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Jinamañjari, Volume 23, No.1, April 2001
RAJACHANDRA AND HIS INFLUENCE ON MAHATMA GANDHI
Dr. Jagmoban Humar Carleton University Ottawa, Canada
The life of Mahatma Gandhi and his message have left an indelible mark on our civilisation. In fact, there are few others whose life has been so closely scrutinized, analysed and reported on. Many question the relevance of his message in the modem world, but if one reflects on the causes of violence, bigotry and intolerance that pervade our society, and for the moral decadence and degeneration that is taking hold of our civilisation, one soon realises that the message of Gandhi has never been more relevant than in the present.
Throughout his life Gandhi dedicated himself to the exploration of truth. He sought it in the writings, and the experience of thinkers, and in their many religious beliefs. Hinduism had a marked influence on his thinking and his action. It is also well known that he drew a great deal of inspiration from the Gita. What is perhaps not as well known is that Jainism, its principles and its philosophy, made an equally profound impression on him.
Gandhi was born and lived in Gujarat where the Jaina tradition still has a pervading influence. However, his first real exposure to Jaina religious thought came in 189 1. In the month of June that year Gandhi returned to India after having spent three years in England earning his law degree. On arriving at the Bombay docks, Gandhi was met by his brother Lakshmandas. It was then that Gandhi learned that while he was in England his beloved mother had passed away. he was told that the news had been kept from him to spare him the sorrow.
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Gandhi was grief-stricken. It was at such a sombre time that his friend Dr. P.J. Mehta, with whom he was staying in Bombay, introduced Gandhi to a person who could provide him with solace and spiritual sustenance. This person was Raichandbhai, also called
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