72. Ashram

Gandhiji's Ashram is situated on the bank of Sabarmati at Ahmedabad. Gandhiji and Kasturba lived there with a lot of other people, girls and boys too. Along with Guajarati, Marathi, Punjabi, Sindhi, Madrasi and Nepali, foreigners from Britain and China also stayed there. They wore Khadi and used to spin yarn regularly. All of them used to get up at dawn and would gather together for morning and evening prayers. They would recite 'Shlokas', sing "Bhajans' and "Ramdhun". There would also be repeated recitals of Gita. Gandhiji would deliver a 'Pravachan'(sermon) after the prayer. There was a common, big kitchen in the Ashram, which was run by the Ashramite sisters. They would cook food turn by turn. They would clean the grain in the storeroom. All inmates of the Ashram used to dine in the same kitchen. There would not be any spices, chilies, asafetida or any seasoning in the food cooked there. It used to be quite simple and clean. Gandhiji himself used to serve the food. Harijans would also dwell there with all others. They used to work with all and would take food with them. It used to be spotlessly clean in the Ashram. All the Ashram dwellers used to clean the toilets by themselves.