Brahmacharya is a common practice for the yogi who wishes union with the Divine. For, the sex impulse is understood to be one of Nature's greatest impediments to attaining that Superconscious Bliss. Having this to aspire to makes it unlikely for one to return to prior indulgences in any form. Thus it was a shock to many when, a couple of years prior to his death, it became public knowledge that Gandhi was doing experiments related to the sex impulse, seemingly in order to determine whether he had any sexual desires left. The most controversial practice was his taking to bed – although sexual encounters were denied – of the younger women in his ashram, including his grandniece Manu. It was this practice with Manu that forced Gandhi to write to his son: “Do not let the fact of Manu sleeping with me perturb you.(1)” His son was not the only one of his inner circle to become concerned by his practices. Gandhi also had to respond to colleague J.B Kripalani, sending a letter to convince him of his position: Manu Gandhi, my grand-daughter, as we consider blood relations, shares the bed with me, strictly as my very blood...as part of what might be my last yajna. This has cost me dearest associates...You as one of the dearest and earliest comrades...should reconsider your position in the light of what they have to say...I have given the deepest thought to the matter. The whole world may forsake me but I dare not leave what I hold is the truth for me. It may be a delusion and a snare. If so, I must realize it myself. I have risked perdition before now. Let this be the reality if it has to be.(2) One of Gandhi's followers, Nirmal Kumar Bose, discussed the matter in depth in his book, My Days with Gandhi, writing: From a serious study of Gandhiji's writings, I had formed the opinion, which was perhaps not unjustified, that he represented a hard, puritanical form of self-discipline, something which we usually associate with medieval Christian ascetics or Jain recluses. So, when I first learnt in detail about Gandhiji's prayog or experiment, I felt genuinely surprised. I was informed that he sometimes asked women to share his bed and even the cover which he used, and then tried to ascertain if even the last trace of sensual feeling had been evoked in himself or his companion.(3) News of Gandhi's experiments spread to other yogis, two of whom - Swami Anand and Kedar Nath Kulkarni - came to visit and discuss with him his methods, which they were opposed to: Question: The irreparable harm, if you weaken the foundation of the moral order on which society rests and which has been built up by long and painful discipline, is obvious. But no corresponding gain is apparent to us to justify a break with established tradition. What is your defense? We are not out to humiliate you or to score a victory over you. We only wish to understand. Gandhi: No moral progress or reform is possible if one is not prepared to get out of the rut of orthodox tradition. ...The orthodox conception of the nine-fold wall of protection in regard to brahmacharya is in my opinion inadequate and defective. I have never accepted it for myself. In my opinion, even striving for brahmacharya is not possible by keeping behind it. ... If you admit the necessity and desirability of reform, of discarding the old, wherever necessary, and building a new system of ethics and morals suited to the present age, then the question of seeking the permission of others or convincing them does not arise. A reformer cannot afford to wait till others are converted; he must take the lead and venture forth alone even in the teeth of universal opposition. I want to test, enlarge and revise the current definition of brahmacharya, by which you swear, in light of my observation, study and experience. Therefore, whenever an opportunity presents itself, I do not evade it or run away from it. On the contrary, I deem it my duty - dharma - to meet it squarely in the face and find out where it leads to and where I stand. To avoid the contact of a woman, or to run away from it out of fear, I regard as unbecoming of an aspirant after true brahmacharya. I have never tried to cultivate or seek sex contact for carnal satisfaction.(4) Gandhi was definitely right in his view that sometimes it is necessary to break with tradition, and that reformers are not ones to wait for others to follow them. But even if orthodox conceptions of nine-fold walls are not for everyone, Gandhi had still forgotten the higher purpose behind brahmacharya. His “enlarged” idea of brahmacharya was to put oneself in potentially sexual situations to see how much sexual feeling there was left in him, leading him to make this astonishing statement: Thousands of Hindu and Moslem women come to me. They are to me like my own mother, sisters and daughters. But if an occasion should arise requiring me to share the bed with any of them I must not hesitate, if I am the brahmacharyi that I claim to be. If I shrink from the test, I write myself down as a coward and a fraud.(5) The ability to avoid sexual impulses while lying in bed with thousands of women – whether at once or one at a time – was not the original intent behind brahmacharya. Brahmacharya was not meant to be a continual negation (even though negation is needed at first); it was done to bring about a true transformation in nature, leading to that higher delight. And brahmacharya went further than the simple avoidance of the sex act, whether done by running away or in bed with a naked woman. The brahmacharyi was to remove the sexual urge not only in the physical act, but also within the mind as well, for as Lord Krishna said, “One who restrains the senses of action but whose mind dwells on sense objects certainly deludes himself and is called a pretender.(6)” Thus sex is to be removed from the mind as well as the elimination of the physical act and its mechanical impulses. To simply repress alone is not enough, because these urges can still remain subconsciously for some time. So Gandhi is on the right track when he denounces the tendency to run away, because life in the mountains may not by itself remove subconscious sexual urges. However, the ascetic life can present a better opportunity to transform the nature than what Gandhi chose to do, which was to sleep naked with a girl every night. Because even though – and this is if we take his word for it – there was no sexual interaction, Gandhi would admit to Swami Anand and Kedar Nath that the urges still remained: I do not claim to have completely eradicated the sex feeling in me. But it is my claim that I can keep it under control.(7) To simply have it under control means that a lot more work is needed, because the brahmacharyi must eventually remove this lower attachment to realize the greater Truth. Gandhi talked a great deal about Truth, but as the following diary entry shows, had few daily activities geared towards that quest, exception being the prayers to Rama…and Allah: Bengali after prayers. Talked to Bisen about... Dictated answer to a question received for Harijan. Went for a walk. Was accompanied by Manu. Massage, bath. While taking bath dictated something for Harijan. Lay down. Mahesh has come. Woke up at 10.20 and took coconut water. Sat up to write. Talked with Mridula. Went to the privy. Spun. While spinning, Sailen read out the newspapers. 10.50 Went to sleep with the mudpacks. Woke up at 11.30. Examined the matter for Harijan. Attended to correspondence. There are letters from Surendra, Anand Hingorani. Went through the mail and dictated replies. 3.10 A deputation of zamindars called. Received the Khaksars. 4.10 Went to the hospital to see Manudi. From there went direct to the station. Prayer at Hilsa. Was accompanied by Shah Nawaz. To be after 10.30.(8) No mention of meditation, hatha yoga or pranayama, or the surrendering of works to God. The diary entry is descriptive of Gandhi's real status as a politician, rather than the usual image of the holy man, living in the ashram with numerous devotees. And what a peculiar ashram this was! To some visitors, like Dr. Jivraj Mehta, the place was more a massage parlor, leading him to write a 1939 letter to Gandhi criticizing some of the ashram habits. Gandhi was only happy to defend himself, and detail his bowel movements: I got your frank letter only today. I am immensely pleased. I had not expected anything different. I understand what you say. Maybe, I might not fully implement your advice. Would you object even if I had a massage in the nude at the hands of a man? Do you believe that it is injurious to health if people slept side by side even in the open air? Please examine this question independently of the supposed impropriety of a woman sleeping by the side of a man. I have developed the habit of reading, etc., in the latrine since many years ago. You can look upon it as a kind of addiction. It is a pitiable condition that my bowels move freely only if I have some worthwhile reading material with me and that in its absence I am constipated. But I am only taking advantage of the fact that I have to rush along. It would be just as well if you could frighten me out of this bad habit.(9) Gandhi would also respond to criticism from Munnalal Shah, who would later leave the Ashram, probably because he did not expect the so-called Mahatma to be taking baths and getting massages in the nude by the women of the Ashram: Is there danger of my being pierced with Cupid's arrows in my letting myself be massaged naked, or in a thousand naked women bathing by my side when I am blind? I do feel afraid of myself in letting the pure-minded Sushilabehn massage me. But if I am lying blind-folded and those two are bathing, I would feel no fear at all. By all means let those who are as minutely scrupulous as I am make themselves perfectly blind and permit some Rambha (celestial courtesan) to bathe near them. But anybody who lets himself be massaged is sure to be maligned. If he is sure of himself, however, let him by all means copy my example.(10) In this particular ashram, competition was fierce to prove who the best masseuse was. In a letter to Krishnachandra, Gandhi staked his claim to the throne by recalling a particularly long massage he gave: Amtul Salaam was so ill yesterday that she had to be served. I claim that I can massage better than any of you, including Sushila. I gave a massage to Amtul Salaam for a few hours yesterday. If you fall too ill as a result of your foolhardiness, I may have to give you a massage too, but it is hardly a very desirable thing. Amtul Salaam has many virtues but she is obstinate in an equal measure.(11) The baths, the evening arrangements, the massages – all in the nude – clearly went on for quite some time, yet the public did not know of it until much later. Such secrecy was unlike Gandhi, a man who once described secrecy as a sin. This was a man who refused to hold back anything from political opponents like the British. Perhaps wishing to appear consistent in both public and private persona, Gandhi would deny to Swami Anand and Kedar Nath that he had been willfully secretive, telling them that “no secrecy was intended. Everything was fortuitous. Previous consultation with friends was ruled out by the very nature of the thing. Besides, I hold that previous consent was unnecessary.(12)” In this case, Gandhi, the man who spoke so much of his Truth – which he took to mean mere honesty – is guilty of a bold-faced lie. In the previously mentioned letter to Krishnachandra, “who had touchingly described Amtul Salaam's joy when Gandhiji gave her a massage,(13)” Gandhi added a side note that “All this can be said only after my death. Let us see where God takes me.(14)” Clearly, public ignorance of Gandhi's experiment was not as fortuitous as claimed. *** Along with the secrecy was the egoistic belief that his methods of brahmacharya were superior to others and that a brahmacharyi must meet the standards set by him: “You have all been brought up in the orthodox tradition. According to my definition, you cannot be regarded as true brahmacharis. You are off and on falling ill; you suffer from all sorts of body ailments. I claim that I represent true brahmacharyi better than any of you. You do not seem to regard a lapse in respect of truth, non-violence, non-stealing, etc., to be so serious a matter. But a fancied breach in respect of brahmacharya, i.e, relation between man and woman, upsets you completely. I regard this conception of brahmacharya as narrow, hidebound and retrograde. To me, truth, ahimsa and brahmacharya are all ideas of equal importance.(15)” After the discussion was over, Gandhi would rehash the same belief in his diary: “Held talks between 7:30 and 9:30 am. I explained to them my point of view. In the light of my present views about brahmacharya, I felt that their ideas about brahmacharya were faulty and imperfect. It is very necessary for them to improve along my line. I have never sought the company of a woman with a view to satisfy my passions. Of course I mentioned one exception.(16)” Gandhi also wrote that he “did not like the manner of A's questions and the grin on his face.(17)” Perhaps it was the boasting of Gandhi, contradicted by the admission (shown previously) that he had not yet got rid of the “sex feeling” that led to Swami Anand's amusement, because only a man with a strong sense of ego would claim that he was the “better” brahmacharyi! Unlike the athletic tournament, a person does not become a brahmacharyi to prove this particular fact to others or have a sense of pride that he is the best brahmacharyi of all! Brahmacharyi is done for personal reasons, and should be naturally based on the individual's nature, so to claim that his method was better than others or to declare others as not being true brahmacharyis is foolish. Especially considering that if one is to hypothetically “judge” who is the “better” brahmacharyi, the criteria ought to revolve around whether the person in question had rid himself of sexual urges. Whether someone has used the orthodox method or a gradual detachment from sex, it does not matter as long as the end result is the removal of sexual urges mentally, physically, subconsciously. Pride in his experiments and ideas were not the only failings of his ego. A more prominent manifestation was in his use of these experiments to gain a lower form of power, because Gandhi did not sleep naked with only Manu. There were other girls for different nights, depending upon his whimsy. Because the girls were only too happy to yield to his wishes, he had a definite control over them. With such control, came attachment, visible even to outsiders. It was only natural that the girls, whom he massaged, whom he took baths with, whom he slept in the nude with, would come to have these emotional attachments for him. And since Gandhi was not monogamous in his choices for the massages or night time arrangements, it was inevitable for one girl to become upset during time not spent with Gandhi, especially if another girl was getting that opportunity. Feelings of sadness and jealousy in the time spent without him would give rise to a desperate need for him, to possess him before he moved on to the next girl. This emotional chaos was evident to Swami Anand and Kedar Nath during their visit, leading them to ask Gandhi about it: “If your attitude and practice constitutes such an advance in the cultivation of true self-restraint, why does not its beneficial effect show in your surroundings? Why do we find so much disquiet and unhappiness around you? Why are your companions emotionally unhinged?(18)” Gandhi would accuse them of only making “superficial observations” as they were only there for a brief period. However, Nirmal Kumar Bose spent a good deal of time with Gandhi, and he arrived at similar conclusions, which he detailed in a letter to Kedar Nath: But when I learnt about this technique of self-examination employed by Gandhiji, I felt that I had discovered the reason why some regarded Gandhiji as their private possession; this feeling often leading them to a kind of emotional unbalance. The behavior of A, B or C, for instance, is no proof of healthy psychological relationship. Whatever may be the value of prayog in Gandhiji's own case, it does leave a mark of injury on the personality of others who are not of the same moral stature as he himself is, and for whom sharing in Gandhiji's experiment is no spiritual necessity.(19) Gandhi, having learned of Bose's opinion, would write Bose to try and deflect the blame, claiming that a couple of the girls were hysterical prior to his experimentation: “I do hope you will acquit me of having any lustful designs upon women or girls who have been naked with me. A or B's hysteria had nothing to do with my experiment, I hope. They were before the experiment what they are today, if they have not less of it.(20)” Even if the girls in question were hysterical before the experiments it is unlikely that they would have had “less of it” afterwards. Such relationships only aggravate emotional problems, because the girls had to have – subconsciously at least – known that no matter their feelings towards Gandhi, they were mainly an experiment to him, only giving them more reason for emotional despondency. His usage of these girls as mere experimental tools was not becoming of one held to be a spiritual exemplary, for it was a display of cruel disregard to the psychological health of the girls, not to be confused with the Sattvic temperament of calm detachment. He was not indifferent to every girl in his Ashram. He had a definite attachment to his grandniece Manu, even if she was also part of the experiment. His attachment to her was outweighed by her complete need to make him happy, a need so strong that it affected her health(21) and her sleep habits, the latter resulting in him – recorded in his diary – displaying the sort of emotional warmth associated with affections of the ego: Today I was wide awake as it struck two. ...I heard Manudi reciting the shlokas of the morning prayer. I was startled. I called her a couple of times. Then she was quiet. She did not say anything, but she was frightened. She lifted my mosquito-curtain and held my hand. I stroked her for a few minutes and asked her to be calm. Now she became conscious and withdrew my hand. I asked her to go to sleep without worrying. I told her not to worry about prayers and assured her that I would wake her up in time. That girl is worrying so much about me! She is just like an innocent child. It is only because of that quality in her that she has remained with me in such a trying yajna.(22) The relationship Manu had with Gandhi went beyond the hysteria of other girls. For Manu, the health and psychological state of Gandhi meant everything. If Gandhi was being criticized, she was going to worry for him. If Gandhi needed a shave while bathing(23), she was almost always willing. In many ways, she was like a devotee towards the Divine. Except in her case, she rarely experienced the joy that the devotee lives; for the most part she was sick and miserable. And on the rare occasions she had something to smile about, Gandhi made her feel guilty. This was the case after a September 1947 prayer session, during which Manu and Abha Gandhi had the audacity to “burst into laughter because they had found themselves out of tune while singing a bhajan during evening prayer.(24)” This minor occurrence disturbed Gandhi greatly, leading him to send a note to Manu that such laughter was like making fun of God and went so far as to wonder if the two even believed in God: My eyes were closed; but I was so pained that I felt I should be weeping...A bhajan is not an exercise in singing; it should make us one with God. It was like making fun of God. If Abha and you do not believe in God, better give up praying. I depend on you two and if you behave like hired singers, it is as good as killing me. I expected this the least from you. A particle of blemish in you appears like a mountain. I will not tolerate even a single shortcoming in you.(25) A night's rest did nothing to ease his emotions, ones which he did not outwardly show, for when Manu “asked Gandhji whether he was still angry with her because of the incident at the prayer the previous day...Gandhji nodded. The addressee did not grasp his meaning and got busy with her duties.(26)” Gandhi had assumed the nod was enough to express his dissatisfaction, but later he realized she did not understand, so he sent her another note: “You asked me a question but did not wait for a reply. I sent for you but gave up when (...) could not understand. I am not angry; I am unhappy. I am helpless if you do not understand my unhappiness.(27)” Gandhi's reaction to the laughter can be considered an improvement from his past behavior, directed at his wife: “I used to let loose my anger upon her. But she bore it all meekly and uncomplainingly. I had a notion that it was her duty to obey me, her lord and master, in everything. But her unresisting meekness opened my eyes and slowly it began to dawn upon me that I had no such prescriptive right over her. If I wanted her obedience, I had first to persuade her by patient argument. She thus became my teacher in nonviolence. And I dare say, I have not had a more loyal and faithful comrade in life. I literally used to make life a hell for her. Every other day I would change my residence, prescribe what dress she was to wear.(28)” While no longer succumbing to fits of violent rages, he was still micromanaging the lives of those around him, criticizing perceived “shortcomings” like spontaneous laughter. His unhappiness led Manu to express “her deep regret for her lapse the previous evening, and asked Gandhiji what she could do to remove his unhappiness.(29)” Gandhi, still unhappy over the incident, wrote a letter to her with “suggestions” on how to make him happy again: There are two ways in which you can cure my happiness. One is immediately to write down a confession and read it out this very day. The other is henceforth to make your life one with God. Then there can be no frivolous laughter. ...Read out the confession at the public prayer meeting. That will cleanse the heart. The confession should not be forced, nor should it be out of shame. A public confession is my own innovation... It is my suggestion.(30) But this sort of confession is by nature a forced one, because Manu was “confessing” not so much because she believed in the error of “frivolous” laughter, but because she wanted to appease Gandhi. And to term it a suggestion is an act of self-delusion for one with such obvious control over his followers. The confession itself was a charade, because Gandhi wrote the draft(31) for Manu to read during the prayer session: We two girls were guilty of a grievous error during the prayer yesterday. We wish to purify ourselves by confessing it before all of you. The error consisted in our bursting into laughter when we went out of tune. We knew that it was wrong to laugh but we could not control ourselves. This shows that we are not absorbed in prayer. We thus insulted our Maker. Bapu has repeatedly told us that a prayer is effective only when we are thinking of God. We know that even though his eyes were closed, Bapu would know and would be much hurt, and that is what happened. We sought his forgiveness and he has forgiven us. But the pain has persisted. It persists even now. We hope that our public confession will relieve it to some extent. Only our future conduct can wholly eliminate it. We entreat the public to bless us that God may make and keep the two of us pure.(32) They did not spit at anyone. They did not insult Allah. They simply laughed over a mistake. The laughter was not frivolous, Gandhi's response was. It is little wonder that Swami Anand and others found hysteria and misery amongst his followers, if for the simple reason that they could not even laugh without the threat of criticism! Gandhi may not have gone into violent rages like in his past, but neither had he truly conquered his anger. He had only suppressed it, and if in the past he would have flown into rage right after the laughter, now he was brooding over it for days, denying to himself and others that he was angry, choosing to frame it in more palatable terms. This sort of repression was similar to what Gandhi practiced with his sexual urges. He can be credited for making a strong effort to gain a level of self-control, but the sexual urges were clearly present subconsciously, to go along with the “sex feeling” and the probable thoughts. If it were not present subconsciously, he would have had no desire at all to “test” himself in bed and bathe with the girls. It was only a tremendous case of mental self-delusion – used by the ego as a potential way to achieve the sexual ecstasy it craved – which led him to pretend that his experiments were of the true brahmacharyi. Such experiments, with true origins in his subconscious urges, were matched against his strong will preventing any possible sexual interaction, leaving Gandhi sitting on the fence nightly. Judging by the misery he and the girls lived in, maybe it would have been better if he had given in from time to time, in order to bring about a greater transformation of his Nature; the dark nights leading to great dawns. References: 1 Letter to Manilal Gandhi , CWOMG vol 86 pg 415 2 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp 220-1, CWOMG vol 87, pg 13-14 3 My Days with Gandhi, pp 173-5, CWOMG vol 87 appendix 4, pg 535-6 4 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp226-9, CWOMG vol 87, pg 89-92 5 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp 224-6, CWOMG vol 87, pg 15 6 Bhagavad Gita 3:06 – some translate pretender as hypocrite 7 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp226-9, CWOMG vol 87, pg 89-92 8 Bihari Komi Agman p 386, CWOMG vol 87, pg 509 9 CWOMG vol LXX pg 95 10 Letter to Munnalal Shah, CWOMG vol LXVII pg 335-6 11 CWOMG vol LXVII, pg 347-8 12 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp226-9, CWOMG vol 87, pg 89-92 13 9/16/38, CWOMG vol LXVII, pg 347-8 Footnote 2 14 9/16/38 CWOMG vol LXVII, pg 347-8 15 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp226-9, CWOMG vol 87, pg 89-92 16 Bihari Komi Agman pp 60-1 Sunday March 16 1947, CWOMG vol 87 pg 98 17 Bihari Komi Agman pp 60-1 Sunday March 16 1947, CWOMG vol 87 pg 98 18 Mahatma Gandhi-The Last Phase Vol I Bk II pp226-9, CWOMG vol 87, pg 89-92 19 My Days with Gandhi, pp 173-5, CWOMG vol 87 appendix 4, pg 535-6 20 My Days with Gandhi pp 176-8, CWOMG vol 87 pg 104 21 Bihar Pacchi Dilhi p 291, CWOMG vol 88 pg 292-3: “It is a sin against God to fall ill. I have repeatedly pointed this out to Chi. Manudi and made her cry for neglecting her health. But I have noticed during the past two days that she has become a little more sensible. I can only hope that this will not prove temporary.” 22 Bihari Komi Agman pp 60-1 Sunday March 16 1947, CWOMG vol 87 pg 98 23 CWOMG vol 90 pg 384: “I had your letter written in English. First, I must apologize for the delay in answering it. I have not a moment's leisure. Even now I am lying in the bath shaving. Usually Manu performs this service, but today I am doing it myself and I am dictating this to Manu. Such is my plight...” 24 Dilhiman Gandhiji I p 42 CWOMG vol 89 pg 211-2 Footnote 1 25 Dilhiman Gandhiji I p 42 CWOMG vol 89 pg 211-2 26 Dilhiman Gandhiji I p 43 CWOMG vol 89 pg 217 Footnote 1 27 Dilhiman Gandhiji I p 43 CWOMG vol 89 pg 217 28 A Pilgrimage for Peace, pp 87-91, CWOMG vol LXVIII, pg 45-46 29 Dilhiman Gandhiji I p 43 CWOMG vol 89 pg 217 Footnote 3 30 Dilhiman Gandhiji I pp 43-4, CWOMG vol 89 pg 217 31 Dilhiman Gandhiji I pp 44-5, CWOMG vol 89 pg 218 Footnote 1 32 Dilhiman Gandhiji I pp 44-5, CWOMG vol 89 pg 218

 

 

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