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Mahatma Gandhi in Jail.
Daily Routine. IN the following interview, Mr. Kaka Kalelkar, Principal 1 of the Gujarath Vidyapith, who was, till date, the companion of Mahatmaji in jail, describes their daily routine :
We get up early morning at four, when the stars are shining in all their glory. By 4.20, our morning prayer begins. After prayer comes the Gita recitation. The recitation finished, I would go for my morning walk, and Gandhiji would spend half an hour in reading and writing, and then join me. The Gita, the Ashram ideal, food problemi, the wheel, my laxity such are the usual topics during the walk. Exactly at 6, we would sit for our breakfast.
MAHATMAJI'S BREAKFAST His breakfast consists of curds (when he took it) and dates soaked in water. By the time we finished the breakfast, the goats would come to be milked. Gandhiji always enjoys the sight of the kiddies, greedily sucking the milk and bleating every now and then by way of comma and semicolan. A gentle kick from the mother would bring the full stop. Without a moment's delay, Gandhiji sits at the spinning wheel, and the wheel begins to recount the tragic tale of India's woes, and the sure hope of a deliverance. Have you ever heard the pensive notes of a perfect spinning wheel ? Verse by verse, the epic goes on, and it grows upon you.
AT THE WHEEL. With the wheel humming by your side, you never feel solitary. With one or two necessary breaks, the thing goes till half past ten. At about seven, he takes a cup of hot water with lime juice and salt. At half past ten, you can see him going for his bath.
I forgot to tell you that every morning he spends sometime with a carding bow with its rhythmic twang. Half an hour's work gives him more slivers that he can consume
Shree Sudharmaswami Gyanbhandar-Umara, Surat
www.umaragyanbhandar.com
