GENERAL ENGLISH ASSIGNMENT

HARDSHIPS FACED BY GANDHI

IN INTIAL YEARS OF PRATICE
-AN ANALYSIS
A.BERTIL STEFHANIA

I BBA LLB
 SYNOPSIS

 Birth and parentage of Mohandass karamjanth

Gandhi
 Childhood
 Preparation for England
 Preparation for the bar
 Gandhi’s helplessness
 Beginning of Gandhi’s life as a lawyer
 Gandhi’s first shock
 Invitation to go to Africa
 Conclusion
 End notes
BIRTH AND PARENTAGE OF MOHADASS KARAMJANTH
GANDHI
The Gandhis belong to the Bania caste .But for three
generations, from MK Gandhi; they have been Prime Ministers
in several Kathiawar States. Uttamchand Gandhi, alias Ota
Gandhi, M K Gandhi’s grandfather, must have been a man of
principle. State intrigues compelled him to leave Porbandar,
where he was Diwan, and to seek refuge in Junagadh. There he
saluted the Nawab with the left hand. Someone, noticing the
apparent discourtesy, asked for an explanation, which was given
thus: 'The right hand is already pledged to Porbandar.' Ota
Gandhi married a second time, having lost his first wife. He had
four sons by his first wife and two by his second wife. Gandhi
does not think that in his childhood he ever felt or knew that
these sons of Ota Gandhi were not all of the same mother. The
fifth of these six brothers was Karamchand Gandhi, alias Kaba
Gandhi, and the sixth was Tulsidas Gandhi. Both these brothers
were Prime Ministers in Porbandar, one after the other. Kaba
Gandhi was my father. He was a member of the Rajasthan
Court. It is now extinct, but in those days it was a very
influential body for settling disputes between the chiefs and
their fellow clansmen. He was for some time Prime Minister in
Rajkot and then in Vankaner. He was a pensioner of the Rajkot
State when he died. Kaba Gandhi married four times in
succession, having lost his wife each time by death. He had two
daughters by his first and second marriages. His last wife,
Putlibai, bore him a daughter and three sons, Gandhi being the
youngest. His father was a lover of his clan, truthful, brave and
generous, but short-tempered. To a certain extent he might have
been given to carnal pleasures. For he married for the fourth
time when he was over forty. But he was incorruptible and had
earned a name for strict impartiality in his family as well as
outside. His loyalty to the state was well known. An Assistant
Political Agent spoke insultingly of the Rajkot Thakore Saheb,
his chief, and he stood up to the insult. The Agent was angry
and asked Kaba Gandhi to apologize. This he refused to do and
was therefore kept under detention for a few hours. But when
the Agent saw that Kaba Gandhi was adamant, he ordered him
to be released. Gandhiji’s father never had any ambition to
accumulate riches and left them very little property. He had no
education, save that of experience. At best, he might be said to
have read up to the fifth Gujarati standard. Of history and
geography he was innocent. But his rich experience of practical
affairs stood him in good stead in the solution of the most
intricate questions and in managing hundreds of men. Of
religious training he had very little, but he had that kind of
religious culture which frequent visits to temples and listening
to religious discourses make available to many Hindus. In his
last days he began reading the Gita at the instance of a learned
Brahman friend of the family, and he used to repeat aloud some
verses every day at the time of worship. The outstanding
impression my mother has left on Gandhi’s memory is that of
saintliness. She was deeply religious. She would not think of
taking her meals without her daily prayers. Going to Haveli -the
Vaishnava temple-was one of her daily duties. As far as his
memory can go back, gandhiji does not remember her having
ever missed the Chaturmas. She would take the hardest vows
and keep them without flinching. Illness was no excuse for
relaxing them. He could recall her once falling ill when she was
observing the Chandrayana vow, but the illness was not allowed
to interrupt the observance. To keep two or three consecutive
fasts was nothing to her. Living on one meal a day during
Chaturmas was a habit with her. Not content with that she
fasted every alternate day during one Chaturmas. During
another Chaturmas she vowed not to have food without seeing
the sun. Children at Gandhi’s home on those days would stand,
staring at the sky, waiting to announce the appearance of the
sun to our mother. Everyone knows that at the height of the
rainy season the sun often does not condescend to show his
face. And he remembers days when, at his sudden appearance,
we would rush and announce it to her, she would run out to be
with her own eyes, but by that time the fugitive sun would be
gone, thus depriving her of her meal. "That does not matter;"
she would say cheerfully, "God did not want me to eat today."
 And then she would return to her round of duties. Gandhiji’s
mother had strong commonsense. She was well informed about
all matters of state, and ladies of the court thought highly of her
intelligence. Often he would accompany her, exercising the
privilege of childhood, and he still remember many lively
discussions she had with the widowed mother of the Thakore
Saheb. Of these parents Gandhi was born at Porbandar,
otherwise known as Sudamapuri, on the 2nd October, 1869, I
passed my childhood in Porbandar. He recollects having been
put to school. It was with some difficulty that he got through the
multiplication tables. The fact that he recollect nothing more of
those days than having learnt, in company with other boys, to
call our teacher all kinds of names, would strongly suggest that
his intellect must have been sluggish, and Gandhi ‘s memory
raw.
CHILDHOOD
Mohandas Karmchand Gandhi must have been about seven when his
father left Porbandar for Rajkot to become a member of the Rajasthan
Court. There he was put into a primary school, and he can well
recollect those days, including the names and other particulars of the
teachers who taught him. As at Porbandar, so here, there is hardly
anything to note about my studies. Gandhi could only have been a
mediocre student. From this school he went to the suburban school
and thence to the high school, having already reached my twelfth
year. He do not remember having ever told a lie, during this short
period, either to his teachers or to his school-mates, he used to be
very shy and avoided all company. Gandhi’s books and lessons were
his sole companions. To be at school at the stroke of the hour and to
run back home as soon as the school closed-that was his daily habit.
He literally ran back, because he could not bear to talk to anybody.
He was even afraid lest anyone should poke fun at him. There is an
incident which occurred at the examination during his first year at the
high school and which is worth recording. Mr Giles, the educational
Inspector, had come on a visit of inspection. He had set us five words
to write as a spelling exercise. One of the words was 'Kettle'. He had
misspelt it. The teacher tried to prompt him with the point of his boot,
but Gandhi would not be prompted. It was beyond Gandhi to see that
he wanted him to copy the spelling from his neighbour's slate, for he
had thought that the teacher was there to supervise him against
copying. The result was that all the boys, except Gandhi himself,
were found to have spelt every word correctly. Only he had been
stupid. The teacher tried later to bring this stupidity home to him. But
without effect. He never could learn the art of 'copying'. Yet the
incident did not in the least diminish his respect for his teacher.
Gandhi was by nature, blind to the faults of elders. Later he came to
know of many other failings of this teacher, but Gandhi’s regard for
him remained the same. For he had learnt to carry out the orders of
elders, not to scan their actions. Two other incidents belonging to the
same period have always clung to his memory. As a rule he had
distaste for any reading beyond his school books. The daily lessons
had to be done, because Gandhi disliked being taken to task by his
teacher as much as Gandhi disliked deceiving him. Therefore he
would do the lessons, but often without his mind in them. Thus when
even the lessons could not be done properly, there was of course no
question of any extra reading. But somehow Gandhi’s eyes fell on a
book purchased by his father. It was Shravana Pitribhakti Nataka (a
play about Sharavana's devotion to his parents). He read it with
intense interest. There came to his place about the same time itinerant
showmen. One of the pictures he was shown was of Shravana
carrying, by means of slings fitted for his shoulders, his blind parents
on a pilgrimage. The book and the picture left an indelible impression
on my mind. 'Here is an example for you to copy,' he said to himself.
The agonized lament of the parents over Shravana's death is still fresh
in his memory. The melting tune moved me deeply, and I played it on
a concertina which my father had purchased for me. There was a
similar incident connected with another play. Just about this time, he
had secured Gandhi’s father’s permission to see a play performed by
a certain dramatic company. This play Harishchandra- captured his
heart. Gandhi could never be tired of seeing it. But how often should
he be permitted to go? It haunted him and Gandhi must have acted
Harishchandra to myself times without number. 'Why should not all
be truthful like Harishchandra?' was the question he asked himself
day and night. To follow truth and to go through all the ordeals.
Harishchandra went through was the one ideal it inspired in Gandhi.
He literally believed in the story of Harishchandra. The thought of it
all often made Gandhi weep. His commonsense tells me today that
Harishchandra could not have been a historical character. Still both
Harishchandra and Shravana are living realities for him, and he is
sure Gandhi should be moved as before if he were to read those plays
again today.2
PREPARATION FOR ENGLAND

After passing his high school examination, Mohandas joined the

Samaldas College at Bhavnagar. As he did not fined the classes
interesting, he returned home after the first term.
There a big surprise awaiting him. His eldest brother and family
friend suggested that Mohandas should go to England to study and
become a barrister. Mohandas was thrilled. Here was a chance for
him to see the world.
But his mother did not like the idea of his going to England. She did
not want her youngest son to stay away from her. There was also the
problem of money. Moreover, she feared that Mohandas would lose
his caste if he crossed the ocean. The family friend assured her that
there would be no much difficulty and everything would be all right.
But his mother was still opposed to the idea.
'I know many reasons why it is dangerous for a Hindu to leave India,'
she explained to him. 'You will have to eat meat. They drink wine
there and you will be tempted to drink wine. Then you might fall into
bad company, and there are many other temptations which may spoil
you.'
'No, mother,' said Mohandas. 'I am no longer a child. I can look after
myself.'
He pleaded with her to allow him to go, and he took a vow not to eat
meat, not to drink, and not to touch a woman. Putlibai at last gave in
and allowed him to go to England. When he left Rajkot for Bombay,
because he had to leave behind his mother, his wife, and his son who
was only a few months old.
On September 4, 1888, Mohandas left Bombay for England. Dressed
in western style, he stood on the deck as the ship slowly steamed out
of the harbour. He was sad, but he was also excited.
Mohandas never forget his first morning on board. He wore a black
suit, a white shirt, a stiff collar pinched him. It was quite a job to knot
his tie property. The tight, short coat also made him ill at ease. He
thought that Indian dress was much more comfortable. Yet a glance
in the mirror made him feel proud of himself. He thought he looked
very impressive.
Mohandas was shy. He rarely left his cabin. He even ate his food
there alone. He was not sure of all those unknown dishes served on
the shop. He thought they might contain meat. He did not wish to
break his vow to his mother, so he lived mainly on the sweets he had
taken with him.3 Gandhi promised his mother the he wouldn’t touch –
women, wine and meat.
PREPARATION FOR BAR
As the Bar examinations did not require much study, Gandhi
did not feel pressed for time. He therefore thought that he
should not only be called to the Bar, but has some literary
degree as well. He inquired about the Oxford and Cambridge
University courses but gave up the idea of going to either of
these places as it would have meant greater expense and a much
longer stay in England than he was prepared for. Ultimately he
decided to study for the London Matriculation. It appears,
however, that from 1888 to 1889, Gandhi had enrolled himself
as a student in the University College, London, for recently the
University College, London has proudly claimed Gandhi as one
of its 18th Century distinguished alumni. The alumni
department of the college dug back its archives and found an
old card index box containing a small yellowing index card in
which is handwritten Gandhiji's name and dates of attendances.
It is now established that Gandhi from 1888 to 1889 was
enrolled as a student in the University College, London for
courses in Indian law and jurisprudence.4
Gandhi took his studies seriously and tried to brush up on his
English and Latin by taking the University of
London matriculation examination. But, during the three years
he spent in England, his main preoccupation was with personal
and moral issues rather than with academic ambitions. The
transition from the half-rural atmosphere of Rajkot to
the cosmopolitan life of London was not easy for him. As he
struggled painfully to adapt himself to Western food, dress, and
etiquette, he felt awkward. Gandhi had hard time in England.5
His weak English was a perpetual worry to me. Mr. (afterwards
Sir Frederic) Lely's words, 'Graduate first and then come to me,'
still rang in my ears. He framed his own time-table to the
minute; but neither his intelligence nor memory promised to
enable him to tackle Latin and French besides other subjects
within the given period. The result was that he was ploughed in
Latin. He was sorry but did not lose heart. He had acquired a
taste for Latin, also thought French would be all the better for
another trial
BEGINING OF GANDHI’S LIFE AS A LAWYER
As his ship steamed into Bombay harbour, Gandhi saw his
brother waiting at the quayside. He ran down the gangway to
meet him. As they exchanged greetings, Mohandas noticed that
his brother looked sad.
'You have bad news for me?' he asked.
'Yes,' his brother replied with tears in his eyes. 'We did not want
to disturb you during your examination. Our dear mother. She
died a few weeks back.'
Mohandas was shocked. His mother had meant so much to him.
He had come back to tell her that he had kept the promises he
had made before he went abroad, but now she was no more.
What a sad home-coming!
At Rajkot, he set up practice as a barrister. Soon however, he
was disgusted with the greed and pettiness that he found among
the lawyers. Gandhi realized that it was difficult for the poor
and the humble to get justice from the courts of law. He was not
happy with his life at Rajkot and he longed to get away.
It was then that an offer came to him to go to South Africa on
behalf of Dada, Abdullah &co. who owned big business
concerns there. They had filed a suit against another firm for
 four hundred thousand dollars. They wanted Gandhi to take up
the case because he spoke English well and knew English law.
In addition to arguing their well and knew English law. In
addition to arguing their case, they wanted him to handle the
firm's correspondence in English. His services were required for
one year and the company promised to pay a handsome fee and
the first-class return fare.
The opportunity to see a new country and new people excited
Gandhi and he accepted the offer.
It was painful for him to be parted from Kasturbai again so
soon, but he was determined to go. In April 1893 he left
Bombay for South Africa.7
GANDHI’S FIRST CASE
Gandhiji’s first case in India after returning from Landon as a
law graduate was a case of land dispute.
GANDHI’S FIRST SHOCK
In Rajkot, Gandhi drafts applications and memorials
for his brother's poor clients. His brother has some trouble
with a British officer whom Gandhi knew in England, so
the brother asks our hero to go to the officer and put in a
good word. Gandhi feels it is wrong to do so because he
barely knew this officer guy in England, but he does so to
help his brother anyway. The officer throws him out.
From this experience, Gandhi learns not to abuse an
acquaintance

INVITION TO GO TO AFRICA
 South Africa he witnessed the ugly face of white racism and the
humiliation and contempt to which Asians who had gone to South
Africa as labourers were subjected. He decided to stay in South
Africa to organise the Indian workers to enable them to fight for their
rights. He stayed there till 1914 after which he returned to India. The
Indians in South Africa consisted of three categories one, the
indentured Indian labour, mainly from south India, who had migrated
to South Africa after 1890 to work on sugar plantations; two, the
merchants mostly Meman Muslims who had followed the labourers;
and three, the ex-indentured labourers who had settled down with
their children in South Africa after the expiry of their contracts.
These Indians were mostly illiterate and had little or no knowledge of
English. They accepted racial discrimination as a part of their daily
existence. The disabilities these Indian immigrants had to suffer were
many. They were denied the right to vote. They could reside only in
prescribed locations which were insanitary and congested. In some
colonies, Asians and Africans could not stay out of doors after 9 pm
nor could they use public footpaths9.
 CONCLUSION
Gandhi faced many challenges in his lifetime. He was so well known
for overcoming many challenges such as; Ridiculous discrimination
for being an Indian in South Africa, he was humiliated and beaten for
what he believed in. An example of the battles Gandhi had to face is:
On his way to Pretoria he was travelling in the first class section of
the train, but a white passenger and railway officials asked him to
leave the first class section. Gandhi refused, so he was thrown out
along with his luggage, on the platform of Maritz burg station where
he spent the night shivering and thinking furiously. He ultimately
made up his mind to stay in South Africa, fight the racial
discrimination and suffer hardships. It was a historic decision. It
transformed Gandhi. Gandhi was a man who faced many challenges
that he tried to overcome. He tried to look on the positive side of
every situation, and remain optimistic. One challenge that made a big
difference in Gandhi's view of South African whites was when he
went to South Africa to practice law, and he earned a lot of money
from this, but he was treated very unfairly while he was there. South
Asians were called 'coolies' by the South African whites, meaning
that they were thought to be untouchable by people of higher standing
people. Gandhi faced many people who were prejudiced, and were
disgusted by the Indians. These unfair things helped Gandhi realize
that being fair and peaceful was what the government should be about
and do, and that India needed to be free from British and whites' rule
END NOTES-
1-mohandas K Gandhi auto biogragraphy: the story of my
experiments with truth by Mahatma Gandhi page-1, 2, 3.
2-Ibid note 1 at page 4, 5, 6.
3-the story of Gandhi written by Raj kumara shaker
Page-26, 27
4- MK Gandhi homage to the debarred page 146
5-supra note 3 at page 56
6-the law and the lawyers by M K Gandhi compiled and edited
by S B Khed page 27
7-Supra note 5 at page 70
8-supra note 1 page 78
9-ibid page 82