Gandhi’s gift to Irish widow will be up for auction

A gift Mahatma Gandhi gave his Irish friend will be up for auction in September. The 13-inch high Burmese Arakan figure of a seated Buddhist deity was given by Gandhi to Emma Harker, an Irish widow. The figure will go under the hammer at a Bonhams auction on September 8 this year.
The widowed Harker came to India to stay with her daughter and son-in-law, a civil servant. It was then that she forged a strong friendship with Sarojini Naidu. A letter from Gandhi to Harker, dated September 19, 1934, suggests that she had volunteered to assist with relief work amongst the poor in the flooded areas of Bihar and Orissa. It is believed that the statuette was presented to her by Gandhi during this period. The figurine is possibly that of Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion. It has been estimated to sell between 3,000-5,000 pounds (Rs 2,36,072-3,93,454).
As mentioned in A Special India (a book written by Harker’s sonin-law James Halliday), by 1929, Harker and the Mahatma had been corresponding for over two years. Gandhi is supposed to have written to Harker from Sabarmati ashram on February 12, 1928, telling her about the expenses and the way of life at the ashram. He also mentioned the soaring temperatures in and around the area. “For Emma,’’ says the book, “then a resident at New Delhi, this challenge was not an opportunity to be missed. She is known to have stayed at the Ashram on several occasions. Gandhi even allowed her to smoke during these visits.’’
In The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Vol49/page 344/letter 372 to Major R V Martin, Gandhi gives a list of those who should be allowed visiting rights since they “...are like blood relations to me’’. Harker’s name is on that list.
James Hammond, head of Asian Art at Bonhams Knightsbridge, has an interesting anecdote to tell about Harker’s grand-daughter, the current owner of the sculpture. “Harker, who died in 1957, knew Gandhi well, corresponding with him over a number of years.
On one occasion, she introduced her grand-daughter, the owner of this sculpture, to him. The little girl asked the maker of Modern India if he had any sweets for her. Gandhi replied that he didn’t eat sweets but asked: ‘Where would you keep your love for me? In your eyes or in your stomach? The little girl answered ‘In my eyes’. And Gandhi replied ‘Let it ever be so’.’’