Nobody can say where connection between two humanbeings start and where they end.
Today I feel writing about a great person whom I admired and always considered as one of my teachers of life.He was a great philosopher and writer from south India.
Guru nitya chaithanya yathi.He was born in and died on 14th may 1991.He wrote around 120 books in Malayalam and English.He was a follower of sree narayana guru and established narayana gurukula in various parts of south India.
My connection to him started when I was around 13 yrs old.I was an ardent reader at that time.Mostly I read childrens books but sometimes I got magazines meant for elder people to read .I started reading them also.From some of that magazines I came across guru’s articles and I became one of his admirers.I understood less about philosophy that days but what I grasped I liked a lot.I liked him also and felt him divine may be due to his long greying beard and calm deep eyes.He seemed a saint to me that time rather than a writer.
Icame in touch with him for the first time when I was in my 3rd year of medical studies.I had many intellectual friends that time who were mainly the workers of SFI or followers of some or the other of many feministic groups of kerala.As a result of this contacts I have motivated to do unusual and risky things in my life. Of which one was my nomination to the post of the magazine editor of 1991 medical college magazine.Till that day no female organism of that college not even ever thought of doing such a blind thing.When the male group of my class approached me for this
I agreed without much thought or analysis.There were two posts.1.fine arts secretary 2.magazine editor.For fine arts a boy named ramesh gave nomination.For magazine editor post they made me give the nomination. There was a third person called gafoor from our senior batch.He gave nomination for both posts.All three of us were popular among our respective groups.Hence no election was conducted for these two posts and we were elected unanimously.
Then came the problem..
“why don’t you with draw your nomination?let the boys do the work.being a female it will be very difficult for you to approach people especially to canvas for advertisements etc”
Those who initially encouraged me now tried to make me confused.What they were saying was the truth too.It was not a job for a female at that period when the soceity was more conservative than today.But I understood one thing
They were just using me as a steppini.It was simple poltics.
On the day when the results were announced two of my class mates who are not in any political group but harboured feministic ideas in their mind came to meet me.
They also had some personal issues with those who nominated me.
“you should not withdraw your nomination.Dont let anyone of the others to become the editor.You can do it.We are always there to help you”
They convinced me to be the editor of that year before they left.Along with that I had the full support from every corner of the three girls hostels.
So I became the magazine editor of the year 1991.
This venture was not a failure and I published the college magazine after around 1.5 years.
I came in touch in reality with guru nitya due to this adventure.
During the making period of my magazine I was thinking about articles and an idea came to me.
‘The vision of people in various fields of life about death’
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I had a team.They supported this idea and we decided to approach varios people like writers,doctors,philosophers etc.
My staff editor was also a woman.A pathologist named doc suvarna nalappatt.She is the cousin sister of the late poetess kamaladas.She supported me in every possible way in this adventure of mine.
When I discussesd with her about the topic she suggested me the name of guruji along with many other names.I wrote a letter to guruji too.
I got a reply promptly and after some weeks received the article too by post.I wrote a letter thanking him.The article was included in the magazine and it was appreciated very much by everyone later.
I got married after some years and migrated to northern part of India leaving my gods own country.But still I was in touch with guru nitya through his writings in various magazines and deeply wished inside to meet him one day.
Probably he knew my wish.
I got a letter from him in May 1998. .In that letter he requested me a donation of rs50/
for a pillar he is making in the narayana gurukula,in fernhills nilgiris.I don’t remember the details. I was so happy to receive this letter.I wrote him an elaborate reply where I expressed my wish to meet him.
“I deeply wish to meet you guruji. But I am not sure wether it will be possible now or not . May be I will be able to see you only during my vanaprastha .”I wrote..
During thatperiod of my life I hadbeen deeply touched by the inequalities and injustice happening around me an inside the society were I served.So I wrote him all my feelings.It included the pathetic state of females in hariyana and the female foeticide.I put a 50 rupee note inside the cover along with the letter and posted it to his address.
After a week or so I got a post card from fernhill gurukula in guruji’s own hand writing.
“I ddnt know that you are living too much away.when you will come during your vanaprastha I might have taken another birth somewhere and living as a small child.
So don’t delay that much and come soon”
He wrote to me.It was already known to me that he is not doing well
I decided to visit him immediately.It took a lot of efforts to convince my spouse as
my elder kid was very small that time.I requested one of my relatives to lookafter her for a fewdays and started my journey to south.
I went to kerala first.it was the month of june and was raining heavily.by the time I reached monsoon had already present in kerala with one of its wildest forms.
At my home,my broyher was not at all enthusiastic about my trip to ooty dutring rains.
The bus has to go through hairpin curves and landslides were happening all the time.
Finally he decided to accompany me even when he had a severe cold.We boarded a bus next morning.The journey was a little scary while bus was driving up the hill.
But by god’s grace we finally reached the fernhill gurukulam by evening.
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PART 2
Guruji was not at fernhill.we met his first assistant.
There were so many young men from different regions and cultures residing in gurukulam.It included,a Jacob,latheef ,rajesh and so on. They were all between 20-28 yrs old.Most of them came there to find a shelter from their problems at home.That is what I understood after our chats that night.Guru nitya was suffering from asthma so he was not comfortable in the cold climate of nilgiris.S he had shifted to a warmer place in kerala during rains –the palghat.
Palghat was only a 3 hour journey by train from my home.!
In the gurukulam there was a row of rooms build for visitors.Initially we were given a room there.Later being a female I was given privilege to rest in the guest room in main building along with my brother.That evening I had interesting conversations with many of the inmates as well as the senior most disciple of guruji.I was introduced into their routine life.There was no means of entrrtaintment like tv or radio.Instead there was a big library with many books.There was a 16 year old boy who was an orphan and adopted by gurukulam.
I was allowed to go to guru’s writing room and see his library.I was so surprised to
See both volumes of HARRISON’S MEDICINE’in his shelf.
I looked questioningly at the swami.He smiled.
“Guruji reads all subjects including medicine “He explained.
Guruji’s sister is a gynaecologist and she was in my medical college for a short time.
There was a big kitchen in the gurukulam.Whoever visit should go to the kitchen and make their own food.I also entered the kitchen and joined other disciples.There was a man who had a medical degree.But he left his family and practice years back and joined guruji.Now he looks after the farm of the gurukulam and visit nearby villages to help people who are ill.
As per the advice of senior swamiji we stayed that night at gurukulam.Next day at early morning we bordered a bus to palghat and reached the house where guruji was residing by 12 noon.
There was a lot chaos in that house due to guruji was in his writing process.Many young people were there to writedown his dictations ,proofreading the printed material etc.It was the house of one of his followers.The woman in the house was cooking lunch for everyone.whoever comes were welcome to eat rice with salt.
Some foreigners were also wandering in the premises.
When I got a chance I went to upstairs of the house through the wooden staircase.It was an old fashioned house with roof made of wood and bricktiles.
Guruji was sitting near the window in an easy chair.His legs were kept on a small stool.Both were swollen due to oedema.He was suffering from high BP and diabetes.
A middle aged textile buisiness couple enterd before me kept a note of rs500 near gurujis feet and asked for his blessings.
When they went away I approached him.He looked at me.I mumbled my name and touched his feet.He recognised me and smiled.
“so you came in this life itself to meet me.”
I too smiled.I couldnot speak anything.
“so everything is unfair there where you live”He was reffering to my letter about hariyana.
“yes guruji.what can I do?”I asked him.
“do nothing.”he replied.’you don’t have to do anything special.but you just go on doing what you have to do in your life” he added.
I was a bit surprised to hear this as I was expecting a speech on humanitarian
Actions.
“Those who are destined tosurvive will survive.Those who are not will perish.That is the rule of nature.So don’t confuse yourself”
I got the message.
I told him about his sister and doc. suvarna nalappat.
‘oh sumangala is your teacher too”he smiled again.
There were other people waiting behind me to finish ,so that they can come forward and seek his blessings.So I took my leave.
“Eat lunch and then go”he told me when I was leaving.
I came down to the yard.There was a van there filled with many bundles of printed material and books.Printed material contained some greeting cards with guruji’s messages in them..Guruji’s secretary was a woman .She gave me one card with a smile.I read it.One sentence was something like this.
“don’t do anything that you don’t want to do”
we were standing near the gate.
“I cant follow this”I told the secretary woman.
“why?’she asked.’if I don’t wish to make tea for my mother in law then?’Igiggled.
She too.
“Guruji is becoming more rebellious with age ya younger”I just thought .
My brother and me had taken lunch before leaving.We sat in a room downstairs with a foreigner and ate salted rice in a bowl ,carefully picking up and eliminating the ‘kankad’ .They ate food just for survival.So it was not perfect food.The foreigner was also doing the same.At that time I felt a unity in human existence.
I came back to my beloved Gurgaon soon.
After 11 months,guruji passed away in may 14th of 1999.but I was very happy that I got an opportunity to meet him in this life itself as my Guru’s form.
