Chapter 3 Chapter 1 Family History

Lineage The Gandhi family, belonging to the Banya caste, appears to have originally been traders.However, starting with my grandfather, they have served as prime ministers of the states of Katiyahua for three consecutive generations.My grandfather, Utenchand Gandhi, alias Ota Gandhi, must have been a man of principle.He had been forced to leave Porbandar because of some political disturbance; he was Divan of that place.He took refuge in Junakad and saluted the local Nahuab with his left hand.Someone asked him why he was so disrespectful, and he replied, "My right hand is already loyal to Porbandar."

— Annotation.Ota Gandhi continued on the death of his wife.The ex-wife left four children, and the second wife gave birth to two children.When I was a child, I never felt or knew that the sons of Ota Gandhi were not born to the same mother.Among the six brothers, the fifth was named Karangchand Gandhi, also known as Kaba Gandhi; the sixth was Durshidas Gandhi.The two brothers served successively as Prime Ministers of Porbandar.Kabbah Gandhi was my father.He was originally a judge in the royal court.Such a court no longer exists, but in those days it was a very powerful institution for mediating disputes between chiefs and their clansmen.He served as Prime Minister for a period of time in Rajkot and Fan Connor.At the time of his death he received Rajkot's pension.

Kaba Gandhi married four times in a row, each time because of the death of his ex-wife.He raised two daughters from his first two marriages.His last wife, Puteri Bai, had a daughter and three sons, and I was the youngest. My father was a loyal, chivalrous, generous, and family-loving man, if a bit irascible.In a way, he seemed a bit sensual, for he was over forty when he married for the fourth time.Yet he was a man of integrity and had a reputation for being extremely impartial both inside and outside the family.His loyalty to his country is well known. Once, an assistant political supervisor insulted the prince of Rajkot in a speech, and he immediately stood up to defend his master and challenged the supervisor.The supervisor was so angry that he demanded an apology from Kabbah Gandhi.Naturally he refused and was detained for several hours.But because Kaba Gandhi had no intention of submitting, the supervisor had to let him go.

My father never had the ambition to get rich, so he didn't leave us much property.He has little education, but is very experienced.The best he can say is that he has read Gujarati to the fifth grade level.He did not study history and geography, but his rich practical experience enabled him to solve the most difficult problems and manage thousands of people.He didn't have much religious training, but he had a religious culture that many Hindus acquired by going to temples to hear scriptures explained.In his later years, under the guidance of a learned Brahman friend in our family, he began to recite the Gida Sutra, and he always recited a few passages when he prayed every day.What stands out to me about my mother is her holiness.She was a deeply religious person; if she hadn't said her prayers for a day, she didn't want to eat.Going to Haveli, the temple of Vishnu, is a must for her every day.As far as I can remember, she never missed a Chaturma fast.She sometimes makes the most difficult vows, but she never fails to keep them.Even when she was sick, she did not give up her wishes with excuses.I remember one time when she was fulfilling the "Chandrayana" vow, she suddenly fell ill, but she did not allow the illness to interrupt her vow of fasting.Even fasting two or three times in a row was nothing to her.During the four-month fasting period, she had become accustomed to eating only one meal a day.She was not dissatisfied with this, and once during the "Chatoma" fasting period, she actually went on a hunger strike every two days.Another time, also during a four-month fast, she made a vow not to eat without seeing the sun.In those days, we sons and daughters looked up to the sky, waiting for the sun to tell our mothers when it appeared.Everyone knows that during the peak of the rainy season, the sun does not show up easily.I remember that for several days, we found the sun suddenly appeared, and immediately ran to tell her.Then she ran out to see for herself, but when she came out the elusive sun disappeared again, thus depriving her of her right to eat.But she said with peace of mind: "It doesn't matter, God doesn't ask me to eat today." So she went in to do housework again.

My mother had a wealth of common sense.She is very familiar with state affairs, and even the noble ladies in the court appreciate her intelligence. When I was a child, I often had the honor of going out with her, and I remember many vivid conversations she had with the widowed mother of the prince of the country. These are my parents, I was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar - a Sudama Puri.I spent my childhood in Porbandar.I remember I also enrolled there.I learned the multiplication formula after much difficulty. I can't recall almost anything about the situation, other than bantering our teacher with the other kids.This fact amply demonstrates that my intellect must be dull, and my memory bad.