Mahatma Gandhi was deeply influence by Rajachandra ji. He was the man Bapu frequently conferred with during his stay at Sabarmati Ashram, Gujarat.
Wikimedia Commons
Rajachandra, who was born on November 9, 1867, at Bawana in Gujarat, was Gandhi’s spiritual guru. He worked in close association with Gandhi till April 9, 1901, when he died.
The first meeting with Rajachandra left a deep impression on Gandhi. It happened in 1947, in Mumbai, on Gandhi’s return from England. They both had an instant connection from the first meeting and respected each other for their passion and simple nature.
Wikimedia Commons
In tribute, Gandhi wrote,
Raichandbhai’s commercial transactions covered hundreds of thousands. He was a connoisseur of pearls and diamonds. No knotty business problem was too difficult for him. But these things were not the centre round which his life revolved. That centre was the passion to see God face to face. Amongst the things on his business table, there were invariably to be found some religious book and his diary. The moment he finished his business he opened the religious book or the diary. Much of his published writing is a reproduction from this diary. The man who, immediately on finishing his talk about weighty business transactions, began to write about the hidden things of the spirit could evidently not be a businessman at all, but a real seeker after Truth.
Gandhi’s memorable accounts on Rajachandra testify the profound influence that his personality exerted on the Mahatma’s life. His emphasis on truth, compassion and non-violence in every walk of life, crystallized as the fundamental stones of Gandhism, which played a significant role in the Indian struggle for independence.
From the play, ‘Yugpurush-Mahatma Ke Mahatma’ Wikimedia Commons
The Rajachandra Mission located in Gujarat stands true and firms to the teachings of their guru. This organisation has conducted more than 600 shows of the play titled ‘Yugpurush – Mahatma Ke Mahatma’. They have performed it in U.S.A, Europe and Britain in front of more than 5 lakh viewers.
We all know that it was Mahatma Gandhi who framed the freedom struggle of India and his life became a message for us but what is unknown to us is that Rajachandra was behind the tremendous change and persuasion in Gandhi’s life which kept him focused on the end result – freedom.