Charkha (on loan)

The charkha, or spinning wheel, was one of the most powerful symbols of Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy and politics. It was both a protest against Britain’s attempts to deliberately undermine Indian weaving and also a symbol of self-reliance. Gandhi encouraged people to spin for half an hour every day arguing that swaraj (independence, or self-rule) could only come from the commitment of every person to wear and use that which was made in one’s own country.