I cannot follow anyone blindly but always appreciate the good qualities. Gandhi is one whom I definitely respect for his contribution to the freedom struggle of India. My respect got a little blow recently when I read about Gandhiji's method of experiment to control himself among the young girls. That was ridiculous and I would say that no men would approve of such a deed even if they are die hard supporters of Gandhi. I won't discuss it further but the more we will dig inside then there will be some or the other revelation that may shock us extremely.

@Shampa : Yes he did indeed try out the experiment with young girls to try to test his brahamacharya and this and some other experiments are generally not highlighted out of respect to him. He was after all a human being with many faults. Also goes to prove that food has no effect on a person's conduct as is being propagated by some vested interests. Gandhijis leadership of freedom movement is a grand contribution worth admiring. 

This is what I wanted to highlight @vijay He should be admired for his contribution but presenting him as God in every walk of life is not acceptable to me. I have seen my father who was a simple man in every sense of the term but he was not a popular name, so what, Should the definition of simplicity change? Like my father there are numerous simple and honest beings but we don't love to follow them rather we try to follow those about whom we are only superfluously aware. What Gandhiji did in the name of Bhramacharya, if such is practised by any man in the present era, won't he be punished? So, it's better that let Gandhi as a freedom fighter be treated on a different pedestal from Gandhi, the man. Even in his freedom struggle he was also a biased man. He was against Subhash Bose and a simple man cannot be a biased man.   

Gulshan Kumar Ajmani wrote:

usha manohar wrote:

Gulshan Kumar Ajmani wrote:

usha manohar wrote:

This just came to my mind , apparently Sarojini Naidu once joked saying that it cost the nation a fortune to keep Gandhiji in poverty ! Gandhiji was no doubt a simple man with simple habits but now people seem to want to make a  saint out of him, who seems like a dull uninteresting person whereas I am sure there are many more interesting facets to his life rather than his diet and dress !

I believe that simplicity just meas that you remain usual self and do not do anything that invites othes' intention. Glamourous life style attracts peoples' intention and thus this is not simple. But if you een make a show of simplicity, you are not simple. To elicidate, Kejriwal andothers attempted to show their simplicty by travelling in metro rail and other gimmicks. This is not simplicity. simplicity means that you live in a manner others placed in your position would do. By this yardstick, Gandhi was not so simple. He ate simple food including goat milk. It is widely believed that the goat ate dry fruits so that the milk is very rich.    

  

After all he was human and I am sure he did have some faults like any of us but he was also a visionary in his own way especially where women's issues were concerned ..In Paris he said, "I have no doubt that women can do infinitely more than men against war." He elaborated his argument to the women there. "Answer for yourselves what your great soldiers and generals would do, if their wives and daughters and mothers refused to countenance their participation in militarism in any shape or form." 

He no doubted respected dignityof women but he also held the view that a woman's proper place is home. He did not favor women sorkinh outside. Bread winning is man's job and housekeeping and upbringing children is women's.   

 

I guess his views on women mirrored the trend during those times...He also said ' Educate a man you educate an individual, educate a woman and you educate a generation ' which shows that his idea of woman was not entirely ancient. I have heard many highly educated men saying the same thing , they feel that nature meant woman to make a home and take care of children and man to fend for his family and protect them.Times have changed and roles have changed but I often wonder at what cost ??

Gandhiji's views on women may not be an entirely new concept. But Gandhiji, led  by example. Kasturba and GandhiJi together worked for cleaning the public toilets.

@Shampa :  Gandhiji was not against Subhash Bose. It is a common myth very popular and widely accepted in Bengal. If that was so he would not have become President of Congress for two terms. Bose was impatient by nature and felt Gandhi's methods would not win freedom for India. So his outlook was different. As majority of Congress was with Gandhi's view Bose had to chart out his way elesewhere. But both had deep respect for each other. The best tribute was paid to Bose by Gandhi when he called him a patriot of patriots. Their common goal was independent India but paths chosen were different.

With all due apologies, I would like to say, some of the members are making mountains out of molehills.  The thread says about Mahatma Gandhi's food habits. Did he ever say anywhere that people should  emulate him or follow him ? If one finds his food habits are good, he follows them. Otherwise not. There ends the matter.

I feel we should be respectful towards all our great leaders and remember their contributions. It was a long struggle following which India attained freedom. Be it Gandhiji or Netaji, they did what they thought best for the country. We should acknowledge that and remember only that. Our children learn what we teach them. If we do character analyzing in our minds, our teaching to our next generation is influenced and they, after all these years of independence would, know very little about the real contributions of the great leaders.

Absolutely. Forgetting our Leaders especially those who contributed their selfless services to the Society and the country is mere ingratitude.

@vijay My opinion has nothing to do with Bengal. It is not based upon Bengali lineage. After Bose won the presidential election and Pattabhi Sitaramayya lost then Gandhiji declared it as his personal loss and that make me feel he was biased. Subhash Bose gave the title of Father of the Nation to Gandhiji and so there is no reason to think that they did not admire each other.

@rambabu We are all adults and it is a proven fact that one aspect of a discussion may lead to another aspect and that's how discussion takes place. I think on this thread no one has opined that Gandhiji forced others to follow him. No, he didn't. but, do you think that's an enough reason not to talk about the aspects of a public figure which we do not appreciate? If we can talk about good qualities then we can talk about something which we do not like and that too when the thread talks about simplicity of Gandhiji. You may have started the thread about his food habit but it led to Sarojini Naidu and so on. What I wrote about Bapu is my personal opinion and have not represented it in a derogatory manner.

@Lopamudra The intention was not to insult a great leader. For me Gandhiji and Subhash Bose are equal and I admire them a lot but obviously there are certain points when I have my different opinion. It is not ingratitude as @rambabu said. I am a mother of a teenage boy and I always ask him to learn about these great personalities irrespective of any bias attitude. Discussion can take place on any ground because we have our own opinion regarding a subject and that is not character analysis. I am certain that in every generation these patriots will be remembered with respect.

I think it's always good to respect others view when it is not derogatory. Everyone cannot be of the same opinion.