q. But that look very like making a complaint against the Government Advocate ? A. I think it is more than that. No advocate would take upon his shoulders the responsibility of choosing the section in such serious cases without consulting the Government. I wish, therefore, to submit that while justice has been done, on the whole, in the punishments inflicted by the Special Courts?except in some cases where they were heavier ?the fine impo-sed upon Ahmedabad is definitely excessive. And the flat rate as well as the heavy contribution imposed upon the mill-workers1 has been a double injustice to them. The manner of collection from them, moreover, was improper and harassing. Then, again, the imposition of the of extra police on Nadiad and Barejadi is to my mind entirely unjustified. And not only do I see no substance in the plea of Mr. Ker, the Collector of Kaira, that the patidar and Bania communities should be saddled with payment for the extra police, but I also sense a vindictive spirit underlying the imposition. From my inquiry in conjunction with the Collector himself, it has been my deliberate opinion that the people of Nadiad were not in league with those who went there to derail. On the contrary, they had helped the Government and got from the same Mr. Ker, the Collector a handsome tribute and a compliment for their assistance. In my opinion, therefore, the order of the fine imposed upon Naidad and Barejadi must be cancelled and the extra police withdrawn. Justice Bankin Q. I do not propose to trouble you with long questions. Nor will I enter any further into a discussion on Satyagraha. But, if you have no objection, I want to get some information from you. You say you had asked the people to obey police orders ? A. That is so. Q. And you had also asked them to respect any orders that local magistrates might pass ? A. Yes, sir. The question was discussed even before the Satyagraha started. I had issued definite instructions that we should not commit a breach of the laws governing processions and so on, but should scrupulously obey them. Q. You made speeches and issued instructions in this connection ? A. I had issued instructions and I remember to have made speeches also. ????????????? 1. For a punitive fine of Rs. 9 lakhs on Ahmedabad, every mill-worker had to pay a week's wages. Q. Can you send me these speeches, instruction etc., with their dates marked upon them ? A. Certainly. All the papers I can trace; but I have no idea how many of them I can send now. Q. The telegram that Swami Shraddhanandji sent you was to urge you to go to Delhi in order to propagate Satyagraha ? A. No, sir. The people were becoming increasingly unamenable to the control of the leaders, and Swamiji thought I could pacify them. He sent at least two wires. Q. Do you happen to have them with you ? A. If I have them, I shall certainly let you have them. My general routine is to destroy as many such documents as possible after I have dealt with them and retain only the most important which may be useful in future. All the same, I will carefully inquire and if possible, send them to you. Q. In your speeches after your return from Palwal you have declared that you had intended to go back to Delhi. If you intended simply to pacify the people when first you tried to go there, why did you think of going again to Delhi ? A. Because I was turned back from Delhi by the Government and it then became my duty as a Satyagrahi to disobey the order. Q. Would not your return have excited the people of Delhi all the more ? And would you not, by your disobedience, have created trouble for the Government ? A. I am not responsible if the Government gets into trouble by their ill-considered step and my peaceful and proper reaction to it. But I would certainly stop from disobeying the Government order if it appeared to me that my disobedience would create disorder; such disobedience would be against the Satyagrahic principle of non-violence. For that reason, immediately when I came to know of the outbreak of violent disturbances in the country, very reluctantly I postponed my departure for Delhi. Q. What then is the particular reason from your point of view to get yourself re-arrested ? A. The Satyagrahi can resist an unjust or an oppressive order by inviting self-suffering through civil disobedience. And as, at the time when I was prevented from proceeding to Delhi, active Satyagraha against the Rowlatt Acts was still going on, it became, as my first reaction, my duty to disobey the prohibiting order. But after I came to know of the events in the Punjab, the postponement of civil disobedience became my duty of primary urgency. Q. You postponed re-starting civil disobedience twice. What made you do it the second time ? A. From their better knowledge and better information both His Excellency the Viceroy and His Excellency the Governor of Bombay warned me that my view that there was no longer any fear of recrudescence of riots was mistaken. I then felt that it was my duty as a Satyagrahi to heed their warning. Q. Will you not agree that the spread of the Satyagraha principle has generally damaged the law-abiding instinct of the Indian people ? A. I will not say 'generally'. I do not believe that people have now less respect for law than formerly. But I must admit that the immediate and temporary result of my propaganda of Satyagraha has damaged that respect in some parts of India. Q. Will you explain your object behind the formation of Satyagraha Sabhas, in order to guide the people regarding the laws to be disobeyed ? A. It was intended as a check on self-willed disobedience by Satyagrahis, every common individual is not able to decide wisely as to what law he should disobey. There was, therefore, a likelihood of uncivil disobediences. It was to ward off this danger that the Committee ( Satyagraha Sabha ) was formed. Q. The Committees were appointed at different places. Were they all independent of one another ? A. Formally they were but not so it fact, since I was made the President of all of them and they had also accepted my guidance and control. I thought this arrangement useful for the propagation of an altogether new idea like Satyagraha. Q. Will you explain the difference between the terms 'passive resistance' and 'civil disobedience' ? A. They are clearly different things. There is an element of inertness in 'passive resistance'. It does not include an active and planned programme of disobedience of laws. A 'passive resister' commits disobedience only if he happens to be in a situation where an unjust or insulting legislation affects him personally. But there is nothing 'passive' about civil disobedience. It is active and intensely active. It is a very potent weapon which makes an Satyagrahi invite self-suffering by the deliberate disobedience of many laws which have only a political but no moral sanction behind them. In 'passive resistance', moreover, I have often seen a conscious desire to harm the opponent. Civil disobedience entirely rules out this object. Sir Chimanlal Setalwad Q. Your Satyagraha doctrine, as far as I understand it, involves a pursuit of truth and in that pursuit it requires the man to invite suffering on himself and not to cause violence to anybody else ? A. Yes. Q. Now, we see an honest difference of opinion as to what truth is even between men of the highest veracity. Who then is to determine the truth ? A. Everyone must determine it for himself. Q. Since different individuals will take very different views as to what the truth to be pursued is, it might cause considerable confusion ? A. I won't accept that. Q. But in his pursuit of truth every man has been forming his own individual opinion which is at variance with those of others. A. That's exactly why non-violence is the necessary corollary to the acceptance of Satyagraha. Without non-violence there is every chance, not only of confusion ensuing but of far more dreadful consequences. Q. Then you recognize, I suppose, that a man in pursuit after truth in the right spirit of Satyagraha must be equipped with high moral and intellectual equipment ? A. Not every Satyagrahi. I would expect from Satyagrahis the observance of truth and non-violence only to the extent that the Satyagraha movement requires. If, for instance, A has evolved a conception of truth, which B and C and others accept implicitly from him, then I will not expect from them that high moral and intellectual equipment which I would expect from A. It is sufficient for them to know that they must not inflict any violence on others in their pursuit after truth. Q. It comes to this, that one man would come to a particular conclusion and others with lesser moral and intellectual equipment have blindly to follow him ? A. Not blindly. You cannot deduce 'blind following' from my previous answer. All I wish to urge is that each individual, unless he wants to carry on his persuit independently, should accept the path to truth conceived by a man of high moral and intellectual calibre and then follow the path without causing harm to anybody else. Everyman is accordingly required to use his independent judgment to decide for himself whether the truth conceived by a particular man is really likely to be so or not and whether the means he suggests are right and proper. There is no room, therefore, for blind faith in Satyagraha. Q. So, according to your scheme the many others have to accept the judgment of one man of high intellectual and moral equipment ? A. I don't think you have put my view properly. I have already said I do not believe in blind obedience. But I do not expect from a Satyagrahi any greater mental and moral capacity than from an ordinary human being. He must have only sufficient intelligence to see that the path advocated by someone else will really lead him to truth. Q. The success, then, of your movement rests on the number of its followers who accept the conclusions of the elite ? A. I will not say so about Satyagraha. In that movement even one full Satyagrahi can achieve success. Q. I understand you to say, Mr Gandhi, that you do not consider yourself a perfect Satyagrahi yet. If that is so, it is almost impossible for ordinary people to ever hope to pursue the doctrine correctly ? A. Not necessarily. I do not by any means consider myself an extraordinary man. There can be better followers of truth. The 40,000 Indians in South Africa, who are totally uncultured and illiterate could see the truth of their course and offer Satyagraha. And if I could give some recollections of that struggle, you would be really astonished to find how great was the success of our brothers in South Africa in gaining self-control. Q. True, but there in South Africa you had a broad issue on which you all were united ? A. I have found that there is more unity here. The people there were divided into camps of varying views. Q. But still you had a clean-cut issue ? A. So also here. And that is the repeal of Rowlatt Act. Q. Now, if Satyagraha is offered on a particular occasion and people, having a sense of injustice done to them, go to jail and suffer, will it not create a feeling of hatred against the Government ? A. It is totally countrary to my long experience. After a bitter struggle of 8 years in South Africa, there was not only no accentuation of ill will between the Government and the Indians, but each party came to regard the other with greater respect and cordiality. Q. According to your doctrine, the suffering ones have to go on suffering. Now does not that require extraordinary capacity to suffer ? A. Not to my experience. The doctrine does not really require any more extraordinary capacity than is possessed by every mother. I humbly suggest that our brothers have exhibited that capacity in a very large measure. Q. Take Ahmedabad. Did they exhibit it there ? A. All I say is that throughout India, if you find isolated instances like those at Ahmedabad, you come across innumerable instances where the people exercise the most exemplary self-restraint. To me, the incidents in Ahmedabad and other places just show that the people have not yet gained complete self-control. In Kaira, as you know, in the face of very grave provocation the people acted with the greatest self-restraint through all the six months of the struggle last year. Q. So you consider these many manifestations of violence in different parts as merely accidental ? A. I will not call them 'accidental' but 'exceptional'. The people will gain self-control increasingly as they have a clearer perception of Satyagraha. And I think that the country has now sufficiently realized the high ideal to enable to venture to start Satyagraha again, if a necessity arises, I do feel sure that the country is all the purer and better for having gone through the fire of Satyagraha. Q. Now ordinarily I take it that your doctrine is co-operation with Government and elimination of hatred. Would not suffering involved in your Satyagraha naturally, create a feeling of hatred against the Government ? A. It goes totally against my 30 years' experience, which shows that a man who suffers voluntarily and as a matter of dharma does not hate the man who inflicts the suffering. It was in South Africa that I clearly saw the truth of this idea. Those very Indians, whom General Smuts had thrown into jail in their thousands, voluntarily came forward to serve under him in the East Africa sector of the War and even honoured that same General Smuts with an address of welcome when he returned from England. Q. Do you think the masses can take part in the Satyagraha movement without taking the Satyagraha pledge ? A. I would not let those, who do not take the pledge, join civil disobedience. But I would certainly invite and take all other help from them. And as a matter of fact those who had not taken the pledge did keep aloof from the civil disobedience part of the fight against the Rowlatt Act. You may perhaps recall that I framed another statement of pledge to be signed by all after this violence. That second pledge bound them simply to truth and non-violence and dropped all mention of civil resistance. Naturally, a leader would sometimes emphasise one part of his propaganda and sometimes another. Accordingly, I soft-pedaled the civil disobedience part of Satyagraha and laid emphasis on truth and non-violence. Q. If I remember aright, Mrs. Besant first took the vow ? A. Well, there are two versions to it. I was told in Bombay that she had really taken the vow in toto less the Committee clause. Mrs. Besant herself has declared that she had not taken any vow. Q. Did not Mrs. Besant point out that in order to enable a man to disobey the Rowlatt Act, he should be an anarchist and that disobedience of any other laws would lead to chaos ? A. Yes, I know she advanced that argument, but I differ. I don't think disobedience of other laws would lead to chaos. Such disobedience ( of other laws ) has to be offered to resist the Rowlatt Act, because only on a rare occasion it is possible to offer civil disobedience against that Act itself. Q. Is it not true that the idea underlying Satyagraha is to embarass the Government ? A. Not at all. The Satyagrahi may never entertain any desire to embarrass the Government for redress of a wrong. By self-suffering for the sake of truth the Satyagrahi awakens the intellect of the opponent to the consciousness of his error and influences him to an extent that he repairs the error. Q. Now, if you actually break other laws would you grant that it would make ordered Government impossible ? A. Ordered Government would not be impossible in the case of totally inoffensive people committing civil disobedience. But I would not hesitate to make Government impossible, if I found that Government officials were determined to flout all canons of justice now and ever. Q. In the message you dictated at the time of your arrest you exhorted the people not to commit violence. And still the people committed murders and burnt down buildings. Does it not show that it is very difficult for the ordinary masses to practice non-violence ? A. I admit the difficulty. After having been used to methods of violence, people cannot at once realize the advantages of abstaining from it and would certainly find it difficult to exercise self-restraint. Q. Now I will put you a few questions as regards 'organisation' that you have spoken of. When was the organisation created ? A. On the night of the 10th and on the following day, i. e. the 11th, to my knowledge and remembrance. Q. How did it come about ? A. Some youths suggested incendiarism to the crowds they met. No destruction of life was suggested by anybody so far as I know. And I do not mean to say that a large number of people participated in this organisation. Q. Can you give us all the facts you know about it ? A. I cannot give you the names of the people who committed the acts or incited others to do so, but I have already told you how the organization was created. Q. What makes you feel that the statements that were made before you were truthful enough to enable you to form your judgment ? A. Three different categories of men came to me and told me how the whole thing was done : One, those men who knew the thing but were not themselves told to do it; those others who saw these things being done, the inciting and the act, whilst they themselves were mere spectators; and the third class of people, who were the actors themselves, but not the incitors. Q. But how can you determine whether the statements made before you were genuine confessions ? The actors, for instance, may, say, 'Yes, we did the act, but we were instigated.' A. They may do that, but I think I should be able to discriminate between that and a true thing. For instance, when villagers come to me and, on my taking them to task, instead of denying their crimes, confess them and even describe them in detail, their statements would appear to me to be truthful and reliable. Then take Nadiad. The derailment there was not organized, and was done certainly by a definite party of people some of whom were drunkards. It is my conviction that people of Nadiad had nothing to do with the crime and that if they had come to know of it, they would have gone to the place and turned these men away. My view is based on the testimony of those for whom I entertain a very high regard. Q. Have the real culprits of the derailment, as reported to you, been prosecuted ? A. Whether they have been prosecuted or some others I do not know, because I have not inquired the names of those who have been. A. You gave your reasons for suspending civil resistance as well as your conditions for its resumption in a public statement. You said you would not resume civil disobedience so long as there was danger of an outburst of violence. But you also added that by July the people would be sufficiently prepared to remain non-violent, so that you would be able to re-start it then. How could you come to this conclusion after your experiences in April ? A. After my free and full intercourse with the people and the frank confessions of their crimes, I felt I had every reason to believe that people understood the movement. Q. So you thought that within that short period of 2 months people would be sufficiently educated to understand the deep philosophy of Satyagraha and be "fitted" for it, as you said, in your public statement ? A. Not in the manner you put it. I accept that the people may not understand the philosophy of Satyagraha within the period. But I used the word 'fitted' in the sense that people would receive the message of non-violence by then and would be passive sympathisers of the movement. They would understand that they should help the movement, even if they could not themselves participate in Satyagraha, by refraining from violence. That is my interpretation of 'fitted'. Q. Then you said that even if the people were not fitted in your sense, there was no harm in resuming civil disobedience because the military dispositions by that time would have been so completely organised as to make violent disturbances impossible ? A. Certainly. Q. That means the military dispositions should be kept in all parts of the country in order that you may have the pleasure of breaking certain laws. A. That is not the interpretation warranted by my letter. I would not commit the sin for wishing of military dispositions. I would ask you to accept my interpretation of my letter. Q. What did you mean by referring to military disposition in your letter, when you did not wish them ? A. The letter simply indicated that a Satyagrahi like myself can have no objection to taking advantage of the exitings fact that military dispositions, making violent outbursts impossible, were maintained in various parts of the country, irrespective of any wish or suggestion on my part. But the Satyagrahi will never entertain such a desire or make any such suggestion. That is why I say that the meaning you draw from my statement is not correct. And I proved my bona fides as regards military dispositions by again suspending civil disobedience, when I was warned by H. E. the Viceroy and H. E. the Governor of Bombay that I should not resume it unless I wished India to be turned into an armed camp. Q. What is your attitude with regard to the Government's dealings with the mill-workers ? A. I think that the load of contribution imposed upon mill-workers is too heavy, and its timing very objectionable. But Mr. Chatfield ( the Collector of Ahmedabad ) has proved himself a thorough gentleman during his tenure of office and was so considerate and sober all through the April disturbances that I am much averse to making any complaint against him. Pandit Jagat Narayan Q. You have no objection to the Government taking measures to put down anarchical crime ? A. Certainly not. Q. What is your ground for opposition to the Rowlatt Bills then ? A. My strongest argument against the Bills is that they indict a whole nation as crime-ridden. Q. And what is your position with regard to the safeguards provided for in the Rowlatt Bill No.2 ? A. I have certainly regarded these safeguards as a dangerous trap. Both the executive and the people are thereby deluded into the belief that its provisions really safeguard their rights to some extent at least. That is why I consider them to be a trap that makes the executive even more irresponsible and the people less conscious of the danger the Bill creates. I decided to oppose it only when, after very serious consideration, I realized that there was no legitimate defence for the Act. Besides these anarchical crimes could have been punished by the ordinary law of the land and they were actually so punished. Q. The question has been discussed here with regard to "embarrassment" of the Government. You don't fight shy of embarassing the Government ? A. It is no question of fighting shy. But I would like to emphasise the distinction that, while ordinary political agitation starts with the definite intention of embarassing the Government the Satyagraha agitation never starts with that intention, but if embarassment is the result, it faces it. Q. You do agree, I suppose, that the success of a cause depends upon the number of persons who fight for it ? A. That's true of other fights. In Satyagraha, however, though its numerical strength is a welcome addition to its inherent strength it is by no means the decisive factor. Q. But you will certainly do your best to increase the number ? A. Even that is not certainly true. The success of Satyagraha depends simply on truth and the soul-force of the Satyagrahi. Q. Do you think the lonely voice of one Satyagrahi can seriously affect a big political question ? A. I am striving to prove that it can. Q. So the voice of one such Indian will be listened to by English rulers ! A. But I have seen it being listened to. Lord William Bentinck condescended to listen to-I think-Keshab Chander Sen.1 Q. You are again talking of a very great man India has produced ? A. The most common man has in him the in born capacity to cultivate soul-force to the highest degree. Even illiteracy, which I hold to be deplorable in common with all my ????????????????? 1. Gandhiji seems to mean Raja Ram Mohan roy an whose instance Lord William Bentinck passed the Act prohibiting the immolation of Hindu widows. countrymen?and it is widely prevalent here, is no bar, my experience tells me, to the propagation of Satyagraha. Q. What, according to you, is then the chief factor that contributed to your success in South Africa ? A. It can be generally said that the success was due to a large number of men going to jail, but the more important point is the fact that they remained very peaceful and orderly throughout. Q. I do not know if you will agree that the largeness of the number was a material factor in the success ? A. I agree that success would be expedited by the largeness of the number, but I don't consider numerical strength to be an indispensable condition. I do not dispute the point that in South Africa the largeness of the number of men who courted jail had its due effect, but it is my firm belief that the secret of the success there lay in the purity of our cause and in the correct methods we used. It was the high moral stand of the movement which, in face of great odds, really gained adherents in the highest ranks of society in South Africa. Satyagraha, moreover, is the only effective means that could canalise in the right direction the impatient enthusiasm and energy of the believers in violence. Q. I do not entertain the fear that Sir Chimanlal does about Satyagraha. I do not believe that civil disobedience committed by individuals would necessarily harm the country. I believe that a society which has a good number of men prepared to go to jail in order to uphold their honour is a developed society. But I would like to know the traits that distinguish Satyagraha from other struggles. A. Satyagraha insists on using the cleanest, i. e., non-violent and moral means. Its object also is to raise the moral standard of society. Government has no reason to feel concerned if a large number of people become Satyagrahis. It is the duty of every citizen - including of course the Satyagrahi?to respect the law of the land. The law-makers are therefore bound to see that the laws they pass are good laws. It is entirely unjust and improper to brand a Satyagrahi as a law-breaker. On the coutrary, it is just because he does not pay blind allegiance to a harmful law while, at the same time, he is particular about observing all other laws of the State, that he succeeds in keeping the legal code of his country on a high moral plane. Q. Was it because you had no other weapon to fight a foreign and irresponsible officialdom that you started Satyagraha ? A. Not quite so. I can imagine occasions when Satyagraha may have to be resorted to against our own ministers even after we gain full responsible self-government. And unlike the present foreign administrators our ministers cannot excuse themselves on the ground of their ignorance of the sentiment of the nation. Q. But after we have gained full freedom can we not dismiss such autocratic ministers ? A. I am not so sure. English history gives us instances of ministers sticking to their posts even after they had lost the confidence of the people. I see no reason why the thing may not be repeated here. I cannot, therefore, rule out the possibility of occasions when grave errors committed by ministers responsible to the people cannot be remedied except by Satyagraha. Q. Such occasions would arise rarely when all the Government officers are Indians and the people are consequently law-abiding ? A. It must, at the same time, be remembered that whilst English ministers have at least the benefit of ignorance on their side, unintentionally, our own ministers will have absolutely no such excuse. I have myself seen grave blunders committed by ministers of a Government chosen by the people, and they have behaved in a very irresponsible manner. The Satyagrahi, therefore, would never hesitate to resist injustice done by them. He sees to it that the will of the people, if it has a moral basis, is fully respected by the official world, but he employs only proper means to make that will prevail. If I succeed in making the people see the excellence of Satyagraha and put it into practice, I can make the Viceroy bend to the popular will or tender his resignation, if he still persists in refusing to withdraw Rowlatt Act. Q. I take it that shartal is an essential part of Satyagraha ? A. It is not an integral part. A hartal may be a Satyagrahic hartal or the opposite of it. I believe that a hartal should be avoided except in cases where it would be entirely necessary. And yet, apart from the general hartal on the 6th of April, I ordered hartals in connection with Mr. Horniman as also with the Khilafat movement, both of which were entirely successful. Q. You would certainly wish that your hartal was not marred by violent incidents? A. Not only would I wish them not to occur, but I would be sorry if they happened. At the same time if there was no unrest when Ansuyabehn and I were arrested, I would be seriously disappointed. But I would wish that unrest took the form of civil resistance and a consequent succession of arrests one after another. Q. When you returned to Bombay on the 11th April, you went to Pydhonie. It has been said that your attempt to pacify the crowd was futile? A. I do not think it would be correct to say that my attempt proved futile. Those who were near enough to be able to hear my voice did accept my advice. Q. A newspaper report says : "While Gandhi has adopted the pose of the interesting invalid when addressing meetings, he showed wonderful agility and nimbleness in escaping from his car when the cavalry was charging." A. All I can say is that the whole story is fabricated. Q. And that you got so afraid that you ran away and took shelter in the nearest house. A. That too is entirely untrue. I was with the crowd all the while, and was an eye-witness to the charge of the cavalry. Then I went to the Police Commissioner Mr. Griffiths to talk about it. Mr. Kemp1 Q. You say that the Martial law order in Ahmedabad was unjustifiable ? A. Yes. That is my view. Q. What would be your attitude if the military officer in command considered it necessary ? A. I would then say that the facts in my possession do not warrant the imposition of Martial Law in Ahmedabad. Q. You said that a number of innocent people were fired upon and some killed ? A. That is my definite opinion. Q. You had sufficiently strong grounds for your opinion ? A. Strong enough to satisfy me. I visited everyone of the wounded and people hot from the thing told me. Q. You wrote to Mr. Ghatfield in the matter ? A. I did. Q. And he asked you to send the complainants to him ? A. Yes. Q. You did not take any steps thereafter ? A. I did not because the martial law was withdrawn the same night after I sent my letter to him. I regard Mr. Chafield as a thorough gentleman and he has behaved in the most handsome manner throughout. I have seen very few officers who can come up to him in honesty of purpose and faithful discharge of duty. It would be painful to me to inflict any unnecessary trouble on him or criticize his conduct. Even his errors tend to prove him a man of high character. I would really ask you nt to feel the least of it that I wish to labour this point. I have gladly acknowledged that the Bombay Government have covered themselves with nothing but credit during the April disturbance. But when I had to look closely into the whole episode it became my duty to point ????????????????? 1. Counsel to the Government of India. out in the gentlest manner possible, the defects I had observed. But I do not want to magnify the incident of the shooting of innocent people and make it a matter of complaint. Mr. Kemp : I have now nothing more to say except to acknowledge that your evidence sets an example of perfect good faith. Mr. Jivanlal Desai1 Q. Mahatma Gandhjiji, you settled in Ahmedabad soon after your return to our country ? A. Yes. Q. And since then you have taken part in the public life of the city ? A. Yes. When in collaboration with Ansuyabai you held mass meetings in Q. support of the labour strike, were strikers peaceful throughout ? A. They were. Q. When you came to Ahmedabad on the 13th April, you intended to hold a public meeting the same evening ? A. I did. But you thought that on account of the Martial Law then in Q. force, the meeting would not be well attended and so you held it on the 14th ? A. Yes. I saw that the meeting could not be notified sufficiently widely on the 13th and therefore, I held it on the 14th. Q. Was the meeting on the 14th largely attended ? A. Yes. Q. And there was no disorder at the meeting ? A. Not onlyu so, but Rev. Gillespie who attended it was treated with great civility by the thousands who were present there. Mr. Guider says in his report, "The impression Mr. Gandhi gave Q. me was that though he was prepared to denounce the rioters for his own benefit, that is to say, to swell the ranks of ?????????????????? 1. Counsel to the Gujarat Sab ha, Ahmedabad. his followers, he had no intention of denouncing them to the authorities." A. Well, I can only say that Mr. Guider has done ( though unintentionally perhaps ) violence to me. Sahibzada Aftab Ahmed Khan Q. I want to ask you a few questions, Mr. Gandhi. Now, going back for a moment to the Rowlatt legislation, you are no doubt aware that, before the War, there were a great many anarchical crimes in India ? A. I would not subscribe to the statement that there were a great many anarchical crimes in India. Q. There were at any rate dacoities and murders in Bengal by people who were not afraid of Government. There was a bomb thrown at the Viceroy in Delhi ? A. Certainly. Q. There were a great many trials held in Bengal ? A. Certainly. Q. And it was due to these occurrences and to keep law and order, that a Commission was appointed consisting of three eminent judges presided over by Mr. Justice Rowlatt ? A. Yes. Q. After a very careful investigation of the whole case, they submitted a report to the Government, and made certain recommendations for a certain kind of legislation. I heard you to say that you did not agree with the conclusions of that report ? A. I said that. Q. What are your grounds for not agreeing with the recommendations of that report ? A. Because the facts that have been marshaled in the Rowlatt Committee's report did not irresistibly lead me to the conclusion that any such legislation was at all necessary. On the contrary, upon those facts I would have written a report totally contrary to the Rowlatt report. That was the impression left on my mind. Q. But you do not deny that, so far as the information in the hands of the Government was concerned, it is a fact that serious crime was happening in the country ? A. No more serious than in any other country, and certainly there is no serious crime in India. This anarchy proper has been confined to Bengal. You have had an outburst here and there, but after all Bengal is not India. Q. Anarchy and crime prevailed very largely in Bengal ? A. I would not underrate the significance of it. It was there, and serious enough to warrant strong Government measures. I do not deny that at all. But I venture to submit that the facts on which the Rowlatt Committee based its report did not warrant its conclusions. I may be totally wrong in that, but the Rowlatt Committee's report is tainted with one very serious defect, in that the evidence recorded by it was taken practically in secret and it was all official evidence. Q. Assuming for argument's sake that the facts as marshalled by the Rowlatt Committee did not warrant the report which they made, you say that the conditions in Bengal were such as made the adoption of such strong measures necessary ? A. I admit that. Q. What measures would you suggest the Government should have adopted to meet the situation ? A. But the Government have actually adopted measures which I disapprove entirely. I simply say that the Government would be entitled, and it would be its duty, to root out crime of that nature. In answer to the question what measures should be adopted by the Government, I can only say, "Not the Rowlatt Act, of course". It is not for me to suggest what measures Government should adopt, but if I were to point them out, then all the measures that I would be capable of suggesting would be of a reformatory character and not of a repressive character, whereas the Government measures were all of a repressive character. Q. You will surely agree that, in the existing state of human nature, Government who are responsible for keeping law and order are compelled, however much it may be against their wishes, to adopt repressive legislation ? A. Certainly. Therefore, I can only say, constituted as I am, that I am prepared to examine any measures that the Government may submit and to criticise them. But it is not possible for me to say what measures Government should adopt because my mind would immediately work at reforming the criminal. If I had to frame a legislative measure, it would be of that character. Any way I would not deny the right of a Government to adopt repressive measures also. Q. When you admit this right and still criticize their measures, surely I am entitled to ask what repressive legislation would be acceptable to you ? A. It is very difficult for me to answer that. I can only give a negative answer, "Certainly, not the Rowlatt Act", and I would give my reasons for it. The Viceroy has got sufficient powers, independently of the Rowlatt legislation, not to warrant his disfiguring the statute- book with an enactment of such nature. Anybody reading such a law, if he had not lived in India and had opened the statute-book and read the Rowlatt legislation, would come to the irresistible conclusion that India must be a country simply infested with anarchy. I do not for one moment believe that India is such an infested country. Therefore, I believe that the powers the Viceroy has got are absolutely ample in order to stamp out anarchy, and if the Viceroy does not use those powers and wants more he is wrong. He has got powers of emergency legislation, and I think that that is the proper thing for him to do. Q. By ordinances you mean ? A. Yes, and I think he would be justified in doing so, and I shall give my reasons for it, because I have discussed it thoroughly and given many an anxious night to the thing as to why it was that a man with the cool head of Lord Chelmsford had run into the trap. He has got this emergency legislation power; he could use those powers without the slightest hesitation and he need not go to the legislature. He may take a responsible step and should justify his action subsequently to the legislature or to the country or to the public opinion such as it is to-day in the country and not anticipate events and put a new law on the ordinary statute-book of the country. I think that there the executive went much further than was warranted by the facts. Q. I have not had the benefit of reading the Rowlatt Act, but I suppose it is merely an enabling statue, i. e., by passing it the Government of India have not necessarily brought it into operation. It can only be brought into operation if the Governor-General-in-Council thinks it necessary ? A. Except that part of it ? Q. The Governor General certifies that the law has to be extended to a certain area, but don't you think that it is a sufficient safeguard ? A. I do not think for one moment that it is so, knowing so well as I do the manner in which these sanctions are given. The origin of the sanction makes it really a tainted sanction. The origin would be through a humble police officer, or not even an officer, but a humble policeman. He goes and tells his superior, 'Oh, such and such things are happening here'. Now the police officer may or may not go into the things deeply and even if he goes into the things deeply, he would examine the things through the spectacles of the policeman who gave him the information. Then after that the original taint in it travels upward till at last it goes to the Viceroy. Q. Do I understand you correctly that in such important matters, because a thing has originated from an ordinary policeman, it will be taken up by all the officials above him right through to the Viceroy without they themselves scrutinising the thing based on the light of their own experience and knowledge ? A. I do not say that it is not possible to manage things in any other manner. But in a Government constituted as ours is, that is the only possible step to take. Knowing that, I would not arm the executive with powers so deadly in connection with a crime which is not endemic in India. If anarchy had become endemic throughout the length and breadth of India, I would not probably have said much against the Rowlatt legislation; then I would have felt constrained to examine the Act in details. Today I would not condescend to examine the legislation and even to talk of it because I consider that the principle itself is at bottom unsound. In ordinary affairs I can understand it, but not when it is a matter of simply dealing with a whole community because that is what the powers mean; anybody may be commanded and called upon to lodge security. Q. You know that during the War under the Defence of India Act there were a great many people who were interned as a necessary measure of safety and that after signing the peace, I suppose ipso facto, after a lapse of six months those people must come out. Then the question would arise as to how the Government should deal with people of a dangerous character. Would you not approve of the Government having a certain weapon in their hands to deal with the situation that might be created any moment ? A. I respectfully contend that the Government have such a weapon. They have it already in the powers granted to the Viceroy to pass ordinances. The Defence of India Act cannot really be used, in my humble opinion, as a stepping stone to legislation of the Rowlatt Act type in times of peace. It was pre-eminently a war measure, and what you would allow in war time you would certainly not allow in times of peace. Q. But the legislation is merely an enabling measure and it is also limited to three years ? A. I understand that, but I cannot contemplate with equanimity a whole people being condemned even for three years. Q. Now I want to know, what was the object of starting the Satyagraha movement? Was it started with a view to bring about a better political condition or as a means to oppose the immoral legislation which is not approved of by the country ? What was the necessity for it ? A. The necessity lay in the intense desire of the people to have that legislation repealed. If you fail to get redress through the ordinary channels of petition and so on, you must examine whether there are other ways open to you, extraordinary still not unconstitutional, and I found that this was the only way to combat the mischief and the evil. Q. Could you not do it by constitutional means ? A. I fail to discover any other less strong but equally effective cons titutional means. It has been suggested by a very great friend of mine that I should have at least promoted and awaited an answer to the petition to the House of Commons before embarking upon it. I beg to differ from him, and I still hold that while it was open to me to do it constitutionally, it would have been totally ineffective. I could not have secured a repeal of the Rowlatt Act by those means. Q. Why ? A. Because of my political experience. A petition after having gone through all the stages in India, I have not known to have succeeded. Q. Therefore you think the only means open to you was the Satyagraha movement ? A. The only other honourable means open to me was that, certainly. Q. If I heard you correctly you feared half literacy more than illiteracy. Did I hear you correctly ? A. That was right. Q. I would like to know the reasons for holding that view ? A. Because I have noticed travelling throughout India that youths with ill-digested education are far more irresponsible and thoughtless than the illiterate masses. I think that the illiterate masses are much better balanced than the half-educated youths of the country, and I believe that if the latter could be reclaimed from the error into which they have today fallen, the problem before India could become infinitely simpler than it is today. Q. Whom would you call half-educated men ? A. Take a boy who has passed on to the High School and has a little knowledge of English history. He reads newspapers which he only half understands and feeds on his own predilections instead of checking them. Such a man is far more dangerous to the peace and well-being of India than the totally illiterate masses. Q. How would you meet the situation ? A. I have been trying to meet the situation, and I flatter myself with the belief that I have attained success which I did not anticipate in the direction. Q. In what way ? A. Because even such men, when you appeai to them, tax your patience more than illiterate people, but if you are patient enough with them, they are certainly amenable to reason and control also. Q. Do I understand you correctly to say that these people who go through high schools are patient enough to receive further teaching but that they tax your patience when you try to put them on the right path ? A. I think the very foundation of the educational system today in India is so unsound that it does not tend to make a man balanced even after he has finished his education As a matter of fact, we have so many highly educated Indians amongst us as to be able to form universal conclusions, and so I do not dread to lay down any definite conclusions about that, because I have got sufficient data, a large number of men to work with and work upon, and so I have come to the conclusion that our educational system is rotten to the core and requires overhauling. Q. Will you please tell me the big defects of that education ? A. The first defect is that there is no moral or religious education in the schools. The second defect is that, seeing that the medium of instruction is English which places such a strain upon the intellectual resources of the youth who are receiving the education, they really do not assimilate the noblest ideas that are imparted to them through the schools. Q. What would you substitute ? ( Lord Hunter intervened to draw the attention of the Sahibzada that he was digressing and that the proceedings reminded one of the Saddler Education Committee ). In your view the medium of education should be vernacular and religious teaching should be introduced ? A. I think these two defects must be remedied and then there is the personal element; the personal touch on the part of the teachers is also lacking. A better class of teachers with much better traditions than are in vogue today is required. These three things will certainly bring about the needful change. Q. Do I understand it correctly that the Satyagraha movement is concerned principally or mainly with the inculcation of truth and high morality without regard to the number of people who join it ? A. Certainly, that is the idea. Q. The essence of the thing is in itself, apart from the number ? A. It does not matter whether there are two members or one member. Q. Has this movement also spread to the Punjab ? A. I think it has spread to the Punjab as a leaven. I may not lay hands upon those who have signed the Satyagraha pledge, but I have come to the conclusion that the Punjab is just as capable of receiving and responding to the doctrine as any other part of India, if not perhaps more so; though I may be mistaken in this, yet I must say that the Punjab is not behind any other part of India in grasping the meaning of Satyagraha. 20-1'20 Letter from Delhi to Miss Ferring : *"My dear Child, "I was sorry to leave the Ashram as soon as you came. I wanted so to have a long chat with you and to comfort you if you were anxious about anything. I felt more sorry when Devdas told me you had not enough to cover yourself ( with ). I hope you asked what you wanted or that someone anticipated your wants. "You know the changes that have been made regarding cooking. Bhuwarjee will be out of the kitchen. I would like you to help Ba in the kitchen. But you shall not do so if it costs over - much patience? ?You will have to summon to your aid all your Christian charity to be able to return largeness against pettiness. We are truly large only when we are that joyfully. I have known friends being generous in a miserable spirit. Their generosity has become a kind of martyrdom. To rejoice in suffering, to pity the person who slights you and to love him all the more for his weakness is real charity. But we may not be able to reach that stage. Then, we should not experiment. On no account shall I have you to lose your inward peace and joy. I want you so to order your life that the Ashram gives you greater you, greater happiness and fairer perception of truth. I want you to be a greater Christian for being in the Ashram. You were with me the whole of yesterday and during the night. I shall pray that you may be healthier in mind, body and spirit so as to be a better instrument of His service. "And I want you to befriend Deepak. He is another big experiment. Mahadev will tell you who he is. I have not the time for writing more. "You may share this letter with Mahadev if you wish to. This has come to me in answer to prayer. Early this morning I wanted to send you a word of cheer. I feel for poor Mahadev just the same. He has an unequal burden to carry and thank God. He has a most sensitive conscience that is unforgiving towards him. But he is fretful. He has not that abundant experience of the divine in him and so he worries. Help him please and derive help from him. "Write to me of your experience of Madras and tell me how you felt there. With deep love." 24-1-'20 Letter to Miss Ferring from Lahore : *"My dear child, "I was delighted to receive your letter on my arrival in Lahore yesterday. "I am glad you have opened out your heart. It is the truest test of friendship and affection. You enable me to help you when you do open out. I had no notion that you had observed? ?'s pettiness. I simply warned you, as I asked you to come in closer touch with her. As it is, my warning reached you just in time. God will give you wisdom and courage to do the right thing at the right moment. Only remember one thing. Never allow your spirit of sacrifice to go the length of making you sour and dis-gusted with yourself and your surroundings. This is one of the so-rest temptations to which workers are exposed. They go on sacri-ficing themselves, till they become disgusted with everything and everybody for want of response. We sacrifice truly only when we expect no response. It is well worth knowing the root meaning of 'sacrifice.' It means, as you might know, "to make sacred." We make neither ourselves nor others sacred when we are irritated or angry. There is often, more 'sacrifice'? sacred making?in a divine smile than in so-called substantial service. The instances of Mary and Magdalene1 occur to me as I write these lines. Both were good, but the one who simply waited upon the Lord without making any fuss was probably more self-sacrificing than the ??????????? 1. "Magdalene' is probably a slip for 'Martha.' In the Gospel according to St. Luke the following story about Mary is given : "Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village : and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, "Lord dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone ? Bid her therefore that she help me." And Jesus answered and said unto her, "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things. But one thing is needful : and Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her." other. And so may it be with you. Do not overtax your spirit in trying to win over? ?or anybody else. Immediately you find that you cannot get on with somebody, you must separate yourself from the person. You could still serve that individual with-out being very intimate. Nothing that you do there should tire out either your spirit or body. "Do please ask for every convenience you may need whether for food or otherwise. Ask Maganlal, Imamsaheb or anybody who has come nearer you. "Yes, Deepak is all as you describe him. I would like you to get him to realize his responsibility and concentrate on his studies. Supervise his letter-writing. See that he writes fully and neatly to his mother everyday. "My heart is with you in your sorrow. I can understand your desire to be with your brother in Denmark. But you have chosen a different path-a path that does not admit of exclusive service. May God give you strength for your task. "I agree with you about Mahadev. He is needlessly anxious about his health. He is prized not for his body, but for his spirit. It must be a privilege for friends to nurse him in his illness. With love" 25-1-'20 Another letter to Miss Ferring : *"My dear child, Narhari tells me you are now boarding with Imam Saheb. I am glad. You will certainly feel at home there more than anywhere else, if only because you have some one who will talk to you constantly in English. And you can shower your discriminating love on Fatima with immediate results. I shall feel deeply hurt if you lose your health or peace of mind. 'Resist not evil' has a much deeper meaning than appears on the surface. The evil in? ?, for instance, must not be resisted, i. e., you or, for that matter, I must not fret over it or be impatient and say to ourselves, "Why will.. not see the truth and return the love I give her ?" She can no more go against her nature than a leopard change his sports. If you or I love, we act according to our nature, if she does not respond, she acts according to hers. And if we worry, we resist evil. Do you agree ? I feel that that is the deeper meaning of the injunction. And so, in your dealings with everybody, I want you to keep your equanimity. Secondly, please do not deny anything you may need for your bodily comfort. Ask me, if you will not ask anybody. I want you to write to me daily, whilst I feel uneasy about you. With love and prayers." 1-2-'20 Lokamanya Tilak Maharaj wrote a letter to Bapu as Editor of Young India. That letter was published by Bapu with his own comments thereon : *"I am sorry to say that in your article on 'Reform Resolution' in the last issue, you have represented me as holding that I considered 'everything fair in politics.' I write this to you to say that my view is not correctly represented therein. Politics is a game of worldly people and not of Sadhus ( recluses ), and instead of the maxim ' ?ã?ããÆ?ãñ£ãñ¶ã ãä?ã¶ãñ ?ã?ãÆ?ãñ£ã½ãá ' ( Anger should be overcome by non-anger, i. e., love ) as preached by Buddha, I prefer to rely on the maxim of Shri Krishna ' ¾ãñ ¾ã©ãã ½ããâ ¹ãƹã£ã ¶¦ãñ ¦ããâÔ¦ã©ãõÌã ¼ã?ãã½¾ãÖ½ãá'1. That explains the whole difference and also the meaning of my phrase 'responsive co-operation'. Both methods are equally honest and righteous but the one is more suited to this world than the other. Any further explanation about the difference will be found in my Gita Rahasya. Yours etc. B. G. Tilak." Poona City 18-1-'20 [ I naturally feel the greatest diffidence about joining issue with the Lokamanya in matters involving questions of interpretations ??????????????? 1. Gita IV-11. "In whatever way men resort to me even so do I render to them"-The Gospel of Selfless Action by Mahadev Desai. of religious works. But there are things in or about which instinct transcends even interpretation. For me there is no conflict between the two texts quoted by the Lokamanya. The Buddhist text lays down an eternal principle. The text from the Bhagwad Gita, shows to me how the principle of conquering hate by love, untruth by truth, can and must be applied. If it be true that God metes out the same measure to us that we mete to others, it follows that if we would escape condign punishment we may not return anger for anger but gentleness for anger. And this is the law not for the unworldly but essentially for the worldly. With deference to the Lokamanya I venture to say that it betrays mental laziness to think that the world is not for sadhus. The epitome of all religions is to promote purushartha and purushartha is nothing but a desperate attempt to become sadhu i. e. to become a gentleman in every sense of the term. Finally, when I wrote the sentence about 'everything being fair in politics' according to Lokamanya's creed, I had in mind his oft-repeated quotation ' Íã?â ¹ãÆãä¦ã Íãã?¿ã½ãá ã' ( meet villainy with villainy ). To me it enunciates bad law. And I shall not despair of the Lokmanya with all his acumen agreeably surprising India one day with a philosophical dissertation proving the falsity of the doctrine. In any case I pit the experience of a third, of the century against the doctrine underlying ' Íã?â ¹ãÆãä¦ã Íãã?¿ã½ãá ã' The ture law is ' Íã?â ¹ãƦ¾ããä¹ã Ô㦾ã½ãá ' ( Truth even towards the villain ) . ] 30-4-'20 From Sinhadh. Extract from a letter to a Mr. Lazarus Gogriel : *"I have given my two sons1 to South Africa and they can stay there as long as they choose. More it is not in my power to give. Every available man is wanted here and so every available pie." ???????????????? 1. When he returned from South Africa Gandhiji left two of his sons, the second Manilal and the third Ramdas, for continuing his services there. To Mr. Gillespie of Ahmedabad : *"I am aware of the great value attached to prayer in Christianity. My own impression, however, is that like all prayers much of the Christian prayer has become mechanical and often selfish. It is the mechanical and selfish element in the Hindu prayer which I am trying with all the power in me to combat." Letter to Nirmalabehn1 : "Thoughts about you have been thronging in my mind after my talk with you. I see that you can do much if only you take it into your head, to do so but your mind needs to be steady and composed. You must reflect over anything good that you may read or listen to, and then put it into practice. I could see from your notebook that your power of reflection is rather low. Now this is my advice : Make it a point to understand everything that you read and imbibe from it whatever you consider as a good advice : You should think deeply over every verse of Gitaji,2 for only then you will be able to make any real progress. With the resolve to stay on in the Ashram till your last breath, you should first carefully observe all the different activities in the Ashram, find out the one where you could be of the utmost use and then do that work. You may see Chi. Maganlal of and on and learn from him all that is essential for your work. You may even request him to give you some work to do. Because you are very young, you need not feel any constraint in speaking to others and confine yourself to your little room. You should believe that you can freely mix with others so long as your heart is pure. You should, therefore, never hesitate to approach the men-folk in the Ashram, but, regarding them as your brothers, learn from them all that you need to know. You should also render loving service to all. I will take you to Bombay at an opportune moment. You should improve your hand, so as to make your writing look as perfect as letters in a printed book, Do write to me regularly, legibly and in ink." ?????????????? 1. Gandhiji's niece-in-law and a very young widow. 2. Bhagwadgita. 'Ji' is a suffix of respect. The following letter to Miss West gives a very good idea of Bapu's penmanship in writing letters filled with small talk: *"My dear Devi,1 "The place where I have arrived today (Sinhgadh) is a lovely little historic fortress.2 The scenery around is glorious and the weather most bracing but mild. I have come here to give tone to a system which is much run down. I have with me Dr. Jivraj Mehta, Mahadev Desai, Swami Anand, Prabhudas, krishna and Deepak. You know only Prabhudas. I need not Balintroduce the others in this letter as I am anxious to finish it soon. I have a splitting headache on me, but having taken out your letter, I must finish the reply. "Mrs. Gandhi has kept remarkably well. She is looking after Harilal's children. Fatima was married to a nice young man on the 20th. It was a very simple ceremony, quite unpretentious. It was performed on the Ashram ground. We shall meet her often as her husband lives in Ahmedabad. I have not heard from Mr. Kallenbach since his expulsion from England. I have inquired but without result. "I am sorry to hear about Mrs. West's ill-health. I hope she is better. Please make love to Hilda on my behalf. Does she ever remember or think of me ? Building operations are still going on at the Ashram. I hope one day you will see it and even take your share in making it. "My life remains as busy as ever. I have not a moment I can call my own. "Devdas is at Benares finishing his Hindi studies. Harilal is not going strong about his business. What he will ultimately do, I do not know. ????????????????? 1. Sister of Mr. West who was working in Bapu's Indian Opinion in South Africa. 2. Like Quebec, the capture of this fort is a saga of heroism and was conquered at the cost of the invading commander's life. As the word means 'lion-fort'. King Shivaji exclaimed, "The fort has come, but the Lion has gone". "Bhai Kotwal I have not seen for a long time. I do not even hear from him. Pragji Desai has joined Mrs. Gandhi's brother. Medh is vegetating. Chhaganlal keeps books. Maganlal is the general manager. His children have now grown up. Prabhudas is said to have tuberculosis. Mrs. Chhaganlal has a very weak constitution. Krishnadas does not keep over well. Imam Saheb looks after all the purchases. His wife does a lot of tailoring for the Ashram. I think I have given you a fair description of the activities of all you know. With love." To Maulana Abdul Bari : *"Dear Maulana Saheb, "You will please pardon me for not going to Fyzabad. I could not, without seriously impairing my health which I wish to conserve if only for the coming fight. I seem to have lost the use of my left leg. I am hoping to regain it here, if I am permitted to stop for a few days. Please plead for me before our friends. "You must have heard all about the English visit. I was disinclined to go unless the friends particularly wished me to. Of that there was no clear indication and I decided to send a cable to Mr. Montagu. I now await his reply. I feel strongly that Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Shaukat Ali should be in Bombay for constant consultation. Organisation must start immediately. Unfortunately Maulana Abul Kalam is still ill. I have asked him to come to Bombay at the earliest moment." Extract from a letter to Mrs. Jinnah1 : "Please remember me to Mr. Jinnah and do coax him to learn Hindustani or Gujarati. If I were you, I should begin to talk to him in Gujarati or Hindustani. There is not much danger of your forgetting your English or your misunderstanding each other. Is there ? "Will you do it ? Yes, I would ask this even for the love you bear me." ??????????????? 1. Wife of Mr. M. A. Jinnah, founder and first Governor-General of Pakistan. Letter to Saraladevi Chaudharani1 written yesterday : *"As I writes this I hear Deepak singing to Balkrishna's sweet Sitar. Balkrishna is a great gift of the Gods to me. He is innocent as a flower. He looks after me like a mother. "Did you read my message on the Khilafat to the A. P. ( Associated Press of India ) ? Lest you may not have got a copy of Young India I am sending you a copy. Do please read the article on Khaddar. Here is yesterday's bhajan (hymn) : ½ããñãäÖâ ÊããØããè ÊãØã¶ã ØãìÁ ÞãÀ¶ã¶ã ?ã?ãè ã ÞãÀ¶ã ãäºã¶ãã ½ãì¼ã?ñ ?ã??ì ¶ãÖãé ¼ããÌãñ ã ¼ãî?? ½ãã¾ãã Ôãºã Ôã¹ã¶ã¶ã ?ã?ãè ãã ½ããñãäÖ0 ãã ¼ãÌãÔããØãÀ Ôãºã Ôãî?ã Øã¾ããñ Öõ ã ãä¹ã??ã?À ¶ãÖãé ½ããñÖò ¦ãÀ¶ã¶ã ?ã?ã è ãã ½ããñãäÖ0 ãã ' ½ããèÀãâ ' ?ã?Öñ ¹ãƼãì ãäØããäÀ£ãÀ ¶ããØãÀ ã ?Êã? ¼ã?à ½ããñÀñ ¶ã¾ã¶ã¶ã ?ã?ãè ãã ½ããñãäÖ0 ãã "At thy feet, O, Guru great ! My heart, my all, is firmly set, For no one else I care a jot The world is a hollow dream, I wot. The worldly sea has dried for me No fear have I to reach to Thee. Mira2 says, 'O Giridhar Nagar ! Thy Light has flooded eyes, O dear' !" ??????????????? 1. Wife of Pandit Rambhuj Datta Chaudhary, a nationalist leader of the Punjab and mother of Deepak. 2. A mediaeval princess of the highest royal family of Mewar. She had to suffer very serious persecution for mixing freely with devoted persons of no status to sing the glory of Lord Krishna, here called 'Giridhar Nagar.' The Lord proved Himself the First Citizen ( nagar ) by holding a hill ( Giri-hill, dhar-one who holds ) as an umbrella against the wrath of the Rain-god, Indra, and saved his town Brindaven from destruction. Mira's songs, written in Hindi and Gujarati, are full of sweet melody and simplicity and she is popular even now in Gujarat and Central India specially. Another letter to Mrs. Saraladei : *"I posted a pencil letter just before leaving Poona for Sinhgadh. Doctor ( Jivraj Mehta )1 was too pulled down to attempt walking up. I, in my infatuity, thought I could do it. So Mahadev, Deepak and I began climbing up. But you will be sorry to learn that I could not move up even half a furlong when I felt an unbearable strain on the left thigh and I had to give up the attempt. I felt humiliated and deeply cut up to find myself so much reduced in strength. But I must be cheerful even under reverses. I shall try to be. I have just got up with two dreams, one about you and the other about Khilafat. To my great joy, you returned within 2 days. I asked, 'How so quickly ?' You replied, "O, it was Panditji's ( her husband ) trick to have me by him. Jagdish's marriage is as far off as ever. I have, therefore, returned !" I discovered that it was a dream. I fell off again to sleep in disgust to find myself before a huge Mohammedan audience. One speaker, who was speaking on the use of Hindustani as the common medium, included the dialect spoken in Arabia by the Bagdadis as Hindustani's offshoot and, therefore, worthy of study. The others in the audience protested against this travelling outside India. Abdul Bari Saheb who was with me sided with the man. But he was speechless under the angry protests of the audience. Bari Saheb did not like their treatment of the man. I was explaining the pros and cons to them. The conversation drifted into ways and means. I emphasized the necessity of adhering to truth at all costs, when there was confusion and I got up. I commenced this immediately on getting up. "Deepak climbed up with Mahadev without any chair. He is none the worse for it. He had milk on starting and cakes on reaching. He is now sleeping heavily. Prabhudas is looking much better and more active. Balkrishna had come half the way to receive us. Revashankarbhai is coming tomorrow. The 'Ice-doctor' too has just now turned up bringing two goats for ??????????????? 1. Dr. Jivraj Mehta was administrator of the merged Baroda State and also the first Chief Minister of Gujarat. me. I understand too that Tilak Maharaj is coming this evening. His party is already in his bungalow. "Here are the goats coming in with their agreeable music. If the marriage is over or postponed, I expect you to join the party and enliven it with your music and your hearty laughter. "I can go on writing, but I must stop, not for fear of wearying you but for the sake of overtaking other work. "I am just reminded of Lala Girdharilal's postcard asking for your bracelet which you had subscribed to the Bagh fund.1 I think it was sent to you yesterday. In any case I put you in mind of it. I thought you had given the bracelet there and then. "You will not worry about my leg. The magnificent climate of the place should see me through. About Deepak you will not worry. We shall all look after him. Shankarlal took him out for a drive round Colaba. He asked me whether he could take him to the Cinema. I said I would not take the responsibility. I would send him some other time if you wish me to. I suggested instead a drive to Colaba or the Victoria Gardens. Hence the drive. Both Mahadev and Deepak dined with Shankarlal. Was I right about Deepak ? With love, Yours, Law-giver." 1-5-20 Letter to Saraladevi written yesterday evening : *"It is now nearly 5 p.m. I have hardly left my bed. I had most torturing headache last night, and remained in a comatic ??????????????? 1. A large courtyard in Jallianwalla in the Punjab enclosed by walls on all sides with gates for entry and exit. A public meeting was held there to protest against the Rowlatt Act. General Dyer stationed machine-guns strategically to prevent egress and then fired on the unarmed meeting which included women and children. The toll of lives came to 4 figures. The blood of Hindus and Muslims mingled there freely and impartially. It was decided to buy that property and raise a memorial to the victims through a public fund. Later on the Government exonerated ( but dismissed ) General Dyer on the ground that "his act was an error of judgment." condition upto 11 p. m. I slept fairly well thereafter. I am free from the headache, but I cannot walk even a furlong. I ask you, however, not to worry about me. I thought y9ou should be knowing my condition if only to keep you to the fortnight's limit, i. e., if Jagdish's marriage is then over or if it is postponed. If you could persuade Panditji too to come, so much better. He must see and love the Ashram life. "Tilak Maharaj paid us a visit in the morning. He came in with his son and son-in-law. The conversation was purely formal. "Deepak is getting on. He seems to like the place. His tastes are clear. He is easily led. "Revashankarbhai came in this morning. He brought some luscious mangoes. I fretted to find that you are not here to share them. "This morning I got up at our usual time but turned in again. I did not watch the sunrise. Had you been here I know you would have dragged me to watch His Majesty coming in. "Padshah has been writing in the East and West. Perhaps the cutting came in whilst we were yet together. I have dictated an article based on it. It is rather good. You should certify. "And now for a boon. I know you have granted many. The appetite has grown with the receiving. You said you were shy over working at the Ashram. Will you not get rid of your shyness by commencing household work there ? This I do not mind having even for my sake. It is not a matter of changing one's viewpoint. It is a matter of getting rid of one's disinclination. Great and good though you are, you are not a complete woman without achieving the ability to do household work.You have preached it to others. Your preaching will be more effective when people know that even at your time of life and in your station, you don't mind doing it." Bapu sent to Saraladevi the following three verses from Ashtavakragita today and then wrote : * ½ãìãä§ã?ãä½ãÞ?ãäÔã Þãñ§ãã¦ã ãäÌãÓã¾ãã¶ãá ãäÌãÓãÌ㧠¾ã?ã ã àã½ãã?ãÃÌ㪾ãã¦ããñÓãÔ㦾ãâ ¹ããè¾ãîÓãÌã³?ã ãã 2 ãã ¾ããäª ªñÖâ ¹ãð©ã?ã??ãð?¦¾ã ãäÞããä¦ã ãäÌãÑã½¾ã ãä¦ ãÓ?ãäÔã ã Ñã£ãì¶ãõÌã Ôãì?ããè Íã㶦ããñ ºã¶£ã½ãì§ã?ãñ ¼ããäÌãÓ¾ ããäÔã ãã 4 ãã ½ãì§ã?ããä¼ã½ãã¶ããè ½ãì§ã?ãñ ãäÖ ºã®ãñ ºã®ããä¼ã½ã㶾 ããä¹ã ã ãä?ãâ?Ì㪶¦ããèÖ Ô㦾ãñ¾ãâ ¾ãã ½ããä¦ã: Ôãã Øããä¦ã¼ ãÃÌãñ¦ã á ãã 11 ãã 1 "I have selected the most powerful from the thirty I read yesterday. I remembered you once said the Bhagwadgita did not appeal to you, so much as some other things from some other poets. These verses too may, therefore, fall flat on you. But I could not help sharing with you what seemed at the moment to ennoble me. Moreover, they are my solace in my enforced idleness. For I have not been able to leave my bed." 2-5-'20 Letter to a Mr. Rehman : *"Boycott of British goods is a punishment. If I buy British goods, I do not identify myself with any injustice perpetrated by the British government. But if I co-operate with the government even when it is doing an injustice I become party to it. Hence, non-cooperation in respect of an unjust government becomes a duty. If through the timidity of influential Mohammedans and aloofness of Hindus, the masses of Mohammedans fail to take up non-cooperation, a bloody revolution must inevitably result, provided, that is to say, the Khilafat question is decided ??????????????? 1. Sage Ashtavakra says to King Janaka : O dear ! If you desire salvation shun all worldly objects as if they were draughts of poison and drink deep the ambrosial drinks of forgiveness, rectitude, mercy, contentment and truth. [ 2 ] If, detaching yourself from the body, you can remain poised and steadfast in Consciousness, you can, even this very moment, be happy, composed and freed from all fetters. [ 4 ] He who ( truly ) believes himself as free, is as good as free already and he who believes himself as bound is similarly bound. This, that the people say, is correct : 'The soul attains the state which the intellect ruminates over.' [ 11 ] against the Mohammedans. If, however, both the above classes were to understand the inwardness of the general Mohammedan feeling, they could make non-cooperation a thorough success and bring about the desired result." Letter to Saraladevi : *"Yesterday I gave you selections from the first chapter of the Ashtavakragita. In it Janaka learned that the remedy of his deliverance lay with himself and that was to be free from the snare of the senses. In the second chapter he expresses his joy at the revelation. Here are some of the verses1 : ÑãÖãñ ãä¶ãÀ??ã¶ã: Íã㶦ããñ ºããñ£ããñ¡Öâ ¹ãÆ?ãð?¦ãñ: ¹ãÀ: ã ?¦ããÌ㶦ã½ãÖâ ?ã?ãÊãâ ½ããñÖñ¶ãõÌã ãäÌã¡ã佺㦠ã: ãã 2-1 ã㠦㶦ãì½ãã¨ããñ ¼ãÌãñªñÌã ¹ã?ãñ ¾ã´ãä´ÞãããäÀ¦ ã: ã ?ã㦽ã¦ã¶½ãã¨ã½ãñÌãñªâ ¦ã´ãä´ÍÌãâ ãäÌãÞãããäÀ¦ã½ ãá ãã 2-5 ãã ?ã㦽ãã?ãã¶ãã??ãØãªáÆÆÆðããä¦ã ?ã㦽ã?ãã¶ãã¸ã ¼ããÔ㦠ãñ ã À??Ìã?ãã¶ããªãäÖ¼ããÃãä¦ã ¦ã??ãã¶ããªá ¼ããÔã¦ãñ ¶ã ãäÖ ãã 2-7 ãã ½ã§ããñ ãäÌããä¶ãØãæãâ ãäÌãÍÌã⠽㾾ãñÌã Êã¾ã½ ãñÓ¾ããä¦ã ã ½ãðãäª ?ãì?½¼ããñ ?ãÊãñ ÌããèãäÞã: ?ã?¶ã?ãñ? ?ã???ãâ ? ¾ã©ãã ãã 2-10 ãã ?ãÖãñ ?ã¶ãÔã½ãîÖñ¡ãä¹ã ¶ã ´õ¦ãâ ¹ã;ã¦ããñ ½ã½ã ã ?ãÀ¥¾ããä½ãÌã ÔãâÌãð§ãâ ?ã?Ìã Àãä¦ã ?ã?ÀÌã㥾ãÖ½ãá ãã 2-21 ãã ??????????????? 1. Oh ! I am unstained with impurity, full of peace and knowledge and beyond the power of Nature. All this long time I was ( unnecessarily ) afflicted with only delusion. [ Chapter II-1 ] Just as on deeper thinking a piece of cloth is nothing but thread, so also the universe, on reflection, is nothing but the subtle and primary element-the At, man ( Indwelling Supreme Soul or the Self ). [ II-5 ] Out of ignorance of the atman, the world looms large, but out of Its knowledge, it ceases to have any appearance. When one does not know, ( owing to darkness, ) that it is a piece of cord, the object looks as if it is a snake; but when it is known that that object is nothing but a piece of cord, the ( delusion of the ) snake disappears. [ II-7 ] The universe that has come out of Me will be merged in Me just as do an earthen pitcher in earth, a wave in water and a gold bracelet in fold itself. II-10 To me, who do not see any duality even among a host of men, everything has become a vast Entity ( literally an uninhabited forest ). For what then can I form any attachment ? [ II-21 ] "I have selected five out of twentyfive. May I again charge you to copy them out and send them to Devedas ? I should love to finish for you an abridged edition of this beautiful work of art. "I am no better today. I must still confine myself to bed. You still continue to haunt me even in my sleep. No wonder Panditji calls you the greatest Shakti1 of India. You must have cast that spell over him. You are performing the trick over me now. But even two swallows cannot make a summer. If you are the greatest Shakti, you will enslave India by becoming her slave in thought, word and deed. "I can't get Deepak to write both to you and Panditji. You must, therefore, be satisfied with one letter to Panditji alone. He says, "Why should I write daily to Mataji (Mata-Mother), if she will not write ?" I put before him the lesson of good for evil. I told him too that probably you had written but the post had not yet been delivered. I was certain of a letter from you yesterday. But none came. Today too there is a blank. I wonder. However, I know you have not failed me. It is all due to the wretched post. "I enclose herewith two cuttings from The Times of India on Indian music. They may interest you. Oh, get rid of your inertia and you can give your music to India. It is not enough that you sing for her. You can make her also sing even as you do. But that requires application and study, a determination to give your musical talent to India. If you are taking the trouble of copying the verses for Devdas, I take it you will copy the Bhajan too for the boy. "We had a visit from Tilak Maharaj yesterday also. He frankly said he had not my forbearance and he believed in giving tit for tat. This was in answer to my gentle remonstrance over his trenchant criticism of Mrs. Besant. Probably you have not read it. I read it only here. He has even defended Mr. Khaparde's ??????????????? 1. Divine Power in the form of a Goddess. description of her as aunt Pootna1. He was refreshingly frank in his remark. "Miss Ferring has not yet arrived. I have invited her to come to Sinhgadh, if she need not be in Bombay for her passage. The last hope of hearing from you today is gone, for the postboy has arrived bringing some newspapers only. Devdas writes saying Panditji-pardon me, I mean Malaviyaji-again thinks I should go to England. I am afraid he is too late now, and perhaps it is as well; without perfect organisation here our going would be worse than useless." Through a detailed criticism of the issue of Young India dated 28th April, Bapu discusses the requisites of an efficient journalist : *"My dear Lalchand, "I have read all your notes in the Young India of the 28th April. The first is quite good, the second is not bad, but it is weak and halting. The matter of the third is good, but the manner of dealing with it is bad; the fourth is bad both in manner and matter-the matter, because the Congress Deputation, you must know, is not going, and if you did not know, you should have made certain. It is bad in manner, because the style is not that of Young India. The fifth note is very good in matter, but you have hardly done full justice to case so important as that of the ill treatment of a lady. My criticism is not meant to frighten you. It is meant only to warn you to be more careful in future in you selection of subjects and manner of dealing with them. To be accurate, original and strong you must become a deep student. Then only will you acquire enlightened confidence in yourself. Never mind, therefore, the range of your subjects, but in your self. Never mind, therefore, the range of your subjects, but go in for the depth, walk round your subject, walk into it, walk through it and you will make the pages of Young India live. ??????????????? 1. A female demon who was sent by the tyrannical King Kansa to the infant Lord Krishna in order to kill him, as the King's death was foretold at Krishna's hands. She posed to be an aunt of the infant and made Him suckle her poisoned breast. But the tables were turned against her by Krishna's miraculous power and it was she who died. "Re-reading my own articles in the current issue, I miss my usual strength in some parts of them. The Khaddar article is the best, but the English of the last paragraph shows that I was half asleep or indifferent when I wrote it. Look at 'even if one is disinclined to use it' followed immediately by 'even if one is not inclined to use it.' The word "use" occurs four times in four lines. I should never pass such a tenth rate sentence in a good article. But you have. I do not mind your having done it, because until I have confidence in your style, I must pay the penalty of my illness, sleepiness or indifference. "Take again my article on non-cooperation. It is all solid stuff, but not at all solidly put. I know under what extreme difficulty I wrote that article, but I can't on that account expect the readers to excuse indifferently written articles. My first article is fairly readable. But had I written it in Sinhgadh, it would have been written differently. The manifesto is the thing I like. It is nice in style, terse in expression, brings out all my points gracefully and concisely. I could have written it better, but it can pass muster. "And now I have given you enough food for thought. You have come to me to get the best out of me, give the best of yourself to the country and do better than your best from week to week, and if you do this you must study Swadeshi, read up Dutt, Radhakamal Mukerji, Barron and all the writers on Indian industries; you must read up blue books, statistical abstracts and deluge the readers with facts and figures from week to week. You will not tell me you have no library. You must go to Ahmedabad and search all the libraries and find out what you can get. Similarly on Hindi and the Vernaculars, study the history of the French craze during the Norman period, how the English nation was saved by some lovers of English, how the energy of a single professor in Russia revolutionized Russian teaching and how practically from that period commenced the National Revival. Then take the linguistic distribution of provinces. You will find among my papers some material already collected, but you can collect it yourself. You have to specialize on Hindu-Muslim unity and on the Khilafat question. You must get Mr. Banker to give you his English weeklies, the New Age and the Nation. Study the history of Turkey, answer like a student all the calumnies against it. Add to this your knowledge of finance and you have enough to deal with every week. "I would like you not to destroy this letter, but read it carefully more than once and keep it as a reminder of what I expect of you. Of course, you will share it with Patwardhan, but I do not want you to share the responsibility with him, for the simple reason that I have not yet burdened him with the responsibility of editing Young India. He has shouldered it and done it bravely too, but I have not located him. Till then his work on Young India is a gift for which I am thankful, but which I will not criticise as I must criticise every thing coming from you. "Do not please confuse two different thoughts. It is not the payment you accept which distinguishes you from Patwardhan. You have come to me reserved for Young India. Patwardhan has come in as the handy man, as a stopgap. Maganlal takes no payment but I criticise him mercilessly in the departments which are his and Patwardhan will come in for similar treatment when he is installed as chief of any department." This reply to the letter of the Professor's1 father with regard to Girdhari gives some idea of Bapu's concept about the objects of a national school. *"I do believe your grandson is doing better at the Ashram than he could do anywhere else. If I did not believe that of anybody I would certainly not keep that boy in the Ashram. In my opinion the Ashram education is such an all-round education that a boy discharged from it is capable of earning more than he would be after a study elsewhere for the same number of years. He acquires, that is to say, more confidence at the Ashram where boys are constantly taught to believe that education is meant for building up character and not for wealth. At the Ashram they are constantly weaned from wealth-hunger. I would ??????????????? 1. J. B. Kripalani, now a distinguished opposition leader. Girdhari is his nephew. strongly advise you not to force Girdhari, to any institution but keep him wherever he wishes to remain He is well able to choose for himself." Letter to Maganlabhai: "Casually I asked Mahadev yesterday, "Can you tell me what has upset Maganlal ?" He then reported to me your outburst on my talk with you about the motorcar. For the present, however, I am not going to answer any of your complaints, but will wait for your own letter, which ought to have come at least today. I have nothing to offer in self-defence, but I would definitely like to write things that may give you mental peace. That also only after the receipt of your letter. "Let me, however, write down what I feel about? ? ? ... Personally I do not wish to arrange for her marriage. But I broached the subject because I supposed you were anxious about arranging it. If you yourself have now become firm in the view of letting the girl remain unmarried and if you can carry her mother with you, I for one would regard her untainted brahmacharya as the most magnificent result of the Ashram way of living. This clarification explains my attitude towards? ?also. My views and expressions about? ? ?( the former ) as well as about marriage in general remain what they were, but my understanding of others has increased. You may, if you like, call it a I lapse. I used to impatiently expect others to follow my way but I no longer do so. Reflection and wider experience have driven out that insistence." 3-5-'20 Another letter to Maganlabhai : "I got the Ashram post today. But as you could not get the time to write to me, I wish to soothe your feelings as best as I can, by writing about your complaints as I understand them to be from Mahadev. "1. Why should I have even consulted you as to whether we should accept the gift of a motor car ? My very question indicates my weakness. "2. What we did about the reception of Gurudev (R. Tagor) and the wedding of Fatima was a huge waste of time and money with no, or hardly any, good result. "3. I am not right in my claim that I am not seeking activities, but they come to me. "4. Saraladevi had her meal while she kept sitting on her gadi that day. I, too, do not leave mine for my meals. Why this flurry ? Would it take much time if she and I went to the common place for our meals ? Even if it did, why should there be such desperate hurry about having one's meal ? "5. I have lost my former firm adherence to principles. "6. India and the Ashram have lost, not gained, through my outer activities. "7. I ought rather to give them all up, bury myself in the Ashram and be absorbed in its school and other activities only. Nobody is now going to accuse me of fleeing from the battle-field. "8. I have lost that grandeur and lustre which compelled others to listen me. I can quite understand if these or similar doubts arise in your mind. Very knotty problems are bound to spring up in the Ashram itself, owing to my outer work, while I am away from it or am as good as away, though temporarily staying in it. I called for your view about the motor car, because, as it is, we have already saddled ourselves with much paraphernalia in the Ashram and I saw a car's utility from the business point of view. Moreover, we have been gladly making frequent use of a car. I did not, therefore, think it proper to decide off-hand without consulting you, the question of accepting the gift of a car. For two full days I fought against the idea, but Lyall1 came to my mind and then I relented. I felt that I might accept the present if you also agreed. But personally I am so free from any illusion in the matter, that I have often wished that our Ansuyabehn's car broke down to pieces. It is true, all the same ????????????????? 1. A white Christian missionary who used to come to the Ashram to teach English. that my opposition on the question has softened. If you interpret the fact as my slackness I would consider it as only the right judgment. "I remained only a passive witness in the Gurudev affair. I have submitted to the wishes of you all in the matter. For myself, I would not have bothered to erect welcome-arches etc but would have found out some simpler method of paying my meed of adoration for him. I believe that it was our duty to give him an excellent reception. I do not think that the students have lost anything in engaging themselves in preparations for the reception. We must remember that the students have only performed their duty of service. Gurudev, besides, is an extra-ordinary personality. He is a poet, patriot and saintly soul rolled into one and deserves veneration. How unaffected and simple he is ! "Whathever has been done in the case of Fatima appears to me the right thing to do. If only we remember that Imam Saheb is a Mohammedan, we shall see that we have done nothing beyond what we should have. Every step in the matter has been taken after careful deliberation. If once we admit that we were bound to celebrate her wedding, then all that has been done will be seen to be proper and justified. Imam Saheb could certainly have observed still greater simplicity. It would have been splendid if he had not given any ornaments to Fatima in dowry. But we must not expect too much from him. I want to give you greater satisfaction in this matter, when we meet. "I assure you, it is not I who goes out in search of activities. Can you find a single one for which I had gone out of my way ? If I kept aloof from the Khilafat question, I would consider myself as having lost all my worth. That work is my dharma par excellence. It is through the Khilafat that I am doing the triple duty of showing to the world what ahimsa really means, of uniting Hindus and Muslims and of coming in contact with one and all. And if the non-cooperation movement goes on all right, a tremendous brute-force will have to yield to an apparently simple and negligible power. Khilafat is the great churning process of the ocean1 that India is. Why should we worry as to what will come out ( poison or nectar ) from the movement ? It is enough if we are certain that that activity is pure and right-ous. I cannot-I must not -give up those subjects and activities for which I have cultivated a talent. It may be that they could be the only path for me to attain salvation. If I refrained from doing them, I would fail to contribute any real service even through the Ashram. It was only for a similar activity that Rev. Doke regarded me as a light to guide mankind. He intended to give the title "The Path Finder" or "Jungle Breaker" to his book ( about me ) but submitting to the suggestion of Polak, he gave it the present name. "Through the establishment of the Ashram also I have shown a path. It is now for you and the others who have joined it to traverse along that path and ultimately reach the Home Eternal. If it is the will of Providence that I should live long enough to have the peace of retirement at the end of years of public work, I can certainly, from my ripe experience, make the Ashram present a more beautiful picture of right living, but that eventuality is a different matter. Despite all this explanation you need not feel any constraint in engaging me in a threadbare discussion over this issue. "As for Saraladevi, she took her mea, in her room, because on that day she was to be alone even in the dining hall. She used to dine with others on all other days. And as I do not take any cereals ever since my illness, I take my food wherever I happen to be sitting at the time. It is true that I have thereby looked to my own convenience and the fact can be regarded as a retrograde step. Your complaint is definitely just. "I have not lost my former strict adherence to principles. Only, my ideas have assumed more defined images with deeper ????????????????? 1. Reference to the story of the churning of the ocean by the Gods and the Demons. They agreed to cooperate for that great attempt in order to extract nectar so as to make themselves immortal. The ocean yielded some "jewels" and then poison which Lord Shiva, for the world's good, drank and kept in His throat. The attempt finally succeeded. perception. I now see more clearly what formerly I had only a hazy conception of. My comprehension of others has increased and the insistency of my demands from others has consequently diminished. "I think it is nearly impossible to answer indubitably the question whether my outer activities have benefited or harmed India and the Ashram. I would immediately settle down to Ashram life in toto, if only I realized that that was the right course for me. The question does not depend on me alone. I wish you could tie me down to the Ashram as the result of a frank discussion with me. "It is quite true that I am not the power that I was. I fell ill and became a handicapped invalid. I have myself realized that ever since I lost the capacity to stand shoulder to shoulder with you all in your hard toil, the fire in me is burning less brightly. I had an iron constitution which has now become delicated and I have often to put up with slackness in practice. Can you imagine a man like myself leaving his post for a change of air ? But that man is now on a hill-station. And when I think of the amount of money spent after me, I simply shudder. I am ashamed to have to travel in the second class. Such occasions make me sick at heart and I feel that the radiance of my soul has definitely faded. There is absolutely no way out of it. The peak period of my life is over. Others have now to gain whatever they can from my ideas only. I have ceased to afford an ideal living-example of practice first and precept next. Such is my plight now. And I am not exaggerating when I say all this. I have often given vent to these same expressions on relevant occasions. "But all this need not cause any despair either to you or to me. Let us all see our own defects and remove them wherever possible. You have had much to learn from my fifty years of life so far. Conserve that wealth. Raise your life-edifice from it in a shape that would reflect glory to you and me. Whenever difficulties arise you may consult me. If you can remove them yourself, so much the better. But never be frightened at the spectre they may present. If anything that I have written here appears as improper or unjust to you, you need not brood over it, but immediately get the thing straightened out from me. "I want to see you perfectly at peace with yourself and bubbling with joy ? ?has wired to me for monetary help, but I am refusing the request. On no account can he be given anything." Reply to Swami Shraddhanand's letter : "Bhai Saheb, "I have your letter. Government servants will be called upon to give up their jobs, only when some dependable scheme for their maintenance is evolved. I am consulting Muslim brothers on the matter. I, for one, have not advised anybody to leave the country, and I never can. It is certainly true that there are some Mohammedan brothers who think of an exodus. I cannot stop them. To them also I have been showing how their intended move cannot achieve their object and how it is a mistake to think of it as a measure of Satyagraha, since the latter rules out any motive of bringing pressure upon the Government. In my view an occasion for Muslims to emigrate from India would arise only if there is a Hindu ruler and if the public, with his support, compels every Indian to become a Hindu. If on the present occasion we are not able to non-cooperative with the Government, the fact will be for me a proof that Indian Muslims have lost their former religious fervour. None can fail to see that in this handling of the Khilafat question there is an attempt to betray Islam very seriously. If, even at this hour of peril, Muslims do not come forward to sacrifice their lives and property, it can only mean that the religious fire in them is altogether extinguished. I shall not be surprised, however, if such an evil result accrues, because during my travels through the world, I have frequently observed the overwhelming prowess of the present Kaliyuga ( iron age ). Religion has receded to the background everywhere and even in what is done in the name of religion I have often observed nothing but irreligion. If what I have written is not sufficiently clear to you, you will please let me know. "The work of Gurukul1 must now be going on well. I am here, in this solitary health resort, for the last four days." To Saraladevi : *"My dear Sarala, Finding Janaka2 exulting in the discovery that he was the changeless Brahma, Ashtavakra ( Janaka's guru ) challenges his position in the 3rd chapter and says : ?ããäÌã¶ãããäÍã¶ã½ã㦽ãã¶ã½ãñ?ãâ? ãäÌã?ãã¾ã ¦ã§ÌãÌã: ã 3 ¦ãÌã㦽ã?ãԾ㠣ããèÀÔ¾ã ?ã?©ã½ã©ããÃ?ãöãñ Àãä¦ã: ãã 1 ãã ?ã㦽ãã?ãã¶ããªÖãñ ¹ãÆãèãä¦ã: ãäÌãÓã¾ã¼ãƽ ãØããñÞãÀñ ã Íãì?ã?¦ãñÀ?ãã¶ã¶ããñ Êããñ¼ããñ ¾ã©ãã À?ã¦ããäÌã¼ãƽãñ ãã 2 ãã ãäÌãÍÌãâ Ô¹ãì?Àãä¦ã ¾ã¨ãñªâ ¦ãÀü¡Èã ?Ìã ÔããØãÀñ ã Ôããñ¡Ö½ãÔ½ããèãä¦ã ãäÌã?ãã¾ã ãä?ãâ? ªãè¶ã ?Ìã £ ããÌããä¦ã ãã 3 ãã Ñãì¦Ìãã¡ãä¹ã Íãì®Þãõ¦ã¶¾ã½ã㦽ãã¶ã½ããä¦ãÔã춪À½ãá ã ?¹ãÔ©ãñ¡¦¾ã¶¦ãÔãâÔã?ã?¦ããñ ½ãããäÊ㶾ã½ããä£ãØãÞ?ãä¦ã ãã 4 ãã ÔãÌãüãî¦ãñÓãì Þã㦽ãã¶ãâ ÔãÌãüãî¦ãããä¶ã Þã㦽ããä ¶ã ã ½ãì¶ãñ?ããöã¦ã ?ããÍÞã¾ãÄ ½ã½ã¦Ìã½ã¶ãìÌã¦ãæãñ ãã 5 ãã ????????????????? 1. The Aryasamaj, a reforming Hindu sect, has established 'Gurukula'-national residential colleges-where the teaching of the old Aryan culture is specially encouraged. Swami Shraddhananda was the Principal of one such at Kangdi ( U. P. ) 2. King of Mithila and father of Sita. His life is an ideal example of 'being in the world and yet not of it.' 3. How is it that you are still so fond of making money when you, so wise and sober, have come to know that in truth the Self is one and indestructible ? [ 1 ] Like the desire to possess a seashell dazzling like a piece of silver, it is only a delusion, which is due to ignorance about the Self, that makes a man crave for the objects of the senses. [ 2 ] After gaining the knowledge, "I am He wherein the universe throbs like billows surging in an ocean", why are you running after sense-objects like a miserable beggar ? [ 3 ] Even after learning that the Self ( Atman ) is Pure Consciousness and Beauty par excellence, the man who continues to be full of lust is heading towards a morass. [ 4 ] It is very astonishing :- That even a sage, who knows that the Atman, permeates all creatures and that they all exist in it, follows the phantom of possessiveness; [ 5 ] ÑãããäÔ©ã¦ã: ¹ãÀ½ãã´õ¦ãâ ½ããñàãã©ãó¡ãä¹ã ̾ãÌããäԩ㦠ã: ã ÑããÍÞã¾ãÄ ?ã?ã½ãÌãÍãØããñ ãäÌã?ã?Êã: ?ãñ? ãäÊããäÍãàã¾ãã ãã 6 ãã ?ªá¼ãî¦ãâ ?ãã¶ãªìãä½ãèã½ãÌã£ãã¾ããÃãä¦ãªìº ãÃÊã: ã ?ããÍÞã¾ãÄ ?ã?ã½ã½ãã?ã?ã¡áàãñ¦ãá ?ã?ãÊã½ã¶¦ã½ã¶ ãìãäÑã¦ã: ãã 7 ãã ?Öã½ãì¨ã ãäÌãÀ§ã?Ô¾ã ãä¶ã¦¾ãããä¶ã¦¾ããäÌãÌãñãä?ã ?¶ã: ã ?ããÍÞã¾ãÄ ½ããñàã?ã?ã½ãԾ㠽ããñàããªñÌã ãäÌã¼ ããèãäÓã?ã?ã ãã 8 ãã £ããèÀÔ¦ãì ¼ããñ?¾ã½ãã¶ããñ¡ãä¹ã ¹ããè¡á¾ã½ãã¶ããñ¡ãä¹ã ÔãÌãêã ã ?ã㦽ãã¶ãâ ?ãñ?ÌãÊãâ ¹ã;ã¶ãá ¶ã ¦ãìÓ¾ããä¦ã ¶ã ? ãì?¹¾ããä¦ã ãã 9 ãã ÞãñÓ?½ãã¶ãâ ÍãÀãèÀâ ÔÌãâ ¹ã;㦾㶾ãÍãÀãèÀÌã¦ãá ã ÔãâÔ¦ãÌãñ Þãããä¹ã ãä¶ã¶ªã¾ããâ ?ã?©ãâ àãì¼¾ãññ¶½ ãÖãÍã¾ã: ãã 10 ãã ½ãã¾ãã½ãã¨ããä½ãªâ ãäÌãÍÌãâ ¹ã;ã¶ãá ãäÌãØã¦ã?ã? ãõ¦ãì?ã?: ã Ñããä¹ã Ôããä¸ããäÖ¦ãñ ½ãð¦¾ããõ ?ã?©ãâ ¨ãÔ¾ããä¦ã £ ããèÀ£ããè: ãã 11 ãã ãä¶ã:Ô¹ãðÖâ ½ãã¶ãÔãâ ¾ãԾ㠶ãõÀã;ãñ¡ãä¹ã ½ãÖ㦽㶠ã: ã ¦ãÔ¾ã㦽ã?ãã¶ã¦ãð¹¦ãԾ㠦ãìÊã¶ãã ?ãñ?¶ã ?ãã¾ã¦ãñ ãã 12 ãã ????????????????? That even the wise man, who is well established in the knowledge ( understanding ) of the Undifferentiated Oneness of the Absolute and in his strenuous pursuit after salvation, becomes a prey to passion and loses self-possession owing to his former indulgences; [ 6 ] That even a very infirm old man, near the end of his days on earth and aware that the Enemy of Knowledge has arisen in his mind, is all the same hankering after the pleasures of the senses; [ 7 ] That one who is without any attachment for this world and the other who can discriminate between the eternal and the evanescent and who actually desires salvation is none the less afraid of that salvation itself. [ 8 ] But the steadfast and well-poised person is neither glad nor grieved though he may be always remaining in the midst of enjoyments or be passing through troubles. [ 9 ] How can that high-souled person be ruffled by praise or censure who looks to the actions of his own body as those of some other's ? [ 10 ] How can that person of unshakable equilibrium who sees this whole universe as nothing but maya (a delusion) and is, therefore, devoid of all impulsion, feel any distress or fear when he sees Death equilibrium by his side ? [ 11 ] Who could stand comparison with that mahatma ( the high-souled ), who, even in the midst of the most despairing environment remains unperturbed with any desire and whose thirst for knowledge of the atman has been completely satisfied ? [ 12 ] ÔÌã¼ããÌããªñÌã ?ãã¶ãããä¦ã Ò;ã½ãñ¦ã¸ã ãä?ã?ØãÆð¶ã ã ?ªâ ØãÆãüÛããä½ãªâ ¦¾ãã?¾ãâ Ôã ãä?ãâ? ¹ã;ããä¦ã £ ããèÀ£ããè: ãã 13 ãã ?㶦ãÔ¦¾ã§ã?Óãã¾ãÔ¾ã ãä¶ã´â¶´Ô¾ã ãä¶ãÀããäÍãÓã: ã ¾ãÒÞ?¾ãã¡¡Øã¦ããñ ¼ããñØããñ ¶ã ªì:?ãã¾ã ¶ã ¦ãìÓ?¾ãñ ãã 14 ãã Thus challenged Janaka retaining the same exultant mood replies in the fourth chapter : Ö¶¦ã㦽ã?ãã¶ãԾ㠣ããèÀÔ¾ã ?ãñÊã¦ããñ ¼ããñØãÊããèÊã¾ãã ã 1 ¶ã ãäÖ ÔãâÔããÀÌããÖãè?ãõ?½ãÃî¤õ: ÔãÖ Ôã½ãã¶ã¦ãã ãã 1 ã㠾㦹ãªâ ¹ãÆñ¹ÔãÌããñ ªãè¶ãã: Íã¨ã?ã£ãã: ÔãÌãêñÌ㦠ãã: ã ?ãÖãñ ¦ã¨ã ãäÔ©ã¦ããñ ¾ããñØããè ¶ã ÖÓãýãì¹ãØãÞ?ãä¦ ã ãã 2 ãã ¦ã??ãԾ㠹ã쥾ã¹ãã¹ãã¼¾ããâ Ô¹ãÍããó Û㶦ã¶ãà ?ãã¾ã¦ ãñ ã ¶ã Ûãã?ã?ãÍãԾ㠣ãî½ãñ¶ã Ò;ã½ãã¶ãã¡ãä¹ã Ôã¡áØããä¦ ã: ãã 3 ãã ?ã㦽ãõÌãñªâ ?ãØã¦ÔãÌãà ?ãã¶ãâ ¾ãñ¶ã ½ãÖ㦽ã¶ãã ã ¾ãÒÞ?¾ãã Ìã¦ãýãã¶ãâ ¦ãâ ãä¶ãÓãñ´ìâ àã½ãñ¦ã ?ã ?: ãã 4 ãã ????????????????? What will that man regard as worth acceptance or rejection who, from the ( supra-mental ) consciousness which has become ingrained in him as his very nature, knows that all this ( universe ) which presents an appearance is in reality nothing ? [ 13 ] One, who has inwardly renounced attachment completely, and has transcended all duality as well as longing, is neither happy nor unhappy when any situation pleasurable or otherwise happens to face him. [ 14 ] 1. O, verily there is nothing in common between the man of serene equipoise, confirmed in the knowledge of the Self, who faces playfully everything ( called 'good' or 'bad' ) that he comes across and the ignorant fools who trudge on in life with the heavy burden of worldly-mindedness. [ 1 ] O, The Yogi, established even in that state which all the Gods right from Indra onwards, covet like helpless beggars, is never subject to the mood of exhileration? ?[ 2 ] The sky remains completely unaffected by smoke though it may seem to be smeared with it. In the same way that man who has realized It ( the Absolute ) remains inwardly untouched with sin or virtue though he may appear to be tinged with either of them. [ 3 ] Who can be fit enough to forbid that mahatma who has realized the whole universe as but his own Self from acting as the spirit moves him ? [ 4 ] ?ããºãÆÚãԦ㽺ã¹ã¾ãö¦ãñ ¼ãî¦ãØãÆã½ãñ Þ㦠ãìãäÌãããñ ã ãäÌã?ãÔ¾ãõÌã ãäÖ Ôãã½ã©¾ãÃãä½ãÞ?ããä¶ãÞ?ããäÌãÔã?ãöãñ ãã 5 ãã ?ã㦽ãã¶ã½ã´¾ãâ ?ã?ãäÑÞã?ãá?ãã¶ãããä¦ã ?ãØãªãèÍÌãÀ½ãá ã ¾ã´ñãä§ã ¦ã¦Ôã ?ãì?Á¦ãñ ¶ã ¼ã¾ãâ ¦ãÔ¾ã ?ãì?¨ããäÞã ¦ãá ãã 6 ãã 1 You will notice that the verses in the 4th chapter are some-what dangerous. It is strong food for a delicate stomach. All the chapters are not of equal length. The 3rd for instance has 14 verses and the 4th only 6." 19-5-'20 Reply to Mr. Jamshed Mehta of Karachi answering his doubts on the non-cooperation movement : "I am glad to have your letter. Let me assure you that I will not fail to understand you or your sentiments. It is wrong to say that an opponent of non-cooperation is not a friend of Mohammedans. Even among friends there is every chance of difference in views. "Now my answers to your questions : "1. Non-cooperation will certainly alienate the people from the Government, but since it is not at all conceived as a weapon of punishment to the Government no question whether the Indian Government has committed any crime or not arises. At the same time the fact stands that the Indian Government has not done all that it should. If the Government of Britain fails to secure justice for the Mohammedans the Indian Government, instead of resting content with a mere 'protest', should tender its resignation. In its failure to do so lies its serious error and the people are justified in expressing their disappointment by withholding cooperation with it. ????????????????? 1. Among all the four kinds of beings right from the God Brahma ( Creator of the universe ) to a lump of grass ( the four kinds are divine, human, animal and the so-called inanimate ), the man of Self-realization alone has the power to give up his desire and aversions. [ 5 ] Only one among millions really knows the oneness of the Self and of the Lord of the universe. He is the living embodiment of what he knows. From nothing and nobody has he any fear. [ 6 ] "2. It is certainly wrong to harm anybody deliberately, but we are not responsible for any hardship that may result from the performance of our unavoidable duty. Resignation from Government service is my inalienable right, and I am not committing any violence if the Government is thereby embarassed. If I am staying in my father's house and even serving him, he is sure to be grieved when, as a protest against an injustice done by my father, I cease to co-operate with him and leave the house. All the same, there can be no other duty for me than of parting company from my father. He himself invites the suffering which may follow my step at the time. If we do not follow this standard of behaviour, every tyrant in the world gets a free pass to carry on his oppression. "3. You will, therefore, see, that if non-cooperation can be carried on with no lapse into violence, it is not only our right but our duty to take the step. "4. Shaukatali's speech has not disturbed me because I think I see what he means. I admit that all ( non-cooperating ) Mohammedans do not look at non-cooperation from my angle. But there has been a distinct understanding with them that violence would never be allowed to go on side-by-side with non-violence. And even if the Mohammedan brothers accept non-violent non-cooperation in a spirit of hatred, it is possible to bring good out of even such non-cooperation, since it will save the country from bloodshed. Whatever the attitude at the back, some good at least is bound to come out of a good act. If a man observes truth or self-restraint simply out of fear of public exposure, he does at least some good to society and himself by his factual observance. That is the glory and grandeur of a good deed." 20-6-'20 In answer to many letters from Mr. Andrews on the Khilafat question, Bapu writes to him : *"You have been pouring out your heart to me on the Khilafat and other matters whereas I have been unable to reciprocate because of the great strain I have been undergoing just now. All the same you know that you are ever in my mind. I know what spiritual struggles mean for you. I hope you are keeping better health. You wrote to me that you were very bad after your return from Calcutta. "I wish you will not concern yourself about my position on the Turkish question, i. e., you will depend upon it that I shall do nothing blindly. I am committed to nothing on the Turkish question, so that, upon proof of the unmorality of a position being found, I could not retrace my steps. The unfortunate position in which I find myself is that I thoroughly distrust the Lloyd George. Somehow or other I distrust the Armenian case as I distrust the Arabian case and I am so prejudiced against the present British diplomacy that I scent the foul hand of the deceitful diplomat in Armenia, Arabia, Mesopotamia, Palestine and Syria. The position, therefore, I take up is that as soon as I can remove my prejudice, I shall retire from the untenable position I may find myself in. I do ask for Turkey's suzerainty over Armenia, Mesopotamia, Palestine, Syria with proper safeguards. You say the safeguards are nothing. I do not agree with you. If the Allied Powers are themselves insincere and jealous of one another they may mean nothing. But if they are sincere, the safeguards can certainly be effective. Britain claims suzerainty over the Transvaal, but the Transvaal has no interference with its internal affairs. Why should Armenia have to complain if it has full autonomy with a Turkish resident there ? If Britain only meant well by Turkey everything could be satisfactorilyarranged.if Tgurkey had joined the Allies, could Britain have dispossessed Turkey of Armenia, Arabia or Mesopotamia ? Would Britain not have brought about Reforms in Turkey by friendly pressure instead of a victor's dictation ? The insolence and hypocrisy of the ministry bolstered up by equal insolence and hypocrisy in the Viceroy's communiqué is really insufferable. "You consider Mohamedali's representation to be as unclean as the treaty. I do not agree with you so far as this condemnation of the Treaty is concerned. I do think that practically the whole of India is with Mohamedali. If you say that the condemnation is not intelligent, is not based on knowledge, but is due to utter distrust of Britain, I should agree with you, but the condemnation is there. I do not read newspapers as a rule but look at the enclosed in The Leader. Mohamedali certainly believes that the whole of India is at his back in the condemnation. Nor is his claim for suzerainty unclean, because he implicitly believes in the correctness of his demand. He has broken no pledge for his claim was much higher than it is made today. Whereas the Peace Treaty is an abomination, a sin against God and man. Remember too, that the Allied Powers, which simply mean England writ large, speak from a consciousness of their brute strength. Poor Mohamedali represents, as he considers, a weak nation and supports the cause of a power that has been already sufficiently humbled and humiliated. I am prepared to excuse some exaggeration in him. I am totally unprepared to tolerate the shameless exhibition of brute force. If only I could infect India with the belief in the weapons of unadulterated suffering, in self-suffering, I would bring down this insolence from its pedestal in a moment and reduce to nothing the whole of the powder magazine of Europe. "Shaken as I was by this Peace Treaty, the Hunter Report has taken away all my faith even in the good intentions of the British ministry and the Viceregal Council. Nor has Mr. Montagu come well out of the ordeal. He has tried to serve both God and Mammon and has failed hopelessly. If the British Constitution survives this shock, it will be due to some inherent vitality in it. Those who are at the helm, at the present moment, have left no stone unturned to smash that Constitution to pieces. Mahadev just now reminds me that you have cancelled by your wire the letter I am replying to. That, however, does not alter the situation. I would like to realise with me the enormity of the double crime of the present British administration or make me see my folly and correct myself. "I need not worry you about my views on caste system. There, too, my moral position need not cause you anxiety. You have mistaken my standpoint. Not to dine with a fellowbeing our of repugnance is a sin. Not to dine with him by way of self-restraint is a virtue. Do you know that Inidian mothers impose the restraint upon themselves of not sharing even the family meals ? I believe Narottam's mother does not dine at the common kitchen. I consider that her self-restraint is unnecessary. It is possible that it has some merit in it. It is certainly not sinful. I hold it to be a virtue to restrict the area of my choice of a wife as it is a virtue to restrict myself to one wife rather than have many. Surely you must grant the necessity and the virtue of limiting one's indulgences. The sin comes in when I limit the area of service, the area of sacrifice. I have often thought that you have not yet realised the full grandeur of the perfect theory of Hinduism, however debased it may be today in practice.1 "My health is fair, but I am longing for perfect peace, rest and solitude. I have just heard that the Turkish Peace Terms are to be completely revised. There may be then some hope of my stealing away for a few days. "Sir George Barnes has invited me also to British Guiana. I have told him I could not go whilst the Khilafat agitation was going on. Are you going ? "I read your letter to the Imperial Citizenship Association on East Africa. Evidently you wrote it under great stress. They criticised it adversely. I remained silent but I could not help sympathising with the criticism. Your letter was scrappy and gave hardly any information. They complained bitterly too that you have not yet sent any Report on South Africa. I do think, as you want as their accredited agent, you owed them a full Report. Indeed your very first writing, if only as a matter of courtesy, was due to them. I wish you would still mend the error in so far as it is mendable." ????????????????? 1. Gandhiji's views on inter-caste dinner and inter-caste marriage have progressively undergone considerable changes. Not to speak of inter-dining he became increasingly an ardent advocate of inter-caste marriage and in the evening of his life he would not attend even an inter-caste marriage, if one of the marrying couple was not a 'Harijan', i. e. of the so-called 'untouchable' community. Bapu wrote the following letter to the Viceroy today : *"As one who has enjoyed a certain measure of Your Excellency's confidence and as one who claims to be a devoted well-wisher of the British Empire, I owe it to your Excellency, and through your Excellency, to His Majesty's Ministers, to explain my connection with and my conduct in the Khilafat question. "At the very earliest stage of the war, even whilst I was in London organizing the Indian Volunteer Ambulance Corps, I began to interest myself in the Khilafat question. I perceived how deeply moved the little Mussulman world in London was when Turkey decided to throw in her lot with Germany. On my arrival in India in the January of 1915 I found the same anxiousness and earnestness among the Mussulmans with whom I came in contact. Their anxiety became intense when the information about the secret treatries1 leaked out. Distrust of British intentions filled their minds and despair took possession of them. Even at that moment I advised my Mussulman friends not to give way to despair but to express their fears and their hopes in a disciplined manner. It will be admitted that the whole of Mussulman India has behaved in a singularly restrained manner during the past fve years, and that the leaders have bee able to keep the turbulent sections of their community under complete control. "The Peace Terms ( which left Turkish rule over Turkish areas of Asia Minor only ) and Your Excellency's defence of them have given the Mussulmans of India a shock from which it will be difficult for them to recover. The terms violate Minis-terial pledges and utterly disregard Mussulman sentiment.I consider that as a staunch Hindu wishing to live on the closest friendship with my Mussulman countrymen, I should be an unworthy son of India if I did not stand by them in their hour of trial. In my humble opinion their cause is just. They claim that Turkey must not be punished if their sentiment is to be respected. Muslim soldiers did not fight to inflict punishment ????????????????? 1. Made by the Allies, for exapmple, with Rusia, Italy and the Grand Sheriff of Mecca in 1915. on their own Khalifa or to deprive him of his territories. The Mussulman attitude has been consistent throughout these five years. "My duty to the Empire to which I owe my loyalty requires me to resist the cruel violence that has been done to the Mussulman sentiment. "So far as I am aware Mussulmans and Hindus have as a whole lost faith in British justice and honour. The Report of the Majority of the Hunter Committee, Your Excellency's Despatch thereon and Mr. Montagu's reply have only aggravated the distrust. "In these circumstances, the only course open to one like me is either in despair to sever all connection with British rule, or, if I still retained faith in the inherent superiority of the British Constitution to all others at present in vogue, to adopt such means as will rectify the wrong done and thus restore confidence. I have not lost faith in such superiority and I am not without hope that somehow or other justice will yet be rendered if we show the requisite capacity for suffering. Indeed my conception of that Constitution is that it helps only those who are ready to help themselves. I do not believe that it protects the weak. It gives free scope to the strong to maintain their strength and develop it. I weak under it go to the wall. "It is, then, because I believe in the British Constitution that I have advised my Mussulman friends to withdraw their support from Your Excellency's Government, and the Hindus to join them, should the Peace Terms be not revised in accordance with solemn pledges of Ministers and the Muslim sentiment. "Three courses were open to the Mussulmans in order to make their emphatic disapproval of the utter injustice to which His Majesty's Ministers have become party, if they have not actually been the prime perpetrators of it. They are : "1. To resort to violence. "2. To advice emigration on a wholesale scale. "3. Not to be party to the injustice by ceasing to co- operate with the Government. "Your Excellency must be aware that there was a time when the boldest, though also the most thoughtless, among the Mussulmans favoured violence and that hijrat ( emigration ) has not yet ceased to be the battle-cry. I venture to claim that I have succeeded by patient reasoning in weaning the party of violence from its ways. I confess that I did not attempt to succeed in weaning them from violence on moral grounds, but purely on utilitarian grounds. The result for the time being at any rate has, however, been to stop violence. The school of hijrat has received a check, if it has not stopped its activities altogether. I hold that no repression could have prevented a violent eruption, if the people had not had presented to them a form of direct action involving considerable sacrifice and ensuring success, if such a direct action was largely taken up by the public. Non-co-operation was the only dignified and constitutional form of such direct action, for it is the right recognized from times immemorial of the subject to refuse to assist a ruler who misrules. "At the same time I admit that non-co-operation practised by the mass of people is attended with grave risks. But in a crisis such as has overtaken the Mussulmans of India no step that is unattended with large risks can possibly bring about the desired change. Not to run some risks now will be to court far greater risks, if not virtual destruction of law and order. "But there is yet an escape from non-co-operation. The Mussulman epresentation has requested Your Excellency to lead the agitation yourself as did your distinguished predecessor ( Lord Hardinge ) at the time of the South African trouble. But if you cannot see your way to do so, and non-co-operation becomes a dire necessity, I hope that Your Excellency will give those who have accepted my advice and myself the credit for being actuated by nothing less than a stern sense of duty." 14-7-'20 to 21-7-'20 [ Mahadevbhai has kept very scrappy notes of Bapuji's speeches, interviews and incidents during his tour with Bapuji through different parts of India. Instead of publishing those notes, it has been thought advisable to reproduce the letters based on them which Mahadevbhai used to write ( in Gujarati ) for Navajivan. ] Punjab Letter?1 No Effervescence in Devotion We started from Bombay on the afternoon of the 14th. There was nothing wanting in the excellence of the arrangements made by Maulana Shaukatali. From Kalyan ( a Bombay suburb ) right upto Amritsar, those interested in Khilafat thronged the big stations. In the few minutes that he had at each of them, Shaukatali explained to the crowds the essence of the Khilafat question and what they should do on the first of August.1 Every-thing went on smoothly upto Bhusawal, since the number of people gathered at the stations till then was never too big for maintaining silence and so far Shaukatali could do his propaganda work without any difficulty. But from midnight onwards, we had to face loud and disturbing noises at many stations. At Hoshangabad particularly even Shaukatali's appeal for quiet had no effect and the people made the station resound with vehement cries of "Mahatma Gandhi-ki-jai" and "Allaho Akbar." The cries awakened Gandhiji also. This exuberance continued through all stations-?Gwalior, Bhopal, Jhansi, Agra, Mathura, etc, ?right trill we reached Meerut the next night. People used to flock not in hundreds but in thousands, and they would press Gandhiji, Shaukatali and Dr. Kitchlew a great deal to halt for a day at their place. At many stations the enthusiasm ran so high that the people did not care for the great discomfort that this hustle and bustle was causing to other passengers. They did not consider to what great harassment they were subjecting their own idols?Shaukatali, Gandhiji, and Dr. Kitchlew. Despite very earnest entreaties on the leaders' part they would not hesitate to dump heaps of flowers into the compartment and so pile up rubbish in it. 'Flowers make rubbish ?'?the comment may appear cynical and betray callous indifference to the obviously ????????????????? 1. Non-co-operation was to begin on that day. deep devotion of the people. But it is justified. Devotion must not run to hysterical excesses. Devotion ceases to be devotion, when it crosses the bounds of propriety and inflicts mental pain on the person adored. Leaders whom the masses come to meet cannot then put to good use the few minutes they can afford to have with them and are robbed to the opportunity of giving some very sound advice. All this ebullition is thus simply wasted. As early as possible, we have but to learn to be discriminate and restrained in the manifestation of our reverence towards leaders. Jullundur But let us now come to more important facts than our travelling experiences. On the morning of the 15th, we put up with Raizada Bhagatram in Jullundur. All the day long hosts of women used to come to Gandhiji and give him balls of handspun yarn and thread as presents. Presenting yarn to Gandhiji was not a new thrill with them, for they had delighted Gandhiji's heart with these gifts in the past. But they found that their "Mahatmaji" could not any longer be gratified merely with presents of yarn-balls and thread. He would disconcert them this time with his loving but effective comment : "Yarn you spin of course, but I don't see you attired in clothes of your own yarn." And then he would enter into a long panegyric upon Khadi. Only he who has actually listened to his eulogy can understand how profound was the impression he could create in the listeners' minds. For myself, I have no doubt that at Bapu's next visit the women will come for his darshan1 in their Khadi dresses. I marvelled at the purity of this womanly devotion. Tough he was critical about their clothes, he would never fail to enliven their spirits by words of encouragement: "Men are mere talkers. I would persuade them, appeal to them, beseech them, to understand the spirit of Swadeshi but all to no purpose. They will indeed say that Swadeshi is the highest dharma, but it is only you, women, who will show in action, not in speech, that Swadeshi is really so." ????????????????? 1. The purifying of a deity or a holy man. At the very outset the Raizada Saheb gave us his view of the situation : "People don't seem to be really enthusiastic about non-co-operation here." We will see later on whether this remark was true, but we did find that there was something in it, if applied to the leaders rather than the people. As it was in this town that Lala Lajpatrai had raised the question of the boycott of Councils, everyone was anxious to hear what Gandhiji had to say in the matter. Some interesting discussion took place, but the Raizada Saheb remained unconvinced about the imperative need of the boycott. Since the programme to leave for Amritsar the same evening was already fixed, a public meeting was arranged in a shamiana ( tent ) at 2 p.m. in the afternoon. Owing to the scorching heat of the Punjab at that hour and season, as well as due to our defective organising power it was found impossible to begin the business of the meeting. Nearly an hour-long attempt failed to silence the people and the meeting had to be dispersed. But three hours later when a meeting was held in a big hall the people were fairly quiet. However, I am not reporting the proceedings of this meeting, since I am going to do so in connection with a vaster gathering at another place and, I suppose, the report of this second meeting eliminates the need for a summary of the speeches made here. Amritsar At Jullundur station also we had to undergo the unhappy experience of the unthinking adoration of the people. As there was still some time for the arrival of the train, Gandhiji, Mrs. Saraladevi, Shaukatali and other leaders were taking rest in a waiting room. Soon enough it was invaded by the crowds in a scramble among hundreds of people to have the darshan of the leaders. The result was that not only the packages of the other passengers in the room but those of their own revered leaders also were scattered in a clumsy way. This commotion continued right upto the time the train somehow managed to leave he platform. It was simply owing to this mad rush that a precious suitcase of Mrs. Saraladevi was forgotten and left at the station How I wish we people learnt to actually participate in the activities of our leaders instead of remaining content with their darshan only ! Amritsar is 50 miles from Jullundur. We reached it in the evening. The same night a public meeting was held. It is wrong to call it mere a 'meeting', for it was, in fact, a very big assemblage of the people. The disappointment we had previously felt at our organising capacity dwindled materially at the sight of this vast gathering in the spacious maidan of the Anjuman Gardens. Crowds and crowds of people had come three hours before time and were quietly sitting in eager expectation. It was difficult to say whether-the Hindus or the Muslims-exceeded the other in numbers, since they were all so mixed up in one big medley. The most conservative estimate would put down their number to ten thousand and yet remarkable silence prevailed. What was still more remarkable was the impressive number of women present there even at that late hour. The presidential chair was occupied by a sober and sedate Muslim, Maulvi Sanaaulla. A sweet gazal1 by Mr. Akhtarali commenced the proceedings. It was a long poem and I cannot reproduce it here. But the central theme was : "This is the moment of our crises. We are passing through a fiery test-One that falls to the lot of the fortunate alone. Our only prayer to the Almighty is that we may come out of it as men of proved mettle." No Rage, No Disappointment Maulana Shaukatali kept the audience spell-bound with a speech that lasted about fifteen minutes. As perfect silence was kept he could be heard by everyone, even though his voice had become hoarse with constant speaking. I shall give the chief points he made. He began with : "I remain unperturbed though I have been hearing for many months past various, dismal as well as relieving, news about the Khilafat. Undeterred by 'disappointment, danger or rage' I simply think ????????????????? 1. A popular form of Urdu or Persian poetry noted for its musical cadence. of my duty and organise the movement. Neither fury, nor fear, nor impatience can help us in this crisis, I wish, I earnestly pray to God that Europe may give us its final decision, so that immediately we too can convince it of the strength of our deadly resolve. By 'deadly resolve' I mean complete stoppage of tallukat ( co-operation ) with the Government, giving it, so to say, a divorce (tallak) or doing in the words of the Holy Koran : adamtaa-avan". He then explained why they chose this line of action though there were two other ways open to the Muslims-those of 'hizrat'1 and 'jehad'. He said : "As long as we need Gandhiji's help, we are bound in honour to accept the way he suggests." He laid great stress on the Punjab question also and declared : "If we remain cowards still, if we are still deaf to the call of our duty towards God and fellow humans, if we are still without any love for freedom, we deserve not one, but ten Jallianwalla Baghs". One Lakh v. Seven Crores Dr. Kitchlew then got up. A child in physical stature, as compared with Shaukatali, he was compelled to stand up on the dais. In a resonant voice he declared : "Not words but downright action is the need of the hour." Explaining the essence of non-co-operation, he said, "Before our very eyes a lakh of Whites are ruling over a whole country. Are we, seven crores of Muslims, unable to do the work of that one lakh ? Are we really so weak, so unfit ? Islam does indeed permit hizrat, but I prefer to stay on and win the freedom of my religion here, -in this land." Then, after giving a lacerating account of the atrocities of the Punjab, he showed how non-co-operation became a matter of necessity for them. Gandhiji 'rose' next. What I mean by 'rose' is not that he stood up for his speech but that he was seated in a chair raised on a table, which itself was placed on the dais. As it was a momentous speech that he delivered, I shall give it here in a little more detailed form. ????????????????? 1. "hizrat"=emigration, and 'jehad'=a holy war of arms. An Ounce of Error and a Ton of Blunder "Words fail me when I try to express my grief. It is impossible to put down in language the sorrows of the Punjab. I only pray to both Hindus and Muslims never to forget the dreadful April we have passed. At the same time I must add that so long as we do not clearly realize our own mistake and rectify it, we have no right to see the fault of others. The Government, i. e., the government officials, have certainly committed heinous crimes, but our hands, are not clean either. Why did we burn down buildings ? Why should we have taken innocent lives ? It was definitely our duty to obey the prohibitory orders of the police. At the same time, if the Government had given us only some punishment for these crimes, we could have understood it and would hardly have complained; but here it was not punishment they meted out to us, it was sheer tyranny. If ours was an ounce of error, theirs was a ton of blunder. What to Do Then The one and only remedy, he emphasised, was non-co-operation and then he detailed its four progressive stages. He said, "Our aged and respected friends call this a crazy venture. They say, 'Gandhiji has forgotten the April horrors and is again obsessed by the old mania. As for Shaukatali, he can only talk in the language of the sword.' I trust I shall be able to show them that neither has Gandhi forgotten last April, nor is there any eccentricity in this step he has taken. If we but wash our sins and become pure and innocent, I don't mind any number of horrors that the Government may rain upon us. But we are certain to fail completely, if we commit hooliganism. So long as we do not learn to be guiltless (begunah), we shall have to bear with, not one but hundreds of JallianWala Baghs. Even they will leave me unruffled, if wee remain begunah. For then we will assuredly be 'azad' ( free ) and keep our heads erect." Punjabis Were Cowed "I have heard praises of the Punjabis as brave and skilful warriors. But I must say that in April last, at least, they were crowed. And I have sufficient reasons to say they were. "Why, otherwise" I ask, "did you rub your nose on the ground at the Government's orders ? Why did you not refuse to crawl through that lane ?1 Who ever asked you to humiliate yourselves to such depths ? Not I at least. Why did you not prefer to embrace death rather than submit to such orders ? Why could you not say, "I am a human being, not a snake. It's not my business and I am not going to crawl like a reptile. I will walk upright and face the world like a man." That's why I say the Punjabis had become craven-hearted. But I have not come here to accuse the Punjab. The soil that has produced the Punjabis has produced me also. How can I affirm that I would not commit the same crime in the same predicament ? I only pray to God that I may be able to let my head be cut off rather than submit to such humiliation. For you also I have the same prayer to offer." Who is a True Warrior ? Gandhiji then went on to explain the importance of the first of August : "It is only by self-possession, not by anger, that we shall be able to solve to our satisfaction both these questions, the Khilafat and the Punjab. If you want victory on these two fronts you must take a vow to fight with weapons of peace. Our work will automatically collapse, if we indulge in row-dyism I appreciate only the true spirit of a warrior, and I present that true spirit to you for adoption. He is a true warrior who dies, but does not kill; who defends honour but does not rob it." Retrieve Jilani's Honour Many people say that the masses have no knowledge of the Khilafat question. This was Gandhiji's answer : "It is possible that all may not be knowing about the Khilafat question. It is the duty of the Khilafatists to rouse the people and I am sure they will do their duty. But is there a ????????????????? 1. General Dyer issued an order compelling everyone who had to cross a particular lane to crawl through it. single person who does not know of the Jallianwalla Bagh holocaust ? Is there anybody who is unaware of the to rture to which Bhai Gulam Jilani was subjected ?" ( Gandhiji here inquired if Jilani was present at the meeting, but he was told that he had left the country ). "While Jilani has done hizrat, he has left in your hands the charge of retrieving his honour. His departure tells us, as his parting message, "My honour has been tarnished by the Government. Are you not going to demand an answer for the sacrilege ?" Are we going to tolerate the excesses of Bosworth Smith, O'brien, Shreeram and Malikkhan ?1 They are still lording it over us in the Punjab as accredited officers. Shall we pocket the insult ? And if we do, will it become our manly valour ? We may be ignorant of the Khilafat question, but the Jallianwalla Bagh rankles in our breast." Snap the Ties Further on he said : "It is the duty of us, survivors, to snap all ties of mohabbat ( lit. affection, here co-operation ) with the Government. How is it possible for us to continue service in that Government under whose administration our very purushartha ( manliness ) was crushed and our religion besmeared ? How ever can we make use of their schools ? How resport to their law courts as counsels ? How resort to council-chambers ?" God the Bread-giver "To say that without that service we would starve betrays only our cowardice. It is God who gives us our daily bread, not the Government. We shall find we have no need to worry over our bread, if we but use our hands and feet. If we have an iota of love for freedom, the only course left open to us is to cut the knot of mohabbat ( attachment ) that binds us with the Government. "Were we equal to Europe in its armed might, would we have lain low as we do now ? We would then have certainly ????????????????? 1. Names specially notorious for oppression in the Punjab. drawn our sword-though on that day I myself would have gone away from India. But that strength we do not possess. There is none among us, however, who does not possess the strength to stop all talluk with the Government. Without our support the Government cannot stand for a minute. To both Hindus and Muslims I say, 'Do not aid and abet the Government in its acts of injustice; do not desecrate your religion by helping the administration.' To the Punjabis I say, 'If there is anything you must do for your brothers, for the innocent victims of tyranny, it is non-co-operation.' "Take particular care to see that the first of August is properly observed. Be patient, till that work is successfully completed. Do not degrade yourselves by violent outbursts if agents provocateur of the Government incite you. Give your head but do not lose it." Council Entry Gandhiji did not like to deal with this question in the open meeting. He thought it must be first discussed with the leaders and only the final decision be submitted to the public for consideration. He felt that a direct advice to the people from him looked like setting them up against their leaders. "I am but a traveller", he declared. "I have not come here to sow seeds of discord between you and your leaders. I will have talks with them and then depart. You may then learn from them the outcome of the talks. In the meanwhile I will be in Bombay and let you know my advice from there. If India listened to me I would allow nobody to get into the councils." Khadi : the Saviour But can there be any speech by Gandhiji where Khadi is not mentioned ? He showed what relation swadeshi bears to the Khilafat question : "If we succeed in convincing England that we can do without depending upon her or any other foreign country for our clothing needs, England will come to realize that a brave and self-respecting nation like ours has but to be treated in an equitable manner and the whole English nation will then stand by us on the Khilafat issue." Appeal for Sacrifice Winding up his speech Gandhiji said : "If Mussulmans do not now resolve to do something tangible, take it from me that this mammoth concourse becomes meaningless. The big questions that have arisen before us are not going to be solved by demonstrations. They will be solved only by solid sacrifices. I appeal to you, therefore, to remember God and in His name plunge into the good fight after dedicating your life, your property and everything you call your own." The great congregation was then over. It is from Lahore that I am writing this letter today. If now I write anything about Lahore also, the letter would grow into double its length. And there have been such memorable incidents in Lahore that, if possible, I will get them narrated from the pen of Gandhiji himself. Lahore, 19-7-'20 Punjab Letter-2 Lahore In the previous letter I gave an account of our tour till we reached Lahore. I now come to the work done there. A public meeting was arranged in the evening at 5 p. m. The people had gathered under a gigantic tent. The Lahore heat has been adverted to even in the evidence given before the Hunter Committee and has become well-known. While thousands of people already sitting inside and drenched in perspiration, were somehow managing to use their fans, there would be an inrush of fresh entrants who would make the early-comers worried about their safety and compel them to stand up. Pandemonium was bound to follow the situation. The president of the meeting, Pundit Rambhujdatta Chaudhari, as well as some others, made strenuous attempts to quiet the audience but their voices could not reach far enough as they were drowned in the loud uproar. For one full hour these attempts continued, but they failed and the meeting had to be postponed for the same night. Moonlit nights alone, it seems, provide the proper time for holding mammoth meetings in the Punjab. In view of the fact that the people had to return home disappointed at the afternoon meeting, nobody expected this night meeting to be anything but ordinary. But, to our pleasant surprise, the public, forgetting its discomfort, flocked in numbers large enough to make a vast gathering. They kept perfectly silent and listened to the lectures with rapt attention right till 1 a. m. in the early morning. But there is no need to give a gist of the speeches. Those of Dr. Kitchlew and Shukat Ali were as spirited as their Amritsar speeches and had the same message to deliver. Gandhiji made a speech even more powerful than at Amritsar, but his speech at Rawalpindi which I am going to report further on contains practically everything that he said here. A Memorable Incident But one important incident which happened at the meeting cannot be allowed to go unnoticed. Details of the firing on the muhajarins ( 'hizaratis' or emigrants ) had come from Peshawar and it was decided to pass a resolution asking the Government to issue at an early date as complete and satisfying a report as possible. Maulvi Zafaralikhan got up to propose the resolution. The Maulviji's tongue is sharp and incisive as a dagger. As he dealt with the firing which was resorted to not once, not twice, but six times on the muhajarins not only was he himself moved to his depths, but he swayed the audience also and tears streamed down the cheeks of some of them. When, moreover, the Maulviji went still deeper into the details of the ghastly tragedy and made it all the more heart-reading, Shaukatali could contain himself no longer and getting up, he checked the Maulviji, saying, "Now, please ! Cut it short. Don't sear our hearts". Rawalpindi The next day we started for Rawalpindi. Third-class passengers from Lahore to Peshawar in The North West Railway have to suffer perhaps greater hardship than others anywhere else. I have not had a personal experience, but let me narrate only two of them which any observer may easily take notice of : twenty men or even more cooped in a compartment for eight and the execrable unclealiness they were putting up with. We reached Rawalpindi the next morning. The platform was flooded with men. With great difficulty we waded our way and got out. The sun was blazing hot over their heads, but would that deter the people from giving their respected leaders the honour of a procession ? It took us nearly an hour and a half to reach our lodging from the station. Within the few hours between noon and evening hundreds of women visited Bapu. Upon them Bapu impressed the fact that Khadi was the wear par excellence of the truly noble. With the men who came?both Hindus and Muslims?Gandhiji discussed practical steps to bring about greater solidarity between the two communities. The meeting was held in the evening. The people had begun to collect since the afternoon and as the meeting was actually held an hour later than the time announced, some of them had gone away. And yet when we reached the meeting there must be at least twenty thousand men. It was no easy job to walk through the surging crowd to the dais. For a time it seemed as if we would have to disperse the meeting. But that step was out of the question here at least, since it was evening twilight already and we were scheduled to leave Rawalpindi the next day. With extreme difficulty Gandhiji succeeded in making the people quiet and when once he began his speech the people maintained pin-drop silence throughout. Freedom for India and Hinduism After stressing the point that it was a just cause the Mahommedan brothers were fighting for, Gandhiji explained in brief why Hindus ought to join them in their struggle : "If Hindus consider the seven crores of Muslims as their compatriots and realize that it is not possible, and disastrous if possible, to live side by side with the Muslims on terms of enmity, then they will at once see that it is their paramount duty to resolve to live and die with the Muslims. I am not enamoured of your cheers, nor of these monstrous demonstrations. What I want is solid and tangible action. If Hindus, forgetting their duty, abstain from offering sacrifices alongside of the Muslims, I would say to them "Don't forget that just as Islam is in danger today, Hinduism may be tomorrow. Today the Ministers of the Allied European countries think they can with impunity eradicate Islam from the soil of Europe. Tomorrow they may wish to make slaves of us, Hindus. It is but fit and proper for us that, so long as our Muslim brothers are ready to sacrifice their all in order to be loyal to their faith and their word of honour, we must stand by them. We will thereby be only serving the cause of Indian freedom." Sacrifice With The Sword Sheathed Continuing, he said that the one and only road to victory was Qurbani ( sacrifice ) and explained what the word really meant : "For the last 30 years, I know my Muslim brothers. I shower bouquets upon them for their reckless courage and heroic deeds. But I have also seen that very often they have done such deeds in a fit of anger and that when the mood subsided their strength also ebbed completely. But in this fight we have to pit cool and calculated sacrifice against the Empire's organised might and therefore to acquire all the tact and skill which the Empire possesses. The soldiers of that Empire simply forget all emotionalism and carry on their fight with perfect discipline, courage and efficiency. If you want to face them as equals you should train yourselves in their discipline, courage and efficiency. If in a gust of passion you forget to obey the orders of your commander, you can never win the fight. Quite often loss of temper only means defeat even in a just cause. God grants the reward of a just settlement to those who are endowed with skill and tact, fearlessness and capacity to do, without malice or anger, the right thing in the right way. Both Hindus and Muslims, are in strong numbers in Rawalpindi and both possess the physical might to indulge in street fights. I appeal to them both to cultivate the strength of Quarbani. Let me rpeat that this Qurbani does not mean drawing the sword. I know Mussulmans are quick at the use of steel and I say let them be so. But I must tell them that if they want even the might of the sword, they must acquire first the strength to immolate themselves. The Punjabi is at home in the use of arms, but I say, he is only a hired soldier and I can never overcome any opponent with the help of such hired soldiers. Your sword turns out to be a toy-sword in a fight with those who are better equipped and more skilful. And the moment your sword falls from your hands, you become entirely helpless. I have shown the way by which you can keep your sword sheathed and still fight successfully. But if you take up the sword, I think, you will be defeated and not only you but even your wives and children will be put to the sword. If you really want to appreciate the excellence and efficacy of adam-ta-awun ( non-co-operation ), you should accept my advice and abstain from a fight with arms. I do not lay any claim to know what the Qorane-Shareef says, but your own Ulemas ( holy men among Muslims ) have declared that adam-ta-awun is a powerful form of jehad ( holy war ). One has to die at the present crisis, whether by fighting with the sword or with adam-ta-awun. Why not then do your own Qurbani by accepting the method of adam-ta-awun which avoids killing others ? "I have heard that people are highly excited, that their blood is boiling over the tyranny inflicted on the muhajarins in Pesha-war. I think the fault never lay with our muhajarin brothers. It lay only with the English soldiers. But even under the pro-vocation of such blunders we shall have to hold patience and gulp down our rising wrath. Our success is a certainty if you resolve neither to lose courage nor temper and if, regardless of the streams of blood that may flow, you offer your own Qurbani" First August and After Dealing with their duty on the First August1, he said "Real ????????????????? 1. The date fixed for starting non-co-operation. non-co-operation lies in imbibing the simple principle : no mohabbat ( love, i. e. co-operation ) with the Government." He then said he hoped to persuade the Government servants to give up their jobs, but only after first appealing to the titleholders to renounce their titles. He went on : "If I find that these dignitaries don't have that strength, or that sincerity of purpose, I will approach even the khansamas ( butlers ) and tell them that they were abetting the tyrannical Government in its crimes if they continued to serve food to Government officers." After stating that the farmers would then be asked to refuse payment of the land revenue and finally the soldiers to refuse to serve the army, he dealt with these last phases at some length : "I am going to ask Indian soldiers to lay down their arms but not then to use their weapons on others. I will ask them to be, like myself, unarmed soldiers. My physical strength is next to nil, but I believe that no power on earth can compel me to do anything against my will. Later on, I shall ask even farmers not to pay their revenue dues, but I must emphasise the point that no soldier and no farmer should take any step without orders from their leaders. In perfect discipline lies the efficacy and excellence of our unarmed fight. I will, therefore, ask our weaponless army not to use our 'arms' except in a disciplined manner. When the right time comes you will get the orders, but so long as we do not feel that we have succeeded in winning over the whole of India to our view, we are not going to give the word to our farmers and soldiers." Don't Be Recruits Referring to the recruitment campaign by the Government even now going on in the Punjab, Gandhiji said : "Why do these people flock to recruiting centres ? For money. That money which robs you of your humanness is filthy lucre. Have you so soon forgotton the black acts of Bos-worth Smith, Johnson, Shreeram and others ? Is the fact that you had to crawl like snakes blotted out of your memory ? I appeal to you, beseech you, "Don't fall into this trap of recruitment. Earn your bread by physical labour and say pointblank to the recruiting agent, "We cannot supply you a single recruit." Just think what a tremendous impression the Punjab's 'no' in this matter will create. Which other province has provided the Government with as many soldiers as the Punjab ? And if once the Punjab shuts the door upon the campaign, who dare get recruits from other places ?" For the Honour of the Punjab "I have myself served in the Government's military force. But now the time has come for us to tell it : "A thousand times dearer to us is service under the Lord's Empire than under yours. In the Lord's Empire our religion is safe and we can follow it unhampered. Your Empire, on the other hand, stands on the foundation of injustice and is a sin against God and man. It is impossible for us to remain loyal to it." "The Punjab has been disgraced, her honour has been raped, by the Martial Law. In order to get full reparation, tell the Government to its face, "Yes, we do intend to remain your loyal subjects, but only when you behave and do justice to the Punjab. Till then our mohabbat with you is dead and we have nothing to do with you." Don't go Mad Turning to Mr. Montagu's statement in the House of Commons about himself, Gandhiji said : "Mr. Montagu has declared that Gandhi has indeed served the country in the past, but he has now gone mad and he will have to be arrested if necessary. I ask you not to go mad if Gandhi is arrested. When you found that Kitchlew was arrested and Satyapal similarly whisked away, you lost your head, burnt down buildings and assaulted, even killed, innocent per-sons. If you really love me, do not do so again. If they arrest us both ( Shaukatali and himself ), if they send us even to the gallows grin and bear it. I quite understand-and my heart fully attests it-that if I were a minister and if a Gandhi, whom I regarded --- honestly regarded --- as a mad man, stood against me, I would certainly send him to the Andamans1. If Mr. Montagu considers me a dangerous lunatic, sincerely feels that I am one, and arrests me what is there to be angry about ? If you don't think I am a mad cap, fill up the jails by doing what I ask you to. Prison is no prison but a palace and a palace is a prison in that State over which a tyrant rules. If you know this talismanic formula that transforms a prison into a palace, you must do what I say. If you believe that I am only a transmitter relaying to you the message God delivers to me, then I want you to give me an assurance that you will rather gulp down your rising blood than let it boil when I am convicted. In a voice, resonant and clear, you must at that time say to the Government : "Do your worst. Send us to jail or to the gallows but you are not going to get any help from us. That you will have only when we are in a jail or on a scaffold pillar. Forget that you can have it for your military establishment, for your legislative councils or for your civil departments." Slaves of each Other At the end of his speech Gandhiji said : "Training in this discipline requires neither physical strength, nor any special acumen, nor a body of Shaukatali's size. Only one thing is needed, viz., assimilation of forbearance. I pray to God that He may give you the light and endow you with strength, so that, forgetting all else, India may take up this work alone. Once that work is accomplished, Hindus and Muslims will become slaves of each other and, united, they will give the order to the world "Hands off this treachery, this blatant injustice." In their own trenchant style Shaukatali and Dr. Kitchlew also asked the people not to go mad. Gujarkhan and Zelum The meeting was thus over. The next morning we left Rawal-pindi for Gujarkhan and Zelum by a motor car. It was only God's ????????????????? 1. Prisoners with life sentences were transported there under the British regime. grace, if I may say so, that saved Gandhiji, Mrs. Saraladevi and Shaukatali from a terrible accident on the way. But I see that newspapers have already reported the fact. There was a small but quite enthusiastic meeting in Gujarkhan. What the people wanted most was speeches on Hindu-Muslim unity. In short speeches, lasting hardly ten minutes, both Gandhiji and Shaukatali expounded the importance of Hindu-Muslim unity. In their over-enthusiasm the people of Zelum forgot the limitations of their organising power. From there we had to take a train for Lahore and there were hardly 20 minutes for the train to start. But instead of holding a meeting the people plumped down upon the programme of taking out a procession. That took up much time and Gandhiji had at last to injure the feelings of the people and leave the procession abruptly to go to the station. The people followed him there. Gandhiji utilized the interval before the departure of the train in telling them what they ought to do on the First August. A Trying Incident Though a small incident by itself, I must find a place for it here in view of the need to let the whole country learn the important lesson it teaches. In my previous letter I have already alluded to the large crowds that collected at all the halting stations. There was the same congestion even during our return journey from Lahore. But in these parts we had the experience of a novel form of adoration-mania. Some men would not feel happy unless they thrust themselves into Gandhiji's compartment and had the thrill of travelling in his company upto the next station. The phenomenon repeated itself at every station, but at Gujranwala as many as about 8 persons rushed into his compartment. Gandhiji pleaded earnestly with them to get down but they simply turned a deaf ear to him and kept standing in the compartment as it was already full. Gandhiji then offered Satyagraha against them. He too got up and stood near the door in their company. There was no halting station for the train before two hours' run. After about half an hour it dawned on the minds of these crazy devotees that they had committed a mistake and they begged Gandhiji's pardon. Gandhiji then impressed upon them a valuable lesson. "What do you talk ? How can there be a pardon for such crass obstinacy ? When you flout my very ordinary instruction to my face, how are you going to obey the far more important ones when I send them from a place thousands of miles away ? I am keeping standing because I see in your disobedience the fact that my own tapasya ( austerity ) is still deficient. But your apology will be accepted if you promise to report this incident in your circle wherever you go and tell them all what dire results accrue from disregarding him whom you have chosen to make your commander." All of them felt grieved to the point of tears and took a vow to speak of the incident and the lesson it taught them to all they know. Gandhiji kept standing even then for the whole period of two hours, but since the Satyagraha was so spontaneous and necessary, I could not gather the courage to request him to take his seat. 1-8-'20 Death of Tilak Maharaj. Gandhiji paid a glowing tribute to him in Young India. Sri Dayalji's letter from Surat wanting to know how best to observe the mourning. Reply : "Bhaishri Dayalji, "Your letter. The idea of a three-day's hartal does not impress me at all. I can understand a day's hartal, but if we want to express our reverence in the right way, I wish we paid him our tribute through some solid work. We must try to find out the excellent traits of his nature and attempt to imbibe them. He was fond of a simple, an austere way of living. Let us take the vow of simplicity in life to keep his memory green. Let all of us renounce in his name one or more things dear to us. He loved courage. Let us try to be brave and overcome our fears of various kinds. He wanted the people to be physically strong and healthy. We all may strive to be so in his remembrance. The country was dearer to him than his very life. We too may grow ever more in our love of the motherland and give up our concern for our little self. He was a learned scholar and had an excellent command over his mother tongue and Sanskrit. We too, if we are deficient, may increase our love and knowledge of the mother tongue. We may remind ourselves of many other such excellent qualities of his head and heart and, by selecting those for which we have an aptitude and by cultivating them, make him immortal in us. Finally if a man can do nothing else, he may give whatever he can, from a paisa to a princely donation for some national work". 10-8-'20 After several years and a strenuous search for it Bapu got Kallenbach's1 address. Letter to him : *'My dear Lower House, "After how long a time have I the good fortune to write to you. After the greatest search I have now got your address. Never has a day passed but I have thought of you. The first information imparted to me about you was by a lady in Johannes-burg. Miss Winterbottom and Polak could tell me nothing. P. K. Naidu could tell me nothing. Dr. Mehta sent me a cable to give me your address. I have also a letter from Jamnadas whom I have asked to see you in Berlin, if you could at all be seen. Jamnadas tells me either he or Dr. Mehta will try to see you. How I wish I could go over to see you and hug you ! For me you have risen from the dead. I had taken it for granted that you were dead. I could not believe that you would keep me without a letter for so long. The alternative was that you had written but your letters were not delivered to me at all. I wrote to your camp and there was no reply. I still think that you have written, but your letters were not delivered to me at all. I wrote cabling to Dr. Mehta to see you. What shall I say of me ? I shall forbear for the time being. Devdas is with me, ever growing in every way and every direction. I am just now travelling with Devdas and another faithful companion on whom I know you ????????????????? 1. Gandhiji's German colleague in South Africa. would dote. I have come in closest touch with a lady who often travels with me. Our relationship is indefinable. I want you to see her. It was under her roof that I passed several months at Lahore and the Punjab. Mrs. Gandhi is at the Ashram. She has aged considerably but she is as brave as ever. She is the same woman as you know her, with all her former faults and virtues. Manilal and Ramdas are in Phoenix looking after Indian Opinion. Harilal is in Calcutta doing his business. He has lost his wife and Mrs. Gandhi is looking after his children. Chhaganlal and Maganlal are with me in the Ashram. Medh and Pragji are in India. Pragji remains in touch with me, not Medh so much. Maganbhai is not with me. You now know something about most members of the family that you know. Oh, I must not omit Imam Sahib. He and his wife are with me. His loyalty is wonderful. I gave away Fatima in marriage the other day. And this has made him happy. Andrews I see often. He lives in Bengal. Anandlal too is with me. I am editing two Weeklies. Both are doing well. I am engaged in a fierce struggle with the Government. No one can foretell the issue. "And now I shall stop. I was two years ago in death's grip. If you are free I want you to resume correspondence. My life is simpler than ever. My food is not fruit and nuts. I am living on goat's milk and bread and raisins. I am under a vow not to take more than five things in all during the whole day. Cow's milk I would not take because of the vows I took in London. Salt I do not abjure because I find that we take inorganic salt in water and inhale it from the sea-air. "With love and expectation of seeing your own handwriting soon. "Yours ever Upper House." 10-8-'20 to 23-8-'20 Tour through the Madras Presidency?Itinerary : 10 August Left Bombay 12-13 ,, Madras 14. August Ambur and Vellore 15. " Madras 16. " Tanjore and Nagore 17. " Trichinopoly 18. " Calicut 19. " Mangalore 20. " Salem 21. " Salem and Bangalore 22. " Madras 23. " Bezwada. Speech delivered in English at the Madras Beach before a vast gathering of thirty-forty thousands : Need for non-co-operation *"What is this non-co-operation about which you have heard so much, and why do we want to offer this non-co-operation ? I wish to go for the time being into the why. At present there are two things before this country. The first and the foremost is the Khilafat question. On this the heart of the Mussulmans of India has become lacerated. British pledges, given after the greatest deliberation by the Prime Minister of England in the name of the English nation, have been dragged into the mire. The promises given to Moslem India, on the strength of which the consideration that was accepted by the British nation was exacted, have been broken and the great religion of Islam has been placed in danger. The Mussulmans hold-and I venture to think they rightly hold-that as long as British promises remain unfulfilled, so long it is impossible for them to render whole-hearted fealty and loyalty to the British connection; and if it is to be a choice for a devout Mussulman between loyalty to the British connection and loyalty to his Code and Prophet, he will not require a second to make his choice and he has declared his choice. The Mussulmans say frankly, openly and honourably to the whole world that if the British ministers and the British nation do not fulfil the pledges given to them and do not wish to regard with respect the sentiments of 70 millions of the inhabitants of India who profess the faith of Islam, it will be impossible for them to retain Islamic loyalty. It is a question, then, for the rest of the Indian population to consider whether they want to perform a neithbourly duty by their Mussulman countrymen; and if they do, they have an opportunity of a lifetime, which will not occur for another hundred years, to show their goodwill, fellowship and friendship and to prove what they have been saying for all these long years that the Mussulman is the brother of the Hindu. If the Hindu regards that before the connection with the British nation comes his natural connection with his Moslem brother, then I say to you that if you find that the Moslem claim is just, that it is based upon real sentiment, and that at its background is this great religious feeling, you cannot do otherwise than help the Mussulmans through and through so long as their cause remains just and the means for attaining the end remains equally just, honourable and free from harm to India. These are the plain conditions which the Indian Mussulmans have accepted and it was when they saw that they could accept the preferred aid of the Hindus, they could always justify the cause and the means before the whole world, that they decided to accept the proferred hand of fellowship. It is then for Hindus and Mussalmans to offer a united front to the whole of the Christian powers of Europe and tell them that weak as India is, she has still got the capacity of preserving her self-respect, she still knows how to die for her self-respect. That is the Khilafat in a nutshell; but you have also got the Punjab. The Punjab has wounded the heart of India as no other question has for the past century. I do not exclude from my calculation the Mutiny of 1857. Whatever hardships India had to suffer during the Mutiny, the insult that was attempted to be offered to her during the passage of the Rowlatt legislation, and that which was offered after its passage, were unparalleled in Indian History. It is because you want justice from the British nation in connection with the Punjab atrocities, you have to devise ways and means as to how you can get this justice. The House of Commons, the House of Lords, Mr. Montagu, the Viceroy of India, everyone of them knows what the feeling of India is on this Khilafat question and on that of the Punjab; the debates in both the Houses of Parliament, the action of Mr. Montagu and that of the Viceroy have demonstrated to you completely that they are not willing to give the justice which is India's due and which she demands. I suggest that our leaders have got to find a way out of this great difficulty and unless we have made ourselves even with the British rulers in India, and unless we have gained a measure of self-respect at the hands of the British rulers in India, no connection and no friendly intercourse is possible between them and ourselves. I, therefore, venture to suggest beautiful unanswerable method of non-co-operation. Is It Unconstitutional ? I have been told that non-co-operation is unconstitutional. I venture to deny that it is unconstitutional. On the contrary, I hold that non-co-operation is a just and religious doctrine; it is the inherent right of every human being and it is perfectly constitutional. A great lover of the British Empire has said that under the British Constitution, even a successful rebellion is perfectly constitutional and in support of his claim he quotes historical instances which I cannot deny. I do not claim any constitutionality for a rebellion successful or otherwise so long as that rebellion means in the ordinary sense of the term what it does mean, namely, wresting justice by violent means. On the contrary, I have said it repeatedly to my countrymen that violence, whatever end it may serve in Europe, will never serve us in India. My brother and friend Shaukat Ali believes in methods of violence; and if it was in his power to draw the sword against the British Empire, I know that he has got the courage of a man and he has got also the wisdom to see that he should offer that battle to the British Empire. But because he recognizes as a true soldier that means of violence are not open to India, he sides with me accepting my humble assistance and pledges his word that so long as I am with him and so long as he believes in the doctrine so long will he not harbour even the idea of violence against any single Englishman or any single man on earth. I am here to tell you that he has been as true as his word and has kept it religiously. I am here to bear witness that he has been following out this plan of nonviolent non-co-operation to the very letter and I am asking India to follow this non-violent non-co-operation. I tell you that there is not a better soldier living in our ranks in British India than Shaukat Ali. When the time for the drawing of the sword comes, if it ever comes, you will find him drawing that sword and you will find me retiring to the jungles of Hindustan. As soon as India accepts the doctrine of the sword, my life as an Indian is finished. It is because I believe in a mission special to India, and it is because I believe that the ancients of India, after centuries of experience, have found out that the true thing for any human being on earth is not justice based on violence, but justice based on sacrifice of self, justice based on yajna1 and Qurbani2-I cling to that doctrine and I shall cling to it for ever-it is for that reason I tell you that whilst my friend believes also in the doctrine of violence and has adopted the doctrine of non-violence as a weapon of the weak, I believe in the doctrine of non-violence as weapon of the strongest. I believe that a man who dares to die unarmed with his breast bare before the enemy is the strongest soldier. So much for the non-violent part of non-co-operation. I, therefore, venture to suggest to my learned countrymen that so long as the doctrine of non-co-operation remains non-violent there is nothing unconstitutional in the doctrine. I ask further is it unconstitutional for me to say to the British Government, "I refuse to serve you ?" Is it unconstitutional for our worthy chairman to return, with every respect, all ?????????????? 1-2. Sacrifice. the titles that he has held from the Government ? Is it unconstitutional for any parent to withdraw his children from a Government or aided school ? Is it unconstitutional for a lawyer to say, "I shall no longer support the arm of the law so long as that arm of law is used not to raise me but to debase me ?" Is it unconstitutional for a civil servant or for a judge to say, "I refuse to serve a Government which does not wish to respect the wishes of the whole people ?" I ask, is it unconstitutional for a policeman or for a soldier to tender his resignation when he knows that he is called to serve a Government which traduces its own countrymen ? Is it unconstitutional for me to go to the "krishak", to the agriculturist, and say to him, "It is not wise for you to pay any taxes, if these taxes are used by the Government not to raise you but to weaken you ?" I hold and I venture to submit that there is nothing unconstitutional in it. What is more, I have done everyone of these things in my life and nobody has questioned the constitutional character of it. I was in Kaira working in the midst of seven lakhs of agriculturists. They had all suspended the payment of taxes and the whole of India was at one with me. Nobody considered that it was unconstitutional. I submit that in the whole plan of non-co-operation there is nothing unconstitutional. But I do venture to suggest that it will be highly unconstitutional in the midst of this unconsti-tutional Government-in the midst of a nation which has built up its magnificent constitution-for the people of India to be-come weak and to crawl on their belly-it will be highly un-constitutional for the people of India to pocket every insult that is hurled upon them; it is highly unconstitutional for the 70 millions of Mohammedans of India to submit to a violent wrong done to their religion; it is highly unconstitutional for the whole of India to sit still and co-operate with an unjust Government which has trodden under its feet the honour of the Punjab; I say to my countrymen : "So long as you have a sense of honour and so long as you wish to remain the descendants and defenders of the noble tradition that have been handed to you for generations after generations, it is unconstitutional for you not to non-co-operate with a Government which has become so unjust as our Government has become. I am non anti-English; I am not anti-British; I am not anti-any government; but I am anti-untruth, anti-humbug and anti-injustice. So long as the Government spells injustice, it may regard me as its enemy, implacable enemy. I had hoped at the Congress at Amritsar-I am speaking God's truth before you-when I pleaded on knees before some of you for co-operation with the Government, I had full hope that the British ministers, who are wise as a rule, would placate the Mussulman sentiment, that they would do full justice in the matter of the Punjab atrocities, and, therefore, I said : Let us return goodwill to the hand of fellowship that has been extended to us, which, I then believed, was extended to us through the Royal Proclamation. It was on that account that I pleaded for co-operation. But today that faith having gone and ( been ) obliterated by the acts of the British Ministers, I am here to plead not for futile obstruction in the legislative council but for real, substantial non-co-operation which would paralyse the mightiest government on earth. That is what I stand for today. Until we have wrung justice and until we have wrung our self-respect from unwilling hands and from unwilling pens, there can be no co-operation. Our Shastras say and I too say with the greatest deference to all the greatest religious preceptors of India but without fear of contradiction that our Shastras teach us that there shall be no co-operation between injustice and justice, between an unjust man and a justice-loving man, between truth and untruth. Co-operation is a duty only so long as Government protects your honour, and non-co-operation is an equal duty when the Government, instead of protecting robs you of your honour. That is the doctrine of non-co-operation. Non-co-operation and the Special Congress I have been told that I should have waited for the declaration of the special Congress which is the mouthpiece of the whole nation. I know that it is the mouthpiece of the whole nation. If it was for me, individual Gandhi, to wait, I would have waited for eternity. But I had in my hands a sacred trust. I was advising my Mussulman countrymen and for the time being I hold their honour in my hands. I dare not ask them to wait for any verdict but the verdict of their own conscience. Do you suppose that Mussulmans can eat their own words, can withdraw from the honourable position they have taken up ? If perchance-and God forbid that it should happen-the special Congress decides against them, I would still advise my countrymen, the Mussulmans, to stand single-handed and fight rather than yield to the attempted dishonour to their religion. It is, therefore, given to the Mussulmans to go to the Congress on bended knees and plead for support; but support or no support, it was not possible for them to wait for the Congress to give them the lead. They had to choose between futile violence, drawing of the naked sword and peaceful non-violent but effective non-co-operation, and they have made their choice. I venture further to say to you that if there is any body of men who feel, as I do, the sacred character of non-co-operation, it is for them and me not to wait for the Congress but to act and to make it impossible for the Congress to give any other verdict. After all what is the Congress ? The Congress is the collected voice of individuals who form it, and if the individuals go to the Congress with a united voice, that will be the verdict you will gain from the Congress. But if we go to the Congress with no opinion because we have none or because we are afraid to express it, then naturally we await the verdict of the Congress. To those who are unable to make up their mind, I say, by all means wait. But for those who have seen the clear light as they see the lights in front of them, for them to wait is a sin. The Congress does not expect you to wait but it expects you to act, so that the Congress can gauge properly the national feeling. So much for the Congress. Boycott of Councils Among the details of non-co-operation I have placed in the foremost rank the boycott of Councils. Friends have quarrelled with me for the use of the word 'boycott', because I have disapproved-as I disapprove even now-boycott of British goods or any goods for that matter. But there boycott has its own meaning and here boycott has a different meaning. I not only do not disapprove but approve of the boycott of the Councils that are going to be formed next year. And why do I do it ? The people-the masses -require from us, the leaders, a clear lead. They do not want any equivocation from us. The suggestion that we should seek election and then refuse to take the oath of allegiance would only make the nation distrust the leaders. It is not a clear lead to the nation. So I say to you, my countrymen, not to fall into this trap. We shall sell our country by adopting the methods of seeking election and then not taking the oath of allegiance. We may find it difficult and I frankly confess to you that I have not that trust in so many Indians making that declaration and standing by it. Today I suggest to those who honestly hold the view, viz., that we should seek election and then refuse to take the oath of allegiance-I suggest to them that they will fall into a trap which they are preparing for themselves and for the nation. That is my view. I hold that if we want to give the nation the clearest possible lead and if we want not to ply with this great nation, we must make it clear to this nation that we cannot take any favours, no matter how great they may be, so long as those favours are accompanied by an injustice, a double wrong done to India not yet redressed. The first indispensable thing before we can receive any favours from them is that they should redress this double wrong. There is a Greek proverb which used to say : "Beware of the Greeks but especially beware of them when they bring gifts to you". Today from those ministers who are bent upon perpetuating the wrong to Islam and to the Punjab, I say we cannot accept gifts but we should be doubly careful lest we fall into the trap that they may have devised. I, therefore, suggest that we must not coquet with the Councils and must not have anything whatsoever to do with them. I am told that if we, who represent the national sentiment, do not seek election, the moderates who do not represent that sentiment will. I do not agree. I do not know what the Moderates represent and I do not know what the Nationalists represent. I know that there are good sheep and black sheep among the Moderates. I know that there are good sheep and black sheep amongst the Nationalists. I know that many Moderates hold honestly the view that it is a sin to resort to non-co-operation. I respectfully agree to differ from them. I do say to them also that they will fall into a trap which they will have devised if they seek election. But that does not affect my situation. If I feel in my heart of hearts that I ought not to go the Councils, I ought at least to abide by this decision and it does not matter if ninety-nine other countrymen seek election. That is the only way in which public work can be done and public opinion can be built. That is the only way in which reforms can be achieved and religion can be conserved. If it is a question of religious honour, whether I am one or among many, I must stand by my doctrine. Even if I should die in the attempt, it is worth dying for and it is better than that I should live and deny my own doctrine. I suggest that it will be wrong on the part of anyone to seek election to these Councils. If once we feel that we cannot co-operate with this Government, we have to commence from the top. We are the natural leaders of the people and we have acquired the right and the power to go to the nation and advise it to non-co-operate with the government. I, therefore, do suggest that it is inconsistent with non-co-operation to seek election to the Councils on any terms whatsoever. Lawyers and Non-co-operation I have suggested another difficult matter, viz., that the law-yers should suspend their practice. How could I do otherwise knowing so well how the Government had always been able to retain its power through the instrumentality of lawyers ? It is perfectly true that it is mostly the lawyers of today who are leading us, who are fighting the country's battles but when it comes to a matter of paralysing the activity of the Government, I know that the Government always looks to the lawyers, however fine fighters they may have been, to preserve its dignity and its self-respect. I, therefore, suggest to my lawyer friends that it is their duty to suspend their practice and to show to the Government that they will no longer retain these offices, because lawyers are considered to be honorary officers of the courts and, therefore, subject to their disciplinary jurisdiction. They must no longer retain these honorary offices if they want to withdraw co-operation from Government. But what will happen to law and order ? We shall evolve law and order through the instrumentality of these very lawyers. We shall promote arbitration courts and dispense justice, pure, simple, home-made justice, swadeshi justice to our countrymen. That is what suspension of practice by lawyers means. Parents and Non-co-operation I have suggested yet another measure-to withdraw our children from the Government schools and to ask collegiate students to withdraw from the college and to empty Government-aided schools. How could I do otherwise ? I want to gauge the national sentiment. I want to know whether the Mohammedans feel deeply. If they feel deeply, they will understand in the twinkling of an eye that it is not right for them to receive schooling from a Government in which they have lost all faith; and which they do not trust at all. How can I, if I do not want to help this Government, receive any help from that Government ? I think that the schools and colleges are mere factories for making clerks and Government servants. I would not help this great factory for manufacturing clerks and servants if I want to withdraw co-operation from that Government. Look at it from any point of view you like. It is not possible for you to send your children to the schools and still believe in the doctrine of non-co-operation. The Duty of Title-holders I have gone further. I have suggested that our title-holders should give up their titles. How can they hold on to the titles and honours bestowed by this Government ? They were at one time badges of honour when we believed that national honour was safe in their hands. But now they are no longer badges of honour but badges of dishonour and disgrace when we really believe that we cannot get justice from this Government. Every title-holder holds his title and honours as trustee for the nation and in this first step, in the withdrawal of co-operation from the Government, he should surrender his titles without a moment's consideration. I suggest to my Mohammedan countrymen that, if they fail in this primary duty, they will certainly fail in non-co-operation, unless the masses themselves reject the classes and take up non-co-operation in their own hands and are able to fight that battle even as the men of the French Revolution were able to take the reins of Government in their own hands leaving aside the leaders and marched to the banner of victory. I want no revolution. I want ordered progress. I want no disordered order. I want no chaos. I want real order to be evolved out of this chaos which is mis-represented to me as order. If it is order established by a tyrant in order to get hold of the tyrannical reins of Government, I say that it is no order to get hold for me but it is disorder. I want to evolve justice out of this injustice. Therefore, I suggest to you the passive no-co-operation. If we would only realize the secret of this peaceful and infallible doctrine, you will know and you will find that you will not want to utter even an angry word when they brandish the sword at you, you will not want even to lift your little finger, let alone a stick or a sword. A Service to the Empire You may consider that I have spoken these words in anger because I consider the ways of this Government immoral, unjust, debasing and untruthful. I use these adjectives with the greatest deliberation. I have used them for my own true brother with whom I was engaged in a battle of non-co-operation for full 13 years and although the ashes now cover the remains of my brother, I can let you know that I used to tell him that he was unjust and his plans were based upon immoral foundation. I used to tell him that he did not stand for truth. There was no anger in me. I told him this home truth because I loved him. In the same manner I tell the British people that I love them and that I want their association but I want that association on conditions well defined. I want my self-respect and I want my absolute equality from them. If I cannot gain that equality from the British people, I do not want the British connection. If I have to let the British people go and face temporary disorder and dislocation of national business, I will rather favour that disorder and dislocation than that I should have injustice from the hands of a great nation such as the British nation. You will find that by the time the whole chapter is closed, the successors of Mr. Montagu will give me the credit for having rendered the most distinguished service that I have yet rendered to the Empire, in having offered this non-co-operation and in having suggested the boycott, not of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, but boycott of a visit engineered by the Government in order to tighten its hold on the national neck. I will not allow it even if I stand alone, if I cannot persuade this nation not to welcome that visit, but will boycott that visit with all the power at my command. It is for that reason I stand before you and implore you to offer this religious battle. It is not a battle offered to you by a visionary or a saint, I deny being a visionary. I do not accept the claim of saintliness either. I am of the earth, an earthly creature, a simple and common cultivator as much as anyone of you, probably much more than you are. I am prone to as many weaknesses as you are. But I have seen the world. I have lived in the world with my eyes open. I have gone through the most fiery ordeals that have fallen to the lot of man. I have gone through this discipline. I have understood the secret of my own sacred Hinduism. I have learnt the lesson that non-cooperation is the duty not merely of the saint but it is the duty of every ordinary citizen who, not knowing much, not caring to know much, wants to perform his ordinary household functions. Europe today is teaching even the masses, the poor people, the doctrine of the sword But the rishis of India, those who have held the traditions of India, have preached to the masses of India the doctrine, not of the sword, not of violence but of suffering, of self-sacrifice. And unless you and I are prepared to go through this primary lesson, I am sure the time is far away when we can be ready even to offer the sword and that is the lesson my brother Shaukat Ali has imbibed and that is why he today accepts my advice tendeded to him in all prayerfulness and in all humility and says: "Long live non-co-operation." Please remember that even in England the little children were withdrawn from the schools; and colleges in Cambridge and Oxford were closed. Lawyers had left their desks and were fighting in the trenches. I do not ask you to fight in the trenches but I do ask you to go through the sacrifices that men, women and the brave lads of England went through. Remember that you are offering battle to a nation which is saturated with the spirit of sacrifice and does not hesitate to go through the ordeal whenever the occasion arises. Remember also that the little band of Boers offered stubborn resistance to this mighty nation. But their lawyers had left their desks. Their mothers had withdrawn from the schools and colleges their children who then became volunteers of the nation. I have seen them with these naked eyes of mine. I am asking my countrymen in India to follow no other gospel than the gospel of self-sacrifice which precedes every battle. Whether you belong to the schools of violence or of non-violence, you will still have to go through the fire of sacrifice and of discipline. May God grant you, may God grant our leaders the wisdom, the courage and the true knowledge to lead the nation to its cherished goal! May God lead the people of India to the right path and may he give them the true vision and the ability and courage to follow this path, difficult and yet easy, of sacrifice." A Model Address Gandhiji and Shaukat Ali have been given addresses of welcome at many places, but the one which may be said to have delighted Gandhiji most was that given at Kasaragode station between Calicut and Mangalore on the Malabar coast. I give below a substance of the address : "Dear and revered brothers, "We, the people of Kasaragode Taluka, extend a hearty welcome to you both on your first stepping into our district. It is a matter of great joy and honour to us that in the midst of your various pressing activities, you have found time to visit our Kanada Province which lies in a corner of India. And for that honour we express our heartfelt thanks. "Revered brothers ! Like a child that rushes to its mother when something distressing happens to it, India, aggrieved and dishonoured India looks up to you for help and guidance at this crisis. We have no doubt that, with the spiritual weapons of swadeshi and non-co-operation, we will prove our manliness and make the British Empire accept for us the status of equal partnership in it. Dear brothers ! We see in you the resurgence of the indomitable enthusiasm and soul-force of our ancient rishis and our one and only hope lies in political ascetics like you who sacrifice themselves for the sacred and noble cause of our country. If we cannot rise equal to the occasion, it will not be due to want of effort, but due to want of ability. We however, assure you in all humility that we hope to walk along your path as far as we can and that we give our full support and sincere sympathy for the struggle you have made your own. "In your intimate brotherliness we see an ideal and living example of Hindu-Muslim unity and the sight fills us with joy and enthusiasm. We envisage in that fraternity the hope of a glorious future for our land. "Finally, we hope and pray that you may live among us for many long years to come, so that your noble efforts for the resuscitation of the old glory and prosperity of Bharat may end in success." In his speech at Mangalore Gandhiji gave free vent to the warm response of his heart to this address : *"Through our tour we have received many addresses, but in my humble opinion no address was more truly worded than the address that was presented to us ar Kasargode. It addressed both of us as "dear revered brothers". I am unable to accept the second adjective "revered". The word "dear" is dear to me I must confess. But dearer than that is the expression "brothers". The signatories to that address recognized the true significance of this travel. No blood-brothers can possibly be more intimately related, can possibly be more united in one purpose, one aim, than my brother Shaukat Ali and I. And I considered it a proud privilege and honour to be addressed as blood-brother to Shaukat Ali. The contents of that address were as equally significant. It stated that in our united work was represented the essence of the unity between the Mussulmans and Hindus in India. If we two cannot represent that very desirable unity, if we two cannot cement the relation between the two communities, I do not know who can. Then without any rhetoric and without any flowery language it described the spiritual significance of Satyagraha and non-co-operation. This was followed by a frank and simple promise. Although the signatories t the address realized the momentous nature of the struggle on which we have embarked, and although they sympathize with the struggle whole heartedly, they wound up by saying that even if they could not follow non-co-operation in all its details, they would do as much as they could to help the struggle. And lastly, in eloquent, and true language, they said, "If we cannot rise equal to the occasion it will not be due to want of effort but due to want of ability". I can desire no better address, no better promise, and if you, the citizens of Mangalore, can come up to the level of the signatories of that address and give us just the assurance that you consider the struggle to be right and that it commands your entire approval, I am certain you will make all sacrifice that lies in your power." It need not be re-stated that it was the honest truth expressed in that address which endeared itself to Gandhiji's heart so much. If we understand what ' Ô㦾ãâ, ãäÍãÌãâ ÔãìâªÀ½ãá1really means, we shall be able to attain our goal quickly. Questions and Answers As in the Punjab, in the Madras Presidency also Gandhiji calls at every place he visits private meetings of local leaders and workers. Questions on the practical application of non-co-operation are answered in these private conferences, while the principle of non-co-operation is expounded in his speeches before large public meetings. As the questions put in the private meeting at Mangalore were the same as those asked everywhere else, I think it desirable to give the substances of the discussion held there in the form of questions and answers. Most of the arguments advanced here have already been given in other places but the need to reproduce them in a succinct form is clear enough : N. C. O. against Indian Government ? Q. This fight has been raised against the Indian Government. What crime has it committed ? It is, poor thing, only a firm of agents that acts according to the orders of the British Government. A. The crime the Indian Government has committed is grave enough. That Government has often given us promises for a satisfactory solution of the Khilafat question. Publicly as well as privately in my very presence, not one but many officials at the top have declared that they have great sympathy for the sentiments and demands of the Mussulmans. But that sympathy has proved itself barren. The arch-culprit may not be the Indian Government but it is certain that it is an accessory that has aided and abetted the offence, after once it began. It is the clear duty of the Indian Government that it must put itself in the position of the Muslims and express its sympathy in deeds, not words. The Viceroy and all his colleagues could have tendered their resignations en masse. Have they done it ? ??????????????? 1. "The True, the Good, the Beautiful." You consider the Viceroy as but a servant, an agent. Even as such, he has no right to align himself with his superior in the commission of a crime. He knows, besides, that his boss has committed it. He also knows that that crime has raised a commotion in the country he governs. Why does he deliberately whitewash the crime ? Every Viceroy sent to govern India must know the prevailing Indian public feeling and must insist that that feeling is honoured. If he does not do so, he must quietly put up with the public opposition. But instead of doing either, the Viceroy and his government have tried to give us a sugar-coated poison pill. "You will get such magnificent legislative councils ! And as many as three Indians will be given seats in my Executive Council !" the Viceroy declares. But all that is a mere bait like that coating of sugar. Below the coat is poison of the deadliest strength. I ask, has he given up his stinging phrases ? Do you find any sincere desire in him to give us justice ? Has a single government officer denied the fact that the Muslim feeling has received a rude shock ? And yet what has been done about this running wound ? This reminds me of the situation at the end of the Boer war. Negotiations were afoot about the form of government the Boers were to be given. "Only this much could be granted but nothing more"?objections like these began to be raised. It was then that Lord Morley put the straight question : "You don't want, I suppose, to egg us on to a fresh war with South Africa ?" The Viceroy also can, in no uncertain terms say to the British Government : "You don't want I suppose to declare a war against India ?" The Indian Government does not deny that, as our representative, it behoves it to place India public view before the British Cabinet. Its responsibility in this matter is, therefore, clear. I have no doubt that Indian possesses the power to open the eyes of the Indian Government. It may be that India is not conscious of its strength just at present, but it is only a question of some time. The moment India is aware, she will prove how powerful she is. Non-cooperation and Sultan of Turkey Q. The Sultan has already signed the Peace Treaty. What's the good of all this furore now ? A. You may be remembering the promise Lloyd George gave in 1918. He had clearly stated : "it is not our object to wrest from the Turkish Empire those world-famous fertile provinces of Thrace and Asia Minor. This war is not being waged for that object, nor is it being waged for confiscating Kustuntunia ( Constantinople )." During the discussion held in the House of Commons at that time he had further clarified his solemn declaration : "This promise is not given for the sake of Turkey or its Sultan. It is given in order to win over the Hindus and Muslims of India. We are facing a critical situation today and nothing can be achieved without the Indian army. That army cannot be drawn out to fight Turkey without placating Indian Mohammedans and that is why the promise has been given." It was on the strength of this promise that large masses of people joined the army. The fact, therefore, that the Sultan of Turkey has signed the agreement is as valueless as a straw. It is the Mussulmans' complaint that the agreement made with them before taking their aid has been broken after they gave the aid. And I do not wish to enter deeply into a matter of their religion, but let me state in brief that no Sultan dare make any terms of peace that go against Islam. The Sultan has no right to sign away a property that does not belong to him and if he does so, the Mussulmans can chuck him out. Let the Sultan be prepared to become the nominal ruler of Kustuntunia if he likes but Islam is not as concerned with Kustuntunia as with Jazirat-ul-Arab. This fight is thus for the honour, for the prestige of Islam. Unrest in the Muslim World Q. Do not the Mussulmans of other countries feel as keenly as Indian Muslims ? Or is it that only the Indian Muslims have taken the monopoly of raising a hue and cry over this matter ? A. If others sell their honour, should we also do the same ? But the real situation is different. At other places also the flame of opposition is raging, but who lets us know the real facts ? It is all precensored information that we get. But even from the news that trickles down to us, political experts have sensed that a veritable conflagration is raging in Central Asia. May be, the Mussulmans of other countries are not as well-organised as those in India and so we do not know all that happens there. But the fact that Muslims in India are so well-organised redounds to their credit. It is also possible that there are pockets where people are not fully conscious about the Khilafat question and are, therefore, in a state of ignorant complacence. But we have to carry the torch of knowledge to these dark pockets. How N. C. O. Affects Government Q. All right. But how can this question be solved by Non-co-operation ? A. The answer is clear. Non-co-operation will completely paralyse the administration and that will bring the Government to its senses. Why cannot alterations be made in the terms of the Peace Treaty ? And if the Viceroy and his Council find that they cannot get then ecessary alterations made, they ought to leave India. It is by the power of this innocent weapon that we can create a situation that requires them to go away, and the moment the perpetrators of that crime depart from here, our object is served. Mussulmans will then have no quarrel with them. The N. C. O. Its Possibility and Feasibility Q. So, Non-co-operation seems to you the one and only remedy and an unfailing remedy at that ? But we have our doubts. We think it neither possible nor practical. A. Were there a method that could bring quicker results, do you think we wouldn't have adopted it ? Non-co-operation is both immediately applicable and practical. As to its use by an individual it is an irresistible missile. Every common individual can discharge his duty thereby and feel satisfied. In the very performance of his duty lie his joy and satisfaction. If a number of men perform their duty as individuals, the same remedy can prove itself perfectly practical for the whole society. Speaking individually, I will give the nearest instances, i. e., of both of us. Our hearts are so sensitive that they cannot but register by the slightest ruffle outside of us, and still we move about as free as monarchs of all we survey. What's the reason ? Consciousness of having done our duty. That same freedom is within the reach of every individual through non-co-operation. Compare with this the method of the sword. That method is possible but not practicable. Shaukat Ali himself is a living example that proves its impracticability. He, for one, is a well-trained gymnast, and an excellent athlete as well. It's a child's play for him to knock down a host of us. But he understand that, single handed, he cannot take up the sword and plunge in an armed struggle and that if he does, it would be of no avail. On the other hand, in non-co-operation the whole country can join him and there can be in it even heroes who fight single battles. The feasibility of this remedy will grow more and more with the growth of public consciousness. N. C. O. and Constitutional Remedy Q. Have you lost all your faith in constitutional methods ? A. No, certainly not. But this is the apex of all constitutional methods. My faith in all constitutional methods other than this has indeed evaporated. I have not revealed to you nor to the public all the numerous constitutional methods I had tried. I left no stone unturned in that matter. Hardly does anybody know that in pursuance of the mandate given to me by the Muslim brothers to confer with Mr. Montagu, I had asked for permission and support for my deputation from the Indian Government. They had been good enough to reply that they would not obstruct my departure in any way but that they would not lend me their support also. I then wired to Mr. Montagu who declared with brutal frankness; the terms of the Peace Treaty are as unchangeable as the writing of the moving finger of destiny which cannot be lured back to cancel a word of it. So don't think of coming here if you want to modify the terms. But you can come if you wish to discuss questions arising out of the Treaty and those others which affect India's interest. All my other constitutional efforts came to an end after this answer. Diplomacy is bred in the very bone of our family-line, and yet all the skill of an ace of diplomats like myself fell flat in this matter. Don't for a moment believe that I underrate any constitutional method. I give full value to the intense agitation for Swaraj that we have been carrying out. It is impossible for me to forget the Herculean efforts which the late Lokmanya Tilak had put in. But if I give up that orthodox method and adopt this reformed one of non-co-operation, why should others feel uneasy and doubtful about it ? N. C. O. and Anarchy Q. Will not the policy of non-co-operation be the mother of anarchy ? A. In the very patience, quietude and sagacity with which we are handling the movement lies the guarantee that no such untoward result will accrue. Don't you see Maulana Shau-kata Ali ? With what a cool temper he leads the movement ? Were he following the method his heart loves, he would have conducted himself as a reckless dare-devil today. But he un-derstands the situation and that is why he moves about with such a cool head. He knows that this non-violent non-co-ope-ration must not be allowed to lapse into violence or anarchy. You wonder who would protect the public if the policemen resigned. But those policemen who leave their official work are not going to sit idle. They will transform themselves into our real protectors. And even if they don't, will not ordinary men from among us come forward to do the police work according to the saying "Crisis creates heroes" ? Do you know what happened last year in Amritsar and Lahore when the police were withdrawn for three days ? And Amritsar is the very home of thieves and dacoits. Life and property are not safe there. And yet, during these three days there was not a single case of theft or dacoity. Unarmed volunteers kept guard day and night and protected the life and proper ties of the people. N. C. O. and National Unity Q. We are so disunited! Hew is non-co-operation possible for us ? A. Non-co-operation itself is the most effective unifying force. The heterogeneous elements of our society will be welded into one whole by non-co-operation. Undoubtedly, much work has yet to be done in the direction. But who can gauge the rate of our progress ? I am born optimist. And so is Shaukat Ali. You may laugh at it, but I am speaking the truth when I say that men devoted to their religion are very optimistic. So for me there is no doubt that our unity will be cemented at a very rapid pace. Even volcanoes that erupt suddenly do not do so in an erratic, self-willed manner. Everyone of them bursts out in obedience to a law. Similarly the ( political ) volcano that has become so active in India today has done so under the impulsion of a Law and that will unite us. Renunciation of Titles Q. You have suggested the renunciation of titles as the first step. But how many of them have been given up in fact ? Does not the whole thing end in smoke unless a really significant number of titles is returned ? A. I want to impress upon you the fact that if even a single title is renounced, it has a value. The moment a single brick in a wall of his house falls down, a wise owner beings to feel anxious. I the same way, as titles fall off, a very alert political power that the British are, will see in the act the falling off of bricks from their political edifice. I admit that stray cases of renunciation of titles will not carry much weight with the Government. But it is the individual title-holder who has been kept in mind in advising this step. It provides him mental satisfaction for having done his duty at this critical hour. Can Resignations Help ? Q. You ask the people to give up their jobs under the Government. But will not other Hindus and Muslims step into the vacancies created by the resignations of the present Hindu and Muslim holders ? A. Quite possibly. But we are not the watchdogs of other people's morality or conscience. It would hurt me deeply if others step in, but I don't think it possible. Cannot our in- tense religious feeling rouse the public conscience so much that these others may themselves feel ashamed to fill up the vacancies ? Boycott of Schools and Self-help Q. You ask students to vacate the schools. The education we are getting today is all from the present schools. If, by their closure we make our education itself impossible, will it not make all national progress also impossible ? A. The programme itself contains the answer. Immediately a school is closed, we ourselves will take possession of that school. After the closure of the present schools, the relieved teachers, if they are wise, will teach only in those schools which we open. But why should you indulge in long thoughts ? If you do your part and close the present Mangalore school and open a new one, that's enough; the matter ends for you. Every town in the country is capable of looking after its own needs and it can meet its educational need also. The Government has supplied our wants till now, but in a way that has greatly obstructed our real progress. Can we not now look after our needs by self-help ? Boycott of British Goods Q. Cannot the boycott of British goods serve our purpose ? A. For the last two years I have been putting before the public my view on the matter. All the same I will submit it in brief before you here. The boycott method does look excellent, but it is difficult to implement because for its success we have first to win over our die-hard millionaires. I can understand their circumstances also, but the fact stands that all our efforts would come to nothing so long as they, the chief patrons, are not prepared to boycott British goods. If they can be persuaded to do so, the programme would certainly have some effect. But it is an unholy weapon tainted with hatred and violence and there is the rub. It also means the suicidal policy of leaving one foreign master to serve another. The Boycott could be effective only if it is expeditious and that is nearly impossible, because we have no means to make the boycott complete or even extensive. At the Ahmadnagar Conference Gangadharrao Deshpande had expected that the boycott would be successful in three months after the passage of the resolution. Years have rolled away since then and the thing still remains only on paper. He is now converted to my view. And so is Hazrat Mohani. During the partition1 days in Bengal was there any lack of enthusiasm ? Any slackness in effort ? Even in Bengal, which represents the essence of idealism purified through many a fiery test, the boycott turned out to be impossible and unpractical. Why ? There was the fundamental want of sufficient means with which to make it successful. Boycotts and Boycotts Q. You say that the boycott of British goods has to be extensive in order to be effectual. And, in clarification, you add that the boycott is impossible under the present circumstances and is therefore impractical. Your boycott of Councils and schools labour under the same defect. If parents, here and ??????????????? 1. Ostensibly for administrative convenience, but really to crush its rising nationalism, Lord Curzon partitioned Bengal in 1905 and brought a hornests' nest about his ears. The partition was annulled by the Royal Proclamation in 1911. there, withdraw their children from schools, would not that boycott be as purposeless or unpractical as the boycott of British goods in a limited form ? A. No. Were it so, I would have been the last to suggest them. Even isolated individuals can have the satisfaction of doing their duty by boycotting Councils or schools. What I mean to say is that I regard these boycotts as a moral ideals. That is why if even a single individual implements them for himself, his action has a value of its own. I have never looked upon British goods boycott as moral ideal. I can never preach it as a dharma for individual practice. But I have been putting before the people those two boycotts as their personal dharma. Boycott of British goods is nothing more than a political weapon, while it is my claim that the boycotts I advocate are spiritual weapons. If you accept the claim the answer to your question is quite clear. Defenceless Swaraj Q. How shall we be able to do without an army and a navy in our swaraj ? You are simply making the country defenceless and helpless, by cutting off all connection with the British. A. ( With a laugh ) But how ? You seem to have fallen in a slough of despond. We will be able to do everything. Can we not prepare ourselves for self-defence when the power comes to our hands ? Why, here is Shaukat Ali whom we will make our Commander-in-Chief when the time comes. And I am sure he will not prove inferior to General Munroe in any way ( Shaukat Ali also interjected here : "Yes, I possess the power to raise an army of millions" ) N. C. O. and the Masses Q. I am sorry, the question should have been put earlier, but it strikes me now. What work will you be able to take from the ordinary man ? And aren't you hanging on the classes, just because you can't take any work from the masses ? A. What a question ! The messes are an inexhaustible mine for me to draw from. You won't be able to give me half as much response as they will to my appeal. But I have, at present, kept them in reserve. They do not yet possess complete self-control. I can prepare farmers for non-co-operation by millions, but I have yet to train them to keep a smiling face when their bullocks and their carts, their live-stock and even their lands and other possessions are sold away. I have a very good affinity with farmers. I have taken from them work that calls for no ordinary patience and forbearance. But I am deliberately delaying my call to them for this work. I have no doubt that I will be able to prepare them adequately. You must not forget that in South Africa thousands of workers could be prepared and they filled the jails. But I can appeal to you even now without any misgivings and so I have begun with you, the leading class. Abdul Bari Saheb told me the other day that he had with him twenty thousand Government servants ready to resign. But if I asked them to do so, what could I do with them just at present ? I have not a ready organisation that could absorb them. We are, besides, waging our fight with cool calculation, foresight and patience. We are not going to squander our reserved force that way. We will use it at the right moment. Suffering : Your Badge Q. I have lost faith in both-our preparedness and our power of endurance. You are dinning into us My Effort and Optimism But, perhaps what you mean to say is that the country is not prepared to suffer for a political cause. All you can say even there is that it is not 'prepared'. If you say it is inherently 'incapable', I differ. But I am doing just the same thing-trying to prepare the country in that direction. I am awakening in the people the quality of patriotism. I am instilling into their hearts that quality of readiness to suffer for the nation's cause which you find in European countries. And I have no doubt that in a very short time our people also will be fired with the same spirit. You honour me by collecting in such mammoth gatherings and thousands of people go mad with joy at my sight. Why is it so ? All that joy of yours, all that enthusiasm I am trying to turn into the right channel. It is only a coward who says "Since we are not ready at present, we must wait till we get ready." That way we can never rise. I am not at all disappointed in my attempt to awaken the spirit of patriotism in us. All this-your joy and your enthusiasm-attests to the tremendous potentiality of national awakening. I cannot feel so much for the sufferings of Italy. I cannot rouse the sympathy of our people for the woes of Germany. I cannot even hope for that consummation because I am not God. But I will certainly make everyone born in India to feel the country's sorrows as his own. In this context let me state it is not Turkey for which I invoke the sympathy of countrymen on the Khilafat question. Were I not staying with the seven crores of Muslims, I would not have begun the fight at all. It is only due to my sympathy with their feelings that I have taken up the cudgels for that cause. Satyagraha Is Immortal Q. I have left out a question that arises from one which has been already discussed. So the Satyagraha has gone for good ? A. What ? How ever could Satyagraha go away ? It is timeless. And it has not failed at all. It will assume different forms, but will always go on. I don't think any evil has accrued from Satyagraha. I don't forget the Jallianwala Bagh, but a thousand Jallianwala Baghs do not frighten me. I suspended Satyagraha because, like a true soldier, I would not allow unnecessary carnage. All honour to Satyagraha and Satyagraha alone, that we are today openly indulging in seditious talks while formerly we used to tremble at whispering them. It is no exaggeration to say that we have established a factory to manufacture sedition. What am I doing but instilling disaffection against the Government-in you all ? And don't consider it only my day-dream when I affirm that the Peace Terms are going to be annulled. Unless that is done, it is certain, neither the British Government nor even the British Empire can rest in peace. And the Government cannot for long persist in its obduracy, at the price of incessant turmoil. 23-8-'20 Bezwada. Seven or eight letters were received from Saraladevi during the Madras tour. They indicate her suspicion about?, her charge that Bapu is dazzled by him and her complaint that Bapu's letters betray 'mental exhaustion.' She says that for Bapu's sake she made such an inordinate sacrifice. She put in one pan all the joys of life and pleasures of the world and in the other "Bapu and his laws" and committed the folly of choosing the latter ! A long letter to her : *"Either the night or the day has been passed each day in the train. The nights have been always disturbed by crowds. Thank God we have nearly finished this exhausting tour. Considering everything, I have kept remarkably fit and strong. "Your letters have your usual self. Some of them decidedly despondent and skeptical and suspicious. "You still do not understand? ? ? ?He and the others who surround me are superior to us, if you will allow me to include you. They are certainly superior to me. And it is as it should be. It is my claim that I have selected as my companions my supe-riors in character. Superiors, that is to say, in their possibility. My progress can only be little. Theirs is still illimitable. They are jealous of their ideal which is my character. I and you must give everything to retain or deserve their love and affection. There can be no yielding only on principle. For that we must forsake all and everything. But I would surrender all the world to deserve love, so pure and unselfish. Their love uplifts me and keeps me on the square. They are my sheet-anchor as I am theirs. You should be proud of their jealousy and watchfulness. They want to run no risks and they are right. You and I are in duty bound to satisfy every lawful requirement. And we shall have well met. "Yes, if you remain at your post in Lahore, it would be quite all right. You can gain little by coming to Calcutta during the week of turmoil and stress. The pilgrimage to your mother may take place in a quieter time and after you have perfected your spinning wheel and Hindi and put our Lahore work on a sound footing. You see, I say Lahore in preference to the Punjab. I want you to lay the surest foundation and therefore I want intensity rather than extent. You ask for a reward of your great surrender. Well, it is its own reward. With deep love * My dear Charlie, "I complete today my exhausting tour in the Madras Presidency. It has been incessant traveling. My experience has confirmed me in the rightness of the struggle and in my belief in the greatness and goodness of Shaukat Ali. He is really one of the most sincere of men I have met. He is generous, frank, brave and gentle. He believes in his mission and in himself. Having an implicit faith in God, he is refreshingly optimistic. The response of the common people is wonderful. The non-violence part of the programme is making great headway. There was a dense crowd at Bangalore covering a vast area as far as the eye could reach. There was a solitary Englishman and an English-woman amongst it. But the crowd did not so much as jostle them. From everywhere I get testimony regarding non-violent behaviour of the crowds. You must have noticed the reluctant testimony1 of the Government regarding the trying circumstances of the Muhajarins. All this is, in my opinion good. On the other hand, I see poor response from the leading class. They do not want to sacrifice anything at all. They expect to gain everything by speeches and resolutions. They are keeping back a nation which is ready for sacrifice." 24-8-'20 Left Bezwada at night. Letter to Saraladevi on the way from Hyderabad to Manmad for Bombay. *"Your letters have caused me distress. You do not like my sermons. And yet so long as you remain like a schoolgirl, what should I do except giving you sermons ? If my love is true it must express itself in sermons, so long as you do not realize the ideal accepted by you as worthy. I do not at all like your doubting the necessity of the life adopted by you or the life you are trying to adopt. What can be the reward of always speaking and doing Truth even at the peril of one's life ? What can be the reward of dying for one's country ? What is the reward of your having given years to acquiring perfection in piano playing ? You give all for the cause you espouse because you cannot do otherwise. Your satisfaction must depend upon complete surrender. A surrender that gives not satisfaction is a compulsory surrender unworthy of a self-respecting person. And if your association with me does not teach you this simple truth, I must be unworthy of your love. For if my life has not taught you this much, I am a worthless being. There is no worth in me expect the capacity for unlimited self-surrender and truthfulness. All have noticed these two qualities in me and there must be something wrong in me if you, who have penetrated my life so deeply, have failed to notice them. And what can I give to share except my richest possessions ? And so, you must not resent my giving you sermons, but receive them ?????????????? 1. Reference to the Viceroy's statement on N. C. O. and the Khilafat in a speech preceding this letter. in the same loving manner in which they are delivered. If I am your Law-giver and if I do not always lay down the law, surely I must at least reason with you on things of eternity or supreme importance for the country for which we live and which we love so well. "But this does not mean that you must not write nasty things if you think of them. My plea is that you must cease to harbour nasty thoughts. With love, Your, Law-giver." 4-9-'20 to 9-9-'20 Special session of the Congress ( Calcutta ). Speech delivered by Gandhiji in moving his resolution on non-co-operation : *"I am aware, more than aware of the grave responsibility that rests on my shoulders in being privileged to move this resolution before this great assembly. I am aware that my difficulties, as also yours, increase if you are able to adopt that resolution. I am also aware that the adoption of the resolution will mark a definite change in the policy which the country has hitherto followed for the vindication of the rights that belong to it and its honour. I am aware that the large number of our leaders who have given the time and attention to the affairs of our motherland, which I have not been able to give, are ranged against me. They think it a duty to resist the policy of revolutionizing the government policy at any cost. Knowing this I stand before you in fear of God and with a sense of duty to the country to put forward this resolution for your hearty acceptance. Think Impartially "I ask you to dismiss me, for the time being from your con-sideration. I have been charged with saintliness and a desire for dictatorship. I venture to say that I do not stand before your either as a saint or a candidate for dictatorship. I stand before you to present to you the results of my many years' practical experience in non-cooperation. I deny the charge that it is a new thing in the country. It has been accepted at hundreds of meetings attended by thousands of men and has been placed in working order since the first of August by the Mussulmans, and many of the things in the programme are being enforced in a more or less intense form. I ask you again to dismiss personalities in the consideration of this important question, and bring to bear patient and calm judgement on it. Training in Toleration "But a mere acceptance of the resolution does not end the work. Every individual has to enforce the items of the resolution in so far as they apply to him. I beseech you to give me a patient hearing. I ask you neither to clap nor to hiss. I do not mind them so far as I am concerned, but clapping hinders the flow of thought, and hissing hinders the process of correspondence between a speaker and his audience. You will not hiss out of the stage any single speaker. For non-co-operation is a measure of discipline and sacrifice and it demands patience and respect for opposite views. And unless we are able to evolve a spirit of mutual toleration for diametrically opposite views, non-co-operation is an impossibility. I have learnt through bitter experience the one supreme lesson to conserve my anger, and as heat conserved is transmuted into energy, even so, our anger controlled can be transmuted into a power which can move the world. To those who have been attending the Congress, as brothers in arms, I ask what can be better discipline than that which we should exercise between ourselves ? Congress and a Minority "I have been told that I have been doing nothing but wreckage and that by bringing forward the resolution I am breaking up the political life of the country. The Congress is not a party organisation. It ought to provide a platform for all shades of opinion and a minority need not leave the organisation, but may look forward to translate itself into a majority, in course of time, if its opinion commended itself to the country. Only let no man in the name of the Congress advocate a policy which has been condemned by the Congress. And if you condemn my policy I shall not go away from the Congress, but shall plead with it to convert the minority into a majority. Only one Remedy : Non-co-operation "There are no two opinions as to the wrong done to the Khilafat. Mussulmans cannot remain as hunourable men and follow their prophet if they do not vindicate their honour at any cost. The Punjab has been cruelly, brutally treated, and inasmuch as one man in the Punjab was made to crawl on his belly, the whole of India crawled on her belly, and if we are worthy sons and daughters of India, we should be pledged to remove these wrongs. It is in order to remove these wrongs that the country is agitating itself. But we have not been able so far to bend the Government to our will. We cannot rest satisfied with a mere expression of angry feelings. You could not have heard a more passionate denunciation of the Punjab wrongs than in the pages of the presidential address. If the Congress cannot wring justice from unwilling hands how can it vindicate its existence and its honour ? How can it do so if it cannot enforce clear repentance, before receiving a single gift, however rich, from those bloodstained hands ? Is there any other way-but of non-co-operation-to get redress for these wrongs and uphold the honour and prestige of the Congress ? Non-co-operation : the Best Scheme "I have, therefore, placed before you my scheme of non-co-operation to achieve this end and want you to reject any other scheme, unless you have deliberately come to the conclusion that it is a better scheme than mine. If there is a sufficient response to my scheme, I make bold to reiterate my statement that you can gain Swarajya in the course of a year. Not the passing of the resolution will bring Swarajya, but the enforcement of the resolution from day to day in a progressive manner. This scheme has been prepared with due regard to the conditions in the country. Extend the Spirit of Sacrifice "There is another remedy before the country, and that is drawing of the sword. If that was possible India would not have listened to the gospel of non-co-operation. I want to suggest to you that even if you want to arrest injustice by methods of violence, discipline and self-sacrifice are necessary. I have not known of a war gained by a rabble, but I have known of war gained by disciplined armies and if you want to give battle to the British Government and to the combined power of Europe, we must train ourselves in discipline and self-sacrifice. I confess I have become impatient. I have seen that we deserve Swarajya today, but we have not got the spirit of national sacrifice. We have evolved this spirit in domestic affairs, and I have come to ask you to extend it to other affairs. Essentials of Success "I have been travelling from one end of the country to the other to see whether the country has evolved the national spirit, whether at the altar of the nation it is ready to dedicate its riches, children, its all, if it was ready to make the initiatory sacrifice. Is the country ready ? Are parents ready to sacrifice literary education of their children for the sake of the country ? The schools and colleges are really a factory for turning out clerks for Government. If the parents are not ready for the sacrifice, if the title-holders are not ready, Swarajya is very nearly an impossibility. No nation being under another nation can accept gifts and kick at the responsibility attaching to those gifts, imposed by the conquering nation. Immediately the conquered country realized instinctively that any gift which might come to it is not for the benefit of the conquered, but for the benefit of the conqueror, that moment it should reject every form of voluntary assistance to it. These are the fundamental essentials of success in the struggle for the independence of the country whether within the Empire of without the Empire. Honour above Everything "I hold a real substantial unity between Hindus and Mussulmans infinitely superior to British connection and if I had to make a choice between that unity and British connection, I would have the first and reject the other. If I had to choose between the honour of the Punjab, anarchy, neglect of education, shutting out of all legislative activity and British connection, I would choose the honour of the Punjab and all it meant, even anarchy, shutting out of all schools etc. without the slightest hesitation. "If you have the same feeling burning in you as in me for the honour of Islam and the Punjab then you will unreservedly accept my resolution. Boycott of Councils "I now come to the burning topic, viz., the boycott of the Councils. Sharpest differences of opinion existed regarding this, and if the house has to divide on it, it must divide. If it must divide you will consider that it must divide on one issue viz., whether Swarajya has to be gained through the Councils or without the Councils. If we utterly distrust the British Government and we know that they are utterly unrepentant?how can you believe that the Councils will lead to Swarajya and not tighten the British hold on India ? Boycott of Foreign Goods "I now come to Swadeshi. The boycott of foreign goods is included in the resolution. You have got here, I confess, an anomaly for which I am not originally responsible. But I have consented to it. I will not go into the history of how it found a place in the resolution, of which the essence is discipline and self-sacrifice. Swadeshi means permanent boycott of foreign goods. It is, therefore, a matter of redundancy. But I have taken it in, because I could not reject it as a matter of conscience. I know, however, it is a physical impossibility. So long as we have to depend on foreign countries even for pins and needles? figurative and literal both?we cannot bring about a complete boycott of foreign goods. I do not hesitate to say this clause mars the musical harmony, if I may claim it without vanity, of the programme. I feel that these words do mar the symmetry of the programme as for its workability. "I again ask you not to be influenced by personality. Reject out of your consideration any service that I have done. I do not claim, for a moment, that whatever programme I place before the country will be infallible. Two things only I claim?laborious industry, and unflinching determination to bring it about. You may take only these things from me and bring them to bear on any programme that you adopt." Speech Replying to Objections on the Resolution *"I know that I have got to perform a duty by you and answer some of the many objections that have been raised against the points in the proposition. You have now listened to all speeches but one, with respectful attention. I am exceedingly sorry that you refused to hear Mr. Jamnadas Dwarakadas. "At the same time I am here to tell you that with all my anxi-to be convinced of any error of judgment or otherwise that I have committed, I stand unconvinced. It has been suggested by Mr. Jinnah and Mr. Das that this programme is impracticable. Is it not capable of being practised ? I venture to suggest to you that it is capable of being practised today by everyone who is affected by the several items. There is the introduction of the word "gradual" and Mr. Das has very properly laid emphasis upon that word in order to show that it is in recognition of the impracticable nature of at least two items, those relating to schools and law-courts. I respectfully differ from him. The in-troduction of that adjective is a concession to our weakness and recognition of our unreadiness. I admit that with the introduc-tion of the adjective, these two items may be absolutely whitt-led down. It would depend largely upon the sense of indignation that has really fired the nation and it will still more largely depend upon the work that may be put into the programme by real workers. You may depend upon it that so long as the Non-co-operation Committee started by the Central Khilafat Committee is in existence, so long will you find these items, and many more, continuously placed before you for acceptance. I have not the slightest doubt, even with the experience of only one and a half months behind me, that we shall have a fairly good response from the country. "In my humble opinion the item of boycott of foreign goods is a practical impossibility as other items are undoubtedly not. I have given you my reasons for accepting this item in my programme though in theory this is sound. I was most anxious to place before the nation only those things which the nation, if it was willing and ready, could put into practice today. Courts and Schools in Wartime "Let me not conceal one great fact from you. I do suggest to you that if you want to carry out the programme of non-co-operation as sketched by me it is expected of you that you will withdraw your children from schools tomorrow and lawyers will suspend their practice from tomorrow. But, as I have said, if you have not the ability, if you have not immediate readiness, the introduction of the adjective gives you thinking time. I declined to accept the interpretation that some in the audience placed upon these two items, when they questioned that they are to withdraw their children only when national schools are ready, and that lawyers should suspend practice when arbitration courts are established. That in my opinion is buildings before founda-tion. I cannot put a handsome pile of building or even erect a straw cottage without having children to educate. When a nation is at war, whether non-violent or violent, it is an indispensable condition that it stops its schools and law-courts. I have gone through two wars myself. In them schools remained in suspended animation and the law-courts were also closed, rather because litigants had no time to think of their private quarrels and parents came to the conclusion that the best education that their children could receive at such a critical tiem in their history was that they should understand that it was better for them to have their education suspended for a time. These two items are, undoubtedly, tests of our feelings in the matter and if the nation feels, it will act up to these two things. Notice to British Government "Much has been made of want of notice and, if facts were as they are supposed to be, I think, it would be a sound argument. If I were making a new demand for Swaraj, the argument will be final. But I have said that without Swaraj it would be impossible to prevent repetition of wrongs such as have been inflicted in the Punjab and therefore in this programme Swaraj is no independent new demand but has been made a demand because in the opinion of the Congress it is necessary, in order to guard against future contingency, to have Swaraj. In my humble opinion, there is absolutely nothing wrong in it. But I go forward. Both Messrs Jinnah and Malaviya have accepted Mr. Pal's programme. You will find therein that some of the items are to be enforced from tomorrow and what the amendment states is that the other items will be reduced to practice later on and that while the mission is conducting its affairs, some operation of non-co-operation programme is to be enforced from the population of India. I think the Congress may well hold that notice sufficient for its purpose without, in any way, damaging the prestige of the whole nation which are convertible terms. Obstruction in Councils "I must confess that I have not yet heard a single argument in favour of going to Councils. All the argument that has up to now been advanced is, seeing that we have done something through these Councils during 35 years, seeing that the reformed Council is in response to our agitation?which I admit?and that seeing that there is greater scope for obstruction as we can command a majority by influencing voters?which too I admit?we may be able by going to Councils to paralyse Government, or the administration, as the case may be. In my humble opinion, as a student of English history, I have found, and it is a practical maxim adopted in English public life, that every institution thrives on obstruction. I assure you that Government will not be pleased to see Nationalists outside the Councils. It is my firm opinion that the services public-men want to render can be rendered outside the Councils rather than inside and such services will be infinitely greater than the services they render in the Councils. Lokamanya and Councils "What is the secret of the great power of the late and the only Lokamanya of the country ? Do you suppose that if he had gone to the Council he would have exercised the unrivalled influence that he exercised over all the millions of India ? You have had evidence given before you in connection with his opinion. I am exceedingly sorry that you had not evidence brought before you as to what he considered in connection with the programme. But as the matter has been brought before you, it has become my painful duty to give you evidence, that is in my possession. I happened at his wish to wait upon him in company with Mr. Shaukat Ali a fortnight before his demise and he said : "I personally believe that it will be better to go to Councils and obstruct where it was necessary and co-operate where also it was necessary." But when Mr. Shaukat Ali told him "What about your promise to Mussulmans in Delhi ?", at which he immediately added, "Oh, yes, if the Mussulmans do the things." He laid emphasis on it and did not merely speak of the boycott of Councils. He said : "I give you my word that my party will stand with you." Where is the Repentance ? "What do these Councils mean ? Do you believe that by going to the Council and engaging in debates there, you can produce a direct impression upon British ministers and secure a revision of the Turkish Terms and repentance on account of the Punjab affair ? Our revered brother and leader Pandit Malaviya has said that very soon all that the Congress Sub-committee asked for will be granted, because some or most of the officers are already gone or will be presently going and in April even the Viceroy will have gone. I respectfully suggest that it is not what I, at least, intended when I put my pen to that report. I said emphatically, even at our discussion, that the dismissal of the officers be based upon their incapacity and the atrocity that they were guilty of and not by efflux of time and that the Viceroy should be compulsorily retired if he does not tender his resignation before his time. It does not serve my purpose when the Viceroy goes by efflux of time; and so also the officers. I want a repentant clean heart, a change of heart and I miss any repentance, any change of heart and the hand of fellowship which I had thought was extended at the time of the Amritsar Congress-and that is my reason for having then suggested co-operation with Government, but having found out afterwards that there was no redress of the Khilafat and the Punjab wrongs, the painful revelation has dawned on me that the British ministers or the Government of India never meant well by the people of India. Instead of repentance, a challenge is given to India that if you want to be ruled by British, the price is terrorism. Therefore, I want to make this party of terrorists, a present of these law-courts, a present of the education of my children if I cannot bring them into national schools. "But I certainly decline to wait for establishment of these schools. Necessity is the mother of invention. When there are children without schools, I promise that our revered leader Pandit Malaviya will himself go from place to place and collect subscriptions for opening national schools. I do not want to starve the Indian mind. I want every Indian to be educated along proper lines, educated to understand the dignity of his nation and not receive the education that makes him a slave. Boycott : A Double-edged Sword "There are many other points but I would reiterate two things. The public will not understand our fine distinctions. It will mean that non-co-operation must commence at the top, viz., in a body miscalled representative body, namely, the reformed Council, and, if the best mind of the country refuses to associate with that Government, I promise that the Government's eyes will be opened. The condition is that those who refrain will not go to sleep, but move from one end of the country to the other and bring every grievance to the notice not of Government but of the public and, if my programme is carried out, the Congress will be going on growing from year to year and give public expression to those grievances, so that the volume of wrong, ever increasing as it rolls, will inflame the great nation and enable it to harbour, to conserve all its anger and its heat and transmute it into irresistible energy. Mussulmans' Deadly Resolve "Please recognize one fundamental settled fact, that the Muslim League has passed a resolution that they are going to boycott Councils entirely. Do you believe that one fourth of our body may pull one way and three fourths in another way ? If these were running along parallel lines I can understand it, but here they will be pulling in opposite ways and is it right they should do so ? Can Hindus gain anything even by a policy of obstruction, if every believer in Islam boycotts the Councils, as he could boycott sin ? That is the religious position in Islam. They consider it is sinful for them to go to the Councils and take the oath of allegiance. Let not "practical" India and "prac-tical" politicians who gather here from year to year forget this settled fact. If they believe that they will be able to change the Mussulman mind and that those resolutions of the Mussulmans are mere pious wishes then certainly the arguments that I have now advanced fall to pieces. But it you believe that Mussulmans are in earnest, that they feel the wrong, and as time goes on, the wrong instead of dying out and being forgotton, will gather force day after day, then you will understand that as time goes forward, the energy of Mussulmans will increase whether Hindus help them or do not help them. That is the choice that lies before the whole of this national assembly. I therefore, respectfully submit to you that I have not embarked upon this thing without careful thought and it is not a matter of pleasure or joy to me to put myself, a humble, single individual, always liable to err, against the best leaders of the country. But here it is a matter of duty. Whereas I see clearly before me that if we want Hindu-Muslim unity and want it to endure for ever, there is no escape for us but a complete association with the Mussulmans so long as they remain on the right path and adopt honourable means and do not over-reach themselves in forming their demands and so long as they do not resort to violence. Conscience v. Personal relationship "My business is finished now that I have placed every argument in a dispassionate manner and not as an advocate, and I assure you I have endeavoured to place the whole argument pure and simple as a judge. I owe a great deal to Pandit Malaviya. The relations that subsist between him and me, the country does not know. I would give my life to placate him, to please him and follow him at a respectful distance. But when it becomes a matter of sacred duty and conviction I hold that I am absolved from any obligation to follow him. I know that he absolves me from any such obligation of following him and if I, who venerate him, adopt a course different from his, you will understand that I am absolutely serious and sincere when I ask everyone in this pandal to use his own individual judgment and not to be carried away in the slightest degree by my personality. Finally, if you pass this resolution, you will do so with your eyes open. If you think everyone of you individually has the capacity and willingness to offer this small measure of sacrifice in the name of the nation, and for the sake of securing lasting friendship with Mussulmans you will not hesitate to adopt the resolution, but if you cannot satisfy these conditions you will not hesitate to reject it." Mrs. Besant was not allowed by the audience to deliver her speech at the Calcutta Congress. The following is a substance of Gandhiji's speech there on : "We have gathered together in order to demand justice. If we demand justice, it is our first and sacred duty to render justice. Mrs. Besant is not your enemy. 'If you are about to inaugurate non-co-operation, you will be making a bad and sad beginning ( this way )'. She deserves our respect owing not only to her age, but also to her magnificent service to the country. If I yield to none in my opposition to her, I yield also to none in my respect for her. Today when you are about to embark on a fight whose requisites are self-control and restraint, I beg of you most humbly and prayerfully to keep aloof from this disorderly and unrestrained behaviour." September 1920 A Week in Shantiniketan1 The strain at the Calcutta Congress told heavily upon Gandhiji's health and he was thinking of going to Darjeeling, when there was a telegram from the loving Mr. Andrews : "No Darjeeling can afford Shantiniketan's rest ( and ) peace. Come here." So Gandhiji dropped Darjeeling and went to Shantinike-tan. It is a hundred miles from Calcutta, near a village called Bolepur.This brahmacharya-ashram has been established on some property left by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore2 and some more around it recently purchased. The heritage, filled with entrancing greenery in the midst of a barren plain stretching miles long, feasts the eye like an oasis in a vast desert. Owing to its very commodious expanse all the buildings?Study-Homes for students, Hostels for them, Teachers' Quarters etc. ?lie fairly distant from one another. They are so constructed as to present all the artistic beauty of the ashram of an ancient sage. The Students' Homes are surrounded by clusters of beautiful amra, bakula and amalaki3 trees, and these Homes as well as the trees have attained immortality through the Poet's (Rabindranath's) ??????????????????? 1. Poet Rabindranath Tagore's World-University, 2. Poet Rabindranath Tagore's father whom the people called Maharshi ( a great sage ) for his saintliness. 3. 1. A mango tree; 2. a tree with very fragrant flowers whose scent does not fade for days after they wither. 3. bears sour but very nourishing fruit. song for children : Amader Shantiniketan ( Our Shantiniketan ). The memory of Maharshi Devendranath subtly pervades the whole atmosphere of the Aahram and, in addition, to keep it green in a concrete form, there is an inscription on a marble slab under a bakula tree just at the place where he attained samadhi.1 This is that short but very soulful and loving inscription : ( Maharshi ) "The repose of our prana ( life's impulsion ) "The joy of our mind "The peace of our soul." Surrounded by this charming atmosphere, regular classes of students are held in the open under the shades of trees. And when not in their classes, the students move about warbling Ravibabu's songs. I won't go to the length of saying that life there means music and song, but it is true that a visitor cannot help feeling that music plays a very important role in their formation. Ravibabu's residence is built two furlongs away from all these structures. Over and above, the fact that peace permeates the whole atmosphere of Shantiniketan, this home of Ravibabu, so far away from all others, is hallowed with serenity and peace par excellence. It was in this house that Gandhiji was lodged. It used to rain all day during all the days we spent there and so Gandhiji could not get the dry climate he wanted, but he did have all the benefit that rest and quiet could give. But what gave him even deeper peace turned out to be an other thing, viz., the company of kindred purified souls. The charming personality of Mr. Andrews was, of course, there?and he and his students literally drenched us with love,?but Bapu met then another adorable high soul, venerated for both age ??????????????????? 1. Samadhi can be best translated as super-conscious trance. Maharshi Devendranath had an experience of samadhi lasting for many hours at the particular place. and wisdom, Bapu Dwijendranath Tagore.1 "Boro Dada : ( elder brother )?that is the affectionate mode of address adopted by all there?is already an octoganarian and yet he remains always absorbed in contemplation and study. That at this age he has given the movement of non-co-operation a high rank among his subjects of study is by itself a cheering news. But it was only after he came to see Gandhiji that we knew him not as a mere student of non-co-operation but as an ardent lover. With great zest he touched the topic : "Words fail to express my joy at finding that what my Robby ( Rabindranath ) has been preaching and propagating through his articles, poems, letters etc., you are not only practising yourself, but also exhorting the country to practise. You have put before the country the one principle that is really worth advocating. Any other attitude towards these our rulers than that of non-co-operation is unworthy and impossible. Co-operation can exist between equals only, not between slaves and their masters. Englishmen never regard us as their equals. Any attempt at co-operation with them is to my mind like chasing a mirage, so long as we do not experience equality with them. As long as this disparity continues, I see in co-operation with them nothing but our ruin. What would happen to the earth except its reduction to ashes, if, poor dear, it rushed to embrace the sun in a fit of 'co-operation' ?" And then he said he would give us an article on non-co-operation. During our week's stay there the students twice performed a short drama of Ravibabu called 'Valmiki pratibha' ( Genius of Valmiki?the author of Ramayana ), but Gandhiji was left alone to his rest and peace all the days. Only the last day was fixed for meeting the inmates. The students met him at the Prathana Mandir ( Prayer Hall ) in the morning, the teachers saw him next and in the afternoon the women. I resist the temptation of giving a gist of the talks with all of them, but since the talk he held at the Prarthana Mandir was specially significant, I give it below in short : ???????? 1. Elder brother of the Poet. The Prayer Hall is a simple building with a long marble floor. Students hold their daily prayers in the open but the weekly sermons of the poet, or of some other professor in his absence, are delivered in this Hall. It was in this Hall that Gandhiji's meeting with the professors and students referred to above was held. Gandhiji took his seat on a small raised stool. Fragrant flowers were kept in front of him. The professors and the boys in one group sat opposite and the ladies on one side. The meeting began and ended with very appropriate songs. This well-known hymn of Ravibabu was first sung : ?ãâ¦ãÀ ½ã½ã ãäÌã?ã?ãäÔã¦ã ?ã?Àãñ ?㶦ãÀ¦ãÀ Öñ ! ãä¶ã½ãÃÊã ?ã?Àãñ, ???ÌãÊã ?ã?Àãñ, Ôã춪À ?ã?Àãñ Öñ ! ?㶦ãÀ 0 ?ããØãƦã ?ã?Àãñ, ?£ã¦ã ?ã?Àãñ, ãä¶ã¼ãþã ?ã?Àãñ Öñ ! ½ãâØãÊã ?ã?Àãñ, ãä¶ãÀÊãÔã, ãä¶ã:ÔãâÍã¾ã ?ã?Àãñ Öñ ! ?㶦ãÀ 0 ¾ãì§?ã? ?ã?Àãñ Öñ ÔãºããÀ ÔãâØãñ, ½ãì§?ã? ?ã? Àãñ Öñ ºãâ£ã, ÔãâÞããÀ ?ã?Àãñ Ôã?ã?Êã ?ã?½ãó, Íããâ¦ã ¦ããñ½ããÀ ?⪠! ÞãÀ¥ã¹ãªá½ãñ ½ã½ã ãäÞã§ã ãä¶ãÓ¹ãâã䪦ã ?ã?Àãñ Öñ ! ¶ãã䶪¦ã ?ã?Àãñ, ¶ãã䶪¦ã ?ã?Àãñ, ¶ãã䶪¦ã ?ã? Àãñ Öñ ! ?㶦ãÀ 0 Unfold my heart I Thee beseech; Indweller ! Thee I cannot reach. Purge it of dross and make it shining gold; Always alert for actions kind and bold. Shake off its sloth and doubts grim; Fill it with love and joy supreme. Free it of fetters strong that gall; Keep it always in harmony with all, Let Thy music so peaceful, sweet; Pervade my life and make it neat. My soul may find its bliss in Thee, In Thee rejoice, in Thee it happy be. At the end of this solemn prayer to make the heart pure and fearless, Gandhiji addressed the audience in English. A summary of the speech is given below : Sisters and Brothers, A few days' company with you has delighted my heart exceedingly. I came here to recoup my shattered health and you will be glad to know that I leave the place much recovered, though not completely. I am really sorry I cannot talk with you in Bengali. If my hope that I shall one day be able to do so is fantastic, I think my other hope that you will understand my Hindustani in future is certainly not extravagant. Your education cannot be called complete till Hindustani becomes a compulsory subject here and you learn it up. Then there is another thing I cannot hide from you. I hope to see your school a busy bee-hive of handicrafts. Human life cannot become perfect so long as the heart and the hand do not keep step with each other in complete harmony for purpose. The significance of the activity I am, at present, absorbed in is, I feel, so easy to understand that I can put it even before children. And yet what I am going to say is not for children alone. I have never kept back anything from my own children as well as from those others whom I made mine in South Africa. So far as I am concerned, my heart owes allegiance to only one religion-the Hindu Dharma. I am proud to call myself a Hindu, but I am not at all a Hindu Pharisee. Hindu Dharma, as I interpret it, is a very catholic, all embracing creed. Its atti-tude towards other faiths is on a footing of perfect equality and respect. And that is why you see me today defending Islam with the same enthusiasm and vigour with which I would defend my own faith. In fact, I find myself transported to the seventh heaven on this occasion when I have to defend Islam, since in that attempt I am enhancing my power to protect my own religion. The danger that hovers over Hinduism from the brute-force of European powers is quite as great as that over Islam. Only, it is Islam that bears the brunt of the attack today, while Hinduism's turn may come tomorrow. But to me it seems that in reality the danger to Hinduism began much earlier, when India came un-der the possession of the British. But it has all along been a very covert danger. I have seen that the very firmaments of our thought are shaken to their roots by Western culture, which is the product of Satanic influences. For many long decades we have been dupes of its weird and influences. For powerful temptation. Only last year my eyes were opened to the fact. When the Allies entered the War, their avowed object was that of the protection of weak States, but under this imposing masque they played many a dirty trick. Despite all that, in all sincerity and with all the emphasis I could command, I pressed upon my countrymen at the last Congress at Amritsar to co-operate with Government, because till then I had the faith that the British people would repent for their crimes and the British ministers would keep their pledges. But all my faith vanished into thin air when the Punjab Chapter was closed in the way it was and the terms of the Peace Treaty with Turkey were published. I then came to the conclusion that there does come, once in the life time of every individual, a crisis when he is at the cross roads and has to choose between Godly and Satanic paths. As the result of co-operation with the British officials for all these long years I realized that the man who seeks association with them ends in his own degradation. I was convinced beyond doubt that till the time when India's eyes are opened to its mission in the world and the Indian people become conscious of a sense of equality with the British, we will continue to slip down on inclined plane so long as we maintain our connection with the British. I also saw that the preservation of our unity and connection with the Muslims is a thousand times more valuable than that of our connection with the British and that it would be difficult to preserve our connection with the Muslims unless we helped them in the hour of their peril. If, moreover a quarter of the nation remains unenlivened and paralysed, the development of the patriotic spirit in the whole nation itself become impossible. Hence, I formed friendship with Shaukat Ali and made him my brother. My contact with him is for me a matter of joy and pride. There is indeed a difference of views in some matters between him and me. I am a believer in the creed of non-violence, while he seems to be for violence. He thinks that under certain circumstances there can or should exist enmity between man and man and that the enemies in that case must be destroyed. But I have joined hands with him because I observed several sterling qualities in him. He is a man of his word, is an extremely loyal friend and an equally brave man. He has deep faith in God. At once I saw that all these many virtues can reside only in a very religious man. It was this very devout attitude of him that charmed me and I developed contact with him. I, for one, have always cherished the faith that on seeing the success of my experiment in non-violence, he will come to realize its excellence and beauty later on. It is difficult to express through any other English word as many implications of ahimsa as the word "innocence" carries. Innocence and ahimsa are, therefore, almost synonymous terms. It is my faith that welfare in every way is assured to the man who follows the path of ahimsa. The weapons that a man who walks the non-violent path comes to possess are more powerful than those a man who takes to violence ever can. I may call any scheme based on violence as fit for savages, since there is definitely an element of beastliness in any such scheme. Only that man who observes non-violence perfectly can show manliness in perfection. If even one man can live a life of perfect non-violence, he will subdue the world. Let me say in all humility that if, even with this decrepit body, I possess some power that can engineer such a tremendous fight as the present one, it is solely due to my observance of ahimsa. It is the Hindu, therefore, who is certain to impress himself upon the whole world, if he but understands the essence of his religion and implements it in life. My life will be reduced to nil on the day when India accepts the doctrine of violence. But my faith is still unshaken. And if you, born of Hindu parents, understand what your duty as Hindus in this world is, you will never co-operate with anyone who is unjust and wicked. Nothing in any other literature can compare with the beauty of the immortal dohas1 Tulsidas has written on shunning the wicked. For India to hope for anything good from British rule, as it is today, is a will-o'-the-wisp. I have closely co-operated with that rule for many many years and have had some very shocking experiences. It is simply from those experiences that I have today raised the standard of this dreadful but noble and spirited struggle and am striving to make you all join it. Sitting in this holy Prayer Hall the only thing I plead before you is that you may all pray to God to grant me His light and good health and keep me always away from sin and cowardice. To the appeal made by Gandhiji at the end of his speech the friends at Shantiniketan responded in the choicest and happiest language of Ravibabu's following poem : ?ãã½ããªñÀ ?ãã¨ãã ÖÊããñ ÍãìÁ, ??ã¶ã Ñããñ Øããñ ?ã ?¥ããããÀ ! ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ ã½ãÔ?ã?ãÀ; ??ã¶ã ºãã¦ããÔã ?ì?ì?ã?, ¦ãì¹ã?ã¶ã ??ì?ã?, ãä¹ã?Àºããñ ¶ ãã Øããñ ÑããÀ, ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ ã½ãÔ?ã?ãÀ ã ?ãã½ãÀã ã䪾ãñ ¦ããñ½ããÀ ?ã¾ã£Ìããä¶ã ãäÌã¹ãª ºãã£ãã ¶ ãããäÖ Øããä¥ã, ?ããñ Øããñ ? ã?¥ããããÀ ! ??ã¶ã ? ½ãã ¼ãõ:? ºããñÊããè, ¼ããÔãã?à ¦ãÀãè, ªãÑããñ Øããñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¹ããÀ, ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ ã½ãÔ?ã?ãÀ ã ??ã¶ã À?ÃÊããñ ?ãÀã ?ãã¹ã¶ã ÜãÀñ, Þããºããñ¶ãã ¹ã©ã ¦ãã ªñÀ ¦ãÀñ, Ñããñ Øããñ ? ã?¥ããããÀ ! ?ã?ã¶ã ¦ããñ½ããÀ Ôã½ã¾ã ?Êããñ ?ã?ã?ñ, ¦ã?ã¶ã ?ãñ? Ìãã ?ã?ãÀ ? ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ ã½ãÔ?ã?ãÀ ã Ñãã½ããÀ ?ãñ?Ìãã Ñãã¹ã¶ã ?ãñ?Ìãã Ñã¹ãÀ, ?ã?ãñ©ãã¾ã ºãããäÖÀ, ? ã?ãñ©ãã Ìãã ÜãÀ ? Ñããñ Øããñ ?ã?¥ããããÀ ! Þãñ¾ãñ ¦ããñ½ããÀ ½ãì?ãñ, ½ã¶ãñÀ Ôãì?ãñ, ¶ãñºããñ Ôã?ã?Êã ¼ããÀ, ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ ã½ãÔ?ã?ãÀ ã Ñãã½ãÀã ãä¶ã¾ãñãä? ªúã¡, ¦ãìÊãñãä? ¹ããÊã, ¦ãìãä½ã ??ã¶ã ÜãÀ Øããñ ÖãÊã, Ñããñ Øããñ ? ã?¥ããããÀ ã ??????????? 1. The famous poet of Ramayan in Hindi. He perfected a special from of couplets called dohas in his immortal epic. ½ããñªñÀ ½ãÀ¥ã ÌããâÞã¶ã ¤ñ?¾ãñÀ ¶ããÞã¶ã, ¼ããÌã¶ãã ãä?ã? Ìãã ¦ããÀ ? ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ã½ãÔ?ã?ãÀ ã ?ãã½ãÀã ÔãÖã¾ã ?ãìâ?ãñ ´ãÀñ ´ãÀñ, ãä¹ã?Àºããñ ¶ãã ?ããÀ ºããÀñ ºããÀñ, ?ããñ Øããñ ?ã?¥ããããÀ ! ?ãñ?ÌãÊã ¦ãìãä½ã? ?ãã?ãñ, ?ãã½ãÀã ?ãããä?, ?? ?ãñ¶ãñãä? ÔããÀ, ¦ããñ½ããÀñ ?ã?ãäÀ ¶ã½ã:Ô?ã?ãÀ ã Captain, O' Captain, our journey's begun; No rest shall we know till the voyage is done. We'll never turn back with You being nigh, Tho' winds may be roaring and waves heaving high. Victory to You ! Though higher they mount, Lead us to the Shore, no troubles we'll Count. "No fear,"-Your word-we sing lustily; Steer on the ship, we pray, speedily. The craven who keep to their homes-the outcaste- We will simply forget, no glance shall we cast. When sounds so urgent Your call to be free, Who ever our dear or kinsmen could be ? No strangers, no friends; no home nor an inn, We care to call ours, when peace is within. Fixed is our gaze on You, dear Lord ; Content we will bear all burdens aboard. The sails are unfurled, in hands are the oars, Prithee, O Helmsman ! we'll combine our force. As we rise and we fall with the wave in a tide, To live or to die we'll take in our stride. No beg gary now at the foreigner's fair; All that he know and all that we care. Is this : our world is comprised of us two; You are with us and we are with You. Our salutes to you, O Captain ! Our Guide ! Storms are a spree-with us You abide. We left Shantiniketan the same evening. All the teachers and students had gathered to bid us farewell. Their face clearly showed how greatly they were affected by the separation. They were singing Amader Shantiniketan, but the song remained incomplete, as their throats were choked with grief when our train started. And the sound 'Amader Shaa?nti...ni?ke?tan' still vibrates in our memory. 28-9-'20 Speech before a public meeting of students on the sands of Sabarmati under Ellis Bridge in Ahmedabad : Students in the Punjab were ordered to walk 16 to 18 miles a day and some children were whipped. But the humiliation did not end there. They had to walk that long distance to salute the Union Jack. I leave it to you, students, to imagine what effect such compulsory salutation to the Union Jack would have on the minds of the oppressed and even on that of God if He is made the object of compulsory salutation. Then there were several students who were expelled from their colleges. I used to get letters from these students. They saw damnation and ruin as the only prospect that faced them after dismissal. What students must learn from the Punjab episode is this : they must free themselves from the craze for college education and disabuse their mind of the fear that they could starve if they did not get it. What I went to Lahore, the glow on the faces of the students there convinced me that their mania for college education had somewhat subsided. But the infatuity would have been all the more intensified, if I had got nervous myself and, out of mistaken sympathy for them, told them that they would cease to be human beings if they did not go back to their colleges. What could the Government have done to them if they were not attending Government colleges ? I tell you, the Government could not have even touched them if, at the time, the students were not studying in Government colleges. It could never have forced them to salute the Union Jack. The spectre that possessed the students was the fear that if they did not tramp all those miles for the salutation they would simply be ruined. Nothing would have happened to them if they had been studying in dependent schools having no connection whatsoever with the Government. But just because they were attending Government colleges and no other, the Government could keep the students under their curb and tar the honour of the nation. It is with the help of students that we can win back our freedom and it will be due to their weakness that we may continue to grovel in slavery. It is true I have laid great stress on the boycott of Councils. Every man is an idol-worshipper at heart and there will be a tremendous immediate effect, I know, when leaders, really fit to be representatives, give up the idea of going to the Councils. I also know that that work can be, and must be done immediately in order to produce that effect. All the same I am here to solemnly promise this also : you will see the whole face of India changed within a month, if all the Government-controlled schools are vacated completely. If every student packs off from his school or college right tomorrow, it will have an electric effect both on the people and the Government, the like of which no other action can have. Not even the boycott of courts by lawyers will create an impression as deep as that of vacating schools and colleges. As soon as students leave Government institutions, it will realize that its Tansa Water Works1?or why go that long?its Dudheshwar Water Works2 is out of order. On the students and on them alone depends the freedom of India, because students represent the flower of mankind?the youth. Lawyers can be termed as aged elders, since they are saddled with some work or other. But students ? They lead an innocent care-free life. Lawyers have an axe to grind?they have to maintain the family and it is difficult to make them give up their practice. But since students have no such self-interest to serve, it is easy for them to leave their schools, provided they give up their infatuity for Government schools. Somebody may say, "But why so much strees on the student-class only ? Why should they give up their studies ?" Against this boycott of schools stand an array of stalwarts?Pandit Madan ????????? 1-2. Stations to supply water to Bombay and Ahmedabad respectively. Mohan Malaviyaji, a veteran in national service and a man of deep religious fervour; Shastriar, who possesses an extraordinarily deep and clear perception; and many other leaders-even Lala Lajpatrai himself. They all declare that this boycott of schools is a step fraught with great danger. I cannot wish that their view may not influence you. And that is why all that I say is this : 'Give full consideration to what these our patriotic leaders have to say; and if, even then, you find that my advice is true, you may leave your schools.' Then some one will argue : "Has this education which we have been taking for many years past suddenly turned into a poisonous draught ? However wicked the Government may be, why should we leave those institutions that are well-managed and have excellent professors or teachers ?" This question may naturally crop forth in every mind. The Government's political policy was bearable even after the Punjab and the Khilafat questions arose. Take my word for it that till I was in the Punjab there was a deep conviction in me that we were certain to get justice. I used to assure our Mussulman brothers also, "The least Lloyd George will do for you is to keep the solemn pledge he has given." And yet we got a severe knock on the head in the Punjab affair and the dirtiest plots were hatched to cover up that grave injustice. And as regards the Khilafat, so glaring has been the breach of promise that even a child can understand it. And those who were oppressed in the Punjab were no ordi-nary men. It was the educated class which the Government itself had reared up that was made the victim of all possible brutality. The Government has robbed the nation of its very selfhood. If a dacoit makes a clean sweep of all that we possess and then comes to us to say, "I have indeed robbed you of your wealth, but I provide for you this school from it, so that you may learn in the school," I am sure we will return only one answer : "We have nothing to do with your school." He who steals my purse, steals trash and I can put up with the loss. But if I am robbed of my honour, if I am deprived of my very manhood or woman hood, how can I ever recover that ? If my nose is cut off,1 how can I make it whole again ? Dacoits of Kathiawar ( Saurashtra. a part of Gujarat State ) used to cut off the wayfarer's nose and then a surgeon came forward, who -re-shaped that nose. But as regards this nose of India that has been cut, its tip has been lopped off, there is no specialist in the world who can make it whole again. If that nose can ever be made whole by anybody it can be done only by us. We ought to believe that just as we discard the best quality milk if even a few drops of poison get mixed with it, so the best kind of education is only fit to be spurned when there is a poisonous element in it. I must confess to a definite suspicion that Malaviyaji and Shastriar do not feel the pain of these two dark chapters ( the Punjab and Khilafat ) as poignantly as I. If they realize that the good things the Government gives us have turned into poison through its political policy, though by themselves the things may be as nourishing as milk, they would declaim against them as vehemently as I. I am constrained to say that these great leaders are unable to detect the poison that has entered into the education imparted by the Government. If we stand by and do nothing betimes, our reputation that has been sullied?our nose that has been cut?will remain un-repared for ever. For ages afterwards we are certain to remain unfit to express our genius in the comity of the world's nations. Nobody can say that you, students, are but children still. I ask you, therefore, to leave your schools after respectfully informing your parents and other elders of your decision. But I wish at the same time to state that you must apprehend clearly the condition under which you, boys and girls above sixteen, may act as independent grown-ups. Only he who has felt the wound?not as a mental scratch but as a gash in the heart?and who believes, "I cannot for one moment more bear the existence of the Empire; it is a shame to remain in it now that it is saturated with the poison of injustice," has the right to leave his school on his own. We may ?????????? 1. In the figurative sense. There was a custom in Gujarat to cut off the tip of a man's nose to humiliate him completely. not accept the education doled to us by this Government, just as we may refuse to accept any charity from a highwayman who has made us penniless. It is in this act of dissociation that real respect for, or real obedience to, our mother, our father and our leader lies. He who hears the still small voice of conscience peremptorily telling him, "This you shall do," has the right to heed the call and act accordingly. If you are so deeply convinced of the truth of my view, I want you to leave your school or college right tomorrow. To the student who asks, "Where is the other school which I can join ?" I say : "You must wait; you must consult your parents, for a doubt still lingers in your mind." How can I ever hesitate whether I should or should not run away from my room, when I find a snake's habitation in it ? If you want to know what the resolution of the Indian National Congress really means, let me tell you that it is an unconditional demand and does not promise to provide a new school before or after you leave your present one. To give up the school which appears as harmful as poison becomes for us an unavoidable necessity and then we will not wait to think whether we shall have a new school or not. The Trumpet Has Sounded Let no one, from all this, run away with the conclusion that I am opposed to education as such or that I am, through it all, propagating my own views on education. My views I am already spreading through the national school I have set up at the Ashram. And I shall find out my own ways and means to forward those views when I think I should do so. But the stand-point that at present impels me to suggest the boycott of schools is that of the soldier. When a war breaks out, students leave their schools and lawyers their courts; why, even jails fall vacant. Hardened criminals in chains shake off their natural propensities and shine as heroes on the front. In the same way this is for us a call to arms. Countless swords would have been drawn out from their scabbards a long time ago, if we were a warlike people equipped with arms. But we are not in that position at present. It is only from the practical point of view?from the common man's point of view?that I deal with this question just now and say, "We have been deeply disgraced by this Government, and we must refuse charity, and aid, which they may give us." If this moot point is accepted, no question remains whether there is a provision of a school for us or not. The questions you, students, may consider about this matter are really these : "Is it or is it not your immediate duty to boycott schools and colleges ? What should the students do after leaving their schools ? What should they do during the transition period when they have no work on hand to do ?" You can put all such questions, but the fundamental principle is what I have already stated. I am not putting before you the corollaries that issue therefrom. You must unflinchingly act according to the decision on the fundamental principle which your heart makes. It is my duty, at the same time to, tell you that no student can excuse his continuance in his school or college on the ground of mental weakness, when all his doubts on the question are quelled. This is no time for the nation to betray weakness of any kind. The names of the students who had renounced their colleges were then read out and then Gandhiji gave the following answers to the questions put to him by students. Q. Mahatmaji, what should we, non-co-operating students, do, if the coming Congress at Nagpur suspends this resolution of the special Congress ? A. I believe that the Congress at Nagpur cannot take a decision suspending this resolution. But to one who has thoroughly grasped the principle behind non-co-operation, the question what the impending Nagpur Congress will or will not do, does not arise. Even the awakening among the students of Gujarat alone may make it impossible for the Nagpur Congress to pass a resolution suspending the boycott of schools. Q. Mahatmaji, is it suicide that you want the students to commit or an act of self-sacrifice ? A. Self-sacrifice. And through that sacrifice to save their souls and their country. Q. The Gujarat College ( Government College at Ahmedabad ) was established solely from the funds contributed by Gujarat and then the Government took its management in hand. Must we then renounce our own property or regain its management ? A. Even law condemns for fraud the man whom, in all good faith, we appoint the trustee of our property and who then puts it to some unintended use. A washerman is a thief in the eye of the law, if he uses the clothes we give him, for any other purpose than washing them for us. On that ground I charge the Government of theft-of misappropriation of property and fraud. I say, "When we entrusted our college to your charge, we had no idea you would do injustice with regard to the Khilafat question and play havoc in the Punjab." Moreover, as our worthy President has said, your empty college building will not be-cannot be-turned into a cattle-pen. That college is bound to be ours in the end. In order to gain its complete possession and management, we have necessarily to renounce, at first, the secondary benefit improperly accruing to us from its wrong and illegal use by our trustees, the Government. If our house becomes infested with plague, we leave it summarily. On the same ground the only thing we must do is to quit this college whose owner-ship has passed from us, the rightful owners, into the hands of others. Dr. Kanuga ( a leading doctor in Ahmedabad ) uses no palliatives but simply amputates the hand of a patient if it is affected with gangrene. It is not suicide that the sailors commit when they throw overboard their goods to save their ship in distress. In the same way we ought to give up at the present crisis even the schools owned by us. And, through that very sacrifice we will regain our ownership. Q. Mahatmaji ! Should we leave even those schools which are under private ownership ? A. Those privately owned schools which have any connection with the Government, be it even through the Universities, must be emptied. Since the schools are under the control of the Government, the Government has a hold on them. In my view even those schools that, even slightly, smack of Government influence must be given up. Q. How can the boycott of schools by a few students produce any effect on the Government ? A. It is not a question of producing an effect. The fundamental question is whether one should accept a gift which is itself tainted with injustice. It is our bounden duty to preserve our self-respect. The boy or girl who leaves the school performs his or her own duty and serves the world as well to that extent. The self-sacrifice of even a single individual can exercise an influence. Q. In my view the Government never honestly wanted to provide us any education. Do we not then only help the Government in its evil intent by leaving our colleges ? A. I never believe that the Government wants us to leave its colleges. It has even issued a circular on the matter. In fact, the Government is already trembling with the fear that it will lose its present control over the people if its schools and colleges are boycotted. But irrespective of the wishes of the Government, we must do what is right and proper for us. Q. Should we leave even those schools which are going to turn into national schools ? A. You may write a letter to the manager of that school : "Our congratulations on your resolve to turn our school into a national one and we request you to send the necessary notice to the Government as quickly as you can so that we may be free from any doubt and worry on that score." Q. What should we do if our parents cannot be persuaded to let us leave our schools ? A. We must gently reason with them. We must treat them with respect and becoming modesty. We should never forget that it is our duty to obey them. But when we think that their behest is morally wrong, we may respectfully disregard it. Q. And suppose the national schools themselves are declared as 'seditious' institutions ? A. Then every student in every government school must get out. If children continue to attend the schools of the foreign government even at that time, the nation concerned only deserves slavery. But it is impossible for the Government to stop the spread of national education. It cannot possibly prevent teachers or volunteers from going to the homes of students. Q. Mahatma Gandhiji ! You said, "With the boycott of the present schools, the Dudheshwar Water Works of the Government is closed". How ? A. Government servants are the water that we supply to the Government and it slakes its thirst through that water. If the supplying tap is closed up, the Government will die of thirst. Lord Macaulay also has stated that, it is through these schools that the Government can get its servants. Q. Some people believe that this movement is another bubble and will soon burst as did the Bengal-Partition bubble. What have you to say there ? A. In the history of every nation such bubbles are formed and they burst. Would it not be a very desirable result if not a single child a mother bears dies in infancy ? To avoid mistakes we must begin any activity after giving due consideration to our defects or limitations. In the Bengal partition agitation there were two defects : ( a ) There was no movement to withdraw children from Government schools, and ( b ) leaders continued to send their children to these schools though they started a national institution. Both these defects are avoided as far as possible in this movement. As for students cursing me in the event of the failure of this movement, I am always prepared for the curses. The man who wants to serve the people must take curses in his stride. Both the people and myself have but to bear the consequences of the movement, whatever they be. But only that way is a nation's rise possible. Q. Is this movement really a war ??with all its characteristics ? A. This movement always contains all the ingredients of a war. This is nothing but a war, in all its grimness. 29-9-'20 Speech before the teachers delivered at the same place the next day : I was once a teacher myself. I can claim to be a teacher still. I have had tutorial experience and have made educational experiments also. During my work as a teacher I realized that nation whose teachers have lost their manliness can never rise. It is a dead fact that our teachers have lost their backbone. They do under compulsion what they would never do willingly. Nobody actually beats them, but they are definitely subjected to an insidious pressure. The hints dropped by their superiors and the threat of a cut in their salaries or a stoppage of any rise in them strike terror in their hearts. But now a situation faces us when schoolmasters and mistresses must risk their lives, their properties and their salaries, and boldly put the real facts of the situation before their students. If they are prevented from doing so, they must give up this means of their livelihood. My work for today will be done, when I convince you, the teachers, why you should do so. Against me is ranged Shastriar, a no mean teacher himself. Even Pandit Malaviyaji, who has founded an independent University-the Hindu University ( at Varanasi )-believes that I am leading the people astray. Those who belong to the Nationalist party also have doubts on the matter. All the same I feel I am right. The Arab Love of Freedom A gentleman coming from Baghdad related today his experiences there and I was simply amazed. It has become difficult for me, I say, to stay on in India. Were I not incessantly thinking of non-cooperation all the 24 hours of the day --- even going to sleep with that thought in the brain, it would have become impossible for me to live any longer in India. I believe that the illiterate Arabs of Baghdad are infinitely more advanced than we. And the gentleman who told me all that is certainly not a nonentity. He was a high-grade government official at Baghdad. And he is not an enemy of the British Government. He stated only the plain facts as he saw them. Gangabehn asked him, "Do you think the British rule will last there long ?" He retorted "Is it India that you put this question ? As long as there remains a single Englishman in Mesopotamia, the Arabs will never sit still." Arabs do not possess arms and ammunition, nothing worth the name at any rate, but it is certain, in one material they are well-equipped, the spirit that asserts, "This is our country. No one can stay in it for a moment without our permission." They annihilated all the Sikhs the British sent there. I don't give that advice to India. On the contrary, I am stemming the tide of armed revolt. The Arabs had no animosity against the Sikhs. What we ought to observe and admire is the object behind their act. The Britishers gave them many tempting hopes. The heat at Baghdad is so scorching that you cannot sit there in the sands as you are doing here. The sand gets so hot that we can cook our food with it. So the British Government told these Arabs : "We shall build pukka reads for you, bring you railways; provide you with many comforts, give you education etc., etc." Even motorcars the Arabs saw only recently for the first time. But the Arabs knew one and only one thing. They answered, "You have come to conquer our country." Even before the Mussulmans of India it is the Mussulmans of Mesopotamia who are driving out the British from their soil. The British bombing from aircrafts cannot frighten them. What does it matter to the Arabs whether they be aircrafts or something even more deadly ? They fight with the courage of desperadoes. What, after all, do they possess which the British may carry away ? They are not fighting for any selfish reason. Their clothes are dirt-cheap made of leather. And they live in tents. But their country, though only a sandy desert, they want to defend. Unless they permit it, who dare set his foot on the soil of their Baghdad Shareef, their holy town hallowed with the memory of many a peer ( mystic ) ? Neither the British, nor the Sikhs nor any of their Allies can plant themselves there. The Arabs are, therefore, a thousand thousand times superior to us. "This is my own, my native land. He who casts a covetous glance at it, shall see his eyes pluckd out of their sockets. No stranger shall be allowed to encroach on our land."?that is the spirit that makes men really happy. We would be doing injustice to the Arabs and even to ourselves, if we looked down upon them as uncivilized and up to our own selves as cultured. We do have some comforts and amenities o