The Sabarmati Ashram nestling on the banks of the river Sabarmati in Ahmedabad is an iconic landmark of the city. If you are visiting Ahmedabad, and you do not visit the Gandhi Ashram to pay your respects to the Mahatma, it would be sheer blasphemy. The Sabarmati Ashram, also known as Gandhi Ashram, was the home of Mahatma Gandhi when he was in Ahmedabad.

Sabarmati Ashram – An Oasis of Peace In a Bustling City

It is from the Sabarmati Ashram that Mahatma Gandhi marshalled his forces of unarmed and non-violent Satyagrahis from across the country. The Sabarmati Ashram was also the place from where he launched many of the historic movements that ultimately forced the British to bid adieu to the shores of India. One of the most important movements, the Dandi March, originated from the hallowed portals of the Gandhi Ashram in the year 1930.

Visiting The Sabarmati Ashram

Ahmedabad, the heritage city of India, is a place where the timeline of Indian history seems etched in stone in the various landmarks that dot it. One of the most visited and revered places is the Sabarmati Ashram of Mahatma Gandhi.

Having spent a substantial part of our childhood in the Sabarmati area, the Ashram holds many nostalgic memories. The first visit to the Gandhi Ashram as a kid is still vivid in memory. What was striking then, was the sheer peace and calm that one experienced as soon as you stepped into the Sabarmati Ashram.

Nothing much has changed, the birds still chirp merrily away in the trees and the sense of tranquillity still prevails. This is in spite of the Ashram being located right on the busy Ashram Road. The Ashram of course has had a makeover, especially the Sabarmati riverfront that in many ways a testimony to the fast development of urban Ahmedabad.

The Gandhi Ashram Museum

Visiting the Sabarmati Ashram is like virtually taking a walks down the lanes of India’s history and its freedom struggle. The museum chronicles the life and times of Mahatma Gandhi which, of course, is inextricably linked with India’s independence movement.

Gandhi In Ahmedabad Gallery – Sabarmati Ashram

A gallery named, “Gandhi in Ahmedabad,” showcases the various epoch-making events that occurred during Mahatma Gandhi’s stay in Ahmedabad. Mahatma Gandhi arrived in Ahmedabad in the year 1915 and the city became the epicentre of the freedom movement that shook the foundations of the British empire in India.

This gallery brings alive important events through beautiful hand-drawn panels. The chronologically arranged panels depict important events like Kochrab Ashram being established in Ahmedabad, the issue of the Mill Workers of Ahmedabad, the Champaran Satyagraha which was the first Satyagraha led by Mahatma Gandhi in India, the launch of the Swadeshi Movement, and the historic Dandi March.

My Life Is My Message Gallery – Gandhi Ashram Ahmedabad

Gandhiji himself said that his life itself was his message. His greatness lay in his simplicity. Mahatma Gandhi and his life is best summed up in the words of the great scientist, Albert Einstein: “Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.”

This gallery showcases and chronicles the life of Mahatma Gandhi. It takes you on a journey from the birth of the boy, “Monia,” in Porbandar in 1869, to the transformation of Monia into the Mahatma, right up to his assassination in Delhi in 1948.

The life of the Mahatma comes alive before your eyes through around 250 photographs. Mahatma Gandhi was a prolific writer, and you can get a glimpse of the man behind the Mahatma through various original texts of the Mahatma.

A text that is sure to grab your attention is a few lines scrawled in the almost indecipherable handwriting of Mahatma Gandhi that says, “My life is my message,” and is signed MK Gandhi.

Gandhi Ashram’s Painting Gallery

Mahatma Gandhi seems to come alive in the painting gallery. The gallery has 8 stunning paintings of the Mahatma in various moods. The paintings are the work of two textile merchants who were also accomplished painters, named Chandulal Shah, and Hiralal Khatri.

As you walk through the Painting Gallery, it is as if you can literally feel the presence of the father of the nation. Mahatma Gandhi is immortalized in the paintings that show him, spinning the Charkha, in deep prayer, and other activities.

Sabarmati Ashram – Archives And Library

Mahatma Gandhi was a voracious reader and a prolific writer. During his life, the Mahatma not only wrote numerous commentaries on diverse topics, his letters to people, both ordinary and extraordinary but were also in themselves full of gems of wisdom. The archives and the library of Gandhi Ashram houses these rare treasures in the form of films, videos, audio cassettes, manuscripts, and letters. The library houses more than 50, 000 books, many of them rare and devoted to India’s freedom struggle.

If you are looking for rare stamps of Mahatma Gandhi, stamps issued from countries across the world on the Mahatma, they are on display here. Apart from these tributes and eulogies from eminent people from across the world can be found here. Personal diaries that were the Mahatma’s companions all through the turbulent times that led to India’s independence can be found here.

Hriday Kunj – Where You Feel The Presence of Mahatma Gandhi

The Museum and its galleries showcase the life and times of the Mahatma beautifully, but what will really touch your heart is Hriday Kunj, the place where the Mahatma lived in Ahmedabad. The spartan building was Gandhiji’s and Kasturba’s home from 1918 to 1930. The place was fondly named Hriday Kunj by the noted social reformer and Gandhian, Kakasaheb Kalelkar.

The red and white building overlooks the Sabarmati river. A river that has witnessed key chapters of the history of Indian independence unfold in the plain-looking structure that was the home of the Mahatma. As you climb three steps and enter the former home of Mahatma Gandhi, you are gripped by strange emotions. A soothing calm blended with a heightened excitement grips you as the realization of being on historic ground dawns on you. The rooms are bare and clean, old black and white photos hang on the walls.

A black and white portrait of Kasturba, Mahatma Gandhi’s wife hangs above the door of the entrance of a room. This was Kasturba’s room. Sunlight streams in from a window and lights up the only poster in the room which contains information about her and some pictures. The stark simplicity of the woman who was the wife of the Mahatma is reflected in the austere nature of the room.

A tall board that captures the chronology of Mahatma Gandhi’s life hangs outside the “Guest Room,” the board is titled, is titled, “Mohan to Mahatma,” and gives the timeline of Gandhiji’s life from his birth in 1869, to his tragic assassination in 1948. The “Guest Room,” is itself completely bare and the afternoon light streams in through two open windows. The light must have shone similarly on many a national and international luminary during their stay as a guest in Gandhi Ashram.

Gandhiji’s room is a large rectangular room that is located towards the front of Hriday Kunj, towards the left of the verandah of the structure. This is the place where the Mahatma could be found spinning the charkha or talking animatedly with his guests. Today the room is closed and you can view it through a peephole. You will see a charkha, a writing desk, and some cushions.

Hriday Kunj also houses a kitchen and storeroom, and there is a beautiful inner courtyard within the structure. Birds chirp away merrily as you leave the serene environs of Hriday Kunj.

Upasana Mandir

Prayer and nourishment of the soul were as important to Mahatma Gandhi, as the thirst for the freedom of India. This is embodied in the Upasana Mandir that stands close to the banks of the Sabarmati river. This place which now echoes with the soulful melodies of numerous birds, once echoed with the voice of Mahatma Gandhi, delivering his discourses on the Bhagavad Gita.

The hallowed grounds of the Upasana Mandir is the site where morning and evening prayer meetings were held at the Gandhi Ashram.

Vinoba Kutir | Mira Kutir

The charisma of Mahatma Gandhi and the simplicity and depth of his philosophy drew men and women from all over the world. They stayed with him for long periods and imbibed his philosophy. Among the many who were impressed and influenced by Mahatma Gandhi was Vinobha Bhave, known for his Bhoodan Movement. Vinobha Bhave stayed in Gandhi Ashram from 1918 to 1921, and the simple room that he stayed in is named as Vinoba Kutir.

Madeline Slade was the daughter of a British Naval Officer who was influenced by Mahatma Gandhi and his principles. She was a stout supporter of Indian independence despite being a Britisher. She was an ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi’s principles and worked in the Ashram. She stayed at Gandhi Ashram from 1925 to 1933. She was called Mirabehn by Mahatma Gandhi, and the room in which she lived, is today known as Mira Kutir.

Mahatma Gandhi bid farewell to the Sabarmati Ashram, or Gandhi Ashram, or the Satyagraha Ashram on July 31, 1933. He vowed that he would not return to the Ashram till India shrugged off the shackles of the British and became a free nation. India became independent on the 15th of August, 1947, however, the Mahatma never returned to the Gandhi Ashram. He was assassinated on January 30, 1948, and breathed his last in Delhi, almost 1,000 kilometres away from his beloved Hriday Kunj.

As we make our way away from a site that scripted major chapters in the history of India, it is evening. The strains of the soulful song of Narsinh Mehta, “Vaishnava Jana To, Tene Kahiye Je Peed Paraayi Jaane Re,” ring mellifluously in our ears.

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Our visit to Gujarat was part of a familiarization trip organized by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and Gujarat Tourism under the #DekhoApnaDesh initiative. The views and opinions expressed in this blog post are our own. #GandhiAshram #SabarmatiAshram #Gujarat #GujaratTourism

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