The National Gandhi Museum located in New Delhi is more than a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. It is also an institution which exists to promote Gandhian principles and methods of non–violent conflict resolution as solutions for world problems today. The two–story concrete building sits about 50 yards back from a busy thoroughfare not far from Delhi’s famed Red Fort. The tree–lined walkway leading to the entrance takes one past wood–carved signs of Gandhi’s quotations, preparing the visitor for the tranquil environment and sense of history found within. As an American Library Association Library Fellow in India in 1989–90, I had the opportunity to visit the National Gandhi Museum in which the library is located and meet with the librarian, H.S. Mathur, with whom I continue to correspond.
On the first floor of the museum are two galleries of Gandhi memorabilia. Here one can browse and view photographs, blow–ups of newspaper clippings and political cartoons, commemorative stamps of Gandhi from many countries, the stone bowl that Gandhi carried everywhere, pens, and even the pencil he is believed to have used just prior to his assassination. There are models of the house in which he was born and of his ashram. A glassed–in room contains replicas of his personal belongings: palette, spinning wheel, bookcase, sandals, etc. Display cases hold homespun khadhi (cotton) and sandals of wood and leather made from non–butchered animals. In an alcove, a “Silence, Please” sign invites one to view the holy urn containing Gandhi’s ashes.
The Gandhi Library is located in the lower level of the museum. Mathur, a retired university administration librarian, administers it as a labor of love (“Certainly not for the pay!” he said.) It was his good fortune to have once met Mahatma Gandhi, and he remains strongly committed to Gandhi’s teachings. Mathur laments that most of the contemporary generation shows little interest in Gandhian philosophy and appears unwilling to sacrifice for the common good.
In addition to the librarian, the staff consists of a library assistant with a certificate in library science and a library clerk. The library is open to the public and welcomes all persons with an interest in any aspect of Gandhian thought. Many of the library’s users are Indian university students, but many others are international scholars from Europe, America, and Australia, as well as other parts of Asia. Mathur also receives and answers inquiries by mail. The library will check out books to members who pay Rs. 50 per year and leave a deposit.
The collection consists of over 35,000 books, bound periodicals and Ph.D. theses, as well as unpublished materials not available elsewhere. The published works are in English, many Indian languages, and various foreign languages. If staff were available, Mathur would have these works translated into several languages in order to make them accessible to more users. The library has the 90–volume Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi which contains Gandhi’s own correspondence. Among the unpublished works are 136 volumes of photocopied letters to Gandhi from persons of many nationalities. (The originals are in the National Archives.) The library also has a large collection of clippings, a valuable source of primary material. The clippings and the unpublished correspondence are not indexed and thus are virtually inaccessible to researchers except by tedious manual searching.
The book collection is organized according to the colon scheme of classification developed by India’s most famous librarian, S.R. Ranganathan. Access is by means of an integrated author, title, and subject catalog. Mathur hopes to be able to automate the catalog as well as index the unpublished materials someday. Financial resources from the Gandhi Foundation Trust are, however, unlikely to be forthcoming; therefore these projects will only be possible if outside funding becomes available.
Several libraries in India as well as libraries in other countries have valuable Gandhian materials. The Gandhi Library has an old catalog of the Gandhian holdings of some Indian institutions, but it is out of date and incomplete. A current, comprehensive catalog would be of great use to the library for collection development, as well as for making appropriate referrals. Another goal, Mathur said, is to sponsor “seminars and conferences at the international level to propagate the philosophy and ideology of Gandhi in order to achieve equality, fraternity and peace all over the world.”
The National Gandhi Museum, which is solely supported by a trust set up after Gandhi’s death, provides funding for the library. The library receives Rs. 30,000 per year (approximately US$1,000) for books, journal subscriptions, binding expenses, and office supplies. Such a limited budget severely restricts book and journal purchases, especially those from foreign publishers. Limited staff and the lack of computer equipment also prevent attainment of the goals mentioned above.
Availability of funds to computerize the catalog, survey the Gandhian collections of other Indian libraries, prepare a union catalog, and index the unpublished materials would enable Mathur to make collection information available to anyone or any library anywhere, either in print or electronic format. This catalog would be a unique resource for Gandhian scholars worldwide. Because of the international relevance of Gandhi’s work, it is hoped that U.S. organizations and/or foundations concerned with peace studies or non–violent methods of conflict resolution can be interested in supporting these efforts.
Faye Powell is Social Science Librarian at Portland State University, Oregon. Her M.L.S. is from the University of British Columbia; she also has a master’s degree in anthropology from San Francisco State University. Before going to Portland, she was Head of Reference for the Washington County (Oregon) Cooperative Library Services. From October 1989 to April 1990 she was an American Library Association Fellow at the American
Studies Research Center in Hyderabad, India. Her publications have appeared in American and Indian journals, reflecting her professional interests in international librarianship, Gandhian philosophy, and library service to persons with disabilities. Ms. Powell is active in professional associations, in the library and anthropology fields, and is Past President of the Special Libraries Association, Oregon Chapter.
E–mail: powellf [at] pdx [dot] edu
©1993 Faye Powell.
Citation
Powell, Faye. “The National Gandhi Museum and Library,” Third World Libraries, Volume 4, Number 1 (Fall 1993).