Ahimsa

The first major change in Anjali’s life is the transition to wearing khadi, or homespun clothing, which is made on a charkha, or loom. To her, the charkha symbolizes the freedom movement in India and, correspondingly, symbolizes her mother, who drew her into the movement. In fact, learning to use the charkha and seeing her mother spin thread is what begins to warm Anjali to the idea of her mother as a freedom fighter, even though she’s resistant at first. Anjali’s successful use of the charkha foreshadows her interest and full-scale investment in the movement. Her reaction to using the charkha shows her excitement and the spark of interest in being part of the freedom movement: She “looked proudly at the thread. She had actually done it. She had made the beginnings of homespun clothes. Just like Gandhiji” (62).

When Anjali is at her lowest, she spots the charkha in her home, which reminds her of her imprisoned mother, and pushes it away from her, damaging it slightly. This action represents her frustration with the freedom movement, feeling like it has taken too much from her. Additionally, at this point in this novel, with Ma and Keshavji in prison, Anjali alone must lead the efforts to integrate her school. This places an enormous amount of pressure on her, but she feels like her continued involvement in this effort will encourage her mother to persevere through her time in prison.

The loom is likewise a symbol of knowledge. When Anjali questions Gandhi’s use of “Harijan” in front of Keshavji, he welcomes the new information and compares it to the charkha, saying, “Like the cloth on that loom, we must take this new knowledge and better ourselves, row by row by row” (125). The loom symbolizes the notion of remaking India anew, helping Anjali realize “that it isn’t we Dalits who are backward. Who need to be saved, who need to change. But rather it is the rest of India” (126). By making clothing from Indian cloth, the freedom movement seeks to weave a new history in their country.