How did Gandhiji take the vow of celibacy?
How did gandhiji take the vow of celibacy?Mahatma Gandhi has explained in detail about the celibacy vow in his autobiography. Gandhiji told that earlier he had not discussed the celibacy vow with his wife, but had consulted her at the time of taking the vow. His wife had no objection to this. But taking the final decision was extremely difficult. At that time he did not have enough understanding to know how to control his desires. Giving up physical relations with his wife seemed a strange thing to him at that time. Still, he moved forward with faith in God.Gandhiji said that he had been practicing self-control since 1901. But the freedom and joy he got after taking the vow in 1906 was something he had never experienced before. The vow was taken when he was in Phoenix. About a month after this, the foundation of Satyagraha was laid. He feels as if the celibacy vow had prepared him for Satyagraha. There was no prior planning for Satyagraha.What did gandhiji say about celibacy?Gandhiji said in his autobiography that he did not have the knowledge to follow the celibacy vow completely. Nor did he gain knowledge of it from any book or scripture. In fact, his knowledge gradually increased with experience. Every new day of the fast took him closer to the knowledge that celibacy involves the preservation of body, mind and soul. Celibacy was not a difficult penance, rather it was a matter of satisfaction and joy."No one should think that this was an easy task for me. Even when I had crossed the age of 56, I still realized how difficult it is to follow celibacy. Every day I realize that it is like walking on the edge of a sword and every moment I feel the need to be alert for it."