Gandhi - Collected Works Vol 89

1.
TELEGRAM TO THE AGA KHAN

S ODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
H. H. AGAKHAN
BOMBAY
MANY THANKS YOUR WIRE. WOULD LOVE TO
MEET YOU AND LEARN FROM YOU WAY TO
SOLUTION COMMUNAL PROBLEM. MAULANA IS ILL BUT
AT WORK. EXPECTING TO REACH WARDHA FEBRUARY.
WRITING.
GANDHI
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
2. LETTER TO JIVANJI D. DESAI

SODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
CHI. JIVANJI,
I got your proof-copy of the pamphlet on constructive work
yesterday. I wanted to use that copy here and did so. But I had
already gone through the proof earlier. As there is no letter accom-
panying it, I don’t quite understand why you have sent it. You have
given a heading to my preface but there is no heading on the page on
which the pamphlet itself begins. I infer from this that final touches
still remain to be given to the printing. I have of course asked Pyare-
lalji to write to you about this, but I think it is better to dictate this just
now in the morning.
I have the impression that I have already written to you about
the cover. My suggestion is that the eighteen headings which you
have given in the pamphlet should be reproduced on the cover in their
proper order, with the page number given against each. This will help
the reader and we shall be able to show what topics have been covered.
The topics can also be shown on the cover in the form of a circle. We
can have a drawing of the spinning-wheel in the centre and the head-
ings can be printed round it like the planets round the sun. There is
one difficulty in this, of course. How can communal unity be repre-
VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 1

sented as a planet? If it is so represented, my original conception
would be vitiated, for the basic conception is that khadi is the chief
handicraft and that the other industries take their place and revolve
round khadi like planets round the sun. If now we can find a place in
this scheme for Adivasis, kisans, students and communal unity, then
the conception will have been worked out. It might be better, there-
fore, to give up the idea of the circle, or to form the circle only with
khadi and cottage industries. But we need not waste any time over
this, for it is essential that the pamphlet should be published as soon as
possible. It is also necessary that the translations should be published
simultaneously. It would, also, be good if at the end a supplementary
list of other books to be read with the pamphlet are given. For
example, Rajendra Babu’s book, Gulzarilal’s essay, etc. You may
drop this also, if you cannot recollect the names of the books imme-
diately. Pyarelal will most probably send you a wire today saying,
“Send another copy proof.” The idea behind this is that if I have to
correct the proof, the time which would be taken by an ordinary letter
may be saved, for the copy which I have passed on is not likely to
come back to me now.1
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 9960. Also C.W. 6934. Courtesy:
Jivanji D. Desai
3. LETTER TO JATINDAS AMIN

SODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
CHI. AMIN,
I got your letter sent with Sushila. She arrived the day before
yesterday. You do not seem to have calmed down yet. You can
render great service if you calm down. Take up only a little work
there. If you bring credit to it, it will be greatly appreciated.
What you write is absolutely correct. Greatness lies in becoming
small and smallness in assuming greatness. We should therfore only
serve by becoming as small as dust particles.
1
This was given to R. G. Casey, the Governor or Bengal, vide ”Letter to R. G.
Casey”,6-12-1945
2 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

Your camera is to be sent only with somebody going there, is
that not so? I am sure you are not in a hurry.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a copy of the Gujarati: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
4. LETTER TO MANORANJAN CHATTERJEE

SODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
BHAI MANORANJANBABU,
I have your wire. I am writing to Dr. Shyamaprasadji 1 and I
shall send either Dr. Sushila Nayyar or Pyarelalji there.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI MANORANJAN C HATTERJEE
From a copy of the Hindi: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
5. LETTER TO SHYAMAPRASAD MOOKHERJEE

S ODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
BHAI SHYAMAPRASADJI,
Why did you fall ill? Dr. Bidhan tells me that you do not take
care of your health and that once you take up some work you never
let go. This is a virtue as well as a vice. It is good when you persevere
in it within a certain limit. It is bad when you go beyond the limit. I
hope that, as reported in the newspapers, you will resume work after
taking complete rest.
Yours,
M. K. G ANDHI
S HYAMAPRASAD MOOKERJEE
C ALCUTTA
1
Vide the following item.

6. LETTER TO SURENDRANATH VISHWAS
SODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
BHAI SUREN BABU,
I have your informative letter. It will be useful to me.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI S URENDRANATH VISHWAS
1/23 PRINCE GULAM MOHAMMED R OAD
KALIGHAT
C ALCUTTA
7. LETTER TO CHARUPRABHA SENGUPTA

SODEPUR,
December 7,1 1945
CHI. CHARUPRABHA,
These days I try to write to all Indians in the national language.
How long shall we go on writing to each other in English ?
I am occupied with many things up to the 10th. I don’ know
how long I shall be here after that. Even then I am writing to Aruna.2
From a photostat of the Hindi: G.N. 8710. Also C.W. 1496. Courtesy: A. K.
Sen
8. LETTER TO ARUNA SENGUPTA

SODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
CHI. ARUNA,
Mother writes to me that I should write to you to come here. I
am busy till the 10th. I don’t know where I shall be after that. Look
up the newspapers and if I am in Sodepur come any day at 5 o’clock
1
A copy of the letter available in Pyarelal Papers bears the date December 8.
2
Addressee’s daughter; vide the following item.

for the prayer. I shall have a talk with you for two minutes after the
prayer.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRIMATI ARUNA S ENGUPTA
93/3/2 H ARI GHOSH S TREET
C ALCUTTA
Sen
9. INTERVIEW TO THE PRESS

December 7, 1945
Asked whether he would like to say anything about the Congress Working
Committee meeting1 , Gandhiji replied.
No, I am tired.
In reply to another query Gandhiji remarked :
What can I give you? The Maulana is here. You can take what-
ever you like from him. They have called me here, but they have not
given me any food to eat, or water to drink. And after my work has
been finished they are sending me back to my place.Your food is
being cooked at Maulana’s hands and he will give it to you when it
is ready.
While waiting for the car Gandhiji turned to Maulana Azad and remarked :
Maulana Saheb, these press reporters and photographers are
having a good time and detaining our car.
A hearty laughter followed. A Press correspondent drew Gandhiji’s attention
to the announcement from New Delhi that the Viceroy had agreed to see Mahatma
Gandhi. The correspondent inquired whether it suggested that Gandhiji had sought the
interview.
Gandhiji replied the news had appeared in the newspapers and he declined to
make any further comment.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 8-12-1945
1
Held at the residence of Abul Kalam Azad, the Congress President.
According to the source “Gandhiji spoke for over an hour and touched upon the
political situation, the Indian National Army, changes in the Congress constitution,
Congress prospects in the Central and Provincial elections and other matters. He
also reported on his talks with R. G. Casey.”

10. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING
SODEPUR,
December 7, 1945
Gandhiji said that he noticed that the people became quiet only after he arrived
at the place. That was not ideal. The place where a prayer was conducted, he said,
should be considered as a temple and only in prayerful mind should they present
themselves there. They should come silently and maintain calm and should leave the
place in the same mood.
If, however, those who joined in the prayer would remain quiet and peaceful he
would be only too glad to see the whole of Calcutta assembled there.
Proceeding, Gandhiji said that there were incorporated in the service Bengali
songs as the majority of those present were Bengalees; but for the benefit of others
he wished to get a booklet including all songs and other prayers printed in both
Devanagari and Urdu scripts. This proposed booklet which might be priced two pice
would be of permanent benefit to the readers who could then be acquainted with the
texts whenever they so wished.
11. LETTER TO G. E. B. ABELL

C AMP: K HADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR (NEAR C ALCUTTA),
December 8, 1945
DEAR MR. ABELL,
I have your letter of 26th November about Shri Yajee. 1 I am
thankful for the considered reply. I am now trying to put myself in
touch with the gentleman and see what he has to say.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
G. E. B. ABELL, E SQ.
P RIVATE S ECRETARY TO THE VICEROY
Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the Government, 1944-47, p. 61
1
The addressee had written that the allegations of Sheel Bhadra Yajee about
food and inhuman living conditions given to him in the jail were all exaggerated.
Vide also “Letter to Sir Evan M. Jenkins”, 7-11-1945

C AMP: K HADI P RATISHTHAN
December 8, 1945
DEAR MR. ABELL,
I thank you for yours of 1st instant. 1 I shall send you in due
course fuller details about Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia and have written
to Shri Prabhu Dayal Vidyarthi to proceed to New Dehli and report
himself.2
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the Government, 1944-47, pp. 63-4
13. LETTER TO R. G. CASEY
Immediate KHADI P RATISHTHAN, S ODEPUR,

December 8, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I write this with the greatest hesitation. The more I see and hear,
the greater is the grief over the happenings in Bengal. Here is a sam-
ple demanding immediate attention.
Satish Babu brings me the story that potato-growers cannot get
seed potatoes and the planting season will be over in a week’s time.
Seed potatoes are there in the market under Government control. But
the grower cannot get them.
There is evidently something radically wrong if the news
brought by Satish Babu is true. I wonder if you can do anything. You
were telling me about the clever Mr. Dey whose services you have
enlisted for such matters. Can you make him over to me or some
other officer who can attend to this immediate affair?
I am having this letter delivered at once. The question is small
1
The addressee had asked Gandhiji to send directly to the Home Member the
details about Vidyarthi and Lohia.
2
A telegram was however sent on December 9.Vide also “Letter to Sir Even M.
Jenkins”, 25-11-1945

enough on the large Bengal canvas but is all in all to the poor growers
whose livelihood is at stake.1
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
From a photostat: G.N. 813; also Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the
Government, 1944-47, p. 113

KHADI P RATISHTHAN, S ODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I have just finished reading your broadcast to be delivered
today. It makes interesting and informative reading. If the waters of
the rivers can be captured and utilized by the people of Bengal,
instead of being wasted in the Bay, it would be a great gain. But it is a
long-term proposition. The millions, meanwhile, must be taught to
utilize every minute of the working hours for their own benefit. If
they learn this art they will make good use of the captured waters.
You have well said :
The tens of millions of farmers of Bengal are idle more than half the
time. They constitute the biggest problem of unemployment in the world and
the biggest waste of potential human effort.
I have provided you with a complete answer which can be
worked out today with a very little outlay on the part of the Govern-
ment. Regard human labour more even than money and you have an
untapped and inexhaustible source of income which ever increases
with use. If I had been your adviser, before the speech was printed I
would have suggested the insertion immediately after, “Let us exa-
mine the problem”, of a paragraph or two, showing the way of imme-
diate utilization of human effort. You could then have followed it up
with your entrancing scheme as a long-range proposition.
Is your peroration right? You say :
The answer to my mind lies not in our politics, our religion or our
individual ambition, but in the abiding factors of our environment, i.e., the
land and water of Bengal.
1
In Gandhi’s Emissary. Sudhir Ghosh writes that the Government, using
emergency powers, seized whatever stocks there were with the profiteers and 250
mounds were distributed among the growers that same day.

This is a gross error or thought and consequent action, handed
down from generation to generation by the British official element.
Your gigantic project will come to nothing until the whole mass of the
people of Bengal is interested in the Government of the province.
Therefore, religion and even individual ambition are intermixed.
They are as much abiding factors of our environment as the land and
water of Bengal, and they are equally shifting.
You asked me for my reaction to your thoughtful speech and I
have given it as it has come to me.
Very many thanks for your prompt action 1 on my letter of this
morning on seed potatoes.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
From a photostat: G.N. 812; also Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the
Government, 1944-47, pp. 107-8
15. LETTER TO THE AGA KHAN

S ODEPUR (NR. C ALCUTTA)
December 8, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I had your long wire to which I have replied2 as follows :
Of course, I shall be glad to receive your suggestions. It does
not matter to me in the least that in this matter you will be
representing nobody but yourself. The only question is how we shall
meet, when and where. I have a fixed programme for Bengal, Assam
and Madras, which is calculated to take me up to almost the middle of
February before I return to Sevagram. If, therefore, I know your
movements about February, I shall try to see what I can do.
Maulana Saheb has interrupted his rest for the sake of the
Working Committee. He is none too well, but I have no doubt he will
be in communication with you himself.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
H. H. THE AGA KHAN
BOMBAY
1
Vide footnote on “Letter to R. G. Casey”, 8-12-1945
2
Vide “Telegram to the Aga Khan”, 7-12-1945

16. LETTER TO SATYANAND
SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
DEAR SATYANAND BABU,
It was a delight to receive your postcard. I am doing all I am
capable of for the alleviation of distress. I do not know what God will
do through the effort.
I hope you are keeping well.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
17. LETTER TO NOEL BARWELL

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
DEAR MR. BARWELL,
I thank you for your cordial note. I am so much fixed up and
so embarrassingly besieged wherever I go that I dare not promise my-
self the pleasure of visiting the society you mention. But I shall cer-
tainly be pleased to see you for a few minutes at this place if you and
Mrs. Barwell can conveniently come. There is not a moment left open
till Monday, but I shall know more fully on Monday where I stand.
Could you please phone on Tuesday next or send a messenger?
Yours sincerely,
NOEL BARWELL ESQ.
6 M IDDLETON S T.
C ALCUTTA

18. LETTER TO BALWANTBHAI D. DESAI
SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
CHI. BALWANTBHAI,
I got your postcard. I am really very glad. Get rid of alldoubts.
Blessings from
BAPU
SJT. BALWANTBHAI DADUBHAI DESAI
DAKOR
19. LETTER TO KISHORELAL G. MASHRUWALA

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
CHI. KISHORELAL,
I have your letter. I am certainly going to …1 Tara. Her letter
reflects her character. The work which she is doing now will not clash
with the work of K. G. N. M. Trust. She will also have some help
from Sushilabai.2 If she would rather not stay at the Mahila Ashram,
she can live in Akola and there can be no hitch even if she has to be
paid a salary. I am passing on Chi. Tara’s letter to Bapa. I strongly
feel that you two should go and stay at Bombay for a time.
How strange that I myself never knew that my car had met with
an accident. Still it made a story. People might be escaping hun-
dreds of such accidents daily. It the papers were to take note of them
we would have to stop travelling by cars, etc. If Prabhu Dayal is there
please ask him to stay on.
Blessings from
BAPU
S JT. K ISHORELAL MASHRUWALA
S EVAGRAM
1
Omission as in the source
2
Sushilabai Mukundrao Joshi, a teacher at the Mahila Ashram, Wardha

20. LETTER TO NARAHARI D. PARIKH
SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
CHI. NARAHARI,
I have your letter. I think the kind of questions asked by
Vishnudatta’s friend ought not to be encouraged. Had I been
conducting Harijan I might occasionally answer such questions.
Generally those who ask such questions are idlers.
Blessings from
BAPU
21. LETTER TO SHANTILAL TRIVEDI

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
CHI. SHANTILAL,
I have your letter. Saralabehn spoke at great length of your
courage and service. I am glad.
I am pleased with what you write about wool. It may be useful
if you have your experiences during the journey published. You
should be concise and to the point.
SJT. SHANTILAL TRIVEDI
GOVIND NIWAS
ALMORA
22. LETTER TO TARA N. MASHRUWALA

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
CHI. TARI,
I read your letter to Kishorelal. How will you continue to be so
diffident? Your name will be announced as an Agent. Thakkar Bapa
will write to you the details. You will no doubt take all the help you
can from Sushilabai. It would certainly be better if she could be
spared from the Mahila Ashram and stay with you in Akola. I think
her salary can be paid from the K. G. N. M. Trust. Write to me at

length, or write to Bapa.
I take it you are all well. Sushilabehn and the children are not
with me; Manilal is.
Blessings from
BAPU
23. LETTER TO ATMARAM

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
BHAI ATMARAM,
It is certainly a bad thing that during prayer undesirable
thoughts come. But you should not worry. Take any sloka of the
prayer and concentrate on it. If even this is not possible repeat
Ramanama from the depths of your heart with such concentration that
there is no room for any other thought. It is no doubt difficult but it
can be done. Such has been my experience and the experience of
other people as well. That is why Ramanama is said to be the panacea
for all ills.
24. LETTER TO KHUSHIRAM

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
BHAI KHUSHIRAM,
Bhai Jairamdas has told me how generous you are. It is good to
give whatever you want to give without laying down unnecessary con-
ditions. And the trust is being made. All this makes me very happy.
25. LETTER TO MRS. S. R. DAS

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
DEAR SISTER,
I was happy to see you, but it also made me unhappy. I was not
prepared to see you in such broken health. Urmiladevi has given me

a cheque for Rs. 500. I will spend that money on the Adivasis. You
know who the Adivasis are, don’t you? Thakkar Bapa and Khersaheb
are working among the Adivasis.
Blessings from
BAPU
MRS. S. R. D AS
1 AUCKLAND P LACE
C ALCUTTA
26. LETTER TO UDDHAV

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
BHAI UDDHAV,
On the death of your brother you performed only the yarn
sacrifice and no religious rites. I liked it very much. It will bring
great benefit if all do so.
27. LETTER TO V. V. SAXENA

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
BHAI SAXENA,
Kishorelalji has forwarded here your letter addressed to him. I
shall not be able to reach Sevagram before February in any case. It
will be best if you write to me what you want to discuss with me. In
this way both of us will save time—and money of course.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
P ROF. V. V. S AXENA
VANASTHALI VIDYAPITH
VANASTHALI (JAIPUR)

SODEPUR,
December 8, 1945
Congratulating the congregation on its maintaining an ideal condition for
proceeding with the prayer straight away as soon as he reached the place, Gandhiji
explained the significance and gradual development of the system of mass-prayer at
Sodepur Ashram.
In 1936 about a dozen Japanese monks paid him a visit when he was staying at
Maganwadi, Wardha. The leading monk suggested to him that he intended to send one
or two of his disciples to the Ashram, a proposal which he approved. First came one
and later on another. Of the two, one was staying with him till the war with Japan
broke out and as a result he was taken into custody. This Buddhist monk used to do all
the tasks he was given very punctually and methodically. In between his work he
used to spend the time at his disposal in singing religious songs in the Japanese
language all the time beating a little drum. This he did while taking his rounds. This
was a Buddhist religious song in praise of the Infinite. Gandhiji said that he incor-
porated the song in his prayer. This was the first item of the prayer.
The second item of the prayer was a Sanskrit sloka and was, according to him,
universal in its appeal. This was an invocation to Mother Earth, sustainer of man. If
there was any objection to it on any score he would plead that he was helpless. To
him all faiths were welcome. He believed in all faiths but he saw no reason to give up
his own faith. Possibly, said Gandhiji, this Sanskrit sloka was symbolic, but,
according to him, many noble thoughts and ideas were couched in symbolic language.
Thirdly, there was the prayer quoted from the Koran. It was incorporated at the
instance of daughter 1 of Abbas Tyabji, the well-known Congress leader. She
possessed a gifted voice. When on a visit to the Ashram she expressed the desire to
propagate the teachings of the Koran to the Ashramites, he readily agreed. She
suggested a verse from the Koran for inclusion in the prayer and it was done.
The fourth item of the prayer was taken from the Zend-Avesta written in the
Pahlavi language. When he was fasting in the Aga Khan’s Palace, Dr. Gilder was
there as were also Dr. Bidhan Roy and some other medical men. Dr. Gilder was a Parsi
and from him the verse from the Zend-Avesta was taken and included.
So far as bhajan songs were concerned, said Gandhiji, there was no hard and
fast rule. It all depended upon the time and place of the prayer. As the prayer was for
the moment being held in Bengal and Bengalees in larger numbers were present,
Bengali songs had to be included in the prayer daily.
It was Gandhiji’s desire to get all the prayers included in a booklet with their
meanings given in Hindustani. He wished it to be printed both in Devanagari and
1
Raihana Tyabji

Urdu scripts and, if possible, in Bengali too.
He asked the assembled people to follow the prayer in a proper spirit and to
live up to the lofty ideals it inculcated.
29. TELEGRAM TO PRABHU DAYAL VIDYARTHI

C ALCUTTA,
December 9, 1945
P RABHU DAYAL
ASHRAM
S EVAGRAM, W ARDHA
PROCEED NEW DELHI AND SEE DEVDAS WHO HAS
INSTRUCTIONS.
BAPU
From a photostat G.N. 11673
30. LETTER TO SAMARENDRANATH ROY

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
DEAR SAMARENDRA
It grieved me to learn from Satis Babu that your great father 1
was no more. You may know that your father and I were friends. We
often met and exchanged views. My condolences to you all.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI S AMARENDRANATH R OY
33/2 BEADEN S T.
C ALCUTTA
1
Kalinath Roy, editor in charge of The Tribune, who died on 9th
December, 1945

31. LETTER TO SUSHILA GANDHI
SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. SUSHILA,
I got your letter. It is enough that your aspiration is pure. I
don’t think there is anything special in staying with me. When you
serve people wherever you are, I shall take it that you are with me. I
do not feel that you are losing anything by not being with me. The
air is humid and it is cold, too.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 4967
32. LETTER TO SITA GANDHI

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. SITA,
You seem to be demanding too much. How can you expect a
letter from me unless you write to me? I know that you are keeping
well and are working hard. Pass the examination. Come to me when
you can. I am glad to know that you do rowing. It is a good exer-
cise. Row the boat of India, too.
Take care of your health while studying.
Blessings to all.
Blessings from
BAPU
33. LETTER TO SHRIMAN NARAYAN

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. SHRIMAN,
I got your letter today. I made very few changes. I am sending
it back.
I am happy to hear that Madalasa is all right. Tell her that I
think of her every day.

Do not give any importance to my cold. I did have a touch of it
but am I not a “mahatma” after all ?
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Hindi]
Panchven Putrako Bapuke Ashirvad, pp. 307-8
34. LETTER TO BHAGWATI PRASAD

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. BHAGWATI,
How will the marriage be performed in Gondia? You have not
said whether there will be any rites or it will be a civil marriage before
a magistrate. I wish both of you well. I cannot have any objection to
marriages which are intended not for indulgence but for observance
of self-control, for enhancing the spirit of service and widening its
sphere. On the contrary I encourage such marriages. And therefore I
would like to have your reply to the above question.
What is the girl’s brother doing? Why doesn’t the girl write to
me? What has she been doing these years since she visited the
Ashram? I am keen to know all these things.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI BHAGWATI P RASAD
C/ O DEVIPRASAD DAMOHE
R ANGE OFFICER, G ENTRAL EXCISE
GONDIA
35. LETTER TO LAKSHMI NARAYAN GADODIA

S ODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
BHAI LAKSHMI NARAYAN,
I have your letter. Personally I liked it very much. I intend to
show it to Sharmaji. You have not asked me not to do so. Similarly, if
it becomes necessary I shall also want to show it to Jajuji and Vichi-tra
Narayan. The whole episode seems strange to me.

I will find out more about khadi because I have received com-
plaints from other people also it this regard.
S HRI LAKSHMI NARAYAN GADODIA
P. O. BOX NO. 17
DELHI
36. LETTER TO H. L. SHARMA

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. SHARMA,
I had sent a copy of your letter to Gadodiaji. I have a long
reply from him, saying that whatever you have said is all fabrication
and where it has any truth it has never been hidden nor is it a matter
of shame. I only hope that you have not done anything improper and
if you have you must frankly confess it. I enclose a copy 1 of
Gadodiaji’s letter.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI H. L. S HARMA
KHURJA
37. LETTER TO SARASWATI GADODIA

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. SARASWATI,
What is there in your letter that makes it confidential? Still, since
you want it, I shall treat it as such. Of course I shall not take it to
mean that it is to remain confidential from those who work for me.
For instance, I did not read the letter, but Kanu read it out to me while
I ate.
You would want me to show it to Sharmaji, wouldn’t you? If I
don’t do that, the letter, which I like and which I find clean and pure
will become useless. Even then I shall wait for your reply. My advice
1
This is not traceable.

is that not only the above-mentioned letter but anything we do or
write should not be kept secret. We should do nothing which has to
be kept secret or hidden. That is the main thing.
Blessings from
BAPU
C/ O S HRI LAKSHMI NARAYAN GADODIA
P. B. NO. 17, DELHI
38. LETTER TO RADHAKANT MALAVIYA

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
BHAI RADHAKANT,
I have gone through your letter. I do not take any interest in
the elections. I know that the Congress must win.
Babuji has formed a separate association. I did not like it. But
who was I to prevent him from doing so? I think it is improper for
you to run it. It is a different thing if Babuji does so. Have a talk with
the Working Committee about the role of the Hindu Mahasabha. I
personally do not like it. I am returning the two letters.
Blessings from
M. K. GANDHI
39. LETTER TO SHYAMLAL

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
CHI. SHYAMLAL 1 ,
You are going ahead very fast. If it is in keeping with your
strength, it is good. The work of Kasturba Memorial can progress
only with such self-sacrifice. We cannot always measure the strength
of self-sacrifice.What does it matter? May God preserve your strength.
Blessings from
BAPU
1
Secretary of the Kasturba Memorial Trust

40. LETTER TO VASUDEV
SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
BHAISHRI,
Your letter is written in a very bad hand. And that too in
English. Can’t you express your views in Hindustani?
I have gone through the printed statement. I did not like it. Its
is pompous and lacking in humility. There is also exaggeration in it.
Read what I have written about students. Writing will not help. Only
work will. Constructive work is easy as well as difficult. Meet Rajen-
dra Babu. Do what he says.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
VASUDEV
YOUTH LEAGUE
P ATNA
41. LETTER TO MOTILAL ROY

SODEPUR,
December 9, 1945
BHAI MOTI BABU,
How long should I go on writing to you in English? These days,
as far as possible, I write to everybody in the national language or the
mother tongue. Perhaps you may not be having anyone who can read
the national language, so I am enclosing a Bengali translation of the
letter also. Amtul Salaam will deliver this letter to you and also have a
talk with you. She has complained a lot to me about the khadi policy
of the Pravartak Sangh. Amtul Salaam has stayed with me for years as
a daughter. She is very industrious and very knowledgeable. Hence,
she has been doing the khadi work at Borkamta for the last few years.
Now the Pravartak Sangh is also functioning there. Amtul Salaam’s
work is purely altruistic and for service of the people.1 Amtul Salaam
says that the [Pravartak Sangh] 2 is not for selfless service but . . . 3
1
A few words are indistinct here in the source.
2
ibid
3
A few words are indistinct here in the source.

ends. She also says that its work is against the policy of the Charkha
Sangh and may cause harm to it. I refuse to believe that you are
aware of these things and allow them to continue. And so I am
sending Amtul Salaam to understand the situation. She will ex-plain
things in greater detail.
It is a matter of regret that the money advanced by the Charkha
Sangh has not been returned so far. They should get it back now. It
belongs to the Trust. And how can the Trust write it off ?
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Hindi: G.N. 11058
42. LETTER TO CHIMANLAL N. SHAH

SODEPUR,
December 10, 1945
CHI. CHIMANLAL,
The newly-opened account in the United Commercial Bank, as
per papers herewith, is to be operated by you or by me. I am thinking
of two more signatures, though I have not decided who the persons
should be. If you can think of any names, let me know. Perhaps two
names may suffice for the present. The question will arise when one
of us dies.
Send your specimen signature on the accompanying form. I
have given mine in Hindustani and intend to sign in that language in
future. You also can do the same. Think over this and do as you like.
Preserve the other papers relating to the account sent with this. Send
the specimen signature to me.
I shall be here for some time.
Blessings from
BAPU

43. LETTER TO SHITIKANTH JHA
SODEPUR,
December 10, 1945
BHAI SHITIKANTH,
I have your letter. If you want to sit by my side, come over
some day. But what is so special in sitting near me? Doing the work
suggested by me amounts to sitting near me.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI S HITIKANTH JHA
KHADI P RATISHTHAN
GRAM S EVA KENDRA
THAKURDANDI
From a photostat of the Hindi: G.N. 7477. Also C.W. 4923

SODEPUR,
December 10, 1945
When we are making a supreme effort for the realization of our
goal let nobody have any opportunity of pointing it against us that
we are not disciplined and therefore not fit for swaraj. Either today or
tomorrow the power must come to our hands. But how are we going
to exercise that power unless we are disciplined ?
The British Government, he reminded the people, was not the last hurdle to be
got over. If the people were not disciplined then even if power came to their hands
they would not be able to retain it and someone else would be there to snatch it away
from their hands.
It was only wild animals which were not disciplined and took recourse to
unreasonable and meaningless climbing. But if men also took recourse to such
tactics how could drivers and guards of trains manage their affairs.1 It was also often
found that small boats which had only limited capacity often gave way and sank
because of overcrowding. They were crores and perhaps for that reason they did not
notice the loss they sustained in such catastrophes. If they could not board a train
they should just wait for the next to travel instead of overcrowding the first and thus
make it impossible for the driver and the guard to run it.
1
The reference is to the conduct of passengers who boarded engines and
guards’ compartments on the previous day to travel to and from Sodepur.

Proceeding, Gandhiji said that they must learn discipline. There were two
ways of learning it. The soldiers learnt it by having drill exercises. But there was the
prayer to teach them the other way. Prayer not only secures for them their salvation
for the next world but also in this world. If they failed to secure their salvation in this
world, could there be any possibility of securing the salvation for the next? In the
circumstances, concluded Gandhiji, they should conduct themselves as thinking men.
45. SPEECH AT CALCUTTA1

December 10, 1945
Addressing the gathering outside Government House, Gandhiji said that when
he entered Government House in the evening he found a crowd of people around his
car. Hence he had come this time walking to them.
He asked them to be calm and peaceful. He was an old man and could not bear
the strain of demonstrations. If they did not allow him to go by car, he would have to
walk on foot to Sodepur.
Gandhiji added that he had come there to serve them and the country. He urged
on them the need for discipline. India had attained a great position in the past
because of her great message of shanti. They could attain freedom only by peace and
discipline.
Referring to the prayer meeting at Sodepur Ashram, Gandhiji said that
thousands and thousands of people came there to join the prayer, but perfect silence
was maintained.
Gandhiji then asked the gathering whether they would allow him to go by car.
The crowd respectfully replied in the affirmative and Gandhiji got into his car while a
corridor was made for him to pass through. Sitting with his hands folded in
salutation, Gandhiji then moved out in the car to his Ashram at Sodepur.
1
At 8·40 p.m., after his talk with the Viceroy. For the Viceroy’s version of
the talk vide “Lord Wavel’s Version of His Talk With Gandhiji”

46. CONGRESS WORKING COMMITTEE RESOLUTION 1
[On or before December 11, 1945] 2
After the arrest of the principal Congressmen in the August
of 1942, the unguided masses took the reins in their own hands
and acted almost spontaneously. If many acts of herosim and
sacrifice are to their credit, there were acts done which could not be
included in non-violence. It is, therefore, necessary for the Wor-
king Committee to affirm, for the guidance of all concerned, that the
policy of non-violence adopted in 1920 by the Congress continues
unabated, and that such non-violence does not include burning of
public property, cutting of telegraph wires, derailing of trains and
intimidation.
The Working Committee is of opinion that the policy of non-
violence as detailed in the Congress resolution of 1920, since expan-
ded and explained from time to time, and action in accordance with it,
has raised India to a height never attained before.
The Working Committee is further of opinion that the construc-
tive activities of the Congress, beginning with the spinning-wheel and
khadi as the centre, are emblematic of the policy of non-violence and
that every other Congress activity including what is known as the
parliamentary programme, is subservient to and desi-gned to promote
the constructive activities as explained by Mahatma Gandhi.
The Working Committee is of opinion that civil disobedience,
mass or any other, meant for the attainment of freedom, is inconcei-
vable without the adoption of the constructive programme on the
widest scale possible by the masses of India.
The Hindu, 12-12-1945
1
The resolution, drafted by Gandhiji, was passed by the Congress Working
Committee on December 11, the concluding day of its five-day session held in
Calcutta.
2
ibid

December 12, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your letter of 10th instant, for which I thank you.
I have not discounted1 your irrigation scheme. I have only
suggested an addition to it so as to bring almost immediate individual
relief to the crores of villagers by occupying their admitted leisure
hours. In your written note you seem to be in entire accord with my
proposition. Where then is the difficulty in the Government of Bengal
sponsoring the scheme and at once creating a hopeful situation so far
as the shortage of cloth is concerned? I have never suggested that
attainment of happiness is possible without the control of physical
surroundings. But I have no desire to enter into any argument. If you
have immediate regard for home-spinning and weaving and other
village crafts, I have suggested a way out. That each cultivator should
grow his own cotton is not a sine qua non of my scheme and certainly
no cultivator should be compelled or even advised to grow cotton to
the detriment of any staple crop. The question is one of utilizing
waste labour, as under your scheme it is one of utilizing waste water.
If you favour the idea as practical and capable of immediate
application, I could furnish you with a detailed scheme which, as I
have told you, can be worked with the help of the various khadi
organizations controlled by the All-India Spinners’ Association.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
1
Vide “Letter to R. G. Casey”, 8-12-1945

KHADI PRATISHTHAN, SODEPUR,
December 12, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your kind letter of 10th instant regarding the Gope
Palace. 1 This is a matter of such a delicate nature that I do not think I
can usefully interfere. And why should there be any hurry if a
popular government is shortly to replace the present regime?
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the Government, 1944-47, p.112
49. LETTER TO PREMA KANTAK

S ODEPUR,
December 12, 1945
CHI. PREMA,
Chi. Sushila2 has addressed the following letter3 to Shyamlal:
I had assumed that Sushila would readily take up this work and
had, therefore, welcomed Shyamlal’s suggestion that he himself
should write to her. But Sushila suggests your name and has declined
to join while you are there. So I ask your advice as to what should be
done. Shouldn’t we do what would help the work and bring credit to
it? If you want to give your reply after consulting Sushila, do that.
You may make any suggestion you like. If you address your reply as
above, I shall get it wherever I am at the time.
Blessings from
BAPU
Prema Kantak
1
The palace, which was on the outskirts of Midnapore, housed a British
Military Hospital and the Health Department of the Bengal Government was anxious
to acquire it permanently for a T. B. sanatorium. The addressee had suggested to
Gandhiji to use his influence with the owner who was a Congressman.
2
Sushila Pai
3
Not translated here. She had declined to be the Agent of Kasturba Memorial
Fund Committee for Maharashtra and suggested the addressee’s name instead.

50. LETTER TO DR. N. B. KHARE 1
SODEPUR,
December 12, 1945
BHAI KHARE,
I think that you are anxious to meet me. 2 It will be all right if
you can come tomorrow evening at 8 o’clock.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
From a photostat of the Hindi: C.W. 4869. Courtesy: N. B. Khare
51. LETTER TO RADHAKANT MALAVIYA

SODEPUR,
December 12, 1945
BHAI RADHAKANT,
I received your letter last night. The meeting of the Working
Committee is over. Please understand my limitations and also my un-
willingness concerning what you write.
S HRI R ADHAKANT MALAVIYA
16 T ARACHAND DUTT S TREET
C ALCUTTA

SODEPUR,
December 12, 1945
Gandhiji said that an individual, even if a snake might be lying on his way,
would pass by it, assuming that it was not a snake but a piece of rope. He would not
be frightened then. But if his companion then drew his attention to the fact that it
was not a piece of rope but a living snake that he passed by, he would at once be
frightened. Was it not curious, asked Gandhiji, that although the same conditions
prevailed, at one time the individual had no trace of fright in him and at another he
would be awfully frightened and would thank God for his miraculous escape.
Drawing the moral from the illustration, Gandhiji concluded that the source of
1
(1884-1967); Congress Premier of C. P., 1937-38, and member of Viceroy’s
Executive Council, 1943-46
2
Some of Khare’s supporters wanted him to explore possibilities of rejoining
the Congress and to see Gandhiji in this connection.

happiness and woe, therefore, did not lie elsewhere but in one’s own mind. In his
reply to Arjuna as to who had attained illumination, Krishna explained the nature of
such a man by stating that he only was self-illumined (sthitaprajna) who was not
affected either by a feeling of happiness or woe.1 This was possible only on the part
of that individual who was self-controlled. To a self-controlled man life becomes
simple and salvation easy.
Amrita Bazar Patrika 13-12-1945
53. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING2
SODEPUR,
December 13, 1945
No knowledge conducive to the real good of the world could be attained
without purification of heart, said Mahatma Gandhi. Those who attended these
meetings should derive some benefits from them; otherwise, it would be useless for
them to attend prayer meetings. They must concentrate their minds and only then
would they realize the existence of God in their hearts. But if they kept quiet because
he (Gandhiji) had asked them to do so, they would derive no benefit from the prayer.
By concentration, their hearts would be purified and their inner knowledge would
grow. Everybody should think that they were going to the prayer metting for self-
purification. Only then would their intellectual progress be uninterrupted and they
would get real peace by controlling their passions.
The Hindu, 14-12-1945
1
Bhagavad Gita, II, 54 and 56
2
According to the source a large number of women and over a hundred Harijan
boys attended the meeting.

December 14, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your kind telegram. I do not return from Madras via
Poona. The probability is that I shall return via Bezwada to Wardha in
February, when a date mutually convenient can be agreed upon either
in Bombay or Poona, wherever it is convenient for you at the time.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
H. H. THE AGA KHAN
BOMBAY
55. LETTER TO BISHOP FOSS WESTCOTT1

December 14, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
Your kind letter (undated) from Ranchi has been received.
I thank you for the book Sudhir has given me. I shall try to
make time to read it.
I entirely agree with you that the spirit of hatred can never solve
India’s problem, for I believe in the general proposition that the spirit
of hatred has never solved and never will solve any problem in the
world. But I also believe that the causes for such hatred have to be
discovered and removed. The removal of these, in India’s case, lies
first in the superior, i.e., the ruling party, undoing the wrong it is
doing. My method, by which I swear, is calculated to do it in the
quicket manner possible.
I am glad you will bear in mind the thought of passing some
time with me in the quiet of Sevagram.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
THE R T. R EV. B ISHOP F OSS WESTCOTT
C/ O THE BISHOP’S HOUSE
R ANCHI
1
Bishop of Calcutta and Metropolitan Bishop of India

56. LETTER TO KAMALADEVI CHATTOPADHYAYA

December 14, 1945
DEAR KAMALADEVI,
Your letter of 2nd instant came into my hand only this morn-
ing. When, after the conference 1 , you find that you have to go to
Mysore for Kasturba work, after due notice of yourproposed entrance
and that you will proceed to Mysore for that definite purpose, you
should enter the State and take the consequences. If the State pre-
sumes to interfere with your activities, it might be worth while to test
the legality of such action. But of that nothing need or can be said at
the present moment.
About those who will be thrown out of work,2 is not Jawaharlal
developing some central scheme or, it may be, the Congress? I have
only a hazy notion. But I know this much clearly that it is a big pro-
blem not to be tackled by any single individual. The Talimi Sangh
can only take in the smallest number possible, and then they are to be
specialists having love for the work. The A. I. S. A. can absorb some
more but such have to appreciate the dignity of village life and village
simplicity. Can those whom you have in view take to it ?
Of your future activity I understand what you say and I would
much like to see you settle down in a village and put your hand not to
the plough which may be too hard for you but to the wheel which is
hard for nobody.
Love
Yours,
BAPU
S HRIMATI KAMALADEVI
C/ O WOMEN’S C ONFERENCE OFFICE
LAMINGTON R OAD, B OMBAY ?
1
All-India Women’s Conference to be held in 1946 over which the addressee
was to preside
2
The reference is to the demobilization of army personnel and labour engaged
in war service. The. A. I. C. C. which met at Bombay from September 21 to 24 passed
a resolution expressing its concern.

57. LETTER TO MUNNALAL G. SHAH
S ODEPUR,
December 14, 1945
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I got your long letter. I was taken aback a little. I was not una-
ware that meat, and even beef, is cooked in the kitchen there. This is a
problem which can be solved only with patience You need not get
alarmed and run away. It should be enough that you yourself do not
eat either meat or beef. But you cannot prevent others from doing so.
It would be good if they thought about it and stopped on their own. I
would, therefore, advise you to have patience and go on doing the
work I have suggested.
I do not want to keep you too long. But I shall be satisfied if
you start writing up the accounts and set them in order and bring the
sanitation work within manageable limits. The other changes can be
introduced only after my return. Jehangirji must have arrived there
by now.
Kanchan remains engrossed in work. She has not recovered
complete strength, but I am hopeful that she will. Has Durlabhbhai
left for good or only temporarily? If you know anything about this,
write to me.
Blessing to all.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah

58. LETTER TO ATUL CHANDRA GHOSH

December 14, 1945
BHAI ATUL BABU,
What can I do? I cannot be young for ever. Therefore be con-
tent with whatever service I can render from one place. Please tell the
people of Manbhum that we can achieve everything through ahimsa
and the symbol of ahimsa is the charkha.
Blessings from
BAPU
BABU ATULCHAND GHOSH
NIVARAN ASHRAM
P URULIA (MANBHUM),
59. LETTER TO V. G. GAVANDE
S ODEPUR,
December 14, 1945
BHAI GAVANDE,
Ramkrishna has given me your statement. When you send
something to someone, whether it is long or short, it should always be
legible. What you have sent is illegible. Unless one gives it concen-
trated attention one can’t read it. Where do I have so much time? I
am sorry to say I have not been able to read it. In writing this my
intention is to tell you that anything, any statement you send, should
be in a clear and legible hand.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI V.G. G AVANDE
MAHAL, N AGPUR

60. TELEGRAM TO MUNNALAL G. SHAH
December 15, 1945

YOUR LETTER. DO ALL WORK YOU CAN SECURING
NECESSARY ASSISTANCE.
BAPU
From a photostat: G.N. 8614. Also C.W. 7194. Courtesy: Munnalal G. Shah

December 15, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
A correspondent writes from the United Provinces to the effect
that manufacture of gur 1 is prohibited there. Gur-making is a
village industry. It is manufactured on their fields by cane-growers
from juice extracted by means of village kolhus2 and boiled in village
pans. I, therefore, thought that my correspondent must be mistaken
and asked him to send me a copy of the order on which his obser-
vations were made. He has sent me a copy of the enclosed startling
order. 3 Cane-growers have since passed resolutions protesting against
the order and threatened to disobey it if it was not withdrawn. As a
result the authorities relaxed the order. A copy of the relaxation
order is also herewith enclosed. I doubt not that you realize what this
means to the poor people. The original order could not have been
issued for the protection of sugar mills but must have been meant to
secure judicious use and distribution of sugar as gur or refined. If so,
it defeats the purpose. The modified order, though less bad than the
first, does not really serve the purpose, considered in the light of the
villagers. There should be no licence for gur made in village.
As this is not a mere provincial matter but applies to all India
1
Jaggery
2
Cane-crushers
3
The notification was to the effect that in certain specified areas no person
should “manufacture gur, introduce or set up any kolhus for crushing cane” or “move
sugar-cane……to any place outside such areas except to sugar-cane factories listed”.

wherever cane is grown, I venture to approach H. E. the Viceroy for
relief.1
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
G. E. B. ABELL, E SQ., I. C. S.
P RIVATE S ECRETARY TO H. E. THE VICEROY
THE VICEROY’S HOUSE
NEW DELHI
62. LETTER TO C. K. NARAYANASWAMI

KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR (NR. C ALCUTTA),
[December] 2 15, 1945
DEAR NARAYANASWAMI,
I am afraid that, owing to my movements after leaving Poona, I
have not been able to be up to date with my correspondence. I hope
that Menon is making good progress with his work.
As to the constructive programme I can say this much that it is
doing better than before. But have you any workable suggestions to
make? What you have said in your letter is good enough for city
mentality. What you and I have to do is to think out suggestions in
terms of village mentality unless, of course, you have reached the
conclusion that the village and village mentality are to go if they have
not already gone. My conclusion emphatically is that if the world is
not to end, the village and village mentality alone will save it. In spite
of their glamour the city and city mentality are going before our eyes.
Therefore, I have left for me no other alternative but to think of ways
and means for sustaining the village life.
What is your concrete suggestion about Muslim unrest?
Yours,
BAPU
S HRI C. K. NARAYANASWAMI
5 HIDAYAT HOUSE
BOMBAY 19
1
The addressee in his letter of January 4,1946, said that gur-making was not
prohibited except in a small area of the United Provinces and that too in order to plan
production and distribution of sugar and gur in the Province.
2
The source has October but Gandhiji was then in Poona.

63. LETTER TO J. C. GUPTA
S ODEPUR,
December 15, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
Many thanks for your letter.1
I am doing all I can about the prisoners.2 I do not think I need
trouble you to see me about them.
It was a pleasure to see your blind son and his wife.
Yours sincerely,
S HRI J. C. G UPTA
23 C IRCUS AVENUE, C ALCUTTA
64. LETTER TO UTTIMCHAND GANGARAM

S ODEPUR, C ALCUTTA,
December 15, 1945
DEAR UTTIMCHAND,
Though the receipt for the 4th instalment has, I presume been
sent you, I have not been able to acknowledge your p. c. of 22nd
ultimo. I have been travelling.
Your puzzles baffle me and my clever friends. I must therefore
give up hope of getting prizes from you for Harijans. I must rely
solely on your love of Harijans and Khadi, perhaps also Adivasis.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI UTTIMCHAND GANGARAM
BOMBAY BAKERY
HYDERABAD (SIND)
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers: Courtesy: Pyarelal
1
According to The Hindu, 26-12-1945, the addressee who was chairman of the
All-Parties Political Prisoners’ Release Campaign Committee had said in his letter
that “43 pre-Reform political prisoners between themselves had undergone
imprisonment for no less than 600 years……”
2
Vide “Letter to R. G. Casey”, 16-12-1945

65. LETTER TO HARJIVAN KOTAK
December 15, 1945
CHI. HARJIVAN,
I got your letter of the 10th yesterday. You seem to be very
impatient. You ask my blessings by wire. We are after all poor people
and trustees of those much poorer than we. And how can we so much
as wish for blessings? Even if we have such a desire, how can we have
it met telegraphically? So thinking I refrained from sending a wire.
Why should you need any blessings? Here is the secret of blessings.
When we are engaged in a work which is worthy of blessings, then the
work itself is a blessing; it does not wait for blessings from others.
Seeking blessings from other people is, there-fore, meaningless; it is
nothing but self-deception. It no doubt has a meaning in that bless-
ings act as a stimulant from which a weak person derives momentary
encouragement. But this kind of encouragement is not of much help.
If you understand this and still really need my blessings, you certainly
have them for your work of producing the tools necessary for making
khadi provided it is done intelligently. When I say intelligently I mean
that we should not manufacture spinning-wheels, winding frames,
taklis, etc., just to sell; we should make only as many as are needed
and see that they are so perfect that no one may find fault with them.
Our aim should be—and is—that all the things are produced locally.
Only then will the villages prosper. What I am now saying is covered
by the new line of thought on khadi that I am propounding. Whatever
I have not elaborated may be deduced from the aforesaid.
Yesterday Sardar was here. He wanted to know why he was not
informed about your leaving the khadi shop. I could not give him a
satisfactory answer. I take it that you must have gone through all the
formalities since you are so alert. However, if you have anything to
say in this regard, write to Sharda. I see from your letter that Sharda
is with you. Is she doing anything ?
Blessings from
BAPU
HARJIVAN KOTAK

66. LETTER TO RAJENDRA PRASAD
December 15, 1945
BHAI RAJENDRA PRASAD
I have your letter. I shall start working on Mahendra Chau-
dhary’s case after receiving other opinions on it.
You should be perfectly fit.
I am going to Santiniketan on the 18th. I shall return on
the 20th.
Blessings from
BAPU
DR. R AJENDRA P RASAD
S ADAQUAT ASHRAM
DIGHAGHAT
P ATNA
67. LETTER TO KHWAJA NAZIMUDDIN

KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR, C ALCUTTA,
December 15, 1945
BHAI SAHEB,
Amtussalaam has given me your letter inviting me to your place
on the 4th. How nice it would have been if I could come to your plac
place. But circumstances do not permit me to do so. Does it mean
that we shall not be able to meet? If that happens I shall be very
sorry.
S IR NAZIMUDDIN
C ALCUTTA
From a copy of the Urdu: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal

December 16, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I have insistent complaints about goondaism and favouritism at
the elections.1 We had a talk about these. But they seem to persist. I
know you do not want these things. Can something be done in the
matter ?
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI

December 16, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
Literature about your prisoners is pouring in on me. 2 Accor-
ding to the papers in my possession, you have over twenty-five pre-
Reform prisoners, all of them having undergone sentences above ten
and most of them above fifteen years.
Then you have untried detenus, detained only on one-sided
secret evidence which they have not seen, and some convicts, all of
them political.
Among these prisoners are two women cooped up in a small
cell.
I am told that there is no terrorism to be feared. The prisoners
are all likely to be public-spirited. But that can be no reason for
keeping them behind prison bars.
I submit that they should all be discharged without the slightest
ado.
I plead for a little grace before, as you and I hope, the trans-
ference of power comes.
I have offered, and still do, to see these prisoners, if it is thought
1
It was Fazlul Haq, ex-Premier of Bengal, who had brought the matter
to Gandhiji’s notice. The goondaism was resorted to by supporters of the Muslim
League.
2
Vide also “Letter to J. C. Gupta”, 15-12-1945

desirable.
I leave for Santiniketan on 8th instant, returning here on the
20th evening.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
70. LETTER TO DHUNDIRAJ

December 16, 1945
BHAI DHUNDIRAJ,
I have been receiving the figures sent by you. I glance through
them as they arrive. According to the new policy, you are also
required to indicate the number of people who go there to learn or to
spin, how many of them know all the processes, whether those at the
shop have learnt them and so on. All these particulars should be
shown in figures.
Blessings from
BAPU
S JT. D HUNDIRAJ
KHADI BHANDAR
395 KALBADEVI
BOMBAY
71. LETTER TO SARALADEVI A. SARABHAI
December 16, 1945

DEAR SISTER,
I came to know of your brother’s passing away from a letter of
Chi. Mridula. I also learnt that you had been to Rajkot in this con-
nection. Such things are part of life. All of us have to go—some
sooner, some later. That being so expression of condolence would
only be folly. Why should I then indulge in it? And why should you
expect me to? So the purpose of writing this letter is only to let you
know that you are not out of my thoughts.

72. LETTER TO MRIDULA SARABHAI
S ODEPUR,
December 16, 1945
CHI. MRIDULA,
Sushilabehn gave me news of the death of your maternal
uncle and told me how calm and unperturbed you were in your
bereavement.
Badshah Khan left yesterday. He was telling me that in the event
of Akbar1 being prepared to go to him, you would take up his work at
Samau or make some arrangement. If this is correct, talk it over with
Akbar and finalize the arrangement. If Akbar is still not satisfied then
let me know who is willing to take up the work at Samau and how it
can be done, so that I can write to Akbar. If some depen-dable worker
is not available, do tell me so frankly.
I have not yet written to Saraladevi regarding her appointment
as Agent because I had a letter from Mavalankar that he would be
seeing her. Write to me if you know anything more. I hope you are
well. I shall go to Santiniketan on the 18th, and return on the 20th.
24th Midnapore. It is correct to regard Sodepur as my camp for the
present.

S ODEPUR,
December 16, 1945
CHI. MUNNALAL,
Your second letter written on the 12th arrived here on the 15th.
You must have received the following wire which I sent you yester-
day :2
The description you have given is quite good. I am sure
that as the problem about beef was solved so will the other also be
solved through patience and love. 3 I entrusted certain jobs to you
1
Akbarbhai Chawda
2
Vide "Letter to Munnalal G. Shah”, 15-12-1945
3
Vide”Letter to Munnalal G. Shah”, 14-12-1945

as being the most important, but since I have already accepted
responsibility for all other arrangements except medical attention I
should certainly like you to take up that work also. So do take up
whatever work you can without coming into conflict with anybody.
Though I shall not be there on January 1, from that day the
institution1 will be run only for the poor and on behalf of the poor.
From that day the management of all departments except the medical
will be considered to have become my responsibility. I trust you will
take up the responsibility on my behalf. But you must assume the
responsibility for only as much work as you can easily attend to. Let
me know what jobs you are not able to take up.
After January 1, there will be no wealthy patients there. If there
are any, they will not be treated as wealthy men.
Dr. Dinshaw had said that he would himself see about the
furniture. He wanted it for his clinic in Bombay. There will be very
few poor indoor patients for the present. Maybe there will be none.
Hence, though we shall keep facilities ready for a large number, the
hospital is not likely to get filled in the immediate future. We shall
have to use our judgement in the matter of furniture. Ascertain
Gulbai’s2 wishes. Don’t insist on ordering things which the two do not
want.
From among the patients there, those who wish to leave may be
permitted to do so. From January 1, really speaking, the only patients
will be Balkrishna3 , Vanu4 and Zohra. You will have no difficulty in
looking after them. You must have realized by now that it is no easy
job to shoulder the responsibility of that institution. The task would
easily test the capacity of any man.
I wish you not to worry about Kanchan.
Blessings to everybody there
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah
1
Nature Cure Clinic
2
Wife of Dinshaw Mehta
3
Balkrishna Bhave
4
Vanamala Parikh

74. LETTER TO G. RAMACHANDRAN
S ODEPUR,
December 16, 1945
CHI. RAMACHANDRAN,
Why should I now write to you in English? If you have to write
in English, you may do so. However, I should like you to make an
attempt to write in Hindustani.
How can I explain to you how much harm we are causing to
India by being unable to write except in English.
I have seen to the matter of the Rs. 100. You do not have to
worry.
I hope your work is going on well. Write to me whatever you
want to. I shall be going to Santiniketan on the 18th for two days.
After that I shall return here.
I hope Saundram is well.
S HRI R AMACHANDRAN
GANDHI ASHRAM
S ALEM DISTT.
75. LETTER TO JASWANTRAI CHURANI
S ODEPUR,
December 16, 1945
BHAI JASWANTRAI,
I had your letter dated the 20th. Ever since I have been touring.
You have done well in sending the receipts of the deposits. If there is
anything more, Mukherjee will write to you.
S HRI JASWANTRAI C HURANI
15 LAKE R AOD
LAHORE

76. LETTER TO KUMAR BABU
S ODEPUR,
December 16, 1945
BHAI KUMAR BABU,
You have spared me from having to visit Vasudevpur. Thanks.
I am indeed sorry that I cannot go there.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI

S ODEPUR,
December 16, 1945
The tendency of learning English rather than one’s own language was
deprecated by Mahatma Gandhi. “If we could stop this tendency we would be free from
one of our slaveries,” said Mahatma Gandhi, adding that he could not express how
this tendency of some people talking and writing in English damaged them and the
country. But in England, whenever a good book was published anywhere in the
world, within a few days it would be translated and would reach the hands of the
English-speaking public. Mahatma Gandhi asked :
Should we not do the same thing in India? Although it would
take time for all people to understand the rashtrabhasha, there were
languages of the locality and any good book could be translated and
presented to the public in their mother tongue.
The Hindu, 18-12-1945
78. STATEMENT TO THE PRESS
December 17, 1945

I see that I have overstayed my time in Calcutta. I found I had
more work in Calcutta than I had expected. And then events com-
pelled me to work more strenuously than I had counted upon.
The result is that, much to my and my fellow-workers’ disappoint-
ment, I have been compelled to cut off the places I had originally
conceived and tentatively discussed with friends who were arranging

the tour. But let no one think that the curtailment will affect my study
of the Bengal situation. The visit to Santiniketan is more by way of a
friendly visit than study. I do not expect to see or meet visitors. They
will oblige me by abstaining from wishing to see me during my very
short stay there.
79. LETTER TO MIRABEHN

S ODEPUR,
December 17, 1945
CHI. MIRA, 1
This is merely a love letter written on the silence day. I have
read your descriptive letter with much interest. But I do not know
when I shall reach the Kisan Ashram. Is your account to the English
Press quite accurate ?
Love.
BAPU
S HRI MIRABAI
KISAN ASHRAM, M ULDASPUR
BAHADRABAD P OST, via JWALAPUR
S AHARANPUR DT.
From the original: C.W. 6513. Courtesy: Mirabehn. Aslo G.N. 9908
80. LETTER TO C. RAJAGOPALACHARI

S ODEPUR,
December 17, 1945
MY DEAR C. R.,
Your letter. You have not much to do for deserving what I said
about you to the friends. For my observation was based on the past
performance, not on the promise of the future.
Let my thought work, if it is true and well thought. The spoken
word may spoil matters. Wait, watch and pray. Let us see.
You should write regularly or, if you are too busy, ask someone
to write. How are you? The account given to me was none too good.
Things here are as bad as could be imagined. I am trying. I go
1
The superscription in this and other letters to Mirabehn is in Devanagari.

on 18th to Santiniketan, return on 20th and go to Midnapore on 24th
for a week. Your letters should be addressed to Sodepur.
Love.
BAPU
From a photostat: G.N. 2114
81. LETTERS TO MAKHANLAL ROY-CHOWDHURY

S ODEPUR,
December 17, 1945
DEAR RPOFESSOR,
If you can come at 5.45 p. m., i. e., just after public prayer on
22nd instant you can talk to me while I am having my walk.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
P ROF. S HRI MAKHANLAL R OY-CHOWDHURY
12 S ITARAM GHOSH S T.
C ALCUTTA
82. LETTER TO JANAKIDEVI BAJAJ

S ODEPUR,
December 17, 1 1945
JANAKIMAIYA,
It was good that I got your telegram.
I was a bit worried. You must have got Sushila’s wire and letter.
I hope you remember about the cow. You are coming to Madras,
aren’t you ?
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 5851. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy:
Pyarelal
1
In Pyarelal Papers the date is 18.

83. LETTER TO MADALASA
S ODEPUR,
December 17,1 1945
CHI. MADALASA,
It is good that you have undergone the second operation. I hope
you are well. You are learning your lesson all right. Write to me when
you are fit enough to do so. Ramakrishna 2 is fine. He does some
work of service. Kamalnayan 3 has come today. I hope the child is
well. Is he growing normally ?
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
Panchven Putrako Bapuke Ashirvad, p. 37. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy:
Pyarelal.
84. LETTER TO ARUN GANDHI

S ODEPUR,
December 17,4 1945
CHI. ARUN 5 ,
I think of you every day, but especially today during silence.
Do you spin carefully at least 160 rounds daily? Is the yarn even? Do
you yourself fix the spinning-wheel? Do you keep a daily account?
If you keep this one promise, you will learn a lot.
Are you all right ? How is Ila6 ? Has she become a little wiser?
Blessings to all of you from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 4969. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy:
Pyarelal
1
2
Addressee’s brothers
3
ibid
4
5
Son of Manilal Gandhi
6
Addressee’s sister

85. LETTER TO J. C. KUMARAPPA
S ODEPUR,
December 17,1 1945
BHAI KUMARAPPA,
Your work has come to my notice. Look after your health and
do not tempt God. If you have understood what I have said, then you
need not move about a lot. It is a question of your being ready. What
is required is mastery over one vocation and working knowledge of
the others. It is very necessary to have good knowledge of Hindus-
tani.
Blessings from
BAPU
KUMARAPPA
WARDHA
From a photostat of the Hindi: C.W. 10406. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy:
Pyarelal
86. LETTER TO RAM MANOHAR LOHIA

S ODEPUR,
KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
December 17, 1945
BHAI RAM MANOHAR,
I am sorry that your father passed away suddenly yesterday. We
used to meet often. I had sent Pyarelalji and Prabhavatibehn to see his
charkha activity. In my view he died in the manner he wanted. He
had been engrossed in his work.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
DR. R AM MANOHAR LOHIA
AGRA
From the Hindi original: C.W. 11065. Courtesy: Hardev Sharma. Also
Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
1

87. LETTER TO SHRIKRISHNADAS JAJU
S ODEPUR,
December 17, 1945
BHAI JAJUJI,
I have your letter about the appointment of Ramdhanbhai in
Kashmir in place of Vichitrabhai. I agree.
I have sent my signatures on the authority letter for opening
accounts in banks.
I have sent the letter after signing it to the Bihar Charkha Sangh.
The reply sent to Badshah Khan is all right.
Do whatever you can about……1 khadi.
Blessings from
BAPU
JAJUJI
88. LETTER TO DR. SYED MAHMUD
S ODEPUR,
December 17,2 1945
BHAI MAHMUD,
How was it that you came and went away? I kept on waiting? It
was much easier for you to come to Sodepur. How can any arrange-
ment be made now ?
Blessing from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Hindi: G.N. 5092. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy:
Pyarelal
1
A word is illegible here.
2

89. LETTER TO VEENA PATEL
S ODEPUR,
December 17,1 1945
CHI. VEENA,
I have your beautiful letter. Let me know to what extent you
had been suppressing yourself. Khimji is no doubt a good man and
you will be happy there. Keep on writing to me. I am going to Santi-
niketan tomorrow. Father meets me quite often. He will go to Wardha.
He will take Swadhina with him. Dhiren is well.
Blessings to you and Khimji from
BAPU
VEENA

S ODEPUR,
December 17, 1945
We have come so close together and you have been observing
such exemplary silence that it will give me a wrench to be away from
you. God willing I shall be leaving for Santiniketan on Tuesday. I
hope to return and again join you in the prayer on the 21st.
The hymn that has been sung on Monday is particularly appro-
priate. It says that he who gives his all gets all without asking. As
against this he who grabs what he has no right to, loses all.
I have been told that some of you travel without ticket on
trains and even stop trains by pulling the alarm chain at will.
The report has pained me. Both these things are illegal. But I do not
want to dwell upon the legal aspect. These practices are contary to the
spirit of the prayer. All I can say is those who indulge in these pract-
ices have not grasped the meaning of prayer. If they will reflect on the
hymn that has just been sung they will realize that they may not travel
1
Although the date in the source is 18, it would appear from the contents
that the letter was written on the 17th, for Gandhiji left for Santiniketan on
the 18th.
2
The speech, written in Hindi, was read out by Kanu Gandhi, it being
Gandhiji’s silence day.

without ticket or pull the alarm chain without legitimate cause. I hope
that such things will not occur again. If we continue to indulge in this
kind of behaviour it will neither bring us independence nor enable us
to retain it after it has been won. May God guide us aright.

C AMP: KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR ( NEAR C ALCUTTA),
December 18, 1945
DEAR MR. ABELL,
In continuation of the correspondence 1 about the alleged ill-
treatment of Dr. Rammanohar Lohia, I am now able to send as reque-
sted a copy of the statement made by Dr. Lohia to his legal adviser.2
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
92. LETTER TO G. L. CROSS

December 18, 1945
DEAR MR. CROSS,
I have very carefully read your letter of the 15th and the note
you left with me when we last met. Dr. Sushila Nayyar added that after
best thought you had come to the conclusion that it would not be
proper to worry me in the matter, at least for the time being. If this last
news is accurate, I need not say anything more. However, I want to say
that in popular estimation anything which the Government either
directly or indirectly supports is considered to be anti-Independence
and there is, at some stage or other, a clash between the people and the
power that keeps the former from their cherished goal. This has
happened often enough within my own experience. Therefore, ‘non-
1
Vide “Letter to Sir Evan M. Jenkins”, 25-12-1945
2
Acknowledging this in his letter dated December 20, the addressee said that
the statement had been forwarded to the Home Member.

political’ has come to mean non-Indian, i.e., anti-Independence.
Hence the unpopularity of movements connected with the Govern-
ment. This is the crux. Association with war has a meaning with me
but not with the average man. Everything British is certainly not bad if
it is not synonymous with the Government; as C.F. Andrews, from top
to toe British, was not bad. There are many organizations under
Democracy which are not themselves run democratically but are not
anti-democratic. Thus, a bank or a hospital would require experts to
run it even though they may be run by democrats in the interest of
democracy.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. G.
G. L. CROSS, E SQ.
C/ O F RIENDS’ AMBULANCE UNIT
1 UPPER WOOD S TREET
C ALCUTTA
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. Courtesy:
Beladevi Nayyar and Dr. Sushila Nayyar
93. LETTER TO PUSHPA K. DESAI

S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
CHI. PUSHPA,
Owing to my many preoccupations, I have not been able to write
to you of late. I hope you are getting on well. You must be learning
Hindustani.
Enclosed is a letter from Vrajlal. Read it and preserve it. Give it
to me when I return. I have replied to Vrajlal and told him that
if he finds it convenient he may go to Sevagram even in my absence.
If he can persuade you to marry him, he may by all means do so. As
I understand you, you do not even countenance the idea of marrying.
But my judgment of you may be wrong. Can any man or woman
really know his or her heart? Does not God alone know it? If, there-
fore, you change your mind after meeting Vrajlal, believe yourself to
be absolutely free to do what you like. Don’t be obdurate through a
false sense of shame. Obey the promptings of a pure heart. I shall
welcome your writing to Vrajlal, and if you do write, send the letter to

me. I will forward it to him. If you are not very eager to write, I shall
not press you to do so.
Blessings from
BAPU
94. LETTER TO DINSHAW K. MEHTA
S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
CHI. DINSHAW,
Though I am here I keep thinking of matters there. Please train
Munnalal well. He is hard-working, honest and accomplished.
What did you do about the furniture? We will not take in any
new patient from the new year. We might admit some who are poor.
I hope you are calm. I am enclosing the wire from Met Manage. Let
him come when he can. Those who stay on should do so after careful
consideration. Those who want to leave may go. Write to me at the
address given above.
Blessings from
BAPU
95. LETTER TO GULBAI D. MEHTA
S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
CHI. GULBAI,
You must now be due for confinement. How are you? You are
calm, aren’t you? Write to me whatever you like. You are not going
to fight shy of me. How is Mother ?
How is Ardeshir1 ?
Blessings from
BAPU
1
Addressee’s son

96. LETTER TO ANASUYABAI KALE
S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
DEAR SISTER,
I was happy to read your letter. Your Hindi is not in any way
inferior to mine.
Everyone should do some constructive work over and above
parliamentary work. And the aim of parliamentary work should also
be to advance constructive work.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI ANASUYABAI KALE
ANAND BHAVAN
DHANTOLI
NAGPUR
97. LETTER TO B. P. SINHA

S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
BHAI SINHA,
I have received the statement1 of Dr. Rammanohar which you
have sent. Thanks.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI B. P. S INHA
KASHI VIDYAPITH
BENARAS C ANTT.
1
Vide also “Letter to G. E. B. Abell”, 18-12-1945

98. LETTER TO N. G. RANGA
SODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
BHAI RANGA,
I have gone through your letter. I will read your pamphlet.
You are doing a lot of work.
Blessings to you both from
BAPU
P ROF. R ANGA
NIDULBROLU
99. LETTER TO H. C. DASAPPA
S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
BHAI DASAPPA,
I have your letter. Meet me in Madras when I go there. I doubt
whether I shall be able to go to Mysore. Be in Madras, both of you.
Blessings to Yashodhara.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI H. C. DASAPPA
S HRI KASTURBA S HIBIR
P ADURAVALLY
V. V. MOHALLA P OST
MYSORE
100. LETTER TO SANKARAN

S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
CHI. SHANKARAN,
I have your letter. I understand. I have already written for the
expenses of [your] son and sister being paid.

Come here after improving your health. Write to me about
everything there. Let me know how many patients there are and what
treatment they are being given and so on.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI S ANKARAN
BALESHAWAR S INGHJI
JIVAN S AKHA, L UKERGANJ
ALLAHABAD

S ODEPUR,
December 18, 1945
BHAI SHYAMLAL,
I have your letter about Durgabai. You may accept her services.
I am not however fully satisfied. How will she be able to do the work
of Kasturba Memorial Trust while practising law? Let us see whether
she learns Hindustani. I have your letter about Shri Panajikar, but I
have not received his letter.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HYAMLAL
S ECRETARY, K ASTURBA GANDHI S MARAK NIDHI
WARDHA
102. LETTER TO PURNIMA BANNERJEE

S ODEPUR,
ON THE TRAIN,
December 18, 1945
CHI. PURNIMA 1 ,
You must be knowing that from January onwards the Kasturba

Smarak Nidhi will function through its Agents instead of the commi-
1
Purnima Bannerjee of Allahabad, sister of Aruna Asaf Ali

ttees. I am enclosing herewith a copy of the resolution passed in this
connection. Will you become an Agent? It will be easy for you to
fulfil the conditons laid down. I had a talk with Jawaharlalji. He says
neither he nor Pantji has any objection to your taking up this work.
That is to say, they will relieve you from other activities. Someone told
me—I cannot remember his name—that you might try to get into the
Assembly. One going into the Assembly will not be able to do the
work of Kasturba Memorial Trust well because an Agent will have to
give a lot of time to the work if she wants to bring credit to it.
Now write to me at the Sodepur address. I wanted to write to
you a few days back but forgot about it.
Blessings from
BAPU
P URNIMA BANNERJEE
103. LETTER TO MANGALDAS PAKVASA
[ CAMP] S ODEPUR,
ON THE T RAIN [ TO S ANTINIKETAN],
December 18, 1945
BHAI MANGALDAS PAKVASA
I have your letter and the opinions. It was good that you sent
copies of the opinions to Jajuji. I shall now see what can be done.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: C.W. 4784. Courtesy: Mangaldas Pakvasa
104. LETTER TO OM PRAKASH

ON THE TRAIN,
December 18, 1945
CHI. OM PRAKASH,
I have your letter. If you have to go to your brother and do the
work there, you should spare some time and come back after finishing
the work. Take care that you do not devote too much time to it.

It is necessary to have a good knowledge of Urdu but why
should you crave for a degree ?
Blessings from
BAPU
105. LETTER TO KRISHNACHANDRA

S ODEPUR,
ON THE TRAIN TO S ANTINIKETAN,
December 18, 1945
CHI. KRISHNACHANDRA,
I have received all your letters. The letter written on rough
paper is also lying with me. Today I shall answer whatever I possible
can.
I am doing quite a bit of work here.
As for hand-carding I believe that this makes the cotton very
clean. It is not so well cleaned either by machine or by any other
means. By all these other means the fibre does become somewhat
weak. In my view land-carding is a grand process. Combing should
be given a place in it. Hand-carding teaches us cleanliness and
patience. Adding the time spent in hand-carding [to that of the whole
process] the speed of spinning the yarn seems slow. But that does not
matter. Hand-carding of course cannot provide a livelihood. But it
has a very significant part in self-reliance. As the process of hand-
carding has not been very much in vogue, we have not had a real
estimate of its power. We shall have an idea of its power if large
numbers of people take to hand-carding. Show this letter to Vinoba
also Hand-carding is his discovery. He has also had a wide experience.
I would like to know if I am mistaken in this.
Because the sadhu had gone away, it was quite proper that he
was asked to leave the Ashram. In my view this does not mean that it
was quite wrong to have kept him in the Ashram. This will enable you
to understand my argument.
I have no doubt that there should be separate classes for women.
As for Om Prakash I shall be content with whatever you think right. It
would not be proper for me to write anything about this.
I think the proper thing would be for me not to lay down limits
as to the expenses of the people who are staying in the Ashram and

who come as visitors. For my experience these days should be regar-
ded as limited. In my view you have all gone too far ahead. And
when one has left a thing behind, one’s view of it becomes less
acceptable. The same applies to me. A doctor, however great a
specialist he may be, does not regard himself as a specialist when he
has given up practice. Others, who have acquired degrees later would
be considered more competent. Hence, if it is decided to limit the
expenses, let me first know the amount now being spent. Then I shall
provide whatever light I can.
As for quarters for workers in the Ashram, I have discussed the
matter at length with Shantabehn. But I am neutral. Shantabehn must
be well now.
I shall not write anything from here about the work of Kamle
and Om Prakashji. It would be improper for me to write. But I shall
be ready to write to them when you write to me that I can place your
views before them.
I understand what you say about Kailasbehn. It would have
been better if I had asked you to be present when I spoke to her. I
admit that what happened was improper. But I was dealing with things
under such pressure that, much as I should have wished it, I could not
have kept you with me all the time. This does not imply that I should
not be warned again. Even a cautions person is likely to commit
mistakes. Hence, it is a good policy to give a discreet warning.
It seems to me that however much we may get to know Vinoba,
there is still more to learn. Do take the girls and the boys with you.
Let there be one rule in this matter, that is, there should be no undue
pressure on Vinoba. We should value his time.
Do you want a wall clock or a timepiece ?
As a general rule, the new entrants should bear their own
expenses. If it is decided to keep anyone free of charge, it should be
done after recording the reason for doing so. I hope you have kept
some such book there.
What decision did you want from me with regard to Chakrayya?
What do you want now ?
Blessings from
BAPU
[PS.]
On the train. Have not revised.

S ANTINIKETAN,
December 18, 1945
Gurudev (Rabindranath Tagore) was like a great bird, wide and
swift of wings, under which he gave protection to many.1
Under the warmth of his wings Santiniketan has been nurtured
to its present size. Bengal is full of his songs. He has glorified the
name of India throughout the world not by his songs only but also by
his pen and brush. We all miss the warmth of his protecting wings.
But we must not grieve. The remedy lies in our own hands.
True monuments to the great are not statues of marble, bronze
or gold. The best monument is to adorn and enlarge their legacy. A
son who buries underground his father’s legacy or wastes it will be
adjudged unworthy of his inheritance.
Whilst on Rathi Babu2 and his colleagues must primarily rest the
sacred duty of making Santiniketan truely worthy of Gurudev’s great
tradition, that duty rests no less upon all those who, though they may
not be directly connected with Santiniketan, received the warmth of
Gurudev’s wings.
All mortals must quit this world one day. Gurudev has gone,
having achieved all that a human being can expect to in life. His soul
now rests in peace. It is for you now, the workers and inmates of
Santiniketan—as indeed all those who are imbued with Gurudev’s
spirit—collectively to represent his ideal.
Santiniketan has been the abode of peace to me and since my
family was given shelter on arrival from South Africa it is a
pilgrimage to me and whenever I got the opportunity I came here to
seek peace and tranquility.
It is indeed sad that we no longer have his protective wings on
us. But I find solace in the fact taht he has left own memorial in the
form of many gifts that he has bequeathed to the nation.
It is our duty to receive those gifts with humility and gratitude
and to see that they go on increasing. If we can continue his work
and prove ourselves true to the task he has left us, I do not see why we
should mourn his passing away. I feel in my heart that his soul is
1
The following four paragraphs are reproduced from Visva-Bharati News.
2
Rathindranath Tagore, son of Rabindranath Tagore

somewhere in this Ashram and in perfect peace.
His songs that you have sung to me, although their meanings are
not accessible to me just now, were full of sweetness and inspiration. I
very much wish I could prolong my stay here in your midst, but I am
afraid it is not possible this time, because I have other urgent duties to
attend to.
Druing the last few years, India has passed through a great
ordeal and none has suffered so greatly as this province of Bengal.
The news of Bengal’s agonies reached me when I was in jail—
powerless to do anything. I all along prayed to God to send me to
serve Bengal and to help the distressed people. My visit this time,
therefore, was undertaken with a view to serve and to work for Bengal.
That is why I am very sorry that I shall not be able to prolong my
stay. I shall take my sustenance of peace and inspiration from this
place and then go away. I hope you will understand and forgive me.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 19-12-45, and Visva-Bharati News, Vol. XIV, No. 7
107. TELEGRAM TO AGA KHAN1

S ANTINIKETAN,
December 19, 1945
AGA KHAN
THANKS YOUR WIRE. PLEASE ADDRESS SODEPUR.

GANDHI
From the original: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.
Courtesy: Beladevi Nayyar and Dr. Sushila Nayyar
1
In reply to the addressee’s telegram of December 17, 1945, which read: “I
would like to write fully about Yeravda.Where can I address letters ?”

S ANTINIKETAN,
December 19, 1945
Santiniketan is no new place to me. This Mandir too is familiar
to me by old association. On more than one occasion I have come
here and addressed the inmates. Santiniketan is like a home of my
own. The world is in need of the ideal of peace which is the ideal of
Santiniketan. That is why I expect a great deal from this place.
Gurudev lives on in his own creation. He has fulfilled his
mission. It is we who have certain duties which we owe to him. If we
fail to fulfil them we shall be failing in our duties.
The message of Santiniketan is urgently needed for the world
in travail. Gurudev travelled from one quarter of the earth to another
to bring about peace and conciliation. In a way he has designed
Santiniketan for bringing peace to the whole world. His father foun-
ded the Ashram and it was left to the son to bring its benediction to
the whole world.
When we come to a place of worship of our minds should be
calm so that our hearts can be receptive. That is why we close our
eyes during prayers. But today I would rather keep my eyes open to
see the vision how the students of this place are getting ready to carry
the message of peace as couriers of goodwill and brotherhood of the
world.
Students of Oxford, Cambridge and other well-known seats of
learning carry their own hallmark. I would like to see the students of
this Ashram invested with that hallmark of peace and fellowship. I
would like to see, moreover, how alert they are to receive the world
and how unperturbed and calm they are in the face of difficulties.2
1
The meeting was one of the weekly ones held every Wednesday morning.
Gandhiji spoke at the request of Kshitimohan Sen.
2
According to Pyarelal “Gandhiji had noticed that during the prayer some of
the boys did not sit erect. Some were fidgety, others listless. He pulled them up for
this as he had done before on the previous evening.”

The world has now grown a small place. England is no longer
seven seas away. It takes hardly three days to reach the heart of
England. We have come so near that we can share our joys and grief
with all. The War has ceased. The Allies have won, but turmoil is still
there, the pain and sufferings are on a very large scale. Winter is
coming. We who belong to the tropics cannot even imagine what
hardships will have to be endured by the people of the West in the
face of dire winter there. Thousands have died and there is death
staring in the face of many other thousands. They die of the severe
cold and we of famine. What further suffering is in store for humanity
nobody knows.
In the midst of this world-wide turmoil this Ashram should carry
out its ideal of peace. All of you should carry the message of peace
and brotherhood and dedicate yourselves to the cause of removing
pain and suffering of the poor. You should prepare yourselves for
that task from now on. You should be resolute and at the same time
unperturbed. It is for you to fulfil the hope and trust that Gurudev
left upon you.

109. SPEECH AT FOUNDATION-LAYING CEREMONY 1
S ANTINIKETAN,
December 19, 1945
Birth and death are the obverse and reverse of the same coin.
They are not distinct. They are different aspects of the same thing.
But out of our ignorance we welcome the one and shrink from the
other. This is wrong. Mourning over the death of dear ones, espe-
cially those like Charlie Andrews and Gurudev who have done their
part so nobly and well has its root in our selfishness. Deenabandhu is
blessed in death as he was in life. Death of people like him cannot be
an occasion for sorrow. Speaking for myself, I may say that I have
almost forgotten to mourn the death of friends and dear ones and I
want you to learn to do likewise.2
Between Deenabandhu and me there existed love like that
between two brothers. I remember how Deenabandhu came out to
South Africa at the instance of Mr. Gokhale and with the blessings of
Gurudev, and how he repeated from place to place with deep feeling
the mantras Gurudev had given him. Today I have laid the foundation
of the hospital in memory of Deenabandhu Andrews—a title which
has been bestowed on him by the grateful poor who need hospitals.
Being situated midway between Sriniketan and Santiniketan, it
will serve not only these two places but also the villages round about.
I have been very much touched by the cordial welcome given me by
the representatives3 of the villagers. It is symbolical of their blessings
with which are joined the blessings of you all.
Gandhiji referred to the high prices of building materials and said that it might
take some time before the hospital could be erected.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 20-12-1945, and Visva-Bharati News, Vol. XIV, No. 9
1
Of Deenabandhu C. F. Andrews Memorial Hospital. The function which was
held in the evening was attended by the staff and students of Sriniketan and
Santiniketan as also a good number of local peasantry.
2
This paragraph is reproduced from Visva-Bharati News.
3
On his arrival Gandhiji was welcomed by a Santhali headman, who applied
sandal paste on his forehead, while a Santhali girl garlanded him.

110. DISCUSSION WITH HEADS OF DEPARTMENT,
SANTINIKETAN 1
December 19, 1945
Regard me as a blank slate. So far I have had only hearsay and
hearsay has very little place in my life. Solid facts are what I want.
Without a full knowledge of facts I shall be able to do little to help
you.
It is not that you have nothing to say. That would mean that the
institution is perfect. But nothing in this world is perfect. Speak to
me freely about the shortcomings. Good things speak for themselves,
not the bad things, at any rate, not to me.
I have followed every word of what you have said with the
keenest interest and I have learned a lot from it. I do not propose to
make detailed observations on what has been said or to give
expression to all that is welling up in me just now but shall confine
myself to one or two remarks of a general character.
As I listened while Nanda Babu2 and Kshiti mohan Babu were
speaking, I said to myself: ‘Here is a real difficulty; but it is a diffi-
culty of our own making.’ If a person conducts a big department he
is expected to transmit what he stands for to someone who can be
termed as his successor. Yet it is the dominant cry of the two stalwarts
that they are unable to find a suitable successor for their respective
departments. True, these are departments of a special character. I
know these departments and I know too Gurudev’s views about them.
Speaking generally, may I venture to suggest that there is no difficulty
but can be overcome by tapascharya? It is almost an untranslatable
word, the nearest approach to its true meaning being perhaps ‘single-
minded devotion’. But it means much more than that. When-ever, in
the course of my multifarious activities, I have been con-fronted with
a difficulty of this character, this single-minded devotion has solved
my difficulty in a manner which I had never expected. During my
twenty long years in God-forsaken South Africa, where under cir-
1
Extracted from Pyarelal’s article “The Santiniketan Pilgrimage”. The heads
of the various departments had met Gandhiji in the evening informally to place before
him their difficulties.
2
Nandalal Bose, who was in charge of Kala Bhawan, Santiniketan.

cumstances of the worst kind conceivable I found my God, it was
my invariable experience that the right helper appeared at the right
moment.
It is my conviction, which I arrived at after a long and laborious
struggle, that Gurudev as a person was much superior to his works or
even this institution where he soared and sang. He poured his whole
soul into it and nurtured it with his life’s blood and yet I dare say that
his greatness was not fully expressed by it or through it. That is
perhaps true of all great and good men—they are better and greater
than their works. If, then, you are to represent that goodness or great-
ness for which Gurudev stands but which he could not express fully
even through this institution, you can do it only through tapas-
charya.
There is a remarkable string of verses in the Tulsi Ramayana to
the effect that what is not possible through other means becomes
possible through tapascharya. This is said with reference to Parvati.
Narada had prophesied that she would have for her companion-in-life
one who answered to the description of Siva. If instead of Siva those
characteristics were met in the person of a rogue, her life would be
ruined. How to avert such a calamity was the problem and it is in that
context that the verses to which I have referred come. I commend
these verses to you for your careful perusal. Only you will have to
strip them of their orthodoxy.
Finances were mentioned by you in the course of discussion. I
will plead with you to dismiss from your thoughts the word ‘finance’
altogether. I am convinced that lack of finances never represented a
real difficulty to a sincere worker. Finances follow—they dog your
footsteps if you represent a real cause. Here, let me utter a warning.
A worker may be real and yet the cause he represents may not be real.
His handicap in that case will continue. There are, of course, seeming
exceptions. The world is full of fools and successful rogues. But
speaking of sincere men and women, it is my faith that if their cause is
as worthy as their means, the handicap of finance need never deter
them or damp their ardour. It is a big thing you have undertaken and
in future you may have to undertake still bigger things and the
question will be raised, ‘What about the finances ?’ and you will find
that the difficulty lies somewhere else rather than in the lack of
finances. Set it right and the finances will take care of themselves.

Yours1 is a common difficulty. You cannot ride two horses at
the same time. If you mix day-scholars with full-time students, the
former will overshadow and spoil the training of the latter. Your ins-
titution was not designed for the mixture.
Then it was said by Krishna Kripalani that they did not know
what they were aiming at or stood for, what the sum total of the
energies of Santiniketan and Sriniketan signified. My answer is that
the ideal before you is not to represent Bengal or even India; you
have to represent the whole world. Gurudev’s claim was not smaller
than that. He stood for humanity as a whole. He could not do that
unless he represented India with its destitute, dumb millions. That
should be your aspiration as well. Unless you represent that mass
mind of India you will not represent Gurudev as a man. You may
represent him as a singer, as a painter, or as a great poet but you won’t
represent him, and history will say of Gurudev that his institution was
a failure. I do not want history to give that verdict.
I agree that if my claim that I am one of you is to be fully
vindicated I ought to be here in your midst for a longer time.2 I would
love to do so. But my future dispositions are in the hands of God.
Vishva-Bharati News, Vol. XIV, No. 9
111. DISCUSSION WITH WORKERS AND

STAFF MEMBERS3
SANTINIKETAN,
December 20, 1945
I want to hear from your lips what inspires you to be here and
what are the difficulties that confront you.
Q. Should Santiniketan allow itself to be drawn into politcal work ?
A. I have no difficulty in saying that Santiniketan and Visva-
Bharati ought not to be mixed up with politics. Every institution
has its limitations.This institution should set limitations upon itself
1
Bibhutibhushan Gupta’s; he had mentioned the complication arising from
the admission of day scholars.
2
This was in reply to Rathindranath Tagore’s request that Gandhiji should
give more time every year to Santiniketan.
3
Extracted from Pyarelal’s “The Santiniketan Pilgrimage”. As some members
did not know Hindi, Gandhiji replied in English with the warning that they would
have to speak in Hindi when they met next, at least he would not speak in any other
language but Hindi.

unless it is to be cheap. When I say that Santiniketan should not get
mixed up with politics, I do not mean that it should have no political
ideal. Complete independence must be its ideal, as it is that of the
country. But that very ideal would require it to keep out of the
present-day political turmoil. I was asked this question when I was
here thirty years ago and the reply I then gave was the same as I have
given today. In fact it applies with even greater force today.
Q. In order to make Visva-Bharati really an international university, should
we not try to increase the material resources of the university and provide greater
facilities and ordinary comforts of life to attract scholars and research workers of
outstanding merit from all over the country ?
A. By material resources I suppose you mean finance. Let me
then say that your question is addressed to person who does not swear
by material resources.‘Material resources’ is after all a comparative
term. For instance, I do not go without food and clothing. In my
own way I have tried—more than perhaps any other man—to increase
the level of material resources of the average man in India. But it is
my firm conviction that Visva-Bharati will fail to attract the right type
of talent and scholarship if it relies on the strength of the material
resources or material attractions that it can offer. Its attraction must
be moral or ethical, or else it will become just one out of the many
educational institutions in India. That was not what Gurudev lived
and died for. I do not mean that creature comforts should not be pro-
vided to the staff and workers who work here. There are ample
material comforts in evidence here already. If I stayed here longer
and had my way they might be considerably reduced. As Visva-
Bharati progresses and more and more gifts and donations begin to
pour in, in due course it will be able to provide more attractions to
scholars and research workers, if it wants to. But if I were asked for
advice I would say: ‘Do not yield to this temptation.’ Visva-Bharati
must take its stand on the advancement or moral worth. If it does not
stand for that, it is worth nothing.
Q. What must be done so that the institution might not lose its high moral
appeal? What remedy do you suggest for it ?
A. Every one of you should understand the significance of
moral worth. Moral worth is easily distinguished from material
worth.The one leads to devotion to moral value, the other to Mam-
mon-worship. What distinguishes man from the four-footed beast is
merely the recognition of moral worth, i. e., the greater the moral

worth of a person the greater his distinction. If you believe in this
ideal, you should ask yourselves why you are here and what you are
doing.
Every worker must have, of course, food, clothing, etc., for
himself and his dependants. But you do not belong to Visva-Bharati
merely because Visva-Bharati feeds, clothes and finds creature com-
forts for you. You belong to it because you cannot do otherwise,
because your moral worth increases day by day by working for its
ideals. Therefore, every defect that crops up, every difficulty that obs-
tructs its working, will be found to be ultimately traceable to some
defect in your outlook in regard to moral worth. I have been con-
nected with many institutions for over sixty years and I have come to
the conclusion that every difficulty in their working was traceable to a
defect in the understanding of moral values.
Q. We are trying to serve villagers. We find that at every step our activity is
blocked by the social environment in the villages. The joyless routine of life there,
the stagnation and the incubus of evil social customs obstruct our efforts. Should we
not work for the eradication of these before we can hope for success in our other
activities, and if so how can it be done ?
A. Ever since I came to India I have felt that social revolution is
a much more difficult thing to achieve than the political revolution, by
which I mean ending our present slavery under the British rule. There
are some critics who say that India cannot attain her political and
economic emancipation till we get social emancipation. I regard it as
a snag and a conundrum set to puzzle us, because I have found that
the absence of political emancipation retards even our efforts for
bringing about social and economic emancipation. At the same time
it is also true that without a social revolution we will not be able to
leave India happier than when we were born. I can however indicate
no royal road for bringing about a social revolution except that we
should represent it in every detail of our own lives.
Force has been used to alter the structure of society in some
countries. But I have purposely eliminated it from our consideration.
So my advice to you is: Try again and again and never say that you
are defeated. Do not get impatient and say, ‘the people are no good.’
Rather say, ‘I am no good.’ If the people do not respond within the
time limit prescribed by you the failure is yours, not theirs. It is
thankless and laborious work. But you do not expect thanks for your
work. Work that is undertaken for love is no burden—it is pure joy.

Q. In an ashram, does the introduction of salary system raise or degrade the
ideal of the institution ?
A. I have no difficulty in saying that it makes no difference
whether you pay a fixed salary or your expenses are paid for you.
Both methods can be tried. The danger to be guarded against is this:
if you pay a man his bazaar price you do not carry out the spirit of
the Ashram. We should rather do without talent and ability, be it of
the highest order, if it demands its bazaar value. In other words, we
should wait till talent is attracted to the institution, not for money but
for something else for which the institution stands. Nor should you
let the principle of “according to want” take you even beyond bazaar
values. The salary system in Visva-Bharati is not a thing to complain
of. The difficulties to which you have referred cannot be removed by
mere tinkering. You must find out and remove the causes which are
at the root of the defects you have in mind.
Q. How can we make headway against cynicism or lack of faith that we find
among the youngsters ?
A. I heave a sigh of despair when you ask me that question.
When you find that your pupils are without faith you should say to
yourself: ‘I am without faith.’ I have found that again and again in
my own experience. And each time the discovery has been like an
invigorating bath for me. The Biblical saying ‘remove the beam from
thine own eye before ye point out the mote in thy neighbour’s’ 1 is
even more appropriate in the case of pupil and teacher. The pupil
comes to you to find in you something infinitely better than himself.
Rather than complain, ‘Oh! he has no faith. How can I implant faith
in him,’ it would be far better that you resigned from your job.
Q. The intellectual tradition of Gurudev is being fairly well maintained here
but I am afraid that the idealism for which he stood does not find full scope. There
must be something wrong in an organization that leads to such a result. What is the
remedy? Secondly, should our institution only to make culture available to the man
in the street? This is your ideal. At the same time should not there be a place where
higher culture can be preserved for the initiated? This was Gurudev’s ideal. Such an
institution will necessarily be exclusive and for the select only. I am a follower both
of yours and Gurudev’s ideals and I am torn by the conflict between the two.
A. To take the second question first, it is a reflection both on
Gurudev and myself. I have found no real conflict between us. I
1
St. Matthew, VII. 5

started with a disposition to detect a conflict between Gurudev and
myself but ended with the glorious discovery that there was none.
Regarding your question, all I can say is that the feeling, ‘I am
all right but there is something wrong with the institution,’ betrays
self-righteousness. It is a killing thing. When you feel within yourself
that you are all right but everything around is wrong, the conclusion
which you should draw for yourself is that everything is all right but
there is something wrong within you.1
Visva-Bharati News, Vol. XIV, No. 9
112. LETTER TO ANAND T. HINGORANI
ON THE T RAIN FROM S ANTINIKETAN,

December 20, 1945
I daily write the diary. 2
Blessings from
BAPU
From a microfilm of the Hindi: Courtesy: National Archives of India
113. SPEECH TO CONGRESS WORKERS 3

R AMPURHAT,
December 20, 1945
Hindu-Muslim unity can come only by selfless service of
Muslims untainted by political motives.
They (Muslims) are just like us and we must be friends with
them. The same applies to Harijans. We cannot survive if we are un-
just to them. By all means let all those go who want to go to the
1
When Gandhiji was about to leave, Indira Devi, Rabindranath Tagore’s
niece, asked him: “Is there not too much music and dance here? Is there not the danger
of the music of the voice drowning the music of life ?” As Gandhiji had no time then,
he replied to the above and some other questions from Culcutta; vide “Letter to
Rathindranath Tagore”, 22-12-1945
2
The reference is to “A Thought for the Day”; vide the last item. This was a
postscript to Sushila Nayyar’s letter to the addressee.
3
Gandhiji addressed “about 60 Congress workers of Birbhum and adjoining
districts in the local town hall. . . . Welcoming Gandhiji, Satyen Chatterjee,
Secretary of the Birbhum District Congress Committee, said that Gandhiji’s advice
would have great effect on all of them and every worker would try to work his
constructive programme.”

Assemblies but even there they must make it their business to work the
constructive programme. In any case, the bulk of the work of Con-
gressmen will be outside legislatures and they must devote themselves
whole-heartedly to the new, enlarged programme of constructive
work.
In reply to his enquiries Mahatmaji was informed that the population of the
district was about eleven lakhs including two lakh Mohammedans and about 73,000
Santhals. He asked the workers to include the Santhals also in their programme of
service . . . .
In regard to the shortage of cloth the workers informed Gandhiji that there
were 500 spinners in the district before 1942. But cotton yarn had always come from
outside, as Bengal had never grown enough cotton for her needs. Gandhiji said that
the lack of cloth in any province could not be looked upon as an insurmmountable
difficulty and cited the example of England, which though it grew no cotton, was the
biggest exporter of cloth.
114. SPEECH AT PUBLIC MEETING 1

R AMPURHAT,
December 20, 1945
Mahatma Gandhi emphasized the need for removing untouchability from the
Hindu society. It was a terrible blot on Hinduism, he added. They must feel that every
Indian was their brother—their own flesh. They must banish from their hearts all
distinctions between Hindus and Muslims, Harijans and Bhils and Santhals. If they
could learn these lessons they could banish a good many of the evils that beset
society.
Mahatma Gandhi regretted that all of them could not understand Hindustani.
They must, of course, know the language of their province. But, he pointed out, if
they wanted to travel all over India and wanted others to come to them, they must
have a common language and that language had to be Hindustani.
Explaining the language, Gandhiji said that Urdu was one form of Hindustani
and the other form was Hindi. The difference was that Urdu contained more words of
Arabic and Persian origin and was written in Persian script, whereas Hindi contained
words of Sanskrit origin and was written in Devanagari script. It was not so always
but he would not at this moment enter into the history or the causes of the present
division. Gandhiji emphasized that those who wished to serve India must learn both
1
The Hindu, 22-12-1945, reported that Gandhiji spoke in Hindustani
and the “speech was explained to the audience in Bengali by Dr. Profulla Chandra
Ghosh”.

the scripts and forms of the language. If they loved their country and its people they
would not mind the trouble and it was not a hard task either.
Urging the people to wear khaddar, Gandhiji observed that after 30 years’
experience he could say that if they had the will to produce their own cloth they could
overcome the scarcity of cloth in no time. It was strange, he remarked, that they
could not or did not produce cloth in their country where cotton grew in abundance and
did not spin and weave their own cloth.
Gandhiji referred to the prevalence of malaria in the district and said that one
reason for this was their terrible poverty. But if they used their leisure hours rightly,
Gandhiji thought, they could lessen their poverty also. They must give up their
insanitary habits and it was the duty of all their workers to know how to preserve
their own health and teach people the way to do so.
115. SPEECH AT RAILWAY STATION, BURDWAN

December 20, 1945
Gandhiji asked them to be peaceful as, he said, freedom could not be achieved
by shouting slogans. Peace was their only weapon for non-violence which alone
could bring independence. He advised them also not to think in terms of Hindus and
Muslims.
116. LETTER TO ABANINDRANATH TAGORE

S ODEPUR,
December 21, 1945
DEAR ABANI BABU 1 ,
I hope you received my telegram sent to you yesterday from
Santiniketan. How I wish it were possible for me, being in Calcutta, to
come to you and meet you face to face ! But I know that I must deny
myself that pleasure !
I went yesterday morning to see Nand Babu’s museum and in it
in a glass case he showed me some rare specimens of your producing
beautiful art out of almost nothing, even straws !
You must live to give India and the world more of such things.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI ABANINDRANATH TAGORE
1
Nephew of Rabindranath Tagore

S ODEPUR,
December 21, 1945
We are all travellers. I had been to Santiniketan for two days. I
have returned and will stay here for two or three days and again I will
go to Midnapore.
We are all travellers. Sooner or later we will have to undertake a
long journey. This is the preparation for the long one. We must not
be sorry for any travelling, short or long. But we do feel sorry for the
long journey because we do not understand the significance of life
and death, which are equal.
Today’s song conveys the idea appropriately ( “ Ai Korechho
Bhalo Nithur, Ai Korechho Bhalo”). This is a prayer to God to burn
our passion. And only when we have succeeded in that, shall we have
no sorrow for the long journey.
118. LETTER TO RATHINDRANATH TAGORE

December 22, 1945
CHI. RATHI,
It was a matter of pure delight for me to be in Santiniketan and
to study all I could during my very brief stay. I told you that I would
put down in writing some of the things I was unable to say there either
to you personally or during the conversation1 with the heads of
departments.
1. Just as I do not like day-scholars, I do not like preparing
boys and girls for university examinations. Visva-Bharati is its own
university. I ought not to be in need of a charter from any Govern-
ment. As it is you are giving Visva-Bharati degrees side by side with
preparing students for the chartered university. You have a high
ideal to live for and live up to. University degrees are a lure to
which you cannot afford to fall a prey. Concessions that Gurudev
1
Vide “Discussion With Heads of Department, Santiniketan”, 19-12-1945

made to weakness with impunity, Visva-Bharati without him cannot
make. Concessions to weakness began with the introduction of the
orthodox matriculation examination. I was unable even then to
reconcile myself to it and I do not know that we have gained anything
by it. I am not now thinking at all in terms of non-co-operation. I am
just now anxious for Santiniketan to represent the highest that
Gurudev stood for.
2. Music in Santiniketan is charming, but has the professor
there come to the conclusion that Bengali music is the last word in that
direction? Has Hindustani music, i. e., music before and after Muslim
period, anything to give to the world of music? If it has, it should have
its due place at Santiniketan. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that
Western music which has made immense strides should also blend with
the Indian. Visva-Bharati is conceived as a world university. This is
merely a passing thought of a layman to be transmitted to the music
master there.
One question 1 about music. I have a suspicion that perhaps
there is more of music than warranted by life, or I will put the thought
in another way. The music of life is in danger of being lost in the
music of the voice. Why not the music of the walk, of the march, of
every movement of ours and of every activity? It was not an idle
remark2 which I made at the Mandir service about the way in which
boys and girls should know how to walk, how to march, how to sit,
how to eat, in short how to perform every function of life. That is my
ideaa of music. So far as I know, Gurudev stood for all this in his own
person.
3. You will not have real rural reconstruction unless you begin
with the basic craft, which is hand-spinning. Weaver’s art without
hand-spinning is a dead art. You know that I pleaded for it with
Gurudev; at first in vain, later on he had begun to see what I was
driving at. If you think that I have interpreted Gurudev aright in the
matter of spinning, you will not hesitate to make Santiniketan hum
with the music of the wheel.
The spinning-wheel and all it means lends itself to the exhi-
bition of all your skill. Do you know that the spinning-wheel is consi-
dered to be solace of the poor widow? And it is the Annapurna 3 of the
1
Vide footnote 1, “Letter to Anand T. Hingorani”, 20-12-1945
2
Vide “Speech at Prayer Meeting”, 19-12-1945
3
Goddess of plenty Teerth”, 26-11-1945

hungry. When you adopt spinning by way of a sacrificial rite you are
immediately in tune with the dumb masses.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI R ATHINDRANATH TAGORE
S ANTINIKETAN
From a copy: C.W. 10553. Courtesy: Visva-Bharati
119. LETTER TO KANTILAL GANDHI
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
CHI. KANTI,
I got your letter. It is quite amusing. You are working hard to
pass three examinations at a time. I wish you success in all the three.
Be a good doctor. Set a fine example of success in inter-caste
marriage and be an expert at spinning and constructive work.Truly
speaking, all the three examinations are a test of ahimsa.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: C.W. 7382. Courtesy: Kantilal Gandhi
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
CHL. MRIDULA,
I hope you received my letter. The following is my itinerary: I
am leaving here on the 24th for Midnapore. I expect to return on the
4th January. After staying on for four or five days I shall go to
Assam. I shall be there for a week. After I return from there I shall
go to Madras. The latest date for Madras is [January] 23rd.
You are moving about quite a lot and gaining experience.
Sometimes I wonder whether it would not be better for you after
gaining so much experience to settle down at some place and put it to
good use. And I wonder whether looking after his health does not
have a place among the many duties of a man.

In my case these questions do not arise any more, because I
have all along assumed the answer in my practice. But is there any
absolute rule that what applies to one can apply to all?
121. LETTER TO SHARAYU DHOTRE
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
CHI. SARAYU,
I have your letter. I never thought you would come to Calcutta.
I shall leave here on the 24th on a tour of Midnapore. I hope to
return on January 4th, after which I shall be staying on for four or
five days. I shall be pleased to see you during that time.
Blessings from
BAPU
S MT. S HARAYUBEHN
DHARMASANGHA, K ISHORE BUNGALOW
25 BALRAM S TREET
C ALCUTTA
122. LETTER TO TARA N. MASHRUWALA

S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
CHI. TARA,
I have your letter.
You will succeed in your work with the K. G. N. M. Trust.
Help Sushila rid herself quickly of the gall-stone. She will be all
right. Sometimes diagnosis of stone, etc., turns out to be wrong. It has
been observed that doctors also commit errors.
Blessings from
BAPU
S MT. T ARABEHN MASHRUWALA
AKOLA

123. LETTER TO RAMANAND TEERTH
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
SWAMIJI,
I have your letter. I have read everything. You have done well
in not accepting any conditions. I had a talk with Panditji. Keep on
writing to him everything.1 I am happy to know that your health is
improving.
S WAMI R AMANAND TEERTH
HYDERABAD
124. LETTER TO SARASWATI GANDHI
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
CHI. SARU,
I have your letter. Kanti has described to me the sweet quarrel
between you two. When both of you testify to each other’s conduct
or when I come to know that either has won over the other, I shall
withdraw the adjective ‘mad’ and substitute it with a similar, nice
adjective. There are innumerable couples in the world who carry on
their life smoothly through the drive of passion. But real greatness
lies in creating unity and spontaneity through knowledge.
Shanti 2 , I trust, is well.
You must learn one thing. As a rule, the wife spends most of
her time in the kitchen. But if you can master the art of eating just to
keep alive, you will have to give the minimum time in the kitchen.
For this you must learn the rules of proper diet. If you are really
keen to learn, I shall teach you some day.
You have asked my permission to come to Madras. If you want
to meet me for the sake of meeting I would advise you to save both
1
Vide also “Letter to Ramanad
2
Addressee’s son

the money and the time. Saving time is also saving money. But if you
feel that you must, then do come.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Hindi: C.W. 7383. Courtesy: Kantilal Gandhi
125. LETTER TO PALTU JHA
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
DEAR PANDITJI,
I have your letter.
I have already given you my reply with regard to Sanskrit. I
have written at length about Varnashrama. A collection of my articles1
has also been published. I have expressed my present views in the
foreword.2 The gist of it is that it is the duty of every Hindu to regard
himself as a Harijan, that is, the lowest among the Shudras. Thus alone
can Hinduism be purified and saved. This includes my reply to your
questions.
I cannot say when I shall be able to read your two books. I
should like to read them.
You have the name and address on your card printed in English
! Why and for whom?
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S ODEPUR,
December 22, 1945
We do not want to live on the mercy of anybody except God.
Gita teaches us to be fearless. If you could learn that, nobody would
1
Varnavyavastha
2
Vide “Foreword to “Varnavyavastha”

be able to keep you down. If anybody asks me to bow down my
head—I am an old man and anybody can push me or knock me
down—but if I say, ‘I won’t,’ the utmost he can do is to kill me. This
fearlessness is swaraj. If everybody acts in the same way or feels in
the same spirit, swaraj is there. It, however, does not mean that
Government will go away today but it means that no power can make
us bow down our head. We would not achieve independence by
simply repeating the word like a parrot. Our deeds must be on the
same line.
Explaining the evening song, Gandhiji said that it was not an easy task to
select an appropriate song out of the many composed by Gurudev. In this particular
song, the Poet asked them not to be cowards. They were in a small boat and God was
their helmsman. When God was their helmsman they should not be afraid of
anything. His hands were not shaky and He would safely escort them to their
destination.
Gandhiji asked his audience to have faith in God. They would have to swim
across the ocean of life. After all, what was fear? The word itself frightened them. He,
therefore, advised them that they must take the essence of the song to their heart.
Gandhiji asked them not to leave him, nor would he leave them, so long as he was in
Calcutta. He also advised them to take part in the prayer by singing in chorus with
them.

127. LETTER TO RANGANAYAKI DEVI
S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
CHI. RANGANAYAKI,
I have your letter. I have shown your letter and cutting to Dr.
Sushila Nayyar. She says that surgically the thing is substantial. But I
would not advise you to pay for your doctor friend for going to
America. If you feel like it you may go to America. But that is a
matter solely for you to decide.
Personally I think that you should turn your deafness into a
blessing and listen to the voice from within. What is worth hearing
will be written down for you. But this can be done only if you feel
like it, not otherwise.
Blessings from 1
BAPU
S HRI R ANGANAYAKIDEVI
F IRST HOUSE
S RIRANGAM
S. INDIA
128. LETTER TO MANIBEHN

24 P ARGANAS,
December 23, 1945
CHI. MANIBEHN,
Kakubhai2 has suggested that the post of Secretary of the
Bombay branch of the A.I.S.A. should be offered to you. He
informs me that you have seen the letter to that effect. I shall
indeed be glad if you could honour the post. I know about your
capabilities but I was not aware that you were also competent to cope
with accounts. However, if that be so I shall be very pleased. Please,
1
The subscription is in Hindi.
2
Purushottam Kanji Jerajani

therefore, let me have your reply, after careful consi-deration. Once
you accept the secretaryship I don’t want to be obliged to admit that
you are not as good an accountant as anyone else. I don’t wish to be a
champion of women’s talents nor do I want to cover up for them. I
have, all along since my South African days, wished that women
would acquire the ability to struggle indepen-dently and not lag
behind behind any man, in their own field. And I believe I have fairly
succeeded in my endeavour.
And is it correct for you to become an agent of the artificial silk
mill instead of following in the footsteps of your husband? Or don’t
you yourself experience any contradiction in becoming a director of
the mill? I shall expect your reply to this before I arrive at any
decision. Write to me frankly. Send your reply to the address men-
tioned above. I shall be in Bengal and Assam till the 20th of January,
but my headquarters will continue to be Sodepur.
I got your letter after I wrote this, which all the same covers all
the points.
Blessings from
BAPU
S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I got your letter of the 16th and postcard of the 19th.1
No fee is to be charged from the poor who may be admitted as
indoor patients, but we shall accept what they can offer. In other
words, we shall follow the practice obtaining in Sevagram. At present
even our expenses on food are so heavy that no person of ordinary
means can meet them. We shall have to consider what diet we can
devise for those people which will cure them and help them to keep
fit.
2. Along with the poor we shall admit only such wealthy patients
who agree to live as the poor do. I can see no place for them in this
1
The addressee’s letters are not available.

sanatorium if they have to be provided special facilities. I shall not
permit even providing a special room for a rich patient simply
because he is rich. The plan of constructing new rooms, etc., does not
appeal to me just now. For we shall know only from experience how
many poor patients will seek admission or how many of them we shall
admit. We shall see what to do when we run short of accomodation.
My view, therefore, is that we should incur no expenditure just now
except what is absolutely essential.
3. The chairs, etc., will of course have to be removed. The
Doctor himself wished to buy up some of the furniture. I do not
know whether he still wishes to do so. If he does not, I am afraid I
shall have to arrange for their disposal. I can only hope that I shall be
able to do so. We shall have to make do with the number of beds we
have at present. I see that there will be no occasion in the immediate
future to admit a large number of patients.
4. The reply to this is contained in what has been stated above.
5. If the boiler for heating water has become useless, it should
be replaced by a new one. I did have some talk with the Doctor about
it, but I forget what decision we took. If it is necessary to seek the
help of the mill-owner in the neighbourhood or of Birlaji, I shall be
ready to do so. Do what the Doctor suggests in this matter.
6. There is no reason to believe that we shall start getting
patients right from January 1. We shall need to make arrangements
only for those who are already there. And they can even sit on the
floor and eat off porcelain plates.
7. I have made arrangements to buy the required quantity of
khadi. If, therefore, you let me know the requirements, I shall be able
to supply it. You yourself suggested five to seven rolls for three dozen
bed-sheets. Will that number suffice?
8. Please consider whether those among the workers there
who have their own arrangements for meals can continue the practice.
I think it is our duty willingly to have meat served to those who are
used to it and whose need we ought to supply. I see no harm or
pollution—no one should—in the two kinds of food being cooked in
the same kitchen. The idea of pollution is a mere excrescence [on our
religion]. Those who are vegetarians should follow their dharma. It is
self- evident to me that utensils used for cooking meat should not be
used for cooking vegetables. In this matter I think we ought to res-

pect the wishes of the Doctor and Gulbai. There should not be even
the slightest suspicion that we are indirectly trying to introduce vege-
tarian food. But we welcome anybody accepting vegetarianism on his
own as being good for him.
I think it will be our duty to supply meat or eggs to those
patients for whom the Doctor may consider them necessary.
9. The selection of medical assistants will rest with the Doctor.
10. Calls for no reply.
11. Just now I would regard Balkoba1 as representing the
standard for poor patients.
12. I agree with the Doctor that ultimately we shall have to shift
to some large place. I have the fullest faith that God will make our
path clear.
13. There is no need just now to call anybody from Sevagram.
I have already written to you about Manibhai. He will come whenever
we send for him.
14. The expenditure will have to be met by me. Is there no
balance in the bank account there? I think I asked this question in a
previous letter too. Probably it was in a letter addressed to the Doctor.
15. I have always held the view which you have expressed.
I think I have now replied to all your questions. If, however,
there is anything you do not follow, do write to me. Address the letter
to Sodepur.
I got you postcard today. The reply to the question you have
asked in it is contained in what I have said above.
I have not revised the letter.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah
1
Balkrishna Bhave

S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
CHI. PREMA,
Your letter of Decemebr 17 is strange, and so is its language.
This is the first such letter I have had from you. You are very busy.
How surprising and sad that, though you claim to be a public worker,
you feel embarrassed to have to ask for money from time to time?
Why need one feel embarrassed to ask for money for public work?
You have, I am sure, seen me putting out my head through windows
of railway carriages and begging a pice each from the people. You
have even helped me in this. And still the letter to which I am reply-
ing seems to have been written by a millionaire. I can understand
your feeling embarrassed if you were asking for money for yourself.
But how can it be too much to ask for money even a hundred times
for a public cause? You have asked for an additional sum, but have
not sent me a copy of the letter. If you have addressed the letter to
me in my capacity as Chairman, you should have addressed a formal
letter to the Secretary too. I can immediately reply to a letter received
through the Secretary. If you have written to me as to an elder, you
should give me enough details to enable me to send the money to you
without delay.
I sought your advice as from a daughter, co-worker and one
who was more than a sister to Sushila. Instead of giving the advice I
asked for, you have written as if we were utter strangers. I do not
undertand what all this is. Address your reply to Sodepur. I shall be
touring in Bengal, and they will redirect the letter from here.
Blessings from
BAPU
Prema Kantak

131. LETTER TO DR. N. B. KHARE
S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
BHAI KHARE,
I have your letter.1 Thanks for the same. I have read it through.
Let us see what happens now.
I am enclosing a newspaper cutting 1 which seems to me quite
wrong. Is not what happened quite the opposite ?2
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
132. LETTER TO T. J. KEDAR
S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
BHAI KEDAR 3 ,
Such things have appeared in the Press. I am really puzzled. I
have sent the original cutting to Dr. Khare.4 I am sending you a copy.
Is not the case quite the opposite of this? Who, I wonder, is getting
things published in this manner? How can such a wrong thing be set
right? If Dr. Khare also holds the views that have appeared in the
papers, the situation cannot be remedied. Think about it and write to
me. It may be taken that my address will be Sodepur till January 20.
Though I shall be touring in Bengal and Assam, I am having letters
addressed to Sodepur.
1
The addressee along with his letter had sent for Gandhiji’s perusal the
Government of India’s scheme for helping the Indians in Malaya.
1
Which carried a report of Gandhiji having been eager to meet the addressee
2
The addressee in his letter of January 12, 1946, denied that he had given any
interview to the Press and was surprised to see the report of their meeting in the
newspapers.
3
A Congress worker of C. P. He acted as a mediator between Khare and
Gandhiji, vide footnote 4, “Letter to Dr. N. B. Khare”, 12-12-1945
4
Vide the preceding item.

I got your letter after writing this. Nobody has ever mentioned
such a thing to me. I know that you did not charge any fee in the
Ashti-Chimur case.1
Blessings from
BAPU
133. LETTER TO HARIGANESH PHATAK

S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
BHAI HARIBHAU,
I have your letter written in English. Why did you not write to
me in Marathi if you could not write in Hindustani ?
There was nothing wrong in sending Savitribai’s name. It was
your duty to do so. It is good that you wrote to Thakkar Bapa. I
have been corresponding with Premabehn. I shall keep Savitribai’s
name in mind. What is her husband doing ?
Blessings from
BAPU
134. LETTER TO CHARUCHANDRA BHANDARI

December 23, 1945
BHAI CHARU BABU,
Your letter is very painful. What can I do? You should have
some consideration for my capacity. I shall not be able to move
about after 4 o’clock. If I had the strength, I would have gone to all
the places. I can finish all your work in half an hour. Do kindly
forgive me. This is my only request.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
Sen
1
Vide “Letter to Sharda G. Chokhawala”, 6-11-1945, also “Statement to the
Press”, 31-3-1945

135. LETTER TO ANNASAHEB SAHASRABUDDHE
S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
BHAI SAHASRABUDDHE,
I have your letter. I have gone through everything. I feel that
at the moment nothing needs to be done in this connection.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI S AHASRABUDDHE
KHADI KARYALAYA
MAHAL, N AGPUR
136. LETTER TO TRIPATHI

S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
BHAI TRIPATHI,
Why did you write to me in English? I have a feeling that you
are either a Maharashtrian or a Gujarati. In which case you could have
written in one of the three Indian languages. You could have written
in the national language or in your mother tongue. You could have
written in Bengali if you are a Bengali. What do you do?
From a copy of the Hindi: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal.

137. DISCUSSION WITH POLITICAL WORKERS1
S ODEPUR,
December 23, 1945
The first [question] was from a lady who wanted to know when the remaining
prisoners would be released. Gandhiji was reported to have talked with H. E. the
Governor about them. Some of the prisoners were important workers without whom
the great organization could not be said to be in full working order.
Gandhiji said he had naturally discussed with His excellency many questions,
but he could not allow himself to be cross-examined. He could only hope with those
present that if they were on the eve of liberty these prisoners must be set free sooner
rather than later. But he warned the lady questioner not to worry about them if she
believed with him that prisons for patriots were gateways to liberty. Was not India in
bondage one vast prison ?
To a student who wanted to know what part students were to play Gandhiji
said that he could not understand student organizations antagonistic to one
another. Students should all be lovers of freedom and therefore all Congressmen
in thought. But their first work was study. They were all servants of the nation.
They should have no communal taint nor could they harbour untouchability.
They were bound to follow the constructive programme and, through the charkha
and all it meant, ally themselves with the millions of poor villagers of India.
For the rest they should hear everything and everyone respectfully, weigh everything
and follow what they thought was right. But they must keep out of party
politics.
To the question whether “Vandemataram” should be replaced by the new
song “Qadam, Qadam”, Gandhiji said that a song that carried such glorious asso-
ciations of sacrifice as “Vandemataram” could never be given up. It would be like
discarding one’s mother. But they could certainly add a new song or songs like the
one mentioned to their repertoire of national songs after due thought and discrimi-
nation.
Q. Was there violence by the people in 1942 ?
Gandhiji referred the questioner to his reply2 to the Tottenham pamphlet and
added that had the people as a whole not remained non-violent, India would have gone
back. He also thought the Government had senselessly put the principal Congress-
1
Extracted from Pyarelal’s Weekly Letter issued to the Press. Those present
included members of the Bengal Provincial Congress Committee, students and trade
union workers. The meeting took place in the afternoon between 3 and 5 p. m. before
Gandhiji left for Santiniketan.
2
Vide “Letter to Additional Secretary, Home Department, Government of
India”, 15-7-1943

men in prison and thus provoked the people who were not yet restrained enough for
complete non-violence. He had seen nothing to alter his conviction that the
Government excesses far outweighed what the people had done in the way of
violence.
Q. What could Congressmen do to draw Muslims to the Congress?
Gandhiji said that in the presence of the prevailing distrust there should be no
attempt to enlist Muslims or any other group or individuals. What however every
Hindu could do was mutely to serve his Muslim or for that matter every non-Hindu
neighbour as his blood brother. Such selfless service was bound to tell in the end.
That was the way of non-violence, otherwise called love.
Asked as to what the position of the Congress in relation of class struggle
between the capitalists and the labouring class was, Gandhiji replied that he could
speak only in his individual capacity as he was not even a four-anna member of the
Congress. His own relations with his capitalist friends, he remarked, typified the
attitude of the Congress towards the capitalist class. He freely accepted the
hospitality of capitalists like the Birlas and made use of their money to serve the
cause of the poor, but the latter did not expect anything in return from him. On the
contrary, they were glad to be exploited by him in the interests of the poor. His
relationship with them was ethical. He could never give up his associations with the
capitalists because of fear of anybody. To do so would, in his opinion, amount to a
betrayal of the cause of the poor.
Similarly, whilst the Congress accepted the financial help and cooperation of
the capitalists in its fight for independence, it never was and never could be a
capitalist organization. The Congress was pledged to defend the rights of labour
against anyone who might attempt to encroach upon them. From its very inception
it had stood for the poor, and consciously or unconsciously striven to become an
organization of the masses. In this connection he referred to Dadabhai Naoroji’s
monumental work Poverty and Un-British Rule in India, which showed the deep
concern of the Grand Old Man of the Congress for Indian masses.
They could now understand why he asked them to rally round the Congress.
They should all identify themselves and serve the Congress, irrespective of whether
they were on its membership register or not. The Congress tricolour symbolized
truth and non-violence. It was the only flag worthy of being adopted by them.
There was no power in the universe greater than truth. Bereft of truth man was no
better than the four-footed beast. If they made truth their staff and ahimsa their shield
they would be irresistible.
Continuing, he told them that he considered himself to be a labourer just like
themselves. He did not think that there was any essential antagonism between
capital and labour. In fact he held that labour alone was true capital. All the gold of

the capitalists could not provide them with one morsel of bread. Collaboration of
labour was necessary before capital could bear fruit. Again the gold and silver of the
capitalists had only a limited currency but labour was universal currency. The
capitalists could be robbed of their wealth but no one could rob the labourer of his
wealth, namely, industry.
Moreover, capitalists were after all few in number. The workers were many.
But capital was well organized and had learnt to combine. If labour realized its
inherent strength and the secret of combination it would rule capital instead of being
ruled by it.
He commended to them the Ahmedabad Labour Union as a model organization
to copy. It was perhaps the best organized labour union in the world. It ran its own
free hospital, schools for children and cheap grain shops out of the union funds. It
had conducted several successful strikes. The essential condition of a successful
strike was that the strikers should not be dependent on public charity for their
sustenance during the strike. They must have an alternative occupation to fall back
upon in a crisis. He recalled how during the 23 days’ strike 1 of Ahmedabad labour
workers, he had offered them work but had refused to give them doles. The latter
would have demoralized them. Spinning was an occupation par excellence for their
purpose. He therefore asked them to learn and practise it in their homes. Concluding,
he observed that a strike should be organized not out of hostility towards the
employers but for the restitution of the just rights of labour. Rights and duties were
reciprocal in their nature, the former accrued only from a due performance of the latter.
138. LETTER TO BHAGAWATICHARAN SHUKLA
[After December 23, 1945] 2
I was very happy to have your letter. I do not have time any
more to write much to anyone. Your account is very good. I also
understand the reason for choosing Gondia.
I am leaving on the 17th.
1
In 1918
2
The letter appears to have been written after the addressee’s marriage which
took place on December 23, 1945. Vide also “Letter to Krishnachandra”, 18-12-1945

You did well to write. You must now be restored to health. I
shall be truly happy when both of you live an ideal life.
From a copy of the Hindi: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and
Library. Courtesy: Beladevi Nayyar and Dr. Sushila Nayyar

December 24, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I promised on 22nd, when we met, that I would send you for
your kind acceptance a copy of my reply 1 to the Tottenham pam-
phlet. This I do now with great pleasure and hope that you will find
time to read it and, if possible, to share it with Mrs. Casey.
I forgot, when we met, to ask you about the salt tax. I trust you
have not forgotten this humanitarian matter.
The first question that was put to me yesterday at the meeting2
with some friends was about prisoners. It was addressed by a woman.
I do feel that your Government will be wholly wrong if they persist
now in keeping in jail these prisoners, some of whom have broken
down in health.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
140. LETTER TO SANTOSH KUMAR BASU

December 24, 1945
DEAR SANTOSH BABU,
Many thanks for your letter and the papers. I have read your
statement 3 with painful interest. I propose to make full use of the facts
1
Vide “Letter to Additional Secretary, Home Department, Government of
India”, 15-7-1943
2
Vide “Discussion with Political Workers”, 23-12-1945
3
This related to incidents in January 1943, within Mahishadal Thana in
Tamluk Sub-division. The addressee, who was then a minister in the Government of
Bengal, had visited Mahishadal and Tamluk during the disturbances.

vouchsafed by you. I return the papers as suggested by you.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI S ANTOSH KUMAR BASU
65 DIAMOND HARBOUR R OAD, K IDDERPORE
From a photostat: C.W. 10554
141. LETTER TO SHANTIKUMAR N. MORARJEE

December 24, 1945
CHI. SHANTIKUMAR,
I got your letter only today. I am leaving for Midnapore. Write
to me at the address given above. I have got a telegram from the Aga
Khan acknowledging [receipt of my letter1 ]. If a letter follows, I will
send you a copy of it. In the telegram he has suggested an interview.
What you say in your letter is all right.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: C.W. 4807. Courtesy: Shantikumar N.
Morarjee
142. LETTER TO SARALADEVI SARABHAI

S ODEPUR,
December 24, 1945
DEAR SISTER,
I received your letter today. I was happy. I know that you do
not accept any position for the sake of honour. 2 You will only be
doing service and I shall be free from worry. Do accept the position.
God will make you do only good.
Blessings from
BAPU
From the Gujarati original: C.W. 11152. Courtesy: Sarabhai Foundation
1
2
The addressee had been appointed agent of the Kasturba Gandhi National
Memorial Trust for Gujarat.

143. LETTER TO H. L. SHARMA
S ODEPUR,
December 24, 1945
CHI. SHARMA,
I got your letter today. I am merely acknowledging it as I am
going to Midnapore right now. The work is becoming difficult. Let
me see what can be done.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a facsimile of the Hindi: Bapuki Chhayamen Mere Jivanke Solah Varsh,
facing p. 344
S ODEPUR,
December 24, 1945
Monday the 24th December was a great day for the Christians. The day
following would be Christmas Day and that was the reason why they had heard in the
bhajan a translation of one of the best English songs from the “Book of Psalms”.
They should understand the meaning of the song. It depicted one who had lost his
way and was penitent for going on a wrong track. Now after a period he had been able
to realize his mistake and he implored God to guide and show him the right way. He
appealed to God to illumine his way in order that he might not fall into numerous pits
which covered all his way. Wistful as he was to realize God, he fervently appealed to
Him to take to the other world. He knew that it was God alone who was able to take
him from darkness to the kingdom of light.
This was the essence of the song, said Gandhiji. What they said in their daily
prayer was not different from this. Gandhiji asked all to remember this and respect all
religions of the world like their own.
1
As it was Gandhiji’s silence day, the speech was read out by Kanu Gandhi.

145. LETTER TO AMRITLAL V. THAKKAR
December 25, 1945

BAPA,
I am going to accommodate all the topics in one letter. I am
writing this on the steamer taking me to Midnapore.
You have written to me about Kuttimalu Amma1 of Malabar but
I am afraid she may not be able to complete our job if she becomes a
member of the Assembly.
I have written to Purnima telling her that I very much doubt
if she can be an Agent if she wishes to enter the Assembly. 2 I dis--
cussed the same point with Jawaharlal also. If, however, you think that
this will not present any difficulty I might revise my opinion.
I think anyone wishing to take up work among women,
especially village women, will have no time for and no interest in the
Assembly. For my part, I would suggest that you write to Kuttimalu
Amma to give up her longing for the Assembly; only then will she be
able to work whole-heartedly for the K. G. N. M. Trust.
Now your second letter—regarding Ram Swarup Khanna. I do
not remember if the words “as far as possible” were dictated by me
or by some other trustee. But they were added during the meeting
itself. If you are inclined to delete the words I shall not say no. But if
the words are to be removed we ought to obtain a formal consent of
all the trustees.
I do not yet have Shyamlal’s letter in this connection.
I have gone through Hariji’s report on Midnapore and I am
proceeding there.
Sucheta has sent a very good and exhaustive account of the
camp at Sahibnagar. The girls of the camp also came and saw me.
We are likely to gain some worth-while experience from it. You
should however write to me only at the Sodepur address. Midnapore
district will take eight days. On the 3rd I shall return to Sodepur.
After having spent there a few days I shall go to Assam, where I
1
A. V. Kuttimalu Amma, wife of K. Madhava Menon, for some time minister
and later President of the Kerala Congress.
2
Vide “Letter to Purnima Bannerjee”, 18-12-1945

expect to spend seven days at the most. After that to Madras via
Sodepur. The date fixed for Madras is 23rd January. Let us see what
happens there. Will you be going to Madras ?
I ask this because we had some talk about the K. G. N. M. Trust.
Spending a day in Orissa does not appear possible.
THAKKAR BAPA
146. LETTER TO JATINDAS
December 25, 1945

CHI. JATINDAS,
If you say that I must write my own letters they are bound
to be delayed, or I may not even be able to write them. Hence,
for the time being you had better give up the desire to receive
letters written in my own hand. That occasionally I may write myself
is a different matter. This is in reply to your letter of the 18th which
reached me yesterday at Sodepur. I am dictating this on board the
steamer taking me to Midnapore. It is good you have gone there in
time, for the silver jubilee celebration of the girls’ school. You will
certainly take a leading part in the athletic events. And I hardly need
say anything about the Art section. Don’t act in haste. I am not going
to issue an immediate summons for you to rush to me ! After all you
are doing work there and I also believe it will bear fruit. Besides, it
will immensely please me if you satisfy Father. A selfless worker
always gets an opportunity to serve wherever he goes. Therefore, the
question of searching for a field of service does not arise.
I shall write whatever is right regarding the Vithal Kanya Vidya-
laya affair after you write to me.
1
I hope you are fine. Send the reply to the Sodepur address.
It appears I shall be leaving Bengal on January 21st.
JATIN
1
A girls’ school at Nadiad in Gujarat

147. LETTER TO SAUDAMINI G. MEHTA
December 25, 1945
DEAR SISTER,
I have your letter. Did you have the purse you had brought
specially for the Bengal Harijan Sevak Sangh? Anyway it does not
matter whether or not you have it. For my part, I have collected a
fairly large amount. How much would you require? Please let me
know. If you say that no sum will be too much I am going to look
upon you as a lazy person. Workers who only know how to spend
and cannot produce what they spend cannot do any work. This has
been my experience over the past sixty years. It began with myself.
In England we formed the Vegetarian Society in the Way’s Hotel, but
did not collect funds from amongst the members, with the result that
we achieved nothing. I occasionally exposed myself to laughter but I
don’t remember anyone having been converted to vegetarianism
because of my activity. My later experience gradually proved sweeter
because I then decided that funds would be collected from those
amongst whom we proposed to work. That balanced the two sides.
The result was I became a “Mahatma”. I am pointing out the golden
way in case you want to become one. This by way of jest. I am dicta-
ting this on board the steamer taking me to Midnapore. That is how I
could get some time. About meeting Harijan workers you may decide
after I return.
S AUDAMINI MEHTA
C ALCUTTA

148. LETTER TO SUCHETA KRIPALANI
ON THE S TEAMER,
December 25, 1945
CHI. SUCHETA,
I have your report. It is very good. You have given all the infor-
mation. I got your report the day before yesterday after the women
of the camp met me. I have written to Purnima.1 Hope P [rofessor] 2 is
well.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI S UCHETA DEVI
S WARAJ BHAVAN
ALLAHABAD
149. LETTER TO DHOLKE

ON THE S TEAMER; M IDNAPORE,
December 25, 1945
BHAI DHOLKE,
I have your letter and also the newspaper cutting. I personally
do not like all these things. Even a well-meaning report can do harm.
I had never thought that any part of the report can do harm. I had
never thought that any part of the report was going to be published.
In parts it is not even true. What can I say about the comment appear-
ing in Navabharat and The Nagpur Times?
NAGPUR
1
Vide “Letter to Purnima Bannerjee”, 18-12-1945
2
J. B. Kripalani

December 25, 1945
BHAI DASAPPA,
I saw your letter addressed to Rajkumari. When will you write in
Hindi? Make an effort, or is it that you cannot even make an effort in
this life ?
There is no need to tempt me as far as Mysore is concerned. I
should at least like it for the camp of the Kasturba Memorial Trust,
but I am afraid it is necessary for you and me to develop the spirit of
renunciation.
S HRI H. C. DASAPPA
GURUKUL ASHRAM
KENGRI P OST, via BANGALORE

December 25, 1945
BHAI JAJUJI,
I have your postcard. If the Congress wants us to organize an
exhibition during the Congress session and is willing to pay for it, we
should do it. Did the Professor write to you? Will you write to him or
shall I ask him? Who will look after the work? Will you leave things in
the hands of Vichitra ?
I am sending a copy of what I have written about Manibehn. I
have a letter from her. I send a copy of it. There is no need to write
more. You will know my mind from my letter.

152. LETTER TO VICHITRA NARAYAN SHARMA
December 25, 1945
CHI. VICHITRA,
Are you aware of the quarrel between Gadodiaji and Dr.
Sharma? What do you know about it and what is your opinion?
Gadodiaji does khadi work. He says that he is doing it sincerely. Let
me know how far that is so.
153. SPEECH AT PUBLIC MEETING1

DIAMOND HARBOUR,
December 25, 1945
Gandhiji had already had one blessing from them. They had gathered there
in thousands but there was no noise and they were sitting there quietly and peacefully
under the scorching sum. If he left them after two hours, he would be going to serve
them elsewhere. If they realized that in their heart he would be really happy.
So many of them, men and women, were spinning there. That was a sight very
pleasing to him. He also desired to thank them for the purse of Rs. 25,250 which they
had given him for work in this sub-division. It was still more pleasing to him that
this money had been collected from 3,900 persons. He was giving it to Charu Babu2
and was sure that it would be spent wise with maximum benefit. He hoped that the
work would be taken up with this sum as capital.
He had read and heard of the calamities suffered by the people of this sub-
division due to flood, famine and pesstilence. He also knew that unless they bore such
calamities with fortitude, they would not be able to survive in this would. Calamities
occurred at every moment in some place or other and humanity all over the world had
to pass through such sufferings. Today humanity was suffering in one form or other
all over the world. But if people thought of them as misfortunes falling on them and
broke under them, they would not be able to reap good out of evil.
The songs sung at Khadi Pratishthan at prayer-time every day had one central
message and that was that even those who suffer get the blessings of God hidden in
those sufferings.
1
Gandhiji’s Hindi speech was simultaneouly rendered into Bengali by Satis
Chandra Das Gupta.
2
Charuchandra Bhandari

It pained him to find that thousands of villagers were still coming there from
distant places. It had been decided that he should come there at half past three and
remain with them for two hours. If he had done so his progamme of work would have
been disturbed and he would not have been able to serve them as he desired.
He had a faith and it was still with him after he had come there. That was about
the charkha. He had been saying from the very beginning that if we did not have faith
in the charkha and realized its inner meaning, we would not be able to live peacefully
in Hindustan. He had been saying this for 60 years, and this was true not noly for
Hindustan but for the whole world, wherever humanity lived, whether it was a small or
big community or country. Humanity could not live peacefully unless it accepted the
creed of truth and non-violence. It needed to be said that hooliganism or rowdyism
would not enable us to bring swaraj or do anythiny good for humanity. He was
convinced that if the 40 crores of people in India were truly imbued with this spirit of
truth and non-violence then sawraj would be in our hands.
He would also tell them briefly the significance of the charkha. They would see
that the poorest of the poor could have a charkha and spin. He had not seen any other
machine which could be as useful as the charkha. Spinning was a form of labour. If a
person did not work for his bread, he would be like a thief stealing the property of
others. The charkha gave them scope for honest labour.
In our country persons who knew English and who were said to be educated
told us that our people, who had no work to do for six months, could have nothing in
store for them but begging. He would tell them that they would have to use
intelligence in spinning too. A few minutes earlier he was spinning. The charkha was
good but there was something wrong in it. He had to mend it before he could spin. In
this way, if there was anything wrong in the machinery used by the people of India,
then we would not be able to reap the maximum benefit out of it. Here one charkha
went wrong. What would be the fate of Hindustan if 40 crores of charkhas went
wrong? Those who believed that swaraj could be won by the charkha, would
necessarily have the blessings of God. So long as we did not believe in God we
would not be able to banish fear from our mind. A person or people who was not
fearless could not be free. That was a simple truth.
He desired to thank them again for they had listened to him quietly.
He hoped they had listened and realized what he had said. If, however, they
had not been able to follow him, he hoped what he had said would be translated into
Bengali and circulated among them. When he heard that they would be glad if he held
his prayer there he was greatly delighted. He would hold his prayer for a few minutes
and then would take leave of them. That did not mean that his work there was finished.
He would go to the launch and hold discussions with their representatives. If he could
work according to his plan, he would know his duties towards them. Concluding
Mahatma Gandhi said :
VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUAR, 1946 101

I would request you to be quiet at the time of prayer. You
should be wholly given to meditation of God while praying. Prayer is
not parrot-like repetition of words. It is meaningless without single-
ness of heart.
154. DISCUSSION WITH CONGRESS WORKERS1

MAHISHADAL,
[On or after December 25, 1945] 2
I cannot say that all that has been done has been well done or
ought to have been done. On the contrary, much of it ought not to
have been done. That the people did not remain inert is a matter of
satisfaction, but the fact that after all these years they should not
have known what the Congress stood for is a matter for sorrow.
What they did was thoughtless. By its very nature it could not be sus-
tained.
You have graphically put in your reports how you blew up a
railway track, put roads out of use, burnt a kutchery, seized a thana,
set up a parallel government and so on. This is not the technique of
non-violent action. People committed the mistake of thinking that
all that did not involve killing was non-violence. Sometimes killing
is the cleanest part of violence. If you kill the mischief-maker out-
right, there is an end to it as far as he is concerned, but harassment is
worse. It did not put out mischief. On the contrary, it brought the
mischief on our own heads. The authorities became vindictive. Per-
haps, you will say that they would have been vindictive anyhow, but
that is not what we should desire or aim at. It does not pay us to let
them go into panic.
In August 1942, the authorities became panicky. We gave them
that excuse. But they are a people who do not know what
defeat is; their cowardice is not fundamental. So, they let such things
as thanas, kutcheries, panchayat courts, etc., remain in your hands for
a short while as toys but as soon as they had completed their dis-
positions they turned the full blast of their machinery of retaliation
against us. It is not in this way that India will attain her independence.
We cannot afford to repeat it.
1
Extracted from Pyarelal’s “Non-violent Technique and Parallel Govern-
ment”
2
Gandhiji was in Mahishadal from December 25 to 30.

Today you have to reckon not with Britain alone but the Big
Three. You cannot successfully fight them with their own weapons.
After all, you cannot go beyond the atom bomb. Unless we can have a
new way of figting imperialism of all brands in the place of the out-
worn one of a violent rising, there is no hope for the oppressed races
of the earth.
Let nobody be misled by the Russian parallel. Our tradition is
wholly different from Russia’s. The historical setting too is defferent.
In Russia the whole population was under arms; Indian masses will not
take to arms even if they could be given the necessary training. But it
is useless to think that our rulers will let us give them that training
when they have at a stroke disarmed a first-rate military State like
Japan. Today Japan lies prostrate at the conqueror’s feet. But non-
violence knows no defeat. It must however be true non-violence, not a
make-believe. I would not shed a single tear if I alone were left to
represent such non-violence.
Q. After all that we have done and suffered, we have begun to doubt whether our
energies have flowed in the right channel, whether the mass awakening was not
misdirected. But is not non-violent rebellion a programme of seizure of power ?
A. Therein lies the fallacy. A non-violent revolution is not a
programme of ‘seizure of power’. It is a programme of transforma-
tion of relationships ending in a peaceful transfer of power. If the
people had fully carried out the five steps outlined by me in my 8th
of August speech 1 in the A.I.C.C. in Bombay, and had there been a
perfect atmosphere of non-violence, the Government’s power and
repression would have been sterilized and it would have been
compelled to yield to the national demand.
If under the impact of foreign invasion or some such. cause
the ruling power abdicates and a vacuum is created, the people’s orga-
nization will naturally take over its functions but such jatiya sarkar
would have no other sanction except that of non-violence and service
of the people to enforce its fiats. It will never use coercion. Even those
who might hold contrary views will receive a full measure of security
under it.
As an instance of the infinitely greater efficacy of the non-violent technique
as compared to the technique of coercion, he mentioned the case of Bardoli. In
Midnapore whilst they succeeded in capturing a few symbols of power in the initial
1
Vide “Speech at A.I.C.C Meeting”, 8-8-1942 and “Speech at A.I.C.C.
Meeting”, 8-8-1942

stages, they could not retain the fruits of their success. But in Bardoli the satyagrahis
were able fully to retain the gains of their struggle.
Moreover, you have seen that all your bravery could not prevent
the violation of women. Now that is intolerable. No one should be
able to cast an evil eye upon them. This requires inculcation of a
higher form of bravery, i. e., that of non-violence which can hurl
defiance at death and against which the power of the aggressor cannot
prevail. This is what I am trying to do. It may take time. It takes a
long time to infuse this kind of higher courage among the millions.
Whether this kind of non violene will ever come into play or not I do
not know. But you who have had training in non-violence for all these
years ought to realize that in your hands non-violence should show all
the brilliance that is inherent in it.
They next wanted to know as to how they could start on the right lines.
Gandhiji in reply prescribed to them the spinning-wheel as “the symbol and central
sun of the 8-fold constructive programme”. It was the best way of achieving social
solidarity and non-violent organization. The technique of non-violent action
consisted in isolating and sterilizing the instruments of evil. Jatiya sarkar based on
non-violence would not put Government servants under duress but would effectively
isolate them so that they would either have to align themselves with the people or be
reduced to the necessity of carrying out the foreign Government’s writ through
undiluted barbarism of which they would soon sicken and tire. Even their relations
and dear ones would desert them.
This presupposes that no section among the people is labouring
under a sense of injustice and wrong at the hands of the others.
Untouchability, exploitation and communal rancour can have no
place under a jatiya sarkar, or it will be like a house divided against
itself which must fall.
Harijan, 17-2-1946

155. LETTER TO HOMI
MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
BHAI HOMI,
I would advise you not to get involved in the Assembly business.
How does it matter if the people ask you to? Moreover, of what use
can my testimonial be? For a noble person his own noble acts or
humanity are the testimonials.
Blessings from
BAPU

MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
BAPA,
Herewith the letter from the Kanya Gurukul. I think you had
better write to the Gurukul lady yourself.
157. LETTER TO BHAILALBHAI PATEL

MAHISHADAL,
C AMP: S ODEPUR,
December 26, 1945
BHAILALBHAI,
I have your long letter. As on reading it I got a clearer idea
of your enthusiasm, I felt that I might not by myself be able to do
justice to that enthusiasm and, therefore, showed the letter to the ex-
perienced co-workers who are in my party. I was accompanied
yesterday by Shri Satis Babu and Shri Annanda Babu 1 in the boat
which brought me to Midnapore. Both of them are learned men and
thinkers and are taking the utmost interest in constructive work. They
are not men who would obstinately cling to their own ideas; they
would go wherever the quest of truth leads them. Neither of them has
1
Annanda Chowdhury, a veteran constructive worker or Bengal

been impressed by tractors, nor very much by electrically operated
flour mills. Since I myself am temperamentally cast in adifferent
mould, I leave out myself. I asked Satis Babu to reduce his opinion to
writing and am sending his note in the original. Annanda Babu has
definite proofs in support of his view and he will collect them and
prepare a note after the present tour is over. I will send it to you. I
think that ultimately the gulf between the two opposite views will
remain unbridged, and everything will depend on experience alone.
Meanwhile, you should cling to the view which you hold so firmly
and act on it. I have always acted on what I believe to be true and it
seems but right that I should continue to do so. Keep on writing to me
if there is anything which you feel might change my views.
Blessings from
M. K. GANDHI
From a facsimile of the Gujarati: Shri Bhailalbhai Patel, Sitermi Janmagranth
Abhinandangranth, 1958, p. 254
158. LETTER TO SADHU CHARANDAS

MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
BHAI SADHU CHARANDAS,
I have your letter. I have written quite a lot on students. You
should read it and do whatever you feel is right. What can be there in
it which makes you sleepless ?
S ADHU C HARANDAS
HEAD M ASTER
BOARD HIGH S CHOOL
S URADA (GANJAM)

159. LETTER TO DHARMA DEV SHASTRI
MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
SHRI DHARMA DEV SHASTRI,
Is it true that you have fallen ill? Get well soon. Why did you
fall ill ?
SHRI DHARMA DEV SHASTRI
DARSHAN KESARI
ASHOK ASHRAM
KALSI, DISTT. DEHRA DUN
160. LETTER TO HARIPRASAD SHASTRI

MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
BHAI HARIPRASAD SHASTRI,
I have your letter. Why did you write in English? What I am
doing is also for the sake of Truth. Who knows what consummation
will serve Truth. It is better to keep on doing what we consider our
duty irrespective of the result.
SHRI HARIPRASAD SHASTRI
SHANTI SADAN
30 L ANSDOWN CRESCENT
LONDON–W II
161. LETTER TO HARIRAM

MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
BHAI HARIRAM,
I have your letter, I cannot do anything in this matter.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI

162. LETTER TO MUKHERJEE
MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
BHAI MUKHERJEE,
I have your letter dated 23rd December. I have had a talk with
your son. I hope your wife is now well. I have gone through all the
papers from Nepal that you have sent. I do not see what help they can
be. This work perhaps can be done only by people like you who are
familiar with it. It cannot be done with the help of a certificate from
the Government of Nepal or anyone else.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI

MAHISHADAL,
December 26, 1945
I have come here to know what you have done so long, and also
to know about your sufferings, and after that to try to help ameliorate
some of them.
I have not come here to deliver speeches. I have delivered many
speeches in my life. Now I am old in age and there has been a change
in my mind, and I think by delivering speeches I will not be able to do
any good to you.
Referring to the sufferings of the people of Midnapore during the past years
Gandhiji said that he was anxious to visit the district for some time, and he was glad
that he got the opportunity today. During his stay in their midst, he would study their
conditions–political and economic.
Mahatma Gandhi advised the gathering to join in singing God’s name as by
doing so they would pick up the habit of doing things unitedly. Swaraj could not be
given by anybody. The people must possess unity of strength for achieving it. It also
meant non-violence or peace.
1
The meeting was held in the open space adjoining Gandhiji’s hut. It was
attended by more than one lakh people.

MAHISHADAL,
December 27, 1945
If we can conduct ourselves unitedly as we have done in
maintaining the rhythm of the bhajan sung, then whatever injury is
inflicted on us and however wronged we may be as the result of the
visitation of Nature or policy of the State, we will be the master of the
situation and keep our head unbent. History provides many such
instances.
Proceeding, Gandhiji referred to the bhajan sung at the meeting and stated that
it would not distort the meaning of the song if in the place of ”temple” the word
“liberation” was used.
But, asked Gandhiji, what was exactly that liberation which the Poet in the
song and they as well wanted to attain? Was it the liberation or salvation that came to
man after his death or was it the liberation from all vestiges of bondage that a human
being suffered under in this world ?
The congregation, Gandhiji hoped, would agree with him that they all wanted
the liberation from bondage in this world. If that was the hankering then they must
appreciate the significance of a unitedly given rhythm.
They were suffering under a bondage of foreign yoke and consequently they
were anxious to be liberated therefrom. There might be, if not equally, strong powers
or influences in their country which also were anxious to keep them down in bondage.
They were anxious to get rid of all these bondages but, added Gandhiji, the worst type
of bondage was that which enabled one to submit himself to any form of slavery.
Man was a slave to may things— his property, his desires, They should seek
deliverance from all these things. If they could press forward their claim for liberation
from all these bondages in the same way as they did in maintaining the rhythm of the
chorus of the bhajan, they would, he hoped, realize his message.
When they kept rhythm by a movement of the hands, the feeling of such a
movement came from within. In other words their hearts were attuned to the outside
movements. That was exactly the thing prerequisite to the attainment of salvation.
1
The meeting was attended by over one lakh people.

165. LETTER TO AMRIT KAUR
MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
CHI. AMRIT,
The papers report your safe arrival. This is earlier than anything
you could have sent. I hope all will go well there.
Here I am in the midst of peaceful surroundings on the canal
bank. This is saved children’s home. No mosquitos. Is it not ‘es’?
Fancy meetings absolutely silent though attended by perhaps one lakh
of people.
No more.
Love to you all.
BAPU
166. LETTER TO T. H. BAIRD
MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your letter of 18th November. I am forwarding your
letter and pamphlet to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Your pretension
appears to me to be too great.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
T. H. B AIRD, E SQ.
33 P ARK AVENUE
P ORTOBELLO, E DINBURGH

167. LETTER TO D. B. KALELKAR
MAHISHADAL,
S ODEPUR (24 PARGANAS),
December 28, 1945
CHI. KAKA,
I can only dictate the reply to your letter. Just now I have to be
content with what I can dictate or write after the morning prayer. I
therefore do not think it necessary to stretch out the hand from under
the quilt to write to you.
I can think of only one thing regarding you, and that is, you
should go on doing what I tell you—though you may make any
suggestion you like. This is exactly what you say in your letter too.
Even if your interpretation is the only correct one, I would say that it
would be safer not to exercise the right which has been granted to you
but to consult the committee. At any rate you will lose nothing
thereby, nor is such procedure likely to result in any delay, especially
when you can consult them by correspondence.
Let us forget the affair of the Vidyapith library, for I never
think about it. And, in any case, what is the use of recalling it ?
I see no need for you to resign from activities in Gujarat. The
whole thing seems to be your imagination. Moreover, Amritlal takes
interest in them. It was you who made him what he is. Without your
support his interest would dry up. He is a straightforward and hard-
working man. From among your discoveries, I consider him as the
one who has proved his worth. So you can leave only after convinc-
ing him fully. You have as good as left, since Amritlal will never do
anything against your wishes.
Thirdly, though you had intended Prof. Banhatti for B. B.
Mandir and told him so, there will be no harm if you take him away
for the Adhyapan Mandir. The latter needs his services for work
which is already in progress, whereas nothing is definite yet about B.
B. Mandir’s work.
I did not like your falling ill. I see no need to work at such
speed and expense of energy. Do what you can without overtaxing
yourself. I can understand your desire that nothing should be over-
looked through lethargy, but I am not at all ready to grant the neces-
sity of working with speed. I remember in this connection the couplet:
“To be impatient is to be confused and to be patient is to be self-
possessed.” It is for you to know who the author is.

I experience supreme peace here even in the midst of meetings
attended by thousands. This is a new sight altogether. I even believe
that this is the result of the work we have been able to do in Sodepur.
Moreover, the people no longer ask for speeches from me, but want
prayer meetings. On one side we have this, on the other, I read in
newspapers the reports of the goondaism that is going on. Who can
say what the outcome of all this will be, or what God will do? Is it not
enough that we should cheerfully shoulder the burden of the small
tasks that fall to our lot ?
Let this suffice for today.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G. N. 10987

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
BAPA,
Herewith Mridula’s wire. You will be able to see Devdas also.
What shall we do about Delhi? If these two names cannot be approved
we should look for some other lady. I also hold the view that until we
come across a woman worker we should carry on the work through
the Wardha office as best as we can, since the main thing is for us to
work in the countryside.
Have you written to them that Tai Rajwade has declined the
offer? Rajkumari has agreed to find [workers] for both the places
(Delhi and Central India). Yet Devdas’s scheme still remains to be
considered. I am doubtful if Ramachandran and Saundaram can
adjust themselves to this task. Ramachandran has adjusted himself to
the Nayee Talim work, so how can we withdraw him from it? Saun-
daram alone surely cannot cope with the responsibility. This is what I
think, so discuss this thing also with Devdas.

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
CHI. DINSHAW,
Today is the 28th. I am dictating this from a village in Midna-
pore. I have sent a full reply to Munnalal’s letter. He had informed
me that it was written on behalf of all of you. I don’t know when this
will reach you.
I only hope that everything will change from January 1st. My
heart is there. When I shall be there is in God’s hands. He will take me
there whenever He wills.
A sign-board in Hindustani, Urdu and Marathi was to be put up
there. Have you done it? Or have you put it off till I come ?
Do you still have the ‘big’ monied patients or have they left?
If they have stayed on, will they agree to be in the same line with the
poor ?
What did you do about the hospital fruniture? Did you get the
pieces you wanted for your Bombay unit? Or shall I have to see to the
matter myself? I know I shall have to put up with the monthly
expenditure there. A number of questions have been raised in this
connection; I shall remit the appropriate amount after I get a reply.
I do not expect a large number of indoor patients moving in
soon. I take it that those who have already applied to you will be the
rich ones. There is no question of our admitting them at the moment.
It will be a different matter if we admit them after the new norms are
established and the rich agree to stay with the poor.
Of course, I strongly feel that you should adapt yourself to the
new pattern in full knowledge and faith.
I hope Gulbai is fine. I expect it is now nearing time for her
confinement.
Write to me at the Sodepur address.
Blessings from
BAPU
DR. DINSHAW M EHTA
P OONA
From a copy of the Gujarati: Pyarelal. Courtesy: Pyarelal

170. LETTER TO THE PRINCIPAL, KANYA GURUKUL,
DEHRA DUN
MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
DEAR SISTER,
I have your letter. I was a little surprised. I had always regarded
the Gurukul as Dharma Devji’s institution.
I have forwarded your letter to Thakkar Bapa and have written
to him to write to you.
THE P RINCIPAL
KANYA G URUKUL
DEHRA D UN
171. LETTER TO C. N. MUTURANG MUDALIAR

P.O. S ODEPUR,
December 28, 1945
BHAI MUTURANG MUDALIAR,
I have your letter, I do have partiality for Rajaji. I feel that he
alone is able to hold the reigns of the Government in Madras. But do
whatever you people think is best. I do not involve myself at all in the
affairs of the Working Committee. I give my opinion on whatever is
referred to me. Therefore it will be no use coming to see me. Dr.
Rajan and other friends had been here. I told them the same thing. I
know nothing about what Asaf Ali did. I have read only what has
appeared in the newspapers.
Yours,
M. K. G ANDHI
C. N. MUTURANG MUDALIAR
4 MAULVI ROAD
THYAGARAYA NAGAR
MADRAS

172. LETTER TO DADA DHARMADHIKARI
MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
BHAI DADA,
I have gone through your letter, also that of Gopalrao. After
taking into consideration everything. I have arrived at the follow-
ing decision: Because all your friends want it, you may seek election
to the Assemby if it can be done without any exertion on your part
and on the clear understanding that it will be a bed of thorns and not
of velvet. If something good comes of it the credit will go to the
electorate or to God. If nothing comes of it we lose nothing because,
if you remain outside it will be to serve truth and if you go in, it
will be also to serve truth. I understand what Vinoba says. I am giving
this opinion knowing very well his views. Refrain from all arguments
and discussions, observe silence, and if even then people elect you go
to the Assembly, You should not make any effort on your part to get
elected.
I am not writting a separate letter to Gopalrao. This is meant for
him also.
DADA DHARMADHIKARI
BAJAJWADI
WARDHA
173. LETTER TO GOPINATH BARDOLOI

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
BHAI BARDOLOI,
I have your letter. I have gone through it and also discussed it. I
shudder at the thought of your programme. You seem to have taken it
for granted that I can keep running about if I live for another 49
years. But it is not so. I can live perhaps for 125 years if I stick to one
place and work within my limits. I had agreed to give seven days to
Assam, inclusive of the time taken by the journey to and fro. You
have arranged for seven day’s programme in Assam itself. And two
days will be spent in going and coming, which makes it nine days.
How can I spare so many days? You will listen to everything and then

decide whether my stay at two place will serve the purpose or not. If
does not then forget about it.
Blessings from
BAPU
174. LETTER TO HASTMAL PATWA

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
BHAI HASTMAL PATWA,
I received your telegram at Mahishadal. I do not know what can
be done about it. Write or teleraph to Jawaharlalji.
SHRI HASTMAL PATWA
13 NARMAL LOHIA LANE
CALCUTTA
175. LETTER TO JAWAHARLAL NEHRU

C AMP: M AHISHADAL,
P OST S ODEPUR,
December 28, 1945
CHI. JAWAHARLAL,
I am enclosing a letter, this as desired by the writer. He might
have met me in South Africa, but I do not remember. I have written to
him that he has made a tall claim in his address. He seems to be a
crazy man.
I could find time only now to read what you said before the
students in Bihar. I liked it very much.
You need a littel rest. It would indeed be good if you could
snatch it.
I had told Rajkumari to write to you about the Communists.
Today I find a totally different thing in the newspapers. A clipping is
attached herewith. What is this? Can you throw some light?
Blessings from
BAPU
From the Hindi original: Gandhi-Nehru Papers. Courtesy: Nehru Memorial
Museum and Library

176. LETTER TO KAMALNAYAN BAJAJ
MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
CHI. KAMALNAYAN,
I have written to the Ashram about the money.
KAMALNAYAN BAJAJ

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
BHAI JAJUJI,
It is my firm view that we should demand yarn for the khadi
required by the Congress. It calls for tact and efficiency. Those who
wear a uniform must learn to spin. The question implies that those
wearing uniforms did not wear khadi and did not spin. Will they do
so now? The presidents of the Congress committees will have to be
patiently persuaded. It is they who want to destroy khadi, and they
may if they can. By efficiency I mean we may provide yarn in cases
where spinning cannot be started right now. I always have quite a
large stock of yarn and I am willing to spare some.The only provision
is that I will give yarn only to those who are willing to give it but are
not able to do so immediately as they do not know spinning. But they
should accept the condition that they will spin and do as required.
And they should collect yarn for the khadi required in future. If we
observe these rules faithfully we shall know whether khadi will bring
us swaraj or will only remain a provider to the poor. You may send
this letter to Vichitra if you want.
S HRI JAJUJI
S ECRETARY, A. I. S. A.
S EVAGRAM, W ARDHA

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
BHAI SHYAMLAL,
I have your letter.
Haven’t I written about Lala Ramswarup that even if we want to
delete a word we have to invite the opinion of the members as far as
possible? Consult Pakvasa and Dada Mavalankar. They are there. We
must have the opinion of the persons who have moved for the
amendment of the resolution. There is no doubt that it can be secured.
Only it will take some time but you have to put up with that.
The second question you have raised is good. I would not like
to be bound down to any particular use of the building. I would like
that Lala Ramswarup should either donate the building on the under-
standing that we may make what use we make of it or he should not
donate it at all. The donor should make the donation on our con-
dition and not his.
BHAI S HYAMLAL
WARDHA
179. LETTER TO PRABODH CHANDRA SEN

KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR,
[December 28, 1945] 1
BHAI PRABODH CHANDRA SEN 2 ,
I have your letter. I have written3 to Rathi Babu about it.
All the inmates of Vishva Bharati must know Bengali and Hindustani.
English should not be compulsory for everybody. Arrangements
should be made for the foreigners to learn Hindustani first. It
should be compulsory for those who come from provinces other than
1
From the postmark
2
Professor and Head of Bengali Department, Visva Bharati
3
Vide “Letter to Rathindranath Tagore”, 22-12-1945

Bengal to learn Bengali; similarly Hindustani should be made com-
pulsory for Bengalis. Then only can Vishva Bharati be worthy of its
name and also the name of Gurudev. If I had my way, I would carry
on everything in Hindustani. If that is not possible now, I would do it
in Bengali, but certainly not in English.
I do not wish to express any opinion regarding the fourth ques-
tion as I do not have full information.
Blessings from
BAPU
From Hindi: C.W. 10408
180. SPEECH AT SHISHU SADAN

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
I have come here to study facts. I have known and studied and
understood. What I have got to say to you I tell you through the
prayer. Practise it in your everyday life.1
Gandhiji smilingly asked the boys whether they would like to play with him.
On being asked by a boy to give him his blessings Gandhiji said that he could not do
that because the boy had dirty dress. He thereupon turned to the teacher of the boys
and said that he would have a quarrel with him. He explained to the teacher that the
aims of Wardha scheme of education was not merely to teach the boys arithmetic and a
few other things. The Wardha scheme of education, Gandhiji emphasized, moulded
the life of man to a new form. Why should they sit with their face bent down? They
should be taught to sit erect.
Remember if they are properly reared up they will be the best
soldiers of Hindustan. Why should the boys put on dirty dress after
having undergone Wardha training for six months ?
He urged that in imparting Wardha training they should be more concerned
with its essence rather than the routine courses of study. Gandhiji also enquired about
their progress in spinning.
1
Gandhiji was answering a woman worker who had complained of hardships
and Government oppression.

181. ANSWER TO QUESTION1
December 28, 1945

Mahatma Gandhi said that if it was necessary to use the plain red flag of the A.
I. T. U. C. in order to be better able to serve the labour of all faiths and denominations
he saw no harm in doing so provided the red flag was not used as a rival to the tri-
colour flag.

MAHISHADAL,
December 28, 1945
Gandhiji stated that he had noticed that ordinary rules of business of an
assembly were not observed. If one was to attend a meeting it was expected of him,
whether he liked the proceedings or not, that he should remain till the end. If this
procedure was not followed and if he left abruptly while the meeting was going on he
would only disturb others. He had been told by many women attending such meetings
that they had only a limited time at their disposal for attending such functions
because they had to attend to other household duties. Undoubtedly it was a strong
argument in their favour but his reply to them would be that in such cases they should
consider beforehand whether they had the time or not at their disposal to sit till the
end of the meeting.
If they at all decided to attend the meeting they should be there till the meeting
was dissolved. There are many who arrived at the meeting after it had commenced. In
such a case the attendant should stay outside the assembly.
All these rules of conduct were applicable in respect of an ordinary assembly.
But they are obligatory in case of prayer meetings. Because at the prayer they wanted
to be in meditation. During such a time anything disturbing from outside was un-
welcome. He would particularly draw the attention of the organizers of such meetings
to the observance of these general rules of conduct. They should circulate
amongst the people beforehand these rules for their observance. If they could
train up people in this respect they would be rendering a public service and will be
able to organize themselves better, advance the cause of public decorum and give new
inspiration.
1
Dr. Maitreyi Bose, Secretary of the Hindustan Mazdoor Sevak Sangh, Bengal
Branch, had asked Gandhiji about the advisability of Congressmen engaged in the
labour movement using the Red Flag.

Referring to the charkha demonstration participated in by about 500 spinners,
men and women, Gandhiji said that he noticed that there were two types of charkhas
in use. The older one was the wheeled one and the latter was called the box-charkha.
The latter was introduced by him and the reason for its introduction was that for the
convenience of men like him who were regular spinners and had to travel, this type of
box-charkha was suitable. But let them not forget, he said, the golden rule for
charkha that its price should be cheap and be made from materials available in the
particular locality. Crores of persons could not be expected to use one uniform type
of charkha. Nor should its manufacture be limited to one central place. If they
developed a central supply store of charkha how would it be possible for them to
supply it to the 40 crores of people ?
So far as the strength of the charkha was concerned he could assert that there
was no other machine which was more powerful than it. To him the charkha was the
symbol of swaraj, ahimsa and annapurna.
Referring to the bhajan sung Gandhiji said that its composer maintained that it
was through sufferings that a man could realize God. What was the method prescribed
for the realization of God was also true for the attainment of swaraj.
There was no instance in the world to show that swaraj could be had without
undergoing sufferings. Not only swaraj, they could not acquire even knowledge with-
out undergoing hardships. If there was anything which was available to a man with-
out undergoing hardships he could not fully prize or appreciate the same. Therefore,
if they had followed the bhajan of the day they should remember that for the sake of
God they had to put up with all sufferings. As it was true that without suffering they
could not realize God so was it equally true that without suffering they could not attain
freedom. They should also remember that for the sake of swaraj whatever they had
suffered had not been in vain. They had all paved the path towards their attaining
swaraj.
183. LETTER TO KANTILAL GANDHI

MAHISHADAL,
December 29, 1945
CHI. KANTI,
It is 6 a. m. just now. It is pitch dark all around. The prayer was
over at 5. After the prayer, instead of returning to bed I read or heard
letters and started writing. I thus reach your letter at 6 a. m.
Chi. Shanti will get well. Every householder passes through such
experiences, bitter, sweet, sweet and bitter.

I would like your doing whatever work relating to spinning
comes to you unsought at home. If you have skill, proficiency, firm-
ness of mind, purity of character, devotion to God and humility, then
the work you do at home will be like the Ganga flowing by your
door-step. I will regard such work done during student life as more
than enough.
If by fulfilling your family obligations and doing service to
others while studying you have to take two years instead of one to
complete your studies you need not feel unhappy at all. It would
certainly be a matter of shame if studies were neglected from lethargy
or love of pleasures. Those who believe that it is impossible to do
public service during student life are mistaken. The student’s stage of
life is also meant for increasing one’s capacity for service. If, there-
fore, the immediate opportunity for service is neglected, the student’s
life becomes as it generally is today, a selfish one instead of one
dedicated to service. Moreover, present day education by and large is
antagonistic to the spirit of service or patriotism. Add to this the
burden of learning through English. And the subjects of study also
include some which are unnece-ssary and exclude some which are
essential, such as spinning. According to me, spinning, which means
both its science and craft, should be introduced as the principal
subject right from the earliest stage. But that is not done anywhere.
Our boys, therefore, who study in Government institutions must
determinedly make good this deficiency, as you have been doing. If
that is not done, one would be guilty of the vanity of claiming
perfection. You should not, therefore, in any circumstances abandon
spinning and its science. Show and explain the whole of this letter to
Saraswati. It will help her to understand and realize how much service,
and nothing but service, is contained in spinning. If she is still not
able to understand, let me know. I will try again to explain the point
to her. Besides, you will also have received my previous letter written
from Sodepur.
I followed what you wrote about the politics there. You should
remain detached and go on doing what you can.
I could perhaps have revised the English of your report and sent
it to you, but the news you had given in it was so good that I felt I
must convey it to Jajuji and so sent on the report to him. I do not
very much care if your English is not of the highest class. I am more
interested in your being in the highest class as a human being and

acquiring wide knowledge of Indian languages. I would, however,
like it if at the same time you could also write grammatically correct
and chaste English. That is why I dropped the hint in my letter.
Here I have been enjoying the highest peace. Tomorrow I will
go to Contai. The programme there, too, is for four days. I expect to
return to Sodepur on January 3. From there I will leave for Assam
on the 8th and return to Sodepur again on the 16th. We are a large
party but we experience no difficulty on that account.
Address your reply to Sodepur. I shall probably reach Madras
on the 23rd.
Blessings the to three of you from
BAPU
[PS.]
Harilal is in Bangalore with Nanjapa.
From a photostat of the Gujarati: C.W. 7381. Courtesy: Kantilal Gandhi

MAHISHADAL,
December 29, 1945
CHI. MADALASA,
I have your letter. Sushila will of course write to you. You may
be considered to be out of danger and pain now.
The operation on the breasts is a long one but is not considered
a difficult one.
It seems you are still in Bajajwadi. If, after you are able to leave
the bed, you eat only what your health requires but eat it regularly
and in adequate quantity, you will soon get well. I was glad that
Vinobaji paid a visit. It was good that the train was late, for he could
give more time to you because of that.
The baby’s weight is rather low. If you learn through all these
experiences and become more careful in your habits, everything will
be well.
Ramakrishna is gaining plenty of experience. The entire tour is
full of happy experiences. How strange it is that people do not want
speeches but want prayer-meetings !
If both you and the baby lie in sunshine for as long as you can
stand, you will sleep longer. Just now I am having firsthand exper-

ience of this. And the longer you sleep the healthier you will become.
If the sleep is not a sign of lethargy, it will refresh the mind, too.
“Rasgulla” 1 is daily becoming more of a rasgulla.
Blessings from
BAPU
185. LETTER TO MATHURABHAI

MAHISHADAL,
December 29, 1945
BHAI MATHURABHAI,
I have your letter. What you say is absolutely right. Since you
are in Bombay you should personally collect all the information. I am
under the impression that pickers [sic] are made from dead animals.
But now that I have your letter I shall make further enquiries.
Blessings from
M. K. GANDHI
S JT. M ATHURABHAI
P ICKERS F ACTORY
DHARAVI R OAD
BOMBAY 17
186. LETTER TO SHRIPAD JOSHI

KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR,
December 29, 1945
CHI. SHRIPAD,
I have your letter. Congratulations on your inter-communal/
inter provincial marriage. I hope that this marriage will not be for
indulgence but for sacrifice and that your capacity to serve will at least
be doubled.
I am not writing a separate letter to Bhai Joshi2 .
Blessings from
BAPU
1
Gandhiji’s nickname for the addressee’s son
2
S. M. Joshi, socialist leader

187. A LETTER
MAHISHADAL,
December 29, 1945
DEAR SISTER,
I have your letter. It is good that Harilal has reached there at
last. Both you husband and wife should now redeem him. If he is
saved I will consider him as your property.
If you are not able to understand Hindi properly, Harilal will
explain to you. Does he write to Kanti and Saraswati? I had one or two
letters from him. Blessings.
Blessings from
BAPU
188. TALK WITH PEOPLE1

MAHISHADAI,
December 29, 1945
Gandhiji replied that he had been asked the same question2 in 1920 and 1921
and he could only repeat the reply which he gave then. The question betrayed
ignorance of non-violence and also of swaraj of his conception. He did not want
swaraj at the cost of women’s honour. If what passed as non-violence did not enable
them to protect the honour of women or if it did not enable the women to protect their
own honour, it was not non-violence.
Believe me, it is something quite different.
And he described what he had written in Hind Swarajin 1909. Gandhiji obser-
ved that experience had added force to the argument.
After all who protected Sita from Ravana? The poet tells us that
her purity was such that Ravana dared not compass his end without
her consent.
1
Extracted from Sushila Nayyar’s “Non-violence and Molestation of Women”.
On the night of the 29th Gandhiji met about 200 men and women of Mahishadal and
neighbouring villages including local workers and victims of police and military
atrocities during the 1942 movement.
2
The question was whether they were expected to remain non-violent even
when their womenfolk were molested.

He warned them in the end that if anybody came to him with the plea that they
could not protect the honor of their womenfolk because they had taken the vow of
non-violence, he would give them no quarter. Non-violence should never be used as a
shield for cowardice. It was a weapon of the brave. He would rather they died fighting
violently than became helpless witnesses to such atrocities. A truly non-violent man
would never live to tell the tale of such atrocities. He would have laid down his life on
the spot in non-violent resistance.
Harijan, 10-2-1946

MAHISHADAL,
December 29, 1945
Gandhiji paid a glowing tribute to the affection and painstaking care that the
men and women volunteers who were in charge of the camp, had shown is looking
after him and his party. Gandhiji congratulated the gathering on the exemplary
silence and order which prevailed during the public prayers at Mahishadal. It had
given him the deepest satisfaction. The peace of mind which he experienced there
exceeded even what he had experienced in Sevagram or Sodepur.
Referring to the events in connection with the 1942 struggle, he said that as a
result of all that he had heard and learnt during the last few days, he had come to the
conclusion that whilst people had shown singular courage and endurance, they had
also committed some mistakes, especially in their understanding of the principle of
ahimsa. He added :
Besides, there were some acts of high-handedness amongst our-
selves. There must be some difference between a national organi-
zation and alien rule. In our national organization there should not
be any differences amongst ourselves. I should go further today and
say that those outsiders who lived near us should be made to realize
that our organization was superior to the alien organization because
we did not want violence. We wanted to carry on our work through
non-vilence.1
Under a national government, even the opponents or those who held contrary
views ought not to experience a feeling that the ideal had not been attained in
Midnapore or, for that matter, in any part of India. It might even be said that it was a
tall order. But if he did not point out their faults or place the undiluted ideal before
them, they could never hope to reach their ideal. Gandhiji continued :
1
These two paragraphs are reproduced from The Hindu of 30-12-1945.

If you do not do it, I won’t be able to do anything, even if I
carry our claim throughout the world. I won’t succeed if I do not
make these things clear to you. During my work for the last 60 years
it has been the practice with me that I do not praise those who work
with me. I make their mistakes known to others and I think, by doing
so, our mistakes would be rectified.2
Gandhiji reiterated his conviction that India had lost nothing, but on the con-
trary had gained in every way as a result of the adoption and practice of truth and non-
violence during all these years. If they had not attained the goal which they had set
before themselves, the fault lay not in truth and ahimsa, but in themselves.
For instance, if they had fully imbibed the principle of ahimsa, they would be
completely free from the feeling of discrimination against the votaries of religions
other than their own and regard them and serve them all with equal love. It had pained
him to learn that, in the Mahishadal area, Harijans were still not being admitted in the
temples. He hoped they would completely rid themselves of the taint of
untouchability. It would be a big advance in ahimsa.
Referring to the song that had been sung, he pointed out that, in it, the
devotee prays to God to purge him of the cowardice which springs from doubt, as
well as the cowardice that results from fear of misfortunes. To harbour doubt is to
insult God. To shrink from misfortune, is to run away from Him. He, therefore, prays
for spiritual as well as physical courage, so that he might be completely rid of
all fear.
The Hindu, 30-12-1945 and 31-12-1945
190. LETTER TO CHHAGANLAL GANDHI

December 30, 1945
CHI. CHHAGANLAL,
I have your letter. About me you must be getting all the
news from the papers. I hope there was no dejection underlying the
statement that Prabhudas had had yet another daughter. If we really
see no difference between a boy and a girl and if we do not, out of a
false sense of attachment, consider a girl a liability there will be no
cause either for dejection or for a feeling of being burdened with
responsibility. It will be sufficient, if we bring her up, train her to
think independently and become self-reliant an teach her, in case
she wants to marry, the art of finding herself a mate and also help her,
if she wants, in her search for one. Moreover, we shall, in addition,
master the art of bringing up daughters and set an example for others

to emulate.
Pass this on to Prabhudas for his perusal. If possible Prabhudas
and Amba should now practise continence. If they fail to practise it
their capacity for service is going to be greatly limited.
I am not surprised at Kashi’s lack of strength. Her weakness
will persist because she continues to be ever so restless. Otherwise I
know she can partly get over the cold weather by keeping herself
warm. My suggestion to her to go to Bombay for the cold season did
have flaws. All the same I did make the suggestion which she rejec-
ted. I hope the cold has abated now.
Rajkumari is in Hyderabad (Sind). She will be relieved from
there on the 2nd.
I hope you yourself are well.
191. A NOTE
December 30, 1945
Children should spin well. They must learn the processes pre-
ceding and following spinning. Children should know and observe the
rules of cleanliness. It is essential to keep the posture when sitting or
standing. Truth and non-violence should come to them easily and
naturally.
M. K. GANDHI
192. LETTER TO NARAYAN M. DESAI
ON THE S TEAMER,
December 30, 1945
CHI. BABLO,
You have now really grown big. You too must aspire to live 125
years in the service of others, and strive towards that end.
If Durga’s health is as good as you describe I shall say you have
truly grown up. Sushi, I am sure, will be quite well.
As for the wedding, in my opinion the longer it is put off the
better it will be.
I keep on hearing that you are grown in body as well as in

mind. May you fill Mahadev’s place and excel him.
Blessings from
BAPU
NARAYAN DESAI
S EVAGRAM

MAIN C AMP: S ODEPUR,
ON THE S TEAMER FROM MAHISHADAL TO C ONTAL,
December 30, 1945
CHI. PUSHPA,
I have your letter. How can you afford to be cowardly? You
should endure your fate. I can bear, even understand, your refusal to
look upon Vajubhai as your husband. But he is a brother to you, is
he not? And why need one fear one’s brother? How can you refuse to
discuss the subject with him? He has committed no fault. If anyone is
at fault, it is you. You do not want to abide by custom. I see no harm
even in that. One who wishes to disregard custom must generally
display great firmness of mind, purity of character and gentlness.
Moreover, you aspire to rise even higher. You are resolved to have as
husband no ordinary man but only God. Your stiffness does not
become your noble resolve.You should, therefore welcome Vajubhai.
Then alone can you uplift both him and yourself. I am glad, that you
believe yourself to be still weak. You should, therefore, carefully
observe the restraints which a weak person should. These restraints are
only not to be alone with Vajubhai and not to touch him. It is no part
of a sister’s duty to a brother to touch him freely. If she chances to
touch him, she does not run away nor does the experience any passion
because of it. But when a girl is weak, even touching one’s blood
brother may sometimes have to be avoided. You will learn to look
upon God as husband and be accepted in His large court only if you
understand all these subtle distinctions. Otherwise you are bound to
fall by the wayside like a mere pebble.
Go to Vinoba when you can. There you will get affection and
knowledge and your determination will grow firm.
If you do not want, I will not send you the letters from
Father or Vajubhai. But I would like you to remain unperturbed
even after reading those letters. Yesterday we had a Bengali bhajan.

Daily in the evenings a Bengali bhajan is sung here and that is
only proper.The first line of the bhajan was: “Lord, save me
from weakness even when I am assailed by doubts.” That destroy
is, destroy every doubt in my mind. Your vow is a hard one. You
have taken it of your own free will. You will not be able to deep
it without God’s grace. I am dictating this letter with great care in the
early morning in a boat, hoping that it may remove your igno-rance
and strengthen you. There can be no peace except through absorption
in service. You can show this letter to Vinoba. He will be able to
explain my ideas better and if there is anything lacking he will make
up for it.
Blessings from
BAPU
December 30, 1945

BHAI SHYAMLAL,
I have your letter of the 26th. I feel it is necessary to consult the
scheme before sanctioning expenditure for opening a basic training
(school) in the village of Tirumalai. Shall we have the ownership of
the site of the building? Have you received the Rs. 500? What is the
population of Tirumalai? If it is necessary to sanction the expenditure
soon, then decide about the ownership, etc., and you may take my
approval for granted. As I want to reply quickly I am writing this on
a boat. Sodepur should be taken as my address.
S HRI S HYAMLAL
KASTURBA S MARAK NIDHI, WARDHA

195. LETTER TO SATYANARAYAN
ON THE S TEAMER,
December 30, 1945
BHAI SATYANARAYAN,
Two of your letters came more or less at the same time—one of
the 24th addressed to me and the other of the 26th addressed to Sus-
hilabehn. I am planning to reach there on January 23, 1946. Whether
I can do so is in God’s hands.
You should stop touring for the present and get to work in
Madras. If the ground is well prepared there our work will shine.
I do not remember having talked to Sitaramji. I did have some
talk with Kamalnayanji. I shall try to talk to Sitaramji when I return to
Sodepur. Much depends on the success of the programme in Madras.
I believe that it is easy to get money if we are perfectly honest and
industrious. You will remember what I mean by honest. I think I
explained to you.
Sardar told me that the meeting of the Central Parliamentary
Board would be held somewhere there. He had no objection but
thought Maulana Saheb might not be able to travel so far. There is no
need for you to do anything in this connection. I personally do noth-
ing and indeed I should not. Whatever has to happen will happen.
I have gone through the programme. It is for both morning
and evening. It will be very difficult for me if I have to attend it at 9
in the morning. Monday is obviously a silence day and on Thursday,
Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday I observe silence at 9. That is the time
for massage, etc. So bearing in mind that it will be possible to take
work from me only from 2 to 5, do whatever you want to.

ON THE S TEAMER FROM MAHISHADAL TO C ONTAI,
MAIN C AMP: S ODEPR,
December 30, 1945
I have your letter.
It is good that you have started hand-carding. Vinobaji’s new
attempt is actually a very old thing. It can be perfected by practice.
Somebody gave a demonstration at a public meeting. He separated
the cotton from the seeds and pulled the cotton on all sides with his
hands, made slivers from the same and started spinning. He did the
spinning on the takli. His yarn was very neat. One woman had started
spinning without separating the seeds from the cotton. But I do not
value all these things much. I value Vinobaji’s experiment very much
becase he says that he is doing it scientifically and from the point of
view of social benefit. Hence, I would always be eager to know the
results of the new experiment.
I understand about Gitai 1 and other things. Just as Vinobaji has
written about sleep to Balkobaji and made it into a beautiful article, he
should also write about observing silence while walking and follow it
in practice. I understand its significance, but even so I am not prac-
tising it in this tour. I am caught by desire and temptation. But I know
that if one wants to live up to 125 years, desire, etc., should necessarily
be given up. I shall not write anything more about it today.
I am glad that Kanam 2 has gone to Paunar. But it is rather
disconcerting that Vinoba should spare one hour for him.
It is good that Balvantsinha has gone to Kharangana. Let him
continue the same way. It will do him good. I also infer from this
that Hoshiaribehn is doing well and she has completely regained her
balance.
I understand about Om Prakash. He must be provided sufficient
money for travel.
Vasumatibehn must be in good health.
Shantabehn will be all right. It would be nice if Hoshiari, Kailas,
Shanta and others wrote to me.
1
Marathi verse rendering of Bhagavad Gita by Vinoba Bhave
2
Kanam Gandhi, son of Ramdas Gandhi

Let Chakrayya get himself trained there. Let him learn there.
Everything is bound to be well if his mind and body are in good
shape.
We had elaborat recitations from Gita on Ba’s death date1 . And
we did spinning. Some outsiders also did spinning with us for an
hour.
I am not in the least interested in keeping that sadhu any more.
I have realized too that my suggestion to keep him arose from
unworthy attachment and temptation.
I shall see about the clock2 . Remind me.
Blessings from
BAPU
197. LETTER TO MARJORIE SYKES

AS AT KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR (24 P ARGANAS),
C AMP: C ONTAI,
December 31, 1945
DEAR MARJORIE,
I must not attempt to write this myself in the boat that carries me
along the canal going towards Contai. I must dictate the letter.
My best wishes for the season, if you think that a vocal effort in
the direction is at all needed. Any such effort becomes formal if the
heart wish is there.
About Charlie Andrews3 I fear nothing can be sent to you
before I reach Sevagram, for the papers have to be searched. They
have been distributed in the various subject files. Some may be in the
file named after Andrews himself. This can be only searched by Pya-
relal who is with me. The writing4 I shall do and it will be a pleasure.
1
22nd of every month
2
Vide “Letter to Krishnachandra”, 18-12-1945
3
The addressee was preparing a biography of C. F. Andrews and during the
eighteen months of its preparation she had held an “Andrews Memorial Chair” at
Santiniketan.
4
The reference is to the foreword which Gandhiji actually wrote on January 12,
1947.

For this you will be in no hurry, for your own manuscript will take
some time.
What I said and did in Santiniketan1 was a duty performed. Of
course, much is expected of you and I have no doubt that you
will try your best to come up to the standard. More no one can
do.
I have read fully Agatha’s letter. I had anticipated her. I am
doing all I can to ensure helpfulness to the deputation 2 on behalf of
the Congress. If, as the papers about report, the expenses of the
deputation are to be found by India, it is a bad job. The deputation
will lack the required grace. You can forward a copy of this letter or
the relevant extract to Agatha. My letter may not reach her in time
even if I succeed in dictating one.
Love.
Yours,
BAPU
MISS MARJORIE S YKES
S ANTINIKETAN
198. LETTER TO BAL D. KALELKAR

C ONTAI,
December 31, 1945
CHI. BAL,
I have your letter. It is worthy of you that you wish to serve
Kaka or me; however, at present your dharma is to keep up what you
are doing. If you do credit to what you have learnt you will have
rendered service to both of us. We might have to consider what your
dharma would be if there had been no one else to serve us; but all that
is irrelevant in the present context. For the time being your knowledge
is to be utilized for Birlaji’s work. In the end you have to let the
masses utilize your knowledge without any thought of fame or
1
Vide “Speech at Foundation-Laying Ceremony”, 19-12-1945
2
Of the members of the British Parliament; vide footnote on “Letter to
Vallabhbhai Patel”, 3-1-1946

fortune. I shall certainly like you to come and stay with me for some
time at your own leisure.
Blessings from
BAPU
S JT. B AL KALELKAR
199. LETTER TO VAIKUNTHLAL L. MEHTA
C ONTAI,
December 31, 1945
BHAI VAIKUNTHBHAI,
I got your postcard. You may gladly inform Khushal Shah 1 of
your disinclination to join the sub-cmmittee, adding at the same time
that, since Satis Babu has not tendered his resignation, the question of
your joining does not arise.
VAIKUNTHBHAI
200. LETTER TO GOPINATH BARDOLOI

C ONTAI,
December 31, 1945
BHAI BARDOLOI,
With great difficulty I can spare five days for Assam. You can
have me freed for Assam but do not be tempted to keep me there too
many days or take me to too many places. I had explained this to the
man who had come from there. He too was convinced. The truth is
that I am no longer fit for travelling. I had to visit Bengal, so I inclu-
ded Assam also. What else can I do? It does not look nice to go on
refusing. I am receiving wires. Please save me.
Blessings from
BAPU
BARDOLOI
1
K. T. Shah

C ONTAI,
December 31, 1945
Gandhiji congratulated the people of Contai on successfully rivalling other
places in Bengal, where he had been of late, in maintaining exemplary discipline. He
hoped that they would show the same spirit of discipline in the event of any other
leader coming in their midst.
Gandhiji recalled how in 1934, when he was touring in Orissa in connection
with the Harijan programme, a German Nazi, Herr Buto, had requested to be allowed
to accompany him on his tour. He professed himself to be an ardent admirer of
Hitler. Having heard how Gandhiji’s method was exactly contrary to Hitler’s and
how in South Africa he had led a successful struggle against General Smuts with
only a handful of Indians and no other weapons than that of non-violence, he was
curious to meet the author of that movement and study his method at close
quarters. Gandhiji had granted him his request in the hope of converting him to non-
violence, but when Herr Buto saw the undisciplined behaviour of Orissa crowds,
he told Gandhiji that he could now understand how a handful of Britishers in
India could keep a nation of 400 millions in bondage. As a result of his experience,
he had become sceptical of India ever winning freedom through non-violence. What
India needed, he thought, was a Hitler. Gandhiji, however, had drawn a different moral
from the same events. What India needed was discipline, no doubt, but not of the
Hitlerite variety. It had to be of the non-violent type and, therefore, voluntary. His
experience in Bengal during his present tour had confirmed him in his faith that the
latter was infinitely superior to the former. If six and a quarter crores of Bengalis
could show the same discipline which the present gathering had shown that evening,
not even a thousand Hitlers would be able to deprive them of their freedom.
Commenting next on Gurudev’s song that had been sung, he observed that, in
that song, a devotee pledges his soul to Truth and prays that Truth may always
triumph. He prays further that Truth may give him strength so that neither misfortune
nor fear of direct punishment may force him into untruth in thought, speech or action.
For fulfilment of that pledge, he longs to lay down his life and all. If the song that
had been sung came really from their heart and not merely from their lips, it ought to
transmute their entire life and they should see the sovereignty of Truth in their
lifetime.
Referring next to repression, followed by the havoc caused by cyclone and
floods through which the people of Midnapore had recently passed, he told them that
all that had filled his soul with anguish. The song which they had just sung was
surely a message for them in their present misfortunes too.

As regards the triple problem facing them, namely, shortage of food, shortage
of clothing and lack of drinking water, he told them that it would be easily solved if
they could throw off their inertia. It was no use waiting idly for Government help.
They must show capacity to help themselves. He was afraid that, so far, they had not
done all that they might have. If all the people of Contai and the neighbouring areas
took to spinning in right earnest, they could solve the problem of cloth shortage. He
observed that their success in that would be followed by amelioration in other
respects too.
Concluding, Gandhiji remarked that if the Government had recognized in their
behaviour in 1942 the legitimate longing to be free and co-operated with them
instead of trying to thwart them, the history of India would have been written
differently. That was not to be. He, however, refused to shed a single tear over the
past and wanted them to do likewise. The present was enough to claim their energy
and attention, and that evening’s song indicated the spirit in which to approach the
problem.
The Hindu, 3-1-1946
202. NOTE TO VALLABHBHAI PATEL
1945
You must flatly refuse to give any secret help. It would be
altogether wrong. The fact will never remain secret. No one would or
should accept such help openly. This whole thing needs to be care-
fully considered. Such important decisions should not be taken in
haste or through hope of gain. Never mind if we are defeated. Let
the British give them Pakistan if they wish.
[From Gujarati]
Bapuna Patro—2: Sardar Vallabhbhaine, p. 285

December 30, 1945/January 1, 1946
BAPA,
I got your letter addressed to Haribhau Phatak.I agree with your
view. I wish to add this by way of clarification. It is desirable that
non-Harijan boys may stay with Harijan boys but we cannot admit
such boys as free boarders. They must pay their full expenses. If the

building is ours then we must get the rent, and if the building is rented
they must pay their share of the rent.
BAPU
[PS.]
C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
I shall see about Sucheta. It is in February, I believe.
I have been able to send the matter regarding Brijkrishna
Chandiwala. It will depend on the reply to Mridula’s wire.
We may as well let Santhanam complete [the writing] about
Ambedkar. If, after reading Rajaji’s booklet1 , he himself believes that
he will be able to shed no new light, it will be a different story. If I get
Rajaji’s booklet I shall go through it.
I understand about your tour. About mine it is what you read in
the newspapers. I have been drinking cupfuls of delight.
Regarding the Harijan Fund, Kanaiyo will write to you.
The above is in reply to your letter of December 26. I have
already sent one letter to you regarding Dharma Dev. I did not like
the thing. I have left it to you to look into the matter. And now I
have this second, alarming letter. I cannot say whether there is any
substance in it. I can form no opinion on the basis of it, but all the
same I must admit that I fear it may be true. Inquire into the matter
and return Mirabehn’s letter.
BAPU
Enclosure: Mirabehn’s letter2
204. LETTER TO MANUEL S. FERNANDES

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your letter.
In a case like yours no one will be able to advise you by post,
and if you cannot leave your bed you must do the best you can in the
1
Ambedkar Refuted, written on Gandhiji’s advice to refute Ambedkar’s
indictment of the Congress
2
This is not traceable.

circumstances. The only general advice I can give is that you should
live for some time on fruit juices such as orange, grape or pineapple,
and have regular enema if your bowels do not move regularly and
fully without causing any strain. This will do no harm and is likely to
give you much benefit.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI MANUEL S. F ERNANDES
ETHEL VILLA MOIRA
BARDEZ, G OA
205. LETTER TO S. P. MISRA

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your letter of 26th instant. So far as I can see, you must
abide by your original promise.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI S. P. M ISRA
KUTCHERY R OAD
LUCKNOW
206. LETTER TO M. J. SUNDARAM

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your letter and the pamphlet slandering Rajaji.1 I can
only say that it is a disgraceful attempt packed with untruth and half
truth which is worse than the first. He never did any harm and he
1
Reference is to the accusations of betrayal against him on two counts, viz.,
non-participation in the August movement and his stand regarding Pakistan; vide
“Letter to L. N. Gopalswami”, 27-10-1945

remains today the same dear friend which he became in 1918, when I
had the privilege of being his guest.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI M. J. S UNDARAM
43 R OYAPETTAH HIGH R OAD
MYLAPORE, M ADRAS
207. LETTER TO PRAMILA

AS AT KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR (24 P ARGANAS),
C AMP: C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
Your letter of 22.12.1945 is before me. I do not want any
witnesses. I do not see how there can be any. I do know how I can
help you. If you are pure in heart and have not responded even in
thought, the man himself must be purified by your own purity. This is
a universal law admitting of no exceptions. Therefore, you need no
further directions from me, except that you should firmly realize that
purity is its own shield against the vilest attack of the most vicious
man.
If the Karnataka men are what you describe them to be, you can
really become guardian of their virtues by means of your own.
You must quickly learn Hindustani. If you are industrious, you
can pick up enough in one month’s time and make yourself perfect
by practice.
S HRIMATI P RAMILA
GATE NO. 66
NR. P OST OFFICE
F ORT BELLARY

S ODEPUR,
January 1, 1946
I did send you a longish letter. I have asked S. to send you a
copy. I have before me two letters from you. The one about Dharma-
dev Shastri has been sent to Bapa. It would be a sad thing if he
proves untrue. But you know what havoc rumour works. Your long
letter covers many points. I do not wonder at the bitter experience
about Vaidyas. Many of them are impostors. You should write to
Chandiprasad about the person sent by him. I do hope you will
come upon a good man. I would have none but a proved man.
That that man has proved a failure is bad and that the cow he
brought has proved a burden is also bad.
Then you do not get a good worker. How will you pull on? I do
not know that all this does not point to retracing your steps or at least
so ordering your life as to enable you to live there without anxiety or
worry. I would advise you to have a servant or two to carry out your
instructions and look after your pony and a cow if you must have one
for giving you pure milk. I would even go without either and be
content with the good milk you may buy there. You should move
away to a cooler place in summer. This should be easy. Do not think
of having a summer haunt for yourself. You must not use up the last
penny and then feel compelled to come to Sevagram or go elsewhere
as a failure which you will be if you have to give up your place after
using the last pice. Do not regard this as a doleful picture. If it is
unwarranted by facts as you see them, throw it away.
About P. I must not say anything. I am prejudiced. I only hope
that God will be your guide in this as in everything else. Only in the
latter case I might offer helpful criticism.
Of the atmosphere what you say is about right. But the things
will shape themselves right. Anyway I am trying my best. Here I am
daily witnessing a mighty change. I had this evening a meeting atten-
ded by probably a lac of prople. I was able to have prayer in perfect
silence. It would have done your soul good to witness such a scene.
This commenced at Sodepur. My first meeting was somewhat boister-
ous. As days went on things were changed. And yet I build nothing
on this. Only this experience is a balancing factor.

I do hope Punditji and his wife will come to you. My love to
them.
Love.
BAPU
S HRI MIRABEHN
KISAN ASHRAM
MULDASPUR
209. LETTER TO VALLABHBHAI PATEL

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
BHAI VALLBHBHAI,
I got your letter, as also the wire. Wherever Satis Babu and
Hemprabhadevi are in charge, there can be nothing wanting in
perfection of arrangements. Therefore wherever I am, I regularly
receive the post redirected to me from Sodepur. Just like you, Satis
Babu officiates as wherever I go and so has he done here.“Here”
means Contai (in Midnapore). Though we are in unfamiliar surroun-
dings everything is so well arranged that I get the maximum possible
free time. So why should my health suffer? I daily see the miracle
wrought by prayer Thousands attend, the number sometimes reaching
even a hundred thousand, but the prayers are peaceful. There is no
noise and no jostling. This is an altogether new experience.
I have gone through the papers 1 regarding Rajaji. I hope the
matter has been settled. I say this because doubts persist in my mind.
I get letters of that type. I reply to them only when I must.
What shall I say regarding your health? Dinshaw’s suggestion
appeals to me. But if you use up the strength that you daily regain,
believing that you are thereby doing service, what can be done ?
About the samadhi2 the Aga Khan had sent a wire saying “Will
Meet.” There has been no other communication. I understand his
1
A. P. I. report about the formation of the Madras Election Board which
carried Sardar Patel’s telegram to Kamraj Nadar, a letter to P. C. Subramaniam and a
statement by T. Prakasam.
2
The reference is to a proposal to acquire the land on which samadhis of
Kasturba and Mahadev were built.

discussing the matter with you. The reply you gave regarding Jinnah
was excellent. I am not attracted by the Aga Khan’s proposals. I am
wholly opposed to such partition. More when we meet.
I am reaching Sodepur on the 3rd. On the 9th I leave for
Assam, and shall be back to Sodepur most probably on the 18th.
After that I shall be leaving for Madras on the 23rd. I have spared a
maximum of two weeks for Madras. After spending a few days in
Sevagram if you permit me I shall go to Poona. Otherwise I shall first
go to Bardoli and then to Poona.
I had a letter from Bhai Vaikunth 1 saying that Balasaheb 2 and
you and also Deo3 are pressing him. Do get him in as member4 . The
rest after I return.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
Bapuna Patro—2: Sardar Vallabhbhaine, pp. 285-8
210. LETTER TO AMRITLAL T. NANAVATI

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
CHI. AMRITLAL,
I have your letter. Ramda s5 has left. It is as well. But I now
realize my mistake. Even though you yourself were willing I ought
not to have put his burden on you. In the event of his not being taken
care of or his not submitting to being taken care of the way he was, I
should have had him taken back to Mysore or allowed him to stay in
whatever position he was. Wouldn’t I have done the same to my own
son? I should also have considered your unsuspecting nature. This I
did not do and entrusted him to your care. Dasappa6 was certainly at
fault but it was my responsibility to rectify the mistake. Dasappa had
pledged that he would leave Ramdas to my keeping. There is no
1
Vaikunthlal L. Mehta
2
B. G. Kher
3
Shankerrao Deo
4
Of the Bombay Legislative Assembly; vide also “Leter to Vaikunthlal L.
Mehta”, 1-1-1946
5
Ramdas Dasappa
6
H. C. Dasappa

dearth of people making pledges, but those who keep them are rare.
Well whatever was destined has happened; I am not going to entertain
Ramdas any more.
May your tour—and Kakasaheb’s—be a success, and may he
keep up his health.
I think you can manage the examination work in Wardha in
addition to your work in Gujarat. Again, if Kakasaheb’s responsibility
comes to be entrusted to you his blessings will give you the strength to
cope with it too. All the same let me warn you that you must not do
anything at the cost of your work in Gujarat, because if the work in
Gujarat suffers I am certainly going to take you to task and
Kakasaheb, too, will take you to task because you took up the Gujarat
work in the nick of time and you have no right to let it break up.
Blessings from
BAPU
S JT. A MRITLAL NANAVATI
C/ O S JT. M AGANBHAI DESAI
GUJARAT VIDYAPITH, A HMEDABAD
211. LETTER TO VAIKUNTHLAL L. MEHTA

MAI N C AMP: S ODEPUR,
C ONTAI,
December 1, 1946
BHAI VAIKUNTH,
I have your letter. I accept most of your arguments. Aren’t you
a dweller of Vaikunth1 ? Or are you its king? But whether you are a
simple dweller in Vaikunth or its king or its gift, there is no doubt that
you are a saviour at need. If, therefore, it is found nece-ssary that you
should go in order to help them out of their difficulties, we shall think
over the matter.
My tour of Bengal and Assam will end on the 20th at the latest.
After that I leave for Madras on the 23rs. There I will spend 15 days
at the most. After that I will go to Sevagram. We shall have, therefore,
enough time to think over the matter. Offer your name as a candidate
1
Vishnu’s abode

for the Assembly, on the condition, however, that you will not have to
spend a single pie and will not have to go begging for votes. It may
not perhaps be possible to apply this rule in all cases, but it should be
applied in yours.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 97. Also V. L. Mehta Papers.
Courtesy: Nehru Memorial Museum and Library
C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
CHI. DINSHAW,
I have your letter of December 28, 1945. I hope you got my
letter of December 28 sent by airmail. Your letter demands
immediate reply and so I am sending this right away.
It will not be becoming for you to admit some patients privately
in your Poona clinic. It does not at all look right that the same per-
son should run a charitable department and a profit-making one. You
may if you wish retain the Bombay clinic; I have agreed to put up
with it.The expenditure at Poona is my responsibility from January
and I have made an arrangement for that. In the end the monthly
expenditure at Poona ought not to be as much as Rs. 3,500 but if it is,
so be it. If we render service worth that amount it will not irk me. At
the moment the main question is whether you may open a separate
profit-making clinic in Poona. I have expressed my opinion in this
regard.
What you write about Gulbai is somewhat strange. She is at pre-
sent with child, so we must patiently put up with her whims. I shall
certainly write to her not to meddle with the affairs of the hospital.
DR. D INSHAW MEHTA
NATURE C URE C LINIC
6 T ODDYWALA R OAD
P OONA

213. LETTER TO PURNIMA BANNERJEE
January 1, 1946
CHI. PURNIMA,
I have your letter. It is straightforward. I do not want to dam-
pen your interest. You have the aptitude for it. Nor would I consider
your going into the Assembly a bad thing. After all someone has to
go there. What I mean is that neither you nor anyone else can ride
two horses at the same time. A similar case from Malabar has come to
me. In that also I have given the same opinion. The lady1 in question
is competent—perhaps as much as you are. Bapa is favourably
inclined. But I have advised her that if she goes into the Assembly
our work will certainly suffer because working for rural women is not
a small thing at all. We have to respect the feelings of those women.
It is a drawback if they cannot go and live in villages but all of us
suffer from that drawback. I am confi-dent that you are rural at heart.
If that is true, in my view your place is at Wardha. It is surprising that
you do not have anything more to give me. I have a vague impression
that it has appeared in the news-papers. Even then I enclose a copy
and should like you to send in your acceptance. If you cannot, then
suggest the name of some other woman.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI P URNIMA BANNERJEE
41 GEORGE TOWN
ALLAHABAD
214. LETTER TO R. K. PATIL

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
BHAI PAITL,
I have your letter. What you have written is correct. I can say
that I had forgotten about the change of air and with that all the things
associated with it.
1
Kuttimalu Amma; vide “Speech at Prayer Meeting”, 24-12-1945

You can give your name for the Provincial election on the
condition that you would neither beg for votes from the electorate nor
spend any money. If you can get elected on this condition you may
enter the Assembly. We shall see about the rest. We shall think over it
when I come. I expect to reach there in the second week of February.
S HRI R. K. P ATIL
215. LETTER TO SHANKERRAO DEO

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
BHAI SHANKERRAO DEO,
I received your letter, and also Vaikunthbhai’s at the same time.
I have written to him to seek nomination for the election. Accepting
presidentship is a different thing. I believe that that can be easily
decided by February. There is a good deal of substance in Vaikunth-
bhai’s opposition and for that reason the decision about the
presidentship has been postponed. He has my approval for seeking
election. Only I have written to him that he should see that he does
not have to spend money or beg for votes from the electorate. If
people want him it will be enough to give his name. We see quite a
number of such instances in British elections. We of course have such
instances here, too.
S HRI SHANKERRAO DEO
LAKSHMI NRISHINH BHAVAN
S HIVAJI NAGAR
P OONA 5

216. LETTER TO RAMAMURTI
C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
BHAISHRI RAMAMURTI,
I have your letter. Do what Prof. Kumarappa wants you to do.
I cannot address a meeting on my way to Madras.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI R AMAMURTI
From a copy of the Hindi Pyarelal Paperes. Courtesy: Pyarelal
217. LETTER TO CHINNARAM THAPAR

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
BHAI CHINNARAM,
I have your letter. I neither take any interest in the Assembly
elections nor keep track of them.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI C HINNARAM THAPAR
VICE P RESIDENT DISTRICT C ONGRESS C OMMITTEE
LYALLPUR (PUNJAB)
218. LETTER TO GOVINDDAS

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
BHAI GOVINDDAS,
I have your letter. These days I do not give any messages to
newspapers and I have begun to believe that a noble venture needs no
message. The purity of the endeavour is in itself a true message.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI GOVINDDASJI
R AJA GOKULDAS P ALACE
JABALPUR

219. LETTER TO INAYATULLAH KHAN
C ONTAI
January 1, 1946
BHAI SAHEB,
It is good you wrote in Urdu. I received the letter only today in
Contai. I have written to you that I am not a member of the Congress.
I cannot write anything on behalf of the Cognress. Only Maulana
Saheb can do so. I have already expressed my opinion that no one is
going to accept your constitution. I personally do not accept it.
Write to me at the Sodepur address.
M. K. GANDHI
220. DISCUSSION WITH CONGRESS WORKERS

January 1, 1946
Gandhiji’s advice to ladies was that they could serve the country even by doing
household duties. Generally, they hankered after making their daughters fit for
marriage and sons for earning. Such families could not be said to be serving the
country. Married men and women could give much time for the service of the country
even after looking after their children and doing household duties. Instead, they
passed their days in enjoyment of life and thus ended the span of life. There were some
who were so addicted to pleasure that they used contraceptives.
Asked how women whose husbands were imprisoned could serve the country,
Gandhiji said that they should no doubt spin. But this might not be sufficient for their
living. They should take to some means of earning money. They could still work for
the country. Under no circumstances, Gandhiji emphasized, should women earn their
livelihood by sacrificing their honesty and purity. Mahatmaji was faced with the
problem of spending annually one crore and 25 lakhs of rupees of the Kasturba Fund.
Althouh he was trying hard to utilize the money in the best possible way still enough
women workers could not be found.
Gandhiji advised women living in towns to serve the villages. He appealed to
them to search their hearts whether they were really ready and then begin work when
they found response in their hearts.
Addressing the students, he said that the question which was put to him was
not new. How the students could serve Harijans should not have been asked so late. If

they were ready to serve the Harijan they could easily do it. They could go to
villages, mix with the Harijan and educate them.
As regards inter-dining and intercaste marriage, Gandhiji said that so far as he
understood the mind of the Congress he knew there was no difference of opinion
about inter-dining but he thought that so long as one could not think himself one of
the Harijans the poison of untouchability could not be removed. If anybody was not
prepared to marry a Harijan he found no occasion of giving his blessings to that
marriage. The question of marrying a Harijan was not so difficult but the difficulty
was only mental.
Replying to the question whether girl students should have a separate
organization, Gandhiji said although the life of men and women was not quite
different so long a woman remained a woman there might be necessity for a separate
organization for their work. In his Ashram men and women lived together and worked
together, still there might be such necessity.
Discussing the constructive programme, Gandhiji said that besides the
charkha there were several other items in his fifteenfold programme and women could
take to any of them as they liked. Women could take a large share in the freedom
movement of the country as they always had done specially in Midnapore and other
places of India during the Salt Satyagraha. So he thought that it was needless to
question what share the women could take in national movement.
As regards reorganization and rehabilitation scheme1 Mahatmaji said that the
people and workers should depend more on their own strength an endeavour than on
the Government. Regarding the drainage problem he had talks with the Governor Mr.
R. G. Casey and was trying to do whatever was possible in that respect.2 If they could
take up any item of work themselves and could fulfil it other things would follow.

C ONTAI,
January 1, 1946
Thousands of Hitlers would neither be able to win their hearts nor take away
their freedom if six and a half crores of Bengalis lived peacefully, as they were beha-
1
A scheme for the reorganization of the Congress and the rehabiliation of
cyclone victims entailing an expenditure of about Rs. 11,13,000 was placed before
Gandhiji by the members of the Executive Committee of the Contai Sub-Divisional
Congress Committee, members of the Keleghal Drainage Committee, women
workers, students and Harijan.
2
Vide Letter to R. G. Casey”, 8-12-1945

ving at the prayer meeting, and carried out all instructions given to them.
He was very happy during his present visit, because the people made no noise
and remained quiet. He recalled his visit to Orissa some time ago when people
gathered in large numbers and shouted and stopped his car. He was accompanied then
by a Nazi 1 who had arrived at Wardha from South Africa. This Nazi noticed the
incidents and told Gandhiji that he did not like Gandhiji’s way of non-violence.
Hitler’s method, he said, was the best, and if Gandhiji wanted peaceful swaraj he would
not succeed.
Referring to Midnapore’s sufferings, Gandhiji said that the area was still
suffering. They had no cloth to wear, no food to eat and no water to drink. There were
two ways of removing these sufferings, one by Government relief and the other
through their own exertion. If they were to be fit for swaraj or wanted to get swaraj, it
was their duty to solve these difficulties by their own exertion.
Success in one effort brought them further strength and this strength would
help them to succeed in other things. The Government of the country would come in
their hands. He had no doubt about it.
If troubles like those of the flood and famine days came, they should all stand
together and face the danger.
Gandhiji suggested that teachers, both in schools and colleges, should under-
stand the real significance of mass prayer and teach it to students. There should be no
compulsion in any case, and those students who wanted to join prayers willingly,
might do so. There was a magnetic power in prayer. As magnet attracted iron, so
would prayer attract all, especially students.2
Gandhiji said that he was told that they came to hear his voice and not to join
the prayer. If it was so then he would be very sorry. He wished that they understood
the real significance of prayer and felt that through prayer one could get one’s desired
things.
The Hindu, 3-1-1946, and Amrita Bazar Patrika, 3-1-1946
1
Herr Buto; vide “Speech at Prayer Meeting”, 31-12-1945
2
This paragraph is taken from The Hindu. What follows is reproduced from
Amrita Bazar Patrika.

222. LETTER TO REGINALD REYNOLDS
AS AT S EVAGRAM,
January 1, [1946] 1
DEAR ANGAD2 ,
I have your letter received by me early morning on New Year’s
day. I am penning these lines in the evening before retiring.
I fancy that I wrote to you some time ago. Your letter just re-
presents you as I have known you. Of course it is good you have
returned to your old love. We should all be glad to greet you back,
even if it be for a short time, if you do succeed in coming this side.
Agatha3 is in India. I hope to see her soon.
With love and all good wishes.
BAPU4
From a photostat: C.W. 4546. Courtesy: Swarthmore College Peace
Collection
223. LETTER TO NARAHARI D. PARIKH

S ODEPUR, C ONTAI,
January 2, 1946
CHI. NARAHARI,
You have aksed a question in the letter addressed to Sushila-
behn. The original draft did contain a reference to underground
activities, too. Though it was dropped, the general view was that
they should have no place in non-violence. I think what you
have read in Jawaharlal’s statement is different from what I have. My
impression is that he had described underground activities as incom-
patible with non-violence. I may be mistaken, for I am a hurried
reader. Whatever the likely consequences, we should cling to our view
if we are convinced about its correctness beyond the shadow of a
doubt.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: S.N. 9139
1
The source has “1945”, evidently a slip.
2
Character in the Ramayana who acted as Rama’s messenger to Ravana.
Gandhiji had given this name to the addressee when he carried his letter to Lord Irwin
in 1930; vide “Letter to Lord Irwin”, 2-3-1930
3
Agatha Harrison; vide “Letter to Horace Alexander”, 31-1-1945.
4
The letter bears the following postscript by Amrit Kaur: “I gave your news
to Bapu and he was so glad to have it. I do hope your passport will soon be
forthcoming.”

224. LETTER TO SHIVABHAI G. PATEL
MAIN CAMP: SODEPUR,
CONTAI,
January 2, 1946
CHI. SHIVABHAI,
Your letter is good. Instead of replying ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to your
questions, I think I shall be able to explain my point of view more
clearly if I state my own ideas. If any institution has not become self-
supporting on the lines suggested by me, the fact can be interpreted in
two ways; either that the workers were not efficient enough, or that my
calculations were erroneous. If any institution has not succeeded so
far, I will begin to doubt only my calculations. But Probably you will
be able to see that both these inferences are irrelevant. I have
advocated self-reliance in three matters: (1) for the workers in villages,
(2) for basic education and (3) for institutions. In regard to the first,
my view is that any individual or family who settles in a village must
earn their subsistence by working in the village itself. For instance, the
person may start some industry—that is, without entering into
competition with anybody else engaged in a similar industry—or may
join an existing industry. If the person becomes popular with the local
population, the people themselves will meet his needs. In either case I
will describe the worker as self-supporting. (2) As regards basic
education, I am of the view that the rent of the school building, the
teacher’s salary and the running expenses of the school should be met
from the pupils’ labour during the seven years of their stay in school.
I am doubtful about including the expense incurred on the pupils’
food in the scheme of self-reliance. Third, any institution will be
considered to be self-supporting if the people for whose benefit it is
run provide its expenses. For instance, if the money for Indian
Christian institutions comes from America, then the Indian Christians
will have proved their incapacity. Those institutions must be supported
by the local Christians. I think this should answer all your doubts. But
the three rules. I have suggested should not be interpreted to mean
that any activities which do not conform to them should be treated as
useless and be wound up. I have thought deeply and long about our
institutions and formulated a code on the basis of experience. We shall
be able to render better service to the extent we are able to live up to it,
and will not become a burden on others. I think it would be danger-
ous to take the prevailing prices as the basis for any calculations. That

is, if you produce cotton, foodgrains, vegetables, fruits and milk on
your own land and consume them, need you concern yourself with
their market price? I would exclude for the pre-sent the expenditure
on cows, seed and bullocks. I think on the basis of this you will your-
self be able to answer the questions you have raised. If you have any
more questions yet to ask, you may do so.
Can Maharaj1 be said to be completely cured? I hope Ganga-
behn 2 is doing well.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: S. N. 9522. Also C. W. 441. Courtesy:
Shivabhai G. Patel
225. LETTER TO J. P. BHANSALI

CONTAI,
JANUARY 2, 1946
CHI. BHANSALI,
If you resort to fasting to cut down your weight or have to go
on a fast for any other reason it is a matter which you and I need to
consider. The ideal position, according to me, is that one taking
a balanced diet should not find it necessary to resort to fasting nor
make any changes in diet. This would be the ideal position. My ambi-
tion for you is that you should reach that stage. You certainly have the
required strength. Your diet should be so adjusted that your body
works like a machine. After all, is not our body only a machine given
us?
I hope to reach there by the middle of February.
Blessings from
BAPU
S JT. B HANSALIBHAI
S EVAGRAM
1
Ravishankar Vyas
2
Gangabehn Vaidya

226. LETTER TO CHARUCHANDRA BHANDARI
SODEPUR, CONTAI,
January 2, 1946
BHAI CHARUBABU,
I have just been able to reach your cheque. There was some
confusion also. The only satisfaction is that nobody has suffered any
loss. When all the money is to be spent there, why should I keep this
cheque with me? So I am returning it. You must be having some
committee. And would it not be for the committee to spend the
amount? Please let me know who are on the committee. Also send me
the budget of the expenditure so that I may pass it after checking it.
However, if you want that the money should remain with me and that I
should remit it as and when required, please return the cheque to me.
And as and when you write and send me the budget I shall send the
money. Do as you like.
Tomorrow I will go to Sodepur and from there to Assam on
8th. Please write to me at Sodepur.
Blessings from
BAPU
Enclosurc: Two cheques
From a photostat of the Hindi: G. N. 8700

CONTAI,
January 2, 1946
BHAI SHYAMLAL,
I have your letter. You can belong to any category. I have
nothing to say if the money is given up after due deliberation. Public
criticism about such things should not be given any importance. What
do they know about our condition and about our means ?
I enclose herewith what you have sent for my approval duly
signed.
S HRI S HYAMLAL
KASTURBA GANDHI R ASHTRIYA S MARAK NIDHI
BAJAJWADI, W ARDHA

228. SPEECH AT VOLUNTEERS RALLY
January 2, 1946
Gandhiji, while taking the salute of the volunteers, asked whether they belon-
ged to any permanent corps or were recruited temporarily. On being told that they
were recruited on the occasion of his visit there, Gandhiji said that they should have a
permanent volunteer corps for their own good and for the service of the people. The
volunteers, he said, should be wedded to the cult of non-violence and should serve the
people and not harass them.
They should spin charkha regularly and know the rules of cleanliness. That
means, Gandhiji emphasized, that if they found dirt anywhere they should try
themselves to clean it. They should look at every human being with an eye of love
and should do their best to alleviate the sufferings of the people. Their whole life
should be dedicated to prayer and they should realize that prayer would instill a power
in them which would enable them to face anything.
Gandhiji put a number of questions to Sj. Sudhir Chandra Das, G.O.C. of
volunteers and asked them why they did not have uniform dress. Knowing that their
volunteer group was temporary and due to shortage of time they could not have
uniform dress, Gandhiji told them that volunteers must get such instructions so that
wherever and whenever they were required they all must be in the same uniform.
229. DISCUSSION WITH MIDNAPORE POLITICAL

WORKERS 1
CONTAI,
January 2, 1946
GANDHI: H ow long would you take to learn it then ?2
A WORKER: One year.
G. S ince H industani is one out of the 18 items included in the
constructive programme and since the carrying out of all these items
in their fulness is swaraj, how long at this rate would you take to attain
swaraj?
In independent India, continued Gandhiji, they would need to have a lingua
franca which could be understood by everybody. He was an admirer of the English
1
A report of this discussion, which was attended by 500 workers of Midnapore
District, was sent to the Press by Pyarelal.
2
There were many among the audience who did not know Hindustani.

language, but it could never take the place of the national language. There was a
saying in English to the effect that matter out of place was dirt. English had its place
in international affairs. But he could not tolerate the introduction of English in our
day-to-day business, in our domestic life. The lingua franca of India could only be
Hindustani, i. e., the language written in Urdu and Devanagari scripts and so simple
that it could be understood without any difficulty.
The workers promised that they would all learn it within six months.
After that Gandhiji took up the questions which had been submitted to him
before the meeting.
The first question invited suggestion as to how they could make a success of
the constructive programme and how they could overcome the obstacle in their way.
Replying, Gandhiji enumerated the various items of the constructive pro-
gramme. The spinning-wheel, though he gave it the central place, must not be on the
brain. There were 17 other items. Communal unity was one of them. Did they regard
all communities as one? Then they had to get rid of untouchability root and branch.
Similarly, they must realize the importance and place of the mother tongue. Their
mother tongue alone could be the language for the domestic affairs and day-to-day
business. He was in his 77th year and yet he had set his heart on learning Bengali. He
hoped to learn to read Bengali before he left Midnapore. Nothing would give him
greater pleasure than to be able to talk to them in Bengali. He could hope to touch
their hearts through Bengali, never through English.
Then there were the Adivasis (called Aboriginals). The 1935 Act had separated
them from the rest of the inhabitants of India and had placed the “excluded areas”
under the Governor’s direct administration. It was a shame that they had allowed them
to be treated like that. It was up to them to make the Adivasis feel one with them. The
other items were prohibition, village industries, basic education, adult education,
women’s education in health and hygiene, economic equality, kisans, labour,
students, and village sanitation. The last was most important and at the same time
most difficult. He almost despaired of our people ever observing the rules of
sanitation voluntarily when he saw the riverside fouled without hesitation even by
those who should know better. He continued :
The execution of the constructive programme in its entirety
means more than swaraj. It means Ramarajya, Khudai Sultanat or the
divine kingdom. I am thirsting after such Ramarajya. My God does
not reside up above. He has to be realized on earth. He is here, within
you, within me. He is omnipotent and omnipresent. You need not
think of the world beyond. If we can do our duty here, the ‘beyond’
will take care of itself. This necessarily includes political indepen-
dence.
Such independence could only be achieved through non-violence and truth
exemplified in constructive work. The Working Committee had realized the

importance of constructive work. Even Subhas Babu would admit his (the speaker’s)
thesis. He did not believe that Subhas Babu was dead1 . His feeling was that he was
hiding somewhere and would appear at the right moment. He admired his courage and
patriotism. But he differed from him with regard to the means. He was convinced that
real freedom, freedom for the man in the street, could never be achieved through armed
revolt.
For him, the parliamentary programme was only a means of promoting
constructive work. The Congress had adopted it because they did not want self-seekers
and enemies of India’s freedom to go to the lgislatures and hinder the struggle for
freedom. He would feel happy if they sent patriotic scaveners to the legislatures.
Their real job would be to keep the undesirables out.
If India won its freedom through truth and non-violence she would not only
point the way to all the exploited Asiatic nations, she would become a torch-bearer
for the Negro races that inhabit the vast continent of Africa, and even to Europe. The
smaller nationalities lived in fear of losing their freedom. In fact they had no
freedom. India’s independence through any other means could never have that result.
He had heard harrowing tales of what the women of Midnapore had suffered.
The shame was not theirs but the menfolk’s. God would take them to task for having
been helpless witnesses to those atrocities. The only atonement they could make was
whole-hearted execution of the constructive programme.
Another friend asked him what he thought of the class struggle which was
ineitable in labour work.
Gandhiji’s reply was that class struggle there had been always. It could be
ended if the capitalists voluntarily renounced their role and became all labourers. The
other way was to realize that labour was real capital, in fact the maker of capital. What
the two hands of the labourer could achieve the capitalist would never get with all his
gold and silver. Could anyone live on gold? But labour had to be made conscious of
its strength. It had to have in one hand truth and in the other non-violence, and it
would be invincible. Labour and capital, classes and masses, are as old as the hills.
The whole trouble arises from the fact that neither labour nor those who are guiding
the labour movement realize the dignity and strength of labour. It is like the lame
leading the blind.
Gandhiji was asked about Karl Marx. He got the opportunity and privilege of
reading Capital, he told them, whilst he was in detention. He entertained high regard
for his great industry and acumen. But he could not believe in his conclusions. He had
no faith in violence being able to usher in non-violence. World thought was moving
and was outdating Karl Marx. That, however, did not detract from the merit of the
1
Subhas Chandra Bose was reported to have died in an aeroplane accident
while on his way to Tokyo on August 18, 1945.

great man’s labours.
Gandhiji concluded by saying that non-co-operation and civil disobedience in
terms of swaraj were not to be thought of without substantial constructive effort.
Either without the latter will be body without soul, as good as dead.
Amrita Bazar Patrika 5-1-1946

CONTAI,
January 2, 1946
Summing up his experience of prayer gathering in Contai and elsewhere in
Bengal, Gandhiji said that he had been noticing phenomenal changes in behaviour of
crowds taking place before his very eyes. He was not surprised at it. Bengal had given
birth to that prince of devotees, Chaitanya, and a host of other God-intoxicated
saints. He longed for the day when the example of the crowds would be taken up by
the whole of India.
He had felt overwhelmed by the consideration that had been shown to him, by
ensuring him as much peace and quiet as was humanly possible, and the way in which
he had resolved to repay his debt of gratitude was by devoting every moment of
leisure accruing therefrom to learning Bengali. He had been doing that ever since he
came to Bengal most systematically. In Contai he hoped that the love for all Indian
languages which that resolve symbolized, would fill them too.
Before coming to the meeting he had been told that carcasses of about 700
cattle and 300 human beings, out of many more which had perished in a cyclone, lay
buried indiscriminately together where the prayer gathering was held. Dust had
returned to dust, and there was no mark to tell the tale, as Gurudev had observed in one
of his songs. God mercifully hides man’s tragedy on earth under a mantle of greenery.
Nevertheless, it betrayed lack of human feeling on the part of those who were
responsible for it. The common practice was to give to each dead body a separate
burial and the ground in which the burial took place became consecrated ground. This
was where cremation was not in vogue. While, therefore, he respected sentiment, he
did not make a fetish of it and he even derived satisfaction from the fact that common
calamity had united men and cattle in death, thereby symbolizing the essential unity
of all life. Thought of it ought to humble man’s pride and bring home to him the
insignificance of human existence with its illusions, which 1 held him a prisoner in
1
In Mahatma Gandhi—The Last Phase, “Petition to Lord Ripon”, 14-7-1894,
the rest of the paragraph reads: “. . . hold him prisoner. If man learned to break
through this net of illusions and made the fulfilment of his dharma the Pole Star of
his life’s pilgrimage, it would considerably lessen the burden under which the world
is groaning.”

their net till man had learned to break through this net of illusions and make the
fulfilment of one’s dharma the pole star in life’s pilgrimage.
Explaining the significance of prayer Gandhiji told them that it ought to result
in self-purification and it ought to transmute their entire conduct. If anybody thought
that it gave him licence to do as he liked during the rest of the day, he deceived
himself and others. That was a travesty of the true meaning of prayer.
Commenting on the song that had been sung at prayer, Gandhiji said that in it
the devotee prayed to God that he might be able to see Him face to face. Through
single obeisance it betokened an indefinable strength of faith in man. With such
faith nothing in the world would be impossible of attainment. Faith in God to be
real, however, had to find expression in work. In his opinion the eighteenfold
constructive programme which he had placed before the country was prayer through
work since it was based on the principles of truth and ahimsa. If they fulfilled that
programme in its fulness not only would they be free, but their example would serve
as a beacon light to all the oppressed and exploited people of the earth.

ON THE S TEAMER TO S ODEPUR,
January 3, 1946
CHI. MADALASA,
I have your letter. My previous letter seems to have gone astray.
You have no reason at all to feel depressed. I have no time
today to write more. I have to deal with the rest of the mail.
Get well soon.
Blessings from
BAPU

January 3, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
I got your note. I have telegraphed as follows :
“Leaving Bengal 20th and Madras about February 8. Very
anxious to go Poona before Bardoli. Will middle March be suitable
Bardoli ?”
The Bengal programme is not exceeding the limits I had set.
According to me much work has been done here. The result is in the
hands of God. I am dictating this letter in a boat. I shall reach Sode-
pur this evening. This letter will be posted from there tomorrow
morning. I have to go to Assam on the 8th after four days in Sode-
pur. The Assam tour, including travelling, will take eight days. I shall
then to go Sodepur and thence to Madras on the 23rd. I must reach
Madras on that date at the latest. We must, therefore, leave Sodepur
on the 21st. In the wire I have mentioned 20th.
I suppose I shall meet the people1 from Britain in Bombay,
Poona or Wardha. It would be unseemly to speak disparagingly of
them. There would be no harm whatever if we use kind words. There
are some good men among them also. I do not see much point in
condemning them in advance.
You will have received my previous letter. After I take charge
of the work in Poona, I must give some time there. I have therefore
suggested the middle of March for my Bardoli visit. But I shall be
guided by your wishes in the matter. I presume that you will definitely
not keep me in Bardoli for more than 15 days. You may even release
me from the promise to go there. There is also the possibility that
you yourself will be engrossed in the Congress affairs. I take it that
you will call me to Bardoli only if my presence there is necessary.
This is just to let you know how my mind is working. The final
decision must be yours. After all you are the Sardar. Are you not?
That too of Bardoli. And now of India.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
Bapuna Patro—2: Sardar Vallabhbhaine, pp. 289-91.
1
British Parliamentary delegation headed by Robert Richards. It arrived in
India on January 5, 1946, ostensibly to make personal contacts with the political
conditions and leaders of India but actually to “reduce” Krishna Menon’s influence. It
left on February 10, 1946. (Vide Transfer of Power, Vol. VI, p. 300)

January 3, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I got your letter of December 30, 1945, on January 3, 1946, at
Contai. I read it in the boat and am dictating this reply, too, in the
boat. I understand what you say regarding khadi. If I can know how
much will be available there, I can think and decide immediately. I
am going to supply as much as is needed.1
I can understand the Doctor [Dinshaw] not being satisfied with
my reply. But I am helpless.
I will try to return as early as I can. I will arrange about the
Bank account. I will arrange for the transfer of the money, too, as
soon as I reach Calcutta.
We should certainly admit all patients who will mix with the
poor. Nobody can be given a special room merely because he is rich.
Will the patients who wish to be admitted be paying ones? If there are
any, apart from our own people, who can mix with the others and
observe the rules, I will not object to their being admitted.
The equipment at Sinhagadh has been covered by the Trust and
I, therefore, believe that we can use it for our purpose and transfer any
item from there.
If the Doctor thinks otherwise, I should like to know his point of
view.
We have no intention of starting any other centre outside Poona
in the immediate future. I will write to Vanamala.
Kanchan is with me in this very boat. She has got a slight cold
but is in fine spirits.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah
1
Vide also “Letter to Munnalal G, Shah”. 23-12-1945

234. LETTER TO RAGHUNATH S. DHOTRE
January 3, 1946
CHI. DHOTRE,
I think I told you to resume the remittances to Ramachandran.
If not, please understand from this letter that the money is to be paid
from October 1945. That makes three months to date. Send a sum to
cover this period and later send a hundred rupees every month. The
address is: Shri G. Ramachandran, c/o Gandhi Ashram, Tiruchengodu.
Blessings from
BAPU
235. LETTER TO SACHINDRA NARAYAN ROY

January 3, 1946
BHAI SACHINDRA NARAYAN,
I have your letter. We can achieve everything by love. Love
can never be impatient nor can it ever be angry. If you behave with
Muslim brethren in this spirit their anger will go.
P ROF. S ACHINDRA NARAYAN R OY
31 S HAH S AHIB’S L ANE
DACCA
236. LETTER TO SHRIMAN NARAYAN

January 3, 1946
CHI. SHRIMAN,
I have your letter. I returned your letter on the very day I
received it after making corrections. 1 Today I am replying to the
letter of December 30, 1945. I am on the steamer, going to Sodepur.
It is difficult to fix the date of my return. I am considering
whether I should go first to Poona or Wardha. Even so I shall try my
level best to reach Wardha on February 8.
1
Vide “Letter to Shrimab Narayan”, 9-12-1945

If the 12th is not Monday, fix it 1 for that date, otherwise fix it
for the 11th at 2 o’clock. Let the venue be Sevagram.
As regards the Provincial Assembly you may take it that I am
not interested. But if you are inclined that way and have the ability
for it, and if all others agree, please do go.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Hindi]
Panchven Putrako Bapuke Ashirvad, p. 309
237. LETTER TO V. S. SRINIVASA SASTRI

SODEPUR
January 4, 1946
DEAR BROTHER,
Jagadisan tells me you are again unwell, so much so that
you have given yourself only two months more on this earth. 2 Why
will you not say with the millions that you are like them in the hands
of God and refuse to feel that you are about to leave your friends.
I do not know if I have clearly expressed myself. Slowly though
surely I am going through the doubly interesting collection made by
good Jagadisan.3
Love.
Yours,
LITTLE BROTHER
From a photostat: C.W. 10524. Courtesy: S. R. Venkataraman. Also G.N.
8825
1
The meeting of Hindustani Prachar Sabha
2
He died on April 17.
3
The reference is to the collection of Sastri’s speeches and writings on
Gokhale published under the title My Master Gokhale, to which Gandhiji, wrote the
Foreword; vide“Foreword to My Master Gokhale”, 20-1-1946.

238. LETTER TO L. F. PHILLIPS
S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
You must rely upon your merits, not upon certificates or
recommendations.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI L. F. P HILLIPS
99 S TEPHEN HOUSE
DALHOUSIE S QUARE
C ALCUTTA

24, P ARGANAS,
January 4, 1946
BHAI SAHEB,
I got your affectionate letter of December 30, 1945, yesterday at
Contai. Then I took a steamer and reached Sodepur this morning
from where I am dictating this. To you at least I should write in Guja-
rati, shouldn’t I? Indeed it should be a matter of shame for us to write
in English.
I hope to reach Wardha around the 8th of February. Then ten
days later I shall leave for Poona. Then I shall do as you desire. If
you are in Bombay we shall meet there or I shall suit myself to your
convenience in Poona. Maulana Saheb of course will not be present.
We shall think over it when we meet.
I understand about the samadhi. The facilities you suggest will
suffice for me. It is not my desire that people should be able to visit
the palace any time of the day. Those who go there out of devotion
or respect should go by the prescribed route and at the appointed
hour. I shall then take it that its sanctity is respected.
I shall certainly appreciate it if you will have the samadhi built
and it will become you. I have never considered marble. I shall be

content if something lasting is built. Mahadev and Kasturba had
become villagers; they lived in huts. Shouldn’t their samadhi be
simple? I shall draw a plan but let us discuss it when we meet.
May your Diamond Jubilee be smooth and auspicious.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
HIS HIGHNESS THE AGA KHAN
240. LETTER TO K. F. NARIMAN

S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
BHAI NARIMAN,
I have your wire. I am very happy. But do not lay down any
conditions. Remain a true soldier of the Congress.
Blessings from
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI KAIKHUSHRU NARIMAN

SODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
1
CHI. MRIDULA,
I have your letter. You have done well in giving me all the
news. I am dictating this reply in a hurry because I have sat down to
the task just now soon after arriving here by the steamer. It is
morning.
The matter regarding Saraladevi has now been resolved. She
will continue to be an Agent2 . You will then be able to do more work
yourself as well as give all help to Saraladevi.
Devdas is what he was. Please don’t worry. I can understand
1
This is in Devanagari script.
2
Of the Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust for Gujarat

his feelings. After all his method of work is also different.
The rest later.
Blessings from
BAPU
S MT. M RIDULABEHN S ARABHAI
R ETREAT
P. O. S HAHIBAG
AHMEDABAD
242. LETTER TO VIRENDRA KUMAR ROY

S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
BHAI VIRENDRA KUMAR,
I have your touching letter. May God grant you peace.
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI VIRENDRA R OY
C ONTAI
243. LETTER TO FATEHCHAND NAHATA

S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
BHAI FATEHCHAND,
Consider what will be my fate if everyone asks me for 10
minutes of my time as you do. You are not going to gain anything
by meeting me. You will unnecessarily waste your time. Read what-
ever I have written and devote yourself to service.
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI F ATEHCHAND NAHATA
P RESIDENT KUSHTIA M AHAKMA C ONGRESS C OMMITTEE
KUSHTIA

S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
BHAI SHYAMLAL,
I have your letter of the 31st. Write to Nanabhai Bhatt that he
may select any woman who is competent. I should consider Manu-
bhai’s Vijaya eligible if only she could reduce her preoccupation with
the children—it ought to become less as the days pass. She can do the
job. She does not have to work in the cities; it is the villages that have
to be awakened, and, in my opinion, Vijayabehn is the right person
for the job. But if some other woman worker of Vijayabehn’s calibre
can be found, Nanabhai may become to her what Lord Melbourne 1
was to Queen Victoria and thus encourage her progress.
S HRI S HYAMLALJI
K. G. [N.] M. FUND
BAJAJWADI
WARDHA (C. P.)

S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
Gandhiji said that he had come back in their midst after some time. He would
again go out to Assam on the 8th. The prayer would be held here till January 7. He
did not know if he would be able to hold prayer here again on his return from Assam.
He had been on a pilgrimage to Midnapore. The tour was so peaceful, the
orderliness was so impressive, that they were unique. He had been to three or four
places: Diamond Harbour, Mahishadal, Kakra and Contai. In each of these places the
orderliness of the people was praiseworthy. At prayer-time the gathering went up to
about a lakh of people. Many people came from long distances. Every one of them
was quite peaceful and none disturbed the orderliness. From Diamond Harbour he
witnessed this orderliness.
Gandhiji said that Ramanama was so attractive that it could absorb man’s
whole thought and self into it. That was why he had asked them to clap their hands
1
Lord Melbourne (1779-1848) was the first Prime Minister of Queen Victoria.
He was responsible for many important liberal measures of her reign.

rhythmically when taking Ramanama. As they went on clapping their hands they got
absorbed in the prayer. They knew soldiers were so trained that they were disciplined
and learnt to work together. Discipline being the most essential thing, there was an
English saying—‘disciplined soldier’.
They were also soldiers of freedom. Soldiers of a State received salary and they
maintained discipline. Soldiers of freedom did not get such payment; but they
acquired strength by maintaining discipline. In the words of Badshah Khan 1 , they
were all Khudai Khidmatgars or servants of God. They were to maintain discipline and
that was why he had introduced the practice of clapping hands while praying.
Explaining the bhajan sung at the prayer Gandhiji said it was very sweet. The
Poet—Rabindranath—said that if nobody responded to their call they must not
despair but continue to work for their ideal. Even if failures met them they must not
be broken. They should go on working irrespective of whether their hopes and
aspirations were realized or not. One who was devoted to God did not feel despair; he
went on knocking at heaven’s door for entrance to the kingdom of God.
Swaraj had not yet come, but he had not given up hope. They must keep on
knocking and one day swaraj was bound to come.

KHADI PRATISHTHAN, S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have to thank you for the arrangements made by the officials
for my travel to and stay in the Midnapore District.
The Superintendent of the Presidency Jail writes to me to say
that Shri S. Bakshi would like to see me. I am therefore bound to see
him. This will be only after my return from Assam. I wonder whe-
ther I could see at the same time the other prisoners who are there.
Shri Sudhir Ghosh tells me you would like to see me on
Monday next. I shall give myself the pleasure of doing so at 7.30
p.m. that day.
I must thank you too for the relief to the E.C. employees.2
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
1
Khan Abdul Gahaffar Khan
2
The reference is to the reinstatement of some dismissed workers of Calcutta
Electric Supply Company.

247. LETTER TO M. E. C. MATHEW
C AMP, S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I thank you for your letter. I do not know where I shall be at
the time you reach India. However, I reciprocate your wish that we
should meet. You will have no difficulty in finding my whereabouts
at the time come to India.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
M. E. C. M ATHEW, ESQ.
182 S EA BOURNE R OAD
S OUTH BOURNE WEST
BOURNEMOUTH, HANTS, ENGLAND

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I sent Rs. 10,000 to Dinshawji yesterday. You will be able to
meet from it all expenditure from this month up to the time I return.
Kanchan had an attack of cold and fever. But there is nothing
to worry about. She is being treated by Sushilabehn.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
CHI. JIVANJI,
The booklet on the constructive programme1 was received only
yesterday. It has taken a rather long time. Why this delay? It took
me some time to find the price. What was the intention in giving it
on the back-page? Or is there merit in novelty as such? Generally
the reader’s habit is to see the cover page and look for the price,
etc. There is no signature at the end of the preface. I wonder whet-
her you thought that, since the preface was by the author himself,
there was no need for his signature. But that does not seem likely
as Chi. Kanaiya also reminds me. Moreover, I had drawn your atten-
tion specifically to this point in my letter2 of December 7, 1945. The
copies are very few. A lot of them could have been sold here. What
happened about Hindi, Gujarati, Urdu, etc.?
Blessings from
BAPU
JIVANJI DESAI
P. B. 105
AHMEDABAD
Jivanji D. Desai

S ODEPUE,
January 5, 1946
CHI. DINSHAW,
I have remitted Rs. 10,000 to you yesterday. With this amount
open an account in the name of the Trust in any bank you like and
issue the cheques yourself, because I have remitted the amount to you
as Trustee and Director. I hastened with the money because I under-
stood you had no funds left with you. I am sorry I was under the im-
1
By Gandhiji.Vide “Constrictivr Programme: Its Meaning and Place”,
13-12-1941 Here the reference is to the second revised and enlarged edition recently
published; vide “Forewatd to “Constrictive Programme- its Meaning and Place”
2
Vide “Letter to Jivanji D. Desail”.7-12-1945

pression that you usually had a large balance lying with you and,
indeed, an important account such as yours ought to have such a
balance. Had I known that the account hardly ever had a balance I
would have arranged for an amount before leaving Poona—but let it
be.
I have a letter from Gulbai, which has alarmed me. She is un-
happy. Do not cause her unhappiness. It seems she is hesitant about
getting Ardeshir vaccinated whereas you seem to be insisting on it. I
don’t have any faith in vaccination. I am writing to Gulbai accor-
dingly. If I were in your place I would respect Gulbai’s wishes. After
all a mother has a stronger claim over the children. Once the seed is
planted the man’s job is over. It is the mother who carries the child
for nine months and then suckles it while it grows. But that is not what
pains Gulbai; it is your behaviour that pains her. We had already had a
little talk on the subject. Please talk to her patiently and explain
things to her.
You appear to be squeamish. I would still suggest that you draw
a salary from the Trust. I am aware that the Deed does not provide for
this, but the three Trustees can agree to make the necessary change.
You may take up some other occupation if you like. A man’s first
duty is to be honest with himself and to be truthful. One who does not
do this is no good for anything. He turns into a hypocrite or cheat.
You made up your mind to go by my advice. Understand the signi-
ficance of this. Anyone who decides to defer to another either sees
the point of what he is told or accepts the advice on faith. Such faith,
again, proves more productive than understanding. And when it does
not, the person is ill at ease. May you never come to such a pass. I
don’t want you to lose your fire. I shall be satisfied only if you rise
higher and higher as a result of my contact.
On further reflection I think I had better send you Gulbai’s
letter so that you can understand her feelings and know what pains
her. Be calm and patient with her.
I shall reach there by the evening of 21st February, or on the
23rd, because 22nd is Ba’s anniversary and I should observe it at a
fixed place. This cannot be done on a train where it would be diffi-
cult to read the whole of the Gita.
It appears Chi. Sushila Gandhi has written to you. Have you not
replied to her? If not, please write to her. She is now in Delhi at
Devdas’s. She does not seem to have benefited [by your treatment].

What could be the trouble with her? Was she administered thyroid
extract? I have forgotten all.
Blessings from
BAPU
251. LETTER TO GULBAI D. MEHTA

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
CHI. GULBAI,
I have your letter. I was thinking of writing a third letter when
yesterday I got your letter. I certainly have no faith in vaccination.
My views have not changed. They are firm. Therefore if I had my
way I would not have Chi. Ardeshir vaccinated. I would risk an attack
of smallpox. But I know Dinshaw believes in vaccination. His views
on nature cure differ considerably from mine. I cling to him in spite
of this knowledge for I regard him as a man of truth. In the case
of a man of truth either I accomodate him or he accommo- dates me.
There is no trace of obstinacy in me. Firmness I certainly have, as I
should have. A man devoid of this quality can never cling to truth.
He does not worry about the risks that confront him because a satya-
grahi has faith only in God. Therefore do what you think right about
vaccination after mutual consultation.
I have sent your letter to Dinshaw because it is a nice letter
worthy of you. Dinshaw however should know that it expresses your
pain. I hope I did not do wrong in passing on the letter to him.
When is your confinement due ?
Please don’t worry about the nursing-home. It is for me to
think about the expenses. Only yesterday I sent a sum for the expen-
ses. According to my reckoning, it will not be necessary for us to
keep the account we maintain for the poor going for long.
I see no need for Maji to move into the house which Balkrishna
used to occupy. She may continue to live where she is or wherever
she wants to till my return. I would suggest that Maji should live in
the quarters that I used to occupy. When I return you may put me up
there if you like. Since the party accompanying me will camp in tents
the arrangement will cause you no inconvenience. In this way the

room that you allot to me, with attached bath-room and the adjacent
room will suffice for me. Let us see when Dinshaw comes by any new
income. It is desirable that he does not go in for any fresh expen-
diture. I would be far from pleased if he accepted defeat for one
reason or another.
I hope you and Ardeshir are well.
Blessings from
BAPU
252. LETTER TO HIRABEHN 1

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
CHI. HIRABEHN,
I got your letter. May your wished be fulfilled.
Blessings from
M. K. GANDHI
253. LETTER TO HASMUKH2

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
BHAI HASMUKHBHAI,
I have your long letter. What is there for me to bless in what
you write? I have not even understood the dispute fully. Besides, if
the work is noble it does not need blessings from any man, however
great. The work is its own blessings.
Blessings from
BAPU
1
The letters are in Devanagari script.
2
ibid

254. LETTER TO NAGINBHAI T. MASTER
S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
BHAI NAGINBHAI,
I have your letter. May your efforts for the sake of Vijayabehn
and Valji bear fruit. I can see that you will be able to cope with the
task, and I am pleased.
S JT. N AGINBHAI M ASTER
BOMBAY C ONGRESS C OMMITTEE
C ONGRESS HOUSE
VITHALBHAI P ATEL R OAD, BOMBAY
255. LETTER TO MARGARETE SPIEGEL

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
CHI. AMALA 1 ,
I was happy to read your letter. It was creditable on your part to
have refused the offer of private tuition to a pupil in your own class
and you deserve to be complimented. Now you will be able to teach
other things. That is good. But why do you look upon Principal Seal
as your enemy? How can a person who looks upon dogs and cats as
her friends regard a human being as her enemy ?
Ahimsa can have no enemies.
If you go on increasing the number of your feline friends, you
will not be able to shoulder the burden.
I keep good health.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
Spiegal Papers. Courtesy: Nehru Memorial Museum and Library
1
German Jewess who joined Gandhiji’s Ashram in 1933

256. LETTER TO VANAMALA N. PARIKH
S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
CHI. VANAMALA,
I am not going to write a long letter either to you or to Zohra. I
am leaving for Assam on the 8th and shall be back here on the 14th.
After that as soon as possible I wish to go to Madras. I hope that I
shall reach there on January 22, at the latest, and from there I shall
return to Sevagram on February 8 at the earliest. Then to Poona on
the 21st or the 23rd. How is Zohra? Both of you, or Zohra, or, if she
is too weak, you alone, should help Munnalalbhai. But you must do
nothing beyond your strength.
I shall be pleased if you both write to me.
Blessings from
BAPU
257. LETTER TO SAVAL L. IDLANI

S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
BHAI IDLANI,
How is it that your letter to me is neither in Urdu nor in Hindi?
You should refer to the Congress President the question you ask
me.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI S AVAL L. I DLANI, J OURNALIST
LALCHAND NANMAL BUILDING
JAMSHED R OAD
KARACHI

258. LETTER TO SUBODHLAL SARKAR
S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
BHAI SUBODHLAL SARKAR,
I got your postcard. Why in English? I shall not be going to
Dhanbad.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
259. SPEECH AT CONGRESS WORKERS’ CONFERENCE— I 1

January 5, 1946
After enumerating the various items of the 18-fold constructive programme as
mentioned in the revised and enlarged edition of his brochure2 Constructive
Programme, Its Meaning and Place, a copy of which had come into his hands only on
the day before, he asked them to take note of the fact that the charkha and khaddar was
only one—though by no means the least important—out of the 18 items in that
programme.
Civil disobedience had been mentioned at the end of the 18 items. It had a
place there since the theme of the brochure was the constructive programme not
merely as an economic activity but as a means of the attainment of swaraj.
Civil disobedience was of two types, individual and mass. Individual civil
disobedience was everybody’s inherent right like the right of self- defence in normal
life. No special sanction was needed for the practice of this kind of civil
disobendience. Just as a man in normal life would use his dagger, revolver or even
1
Extracted from Pyarelal’s “Weekly Letter”. About 750 to 800 workers from
all the districts of Bengal, including several women, met Gandhiji on January 5 and 6
to seek his guidance regarding the Congress reorganization work in Bengal,
particularly the constructive activity. A long list of questions were handed to
Gandhiji just before he came to the meeting. Before answering the questions,
Gandhiji addressed them briefly in Hindustani.
2
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 7-1-1946, had reported that, “incidentally in the
course of his remarks, Gandhiji congratulated two Calcutta papers—Amrita Bazar
Patrika and The Hindustan Standard for publishing the brochure in their columns and
hoped that people would take up the programme and give effect to it in right earnest.”

fisticuffs to foil a sudden attack, even so civil disobedience would be resorted to by
the constructive worker as a non-violent equivalent to the use of fisticuffs or arms. It
did not need sanction or permission from anybody. As an illustration of how civil
disobedience could be used to overcome Government’s opposition to constructive
work he took up the hypothetical case of a worker engaged in the service of the
Adivasis. If the Government prevented him from going among them he would
simply disobey the order. The Government might put him in prison, he would wel-
come it. It would be a most auspicious beginning for his work. The very fact that he
had gone to prison in order to serve the Adivasis would enshrine him in their hearts.
Mass civil disobedience was for the attainment of independence. For if the
fulfilment of the constructive programme almost in its entirety was an indispensable
preliminary condition. The ‘Quit India’ resolution of August 1942 might be cited as
an exception to this dictum, he remarked. His reply was that it was justified by
exceptional circumstances into which, however, he did not propose to take them at
present. Moreover, the movement had never been started.
Gandhiji then took up the first two items from the constructive programme and
showed how they helped the struggle for independence. The first was communal
unity. If they could achieve true heart unity among all the communities, not as a
political expedient to be cast aside when its purpose was served or as a token of their
common dislike of the third party, no power on earth would be able to sow
division amongst them as at present. And even a child would understand that an India
united would be an India free. The same held true in regard to the removal of
untouchability. 1
In the course of his remarks Gandhiji referred to the report of Sarat Babu’s
recent speech2 which was to the effect that since with Gandhiji he believed in non-
violence of the strong—not of the weak, he felt that military training was necessary
to inculcate the spirit of discipline, without which true non-violence could not be
practised. Commenting upon it, Gandhiji said that he did not know whether
Sarat Baba had been correctly reported or not. He himself had often suffered from
bad reporting. But the statement as it appeared lent itself to an ambiguous
interpretation.
It was only a half truth to say that military training was an aid to the
practice of non-violence. The statement was true if by military training was meant
inculcation of perfect discipline, but if by military training was meant training also
in the use of arms and the art of killing it could have no place in his (Gandhiji’s)
programme of non-violence.
1
The following four paragraphs have been taken from Amrita Bazar Patrika,
6-1-1946
2
In the Bengal Legislative Assembly

He Himself had been advocating the necessity of non-violent discipline in
his prayer meetings and had even been trying to impart it to the people wherever he
went. He considered this kind of discipline to be superior to what was known as
military discipline inasmuch as the latter was enforced by penalties while the disci-
pline of non-violence was absolutely voluntary and called for the strength to face
death without killing.
If he found that his views were opposed to Sarat Babu’s views and he people of
Bengal asked him as to which of the two sets of views they should follow, he would
unhesitatingly tell them to follow Sarat Babu’s views and discard his, since Sarat
Babu was the leader of Bengal and not he. But in the present case he felt sure that
there was no difference between their views as Sarat Babu had himself told him in the
course of his recent talks with him that in the matter of non-violence he wantd to go
the whole hog with him. Therefore, he was of opinion that Sarat Babu’s advocacy of
military training held good only in the context of non-violence. In no other sense
was it compatible with the Congress faith much less with non-violence as he
(Gandhiji) understood it.
Gandhiji then proceeded to answer questions :
Q. You have asked the charkha workers to keep themselves detached from the
political work of the Congress. From experience the questioner finds that such
centres fail to make the people conscious fighters for swaraj. On the other hand,
other centres, where workers have been working in double functions—both as
charkha as well as Congress workers—give a better account of themselves during
civil disobedience. So please make your directions in this respect clear.
GANDHIJI: It is a good question but it betrays want of clear
thinking. All I have said is that a khadi worker will not be able to do
full justice to his work if he has too many irons in the fire. Khadi
work demands one’s undivided attention. But that does not mean that
it should be done mechanically. No khadi worker can afford to be
indifferent to other things with which khadi is interrelated or lose sight
of its correlation to the struggle for independence. Experience has
shown that wherever intensive charkha work had been done the people
had shown greater grit, unity and capacity for organization in the
struggle for independence.
Q. You have often repeated that charkha without its full implications means
nothing. Supposing we do not associate the charkha with political work, then, how
will people understand its full implications ?
G. ‘Full implications’does include political work, but it
includes many more things. The charkha has an undoubted value as a
means for providing economic relief to the masses but as I have so

often reiterated, khadi activity, stripped of its significance in terms of
India’s independence means nothing to me today. At the same time
if you take up charkha work merely for gaining political ends, it will
defeat its purpose and you will make a mess of it in the political as in
the economic sense.
To say that unless we associate charkha work with Political work
it will have no political value, betrays a thorough ignorance of the
non-violent technique. Let me take ‘service of the lepers’ which is
another item in the 18-fold constructive programme. Surely, it cannot
be associated with any kind of political work in the accepted sense.
Yet it would be absurd to say that it has no value in terms of swaraj.
Under the non-violent technique every real service renderd, every
right act performed does bring the country nearer to the goal of
political indepedence though in itself it may not have any direct
political significance.
If you were to tell me that you have lost faith in non-violence as
a means for the attainment of swaraj, I would agree that the charkha or
constructive work have no use for you. Nor would you have any use
for me in that event. But since you have discarded faith neither in
ahimsa nor in me, your indifference to charkha and constructive work
is a sign only of your laziness and inertia. It is my conviction that the
phennome-nal awakening that has taken place in India during the last
25 years is entirely due to the adoption of non-violence and the
charkha as its symbol.
To the extent to which we have neglected the charkha and cons-
tructive work we have failed in the attainment of our goal.
Q. On December 23, you have advised 1 Hindu workers to offer selfless
service to the Muslim masses, for it will tell in the end. That might be termed a long-
term policy. Should we then do nothing political among the Muslim masses? Apart
from its effect on the Muslims, is not the policy of non-interference and political
aloofness likely to engender in the non-Muslims a new attitude of exclusiveness
towards the Muslims and thus serve the ver purpose of those who are trying to divide
the nation ?
G. With due deference to the framer of the question let me
say that I fail to understand it. If millions of Hindus regarded non-
Hindus as their blood-brothers and sisters and treated them as such
without the slightest tinge of a political motive, it must result in
the complete political unity of India. Is it a ‘long-term’ effect? The
1
Vide “Discussion with Political Workers”, 23-12-1945

framer of the question does not seem to know how ahimsa works.
What I have deprecated in the present poisoned state of our communal
relations is the attempt on the part of Congressmen to draw non-
Hindus into the Congress fold, as it would only accentuate the existing
mistrust. But supposing I make friends with Badshah Khan how does
it widen the gulf between the communities? On the contrary, it imme-
diately eases communal tension to that extent. Multiply this picture a
millionfold and it will be seen that the difficulty posed in the question
is altogether chimerical.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 6-1-1946 and 13-1-1946
260. LETTER TO ANASUYABEHN SARABHAI

S ODEPUR,
January 6, 1946
CHI. ANASUYA,
I got your letter. It is not possible for me to offer any sugges-
tions or guidance from here. Sir Radhakrishnan is going that way and
it would be better for you to see him. I think no one can do from
here anything that would prove useful to you.
Why do you write ‘people’ 1 ? ‘Peoples’ means ‘nations’. Are
we ‘nations’? And if we are, how many nations are we? And where?
Great Britain had one people, but Europe has many peoples with their
own different countries. Is such the case with India ?
Blessings from
BAPU

S ODEPUR,
January 6, 1946
CHI. ANASUYABHEN,
Chi. Mridula writes to say that you are now growing old and are
often bed-ridden !!! What is this? And why? If you grow old, what
1
The words in single quotes are in English ?

about me? 125 years is still far away for you as well as for me. And
then 125 years is not for me alone. It is for all of us.
Blessings from
BAPU
262. LETTER TO SORABJI P. KAPADIA 1

S ODEPUR,
January 6, 1946
BHAI KAPADIA,
I have the letter from Joshi Behn which you sent me. I have sent
her an appropriate reply.
Blessings from
BAPU
S ORABJI P. K APADIA
“ MUMBAI S AMACHAR”
BOMBAY
263. LETTER TO SARVANBEHN

January 6, 1946
DEAR SISTER,
I got the khaddar. According to me no one is an abala 2 . A
woman who does even a little can never be called an abala.
Blessings from
BAPU
1
The letter is in the Devanagari script.
2
A weak woman

264. LETTER TO K. T. BHASHYAM
S ODEPUR,
January 6, 1946
BHAI BHASHYAM,
I have your long letter. I may not be regarded as a guide in any
way any more. The days are gone when I could act as one. My
advice is that you may take up whatever appeals to you from among
the activities I have already indicated. Hence you should come toge-
ther and do whatever you can regardless of whether the outcome is
good or bad. I am now of no use whatever for such matters.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI K. T. BHASHYAM
C OTTONPET
BANGALORE C ITY
265. SPEECH AT CONGRESS WORKERS’ CONFERENCE—II

January 6, 1946
1
Meeting Gandhiji on the second day of the conference the Bengal workers
found in him a hard customer. Instead of waiting fot them to put question he
anticipated them by asking them whether they knew Hindustani. As only about half
the number raised their hands in reply, he inquired as to how long they would require
to learn Hindustani. Some replied: “One Year.” Gandhiji commented :
No good, Contai people did not require more than six
months2 .
“All right then, six months,” shouted a few voices. But Gandhiji twitted them
for doing no better than the countryfolk of Contai in the matter of learning the
national language. Calcutta should do better. Someone from the gathering objected
that they were not all Calcutta folk. But the objector’s voice was drowned in a chorus
from the rest who shouted “three months”. [Gandhiji said :]
That is good, but say “six months” all in chorus and endorse
the same by raising your right hand in affirmation.
1
For the previous day’s report, vide “Speech at Congress Workers Confe-
rence-I, 5-1-1946
2
Vide “Discussion with Midnapore Political Workers”, 2-1-1946

A forest of hands rose in reply. But Gandhiji’s keen eye detected a lacuna.
I notice that the women workers are hesitating. Is Azad 1
Hindustan then going to be for men only and are women for ever to
be in Zenanistan? If not, you should all shout out, “sub” (“all”) in
one voice.
There was a deafening chorus of “sub, sub” in reply. Gandhiji was pleased . . .
he told them it was up to them to see that they kept it. There were ample facilities in
Calcutta for learning Hindustani and they should avail themselves of it.
Another friend asked whether by learning Hindustani was meant ability to
understand Hindustani or whether it included the ability to read and write Hindustani
as well. This gave Gandhiji the opportunity to emphssize the importance of learning
to read and write both the Nagari and the Urdu scripts, if they wanted to maintain
direct touch with all the sections of the people in the country. Even Hindus in north,
let along Muslims, did not know the Nagari script. In support of his argument he
mentioned the instances of the late Lala Lajpat Rai, the Lion of the Punjab, Pandit
Ajodhyanath, who was one of the founders of the Congress and Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru,
none of whom knew the Nagari script. The Urdu script was not difficult to learn.
Anyway he was not prepared to hear objections on the score of difficulty from
intellectual Bengal.
Gandhiji’s attention was next drawn to a Press cutting purporting to give a
restatement of his views on the utility of the parliamentary programme in relation to
constructive work. The reference was to a recent writing of his in Hindustani in Khadi
Jagat. “What attitude should a wholetime constructive worker maintain towards the
parliamentary programme? Can the will of the people be really represented by a
legislature under present conditions in India? If the conditions are adverse, i. e., if
the Government is hostile, should Congressmen continue to function in the
legislatures and what help can they advance under the circumstances to the cause of
constructive work ?”
Gandhiji, replying, said that he had advocated the boycott of the legislatures
as a part of the fourfold non-co-operation programme. He still held the view that if
that programme had been given effect to in full, India would have got swaraj. But the
country as a whole was not prepared fot it. There was a considerable section in the
country that wanted to use parliamentary talent in the service of the country. No one
should prevent them from serving the country in their own way. As a practial idealist
he had therefore reconciled himself to Congressmen capturing the legislatures and
other elective bodies, if only to prevent self-seekers and enemies of India’s freedom
from getting there.
1
Independent

He repeated what he had said at Contai, that nothing would please him
better than that ideal scavengers should be returned to legislatures to represent
the Congress there. He himself claimed to be scavenger No. 1 of India. His
ideal scavenger would not be an ignorant puppet but a man with sturdy common
sense and capacity to think and decide upon the problems of the day. He would
be an educated person though he might not know English. He could not see why
such a one should not be President of the Congress. The positive function of
those who went to the legislatures would be to promote constructive work. He,
however, warned them that mere parliamentary work would not bring them
swaraj. That would come only as a result of their work outside among the masses.
A wholetime constructive worker would not be able to take up parliamentary
activity without detriment to his own work. But those who were not giving
all their time to constructive work might enter the legislature if people wanted
it, provided however that it did not lead to rivalries among workers and they had
not to enter into any expenditure in order to be elected.
Q. In many portions of Bengal, the cultivators are Muslims and the proprie-
tors Hindus. Recently in some places the Muslim tillers have refused to till the land
under Hindu owners. What should the Hindu owners do under the circumstances ?
Gandhiji, replying, said that the views he was going to express were strictly
his own. As they all knew, he was not even a four-anna Congress member and
therefore he could not speak as a Congressman. He spoke only in his personal
capacity as a satyagrahi.
Although the question had been posed in a communal setting the real cleavage
as he saw it was not communal but economic. In Bengal the cultivators might be
Muslim and the properietors Hindu. But in Andhra both the cultivators and
proprietors were Hindus and yet the same conflict was in evidence in some parts.
His views, continued Gandhiji, on the ownership of land were well known.
The only rightful owner of the land was he who tilled it. The present properietors
were morally entitled to hold land only if they became trustees for it. If the
cultivators of the fields of a proprietor, who had become a trustee, refused to till the
land for him, he would not sue them or seek otherwise to coerce them. He would leave
them alone and try to earn his livelihood independently by his honest industry. If he
has been discharging his function as a trustee honestly, they would come to him
before long in contrition and seek his guidance and help. For, he would use his
privilege not to fill his pockets by the exploitation of the labourers but teach the
letter co-operation and organization so as to increase their produce and generally
ameliorate their conditons. This would mean that the proprietor must himself become
a cultivator par excellence. A propeietor who regarded his property merely as a means
of satisfying his lusts was not its owner but its slave. The proprietors of land in

Bengal had therefore only to adopt his ideal of trusteeship and their troubles would
end.
Q. Would the trustee’s property be passed on to his children by in-
heritance ?
G. A proprietor who holds his property as a trust will not pass it
on to his children in inheritance unless the letter in their turn become
trustees and make good their claim as such. If they are not prepared
for it, he should create a trust of his property. It is demoralizing for
an able-bodies young man to live like a parasite on unearned income.
A father should inculcate in his children the appreciation of the
dignity of labour and teach them to earn their bread by their honest
industry. As regards the monied people all I can say from my close
personal association with a large number of them, is that if a general
atmosphere in favour of trusteeship, devoid of ill-will and class hatred,
is created in the country they will fall in line with it.
Q. Many Congress workers who have recently come out of jail have to earn a
living for themselves or their families. Under present economic conditions they
have been forced to crowd into towns for this purpose with the result that the villages
have begun to lose their services. Could not a paid service be established for them by
the provincial or the district Congress organizations? If so, how would you advise
them to find the money for this prupose ?
G. The question reflects the present deplorable condition of
the country. The cities are not only draining the villages of their
wealth but talent also. The only way to check the process is for Con-
gress workers to refuse to make their lives their God but to dedicate
themselves to the service of their ideal only. God will then take care
of them. A labourer is always worthy of his hire but I know that I
have no magic wand to revolutionize people’s outlook up to the ideal
of voluntary poverty. There-fore I consider it desirable that a fund
should be created either by the Provincial Congress Committee
or by local agencies to provide maintenance for such workers as
may want to dedicate themselves to the service of the villages. Do
not expect me however to provide you with funds. My begging days
are over. It is my firm belief that no worthy cause has ever suffered
for want of finances if there are sincere workers to work fot it.
Calcutta has got enough ‘money bags’, and if a practical scheme of
work in the villages is produced and there are sincere and earnest
workers forthcoming to take it up, I am sure the money will come
forth.

Q. You have advised spinning for swaraj. If, in trying to execute that
programme in its full implications, spinning for wages has to be restricted, should we
do so? That will mean hardship for the very poor who find some relief through their
spinning wages. Then, again, if we keep up spinning for wages, the new rules of
purchasing khadi against yarn will make it more difficult for us to dispose of the
khadi produced for offering relief to the poor.
Gandhiji said that what he had recommended was that all people should spin
not for self but for swaraj. Such conscious and altruistic spinning on the part of forty
millions would constitute a veritable yajna or sacrifice out of which swaraj would
emerge. It would knit the classes and masses, the brain workers and the manual
labourers, in a living bond of unity. What had however happened was that although
their efforts had resulted in providing thousands of men and women with a
supplementary source of income, the spinners themselves did not wear khaddar.
They did not realize the implications of khadi in terms of swaraj. He had therefore
come to the concluclon tha if khadi was truly to become the “livery of freedom”1 , to
use Pandit Jawaharlal’s expression, all those who spin should consciously adopt
khadi and all those who wanted to wear khadi should spin. There was thus no conflict
between spinning for wages and spinning for sacrifice. The two were supplementary,
one of the other.2
Q. Violence is bad . . . . The only substitute for it is constructive activity as
symbolized by the charkha. But the dynamic quality seems to have gone out of it.
What should be done to bring out its revolutionary significance ?
G. Dr. Radha Kumud Mukherji in one of his books has quoted
Colebrooke as saying that in India, the home of chronic poverty, the
spining-wheel is the provider of butter and bread for the poor. The
late R. C. Dutt has shown how the prosperity of the East India
Company was founded on their trade in Indian textiles. No part of
the world, neither China nor Japan could produce fabrics to equal
them. In the early phase the East India Company battened on the
exploitation of its monopoly in Indian textiles. Not only did it bring
them immense trade profits, it also gave an impetus to British
shipping. Later, Lancashire developed its own textile industry follow-
ing upon a series of mechanical inventions. This brought it into com-
petition with the Indian textile manutactures. The policy of exploi-
tation of the Indian artisans then gave way to that of destruction of
their craft.
1
Vide “Livery of Freedom”
2
What follows is extracted from Harijan, 31-3-1946. It appeared under the
title “How to Make It Dyamamic ?” by Pyarelal, who had explained that the question
was “put to Gandhiji at Calcutta by the khadi workers of Borkamata”.

An English writer has observed that the history of cotton is the
history of civilization. Politics is the handmaid of commerce. Indian
history provides an apt illustration of it. In the heyday of our cotton
manufactures we used to grow all the cotton for our needs. The
cotton seed was fed to the cattle which provided health-giving milk to
the people. Agriculture flourished. The lint was turned into beautiful
fabrics of which the jamdanis of Dacca were a specimen. As an
offshoot we had the worldfamed dyeing and printing art of
Masulipatam. Connoisseurs say that our old indigenous dyes could
not be matched by any in the world for their permanence as well as
brightness and beauty. All that is gone now. India is today naked.
We have to cover her nakedness. If anybody could suggest a better
substitute than the spinning-wheel for the prupose I would discard the
spinningwheel today. But none has been found so far and I dare say
none is likely to be found.
The question may however be asked: ‘How can the charkha
bring India freedom when it could not prevent its loss ?’ The reply is
that in the past charkha was not linked with the idea of freedom. Nor
did it then symbolize the power of non-violence. In olden days it
symbolized our slavery. We had not realized that our progress,
prosperity and even freedom depended on the charkha or else we
should have put up a fight and resorted to satyagraha to save it from
destruction. What was lost through our ignorance and apathy has now
to be won back through intelligence and knowledge. We have today
ceased to think for ourselves. The Government says that Bengal is a
pauper province and we mechanically accept the statement. To call a
province which boasts 612 crores of population as pauper is only to
proclaim our own intellectual bankruptcy. Did not the Governor of
Bengal observe in a broadcast talk1 the other day that the cultivator
in Bengal remains unemployed for six months in the year? Can any
population in the world subsist while remaining idle for half the year?
Even if all the water that the rains bring were captured and harnessed
to irrigaion it would not keep the masses alive if their enforced
unemployment for the better part of the year were not removed. Our
real malady is not destitution but laziness, apathy and inertia. You
may achieve marvels of irrigational engineering. But wellfilled grana-
ries alone cannot and will not end our slavery. To end slavery you
must over-come the mental and physical inertia of the masses and
1
On December 8, 1945; vide also “Letter to R. G. Casey”, 8-12-1945

quicken their intelligence and creative faculty. It is my claim that the
universa- lization of hand-spinning with a full knowledge of all that it
stands for alone can bring that about in a sub-continent so vast and
varied as India. I have compared spinning to the central sun and the
other village crafts to the various planets in the solar system. The
former gives light and warmth to the latter and sustains them. With-
out it they would not be able to exist.
Q. If swaraj hangs on the thread of hand-spun yarn, as you say, why have we
failed to attain it up till now after a quarter of a century of khadi work ?
Because our labour was not quickened by knowledge. The
G.
peace of the grave makes the latter the house of death. But the peace
in the soul makes it the seat of divine intelligence. Similarly, soulless
labour symbolizes serfdom Labour illumined with knowledge smy-
bolizes the will to freedom. There is a world of difference between
the two. Khadi workers should understand that khadi work without
the mastery of the science of khadi will be love’s labour lost in terms
of swaraj.
Q. What do you mean by the science of spinning? What things are included
in it ?
G. I have often said that I can do without food but not without
sacrificial spinning. I have also claimed that no one in India has
perhaps done his spinning with such unfailing regularity and
conscientious diligence as I. And yet I will say that all that by itself
cannot take the place of scientific knowledge. Scientific knowledge
requires constant probing into the why and wherefore of every little
process that you perform. Mere affirmation that in charkha there is
swaraj and peace is not enough. A scientific mind will not be satisfied
with having things scientific just on faith. He will insist on finding a
basis in reason. Faith becomes lame when it ventures into matters
pertaining to reason Its field begins where reason’s ends. Conclusions
based on faith are unshakable whereas those based on reason are
liable to be unstable and vulnerable to superior logic. To state the
limitation of science is not to belittle it. We cannot do without
either—each in its own place.
When I first discovered the spinning-wheel it was purely through
intuition. It was not backed by knowledge so much so that I confused
charkha with kargha, i. e., handloom. Later on, however, I tried to
work out its possibilities with the help of the late Maganlal Gandhi.
For instance, the question arose: Why should the spindle be made of

iron, not brass? Should it be thin or thick? What would be the proper
thickness? We began with the mill spindles. Then, spindle-holders
used to be bamboo and wood. Later we came to leather and gut
bearings. It was found that spindles got easily bent and were difficult
to straighten. So we tried to make them out of knitting needles and
ultimately of umbrellawires. All this called for the exer-cise of the
inventive faculty and scientific research.
A khadi worker with a scientific mind will not stop there.
‘Why the charkha, why not the spinning mill?’ he will ask himself.
The reply will be that everybody cannot own a spinning mill. If
people depend on spinning mills for their clothing, whoever controls
the spinning mills will control them and thus there will be an end
to individual liberty. Today anyone can reduce the whole of London
and New York to submission within 24 hours by cutting off their
electric and water supply. Individual liberty and interdependence are
both essential for life in society. Only a Robinson Crusoe can afford
to be all self-sufficient. When a man has done all he can for the
satisfaction of his essential requirements he will seek the co-operation
of neighbours for the rest. That will be true co-operation. Thus a
scientific study of the spinning-wheel will lead on to sociology. The
spinning-wheel will not become a power for the liberation of India in
our hands unless we have made a deep study of the various sciences
related to it. It will then not only make India free but point the way to
the whole world.
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru has very aptly remaked that at one time
India was not lacking in the inventive spirit but today it has become
dormant. Once one gets the scientific outlook it will be reflected in
every act of his, in his eating, drinking, rest, sleep. Everything will be
scientifically regulated and with a full appreciation of its why and
wherefore. Finally, a scientific mind must have detachment or else it
willl and itself into the lunatic asylum. The Upanishad says that
whatever there is in this universe is from Him. It belongs to Him and
must be surrendered to Him and then enjoyed. Enjoyment and
sorrow, success and failure will then be the same to you.
One thing more. Supposing the tyrant wants to destroy the
spinning-wheel itself. What then? My reply is that in that event we
should ourselves perish with the spinning-wheel and not live to witness
its destruction. For every khadi worker who thus sacrifices himself
thousands will arise to take his place. The act of his will set the final
seal of victory on the cause he represents.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 13-1-1946, and Harijan, 31-3-1946

January 6, 1946
1
Gandhiji emphasized what he had said at Mahishadal about the observance of
the general rule for attending a meeting. He said that it was the common rule that
nobody should enter the meeting place after it had begun and nobody should leave the
meeting place during the continuance of the meeting. Those who would violate this
rule, Gandhiji emphasized, would disturb others. Even if anybody did not find any
interest in the meeting he should think of others who are in the meeting and not leave
the meeting before it was concluded. This was the common rule for every meeting and
in the case of prayer meeting they should be more careful, because at the prayer they
had to train their minds and concentrate on God.
Referring to the song that was sung at the prayer Gandhiji said that they
should take the significance of the song to their hearts. In the song Poet Rabin-
dranath said that he would not be frightened to see God coming to him in the form of
misery. In this connection Gandhiji would remind them of an English poem entitled
“The Hound of Heaven”2 in which God had been described as a huntsman pursuing the
disciple continually. God, Gandhiji explained, could not leave His devotee alone
because He, who had created the world, was concerned about the world going in order.
So real misery came when they forgot God and happiness came when they kept God in
them.
This 3 is also a kind of misery, but you should not feel like that. At the
Sabarmati Ashram which was at a short distance from the Station there was a person
who took the vow of silence. One day he told Gandhiji that he was greatly disturbed
by the whistling train at the time of worship. Gandhiji suggested to him to shut his
ears with cotton or rubber to prevent the whistle disturbing him. After a short time
the man again came to Gandhiji and told him that he was no more in need of cotton or
rubber because he had been trained to such a concentration of mind that no sound or
whistle could enter his ears. What Gandhiji would tell them was that they should not
be perturbed when misery—in whatever shape or form—came to them.
1
2
By Francis Thompson
3
The reference is to the whistling of a train, which interrupted Gandhiji’s
speech.

267. TELEGRAM TO VALLABHBHAI PATEL
Express S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
S ARDAR
C ARE P OWERFARM
BOMBAY
GOD WILLING SHALL BE AT BARDOLI THIRD MARCH.
BAPU
268. TELEGRAM TO K. SRINIVASAN

Express S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
KASTURI S RINIVASAN
“ HINDU”
MADRAS
YOUR TELEGRAM. APPROVED.
GANDHI
269. TELEGRAM TO M. SATYANARAYAN

S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
1
S ATYANARAYANJI
C ARE DAKSHIN [BHARAT HINDI P RACHAR S ABHA]
THYAGARAYANAGAR ( MADRAS)
RAJKUMARI WRITTEN ZAKIRSAHEB OR SAIYIDAIN2 . FAILING EITHER
RAJKUMARI WILL.
BAPU
1
Secretary, Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha, Madras
2
Khwaja Ghulam Saiyidain, Principal, Teachers’ Training College, Aligarh;
later Adviser and Secretary to the Ministry of Education, Government of India

270. LETTER TO ARUNA ASAF ALI1
S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
CHI. ARUNA 2
I read your little note immediately it was received. But your
joint letter to Maualana Sahib I read early morning today (silence-
day) immediately after the 4.30 prayer. You will let me say that it is
eloquent but not cogent. It does injustice to yourselves, the Maulana
and the cause. But I must not argue whilst you are under detention of
your own making and yet falsely believing yourselves to be free.
Of course you must do as your comprehension of truth bids and
not as anybody else however high says. And I honour you for such
action.
It is for your sake that I resort to a foreign tongue and a thing I
will not do even for you, if you were free.
Blessings to both from 3
BAPU
From a copy: C. W. 11339. Courtesy: Aruna Asaf Ali
271. LETTER TO SHARDA G. CHOKHAWALA

S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
CHI. BABUDI,
Today is silence day. This is the first letter I am writing after the
morning prayer. How are you? How is Anand? I am still touring on
this side. I shall leave for Madras on the 19th or the 20th instant.
Blessings to you all from
BAPU
From the Gujarati original: C.W. 10065. Courtesy: Sharada G. Chokhawala
1
Wife of Asaf Ali, a Congress leader. She was a member of the Congress
Socialist Party and had played a prominent part in the Quit India movement in 1942.
2
The superscription and subscription are in Devanagari.
3
ibid

KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
January 7, 1946
DEAR MR. ABELL,
Shrimati Saroj Basini Goho, the wife of Shri S. C. Goho, ‘until a
few days ago’ said to be the Agent of the Government of India in
Malaya, has just seen me and asked me to approach His Excellency
about her husband, who is reported to have been arrested in
Singapore. She has given me a copy of her memorial submitted to
His Excellency. I have taken the liberty of telling her that if what is
set forth in the papers shown to me and which are in the possession of
the Government are true, her husband is quite safe. Could you please
enlighten me in the matter ?1
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
273. LETTER TO SAROJ BASINI GOHO

S ODEPUR,
January 7, 194[6] 2
DEAR SISTER,
I have gone through the papers you gave me and have started
work in that connection. Please do not worry.
Blessings from
M. K. GANDHI
S HRIMATI S AROJ BASINI GOHO
6/1 K ANTAPUKUR L ANE
BAGH BAZAR P. O.
C ALCUTTA
1
S. C. Goho had been charged with collaborating with the enemy. He was
released in March 1946.
2
The source has 1945, which is obviously a slip. Vide the preceding item.

274. LETTER TO A. B. M. ENAYAT HUSSAIN
SODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
BHAI SAHEB,
I got your letter last evening. Today is my silence day. Tomo-
rrow I leave for Assam. You and your friends may come on the 16th
at 2.30 p. m. I shall manage to give you half an hour.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
JANAB A. B. M. ENAYAT HUSSAIN
GENERAL S ECRETARY
MUSLIM UNEMPLOYED R ELIEF ASSOCIATION
18 M IRZAPUR S TREET
C ALCUTTA

S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
Gandhiji stressed the need for observance of the rules of cleanliness by every
citizen. He asked them to remember that cleanliness was next to Godliness and that if
they could observe the rules of cleaniness they would be pure in their hearts also.
Gandhiji said that although he did not travel much during these days he had
heard from his friends how the city streets were made dirty with the kernel of
fruits, paper pieces and other useless things strewn over them. It was also said
that Calcutta had been dirty. But he could tell them that if every citizen did his
part and observed the rules of cleanliness then the face of Calcutta would be
changed.
Gandhiji also exhorted them to apply the rules of cleanliness in other spheres
of their lives as well.

276. INTERVIEW TO STUDENTS DEPUTATION1
CALCUTTA,
[On or after January 7, 1946]2
The answer is already in what you have told me just now. You
should get into the habit of speking in Hindustani. Just knowing it is
not enough. One should be ashamed of speaking in English.
2. Students should assemble for this particular work and hold
meeting. Vinoba, Dada, Aryanayakum, Ashadevi, Ramachandran,
Mahesh and others are all there to guide you. Acharya Kripalani and
Sucheta are of course there. For that matter Dhiren Majmudar and
Vichitra Narayan are also there. Consult them also. There are many
more whom I have not named. The thing is that there should be
steadfastness and truth in you. Then everything could be done. But
not today. Consult all these people. Aryanayakum is here and also
Kripalani and Sucheta. Do this after careful thinking. There should be
no repentance afterwards. Discuss with Radhakrishna. It is quite easy
[to do this] in Kashi Vidyapith. What is the use of asking me? Think
yourselves and do what you think proper. Have a talk with Pyarelal.
He was also a student like you when he came to me.
277. TELEGRAM TO MUNNALAL G. SHAH

CALCUTTA,
January 8, 1946
MUNNALAL
NATURECURE CLINIC
POONA
KANCHAN’S ILLNESS CAUSING ANXIETY. YOU CAN COME IF
YOU FEEL YOU MUST. AM LEAVING FOR ASSAM. SUSHILABEHN
REMAINGING WITH KANCHAN. DOCTOR BIDHAN ROY SUPERINTENDING
TREATMENT. ASKING NAR HARI3 SEND MANIBHA REPLACE YOU
IF YOU LEFT
BAPU
1
R. Achutan, Secretary, Benares Hindu University Rachanatmak Mandal for
students and spokesmen of the deputation, says: “In January 1946, a group of
students from Benares Hindu University met Gandhiji at Sodepur Ashram in Calcutta
and discussed with him about the question of revival of Gandhi Seva Sangh to take up
the constructive task of non-violent revolution.........Since Bapu was observing
silence......[he] wrote [down] his reply. . . .” (S.N. 10854)
2
Gandhiji’s first silence day was on the 7th in January 1946.
3

278. TELEGRAM TO NARAHARI D. PARIKH
SODEPUR,
Express January 8, 1946
NARHARIBHAI P ARIKH
S EVARAM
WARDHA
KANCHAN’S ILLNESS SERIOUS. MUNNALAL MIGHT COME IF
HE IS ANXIOUS. HENCE SEND MANIBHAI POONA IF
FEASIBLE. GOING ASSAM FIVE DAYS STAY. ADDRESS
GAUHATI.
BAPU

SODEPUR,
January 8, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI
Yesterday I sent you a telegram as follows :
“God willing reach Bardoli 3rd March.” I very much wanted to
come on the 1st but I see that that is not possible, for February has
only 28 days and I must look in at Poona, for a few days at least,
before going to Bardoli. I have, therefore counted two days more so
that I may arrange the programme as if the month had 30 days.
Having started the thing I must see it through. I cannot in any
circumstances tolerate misuse of money. And if I take no interest
Dinshaw cannot manage the new venture. I will, therefore, quickly
finish the work at Wardha, pay a brief visit to Poona, and then come to
Bardoli and after that go back to Poona again. This is what I have in
mind at the moment.
I have already written something about the Parliamentary
Delegation.1 We should not spurn it; on the other hand we should
welcome it whole-heartedly. It is not necessary to get excited
over it as people used to when such people arrived in the past. We
should not insult our guests in any manner whatesoever. There is no
need for Congressmen to decline the invitation if they are invited to
1
Vide “Letter to Vallabhbhai Patel”, 3-1-1946

parties that may be held to honour the members of the delegation. I
myself will certainly meet them somewhere. As it, I was to see the
Governor on returning from Midnapore. I saw him only last evening
and he himself asked me when I could meet them. I gave him my
dates. They will most probably meet me in Madras, no other dates
scemed suitable. Dr. Mahmud has come over to see me. He met me
the day before yesterday, and since I am soon leaving for Assam he
intends to go to Patna after seeing me off. So he will go today. In the
meanwhile, the Governor heard about his arrival and suggested a
meeting. They were together for about an hour. Nothing important
seems to have been discussed, but they were glad to have met. I have
not as yet been able to sit and talk with Dr. Mahmud for even a
quarter of an hour. Just as he came my silence began. It lasted
throughout yesterday. Dr. Mahmud came in the evening, but I went to
see the Governor. When I returned it was already a quater to ten; and
so naturally we could not sit and talk.
I am all right. Kanchan has been taken very ill but I hope she
will recover. She has severe anaemia. She has had it for some time but
she did not pay attention to it. I leave for Assam today. I do not like
to leave her but you know how often I have had to go like this. Most
probably Sushila will stay on for her sake. I am dictaing this early in
the morning after the prayers. How she fares today we shall know
only in the course of the day. Just now she is sleeping. So is Sushila,
She was with Kanchan for most of the night.
If I fill this letter with an account of my experience here, it
would become much longer. I have not the time for it. Besides, why
should you want to read all that?
Rajkumari is of course here. She had to go to Hyderabad
(Sindh) for some time. She will accompany me to Assam. After that
she will have to go to Mysore.
Blessing from
BAPU
S ARDAR V ALLABHBHAI P ATEL
68 MARINE DRIVE, B OMBAY
[From Gujarati]
Bapuna Patro-2: Sardar Vallabhbhaine, pp. 291-3

KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
SODEPUR (NEAR CALCUTTA),
January 8, 1946
DEAR MR. ABELL,
I enclose herewith a cutting 1 for you to read. Can the infor-
mation therein be true ? 2 probably you could let me know without
troubling His Excellency.
Enclosure: 1
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR ( NEAR C ALCUTTA),
January 8, 1946
DEAR MR. ABELL,
His Excellency knows Dr. B. C. Ray. He is one of foremost
physicians of India. He is responsible for the efficient management of
several hospitals in Calcutta. His services have bww been enlisted by
the Government of India. He was on the Bhore Committee 3 too. The
Congress has organized a mission of relief for the people of Burma
and Malaya. I see from the papers which Dr. Roy has handed to me
that the Government of India are hesitating about giving facilities to
the mission, the reason being that the Government are doing all they
1
From The Hindustan Standard, 6-1-1946, which had reported that twenty-
five-INA prisoners were bayonetted to death for singing the INA national
anthem in Bahadurgarh camp and many were punished for shouting the slogan
“Jai Hind”
2
The addressee in reply enclosed a Press Note which said that 42 men had
received bruises on their buttocks from the tip of the bayonets as a result of their
resistance. No one was killed and no one was punished for using the slogan “Jai
Hind”.
3
The Health survey and Development Committee appointed by the
Government of India

can. But in a service of this kind all that even a powerful Government
can do is not enough. Lest for want of offered help people in distress
might suffer, I want to dismiss from my mind the suggestion that
because it is a Congress mission there is hesitation about its
acceptance. I only hope that the very able assistance offered by Dr. B.
C. Roy will not be rejected.1
Yours sincerely
M. K.GANDHI
282. LETTER TO STEPHEN LEE

SODEPUR,
January 8, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I thank you for your prompt and clear reply. I propose to make
the fullest possible use of it.
Yours sincerely,
M. K.G.
STEPHEN LEE, ESQ.
FRIENDS’ SERVECE UNIT
1 UPPER WOOD ST.
CALCUTTA

KHADI PRATISHTHAN,
SODEPUR,
January 8, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
Herewith the note I promised last night to send to you.
1. Mahishadal—Tamluk sub-division, Midnapore District.
On the application of one Shridhar Chandra Goswami on 27th
June, 1944, the presiding officer ordered the return of articles seized.
1
In his reply of January 30, the addressee said the offer “must be declined
because the Government of Burma were themselves trying to provide medical relief
and could not provide facilities to the mission.

These articles have not yet been returned nor compensation offered, if
the articles are missing (according to my information).1 Original
papers sent herewith. (Enclosure1) 2
2. Contai sub-division.
Water that has become saline there and probably in the other
sub-divisions also should be drained out and renovated so as to be
drinkable.
I enclose herewith the original letter from the Friends’ Service
Unit showing how urgent this work is. (Enclosure 2)
3. Abhoy Ashram, Comilla.
I attach hereto a paper marked ‘Enclosure 3’. It discloses a
curious state of affairs, as I understand if. I know personally that the
Ashram activities were wholly beneficial and constructive. Schools
based on social reform were run, catering for mostly Muslim children
of spinning families who span yarn for wages; a depot was established
for the storing of yarn, cotton and khadi; a hospital was conducted
under the able supervision of Shri Suresh Bannerji.3 (Enclosure 3)
4. Other Khadi Centres.
Other khadi centres affected are shortly referred to in
enclosure No. 4.4
5. Sales Tax Act.
As to Sales Tax Act, I observe that the Act was passed on Ist July
1941. Handloom cloth was excluded from the operation of the Act,
but it was amended on March 30th 1944, and the tax was raised from
one to two pice per rupee. On 25th June 1945, it was raised to three
pice per rupee by the Governor’s Ordinance. Handloom cloth was
made taxable though originally omitted, but it is not clear when. Dhoti
1
The addressee said in reply that the applicant had filed a claim petition after
the articles were auctioned and therfore he was asked to withdraw the sales proceeds
which he declined. It was not possible to return the articles but the payment of
compensation would be considered if he submitted an application to the District
Magistrate to that effect.
2
This and the other enclosures mentioned in the letter are not traceable.
3
The addressee said in reply that the question of removing the ban on these
institutions would be examined and the payment of compensation for the damage
done to the property would be considered.
4
The addressee said in reply that in most of the khadi centres either the
immovable property had been returned or compensation in lieu of it had been paid.
The cases of the remaining centres were under consideration. In cases where premises
were forfeited orders were being issued either to retun the premises or to provide an
alternative accommodation.

sari and lungi worth Rs. 10, Rs. 15, and Rs. 18 respectively are
excluded from the operation of the Act.
My point is that khadi, i.e., hand-spun and hand-woven, or
hand-spun yarn should be excluded from all taxes. Logically, hand-
woven cloth also, though woven from mill yarn, should be excluded
for the tax hits the handloom weaver. Therefore, the exclusion of
dhoti, sari and lungi is of no help. The revenue derived from khadi is
altogether negligible. The revenue derived from hand-woven cloth is
fair because hand-woven cloth is large enough in quantity to yield
some income to the treasury, but at the poor weaver’s expenese. In
taxing khadi, however, thousands of poor hand-spinners are so hard
hit that the tax becomes so deterrent as to be punitive. I am quite
certain that such was never the intention of the farmers of the Act. The
oversight has only to be brought to the notice of the Government to
be remedied. I may also mention that all the khadi depots of the All-
India Spinners’ Association are benevolent concerns. The conductors
are servants of the A. I. S. A. which according to the recent judgment
of the Privy Council, has been held to be a benevolent institution, not
liable to income tax.1
Incidentally, I may mention that whilst fresh milk is excluded
from the operation of the Act, all other forms of milk such as boiled
milk, pasteurized milk, dahi, etc., are taxable under the Act. The
clause baffles me. The original Act is called Bengal Act of 1941.
6. Feni.
Feni is within the Japanese bombed area. Therefore, 98 villages
were evacuated by the Government. Assurance is said to have been
given that six months after the cessation of hostilities the villages
would be returned to the villagers. Nevertheless, 28 villages appear to
be still in Government possession. At the time of evacuation, removal
of merchandise was strictly prohibited. This is a case demanding
close inquiry.
I enlose herewith an account furnished to me, marked
‘Enclosure 5’. 2
1
The addressee assured Gandhiji that he would have the sales tax examined
immediately.
2
The addressee said that eight villages would be permanently acquired as they
had been converted into airfields. The other 14 which were requisitioned for making
bricks were being released. The accusation that people in the requisitioned areas were
prevented from removing their movables was wrong. On the contrary help was given
to them to do so.

I have hurriedly drawn up this letter. The chief aim is to involve
as little reading as possible for you. If, however, any further papers
are required I shall be prepared to furnish them on my return from
Assam, I hope on the 14th. As I told you last evening I cannot myself
vouch for the accuracy of the facts given. They have been to me by
co-workers as being accurate. But if that is not so I stand open to
correction. If, however, they are found to be accurate I suggest that
they call for immediate inquiry. I have taken care to refer only to
those things which can be remedied without much difficulty or
expense and yet they are the things which will give relief to the
neediest.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANCHI
Enclosure: 5
284. LETTER TO DEVDAS GANDHI

SODEPUR,
January 8, 1946
CHI. DEVDAS,
I got your letter about Prabhu Dayal 1 on 3-1-1946. I am very
busy myself. Prabhua Dyal seems to be getting along fairly well. I
expect you have detained him, let me know the developments.
Kanchan has fallen ill. I have to go to Assam today.
I hope you are all well.
Blessings from
BAPU
S JT. D EVDAS GANDHI
“HINDUSTAN T IMES”
NEW DELHI
1
Prabhu Dayal Vidyarthi

S ODEPUR,
January 8, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I have sent the following wire :1
As it is Kanchan was ill. She was suffering from anaemia. Dr.
Bidhan sent his own pathologist, who took her blood sample and
examined it. She has been found to be suffering from severe
anaemia. It is because of this that her cough does not leave her. I
have not known even a millionaire receive better treatment than she is
receiving. Dr. Bidhan calls regularly and guides Sushilabehn. The
latter had treated her once through a serious illness and hence
Kanchan had complete faith in her. I do not therefore believe that
you will be able to do anything more by coming here. But if you feel
you must, I will not dissuade you. It might not be proper also in view
of the seriousness of the illness. I have, therefore, sent the above wire.
If you have already left this letter will be superfluous. But I am
dictating this assuming that you have not left. If you do come the
question will arise as to who will take charge there. I have therefore
sent a wire to Manibhai at Sevagram saying that, if he can, he should
leave immediately for Poona. If you have not already left, he will help
you. Take whatever help he can give. If you have already left,
Manibhai will do as he thinks best.
I had got your postcard yesterday. All the questions in it had
been answered in my previous letter.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah
January 9, 1946
Last night (Tuesday) was a terrible night for me. The crowds at
every station were unmanageable. The shouts, although well meant,
could not please me in my old age, if they ever pleased me before.
1
For the text, vide “Telegram to Munnalal G. Shah”, 8-1-1946

For I know that swaraj is made of truer and sterner stuff. They serve
no uselful purpose. In the beginning stages, when people out of fear
were afraid to hear their own voice, shouts and slogans had a place,
not today when we seem likely to achieve independence, maybe within
a few months. I was allowed last night no sleep except for what I
could snatch in between stations. I cannot repeat this performance for
many days and hope to live to the age of one hundred and twenty-five
years. Friends will now appreciate why I have hardened my heart
against even a brief tour through East Bengal. I would love to travel
throughout Bengal but I know that for the sake of the common cause
I must restrain myself and invite friends and co-workers to do
likewise. Let them and people at large satisfy themselves with what
service I can render without traveling as I used to before. Let the
leaders in the various places try to conciliate the populace surroun-
ding them and advise them to restrain from shouts and slogans and
from jostling one another.
One vulgar and uncivilized practice must be given up. There is
the chain on every train to be used strictly in times of danger or
accidents. Any other use of it and the consequent stoppage of the
train is not merely a punishable offence but it is a vulgar, thoughtless
and even dangerous misues of an instrument devised for great
emergancies. Any such misuse is a social abuse which, if it becomes a
custom, must result in a great public nuisance. It is up to every lover
of his country to issue a stern warning against such wanton abuse of a
humanitarian device intended for public safety.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 10-1-1946 and 11-1-1946

287. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING 1
SAULKUCHI,
January 9, 1946
Gandhiji said that he had noticed during the bhajan that some of the people
had failed to keep time with the song, but that was pardonable. He would like
that this form of congregational prayer be adopted all over Hindustan. He was
told that women in Assam sang sweetly during their work, for example when
they were spinning or weaving. Gandhiji had noticed that women had not joined
in today’s bhajan . It might be that they were ashamed to sing in chorus, but
Gandhiji told them that swaraj would not come until they gave up this feeling of
shyness.
He was thankful to them for maintaining peace in the prayer meeting. In a
few months they might have swaraj and they wanted to have swaraj within a few
months in a peaceful way. But could they achieve swaraj if they went on shouting
in season and out of season? This would go to show that they did not possess the
necessary discipline.
Mahatma Gandhi referred to the experience of his journey and the indisciplined
behaviour of the people at some places. He said this showed that the people had not
yet fully imbibed the principle of non-violence. Indiscipline, he added, was only a
variety of violence. If 40 crores of people or even a major part of them had
assimilated the message of truth and non-violence which the Congress had been
preaching for the last 25 years, India would have been free. But that was no reason for
despair or despondency. To inculcate perfect discipline and non-violence among
forty crores of people was no joke. It needed time. Twenty-five years were
insufficient for such a tremendous task. That was why he desired to live 125 years so
that he might, with his own eyes, see the consummation of his own ideas. But he
could not hope to live up to that span of life unless the conditions attaching to it were
fulfilled. If these conditions were fulfilled not only he, but anybody even in a country
like India where the average expectation of life was the lowest in the world could live
up to that period. It was clear, however, that if he exposed himself to experiences
like that of last night his candle would be burnt out within a month.
Britishers, continued Gandhiji, might realize, as they were bound to one
day, that they could not hold down an awakened people for all time with
force of bayonets and therefore, decide to transfer power to them. They (the
people) would find themselves in a quandary in that event, if they had no discipline
and organization. He hoped that they would not allow themselves to be caught
1
Held on the northen bank of the Brahmaputra. The first two paragraphs are
reproduced here from Amrita Bazar Patrika, 11-1-1946

napping like that.
There was no greater spell-binder of peace than the name of God, said
Gandhiji. He had, therefore, commenced the practice of holding mass prayers and
inviting people to join in singing Ramdhun to the beating of time with the hands, to
inculcate in the masses the spirit of non-violence and discipline. He would love to
see that the whole of India was covered with prayer gatherings like that.
The Hindu, 11-1-1946, and Amrita Bazar Patrika, 11-1-1946

GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
I have seen a report in the Press wholly baseless, to the effect
1
that I propose to give two days to Orissa before reaching Madras. I

would love, if I at all could, to give some days to Orissa and some days
to Andhra. But I know the limitations of My body. It gives the work
that it does from day to day to the utmost limit. Therefore, I cannot
break my journey either for Orissa or Andhra and I invite all friends
and co-workers in these two provinces to give their fullest co-
operation by telling people not to expect from me what seems to me
to be impossible. I do not know who is responsible for the report in
question.
1
The report appeared in Amrita Bazar Patrika, 8-1-1946

289. TELEGRAM TO JAMINI BOSE
EXPRESS GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
JAMINI BOSE1
C ONGRESS OFFICE
C HITTAGONG
YOUR WIRE. DOING NEEDFUL. WIRE OR POST FULL
PARTICULARS GIVING OSTENSIBLE CAUSE OUTRAGE.2
GANDHI

C AMP: S ARANIA ASHRAM,
GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I enclose herewith copy of a wire 3 received today. The story
seems to be unbelievable. I know you will inquire and take the
necessary steps, if there is any foundation for the truth of the story.4
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
H. E. THE GOVERNOR OF BENGAL
C ALCUTTA
1
President, Chittagong District Congress Committee
2
Four men of Ganjam Pioneer Corps and tried to molest a village woman
near Chittagong. On their attempt being foiled by the villagers they came back in
great strength and set fire to houses, assaulted men, molested women and plundered
property.
3
Vide the preceding item; also “Telegram to Private Secretary to the Governor
of Bengal”, 12-1-1946
4
Casey informed Gandhiji that the culprits would be tried by a civil (criminal)
court.

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 10, 1946
CHI. MIRA,
This is just to tell you that I succeeded only yesterday in
studying your drawings of the Himalayan scenes. They need greater
study than I was able to give them. But I had little difficulty in under-
standing and appreciating the love you have put into your work.
Your instructions at the back are most careful.
I hope you had my previous letter1 in answer to your long letter.
I do so wish you had less trouble with men and animals. Others
must write to you about the wonderful experience I am having
here.
Love.
BAPU
From the original: C.W. 6514. Courtesy: Mirabehn. Aslo G.N. 9909
292. LETTER TO TAYYEBULLA

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 10, 1946
DEAR TAYYEBULLA,
Some mutual friend had told me of your loss before your
letter was given to me on my arrival here last night at about 10 p.m.
Why grieve over the inevitable? And death is the common treasure of
all that lives. Imagine the torture that birth would be if there was
no death ! Loss therefore is a conventional word. Then true friendship
is tested finally by the death of the loved one. And the verse you
quote from the Holy Koran puts the finishing touch on all I say.
Let Him take what He has given. Let us then praise His great name.
My prayer with you.
You have done well in not coming to me.
Love.
BAPU
M.T AYYEBULLAH
NOWGONG
From a photostat: G.N. 3765. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
1
Vide “Letter to Mirabehn”, 17-12-1945

293. LETTER TO ARTHUR HENDERSON
AS AT S EVAGRAM,
“VIA” WARDHA, C.P., I NDIA,
C AMP: S ARANIA ASHRAM,
GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
Thank you for your letter received some days ago. I have been
busy with the annual session of the Women’s Conference and hence
unable to acknowledge it earlier. I am grateful to you for enquiring
about the matters mentioned to you by me when we last met. I do so
wish all political prisoners could be released. It would have a good
effect. What is more, it would be an act of justice though tardy.
I enclose a list of several prisoners who have done ten to fifteen
years in jail. This refers to Bengal only and then too the list is
probably not exhaustive. Some are in bad health. Do you not agree
that these should be released without delay ?
ARTHUR HENDERSON, E SQ.
UNDER S ECRETARY OF S TATE FOR INDIA
WHITE HALL
LONDON
294. LETTER TO CHAMPA R. MEHTA

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 10, 1946
CHI. CHAMPA,
I got your letter here last evening. You seem to have succeeded
very well. Kanta of course is a very obliging lady. She knows the art
of looking after children. I am, therefore, not surprised by what you
say. I am only pleased. How is Sarala? How is Kanta’s own health?
Ask her to write to me.
You have said nothing about Shanti. I trust the children are all
right.
Blessings from
BAPU
Champa R. Mehta

295. LETTER TO AMTUSSALAAM
GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
CHI. AMTULSALAAM,
Since you have been following my suggestions without arguing
about them, you are bound to get well. I should be very happy if
both of you sisters 1 recover enough to be able to come to Madras.
But it will be as God wills. I may not write to anybody else today.
Blessings to all.
Blessings from
BAPU

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 10, 1946
CHI. PUSHPA,
I got your letter. Keep meeting Vinobaji from time to time.
You should regard it as your dharma to write regularly cour-
teous letters to Father. If you want to tread the path of truth, you
should lovingly and in a spirit of humility do whatever work of service
is entrusted to you. If you understand only this much, all your pro-
blems will be sloved. To say that God may lead you to this path of
truth would be tautologous. Truth itself is God. Hence dedication to
truth is itself discovery of the path of truth. Reflect on all the impli-
cations of the path of bhakti from this point of view.
Blessings from
BAPU
1
The addressee and Kanchan M. Shah

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 10, 1946
I have your two letters before me, which I am enclosing. I am
sorry to learn that Parnerkar’s sister’s son has passed away. I
understand what you say about Anantramji. It will be good if he
grows leafy vegetables. See how much land Aryanayakumji wants
and where he would like to have it. In my opinion, we should give
him whatever he wants. Maybe I have left out something but today
only this much.
Blessings from
BAPU

GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
Gandhiji congratulated the gathering on the beautiful way in which they
had followed Ramdhun. Particularly he was pleased that women had whole- heartedly
joined in it without any feeling of false shame. In taking the name of God, hesitation
and fear as well as false shame were equally out of place. The man who had the
realization of God Who dwelt in the hearts of all beings should know no fear.
“Jai Hind” should not replace “Vandemataram”. 1 The words which Subhas
Bose uttered were very pleasant to hear. But by this poeple should not forget
Vandemataram which was being uttered since the inception of the Congress. First,
they should say “Vandemataram” and then “Jai Hind”. He would whole-heartedly
return that greeting but it should not be to the exclusion of “Vandemataram”. If they
could discard “Vandemataram” which had such a tradition of sacrifice behind it, he was
afraid they would one day discard “Jai Hind” also.
1
The source had reported that Gandhiji was greeted by some girl volunteers
with ‘Jai Hind’ as he arrived at the prayer ground.

Gandhiji reiterated his belief that Subhas Babu was not dead, but was hiding
somewhere1 and said that if he could communicate with Subhas Babu, he was sure the
latter would endorse him in his view about “Vandemataram”.
The Hindu, 12-1-1946

GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I got your wire. Your decision not to come over is perfectly

correct. It was my dharma to send you the wire that I did. I had
explained to you what your dharma was at the time of your father’s
death. You have adhered to that. May you be blessed. I daily get
news about Kanchan’s progress I am dictating this in the early hours
of the morning. I had a wire from Sushila yesterday, saying that
Kanchan was improving. She gives the credit to penicillin. I believe
that Sushila has nursed her very well indeed. She has stayed behind
entirely for the sake of Kanchan. Let us see now what happens.
Perhaps this serious illness may bring about a complete transfor-
mation in Kanchan. She is simple-hearted but is very much of a child
also. As she grows in age, she does not correspondingly grow in
understanding. Can it be that you are the cause of that? The people
around us believe so, and hold me also jointly responsible with you.
I do not admit the charge. But that is another matter. I have men-
tioned the thing in case you would like to think over it.
Manibhai must have arrived there by now. We had in any case
decided to summon him there, and becuase of the development
regarding Kanchan I felt it my dharma to send him there and asked
him to proceed immediately if he was free. I have had very little
experience of him. But Shantilal,who has lived at Sevagram for some
time, and Ishvarlal Desai, husband of Nirmala, Mahadev’s sister, have
given me the impression that he is a man of uncommon ability.
Narahari has had experience of him and seen his worth. You will,
therefore, find Manibhai of the greatest help. He is a capable man at
any rate.
I have been insisting on the account books being kept in
English entirely for the sake of Jehangirji2 . If he is not keen on that,
1
Vide also “Discussion with Midnapore Political Workers”, 2-1-1946
2
Jehangir Patel

you may by all means have them kept in Hindi or Marathi. Can it be
so arranged that the months and the dates are entered according to the
Gregorian calendar, so that Jehangirji can check them ?
You can show this letter to Dinshaw. You may show him any
letter of mine.
Give the accompanying letter to Manibhai. Give Doctor the
letter I am writing for him.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah
300. LETTER TO SITA CHARAN DIKSHIT

GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
BHAI DIKSHITJI,
I have your clear letter. It is good that you have written frankly.
I am dictating this also at a Mahila Ashram. It is in Gauhati. A camp
of the Kasturba Fund is being held here. On one side there is a village
and on the other Gauhati city. It is utterly peaceful.
It gave me satisfaction to know that the cereals which were used
for the camp would be cooked as kedgeree. It is quite true that I like
garba and this I mentioned there. In one way I liked the scene, but
from another point of view I did not like it and felt sorry.1 I could not
then express myself in words as I was deeply moved. My heart has
already in Bengal. I can never say that there was anything wrong in
what you did. There was nothing wrong. The whole scene was one of
love and it was performed with my consent. Even so I had some talk
with Shriman Narayan. But its purport was quite different. I do not
remember whether I was able to convey it or not. But if I could not
speak out then I am telling you now. The Mahila Ashram is an
institution of the poor. It is born of a noble sentiment. It is filled with
Jamnalalji’s feelings and Vinobaji’s tapascharya. It is regarded as a
good means of rendering service to poor women. And its manage-
ment is in the hands of Shantabehn. And yet what a difference
between what does on in such an institution and the almost naked
1
Vide “Speech at Mahila Ashram”, 30-11-1945

condition of the millions of poor women of India and Bengal. And I
being a witness to all this. It wrung my heart then. Even as I recall
the scene, my heart weeps. Even if I could not convey my meaning,
Shriman understood it and conveyed it. I dictate this early in the
morning. If it calls for further explanation, or if you want to know
more, ask me when I come there. You may share this letter with all.
Blessings from
BAPU
From Hindi: C.W. 10421. Courtesy: Sita Charan Dikshit
301. LETTER TO MANIBHAI

S ARANIA ASHRAM, A SSAM,
January 11, 1946
CHI. MANIBAHI,
Naraharibhai replied to my wire and what I had expected has
come about. Give all help to Munnalal. Do as much as you can
without harming your health. I expect to see in all you do firmness,
sweetness, cleanliness and skill. That is the impression Chi. Shantilal
has given me of you and, as far as my experience goes, you have lived
up to this reputation. I had intended to take you to Poona with me
but circumstances have conspired otherwise; and I think it is all for the
better. Please write to me. Munnalal will give you my itinerary.
I hope your leaving Sevagram has not inconvenienced Nara-
hari.

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 11, 1946
CHI. DINSHAW,
Chi. Munnalal’s wife Kanchanbehn has been very ill, so I
sent a wire saying that he should be relieved if he wanted to come
away. I assumed that someone would have to replace him there and
so telegraphed to Sevagram also asking them to send M[anibhai],
whom I regard as very competent. He has promptly left for Poona.
I am glad I have been told that Manibhai is a very good worker. I
believe it. I have hardly any personal experience of him. You will
have some.

I hope you received the Rs. 10,000 I sent you, so the new
account will not suffer from paucity of funds.
The patients who were already there should adapt them-
selves to the new pattern. They should mix with the poor. Every-
one should be punctual to the minute. Over and above this, you
should accommodate them only if they pay or else let them leave.
This alone will be true comradeship. We cannot any more allot
separate rooms to the patients according to their wishes. In fact for
the present we cannot accommodate patients who need separate
rooms. I have already written to you to allow as much privacy as the
patients may need. I hope you remember it. If you haven’t had such
instructions from me so far, please make a note now.
Munnalal suggests that the English method of book-keeping is
more expensive. I believe it is true. How would it matter if we
maintained accounts in the Indian style? The Indian method can also
ensure accurate account-keeping. Indian firms maintain accounts in
the Indian way and carry on business in millions involving dealings
with English banks. And since our little affair is going to be and
should be worthy of an Indian we ought to infuse into it the swadeshi
atmosphere as far as possible right from the beginning. Please show
this letter to Jehangirji. It was at his instance that we had agreed to
maintain accounts in the English way. But I believe, if opting for the
English method is likely to cause an expenditure of Rs. 40 to 50 per
month, Jehangirji would be in favour of saving the amount. The
money that I shall contribute must be regarded as belonging to the
poor. I may be getting it from the rich, but once it comes into my
hands it becomes the poor man’s pie, to be spent solely for the poor.
All my dealings are carried on in the same old way and it pains me
that now because of my old age I cannot fully follow that way, and I
also put up with the situation because I cannot get on otherwise. But I
must not burden others with my foibles.
I hope you got my earlier letters, and have replied to them.
For the present save all avoidable expenditure. I shall try my
best to reach there on the 20th or the 21st of February. It is in God’s
hands whether I shall succeed.

303. LETTER TO SUSHILA GANDHI
S ARANIA ASHRAM, G AUHATI,
[January 11, 1946] 1
CHI. SUSHILA (GANDHI),
I saw what you wrote at the bottom of Arun’s 2 letter. You will
know from my letter to him how my mind is working. You should
not be soft. There is a famous line in Kalidasa and, I think also in the
Bhagavata. It says that love is more tender than a flower and harder
than steel.3 That alone is love which can soften or harden with the
occasion, all else is infatuation. Those who are worldly-wise should
also note that such famous sayings are often misconstrued.
There are many occasions when I remember all of you. There
are also occasions when there is a feeling of relief that you did not
come. The experience which you are gaining there and what Arun
and Ila are witnessing is of course worth while. Maybe, comparatively
speaking that is better than anything else. Ila for one was not likely to
have imbibed anything in this place. Hence, for her at least I regard
this atmosphere as positively bad. You needed peace. You cannot
expect to find peace in my company, especially while I am touring.
Arun’s can be considered a different case, yet on the whole he is
likely to be safest while he is before your eyes. He is a fine boy. I am
of the view that he will have achieved all if he grows finer and finer.
As for the other development everything happens in its own course.
And in the absence of nobility of character even the Kingdom of
Heaven is meaningless.
1
The letter is found among letters of this date.
2
The addressee’s son
3
Uttararamcharita, II. 7

304. LETTER TO KAILAS D. MASTER1
GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
CHI. KAILAS,
I have your letter. I shall say you have grown very wise if you
get good testimonials from everyone there. And then I shall have
nothing more to say to you. I shall be glad and the expectations that
Prabhudas himself has entertained and has encouraged me to entertain
of you will bear fruit. Besides, you already have my blessing that you
may grow to be a very fine girl. There is much scope there to learn
for anyone who wants.
I have your brother’s letter to which I am enclosing a reply.
Pass it on to him after you have read it. Don’t encourage him to
come till you are yourself perfectly settled and don’t let him come
until he grows into a very hard-working, firm and obedient boy. The
question of his earning anything does not arise. See that in your zeal
you do not encourage him only to repent later and cause
embarrassment to others. You must watch out. You must draw your
letters still bigger and you must form them well. You have learnt
Urdu, haven’t you ?
Blessings from
BAPU
KAILASBEHN
305. LETTER TO JITU MASTER

GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
CHI. JITU 2 ,
I have your letter. You must improve your handwritting. I am
glad you want to live in the Ashram. But it is a difficult life.
You can lead Ashram life in your home and pursue the crafts
1
2
Brother of Kailash D. Master; vide the preceding item.

that are pursued in the Ashram. If you don’t have the strength to do
it the Ashram cannot endow you with it. Wanting to live in the
Ashram merely for this is, I am afraid, mere infatuation.1
Blessings from
BAPU

GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
CHI. ARUN,
I have your letter. I find it better than your earlier one,
although it has scope for improvement, which you must bring about.
I would always advise you and it is my wish that wherever you be you
will always fully observe your vow.
I can very well understand that there are difficulties while one is
travelling. It is also quite understandable that sometimes one just
cannot spin however much one wants to. I shouldn’t mind if you are
not lazy but fail to spin owning to some unavoidable circumstances.
Thorough observance of one vow straightens out all other matters.
This is invariably found to be the case.
Why is Ila growing insolent. As her elder brother, you are, I
think, to blame for it. She is a nice girl. You can therefore help her
make good progress.2
Blessings from
BAPU
ARUN GANDHI
DELHI
1
The letters are in the Devanagari script.
2
ibid

307. LETTER TO PRABHU DAYAL VIDYARTHI
GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
CHI. PRABHU DAYAL,
I was glad to have your letter. I had seen your letter to
Sushilabehn and I think she had sent a reply also.
It is right for you to remain there as long as they do not relieve
you.
I shall pay your expenses, including your return fare. Draw the
amount from Devdas and that, too, from my account. As long as
Devdas is there, there should be no need to send it from the Ashram.
The Government have of course offered to pay for your journeys.
All this is only for your information.
The Delhi weather is considered to be the best during this
season. Normally, [good] climate and pure food are adequate for
maintaining good health.
I understand about the Jamia. It would indeed be good if they
let you stay there. Maybe they cannot for want of accommodation
but if the reason is paucity of funds you can tell them that your
expenses will be borne by the Ashram.
I am writing to Bhai Shriram. It is good that you informed me.
From here, I shall reach Sodepur on the 14th and on the 19th. I
may leave there for Madras. That means that a letter written to reach
me by the 19th, should be sent to the Sodepur address.
C/ O DEVDAS GANDHI
“HINDUSTAN TIMES”
NEW DELHI
From a photostat of the Hindi: G.N. 11696. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy:
Pyarelal

308. LETTER TO SHRIRAM SHARMA
[January 11, 1946] 1

BHAI SHRIRAMJI SHARMA,
Prabhu Dayal writes that you lost a son while you were in jail
and another after your release. What can I write to you? How can I
console you? But where is any call for consolation on a death? Why
fear death? Is death painful? And is birth joyful? Why is it that great
epics such as the Ramayana teach the same thing? Because, on
reflection, we find that birth and death are but two sides of the same
thing. What is there good or bad about it? A world without death
would be a frightful thing. Maybe the world would then have peri-
shed. All this is not philosophizing but an utterance of the thoughts
that come to my mind.
Prabhu Dayal also writes that after meditation in the jail, your
faith in truth and non-violence has grown much stronger and that you
and your whole family spin beautiful yarn. All this makes me very
happy.
My Assam tour will end tomorrow. I intend to leave Calcutta
for Madras on the 19th and February 8 is the date when I reach
Sevagram.
My address in Madras: Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha,
Thyagarayanagar. At Calcutta, it will of course be Khadi Pratishthan,
Sodepur. I shall expect your reply at either Place.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRIRAM S HARMA
BALKA BASTI
NAGPUR
1
In the source this is placed among the letters of this date.

309. LETTER TO ADVAITKUMAR GOSWAMI
[January 11, 1946] 1

BHAI ADVAITKUMAR,
I have your letter. I am trying to find out. Let us see what
happens.
I have the Raja Saheb’s2 letter. I have not yet read it.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI ADVAITKUMAR GOSWAMI
C/ O MUNICIPAL C OMMISSIONER
BRINDABAN
From a copy of the Hindi: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy : Pyarelal
310. LETTER TO SHANTA NERULKAR

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
[January 11, 1946] 3
CHI. SHANTA,
I have your letter. You write with too much hesitation. There is
no reason for it. It does not matter that I may not reply. I must still
have letters from you.
Your illness pains me. One who would serve the villages should
have a body strong as steel.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRIMATI S HANTA NERULKAR
1
2
Presumably Raja Mahendra Pratap; vide “Letter to G.E.B. Abell”, 12-1-1946
3

311. SPEECH AT KASTURBA MEMORIAL COMMITTEE
MEETING1
GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
Addressing the gathering, Gandhiji explained the aims and objects of Kasturba
Memorial Trust which had been started2 during the period when he was in jail. Later
on he lent a hand in framing the Trust of the Fund.3 The idea behind the whole scheme
of Kasturba Trust had been to make women self-reliant and self-sufficient. This did
not mean that men would go down, but if womenfolk improved and raised themselves
up, men would automatically be raised higher. It is good that in India there were no
quarrels between the menfolk and the womenfolk as existed in other countries. But
that did not mean that the condition of Indian women was better than those of
European countries. If the resources of Assam could be utilized, then the face of Assam
could be changed. So much time was wasted in useless and idle talk. If they kept a
diary of their work for the 24 hours, then they would know it. If they could utilize
only a portion of the time they wasted for constructive work, there would be a
wonderful improvement in their condition. In Assam muga industry was one through
which people could change their conditions considerably and thus could do immense
service to the cause of their country.
He knew that quite a number of ladies had come merely to see him. But he
could tell them that if they could devote all their strength to the execution of his
constructive programme they would be immensely benefited.4
Gandhiji emphasized that beauty lay not in ornaments or fine clothes but in
doing something good and in applying oneself to doing some service to others.
Replying to certain questions, Gandhiji said that the relation between the
Congress and the Kasturba Memorial Trust was nothing but at the same time
everything. If Congressmen took interest, the relation was there. If not, there was
no relation.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 13-1-1946, and The Hindu, 13-1-1946
1
This was held at Sarania Ashram to seek Gandhiji’s advice on uplift of
women.
2
On March 18, 1944
3
In 1944
4
What follows is reproduced from The Hindu, 13-1-1946.

GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
Gandhiji said that prayer was his life. He felt that the man who did not pray
was a dry person, devoid of everything. He did not know whether salvation could
come in the other world. He wanted salvation in this world, and did not bother about
the other world. As he was a social being he could not have salvation for himself
alone. That was why he wanted to share prayer with all of them.
Gandhiji was sorry that there was some misunderstanding about his going to
the women’s ashram (a centre of constructive work in a tribal area about 20 miles
from here). He did not promise to go there, but a number of persons collected there
and they were grieved as he did not go. He wanted to tell them through the people
here and to the whole of India as well, that he had not the capacity now to go from
place to place in view of his old age. He therefore wanted to work staying at one
place.
313. LETTER TO HOSHIARI
[After January 11, 1946] 1

CHI. HOSHIARI,
I have your letter. Why is your mind perturbed at times? If you
have grown wise enough there can be no cause for disturbance. Isn’t
it our duty to be completely engrossed in our own work of service? At
the Ashram especially, every minute of one’s time has to be devoted
to service. What more can you ask for? It is equally important that
you maintain good health. For that hip-bath, friction-bath, mud-
packs on the abdomen and regular walks are essential. For strength of
character and concentration Ramanama.
Does Gajaraj attend school regularly? Ask him to write to me.
Blessings from
BAPU
1
In the source the letter is placed after those of January 11.

314. TELEGRAM TO PRIVATE SECRETARY TO THE
GOVERNOR OF BENGAL
GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
P RIVATE S ECRETARY
H. E. GOVERNOR
C ALCUTTA
PRESIDENT CONGRESS COMMITTEE CHITTAGONG SENDS WIRE
ACCUSING CERTAIN PIONEER FORCE PERSONS MOLESTING
FEMALES AND WHEN RESISTED RETURNING IN
VENGEANCE WITH COMPANIONS ATTACKING VILLAGERS
BURNING HOUSES LOOTING PROPERTY. TRUST FULL
INQUIRY WILL BE MADE AND PROPER JUSTICE RENDERED.1
GANDHI
315. TELEGRAM TO NAWAB OF BHOPAL

EXPRESS GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
H. H. B HOPAL
BARODA HOUSE
NEW DELHI
YOUR KIND WIRE. BHOPAL SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE. NOT SURE
ABOUT DELHI. WRITING.
GANDHI
1
Vide “Telegram to Jamini Bose”, 10-1-1946

316. LETTER TO SIR STAFFORD CRIPPS
AS AT S EVAGRAM, VIA WARDHA ( INDIA),
C AMP: GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
DEAR SIR STAFFORD,
I was delighted to receive your letter1 of 19th December, 1945.
As I am touring in Bengal and Assam, your kind greetings were
received only yesterday. The Rajkumari had described her talks with
you and told me how affectionate you were towards me. I am hoping
that this time2 there is determination to do the right thing in terms of
Indian thought. I well remember what King Edward had said about
right dealing. I was then in South Africa. The question was of inter-
preting the treaty between the British and the Boers and the King had
gently insisted on the Boer interpretation being accepted in preference
to the British. How I wish that the admirable canon be repeated this
time.
I hope with you that this New Year will bring to the thirsting
earth the much-needed shower of peace and goodwill for which the
“Prince of Peace” lived and died.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
S IR R. S TAFFORD C RIPPS
BOARD OF TRADE
MILLBANK
LONDON, S.W. 1
1
This said: “I most profoundly hope that in these coming months we shall be
able by mutual understanding, respect and trust, to work out between us a happier and
brighter future for India. I know you have laboured for this throughout your life and I
pray that it may be given to you to see the climax of your hopes in the realization of
your desires. I shall, as always, try and play my part towards that happy solution of
the great problems which confront our two countries.”
2
The reference is to the Cabinet Mission, consisting of three members
including the addressee, which was to arrive in India with a view to finding a solution
for the Indian Problem.

AS FROM KHADI P RATISHTHAN, S ODEPUR,
C AMP: G AUHATI,
January 12, 1946
DEAR MR. ABELL,
I am writing to you on behalf of Gandhiji. A couple of days ago he received a
letter from Raja Mahendra Pratap dated October 19th, 1945, from Yokohama Prison.
The letter came through the American Red Cross. He has also received a letter from a
friend of Raja Mahendra Pratap to say that rumour has it that he is now in prison
somewhere in India. Is this true? If so, could you let Gandhiji have any particulars
about him ?1
Yours sincerely,
AMRIT KAUR
318. LETTER TO M. R. JAYAKAR

C AMP: GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
DEAR DR. JAYAKAR,
Your kind letter and copy of the Sapru Committee 2 Report was
received during my Assam tour. I was wondering why I had not
received a copy and had to content myself with Press notices. I had
come to the conclusion that my copy must have been sent to Seva-
gram and was awaiting my return there. I was, therefore, doubly
pleased to find your letter and a copy of the report during my stay in
Gauhati.
I wonder if you have seen the enclosed cutting.
I propose to read the report if I can find sufficient time for it.
In any case I know enough of the report from my discussions
1
The addressee informed Gandhiji that Raja Mahendra Pratap was in Tokyo and
he no longer possessed British Indian nationality.
2
Appointed by the Standing Committee of the Non-Party Conference in
November 1944. Its report, which was compiled by T. B. Sapru, M. R. Jayakar,
N. Gopalaswami Iyengar and Kunwar Jagadish Prasad, was published on December 27,
1945. For a summary of the proposals, vide “The Sapru Committee Proposals”,
27-12-1945

with you and Dr. Radhakrishnan to feel that it is bound to be of value
to constitution-makers.
Whilst I send this letter in English for fear of your resentment, I
must inform you that nowadays to most Indian friends I have been
studiedly writing in Hindustani or, when I find it is cruel to write to a
countryman in the South in Hindustani, I take speical care to get
someone near me who knows one of the Southern languages to write
in it. So I hope you will not mind receiving my letter one fine
morning written in rashtrabhasha.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
Enclosure: cutting from The Statesman, 28-12-1945, entitled
“Out of date”.
DR. M. R. J AYAKAR
WINTER R OAD
MALABAR HILL, B OMBAY
Gandhi-Jayakar Papers. File No. 326. p. 37. Courtesy: National Archives of
India
319. LETTER TO G. A. NATESAN

[AS AT] S ODEPUR,
January 12, 1946
BHAI NATESAN,
Your two letters. Jagadisan wrote to me about the state of Sas-
triar’s1 health. I shall certainly see him.
As for visiting your house, I am at present unable to decide.
Apart from the question whether I shall have the time for the purpose,
the trouble of the journey to and fro may be too much for me to bear.
What can I—who have not read many books—say about
books 2 ? Again, do I have Sastriar’s power of writing? It is said that
few are as well read as he and that the books he has not read are not
worth reading. But I for my part have not read most of the books that
ought to be read. What then could I write? And where is the time ?
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI3
From a photostat of the Tamil: G.N. 2239. Also C.W. 10525
1
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri, vide also “Letter to V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”
2
The addressee was publishing in Indian Review, of which he was the editor, a
symposium on “Books that have influenced me”.
3
The letter was originally written in Hindi but the translation of it in Tamil
bears Gandhiji’s signature in Tamil.

320. LETTER TO MARGARET BARR1
January 12, 1946

DEAR MARGARET,
You will pardon me when I tell you that I had forgotten—which
I should not have done—that you were in Shillong. I am going to
Dhubri today and from there tomorrow I say goodbye to Assam.
Therefore, for the folly of my forgetfulness—and shall I also say your
folly in not descending to Gauhati to meet me—I shall have to go
away without seeing you even though you are within such a short
distance of me. However, it is good that you have reminded me of
your presence in Shillong and told me how well you are doing there.
I am sure you have gained by following my instructions about
not taking part in the political turmoil.
Yes. I have been hearing fairly regularly from Mary 2 . I agree
with you that she will return to India when your father does not need
her services. So far as I gather from her letters, however, she does not
expect to come back to India in the near future. It does appear as if
there ever will be a time when your father will not need her services.
According to my calculation if the old Mr. Barr’s life is being spent
in accordance with the teaching of Ishopanishad, he must complete
the full span of life i.e., 125 years. Have you read that little
Upanishad? If not you should get a copy from some library there or
at least in Dr. B. C. Roy’s collection. I suppose you know he has a
bungalow there.
I shall be in Khadi Pratishthan, Sodepur, near Calcutta, for 4 or
5 days and then proceed to Madras.
Love.
BAPU
MISS MARGARET BARR
MALKI, S HILLONG
1
This was delivered by hand on January 12.
2
Addressee’s sister

321. LETTER TO RAJA MAHENDRA PRATAP
January 12, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your letter1 after a long lapse of time. It appears to be a
manifesto and you have invited publication of it. I, however, refrain
from sending it to the Press at the moment. I would like to know from
you whether you are allowed to receive visitors. Goswami2 has
enquired about you to find out your whereabouts and suddenly within
two days of this enquiry I got your letter. Are you permitted to tell me
whether you are to be tried or how long you are to be detained? From
your letter I gather that you are keeping well and are being well
treated. Are you kept in company with others or are you by yourself?
Your friends and advisers would certainly like to know all about you.
Yours sincerely,
322. LETTER TO SECRETARY, AMERICAN RED CROSS,

CALCUTTA
AS FROM KHADI P RATISHTHAN,
S ODEPUR,
January 12, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I am enclosing herewith a letter from Gandhiji addressed to Raja Mahendra
Pratap, who was arrested some five months ago in Tokyo by Gen. MacArthur for trial
as a war criminal by the British. Gandhiji’s letter is in reply to a letter just received
from Raja Mahendra Pratap dated 19th October, 1945. The letter is written in the
letter head of the American Red Cross and the address given is :
XI CORPS STOKADE NO. 1
YOKOHAMA PRISON
APO 503, JAPAN.
A long time has elapsed since this letter was written and it has even been
reported that Raja Mahendra Pratap has been handed over to the British by
1
The addressee who had been imprisoned by the U. S. Occupation Authorities
in Japan had requested Gandhiji to do everything humanly possible to have him freed
so that he could work for world peace.
2
Advaitkumar Goswami

Gen. MacArthur and is now somewhere in India. Since the letter is written in the
letterhead of the American Red Cross I presume you will be able to forward this letter
to him. Gandhiji will be grateful if you can furnish him the address of Raja Mahendra
Pratap.
A line in reply to the effect that Gandhiji’s letter has been forwarded to Raja
Mahendra Pratap will be appreciated.1
Yours sincerely,
AMRIT KAUR
SECRETARY
AMERICAN RED CROSS
CALCUTTA
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. Courtesy.
323. LETTER TO SITA VIJAYARAGHAVACHARI

C AMP: GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
CHI. SITA,
I am delighted to have your letter. I see that you do know
some Hindustani. Why then should you write in English? I well
remember how devotedly you looked after your father and how you
meant everything to him. But why are you grieved over his passing ?2
It is difficult for me to go to Salem. I would be glad if you
could come and see me some day after I reach Madras.
I very well remember the affection your father had for me. I
expect to reach Madras after the 21st of this month.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRIMATI S ITA VIJAYARAGHAVACHARIAR
S ALEM
1
C. Vijayaraghavachari; he was President of the Nagpur session of the
Congress in 1920.
2
He died on April 19, 1944, at Salem.

324. LETTER TO SARALABEHN
S ODEPUR,
January 12, 1946
1
CHI. SARALA ,
I have your letter. It gives all the news. Do whatever your
health permits.
It is good that you informed me about the Nainital friend. When
it is turned into a hospital the house, I am sure, will prove a great help
to the poor.
I hope you have not forgotten your Urdu lessons. Ten minutes
devoted to a thing daily produce far better results than hours spent on
it irregularly; this is an unwritten law.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRIMATI S ARALABEHN
LAKSHMI ASHRAM
[KAUSANI]
325. LETTER TO N. G. RANGA

GAUHATI, A SSAM,
January 12, 1946
BHAI RANGA,
I have your letter. Do as you like about your forthcoming
book 2 .
Your latest book3 has not yet been received. I shall go through
it when I get it.
1
Catherine Heilman, an Egnlish Jewess. She first came to India in 1932 as a
teacher in an experimental school at Udaipur.
2
Presumably Mahatma Gandhi’s Message to Oppressed Races
3
Presumably Outlines of National revolutionary Path, which was published in
December 1945

326. TALK TO HARIJANS 1
GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
He enquired about their wages, their accommodation and their food supply.
When his attention was drawn to the next engagement, which was a meeting with
sufferers of the August movement, Gandhiji was heard to say that he would also meet2
them now. They were martyrs and many people would feel for them, but nobody
would feel for these Harijans.
Referring to the condition of the Harijans he said that he knew how they lived
and what they ate. Their condition was almost similar to what it was in other parts of
India. Gandhiji asked two headmen of the Harijans to wait and see Mrs. Jayaprakash
Narayan and give her a detailed account of their condition. He would try to do what
he could for them.
327. TALK TO SUFFERERS OF AUGUST DISTURBANCES

GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
Giving his blessings to these sufferers, Mahatmaji said that the victims
had done what duty they had to do for the country. There was nothing for which
they or the members of their families should be sorry. At yesterday’s prayer
meeting he had asked people to be fearless. They (family members) also should
be fearless.
328. SPEECH AT POLITICAL WORKERS’ CONFERENCE3

GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
Explaining the scope of the constructive programme to them Gandhiji by way
of an illustration described how a capital expenditure of about twenty five lakhs of
rupees had been able to put into the pockets of the poor a sum amounting to not less
1
Gandhiji met about four hundred Harijans at Sarania Ashram.
2
3
About seven hundred workers were present at the meeting.

than five crores of rupees. Indian cloth consumption, he said, amounted to about one
hundred crores of rupees according to the present price level. All that money can be
prevented from going out of the pockets of the people by fulfilling one item of the
constructive programme, namely, khadi.
With regard to parliamentary programme Gandhiji reiterated what he had
previously said 1 at Sodepur. He was fully convinced that if all the people
boycotted the legislatures, the country or the nation would not be losers by that. On
the contrary, Gandhiji stressed that it would mean a great addition to their strength.
But he realized that was not practical politics at present and as a realist he realized the
necessity of preventing self-seekers and enemies of the freedom of India from
entering the legislatures. The main function of the legislatures should be the
advancement of constructive work. Any programme that hindered constructive work
was not worth taking up. As an illustration of constructive work Gandhiji
mentioned the services to Adivasis. Today, he said, they had been divided into water-
tight compartments by the ruling power and that was why Adivasis had
been classified as tribal races. It was a shame that they should be isolated from
the nation of which they were an inalienable part. Here was a vast field of
constructive work which Gandhiji exhorted all to take up. Nobody could
prevent them from undertaking this kind of constructive work. And if for
undertaking constructive work they were put in jail, they should not be afraid of jail-
going. In this connection Gandhiji referred to his own stand in the Champaran
Satyagraha.
In the course of his long and convincing speech Gandhiji made references to
the names of Abbas Tyabji, Badshah Khan and Pandit Jawaharlal in order to illustrate
his points by concrete examples.
329. MESSAGE TO ASSAM STUDENT VOLUNTEERS

S ARANIA ASHRAM,
January 12, 1946
I thank all volunteers of Assam Students’ Union for the
services they rendered and wish them all success. My blessings are
with them.
1
Vide “Speech at Congress Workers Conference-II”, 6-1-1946

330. LETTER TO VICHITRA NARAYAN SHARMA
ON THE S TEAMER,
January 13, 1946
CHI. VICHITRA,
I have your letter of 26-12-1945. Come and see me by all
means. Consult Dada if you want. I see that you and Jajuji do not get
on well. I am unable to make up my mind whether I should try to
persuade you to keep together or let you work independently in your
different ways. Either course can be justified. What harm could there
be if you were to work independently of the Charkha Sangh? You
are both devoted to khadi. It is possible that under Jajuji’s control,
the Meerut Gandhi Ashram’s progress is arrested and they cannot
work to their full capacity. If it is so and if Jawaharlalji and Pantji are
also of the same opinion, why not have a separate organization for
khadi in the U. P.? Assuming that it is done for the love of khadi and
if, as a result, khadi is more successful in the U. P., such a step would
only do good instead of harm. There have been many instances in
my life when I gave such encouragement and it always resulted in
good. The latest instance is that of the Hindi Sahitya sammelan. I quit
it. How could I oppose Tandonji? He had the main part in building
up the organization. I do not approve of his present policies and feel
that I would be able to serve Hindi well, perhaps even better, by
keeping out of it. In case it does not turn out so, I shall admit my
mistake and follow Tandonji. But if I have not made a mistake, I shall
only further the cause of the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan from outside.
The important point is that our actions should not be inspired by
selfish motives and our ultimate aim should be one and the same.
Maybe I should be able to make a definite statement if I could meet
all the people.
Think well over this letter, consult the others and write to me
what you think is the proper course of action. I shall reach Madras
probably on the 21st and shall stay there for 15 days. You may come
there if you like. Jajuji will of course be there. You need not go there
immediately I arrive. We can manage even if you come in the
beginning of February. My sole intention is that all khadi devotees
should make all-round progress and khadi should get its rightful
place. Of course, if you do not sincerely believe in non-violence, do

not consider khadi its symbol and have no faith in my present policy
with regard to khadi, then it is a different matter. When our views
differ to such an extent, the question assumes a wholly different form.
And if, while maintaining different views with regard to the above
three points you still want to serve khadi, you must dissociate yourself
from the Sangh. Then the question is not one of differences with
Jajuji but of differences over principle, and if that be the case they
ought to be cleared up.
Blessings from
BAPU
331. LETTER TO DR. PATTABHI SITARAMAYYA

ON TOUR IN ASSAM,
January 13, 1946
BHAI PATTABHI,
I enclose herewith a cutting1 from The Nationalist of Calcutta.
Is the report correct? If so, we have no right to offend anyone like
this. Whatever the case we have to be civil in the face of incivility.
This is the secret of non-violence. There is nothing indecorous if
your association is represented by ten delegates.
Think over it and do as you think right.
Blessings from
BAPU
P ATTABHI S ITARAMAYYA
332. LETTER TO NAWAB OF BHOPAL

P. S. Persian,
January 13, 1946
NAWAB SAHEB,
I had your wire. I hope you got my reply 2 sent from Gauhati.
My position is not at all comfortable. The pressure of work is so
1
Not traceable
2
Vide “Telegram to Nawab of Bhopal”, 12-1-1946

heavy that if I take one hour off, one hour’s work piles up. Under the
circumstances how can I go to Bhopal? I have to keep some margin of
time for Delhi because in the event of my presence being indis-
pensable I have to go there. In that case, I shall inform you accor-
dingly.
I hope you will understand my helplessness. What more can
I say ?
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
BY HAND
From a copy of the Urdu. Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
333. INTERVIEW TO UNITED PRESS OF INDIA1
[January 13, 1946]

Asked whether the cry of Jai Hind could be appropriately adopted in a non-
violent action since originally it was devised by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as a war
cry, Mahatma Gandhi said :
It does not follow that because Jai Hind was devised by
Subhas Babu as a war cry in armed warfare, it must be eschewed in a
non-violent action. On that basis even Vandemataram may have to
be given up because there are instances of people committing violence
with this cry on their lips. If a thing is essentially an evil it becomes a
positive duty to abjure it In my opinion Jai Hind and Vandemataram
have almost the same meaning. In one we make obeisance to Mother
India and thereby wish her victory; the other merely wishes her
victory. There is no question of singing the two together. As I have
said2 before Jai Hind cannot replace Vandemataram.
Asked whether Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose enjoyed the same place in his
esteem and affection and whether he heard what Netaji and written about him in his
reported book Father of All Nations, as was believed in some sections of the people
of Assam, Gandhiji replied :
I have not read what Subhas Babu is reported to have said about
me. But I am not surprised at what you tell me. My relations with
him were always of the purest and best. I always knew his capacity for
1
Gandhiji was interviewed by a special correspondent of U. P. I. aboard the
steamer Persian which he boarded at Gauhati in the evening of January 12 for going to
Dhubri where he arrived on January 13, 1946.
2

sacrifice. But a full knowledge of his resourcefulness, soldiership and
organizing ability came to me only after his escape from India. The
difference of outlook between him and me as to the means is too well
known for comment.

GOALPARA,
January 13, 1946
Gandhiji reiterated that there could be no non-violent swaraj which was but
another name for Ramarajya except through the charkha. His definition of Ramarajya
was that under it even the weakest must enjoy the same freedom and same rights as the
strongest. For that it was necessary that even the physically weakest person shold be
able to take due share in the struggle for independence. In other words, women and
children should be able to play an equal part with men. It was clear that this was not
possible in armed warfare.
Gandhiji’s reading of India’s history was that every time the people made use
of armed forces for their protection it only resulted in tightening their bondage. The
so-called protectors in their turn, Gandhiji added, became oppressors. But under non-
violence as symbolizesd by the spinning-wheel, men and women enjoyed absolute
parity in the fight for freedom. The condition was that every thread of yarn that they
spun should be a conscientious sacrifice or yajna for swaraj and it should be backed by
the determination to resist with their lives any assault that might be directed against
charkha. By charkha, he meant not hand-spinning alone but all those things which
hand-spinning symbolized. These included the revival of all other village industries,
of course, but it included all the various other items of his 18-point constructive
programme as well. By way of illustration Gandhiji mentioned communal harmony
and total abolition of untouchability, both of which were natural corollaries of
ahimsa.
335. SPEECH AT DHUBRI
January 13, 1946

Addressing the gathering, Gandhiji said that he was sorry for keeping
them waiting for such a long time. The steamer could not move due to fog. He had
heard and seen the miseries of Bengal. He came to Assam because the miseries of the
people of Assam were no less than that of the people of Bengal. He could not stay

longer in Assam due to urgent work at Calcutta. He emphasized that swaraj would
not come from the heavens and would not be given to them by anyone.
Eveything depended on their self-help and swaraj would be achieved through
charkha.

ON THE TRAIN,
January 14, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I got your letter. I do not feel happy about Dr. Dinshaw’s
indifference. It is good that Jehangirji helps you. You should go on
doing patiently and calmly whatever you can. Let those who wish to
leave do so. I hope Manibhai is giving you all possible help. Do not
admit new patients. Even the old ones who pay their own expenses
must abide by the new rules. We do not want to run the show with
their money. We wish to do that with the blessings of the poor. The
Doctor may recommend to new patients such treatment as they can
take at home. If any patients come for baths, etc., these may be given.
But nobody should be allowed to stay in the clinic. I hope that we
shall be able to systematize everything after I return. If necessary,
you may show this to Jehangirji. The doctor of course will read it.
We shall arrange about khadi after I return there. I will get the
required quantity.
I believe Kanchan is all right.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah

ON THE TRAIN,
Silence Day, January 14, 1946
CHI. PREMA,
I got your letter. What reply shall I give? If the thing you
assume does not exist at all, what reply can I give? What are we to say

to a person who asserts that there is a flower in the sky?“As silver is
perceived in the mother-of-pearl and sunlight in water though
non-existent at all times are yet perceived. So is this illusion which
none can dispel.” Remember this verse of Tulsidas and laugh if you
can.
I had never thought that you were so sensitive. And what
epithets you use for Haribhau? When you write with a calm mind, I
will write more. I have received Sushila’s letter. I have advised Bapa
not to fill the place till a suitable woman Agent is available.
As desired by you, I have torn up your letter.
Blessings from
BAPU
Prema Kantak
338. LETTER TO MATHURADAS TRIKUMJI1

ON THE TRAIN,
January 14, 1946
CHI. MATHURADAS,
You will never cease to be the Modh bania that you are !!!
Whose fault is it, yours or Taramati’s? Now have a prompt betrothal,
so all of you will have peace of mind. It seems life is a series of
betrothals and marriages; am I right? I don’t see I come anywhere
into it. What is there to consult me about? This does not mean that
what you are going to do is wrong. Why should you follow me
wherever I go? I have taken a different path. Why should anyone
join me along it without under-standing? If… 2 has told nothing but
the truth it will never prove false. You go your own way without any
fear.
Take care of your health. Follow what others write about my
health. It is also fairly adequately reported on in the newspapers.
BAPU
1
2
A word here is not clear in the source.

339. LETTER TO AMRITLAL V. THAKKAR1
ON THE TRAIN,
January 14, 1946
BAPA,
It is silence day, hence I must write myself. I got your con-
densed letter, precise and concise.
Jawaharlal thinks of nothing but the country’s freedom. He
spends all his energy for it. Then why shouldn’t the people be mad
about him ?
I understand what you say about Sucheta. Deal with Sushila
Pai’s case as best as you can. I am firm in my opinion. Where a
woman Agent is not readily available we should wait for one. Our
work will go on. I shall, however, be prepared to do anything else that
you propose.
In Assam I heard about the swami and about the women’s
college also. Both the cases need consideration. The swami seems to
have reached the limit. I have his reply.
Amalprova is proceeding well though with great caution. Her
father is on her side. The place is in the countryside, but near Gauhati.
I visited the village. In fact I went there for my daily walks. I see our
mangoes will not ripen in a hurry.
A good amount of money has been collected for Harijan work.
A sum has also been earmarked for the tribal people. I welcome your
refraining from going to Madras. I might use your presence for my
own selfish ends but that would be wrong. You must take some rest
somehow. You will then be able to do twice as much work as you now
do. Even the man-made machine needs rest. Even a pair of shoes
lasts longer if it has some rest, what then to say of man ?
BAPU
S HRI THAKKAR BAPA
HARIJAN C OLONY
DELHI
1

340. LETTER TO SUMITRA GANDHI
[SODEPUR,
January 14, 1946] 1
CHI. SUMI,
I will not reply separately. How can I spare the time?
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI S UMITRA GANDHI
BIRLA GIRLS’ S CHOOL
P ILANI, J AIPUR S TATE2
From the Gujarati original: Mrs. Sumitra Kulkarni Papers. Courtesy: Nehru
Memorial Museum and Library

ON THE TRAIN,
January 14, 1946
CHI. SANKARAN,
I got your letter. Today is my silence day and therefore I can-
not dictate the letter.
Your reply is perfect. I am glad to know that you are improving
your health and learning nature cure.
Jeevansakha3 might probably be in Sodepur. I could not find it
in Assam. I am going to Sodepur by this very train.
It seems that like Dr. Dinshaw’s [clinic] Baleshwarji’s is also not
meant for the poor. We must remedy this. We shall think over the
matter after your treatment is over. I expect to reach Madras on the
21st and Wardha on 8th February. I am not keen to send any message
1
The two sentences are written by Gandhiji below the reply to Sumitra by
Sushila, presumably Sushila Nayyar, which bears the date December 14, 1946 which
is evidently a slip, since on that date Gandhiji was in Shrirampur in Noakhali. Sushila
in her reply refers to Gandhiji having returned from Assam to Calcutta just that day,
that is, the 14th. Gandhiji had left Calcutta for Guwahati on January 9, 1946 and had
returned to Calcutta on the 14th of the same month.
2
The address as in Sushila’s postcard
3
A journal on nature cure

for the speical issue of Jeevansakha. All good things carry their own
blessings.
Blessings from
BAPU

ON THE TRAIN,
January 14, 194[6] 1
CHI. DASAPPA2 ,
I got your letter. The news about your brother is distressing,
and on top of it your father is ill. But, if we reflect, we shall realize
that death and diseases of various kinds are with us from the birth. It
is therefore futile to grieve.
I have grave doubts about being able to go to Mysore. Let us
see how I get along in Madras.
My blessing to Yashodhara.3 Tell her to write to me. I hope
Ramdas 4 is well. How is he doing? It will be good if he now settles
down there. He should learn Hindi as well as Urdu as also all the
processes connected with spinning.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI DASAPPA

S ODEPUR,
January 14, 1946
I am sorry that today I cannot talk to you as I started silence at
Dhubri at midnight. I am glad to say that on my way back people
1
The source has 1945, but the letter is placed among those of 1946.
2
An advocate whose name was struck off the rolls in July 1940, for political
reasons
3
Addressee’s wife
4
Addressee’s son
5
The speech was read out by Kanu Gandhi.

maintained perfect peace at the stations. I would like such peace to be
maintained always. The villages of Chittagong have been reduced to
such a state that it must have given you the same pain as it has given
me. 1 The Government will have to do its duty. But I am thinking of
ours. If true satyagraha were alive in all of us, men and women, such
a happening could never have taken place. At the same time what
happened in Diamond Harbour is also a tragic chapter.2 Today’s
prayer song is helpful in pointing to a right decision in these matters.
This I shall try to explain tomorrow.3
344. LETTER TO BEGG, DUNLOP & CO., LTD.

S ODEPUR,
January 15, 194[6] 4
GENTLEMEN,
Shrimati Profullabala Sarkar, widow of Shri Rajkumar Sarkar,
writes to me about her distress. She says that her husband left a
provident fund of Rs. 1,650 with you, which cannot be withdrawn on
account of certain other claims submitted to you. She says that she is
in a helpless conditon with several children to maintian.
If her condition is as she describes it, will you please let me
know if you can render her the help she needs. Her address is:
Shrimati Profullabala Sarkar, Tarapada Kumar’s House, Vill. Anthpur,
P.O. Shyamnagar, (24 Parganas).
Yours truly,
M. K. GANDHI
MESSRS BEGG, D UNLOP & C O., L TD.
(MANAGING AGENTS, J AGATLAL ALLIANCE
NORTH JUTE MILLS)
2 HARE S TREET, C ALCUTTA
1
The reference is to the looting of villagers’ properties by Ganjam Pioneer
Corps; vide “Telegram to Jamini Bose”, 10-1-1945 and “Telegram to Nawab of
bhopal”, 12-1-1946
2
On the occasion of the Gangasagar Mela some temporarily constructed
jetties to enable pilgrims to board steamers bound for Sangam island at the mouth of
the Ganga collapsed. As a result 147 people were killed and 80 injured.
3
4
The source has 1945, obviously a slip.

345. LETTER TO CHAMPA R. MEHTA
S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
CHI. CHAMPA,
Today I have replied to Bhai Gatubhai’s letters as follows.1 I can
think of nothing else and nothing more.
S MT. C HAMPABEHN MEHTA
S EVAGRAM
346. LETTER TO GATULAL J. DAVE
January 15, 1946

BHAI GATUBHAI,
I got your letter yesterday.
I don’t know at all what in the first place I can do in
Maganbhai’s case. I shall not be able to give him as much time as he
wants. Besides, it is very difficult for me to be involved in this matter.
I am therefore of the opinion that you should seek the advice of some
good lawyer and act strictly as he directs.
GATULAL JATASHANKAR DAVE
KARANPARA, S HERI NO. 23
R AJKOT
347. LETTER TO HATIM A. ALVI2

S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
BHAI HATIM,
I had your letter but how could I give it thought being
constantly on the move. Your belief that the titles Deshabandhu,
Deena-bandhu, Sardar, etc., are my inventions is not correct. I cannot
1
2
The letter is written in the Devanagari script.

therefore take credit for the inventions. I accepted the names. I don’t
even know if it is the invention of a single individual whom we could
indentify. The name ‘Harijan’ is also said to be my invention, but the
assumption is unfounded. It was an untouchable friend from Kathia-
war who found the name. I don’t know if he is still alive. It is
therefore not correct to attribute to me the inventive talent you do.
I should like to find some nice descriptive title for Bhai
Jamshed1 but I could think of one only if I were such an inventor !
Think of something yourself. January 7 has passed; how does it
matter? We should start using the title when we find one.
HATIM ALVI
KARACHI
348. LETTER TO RAMESHWARI NEHRU

S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
DEAR SISTER,
Yesterday I got your letter of 20th ultimo. I have no objection
to your going to the Assembly. Some of us should, but personally I
attach very little value to it. I very much doubt whether those who can
utilize their time in other work, or are already doing so, will gain by
going to the Assembly; especially those women who represent
Kasturba Nidhi. I am corresponding with Bapa regarding this. In my
view, it will not be good for these women to go to the Assembly. Is
not the work of Kasturba Nidhi a novel scheme? Only experience will
teach that work. Let us not fall into an error through our attachment.
Only from this point of view your going to the Assembly will not
please me. Give your objective opinion regarding this.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI R AMESHWARI NEHRU
WARIS R OAD
LAHORE
From a copy of the Hindi: Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust.
Courtesy: Nehru Memorial Museum and Library
1
Jamshed Nusserwanji Mehta, “builder of Modern Karachi” who was presented
an address by the poeple of Karachi on his 61st birthday describing him as “the
greatest architect of Karachi”.

S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
I have your letter.
The removal of Gajraj’s tonsils must have done good.
I understand about Mavjibhai.
The right place for Chakrayya seems to be with Raju. By staying
with him, he too may get trained.
I think there are several copies of the Hindi Koran lying with us.
Any one of them may be given to them. It is likely that all those
books have been given to the Talimi Sangh. From there also it can be
got for them. Do what is necessary.
People do joke about boys and girls. It can be innocent as well
as harmful. There cannot be one rule for this. Life is full of risks and
will continue to be so. Ours can only be the middle path. Among our
prayer songs there is one by Raichandbhai: “Innocent joy may be
derived from anywhere.” This song is probably there in the [Ashram]
Bhajanavali. One who wants to do evil may do no evil at all by action
but will do so by his thought. The golden rule is that always and in all
circumstances we should remain pure. That purity does by itself
influence the atmosphere. If you want to ask anything about this, ask
me when I come there.
Let us be quite impersonal towards that sadhu and tell him
bluntly that there cannot be any place for him in the Ashram.
Blessings from
BAPU

350. LETTER TO HARI GANESH PHATAK
S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
BHAI HARIBHAU,
I have your postcard. Write to Bapa about Savitribai. Will she do
better than Premabehn ?
I hope to leave here on the 19th for Madras and I shall have to
spend a few days there. I expect to reach Sevagram on the 8th
February.
BHAI HARIBHAU P HATAK
625 S ADASHIV
P OONA C ITY
351. LETTER TO G. ANNASAMY

S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
BHAI ANNASAMY,
I got your English letter. I am afraid that much as I would wish
it, I shall not be able to visit Pondicherry. I hope you will all be able
to understand this much Hindi.
G. A NNASAMY
P ONDICHERRY

S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
Gandhiji said that the victims of the Diamond Harbour accident were no more
but what would happen to their relatives? Many lives had not been lost in Chitta-
gong, however.
These two incidents had overwhelmed him but it should not be so. Men should
be calm and steady even if thousands, lakhs or even crores die. If we can bear it

peacefully, we can hear the inner voice then.1
Government must be alive to their duties regarding these two incidents but at
the same time the people should not forget theirs. The bhajan sung at the prayer on
Monday (Antar mama vikasita karo) indicated the way. It was a prayer to open our
hearts. The world would become a vast fraternity if that was done.
Gandhiji said that if he were there at Diamond Harbour, he would have
advised the men and women not to go there. He had witnessed a similar instance
at Kumbha Mela at Hardwar in 1915, when in the jostle for a dip in the Ganges,
17 men were drowned. At Diamond Harbour the pilgrims had to get on the jetty
and the Government should have made proper shipping arrangements. However,
even if the Government did not do their duty an accusation on that score would
not help us. The people on their side should follow the right course. The Govern-
ment could not be blamed for the incident at Hardwar. Here of course it could
be found on enquiry that proper arrangement for shipping facilities had not
been made.
At Chittagong, it was worse. People had read the Government account and it
was an admission of the story as sent out by Jaminibabu. But the people, Gandhiji
said, did not play their part as preached in the bhajan . The bhajan wanted to make us
firm, active and fearless. Gandhiji felt sure that if the people could rely on these
qualities, the Chittagong incident could not have taken place. If people could sing
the bhajan as they did in the prayer, why could they not act according to its message,
he asked. Gurudev’s words were not meant for Bengal only. Everywhere saints had
preached the same message.
An Englishman had sardonically asked Gandhiji if the Indians could get
independence by harping on the theme of their slavery. Gandhiji thought that the
remark was true. No good could come out of repeating the fact of dependence. Slave
people lived in eternal misery and only by working for eradicating this misery could
they get swaraj. Only criticism could not make foreigners quit. If people realized the
message of satyagraha, if they practised it in life, they could get rid of this misery.
What was satyagraha? It was only the craving for truth inherent in man and there lay
its strength.
Two women were attacked at Chittagong and for that two men were counter-
attacked. As a result a hundred came, attacked the villagers and burnt the hamlet. If
the people could rest firm on truth such an incident could never happen. He had
subsequently learnt, Gandhiji said, that the rowdy elements were his countrymen and
therefore brothers. If that was so he also had some responsibility for their action
and it was his duty as well to strive for the eradication of their vile instincts. On the
1
Vide also “Telegram to Jamini Bose”, 10-1-1946 and “Telegram to Nawab of
Bhopal

other side many pilgrims died at Diamond Harbour. This latter accident occurred
because the Indian people had not been successful in explaining the true significance
of pilgrimage. Pilgrimage entails pain. It was not pilgrimage to travel by rail or
steamer. Travelling from Cape Comorin to Hardwar by a train was no pilgrimage.
He had been preaching this idea for a long time, and he would be doing so in
the future whatever the result. He would continue with his message even if five men
only responded to the call.

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
CHI. JIVANJI,
I have with me three letters of yours dated December 13, 1945,
January 7, 1946, and January 11, 1946.
I will not argue at length about another Tamil translation of An
Autobiography. Nor have I the time for that. I am dictating this reply
in the early hours of the morning, and that also while racing against
time. I have seen in English more translations than one of a good
book. I don’t find anything wrong in it. Our only aim in retaining
the copyright can be to guard against possible misuse of the privilege.
But if we have authorized one person, and then another public-spirited
person who can do a better translation comes forward, why should we
not give him the permission? This is my line of reasoning. More
when we meet and can talk at leisure. But meanwhile I will accept your
decision as final and correct. For I may decide something in haste
and you may have to bear the burden, which would not be proper.
I have decided for the present to refuse permission for a Finnish
translation, for the person’s intention seems to be to make profit.
About Harijan we shall decide after I hear more from you.
For, as long as the Government does not share our desire that
its publication should be resumed, I think it will be a great risk
to embark on the venture. I think I have discussed this matter with you
earlier.1 The lifting of the ban will not be enough for resuming publi-
cation. Discuss the matter with Mavalankar and Sardar, if he is there,
and then write to me. We wish to do nothing in haste.
1
Vide “Letter to Jivanji D. Desai”,13-11-1945

I have received the new edition of The Constructive Programme.
You are right when you say that you can afford to send, and should
send, a large number of copies only if a proper account of the copies
is kept and the money is regularly remitted to you. Do not send
more copies just now. Two of the newspapers here published the
whole test. You may publish the booklet in the other languages you
intend to.
You have given a full explanation about the preface, as also
about the price.
Chi. Kanu will write to you separately regarding the Bhajana-
vali. Do not publish the new edition till you get all the material from
him.
I should like you to publish the translation sent by Rajendra
Babu. Discuss the matter with Kishorelal and Narahari also.
The Rashtrabhasha dictionary follows me wherever I go. I have
not forgotten, either, about the foreword to the book on Gita
According to Gandhi written by Mahadevbhai. I will be happy if I
can finish it before leaving for Madras. But all that is in God’s hands.
I rest content with the work I can do from day to day. I cannot, of
course, attend to all the things. I see in this my inefficiency. If I
cannot overcome it, I cannot hope to live up to 125 years. But be it as
it may. If you think it fit, you may reprint Nation’s Voice.
Your suggestion for adding something more to the paragraphs
on cow-protection in The Constructive Programme seems a good one.
I would describe it as “improvement of livestock”. I agree that it
should not have been left out. We will remember the point at the time
of the next edition. If the current edition is exhausted soon and any
suggestions for improvements occur to you, let me have them, too.
I am leaving here on the 19th and reaching Madras on the 21st.
The address will be c/o Dakshina [Bharat] Hindi Prachar Sabha,
Thyagarayanagar, Madras. I will be in Madras for 15 days at the
most. If I can finish earlier, I will try. Then on the 8th to Seva-
gram. After spending a day in Bombay, to Poona on the 21st.
Blessings from
BAPU
Not revised.
Jivanji D. Desai

354. TELEGRAM TO M. SATYANARAYANA
Express S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
S ATYANARAYANJI
DAKSHINA BHARAT HINDI P RACHAR S ABHA
THYAGARAYANAGAR (MADRAS)
SORRY MUST REACH TWENTYFIRST. MAKE NO APPOINTMENTS
BEFORE TWENTYTHIRD. CONTINUE YOUR USUAL WORK.
ASSUME NO SPECIAL TRAIN FOR ME.
BAPU

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have your two kind letters1 . I shall have great pleasure in call-
ing on you, perhaps for the last time (though I shall hope not) on the
18th at 7·30 p. m.
I am glad you have taken proper and energetic action on the
two terrible tragedies.2
On the question of salt I see that I have failed to make my
point clear. But I must not inflict written argument on you. Accor-
ding to the exigencies of the time I shall discuss the matter with you
on Friday.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
1
Dated January 15 and 20
2
Of Chittagong and Diamond Harbour; vide “Telegram to Nawab of Bhopal
and “Speech at Prayer Meeting”, 14-1-1946

356. LETTER TO C. RAJAGOPALACHARI
S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
MY DEAR C. R.,
I leave here on 19th and reach there with a large party on 21st.
I must not be in a train the 22nd day of a month, if I can at all help it.
Ba died that day and we have Gita Parayan1 that day. I must devote
21st and 2nd to private, necessary visits. Just now I have only Sastri2
in mind. Natesan wants me to go to my old home—his place. 3 You
will see what should be done. The rest when we meet. Do hope there
will be no boisterous demonstration. Noises and undisciplined crowds
get on my nerves.
Love.
BAPU
[PS.]
I expect to meet the Parliamentary Delegation on 23rd.
357. LETTER TO JEHANGIR P. PATEL

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
BHAI JEHANGIR,
I have your letter dictated in chaste Gujarati. I am delighted.
However, since we want to work for Dinshawji I shall certainly write in
English if that helps us better.
I shall try to reach Poona before 21st February.
I am sure you know that I have already sent the money. All I
am worried about, if at all, is that the clinic should benefit the masses.
Till now it has catered solely to the rich. But we shall further discuss
1
Recitation
2
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri who was ill; vide “Letter to V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”,
4-1-1946
3
Vide “Letter to G. A. Natesan”, 12-1-1946

all this when we meet. For the time being whatever you can do and
get done is enough.
S JT. J EHANGIR P. P ATEL
P ATEL BROTHERS, P ATEL HOUSE
10 C HURCHGATE S TREET
F ORT, B OMBAY
358. LETTER TO DR. N. B. KHARE

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
BHAI KHARE,
I have your letter. I was delighted to see that you wrote in
Hindustani and signed in Urdu.
I am carefully watching what you are doing and what you can
do in Malaya-Burma. And I wish that everything is for the good of
the people there. What is the harm in Dr. Bidhan’s Medical Mission
going to Malaya-Burma ?1
I understand what you have written about the congress. I do not
want to write anything more about it.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
From a photostat of the Hindi: C.W. 4871. Courtesy: Dr. N. B. Khare
359. LETTER TO G. RAMACHANDRA RAO

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
BHAI RAMACHANDRA RAO,
I have your letter. I like it. I am also glad that you have deci-
ded to give Manorama in marriage to a Harijan. But your inference
in favour of atheism is not correct; or as I believe, your nastikta2 is
only a form of astikta 3 .
I am prepared to get the marriage performed in the Sevagram
Ashram and have the same rites followed as in the case of Tendulkar.
1
Vide “Letter to G. E. B. Abell”, 8-1-1946
2
Atheism
3
Faith

The priest, who will perform the ceremony under my supervision, will
be a Harijan. You are welcome to make any suggestion in this regard.
One thing more. Manorama is 17 years old; I think I remember her.
My advice is that she should wait at least for two years. If your idea is
that the ceremony may be performed now and the girl might go to
stay with her husband on attaining the age of 19, I would suggest
postponing the marriage till she can live with her husband. In the
meantime they may learn whatever more they want to learn. Let them
learn at least Hindustani in both the scripts and all the processes of the
charkha right from beginning to end.
Blessings from
BAPU
From Hindi: C.W. 9194
360. LETTER TO SECRETARY, MADRAS LABOUR UNION

FOR TEXTILE WORKERS
S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
DEAR MR. SECRETARY,
I propose to address no meetings. I have neither the desire nor
the strength to undertake more work than I have already accepted.
You must realize that the days are gone when I could go anywhere
and address any number of meetings. Therefore, please excuse me.
You may consult Shri Satyanarayana about an appointment with me.
M. K. GANDHI
S ECRETARY
MADRAS LABOUR UNION F OR TEXTILE WORKERS
361. LETTER TO AVADHNANDAN

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
BHAI AVADHNANDAN,
I got your letter. None of us could make out the first signature;
the second and third are all right. I think when one’s signature is
illegible, one should spell it out clearly beside or below. The English
deliberately make their signatures illegible. Why should we imitate

them? And if we do, we should also follow their signature practice of
spelling out the name clearly below.
If your complaint is just it deserves to be considered. But then I
should have your permission to show your letter to Satyanarayana. I
will try to find some time for a talk with you.

S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
BHAI KEDAR,
I got your letter of January 12. I was very happy. Let us see
what happens.
I hope to reach Sevagram on the 8th. I shall stay there for ten
days and then proceed to Poona.
S HRI T. J. KEDAR
ADVOCATE
NAGPUR
363. LETTER TO SATYANARAYANA

S ODEPUR,
January 16/17, 1946
BHAI SATYANARAYANA,
A wire was sent to you yesterday. Did I tell you that I would try
to reach there about the 23rd? Well, I had forgotten at the time that
the 22nd was Ba’s death anniversary. Chi. Kanu reminded me of it
and therefore I have now decided to reach there on the 21st. Besides,
the M.P.s would be there on the 23rd and in order to meet them also, I
must reach there a day earlier. I hope you will not be put to inconve-
nience if I come a couple of days ealier. You will have understood
what Rajkumari explained on the telephone. I have no letter of yours
regarding the special train. It would be wrong to incur expenditure
on a speial train. If it is the others who are to be brought by the
special train, why bring them two days in advance? In any case if that
be the intention you may do as you think best. That means that if
everyone pays his own fare there will be no harm in requisitioning a

special train.
I shall be accompanied by 22 persons. The number may even
increase by two or three. A list1 of their names is enclosed. Bapa will
go there. You may put him up with me. He also wants it. See to it
yourself. If the number of people increases, arrangements can be
made to put some of them up elsewhere although I would prefer all
my companions being put up in one place.
Blessings from
BAPU
[PS.]
January 17, 1946
The letter which called for the wire has arrived today but what I
have written above is sufficient.
S HRI S ATYANARAYANAJI
C/ O HINDI P RACHAR S ABHA
THYAGARAYANAGAR, M ADRAS

S ODEPUR,
January 17, 1946
Gandhiji said that Friday2 would be his last day at Sodepur on this occasion.
He had always cherished a desire to stay in this place and join them in prayer. Indeed
he had not been able to stay there continuously owing to his tours. His tours had
produced good results. He hoped that they would stick to the system of congre-
gational prayer.
Exhorting them to sing the name of God in chorus and to keep tune with all
heart, Gandhiji said that he had told them before and wanted to tell them now that
soldiers were compelled to move together and to keep step in marching. At first there
was an element of compulsion in making them do so but gradually as they became
habituated the element of compulsion passed and their movements became easier and
smoother. In their case the soldiers were made disciplined on pain of dismissal, but
in prayer although they were the devotees of God yet there was no question of
compelling them to keep or sing in chorus. But it was for the sake of their own good
that they joined in prayer and if they uttered the name of God in one tune their hearts
1
This, however, is not traceable.
2
January 18

would be purified and they would get new strength in their hearts. This would be their
remuneration for becoming the devotees of God.
Referring to the day’s bhajan , Gandhiji said that in this song the devotee was
making the submission that he would offer his salutation to God in all his worldly
duties. God was their real friend, He was their father and mother and in fact
everything. Their earthly friends and relations suffered death but God was immortal.
He never left them at any time. The bhajan therefore very aptly taught them to
remember God who was their eternal friend in every sphere of their life’s activities.
The song also told them to keep their inward eye open because it was through this
inward eye that they were able to perceive God.
Concluding, Gandhiji said that in the prayer song of the day they had found
such things which would be of great value in their everyday life. They should take the
teachings of the song to heart. After they had attended the prayer if they returned
home with their hearts unchanged they would be deprived of a great thing.
365. LETTER TO AMRITA LAL CHATTERJEE

S ODEPUR,
January 18, 1946
CHI. AMRITA LAL,
Do you know that falling ill is a crime? And after falling ill
taking no treatment is doubly so.1 Hence get well soon. Your palce is
in Wardha. From that also you have been cut off. Now you can go
there only after getting well.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Hindi: C.W. 10413. Courtesy: Amrita Lal Chatterjee
366. DISCUSSION WITH CHITTAGONG CONGRESSMEN

January 18, 1946
A number of Congress leaders of Chittagong met Mahatma Gandhi at Sodepur
Ashram and had nearly an hour’s discussion with him about conditions in the district
since 1942, with particular reference to war-time economy and the problem of
resettlement of the evacuees.
The Congress leaders also discussed with Gandhiji the recent incident at Kasai-
para. Gandhiji told them that the question of resettlement of the evacuees had been
1
The addressee had dysentery and had refused medical treatment.

engaging his attention for a long time. He asked them to correspond with him on
this matter. The problem could be solved if the 18-point constructive programme was
fulfilled.
The Hindustan Times, 21-1-1946

S ODEPUR,
January 18, 1946
Gandhiji regretted that he was addressing the congregation for the last
time on the present occasion and God only knew when he would be in position to
repeat his visit to Bengal. He had a mind to go to Chittagong and also to visit
Munshigunj but he could not realize his wish. Mahatma Gandhi observed :
Although during my stay I could not visit the different parts of
Bengal as I wished, still I will say that I am satisfied with what little I
could do in Bengal. My code teaches me to be satisfied even if I
succeed in one front out of ten I try.
Referring to the Chittagong incident, Gandhiji said that there was no point
in finding fault with others over this issue. They had to analyse themselves. They
should remember that in always finding fault with others they themselves were
likely to be at fault. If the habit of fault-finding became a permanent feature
with them they would never be able to serve anybody. Tulsidas in his inimitable
way made it quite clear that there were no animate or inanimate objects which
were either totally evil or totally good. Those two qualities more or less were
to be noticed in everything and just like the proverbial swan they had to discard
the evil of a thing and adopt the good of it for their own welfare. He asked the
people to remember this moral sermon of the poet and conduct themselves accor-
dingly. If they concentrated only on black spots they would themselves be spotted.
Therefore, for one’s own welfare it was desirable that the habit of fault-finding be
given up. In China there was a pillar on which three monkeys were carved in stone:
one of them was blindfolded, the second ear-logged and the third close-mouthed. The
moral of this illustration was ‘see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil’. He urged
upon the congregation to take to heart what this Chinese symbol taught them.
Dwelling upon the necessity of congregational prayer, Gandhiji hoped that
people on return to their homes would conduct such prayer in the company of the
members of the family and children. Theatres or cinemas they often visited, but those
agencies could scarcely benefit the people to the extent the congregational prayer
could do. He himself had been to a famous theatre in London and could speak
from his personal experience that it hardly benefited him. Comparing the benefit

of congregational prayer with what little historical knowledge a dramatic perfor-
mance could offer, Gandhiji said that the former was many thousand times more
beneficial. What could the stage teach, he asked. Was it of any consequence when
compared with the realistic drama that the world presented? He had seen the role of a
hero being played on the stage. Could Rama of his conception be played on the
stage? Could the tragedy on any stage be so realistic and effective as the tragedies
they witnessed on the world stage? Mothers were ministering angels of homes and
they nursed children to life and to them he especially appealed to introduce God and
divinity to their children and to introduce bhajan song which was full of eternal bliss.
368. LETTER TO G. D. BIRLA

S ODEPUR,
[On or before] January [19] 1 1946
CHI. GHANSHYAMDAS,
The enclosed letter has been received from Kanya Gurukul. I
think I had better send it to you. I do not know what exactly is to be
done.
Blessings from
BAPU
From the Hindi original: C.W. 8076. Courtesy: G. D. Birla
369. TELEGRAM TO SUCHETA KRIPALANI

January 19, 1946
NO TELEGRAM RECEIVED. PERSONALLY AGAINST YOU
ENTERING LEGISLATURE.
BAPU
1
The numeral is faded in the source. Gandhiji left Sodepur on this date.

S ODEPUR,
January 19, 1946
CHI. SUCHETA,
Your letter written from Allahabad is before me. I am dictating
this after the morning prayer. At 2·30 p.m. today, I leave for Madras.
Your report is good. I have written to Bapa regarding the Delhi
case as well as the question of representation. I am inclined to think
that if we just wait till we find a suitable Agent for a place, meanwhile
getting the work done through the centre, no problem should arise in
the appointment of women Agents. Therefore, I am of the opinion
that we may take any kind of work from Brijkrishna. We should not
formally appoint him an Agent. If the idea does not appeal to either
or both of you I shall be ready to do as you suggest. This has been
my policy regarding any activity that I am not conducting myself and
I am convinced that it is right. Therefore, send me your own opinion.
About the U.P., I am carrying on correspondence with Purnima.
No decision has yet been reached. Concerning the appointments
another question had now arisen, viz., whether anyone contesting
election to the Assembly can continue to be an Agent. We have three
or four such cases—those of Durgabai, the sister from Calicut (I
forget her name), Rameshwaridevi and probably Purnima too. I feel
that it would indeed be difficult, if not impossible, for those going into
the Assembly, to do full justice to their work as Agents. Besides, the
mere knowledge that their Agents are members of the Assembly is
likely to perturb the village women. Do send me your views in the
matter. Are you coming to Madras? Bapa is coming. You may also
come. If you come I shall arrange for your accommodation.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRIMATI S UCHETA KRIPALANI
S WARAJ BHAVAN
ALLAHABAD

S ODEPUR,
January 19, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
These days I am kept extremely busy. I, therefore, have not
been able to reply to one or two letters of yours. They contained
nothing special. I am glad that things have improved somewhat. How-
ever, I have realized your difficulty. We shall be able to solve it only
through patience. I cannot do more from here. It will be enough if
you do not incur any new expenditure. I will see about the khadi
after I return.
I read your long telegram to Kanchan. I would say that you
should not have sent it. I do not understand how Balkrishna encou-
raged you to send it. It can be described as a wire from a vevalo1 .
You will understand what I mean if you know the meaning of the
word vevalo. I do not know the English equivalent for vevalo. Every
language has some words which are untranslatable. Vevala is such a
word. I am not reprimanding you at all. This is only a joke. I
actually gave you an opportunity to come, if you wished to. Kanchan
is better now. And if she gives up her obstinacy, this illness will do
her much good. I am leaving today for Madras. It is not certain
whether or not I shall take Kanchan with me. Dr. Bidhan has had an
X-ray taken. If the report is good, Sushilabehn says I can take her.
She has not yet been permitted to walk.
My reason for sending Manibhai was that if such an occasion
should arise again, you should be able to leave the place immediately.
Manibhai, therefore, was to get trained by you even if you had not
left. But what has happened has happened.
One thing is certain, namely, that Kanchan was looked after with
as much care as would be bestowed on an Emperor. And she got a
doctor, too, such as only an Emperor could get.
I had a letter from Jehangirji. He says he will do his best.
Kanchan is accompanying me.
Not revised.
Blessings from
BAPU
Munnalal G. Shah
1
Mawkishly sentimental

372. A NOTE
S ODEPUR,
January 19, 1946
I think the construction of the bunds at Hooghly, which has
benefited the people greatly is actually a part of the Constructive Pro-
gramme.1 Such creative power should be there in all the sevaks.
From a photostat of the Hindi: G.N. 8028. Also C.W. 10517 and 10526.
Courtesy: Ratnamoni Chatterjee
373. SPEECH AT BALASORE2

January 19, 1946
He said that he had already spoken enough in Bengal and Assam and they must
have read the speeches in the papers. He asked them to follow those instructions.
Gandhiji laid stress on the need for Harijan uplift. He wanted caste Hindus and
Harijans to live as brothers. He also complimented them on the discipline they had
shown and said that the people at Balrampur had also behaved in similar manner.
374. A THOUGHT FOR THE DAY3

November 1, 1945
The joy of life lies in divesting oneself of life’s cares.
November 2, 1945
The past belongs to us but we do not belong to the past. We
belong to the present. We are makers of the future, but we do not
belong to the future.
1
The reference is to the construction of a cross bund in Arambagh for
irrigation purposes across the river Mundeswari by the villagers, the cost of which
was met by voluntary cess.
2
Gandhiji was sleeping when his train arrived at Balasore. However, when he
was informed that a disciplined crowd was waiting on the platform to see him, he
came to the doorway and addressed them.
3
Gandhiji started writing “A Thought for the Day” for Anand Hingorani, at
the latter’s request, on November 20, 1944, and continued the practice for about two
years. The thoughts for the period covered by this volume are reproduced as a single
item under the last date, 19-1-1946. The thought’s were originally written in Hindi.
The translation by Anand T. Hingorani is reproduced here with slight alterations.

November 3, 1945
He alone who truly serves is a good householder. He goes on
giving without expectation of return.
November 4, 1945
A fault as small as a mustard seed becomes as big as a mountain
when sought to be concealed. It can, however, be eradicated if an
open confession is made.
Pratipada, November 5, 1945
Faith transcends reason; it is not opposed to it.
November 6, 1945
It is easier to cross the ocean between countries than to span the
gulf between individuals or people.
November 7, 1945
It is not man that enjoys pleasures; it is pleasures that enjoy man,
which is to say they consume him.
November 8, 1945
Everyone grows old with the passage of time; desire alone
remains ever youthful.
November 9, 1945
Irregularity never goes well with non-attachment.
November 10, 1945
He who is shamed into acting correctly is not acting correctly at
all.
November 11, 1945
The avaricious, the lustful, the wrathful and the drunkard are
among the ten types of persons reckoned by Vidura as having no
regard for religion.
November 12, 1945
That which should be renounced must be declined as a matter of
duty even if offered free.
November 13, 1945
None can put him to shame who, of his own free will, and even
though others know nothing about it, makes a clean breast of his sin
and is ashamed of it.
November 14, 1945
Innocent and dreamless sleep is samadhi (meditation), yoga
(concentration of mind) and selfless action. (Adapted from Vinoba’s
letter).

November 15, 1945
Nothing is impossible for a true devotee.
November 16, 1945
A devotee is ever absorbed in God.
November 17, 1945
He who is absorbed in God cannot become absorbed in
anybody or anything besides Him.
November 18, 1945
It is said that a pilgrimage is not undertaken at the cost of
one’s hearth and home. The truth, however, is that a pilgrimage
is possible only after a complete renunciation of hearth and
home.
November 19, 1945
The fear of the gun disappears when it has been fired. The
bond of love grows ever tighter, yet is never felt as bondage.
November 20, 1945
Man’s real enemies are six—lust, anger, attachment, drunken-
ness, pride and grief. Victory over them makes it easier to conquer
the rest.
November 21, 1945
Everyone agrees it is folly to do evil. But to consider evil means
justified for gaining a worthy end must be regarded as even greater
folly.
November 22, 1945
If a man were not to undertake work which is beyond his
capacity, there would be no scope left for anxiety.
November 23, 1945
It is more than severe punishment to compel a man to do
something which he does not understand.
November 24, 1945
I see a man whom I consider my brother and love him as such.
Later, I find that he is not my brother. He is what he is and I give him
up. Who is to blame in this ?
November 25, 1945
What is it, if not futile, to argue about something which is
beyond thought ?
November 26, 1945
What should be done if a mad man appears before us and
takes possession of our house and stores? What is the non-

violent remedy? The simple answer is lovingly to let him have his
way.
November 27/December 3, 1945
He who does not labour and yet eats, eats stolen food.
Who can eat with an easy mind so long as even a single person
starves for want of work ?
Trace the course of every pice that finds its way into your
pocket and you will learn much from such reflection.
To a starving person, God will appear in the form of bread
alone.
December 1/December 3, 1945
Why insult the naked by giving them clothes? Give them
work so that they may earn the money for clothes by their own
labour.
December 2/December 3, 1945
It is a sin to open free kitchens for those who are capable of
physical labour. To provide work for them is meritorious.
December 3, 1945
Faith that does not wane but ever waxes higher and turns into
realization.
December 4, 1945
Beauty lies not in the complexion but in Truth alone.
December 5, 1945
When a man lives in submission to authority, it means he is
paying the price of personal freedom.
December 6, 1945
When the administration becomes so evil as to be intolerable,
a man sacrifices even personal freedom to offer non-violent resistance
to it.
December 7, 1945
Truly, there are as many religions as there are men. But when
one goes to the root of one’s religion, one finds that in reality
is one.
December 8, 1945
If we are careful about the means, the end will take care
of itself. In other words there is no difference between means and
ends.

December 9, 1945
Confession of error works like a broom. The broom sweeps
away filth; confession does no less.
December 10, 1945
One perfect man can dispel untruth even though the untruthful
be legion.
December 11, 1945
There is a limit to violent action and it can fail. Non-violence
knows no limit and it never fails.
December 12, 1945
Faith is put to the test when the situation is most difficult.
December 13, 1945
Violence is the weapon of the weak; non-violence that of the
strong.
December 14, 1945
He who wishes to preserve his integrity must be prepared to lose
all material possessions.
December 15, 1945
A religion which takes no note of this world and only harps on
the one beyond, does not deserve the name.
December 16, 1945
He who is poor by force of circumstances, cannot become poor
by choice.
December 17, 1945
Chastity needs no purdah. It needs only God’s protection.
December 18, 1945
The right that accrues from the performance of duty endures.
December 19, 1945
So long as gold and diamonds lie buried in the bowels of the
earth they are of no use to anyone. Man’s labour digs them out and
gives them their value. Seen thus, it is the labourer who produces
them.
December 20, 1945
Just as I have the right to eat and drink, so also have I the right
to do my work in my own way. This is swaraj.
December 21, 1945
Do not seek to know the views of others, nor base your
opinion thereon. To think independently for oneself is a sign of
fearlessness.

December 22, 1945
If God be our protector and companion, why or whom shall we
fear, however fierce be the storm, however deep the darkness.
December 23, 1945
In complete non-violence, there is complete absense of
hatred.
December 24, 1945
Non-violence works for the good of all, not only of the greatest
number. The votary of non-violence must be prepared if necessary to
lay down his life in order to secure the good of all.
December 25, 1945
Prayer needs a heart, not a tongue. Without the heart, words
have no meaning.
December 26, 1945
Purity asks for no external protection.
December 27, 1945
Our greatest enemy is not the foreigner, nor anyone else. We
ourselves, that is, our desires, are our enemies,
December 28, 1945
He who does not want to be a slave of anyone, must become the
slave of God.
December 29, 1945
Violence must be abjured, for the good that it may seem to
achieve is in appearance only, while the harm that it does is
everlasting.
December 30, 1945
Man is the image of his thoughts.
December 31, 1945
True religion knows no territorial limits.
January 1, 1946
Looking at a blank sheet of paper, one cannot say which is the
obverse and which is the reverse side. So it is with non-violence and
truth. The one cannot exist without the other.
KASHI,
January 2, 1946
It would be considered deplorable if a dead man’s body were to
be buried in the same pit as the carcass of an animal. But on

reflection it would appear that out of this action arises a happy state—
the unity of all life is established.
ON WAY TO S ODEPUR,
January 3, 1946
Physical weakness is not the real weakness. Weakness of the
mind alone is the real weakness.
S ODEPUR,
January 4, 1946
The common people are a devoted worker’s real bank, and this
bank never fails.
S ODEPUR,
January 5, 1946
Renunciation which does not spring from the heart cannot be
abiding.
S ODEPUR,
January 6, 1946
He who in his distress turns to God is not troubled by any
fear.
S ODEPUR,
January 7, 1946
Education which does not mould character is wholly worthless.
ON THE ASSAM MAIL,
January 8, 1946
When there is both inner and outer cleanliness, it approaches
godliness.
ON THE ASSAM MAIL,
January 9, 1946
O man ! If thou art really free from attachment, thou hast to put
up patiently with insult, abuse and even assault.
S ARANI OR GAUHATI,
January 10, 1946
What matters to you the world’s praise or censure? Do what you
think is your duty.
S ARANI OR GAUHATI,
January 11, 1946
Only the brave can be forgiving. The weak are unable to
punish; so, in their case, the question of forgiveness does not arise.

S ARANI OR GAUHATI,
January 12, 1946
Economics which departs from or is opposed to ethics is no
good and should be renounced.
ON THE S TEAMER TO DHUBRI,
January 13, 1946
Man is where his mind is, not where his body is.
S ODEPUR,
January 14, 1946
That which looks for mercy from an opponent is not non-
violence.
S ODEPUR,
January 15, 1946
One mark of non-attachment is that the work of a person free
from attachment is never in arrears at the end of the day.
S ODEPUR,
January 16, 1946
A person without attachment should have an inexhaustible fund
of patience.
S ODEPUR,
January 17, 1946
A person without attachment should under no circumstances
give way to anger.
S ODEPUR,
January 18, 1946
One who thinks in terms of ‘mine’ and ‘thine’ cannot be free
from attachment.
ON THE TRAIN TO MADRAS,
January 19, 1946
The non-attached person cannot own anything.
A Thought for the Day, pp. 347-426

375. FOREWORD TO “MY MASTER GOKHALE”
ON THE TRAIN TO MADRAS, 1
January 20, 1946
Whilst I appreciate Shri Jagadisan’s2 invitation to contribute a
few words by way of Preface or Foreword to his admirable collection
of Rt. Hon’ble Sastriar’s3 writings and speeches on Gokhale4 the
Good, as I would call him, it embarrasses me. However strange my
claim may appear to the reader, I have called Gokhale my political
guru. Therefore Sastriar is a fellow-disciple. And what a disciple and
yet an amiable usurper! I was to have the honour of being Gokhale’s
successor but I found in Sastriar a worthy usurper to whom I made a
willing surrender. I could have given no satisfaction to the few well-
chosen members of the society.5 I had, and have, no gifts which Gok-
hale had and Sastriar has in luxurious abundance.
I confess that however great may be my attempt at impar-tiality,I
must fail to satisfy the critical reader. Fellow-admirers need no pass-
port from me. And of whom was I to write? As I began to read Jaga-
disan’s selection, I did not know whether Gok-hale absorbed my
attention or Sastriar.
Therefore I would close these hasty and rambling remarks by
warning the critical reader against his or her trying the ques-tionable
task of discovering in these pages an echo of his or her own views. It
should be enough to find in them the transparent sincerity and patrio-
tism of the writer or, shall I say, the biographer and the master.
M. K. GANDHI
My Master Gokhale
1
Gandhiji was going to Madras to inaugurate the Silver Jubilee celebrations of
the Dakshina Bharat Hindu Prachar Sabha.
2
T. N. Jagadisan’s
3
V. S. Srinivas Sastri’s
4
Gopal Krishna Gokhale
5
The reference, presumably, is to Gandhiji’s joining the Servants of India
Society founded by Gokhale in 1905; Gokhale was keen on it. But there was
difference of opinion among some `members: vide “An Autobiography”, sub-title
“With Gokhale in Poona” and “An Autobiography”, sub- title “Kumbha Mela”

376. FOREWORD TO “THE GOSPEL OF SELFLESS ACTION
OR THE ‘GITA’ ACCORDING TO GANDHI”
The following pages by Mahadev Desai are an ambitious pro-
ject. It represents his unremitting labours during his prison life in
1933-’34. Every page is evidence of his scholarship and exhaustive
study of all he could lay hands upon regarding the Bhagavad Gita,
poetically called The Song Celestial by the late Sir Edwin Arnold. The
immediate cause of this labour of love was my translation1 in Gujarati
of the divine book as I understood it. In trying to give a translation of
my meaning of the Gita, he found himself writing an original com-
mentary on the Gita.
The book might have been published during his lifetime, 2 if I
could have made time to go through the manuscripit. I read some
portions with him, but exigencies of my work had to interrupt the
reading. Then followed the imprisonment of August 1942, and his
sudden death within six days of our imprisonment. All of his imme-
diate friends decided to give his reverent study of the Gita to the
public. He had copies typed for his English friends who were im-
patient to see the commentary in print. And Pyarelal, who was colla-
borator with Mahadev Desai for many years, went through the whole
manscript and undertook to perform the difficult task of proof-
reading. Hence this publication.
Frankly I do not pretend to any scholarship. I have, therefore,
contented myself with showing the genesis of Mahadev Desai’s effort.
In so far as the translation part of the volume is concerened, I can
vouch for its accuracy. He has carried out the meaning of the original
translation. I may add, too, that Pyarelal has interfered with the origi-
nal only and in rare cases where it was considered to be essential, an
interference which Mahadev Desai would, in my opinion, have gladly
accepted, had he been alive.
M. K. GANDHI
ON THE TRAIN TO MADRAS, January 20, 1946
The Gospel of Selfless Action or The Gita According to Gandhi
1
Vide “Anasaktiyoga”, sub-title “The Message of the Gita”
2
Mahadev Desai passed away on August 15, 1942.

377. WHAT EXHIBITION SHOULD BE
The Congress session is likely to be held within two or three
months. The question, therefore, arises as to what sort of an exhibition
should be put up from the villagers’ point of view. It is only the rural
view-point which can be valid for India, if we desire and believe that
the villagers have not only to survive but also to become strong and
rich. If this is true, there can be no place for city articles and pomp
and show. There should be no need for the entertainments that are
prevalent in cities. Under no circumstances, should the exhibition
degenerate into cheap entertainment or a means for earning and never
into an instrument of advertisment for business men. Nothing should
be sold there, not even khadi and the products of village industries.
The exhibition should be educative, and it should be intersting too. It
should be so organized that a villager after returning home, would
begin to feel the necessity of learning some sort of industry or craft.
There should be somebody who can point out the shortcomings in all
the villages of India and someone who can explain the ways and
means for getting rid of them. There should be someone who can
show how far we have progressed since the beginning of the move-
ment for village uplift. There should be somebody who can explain
how this exhibition helps in making village life aesthetically satis-
fying.
Now let us consider what should be the form of the exhibition
which can fulfil these conditions:
1. There should be two models of the village—one showing the
village as it is today and the other, the improved one.
The improved village will be clean. The cleanliness will be seen
in the houses, the roads, the surroundings and the fields. The con-
dition of the cattle will also be better. Maps, pictures and books should
show how particular occupations can help in increasing the villagers’
income.
2. Complete details should be displayed about how the various
village industries should work, where the tools for them are available
and how they are manufactured. All the crafts should be demons-
trated. At the same time the following items should be shown:
(a) Ideal diet for the villagers;
(b) the competition between machine industry and handicrafts;
(c) a practical demonstration of animal husbandry;

(d) a model for latrines;
(e) art section;
(f) organic manure v. chemical fertilizers;
(g) use of hides and bones of animals;
(h) village music, musical instruments and village dramas;
(i) village games, gymnasium and exercises;
(j) Nayee Talim;
(k) village medicines;
Bearing in mind the policy stated at the outset, whatever addi-
tional items can be exhibited should be there.
What I have stated is only illustrative. I have deliberately omitted
all those village industries which are connected with the spinning-
wheel. Without these industries the exhibition should be considered
worthless.
M. K. GANDHI
ON THE TRAIN TO MADRAS, January 20, 1946
[From Hindi]
Khadi Jagat, February 1946
378. SPEECH AT CUTTACK

January 20, 1946
Gandhiji said that independence was not an easy thing to win or was it a drama.
Discipline was essential in the national life of the country and, if they got swaraj, he
asked, how could they maintain it without discipline. He was very much impressed at
the discipline of people in place like Balasore 1 and Bhadrak and was expecting
discipline of higher order in Cuttack, this being the capital of the Province. 2
Thankkar Bapa had asked him to break journey in Orrisa. He regretted very much that
he could not break journey. But he had Orissa always in his heart.3
It has cut him to the quick, he said, that Orissa, which he had loved so fondly
and through which he had made his Harijan pilgrimage on foot, 4 should belie his
expectations. Was this their non-violence or did they imagine that freedom would be
1
Vide “Speech at Balasore”, 19-1-1946
2
Accoding to report in Amrita Bazar Patrika, when the train slowed down at
Cuttack around midnight, some people climbed the footboards, and Gandhiji asked
them to sit down in an orderly manner: vide also the following item.
3
What follows is extracted from Pyarelal’s “Weekly Letter” in Harijan.
4
In May 1934

won or kept through indiscipline and hooliganism? They were living in a fool’s
paradise, if they did. Was it not ridiculous to pit indiscipline and hooliganism against
the atom bomb which was the ultimate of brute force? It was time that they made up
their mind as to their choice between the two paths. They were at liberty to scrap non-
violence, if they felt that it was a played-out force. But, if they were thinking of
violence while they professed non-violence, they would be guilty of deception and
fraud upon themselves and the world. He remarked:
I do not want your cheers of welcome, nor money during these
stoppages. But I want you to purge yourselves of the lie in the soul.
That will please me more than your gifts; the noises never will, and
never have.
Amrita Bazar Patrika, 21-1-1946; also Harijan, 24-2-1946
379. SPEECH AT BERHAMPUR1
Junuary 20, 1946

In these early hours I meet you, and I am glad. I am sorry, I
could not stay with you even for a day in Orrisa. You will excuse me.
My health is not like before. After fifty years of age one’s health
weakens. That is God’s will. At Bhadrak and Balasore the crowds were
very disciplined. So I thought it was better that I stop at Cuttack. In
the original programme, no stoppage at Cuttack of the special train
was arranged. In Cuttack2 the mob was unruly. It was about 1.30 a. m.
At such a time one should not be disturbed in his sleep and that too an
old man like myself. They afterwards became orderly.
You are sitting calmly. My prayer is, not only at your place but
at all places, that it should be so. Through unruliness we cannot win
swaraj. You all know me and I know you. I am not new to you. You
should carry on constructive work. You should take to khadi work
and removal of untouchability earnestly. You have not yet completely
solved the Harijan problem The problems are the same in all parts of
India. I agreed to come to you so early in the morning because I hope
that Orissa will show the lead in these matters. I know the British will
1
The report said: “At a reception organized by the Utkal Congress Committee
at the Berhampur railway station . . . at 4 a. m. . . . Gandhiji was received . . . by
Harekrushna Mahtab and Viswanath Das and conducted to a dais in the open ground
close to the platform.” Gandhiji’s speech was rendered into Oriya by Herekrushna
Mahtab.
2
Vide the preceding the item.

leave India tomorrow. If they go, not out of your strength, of what use
is it to us? If you think you can make the British leave the country by
empty shows, you are not correct. I have no doubt that through non-
violence and truth alone we can achieve swaraj.
Mahatma Gandhi thanked the people for the purse presented for the Harijan
fund and said :
If I have time enough, I would have collected from each one of
you money for the fund.
Concluding, Gandhiji said, what had happened at Cuttack (the
people behaving in an unruly manner) distressed him, but the orderly
manner in which people behaved in Berhampur amply consoled him.1
380. SPEECH AT PUBLIC MEETING, VISAKHAPATNAM2

January 20, 1946
Gandhiji asked whether (1) they had removed untouchability, (2) they had
achieved communal unity, and (3) they had realized that Adivasis (hill tribes) should
also share swaraj.
Mahatma Gandhi said, they were all of Hindustan, drinking the same water and
breathing the same air. So swaraj must be of the Hindus, the Muslims, the Christians
and others of India.
Referring to the necessity of keeping themselves disciplined and peaceful at
meetings, Mahatma Gandhi said that even if one crore people congregated at one
place, there should be no disturbance. Then only could they claim to be organized and
disciplined; If even the few people that gathered at a public meeting, compared to the
forty crores of India, could not keep themselves in order, he asked, how they could
get swaraj. Even supposing they got swaraj, they would lose it, if they were not
diciplined and orderly in their behaviour. Gandhiji said that without doubt swaraj
would come but their preparedness must be shown my proper discipline. He had not
come to collect funds but to test at first hand how far people were ready for swaraj by
self-discipline.
1
According to report in Amrita Bazar Patrika, 21-1-1946, “Gandhiji’s address
was followed by Ramdhun led by Kanu Gandhi and joined in chorus by the entire
audience.”
2
Then called Vizagapatam. The meeting was held at the Indian Institute. The
report said: “Mahatma Gandhiji’s special train arrived at Waltair at 11.05 a. m. Led by
Mr. Viswanatham, Mahatmaji walked briskly the distance of two furlongs to the
meeting place. Purses were presented there for the Harijan and Hindi prachar funds.”

Gandhiji next touched upon the lingua franca of India and said, everyone knew
that he was at present on his way to Madras to preside over the Dakshina Bharat Hindi
Prachar Sabha celebrations. Two or three Andhra ladies were travelling with him, and
when he spoke in Hindustani, they could not understand. They should all know
Hindustani. Gandhiji asked:
Do you want to know the language that is common to all
Provinces of India or English?
Gandhiji said that he was devoting his services to all in India. When that was
so, he asked, which would be preferable—whether his (Gaandhiji’s) learning all the
languages of India or a small proportion still not knowing Hindustani learning the
language for following his advice. Hindustani was a sweet language, easy to learn,
which had been adopted as the mother tongue of 33 crores of people. So he belived
that they should all take up the subject and learn Hindustani.
Continuing, Mahatma Gandhi said, swaraj cannot be retained if it came as if by
magic. They all proclaimed, they would get their swaraj through non-violence and
truth. That being so, they should not behave otherwise and cheat the world. Since 25
years they had been proclaiming that they would win indepedence by truth and non-
violence. On that account, the whole world had placed India on a high place.
Supposing in 1920 they had announced that they would win swaraj by violent means
and later had won it, they would have lost it by now. Gandhiji wanted them to take a
pledge to win swaraj by means of truth and non-violence.
Concluding, Gandhijj said that he was glad to have noticed that the crowd had
remained peaceful.
381. ADVICE TO CONGRESSMEN1

Junuary 20, 1946
It is necessary that you should give up English and learn
Hindustani. If you want to tell me anything, tell it in Hindustani or in
Telugu. You may know English but it is not necessary you should use
it.
1
The report said that at Dusi Station, Gandhiji spoke to “Congressmen who
wanted to read out an address in English”.

382. MESSAGE TO ANDHRAS 1
ELLORE,
January 20, 1926
I am sorry for observing silence as tomorrow is Monday. I am
glad to visit Andhra. I am sorry, I could not spend longer time in
Andhra. I request you to excuse me as I am old. If only you work my
constructive programme, that is more than seeing me.
From a copy: C.W. 10583. Courtesy: Government of Andhra Pradesh
383. FOREWORD TO “HINDUSTANI-GUJARATI KOSHA”2

January 21, 1926
This is the second edition of the Hindustani-Gujarati diction-
ary. I have not seen any other dictionary of this type in Gujarati. A
dictionary giving the words both in Devanagari and Urdu scripts
seems to be a new venture. If the necessity of knowing both the scripts
and speaking both Hindi and Urdu is accepted, a dictionary like this is
a great necessity.
This dictionary is not to be used in the same way as other
dictionaries are used. If the student of Hindustani consults it fre-
quently, his knowledge of both the scripts and of words from both the
branches of the language is bound to increase. Another way of using
the dictionary properly is that, if any mistakes are found in it, the
reader should note them, as also words which he does not find in it,
and send the lists to the Editor from time to time. The Editor may
make appropriate use of the suggestions when preparing a new edi-
tion; or the addition’s if supplied as addenda, may enable the owner
of the dictionary to use it at nominal cost, as if it was a revised edition.
The addenda can also be sent as a supplement to everyone having the
1
According to Andhra Pradesh Government Papers, “the special train . . .
arrived at Ellore Station at 10.30 p. m., and stopped for fifteen minutes. About ten
thousand persons including many ladies had assembled on the platform. Gandhiji . . .
did not speak . . . but gave darshan by stepping out on a table placed on the platform.
His message to Andhras was transmitted through loud-speaker . . .” A similar message
was given to people the next morning at Vijayawada, when Gandhiji received
contributions.
2
By Maganbhai Prabhudas Desai

original edition.
I hope the people of Gujarat will welcome this venture.
[From Gujarati]
Hindustani-Gujarati Kosha
384. SPEECH AT MADRAS 1

January 21, 1926
Gandhiji asked them to maintain silence and preserve order. He said that unless
every one of them kept perfectly quiet, the vast crowd may not hear him, and he
wanted every one of them to hear him.
But again the crowd shouted “Mahatma Gandhi ki Jai”. Gandhiji. . . said :
I do not expect that you, citizens of Madras, would be so undis-
ciplined. How can I come in your midst again, if you do not conduct
yourself in a disciplined manner?
Then Gandhiji called for the singing of Ramdhun. . . . the whole gathering
took up the refrain. . . . He followed the singing of the crowd with eyes closed . . .
keeping tune with the song. Ramdhun terminated after five minutes. . . . Gandhiji
said:
Now you have seen me. I want every one of you to go home
quietly and leave me to my work.
The crowd, however, was not satisfied . . . They kept shouting, “Lights,
lights; we want to see him.” The electrical staff . . . projected a lamp . . . on the dais
and . . . Gandhiji stood in the full blaze of the light . . . for a full minute and then
pleaded with the crowd . . .
I have come travelling a long distance. I have not even washed
or taken food. There is any amount of work waiting for me. Do you
want me to stay here all night to be with you?
The crowd in a chorus shouted, “No, no; we won’t detain you.” Gandhiji said :
Then let me go. But you must first of all go home quietly. That
is my request to you. Are you prepared to do so?
“Yes”, came the unanimous answer followed by a shout in Tamil “pogirom”2 .
1
The report said that Gandhiji, who had alighted at Ambattur at 4.15 p.m., was
taken in a car to the bungalow adjacent to the Hindi Prachar Sabha, where several
thousands of people had collected but refused to disperse without seeing Gandhiji.
When he came out at about 7 p. m., they shouted “Gandhijiki Jai”. When Gandhiji
raised a warning finger, they became quiet. The Hindustani speech was rendered into
Tamil by Bhashyam.
2
Meaning “We shall go.”

Gandhiji said :
Good, go, all of you. Do you now give me leave to go?
The crowd shouted “Yes”, and Gandhiji then slowly descended . . . and walked
back to his residence. . . .
385. TALK WITH INDONESIAN SAILORS 1
MADRAS,
Gandhiji told them that Indian sympathy3 they had already, as was shown by
the resolution of the Working Committee4 on Indonesia and the far East. As for
the use of Indian troops against them, it was as much India’s and Britain’s
shame as their misfortune. It could be ended only by India gaining her independence,
which would be the forerunner of the emancipation of all the suppressed and exploited
races of the earth.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
386. DISCUSSION WITH NEGRO SOLDIERS 5

MADRAS,
QUESTION: There are several religions in the world. They were all orginated in
foreign countries. Which one of these should Africa follow? Or should she discover
her own religion? If so, how ?
GANDHIJI: It is wrong to say that all religions were originated in
foreign countries. I had fairly extensive contact with Zulus and Bantus
and I found that the Africans have a religion of their own, though
they may not have reasoned it out for themselves. I am not referring
1
This and the following item are extracted from Pyarelal’s “Lighter Inte-
rludes”.
2
Gandhiji reached Madras on January 21; vide the preceding item.
3
Pyarelal reported that the Indonesian sailors had “refused to man their posts
when their ship was ordered to proceed to Batavia with personnel and cargo
ostensibly meant to be used against the nationalist struggle there, and had, in
consequence, been discharged. They wanted India’s sympathy in their cause and
complained about the use of Indian troops to suppress the Indonesians.”
4
Which met in Calcutta from December 7 to 11, 1945. For the resolution, vide
“Lord Wavell’s Version of His Talk with Gandhiji”
5
Vide footnotes 2 and 3, p. 10. Pyarelal explains that the Negro soldiers from
West Africa came “with a long list of questions indicative of the deep stirring in their
consciousness”.
6
ibid

to the rites, ceremonies and fetishes that are prevalent among African
tribes but the religion of one Supreme God. You pray to that God.
There are many religions, but religion is only one. You should follow
that one religion. Foreigners might bring you Christianity. Chris-
tianity as exemplified in Europe and America today is a travesty of
the teaching of Jesus. Then there are Hinduism, Islam, Zoroastrianism
and so on. You should absorb the best that is in each without fettering
your choice and form your own religion.
Q. How can a continent like Africa fight down the fetters of slavery when it
is so hopelessly divided?1
G. I know your difficulty. If you think of the vast size of
Africa, the distance and natural obstacles separating its various parts,
the scattered condition of its people and the terrible divisions among
them, the task might well appear to be hopeless. But there is a charm
which can overcome all these handicaps. The moment the slave
resolves that he will no longer be a slave, his fetters fall. He frees
himself and shows the way to others. Freedom and slavery are mental
states. Therefore the first thing is to say to yourself: ‘I shall no longer
accept the role of a slave. I shall not obey orders as such but shall dis-
obey them when they are in conflict with my conscience.’ The so-
called master may lash you and try to force you to serve him. You will
say: ‘No, I will not serve you for your money or under a threat.’ This
may mean suffering. Your readiness to suffer will light the torch of
freedom which can never be put out.
Q. Africa and India both drink of the cup of slavery. What necessary steps
can be taken to unite the two nations so as to present a common front?
G. You are right. India is not yet free and yet Indians have
begun to realize that their freedom is coming, not because the white
man says so but because they have developed the power within. In as
much as India’s struggle is non-violent, it is a struggle for the eman-
cipation of all oppressed races against superior might. I do not pro-
pose mechanical joint action between them. ‘Each one has to find his
own salvation’ is true of this as well as of the other world. It is enough
that there is a real moral bond between Asiatics and Africans. It will
grow as time passes.
Q. Everything immoral and deadly is attributed to Africa. What steps should
1
According to Pyarelal, the Negroes “quoted Gandhiji’s observation that to
remain in slavery is beneath the dignity of man; a slave who is conscious of his state
and yet does not strive to break his chains is lower than the beast.”

be taken to eradicate the epidemic of foreign prejudice against us?
G. In so far as there is a modicum of truth in this criticism, it is
no special prerogative of Africa. Immorality and wrong are common
in all countries. But you must not allow yourselves to take refuge in
self-complacency either, by saying to yourself: ‘Well, others are no
better than we.’ Many, perhaps most of the evils that are at the back of
the prejudice against Negroes are the result of nominal Christianity
imported from America. They have learnt to drink, dance immoral
dances and so on. Then there are evil African customs. You must
eradicate these and thus disarm foreign prejudice. It is a laborious task
but a joyous one. The epidemic of foreign prejudice will then die a
natural death.
They wanted to know as to how they could set up depots of useful Indian
books, and what India could give them and how they could achieve “co-operative
industrialization” in order to be saved from the terrible exploitation under which they
were suffering. Gandhiji replied :
India can give you good ideas. It can give you books of
universal worth. The commerce between India and Africa will be of
ideas and services, not of manufactured goods against raw materials
after the fashion of Western exploiters. Then India can offer you the
spinning-wheel. If I had discovered it when I was in South Africa, I
would have introduced it among the Africans who were my neigh-
bours in Phoenix. You can grow cotton, you have ample leisure and
plenty of manual skill. You should study and adopt the lesson of the
village crafts we are trying to revive. Therein lies the key to your
salvation.
Harijan, 24-2-1946

387. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS 1
[Before January 22, 1946] 2
QUESTION: In the Bhagavad Gita comes a sloka 3 : . . . If everything goes
according to fixed law, then if you pray to God, can He intervene and set aside the law
for your sake?
ANSWER: But the meaning at the bottom is: “Thy will be done,
not mine.” God’s law is never interrupted, but that very law says that
every act has its result. In the prayer for the child, father surrenders
his will to God. The law works as if it were a person, and since every
action tells, this prayer has an unforseeable result. You should work
out what I have written. The sum total of every act is a resultant. Draw
a parallelogram of forces.
Jnana, karama and bhakti—should not they all go together? Unless you know
God, how can you have bhakti? You cannot even offer him your karma.
You must not reason like this. If you have no work and so-
called bhakti, the result will be lop-sided. Do you know God to whom
you pray? I don’t. He is unknown to you and me.
To whom shall we then pray?
To God, whom you do not know. We always do not know the
person to whom we are praying.
But the Shastras say that He is knowable.
Since He is knowable we search. It may take a billion years.
Even if you do not believe, you must continue to pray.“Help thou
mine4 unbelief” 5 is a verse from the Bible. But it is improper for you
to ask such questions. For you, there must be infinite patience and
inward longing. Inward longing obviates all such questions. “Have
faith and you will be whole”6 is another chip from the Bible. Gita has
many such parallel passages.
1
This was an enclosure to a letter (G.N. 3230) dated “Thyagarayanagar,
Madras, January 22, 1946”, for R. P. Parasuram to Konda Venkatappayya, which
read: “As instructed by Pyarelalji, I am enclosing herewith Gandhiji’s scribbled
answers to your questions. I am also enclosing herewith a typed copy for your
convenience.”
2
ibid
3
The verse is not given in the source.
4
The source, however, has “my”.
5
St. Mark, ix, 24
6
St. Mathew, ix. 22, and St Mark x. 52, which read: “They faith hath made
Thee whole.”

Q. When I look at nature around me, I say to myself there must be one
Creator, one God and to Him I should pray.
A. That is reasoning. God is beyond reason. But I have nothing
to say, if your reason is enough to sustain you.
From a photostat of a copy: G.N. 3230
388. TELEGRAM TO GOVIND BALLABH PANT 1

MADRAS,
January 22, 1946
SUCHETA FREE DECIDE WHETHER TAKE KASTURBA OR PARLIAMENTARY
WORK. 2
GANDHI
389. TALK WITH V. S. SRINIVASA SASTRI 3
MADRAS,
January 22, 1946
GANDHIJI: You must not hug me and excite yourself.
SASTRI: I have wanted to say one thing to you. Another opportunity for peace
has been lost. They are sitting there at the Peace Conference Table. But who is there
who can speak for humanity except you? I am afraid, India has failed to do her duty.
Even if they do not ask you, you must go as the apostle of truth and non-violence and
be on the spot. Your mere presence will have a tremendous effect. You must not stand
on ceremony.4
1
1887-1961; Leader of Congress Party in the United Provinces Legislative
Assembly, and its Premier, 1937-39; Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, 1946-55;
Home Minister, Government of India, 1955-61
2
The addressee had sought Gandhiji’s permission to sponsor Sucheta
Kripalani for membership of U. P. Legislative Assembly. She, however, Joined
Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust.
3
This is extracted from Dr. Sushila Nayyar’s “Meeting Sastriar”. Sushila
Nayyar who explains: “Gandhiji had heard that Sastriar was so ill that probably he
alone would be allowed to go in for a few minutes. Shri Jagadisan had advised my
brother [Pyarelal] and me to accompany him. . . . So Gandhiji took both of us and
Shri Manilal Gandhi with him. . . . The doctor, however, gave us more cheerful news.
. . . Sastriar sat bolt upright . . . as Gandhiji entered . . . and moved to the edge of the
bed. ‘I want to come near enough to hug you, little brother,’ he muttered. . . . Gandhiji
took his hand and soothed him.”
4
According to Sushila Nayyar, “ever since Gandhiji’s release from prison,
Sastriar had been writing to him imploring him to go to the Peace Conference at San

Then, referring to the Parlimentary Delegation1 , he remarked, “we know noth-
ing can come out of it. Labour or Conservative, so far as India is concerned, they are
all one and the same.
G. But we must trust. Burrows 2 , the new pitboy Governor of
Bengal, has a sense of humour. When the Pressmen worried him and
asked him what policy he was going to initiate, he replied, “Gentle-
men, I am not going to initiate. I am going. to carry out.” That is true
of all of them. The labour Government cannot afford to do otherwise.
S. What next?
G. Who knows? The British Government itself does not know, I
think. But I did not come here to discuss politics with you.
S. I see, you think I am not good for it.
G.No, but you are certainly no good for it in the present state
of your health.3
Harijan, 28-4-1946
Francisco [vide “Letter From V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”, 2-6-1944] . . . Gandhiji’s view

was that his non-violence should have its effect from wherever he was. His going to
the Peace Conference, unless the great powers themselves want it, could serve no
useful purpose.”
1
Which reached Bombay on January 5; it consisted of Prof. Richards (Leader),
R. Serenson, (Mrs.) Mureiel E. Nichol A. G. Bottomeley, Maj. Woodrow Wyatt,
Godfrey Nicholson, Brig. A. R. W. Low, R. Hopkin Morris, the Earl of Munster and
Lord Chorley of Kendal. According to The Transfer of Power, 1942-47, Vol. VI, p.
522, in a memorandum dated November 14, 1945, to the British Cabinet, the
Secretary of State for India, Pethick-Lawrence, had said that the Parliamentary
Delegation “would serve to demonstrate the sympathy of Parliament with Indian
aspirations and the sincerity of British intentions in the matter of India’s
constitutional advance. The Delegation. . . . would be free in their movements and
their contacts with Indians, from any control by the Viceroy or Governors.”
2
Sir Frederick Burrows
3
The report concluded: “They touched upon the topic of the communal
problem. They cracked a few more jokes and then Sastriar called us near and bade
good-bye saying a few kind words to each one of us. He talked a little about South
Africa and Gen. Smuts with Shri Manilal Gandhi, and Gandhiji left him with a promise
to visit him again if the doctor reported that the visit had had no deleterious effect
upon his health.”

390. LETTER TO DR. B. PATTABHI SITARAMAYYA
MADRAS,
January 22, 1946
BHAI PATTABHI,
I got your letter just now. Bhai Venkatrao1 also showed me his
letter. Get well soon. I have said all that I wanted to say. You may now
explain things to me when the need arises. Your duty at present is to
get well.
Blessings from
BAPU
DR. P ATTABHI S ITARAMAYYA
MASULIPATTAM
From a copy a copy of the Hindi: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
391. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, MADRAS 2

January 22, 1946
Gandhiji explained how Ramdhun was sung and how those willing to join
might clap their hands in time. He explained :
This custom was started in Bengal, and, I believe, with very good
results. I wish as many of you as are willing should join this dhun.
Gandhiji first enquired how many of them could understand Hindustani. About a
tenth of the crowd raised their hands. To the question how many were unable to
understand Hindustani, there was no answer until it was translated into Tamil and then
the overwhelming majority raised their hands. Gandhiji said, they need not be shy or
ashamed, but he would want them all to learn Hindustani.
At the outset, Gandhiji said that it gave him great pleasure to be in their midst
once again after so many years. He then recalled how years ago it was in the city of
Madras that satyagraha againt the Rolatt Act 3 was first launched. He had come to
Madras on that occasion4 at the invitation of Mr. Kasturiranga Iyengar who had put
1
K. Venkatrao, Secretary, Andhra Provincial Congress Committee
2
The report said: “Precisely at 5.30 p. m., Gandhiji, accompanied by his party
including Miss Agatha Harrison, proceeded to the grounds to the south of Hindi
Prachar Sabha for prayer. . . . Gandhiji . . . addressed them . . . in Hindustani. Mr. A.
Subramanyam, Hindi Pracharak from Trichinopoly, rendered the speech into Tamil.”
3
Bill No. 29 of 1919
4
In March 1919

him up with Mr. C. Rajagopalachari. Rajaji had then recently come over to Madras
from Salem. There he was a leading practising lawyer and was doing useful work as
Chairman of the Salem Municipality. Gandhiji confessed that he had at first felt a bit
put out at Mr. Kasturiranga Iyengar putting him up with one who was a preactising
laywer and a stranger to him at that time. But the late Mr. Mahadev Desai who was
then with him told him the next day that Rajaji was a precious friend of Mr.
Kasturiranga Iyengar and far from playing him a trick; therefore the latter had selected
an ideal host for him. Although Rajaji had never met Gandhiji before, Mr. Desai had
told Gandhiji before, Mr. Desai had told Gandhiji, he had been following his work in
South Africa with close attention and admiration. Mr. Mahadev Desai had further told
him that Rajaji would be prepared to throw away his practice in a trice at a word from
Gandhiji.
I could hardly believe at that time that a leading lawyer could
give up his practice like that. I, however, accepted Mr. Desai’s testi-
mony of faith. The subsequent events have, however, amply borne out
Mr. Mahadev Desai’s estimate. Rajaji as I see him today is just what he
was on the day when we first met.
It was on that occasion, too, said Gandhiji, that he had made his first acquain-
tance with the late Mr. C. Vijayaraghavachariar.
Continuing, Gandhiji described how it was at Mr. Rajagopalachari’s place that
the observance of the 6th of April1 which had become a sacred day to all of them was
commenced. It was a great day for him and for them. It marked the birth of satyagraha
in this country. The way in which it galvanized the whole nation into a new cons-
ciousness was nothing less than a miracle. It gave him particular pleasure, therefore,
to recall those glorious associations and to re-visit the place that had given them
birth.
Referring to his present visit, Gandhiji stated that he was disinclined to come
to Madras on the present occasion. He was reluctant to come out of Sevagram in the
first instance and later he would have liked to return straight to the Ashram from
Bengal. He believed that it was providence that had brought him to Madras. Surely it
would not be for nothing. He hoped that the present visit would prove as fruitful as
the previous one. He added :
Yesterday I was rather disappointed with you. I tried in my bro-
ken Hindustani, to make myself understood but could not. When I
spoke in Hindustani, Rajaji himself did not fully understand it. He is
the defaulter No. 1 in this respect. He addresses you in Tamil but
1
In commemoration of the total hartal observed on April 6, 1919, in protest
against the Rowlatt Act and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre which followed on April
13. The week had since been observed as “National Week” every year.

when he goes outside the Province, he talks in English. Well, if the sea
water should lose its salt, wherewith shall it be flavoured? All over the
country he is reputed to be one of the finest speakers in the English
language, but he has not learnt to speak in Hindustani. I want a pledge
from you here and now—and you should not only give the pledge
but pledge yourself to implement it too—that you will all learn
Hindustani. Should you not do even that little for the country’s
independence? Do you expect all the two crores of people of Tamil
Nadu to learn English? Or do you expect India to learn one of the
four South Indian languages to be able to communicate with you? I
say it is your dharma to learn Hindustani, which will link the South
with the North.
I want you further to contribute to the Harijan fund. You must
do so as a token of your determination to eradicate the blot of
untouchability from the fair name of Hinduism. Another thing I want
to tell you is that whatever your religion, prayer should form part of
your daily life. It should mean more to you than food and drink. I
thank you for maintaining perfect discipline during prayer. I will hold
prayer here, every evening. The text of the prayer with the translation
of the same in the four South Indian languages is obtainable from
Satyanarayanaji1 . You should learn it and its meanings. Further all
those who come to the prayer should fully take part in it and join in
the singing of the Ramdhun to the accompainment of tala.2 .
1
M. Satyanarayana, Secretary, Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha, Madras
2
Rhythmic beats

392. ADVICE TO INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY MEN1
MADRAS,
Gandhiji told them that they could only follow the lead of the Congress and
commended to their attention Capt. Shah Nawaz’s statement in which he had said
that, whilst they had fought with arms for their country’s freedom when they were
outside India, they would now serve India through non-violence.
Lastly you should remember that it is unbecoming the dignity
of a soldier to depend on anybody’s charity. As soldiers of freedom,
you should earn your bread by your honest industry and disdain to
look to others for support, even though you may have to suffer hard-
ships and privations in consequence.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
393. FRAGMENT OF TALK WITH V. V. GIRI 3

MADRAS,
January 23, 1946
Gandhiji’s individual opinion was that no Trade Union which respected the
National Congress could do without the tricolour flag with the charkha in the middle.
He added that he saw no objection to the simple red flag with the particular
Union’s name on it, provided that it went side by side with the supreme tricolour.
1
Extracted from “Lighter Interludes”. Pyarelal explains: “At Madras . . . there
was a group of discharged I.N.A. men. Gandhiji saw them for a couple of minutes as he
was going to his residence. They were returning to their respective homes. They had
received their training in the Military Academy at Tokyo. They asked: ‘We worked
under Netaji’s guidance. Whose lead should we now follow?’ ”
2
From the reference to Shah Nawaz Khan’s statement which was made on
January 22, on the eve of Subhas Chandra Bose’s 50th birthday
3
1894-1980; twice President of All-India Trade Union Congress and its
representative at I.L.O., Geneva, 1927; represented Labour at Round Table
Conference, London, 1930-47; India’s High Commissioner in Sri Lanka, 1947-51;
Minister of Labour in Union Cabinet, 1952-54; successively held Governorship of
Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka from 1958 to 1964; Vice-President of India,
1967-69 and President of India, 1969-74

394. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, MADRAS1
[January 23, 1946] 2
Gandhiji said that the very best of food served to a sick person who could not
digest it would act as poison. Similarly freedom or swaraj would prove a questionable
boon to them, if they lacked discipline.

January 21/24, 146
CHI. JIVANJI,
I sent herewith a Foreword3 for Maganbhai’s dictionary. I
suggest the addition of one page to explain the Urdu script. The
method of forming words, too, should be explained so that the buyer,
if he does not know Urdu, may learn it. Pyarelal has an impression
that there are also mistakes in a few places. If you think it necessary,
get the dictionary examined again from that point of view.
I am sending a Foreword4 for Mahadev’s Gita, too. I suppose I
have nothing more to write now. Am I right?
I forced myself to find time and write all this yesterday under
great pressure of other work. I put aside other reading and writing.
If Maganbhai or you wish to suggest any changes, you may do
so. Never mind if that delays the publication by a few days.
Enclosure: Foreword
January 24, 1946
This is a painful thing. This is being posted on the 24th instead
of on the 21st. But is it not better that it should go today at any rate
rather than not at all?
Blessings from
BAPU
Jivanji D. Desai
1
The report said: “The meeting was very noisy. Contrary to his usual practice,
Gandhiji kept standing throughout the prayer.”
2
From the reference to the noise at this meeting in “Speech at Constructive
Workers’ Conference, Madras”, vide "Key to Health”, 28-8-1942
3
Vide”Key to Health”, 28-8-1942
4
Vide “Key to Health”, 28-8-1942

396. A TELEGRAM
January 24, 1946
YOU AND PROMILABEHN DECIDE ON INSCRIPTION. MUST BE IN
NAGARI AND URDU RETAINING OM AND HE RAM NO GAUDINESS.
BAPU
From the original: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and Library.
Courtesy: Beladevi Nayyar and Dr. Sushila Nayyar

MADRAS,
January 24, 1946
CHI. JIVANJI,
I came to learn in the course of a discussion with Kakasaheb 1
that you cannot carry out the changes he has introduced in the Nagari
script because you do not have such types or give up printing in
Devanagari script. We cannot cling to the old forms of the letters. The
improved forms have been made current by Kakasaheb and, so far as
I know, our [Hindustani Prachar] Sabha has accepted them. How, then,
can we ourselves admit anarchy? If I am mistaken in this, please
correct me. Kaka and Nanavati2 have seen this letter.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 9964. Also C. W. 6938. Courtesy:
Jivanji D. Desai
398. LETTER TO MUNNANLAL G. SHAH

MADRAS,
January 24, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
Two of your letters are lying with me. I am writing this during a
few moments of free time. Do not worry in the least about the
1
D. B. Kalelkar
2
Amritlal T. Nanavati

samadhi1 . Go on doing only the task in hand. Nothing is done there
(in the Spinners’ Association) without my permission.
Do what is possible regarding the clinic 2 . Now I will be there in
a few days.
Kanchan3 is with me. Her cough has not disappeared. But other-
wise she is all right. She is quite cheerful. According to me she is
being looked after better than a queen. I have not asked her whether
she would agree.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: G.N. 8609. Also C. W. 7209. Courtesy:
Munnalal G. Shah
399. LETTER TO MRIDULA SARABHAI 4

MADRAS,
January 24, 1946
CHI. MRIDU,
I have your letter of January 11, 1946. I have been very busy
and it is nearly six in the morning. What is being done for women
seems to be good.5 Jawaharlal has done a very good job.
Blessings from
BAPU
S MT. M RIDULA S ARABHAI
S HAHIBAG
AHMEDABAD
1
The reference is to the proposal to acquire the land in the Aga Khan Palace,
Poona, having the samadhis of Kasturba Gandhi and Mahadev Desai. Vide also
“Letter to Vallabhbhai Patel”, 1-1-1946
2
Nature Cure Clinic, Poona
3
Addressee’s wife
4
The letter is in Devanagari.
5
The addressee, a trustee of the Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust, had
organized women’s welfare activities.

400. LETTER TO JETHALAL L. GANDHI
MADRAS,
January 24, 194[6] 1
CHI. KAKU,
I have your very long letter. We should be charitable. We would
go crazy looking for other people’s faults, and we would never see
our own. Hence remain silent and render such service as you can.
I should consider it a matter of shame that you should rush
about in the car to do my work. All the same I am trying to be vigi-
lant.
I shall not be able to look up Hemchanbhai and the labourers.
Sorry.
Blessings from
BAPU
401. SPEECH AT CONSTRUCTIVE WORKERS’

CONFERENCE, MADRAS 2
January 24, 1946
Gandhiji had hardly spoken a few sentences when the drone of planes overhead
dropped his voice, and Gandhiji stopped speaking for a while till he could be heard
better.
Gandhiji took the organizers to task because the printed programme that had
been put into his hands was in English. It shold have been, he said, in the local
language or in the rashtrabhasha, Hindustani.3
Gandhiji sharply rebuked those workers who did not understand Hindustani for
not knowing that language. He told them that the time was past when he used to
1
The source, however, has “1945”, a slip of the pen.
2
The report said, about 200 workers including a ”good number” of women had
gathered at the Conference, which was presided over by SShri Krishnadas Jaju of All-
India Spinners’ Association. Gandhiji, supported by Abha Gandhi and Kantilal,
arrived at 8.20 a. m. He spoke in Hindustani.
3
According to the report, “Some persons in the gathering did not understand
what Gandhiji was saying and one of them stood up and, speaking in Telugu, said he
could not follow Gandhiji’s speech. Gandhiji asked him in Tamil to sit down. The
gentleman, not understanding Tamil continued standing, and some of his friends made
him sit.”

address them in English, if only to please them. He had now decided to reserve his
English, if only to please them. He had now decided to reserve his English for
Englishmen and foreigners only. So far as they (the gathering) were concerned, he
would prefer to speak to them in his broken Hindustani, even if he could make himself
better understood by speaking in English.
Referring to the prayer gathering of the previous evening, 1 he said, he knew
there were only a few at the far end who were creating the noise; but in an orchestra if
even one instrument was out of tune, the harmony of the whole was spoilt. Disci-
pline and its inculcation in the people was an essential part of constructive work.
If he had time, he continued, he would have gone to their latrines, their
kitchen, their dining hall, ect., so that he might see for himself how they ate, sat and
so on. Maintenance or proper living conditions in the camp was another illustration
of fresh items that could be added to the 18-fold constructive programme.
Parliamentary programme and constructive programme were both before the
country, he observed. It was not a question of one being inferior to the other, but he
wanted to make it clear to them that for India to win her independence through truth
and non-violence, constructive work was absolutely essential. Those who went to the
legislatures should go there primarily to promote constructive work. But in any case
he was of opinion that lovers of freedom should go to the legislatures, if only to
prevent those who did not want freedom from getting in and posing as the country’s
representatives.
Referring to the Parliamentary Delegation, he said that he had given a couple
of hours to them on the previous evening and another hour to some of them this
morning. 2 He did not think he had wasted his time, but he did not depend on anybody
for giving them swaraj. Gandhiji concluded :
Swaraj has to come through our own strength. We might get
help from other quarters. It would be wlecome. But we should under-
stand that freedom could never come as a gift from outside. We bore
no enmity towards the British. We want the British rulers to quit in a
friendly spirit. If they do that, it will augur well for them, for India
and the world.
Gandhiji declared the Conference open and wished them a fruitful discussion3 .
1
2
For a discussion, vide“Key to Health”, 28-8-1942
3
At its afternoon session; vide the following item.

402. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS AT CONSTRUCTIVE
WORKERS’ CONFERENCE, MADRAS
January 24, 1946
The first question related to the place of khadi in the national economy and
how far it would help to solve the poverty problem.
Gandhiji said that khadi was the very foundation of Indian swaraj and
economic uplift of the poor. He had always linked khadi with swaraj from the
beginning. The more khadi we produced, the nearer we would be to swaraj. Manual
labour was an essential factor in his programme, and it was as necessary for the rich
also to do manual work. Spinning was manual labour par excellence. It enabled even
poor people to lead independent lives. Explaining the symbolism of the charkha,
Gandhiji said that it stood for ahimsa . Let them not get lost in minor controversies
but concentrate on the work of spinning and production of khadi, the most important
part of the constructive programme.
Another question asked was how khadi production could be of help to the poor
man when one considered that in the budget more than 80 per cent was spent on food
and only 12 per cent on cloth.
Gandhiji answered that if through khaddar they could add to the income of the
people even a few annas, it would be worth while. He was looking forward to the day
when khadi would become a universal gospel, though today it was confined to India.
The first step he envisaged was that khadi should touch all the 40 crores of Indian
people.
A question written in English and in pencil on an odd slip of paper was next
put aside by Gandhiji with the remark that it was illegible and the questioner was
doing violence to an old man to send the question in that way.1
QUESTION: What exactly do you mean by economic equality? What is statutory
trusteeship as conceived by you?
Gandhiji’s reply was that economic equality of his conception did not mean
that everyone would literally have the same amount. It simply meant that everybody
should have enough for his or her needs. For instance, he required two shawls in
winter whereas his grand-nephew Kanu Gandhi who stayed with him and was like his
own son did not require any warm clothing whatsoever. Gandhiji required goat’s milk,
oranges and other fruit. Kanu could do with ordinary food. He envied Kanu but there
was no point in it. Kanu was a young man whereas he was an old man of 76. The
monthly expense of his food was far more than that of Kanu but that did not mean that
there was economic inequality between them. The elephant needs a thousand times
1
What follows is extracted form “Gandhiji’s Communism” by Pyarelal in
Harijan.

more food than the ant, but that is not an indication of inequality. So the real
meaning of economic equality was: “To each according to his need.” That was the
definition of Marx. If a single man demanded as much as a man with wife and four
children that would be a violation of economic equality. Gandhiji continued :
Let no one try to justify the glaring difference between the
classes and the masses, the prince and the pauper, by saying that the
former need more. That will be idle sophistry and a travesty of my
argument. The contrast between the rich and the poor today is a
painful sight. The poor villagers are exploited by the foreign Govern-
ment and also by their own countrymen—the city-dwellers. they pro-
duce the food and go hungry. They produce milk and their children
have to go without it. It is disgraceful. Everyone must have a balanced
diet, a decent house to live in, facilities for the education of one’s
children and adequate medical relief.
That constituted his picture of economic equality. He did not want to taboo
everything above and beyond the bare necessaries but they must come after the
essential needs of the poor are satisfied. First things must come first.
As for the present owners of wealth, they would have to make their choice
between class-war and voluntarily converting themselves into trustees of their
wealth. They would be allowed to retain the stewardship of their possessions and to
use their talent to increase the wealth, not for their own sakes, but for the sake of the
nation and therefore without exploitation. The State would regulate the rate of
commission which they would get commensurate with the service rendered and its
value to society. Their children would inherit the stewardship only if they proved
their fitness for it. He concluded :
Supposing India becomes a free country tomorrow, all the capi-
talists will have an opportunity of becoming statutory trustees. But
such a statute will not be imposed from above. It will have to come
from below. When the people understand the implications of trustee-
ship and the atmosphere is ripe for it, the people themselves, begin-
ning with gram panchayats, will begin to introduce such statutes. Such
a thing coming from below is easy to swallow. Coming from above, it
is liable to prove a dead weight.
Q. What is the difference between your technique and that of the communists
or socialists for realizing the goal of economic equality?
A. The socialists and communists say, they can do nothing to
bring about economic equality today. They will just carry on propa-
ganda in its favour and to that end they believe in generating and
accentuating hatred. They say, when they get control over and

accentuating hatred. They say, when they get control over the State,
they will enforce equality. Under my plan, the State will be there to
carry out the will of the people, not to dictate to them or force them
to do its will. I shall bring about economic equality through non-
violence, by converting the people to my point of view by harnessing
the forces of love as against hatred. I will not wait till I have converted
the whole society to my view but will straightaway make a beginning
with myself. It goes without saying that I cannot hope to bring about
economic equality of my conception, if I am the owner of fifty
motor-cars or even of ten bighas of land. For that I have to reduce
myself to the level of the poorest of the poor. That is what I have been
trying to do for the last fifty years or more, and so I claim to be a
foremost communist although I make use of cars and other facilities
offered to me by the rich. They have no hold on me and I can shed
them at a moment’s notice, if the interests of the masses demand it.
Q. What is the place of satyagraha in making the rich realize their duty
towards the poor?
The same as against the foreign power. Satyagraha is a law of
universal application. Beginning with the family, its use can be
extended to every other circle. Supposing a land-owner exploits his
tenants and mulcts them of the fruit of their toil by appropriating it to
his own use. When they expostulate with him, he does not listen and
raises objections that he requires so much for his wife, so much for his
children and so on. The tenants or those who have espoused their
cause and have influence, will make an appeal to his wife to
expostulate with her husband. She would probably say that for herself
she does not need his exploited money. The children will say likewise
that they would earn for themselves what they need.
Supposing further that he listens to nobody or that his wife and
children combine against the tenants, they will not submit. They will
quit, if asked to do so, but they will make it clear that the land belongs
to him who tills it. The owner cannot till all the land himself, and he
will have to give in to their just demands. It may, however, be that the
tenants are replaced by others. Agitation short of violence will then
continue till the replaced tenants see their error and make common
cause with the evicted tenants. Thus satyagraha is a process of
educating public opinion such that it covers all the elements of society
and in the end makes itself irresistible. Violence interrupts the process
and prolongs the real revolution of the whole social structure.
The Hindu, 26-1-1946; also Harijan, 31-3-1946

403. FRAGMENT OF AN INTERVIEW1
MADRAS,
January 24, 1946
If the report about the damage to communist persons and pro-
perties is true, I consider it disgraceful. Whatever may be the diffe-
rence between communists and others, they must be respected, as
others will wish theirs to be respected. Every act of popular violence
is detrimental to the people’s progress.
The Hindu, 26-1-946
404. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, MADRAS

January 24, 1946
Speaking of the Tyagaraja keertana that had been sung during prayer, Gandhiji
said, he knew what a high place Sri Tyagaraja occupied in South India. Wherever he
had been, whether in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Desha, Karnataka or Kerala, he had heard
Tyagaraja’s songs sung with a sweet melody which seemed to spring from the very
heart of the singer. Tyagaraja’s songs and Tyagaraja’s name comported ill with the
spirit of provincialism and secularism that he had witnessed among them. There was
rivalry of languages today which might grow into something worse tomorrow. Some
wanted Tamil, some Telugu and so on. Then there was the feeling of separateness and
rivalry betwen South Indians and North Indians. He was utterly unable to understand
how this parochialism could be compatible with the growing desire for freedom for
the whole of India. Supposing a Bengali achieved distinction in a particular field,
would the glory belong to Bengal alone? No, it belonged to every Province and every
one of the forty crores of India. That should be their first lesson, if they wanted to be
a free nation. Tyagaraja had sung that if all the attributes of Rama are put on one side
and the glory of Ramanama on the other, the latter would far outweigh the former.
Thinking of the historical Rama of Valmiki or Tulsiddas, one was liable to have many
doubts as, for instance, why Rama banished Sita, and so on. But when one thought of
Ramanama in the abstract, forgetting who Rama was and what he did, Rama at once
1
This was reported as stated by Gandhiji “in the course of an interview” with
reference to “reports of outbreak of violence in Bombay [on January 23] in
connection with the observance of Subhas Chandra Bose Day, and the attack on the
headquarters of the Communist Party of India”. According to The Transfer of Power,
1942-47, Vol. VI, pp. 86-9, although “the authorities in Bombay altered the
permitted route of a Subhas Bose procession to avoid Muslim areas in the city”, the
“organizers of the procession refused to follow the altered route and in ensuing
disturbances 11 persons were killed and several hundreds were injured”.

become the omnipresent and omnipotent God, above doubt and criticism. Similarly
he asked them to forget and put behind them the confusing label of Tamil Nadu v.
Andhra, Gujarat v . Maharashtra or Punjab, and so on, and just remember Hindustan
and its glory. There was a potency in the two letters composing the syllable Ram
which nothing could match or rival. Similarly there was a magic in the syllable
Hind all its own. After all, the world knew India, not its Provinces—India which had
resolved to win her independence through truth and non-violence. He exhorted them
to throw their parochialism and petty quarrels and rivalries into the Indian Ocean and,
in Tyagraja’s name, take a pledge that they would be Indians first and Indians last,
live for India and die for India.
When Tamil translation of Gandhiji’s exhortation was given, some people
shouted for Telugu translation also. Gandhiji said :
All right, say it in Telugu also.
Accordingly a Telugu translation was given. Gandhiji then remarked with a
laugh :
Is there no Malayalee and no Canarese here?
405. DISCUSSION WITH MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENTARY

DELEGATION 1
MADRAS,
January 24, 1946
Gandhiji gave a very clear picture of what his views were on the present
political situation and the future. Gandhiji’s view outlined broadly was, it is under-
stood, that India wanted her freedom. She wanted the freedom to be given to her not as
though by a superior to an inferior, but given and taken as among equals. He hoped
that the British Government would soon make a declaration to that effect, for any
delay would complicate the situation and harden the feelings betwen the different
sections of opinion in India, and between India and Britain.
Once that declaration was made and Constituent Assembly was set up, an act
which would prove that Britain was acting in good faith, India would begin to believe
that Britain was in earnest. Of course, he realized that it would take time before the
full Indian Constitution would function properly. But they would be prepared to work
out these details in patience or, he is stated to have pointed out, they would have been
1
According to the report, Prof. Richards, Lord Chorley and Reginald Sorensen
called on Gandhiji. “The talks commenced at 7.30 p. m., as on the previous day, and
lasted 90 minutes. . . . Lord Munster was not present.”

satisfied about Britain’s good faith.
Gandhiji, it is reported, also touched on the position of political prisoners and
urged the need for their release.
406. MESSAGE TO STUDENTS1

MADRAS,
January 25, 1946
Gandhiji’s advice was that the students must observe perfect discipline and
non-violence. Not only there should be no coercion of any kind, but there should be
no show of force either. To take a large mass of students to another College in order
to bring out the students of that College, in Gandhiji’s opinion, would not be strictly
non-violent. More than that he could not say. Gandhiji would like the students to act
under the guidance and advice of someone in the city in whom they have faith.
407. SPEECH AT DAKSHINA BHARAT HINDI PRACHAR

SABHA, MADRAS 2
January 25, 1946

Congratulating the Sabha on its work during the last 25 years, Gandhiji said
that what had been achieved so far was certainly praiseworthy. One of the previous
speakers, Mr. T. Krishnaswami, had used a type of English-mixed Hindus-tani,
though he could talk good Hindustani, in order to emphasize how far they had
succumbed to the influence of a foreign language. He did not want to make any
invidious comparisons, but it seemed that the influence of English was so great,
particularly in South India, that even Indian names assumed an English form in many
places. This was a kind of slavery. Why should they continue to hug the chains,
albeit golden, which enslaved them? Should they not break these asunder and try to
regain their freedom? It was not difficult at all. Let them at least replace English with
Hindustani. He wanted Hindustani to spread so as to unite the different parts of India
and not so as to displace the local Indian languages. He was sorry to note that so
many in that gathering could not understand him. He desired to serve them, enslaved
as they were. It was here in Madras that he first started on his service of slaves. Many
1
The message was signed by Pyarelal, and it was read out to the students of
Pachaiyappa’s College who were stopped by police from going in a procession.
2
Gandhiji was inaugurating the Silver Jubilee celebrations.

prominent citizens of Madras, highly educated persons, welcomed him and extended
to him their hospitality at that time. They all fell in with the idea of promoting
Hindustani as the lingua franca of India. It was soon after that the movement was set
on foot here. He was glad to read the reports presented to him of the progress of work
so far, and he congratulated them on it; but taking into consideration what yet
remained to achieve, one should admit that it was but a drop in the ocean. So it was
that he appealed to everyone in the gathering and outside to learn Hindustani as early
as he or she could. If only they devoted to the study of Hindustani a sixteenth of the
time they devoted to English, they would attain a higher degree of proficiency in that
language. They should learn to read and write both the scripts related to that langu-
age—Nagari and Urdu—for the sake of India’s independence.
Suggesting that the nomenclature for the work done by the Sabha should be
changed from “Hindi Prachar” to “Hindustani Prachar”, Gandhiji said that he was not
quite such a fanatic about the nomenclature as some were. What was meant by
rashtrabhasha was that common medium which was easily understood by some 23
crores of the people of India, irrespective or religion or class. That was Hindustani. It
was their dharma to learn this language and in both the scripts, too. He also would
like Hindi workers to learn the language of the area in which they carried on their
work so that they would be able to serve the country and the rashtrabhasha all the
more.
Referring to the difficulties over translation, Gandhiji said that he had decided
that there should be no translation of his speech that day. It would save time, for one
thing. Furhter, they could read what he said in the newspapers later on or gather the
substance from friends.
It was good that they had all contributed to the Silver Jubilee Fund and come
there in such large numbers. But he had seen how they had also committed a serious
breach of discipline in rushing pell-mell and sitting here, there and everywhere,
instead of occupying the seats allotted to them If they did not learn to observe
discipline in their everyday life, how would they be able to manage the affairs of a
free India, he asked. It should be their sankalpa1 that swaraj should be run on the
basis of discipline. Everyone should learn to obey laws and regulations in order to
promote constructive national work. Disobedience to be non-violent had to be civil;
it did not mean breaking of any and every law. That would lead to chaos and mob rule.
He did not wish to live to see mob rule in India. His desire to live for 125 years was in
order to serve the cause of truth and non-violence. That presupposed the observance
of strict discipline on their part.
1
Determination or resolve

Gandhiji said that he did not want to take more time. He thanked them for the
silence they had maintained and bade them good-bye.
January 25, 1946

Gandhiji said that he did not put through a comprehensive prayer programme
as the meeting was not observing perfect silence. He was, however, glad that the
position improved during Ramdhun.
Gandhiji declared that henceforth there would be no translation of his speech
in Tamil or Telugu.1 Those who did not care to know Hindustani should afterwards
gather from newspaper reports or from friends what he had said. If they did not wish to
hear him in Hindustani, he was prepared to go away without saying anything. The
incident had pained him greatly, he said. His appeal2 of the previous seemed to have
fallen on deaf ears.
They should at least observe elementary rules of courtesy. The rule was that
even if a child was entrusted with authority, everyone should implicitly obey his or
her instructions. He had heard that on the previous evening one child was crushed in
the crowd. It had given him much pain. Their joining in the prayer was a meaningless
thing, if it did not teach them to show consideration to women and children and give
them precedence. They should let women and children go first. Why should there be
such unseemly hurry to depart after the meeting?
Finally Gandhiji exhorted them to observe perfect discipline in the indepen-
dence Day3 meeting. He was the author of the independence Pledge4 . He wanted to live
and die for India’s independence. Any indiscipline on their part would hurt him
deeply. It would delay the coming of swaraj. The Independence Pledge laid it down
that independence had to be won through truth and non-violence. This required on
their part adherence to strict discipline. Violence did not merely mean causing physi-
cal injury. It means also giving provocation or causing inconvenience to others. To
1
Gandhiji spoke in Hindustani which was translated into Tamil. After a few
sentences were translated, an Ardhra gentleman among the audience asked for a Telugu
translation also.
2
3
January 26
4
Originally drafted by Gandhiji in January 1930, the pledge was amended in
December 1939 and to which a paragraph was added in 1941; vide “Draft Declaration
for January”, 10-1-1930, “Resolution on Independence Day Pledge”, and
“Instructions for Independence Day”, 11-1-1941

indulge in abuse or to goad others into acts of violence was worse than direct physical
violence. 1
The Hindu, 27-1-194
409. A TELEGRAM
January 26, 1946
THAT HIGHNESS HAS BUILT SHOULD BE STATED. NO FURTHER
INSTRUCTIONS NECESSARY.
BAPU
From the original: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Museum and Library. Courtesy:

WORKERS’ CONFERENCE, MADRAS2
January 26, 1946
Gandhiji singled out for his first answer his favourite topic, Harijan uplift. He
categorically called on the constructive workers to make Harijan uplift a major
programme. While he agreed that a large majority of the people had advanced views
on this question, the action taken in this regard, he regretted, was like a speck in an
ocean. Their question was what step should be taken for the complete amelioration of
the condition of the Harijans. He had again and again answered such questions. He
would repeat that steps such as inter-dining of caste Hindus with Harijans, voluntary
admission of Harijans into temples—he considered this as a vital programme—and
accessibility of Harijans to roads and water sources would alone give the Harijans
1
The report concluded: “Gandhiji then . . . walked back quickly to his
residence. . . . As he approached . . . his residence, Mr. A. Subrahmanyam . . . Tamil
translator . . . expressed regret that his translation should have caused Gandhiji the
distrubance. Gandhiji said, he was not at all to blame. The Andhra gentleman . . . had
by now come up . . . to explain himself . . . Gandhiji rebuked him saying that he
should first have made his request to him either in a note or in person instead of
disturbing the prayer and trying to dictate what should be done. By so doing, he had
only forced him to come to a decision not to have translations at all and thus
prevented his coming into contact with the people in the manner he wanted. The
offender persisted in his attempts to further press his case, while expressing his
regret for what had happened. Dr. Sushila Nayyar interrupted at this stage, and asked
him not to cause Gandhiji unnecessary strain. The gentleman then withdrew.”
2
In the afternoon session to the third day, V. Bhashyam Iyengar presided.
After his speech, Gandhiji called for questions from the delegates in Hindustani.

equal status with the caste Hindus. To depend on the Government for throwing open
the temples to Harijans was to expect too much of them. People alone could volun-
tarily take the Harijans into temples and give them real temple-entry based on a
change of heart.
Through another answer, Gandhiji announced that non-violence was also a
principal item in the constructive programme. He averred that violent acts such as
arson and causing injury to others would not bring them Ramarajya, their birthright.
Non-violence alone would lead them to freedom. But what happened? They had
freedom almost in their hands and, through violent acts, they were, as it were,
throwing it away into the sea.
Concluding, Gandhiji stressed the importance of co-operating with the Hari-
jans and helping them to keep their places and persons clean.
As a few minutes of the allotted time still remained, Gandhiji invited more
questions and answered them. The answers only reinforced what he had already said.
411. SPEECH AT CONVENTION OF HARIJANS, MADRAS1

January 26, 1946
At the outset, Mahatma Gandhi expressed his great pleasure in seeing before
him such a large gathering of Harijans. He was also glad to notice the great awaken-
ing among them.
Englishmen often put the question, what the caste Hindus were going to do for
the solution of the problem of untouchability, if the country achieved freedom? They
further asked what had the people done for Harijans? Mahatmaji admitted that the
question was pertinent; but at the same time he wished to make it clear that
untouchability did not exist in such a horrible form, as their European friends wanted
to make out.
In this connection, Mahatma Gandhi referred to his South African experience
and said that there all Indians were regarded by the European people as untouchables.
An Indian might be a merchant or a barrister. Still he was a ‘coolie’, so far as the
Europeans there were concerned. Separate places were allotted for the residence of
Indians. There were also other disabilities. Therefore it could not be said that Euro-
peans did not observe untouchability. There might not be untouchability amongst
themselves; but they treated Indians in South Africa as untouchables. He did all he
could to remove that kind of untouchability while he was in South Africa. After
1
Organized as part of Silver Jubilee celebrations of Dakshina Bharat Hindi
Prachar Sabha

returning to India he had devoted himself to the removal of untouchability in this
country.
“Would the conditions of Harijans be the same, or would it imprive when India
attained freedom?” was another question asked. He visualized that there would not be
any question of untouchability in free India. Their Hindu brethren would see to it that
untouchability was put to an end and that all Harijans were acknowledged equals.
Crores of Congressmen would devote themselves towards that end. They would work
for the removal of untouchability and die for it. In his address 1 to the constructive
workers, he had stated clearly the nature of work [and asked] the workers to strive
sincerely for the removal of untouchability. It was not enough, if a few Harijans rose
to high positions in life such as barristers or High Court judges. For the uplift of the
community as a whole, all of them must strive. They must educate themselves. They
must fight and win their own freedom, not by violent means, but through truth and
non-violence. Untouchability should disappear by winning the hearts of the caste
Hindus through peaceful means.
Mahatma Gandhi then went on to explain what was meant by real freedom. It
did not mean freedom to do as they pleased. It meant freedom to do their duty, freedom
to abstain from drink, and freedom to work for their own uplift. In this connection
Gandhiji explained the significance of the term ‘Harijan’ by which he preferred to call
them. The term signified people of God. He who nurtured hatred or ill-feeling towards
another could not be a man of God. The Harijans had borne their sufferings patiently
for ages without retaliating. Therefore they deserved to be called Harijans. True to that
expression, they must believe in God and repeat His name. They must be true devotees
of God, and history furnished them with classic examples of true devotees like
Nandanar. On this occasion he did not wish to refer to the rights of Harijans, but only
to say a few words on their duties or dharma. The so-called higher castes had their
duties; so had Harijans. If they considered that inter-dining or inter-marriage was the
purpose of their freedom, they would be mistaken. All these things would not bring
about real happiness. By acquiring clean and healthy habits, by adhering to truth and
non-violence, and by doing their work in life honestly and sincerely and with love of
God, they would be promoting not only individual happiness but also the happiness
of the community as a whole. Only through truth and non-violence could they
establish swaraj or Ramarajya in this land.
1

412. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, MADRAS1
January 26, 1946
Gandhiji said that festivals varied in character with the times. The Indepen-
dence Day was a sacred day to them all, as on that day crores of people would be
repeating their pledge for the attainment of the independence of India. He hoped that
everybody had taken the pledge. If not, everybody should take it. The special feature
of that pledge, he reminded them, was that the means to be adopted for the attainment
of independence were unadulterated truth and non-violence. 2 Crores of people had
been repeating that pledge for the last 25 years and offering prayers for the fulfilment
of that pledge to the Most High, who, though far, was yet nearer to us than our hands
and feet. It was the self-same Power, though known by various designations, Allah,
Rama, Rahman, Rahim, God, and so on. There was no limit to His names. They were
as countless as His attributes. It was to this Unseen Power which permeated and
sustained the universe that their prayers where made. It would be heard only if their
means where as pure and spotless as their end.
Could they expect God to crown their resolve with success, if their means
included falsehood, deceit, violence and deception? Such a prayer would not ascend to
heaven. It would only bring ridicule on those who offered it. True prayer must
transform their conduct. How could they indulge in unseemly behaviour like
yesterday’s, while they professed to be votaries of truth and ahimsa ? Prayer meant
nothing, if it did not result in self-purification and humility. Prayer ought to purge
the soul of all impurity, pride and egotism. Whilst the incident had caused him deep
pain, it was not without a redeeming feature. The redeeming feature was that although
one person had run amok, those around him had refused to be thrown off their legs and
had not joined him in the clamour. That was as it should be in a well-behaved
gathering.
In conformity with yesterday’s announcement, he had discontinued giving any
translations either in Telugu or Tamil of his remarks at the end of the prayer. Even the
song was in Hindustani because he did not want to make the language of the song a
bone of ocntention. He strongly deprecated the rivarly and recrimination between the
Tamilians and the the Andhras which he had noticed during his visit to the South. The
Tamilians and the Andhras, the Kanarese and the Malayalees were distinct, but not
antagonistic to one another. They were like branches of the same tree. They should
realize the fundamental unity underlying their diversity. Then alone they would be
1
The report said: “The prayer was held without the recitation of the usual
slokas from the Upanishads and the Gita. Ramdhum was sung, and it was followed by
a song in Hindustani.”
2
Vide also “Speech at Prayer Meeting, Madras”, 23-1-1946

worthy of independence.
Referring to the disturbances that continued through the prayer from the dis-
tant fringe of the gathering, he said, he realized that it was due to insufficiency of
accommodation. The clamour came from those who could not find accommodation.
The right thing for those who failed to get accommodation would have been to quietly
sit back or wait in silence outside. Similarly, if they had assimilated the spirit of non-
violence, he would not have been forced to confine himself to the precincts of his
residence as he was doing at present. It was because he was afraid of the unthinking
adoration of the crowds that he did not go out in the open even for his evening walk.
Genuine love should be more discerning.
Concluding, Gandhiji asked them all to pray to God to either give them
freedom or the strength to die for it. He said :
Let us hope we shall not have to repeat this pledge next year but
shall have attained our freedom before that. It is given to man but to
try. The result is in the hands of God. But, if our weapons are un-
adulterated truth and non-violence, our prayer will not go unheard.

WORKERS’ CONFERENCE, MADRAS
January 27, 1946
Mahatma Gandhi said that many women enquired of him about the nature of
work they might do. He had been telling repeatedly, and he would say again that
women should go to villages and work there. They must attend to the health and
sanitation of the villages and to the education and culture of the womenfolk. All these
should be done in a spirit of love and service and not as a mere formality.
Replying to a question relating to parliamentary programme, Mahatma Gandhi
said that the question of entering legislatures was a small matter. Only a limited
number of women could engage themselves in this work, whereas the constructive
programme provided scope for all of them. Mahatma Gandhi added that he had no
objection to women standing for election to legislatures; but they must enter the
legislatures with the idea of serving the people, always keeping in mind the principle
of truth and non-violence. But how many of them would be able to enter the
legislatures in a spirit of service? They must also have a clear idea beforehand as to
what they would do inside the legislatures. The parliamentary programme was like
building from the top. Their aim must be to build from below so that the foundation
would be strong and the structure good. If any mistake occurred while building from
the bottom, it could be rectified immediately, and the harm done would not be much.

On the other hand, if a mistake was committed in the other programme, the entire
structure might collapse and the whole country stood to lose thereby.
The next question related to receiving assistance from Christian Missionaries
in a free India. Gandhiji declared that they could certainly accept help not only from
Christian Misssionaries but from others also, if such help was offered sincerely and
in a spirit of service to the country. There was before them the example of the late
Deenabandhu Andrews. He was a Christian. He served India and gave his life for India.
India required the help of all men of goodwill who were prepared to offer that help in a
spirit of love and service.
In reply to another question, Mahatmaa Gandhi said that the wife or dependent
of a Government servant could do national work, provided she was ready to do so
without fear of her property being consfiscated or the education of her children
suffering. If any woman thought that by doing constructive national work her
children stood to lose privilege they might otherwise get from the Government, she
should not undertake the work.
He said that this sphere of work was large and all were welcome. It was the
constructive programme that was responsible for creating an awakening in the
country. It was only through constructive programme that they would be able to
retain their freedom when it was won. The important part of the constructive pro-
gramme was to develop purity of body and mind and to educate their children accor-
ding to the Nayee Talim or New Education. Thereby their girls and boys would grow
into self-supporting and independent citizens. They wanted many workers to go out
into the villages and work among the people. Educated women should make it a point
to get into villages and teach the children to read and write and to lead clean lives. If
these things were done, the constructive programme would have achieved its purpose.
If they had a capital of one crore of rupees, they should be able to multiply it
and not allow themselves to squander away what they had. All of them were aware that
he would not allow even a pie being spent unnecessarily. The construrctive
programme, if correctly followed, would not only pay its way but also add to the
capital. Therein lay its greatness.

414. SPEECH AT DAKSHINA BHARAT HINDI
PRACHAR SABHA, MADRAS 1
January 27, 1946
The business they had all met to transact was a solemn one, and he was glad to
be able to take part in that function. If the aspirations of the people of India for
freedom were to be fulfilled, they should learn the lessons of true discipline and right
conduct, particularly in such large congregations. No doubt there was a president on
such occasions to regulate proceedings and maintain order. But the order he wanted
was that which was born of a due sense of discipline in each individual. The discipline
should be so strong that even where it was a child of five that sought to enforce
regulations and law, people should willingly abide by it. That he thought was real
vinaya 2 . They should also concentrate on the main purpose for which they were
assembled there and do nothing to mar the solemnity of that purpose and its
fulfilment.
He had again and again said that he preferred the nomenclature ‘Hindustani’ to
‘Hindi’ in this connection. The language the Sabha sought to spread was really the
language of the common folk of North India, understood by an overwhelming
majority. He had also stated again and again that students of Hindustani should learn
both Urdu and Nagari scripts. Some people deliberately mixed more Sanskrit words
and some others Arabic and Persian words, with the result that today two distinctive
streams were noticeable in the language which was one. His own view was that
Hindustani was the one common language containing Sanskrit words as well as
Arabic and Persian words and understood by the common people. He wanted them to
do their bit for spreading that languaage.

January 27, 1946
Addressing the gathering in Hindustani, Gandhiji said that in that song3 there
was a prayer by the devotee that God might save his honour. He then alluded to the
episode in the Mahabharata describing how, when Draupadi was sought to be shamed
in the court of Duryodhana in th presence of thousands of persons, Lord Krishna came
to the rescue and saved her from being dishonoured. The secret of the miracle was her
undying faith in God which nothing could shake. The legend says that the Lord
himself reached out his arm to protect her. The poet, of course, is here referring to the
1
At its twenty-third convocation
2
Humility
3
From Ashram Bhajanavali; vide ”Ashram Bhajanavali”

omnipotence of God, who, however, becomes a living force to those who have faith.
Gandhiji said that as Draupadi was depicted as being sought to be made naked,
India was already naked and was praying for protection from shame—the shame of
slavery and serfdom under alien exploitation—and restoration of her independence.
Yesterday they had pledged themselves that they would either win
independence through truth and ahimsa or perish in the attempt, and yet today, in
spite of the spacious grounds, they were behaving like an undisciplined mob in one
quarter of the prayer ground.1 If they could not behave well even during bhajan , how
would they behave when India got freedom? Theirs was by no means an
extraordinarily big gathering, but for a people who aspired to be free and remain free
through no other means than ahimsa , it should be possible to act and obey orders as
one man even if they were 400 million. If 400 million could but shout with one
voice, the effect would be overwhelming. But there was a proper time for shouting as
for silence. Each must come in its proper place.
Gandhiji concluded by expressing the hope that if God again brought him in
their midst, they would all be able to understand Hindustani, and there would be no
clamour for Tamil and Telugu translations of his speech. He prayed to God to guide
them all aright so that they might deport themselves in a manner worthy of the
people who aspired to be free.
416. SPEECH TO WAITING PEOPLE, MADRAS2

January 27, 1946
I realize you are all here gathered to see me, out of abundant
love for me; therefore I have come to you, giving up my usual walk at
this time.
He then advised them to return home quickly and attend the prayer meeting the
next evening. Gandhiji informed them that the prayers were now taking place on an
extensive site which could accommodate many thousands conveniently. [He said :]
Therefore come there tomorrow and bring your friends.
Finally Gandhiji stressed the importance of maintaining perfect silence during
prayer and said that even if a crore of people gathered, peace and serenity should be
observed. Otherwise the object of a prayer meeting would be lost.
1
The meeting was being held in a new venue; vide the following item.
2
According to the report, Gandhiji spoke in Hindustani; he instructed A.
Subbiah to translate the speech into Tamil.

417. A MESSAGE
January 28, 1946
I hope Kamala Nehru Basic School will bring credit to the name
of the departed.
M. K. GANDHI
418. LETTER TO ANDHRA PRADESH CONGRESS

COMMITTEE MEMBERS
MADRAS,
January 28, 1946
BROTHERS,
I got your letter yesterday. Bhai Venkatarao had a talk with me.
I had told him that Doctor Saheb1 could enter [the Assembly] when it
becomes imperative. What can be the urgency now?
Although Doctor Saheb takes my advice and also abides by it, I
cannot order him, nor have I done so. Who am I to stop him, if he
wishes to enter the Assembly? My advice, however, is against it. He
can render greater service from outside.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S IGNATORIES [sic]
EXECUTIVE ANDHRA P RADESH C ONGRESS C OMMITTEE
C/ O T. N. VENKATARAO
P RESIDENT, D ISTRICT C ONGRESS C OMMITTEE
TENALI, G UNTUR
From the Hindi original: C. W. 4230. Also Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
1
Dr. Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya (November 24, 1880 to December 17,
1959); son of village Karnam, he took M. B. & C. M. degree in 1906; gave up
practice to join Indian National Congress; was member of A. I. C. C. and Working
Committee; he headed Andhra Provincial Congress for many years; edited Janma
Bhoomi an English weekly, from 1919 to 1930; author of The History of The Indian
National Congress

419. A LETTER1
MADRAS,
January 28, 1946
BROTHERS,
I have your letter. All of you are earning. God has given you
wealth. You may, therefore, make no payments to the clinic by way of
fees but should donate to it as much as you can, to your heart’s
content. This is just my wish. Anyhow, I will be there in a few weeks’
time.
Tell me everything then, and I shall do what I can.
Blessings from
BAPU

MADRAS,
January 28, 1946
CHI. ANASUYABEHN,
What a coincidence! I got your letter today, a silence-day. There
is so much work here that I do not write or get letters written except
on a silence-day. God sustains me.
I would have been completely ignorant about your health. This
I write just to satisfy myself.
Come over to Bardoli only if you have completely recovered.
There is still the whole of February.
It is as well that I had better written to both of you.
Blessings from
BAPU
From the Gujarati original: G. N. 11566
1
The letter is in Devanagari.

421. NOTE TO NAGESHWAR PRASAD VAKIL
January 28, 1946
Write to him and also to Priyamvada. Who is the person desiring
to marry ?1 What does he do ? Does he have any children ? How much
money does he have ? What is his occupation ?
From the Gujarati original: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and
422. LETTER TO T. PRAKASAM

MADRAS,
January 28, 1946
BHAI PRAKASAM2 ,
While passing through Andhra I heard that the purses presented
to you were used by you for your own personal expense. I said that
that could not have been so. I was told that that exactly was the case,
but that there was nothing wrong in your spending the money given
to you for personal use. Write to me or tell me the real facts in this
matter. I wanted to talk it over with you but I have no free time.
Blessings from
BAPU
From the Hindi original: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and
Library. Courtesy: Beladevi Nayyar and Dr. Sushilal Nayyar
423. SPEECH READ OUT AT PRAYER MEETING, MADRAS3

January 28, 1946
Today is my day of silence. Therefore I am not able to speak to
you. You must please excuse me. What a good thing is silence! I have
personal experience of it. The joy one derives from silence is unique.
How good it will be, if everyone observed silence for some time every
day! Silence is not for some great men; I know that whatever one
1
The addressee had written that a widower friend of his was eager to marry a
Harijan girl of Gandhiji’s choice.
2
1872-1957); editor, Swarajya; was called “Andhra Kesari”— the lion of
Andhra; Premier (Chief Minister) of composite Madras state 1946-47, and later the
first Chief Minister of Andhra, 1953-54.
3
Written in Hindustani by Gandhiji was read out by Kanu Gandhi

person is able to do can be done by everyone, given the effort. There
is a saying1 amongst us that through silence everything can be
achieved. There is much truth in this saying.
424. MESSAGE TO COMMEMORATION MEETING ON

ROMAIN ROLLAND’S 80TH BIRTHDAY2
[Before January 29, 1946] 3
The few days I passed with Romain Rolland and his sister at
Villeneuve 4 were among the happiest days of my life. He has been
truly described by some of us as a Maharishi. He bore on his benign
face the marks of a great sage. He lived and died5 for humanity,
leaving it richer for having lived.

WORKERS’ CONFERENCE, MADRAS 6
January 29, 1946
Q. Can a worker who has taken up one item of constructive work dabble in
others? Is it right for him to do so? If so, how?
A. Constructive programme as it stands today is comprised of
18 items. The spinning-wheel as the symbol of non-violence occupies
the central place. So every worker must spin and know all about
spinning. Supposing a worker takes paper-making as his main occu-
pation and has to find his livelihood also throught it, he won’t have
2
The meeting was held on January 29 at Ramakrishna Mission Institute of
Culture, Calcutta. The message was read out by Kalidas Nag.
3
Ibid
4
In 1931
5
He died in Switzerland on December 30, 1944.
6
The report in The Hindu, said: “Gandhiji addressed the concluding session of
the Constructive Workers’ Conference for about twenty minutes in the morning and
answered a few questions handed over to him. Gandhiji, at the outset, asked how many
of those present knew Hindustani and a large majority signified they knew the
language. “The first two questions and answers are reproduced here from Harijan which
published them under the title “Constructive Workers’ Samagra Gramseva” as
translated “from Harijan Sevak”, 17-3-1946.

much time left for other things. But he will be able to render some
other service to the villagers besides that which he renders through
the spinning-wheel and paper-making. For instance, he can work for
improving the sanitation of the place and render advice about the care
of the sick when he cannot take up full responsibility for nursing
them.
Supposing another worker decides to concentrate on the spinn-
ing wheel only and to find his livelihood also through that, he can do
so. I have no doubt in my mind that the wheel can serve as the
instrument of earning one’s livelihood and at the same time enable
the worker to render useful service to his neighbours. The thing is that
every worker should decide for himself what will be his main activity
besides the spinning-wheel, and what will be his subsidiary activities.
Whatever he does, he should do intelligently and with knowledge.
Thus, in order to ply the wheel intelligently, he should know all the
processes that precede and succeed spinning. He should have full
knowledge of the activities that he wishes to concentrate upon and
have a general working knowledge about other items of the construc-
tive programme. A student of astronomy cannot know astronomy
without some knowledge of science in general. Similarly a worker
cannot afford to be utterly ignorant about other items of constructive
work.
Q. Please explain the meaning of samagra gramseva of your conception.
How can we fit ourselves for that?
A. The 18-fold constructive programme includes samagra
gramseva. A samagra gramsevak must know everybody living in the
village and render them such service as he can. That does not mean
that the worker will be able to do everything single-handed. He will
show them the way of helping themselves and procure for them such
help and mate-rials as they require. He will train up his own helpers.
He will so win over the villagers that they will seek and follow his
advice. Supposing I go and settle down in a village with a ghani
(village oil-press), I won’t be an ordinary ghanchi (oil-presser) earn-
ing 15-20 rupees a month. I will be a Mahatma ghanchi. I have used
the word Mahatma in fun but what I mean to say is that as ghanchi I
will become a model for the villagers to follow. I will be a ghan-
chi who knows the Gita and the Koran. I will be learned enough to
teach their children. I may not be able to do so for lack of time. The
villagers will come to me and ask me: ‘Please make arran-gements for
our children’s education.’ I will tell them: ‘I can find you a teacher
but you will have to bear the expenses.’ And they will be prepared to

do so most willingly. I will teach them spinning and when they come
and ask me for the services of a weaver, I will find them a weaver on
the same terms as I found them a teacher. And the weaver will teach
them how to weave their own cloth. I will inculcate in them the impor-
tance of hygiene and sanitation, and when they come and ask me for a
sweeper, I will tell them: ‘I will be your sweeper1 and I will train you
all in the job.’ This is my conception of samagra gramseva. You may
tell me that I will never find a ghanchi of this description in this age.
Then I will say that we cannot help to improve our villages in this age.
Take the exam-ple of a ghanchi in Russia. After all the man who runs
an oil-mill is a ghanchi. He has money but his strength does not lie in
his money. Real strength lies in knowledge. True knowledge gives a
moral standing and moral standing and moral strength. Everyone
seeks the advice of such a man. Take the instance of Vinoba. He is a
good ghanchi. You all know what he does, and you can all follow his
example according to your capacity.2
Q. Khadi work has been carried on for the last 20 years for the purpose of
solving the problem of unemployment. Now if priority is to be given for an all-round
uplift of the villages, then (1) arrangements should be there for the tiller of the soil
so that he gets full remuneration for his labour; (2) efforts should be made to improve
agriculture; (3) if there is some spare time, spinning and such other industries should
be introduced in the villages. According to my scheme, khadi and gramodyog get a
third place. How far am I right in this?
A. When khadi was first introduced, we used to say that it was
meant for helping the poor. But at the same time I had told the
country that swaraj rested upon cotton yarn. Both the things went on
simultaneously. But you paid attention only to one of them. This was
our ill-luck. I had brought the idea of khadi from South Africa. From
there I could visualize that till we chose an occupation in which
millions of men and women of India could take part, swaraj could not
be achieved even through truth and non-violence. Those who have to
work for their livelihood may do so. But they can spin voluntarily for
their country or they can work at some occupation for their survival. I
hope you understand the difference between the two.
When I came to India, then also women were carding. I placed
1
Harijan Sevak has: “I am myself a Bhangi . . .”
2
The following three questions and their answers are translated from Khadi
Jagat, April 1946, which published them under the title “Farming or Spinning-
wheel”.

before them the idea of swaraj as I understood it. Whether the poor
earned their livelihood through khadi or adopted it as a means of
swaraj, both the things could go hand in hand. I realized that real
freedom could be attained only in this way. Therefore I placed before
the Congress the idea of khadi. The Congress accepted khadi in 1920.
You should know that till that day the Congress had no flag. When
people realized the importance of khadi, the tricolour flag came into
being.
In the Aga Khan Palace I used to think constantly about the
place of khadi. It is a matter of shame that I was released1 on grounds
of ill-health. The Government did not want that, like Ba and Mahadev,
I too should die there.2 Therefore they released me. After my release
I placed before you the same idea. Was khadi only a means of econo-
mically helping the poor or was it a means of attaining swaraj also? If
we wish to make khadi a means of achieving freedom, then we shall
have to change our method of work. Many people were disappointed
with spinning only for economic reasons. To spin for the whole day
and get just an anna was not enough. We raised the status of women
by raising the wages of the women spinners. But at the time we
emphasized the point that the spinners should also wear khadi. This
was the second step.
Now the third step is that all those who wear khadi should spin.
How splendid it would be, if all the people of Madras should spin and
also weave the yarn spun by them. Otherwise they can get their yarn
woven at a nearby place. This is the way of the village to get all things
done at minimum cost and labour. The urban way is just the opposite.
When I visited Lancashire, I observed that the workers never wore the
cloth that they themselves produced. For them the cloth was imported
from Ireland. Some embroidered cloth from Madras was also used.
Now, if the villagers or the cultivators are able to spin and produce
yarn for their own use, we can save them a lot of trouble. And, if they
do so with knowledge, they would be bringing swaraj nearer. This is
the new policy of khadi.
If you have understood my point, then the place of khadi is not
third, but it remains first. I have made khadi or the spinning-wheel the
symbol of ahimsa. Ahimsa is a unique thing. You can make anything
1
On May 6, 1944, having been detained from August 8, 1942
2
Mahadev Desai died on August 15, 1942. Kasturba Gandhi died on February
22, 1944.

its symbol. I made the charkha its symbol and not the rosary after due
thought. If we spin just one length all the time taking the name of
God, then the spinning-wheel itself becomes our rosary. Spinning
itself becomes sacrificial work.
One who having eyes does not see the light of the sun and
having a skin does not feel its warmth is dead, though living. The
spinning-wheel is the life of constructive work. If you take away that,
all the other seventeen items will become a lifeless corpse. If we wish
to achieve swaraj for the poorest of the poor and the weakest of the
weak, for the crores of women, whose only guardian is God, and not
only for some educated women, it can be done only through the
spinning-wheel. And, without the spinning-wheel, the constructive
programme becomes a mere cipher. It becomes ten if the zero is
placed after one. Zero alone has no value.
Q. Ninety-five per cent of agriculture in India depends on rains. For the
improvement of farming more than 50 per cent of it should be done through
irrigation. It is the experience of the experts that in this way alone farming can be
improved. Under all circumstances this sort of improvement will have a prominent
place in the economic planning of India. In case such an improvement in farming is
introduced, it becomes a complete industry which goes on throughout the year. In that
case the spinning-wheel do not occupy the place of a supplementary industry. If we
want to ply it in the villages, we will have to think of a place for it as for the hand-
loom. Please throw light on this matter.
A. Khadi and all the activities connected with it have a direct
relation with satyagraha. Whatever credit I have earned, I have earned
it through satyagraha. I am not a learned man. I consider myself and
feel somewhat stupid before scholars in Tamil, English, Hindustani
and even Gujarati. But I have placed before you satyagraha know-
ingly and after careful thinking. I have not acquired it from books,
but from experience. I could see that khadi industry could serve as a
means of achieving [swaraj]. Farming cannot take that place. Millions
of men, women and children cannot take part in it [as they can in
spinning]. I live for the freedom of the country and work continu-
ously for it. After I am worn out, I do not wish to live; not even for
enjoyment. For that matter I am always happy and never sad. If I were
born in free India, perhaps I would not have insisted on khadi. But,
even when I was in South Africa, I knew that India was a slave country
and to remove that slavery I thought of the spinning-wheel as the
means.
First of all do not possess full knowledge about agriculture. But

the simple thing is that we cannot progress much without the help of
the Government. Canals will have to be constructed, some trees will
have to be cut down. We will have to use the new engineering devices.
At every step, the Government’s help will be required.
Q. An Indian villager spends about 80 per cent on foodgrains and 12 per
cent on cloth. Does it not follow that agriculture holds the most important place in
our village uplift scheme? Would it not be proper to give to agriculture instead of to
khadi the place of the sun in the solar system [of the constructive programme]?
A. Even if all that is correct, farming cannot take the place of
the spinning-wheel. It is a great thing to become industrious through
the spinning-wheel and give up lethargy. The key to our swaraj lies in
it. When we keep the spinning-wheel in the centre and try to remove
its defects, we learn many things by the way. You must know that I
talk about the charkha [only] as regards India. I would not ply
charkha in the North Pole. If India understands the value of the
sspinning-wheel, swaraj can be certainly attained through it. To some
extent there is propaganda of the spinning-wheel in the cities. It is
welcome. But the villagers have to adopt the spinning-wheel. In order
to link it with agriculture, the villgers had better adopt it.1
Q. Is it possible to achieve nationalization of land in a non-violent manner?
“Yes” came the answer from Gandhiji. He made it perfectly clear that kisans,
the tillers of the land, should educate kisans on their rights and duties, and tell them
how they should develop self-confidence and courage to assert their just rights.
Satyagraha might have to be resorted to in the process of claiming ownership of the
land, and the zamindars were not rakshasas to oppress them, for it would not be to
their benefit to do so.
Q. What should be done when an unsympathetic Indian State placed
obstacles in the way of the constructive programme?
Gandhiji said that the result depended entirely on the workers themselves and
the extent to which they were prepared to suffer for the cause. Gandhiji, replying to
another question, approved of Kaka Kalelkar’s suggestion to bring in words
belonging to other languages to make themselves intelligible in their addresses to
gatherings. If any pandit objected to this procedure, he would be only ignoring
realities. He, however, pointed out the absurdity of using bombastic words like
chathushpada peetham for chair and lakhini nilaya for an ink-stand.
Gandhiji was asked as to what extent students could engage themselves in
political work. Mahatmaji said that there was quite enough work for students to do
1
The following two questions and their answers are from The Hindu,
30-1-1946.

alongside of their studies. They could, for instance, do a great deal in connection with
removal of illiteracy. But he was not in favour of students associating themselves
with party politics or controversies as they could not do justice to such work,
remaining as students. If some of them felt like leaving schools and colleges with a
view to engaging themselves in national work, they were free to do so.1
To a question whether constructive workers can go to jails, Mahatma Gandhi
said :
As far as possible, constructive workers should wholly devote
their time to the 18-point programme. This should be the case at
almost all times. But when the situation in the country is extraordi-
nary and the constructive worker feels impelled to go to jail, then,
of course, he can go to jail. This is, however, only in extraordinary
circumstances.2
Harijan, 17-3-1946, and Khadi Jagat, April 1946; also The Hindu, 30-1-1946,
and The Hindustan Times, 30-1-1946
426. SPEECH AT WOMEN’S MEETING, MADRAS 3

January 29, 1946
Addressing the gathering, Gandhiji called for silence, observing that unless
they kept silent, they would not be able to hear him. As there was no appreciable
reduction in the noise coming from the fringes of the vast gathering, Mahatmaji
called for bhajan . 4
He said that he had received a purse containing about Rs. 10,000 from the
Maharani of Vizianagaram, on behalf of the ladies of Madras, for which he was
thankful. The Rani Saheba had told him that on account of the the shortage of time,
more could not be collected, but had promised to raise the amount to Rs. one lakh
within three months. The vast gathering before him was witness to that promise. If
the Maharani was not able to collect the entire balance within that period, Mahatmaji
1
What follows is from The Hindustan Times, 30-1-1946.
2
The report in The Hindustan Times concluded: “Gandhiji declined to bless the
foundation-stone for a new building to be constructed for the Kasturba Free Reading-
room and Library of the Andhra Young Men’s Association, Madras, as the inscription
on the stone was in English. A fresh stone was thereupon prepared with the
inscription in Telugu, the mother tongue of the people in that area, and Gandhiji
blessed the stone and wished the institution all success.”
3
The report said: “Mahatma Gandhi and party arrived at the pandal at 4.35 p.
m. He was conducted to the dais by the Maharani of Vizianagaram, Rajkumari Amrit
Kaur, Mrs. Ambujammal and others. He was presented with khadi garlands by a
number of children.”
4
According to the report, “Two women sang Raghupati Raghva Rajaram and
the audience joined in the chorus, making time with hands.”

was certain she would make good the deticit form her own pocket. But that would not
please him. It was his desire that his sisters residing in all the four linguistic parts of
this Province should contribute and see to it that the fund reached the figure of Rs. one
lakh.
Explaining what he proposed to do with the money, Gandhiji said that he was
not going to devote the entire sum for work among women.He proposed to give a
portion of it to the Hindi Prachar Sabha for the spread of Hindustani among women,
a portion to Harijan work and balance for important work for the uplift of women.
He had seen many girls taking their degrees at the Hindustani Convocation. He was
not satisfied with their number. He would like to see crores of women studying
Hindustani in South India. All of them were aware what a “greedy” person he was in
the matter of collecting funds for specific purposes. He was never satisfied with small
purses. He wanted crores so that he could spend the money on deserving causes. The
sum of Rs. one lakh was not a big thing for the women of Madras Presidency to
contribute. Women liked to decorate themselves with so many unnecessary things.
They could avoid so much waste and contribute to good causes.
Gandhiji remarked that the Maharani had taken pity on him as sun-light was
falling severely on him. 1 Resuming his speech, Mahatma Gandhi said that he saw
women wearing a number of ornaments. He would prefer to see them dressed in
khaddar rather than bedecked with ornaments. After all, character was the most
important thing for women. It was ignorance that led them to wear ornaments. The
simplicity of Sita was an example before them. In spite of carrying her away to
Lanka, Ravana dared not lay his hands on her. Why was it? It was because of the
character of Sita. India was a glorious country, full of such great examples. The glory
of Hindustan was in the hands of Indian womanhood. Dusshasana was unable to put
Draupadi to shame, though the Pandavas were unable to come to her rescue. It was her
character that made the Lord come to her rescue. Swaraj or Ramarajya was after all a
small thing. It was the tejas2 of Hindustan that mattered. If the womanhood of India
attained her complete tejas, the foreigner would not be here. Therefore he would
impress upon them that their real asset and ornament was character and not dresses
and jewels.
Finally Gandhiji spoke about untouchability and said that some of them could
not drink even water given by a Harijan. Not only that, they would not give water to a
Harijan in a pot. They would pour water only into his hand. This attitude should go.
Other differences like Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Parsi should also go. They should
strive for unity and that unity could be achieved early by all of them speaking a
common language, Hindustani.
Glancing at his watch, Mahtamaji said that it was time for him to leave. He
would, therefore, request them to excuse him, if he could not speak more.
1
Here the speech was interrupted, while Gandhiji shifted his seat.
2
Literally, “brightness”; here it refers to brightness of purity of character.

427. SPEECH AT NAYEE TALIM CONVOCATION, MADRAS1
January 29, 1926
Gandhiji addressed an exhortation to the teachers to carry on their work in
their respective areas in a spirit of loyalty and earnestness to the cause. He wanted
them all to remember the several items of work mentioned in their certificates2 and to
strive their utmost to carry out their duties in that connection. It was true that there
were certain very wide subjects like agriculture included there, but he was sure they
would do their best to instil in those coming under their care the proper attitude in
this matter. The one important matter which he wanted them to bear in mind was that
they should all learn Hindustani. He added that they should in no circumstance
neglect their mother tongue. In each linguistic area, the mother tongue should have
the first claim. But Hindustani would not only serve as a common medium for the
different language areas of their own Province but also as a means of communication
between the South and the rest of India.
Another important thing he would urge them to bear in mind was that they
should learn all about their immediate surroundings and gradually extend their
knowledge in a widening circle to things outside. Mere memorizing would not carry
them far. He remembered how as a young boy he was made to memorize “London is
on the Thames’ as part of his geography lesson. That kind of knowledge was not
much good.
Knowledge directly derived from anything was much better than knowledge
derived through a written lesson or through symbols. A child would have a much
better idea of a charkha when it saw one and how it worked than by reading or hearing
about it. That was an essential basis of Nayee Talim.
These were some of the ideas which he thought he might place before them,
and he wanted that they should adopt whatever seemed good to them therein.
1
The Convocation was held in the evening in the Hindi Prachar Sabha
premises; Narahari Parikh presided. The report said: “Gandhiji . . . distributed
certificates to 26 teachers trained in Wardha Basic Education course. . . . He first
perused the certificates which were printed in Tamil, the caption alone being in
Hindustani. Whenever he came upon a difficult word or a technical expression. . . he
asked a teacher nearby to explain it to him.
2
The Certificates, signed by Gandhiji, mentioned about training in,
agriculture, spinning, village sanitation, basic education, child psychology and
Hindustani.

January 29, 1946
I hear many of you did not understand the bhajan 1 of Guru
Nanak which was just sung. He had written the bhajan for men and
women who are ignorant. He says, some people go to the forest to
realize God. God is for the many crores of people on earth and not
for those who go to the forest alone. In the forest live tigers, lions and
bears. Therefore ordinary people cannot be expected to go to the
forest. ‘Why do you go to the forest?’ he asked. When God is inside
you, be in this world and do the work of this world. Gambling and
operating on the sharemarkets are not among the works of the world.
God is everywhere. He is in the scorpion. He is in the dog. The dog
may bite us, God is good. God is not far away in the forest, but He is
within us. 2
429. TALK WITH SINDHI MERCHANTS3

MADRAS,
January 29, 1946
GANDHIJI (laughingly): That is all? It is much too small! Wher-
ever I go, I see so many of you doing good business. It should be
much more.
A MERCHANT: But we have paid Rs. 50,000 already to Pandit Nehru in Sind.
The more reason why you should pay me also as much.
We will do so when you come to Sind.
1
Vide “Ashram Bhajanavali”
2
According to the report, “at this stage Gandhiji had to stop his speech as a
section of the audience continued to make noise”.
3
About 25 merchants led by Kewalram Chellaram met Gandhiji soon after the
evening prayer, and presented to him a purse containing Rs. 10,000.

430. TELEGRAM TO ARUNA ASAF ALI
SO YOU HAD YOUR WAY. EXPECT LETTER.
BAPU
The Bombay Chronicle, 3-2-1946
431. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS OF HINDI PRACHAR

SABHA STAFF AND WORKERS 2
Jaunary 30, 1946
Gandhiji, who made many kind enquiries about them, cracked many jokes and,
saying that he considered them as members of his own family, urged that not only
Hindi workers but the members of their families should also learn Hindustani. He
compared the Hindi pracharak to the Gantotri, the place from where the Ganges flows.
He said, the pracharak should be the fountain-head of learning, and through him the
knowledge of Hindustani should spread throughout the country.
Gandhiji then invited questions. Pandit Sivarama Sharma of Guntur asked
whether pracharaks could take up work in public educational institutions, such as
schools and colleges in connection with the teaching of Hindustani to the students
there.
Gandhiji replied that there was no antagonism regarding any place of work for
Hindi pracharaks. It was their aim to spread Hindustani all over the country and
they should deem it part of their duty to teach Hindustani to everyone who desired to
learn it.
If Lord Wavell wants to learn the language, I will send him my
best Hindustani pracharak or myself take up the duties of teaching
that language to him.
Answering another question, Gandhiji said that the Hindustani workers should
try also to contribute their bit to the assimilation in Hindustani of whatever was best
in the local languages and even in other languages. Works like those of Valmiki,
1
According to the report, the telegram was sent after receipt of news of
cancellation of warrant against Aruna Asaf Ali. The warrant was cancelled o n
January 29.
2
The report said: “The members of the staff . . . and workers of the
sabha’s Press with the members of their families met Gandhiji at ‘Mangala
Bhavanam’. . . . Gandhiji guessed their unexpressed desire to meet him . . . and he had
fixed 7.30 a.m. . . .”

Kamban and Shakespeare would enrich any language. Further they should continue
their studies side by side with their work as pracharak and, if possible, organize
extension lectures and postgraduate courses in this connection. Another thing
pracharaks should do was to try to bring about a synthesis, and exchange with other
Indian languages so that the benefit would be mutual as between Hindustani and those
languages.
432. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS AT MEETING OF

TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
January 30, 1946
Gandhiji first expressed pleasure at the very large gathering that had
assembled. He said that though of late he had not participated in students’ meeting,
yet his affection for them remained the same as before. He believed that one could do
more service by silent work, and this was borne out by his experience not only in
South Africa, where he had moved with Madrasis, but also in this city during his short
stay. People here, to whom he had not spoken, had clearly understood what he stood
for and what shape their service to the country should take.
The rest of the address was in the nature of replies to questions that were placed
in his hands earlier. Gandhiji had walked into the meeting bringing the questions
with him. First he remarked in a humorous vein that while he would answer the
questions, he would not like to leave the palce before receiving their promised purse.
Before he commenced his answers, he put his usual question as to how many of them
could understand him in Hindustani. The response was not good. On this he remarked
that it was a matter for regret that, in spite of the fact that the Sabha had been working
amongst them for twenty-seven years, they had not learnt Hindustani in large
numbers. He expected that students, at least all of them, would learn Hindustani and
said that learning Hindustani was not as costly as college education. It was much
easier also to learn the language.
Next the subject of utilization of collections made for the presentation of a
purse to Gandhiji was touched upon by him. Gandhiji said that since they had
made the collections with a view to giving him the amount towards the Hindi
Prachar Sabha Fund, law and propriety required that they should not lay any
condition on the utilization of the amount. He did not wish to say anything more on
this point.
Gandhiji’s opinion was sought on the practice prevalent amongst students of
conversing in English. Gandhiji condemned such a practice and said that this ought
not to be. Though the English language could be compared to a gold chain, yet it

bound their hands and feet in slavery. The mother tongue could be compared to their
mother, and to drop it in favour of English was like letting down their mother. Every
student should know two languages, his mother tongue and Hindustani.
Q. Could girl students use cosmetics and boy students ape it?
Gandhiji’s reply was that only inanimate things like stone-images required
frequent polishing, and that human beings’ natural beauty required no cosmetics. He
added that in this country, where poverty and starvation was rampant, it was foolish
to waste money on such luxuries.
Q. Do you approve of smoking which was at present very common amongst
students?
Gandhiji said that he did smoke once or twice when he was young and,
reflecting on it, he was really ashamed. But, while he did it stealthily, students were
doing it at present openly (laughter). Smoking was as had as drinking, whether it was
indigenous stuff or foreign, and should be avoided.
Replying to another question solicited Gandhiji’s view on the poor percentage
of students using khadi, Mahatmaji observed that khadi had its birth for freedom. He
reiterated that if they wanted freedom quickly, students must not only wear khadi, but
also make it out of their own spun yarn.
Gandhiji referred the students to his latest book1 on constructive work, when
he was told that many students did not believe in the constructive programme. He
added :
How could work amongst Harijans and aboriginal prove un-
interesting? To say that constructive programme was uninteresting
was a vote in favour of slavery.
When asked for his advice to students who were intolerant, Gandhiji said that
tolerance was the first virtue that a student should develop. He added :
If anyone says that India can gain independence through the
sword, I would patiently hear him, even though I have been preaching
truth and non-violence for the last twenty years for winning swaraj.
Gandhiji, full of emotion, referred to violence such as causing destruction with
the atom bomb and the victory won thereby, and said that he had applied his mind to
this point. He felt that truth and non-violence were really more powerful than the
atom bomb.
“I am not afraid of the atom bomb,” he remarked. While they could cause
physical injury, they could not kill their soul. Once they had the determination that
they could not be conquerred by violence, victory was theirs; for a moral protest
1
Vide “Constructive Programme: Its Meaning and Place”, 13-12-1941 and
“Foreword to “Constructive Programme its Meaning and Place”

against evil was itself a victory.
Finally Gandhiji exhorted the students to think on the various problems; for
students who could not think for themselves could not learn anything.
The Hindu, 1-2-1946

January 30, 1946
Taking for his theme the text of the bhajan song—“With the grace of the Lord,
everything can be achieved”—Gandhiji said, the persistence of the noise from one
section of the crowd was such that it seemed that only God’s grace could bring about
perfect silence in that gathering. For his part, he thought, it would be impossible for
him also to speak when so many were “making speeches” at the other end of the
gathering. Were a similar meeting held under the auspices of the Government, there
would surely be silence enforced with a lathi. But here there was only the appeal of
the volunteers, which they in their sense of freedom did not care to obey. He knew
they did so because of their love for him, and in their desire to see him closer. They
would not be denied. But they should learn to discipline themselves in such matters
and even to deny themselves what they wanted, if it was harmful to discipline and
general good. How could they do it unless they became filled with Rama for, as the
bhajan song went, when they became saturated with Rama all else would be
eliminated.
In Madras, he knew, thousands were addicted to liquor. The consequent evil
was enough to break one’s heart. When the Congress was running the Ministry,
drink was abolished in different areas. Liquor revenue fell, but the people were happy
and their wives and children had a square meal and a happy home. Had the reform
come from within and not as a result of something from without, then it would have
been far more good. When could such a phenomenon happen? Only when people
were saturated with Rama and Gurukripa—God’s grace—as the song went.
Should a rich man offer them gold or silver from his safe room, people would
crowd to his gates. But of what use would gold and silver be to a man, really?
Gurukripa was the greatest and most valuable help one could have. God is known by
different names but God is One. When His grace filled one’s being, nothing was
impossible for one to achieve.
The Hindu, 1-2-1946

434. SPEECH TO CONGRESS WORKERS, MADRAS1
January 30, 1946
Gandhiji asked, how many of them could follow his speech. About fifty
people raised their hands. Noticing that Mr. Kamaraj 2 was not among the number,
Gandhiji laughingly remarked: “You too?” Gandhiji said that he had hoped that
Congress workers at least would all have learnt Hindustani by now, but he was dis-
appointed. The Congress resolution about lingua franca and conducting all business
in Hindustani should, he took it, be binding on them all. It was a misfortune, indeed,
that after so many years of emphasis on the importance of Hindustani, Congressmen
were yet unacquainted with the language. He knew the hold of English on the people
of this country. He had seen sign-boards before business premises showing Indian
names in Roman characters. That indicated the extent of the slavery of the people of
this country to the foreign language.
Gandhiji paid a tribute to the late Mr. S. Satyamurti, and said :
He was a fine man, but I used to quarrel with him, asking him
whether he would speak in English in Northern India.
Pointing to the writing on the mike before him (giving the name of the radio
company concerned in Roman script) Gandhiji said that provided another illustration
of his statement. But how did English or other Western people and firms go about the
work? They tried to reach the people by boosting their own ware in the language of
the people.
It was the duty of the people to throw off this slavery to a foreign language. A
common language spoken by the bulk of the people of the country could alone be the
medium linking all parts of India, and such a language was Hindustani. Local provin-
cial affairs should be transacted in the local provincial language; for all-India
1
The rport said: “Gandhiji addressed about 1,500 Congress workers for about
half an hour from 7.30 p.m. in the Constructive Workers’ Conference pandaal. On
his arrival, he was greeted with deafening cheers. An illuminated charkha electrically
operated was revolving at one end of the hall and Gandhiji watched its movement with
interest for some time.”
2
Kumaraswami Kamaraja Nadar (1903-76); active Congress worker from
boyhood; in 1930, joined Salt Satyagraha Movement at Vedaranyam, and was
sentenced to two years’ imprisonment; was Member, Tamil Nadu State Legislative
Assembly for several terms, and its Chief Minister, 1954-67; Member, Congress
Working Committee, 1947-69; elected President, Indian National Congress, 1963;
evolved ‘Kamaraj Plan‘ to dispel lure for power from the minds of leading
Congressmen, and to persuade them to prefer organizational activities to ministerial
posts

purposes and inter-provincial communication Hindustani should be the medium.
Gandhiji then invited those present to ask him questions. If they had no ques-
tions to ask, he would like to talk to them about the charkha for some time.
The first questioner, speaking in English, requested Gandhiji to tell them
something about the future.
GANDHIJI (humoursly): What is ‘future’? Is it a horse? Say it in
Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam or Kannada. Only God can say what is in
the future. I am an ordinary man. I have not read as much as some
of you. If I wrote ‘B.A.’ behind my name, people will laugh at me.
Much less can I write ‘M.A.’ I cannot call myself Barrister-at-Law
either. I have been removed from the rolls by the Inns of Court
because I went to jail.
The gentleman repeated his question in Tamil. Gandhiji, replying in Hindus-
tani, told him that he could not foresee the future; the future rested with the Almighty.
QUESTION: What is the easy method of learning Hindustani?
GANDHIJI: Devote to it one-sixteenth of the time you have spent
in learning Engish. That is, if you have spent sixteen years learning
English, spend one year for Hindustani. . . .1
Tell me beforehand when you want to take my picture. Then I
will close my eyes so that they may not become blind (laughter).
Continuing, Gandhiji said that he could not tell them anything about the
future. They might ask him about the present, if they chose, since talking about the
past was not much good.2
Gandhiji said that he would answer such questions3 , as he could, within the few
minutes still available to him. Referring to the complaint of the Harijan sweeper,
Gandhiji said that it was a matter over which they should ponder deeply. If it was
true, it was a matter very much to be regretted. He wanted that all Congressmen should
place God in their hearts and act as their conscience dictated. Then everything would
go all right. If they should observe distinctions such as Hindu, Muslim, Parsi,
untouchable and so on, the nation would go to ruin.
Answering another question, Gandhiji said that it was part of the law of his life
1
At this stage, a cameraman, took a flashlight snap. Gandhiji turned towards
him as if to say something but stopped without saying anything. Just then another
cameraman flashed a shot, and Gandhiji burst into laughter.
2
Here the report added: “One of those in the audience, speaking first in
English and then in Telugu, said that he was a Harijan employed as a sweeper in the
Khadi Nilayam, George Town, and complained that those in charge of the Nilayam
treated him as worse than a dog and refused to allow him to approach them.”
3
Gandhiji received three slips.

that he should pray to God, be it Krishna, Rama, Allah or Christ. They were all one to
him. All religions to him appeared to be like branches of one and the same three. In
his view, there was no conflict between different religions. He did not pray in the
manner he did with any ulterior motive of preaching Hinduism or any particular reli-
gion. He merely prayed to God. If people misunderstood that, he was not to blame.
People were welcome to join in the prayer, if it pleased them; otherwise they might
keep away and leave him alone.
Another member asked a question in regard to the elections to the legislatures,
Congress committees and Congress executive bodies. Gandhiji said :
How can I answer this question? I am not even a four-anna
Congressman. Much less can I give you advice in such matters. The
advice I may give you, you may not find of much use. These are
questions which you should ask to the President 1 of the Congress,
who is a great and good man. You should ask these questions of a
man like Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel or other members of the
Working Committee. And, whatever Congress decides, it is open to
you to abide by it.
It is true, Gandhiji added, that he had been connected with the Congress for
many years and had also fought the Government on behalf of the Congress. To some
extent he had also been responsible for shaping its Constitution. But his advice was
given to the Congress Working committee, if and when it sought his advice. So far
as they were concerned, such questions should be put to the Working Committee or
the Congress President. His own particular department was constructive work. They
were welcome to ask him questions on that subject.
Gandhiji stated that he met them because, having come all the way to Madras,
he did not want to omit meeting Congress workers. But he did not want to enter into
complicated political matters which were not within his province.
One member observed that constructive work was also related to politics.
Gandhiji agreed that it was in a way related to politics, but to him it was pure
constructive work.
One gentleman asked whether the the spread of Hindustani would not
prejudicially affect the local languages.2
QUESTION: What place should the Congress assign to people who had carried
on black-marketing activities during the last War and what punishment should be
given to them?
1
Abul Kalam Azad
2
Here, according to the report, C. Rajagopalachari remarked that it was like
asking about the relationship of Rama and Sita after listening to the entire
Ramayana.

Gandhiji said that if he was a Congressman, he would say, they should be
horse-whipped non-violently. But as a man of out-and-out non-violence, he preferred
to keep mum. Gandhiji added that he had exceeded the time which had been allotted
for the function, and he asked leave of them to go.
One member asked him a question as to whether the rulers should not learn the
language of the people rather than the people learn the language of the rulers. Gan-
dhiji said that this was the proper thing to do. The rulers should learn the language of
the people. But as it was, the people had allowed themselves to be suppressed and
their language to be dominated by the language of the ruler.
MADRAS,
January 30, 1946
SASTRI: You have been a blessing to me in a hundred ways.
GANDHIJI: What nonsense, Sastri.
S. Ah, don’t I know, Gandhi, you are the greatest fellow alive in the world
today? Let your kataksha fall on them.2
He who does not see Rama and whom Rama does not see is despised by
everyone in this world.3
Then Sastriar told Gandhiji how, on the previous day after his mid-day meal,
he had dozed off and as if in a trance written a most beautiful essay on the
Ramayana in about 15 minutes. The theme was that after Ravana’s death, Hanuman
goes to Sita in Ashoka Vatika and asks her :
Mother, give me your permission and I shall severely punish all the rakshasis
who have been torturing you.
The Divine Lady turns round and replies :
No, what wrong have these poor things done? They are merely slaves of their
master, and they did his bidding for the sake of their livelihood. Leave them
1
Extracted from “Meeting Sastriar” by Sushila Nayyar, who explains: “Dr.
Srinivasan, an Honorary Physician of the General Hospital, Madras, who was in
charge of Sastriar’s case came to Gandhiji’s residence and escorted him to the hospital
as on the previous occasion”; vide “Talk with V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”, 22-1-1946 C.
Rajagopalachari, Thakkar Bapa, amrit Kaur, Agatha Harrison, T. N. Jagadisan,
Pyarelal and Sushila Nayyar accompanied Gandhiji.
2
Sastriar was introducing his grandchildren to Gandhiji “and in good humour”
quoted the Ramayana, Ayodhya Kanda. 8
3

alone. It is forgiveness that makes life worth living. Forgiveness is divine.
It is the noblest of virtues, so I pardon them. There is no one who is wholly
free of error. And who does not need to be forgiven?1
S. As soon as I go home I shall dictate it to Jagadisan, if he can come to me
and send it to you. Will you let Pyarelal read it out to you?
G. You dictate it to Jagadisan tomorrow and send it to me. I
shall read it before I go to Madura.
S. No, it will take me at least two or three days. I have to do it in bits.
Marvellous as my doctor is, he has not made me well enough to do it tomorrow.
Sastriar was full of the Ramayana. He regretted that the great epic was not read
more generally and that its ideal did not animate the people as of old. [He added]
S. The Ramayana has no parallel. When Sita had repulsed the evil-
intentioned Ravana with the tejas of the purity the rakshasis came to her and said:
You do not know the world. Else you would not have refused what is being
offered to you.
The Divine Lady’s reply was :
Your city is beautiful, the buildings are grand, and there is every mark of
civilization, but are there not two or three people who feel the wrong and can
say the truth to Ravana?
That is the duty we owe to friends and that we fail to discharge. I have done
that for you once or twice and, as for you, do it, and sometimes publicly, much to the
consternation of everybody.2 But it is the noblest office of friendship.
Tell me, Rajagopalachari, out of hundred people that go wrong, is not there
one whom a timely warning could have saved? Please do not thin that I am preaching
at the Mahatma. I am making a confession. I have also failed in that duty sometimes.
S. (turning to Bapu): You are a seeker after truth. You and I are poles asunder
in many things. I have differed from you, and you have said so without reserve. But I
am also a follower of truth, though at a great distance from you. The eternal truths
propounded by Valmiki in the Ramayana have been the greatest source of inspiration
to me. I feel, I have failed to do my duty by not giving to the people what I have
found for myself in that great epic.
Gandhiji reminded him of the lectures on the Ramayana that he had delivered,
and suggested that they should be printed. But that was not enough for him.
1
Ibid.
2
The reference is to Gandhiji’s attitude to World War; vide “Conundrums”,
30-9-1939.

S. If I live for some time more and good Jagadisan can spare time, I might
still be able to make some atonement.
G. Jagadisan is your admirer and a devoted follower. He will
be always at your disposal, unless, of course, the doctor thinks that
you should not be disturbed. Then he will just not be at home.
S. (with a hearty laugh): So, like Rama, you teach falsehood. When
Sumantra was driving Rama, Lakshmana and Sita to the jungle, Rama asked him to
drive fast: “Man, why prolong the agony? Go fast and, if my father is angry, tell him
you did not hear him.”
S. (to the doctor1 ): Yes, you are right. A good conversationalist hears more
than he talks. But they say ‘once a schoolmaster, always a school-master.’ So I have
gone on.
G. And we shall bear witness to that.
S. Well, this might be my last meeting with you. I am not in a position to
say, ‘I will come to see you when you return from Madura.’ So I wanted to talk, and
have talked. Now it is your turn.
G. Nonsense, this is not the last meeting. I will try to come and
see you on my return from Madura. 2 And I have very little to say
except this, that you must get well soon and return the visit at
Sevagram.
S. You are the prince of optimists.
G. Oh yes, an irrepressible one!
Harijan, 28-4-1946
436. LETTER TO HORACE ALEXANDER

MADRAS,
January 31, 1946
MY DEAR HORACE,
Welcome. You will meet me when and where you can. Agatha
knows my movement.
Love.
BAPU
1
Who was getting worried as the patient was talking too much and said
something in Tamil
2
Vide “Talk with V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”, pp. 87-8. V. S. Srinivasa Sastri died
on April 17, 1946.

437. SPEECH AT VOLUNTEERS’ RALLY, MADRAS1
January 31, 1946
Gandhiji said that he was under the impression that the entire programme was
over with the previous evening. But he was told in the night that there was this rally
and that he must be present. He was glad, he was able to attend the function and he
was really pleased to meet them all.
Referring to the service rendered by the several departments in making the
celebration a success, Gandhiji profoundly thanked them for their help and co-
operation. Without the aid of volunteers, he could not believe that they could have
got through such an important celebration. He considered volunteers as those sworn
to non-violence, as against the police and the military who were pledged to violence
and who dominated over the people. It was only with this impression that he had
appealed as early as 1920 that they should organize volunteer corps all over the
country so that service rendered sincerely and non-violently could get them freedom
quickly.
They must learn thoroughly how to control large gatherings with tact, poli-
teness and calmness, without distinction of rich and poor, civilized and uncivilized.
He knew that people would keep order, if a policeman appeared on the scene because
he posed himself as their master and paraded his lathi. But this was not what he want-
ed. They must make people understand by persuasion what they should do through tru-
th and non-violence and show that these forces of law and order were only for serving
the people. He had attended many parades and rallies in foreign countries where the
police took an oath that they would serve the public. In London, which was
considered to be very advanced in policing, policemen took an oath that they would
render service to the people through their work. Why not the Commissioner of
Police here take a similar oath? If the servants of Hindustan understood this particular
view-point, then freedom could easily be obtained.
Referring to the frequent noisy behaviour of the large concourse at prayer
meetings in spite of the efforts of volunteers to keep silence, Maahatmaji said that
the volunteers should bear in mind what he had said about their duties and make a
practical demonstraton that they were following them by keeping perfect order and
silence in that evening’s prayer meeting.
The Hindu, 1-2-1946
1
Held in the morning

438. SPEECH TO MEMBERS OF MESS COMMITTEE,
MADRAS 1
January 31, 1946
Addressing the gathering, Gandhiji said that the Mess Committee had fed
about 50,000 people, and he heartily thanked them for it. Proper feeding had kept
people in good spirits to get through the important business at the conferences and
meetings. They had done this job well and taken away a heavy burden off the
shoulders of the Reception Committee. What he was particularly pleased with here
was that the entire show was conducted in clean surroundings. He had toured all over
the country, and he felt that they had really set an example to others in cleanliness.
What should be observed on these occasions by cooks was cleanliness in body and
mind. By cleanliness he did not mean that their clothes should be nicely ironed. It
was enough if their simple clothes were free from dirt.
Gandhiji said that he had no time to auction the articles individually nor
had he the required energy for it. He suggested that the entire lot might be
purchased by a group of persons for a lakh of rupees, out of which Rs. 10,000 would
go to the Harjan Fund and the balance to the Hindi Prachar Sabha. After all, they
should realize that a bulk of it would be given to the Sabha as they had not reached
their target.
Closely following this appeal, Gandhiji, like a true Bania, began to canvass
support for his suggestion. He singled out of the several articles a silver vigraha2 of
Gajalakshmi and said that that had been presented by a lady who stated that it was
done as Gandhiji was a worshipper of God. But the pity was a worshipper of Avinashi
and Avyakta (Eternal and Unseen) God. Therefore, he said, he was not keeping it with
him and wanted to part with it.
Taking out a silver idol of Muralidhara from the collection, Mahatmaji said
that this was presented because he was a Krishna bhakta. But his Krishna was He
‘Who sees me but Whom I do not see’.3
The Hindu, 1-2-1946
1
The report said: “Articles collected for presentation to Gandhiji were
exhibited. . . . Referring to three walking-sticks presented, Gandhiji remarked: ‘I
have become old and these sticks are to aid me during walks. But I would rather like to
give them away in auction.’ A printed list of the articles presented was then handed to
Gandhiji. It was in English. Gandhiji remarked humorously: ‘I think this is in
English to avoid the Tamil-Telugu controversy (laughter). But I do not approve of
this. You must print it in Hindustani’”.
2
An idol
3
The report concluded: “After some consultation about Gandhiji’s suggestion,
the merchants promised to let Gandhiji know their view in the evening. Mahatmaji
then returned to his bungalow.”

439. SPEECH TO ANDHRA WORKERS OF KASTURBA
FUND, MADRAS 1
January 31, 1946
Gandhiji said that on his way to Madras he passed through Andhra Desha and
had opportunities to learn about the work that was being done there. He had heard the
report just presented and was also aware of the efforts made by Sambamurthi for the
collection of funds. On an occaion like this, the memory of the late Dr. B. Subrah-
manyam of the Sitanagaram Ashram occurred to him. He was a good worker in Andhra
Desha.
All of them were aware of the part played by women in the cause of India’s
freedom. The work connected with the Kasturba Fund was a different one. Here they
received training for working in and among the villagers. He was looking forward to
the day when it would be possible to say that women were working in the villages in
large numbers. They must remove illiteracy and also improve the condition of
village women. Then only would they have real swaraj and the ability and strength to
retain political freedom when it was won.
The Hindu, 2-2-1946
440. SPEECH GIVING BLESSINGS TO ANDHRA MAHILA

SABHA, MADRAS 2
January 31, 1946
Gandhiji said that the proper way to perform the ceremony was for him to go
to the site of the buildings and lay the stone himself. That was a task physically
impossible for him to do. But the women connected with the Sabha had so much
regard for him that they wanted him to at least touch the stone and give his blessings.
He did so with great pleasure.The Sabha should become a training-ground for workers.
Mahatmaji hoped that the institution would keep up that ideal, and wished it every
success.
The Hindu, 2-2-1946
1
The workers met Gandhiji, in the afternoon, in Hindi Prachar Sabha
premises.
2
The ceremony was held, in the afternoon, in Hindi Prachar Sabha premises;
when, according to the report, “Gandhiji blessed three inscribed tablets which were to
be laid for three new buildings of the Andhra Mahila Sabha under construction in Luz
Church Road”.

441. SPEECH AT WORKERS’ RALLY, MADRAS 1
January 31, 1946

Gandhiji said that he had been delayed by another engagement 2 and he was
sorry for having come later than the scheduled time to the meeting.
The truest capital was, in his opinion, one’s capacity for work. Money alone
could never produce goods; only through labour could goods be created. Labourers
then were possessed of real wealth, but they were not rich in worthy goods and had no
property. He wanted that they should all become maliks (men of property), but not
through any process of coercion. Property got through coercion would not remain
with them; a stronger man might snatch it from them. If they were to become maliks,
therefore, they should first learn to be non-violent, truthful and peaceful. He was a
worker like them and he felt like a worker. He wanted to tell them of the joy of non-
violence, truth and peacefulness. He was a servant of the poorest Harijan. He wanted
them to bear in mind the exapmple of the Ahmedabad Labour Union and take a leaf
from its work. There was nothing extraordinary in a labourer becoming the President
of the Congress. It was not necessary that one should know English to be the Pres-
ident. He said :
Maulana Azad, the present Congress President, does not speak in
English with anybody, although he knows the language. When
Maulana Azad goes to the Viceroy, he does not speak in English, but
takes a translator with him, and he speaks through him. It is not as if
he does not know English. He is a very learned man. He is so wise
that there is hardly anybody who equals him. But he wants that he
should speak in the language of the country.
The whole country, said Gandhiji, was one. The workers were all one entity.
One of them could certainly become President of the Congress. The difference
between the mazdoor and the kisan was that the kisan stayed to work on the land,
while the mazdoor went wherever there was work. The workers were taken there by
the proprietors. Mahatma Gandhi recalled that he had always said that the real pro-
prietor was not the person who owned the mill, but the person who worked. He him-
self was speaking as a worker. He said :
I have given up my ownership of property some time back. The
lakhs I have with me are not my money. It is intended for carrying
out the work for which contributions have been given. If anybody
gives money for the Harijans, it will be spent for the Harijans.
Ever since his return to India from South Africa he had been serving the
1
Gandhiji addressed them in Hindustani.
2

workers. The Ahmedabad Workers’ Union, which was started by himself, was a model
for others. He did not suggest that even there the workers had become the owners. He
felt that the workers would come to own the mills and factories in which they worked,
if they became more disciplined and wiser.
Appealing to them to learn Hindustani, Gandhiji said that all India was one and
they should learn the Hindustani language which would enable them to be one with
the rest of India. Industrial workers and kisans were both badly off; they were
suffering alike. If all of them pulled together and worked for their common good, he
was sure they could achieve a great deal through non-violence and truth. He knew he
was not understood by a good number of them, but he was thankful to them for the
consideration they showed him and the perfect silence they were maintaining, though
he spoke in a language which all of them did not understand. He wished he knew
enough Tamil to address the gathering in that language.
In conclusion, he prayed for God’s blessings for them and all their kith and
kin.
The Hindu, 1-2-1946

January 31, 1946
Gandhiji asked to be pardoned for coming late to the meeting. He said that it
was due entirely to the heavy programme that had been arranged.
Gandhiji then referred to the Workers’ Convention 1 held that evening and
complimented the workers on the shanti (silence) that prevailed at that meeing. That
was not to be found here. That labourers who had not acquired education, and who did
not understand Hindustani, had behaved so well was marvellous, he said.
“Were these workers responsible for not knowing Hindustani?” asked
Gandhiji. “No,” was his answer. While the Hindi Prachar Sabha should share to some
extent the responsibility for this, he felt that practically the entire responsibility for
such state of affairs should be owned by the educated people of this country. The
educated people had neglected the education of these poor labourers. If educated
people took a decision to teach them Hindustani, he was sure that before he next
visited Madras—he hoped that this would happen by God’s will—all of them would
have learnt the language.
Speaking on the import of the day’s special song, Gandhiji said that right
from his youth, he was impressed by it. Dr. Bharatan Kumarappa had told him a few
days ago that his sister was conducting an institution here and that the girls of that
1

school would like to learn and sing the song, vaishnava Jana To1 . The girls today had
sung the song in the best possible manner. So impressed was he that its tune and
sentiments were still ringing in his ears. While the girls who sang it did their best,
he had to confess that it was not rendered in the way it ought to have been done. It
should be sung with a full under-standing of its meaning and import. The song was by
Narasinha Mehta a bhakta kavi, and was intended entirely for the use of the villagers.
It was in a tune which could be sung by the ordinary villagers and, being sweet, was
full of meaning. The bhakta, a worshipper of Lord Vishnu, through this song was
trying to take upon himself the miseries of others and felt a supreme pleasure in doing
so. This was its secret.2
The Hindu, 2-2-1946
443. SPEECH AT FOUNDATION-STONE LAYING

CEREMONY, MADRAS3
February 1, 1946
Gandhiji said that many of them might not perhaps be aware that the function
he was taking part in that morning had been pending ever since he came out of the
jail. After he was released, Mr. B. Jagannath Das and Mr. V. Bhashyam Iyengar
approached him on the subject. Besides his (Gandhiji’s) being able to be present and
perform the function, there were certain other obstacles in the way which had to be
got over. Certain negotiations had to be carried on with the Madras Corporation and
certain difficulties to be overcome in that connection. After putting forth some
efforts, everything was settled satisfactorily, and they were able to secure this land
for the Harijan Industial School. It was not as if they were able to secure the land free;
but they were able to secure it at the minimum price. All of them were thankful to the
corporation of Madras for that.
Proceeding, Gandhiji said that at this juncture, it was up to them to think
deeply over the work ahead. Dr. Alagappa Chettiar, the great philanthropist he was,
had given them very great help. Gandhiji felt confident that Dr. Alagappa Chettiar
considered his wealth as but a means of rendering service. But all the wealth Dr.
Alagappa Chettiar possessed would not suffice for the cause of Harijan service. The
Hindu community had committed a great sin by the Harijans by observing untou-
chability. It was the duty of every Hindu to rid himself of this sin. How else could he
1
Vide “Ashram Bhajanavali”
2
According to the source, at this stage “some persons, mostly ladies, began
to leave, as it was getting late for them”, and Gandhiji concluded the speech.
3
At the newly acquired site for Harijan Industrial School; Gandhiji spoke in
Hindustani.

do the purificatory ceremony than by serving the Harijan?
There was another aspect to this harsh treatment of Harijans. All men were
equals and by treating a fellowman as untouchable, a person degraded himself. The
real un-touchable was the person who treated a fellowman as untouchable. Such a
treatment was not only a great wrong but also a great sin. Men fortunately placed in
this world, who gave for the cause, were but discharging their duty by the less
fortunate, because wealth after all was a thing held in trust by the rich on behalf of
the poor. Gandhiji, from this point of view, regarded that there was no need for
offering special thanks to Dr. Alagappa Chettiar. All the same, he was thankful to
Dr. Alagappa Chettiar for the munificent offer of help and for showing the way as to
how men ought to discharge their obligation towards their less fortunate brethren.
On this occasion, Gandhiji emphasized, he desired to draw the attention of everyone
to the urgent need for serving the cause of Harijans through a change of heart, for, he
added, a change of heart was far more important than gifts of money or other similar
help.
Referring to the desire expressed by Mr. Thakkar with regard to the future
development of the institution, Gandhiji said that it was very good that they were
making provision for training as many as 300 persons in the institution. Gandhiji
desired that the course of training should be devised on proper lines so that the
institution might become a model one, serving not only this Province but also
enabling people from other parts of India to come here and receive training. He also
hoped that the pupils trained in this institution would be among the best workers in
the cause of Harijans.
Good work carried on sincerely and truthfully would never suffer for want of
financial help. God in his mercy would somehow take care of all good causes. Had he
not, on this occasion, sent them help through Dr. Alagappa Chettiar? Nothing would
please him more than to see that his coming to Madras had been of some help to this
institution.
Gandhiji next stressed the importance of imparting instruction and training in
the school in the mother tongue. Hindustani should also be taught. He was glad to
note that the entire proceedings of the meeting were conducted in Tamil, though it
was unfortunate that the programme of the meeting should have been printed in
English. How much better would it have been, if even the programme had been
printed in Tamil or Hindustani? In this connection, Gandhiji referred to an incident of
the previous day when he met some merchants for the purpose of raising funds for the
Silver Jubille Fund of the Hindi Prachar Sabha. Invitation to the merchants had been
sent in English. He mentioned this in order to emphasize the need for getting rid of
this slavery to English. Those in charge of teaching work in the Harijan Industrial
School should not forget the mother tongue just as they ought not to forget their

mother. He would, at the same time, appeal to them not to forget the motherland
either. They should try to learn as many languages as possible; but they must all
learn Hindustani which would help unify the whole of India.
Gandhiji next suggested that the new school should be named after Mr. A. V.
Thakkar. He said that Thakkar Bapa had dedicated himself to the cause of Harijans and
Adivasis to the exclusion of everything else. All the 24 hours of his day, he devoted
to this work. It was, therefore, but fitting that the Harijan Industrial School should be
named after such a good servant of the cause. They might call it the “Thakkar Bapa
Vidyalaya” or for brevity’s sake, only “Bapa Vidyalaya”, for who was a greater Bapa
(father) of the Harijans than Thakkar Bapa?
In conclusion, Gandhiji wished the institution a great future and useful
service to Harijans. He also hoped that the institution would help to bring about a
real change of heart among the people towards Harijans and enable them to live as
equals with the rest of the society. Gandhiji further hoped that this Vidyalaya would
maintain steady progress and that the pupils trained at this centre would, by their life
and example, be real Harijans, sons of God, pledged to serve the country truthfully.
The Hindu, 2-2-1946
444. TALK TO VILLAGERS, KODAMBAKKAM1

February 1, 1946
Gandhiji expressed his pleasure at meeting them and told them that on the
previous day, he had addressed2 a gathering of workers like them. He would ask them
one simple question to which they should answer without any fear by raising their
hands. Gandhiji asked :
How many of you here are addicted to drink?
Finding that a good number in the crowd had lifted their hands, Gandhiji
remarked that he did not understand what benefit they derived by drinking, which was
a sinful act. They all earned their livelihood by labour, and they should not spend
their hard-earned money in evil habits like drink and gambling. He would advise
them to spend it wisely for their own good. Gandhiji then asked them to disperse
peacefully and go home.
The Hindu, 3-2-1946
1
The report said: “Gandhiji visited the Harijan Industrial School in the
afternoon and remained there for nearly an hour and a half. A large gathering of men
and women were present on the occasion in the shcool premises under a pandal.
While returning to his seat in the pandal, Gandhiji noticed a crowd of villagers
outside the western gate clamouring to see him. At once he proceeded to the spot and
after asking them to keep silent, addressed a few words in Hindustani which were
translated into Tamil by L. N. Gopalaswami.”
2
Vide “Speech at Workers Rally, Madras”, 31-1-1946

445. SPEECH AT HARIJAN INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL,
KODAMBAKKAM 1
February 1, 1946
Gandhiji recalled his visit to the School a few years ago 2 , and expressed his
pleasure to be present there again and see their work. He hoped that though there were
practical difficulties, the trained boys would do their best to settle in villages and see
that the work they had learnt was also taught to the villagers. Urging the removal of
untouchability completely, he said that the workers connected with Harijan uplift
should banish from their minds any notion that the people for whom they worked
were un-touchables, and establish closer contact with them.
Referring to the School, Gandhiji said that at present there were 50 boys
under-going training. This was not enough. They should see that hundreds of boys
were benefited by the school. The public on their part should extend financial help to
such institutions freely and fully. Gandhiji also made a fervent appeal to Harijans and
others to learn Hindustani along with the study of their mother tongue. He reminded
them of the visit of Swami Vivekananda to Madras a few years back and the advice he
had given them to study Sanskrit. Gandhiji hoped that some of the Harijans would
aspire to become Sanskrit pundits.
The work which the Harijans were taught in the school, Gandhiji said, was not
merely intended to eke out their livelihood; it should also enable them by their
conduct to make the higher castes feel that they were equal to them in all respects, and
not un-touchables. If they went out doing good work, speaking good things and
leading a good life, nobody would call them Harijans. Gandhiji hoped that God would
guide them and the institution along the right path.
The Hindu, 3-2-1946

February 1, 1946
Gandhiji began his speech with a reference to the orderliness of the gathering,
by pointing out that the noise that usually came from his left was absent that day, and
that he had hoped to thank them for the calm and peaceful manner in which they had
conducted themselves. But, he added, at the end of the prayer there was a slight
1
The report said: “An address of welcome was handed over to Gandhiji on
behalf of several organizations working for Harijan welfare. Pupils of various
institutions were asked to stand in their places, and were introduced to Gandhiji.”
2
On January 22, 1937; vide “Letter to Gangabehn Jhaveri”, 15-11-1930

distrubance in front of him. Gandhiji, however, appreciated the patience of the
gathering and remarked that the prayer meetings appeared to have had some effect on
them as they had learnt how to maintain silence and order.
This big maidan was really the best temple of God. They had the fine blue sky
for their roof, under which there was no difference between the rich and the poor, the
master and the servant, the millionaire and the worker, or the Hindu, the Muslim, the
Christian and the Parsi. With sky as canopy and with mother earth, which could
accommodate thousands of them, as floor, they had before them a temple of art, kala
mandir, the like of which he had not seen in any part of the world. This was a special
feature of India. He had travelled in Europe and had seen many places of worship. He
had been to many mosques. He had also visited a number of temples. Before he took
up the question of Harijans, he used to be taken to the temples. People believed
that they would be rid of their sins by making offerings and worshipping at the
temples. Though such a belief would have its own effect, Gandhiji felt that the acts
of worshipping and making offerings by themselves would not make one pure. Purity
was a matter of the heart, and it was this indestructible quality that they should aim at.
Gandhiji then went on to say that a person who worshipped in a Siva temple
would not go to a Vishnu temple because he felt that his salvation could be secured
only by worshipping Siva. This sort of bigotry was wrong. It was a mere illusion. It
used to be said that once Tulsidas went to a Krishna temple and fervently wished to see
there his Rama with his bow and arrows. It was also said Tulsidas was able to see his
Rama in the image of Krishna. This showed that faith and belief were matter of the
heart and that one realized what one ardently desired and prayed for.
In this open-air temple, Gandhiji said, they had been assembling for the past
few days. they had understood the need for orderliness, he was glad to note. But he
aso wanted that this orderliness and devotion should not be a mere outward show.
There was no use if they appeared pious, but indulged in drink, gambling and deceit.
The lessons of discipline and orderliness which they learnt at these gatherings should
not be forgotten. The peace and calmness that prevailed at the meeting was very dear
to him. He was perfectly satisfied. This was probably the last meeting he would be
addressing in Madras this time. But on his return from Madura, if he found time, he
might address them once again in the same maidan.
Gandhiji said that he had a special attachment to South India, and whenever he
came to the South, the people demonstrated their affection for him. Whatever work
he had been able to do, and that too without rest, would not have been possible but for
their affection and sincerity. He was old and weak and he also got easily tired. His
mind was overworked, but with God’s grace, which manifested through their affection
for him, he had been able to do his work properly. Gandhiji said :
After all what is my work? I have nothing to give you except

my services. If you continue to show the same love to me, I am
confident, God will give me strength to serve you further in the future.
It is your devotion that enables you to sit calmly for such a long time.
It is your calmness that gives me more and more strength.
Referring next to his visit1 to the Harijan Industrial School at Kodambakkam,
Gandhiji said that it was a small place where students were taught many useful handi-
crafts. One should not go away with the feeling that the institution after all helped
only a few students. It was such kind of work that would go for the unification of
India. In South India they spoke four languages. It could not be said that there was
unity among them. That was a sad thing. It must be possible for him to hear that no
feeling of difference existed between the four linguistic areas of South India or
between South India and North India. Untouchability had not completely disappeared
from their midst. All human beings are the children of God, and how could there be
any difference amongst them? If educated people created a feeling of brotherhood
among all communities and ceased to think that brain-worker was superior to a barber
or an oil-monger or a Harijan and thereby helped their Harijan neighbour to feel that
he was equal to them, the unity of India would be promoted and realized.
Referring to the theme of the song sung earlier, Gandhiji said that in order to
realize Rama, the poet felt that he should become a saint. The poet said that one
should give up outward show and keep one’s heart pure so that Rama might come and
reside within. That showed that God would make his abode in the hearts of only who
got rid of thier sins and passions and became pure.
Concluding, Gandhiji wished the gathering happiness and the grace of God.
The Hindu, 3-2-1946
447. “HARIJAN” REVIVED2

Why is Harijan revived? This question may have occurred to
many as it has to me. I may tell the reader that no special effort was
made for its revival3 . An application for the removal of the ban was
made on December 3, 1945, and the ban was removed on January 10,
1946. Many readers, including English and American, had all along
felt a void, and they began to feel it more after the defeat of the
Fascist Powers. The reason for the feeling was obvious. They wanted
my reaction, in terms of truth and non-violence, to the various events
happening in India, if not in the world. I wished to satisfy this desire.
1
Vide the proceding item.
2
This appeared under “Notes”.
3
After suspension in August 1942;

There have been cataclysmic changes in the world. Do I still
adhere to my faith in truth and non-violence? Has not the atom bomb
exploded that faith? Not only has it not done so but it has clearly
demonstrated to me that the twins constitute the mightiest force in the
world. Before it the bomb is of no effect. The two opposing forces
are wholly different in kind, the one moral and spiritual, the other
physical and material. The one is infinitely superior to the other which
by its very nature has an end. The force of the spirit is ever progre-
ssive and endless. Its full expression makes it unconquerable in the
world. In saying this, I know that I have said nothing new. I merely
bear witness to the fact. What is more, that force resides in everybody,
man, woman and child, irrespective of the colour of the skin. Only in
many it lies dormant, but it is capable of being awakened by judicious
training.
It is further to be observed that without the recognition of this
truth and due effort to realize it, there is no escape from self-destruc-
tion. The remedy lies in every individual training himself for self-
expression in every walk of life, irrespective of response by the neigh-
bours. Harijan will attempt from week to week to stand up for this
truth and illustrate it.1
ON WAY TO MADURA, February 2, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946
448. SPEECH AT ACHARAPAKKAM STATION2

February 2, 1946
Gandhiji said that if the same shanti prevailed all along the route to the Sri
Meenakshi Temple at Madura, he would be delighted. He said :
I have a pet idea, perhaps foolish, that I should always travel
third, but I am actually travelling double first class. I have not the joy
of having fellow-travellers in the train with me in the carriage. I know
such travel is not for a pilgrim that I am now. I am a pilgrim today
for an important reason. I have passed through Madura before but I
have never turned to the Sri Meenakshi Temple because Harijans did
not then have access to it. But God fulfills Himself in many ways. I
1
Vide also “To the Reader”
2
The report said: “Leaving Kattupakkam at five in the morning, the special
train halted . . . at Acharapakkam. . . . people . . . gathered in the station yard . . .
maintained perfect silence as Gandhiji came out. . .”

am an opponent of untouchability and so is Rajaji. It was God’s will
that Government came into the hands of Congressmen for some time.
Through your support Rajaji had the legislation made, and the Sri
Meenakshi Temple is now open to all Hindus including Harijans. 1 I
am no worshipper of idols. But I know the great place idol-worship
has amongst Hindus. There is a place in every man’s heart for such
worship in that spirit. I go as a pilgrim to Madura. You are sitting
here like true pilgrims and listening to me with prayerful hearts. I
know, I carry your prayers with me.
The Hindu, 3-2-1946
449. SPEECH AT ARIYALUR STATION 2

February 2, 1946
You know I am on my way to Madura. I am a Harijan, and this
pilgrimage of mine is a Harijan yatra. I want you to follow me to
Madura in your thoughts and cast aside untouchability. You must
also contribute to the Harijan Fund. But mere money contributions
will not do. There must be a genuine change of heart. So long as
there is no change of heart towards the Harijans on the part of the
savarnas, we will not get freedom, and Hinduism will be ruined. I
know, you do not want Hinduism to be ruined. So you must rid your-
selves and Hinduism of the sin. Good-bye, good-bye.
The Hindu, 3-2-1946
450. SPEECH AT LALGUDI STATION

February 2, 1946
Referring to his visit to Madura as a teertha yatra, Gandhiji, who spoke a few
words to those gathered at Lalgudi Station, said that in olden days pilgrims from one
end of the land to the other, sometimes, used to walk the whole distance. Since the
Madura Temple was thrown open to Harijans, he had been longing to visit it and
worship Sri Meenakshi. He was himself a Harijan who wanted to worship there. He
wanted their blessings for the success of his pilgrimage.
The Hindu, 3-2-1946
1
The temple was thrown open to Harijans on July 8, 1939.
2
The report said: Seven thousand men, women and children . . . sat in the sun
patiently and . . . when the special drew up at 11.15 a.m., they lifted their folded
hands in silent obeisance. Gandhiji was so impressed by the orderliness of the crowd
that he called for Ramdhun in which the assemblage participated. . .”

451. SPEECH AT GOLDEN ROCK1
[February 2, 1946] 2
The workers, Gandhiji said, were possessed of real wealth, for wealth really
was not money but the capacity to produce goods. Money alone could produce no
goods, only labour could. He wanted the workers to realize their strength and work
for progress on the lines of truth, ahimsa and unity. He was confident that he carried
with him their good wishes and sympathy in his pilgrimage to Madura. Addressing
the women in the gathering, Gandhiji said that during the days of the Salt Satyagraha
Campaign, women gave proof of their patriotism and showed themselves as not a
whit behind men. They should represent in themselves the essence of truth and
ahimsa. 3
The Hindu, 4-2-1946
452. SPEECH AT MANAPPARAI4

February 2, 1946
Gandhiji said that he was very happy to see so many charkhas plying. He saw
a similar demonstration in Bengal, but there it was mostly the men who were the
spinners. The women who were spinning at the present gathering seemed to be poor
people. Everyone must spin and wear khadi. The charkha should be in evidence
everywhere. Gandhiji asked :
Have you all rid yourselves of the observance of untouchability?
If they had not already done so, they must at once, he added. Swaraj was close
at hand, but they must realize that the charkha was the basis and the means of that
swaraj.
The Hindu, 4-2-1946
1
According to the report, “some ten thousand men and women mostly of the
working classes sat in absolute silence and order.”
2
Form The Hindu, 3-2-1946, which reported that Gandhiji’s Special reached
Trichinopoly at 1.30 p.m. on this date, “after reception at Srirangam and Golden
Rock”.
3
Vide also “Some Labour Questions”
4
According to the report, “entire maidan near Manapparai railway station was
filled to capacity by . . . men and women, many of whom were spinning”.

453. SPEECH AT MADURAI1
February 2, 1946
I am sorry there is so much noise in this vast assembly. I came
here wanting to tell you many things, but I am afraid, on account of
the noise, I will not be able to say anything. People in front of the
dais are very quiet and if others are not equally quiet, it will be
difficult for me to stay on here. My health does not permit me to stay
on here and stand noise. But when I see so many of you sitting so
quiet in front, I still want to tell you how I appreciate the silence of
this section of the gathering. It is a matter for regret that after so
many years we have not yet learnt how to behave when we gather in
such large numbers. Madura is a famous city. It is a holy city. You
have opened the Temple here to Harijans. Since then I wanted to visit
the shrine.
I know all this noise and commotion is explained by your love
and affection for me. You are all eager to see me. But I tell you such
intemperate and undisciplined affection is not love. You have only
made it impossible for me to tell you what I wanted to. Prayer, to me,
is no mere routine. It is dear to me and is part of my life.
His only request to them would be that when he went next morning to the
Meenakshi Temple for worship, only those who had been invited should come there.
Others should not go there or cause inconveniene to the invitees.2
The Hindu, 4-2-1946
454. SPEECH AT ODDANCHATRAM

February 3, 1946
Gandhiji said that it was one of the very few perfect gatherings he had
addressed since leaving Madras. Such discipline was good for them and would be
1
Then called Madura; the report said that “Gandhiji walked round on the dais,
appealing for shanti, but in vain”.
2
The report concluded: “Gandhiji then appealed to the crowed to be orderly,
and was preparing to leave for his temporary residence when the crowd made a rush
forward. Seeing the utter indiscipline prevailing, he quietly stretched himself on the
matress and refused to budge until the crowd dispersed quietly. . . . The stalemate
continued for over two hours. In the mean time the crowd, finding the hour getting
late, began to melt away.” Vide also “The Lesson of Madurai”

invaluable for the country especially when swaraj came, as he was hoping it would, in
a few months. He wanted them to remove untouchability from their midst and use
local made khadi cloth. Gandhiji then bade good-bye, and the crowd silently joined
hands in pranam to him.
The Hindu, 5-2-1946
455. SPEECH AT PALNI

February 3, 1946
Addressing the crowd in Hindustani, Gandhiji said, he had been ordered by his
doctor that he should not go up the hill with its 640 steps.1 His experience in Madura2
showed how, out of love for him, the crowds could become uncontrollable. He would
ask them not to follow him up the hill if he went.
He would much rather not ascend the hill than that they should be disappointed
at not being able to accompany him. Obeisance offered with a pure heart, from
whichever spot it might be, would receive God’s blessings. When he saw the crowd’s
shanti, his own soul had shanti, too.
Urging them always to conduct themselves in a disciplined manner, Gandhiji
said that through discipline alone could they retain swaraj and get the best service out
of their own leaders. Speaking in the presence of Palaniandava 3 , he would exhort
them to cast off untouchabilty from their hearts. Removal of untouchability meant
not merely willingness to suffer the touch of anyone, but readiness to treat the
brother Hindu as an equal. No sense of inferiority or superiority should subsist
between one section and another of the community or between Hindu, Muslim, Parsi
or Christian.
Speaking of temple worship, Gandhiji said that worship of God‘s image
would serve no good unless people cleaned their hearts of hardness against
fellow-beings. God should be enshrined not in images, but in human hearts. He had
just worshipped Sri Meenakshi at the Madura Temple because that Temple was now
open to Harijans. While in the Temple he had realized a new spiritual significance.
Worship in the temples must mean change of heart towards Harijans. Otherwise it
was fruitless. Their silence and shanti made him feel confident that his pilgrimage
had borne fruit4
The Hindu, 5-2-1946
1
He was, however, carried in a palanquin; vide the following item.
2
Vide “Speech at Madurai”, 2-2-1946
3
The presiding deity at Palni
4
The report concluded: “Gandhiji then conducted his evening prayer at the
meeting. It was a complete prayer with the usual recitals from the Upanishads, the
Gita and the Koran followed by Ramdhun. He then left for the Hill Temple.”

456. ENTRY IN PALNI TEMPLE VISTIORS’ BOOK1
February 3, 1946
I was happy to be here and be able today to have darshan in this
Temple.
The Hindu, 5-1-1946
457. ARE WE GOING DOWN?

Personal likes and dislikes, ambitions and jealousies should have no
place in our organization. What, therefore, distresses me greatly is that dis-
like, hatred and vindictiveness in private life and even in public speeches are
becoming common among Congressmen; and consequenty indiscipline and
hooliganism are increasing.
This extract is taken from a long letter from a friend. She even
quotes instances and elaborates her thesis. But I have reproduced
sufficient for my purpose. I whole-heartedly endorse every word of
what she says. Though I do not read newspapers diligently, I feel that
there is truth in her experience. Now that it seems that we are coming
into our own, the evils complained of ought to go and calmness, rigid
discipline, co-operation and goodwill must take the place of passion,
indiscipline and jealousies, public and private. Or else swaraj machi-
nery will crack and go to pieces and our future state may very well
become worse than the present, bad and insufferabe as it is. As I said
in Mahishadal, 2 the glow of swaraj in action must be felt by the
illiterate millions of India. They must feel the vital difference between
the present autocratic and ordinance regime and the orderly, demo-
cratic, non-violent regime under swaraj. I hug the hope that when real
responsibiity comes to the people and the dead weight of a foreign
army of occupation is removed, we shall be natural, dignified and
restrained. We are living just now in a state that is highly artificial and
unnatural. The sooner we get out of it the better for us, the ruling
power and the world. I can, therefore, only suggest to my friend and
1
The report said: “Sitting in a special palanquin, Gandhiji reached the Temple
at 9 p. m. Some 200 worshippers who were present . . . sat down in perfect order
and silence leaving . . . Gandhiji . . . to offer worship in comfort. . . .” Vide also
“Its Implications”
2
Vide “Speech At Prayer Meeting”, 29-12-1945

those who think like her, that they should rigidly carry out in practice
what they think, even though they be a handful.
ON THE TRAIN TO MADRAS, February 4, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946
458. ITS IMPLICATIONS

The vast meeting at Palni1 under the shadow of the Temple was
perfectly silent; there were no noises. I seized the occasion to give the
audience the implications of removal of untouchability. It began with
touch but it would be a wooden thing, if it merely ended there. A
Brahmin may be a depraved man in spite of his learning. It would be
preposterous to call him one. A Brahmin is he who knows Brahma. It
is character, not occupation, that determines the man. The Bhangi is,
or should be, on a par with the Brahmin in all social relations. There is
no reason why he shoud not, other things being equal, occupy the
chair which Maulana Abul Kalam Azad occupies with distinction. I
would be happy to see the day when a Bhangi, working as such, is in
the Presidential chair.
The ulcer of untouchability has gone so deep down that it seems
to pervade our life. Hence the unreal differences; Brahmin and non-
Brahmin, provinces and provinces, religion and religion. Why shoud
there be all this poison smelling of untouchabiity? Why should we not
all be children of one Indian family and, further, of one human
family? Are we not like branches of the same tree?
When untouchability is rooted out, these distinctions will vanish
and no one will consider himself superior to any other Naturally ex-
ploitation too will cease and co-operation will be the order of the day.
Having dealt with untouchability, I turned to the pilgrimage.
There was fear of my being unable to negotiate the flight of over six
hundred steps on a chair, if crowds of people insisted on accom-
panying me up the hill which was too small to accommodate them. I
would be satisfied with doing darshan at the foot of the hill. Let not
the people, however, think that I was guided by any belief in the
potency of images of clay or precious metal. Idols became what the
devotees made of or imputed to them. For me they had no potency
whist Harijans were prohibited from entering temples. I had passed
1
Vide “Speech At Palni”, 3-2-1946

by the famous Meenakshi Temple in Madura more than once before
and never cared to go inside it whilst the prohibition against the
Harijans lasted. How could I, who claim to be a Bhangi, care to enter
such temples? Then I was sure that the God of India was God living
in the plains where the millions lived. How many could reach the
Himalayas? Many more have gone and more many could reach the
Himalayas? Many more have gone and more could certainly go to
Palni, but the crores could not. I would be, as I am, one of them.
I was sure, too, that my prayer at the foot of the hill would be
heard more than that of some devotees in the Temple itself. God
knew and cared for the hearts of men. Outward appearance was
nothing to Him, if it was not an experssion of the inner. It was
enough for me that the Harijans of the inner. It was enough for me
that the Harijans were as free as any other Hindu to enter the Palni
Temple for the purpose of worship.
Nevertheless the millions who were assured that I would have
darshan of the image itself would not understand this message and
might feel that some calamity would descend upon the country, if I
could not go up the hill. Their silence at the meeting encouraged the
hope that I might be able to go through the advertised programme.
The speech was delivered at nearly 6 p. m. But at 8 p. m. I
found that I was able to negotiate the hill and, though there was a
large crowd at the entrance, none insisted on joining while Rajaji and I
were being taken up the hill in chairs. Thus happily did the pilgri-
mage came to a successful end.
One swallow does not make summer. No legitimate inference
can be drawn from this incident. However I cannot help cherishing
the fond hope that it augurs well for India under swaraj, home rule or
indepen-dence, by whatever name one may choose to call the thing.
Perhaps this article is the proper place for recording my thanks
to the South Indian Railway and the staff for their considering no
trouble too great for making the journey as little tiresome as it was
possible for it to be under the circumstances.
ON THE TRAIN TO MADRAS FROM P ALNI, February 4, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946

459. SPEECH AT ULUNDURPET STATION
[Februarty 4, 1946] 1
Gandhiji thanked the giver 2 but added that he was no longer able to digest
groundnut and had, therefore, given it up. He said :
Day by day, I am growing older but I am at the same time desir-
ous of living 125 years. Not that I want to live in pleasure, but I want
to do more service. I want to serve you and your freedom’s cause.
True freedom is in developing freedom-consciousness. That cannot
be deveoped in one year or two. Twnty-five years’ work among 400
millions is but a drop in the ocean. My prayer to God is that He
should spare me 125 years to render more service. Harijan seva is an
important item in that service. If you do not wash your-selves of the
sin of observing untouchability, we cannot become free, nor can our
religions survive long. From the time the Madura Temple was thrown
open to the Harijans when Rajaji was Premier, I have thought of
visiting it. Rajaji is a servant of you all. But even ten Rajajis could not
have achieved such great work unless there was public support and
public opinion behind it. I want you, therefore, to elimi-nate
untouchability from your hearts.
The Hindu, 4-2-1946
460. SPEECH READ OUT AT PRAYER MEETING, MADRAS3

February 4, 1946
I am very glad that I have been able to make the two pilgri-
mages to Madura and Palni. The people of the Province behaved with
great consideration to me all along the route. The vast gathering
kept sitting in their places, observing complete silence. The best exhi-
bition of such silence and such discipine was at Palni. It was entirely
on account of the discipline of the people there that it was possible to
carry me up the hill in a chair.
You, people of Madras, have given me your company at prayers
1
On his return jouney from Palni to Madras, Gandhiji reached Ulundurpet on
this date.
2
Gandhiji was given a bag full of groundnuts by one of the villagers.
3
The report said that this “message in Hindustani written on an envelope” was
read out by Kanu Gandhi as Gandhiji had not broken his silence.

for the last ten days. May I expect that through you the people of this
Province will imbibe the lesson of silence and orderliness? Swaraj is
on the way—that is the belief of all. But swaraj will be incomplete
without shanti. There cannot be shanti without the grace of God, and
there cannot be grace of God without prayer, prarthana. That is why
I ask you to cultivate the habit of prayer. Prayer should proceed from
the heart.
The Hindu, 6-2-1946

MADRAS,
February 4, 1946
In reply to Sastriar’s enqiury about the tour, Gandhiji wrote that it had been
very nice but very taxing. Sastriar was surprised to hear that five to six lakhs had
gathered at the prayer meeting at Madura, more than half of which number had come
from the surrounding villages. They had sat on the roadside without food and shelter
just to have a darshan as they felt that this might be their last chance.
Gandhiji enquired about Sastriar’s health and advised him to obey the doctor.
Sastriar said, he felt almost normal. He was moved beyond words. He remarked :
Brother, you have done me an exceptional honour, especially by paying this
visit when you were in a great hurry. You are dearer and nearer to me than my own
brothers and sons and members of the family.
His voice had become almost inaudible :
We have come together by some inner affinity. No external reason can
explain this friendship. Gokhale was but the occasion of it.
And he drew nearer to Gandhiji and whispered :
I won’t waste words. You know what I want to say.
Gandhiji waved to him to be quiet as he was becoming breathless with emotion
and got up to say good-bye.
As Gandhiji got up, Sastriar caught sight of his dangling watch. He said :
Ah! your constant companion. Somebody said, you had lost your watch and
1
Extracted from Sushila Nayyar’s “Meeting Sastriar”. Sushila Nayyar
explains: “On his return from Madura, Gandhiji had only three hours at his disposal
during which he . . . saw several people, collected funds for Harijans and Hindustani
prachar and paid hurried visit to Sastriar, on his way to the Station. It was a Monday
and Sastriar was disappointed to find that Gandhiji was observing silence. . . .Sastriar
talked and Gandhiji replied by writing on slips of paper.”

would use it no longer.
Shri T. R. Venkatarama1 corrected him by saying that the remark related to his
fountain pen. Sastriar said :
Oh! I see. But if someone steals your watch, will you give up using a watch
also?
Gandhiji laughed and shook his head to say that he could not do without his
watch.
Harijan, 28-4-1946
462. CURIOUS
On my return journey from Palni, someone gave me at one of
the halts a letter reviling Shri Rajaji and Shri Gopalaswami 2 , and
informing me that they would not allow anyone against them to come
near me. Now I know to the contrary. No one who wanted to say
anything worth-while could be prevented from seeing me or writing to
me. The delivery of the very letter disproves the allegation. Shri
Kamaraja Nadar was with me on the same special. He was with me in
the Temple on the Palni Hill. But there is no doubt that both Rajaji
and Gopalaswami were closest to me during the journey. They had
arranged it. Rajaji is one of my oldest friends and was known to be
the best exponent in word and deed of all I stand for. That, in 1942,
he differed3 from me, I know. All honour for the boldness with which
he publicly avowed the difference. He is a great social reformer,
never afraid to act according to his belief. His political wisdom and
integrity are beyond question. I was, therefore, pained to find a clique
against him. It is a clique that evidently counts in the official Congress
in Madras. But the masses are devoted to Rajaji. I am neither vain nor
foolish enough to feel that I could have had the huge public
demonstratations all along the route of the pilgri-mage, if he had no
influence with the masses in Tamil Nadu. Congressmen in the South
will act as they think best. But I would be less than loyal to the orga-
nization, if I did not warn them against losing the valuable services
1
T. R. Venkatarama Sastri, one of the students of Srinivasa Sastri, who later
became his intimate friend
2
N. Gopalaswami Iyengar, Chairman, Jubilee Celebration Committee of the
Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha, Madras
3
On the issue of demand for Pakistan, Rajagopalachari, resigned from the
Congress Party on July 15, 1942; vide “Letter to C. Gopalachari”, 5-7-1942

which no one can shoulder as Rajaji can at the present moment.1
En route TO WARDHA, February 5, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946
463. SPEECH AT VIJAYAWADA 2

February 5, 1946
Addressing the audience in Hindustani, Mahatma Gandhi first referred to a
letter3 , handed over to him by Mr. A. Subrahmanyam, a local Congressman, saying
that there was a feeling among the Andhras that he (Gandhiji) had come to Madras to
set up Mr. C. Rajagopalachari as the Premier. He said that he was very sorry that
there was such a misunderstanding even among Congressmen about the purpose of his
trip to Madras. Even the Telugu papers, he added, were writing that he had come to set
up C. R. as Premier, and that he had made his journey specially for Mr. Rajagopa-
lachari’s sake. In fact he had not even dreamt of this. Ever since his release from jail
he had been thinking of visiting Madras for Hindustani propaganda. He made it clear
that he had gone there as the President of the Dakshina Bharat Hindi Sabha Rajat
Jayant (Siver Jubilee) celebrations and not in any other capacity or for any other
purpose. He was asked to speak about Mr. C. Rajagopalachari but he refused to do so.
He did not answer any letter received by him in this connection. This was beause he
was not even a four-anna member of the Congress.
Mr. Rajagopalachari was his old friend, and he had great respect for his con-
duct and convictions. Mr. C. Rajagopalachri was quite competent to wield the reins
of Premier-ship, he would do it, but to make him the Premier or to become Premier
himself was not in his hands. It was the business of the pvovincial Congress
Committee and the All-India Congress Cmmittee, which were the only bodies compe-
tent to do the job.
He was not interested in the elections and the Parliamentary programme.
Until today he had not done anything secretly nor did he intend to do so in the future.
He came to know of their misunderstanding only after his arrival in Bezwada. He had
no occasion to think of it before. If it was his intention to interest himself in setting
up Mr. C. Rajagopalachari for the post of Premiership, he need not have come all the
way to Madras but could have done it from where he was. Therefore he wanted to keep
silent over this matter and did not want to interfere.4
He wanted them not to forget what he had said about Hindustani propaganda.
1
Gandhiji continued the article after he left Vajayawada; vide “Curious”
2
Then called ‘Bezwada’
3
For a gist, vide the following item.
4
Vide also the preceding item.

Although the Hindustani Pracharak Sangh had been functioning in Andhra Desha for
the last many years, he was really sorry to find that a vast number of them did not
know Hindustani. Today he had blessed 1 the foundation-stone of the Hindustani
Bhavan to be constructed in Bezwada. He hoped that very soon all of them would take
advantage of it and learn Hindustani. He would only be satisfied when he heard that
there was no one who did not understand Hindustani. By this he did not mean they
should neglect their mother tongue, Telugu. But Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, etc.,
could never become the all-India language and, therefore, people of all languages
should learn Hindustani.
Gandhiji also referred to the controversy whether Hindi or English should be
the common language in India. All Indian languages were being eclipsed by the
popular use of English. It was just for this reason that he was strongly emphasizing
the need for Hindustani propaganda.
In conclusion, he appealed to them not to waste their time with Tamil-Talugu
or Canarese-Malayalam differences and said, “God bless you all.”
The Hindu, 6-2-1946
464. CURIOUS [CONTINUED]

The foregoing 2 was written before Bezwada was reached at 5.30
in the morning. At Bezwada a note in Hindustani from Shri A.
Subrahmanyam was delivered, the gist of which is given below :
There is a belief spread in Andhra Desha that you have
come to Madras with a view to make Rajaji Premier. Several
Congressmen have been carrying on such propaganda. Taking
up the theme, some Telugu newspapers have been writing even
against Hindustani. Pease give your opinion on this.
I felt bound, therfore, to give my reply. I said3 that my journey
was purely for the purpose of celebrating the Silver Jubilee of the
Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha, now Hindustani Prachar Sabha,
and incidentally for Madura and Palni Temples. The visit was
conceived soon after my premature discharge and before the Con-
gress resumption of parliamentary work was even conceived. My visit
has nothing to do with Rajaji being the Premier. My life had no
secrecy about it. If I wanted to give an opinion, I was in the habit of
giving it openly. But I had rejected the advances of friends to guide
1
Soon after his arrival there in the morning
2
Vide “Curious”
3

them, for I was not interested in elections and offices. But since I was
challenged, I had no hesitation in saying that Rajaji was by far the best
man for the purpose in the Southern Presidency and, if I had the
disposal in my hands, I would call Rajaji to office; if I did not give it
to myself. But the disposal was with the Provincial Congress Com-
mittee and finally with the Working Committee. My opinion was only
that of an individual, to be taken for what it was worth.
AFTER BEZWADA, en route TO WARDHA, February 5, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946
465. HINDUSTANI
How can any Indian really be averse to Hindustani? Lovers of
Sanskritized Hindi are, however, afraid that Hindustani will hurt Hindi
and likewise lovers of Persianized Urdu fear hurt to Urdu. These fears
are futile. No language can spread through mere propaganda. If it
had been so, Esperanto would have found a place amongst the popu-
lace in the West. They failed because in such a matter the enthu-siasm
of only a few cannot succeed. The language of a people who produce
hard workers, literary experts, business men and enter-prising persons
spreads and is enriched. It is ours to make the effort in that direction.
Only that language which the people of a country will them-
selves adopt can become national. However virile the English langu-
age may be, it can never become the language of the masses of India.
If the British regime were to be permanent, it would continue to be the
official language of their Indian officials and, because education
woud be in their hands, provincial languages would suffer. The late
Lokamanya 1 once said that the British had done a service to the
provincial languages. This is true to some extent. But it was not their
business to encourage them nor could they in reality do so. That work
belongs to the people and their leaders. If the Engish-educated neg-
lect, as they have done and even now continue, as some do, to be igno-
rant of their mother tongue, linguistic starvation will abide.
We are today certain that the British Raj cannot remain for ever.
They say, and we believe, that it will go even this year. Then there can
be no national language for us other than Hindustani. Today there are
two forms of this language, Hindi and Urdu, the former written in
Nagari and the latter in Urdu script. One is fed by Sanskrit, the other
1
Bal Gangadhar Tilak

by Persian and Arabic. Today, therefore, both must remain. But
Hindustani will be a mixture of these. What shape it will take in the
future none can say nor need we know. Twenty-three crores out of
thirty speak Hindustani. This number must have increased pari passu
with the population. Obviously in this lies the national language.
There ought to be no quarrel between the two sisters Hindi and
Urdu. The rivalry is with English. This struggle itself means much
labour. The rise of Hindustani will also give an impetus to the
provincial languages because it is the language of the masses, not of a
handful of officials.
It was for the propaganda of the national language that I went
recently to the South. The name Hindi used there up till now has been
changed to Hindustani. During the last few months several persons
have been learning both the scripts and have obtained certificates. In
the South, too, the difficulty is not about the two scripts but in regard
to English. We may not blame the official world for this. The fault lies
in us. It is we who are infatuated with English. I found this disease
even in Hindustani Nagar. But I hope that the illusion will now
disappear. A good deal has been done in the South but much still
remains, if we have to reach the desired goal.
February 5, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946
466. THE LESSON OF MADURAI

The crowd in Madura 1 could not have been less than five lacs
and may have been even six. Human faces were to be seen as far as
the horizon. It was a veritabe sea of human faces. The long
route to the race course was lined by people who were all to swell the
crowd in the prayer ground. They must push on as much as they
could. I doubt if the people on the fringe could even see me, much
less hear me or anyone else, though loudspeaker arrangements were
good and the rostrum high enough. The volunteers were not used to
manage such vast crowds. People had come from distant villages
where the Congressmen had not worked habitually, if at all. Such
being the case, the din and noise and jostle were unavoidable. And
then the crowd had to deal with a satyagrahi in me. But my satyagraha
for the first time failed. The people’s was bound to fail. They showed
1
Vide Speech At Madurai”, 2-21-1946

the greatest forbearance whilst I was passive. The vast multitude in
front of me and on either side sat noiseless and motionless, in spite of
the pressure from behind. But the jostling and noise from behind the
rostrum continued unabated. I, therefore, cleared the dais and asked
the women members of my party to go. Only Rajaji, Kanu Gandhi
and Ramakrishna Bajaj remained. The latter said, the way was clear;
but, as I appeared, the people became restive. I addressed the people
in front and at the sides and pleaded with them to go away as I did not
propose to speak. They remained silent but would not leave. So I
thought I would rest where I was for the night till the crowd had either
dispersed or made a way for me. Kanu Gandhi, the tempter, came
again and said, the poeple would make a passage and let me go. The
car would wait for me at a distance from the crowd. In a weak moment
I yielded. I went down the few steps of the improvised strong ladder
only to meet the same pressing and noisy crowd as before, though
considerably thinned. It was not a safe passage through a noiseless,
disciplined crowd for which I was pleading and waiting. It was neither
a mischievous crowd. Making noise and pressing forward towards the
idol was the only way of expressing their love towards it. Here was a
living idol made of the same clay as they. And this idol could not and
would not appreciate their demonstration. But I proved an impatient
and inefficient teacher. Had I waited, I believe, this particular crowd
would have learnt the value of silence and, knowing love, probably of
discipline requisite for swaraj. I shall know much better next time, if
such ever comes. Anyway it is legitimate to ask whether the exemplary
behaviour at Palni was a result of the imperfect lesson of the previous
night at Madura. In any case, no blame attaches to anybody in the
drama and nobody has any cause for shame.
Enroute TO WARDHA, February 5, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946
467. NATURE CURE CLINIC1

Readers are aware2 that I have become co-trustee with Shree
Jehangir Patel and with Dr. Dinshaw Mehta in his clinic at Poona. A
condition of the trust is that from January 1 this year the clinic should
1
This appeared under “Notes”, as “translated from Hindustani” in Harijan
sevak published simultaneously with the source.
2
Vide “Statementb to the Press”, 21-11-1945

become a clinic for the poor instead of for the rich. The conception
was mine but owing to my absence on tour the condition has not been
wholly fulfilled. I am hoping to go to Poona this month, however, and
trust I shall be able to do some work in this connection. My fervent
hope is that rich patients will, if they came, pay to their fullest capa-
city and yet live in the same wards as the poor. I believe that by doing
so they will derive more benefit from henceforth. Those unwilling to
abide by this condition need not trouble to go to the clinic. This rule
is necessary.
In addition to treatment for their ailments, poor patients will also
be taught how to live healthy lives. It is a common belief today that
nature cure is expensive, more so than Ayurvedic or allopathic. If this
is proved to be true, I shall have to admit failure. But I believe that the
opposite is ture, and my experience also bears out the belief. It is the
duty of a nature cure doctor not only to look after the body but also
pay attention to and prescribe for the soul of a patient. The best
prescription for the soul is, of course, Ramanama (God’s name). I
cannot today go into the meaning of and method of applying
Ramanama. I will only say that the poor do not stand in need of much
medicine. They die uncared for as it is. Their ignorance makes them
blind to what nature teaches us. If the Poona experiment succeeds, Dr.
Dinshaw Mehta’s dream of a nature cure university will come true.
Help of India’s true nature cure doctors is needed in this great
work for the country. There can be no question of making money
in it. The need is for those who are filled with the spirit of service to
the poor and only with a sufficient number of such doctors can the
work progress. The mere title of a doctor is no criterion; a real doctor
is he who is a true servant. Those who have experience and knowledge
and are anxious to serve may write with a list of their qualifications.
No replies will be given to those whose qualifications are not up to the
standard.
Readers will please note that work has increased with the revival
of Harijan. There will, therefore, be very little scope for replying to
individual letters.
ON TRAIN TO WARDHA, February 5, 1946
Harijan, 10-2-1946

468. THE LURE OF LEGISLATURES1
I believe that some Congressmen ought to seek election in the
legislatures or other elected bodies. In the past I did not hold this
view.2 I had hoped that the boycott of legislatures would be complete.
That was not to be. Moreover times have changed. Swaraj seems to be
near. Under the circumstances it is necessary that Congress should
contest every seat in the legislatures. The attraction should never be
the honour that a seat in a legislature is said to give. The desire and
opportunity for service can be the only incentive for a Congressman.
Congress should have, and has, such prestige that a Congress candi-
date is irresistible even where a particular seat is contested. Moreover
those that are not selected by the Board should not feel hurt. On the
contrary, they shoud feel happy that they are left there to render more
useful service. But the painful fact is that those who are not selected
by the Board do feel hurt.
The Congress should not have to spend money on the elections.
Nominees of a popular organization should be elected without any
effort in the latter’s part. Conveyance arrangements for the poor
voters should be made by their well-to-do neighbours. For instance, if
the voters from X have to go to Y, the railway fare from X to Y for the
poor voters should be paid by the well-to-do people of X. That is the
distinguishing feature of a well-organized, non-violent, popular
organization. An organization which looks to money for everything
can never serve the masses. If money could bring success in a popular
contest, the British Government which can, and does, spend most
lavishly should be the most popular body in India. The facts are that
even Government servants drawing fat salaries do not, in their heart of
hearts, want the British Government.
Let us examine the utility value of legislatures. The legislatures
can expose the Government, but that is the least service. He who can
tell the people why they become victims of the Government in spite of
knowing its faults, and can teach them how to stand up against
Government wrongs renders a real service. The members cannot do
this essential service, for their business is to make people look to them
1
This appeared as “translated from the Gujarati” in Harijanbandhu published
simultaneously with the source.
2
Vide “Resolution on Council-Entry”, 19-5-1934

for the redress of wrongs.1
The other use of legislatures is to prevent undesirable legislation
and bring in laws which are useful for the public, so that as much help
as possible can be given to the constructive programme.
Legislatures are supposed to carry out the popular will. For the
moment eloquence may be of some use in these bodies. Ultimately
that will not be the need. Experts with practical knowledge and those
who can give to these few their support will be required. In an
organization which exists for the sake of service and which has
boycotted titles and other such paltry things, the sentiment, that to be
selected as candidates for the legislatures is a mark of honour, is
harmful. If such a sentiment takes root, it will bring down the name of
the Congress and finally prove its ruin.
If Congressmen are to be reduced to such degradation, who will
put flesh and blood into India’s millions of skeletones? On whom will
India and the world rely?
ON WAY TO S EVAGRAM, February 5, 1946
Harijan, 17-2-1946
469. MESSAGE TO ANDHRA DESHA2

February 5, 1946
I expect much from Andhra Desha, and I hope the Andhras will
fulfil my expectations. This is my wish: Remove untouchability
altogether, throw open the doors of all temples for Harijans, strive for
communal unity, wear khadi and work for its spread; learn your
mother tongue and learn your mother tongue and learn Hindustani as
well both in Urdu and Devanagari scripts.
The Hindu, 7-2-1946
1
Instead of this sentence, Harijanbandhu has: “Councils are, have been and
will be, an obstruction in this work.”
2
According to the report, this was sent through Unnava Rajagopala-
krishnayya, Secretary, Andhra Hindi Prachara Sangham, Bezwada, who accompanied
Gandhiji from Bezwada to Kazipet.

470. SPEECH AT BALHARSHAH STATION
February 5, 1946
If people do not keep discipline, then swaraj, which is near at
hand and which they are sure to get, would be swaraj only in name
and will not be of any use. The British will quit India. They have to
quit. Therefore you will have to change your hearts and be worthy of
swaraj.
Concluding, Gandhiji urged the people to give up corrupt practices like black-
marketing, etc.
The Hindu, 8-2-1946
471. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, WARDHA

February 6, 1946
I had proposed to come here on the ninth instant, but I came
earlier. On the 19th evening, I am leaving for Poona for staying in the
Nature Cure Clinic. After staying about ten days there, I desire to be
in Bardoli Ashram on March 2 or latest on March 3, for observing
Ba’s death anniversary on Shivaratri Day. It may be that on February
22 the anniversary may also be observed according to the Gregorian
calendar. After about a month’s stay there, I will be in Poona.
The Hindu, 8-2-1946
472. STATEMENT TO THE UNITED PRESS OF INDIA1

February 7, 1946
I never made such an admission. What I did say, and what I
believe, is that the Bengal famine of 1943, which is claimed in certain
quarters to be man-made, was cerainly due to hopeless mismanage-
ment passed current like other things under the military necessity. It
was certainly not an act of God.2
The Hindustan Times, 9-2-1946
1
The report said that this was in reply to a question put by an U. P. I.
representative “whether Mahatma Gandhi had admitted to the Governor of Bengal that
the Bengal famine of 1943 was not ‘man-made’”.
2
The report added that “in an interview which Dr. B. C. Roy had with members
of the British Parliamentary Delegation during their recent visit to Calcutta . . . one
member asserted that the Governor of Bengal succeeded in convincing Mahatma
Gandhi that the famine of 1943 was not man-made and that Gandhiji had accepted that
position.”

S EVAGRAM,
Februarty 7, 1946
DEAR MR. ABELL,
I thank you for yours of 30th ultimo received by me in Madras
on the 4th instant about the proposed Medical Mission to Burma and
Malaya. 1
The attitude of the Government of Burma is somewhat strange. I
had the pleasure of meeting H. E. the Governor of Burma last June in
Simla. I should have thought that they would welcome any medical
assistance especially when it is under the very able guidance of one of
the most celebrated physicians of India, who is well-known not only
for his exceptional medical talent but for his equally great organizing
ability.
I am glad that the part of the offer that relates to Malaya has
been accepted, for which I am thankful to His Excellency.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
G. E. B. ABELL, E SQ
1
Replying to Gandhiji’s letter of January 8, vide “Letter to G. E. B. Abell”,
8-1-1946, the addressee, Private Secretary to the Viceroy, had said that while offer of
medical assistance was “declined” by the Government of Burma, the British Military
Administration of Malaya, however, “accepted” it.

474. LETTER TO JATINDAS M. AMIN
S EVAGRAM,
February 7, 1946
CHI. AMIN JATIN,
I would only say this much that you should stay where you are
and render such service as you can. “Action alone is thy province,
never the fruits thereof.”1
The best way of undoing injustice is to persuade ourselves that
no one can [really] do an injustice.
Blessings from
BAPU
JATINDAS M. A MIN
VITHTHAL KANYA VIDYALAYA
NADIAD
S EVAGRAM,
February 7, 1946
CHI. SUCHETA,
I got your letter of January 30, 1946, written from Allahabad.

As for me, I am quite certain about two things: one, that a member of
the Assembly cannot be an Agent 2 , and two, that no man should be
appointed Agent. I think that Thakkar Bapa also agrees with this and,
therefore, as long as he is unable to find a woman worker in Delhi, he
will carry on the work through the Central Office. The committee has
ceased to be since January 1.
Poornima has already sent name [as candidate] for the Assem-
bly. Now wouldn’t you, therefore, agree to be the Agent? Ramesh-
waribehn3 writes to the effect that she will quit the Assembly.
1
Bhagavad Gita, II. 47
2
Of Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust
3
Rameshwari Nehru

What you say about Priyamvada1 is right and so too about
Devdoot2 .
Blessings from
BAPU
S UCHETA KRIPALANI
476. LETTER TO ANAND T. HINGORANI3

S EVAGRAM,
February 7, 1946
What shall I write? I have your letter. Meet Jairamdas4 and learn
shantipath5 .
Blessings from
BAPU
From a microfilm of the Hindi. Courtesy: National Archives of India, and
Anand T. Hingorani
477. SOME LABOUR QUESTIONS

During the pilgrimage to Madras and Palni the following docu-
ment signed by 259 persons was handed to me at tremendously large
meeting6 of labourers at Golden Rock :
We the workers of the South Indian Railway beg to place before you some
of our major problems with a view to get your support.
Nearly 2,64,000 workers are going to be retrenched all over the railways.
In South Indian Railway alone, 10,000 will be retrenched and till now more
than 2,000 have been discharged. The Government
1
Priyamvada Nandkeolyar who was subsequently appointed Agent of Kasturba
National Memorial Trust for the Province of Bihar
2
Devdoot Vidyarthi, worker of Kasturba Gandhi National Memorial Trust,
Madhubani
3
This was a postscript to Sushila Nayyar’s letter to the addressee which read:
“Bapuji will most probably continue to write his daily thoughts. The thoughts of the
last two months I am sending through a separate bookpost. Please write which dates
have been left out. Till now Bapuji was not able to correct the original. Therefore I
did not send them. He may be able to get them in Poona. Then I shall send them.”
4
Jairamdas Doulatram
5
Lesson of peace
6
Vide Speech at Manapparai”, 2-2-1946

contemplate absorption of ex-service men in place of railwaymen, thus putting us
against the ex-soldiers.
We have been demanding a minimum living wage of Rs. 30 per mensem. At
present the lowest wage is Rs. 8 to Rs. 15, and a majority of us receive less than Rs.
18 per mensem.
Out of 42,000 railway employees, only 8,000 are provided with quarters, of
which the majority are infested with insanitary conditions, and are without proper
ventilation.
You may be aware of the decision of the All-India Railwaymen’s Federation
demanding adjudication or a court of enquiry, if they refuse to redress our grievances
and accept the suggestions. The suggestions were intended for improvements in the
railway system and the condition of the employees. For your reference we are giving
below the sixteen suggestions forwarded to the Railways Board and the Government
by the Federation:
1. Reduction of work to 40 hours per week as a first step and further to 40
hours per week for all the staff including running staff without fall in wages.
2. Introduction of weekly calendar days off for all the railwaymen.
3. Leave reserve to be increased to 25%.
4. Reduction of rail length for engineering gangmen.
5. Extension of leave facilities to dailyrated and inferior service staff on par
with subordinates.
6. All the work now done through contract labour should be taken over
departmentally.
7. Reduction of mileage for overhaul of locomotives, wagons and carriages.
8. Expansion of workshop production, namely, construction of boilers,
engine parts, etc.
9. Manufacture of locomotives, carriages and wagons in the Indian
Railways workshop.
10. Rebuilding of third-class carriages so as to provide better facilities for
passengers such as bath-rooms, fans and sleeping accommodation for long distance
travel, etc.
11. Reopening all the lines that were closed and the restoration of all the
trains stopped during the period of war and further expansion of services to meet the
needs of the public.
12. A programme of house building with a view to provide decent houses for
all railwaymen.
13. Construction of new lines to suit the needs of the country.

14. Laying down of double tracks wherever necessary.
15. Introduction of rail-motor transport to the distant towns and villages
where railways cannot reach.
16. R. A. F. workshops now controlled by railways to be maintained and
extended to serve the need of aviation.
In the demand of ours for full work, living wages, proper housing facilities,
etc., we request you to support us and give a lead in the matter to the country and
force the Railway Board to accept the same and save thousands of railwaymen and
others from unemployment, misery and poverty.
If the workers are to be retrenched in order to make room, as
alleged in the letter, for ex-soldiers, it is, in my opinion, doubly
wrong. Wrong for the ex-soldier in that they will be favoured, and a
solider who accepts favoured treatment is no solider. The second
wrong will be to the men to be retrenched who, for no fault of their
own, will be thrown out of employment. It will not do to say they
were temporary hands The State has to find work for all unemployed
persons. Coming to the railwaymen’s demands, items Nos. 1-9 and
No. 12 fall, in my opinion, within the sphere of labour, but whether
they are reasonnable or not cannot be said without hearing the railway
authorities’ side. They should be referred to arbitration. They
cannot be made a subject of strike, before the process of arbitration
has been gone through. Any lightning strike is a form of dictation
which is dangerous.
Items Nos. 10, 11 and 13-16, cannot legitimately be demanded
by labourers. They are passengers’ grievances and passengers, i.e.,
the public, can take them up.
Item No. 10 I would consider quite extravagant. By far the
largest number of passengers belong to the third class, and I have no
doubt they deserve progressively better treatment, not the first and
second class. Raiway-cars of the not distant future will have no classes.
Classes society is the idea , not merely to be aimed at but to be worked
for and, in such society there is no room for classes or communties.
Until that time is arrived at, first and second-class comforts be
standardized and lowered where necessary and all attention bestowed
upon third-class passengers. But I cannot visualize a time when third-
class carriages, no matter how distant of the journey may be, can carry
bathing accommodation for tens of thousands of travellers. What is
required is proper bathing arrangement for third-class passengers at
railway stations. Third-class passengers are the most neglected in

India. Railway-cars and railway stations should be utilized for proper
education of the public in sanitation and cleanliness. This is not the
case today. And the quicker Hindu and Mohammedan tea or water
distinctions disappear the better 1 . Why should the State recognize
these unnatural and irreligious distinctions? Those who consider
themselves defiled by service rendered by person not belonging to
their own persuasion may well be left to their own resources.
The association for railway passengers’ relief should certainly
ventilate grievances before the authorities. Their main work should be
to conduct sustained education among the passengers as to their own
duty toward one another and about observing laws of cleanliness and
hygiene.
S EVAGRAM, February 8, 1946
Harijan, 17-2-1946
478. TELEGRAM TO JATINDAS M. AMIN

S EVAGRAM,
February 8, 1946
JATINDAS AMIN
VITHTHAL KANYA VIDYALAYA
NADIAD
NO FAST. PERFORM YOUR OWN DUTY QUIETLY. 2
BAPU
From a copy: Pyarelal Pepers. Courtesy: Pyerelal

S EVAGRAM, via WARDHA,
February 8, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I have to acknowledge receipt of your three letters of January
20, 1946, January 30, 1946, and February 1, 1946.
Now that you are about to leave your office and also India,
I will not trouble you any further with reference to the several
matters on which I see there are differences of view-point. I can-
1
Vide also “Hindu and Mussalman Tea, Etc.”, 7-3-1946.
2
Vide also “Its Implications”

not help mentioning my regret that I have failed to carry convic-
tion in the matter of salt and khadi.1 The position regarding
milk is certainly extraordinary. There is no question here of even
carrying conviction. It is typical.The answer you have been Instructed
to give reveals to me the official mind in India which refuses to admit
even obvious mistakes. Hence we have called the Civil Service
‘heaven-born’ and the late Mr. Montagu called it ‘wooden’. Some
day, if you and Mrs. [Casey] and I meet without you being
trammelled by cares of office, we shall laugh heartily over the many
tragedies of Bengal which, let us hope, will have been things of the
past and the ludicrous mistakes lying at the bottom of these tragedies.
I understand what you have said2 about the release of prisoners.
I hope that the Red Cross work will share itself for the benefit of
the millions.
I enclose for your information the statement3 I have made with
reference to “man-made famine”. I hope that I have correctly
recalled our conversation.
I thank you for the Australian wool you have been good
enough to send to the Rajkumari4 for turning into blankets. I hope
to report to you how the blankets look when they come from the
weavers and tell you whether Australian wool makes better blankets
than the Tibetan.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
H. E. THE GOVERNOR OF BENGAL
C ALCUTTA
1
Vide also “Letter to R. G. Casey”, 8-1-1946 and “Letter to R. G. Casey”,
16-1-1946
2
In his letter dated February 1, the addressee, inter alia, had said: “The process
of release of all those that it is anyway safe to release will be continued hereafter.
3
Vide “Statement to the United Press of India”, 7-2-1946
4
Amrit Kaur

GRAMSVA ASHRAM, S EVAGRAM,
February 8, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
You may not know X but he is staunch Congressmen. He
has suffered, too. I send you the letter which he has left with me.
You will see from it that Y has broken faith with the Congress.
The Doctor left the letter with me in order to guard against his
candida-ture being approved through mistake. Now do what seems
right to you.
I hope you keep good health. The tour was quite strenuous, but
God granted me the necessary strength, and it was finished without a
hitch. As arranged, I hope to reach Bardoli on the 3rd. I leave here
on the 17th and reach Poona on the 19th.
From the newspaper reports, you seem to have done fairly well
in the Sind elections.
Blessings from
BAPU
Bapuna Patro—2: Sardar Vallabhaine, p. 293
481. LETTER TO VEENA

S EVAGRAM,
February 8, 1946
CHI. VEENA1 ,
I got your letter as also the previous one. How can I find time
to write while I am constantly on the move? It is good news that you
are keeping well.
Your parents arrived here yesterday. Everyone is fine. Why
are your envelopes marked ‘Private’?
It would be good, if you could come to Bardoli. I shall try to
leave here on the 17th and reach Poona on the 19th.
Blessings from
BAPU
1
Daughter of Amrita Lal Chatterjee

S EVAGRAM,
February 8, 1946
CHI. SANKARAN,
I got your letter. I reached the Ashram on the 6th morning. The
issue of“Jivansakha”has not yet been found. Why are your envelopes
marked ‘Cofidential’? Such letters are handed over to me unopened,
and I can see them only when I find time. For instance, though your
letter had reached us in Madras, I opened it only yesterday. There
was no scope for it to be opened during the journey. You do not
write to Sushilabehn at all.
Blessings from
BAPU
483. PRESERVATION OF CATTLE1

The Goseva Sangh which has its headquarters in Wardha was the
late Shri Jamnalalji’s last creation. He served the public cause in a
variety of ways. For years money-making had ceased to be his main
occupation. If he cared for money, it was only with the object of
financing public activities. Eleventh day of February was the fifth
anniversary of his death,and his followers and comrades decided to
celebrate this anniversary by holding a meeting of friends and
workers of the Goseva Sangh.
An hour before he died, he was working for this cause. Gopuri,
where the meeting took place, is his creation. His ashes rest there, and
the first meeting of the Sangh was also held there. The name Goseva
was chosen after careful thought. The sense of patronage contained
in goraksha was eliminated by the substitution of the word seva. The
Hindu believes in the cow as mother and indeed she is so. An
American has described her as the “Mother of Prosperity” and the
description is correct. It is another matter that they eat beef in the
West. They believe, at the same time, that the cow occupies highest
place amongst those animals which contribute to man’s comfort and
1
This appeared as “from the Hindustani” in Harijan Sevak published simulta-
neously with the source.

happiness. It is difficult, if not impossible, for an Indian to think of
man as being able to live without cow’s milk.
Preservation of cattle is a vital part of goseva. It is a vital
question for India. And it is a tragedy that the country which wor-
ships the cow pays scant attention to her and her progeny. While we
may not kill the cow, we definitely torture her. Matters have reached
such a sorry pass that today cattle seem to have become a burden and
people talk of killing them off in order to lighten this load. What
could one Jamnalalji do to battle against such odds? And now even
he is not among us.
Speeches are not going to solve the problem. There is urgent
need for deep study and the spirit of sacrifice. To amass money and
dole out charity does not co109nnote real business capacity. To know
how to preserve cattle, to impart this knowledge to the millions, to live
up to the ideal oneself, and to spend money on this endeavour is real
business. Today the opposite obtains. The rich amass wealth somehow
and salve their consciences by giving a paltry sum out of it towards
the upkeep of goshalas by untrained persons and fancy that they
have acquired merit. Jamnalalji was well aware of these short-comings
and was working out a scheme to overcome them. In the meanwhile.
death claimed him. Perhaps even greater capacity is needed to solve
this immensely difficult problem than to obtain swaraj.
Harijan, 17-2-1946
484. QUESTION BOX1

Q. While in conversation or doing brain work or when one is
suddenly worried, can one recite Ramanama (the name of God) in
one’s heart? Do people do so at such times and, if so, how?
A. Experience shows that man can do so at any time, even in
sleep, provided Ramanama is enshrined in his heart. If the taking of
the name has become a habit, its racitation through the ear becomes as
natural as the heartbeat. Otherwise Ramanama is a mere mechanical
performance or at best has touched the heart only on the surface.
When Ramanama has established its dominion over the heart, the
question of vocal recitation does not arise. Because then it transcends
1
This appeared as “from the Hindustani” in Harijan Sevak published simulta-
neously with the source.

speech. But it may well be held that person who have attained this
state are few and far between.
There is no doubt whatsoever that Ramanama contains all the
power that it attributed to it. No one can, by mere wishing, enshrine
Ramanama in his heart. Untiring effort is required as also patience.
What an amount of labour and patience have been lavished by men to
acquire the non-existent philosopher’s stone? Surely God’s name is
of infinitely richer value and always existent.
Q. Is it necessary for the mind to go through different stage of
progress (including collapse) before it attains absolute calm? Why is it
that even when one is awake and quite calm, one’s mind is often
disturbed as in a dream? Why do such things as one has neither felt
or seen in real life intrude into one’s conscious or sub-conscious
mind?
A. Before attaining perfect calm, it is essential for almost every-
one to go through stages of progress. I use the word ‘almost’ ad-
visedly. It exclude those who have made consistent effort in a pre-
vious existence, but without complete success, and who will not, there-
fore, have to pass through purgatory in this life. When the apparently
calm mind is disturbed as if by dreams, it means that the calm is
outward and not inward. What does not appear to have any relation to
one’s life’s experience and yet disturbs shows, in my opinion, that
there are many things which have associations but of which one has
no recollection.
Q. Is it harmful if, owing to stress or exigencies of work, one is
unable to carry out daily devotions in the prescribed manner? Which
of the two should be given preference, service or the rosary?
A. Whatever the exigencies of service or adverse circumstances
may be, Ramanama must not cease. The outward form will vary
according to the occasion. The absence of the rosary does not
interrupt Ramanama which has found an abiding place in the heart.
Harijan, 17-2-1946

485. CRIMINAL IF TRUE1
A letter from Karnataka contains the following information:
On February 1, 1946, at about 10 a.m. when the Karnataka Provincial
Congress Parliamentary Board was conducting its business in its office in
Hubli, 20 to 25 persons effected an entrance into the meeting hall without first
obtaining permission of the President.
The Board had met to discuss some improtant matters. Some of the
persons above mentioned asked for time to make certain representa-
tions. The President told them that sufficient time for the purpose had
been given to them on the previous day. The Board was now engaged in
serious deliberations but would see them again during the afternoon. In
reply, they said, they had further important matter to represent and insisted on
doing so then and there. The president opined that their attitude was quite
inconsistent with due decorum and discipline, but they continued to insist,
whereupon the President said that he would be obliged to leave the hall. As he
stood up in order to go away,one member of the party tried forcibly to hold
him down. Another snatched the office files from his hands and was going to
take them away. Yet another hit Shri Diwaker on the head with his umbrella.
Persons in the hall finally came to the rescue and restored order.
If such be the case, the Congress organization will go to pieces.
Indeed no organization can successfully work under a system of
terror. I do not go into the merits. That work will be done by the
Congress Working Committee. What is reported to have taken place is
not against decency and all the rules of the game, but is manifestly
against non-violence. Moreover there seems to be an indecent longing
for getting into the legislatures.This indecency shows that the deciding
reason for contesting elections is being lost sight of.
Harijan, 17-2-1946
1

S EVAGRAM,
February 9, 1946
Today I am dictating this letter in Gujarati.
1. Those who feel themselves poor without the knowledge of
English may be taught the language. The general policy should be
understood that nobody should be taught English, and that, when it is
found necessary to teach anybody, my permission should be ob-
tained.
2. The reason for stressing the importance of carding is that, if
we learn it, we shall be spared the necessity of all other processes. If,
in addition to carding by hand, they also think it necessary, they may
use the carding-bow, but I don’ regard that as essential. I see no
difficulty at all in stopping the practice of procuring the gutstring of
the carding-bow from outside. Good cotton can be carded with a
string made of mooj 1 or yarn. But I don’t insist on this.
3. General supervision work leaves no time for teaching things
to others. It is another matter if, in order to improve one’s efficiency
in supervision work or relax one’s mind, one finds it necessary to take
up some other work. It is difficult to lay down any rule in this matter.
The supervisor himself must decide. It is a sign of ignorant attach-
ment to go on working till the breaking point.
4. I regard a weekly tour by Vinoba as essential. There would
be no harm in his taking someone who can be spared from his work
and who is eager to learn. The rule that one person should always
accompany him seems laudable.
Blessings from
BAPU
487. FAMINE OF GRAIN AND CLOTH

During my wanderings in Bengal, Assam and Madras, I heard
tales of distress due to shortage of food and cloth. Reports come to
1
A kind of hay

me from other parts of India. They support the same tale. Dr. Raj-
endra Prasad tells me that the Government report expressing fear of
shortage of food immediately doubled the market price. This is a bad
sign. Such speculation should be a thing of the past. The mer-cantile
community should be competent to curb such greed. Let them not
add to the distress caused by the Government mistakes or incom-
petence. There are mercantile association and chambers. If they act
patriotically, they can help most to prevent panic and speculation.
It is the fashion to blame nature for famine. Scarcity of rain is
by no means a monopoly of India.In other countries, though people
welcome rains, they have made themselves fairly independent of
rainfall during a season or two. Here Government have used them-
selves and the public to the idea that famines come when there is
shortage of rainfall1 . Had the mind been framed otherwise, they would
have made adequate provision for shortfalls. They only tinkered with
the porblem and naturally so. For the official world was taught to
think no better. Originality there could be none in a close monopoly
organization like the Government of India. It is the largest autocracy
the world has known. Democracy has been reserved only for Great
Britain. And when it rules and exploits millions belonging to other
races, it becomes an unmitigated evil. It corrupts the whole island with
the idea that such exploitation is the best thing for an enlightened
democracy to do. It would be well to remember this fundmental fact,
if I have correctly estimated it. If we recognize this while dealing with
the immediate problem, we shall be patient with the present actors.
There is no call here for patience with the evil. The distinction will
enable us the better to deal with the evil.
We must then first put our own house in order as far as may be,
and at the same time demand from the foreign Government that since
they mean what they say, let them at once replace the irresponsible
executive with elected and responsible members from the Central
Legislature, however arcahic and based only on a limited franchise it
may be. There is nothing to prevent the Viceory from doing this
today. I do not propose to answer the difficulties in anticipation.
“Where there’s will, there’s a way”. This one act will restore confi-
dence and allay panic.
“Grow more food” was not a bad cry during the war. It is a
greater necessity now. This can be best done only by a national
1
The source has “waterfall”.

executive. Even its mistakes will not loom so large as those of a
nominated executive, however able the latter may be. As it is, even
their ability and integrity are in question—rightly so or wrongly is
beside the point in this connection. Everything possible should be
done to draw water from the bowels of the earth.There is talent
enough in this country for the purpose. Provincial selfshness should
give place to the national want. In addition to, not in the place of ,
these measures, grain should be imported from wherever it can be
had.
Cloth famine can and ought to be averted by telling the
millions to spin and weave in their own villages, the State supplying
them with cotton where it is not grown or available, and with the
simple instruments of production on hire or long-term purchase. The
A. I. S. A. with its seasoned workers should be summoned to render
assistance and guidance. This will take a few months, if the work is
taken up in earnest. Indigenous mills will be called upon to assist this
national process by a wise distribution of their cloth in citites and
villages while the transition process is going on. Argumentation on
the capacity of mills to supply all the cloth required should cease in
face of the calamity which is existent and daily growing in intensity.
Mills cannot find employment for the millions of unemployed villa-
gers. The educative value of the charkha is not be surpassed. But for
the spell of hypnotism which rules our minds today, we shall all
realize this obvious truth, set ourselves working out the concrete pro-
position and thereby restore confidence to the millions and, maybe,
even to the world which has neither enough food nor cloth1 .
Harijan, 17-2-1946
488. TO THE READER

Harijan is being revived. For all these years I used its columns
to place before people my views on several matters. The stream that
had dried up in 1942 will now flow again. In fact the Harijan
1
In his “Weekly Letter” in Harijan, 3-3-1946, Pyarelal says: “The grim
spectre of the impending famine filled Gandhiji’s mind. . . .He took the opportunity
to discuss the question with the Governor of Madras. . . but did not come away from
the talk reassured. . . Mr. Abell was agreeably surprised to find, when he flew to
Sevagram on February 11, that Gandhiji had anticipated his propasals in an article. . .
” Vide also “Statement to the Press”, 11-2-1946 and “What ought to be done”

editions—the Hindustani, the Gujarati and the English—are my
weekly letter to readers. But I would not be wrong, if I described the
Gujarati edition as specially so. Gujarati being my mother tongue, a
large number of correspondents write letters to me in that language
than in the others, and I reply to them more easily and freely. If,
therefore, I wrote only in Gujarati and the material for the other
editions was supplied as translations, I would have to take less pains,
and I would be able to enrich the Gujarati Harijan1
But one cannot easily give up a practice already adopted. And
ignorant attachment also, consciously or unconsciously, would do its
work. I know English. I have realized that my English writing has an
appeal, though I do not know what exactly is the attraction. The same
is true of Hindustani but to a lesser extent. Shri Brajkishore Babu 2
made me realize this years ago. I was then made President of the
Provincial Hindu Sammelan. At that time my Hindi was much weaker
than it is today. I gave him my Presidental address and asked him to
revise it. But he refused to do so and it was delivered as it was. The
reader puts up with my imperfect and ungramatical Hindi. Thus
unlike the proverbial recluse who, hankering after both this and the
other world, ruined his prospect in both, I stand to lose three!
For the present, however, I wish to let things continue as they are. I
cannot say at the moment where the ship will anchor in view of this, I
hope, the Gujarati reader will excuse me, if he finds in the Gujarati
Harijan more translations of my English articles than original Guja-
rati articles. I can, however, give him the assurance that whatever
translation appear in it will have been by me also, so that there will
generally be no misinterpretation. I have to say “generally ” because
sometimes I may have no time to see the translations and, morever, if a
translation is done at Ahmedabad. I will not be able to see it at all. Be
that as it may, I trust the reader will put up with this as he had been
doing so far.
[From Gujarati]
Harijanbandhhu, 10-2-1946
1
That is, Harijanbandhu
2
Father-in-law of Jayaprakash Narayan

489. TELEGRAM TO VALLABHBHAI PATEL
S EVAGRAM,
February 10, 1946
Express
S ARDAR P ATEL
68 M ARINE DRIVE
BOMBAY
SORRY CANNOT EARLIER.1
490. LETTER TO LORD WAVELL

S EVAGRAM,
February 10, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
Shri Sudhir Ghosh has handed me your kind note of 9th in-
stant. You will believe me when I say that I would have responded
to your invitation at once, if I could have. But I have explained
to our mutual friend physical and moral reasons for my inablity.
He will explain them fully to you and will also put before you
my proposition. Of course I shall be glad to meet any representative
you may send.2
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
H. E. THE VICEROY
Gandhi’s Correspondence with the Government, 1944-47, pp. 139-40
1
The reference is to Gandhiji’ arrival in Bardoli; vide also “Letter to
Vallabhbhai Patel”, 10-2-1946
2
In Gandhiji’s Emissary, “Talk to Villagers, Kodambakkam”, 1-2-1946,
Sudhir Ghosh explains: “Abell asked me, if I would . . . take a letter from Lord Wavell
to Gandhiji. . . and do my best to persuade Gandhiji to come and see the Viceroy in
New Delhi to discuss with him how best to handle the food situation. . . I was rather
confident that Gandhiji would respond to the Viceroy’s appeal.. . But. . . , Gandhiji
refused to come. He firmly told me that I was not to try to persuade him to go to
Delhi. . . He took me to task for having acceded to Lord Wavell’s request. . . I
conveyed to George Abell on the telephone Gandhiji’s reaction . . . Abell flew down.
. . on the 11th February . . .the idea was that the appeal should be signed by Gandhiji,
Mr. Jinnah and the Viceroy. . .But it was the same old game of parity between Hindus
and Muslims. . . To this sort of treatment Gandhiji’s objection was as he said in his
letter to Lord Wavell, ‘moral’”. For an extract from Abell’s note on the meeting, vide
Appendix II. For Gandhiji’s view on the famine situation, vide pp. 110-2 and 120-1.

S EVAGRAM,
February 10, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
Rajendra Babu is with me. I have your wire. It is impossible to
reach Bardoli before the 3rd.
The Viceroy has sent for me 1 . But I cannot go in the near
future.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
Bapana patro—2: Sardar Vallabhbhaine, p. 294
492. LETTER TO DAMAYANTI

S EVAGRAM,
February 10, 1946
CHI. DAMAYANTI,
I have your letter. I did not read in the papers that Bhogibhai
had passed away. And I don’t read newspapers. I learnt about it only
through your letter. You had written to me acknowledging receipt of
the money; Mahendra also wrote. Was it not God’s miracle that
Bhogibhai passed away only after paying up the amount? Death, of
course, ought not to be grieved over.
Blessings from
BAPU
DAMAYANTIBEHN
GANDHI NIWAS
GHODBUNDER R OAD
S ANTA C RUZ
1

493. LETTER TO AGA KHAN
February 10, 1946
BHAI SAHEB,
I got your letter today. You certainly know my plight, and why
I am unable to be present. I expect the Diamond Jubilee to be cele-
brated in a fitting manner, and may you live for many more years.1
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
H. M. THE AGA KHAN
LAND’S END
MALABAR HILL
BOMBAY
From a copy of the Gujaratt: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
494. LETTER TO PRITILATA

S EVAGRAM,
February 10, 1946
CHI. PRITILATA,
It is good you wrote. Your health must now improve. I shall
feel happy only when you both make your lives ideal. If you lead an
indulgent life, it would set a bad example.
Blessings from
BAPU
495. LETTER TO BHAGAVATICHARAN SHUKLA

S EVAGRAM,
February 10, 1946
CHI. BHAGAVATI,
I was delighted to have your letter. I am no longer able to wrtie
many letters. The resumption of Harijan has added to the work.
1
The addressee, Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan, was weighed against 243.5
lb. diamonds on Sunday, March 10, 1946, on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee of
the Sultanette. Vide “Message to Aga Khan”, 10-3-1946.

You have given a good account. I understand why the marriage
had to be solemnized at Gondia. I shall leave this place for Poona on
the 17th. You can come over here or to Poona whenever you wish to.
But my programme is uncertain.
Blessings from
BAPU
BHAGAVATICHARAN S HUKLA
496. FLAGS AND SCHOOLS1

I have two typical letters about flags in schools and colleges.
Some boys hoist the Congress flag, therefore others hoist the League
flag. Both are wrong. My correspondents report that the mischief
commenced by the hoisting of the Congress flag. Probably nothing
would have tolerated. The right thing was, and is, that boys must not
take the initative in such cases. The buildings belong to the authorities
and they must decide whether or not to fly, which, if any, flag over
their buildings. If boys take the law into their own hands, the result
must be chaos and confusion plus breaking of heads. This would be
sheer vulgarity and doing no good to anybody. Schools and colleges
should be institution for healing communal breaches, not for promo-
ting differences. If boys and girls do not learn discipline in their
school-days, money and time spent on their education is so much
national loss. The one bright thing that emerges from the Lahore
episode is that Maulana Saheb Abul Kalam Azad promptly intervened
and ruled that the boys who had hoisted the Congress flag were in the
wrong.
Harijan, 17-2-1946
1

497. LIVING UP TO 1251
I have not talked about wishing to live up to the age of 125

years without thought. It has a deep significance. The basis for my
wish is the third mantra from Ishopanishad which, literally rendered,
means that a man should desire to live for 100 years while serving
with detachment. One commentary says that 100 really means 125.
Even today in Madras the word ‘hundred’ is used to mean described
as Rs. 100, but was, on scrutiny, found to be Rs. 116. 100=99+1 is
not an invariable formula in our country.
Be that as it may, the meaning of ‘hundred’ is not necessary for
my argument. My sole purpose is to indicate the condition necessary
for the realization of the desire. It is service in a spirit of
detachment, which means complete independenc of the fruit of action.
Without it one should not desire to live for 125 years. That is how I
interpret the text. I have not the slightest doubt that without attaining
that state of detachment, it is impossible to live to be 125 years old.
Living to that age must never mean a mere life unto death, like that
of an animated corpse, a burden on one’s relations and society. In
such circumstance one’s supreme duty would be to pray to God for
early release, not for prolongation of life anyhow.
The human body is meant solely for service, never for
indulgence. The secret of happy life lies in renunciation. Renunciat-
ion is life. Indulgence spells death. Therefore everyone has a right
and should desire to live 125 year while performing service without
on eye on result. Such life must be wholly and solely dedicated to
service. Renunciation made for the same of such service is an ineffa-
blye joy of which none can deprive one, because that nectar springs
from within and sustains life. In this there can be no room for worry
or impatience. Without this joy long life is impossible and would not
be worth while even if possible.
Examination of the possibility of prolonging life to 125 years
by outward means is outside the scope of this argument.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
1
Originaly published in Gujarati, this appeared as “from Harijanbandhu”,
17-2-1946.

498. TELEGRAM TO URMILA DEVI
S EVAGRAM,
February 11, 1946
URMILADEVI1
2/1-B HINDUSTAN P ARK
R ASHBEHARI AVENUE
C ALCUTTA
LEAVING SEVENTEENTH BUT YOU CAN COME.
BAPU
499. TELEGRAM TO AGA KHAN

S EVAGRAM,
February 11, 1946
Express
H. H. THE AGA KHAN
MALABAR HILL
THANKS YOUR LETTER. TWENTY-FOURTH POONA FOUR
O’CLOCK AFTERNOON WILL SUIT ME.
GANDHI
From a copy: Pyarelal Papars. Courtesy: Pyarelal

S EVAGRAM,
February 11, 1946
CHI. MUNNALAL,
I have your letter. Now we shall see about it only after I come.
You may not fix up a woman cook for the time being. The matter
about Dr. Dinshaw will also be settled after my arrival.
I propose to reach there on the 18th. From there I proceed to
Bardoli on the 28th or on the 1st of March. I shall bring with me as
small a party as I can. You need not obtain anything for their sake.
1
Sister of Chittaranjan Das

You should lodge me where Doctor says. I am even prepared to put
up in a tent. I shall be having a mosquito-net.
I shall see what I can do about Harijan.
Blessings from
BAPU

[On or after February 11, 1946]1
The food situation brought the Private Secretary to H. E. the
Viceroy to me. I had many meetings and appointments up to a fairly
long time. These I could not disregard, and I do not know how to
fly, and hope I may never have to do so. Therefore in reply to an
imperative invitation from His Excellency, I asked 2 that he should
send me someone who could speak for him, and so the P. S. V. came
yesterday3 . The food situation alone brought him to me. Could I say
something in order to lift the question out of the political arena and
out of the general distrust of Government intentions and policy? As
the matter brooks no delay, I give here the purport of what I said. So
far as the Congress policy is concerned, His Excellency should invite
Maulana Saheb and, if he cannot come, ask him to name his deputy. I
personally feel that the present irresponsible Executive should be
immediately replaced by a responsible one chosen from the elected
members of the Central Legislature. I also personally feel that this
responsibility should be shouldered by the elected members of the
Central Legislature irrespective of parties, for famine of cloth and
food is common to the millions of India. Whether the Government
can accept the suggestion and whether the different political parties
that compose the Central Legislature consider it practicable or not, is
more than I can say. But this much I can say without fear of
contradiction: I have little doubt that if the mercantile community and
1
From the reference to the visit of Abell, Private Secretary to the Viceroy;
vide footnote 11, “To the Reader” Abell met Gandhiji in the evening on February 11;
vide “Speech at Second Goseva Samgh Confernce Wardha”, 12-2-1946
2
Vide “Letter to Lord Wavell”,10-2-1946
3
It being his Silence-Day, Gandhiji wrote down his part of the dialogue; for an
an extract from Abell’s note, vide “G. E. B. Abell’s Note on Interview With
Gandhiji”, 11-2-1946

the official would become honest, if only in face of the impending
calamity, we are such a vast country that we can just tide over the
difficulty even if no help comes from the outside world, which is itself
groaning. Grain and cloth dealers must not hoard, must not speculate.
Food should be grown on all cultivable areas wherever water is, or is
made available. Flower gardens should be used for growing food
crops. This has been done during the period of war. The present is,
in some respects, worse than the war period. Before we have eaten up
the grain we have in stock, we must economize like misers. All
ceremonial functions should be stopped. Women can play the highest
part in the alleviation of the present distress by economizing in their
households. In nine-tenths of our activity we can manage our daily
affairs without the aid of the Government, whatever its colour may be,
if only it will refrain from interfering with the people. Panic must be
avoided at all costs. We must refuse to die before death actually takes
toll, and think of the skeletons of India and the least little things we
may do to help, and all will be well with India. Let us not hypnotize
into the belief that because we can indulge ourselves, our next-door
neighbour can do likewise. Cloth famine, I know, is a mockery, for if
only the Government and mill-owners will act honestly and intelli-
gently, no one need go naked for want of cloth. We have cotton
enough and idle hands enough and skill enough to make in our
villages all the cloth we need.
Harijan, 17-2-1946
502. TELEGRAM TO WANDA DYNOWSKA

S EVAGRAM,
February 12, 1946
UMADEVI
7 P EDDAR R OAD
MOMBAY
LEAVING HERE SEVENTEENTH FOR POONA. NO
USE COMING HERE.
BAPU

503. TELEGRAM TO HARIHAR SHARMA
S EVAGRAM,
February 12, 1946
Express
HARIHAR S HARMA1
195 H IGH R OAD
TRIPLICATE
MADRAS
THANKS OMIT MEETING. CONTINUE REPAIRS.
BAPU
504. TELEGRAM TO PRESTON GROVER

S EVAGRAM,
February 12, 1946
P RESTON GROVER
[“THE] T IMES OF INDIA” BUILDING
BOMBAY
DAYS HERE FILLED WITH MEETINGS. LEAVING
FOR BOMBAY SEVENTEENTH EN ROUTE POONA.
GANDHI
505. LETTER TO BALKRISHNA BHAVE

S EVAGRAM,
February 12, 1946
CHI. BAL,
You do not seem to have fully recovered yet.
I met Vinoba 2 yesterday. But I got a report from him only
about carding and making slivers.
1
Of the Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha; he was also called “Anna”.
2
Addressee’s brother

Regarding sleep, when we meet. I hope to arrive there on the
18th.
Paper which resembles mill-made paper in appearance cannot
be hundred per cent hand-made paper. Explain this to me further
when we meet.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Gujarati: C. W. 814. Courtesy: Balkrishna Bhave
506. LETTER TO AGA KHAN

S EVAGRAM,
February 12, 1946
AGA KHAN,
I have your letter from Bhopal. You will have received the
telegram1 I sent you in reply. I have suggested 4.00 o’clock on the
24th. Please let me know if that time is not suitable. It will be nice if
Nawab Saheb can come. I do not think Maulana Saheb and others will
be able to come.
May the Diamond Jubilee be a success ! I trust you are well.
From a copy of the Gujarati: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and
507. SPEECH AT SECOND GOSEVA SANGH CONFERENCE

WARDHA
February 12, 1946
The principle of succession to propety should be based on new
fundamental, i. e., that those who act up to the wishes of the departed
soul or carry on his work should be the real heirs and not those born
in his family.
So, if Janaki Devi2 or Kamalnaya3 or Ramakrishna3 do not
devote themselves to Jamnalal Bajaj’s incomplete work whose anni-
versary we are observing, they have no right to be Janmnalal’s heirs,
but persons like us who carry on his work4 .
1
Vide “Letter to Munnalal G. Shah”, 11-2-1946
2
Wide and sons of Jamnalal Bajaj
3
Ibid
4
Vide also “Oh! For Our English!”

Mahatma Gandhi then referred to the impending famine and the
visit of the Viceroy’s Private Secretary to Sevagram last evening.
I have visited Bengal and Assam and met workers from Orissa.
I have seen people who have expressed their views about the famine
which is staring them in the face unless proper steps are taken. If
things or food can be imported from outside, it is well and good. But
this year there is little prospert for that for transferring food from one
province to another. So my advice to you would be to minimize food
requirements, avoid wastage and serve both men and cattle to your
utmost capacity. We must produce better milk and increase our wealth
and improve our health. If you devote to cow-keeping, it will be a
fiting tribute to Jamnalal’s revered memory.1 If you don’t know how
to serve your own people, how can you serve animals and especially
cows?
Gandhiji referred to his talk with Mrs. Aruna Asaf Ali when the latter told
him that people served cows and other animals but there are many other animals in
India, namely, 40 crores of Indians whom they should not forget.
The Hindustan Times, 14-2-1946; also The Hitavada, 14-2-11946
508. LETTER TO LABHSHANKER VYAS

[On or before February 13, 1946] 2
BHAI LABHSHANKER,
I got and read your letter today. May all the girls become good
and bring credit to the institution.3
Blessings from
BAPU
LABHSHANKER VYAS, P RINCIPAL
H. K. VIDYALAYA
S ABARMATI
From a microfilm of the Gujarati: M. M. U./ XXII
1
What follows is reproduced from The Hitavada, 14-2-1946.
2
From the postmark
3
Harijan Kanya Vidyalaya

509. LETTER TO AGNES M. PHILLIPS1
S EVAGRAM,
February 13, 1946
MY DEAR AGNES,
It was a good thing to have a letter from you after such a long
time. The friend to whom you gave your note has not yet turned up.
He has been informed that he can come and see me.
My doings you should follow from the paper. This is merely a
line to tell you that my love does not suffer because I do not hear
from you, or because you are so far away from me.
Love.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
MISS AGNES P HILLIPS
S T. A NDREWS’S HOSPITAL
THORPE, N ORWICH
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal. Also Reminiscences of
Gandhiji, p. 195
510. LETTER TO J. C. SMUTS

S EVAGRAM, “ VIA” WARDHA,
February 13, 1946
DEAR FIELD MARSHAL,
This is just to introduce Miss Majorie Sykes who is proceeding
to South Africa and other parts of the earth in search of material and
facts for writing the life of the late Deenabandhu C. F. Andrews. I
1
Reproducing this letter in her article “Recollections” in Reminiscences of
Gandhiji, the addressee explains: “During the 1939 war a soldier who was going out
to India told me that he would much like to meet Mr. Gandhi. I gave him a letter of
introduction. Owing to illness he was not able to meet him, but sent on my letter.
Later I received a letter from Mr. Gandhi, which bore my name and his signature in his
own handwriting. I still have that letter and regard it as one of my cherished
possessions.” The addressee came to know Gandhiji in South Africa while staying
with her uncle, the Rev. Charles Philips, who was deeply interested in the Asiatic
question. She did nursing work in the two World Wars and met Gandhiji during his
visit to England.

hope you will give her such help as it is possible for you to give and
facilitate her passage from South Africa to England.
I see that you are keeping fit and well even though fairly
advanced in years.
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. Courtesy.
511 . LETTER TO VERRIER ELWIN

S EVAGRAM, “ VIA” WARDHA (C.P.),
February 13, 1946
MY DEAR VERRIER,
Your letter of 1st November was given to me by our mutual
friend Jehangir Patel after the 14th January through Thakkar Bapa.
Your language cannot hurt me. I love you so well and so much
that language has no effect on me, even as my son Harilal’s has not.
What has hurt me is that distrust of you has crept into me. Bapa, who
loves you, if it were possible to do so more than I do, deepens that
distrust. I do not know whether I have succeeded in conveying to you
my full meaning. Your learning which I know is very great, is worth
nothing to me if you do not or cannot represent truth, the whole truth
and nothing but the truth. Of course you know this fine oath that is
administered to every witness before a law court. That it has become a
mere mechanical thing and debasing as that does not matter. We utter
God’s name in vain. He does not suffer. We do. Is it possible that
untruth has crept into you ? Bapa swears, I feel.
Bapa will see this letter before I send it and so will Jehangir Patel
through whom it will go, if it does.
I have dictated this letter because Harijan takes almost every
ounce of my energy.
Love.
BAPU

S EVAGRAM,
February 13, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
You will have seen my statement1 in the newspapers. I did not
like what Jawaharlal is reported to have said. I have also written to
him about it. We cannot incite peope in that way. We cannot deprive
the millions of poor people of what little they get. If food is available
only in a limited stock, it should be made to last until the next season.
I hold that we should offer our co-operation to this end. However I
am reaching there on Monday. But I shall be observing silence when
I arrive.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]

S EVAGRAM,
February 13, 1946
CHI. ARUN
Have I not told you not to expect letters from me? Besides,
now that Harijanbandhu comes out every week, is it not a letter for
you too? And what a long letter ! It is good that you spin. I got Chi.
Manilal’s2 postcard.I have been very busy. So much the better.
Pyarelalji has fallen ill.
BAPU
C/ O MANILAL GANDHI
DELHI
1
Vide “Statement to the Press”, 11-2-1946
2
Addressee’s father

514. LETTER TO M. R. JAYAKAR
S EVAGRAM, via WARDHA,
February 13, 1946
BHAI SAHEB,
I have your long letter1 . It is good, you have given [the details].
I already knew some of the things, but some are news to me. I am
cautious and will remain so. To keep me on my guard please do
write to me as much as you can with ease.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S HRI M. R. J AYAKAR
[From Hindi]
Jayakar Papers: File No. 826, p. 38. Courtesy: National Archives of India
515. WHAT OUGHT TO BE DONE

Food crisis should be regarded as a certainty. In the circum-
stances, the following things should be attended to at once:
1. Every person should confine his daily wants regarding food
to the minimum, consistent with his or her health requirements; and
where, as in cities, milk, vegetables, oil and fruit are available, grains
and pulses should be reduced as they easily can be. Starch can be
derived from starchy roots such as carrots, parsnips, potatoes, yam,
banana; the idea being to exclude from present diet and conserve
those grains and pulses which can be kept and stored. Vegetables too
should not be eaten as an indulgence or for pleasure when millions
are denied the use of these things altogether and are now threatned
with starvation due to shortage of cereals and pulses.
2. Everyone who has access to any water should try himself or
herself to grow some edibles for personal or general use. The easiest
way to do so is to collect clean earth, mix it with organic manure
where possible—even a little bit of dried cowdung is good organic
manure—and put it in any earthen or tin pot and throw some seeds of
vegetable such as mustard and cress, etc., and daily water the pots.
1
Dated February 8, 1946; for the text, vide “Letter From M. R. Jayakar”,
8-2-1946

They will be surprised how quickly the seeds sprout and give edible
leaves which need not even be cooked but can be eaten in the form of
salad.
3. All flower gardens should be utiized for growing edibles.
And in this connection I would suggest to the Viceroy, Governors and
high officials to take the lead. I would ask the heads of agricultural
departments at the Centre and Provinces to flood the country with
leaflets in the provincial language tellling laymen how and what to
grow easily.
4. Reduction should be taken up not merely by the civilian
population but equally, if not predominantly, by the military. I say
“predominantly“ for the military ranks, being under rigid military
discipline, can easily carry out measures of economy.
5. All exports of seeds, such as oil-seeds, oils, oil-cakes, nuts,
etc., should be stopped, if they have not been already. Oil-cakes, if
the seeds are sifted of earth and foreign matter, are good human food
with rich protein content.
6. Deep wells should be sunk by the Government wherever
possible and required, whether for irrigation or for drinking purposes.
7. Given hearty co-operation by Government servants and the
general public, I have not the slightest doubt that the country can tide
over the difficulty. Just as panic is the surest way to defeat, so also
will be the case when there is widespread distress impending and
prompt action is not taken. Let us not think of the cause of the
distress. Whatever the cause, the fact is that if the Government and the
public do not approach the crisis patiently and courageously, disaster
is a certainty. We must fight this foreign Government on all other
fronts except this one, and even on this we shall fight them, if they
betray callousness or contempt for reasoned public opinion. In this
connection I invite the public to share my opinion that we should
accept Government professions at their face value, and believe that
swaraj is within sight inside of a few months.
8. Above all, black marketing and dishonesty should disappear
altogether, and willing co-operation between all parties should be the
order of the day in so far as this crisis is concerned.1
S EVGARAM, February 14, 1946
Harijan, 24-2-1946
1
Vide also “Statement to the Press”, 11-2-1946

Express S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
H. H. THE AGA KHAN

KAPURTHALA
TWENTY-FIFTH WILL SUIT. THREE P. M. DOCTOR DINSHAW‘S
POONA.
GANDHI
517. TELEGRAM TO BHOLANATH MASTER
S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
BHOLANATH MASTER
P RAJAMANDAL
ALWAR
DELIGHTED.
GANDHI

518. TELEGRAM TO SURENDRA MOHAN GHOSH
Express S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
1
S URENDRA MOHAN GHOSH
10 S UBURBAN S CHOOL R OAD
C ALCUTTA
PLEASE WIRE TRUTH ABOUT CALCUTTA
DISTURBANCES AND BURNING OF MILITARY
2
LORRIES.
GANDHI
From a copy: Pyarelal Papars. Courtesy: Pyarelal. Also The Hindu 18-2-1946.
519. TELEGRAM TO JEHANGIR PATEL

S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
JEHANGIR P ATEL
10 C HURCHGATE S TREET
BOMBAY
PROPOSAL ACCEPTED.
BAPU
1
President of Bengal Provincial Congress Committee
2
Disturbance broke out in protest against sentence for life passed on Capt.
Abdul Rashid of Indian National Army; the sentence was, however, reduced to seven
years’ rigorous imprisonment by Commandar-in-Chief. The addressee
telegraphically informed Gandhiji that “reaction against police firing on peaceful
processionists excited people and led to mob violence including burning of military
lorries. In all 53 persons were killed and over 500 were injured. Congress Peace
Bridgades were patrolling the city but the military were interfering with their work,
and the city was under military control.”

S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
I got your letter, as also the cheque.
I am writing to. . . 1 What he says is strange. To me he talks
sensibly. Your work has increased very much indeed.
I think you are mistaken about the food situation. Some
foodgrains may be imported from abroad but I think depending on
others always ends in disappointment. If the people show some enter-
prise, they can certainly grow more food. It may be that there would
be insufficient cotton for the mills; if so, the balance may be
imported. There is enough for the spinning-wheels.
More when we meet.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
521. LETTER TO MANIBEHN PATEL

S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
CHI. MANI,
I have your letter. You have given plenty of news“The lure of
Legislatures”2 , though written in Gujarati, is really, meant for the
whole country. I am returning the Press cutting.
I will implement whatever suggestions of yours can be imple-
mented.
Take care of your health. I will not write more as we shall meet
soon.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
Bapuna Patro—4: Manibehn Patelne, p. 138
1
The name is omitted in the source.
2
Vide “The Lure of Legislatures”

522. LETTER TO DR. DINSHAW K. MEHTA
S EVAGRAM,
February 14, 1946
CHI. DINSHAW,
I shall reach there on the 19th. I shall write later by what train.
We shall be about 11 or 12 people. This time I am not coming as
your guest, but for the sake of the work that we want to do there.
This time my party as well as I will meet our food expenses only from
the funds reserved for the poor. You need not, therefore, incur any
expenditur on that account. I will reimburse then and there whatever
you spend [on our account]. That too would not be from my own
account but from the money that is earmarked for the poor out of the
hospital fund. The other that lies with me has not been earmarked
for any particular purpose. And this amount belongs to my rich
friends Whatever amont now remians with you is what you have
earned yourself and for your personal expenses. And I have no right
to take a single piece out of it, for after having become a trustee I
should not regard it as my right to draw anything from that amount.
As regards accommodating me, I shall put up wherever you ask
me to, i. e., in the room you have reserved for me or in any part of
the hospital or in a tent. I don’t at all regard it as inconvenient for me
to put up in a tent in this season. And I shall not find it inconvenient
to stay throughout the year in a place with a tiled floor. You had such
a place made for the Working Committee.
You are not to incur any expenditure on my account. If I don’t
proceed with a hardened heart as I do, I will not be worthy of the trust,
nor will I be able to serve the poor through the trust.
I hope you, Gulbai1 and Ardeshir2 are fine, and I expect Maji3 is
enjoying peace and happiness. From there I shall return on the 1st of
March. I expect to go to Poona again on the 19th or 20th of March.
The rest when we meet.
Blessings from
BAPU
DR. D INSHAW MEHTA
P OONA
From a copy of Gujarati: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
1
Wife, son, and mother of the addressee
2
ibid
3
ibid

523. ABOUT RAJAJI
I have read Shri Kamaraja Nadar’s Press message1 . I am sorry.
I can easily be silent, but the cause may suffer. He says he is my
follower. In that case he should have referred to me before rushing to
the Press and certainly before resigning2 . I have intentionally descri-
bed myself as a Bhangi. In the man-made social ladder I want to be at
the bottom. I would like Shri Kamraj to cease to be a Nadar and to
become a Bhangi with me and then in all humility withdraw his resig-
nation. Whatever it is legally or not, the Provincial and Working Com-
mittees alone can decide. Morally it is perfectly possible, if he him-
self feels he has hurt himself and the cause by resigning. Then he will
rejoin the difficult post (if it is legally possible) as a strong man. He
was weak in resigning. He says he prevented four others from follow-
ing him. It was well that they did not resign.
Why worry about the use of the word ‘clique’? 3 In spite of all
my love for the English lenguage, it is a foreign tongue for me and I
am as likely as not to make mistakes in using it. Of course, I have
used the word ‘clique’ deliberately. I must not withdraw it. This is its
dictionary meaning:“small exclusive party”. I know that there is such
a clique in Tamil Nadu against Rajaji. I am unable definitely to name
one single person in it. 4 No one need wear the cap unless it fits him.
There are many cliques in the Congress organization as even in the
best managed organizations in the world. The fewer their number the
better the organization.
Were I not challenged at the time that I was touring in the
South, I would have been silent.
I must admit that I did not talk to those who were with me in that
special train. I was buried in my work which was divided between
meetings at frequetnt stoppages and writing whilst the train was in
motion. And let the public know that those who are physically nearest
to me have to be so forbearing that they would not come near me and
interfere with my work. Such has been the usage during my stormy
life. My own children thus get the least of me. Aruna Asaf Ali came
1
Vide “Statement of K. Kamaraja and T. Prakasam”
2
From the Congress Parliament Board
3
Vide “Curious”
4
Vide also “Interview to “The Hindu”, 16-2-1946

for two days to see me fresh from her hiding place and was so
forbearing that she had of me only as much as she could during my
walks.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
524. HOW TO CANALIZE HATRED

Hatred is in the air, and impatient lovers of the country will
gladly take advantage of it, if they can, through violence, to fur-
ther the cause of independence. I suggest that it is wrong at any
time and everywhere. But it is more wrong and unbecoming in
a country where fighters for freedom have declared to the world
that their policy is truth and non-violence.Hatred, they argue,
cannot be turned into love. Those who believe in violence will
naturally use it by saying, ‘Kill your enemy, injure him and his pro-
perty wherever you can, whether openly or secretly as necessity
requires.’ The result will be deeper hatred and counterhatred, and
vengeance let lose on both sides. The recent war, whose embers have
yet hardly died, loudly proclaims the bankruptcy of this use of hatred.
And it remains to be seen whether they so-called victors have really
won or whether they have not depressed themselves in seeking and
trying to depress their enemies. It is a bad game at its best. Some
philosophers of action in this country improve upon the mode and
say, ‘We shall never kill our enemy but we shall destroy his property’,
for the remarkable thing is that the so-called enemy has brought no
property of his own and what little he has brought he makes us pay
for. Therefore what we destroy is really our own. The bulk of it,
whether in men or things, he produces here. So what he really has is
the custody of it. For the destruction too we have to pay through the
nose and it is the innocent who are made to pay. That is the
implication of punitive tax and all it carries with it. Non-violence in
the sense of mere non-killing does not appear to me, therefore, to be
any improvement on the technique of violence. It means slow torture
and when slowness becomes ineffective we shall immediately revert to
killing and to atom bomb, which is the last word in violence today.
Therefore I suggested in 1920 the use of non-violence and its
inevitable twin companion truth for canalizing hatred into the proper
channel. The hater hates not for the sake of hatred but because he

wants to drive away from his country the hated being or beings. He
will, therefore, as readily achieve his end by non-violent means. For
the past twenty-five years, willingly or unwil-lingly, the Congress has
spoken to the masses in favour of non-violence as against violence for
regaining our lost liberty. We have also discovered through our
progress that in the application of non-violence we have been able
to reach the mass mind far more quickly and far more extensively
than ever before. And yet, if truth is told as it must be, our non-
violent action has been half-hearted. Many have preached non-
violence through the lips while harbouring violence in the breast. But
the unsophisticated mass mind has read the secret meaning hidden in
our breasts, and the unconscious reaction has not been altogether as it
might have been. Hypocrisy has acted as an ode to virtue, but it could
never take its place. And so I plead for non-violence. and yet more
non-violence. I do so not without knowledge but with sixty years
experience behind me. This is the critical moment, for the dumb
masses are today starving. There are many ways that will suggest
themselves to the wise reader as to how to apply the canons of non-
violence to the present needs of the country. The hypnotism of the
Indian National Army has cast its spell upon us. Netaji’s name is one
to conjure with us. His patriotism is second to none. (I use the
present tense intentionally). His bravery shines through all his actions.
He aimed high but failed. Who has not failed? Ours is to aim high
and to aim well. It is given to everyone to command success. My
praise and admiration can go no further. For I knew that his action
was doomed to failure, and that I would have said so even if he had
brought his I. N. A. victorious to India, because the masses would
not have come into their own in this manner. The lesson that Netaji
and his army brings to us is one of self-sacrifice, unity irres-pective
of class and community, and discipline. If our adoration will be wise
and discriminating, we will rigidly copy this trinity of virtues, but we
will as rigidly abjure violence. I would not have the I. N. A. man
think, or say, that he and his can ever deliver the masses of India
from bondage by force of arm. But, if he is true to Netaji and still
more so to the country, he will spend himself in teaching the masses,
men, women and children to be brave, self-sacrificing and united.
Then we will be able to stand erect before the world. If he will merely
act the armed soldier, he will only lord it over the masses and the fact
that he will be a volunteer will not count for much. I, therefore,
welcome the declaration made by Capt. Shah Nawaz that, to be worthy

of Netaji, on having come to Indian soil, he will act as a humble
soldier of non-violence in Congress ranks.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
525. PLEASE NOTE

I have taken up Harijan at such a critical moment in our
country’s history that, having undertaken to write, I cannot wait in
certain matters for publishing my thoughts till the next number
of Harijan is out Then too it is published not at the place
where I reside but away from me. Thus exacting readers will
forgive me, if they find things in the columns of Harijan which
have already printed in the daily Press The reason for publication is
obvious. Harijan goes to many readers who do not read the papers
in which my statements may be published and in which accurate
publicity can never be guaranteed. Harijan is not a commercial
concern in any meaning of the experission. It is published purely in
the interest of the cause of India’s independence.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
526. TELEGRAM TO SAROJINI NAIDU

S EVAGRAM,
February 15, 1946
S AROJINI NAIDU
S UKHNIVAS
HYDERABAD, D ECCAN
LOVE. MANY HAPPY RETURNS 1 . HOPE YOU FAMILY
WELL.
S PINNER2
1
The addressee’s birthday was on February 13.
2
The addressee had given to Gandhiji the epither “Spinner of Destiny”.

527. LETTER TO PURUSHOTTAM PATEL
S EVAGRAM,
February 15, 1946
BHAISHRI,
In reply to your letter I should say that your ideal can be
reached through a knowledge of nature cure. I am of the opinion that
nature cure is at present in a very imperfect state.
Vandemataram from
M. K. GANDHI
P URUSHOTTAMBHAI P ATEL
69 BARODA C OLLEGE HOSTEL
BARODA
528. LETTER TO DAHYALAL

S EVAGRAM,
February 15, 1946
CHI. DAHYALAL,
I have your letter. You might be knowing that I don’t hold any
office in the Goseva Sangh. Please write to the Goseva Sangh direct.
Blessings from
BAPU
529. LETTER TO HARI-ICHCHHA KAMDAR

S EVAGRAM,
February 15, 1946
CHI. HARI-ICHCHHA,
I have your letter of the 12th; I am very glad. I am not going
to stay in Bardoli for one month, I shall stay for fifteen days only.
You should ask Manibehn1 about your staying there.
I accept your claim to my company when I am in the Ashram.
1
Wife of Narahari Parikh

But when I am away doesn’t the right to stay with me generally
belong to whosoever I am putting up with?
I hope you are keeping well.
Blessings from
BAPU
HARI-ICHCHHA KAMDAR
KHADIA P OLE
R AJMAHAL R OAD
VADODARA
530. LETTER TO POONAMCHAND RANKA

[February 15, 1946] 1
BHAI POONAMCHAND2 ,
I hear that you have deliberately formed a sort of group, exclu-
ding from it those who can be regarded as fully eligible, whereas you
have sent in the names of those who don’t deserve to be returned to
the Assembly. I am pained to hear all this. Why such fascination for
the Assembly. Why the lure, and that too for a man like you? Adopt
the path of humility, justice and truthfulness.
BAPU
531. INTERVIEW TO “THE HINDU”

[On or before February 16, 1946] 3
I have seen both statements 4 and I confess that I do not like
them. I have not singled out any person for reference. My observation
was general and took stock of the situation as I observed it. I must
repudiate the charge that in making my observation I committed a
1
In the source, letter is placed between the letters of February 14 and 15.
2
President of the Central Provinces Provincial Congress Committee
3
The interview was reported under the date-line “Wardhaganj, February 16”.
4
Of K. Kamaraja Nadar, and T. Prakasam, President, Andhra Pradesh Congress
Committe. They were in connection with the observation made by Gandhiji in his
article “Curious”, vid”Curious”and “Curious”. For the statements, vide “Statement of
K. Lkamaraja and T. Prakasam”

serious blunder. But, if I have, my advice as an indivi-dual may be
summarily rejected. My sole anxiety is that the right thing should be
done irrespective of individual likes and dislikes.1
532. QUESTION BOX2

Q. It is necessary to import as many foodstuffs as possible. As
it is, people do not get enough to eat. Any further reduction in rations
is fraught with risk. It will mean further undernourishment, making
the people an easy prey to disease. It may even lead to food riots. As
for increasing production, it is most difficult, if not utterly impossible,
at the present juncture.
A. I am aware that many people hold the views given above.
But the argument does not impress me. People will find it unbearable
to have their rations further reduced when they are already not getting
enough to eat. But, if we accept, as I do, that the Government figures
are correct, foresight demands, and it is our duty, to swallow the bitter
pill and ask the people to do like wise; that is, we should all eat less so
that we can hold out till the next harvest. Today, because of the
corrupt administration, the masses do not get even their just dues
under the rationing system. It will be a great thing if this can be
rectified so that everyone can get his or her share easily and truly. If,
however, we believe the Government figure to be wrong and continue
the agitation for increased rations, and if the Government concedes
that demand, a time will come before the next harvest is in when we
shall be let without any food whatsover and the poor will have to die
an untimely death.We should take every care to avoid such a calamity.
It will, therefore, be wisdom on our part to put up with a reduction in
the present rations.
Then I do not think it is impossible to grow more foodstuffs,
though I agree that it is difficult. The difficulty is due to our lack of
knowledge and the requisite skill If we are all optimistic and
courageous and employ ourselves forthwith to produce whatever food
we can by our individual effort, we shall probably be able before long
to give the people a balanced diet and shorten the period of reduced
rations.
1
Vide also “About Rajaji”
2
Originally published in Gujarati, this appeared as “form Harijanbandhu”,
17-2-1946.

My optimism is irrepressible, but I admit that nothing will be
possible without whole-hearted co-operation on the part of both the
Government and the public. Without it, even the imported foodstuffs
may be squandered and maldistributed. Besides we are not yet inde-
pendent. Relying on outside help will make us still more dependent.
If, however, without relying on them, we do get imports of foodstuffs,
we shall gratefully accept and make the best use of them. While it is
the duty of the Government to try to get food from outside, I do not
think it is good for us to look either to them or to other countries.
What is more, disappointment from that direction will be positively
harmful for the morale of our people in these hard times. But, if the
peo-ple become united and determined to look to none save God for
help and do not oppose such Governmental measures as they find
useful, there will be no cause for disappointment. Such action will
enable the people to emerge stronger from the ordeal, and foreign
countries will think of their duty to send us food of their own accord
wherever they can spare it ‘God helps those who help themslves.’
How can others withhold help from the self-reliant? The British
Government, during their hour of need, took away all that India had,
and today we have to put up with the consequ-ences of their action.
Need we then tell them and those whom they helped by depleting
India’s resources that their duty today is towards India?
Q. India does not produce enough cotton. This has to be
imported from Africa and America. Peasants are not allowed to grow
cotton, the reason given being that they should grow more food.
A. This cannot apply to those who grow cotton for their own
use. It can only be applicable in the case of those who grow cotton as
a money crop. The Government has committed the crime of making
cotton a commercial commodity. This sin cannot be wiped out by
importing cotton. That can only aggravate the wrong. The export of
the cotton was made solely for the benefit of Lancashire. It thus
became a commerical commodity in an artificial manner. I can
understand the prohibition against growing large quantities of cotton
during war in certain areas in the interests of food production. To
prohibit the growing of cotton altogether and depend on imports for
our needs is no remedy for food scarcity. Wherever possible people
should grow cotton for their own use. I might understand, and even
tolerate, the policy of importing cotton for the use of Indian cloth
mills. But, if this policy prohibits the growing of cotton for the
individual’s own use, it becomes wholly untenable and must, there-

fore, be strongly resisted. This is a matter for the consideration of
both the Government and the public.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
533. MEANING OF GOD1
A correspondent writes :
I am reading your Gita Bodh these days and, trying to understand it, I am
puzzled by what Lord Krishna says in the tenth discourse2 .
“In dicer’s play I am the conquering double eight. Nothing, either good
or evil, can take place in this world without my will.” Does God then permit
evil? If so, how can He punish the evil-doer? Has God created the world for
this purpose? Is it impossible then for mankind to live in peace?
To say that God permits evil in this world may not be pleasing
to the ear. But if He is held responsible for the good, it follows that
He has to be responsible for the evil too. Did not God permit Ravana
to exhibit unparalleled strength? Perhaps the root cause of the
perplexity arises from a lack of the real understanding of what God is.
God is not a person. He transcends description. He is the Law-maker,
the Law and the Executor. No human being can well arrogate these
powers to himself. If he did, he would be looked upon as an un-
adulterated dictator.3 This does not befit a man. They become only
Him whom we worship as God. This is the reality, a clear under-
standing of which will answer the question raised by the corres-
pondent.
The question whether it is impossible for mankind ever to be at
peace with one another does not arise from the verse quoted. The
world will live in peace only when the individuals composing it make
up their minds to do so. No one can deny the possibility nor say
when that will come to pass. Such questions are idle waste of time.
To a good man the whole world is good. By following this golden
rule the correspondent can live in peace under all circumstances,
1
Originally written in Gujarati, this appeared as “from HarijanBandhu”
published simultaneouly with the source.
2
Verse 36
3
In place of this sentence, Harijanbandhu has: “If he did, we see him as
Emperor Nero (devil), as the Viceroy here, the Law-maker, the Law and the Executor.”

believing that what is possible for him to be is also possible for others.
To believe the contrary connotes pride and arrogance.
Harijan, 24-2-1946

S EVAGRAM,
February 16, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
You cannot detain me there till April 3. I have already written1
to you that you may keep me there for 15 days at the most. I must
see through what I have started. I have even accepted enagagements
outside Bardoli after the 19th. You can take all the work you want
from me during my fifteen days in Bardoli. I have discussed every-
thing with Bhai Kher2 . Of that more when we meet. I am quite busy
at present.
I am sorry to hear about Bhulabhai’s 3 illness. I should like to
go and see him before you take me home from the railway station.
My silence will not come in the way. I think Mathuradas 4 will be
able to come and see me at Birla Bhavan.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
535. TALK WITH MEMBERS OF TALIMI SANGH5

S EVAGRAM,
Febraury 16, 1946
It would not, therefore, do for you to say in the present
crisis that you are occupied with your educational activity whilst the
1
2
B. G. Kher
3
Bhulabhai Desai’s
4
Mathuradas Trikumji also was ill at the time.
5
Extracted from Pyarelal’s “Weekly Letter”; Zakir Husain and some members
of the Sangh came in the afternoon.

people are threatened with death due to starvation. Nayee Talim must
react to the present situation by converting itself into an instrument
for increasing our food supply and teaching people how to meet the
danger of food shortage. If the students under Nayee Talim can
produce even a part of their food requirement, they will to that extent
release food for others, besides teaching them self-help by their
personal example.
You do not know the kind of land we had to begin with in South
Africa. Who would give good land to ‘coolies’, as we were called
there? But by dint of application we were able to convert it into a fruit
orchard. 1
If I were in your place, I would not use the plough to begin
with. I would arm our children with the hoe, and teach them to use it
effectively. it is an art. Bullock power can come later. Similarly I
would not like you to be deterred by the power quality of the soil. A
thin top layer of loam or compost can enable us to grow many a
useful vegetable and pot herb. A beginning can be made at once by
converting night-soil into manure by the shallow trenching system.
The coversion does not need more than a fortnight. Every pint of
water whether from bathing and ablutions or from the kitchen
should be turned into the backyard vegetable beds. Not a drop of
water should be allowed to be wasted. Greens can be grown in earthen
pots and even discarded old tins. No opportunity should be neglected,
however trifling. The cumulative result, then, if the practise is on a
nation-wide scale, will be colossal.
Harijan, 3-3-1946
536. PROCEEDINGS OF THE HINDUSTANI PRACHAR

SABHA MEETING, WARDHA 2
[On or after February 16, 1946] 3
A meeting of this Sabha was held on February 15 and 16.
Important extracts of the proceedings are given below:
A committee comprising Shri Kaka Kaleker, Shri M. Satya-
narayan, Dr. Tarachand, Shri Manganbhai Desai and Shri Shriman
1
According to Pyarelal, “someone had complained that the land at the
disposal of the Sevagram Tamil Sangh was of a poor quality”.
2
This appeared under the title “Hindustani Prchar Sabha, Wardha”.
3
Inferred from the contents.

Narayan Agrawal (Secretary) be appointed to suggest necessary
amendments to the Sabha’s Constitution.
The following Associate Members can be appointed Members
of the Sabha under Rule 5 of the Education Circular:
Dr. Jaffar Hassan, Dr. Syed Mahmud, Shri A. M. Khwaja,
Shri Jugatram Dave, Shri Shrinath Singh, Shri Haribhau Upadhyaya,
Shri Pyarelal, Dr. Sushila Nayyar, Smt. Yashodhara Dasappa. Smt.
Prema Kantak, Shri Devprakash Nayyar, Shri Shripad Joshi.
The first three examinations in Hindustani should not be
conducted from Wardha but as far as possible the responsibility of
them should be placed on the Provinces. The fourth, or the final
examination, should be conducted from Wardha.
The responsibility for conducting the final examination and
supervising the other three examinations will rest with a committee
consisting of the following members.
Shri Kaka Kalelkar, Shri Shriman Narayan Agrawal and Shri
Amritlal T. Nanavati (Secretary).
The syllabus for the fourth examination will be along these
lines:
Paper 1: Hindustani Prose
Paper 2: Hindustani Poetry
Paper 3: Language and Grammar
Paper 4: Essay and Translation
Paper 5: Oral Examination
The work of selecting text-books for this examination will be
taken up by Shri Kaka Kalelkar and Shri Shriman Narayan Agrawal,
who will be assisted by the following members:
Dr. Tarachand, Shri Surdarshan, Shri Satyanarayan and Smt.
Raihana Tyabji.
The final decision about the text-books will be taken by the
Working Committee.
An institution named “Hindustani Pracharak Madrasa” should
be opened in Wardha. It will work from July to April.
Selected students from the all-India body will be recruited in
this school.
The following committee is being appointed for running this
school:

Shri Kaka Kalelkar, Chairman
Shri Shriman Narayan Agrawal, Secretary
Shri Amritlal T. Nanavati, Member
Shri Rainath Banhatti, Member
Smt. Raihnana Tyabji, Member
The following subjects will be taught in this school:
Paper 1: Histoy of the Hindustani Language and an advanced
study of Hindustani.
Paper 2: Hindustani Language and the origin and development
of the language Hindustani, its structure and grammar.
Paper 3: Knowledge of Hindi and Urdu—language and
literature.
Paper 4: Methods of teaching.
Paper 5: History of Indian civilization.
Paper 6: India’s communal problem.
Paper 7: Art of translation.
Paper 8: Indian languages, and an elementary knowledge of
their literatures.
The work of selecting text-books for the study of these subjects
will be done by Shri Kaka Kalekar and Shri Shriman Narayan
Agrawal. In this work they will be assisted by the following members:
Shri Satyanarayan, Dr. Tarachand, Shri Sudarshan and Smt.
Raihana Tyabji.
The final decision regarding the text-books will be taken by the
Working Committee.
On finishing the course at this school, candidate passing the
examination will be awarded the ‘Hindustani Pracharak’ diploma.
Perinbehn Captain, Secretary, Hindustani Prachar Sabha, Bom-
bay, has proposed that the area of operation of the Hindustani Prachar
Sabha, Bombay, should not be restricted to Bombay city only and
that it should be permitted to work in the suburbs of Bombay, up to
Kalyan on the G. I. P. Railway line and up to Vihar on the B. B. & C.
I. Railway line.
It was agreed to accept provisionally the proposal of Perinbehn
Captain.
[From Hindu]
Harijan Sevak, 3-3-1946

537. IGNORANT WASTE 1
Shri Jhaverbhai Patel of A. I. V. I. A. 2 , who knows his subject,
writes:3
Since the cutting off the supply of rice from Burma, there has been an
acute shortage of rice in India. To meet this quantitative deficiency,
Government prohibited the polishing of rice beyond a certain degree. If
polishing has been banned altogether, the deficiency. . . would have been
more than met. . . Government could not introduce that measure. . . but. .
.even the halting step taken by the Government has been put to naught
without the intelligent co-operation of the people. Since the Government has
begun supplying undermilled rice, consumers have begun getting the rationed
rice polished.. . . The most effective way to get whole rice find its permanent
way into our dietary is to teach our womenfolk the science of dietetics.
It is very true that this peremptory reform can be brought about
quickly by educating our women in the art of conservative cookery.
How this education can be imparted is a serious question. Schools
and colleges are perhaps the most ready-made media, let alone the
Press and platform. If the people are to save themselves and the star-
ving millions during this critical period, the Press and the platform
have to respond to the urgent need.
Harijan, 24-2-1946
538. LETTER TO D. B. KALELKAR

S EVAGRAM,
February 17, 1946
CHI. KAKA,
I have your letter. I should certainly like it, if Anna lives in the
Ashram but the question is whether he will be able to adjust himself to
the Ashram atmosphere. Hence write to him all that you should about
this point. Pass on this letter to him. He had a talk with me and his
response had the same tone. That is why he had said that had he
1
2
All-India Village Industries’ Association
3
Only extracts are reproduced here.

would be able to pull on for two or three months. It was proposed
that he would work with Jagannath Dass and at the same time help in
the working of Bharati. I cannot make out what has happened about
all that. His letter is not clear whether he will come alone or with his
family. A lot of work can be found in the Ashram itself, and later he
can be accommodated under you as it suits all. This is all I can think
of at the moment. It will be all right even if you pass on this letter
itself adding to it whatever you think fit.
Blessing from
BAPU
[PS.]
I do have Ranade’s book but have not read it. Maybe, I shall
bring it myself or send it on.
539. SPEECH TO TEACHERS, SEVAGRAM1
February 17, 1946

We should try to draw all the children towards us. We should
admit that it is our fault if some do not come to us. They should all
want to come to us.
We should treat those children who come to us as our own
children. If their body and mind become sound and they acquire
normal discipline, we should be satisfied that our purpose has been
served.
I have taught many boys. I never allowed them to indulge in
mischief. If they were under my care, I would educate them in such a
way that they would learn from their very childhood that the desire to
destroy was a very bad thing. Whatever they do, they should create
something, produce something. There is an art in making anything
and whatever they make should be artistic.
I do not believe that children are either good or bad from their
very birth. Some tendency is there, but we have to mould them. This
means that an infant starts learning right from the time of conception.
At that time I would teach the mother. That would be a part of adult
education. The training of the infant begins from that stage. We have
1
This appeared under the title “Pre-Basic Education”, as summarized by
Sushila Nayyar.

to train the future generation on these lines. Till the child is separated
from the mother, I would teach the mother. The infant is ever moving
its hands and feet and is able to do something. If we are able to take
under our care children of two or two and a half years of age and if
they learn to move their hands and feet according to our method, I
cannot set any limits to their progress.
If the child is put under our care, he will not destroy anything.
He will feel hurt in doing so.
Whatever education we give to the children, it should be
constructive and creative but never destructive.
When the child starts speaking, he starts learning a language.
First you should teach him to distinguish different colours. Begin
teaching him the letters of the alphabet only with the help of the
pictures. Don’t you have charts showing 1-2, A-B and so on? Read-
ing, writing and arithmetic will come in due course of time and the
child will not be overstrained. His education should be a form of
play.
Whatever thing he makes should be useful. In this way his mind
and hands and feet develop in co-ordination.
There are no distinctions between work and play in basic
education. For a child everything is play. I would go so far as to say
that thus his whole life becomes a kind of game. I have been doing
this for many years now. I never feel that it is time for play and I
should go and play. For me even writing is a game. Under basic
education of my conception children will learn while playing.
[From Hindi]
Harijan Sevak, 17-3-1946
540. NEW POLICY AND BOMBAY KHADI BHANDAR

The following figures 1 have been received from the All-India
Spin-ners’ Association Bhandar. They deserve to be studied. The
progress of khadi under the new policy will in some matters, have to
be measured in the inverse ratio. No doubt the more spinning-wheels
the city-dwellers buy, the better; it means that more of them learn
spinning. But the soon-er slivers stop selling the better. The only
conditions is that the number of persons desirous of learning carding
1
Not reproduced here

and spinning should increase. If the people are really enthusiatic,
Vinobaji’s experiments should bear some fruit. Whatever it may be,
this much is clear that one who spins should himself card his cotton
and make slivers out of it. For this the pro-cess of carding should be
made easy. The answer to this is hand-carding.
Khadi may be kept in a bhandar, but the bhandar should
present the appearance of a school. The persons woking in a bhan-
dar, if I may call them employees, should necessarily be volunteers.
They do not cease to be volunteer, if they accept less than their market
value and do the work because of love of khadi. All of them should
be proficient in ginning, carding, spinning and in teaching all the
these. The greater the number of those who can weave, the better. We
have done very few experiments regarding weaving. The real bhandar
of my conception is an extensive plot near a suburb of Bombay where
all those processes go on and are taught.
Difficulties should not overwhelm us; we should overcome them,
that is, get rid of them. If it is true that swaraj lies in khadi, there are
bound to be difficulties. Here, in the path of non-violence, they will
be the least.
IN THE TRAIN TO BOMBAY, February 18, 1946
[From Gujarati]
Harijanbandhu, 17-3-1946
541. LETTER TO RAMESHWAR

ON THE TRAIN,
February 18, 1946
CHI. RAMESHWAR,
I have no faith in this plan. Nothing can be achieved by having
the building alone. I have told them that so many trustees are not
required. Even if one intelligent, honest and hard-working man is
available, the work can go on. I tried to get one sister but was un-
successful. What is the use of getting a sister from a far off place?
What would be gained by asking her to meet me in Bardoli? I shall be
immersed in work.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Hindi: C. W. 10417

542. OH! FOR OUR ENGLISH!
How nice it would be, if we had newspapers only in our
own languages. We should not then be blind persons, one mistak-
ing the tail for the elephant, another the tusks, a third the trunk, for the
noble animal—all wise in their own conceit, yet all wrong in essence.
Thus I in my conceit said1 , and still say, that the opposition to Rajaji
was, and is, confined to a clique. An esteemed friend and others main-
tain that I have made a serious blunder 2 in calling the opposition by
this name. My appellation can-not be, and was not meant to be
applied to the Congress organization, whether provincial, central or
any other, which, like the king, can do no wrong. A clique generally
does the wrong thing. But surely both my critics and I are right, each
other in our own way, and both are wrong. All this bother over the use
of a foreign word! If I had written in the national [language] or my
mother tongue, we would not have quarrelled over a word. Only let
me close the Rajaji episode by saying that if I am wrong in the use of
the word or in my estimate of Rajaji, no one need follow me. I have
no official authority. The loss will be purely mine in that, for a wrong
estimate, I shall have lost much or some of the moral weight I possess.
My purpose, however, just now is to quarrel with the reporter
who, in trying to translate my Hindustani speech3 at the Goseva Sangh
meeting into English, has made me say the opposite of what I had said
and meant. A handsome and delicate compliment has been turned
into an indelicate reflection. There was no ‘if’ about my saying that
Janakibai, the widow or the late Jamnalalji, was the rightful first
successor of her late husband, even as the late Ramabai was of her
later husband Justice Ranade. Next to her were his children. They
might fail, but those of us who had gathered together to honour the
memory of the deceased were also heirs, only if we were true.We were
heirs by choice unlike the heirs through relationship. I am sure that
the delicate compliment I paid in my indifferent Hindustani was not
lost upon the widow, the children who are all working for the cause, or
the numbers of freinds who filled the pandal which was specially
constructed for the purpose. All were heirs in a common and noble
1
Vide “Curious” and “About Rajaji”
2
Vide “Letter to Poonamchand Ranka”, 15-2-1946
3
Vide “Speech at Second Goseva Sangh Conference, Wardha”, 12-2-1946

service which constituted a limitless inheritance. I prided myself on
the message which was altogether lost in transmission through a
foreign medium. Could it have been reported and transmitted in
Hindustani, it would have gone home to the readers.
I have not been able to read the whole report. Let me, there-
fore, complete it by briefly stating the other two thoughts I placed
before the meeting. Cattle preservation was one of the major problems
of India. It was not to be solved by speeches or money. It could only
be solved by the Goseva Sangh possessing many cattle experts who
understood and gave themselves to the problem, and by the mer-
cantile community doing its work in the spirit of service rather than
in the spirit of self-aggrandizement and exploitation. If they applied
their undoubted talent to cattle-preservation, they could render great
service to India. They need not be overwhelmed by the vastness of
the problem. Each one was to think what he could do and do it
thoroughly, irrespective of his neighbor or others. Therefore the
central body was to concentrate on producing milk and bringing milk
cheaply to every inhabitant of Wardha. In the end they would discover
that they had solved the cattle problem for India.
Lastly I asked them to bear in mind Aruna Asaf Ali’s wellmeant
taunt that in thinking of their benefactor, the four-footed animal, they
might not forget their elder freind, the biped of India, who made up
the forty crore and without whom cattle could not exist for one day.
Therefore every honest man owed it to himself, and the country, only
to eat what he must for living healthily and not a morsel for
indulgence. Every man, woman and child of understanding should
try to grow for the use of India two blades of grass where today only
one was growing. If they worked intelligently, honestly and co-ope-
ratively in hope, they would find that they could tide over the impen-
ding calamity without fuss, without anxiety and with dignified bear-
ing.
BOMBAY, February 18, 1946
Harijan, 24-2-1946

543. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, BOMBAY1
February 18, 1946
There is a time for laughing and shouting and a time for
observing silence and being serious. I have often said that a people
who want to be free should learn to mount to the gallows with a smile
upon the face. But laughter becomes an offence against decorum, if it
is out of season. Similarly shouting out of season is an exhibition of
bad manners. It becomes a man to remember his Maker all the
twenty-four hours. If that cannot be done, we should at least con-
gregate at prayer time to renew our covenant with God. Whether we
are Hindus or Mussalmans, Parsis, Christians or Sikhs, we all worship
the same God. Congregational prayer is a means for establishing the
essential human unity through common worship. Mass singing of
Ramdhun and the beating of tala are its outward expression. If they
are not mechanical performance but are an echo of the inner unison,
as they should be, they generate a power and an atmosphere of
sweetness and fragrance which has only to be seen to be realized.
In the police and the army, physical drill and training in the use
of arms regarded as an essential part of discipline. Military training
includes marching in step and executing of movements to order in the
mass noiselessly and harmoniously too.The mass singing of Ramdhun
and the accompaniment of tala are as much a part of discipline in
non-violence as physical drill and training in the use of arms are that
of military discipline.
Gandhiji, however warned them that his advice must appeal to their hearts,
not merely to their heads, if it was to bear fruit. Dry intellect would not take
them far.
Turning next to the food crisis, he said, it presented a grim prospect. They
could criticize the Government as much as they liked for its share in it. He himself
had not been sparing in his criticism of the Government in the past and he would do
so again when the occasion demanded it even though he stood alone. He stood by
what he had said in 1942. If the British had stayed in India as the servants of the
people, not their masters, and purely to defeat the Axis powers, he would have had
nothing to say. Instead they had in their arrogance cast to the winds the warnings and
1
The speech is extracted from Pyarelal’s “Weekly Letter”. Gandhiji, taking
advantage of a day’s halt in Bombay on his way to Poona, addressed in Hindustani a
prayer gathering at Rungta House in the evening.

protests of the people’s respresentatives and denuded India of her vital resource,
though perhaps not deliberately, with the result that they all knew. Nevertheless he
could understand the food shortage. But cloth shortage he could not understand at all.
India could grow any amount of cotton. He said:
In this land of ours, fabulously rich in natural resources, there is
the lofty Himalayas with its everlasting snows where, they say,
dwells the Lord of the Universe. It has mighty rivers like the Ganges.
but owing to our neglect and folly, the year’s rains are allowed to
run down into the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. If all this
water was trapped and harnessed to irrigational purposes by the
construction of dams and tanks, there should be no famine or food
shortage in India Similarly cloth shortage can immediately be
remedied by planting a miniature mill in every home in the form of a
spinning-wheel or a takli. That would give us all the cloth that we
need almost for nothing. I have cried myself hoarse in pressing this
solution on the Government. It is immediately feasible, and it is my
claim that not a single person need go naked, if necessary steps are
taken to put it into operation. The only obstacles in the way are the
inertia and prejudice in high places.
In regard to the food shortage, I admit that Government alone
has adequate resources to cope with it. But even so we need not
apathetically resign ourselves to fate, fixing our gaze at the skies for
the rains to come. There is an inexhastible reservoir of water in the
bowels of the earth. It should be tapped, even though we may have to
dig two thousand feet deep for it, and used for growing food. We
may not blame fate before we have exhausted all available means for
combating a threatening calamity.
Today there is a lot of wastage in food going on in big cities
like Bombay in the form of feasts and ceremonies. It is the sacred
duty of every man, woman and child to conserve every grain of food
and every drop of oil and ghee in this crisis. One should eat no more
than necessary to keep the body in health and fitness when millions
are faced with the prospect of death through starvation The foodstuffs
thus saved can be distributed among the needy poor—not as alms but
as remuneration for honest labour.
The Harijan which resumed publication recently, had a part to play in the
present crisis. He advised them to read it as it would be for their good.1
1
These two sentences are from The Hindu, 20-2-1946.

Proceeding, Gandhiji diagnosed the present helplessness of the country to the
double slavery—slavery under the foreign yoke and slavery to our own inertia and
sloth. As an instance of the latter he mentioned the fitful and inadequate response to
the officer under the new khadi plan of the Bombay Kalbadevi Khadi Bhandar to
provide instruments of, and instruction in, spinning and carding and the allied
processes to all those who care. If we were not under the hypnotic spell of inertia and
laziness, the people of Bombay should flock to the Khadi Bhandar in an unending
stream day and night and make in no time the shortage of cloth a thing of the past.
The political slavery, they all hoped and he shared that hope, would soon end.
But the removal of the foreign yoke won’t necessarily bring freedom to the people in
the real sense of the term. The Congress President had only the other day denounced1
the recent happenings in Calcutta as being unworthly of a people who aspired to be
free. He hoped that they would never disgrace themselves again like that. They were
greatly deceiving themselves, if they thought that by indulging in hooliganism they
would be able to make the British quit India. They would belie their creed and demean
themselves in the eyes of the world if, after pledging themselves to truth and non-
violence as the only means for the attainment of swaraj, they exhibited their
impotent wrath by indulging in looting, stone-throwing, arson and abuse. He
repeated what he had previously said that if 40 crores of Indians resolved unanimously
and whole-heartedly that they would have swaraj through and non-violence alone, it
would be theirs for the asking. But, if they lacked that faith, it was open to them to
repudiate non-violence openly and after due deliberation. People like him might
question their wisdom but nobody would charge them with falsehood and cowardice.
He was afraid, they could not escape that charges today. He reminded them of Capt.
Shah Nawaz’s declaration2 that Netaji Bose had told them that on their return to India
they would be expected to serve their country not by means of the sword but through
non-violence.
Granted that India produced sufficient arms and ammunition
and men who knew the art of war, what part or lot will those who
cannot bear arms have in the attainment of swaraj? I want swaraj in
the winning of which even women and children would contrubute an
eqal share with physically the strongest. That can be under ahimsa
only. I would, therefore, stand for ahimsa as the only means for
obtaining India’s freedom even if I were alone.
Harijan, 3-3-1946
1
On February 12, in his statement to the Associated Press of India
2
Vide “Advice to Indian National Army Men”, 22-1-1946

544. PURSES FOR PUBLIC MEN1
An interesting case of the use of purses presented to a public
person has recently come under my obeservation. I received many
purses from the public. Thus, during my recent tour, donations
covering over two lakhs were given to me between Calcutta and
Madura. Some of them were anonymous, some earmaked, and some
donors said, when asked, that I was to use the money in any manner I
liked. I have kept no property which I can call my own. Am I
entitled to use those donations or a part of them for personal needs?
During the whole of my career I have never made any such use and
have always advised friends to do likewise. I hold that there is no
other course open to persons who enjoy public confidence and to
whom the public give donations, fully believing that the money will be
used more judiciously and carefully than by themselves for some
public purpose. It would be a terrible thing, if the trust reposed in
one were abused for personal purposes. Ruinous consequences of
such use can be better imagined than described. Public service must
be, like Ceasar’s wife, above suspicion.
BOMBAY, February 19, 1946
Harijan, 24-2-1946
545. A LETTER
BOMBAY,
February 19, 1946
Your letter had been forwarded to me by Bhai Sadiq Ali. I am
sorry I could not send a reply sooner. I do not consider what you
write a justification for Pakistan. The two-nation theory does not
impress me. Economic inequality must go. It is not a Hindu-Muslim
question; it is a question of hunger, affecting millions. It is the same
both for the Hindus and the Muslims. It is the question of the workers
and employers. I am convinced that when this question is solved, the
problem of high and low will also be solved. Both parties will have to
co-operate in solving this problem. Let us see what God wills.
M. K. GANDHI
From a copy of the Hindi: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and
1

546. TELEGRAM TO SECRETARY, C. P. PROVINCIAL
CONGRESS COMMITTEE
P OONA,
February 20, 1946
S ECRETARY
P ROVINCIAL C ONGRESS C OMMITTEE
NAGPUR
GENERAL AWARI’S FAST1 ENTIRELY MISPLACED. HE
SHOULD DESIST.
GANDHI

Express P OONA,
February 20, 1946
THE AGA KHAN
MALABAR HILL
THANKS WIRE. DATE DEATH2 TWENTY-SECOND.
WOULD LIKE TO VISIT CREMATION GROUND THEN.
IF YOU ARE THERE THEN I WOULD GLADLY COMBINE
PILGRIM-AGE WITH OUR MEETING. WOULD NOT CARE
SPARE FURTHER TIME OUT OF LIMITED TIME MY
DISPOSAL.
GANDHI
From a copy: Pyarelal papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal
1
Manchershaw Rustomji Awari, popularly known as ‘Gen.’ Awari’ after his
‘movement of civil disobedience with regard to the Arms Act and the Explosive
Substance Act designed for the release of Bengal detenus” in 1927, vide Vol. XXXIII,
pp. 337-8, was Treasurer of Central Provinces Congress Committee, and also an
office-bearer of Nagpur Parliamentary Board. He went on hunger-strike from February
18 in protest against what he called acts of injustice by the Central Parliament Board
of the Congress of which Vallabhbhai Patel was Chairman, in rejecting the
nominations, including his, proposed by the Nagpur Pradesh Congress Committee
for a seat in Nagpur General Urban constituency. Vide also “Letter to Damodar Das
Mundada”, 24-2-1946 and “Letter to Manchershaw R. Awari”, 24-2-1946 also “Letter
to Puratan Buch”, 28-2-1946
2
Of Kasturba Gandhi

548. TELEGRAM TO PIROJA WADIA
P OONA,
February 20, 1946
P IROJA WARDIA
P ANORAMA
WALKESHWAR R OAD, B OMBAY
COME ANY DAY.
GANDHI
From a copy: Pyarelal papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal

NATURE C URE C LINIC,
6 T ODIWALA R OAD, P OONA,
February 20, 1946
DEAR FRIEND,
I refer to the letter 1 I wrote on November 25, 1945, when Sir
Evan Jenkins was P. S. V. He asked me to send Shri Prabhu Dayal
Vidyarthi to New Delhi which I did. Since then my son has been in
correspondence with me as he was seen by Sir John Thorne 2 in this
connection. But I have had no official intimation of the result of the
examination or what is produced to be done.3
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the Governement, 1944-47, p. 64
1
It was about torte and bad treatment in prison of Prabhu Dayal Vidyarthi and
Rammandhar Lohiaa; vide “Letter to Sir Evan M. Jenkins”, 25-11-1945
2
Home Member
3
The addressee’s reply dated March 12, read: “I am sorry for the delay over
answering your letter of 20th February about Mr. Vidyarthi’s case. The Home
Member had discussed the whole matter with your son Mr. Devdas Gandhi; he had also
promised to let him know the result of certain investigations which are still
proceeding at Nagpur.”

P OONA,
February 20, 1946
CHI. PUSHPA,
It is all right, if you refrain from writing in order to save my
time. Otherwise you must write.
I hope you are in high spirits.
Blessings from
BAPU
551. NOTE TO DR. DINSHAW K. MEHTA

February 20, 1946
Here is my idea :
At present do not admit any patient unless I send him or for
whom I cannot arrange the expenses from the fund that is earmarked
for the poor. This way the poor, but not the destitute, will be accom-
modated.
2. Examine any poor patient, whether male or female.Give him
a bath, if necessary; also the syringe, if necessary. Prescribe the diet in
writing. He should himself procure it. If he asks for it, we may give
it but he should pay for it. They need not be made to lie down in a
large tub; should be seated to have a hip-bath and bathed with a
shower. There should be provinsion to clean all parts of the body.
[The patient] should be given nude sun-bath. He may put on a
langoti1 . There should be separate arrangement for women but no
separate arrangement for individual patients.
3. Let him take as much clean drinking-water as he can. Those
who cannot afford oranges, etc., should be given honey, lime and
water.
4. Only those for whom such treatment is enough should
be attended to This includes indigestion, fever, smallpox, constipa-
1
Cod-piece or long strip of cloth to cover frontal nudity

tion, headache, eczema, eruption, measles, chicken-pox, itch, dysentery
and such other ailments common among the villagers.
For carrying on this work we should take on workers, in
proportion to the number of patients, and train them. We should take
only those who are prepared to work at least for two years. Generally
such workers should stay at their own place. Some of them should
give a few hours’ free service while some should be paid a regular
salary. But all these things will settle down gradually. As our needs
grow, a way will suggest itself and we shall know how to implement it.
5. We shall never use foreign medicines nor any organic drugs.
Medicines made from plant stalks and as simple as can be procured in
the village may be used to some extent. Castor oil may be used, if
found necessary.
6. We would need a large number of volunteers for this work.
None of them, however, should be highly paid.
7. If this work is broad-based, it can certainly develop into a
seat of learning, say, a university.
8. It is my firm belief that if the project works, we shall cer-
tainly get as much land and funds as we need.
9. If you cannot appreciate this project but if you can have
faith in it, you may go ahead with your work at Bombay until this is
put on the rails. Examine other places. I am not inclined to invest in
land or a building right now. I wish to carry on with the existing
means. If you have the faith, you will of course, peep in now and then.
10. You must keep your promise to those patients who pay. It
is for you to see how it can be done. Whatever amount you get should
belong to you. These people may not stay on this site but I think they
can stay anywhere in Poona.
If anything is left unanswered, please ask me. I shall reply in
writing.
Show this to Jehangirji. After that all three of us can discuss.
You are not to accept defeat and certainly there is no question
of despairing. It is the duty of all three of us to fulfil what we have
undertaken.
From the Gujarati original: Pyarelal Papers. Courtesy: Pyarelal

552. LETTER TO PURUSHOTTAM GANDHI
P OONA,
February 20, 1946
CHI. PURUSHOTTAM,
I have your interesting letter. May the dance-and-music func-
tion that you have organized bring good results. We must not
understand by music mere singing or playing on an instrument, or by
dance mere rhythmic movements. I would say that one understands
music only if one’s whole life became full of music. Therefore a
student of music ought to know how to make himself comfortable,
how to communicate with others, etc., whether alone or in society.
There should be sweetness in [whatever he does], in his movements, in
his eating, drinking. A person who is full of music will be courteous
and thoughtful in all his acts.
Blessings from
BAPU
553. LETTER TO PYARELAL

February 20, 1946
CHI. PYARELAL,
Though I took work from Manibhai there, I had brought him so
that he would work here. I thought you knew that much. But I shall
send Munnalal as substitute. He is also capable of working. Someone
else had asked for him but I let the matter pass. There is no need at all
to panic.
Blessings from
BAPU
From the Gujarati original: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and

554. LETTER TO V. S. SRINIVASA SASTRI 1
P OONA,
February 20, 1946
GURUBANDHU,
I have your letter2 . Venkatrama Sastriji’s handwriting is as neat
as yours. I have torn up your letter. Do not worry. My support cannot
be had for dividing Hindustan into two parts. I do not think Rajaji’s
opinion is different. If it is, it will not be acceptable to me. The Aga
Khan has not offered the Palace to me, nor have I asked for it, nor do
I wish to.
May you get well and have a long life.3 What did you do about
Valmiki 4 ?
1
Forwarding this letter to the addressee on February 21, Amrit Kaur said:
“Bapu wrote the enclosed for you and asked me to copy it out in clear Hindi which I
did. I feel you would treasure the original rough draft, and am, therefore, giving it to
Jagadisanji to make over to you . . . .”
2
In Letters of Srinivasa Sastri, p. 366, Jagadisan explains: “At Sastriar’s
bidding this letter, written from his death-bed, was delivered by me personally
to Gandhiji. . .” Dated February 18, the letter read: “The Aga Khan’s offer of the
palace to you is genuine and need not be doubted. He is the most acute and wily
diplomat in modern India. He began the separatist game and would end it by
taking it out of Jinnah’s hands and making it
3
Vide “Talk with V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”, 30-1-1946
4
Vide “Talk with V. S. Srinivasa Sastri”, 30-1-1946

555. LETTER TO MAHARAJA OF REWA
DINSHAW MEHTA C LINIC, P OONA,
February 20, 1946
1
MAHARAJA SAHEB ,
Yesterday you presented me a cheque for Rs. 1,001. I consi-
dered whether or not I should accept it. My heart says that I should
not; I am, therefore, returning it. Please excuse me.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
MAHARAJA
R EWA
556. QUESTION BOX 2

Q. You say that one of the contracting parties in a marriage
should be a Harijan. I hope you do not call other marriages taboo.
A. This is a good question. I do not believe that all other
marriages are taboo. I have pointed to the ideal, the practical attain-
ment of which it is our duty to strive for as speedily as possible.
P OONA, February 21, 1946
Harijan, 3-3-1946
1
Martand Singh, the Yuvaraj who presumably ascended the throne on the
dramatic deposition of the Ruler, Gulab Singh Ju Deo, while out on camp near the
border, by the Resident Lt. Col. Campbell. The dismissal was condemned by
Jawaharlal Nehru, for it implied British displeasure at the ex-maharaja’s desire to give
self-government to his subjects.
2
Originally written in Hindi, this appeared as “from Harijan Sevak”,
24-2-1946.

557. MESSAGE TO BRITISH PEOPLE1
P OONA,
February 21, 1946
My life itself is a message for the English people.
The Hindi, 24-2-1946

NATURE C URE C LINIC,
6, T ODIWALA R OAD, P OONA,
February 21, 1946
DEAR MR. ABELL,
Here are a few more suggestions to meet the food situation
which have been sent to me by friends.
The Indian Army should be given this unique opportunity of
doing constructive work. They can be moved about easily. They
could, therefore, be sent to all such places where wells need to be dug
most urgently.
Regarding additional foods, fish has been mentioned. Fish
abounds in the seas around the coasts of India. The war is over; there
are innumerable small and medium-sized vessels which were used for
doing patrol and guard duties along our shores for the last five years.
The Royal Indian Navy could arrange about staffing these with the
Department of Fisheries giving all assistance. If everything and any-
thing can be done during a war, why not a peace-time war effort?
Dry fish does even now form part of the normal diet of a great num-
ber of people who are very poor—that is when it is available and they
can afford to buy it.
All public gardens should immediately by law made to start
growing vegetables. Squads of army personnel should be put to work
here too People requiring extra labour to transform their ground or
garden should also be able to obtain free help through this channel.
1
The report said that the message was given to an officer of the British Army
in India whose service had been terminated. He told Gandhiji that he would go back to
England and propagate India’s cause for freedom as he knew how Indians were
“exploited under the British rule”.

The distribution of food should be through co-operative socie-
ties or similar organizations.
All food parcels to friends or relatives in Britain or elsewhere
abroad should be stopped as also the export of groundnuts, oils, oil-
cakes, etc.
All stocks of foodstuffs in the hands of the military should be
released forthwith and no distinction should be made between military
and civil ranks. In this connection I draw His Excellency’s attantion
to the following A. P. I. message published in the Amrita Bazar
Patrika of February 11, 1946.
It is learnt that huge quantities of composed atta are being destroyed for the
last few days by throwing them into the river Shitalaksha at Narayanganj.
The campaign against despondency and for growing more food
will avail nothing, unless bribery which is going on as never before is
stopped and honesty and straight dealing begin to pervade the Gover-
nment ranks and the public.1
Yours sincerely,
M. K. GANDHI
Gandhiji’s Correspondence with the Government, 1944-47, pp. 141-2; also
Harijan, 17-3-1946
559. LETTER TO T. PRAKASAM

February 21, 1946
MY DEAR PRAKASAM,
I am enclosing herewith copy of a letter which I have received
from Bezwada dated 15th inst. Ordinarily I would have ignored such a
letter but there is a specific allegation in this letter which I believe
requires immediate contradiction. It is about your having collected
Rs. 50,000/-.2 I do not know whether there is any truth in this matter
but if you have collected such an amount, it must have been credited
to the Congress account in your province. This kind of scandal should
not be allowed to be spread and therefore I would suggest that you
may take such steps either by public contradiction or by such other
1
For the addressee’s reply, vide “Letter from G. E. B. Abell”,26-2-1946. The
two letters appeared in Harijan, 17-3-1946, as “released to the Press by Gandhiji with
the consent of His Excellency the Viceroy”. Vide also”Famine of Grain and Cloth”
and “Letter to G. E. B. Abell”, 22-2-1946
2
Vide also “Speech at Prayer Meeting, Bombay”, 11-3-1946

method as you may deem appropriate to prevent the spread of such
scandals.
Yours sincerely,
From a copy: Pyarelal Papers. Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Courtesy:
560. LETTER TO ANNIE MASCARENE

P OONA
February 21, 1946
CHI. ANNIE1 ,
A report of the speech you made at Bombay has appeared
in the newspapers. If it is correct, what you said is not right. Even
otherwise, I know that you have no control over your tongue and
when you stand up to speak, you blab anything that comes to your
mind. This speech also is quite a specimen, if the newspaper report is
correct. I have sent the report to Bhai Thanu Pillai. You can read it.
Such indiscreet talk can do good neither to you nor to the poor
people of Travancore. Besides, by your act you put the whole fair
sex to shame. Why all this?
Send me a prompt reply. If you address your letter to Sevagram,
it will reach me wherever I may be.2
Blessings from
BAPU
561. LETTER TO PATTOM THANU PILLAI

P OONA,
February 21, 1946
BHAI THANU PILLAI,
I hope you are well. I send you a report of Annie Mascarene’s
speech that has appeared in the newspapers. I am also enclosing a
copy of the rejoinder that the Sachivottama3 has sent me. If the speech
1
Advocate and political worker; Minister for Health and Electricity,
Travancore-Cochin State; Member, Constituent Assembly of India
2
Vide also the following two items.
3
The Maharaja of Travancore had conferred this title, meaning Prime Minister,
on C P. Ramaswami Aiyar, the Dewan.

was as reported, I feel that Annie Mascarene does not deserve to be a
co-minister. The Sachivottama writes that it is our duty to admit as
much as is true, but to expose what is vile also becomes our duty.
With this thing in view, please send me a full reply. If you do not
understand the Hindustani, take the help of Bhai Satyanarayana or
any other Hindi Pracharak and reply in the rashtrabhasha only. If
this is not possible, then write in English.
Read my letter1 to Annie and forward it to her wherever she is.
Blessings from
BAPU
[PATTOM THANU P ILLAI]
TRIVANDRUM
562. LETTER TO C. P. RAMASWAMI AIYAR

P OONA
February 21, 1946
BHAI RAMASWAMI ,
I have your letter regarding Mrs. Annie Mascarene’s speech. It
is good you drew my attention to it. I had not read it before your
letter came. I hardly look at any papers, and leave out many things.
Though I am not making your letter public, I have written 2 to Annie
and also to Bhai Pattom Thanu Pillai. Let me see what the outcome is.
My advice is that in case you do not already have one, you
should engage an additional secretary knowing Hindi and Urdu and
should correspond, as far as possible, with other Indians in the rash-
trabhasha and with the Travancore people in their mother tongue. I
know a simple thing like this is not beyond you.
Yours,
M. K. GANDHI
S IR C. P. R AMASWAMI
TRAVANCORE
1
Vide the preceeding item.
2
Vide “Letter to Annie Mascarene”, 21-2-1946

563. LETTER TO CHANDRANI
P OONA,
February 21, 1946
CHI. CHAND ,
I have your letter. That you keep longing to meet me is as good
as meeting me. Get well and be ready [for service]. That is much more
important than meeting me. I also like it that you consider Satyavati
your ideal. God will take care of the rest.
Blessings from
BAPU
From a photostat of the Hindi: Chandrani Papers. Courtesy: Gandhi National
Museum and Library
564. COERCIVE FAST

Telegrams and letters condemning my remarks1 about Rajaji
have been received. Some of them say that all the praise bestowed on
Rajaji is well-deserved. They admit his integrity, self-sacrifice, great
ability and administrative capacity. But they hold his so-called apos-
tasy in 1942 to be unforgivable and add that his scheming to be
Premier of Madras is insufferable. For me there is no offence or apos-
tasy in resigning from the Congress and maintaining one’s views. If
he is scheming to get the Premiership, it is undoubtedly worthy of
condemnation and would be a sad discovery for me.
But my purpose in reverting to the subject is not for the sake of
defending him. My opinion carries no authority save moral which can
be rejected at will. What I want to reprehend the threat of fasting, or
the fast itself, if I do not withdraw the epithet ‘clique’ in respect of
those who are opposing him. I have given my meaning of the word.
And I adhered to its use according to that meaning. Nobody should
be coerced into changing his belief. There would be an end to all
decency and reason, if such fasting became effective. As the author of
fasting as a weapon in satyagraha, I must state that I cannot give up an
opinion honestly held even if the whole world fasts against me. I
1
Vide “Curious”, “About Rajaji”, “Interview to “The Hindu”, 16-2-1946 and
the following item.

might as well give up my belief in God because a body of atheists
fasted against such belief. The rule of conduct stated by me is of
universal applicability. Incidentally I may mention that the fasts
reported of prisoners in some U. P. jails and now of persons1
aggrieved by the decision of the Parliamentary Board elsewhere fall
under the same category though for different and sound reasons.
Harijan, 3-3-1946

P OONA,
February 22, 1946
Among messages and letters condemning my remarks about
Rajaji are some from persons threatening to fast, if I do not withdraw
the word ‘clique’. As the author of fasting as a weapon in the
armoury of statyagraha, I must reprehend such use of fasts. No one
should give up opinion honestly held even if the whole world were
against him. I, therefore, advise against such fasts.2
Harijan, 3-3-1946
566. MINUTES OF MEETING OF ALL-INDIA NATURE CURE

FOUNDATION TRUSTEES
The first meeting of the trustees of All-India Nature Cure
Foundation was held on February 21, 1946, at 10.30 p. m. at . . . 3
where Gandhiji stayed. Gandhiji presided over the meeting. Both the
other trustees, Shri Jehangir Patel and Shri Dinshaw Mehta, were
present.
I. Regarding the accounts, the following subjects were
discussed at length :
1. The weekly expenditure during seven weeks.
2. The details of income.
3. Daily expenses incurred over the indoor and outdoor
1
The reference is to Manchershaw Awari’s fast against the decision of
Congress Parliamentary Board; vide footnote 1, “Telegram to Secretary, C. P.
Provincial Congress Committee”, 20-2-1946
2
Vide also the preceding item.
3
Omission as in the source

patients.
4. Expenses incurred on the boarding and lodging of the
resident workers and servants.
5. Expenses incurred on construction works and repairs, and
also on gardening and the income from garden produce.
6. Account of the bills pertaining to expenses of December
1945 or an earlier period paid in January, so that necessary
adjustment can be made with the personal account of Dr. Dinshawji.
7. The statement showing the outstanding amounts, if any, to
be recovered from the patients or from any other source.
II. How this institution functioned till today, i.e., January 1,
1946, to February 21, 1946, was discussed in detail. Gandhiji desired
that the institution should function according to his views.
III. Elaborate discussion took place amongst the trustees as to
how this institution should function in future. Gandhiji expressed his
views not only regarding the management but also how treatment
should be given so that poor people could derive benefit. Dr. Mehta
stated that this method of treatment was only experimental and had
very limited scope. But even in its limied form, if it was made available
to the people of India and if a Nature Cure University came into
being, he was prepared to run the treatment according to Gandhiji’s
views. And during that period either its success would have been
proved or Gandhiji would give up the idea. According to Gandhiji, the
creation of a Nature Cure University was the last mission of his life.
The meeting then adjourned to February 22, to meet at
2.15 p. m.
M. K. GANDHI
Ferbruary 22, 1946
From a facsimile of the Gujarati in Mahatma, Vol. 7, between pp. 96 and 97

567. TELEGRAM TO H. L. SHARMA
P OONA,
February 22, 1946
DR. H. L. S HARMA1
KHURJA
COME HERE TWENTY-SIXTH.
Bapuki Chhayamen Mere Jivanke Solah Varsh, p. 348
P OONA,
February 22, 1946
MY DEAR MR. ABELL,
In continuation of his letter2 to you of yesterday’s date, Gandhiji wishes me to

bring to your notice the following information which has been given to him :
(a) The Managing Director of the New Dholera Steamships Ltd., Bombay,
says that one of their boats went out last week with 2951 sacks of pulses called
moong.
(b) The steamers Begam and Jalajyoti last month carried to Colombo 35,000
bags of pulses; moong, tur and lang dals on the Begam were 1,612, 3,011 and
26,053 bags respectively. The writer says, this is done monthly.
(c) The attached cutting3 refers to the very large quantities of rice exported as
late as September last.
1
Mangaging Trustee of Surya Chikitsalaya and Dadeech Seva Sangh, Nawabad,
Khurja
2
Vide “Letter to G. E. B. Abell”, 21-2-1946
3
Pyarelal explains: “The report was to the effect that during the month of July,
August, September 1945, 22,504 tons of rice valued at over Rs. 94 lakhs was
exported from Calcutta port by one single firm.”

Thanks for yours 1 of the 15th instant. Gandhiji quite understood about the
Government communique to the Press.2
With kindest regards,
Yours sincerely,
AMRIT KAUR
569. LETTER TO MATHURADAS TRIKUMJI

February 22, 1946
I got your letter. There was nothing improper in what you said.
From a philosophical point of view nobody has any right. But we
were not discussing philosophy. I see nothing improper in somebody
saying to his elder, ‘I have a right over you’. I can understand your
having such thoughts at present because of your illness. Banish them.
I hope your fever has quite gone.
[From Gujarati]
Bapuni Prasadi, p. 209
1
Which, inter alia, read: “What had been out to the Press was an official
communique from New Delhi. . . My telephone message to say nothing except that I
had gone to Wardha to apprise Mr. Gandhi of the situation . . . had not been
appreciated. . . . We managed to get something into the morning’s papers
simultaneously with the communique to show that Mr. Gandhi’s health was
satisfactory . . .” Pyarelal explains: “The official communique was to the effect that
Gandhiji was ‘unfortunately not well enough to travel’ and so the Private Secretary . .
went to see him. . . . But . . . in the communique . . . Mr. Abell was . . . reported to
have said . . . that Gandhiji ‘is in good health but is a bit tired due to strain of his
recent long tour of the country.’ ” Vide also “Letter to Lord Wavell”, 10-2-1946
2
In his reply dated February 25, the addressee said that as he was not aware of
the facts, he was “sending on to the Food Department the cutting about the alleged
export if rice in July, August and September 1946. He added that they “have been
exporting 3,000 tons of pulses per month to Ceylon”, which “has now been stopped
though the result will be a very serious situation for Ceylon”.

570. LETTER TO VIKRAM SINGH
February 22, 1946
CHI. VIKRAM,
I got your letter. I approve. I am doing all that should be done
in that connection.
Blessings from
BAPU
S HRI VIKRAM S INGH
C/ O S HOORJI VALLABHDAS
BOMBAY MUTUAL BUILDING
P OST BOX NO. 34
BOMBAY
571. LETTER TO ANASUYA KALE

P OONA,
February 22, 1946
SISTER,
I got your letter. How can it be a matter of right to get elected
to the Assmbly? It should never be a question of right. The picture
of the Congress has room only for service, none for rights. You
should be satisfied with what we get while rendering service. Have you
forgotten that at Faizpur I had them raised their hands only at your
instance and you saw, didn’t you, that a very large number did not
have their names on the Congress rolls? Yet they rendered service and
that too gladly. Of course there were many among them who didn’t.
For once, even if I accept that the field of service has scope for rights
too, you must understand that I neither participated nor have any
interest in elections. And I am pained at the rivalry that is rampant in
elections.
Vandemataram from
M. K. GANDHI
S OW. A NASUYA KALE
DHANTOLI
NAGPUR

P OONA,
February 23, 1946
I have followed the events now happening in India with pain-
ful interest. This mutiny1 in the navy and what is following is not, in
any sense of the term, non-violent action. Inasmuch as a single person
is compelled to shout “Jai Hind” or any popular slogan, a nail is
driven into the coffin of swaraj in terms of the dumb millions of
India. Destruction of churches and the like is not the way to swaraj as
defined by the Congress. Burning of tram-cars and other property,
insulting and injuring Europeans is not non-violence of the Congress
type, much less mine, if and in so far as it may be different from the
Congress. Let the known and unknown leaders of this thoughtless
orgy of violence know what they are doing and then follow their
bend. Let it not be said that India of the Congress spoke to the world
of winning swaraj through non-violent action and belied her word in
action and that too at the critical period in her life. I have deliberately
used the adjective“thoughtless”. For, there is such a thing as thought-
ful violent action. What I see happening now is not thoughtful. If the
Indian members of the Navy know and appreciate non-violence, the
way of non-violent resistance can be dignified, manly and wholly
effective, if it is corporate. For the individual it always is. Why should
they continue to serve, if service is humiliating for them or India?
Action like this I have called non-violent non-co-operation. As it is,
they are setting a bad and unbecoming example for India.
A combination between Hindus and Muslims and others for the
purpose of violent action is unholy and will lead to and probably is a
preparation for mutual violence—bad for India and the world.
The rulers have declared their intention to “quit” in favour of
Indian rule. Let the action be not delayed by a moment because of
the exhibition of distressul unrest which has been lying hidden in the
1
According to The Indian Annual Register, 1946, “The Indian Franchise”, 16-
12-1895, the mutiny “against the quality of food supplied. . . and ill-treatment” was
started “by the men of H. M. I. S. Talwar . . . who secured the sympathy and support of
nearly 20,000 men representing the entire Royal Indian Navy personel”. On
February 19, “strikers . . . in the Bombay Harbour demonstrated widely and
sometimes violently for two hours . . . causing utter confusion and complete hold-up
of traffic . . .”

breast theirs might is unquestioned. Its use beyond the bare require-
ment will be unworthy and even wicked, if it is made to suppress the
people or a portion of them. The people have been far too long under
the foreign heel.
Harijan, 3-3-1946
573. TELEGRAM TO SARALA DEVI

P OONA,
February 23, 1946
S ARALADEVI
C ARE S ARALA
BOMBAY
IMPOSSIBLE TOMORROW. CAN SEE YOU TWENTY-SEVENTH.
BAPU
574. TELEGRAM TO MIRABEHN

P OONA,
February 23, 1946
MIRABEHN
C ARE P OSTMASTER
BAHADRABAD
JWALAPUR
NO CHANCE DELHI. YOU MAY COME TO
POONA ANY DATE AFTER MARCH TWENTIETH.
BAPU
From the original: C. W. 6516. Courtesy: Mirabehn. Also G. N. 9911

S EVAGRAM,
February 23, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
I can understand the ordeal you are going through. To what a
pass have things come!
Do you want to take me to Bardoli in this situation 1 ? I cannot
1
The reference is to riots in Bombay in connection with naval mutiny.

stay there longer than 15 days in any circumstances. Why need I be
taken in a special train? Is it in order to save me from the crowds that
the night will have to be spent in the train? I send this with Sushila in
the hope that it will reach you earlier. She will give you the details.
I hope you are well.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
576. LETTER TO POTTI SRIRAMULU

P OONA,
February 23, 1946
BHAI SRIRAMULU 1 ,
I got your wire today. Of course you have my blessings.
Blessings from
BAPU

P OONA, 2
February 23, 1946
BHAI KEDAR 3 ,
I got your letter of the 20th today. I also had the previous one.
I deliberately omitted to acknowledge it as it did not call for a reply.
There was nothing in it to pain me.
Although I had hoped that you would come and show me your
face at Sevagram, I appreciate the reason you give for not coming.
Blessings from
BAPU
[T. J. KEDAR]
NAGPUR
1
A Congressman of Nellore who had asked for Gandhiji’s approval to
undertake a fast in order to awaken public conscience in favour of opening a temple to
Harijans in Nellore. Vide also “Statement to the Press”, 16-3-1946, and “Letter to
Potti Sriramulu”, 17-3-1946.
2
This is in Marathi.
3
Advocate; Vice-Chancellor of Nagpur University

578. LETTER TO RAGHAVDAS
P OONA,
February 23, 1946
BABA RAGHAVDAS ,
I got your letter and was pleased to get it. I shall surely do all I
can. Do you get Harijan Sevak? What newspapers are you allowed?
I hope you are keeping good health.
Blessings from
BAPU
[RAGHAVDAS]
F AIZABAD JAIL
579. NOT LONELY

A friend 1 wrote to me the other day how lonely he felt in the
midst of company. This remark was prompted by my telling him that
I distrusted the word of the official world. He did not and had
thought that I might share his trust. Behold his disappointment when
he found me wanting. It may be that was not what he meant by his
cryptic letter. Anyway that was my interpretation and I replied2 that as
a man of God, he must never feel lonely. For God was ever with him.
1
The reference is to Sudhir Ghosh, who, in Gandhi’s Emissary, p. 77,
explains: “It was the evening of 10th February . . . Gandhiji and Dr. Rajendra Prasad
reviewed the whole Indian political scene, and I listened quietly to all that they said to
me. What bothered me was Gandhiji’s repeated statement . . . that he distrusted the
word of British officialdom in India and advised me to do likewise . . . He told me that
I was not to be ‘thrilled’ by the attention that was being paid to me by men in high
authority like the Viceroy. This hurt, though there was no lack of fatherly love in
what he said. . . . I brooded over what Gandhiji had told me about the need to distrust
British officials. I was seized with an unusual sense of loneliness. . . . On 16th
February I wrote a letter to Gandhiji to unburden myself.” For an extract from Sudhir
Ghosh’s letter, vide “Letter from Sudhir Ghosh”
2
Sudhir Ghosh, who seems to have lost the letter from Gandhiji, says that
Gandhiji narrated, “in his own inimitable language, the story of the Prophet
Mohammed and his disciple Ali, both of whom were hiding from their persecutors in a
dark cave. Ali was afraid and said to his master, ‘We are alone.’ The master said: ‘We
cannot be alone. For God is with us.’ ”

Why should he care even if the whole world deserted him? Let him
trust in spite of me, as long as the trust came from his heart and not
his head.
I feel differently. Mutual trust and mutual love are no trust and
no love. The real love is to love them that hate you, to love your
neighbour even though you distrust him. I have sound reasons for
distrusting the English official world. If my love is sincere, I must love
the Englishman in spite of my distrust. Of what avail is my love, if it
be only so long as I trust my friend? Even thieves do that. They
become enemies immediately the trust is gone.
See what is happening in Bombay 1 —the Bombay where I have
passed so much time, which has given the public causes so much
money, and which I had thought had fairly imbibed something of
ahimsa. Will it prove the burial ground of ahimsa?
I am unable to think that the incendiarism, the looting and the
insults heaped upon Englishmen are, or were, acts of hooligans. Who
are hooligans? Will there be none when English rule is no more? The
fashion of blaming the hooligan ought to be given up. We are the
makers of the brand. They respond to the air about them.
Imagine the senselessness of looting grain shops. The looters
did not help themselves. Even if they did, they were not starving. The
grain was meant for the starving. If it was being misused, looting
could not prevent that misuse. Usurpers will always replace the looted
grain while there is any to usurp. Between the two sets of looters the
starving will be more starved than before.
They who incited the mutineers did not know what they were
doing. The latter were bound to submit ultimately. Or was it meant as
a lesson in violence? That is not the way to understand history.
I ask myself, and perhaps others are asking, why I am not repea-
ting what I did after Chauri Chaura.2 I have no call in that direc-tion.
When or if it comes, nothing in the world will prevent me, ill or well.
Let me reaffirm the truth that I love the Englishman as well as the
Indian. Both are humans. Yet I want the rule of and for the masses of
India. Loka-manya has taught us that Home Rule or swaraj is our
birthright. That swaraj is not to be obtained by what is going on now
1
The reference is to the naval mutiny.
2
The reference is to the suspension of civil disobedience Resolutions at
Bardoli”, 12-2-1922 after the inhuman conduct of the mob in February 1922.Vide
“Working Committee’s

in Bombay, Calcutta and Karachi.
Let every Congressman, whether four-anna member or not,
think for himself where Congress should stand. Let us not deceive
ourselves and the world.
Harijan, 3-3-1946
580. NATURE CURE TREATMENT1

Nature cure treatment means that treatment which befits man.
By ‘man’ is meant not merely man as animal but as a creature
possessing, in addition to his body, both mind and soul. For such a
being, Ramanama is the truest nature cure treatment. It is an unfailing
remedy. The expression ramban, or infallible cure, is derived from it.
Nature too indicates that for man it is the worthy remedy. No matter
what the ailment from which a man may be suffering, recitation of
Ramanama from the heart is the sure cure. God has many names.
Each person can choose the name that appeals most to him. Iswar,
Allah, Khuda, God mean the same. But the recitation must not be
parrot-like, it must be born of faith of which endeavour will be some
evidence. What should the endeavour consist of? Man should seek
out and be content to confine the means of cure to the five elements
of which the body is composed, i. e., earth, water, akash, sun and air.
Of course Ramanama must be the invariable accompaniment. If, in
spite of this, death supervenes, we may not mind. On the contrary, it
should be welcomed. Science has not so far discovered any recipe for
making the body immortal. Immorality is an attribute of the soul.
That is certainly imperishable but it is man’s duty to try to express its
purity.
If we accept the above reasoning, it will automatically limit the
means permissible under nature cure. And man is thereby saved from
all the paraphernalia of big hospitals and eminent doctors, etc. The
large majority of persons in the world can never afford these. Why
then should the few desire what the many cannot have?
Harijan, 3-3-1946
1
Originally written in Hindi, this appeared under “Notes” as “from Harijan
Sevak”, published simultaneously with the source.

581. LETTER TO DAMODAR DAS MUNDADA
P OONA,
February 24, 1946
CHI. DAMODAR,
I have read the statement1 of Gen Awari. My opinion stands that
nothing can be done under the pressure of fast. Public life will
become worthless, if things could be achieved in this manner through
coercion. Fast has several limitations. Fasts which transgress those
limitations, I consider as disastrous to public life. Gen. Awari ought
to see this simple thing and give up his fast. After that it is open to
him to say what he wants to. It is not also correct to say, as Gen.
Awari does, that there is no appeal against Sardar’s decision. There is
the Working Committee and the All-India Congress Committee.
You can show this letter to anybody.
The Hitavada, 27-2-1946
582. LETTER TO MANCHERSHAW R. AWARI

P OONA,
February 24, 1946
BHAI AWARI,
Your hunger-strike is not right. I hope you got my wire. 2 Can
such self-torture prove anything, or turn a falsehood into truth? This
kind of obduracy is not worthy of you or anyone else. I think no one
would stop a person who sets out to commit suicide in this way. Does
Bhai Pooranchand approve of this obduracy? I do hope, you will not
1
According to the report, this was shown to Gandhiji by the addressee, “who
was deputed by Acharya Dharmadhikari to secure Gandhiji’s help to persuade Gen.
Awari to give up his fast”. Awari had stated: “It was a farce to appoint a Parliamentary
Board while Sardar Saheb had decided to sweep off the whole list selected by the
Nagpur Parliamentary Board. . . . Ours was the only Province where the President of
the Parliamentary Board was not a candidate for the Assembly. . . . I will go on with
this fast, a death warrant and . . . no persuasion . . . shall budge me from my
determination except the removal of the grievances before or even after this
election.”
2
Presumbably, “Telegram to Secretary, C. P. Provincial Congress
Committee”, vide “Telegram to Secretary, C. P. Provincial Congress Committee”,
20-2-1946

exhibit your ignorance by claiming your action to be God’s promp-
ting. You may, if you like, file an appeal. Give up your fast.1
Blessings from
BAPU
AWARI
NAGPUR

P OONA,
February 24, 1946
BHAI VALLABHBHAI,
Write and ask Awari to give up the fast and to send a statement
to the Working Committee or to the All-India Congress Committee
presenting his ease. And of course he may appeal to the public.2
You must have received the earlier letter 3 sent with Sushila.
Personally I feel that you should now give up the idea of taking me to
Bardoli. I will of course do as you say but you must not leave Bom-
bay. If there is anything about which you want to see me, do come
here. I shall come, if you want me there. My work here will be over
in a few days.
The differences of opinion in the Working Committee are very
harmful at present. Think over this. Frankness is essential. Please do
not drive yourself too hard.
Blessings from
BAPU
[From Gujarati]
1
The addressee’s reply, reported under date line “Nagpur, February 27” in The
Hindu, 1-3-1946, read: “I had expected you to tell me where I am wrong. You say that
under pressure of fast nothing can be done. This argument was advanced by the
British Government whenever you launched upon a fast. I had not expected you to
adopt the slogan of the British Government. Fasts against humiliation and injustice
are not suicide.” Vide also the preceding and the following items.
2
Vide also the preceding item, and “Statement to the Press”, 27-2-1946
3

584. LETTER TO DR. DINSHAW K. MEHTA
P OONA,
February 24, 1946
CHI. DINSHAW,
I continue to think about you. I also had a talk with Jehangirji.
The poor will never be treated properly unless a sanitary1
sense2 awakens in you. The servants’ chawl is a shame. Filth reigns. I
think you should remove them from there. This is your task and
nobody else’s. It cannot be done by others. Something can possibly
be done only if you hand over vacant possession of the premises.
You may transfer absolute custody on a date which you would
yourself appoint. You can relieve Munnalal with immediate effect [if
not also a few others]. What else can I say?
Blessings from
BAPU
DR. D INSHAW MEHTA
P OONA
1
These two words are in English.
2
Ibid

APPENDICES
APPENDIX I
THE SAPRU COMMITTEE PROPOSALS 1
BOMBAY,
December 27, 1945
“The Committee stands for a single Union of India, including the whole of
British India and all the Indian States, the claim for secession or non-accession, by
which individual Provinces or States can keep out of the Union is not accepted,” says
the Sapru Committee in its final report on constitutional proposals. This report,
which was compiled by the Rt. Hon. Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru, the Rt. Hon. Mr. M. R.
Jayakar, the Hon. Sir N. Gopalaswami Iyengar and Kunwar Sir Jagadish Prasad, was
released to the Press on December 27, 1945.
Embodying this principle in its proposals, the Committee recommends that
the constitution-making body to be appointed after the elections should proceed on
the basis of framing a constitution for a single State, and urges that the right of
secession or non-accession given to individual States or Provinces in the Cripps
proposals should be withdrawn.
The Committee maintains that throughout it has endeavoured to make a cons-
tructive approach to the many knotty problems that confront the country, to
investigate them from every angle, to appraise as dispassionately as they could every
fact, circumstance or conceivable argument and to reach conclusions which in their
estimation were calculated to promote the lasting interests of India and were likely to
elicit the approbation of thinking Indians.
The report says : “It is the Committee’s firm conviction that the future of
India lies in adopting a democratic constitution. The ultimate sovereign in a demo-
cracy is the electorate, which chooses those who are to represent it in the Legislature
and Executive. Adult franchise is therefore recommended. Under existing conditions,
it is excusable to give religious communities the right to a fair and adequate share of
opportunities for service in the Legislature and Executive, but the aspirants for these
opportunities should realize that they hold them in trust for the nation as a whole and
should for that reason seek the support of all communities.”
JOINT GENERAL ELECTORATES
The Committee has recommended that separate communal electorates
should disappear and should be replaced by joint general elctorates with reservations
1
Vide “Letter to M.R. Jayankar”, 12-1-1946

of seats. In the opinion of the Committee, Parliamentary Government is not unsuited
to India and can be worked even with communally composed Legislature and Exe-
cutive. One of the cardinal features of the constitutional proposals made by the
Committee is the provision of ample and effective safeguards for the minorities.
Emphasizing the importance of joint electorates, the Committee says : “No
Government, which is not merely in power but accepts active responsibility for its
decisions, can legitimately flinch from the task of righting a manifestly wrong
decision (taken forty years ago, accepting separate electorate for Muslims), which
has been so mischievous in its effects. We hope the present Labour Government in
Britain, with its high democratic ideals and the enormous voting strength behind it,
will not lack the courage to get this decision reversed with the support of Parliament.
We have no doubt that such reversal would be to the lasting benefit of the Muslims
themselves.”
P ARITY AT THE C ENTRE
It is because the Committee attaches great importance to the abolition of
separate electorates that it considers parity of representation in the Central
Legislative Assembly between Muslims and Hindus, other than Scheduled Castes, not
too great a price to pay. Hindu objections to this proposal are strong, because it
means on a population basis one Muslim will be regarded as equal to two Hindus,
other than Scheduled Castes, also the fear that the British Government may accept the
parity concession without implementing the important provision that joint
electorates must be introduced, is not unfounded in the light of past history. Each
special concession has, in the past, been made the starting-point for fresh demands.
But in the interests of communal harmony, which abolition of separate electorates
will bring about, the Committee has ventured on this proposal, but it insists that in
its recommendation on parity, the conditions and limitations it has laid down are
equally important. Parity, however, is confined to the Lower House of the Union
Legislature and Union Executive, which are the final organs for determining all-India
policy; and it is important that such policy should have the substantial backing of
the bulk of Hindus and Muslims. The same considerations do not apply to the
Provincial Legislatures or Executives, or to the Services, or to other fields of
administration.
Joint electorates, with reservation of seats, are admittedly a far cry from
democracy, but they are a necessary halfway house between separate electorates and
general electorates without any limitation even as to candidature.
C ONCESSION SHOULD NOT EXTEND TO THE S ERVICES
The Committee considers that it will be unjust and improper to extend the
concession of parity to the Services, civil or military. Government Services, like
any other service, must be based upon individual merit and fitness. Neither does the
VOL. 89 : 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 451

Committee think that the Muslims are educationally backward, as they were thirty or
forty years back. As regards other communities, the present proportions are consi-
dered fair, but they may be revised by future Governments, so as to provide adequate
representation for backward communities. The Committee also expresses the view
that it will be dangerous to extend the principle of parity to the Defence Services.
Maintaining that the Muslims are not a separate nation, the Committee in the
chapter on Pakistan or partition of India says that the separate nationhood of Mus-
lims cannot be established on grounds of race, language or culture. If religion alone
will have to be the basis of division, then many other communities can also claim
separate nationhood.
Declaring that self-determination is not an absolute right and can only be
applied with due regard to circumstances, the Committee examines the practicabilities
of Pakistan in the context of Indian conditions and in the light of Indian opinion. It
says : “The position is that the scheme of Pakistan put forward by Mr. Jinnah is not
acceptable either to the Hinuds of the Punjab and Bengal or to the Sikhs or to the
Congress or to the Hindu Mahasabha. The C. R. Formula has been totally rejected
by Mr. Jinnah and has been opposed by the Hindus and Sikhs of the Punjab and
Hindus of Bengal.
P AKISTAN NOT A P RACTICABLE P ROPOSITION
“It is thus clear that Pakistan, whether whole, according to Mr. Jinnah’s
ideals, or truncated, according to the C. R. Formula, cannot be established without the
consent of parties and will meet with the strongest opposition. Arbitration has been
ruled out and is out of place when the fate of the entire country is to be decided. The
only alternatives for enforcing Pakistan are either British enforcement of it or civil
war.”
After considering the problems of Defence of the sub-Continent and the
position of minorities after division, the report states the Committee’s conclusion
that Pakistan “solves no communal problems and only raises fresh ones : that on
grounds of Defence, leaving apart other major considerations, the division of the
country into two independent States will endanger the safety of both, and that there is
no justification for the British Government to support such a revolutionary scheme if
they have genuine faith in the unity of India which they themselves have built up and
fostered.”
The report characterizes Prof. Coupland’s regional scheme as “fantastic, unreal
and academic.”
Rejecting all schemes of partition and division, the Committee concludes :
“We are convinced that the partition of India would be an outrage justified neither by
history nor by political expediency. It is incompatible with the greatness, safety and
economic development of the country and will lead either to constant internecine war

or perpetual foreign domination. It multiplies and complicates the problem of
minorities without solving it and threatens to plunge India back into the dark and
dismal days of the 18th centruy.”
The Committee feels certain that political unity can be maintained and
Hindus and Muslims can live together amicably as they have done for a thousand
years.”
The report proceeds to consider the arrangements to be made by which India
will remain united and at the same time, afford the communities sufficient scope for
self-development. One of the Committee’s fundamental recommendations in this
regard is the provision by which in the Union Assembly, excluding the seats given to
special interests, Muslim representation from British India will be on a par with the
representation given to Hindus excluding the Scheduled Castes. The offer of parity is
subject to the condition that joint electorates with reservation of seats are introduced
throughout, i. e., for all elective bodies in the country and the Committee adds that,
should the Muslims not agree to this condition and insist on separate electorates, not
only should the offer stand withdrawn, but the Hindus should be free to ask for a
revision of the Communal Award.
P ROVISION FOR ADULT F RANCHISE
Another important recommendation is the provision for adult franchise. If

political power is to be transferred to an Indian Democracy, so as to prevent its
concentration in the hands of a few, the risk of enfranchising the entire adult
population should be taken. Political consciousness among the masses has awakened
to a great extent and the last elections in 1937 were in themselves a great educative
force. The average man thinks more and more in terms of politics and, if his judgment
is faulty, he is no better or no worse than the average voter in Europe, where franchise
has been in existence for some time.
Before Pakistan came to occupy the field, Muslim opinion generally seemed to
demand that the residuary powers should be lodged with the Provinces, in order that
the latter might have the fullest freedom to legislate in matters which were not
covered expressly by the provisions enumerating the distribution of powers. Though
the case for a strong Centre is strong, the Committee, as a matter of compromise and
for the sake of peace and amity, recommended the vesting of the residuary powers in
the Provinces, in accordance with the Muslim view. Mr. P. R. Das and some other
members disagree with this recommendation.
While the subjects allotted to the Centre are reduced to a minimum, it is
provided that the Centre shall have powers to co-ordinate legislation and adminis-
tration of different units when necessary as well as to ensure the maintenance of the
political integrity and economic unity of India as a whole.

R EPRESENTATION FOR C OMMUNITIES
The Committee recommends that the constitution should provide for represen-
tation of different communities in the Central Executive on the basis of their strength
in the Legislature. The Cabinet will be a composite one only in the sense that
communities will be represented on it, but in the interests of harmonious working
“the Prime Minister’s choice of his colleagues is not to be fettered”. The Committee
looks forward to the choice of members to whatever community they may belong on
the basis of their political affiliations. The substitution of joint for separate
electorate should, by compelling candidates to seek support from all communities,
help the emergence of political parties each of which will contain members of
different communities. It is on these considerations that “composite” instead of
“coalition” Governments have been envisaged. It is also provided that there should
be collective responsibility to the Legislature. The Committee prefers the British
model, namely that the Prime Minister should choose his colleagues though a
suggestion had been made that the Swiss model, under which the Central Legislature
in joint session by single transferable vote elects the Cabinet and the Ministers hold
office for the duration of the life of the Legislature, was made.
INDIAN S TATES AND F EDERATION
Dealing with the Indian States, the Committee says that provision should be
made in the constitution for the accession from time to time of Indian States as units
of a Federation on such terms as may be agreed upon but the establishment of the
Indian Union should not be contingent on the accession to the Federation of any
Indian State or of any minimum unmber of Indian States. The Committee, therefore,
contemplates that the Union need not be identical with Federation and it may include
States which have not formally federated.
The Committee say: “Our recommendation is that the new constitution should
continue at least the unity that now binds the States and British India, though the
bond may not be federal. Federation, we recognize, is a closer and a more intimate
and efficient bond and we earnestly hope that in due course and after the fullest
consultation and investigation, all th States—a few individually but the great
majority organized in groups and sub-federations—will have acceded as federated
units of the Union. The inherent difficulties of bringing about such a happy con-
summation and the experience of negotiations which Lord Linlithgow inaugu-
rated and conducted between 1936 and 1939 do not encourage the hope that these
consultations and investigations can be successfully concluded, except with the
exercise of infinite patience and after lapse of several years. To hang up the Federal
Union of such units as are willing to federate until some States, or a minimum number
of States, or the last hesitant State has agreed to accede, would be a policy which is
calculated to postpone indefinitely the elimination of foreign rule and the achieve-
ment of full self-government. The Committee, therefore, insists that the Union of

India should be established without any such waiting and that, while individual States
might take their own time to make up their minds as to whether they would accede as
federated units, all of them should, from the outset, be treated as in the Union, united
with each other and with the rest of India through paramountcy at the Union Centre.”
As regards paramountcy, the report says, “British suzerainty, which is the
mainspring of paramountcy jurisdiction today, will have to cease to exist and the new
Union Centre, that is, the Federal Cabinet will come to exercise that jurisdiction over
the unfederated States.” The Committee hopes that the Rulers of States will not object
to this inevitable development.
The Committee is also of the view that the Crown Representative as a
separate office should disappear and the paramountcy jurisdiction now exercised by
him should be transferred to the Union Cabinet. It is suggested that the Minister
of the Union Cabinet should be in charge of the States affairs, assisted by a
reformed Political Department. The Minister should also have a body of Indian
Advisers to help him in administering paramountcy jurisdiction over the unfederated
States.
“HEAD OF S TATE”
On the question of “Head of the State”, the Committee says : “All parties
are agreed that the constitution should be based on Indian independence and,
therefore, in law and in fact the indefeasible sovereignty of the people of India
from whom alone all powers of legislation and administration should be derive,
should be recognized. No foreign power should be allowed to exercise any juris-
diction over the Indian Union and therefore the existing practice by which
all residuary powers are exercised by the United Kingdom Parliament on the theory
of “the indestructible sovereignty of the King in Parliament over the land through-out
the King’s dominions” will not be acceptable to any school of Indian
political opinion. The Head of the State under the new constitution should replace
the present chief Executive with his dual role as Viceroy and Crown’s Represen-
tative. He will have such powers as are given to him under the constitution as
also such other powers as are now vested in his Majesty the King, including
powers connected with the exercise of the functions of the Crown in relation to
Indian States. The Head of the State cannot act arbitrarily but only on the advice of
the Ministry. His term of office may be for five years and ordinarily one person may
not hold if for more than one term.
MINORITY R IGHTS
Dealing with the rights of the Scheduled Castes and other minorities, the
Committee has provided that these communities will in future be accorded by statute a
place on the Executive and will share in the responsibilities of administration. They
will have adequate voice in framing the constitution with safeguards against hasty

changes. They will have likewise the benefit of the fundamental rights with power to
have more important ones enforced by the highest tribunal in the country. The
Minorities Commission will keep a jealous watch over their welfare and will obtain
relief when they are injured. The Committee hopes that with their rights ensured and
protected, the minorities will not lose sight of their obligations to the sub-sections
which exist in their midst.
As regards the Scheduled Castes, the Committee recommends the continuation
of the method of election prescribed in the Poona Pact.
INDIANIZATION OF ARMED F ORCES
Dealing with the question of Indianization of armed forces the Committee
says : “Under any system of real self-government, these must be in the charge of a
member of a responsible ministry. The disciplinary head of the armed forces, the
Commander-in-Chief, has to work under the orders of the Ministry and, on the
Dominion analogy, the supreme command of the armed forces has to be vested in the
Head of the State; Indian statute law will make provision for the government of the
armed forces, the application of the British Army Act and any other enactment of a
similar nature to the Indian Army being done away with.”
The Committee lays great stress on the creation and rapid development of a
National Army.
S ECESSION
Dealing with the question of secession, the Committee takes strong exception
to the provision contained in the Cripps offer in regard to secession. In the opinion
of the Committee such a provision amounts to the recognition of revolt from and
repudiates the constitution. It is, in essence, an extraconstitutional act and common
sense is against the constitution recognizing it as a legal right to be unilaterally
exercised at the option of the unit.
In the opinion of the Committee, the constitution-making body should
proceed on the basis of framing the constitution for a single State as a safe- guard for
minorities, it is provided that no decision of the constitution- making body will be
valid unless it is supported by three-fourths of the members present and voting.
Valid decisions of the Constituent Assembly must be binding on the British
Government. The Committee says that a stage has been reached when the British
Government can no longer evade responsibility. Therefore they should not allow
things to drift and the situation to deteriorate.
INTERIM GOVERNMENT
In conclusion the Committee makes an earnest appeal to all communities and
parties in the country to accept the principles underlying its recommendation. In the
event of there being no agreement, the Committee calls upon His Majesty’s

Government to set up an interim Government at the Centre and proceed to establish a
suitable machinery for framing a new constitution, substantially on the principles
enuciated by it and to have it put into operation at the earliest possible date by
handing over all the power now vested in them to the authorities establised there-
under.
The Indian Annual Register, 1945, Vol. II, pp. 176-8
APPENDIX II
CONGRESS WORKING COMMITTEE RESOLUTION ON INDONESIA1
The Working Committee have watched with admiration and sympathy the
valiant struggle in defence of their newly won republic and independence which the
people of Indonesia have been carrying on with steadfast courage and determination
against British and Dutch forces. This Commitee emphatically condemn the wanton
invasion of Java and other parts of Indonesia in order to impose Dutch imperialist
domination on their inhabitants against their unanimous demand for a free State. Any
support from any quarter to imperialist designs in Indonesia, Indo-China and
elsewhere is resented throughout Asia as culpable violation of the professed aims of
the United Nations and the undeniable right of Asian nationals. This will destroy the
chance of international understanding and the very basis of any future world
organization. The Committee regret that the United States of America have by their
passive attitude encouraged these imperialist aggressions. While expressing their
heartfelt sympathy with the Indonesia and Indo-Chinese nationalists for the
enormous loss and suffering inflicted upon them by the imperialist powers, this
Committee are particularly distressed to find the units of the Indian army arrayed
against the Indonesians and Indo-Chinese and view with deep indignation this
mischievous misuse of the Indian forces by the British Government. This Committee
note with resentment that the Government of India has not granted necessary
facilities to enable Jawaharlal Nehru to proceed to Java in response to Dr. Soekarno’s
invitation to which the present intolerable state of humiliating helplessness is due.
The Indian Annual Register, 1945, Vol. II, p. 101
1
Vide “Talk with Indonesian Sailors”, After 21-1-1946

APPENDIX III
G. E. B. ABELL’S NOTE ON INTERVIEW WITH GANDHIJI1
S EVAGRAM,
February 11, 1946
At 1 p. m. exactly I was taken along to Mr. Gandhi and was given a chair
beside him. He sat on a mattress on the floor. Mr. Pyarelal, Mr. Ghosh, Rajkumari
Amrit Kaur and an anonymous young girl also sat on the floor.
It was Mr. Gandhi’s day of silence. When I asked if I might speak first and
deliver His Excellency’s message, he nodded assent.
I said, His Excellency hoped he had recovered from the fatigue of his Madras
tour. He wanted me to explain the grave food situation and ask for Mr. Gandhi’s help
and co-operation. I had come without any high hopes as Mr. Ghosh had told me over
the telephone that Mr. Gandhi’s attitude was thoroughly hostile—I said this in a
joking way and Mr. Gandhi laughed heartily. His Excellency had toured in the
scarcity areas of Bombay, Mysore and Madras. In these areas there were practically
no crops. Food had to be found for the people of these areas for 8 to 10 months;
otherwise there would be a disaster. There was a very heavy all-India dificiency and
the world food situation was such that in spite of our best efforts we might get very
little in the way of extra imports. Two different policies had been suggested. The
first was to maintain the present basic ration of 1 lb. and rely on getting imports.
The other was to cut down the rations every-where, impose equal sacrifices on all, and
thus ensure that even if no extra imports were obtainable, the people in the villages
of South India would not starve. The Government of India were quite clear that the
second was the right alternative. Mr. Gandhi signified that he agreed.
I said that we had very slender reserves, and that hoarding was a grave danger.
If political parties used the opportunity of the ration-cut to agitate against the
Government and undermine confidence in the food administration, the result might be
to make a large-scale disaster inevitable. We had no desire to shirk responsibility,
but there was a clear humanitarian issue to which everyone must face up.
On the political side, the scarcity involved a grave risk to the success of the
efforts that would be made shortly to form a National Government and to get ahead
with deliberations on a new Constitution. It would also be a very serious obstacle in
the way of the new Ministries in the Provinces. The present Government was pre-
pared to incur the odium of cutting the ration now in order that every available ounce
of foodgrains should be saved for the scarcity areas, and a fair field given to the new
Executive Council and the new Provincial Ministries.
1
Vide “Letter toLord Wavell”, 10-2-1946 & “Statement to the Press”, on or
after 11-2-1946

Though the Government of India would have welcomed the nomination of a
Congress representative on the delegation now going to London, His Excellency
realized that Mr. Gandhi might find it difficult to help in this particular matter. Mr.
Gandhi nodded emphatically, and I did not pursue the point.
It had also been suggested that Mr. Gandhi’s support to an appeal for imports
would be valuable. I did not think His Excellency would press this either. Again an
emphatic nod from Mr. Gandhi.
His Excellency did, however, urge very strongly indeed that Mr. Gandhi should
assist by not embarrassing the administration on the food issue—Party capital should
not be made of it as the result of agitation would be panic, hoarding and the loss of
many lives. Mr. Gandhi’s influence would be invaluable and His Excellency hoped he
would use it.
Mr. Gandhi was in a more friendly mood than I had expected. He wrote down
that he had written at 5 a. m. that morning an article for the Harijan which met
His Excellency’s requirements. This he produced. I read the article and said that
though it contained some very useful advice to the public, the emphasis, which
was on the futility of the administration, was wrong, I thought he could do better
than that.
Mr. Gandhi wrote that the emphasis was a matter of opinion. His article
showed a way out, which was to put in a National Government at once. I said His
Excellency wanted such a Government as soon as possible but the President of the
Congress himself had deprecated the formation of a new Executive Council until after
the elections were over in the Provinces. Mr. Gandhi said that he personally dis-
agreed with this. An Executive Council could be formed in two days. I said, I did not
agree. A serious attempt would have to be made to get the Muslim League into such a
Government. This would be very difficult and at the best take time. If it were urged
that the League should be by-passed, at once I would say that this could not possibly
be done during the elections. Nor, at such a critical time, could we have two changes
of Government in the space of two or three months. (Mr. Gandhi made it clear he
thought only of a short-term Interim Government to give way to another Government
in April or May.) Finally there was the obvious difficulty about the budget. Mr.
Gandhi seemed to be impressed with the practical difficulties and did not pursue the
idea further.
Mr. Gandhi then said, it would be helpful, if I would give him in
writing suggestions as to what he should do. I said, if he wanted anything authorita-
tive, I would ask His Excellency to send him a letter on my return, but I emphasized
that we were short of time and wanted a lead from him in the next few days. He said it
would help, if I wrote down my ideas “as a man”. I wrote down a few suggestions in
the following words and got Rajkumari Amrit Kaur to give me a copy before I left :

1. Put about the idea that sacrifices are necessary by all, rich and poor,
in order that the poor may live.
2. Encourage thrift, especially by housewives.
3. Discourage hoarding as a criminally wicked act.
4. So far as possible give the lead to electioneering speakers either to
speak helpfully on food or at least not to say anything that will tend to
destroy confidence.
Other moves in the same direction will occur to you. May not the shor-
tage be a blessing in disguise, if all parties and people work together both
now and under a new government to mitigate the suffering of the poor?
Mr. Gandhi read this and indicated that he was fully prepared to help on these
lines. I asked him whether he would give a lead at once to Congress and electio-
neering politicians all over India. He refused to commit himself firmly on this point,
but sent a message after I had left him that he would consider making a Press
statement. . . .
Mr. Gandhi advised that His Excellency should send for Maulana Azad and say
to him what I had said to Mr. Gandhi. . . .
Before leaving I asked what I should say to the Press. I told him that I had
suggested that the Press should only be told today that I had gone to see Mr. Gandhi
on His Excellency’s behalf to apprise him of the food situation in India as a whole.
He said, he would like us to say no more than that, unless we added that His Ex-
cellency had asked Mr. Gandhi to see him in Delhi but I had gone to Sevagram
instead, because Mr. Gandhi, owing to his engagements, could not make the journey
at once. He wanted no mention made of fatigue of ill-health and indeed he seemed
very fit and spry.
The Transfer of Power. 1942-47, Vol. VI, pp, 932-5
APPENDIX IV
LETTER FROM M. R. JAYAKAR 1
BOMBAY,
February 8, 1946
DEAR MAHATMAJI,
You will kindly excuse this letter, which is consequent on the eventful news in
today’s Press that H.H. the Aga Khan is meeting you on the 20th at Poona. This is an
astute move, which he foreshadowed during his interview on reaching India a few days
ago. Why should he be bothering you with his attention instead of meeting Mr.
Jinnah’s, it is not difficult to understand. You have done your best to meet Mr.
1
Vide “Letter to M.R. Jayankar”, 13-2-1946

Jinnah’s point of view by offering a division of India, though on the basis of a
friendly transaction between two brothers. Mr. Jinnah contemptuously spurned it
wanting the division as between two separate nations. With this background, the
Aga Khan should be busy in meeting Mr. Jinnah and not you. But he won’t do this
because he knows that Mr. Jinnah will show him the door, if he tried to interfere. So
he turns in your direction.
As for the Aga Khan’s credentials to be an intermediary in such a vital cause,
you will no doubt remember that he was the sponsor of the deputation to Lord Minto
in 1906, asking for separate electorates—a deputation which the late Maulana
Mohammed Ali described as a command performance. Further if you were aware of the
proceedings of that deputation and knew, as I do, the activities of the Aga Khan
during the four years of the Round Table Conferences in London, you would have no
difficulty in realizing that, under the cloak of an international diplomat, he is as
vicious a communalist as any in India. You will also recall what is now well-known,
though at one time a part of the secret history of that time, that, on the occurrence of
a European crisis, the Aga Khan went to Turkey to carry on negotiations, but the Ata
Turk Kamal Pasha, on becoming aware of his visit, summarily ordered him out of the
country.
These are some of the Aga Khan’s antecedents which I have been able to
recall. So I am writing this letter, as I did during your talks with Mr. Jinnah, with
the view of conveying a caution—perhaps unnecessary—about the subtle nature of
this attempt.
As reported in this morning’s papers, the Aga Khan talks of a Pakis-
tan State as part of an ‘Indian and South Asiatic Confederation’. The South Asiatic
Confederation is not in his power to establish. It may or may not come. But, if you
accede to his delusive scheme, the Pakistan in India will be established and the other
ingredients of the scheme may evaporate into thin air. His clever device is to sink
Pakistan in an attractive scheme of an Asiatic Confederation, but a little search into
the matter will reveal that it is an astute method for obtaining for the Muslim League
its cherished object of a divided India. I need not say anything more. I am aware, as
you said in one of your replies to me that you will not be wanting in caution,
remembering that, anything which you think of conceding, it will be difficult for the
country later to avoid. Such is your great influence in the country.
Begging you to excuse once more, I am,
Yours sincerely,
M. R. J.
MAHATMA GANDHI
S EVAGRAM
WARDHA
Gandhi-Jayakar Papers. File No. 826, p. 36a. Courtesy : National Archives of
India

APPENDIX V
STATEMENT OF K. KAMARAJA AND T. PRAKASAM 1
KAMARAJA’S S TATEMENT
After Gandhiji’s recent article, I feel that I can do nothing else than resign
from the Parliamentary Board because all this conflict has come about only on
account of the parliamentary programme. Yesterday the Parliamentary Board met, as
already arranged. But meanwhile Gandhiji’s article appeared. That needed serious
attention. So I adjourned the Board meeting, so that I may consider Gandhiji’s
statement. It came as a shock to me.
I am the official head of the Tamil Nadu Congress. According to the Cons-
titution, I nominated the Working Committee. Therefore Gandhiji’s reference can
only be applicable to me. I have paid my respects to Gandhiji in person, and have
been in his calling distance in Madras and during his Tamil Nadu tour. So have been
many of the other members of our Working Committee. It pains me much that
Gandhiji did not talk to us anything about the Tamil Nadu Congress affairs while here.
His use of the word “clique” affects me deeply.
Neither I nor my colleagues believe in the parliamentary programme except as
a means to further the country’s struggle for freedom. I had made my position clear on
dozens of platforms since my release. At any rate I am no aspirer to any kind of office
under the parliamentary activities.
As for the public agitation against Rajaji, it is only the reaction among
Congressmen and the public to Rajaji’s action and his speeches since his Pakistan
resolution and resignation from the Congress. But, after Gandhiji’s recent article, I
feel that I can do nothing else than resign from the Parliamentary Board, because all
this conflict has come about only on account of the parliamentary programme.
My four colleagues, Messrs T. S. Avinashilingam, C. N. Muthuranga
Mudaliar, O. P. Ramaswamy Reddiar and Mrs. Rukmani Lakshmipathy felt compelled
to quit also. I have persuaded them to remain for the very simple reason that the short
time available for the election work ahead could not admit of such wholesale
resignations. I thank them for the spirit in which they have agreed to continue on the
Board. They would certainly have been within their rights, if they had followed my
example. But they and I do not want to disturb the election work.
For my part, I cannot but quit. For 20 years Gandhiji has been the leader whom
I have unswervingly followed and my faith in him continues unabated. That I should
occasion him pain drives me to take the action I have decided to take. I assure
1
Vide “About Rajaji”, 15-2-1946 & “Interview to The Hindu”, on or before
16-2-1946

everybody concerned that every decision taken by the Board here or at the centre will
command my whole-hearted acceptances.
P RAKASAM’ S S TATEMENT
February 13, 1946
Mahatma Gandhi, who had declared more than once that he had nothing to do
with Parliamentary politics and that he was not interested in anyone particularly, was
led into a serious error when he characterized the official Tamil Nadu Congress as a
“clique”.
I feel strongly that Gandhiji should make amends in this matter, and I have
every hope he will.
Shri Kamaraja Nadar did well in resigning the presidentship of the Tamil Nadu
Provincial Parliamentary Board. He fought well over a big constitutional issue until
it became impossible for him to continue any further.
The Hindustan Times, 13-2-1946 and 14-2-1946
APPENDIX VI
LETTER FROM G. E. B. ABELL 1
THE VICEROY’ S HOUSE, NEW DELHI,
February 26, 1946
DEAR MR. GANDHI,
Thank you for your letter of the 21st February making suggestions to meet the
food situation. His Excellency, to whom I have shown your letter, is grateful to you
for writing, and will have the various proposals examined where this has not been
done already.
2. Only a day or two ago His Excellency suggested to the Commander-in-
Chief that it might be possible for the R. I. N. to assist with fishing. Recent events
may make this difficult, but meanwhile His Excellency has initiated enquiries about
the possibility of importing dried fish from Canada and Newfoundland, and also about
the securing of suitable vessels and equipment so as to make a start with developing
on modern lines the fisheries industry. Already the Army is doing a good deal in the
Grow More Food campaign and is releasing machinery for digging wells, levelling
ground, etc.
3. In Delhi, a considerable part of the Central Vista is to be ploughed up and
the gardens of bungalows are to be used for growing vegetables on a larger scale. The
sending of food parcels to friends or relatives outside India has been ordered to be
stopped and an urgent examination is being undertaken of the question of exporting
groundnuts, oil-cakes, etc.
1
Vide “Letter to G.E.B. Abell”, 21-2-1946 & 3-3-1946

4. Bribery and corruption is admitted to be one of the worst enemies of
efficient food administration. This is also one of the most difficult to defeat. The
detailed implementing of the controls is mainly in the hands of Provincial
Governments, and perhaps the new Ministries may be able to achieve results in this
direction.
Yours sincerely,
G. E. B. ABELL
M. K. GANDHI, ESQ.
APPENDIX VII
LETTER FROM SUDHIR GHOSH1
During the conversation I had with you at Sevagram you talked about ‘distrus-
ting’ one’s friend. I pondered over it after I left Sevagram. It made me feel that I
ought to say something about what I am trying to do and why. It is difficult to talk
about it. But I enclose a letter which a young Englishwoman wrote to me when I left
Cambridge. I hope you will have a look at it in a spare moment. She was a Quaker
and a deeply religious person. We worshipped together in the Friends’ Meet-ing
House during our three years at the University. You know how young people get
drawn towards each other and become fond of each other. We were very fond of each
other; but we succeeded in keeping this friendship free from any sentimental bonds.
She says in this letter : “You have not chosen to do anything easy and I fear that,
humanly, you will often be lonely. But you have a source of strength which will not
fail you in the worst trials and desolation. If my friendship can help, I shall be more
than glad and shall send you my love as I do now.” She helped me to understand the
good that is England, and Cambridge gave me the inspiration to work for peace
betwen the British and the Indian peoples. When I left Cambridge in the summer of
1940, she sent me a copy of the Oxford Book of Mystical Verses along with this
letter. I experienced when I left Sevagram this time something of the ‘loneliness’
which she talks about in the letter. I know you will understand what I am trying to
say.
Gandhi’s Emissary, p. 78
1
Vide “Not Lonely”, 24-2-1946

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1.

TELEGRAM TO THE AGA KHAN

2. LETTER TO JIVANJI D. DESAI

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 1

3. LETTER TO JATINDAS AMIN

2 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

4. LETTER TO MANORANJAN CHATTERJEE

5. LETTER TO SHYAMAPRASAD MOOKHERJEE

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 3

7. LETTER TO CHARUPRABHA SENGUPTA

8. LETTER TO ARUNA SENGUPTA

4 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

9. INTERVIEW TO THE PRESS

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 5

11. LETTER TO G. E. B. ABELL

6 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

13. LETTER TO R. G. CASEY

Immediate KHADI P RATISHTHAN, S ODEPUR,

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 7

14. LETTER TO R. G. CASEY

8 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

15. LETTER TO THE AGA KHAN

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 9

17. LETTER TO NOEL BARWELL

10 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

19. LETTER TO KISHORELAL G. MASHRUWALA

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 11

21. LETTER TO SHANTILAL TRIVEDI

22. LETTER TO TARA N. MASHRUWALA

12 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

23. LETTER TO ATMARAM

24. LETTER TO KHUSHIRAM

25. LETTER TO MRS. S. R. DAS

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 13

26. LETTER TO UDDHAV

27. LETTER TO V. V. SAXENA

14 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 15

29. TELEGRAM TO PRABHU DAYAL VIDYARTHI

30. LETTER TO SAMARENDRANATH ROY

16 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

32. LETTER TO SITA GANDHI

33. LETTER TO SHRIMAN NARAYAN

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 17

34. LETTER TO BHAGWATI PRASAD

35. LETTER TO LAKSHMI NARAYAN GADODIA

18 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

36. LETTER TO H. L. SHARMA

37. LETTER TO SARASWATI GADODIA

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 19

38. LETTER TO RADHAKANT MALAVIYA

39. LETTER TO SHYAMLAL

20 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

41. LETTER TO MOTILAL ROY

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 21

42. LETTER TO CHIMANLAL N. SHAH

22 THE COLLECTED WORKS OF MAHATMA GANDHI

44. SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING

VOL. 89: 7 DECEMBER, 1945 - 24 FEBRUARY, 1946 23