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Gandhi's Teachers : Rajchandra Ravjibhai Mehta
latter was true. Then what should be his relationship with his wife and how that relationship could be made more pure and selfless, he considered. Gandhi resolved thereupon that he would take the vow of brahmacharya and have only pure and selfless relationship with his wife.
Earlier also starting in 1901, Gandhi had tried to control his sex drive. But the motive at that time was to escape from having more children through natural birth control methods. He and his wife started sleeping in separate beds and Gandhi would return to his bed only after the day's hard work had completely exhausted him. These measures did not work and Gandhi failed twice in his efforts at observing brahmacharya. In 1906, he had a full discussion of the matter with his wife and explained his thoughts to her. The wife had no objection to Gandhi's plan of having no more sex relations with her. Gandhi succeeded this time and never broke the vow of brahmacharya again. He shares:
"After full discussion and mature deliberation I took the vow in 1906. I had not shared my thoughts with my wife until then, but only consulted her at the time of taking the vow. She had no objection. But I had great difficulty in making the final resolve. I had not the necessary strength. How was I to control my passions? The elimination of carnal relationship with one's wife seemed then a strange thing. But I launched forth with faith in the sustaining power of God... As I look back upon the twenty years of the vow, I am filled with pleasure and wonderment... The freedom and joy that came to me after taking the vow, had never been experienced before 1906."
Having himself tried and finally accepted the vow of brahmacharya, Gandhi explains that the observance of brahmacharya is not just abstinence from sexual activity and sexual desires. Rather it requires control over all the senses related to hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, touching, and the thought pattern. Anyone who tries to control only sex drive and allows other senses a free play is bound to fail in the effort at brahmacharya. Gandhi also tries to explain that it is
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