Commmorating Mahatma Gandhi’s 73rd Anniversary of Martyrdom
Houston: On January 30, 2021, the Eternal Gandhi Museum Houston, EGMH, along with Arya Samaj Greater Houston, Unity of Houston, The Ismaili Jamatkhana and Center Houston, Rothko Chapel, Bahai’ Faith of Houston, and others virtually commemorated the 73rd anniversary of the martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi for Truth & Nonviolence as Shraddhanjali. The program began with […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 5
The story thus far…In South Africa, Gandhi saw how the Indians were treated as inferiors, only allowed to work the soil but not permitted to own land. Under the law enacted in the Orange Free State in 1888, Indians had been deprived of […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 4
Gandhi’s Impact on South Africa The story thus far… Gandhi arrives in South Africa and is rudely made aware of the rampant racism in that country when has to visit Pretoria on work. He is unceremoniously thrown off a 1st class compartment on a train to Johannesburg. He manages to board another train where his […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 3
Gandhi in South Africa The story thus far: Gandhi, having studied well and completed his law degree in England, returns to India. He misses England but is happy to be reunited with his family. He begins practicing law in Rajkot. Upon return to India, Gandhi started to practice law in Rajkot, but he was soon […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 2
Gandhi in England Gandhiji’s Story Thus Far… Last week, we read about the birth and youth of the young boy Mohandas, who would grow up to be universally revered as the Mahatma. He had an ordinary childhood, went to school, made friends, and got a rude awakening into the dreaded social specter of the caste […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 1
Young Mohandas is Born in 1869 Born more than 130 years ago, the life and times of the man who would grow up to be universally known as The Mahatma, still resonates until today. Mohandas Gandhi had an ordinary childhood in Porbandar, on the coast of Kathiawad in the western state of Gujarat, a loved […]
1000 Lights for Peace, 149th Birth Anniversary Celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi
HOUSTON: Let the lighting of lamps for peace be not an empty gesture, but light the lamp in your heart with courage and oil of love, said Dr. Sita Kapadia, a Gandhian, at the “1000 lights for peace” event celebrating Gandhi Jayanthi at Miller Outdoor Theater in Hermann Park, Houston on Sunday. Dr. Kapadia, emeritus […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 18
The story thus far… After the defeat of Japan in August 1945, Britain agreed to a planned withdrawal from India. All through his life Gandhi had worked for unity between Hindus and Muslims, without much success. There was a large section of nationalist Muslim in the Congress but leaders of the Muslim League were drifting further […]
Mahatma Gandhi’s Sesquicentennial Celebrations Begin with Event at Asia Society
By Pramod Kulkarni HOUSTON: Mahatma Gandhi is the apostle of satyagraha, the struggle against injustice through nonviolence. Gandhi’s Satyagraha helped achieve human rights for Indian migrant laborers in South Africa in the early 1900s and India’s independence from British rule in 1947. Others have adapted satyagraha for their own struggles for freedom such as the […]
Gandhi Fights British Attempt to Divide Hindus – Part 15
At home Gandhi found that the Government had returned to the policy of repression. There were widespread arrests and the Government seized the properties and bank balances of people and organizations who were hostile to their interests. Early in 1932 Gandhi wanted to meet the new Viceroy, Lord Willingdon, but the Viceroy made it clear […]
Gandhi’s Arrest Creates Sensation Worldwide – Part 14
The story thus far… Newspaper reporters from all over the world were there to report the progress of the Gandhi’s satyagraha. The march ended on April 5 at Dandi village. Gandhi and his selected followers went to the sea shore and broke the salt law by picking up salt left on the shore by the […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 13
The story thus far…It was announced that a meeting was to be held in a garden called Jallianwala Bagh, to protest against the government’s actions. General Dyer took no measures to prevent the meeting. He reached the place soon after the meeting began and he took with him armored cars and troops. Without giving any […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 12
The Story thus far…A separate institution named Satyagraha Sabha was formed with headquarters in Bombay. There were agitations everywhere against the Rowlatt Committee’s report. But the government was determined to implement the Rowlatt recommendations and in 1919, the Rowlatt Bill was introduced. When the bill was debated in India’s Legislative Chamber, Gandhi attended as a […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 11
The story thus far… For two years Gandhi traveled extensively in India and had talked at different places. His interest first centered on the problem of indentured labor where poor, ignorant laborers were enticed away from India to work in the British colonies. He disapproved of this system in South Africa, fought it there, and he […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 10
Gandhi Invites Untouchable Family to Ashram The story thus far…. Gandhi permitted a lower caste family to reside at the ashram that he established at Ahmedabad. He met with much opposition. He also amazed and angered the British officers, upper-class Indians, and friends gathered at a foundation stone laying ceremony at Banaras University by speaking out […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 9
Gandhi invites untouchable family to ashram The story thus far…. Gandhi went to Rajkot and Porbandar to meet his relatives and then went on to Shantiniketan. There Gandhi met poet laureate Rabindranath Tagore for the first time, as well as C. F. Andrews. Andrews, who came to India as an Anglican priest in 1904, was […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 8
First Victory for the Satyagraha Experiment The story thus far… a recent court decision in South Africa held that the law did not recognize Indian marriages. The women were suitably offended by this and found it an attack on their basic family values. They openly broke the law and were imprisoned in large numbers. In […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 6
The story thus far… Gandhi’s activism on behalf of the Indians in South Africa, brought him much strife. The local Afrikaners and the British considered him as a troublemaker. He was attacked by angry mobs. With his calm demeanor, he wins over the people, and even gets to help create an ambulance corps. The Durban police […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 5
Story of Mahatma Gandhi The story thus far… In South Africa, Gandhi saw how the Indians were treated as inferiors, only allowed to work the soil but not permitted to own land. Under the law enacted in the Orange Free State in 1888, Indians had been deprived of their rights. In Transvaal, they had to pay […]
The Extraordinary Life and Times of Mahatma Gandhi – Part 4
Gandhi’s Impact in South Africa The story thus far… Gandhi arrives in South Africa and is rudely made aware of the rampant racism in that country when has to visit Pretoria on work. He is unceremoniously thrown off a 1st class compartment on a train to Johannesburg. He manages to board another train where his […]