Shrimad Rajchandra And Mahatma Gandhi

Author(s): Kumarpal Desai
Publisher: Raj Saubhag Satsang Mandal

Page 87

An Enlightening Chapter in History
An important chapter in the religious, spiritual, and cultural history of India was the creation of a strong spiritual bond between Shrimad Rajchandra and Mahatma Gandhi. Shrimad was about two years older than Gandhiji, who considered Shrimad to be his spiritual guide. This is sufficient to express not only the greatness of Shrimad's spiritual stature but also the sincerity in Gandhiji's quest for the truth.
Gandhiji had commenced the observance of celibacy from the year VS 1956, and in VS 1962 he along with his wife, Kasturba, took vows of complete and lifelong celibacy. In his autobiography ‘My Experiments with Truth', Gandhiji writes about this decision:
“Whilst in South Africa, it occurred to me that I should observe complete celibacy, even with my wife. I cannot recollect any incident or a book that gave rise to this idea. But I do recall that Rajchandra had played an important and influencing role in this decision."