Celebrating The First International Day of Yoga
Yoga_Life_Winter_2015_WEB
Yoga_Life_Winter_2015_WEB
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
LIVES OF THE SAINTS<br />
Lives <strong>of</strong> the Saints<br />
Mahatma Gandhi<br />
In this special <strong>Yoga</strong>Life edition dedicated to the <strong>International</strong> <strong>Day</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Yoga</strong>, we bring you the next in<br />
our series on Lives <strong>of</strong> the Saints by presenting the life <strong>of</strong> a modern saint through the eyes one <strong>of</strong> his<br />
contemporaries, another great saint <strong>of</strong> modern India, Sri Swami Sivananda. <strong>The</strong> following article is an<br />
edited version <strong>of</strong> “Mahatma Gandhi” from Swami Sivananda’s Lives <strong>of</strong> the Saints.<br />
Mohandas<br />
Karamchand<br />
Gandhi, the<br />
youngest son<br />
<strong>of</strong> Karamchand<br />
Gandhi and Putlibai, was born<br />
on October 2, 1869. His birth -<br />
place was Porbander, a small<br />
seaside town in the Kathiawar<br />
peninsula <strong>of</strong> western India.<br />
His mother was a devout and<br />
religious woman who attended<br />
temple services daily and<br />
never ate before she prayed.<br />
At school in Porbander,<br />
Gandhiji was very shy and<br />
lacked the confidence and<br />
poise necessary to talk to<br />
strangers. But he was<br />
admirably punctual and<br />
obedient, and participated<br />
actively in school games.<br />
In compliance with the<br />
prevailing custom <strong>of</strong> child<br />
marriage, Mohandas married<br />
at the age <strong>of</strong> thirteen.<br />
Kasturbai, his illiterate wife,<br />
was simple, persevering, bold<br />
and independent.<br />
A Student <strong>of</strong> Law<br />
in England<br />
Karamchand Gandhi died<br />
in the year 1885, leaving little<br />
property for his family. In 1887,<br />
Mohandas completed his<br />
matriculation and left for<br />
England to study law. He lived<br />
in London, where he found<br />
the life strange and difficult<br />
to adjust to. Although he<br />
adopted English dress and took<br />
dancing and violin lessons,<br />
he was nevertheless quite<br />
In Einstein on Peace scientist, thinker<br />
and peace activist Albert Einstein said,<br />
‘Generations to come will scarce believe<br />
that such a one as this ever in flesh and<br />
blood walked upon this earth.’ <strong>The</strong> one<br />
who Einstein was speaking <strong>of</strong> was<br />
Mahatma Gandhi.<br />
unsucc essful in conforming<br />
to the British mode <strong>of</strong> life. His<br />
friends tried to compel him<br />
to eat meat but he abstained,<br />
adhering very rigidly to a<br />
vegetarian diet. He joined<br />
vegetarian clubs and very<br />
soon became a champion <strong>of</strong><br />
vegetarianism. In fact it was<br />
in England where Gandhiji’s<br />
experiments in diet began.<br />
A transformation in<br />
Gandhiji’s life and character<br />
now began to take place. His<br />
heart ached deeply for religion.<br />
He was inspired by meetings<br />
with Madame Blavatsky and<br />
Annie Besant. He read their<br />
books on <strong>The</strong>osophy and read<br />
the Bible. He was impressed<br />
by the similarity <strong>of</strong> the<br />
teachings <strong>of</strong> the Sermon on<br />
the Mount and the Gita. He<br />
began reading the Gita only<br />
during his second year in<br />
London, and in it found the<br />
comfort and solace he sought.<br />
Gandhiji studied French,<br />
Latin and science. He was<br />
called to the Bar in 1891,<br />
after which he at once sailed<br />
for India. On his return to his<br />
native land he began to study<br />
Indian Law. At Rajkot he<br />
established a moderately<br />
successful practice. While<br />
there, he was insulted by a<br />
political agent, a British <strong>of</strong>ficer<br />
who was prejudiced against<br />
Gandhiji’s brother. This insult<br />
changed the course <strong>of</strong> his life,<br />
inspiring him with the desire<br />
to learn something about the<br />
politics <strong>of</strong> his country.<br />
60 YOGALife |Autumn/Winter 2015