Hill Temples: Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple at Polur

Hill Temples: Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple at Polur




For a person interested in staying at Polur and visiting this temple, the most reasonable and clean lodge is SABARI LODGE, RAILWAY STATION ROAD, OPP TO ARUN THEATRE, POLUR-606803. An A/C Double room with attached bath costs only Rs 700/ for 24 hrs. Hot water, however is not available. Room is clean, bathroom and toilet(Indian type) is also clean. As regards restaurant, NEW BOMBAY HOTEL near bus stand is very good. The lodge is only 100 mtrs from the bus stand. Since the hill is about 2 kms away, it is better to engage an Autorickshaw which will charge only Rs 50/- one way. For return, one has to call the driver on the phone and the return journey to the lodge may cost Rs 80/-

Facts given by R Subramanian

Pazhoor Aaradhana

On 22 Jan 2009, we travelled to Trichy in Tamil Nadu to take part in the Aaradhana of Sri Govinda Damodara Swamigal at his adhishtanam in a village called Pazhoor, 10 kms from Trichy on the Trichy-Karur road.
A few words about the person for whom the Aaradhana is held.

Moola Dwaraka and Porbandar

Kirti Mandir(Gandhi's Home)

Moola Dwaraka and Porbandar

On 04 Feb 2005 morning, we left Dwaraka and visited Har Siddi Mata Temple and Moola Dwaraka where Lord Krishna during his Journey from Mathura to Dwaraka spent a night and reached Porbandar. At Porbandar, we visited the birthplaces of Mahatma Gandhi, Kasturba Gandhi and Kuchelar. We had darshan at the Bharatmata Temple and Anjaneya Temple. Somnath was to be our night halt.

Moola Dwaraka

This is the place where Lord Krishna is believed to have spent a night during his journey from Mathura to Dwaraka. He left the place in the morning and moved to Bhet Dwaraka. The place is deserted and is near KODNAR. One has to travel in a jeep up to a point and then walk up to a mound where stands an enclosure having a stone slab representing the spot where Lord Krishna set foot.

Porbandar

It is the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi, Kasturba Gandhi and Sudhama/Kuchelar, a friend of Lord Krishna from his Gurukul days. Hence, Porbandar is also known as Sudhama Puri or Sudhama Dwaraka.

Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on 02 Oct 1869 as the youngest child to Putlibai, the fourth wife of Karamchand. He belonged to a community of grocers known as Modh Barias. Both his father and grandfather rose to the position of Dewan of Porbandar State. Gandhi was born in Kirti Mandir located. The exact place of his birth in the building is marked with a “ Swastika “ symbol. To commemorate the birth of Gandhi, a 79 ft high building has been built adjacent to Kirti Mandir. This building adjoining Kirti Mandir has a library of Gandhian books, a prayer hall, a nursery and a steeple decorated with episodes from Gandhi’s life.

It will not be out of place to mention a few landmarks in Gandhi’s life. He learnt his first lesson in non-violence from his father who wept silently when Gandhi confessed to his boyish mistakes. He was sent to London to study law but only after taking a vow not to touch wine, women and meat. In England, he was shy and diffident, could not speak English fluently and was ignorant of British manners. The principles of renunciation and non-violence advocated in the New Testament made a deep impression on him.

After becoming a barrister in 1891, he tried to practise law in Indian courts but was disappointed and dejected due to his ignorance of Indian laws and the practice of lawyers paying commission to touts to get cases. Disillusioned, he set sail to South Africa in 1893. It was South Africa, which made Mahatma Gandhi. He went there as a young, shy, brief less barrister and returned as an extra-ordinary leader who had mobilized masses for a novel fight. His ideas were shaped in South Africa. In this, Ruskin, Tolstoy and Thoreau influenced him. The principle of Satyagraha was born in South Africa.

Mahatma Gandhi returned to India in Jan 1915 and founded the Satyagraha/Sabarmati Ashram in May 1915. He left Sabarmati Ashram on 12th March 1930 vowing not to return till India got its Independence.

Vaishnav Jan To was Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite hymn. A reproduction of the hymn and a translation by Kushwant Singh is given below:

The Original Hymn

Vaishnov Jan to taynay kahyeeyeJay peerh paraaye janneyray Par dukkhey upkar karey teeyey,man abhiman na anney ray
Sakal lokma Sahuney bandhey, Ninda Na karye kainee ray Baach kaachh, Man nischal Raakhey,dhan-dhan jananee tainee ray
Samdrishi nay trishna tyagee, par-stree jaynay mat ray Vivihva thaki asatya na bolay,par-dhan nav jhaley haath ray
Moh maaya vyaayey nahin Jeynay,dridth vairagya jana manma rayRam-nam-shoom taalee laagee,Sakal teerth seyna tanma ray
Vanloohee nay kapat rahit chhay,Kaam, Krodh nivarya rayBhane Narsinhyo tainoo darshan kartakul ekotair taarya re.

Mr. Singh's translation

A godlike man is one,Who feels another’s painWho shares another’s sorrow,And pride does disdain.
Who regards himself as the lowliest of the low,Speaks not a word of evil against any oneOne who keeps himself steadfast in words, body and mind,Blessed is the mother who gives birth to such a son.
Who looks upon everyone as his equal and has renounced lust,And who honours women like he honours his motherWhose tongue knows not the taste of falsehood till his last breath,Nor covets another’s worldly goods.
He does not desire worldly things,For he treads the path of renunciationEver on his lips is Rama’s holy name,All places of pilgrimage are within him.
One who is not greedy and deceitful,And has conquered lust and angerThrough such a man Saint Narsaiyon has a godly vision,Generations to come, of such a man, will attain salvation

A favourite quotation of Mahatma Gandhi runs thus:

Gandhi's Talisman

"I will give you a talisman. Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man [woman] whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him [her]. Will he [she] gain anything by it? Will it restore him [her] to a control over his [her] own life and destiny? In other words, will it lead to swaraj [freedom] for the hungry and spiritually starving millions?Then you will find your doubts and your self melt away."
- One of the last notes left behind by Gandhi in 1948, expressing his deepest social thought.

Kasturba Gandhi

Kasturba was born in the same year as Gandhi at Porbandar. Her father was a well to do businessman and their house was 150 yds. behind that of Gandhi. She was married to Gandhi in 1882 and she did not accompany Gandhi to England as she was already a mother by then. By 1900 she had four sons. Gandhi decided in 1906 to practise celibacy and hence the couple never had sexual relations thereafter. Throughout her life, Kasturba was a steadfast companion to Gandhi in all his experiments in South Africa and India.

From 1904 to 1914, she was the heart and soul of ‘ Phoenix Settlement “ in South Africa. The strict and tough regimen of Ashram life affected her and on 22 Feb 1944, she died in the lap of her beloved husband. Her selfless existence, silent suffering, sacrifice, humility and faith were reminiscent of Anasuya and Arundhati.

How did Gandhi himself evaluate Kasturba?
“ Her greatness lay in complete self effacement….I learnt the lesson of non-violence from my wife…”.

On her passing away, Sarojini Naidu remarked:
“ Never once did her feet falter or her heart quail on the steep path of perpetual sacrifice…she has taken her rightful place in the valiant assembly of the beloved heroines of India’s legend, history and song.”

A special commemoration stamp was brought out by the postal dept. on her 20th death anniversary.

Sudhama Mandir

Extremely poor but self respected Sudhama and Krishna’s friendship will be remembered for ages as the best example of friendship. It is in memory of this friendship that a temple has been built in Porbandar. It is popularly known as Sudhama Mandir.

Sudhama (also called Kuchela) studied with Balarama and Krishna under Guru Sandipani. In course of time, Sudhama got married and was derisively called Kuchela, the one who always wore tattered clothes. His only concern in life was his selfless love and devotion to Lord Krishna, his friend. Kuchela’s wife could not endure poverty for long. She suggested that he approach Lord Krishna for material help. Sudhama agreed and with a bundle of puffed rice as a gift for his friend, set out for Dwaraka.

At Dwaraka, he was heartily welcomed by his friend who guided him to his own seat and washed his weary feet. Krishna enquired about Sudhama’s family. Krishna noticed the bundle in Sudhama’s hands, opened it and had three mouths full of the puffed rice before Rukmini stopped him since she feared that Krishna would give away all the riches.

Sudhama bade good-bye and only on his way back, realized that he had not asked Krishna for material assistance. He chastened himself thinking that it would have been selfish and shallow of him to ask for assistance from a bosom friend.

When he reached home, Sudhama was stunned to see a huge glittering palace instead of his hut. He was equally stunned to see his wife and children coming out of the palace decked in rich clothes and wearing jewels. Strange are the ways of God! Sudhama became rich overnight but wisely directed significant portions of his wealth to the poor and needy.

--Continued--

Nageshwar Temple

Nagesam/Naganath/Nageshwar

Nageshwar is located near Dwaraka on the route Bhet Dwaraka—Dwaraka, about 20 kms from Dwaraka. This place is also known as Devadaruvanam and Darukavanam. It is believed that Lord Shiva’s cosmic dance was enacted first here. Lord Vishnu was witness to that in the female form of Mohini. Sages who lived an ascetic life at this place along with their wives gained lot of yogic power by means of their worship and poojas. The power thus gained, instead of making them more humble, made them arrogant. They thought that they had gained these powers by their own effort and not due to any grace of the Lord. They even thought that they don’t have to worship him anymore. Their wives were even more arrogant. They thought that their chastity alone is capable of achieving any thing in this world for them. The Lord decided to teach them a lesson and also bring them back to the path of righteousness. Lord Shiva requested Lord Vishnu to assist him in this by again assuming the female form of Mohini. Shiva assumed the form of a naked Mendicant and along with Mohini reached Darukavanam. While Mohini enticed the sages by her voluptuous dances and obscene gestures, the Mendicant appeared before their wives and started teasing them. The wives fell for the Mendicant and the sages went crazy over Mohini and forgot their wives for some time. When they saw their wives completely bowled over by the Mendicant, the sages got angry and scolded the Mendicant for his behavior. The Mendicant stated that he only wanted to lead an ascetic life along with his wife, Mohini, like the sages. He can’t help if the sages and their wives fell for them. Thereupon, the sages got angrier and tried to eliminate the Mendicant by sending a tiger, snakes, fire and other weapons. The Mendicant being none other than Lord Shiva converted all these into ornaments and wore them. The snakes adorned his head, the tiger skin became his dress and the trishul became his weapon. The demons became his followers. He held the fire in his palm. Finding that all their efforts have gone in vain, the sages started cursing the Mendicant. The curses became his garlands. In the end, the sages realized that they couldn’t defeat or eliminate the Mendicant. They never realized that Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva have tested them.

After adorning all the weapons aimed at him, Shiva proceeded to dance with gay abandon. Thereafter, he disappeared into an anthill and Maha Vishnu left for vaikuntam.
After the departure of both the Lords, the sages were afflicted with all sorts of ailments and they couldn’t carry on with their daily rituals. They all went to Lord Brahma and requested him to save them. Lord Brahma told them that all their problems were as a result of their arrogance and due to that they couldn’t even recognize Lords Shiva and Maha Vishnu who had come to rescue them from their wrongdoings. Their sufferings were due to the fact they tried to kill Lord Shiva. Lord Brahma then told them that Shiva is in the anthill at Darukavanam and if they worship him with devotion, they can be sure of being blessed by the Lord. Thereupon, all the sages sat near the anthill and started praying to Lord Shiva. Pleased with their devotion the Lord appeared before them as a flame, which later became a Shivalingam. The sages worshipped him and asked for forgiveness and blessings. Acceding to their request he became a Jyotirlingam there only. Since he was adorned by a five-headed serpent, he came to be known as Nageshwar/Nagnath Mahadev/Nagesar/Nageshwar Jyotirlingam.

The place came to be known as Darukavanam for a different reason also. In the olden days, there lived an Asura couple called Darukan and Darukai. Darukai prayed to Goddess Parvati and got a boon by which she came to be in possession of a park, which can fly. The couple built castles in that park and settled along with other asuras. They used to fly with the park to conquer many areas. In the process, they destroyed many towns and harassed Brahmins and Sages. The Brahmins and Sages approached Sage Owra and prayed for relief. Due to the curse of Sage Owra, the asuras lost their power to conquer and the Devas lost no time in eliminating them.

To escape the wrath of the Devas, Darukai shifted the park with the castle to a new location in the Arabian Sea. The couple started waylaying all the ships passing that way and imprisoned and harassed the passengers. Once, they imprisoned a wealthy and philanthropic merchant by name Supriya. He was a great devotee of Lord Shiva. Daruka asked Supriya to teach him the path of devotion to Lord Shiva, the norms of performing pooja and penance. Fearing that Daruka would use any additional powers gained by such penance, to bad use, Supriya refused to guide him. The enraged Daruka began to torture Supriya. Supriya was, however, staunch in his faith in the Lord and was unmoved by torture. Daruka tried to kill Supriya and Lord Shiva killed the demon. The Lord also shifted the park back to its original location in Western India. Darukai now started giving even more trouble than her husband and Lord Shiva vanquished her too. The place thus came to be known as Darukavanam and some researchers say that the city built by Lord Krishna at this place thus came to be known as Dwaraka. The bad qualities of the asuras persist in human beings due to a boon granted by Goddess Parvati to Darukai.

The original temple was destroyed during the invasion by aliens and the present one owes its existence due to the munificence of Late Gulshan Kumar.

The Shivalingam is facing south with the Gomukham facing east. There is a story, which explains this. A devotee by name Namdev was singing bajans in front of the Lord and other asked him to stand aside to have a clear view of the Lord. Namdev asked them to suggest a direction in which the Lord doesn’t exist so that he can stand there. The enraged devotees carried him and left him on the southern side. To their astonishment, they found that the Lingam was now facing south with the Gomukham facing east.

Outside the temple, a few yards away from its entrance, we find a huge statue of Lord Shiva in a sitting pose. The statue is 85 ft tall and looks majestic and can be seen from very far.

--Continued--

Bhet Dwaraka and Gopi Talab

On 03 Feb 2005, we started early in the morning, to visit Rukmini Temple, Bhet Dwaraka, Gopi Talab and Nagesam.
Rukmini Temple

Due to Sage Durvasa’s curse, Rukmini could not stay with Lord Krishna and hence the temple dedicated to Rukmini is away from Dwaraka. The idol of Rukmini is captivating. She is seen with four hands holding a conch and discus in two hands. The pilgrims to this place offer pure water to the Goddess to emphasise the fact of Durvasa curse that Dwaraka will not have potable water. Yet another feature of this place is that the mendicants/sadhus at this place do not crowd around the visitors as they do at other places. Instead, they sit in one line and the devotees hand over their offerings to one sadhu who divides it amongst all equally.

Bhet Dwaraka

“ Bhet “ in Gujarati means an island. So Bhet Dwaraka means the temple on an island. The offshore island at Okha is 30 kms from Dwaraka. Built in the 19th Century, the temple has shrines and images of Lord Krishna and his consorts. There are several other temples on the island and excavations revealed some Harappan period artifacts. It is interesting to note that though this is an island, the water here is portable. The temple is located on a small hillock.

Gopi Talab

Once the Gopis of Vrindavan wanted to have the darshan of Lord Krishna and proceeded to Dwaraka. On the way, they all had a dip in the tank, which is now known as “ Gopis’ Tank “ or “ Gopi Talab “. The devotion of Gopis to the Lord was such that once when Rukmini was offering Pada Pooja to the Lord, she was shocked to see boils on Lord’s feet. The Lord told her that as his devotee Radha drank boiled milk offered by Rukmini, these boils were caused. In another instance, the Lord wanted to prove the superiority of Gopis’ devotion and hence pretended to suffer from headache. When none could cure his ailment, he suggested that the dust under the feet of the Gopis would relieve him of his headache. On hearing this, the Gopis of Vrindavan sent a cartload of their feet’s dust and cured him of his headache. Hence, the Gopi Talab became a famous place connected with Lord Krishna. The place reminds one of the pure devotion of the Gopis. However, there is no water in the tank when we visited the place.

Jyotirlingams in Gujarat

Our next halt was Nagesam where one of the twelve Jyotirlingas could be seen. The other Jyotirlingas are at Kedarnath (Uttaranchal), Varanasi (U.P), Beema Shankar, Thriambakeshwar and Grishneshwar (Maharashtra), Parli Vaidyanatham (Bihar), Srsailam (Andhra Pradesh), Rameshwaram (Tamil Nadu), Ujjain, Omkareshwar (Madhya Pradesh) and Somnath (Gujarat). In this Yatra, we visited Nagesam and Somnath.

--Continued--

Sangam Sthan(Photo)

Sangam Sthan

Gomathi Ghat(Photo)

Gomathi Ghat

The Main Temple of Dwaraka(Photo)

The Main Temple of Dwaraka

Our Yatra to Dwaraka

Dwaraka
Our journey to Dwaraka started on night 01 Feb 2005 by bus and we reached Dwaraka early morning. After settling down comfortably at the Swaminarayan Dharamsala, we had a dip in the R.Gomathi. Dwaraka is one of the 108 Divya Desams. The Dwaraka Deesh temple is located half a mile from the Dwaraka Rly Station in the Kathiawar Peninsula of Gujarat, near Okha port. The main deity is Sri Dwarakadeesan (Lord Krishna) in a standing pose and facing west. His consort Sri Lakshmi called Kalyana Nachiar has a separate sannadhi. Nammazhwar, Periazhwar, Thirumangai Azhwar, Thirumazhisai Azhwar, Thondaradipodi Azhwar and Andal have sung hymns in praise of the Lord.

Since the temple described and sung by the Azhwars have been submerged in the sea, the present one was built in the 16th century as Jagat Mandir or Dwarakadeesh Mandir. Lord Krishna (Dwarakadeesh) has a separate sannadhi and there are sannadhis for Balarama, Devaki, Satyabhama etc. Everyday, neivedyam called “ Bhog” is offered 17 times to the Lord. The pilgrims enter through the eastern entrance called “ Swarg Dhwar” and come out of the western entrance called the “ Mukthi Dhwar”. It was here that Kuchelar or Sudhama, Krishna’s gurukula friend, came to meet the Lord with a handful of broken rice or “ Aval”. It seems, he asked in Hindi, “ Dwarr Kahan Hai” and the word got corrupted over a period of time to become Dwaraka.
The Lord seems to have married Rukmani here. However, the temple for Rukmani is at a place far from this place. The reasons for this form part of another story.
It was from here that the Lord went to the rescue of Draupadi at the time when the Kaurava prince Duchasana tried to disrobe her in the royal court of Dhiridhrashtra.
It was from here that the Lord went to Hastinapuram as the messenger from the Pandavas to the Kaurava court.
It was here that the “Parijatham tree” was brought from Indralok and planted.
Holi, Diwali & Janmashtami (birthday) are celebrated here with great religious fervour.

We can find pieces of marble believed to be part of Lord Krishna’s palace, even today, at the confluence of the R. Gomathi with the sea. These are known as Gomathi chakrams or Dwaraka stones and are treated as sacred as the Salagramams found in the bed of R.Kandagi in Nepal.
Water is not potable in Dwaraka as it is surrounded by sea on three sides. It is brackish. There is a story connected with this.
Rukmini Devi and Lord Krishna invited Sage Durvasa to Dwaraka to seek his blessings. Sage Durvasa insisted that the chariot be pulled, not by horses but by Lord Krishna and Rukmini. As Rukmini felt thirsty, Lord Krishna stamped his foot on the ground and made water gush out for Rukmini to quench her thirst. This action of Lord Krishna infuriated the Sage who was by nature short tempered. He felt that Lord Krishna should have sought his permission prior to his action. He cursed that the entire area would be without drinking water and Lord Krishna would be separated from Rukmini for six months. It is sad to note that even today the residents of Dwaraka have to bring drinking water from elsewhere. The Lord assured Rukmini that he would visit her every day. The temple for Rukmini is thus located far away from Dwaraka.
After lunch, we visited the following places in Dwaraka:
1.Gayatri Mandir
2.Sunset point
3.Gomathi Ghat
4.Visveswar Mahadev Mandir
5.Gita Mandir
6.Baneshwar Mahadev Mandir
7.Sangam Sthan (site of confluence of R.Gomathi with the sea)

It is believed that doing kriyas for Pithrus (forefathers or ancestors) at Gomathi Ghat is sacred.
At Sangam Sthan, R.Gomathi joins the sea where it is believed that Lord Krishna is present twice during the day. Hence a Yatra to Dwaraka without a visit to Sangam Sthan is considered incomplete.
Baneshwar Mahadev Mandir is quite near to Gita Mandir. One might have to wade through the waters of the sea depending upon whether it is high tide or low tide.

At the Gita Mandir, Lord Krishna is seen giving “ Gitopadesam “ to Arjuna. The temple hall being quite big, one can sit here and meditate peacefully. The Gayatri Devi Mandir is near the shores of Gomati River and is visited by many. The evening Aarthi at the main Dwarakadeesan temple is a sight one should not miss. We were seated in front of the Devaki Temple and from a high pedestal we could have a good view of the Lord who is lovingly known as “ Ranchor Raya “. After the Aarthi, we visited the shrines of Balarama, Rukmini, Satyabama, Devaki etc. It is interesting to note that in Gujarat Lord Krishna is never seen with Radha whereas all over Uttar Pradesh (Mathura, Vrindavan, Gokul etc.) Lord Krishna is invariably seen with Radha only.
Adi Shankaracharya established the Sharada Peetam at Dwaraka. His disciple Sureshwaracharya was the first Peetathipathi. The Peetam has to its credit many social religious and educational activities.

--Continued--

Ahmedabad and Gandhi Nagar- Cities in Contrast

Akshardham

Akshardham houses the Swaminarayan Temple. The Swaminarayan Temple of Gandhi Nagar is a modern complex built in traditional Indian architectural style using pink sand stone from Rajasthan. The temple is set in a multi acre, beautifully landscaped garden with intricate sculptures of Gods. The interiors have beautiful columns and rise up to a high dome. The temple has a museum depicting the life, temporal and spiritual, of Lord Swaminarayan. These are depicted in the form of Murals and audio-visuals. The concept of Akshardham movement was founded in 1907 to promote the teachings of Lord Swaminarayan and a number of charitable causes.
Who is Lord Swaminarayan and how and when did he start functioning as a preacher? In fact, his followers consider him as the incarnation of God himself.
He was born as Ghanshyam on 3rd Apr 1781 in the rustic village of Chapaya in Uttar Pradesh. He was the second of three sons to his parents. Even as a child, he exhibited the virtues of austerity, detachment, yoga, dharma, leadership, truth and power of discrimination. People started calling him as Neelakanth. He lived for a short but dynamic life span of forty-nine years. From 1792 to 1799, he traveled throughout the country, from Himalayas to Rameshwaram, Manasarovar, Katmandu, Kamakya, Puri, and Kanyakumari and finally landed at Loj, near Mangrol in southern Kathiawar of Gujarat. Though his life and travels closely resembles that of Adi Sankara, he favoured the Visishtadvaita philosophy of Sri Ramanujacharya. Far from being an aimless wandering, Neelakanth’s sojourn was a planned pilgrimage to most important and sacred shrines of India.
At Loj, he was at the ashram of Sri Ramanand Swami whose disciple he became in 1800 at Paplana village. He was renamed as Swami Sahajanand. In 1801, at Jetpur, he was ceremoniously appointed as successor to Ramanand Swami. On the passing away of his Guru, Swami Sahajanand presented the Swaminarayan Mantra to his followers and came to be known as Swaminarayan to his followers. He created a band of disciples called Paramahamsas to serve the society. He set up almshouses during the great famine of 1813 in Kathiawar. He abolished animal sacrifices in yagnas. He introduced Bhajans in the conduct of festivals. He allowed entry to members of lower caste in to the Fellowship and instructed the Paramhansas to beg alms from the lower sections of the society and also visit their homes.
The teachings of Lord Swaminarayan incorporate the
essence contained in the Vedas. The moral teachings of Lord Swaminarayan are found in his Shikshapatri, which contains distilled truths propagated by Hindu Dharma Shastras. In this, he laid down codes of non-violence, tolerance, atonement, continence, devotion, philosophy, diet, hygiene, ecology, social and professional ethics etc.

The Sabarmati Ashram

Formerly known as Harijan Ashram/Satyagraha Ashram, Gandhi’s first ashram in India, was set up in Kochrab area of Ahmedabad in 1915 and was later shifted to the west bank of Sabarmati river in 1917. This was Gandhi’s home till 12th March 1930 when he left for his famous Dandi March, vowing not to return until India became independent.
Hriday Kunj is the cottage where the Mahatma lived. What strikes the visitor most is the simplicity of the entire place. Bapu used to say, " This is a good spot for my ashram. On one side is the cremation ground. On the other is the prison. The people in my ashram should have no fear of death nor should they be strangers to imprisonment."
The ashram has a museum called Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalay. This museum is a story of Mahatma’s life in commentary, photographs and personal effects. Mahatma Gandhi was a man of wisdom and humility, armed with resolve and inflexible consistency, who had devoted all his strength to the uplifting of his people and the betterment of their lot; a man who had confronted the brutality of Europe with the dignity of an ordinary but simple human being. Albert Einstein remarked, " Generations to come, it may be, will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth. "
Two of his commentaries struck me as relevant to the present day conditions in India. Without commenting upon them, I am just reproducing them for the readers to make their own judgment.
1. Our Culture
" It is my firm opinion that no
culture has treasures so rich
as ours has. We have not
recognized its value… If we do
not follow our culture, we
would be committing suicide
as a people."
2. Social Sins
􀂙 Politics without Principle
􀂙 Wealth without Work
􀂙 Pleasure without Conscience
􀂙 Knowledge without Character
􀂙 Commerce without Morality
􀂙 Science without Humanity
􀂙 Worship without Sacrifice
…. Continued…