Kaumudi Teacher

Kaumudi Teacher (16 July 1917, Vayakkara - 4 August 2009) was a Gandhian and an Indian freedom activist from Kannur, Kerala. She was known for voluntarily donating her ornaments to Gandhi when the latter visited Vatakara on 14 January 1934 which was acknowledged by Gandhi when he wrote an article "Kaumudi's renunciation" in Young India. Kaumudi Teacher died on 4 August 2009 at Kadachira in Kannur.

Early life Kaumudi Teacher, a Gandhian, renounced gold ornaments to Mahatma Gandhi in the year 1934 for his Harijan fund collection, for the cause of freedom struggle.

Kaumudi was born in a royal family to A K Ramavarma Raja and Devaki Kettilamma on May 17, 1917, at Vayakkara in Kannur. She later began to take interest in the India freedom struggle and pledged to not wear ornaments after her act of renunciation for the cause of Harijans in 1934.

Career After matriculation, she studied Hindi and got appointed as the first Hindi teacher in Malabar, at the Government Girls High School. A disciple of Vinobha Bhave, she had also been associated with the Bhoodhan Movement.

She retired from service in 1972 and worked in the ashram of Vinobha Bhave in Thiruvananthapuram. She was also a frequent visitor to Sewagram and Paunar ashrams. She later devoted herself to propagation of khadi and teaching Hindi and decided not to wear ornaments. which was published in 'Young India.' This text was later translated to all Indian languages and made part of school syllabus.

In his article, Gandhi mentions gives an account of the events that had transpired on the day the renunciation was made. After Gandhi finished giving his speech at Badagara, he had made a reasoned appeal to the women present for jewellery to be donated for raising funds for the Harijan Sahaya Nidhi. Following the speech, Kaumudi took out one bangle and asked Gandhi if he would give his autograph. He was preparing to give it, when off came the other bangle, she had only one on each hand. Upon seeing this, Gandhi said, “You need not give me both, I shall give you the autograph for one bangle only.” She replied by taking off her golden necklace, even as she struggled to disengage it from her long plait of hair, in which the necklace was entangled. She did so, in the presence of a large gathering of both men and women. Upon being asked by Gandhi, on whether she had had the permission of her parents to donate the jewellery, she gave no answer and went ahead in also donating her earring. Gandhi later claims to have found out that her father too was as generous as her, in fact he too was a part of the meeting and was even helping in bidding for the addresses that Gandhi was auctioning. Gandhi then scribbled in an autograph for her, As he handed her the autograph, he prefaced it with the remark, “Your renunciation is a truer ornament than the jewellery you have discarded."