Describe the journey of Gandhiji and his ashram members in meeting their objective of being able to clothe themselves in the cloth manufactured by them.
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Describe the journey of Gandhiji and his ashram members in meeting their objective of being able to clothe themselves in the cloth manufactured by them.
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Answer:
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Explanation:
The journey of Mahatma Gandhi and his ashram members towards self-sufficiency in clothing is a remarkable chapter in the history of India's struggle for independence. This objective was closely intertwined with Gandhi's larger vision of self-reliance and the promotion of indigenous products. Here's an overview of their journey:
1. **Concept of Swadeshi:** Gandhiji firmly believed in the concept of "Swadeshi," which emphasized the use of locally produced goods and boycotting foreign products, particularly British-made textiles. This concept was not only a means of economic empowerment but also a form of non-cooperation with the British colonial rule.
2. **Establishment of Sabarmati Ashram:** In 1915, Gandhiji set up the Sabarmati Ashram on the banks of the Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. It served as the base for his experiments with self-sufficiency and other aspects of his philosophy. At the Ashram, he started working towards producing his own clothing.
3. **Charkha and Khadi:** Central to this journey was the use of the spinning wheel or "Charkha" to spin cotton into yarn. Gandhiji promoted the use of hand-spun and handwoven cloth called "Khadi." The use of Khadi not only provided a means of self-sustenance but also became a symbol of resistance against British goods.
4. **Leading by Example:** Mahatma Gandhi led by example. He and his ashram members actively engaged in spinning and weaving Khadi. He could often be seen at the Charkha, spinning yarn for his own clothes. This practice set an inspiring precedent for the entire nation.
5. **Promotion of Khadi:** Gandhiji traveled extensively to spread the message of Khadi. He advocated the use of Khadi in his various movements, including the Non-Cooperation Movement and Civil Disobedience Movement. The spinning wheel became a symbol of self-reliance and non-violent resistance.
6. **Boycott of Foreign Cloth:** The call for boycotting British textiles and the adoption of Khadi gained immense popularity across India. People began to weave their own cloth, and Khadi production centers were established to meet the increasing demand.
7. **Impact and Legacy:** The movement towards Khadi had a profound impact on India's socio-economic fabric. It provided employment to a large section of the population, particularly in rural areas. It instilled a sense of self-reliance and dignity among the people. Khadi became a symbol of the Indian identity and the struggle for independence.
8. **Post-Independence:** The legacy of Khadi and the Charkha continues to this day. Khadi remains a symbol of Indian heritage and self-sufficiency. The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) was established in post-independence India to promote Khadi production and other village industries.
Gandhiji's journey towards clothing the nation in Khadi was not just about fabric; it was about empowerment, self-sufficiency, and a rejection of colonialism. His emphasis on Swadeshi and Khadi continues to inspire generations and stands as a testament to the power of self-reliance and non-violent resistance in achieving noble objectives.
Explanation:
The object that we set before ourselves was to be able to clothe ourselves entirely in cloth manufactured by our own hands. We therefore forthwith discarded the use of mill-woven cloth, and all the members of the Ashram resolved to wear hand-woven cloth made from Indian yarn only. The adoption of this practice brought us a world of experience. It enabled us to know, from direct contact, the conditions of life among the weavers, the extent of their production, the handicaps in the way of their obtaining their yarn supply, the way in which they were being made victims of fraud, and, lastly, their ever growing indebtedness. We were not in a position immediately to manufacture all the cloth for our needs. The alternative therefore was to get our cloth supply from handloom weavers. But ready-made cloth from Indian mill-yarn was not easily obtainable either from the cloth-dealers or from the weavers themselves. All the fine cloth woven by the weavers was from foreign yarn, since Indian mills did not spin fine counts. Even today the out-turn of higher counts by Indian mills is very limited, whilst highest counts they cannot spin at all. It was after the greatest effort that we were at last able to find some weavers who condescended to weave Swadeshi yarn for us, and only on condition that the Ashram would take up all the cloth that they might produce. By thus adopting cloth woven from mill-yarn as our wear, and propagating it among our friends, we made ourselves voluntary agents of the Indian spinning mills. This in its turn brought us into contact with the mills, and enabled us to know something about their management and their handicaps. We saw that the aim of the mills was more and more to weave the yarn spun by them; their co-operation with the handloom weaver was not willing, but unavoidable and temporary. We became impatient to be able to spin our own yarn. It was clear that, until we could do this ourselves, dependence on the mills would remain. We did not feel that we could render any service to the country by continuing as agents of Indian spinning mills.
No end of difficulties again faced us. We could get neither spinning wheel nor a spinner to teach us how to spin. We were employing some wheels for filling pearns and bobbins for weaving in the Ashram. But we had no idea that these could be used as spinning wheels. Once Kalidas Jhaveri discovered a woman who, he said, would demonstrate to us how spinning was done. We sent to her a member of the Ashram who was known for his great versatility in learning new things. But even he returned without wresting the secret of the art.
So the time passed on, and my impatience grew with the time. I plied every chance visitor to the Ashram who was likely to possess some information about hand spinning with questions about the art. But the art being confined to women and having been all but exterminated, if there was some stray spinner still surviving in some obscure corner, only a member of that sex was likely to find out her whereabouts.
In the year 1917 I was taken by my Gujarati friends to preside at the Broach Educational Conference. It was here that I discovered that remarkable lady Gangabehn Majmundar. She was a widow, but her enterprising spirit knew no bounds. Her education, in the accepted sense of the term, was not much. But in courage and commonsense she easily surpassed the general run of our educated women. She had already got rid of the curse of untouchability, and fearlessly moved among and served the suppressed classes. She had means of her own, and her needs were few. She had a well seasoned constitution, and went about everywhere without an escort. She felt quite at home on horseback. I came to know her more intimately at the Godhra Conference. To her I poured out my grief about the charkha, and she lightened my burden by a promise to prosecute an earnest and incessant search for the spinning wheel.