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The Gandhi Ashram or the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad is an abode of peace and tranquility. The ashram in itself is a modest complex located on the banks of the Sabarmati River but it was here that Mahatma Gandhi spent 12 years of his life with wife Kasturba. What gives the ashram its iconic status is the fact that it was from here that Gandhiji launched the historic Dandi march that led to a nationwide civil disobedience movement against the British.

But the moment you enter the calm compounds of the ashram, it kind of puzzles you… How can a place so quiet, so serene be the epicenter of such a mass movement that rocked the empire!

While the most sought after sight at the ashram is ‘Hriday Kunj’ which was Gandhiji’s residence throughout the years he stayed there, other points of interests include Vinoba Kutir and the Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalay a.k.a Gandhi Museum which was inaugurated by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in 1963 and designed by famed architect Charles Correa among others.

The Magan Niwas, named after Gandhiji’s favourite nephew, is the first cottage that the visitor sees upon entering the gates. A few steps further and you find yourself staring at the Sabarmati waterfront and standing next to the Upasana Mandir or Prarthana Bhooni (Prayer Ground). But it’s the spartan settings of Hriday Kunj and Vinoba Kutir that reminds you of the austere ways of the divine souls who once lived in these humble abodes.