A dip into the Satyana Prayogo

Hello everyone,

Literature is classified into various genres, such as novel, short story, novella, autobiography, biography, etc. Saint Augustine of Hippo wrote Confessions, the first Western autobiography ever written, around 400. Recently, I came across the autobiography of Mahatma Gandhi. It was the first time that I explored a new genre of biography.

It is divided in five sections. Each section unfolds his phases of life. It's hard to write a good biography because you have to confess all the sides of your life. And Gandhiji confesses every little thing in it. In the first section, he talked about the beginning of his life. Child marriage and his introversion put him in trouble. Moreover, during this period, he had to go abroad for studies.

In infancy he eats nonveg, which he also steals many times. After that, he has regret, and he confesses it in front of his father. Meanwhile, after a short illness, his father died. He depicted the initial struggle of the journey abroad. Along with this, he reads a lot about every religion. Though he wasn't able to put faith in any of them. He completed his studies for an LLB and became a lawyer.

In the second section, he talked about South Africa's Girmitia people. They became victims of Britishers. Even Gandhi himself faces lots of hurdles and inconveniences from the native people. "બીજાને નમોશ કરી મનુષ્યો પોતે કેમ માન માની શકતા હશે એ કોયડો હજુ લાગી ઉકેલાયો નથી." There are lots of incidents, like mistreatment of him in the train, at a hotel, in Ram, etc. Native people treated him as Kuli, which means similar to untouchables. He has to dress up according to their rituals.

However, most of the time he resists them but is eventually mistreated by them. Along with this, he started his lawyer practise and started fighting cases against Girmitia people. He cultivates relationships with the South Indian people, mostly from Madras. In a short time, he won their hearts and became a successful leader. Though he won many cases there, the situation was difficult.

Additionally, he started writing journals to break the cold wave of resistance. He faces financial problems, but somehow he manages them every time. In the third section, he talks about the Mahasabha and the many people connected with it. He learns to work as a nurse. Not only did he and his team go to a medical camp in a war zone, but he also worked on people's bad habits. His servitude and patience to do any work saved many people's lives.

Furthermore, in the later stages of his life, he strongly believes in celibacy. For this, he started doing experiments with his food habits. " કોઈના મન ઉપર ખરી ખાતરી વિના વધારેપડતી અસર પાડવી એ પણ સત્યને ઝાંખપ પહોંચાડનારી વસ્તુ છે. "He believes in non-violence, and that's why he stopped drinking milk. His life and financial management help him to drive institutions, agitate, etc. He firmly believes in truthfulness, and he tried to stick to it. Though he chooses the profession of lawyer,he stays true to it.

In the fifth section, Gandhiji mostly described his service towards Marki's patients. As I told you earlier, he started experimenting with food, but along with this, he started eliminating food. He was most probably on fast. While doing this, he opens one school where everyone contributes their own thing. There is no doubt that he was an exceptional teacher. He thought that whatever we want students to learn, we must start with them by having them participate in it.

In the last section, he provided information on Chmparan satyagraha, Kheda satyagraha, Rolate Act, Asahkar agitation, etc. In the beginning, he chooses the profession of lawyer, but he then becomes a teacher, nurse, clerk, leader, and many more. From the start, he resists his voice against colonies. But he strongly believes that we can change others hearts through good behaviour. He was so down to earth that, though he was at the top of his profession, he never hesitated to do small jobs. He never takes credit for his work; he stands with the people and fights for them.

Moreover, he mentioned that his mentality changes with time. He has agitated without any violence. He is the best example of a leader. The way he confesses everything—his defects, inabilities, and rigidity—is absolutely commendable.

"અહિંસા એ નમ્રતાની પરાકાષ્ટા છે. અને નમ્રતા વિના મુક્તિ કોઈ કાલે નથી એ અનુભવસિદ્ધ વાત છે. "

 Thank you.