A Week With Gandhi by Louis Fischer

Author:Louis Fischer [Fischer, Louis]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Asia, India & South Asia, Religion, Hinduism, Health & Fitness, Yoga, Longevity
ISBN: 9781786254924
Google: njdwCwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
Published: 2015-11-06T02:57:54+00:00

June 7, 1942

THE PHOTOGRAPHS taken yesterday by Kano Gandhi, the Mahatma’s nephew, did not turn out because the films were out of date, and so I shaved again early this morning and walked over to Gandhi. I again found him scooping mango sauce out of a deep glass while his wife fanned him. He asked me how I had slept. I told him I had slept very well, and asked how he had slept. He said he usually sleeps from 9:30 to 4:30.

“Without interruption?” I asked.

“No,” he replied, “with two or three very brief interruptions. But I have no trouble falling asleep again. And then I have half an hour’s sleep every afternoon.” I told him that Churchill did the same. “I hear,” he said, “that this is becoming more and more customary in Europe. Especially in old age it is very important.” I told him that it had been reported that Roosevelt falls asleep the moment he gets into bed. Gandhi inquired about Roosevelt’s health and then asked me to describe Mrs. Roosevelt to him. “Then she has an influence on American politics?” he asked. I tried to explain the progress in social legislation, trade-union organization, and social thinking which had taken place under the New Deal. I also stressed the fact that the American government is financing foreign governments and financing domestic war industries. I compared that with the private financing of foreign governments and of American industry during the first World War.

“What about the Negroes?” Gandhi asked.

I talked about the Negro situation in the North and South. I said I did not, of course, wish to defend the treatment meted out to Negroes, but it seemed to me that it was not so cruel as untouchability in India.

“As you know,” he answered, “I have fought untouchability for many years. We have many untouchables here in the ashram. Most of the work in the ashram is done by the untouchables, and any Hindu who comes to Sevagram must accept food from untouchables and remain in their proximity.

I asked whether the discrimination against untouchables had been somewhat alleviated. “Oh, yes,” he replied, “but it is still very bad.” Kurshed came over and said something in Hindustani which made him laugh. I asked what it was, and she told me she had said, “I bow to your feet.” I said it was like the men in Vienna who say, “I kiss your hand,” but don’t do it. Gandhi laughed. Two young boys appeared as he stood up, and they wriggled into position so that he would lean on them during his walk. There is always quite a competition for this honor. One evening a girl came out from the village to meet our group as we returned from the walk, and she skillfully maneuvered herself to Gandhi’s side so that the girl who had been there was forced to surrender her place.

I returned to the subject of untouchability as soon as we had started on the morning promenade. I said,

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.