Gandhi visited the famous temple in January 1937 after the temple entry proclamation was issued on 12 November 1936. Photo credits: A. sheikhmohideen
When Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi decided to go to England to study law, the Sheth, the head of his community, told him, “Our religion forbids traveling abroad.” Sheth declared him an outcaste when Gandhiji said that caste should not interfere in the matter. In his autobiography, my experiments with truth, Gandhi says, “The order had no effect on me and I took leave of Seth.” However, Gandhi must have felt its effects years later when he was denied entry to the Bhagavathy Amman temple in Kanyakumari in March 1925.
Never mind, at the same time a protest was going on in Vaikom, demanding entry of backward communities and ‘untouchables’ into the streets of the temple, and Gandhi himself was guiding the movement. Leaders including TK Madhavan, KP Kesava Menon, George Joseph, Periyar EV Ramasamy and Dr. Emperumal Naidu of Kanniyakumari were at the forefront of this struggle which lasted for 603 days from March 30, 1924 to November 23, 1925. But Gandhi, being Gandhi, was in no mood to defy the ancient custom and left without entering the temple at Kanyakumari, where the three seas meet.
‘A very wet welcome’
“As he looked on, a great wave soaked him up to the skin and he smiled as the goddess of the sea gave him a very wet welcome. Then he went around the temple, and reached the entrance, quietly marching into the high courtyard of the holy building, but when he was told that the entry of persons who had returned from England into the temple was prohibited, he said that he would not move an inch from the place which is open to a person traveling abroad. was kept out of bounds. He worshiped the deity from the seat of the flagpole,” reports Hindu On March 16, 1925.
Gandhi later visited Kanyakumari on 8 October 1927 and 22 January 1934. AK Perumal, author of tenkumariyin kathai (History of Kanyakumari) details Gandhi’s visit, who Dr. Emperumal Naidu, Advocate A.K. Shankar Pillai, Mr. Addressed public meetings organized by Ramachandran and others. He seems to have avoided going to temples. There was no reference to Sri Perumal visiting temples in his book and Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi during these visits.
a cult meeting motion
Sri Perumal remarks that the Gandhi-cult had become widespread in Kanyakumari district even before his first visit. “It gained momentum after his visits in 1925 and 1927, and his followers wanted to formally take Gandhi’s picture along with the temple idol during a car festival of the Thanumalayaswamy temple at Suchindram.” A correspondent brought this to Gandhi’s knowledge, and he subsequently rejected the idea. Young India on April 4, 1931, under the title “Save me from my admirers”. Pointing out that “this excessive hero worship borders on questionable idolatry and is calculated to hurt the sensibilities of conservative people”, he said, “If they have any respect for my feelings, the organizers of the car festival should Let go of those who will put up my portrait.” The car abstains from their movement. There are many other ways to express and promote the spirit of patriotism,” he advised.
It was a different experience for Gandhi in January 1937, when he came to the fore: on November 12, 1936, after the announcement of temple entry, the doors of the temples were thrown open to all communities. Harijan On January 23, 1937: “And this morning I visited the famous temple dedicated to the Virgin at the Cape. Accompanied by a large group of Harijans singing bhajans, we passed through the lane leading to the temple. The road like the temple was forbidden for untouchables. But now, without any protest from anywhere, we walked through it and then into the temple as if we had never been denied. It is a dream realized in a way and in a place where this realization seemed almost unimaginable before it was realized elsewhere.
He also worshiped at the Nagraj temple in Nagercoil. “It was a spectacular spectacle. After worshiping at the temple, Gandhiji and the small group of Harijans following him were given ‘prasadam’ by the chief priest, who explained to Gandhiji the mythological significance of the temple. Hindu On January 15, 1937.
He was also given a warm welcome at Suchindram, where he visited the Thanumalayaswamy temple accompanied by singing Harijans. He also spoke at meetings in Thuckale, Thiruvattaru and Nagercoil. During Suchindram’s car festival on January 5, 1947, a group of Congress workers attempted to hoist the party flag over the car. This resulted in police firing, in which four persons were killed.
according to information Collected Works of Mahatma GandhiAt least 50,000 people attended the meeting in Nagercoil. Gandhiji’s welcome speech was presented by the Municipal Council, Hindi Prachar Sabha, Nanjinad Sambavar Sangam and Hindi Prem Sabha.
“the announcement [of temple entry] It is the beginning of the purification of Hinduism… It is, therefore, absolutely necessary for you and me to find out what place the temples have in the development of Hinduism… It will be sufficient if every man and woman with all sincerity to himself and his duty Understand in terms of working of this proclamation,” he said in his speech in Nagercoil.