Mahatma Gandhi 16 - An Attempt To Become An English Gentleman! Poem by Geeta Radhakrishna Menon
Mahatma Gandhi 16 - An Attempt To Become An English Gentleman!
While studying Law in England,
To attune himself with
The way of life therein
To emulate the polished way
Of English society
Gandhi tried his hand at becoming
An ‘English Gentleman'!
Through many trials, many attempts!
Gandhiji spent ten pounds to buy an evening suit,
And a chimney pot hat to match his attire.
He invested three pounds
To learn dancing
Another three pounds to learn violin!
That was not all!
He joined elocution classes,
Tried a hand in learning French too!
The eagerness to learn
And acquire more skills
Gripped Gandhiji
But after six lessons of dancing
He could neither dance
With ‘any rhythmic motion'
Nor was he able to play or
Tune the violin strings.
Gandhiji suddenly felt like a recluse!
His state was like the one
In the old Indian fable!
A man kept a cat to keep off the rats,
Then, a cow to feed the cat with milk,
Then, a care taker to look after the cow,
So, it went on; his ambitions growing.
Like that of the recluse!
The period of infatuation
To imitate,
To walk and talk gently,
Like a polished Englishman,
Hardly lasted for three months!
The initial period was not merely
A period of desires and experiments,
But a period of introspection as well!
Gandhiji reasoned that neither learning to dance,
Nor lessons in elocution can make a gentleman out of him!
And violin! He could learn in India too!
He needed to stop!
After all he had come to England
Not to stay there for a life time!
He realised he needed to remain focused on his study
And get back to his native land at the earliest.
I remember as a young person, i had so many dreams. I was gripped with the idea that ranged from a farmer to a lawyer, from a singer to a dancer, from a teacher to a scholar, from a painter to an exemplary artiste, from a doctor to a healer, so on and so forth, never ending desires! ! !
But luckily, I realised early enough, that it was not possible to do all in one life. One cannot dream of many things simultaneously. One needs to pick and choose, the one most suited to you. After all, it would be stupid to become Jack of all trades and become master of none!
Part-1 To be an English Gentleman Mahatma Gandhij had done much when in England and at last realised and got back to his native land at the earliest. This fact has been so nicely and touchingly delineated here. The most interesting lines those touch me are as follows.......... Gandhiji suddenly felt like a recluse! His state was like the one
hi, geeta! i knew something of this story from the movie gandhi, but i enjoyed reading your piece that illustrates the experiments all of us go through in finding ourselves, our calling. what a contrast to the elder image of gandhi in a dhoti! glen
Thank you Glen. So good of you to read my Gandhi poems. God bless
I understand the education and life lesson this piece provides very nicely, Geetaji. Thank you also for sharing your life's experience on the subject.
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
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5/2/2024 10:18:23 AM # 1.0.0.1119
Part-2 In the old Indian fable! A man kept a cat to keep off the rats, Then, a cow to feed the cat with milk, Then, a care taker to look after the cow, So, it went on; his ambitions growing. Like that of the recluse! A beautiful poem shared with poet's note incisively.