Today is the excursion tour day. We went to see two prominent historic site in Ahmadabad. The first stop was the place where Gandhiji isolated himself when he returned back from South Africa, a country where he gained knowledge about rebellion against the European colonizer is a legitimate action and must be done. It is now called Sabarmati Ashram (also known as Gandhi Ashram, Harijan Ashram, or Satyagraha Ashram) and is located in the Sabarmati suburb of Ahmadabad, adjoining the Ashram Road, on the banks of the River Sabarmati. This was one of the residences of Mahatma Gandhi who lived there for about twelve years along with his wife Kasturba Gandhi, after he returned back from South Africa. Ashram means monastery. This was the place where he trained countless Indian followers to fight against the British colonizers. It was also served as his base when he led the Dandi march (241 miles from the ashram) also known as the Salt Satyagraha on 12 March 1930, with 78 companions in protest at the British Salt Law that increased the taxes on Indian salt in an effort to promote sales of British salt in India. In recognition of this march and its significant influence for the Indian independence, the Indian government has established the ashram as a national monument.
Gandhi perfectly knew that unless they (the Indian) do the dirty job and librate their country, no one can do it for them. He also knew that can not come without any scarification, but he was very much prepared to pay whatever price the colonizers may tag on him. While at the ashram, he formed a tertiary school that focused on manual labour, agriculture and literacy, in order to advance the awareness of Indians so that they understand his efforts for the nation's self-sufficiency. He also wrote several articles about this in which made colonizers uncomfortable. Although his eye opener articles draw unimaginable support from the Indian and even attracted massive follower into his little monastery, it costed him several scarification to pay. He was beaten, arrested, sentenced to serve longtime in Jail though it was not as long as 28 years as Mandela did to liberate South African from the ruthless Apartheid rulers. Gandhi also knew economic pressures on the rulers was the main tools to liberate India, and educated India to do just that. The economic pressures includes boycotting foreign products, such us clothes, alcohol, salts and others. He even requested Indian to burn their foreign clothes and asked them to make their clothes from domestic cotton, though most of the cotton farms are owned by the rulers. (Every time, I visited any historical place I always found some kind of similarities. For example, the equipment the Gandhi followers were using to make their clothes at the monastery looks very much similar with the equipment that the Ethiopian still use in the countryside to make the traditional clothes.) All these mass civil disobedience that he led had of course severe consequences. For example, his Salt march led to the jailing of some 60,000 freedom fighters by the British Raj over the following three weeks and losing control of his base, ashram. Since the British rulers refused to give his base back, Gandhi later disband the ashram and make his once crowded base a deserted place but local citizens decided to preserve it. Gandhi had vowed that he would not return to the ashram until India had gained independence, and he was assassinated on 30 January 1948.
The first house in ashram where Gandhi and his family lived!
The instrument that was used to make clothes from cotton!
Protest symbolism; hear no evil, see no evil, and speak no evil!
Leaving Ashram with full of new culture!
The next stop was Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel national memorial, which is a museum and exhibition centre dedicated to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (the first home minister of India after independence) at Moti Shahi Mahal, located in Shahibaug, Ahmedabad. Moti Shahi Mahal was constructed by the Mughal emperor Shahjahan between 1618 and 1622. The saloon is spacious and lofty as the building; the walls are covered with a white stucco, polished like the finest marble, and the ceiling is painted in small compartments with much taste. The angular recesses lead to eight small octagon rooms, four below and as many above with separate stairs to each. They are finished in the same style as the saloon. The flat roof commands a wide view; the rooms under the saloon, and a surrounding platform ornamented with small canals and fountains, form a cool retreat. Vallabhbhai Patel memorial is also located on the ground floor of the palace, covering the central hall and four adjacent rooms. Patel, as India's first home minister after independence, was very instrumental in integrating princely states into India and created a unified India that the world knows today. In short, he saved India from disintegration into pieces; because right after independence, many of the princely states intended to declare independence and consider themselves as sovereign countries. Patel protected such act with very matured diplomacy and even by force when the diplomacy failed. That is why he earned special respect by many Indians, probably the same respect as Mahatma Gandh, his comradeship.
The palace from the front end!
Finally, our excursion concluded by having the conference gala dinner at the Narayani Height hotel, Bhat, Gandhinagar. The reception was arranged outside with live Indian dance performances. It was there where we saw unbelievable performances. Until I saw it that day, I never believed that anyone can burn fire on top her head and boil a tea with it while dancing an elegant dance. It was amazing and very scary to watch actually. Here is what had happened, a young beautiful lady put some kind of towel on top of her head, put some kind of rounded head rap that was socked with fuel, then placed a jar half filed with cold milk and tea spices, then lighted the head rap with fire, and started dancing around the stage with a music while the fire is burning and cooking the tea at the top of her head. She even stepped on the nails and glasses while she was dancing. She dance as if nothing is on top of hear head for an extended time, which was until tea got well cooked. Finally she demonstrated to her audience that she really made a real tea by poring the tea on the cap and passing it to different tables. Our table got one cap and it was really well cooked tea. Incredible!!
