Another special day passed into memory. The veena clad Goddess of knowledge showered a lot of blessings on all of us on this special occassion. Another Vijayadasami day presented another opportunity to recollect the past. Every special day like this takes me to the sweet memories of the yesteryears. Whenever the sweetness brims in the heart, the soul craves for sharing - sharing the sweetness with you all. I shall not enjoy the sweetness alone, so I share it with you. If you have a little time to spare, come with me. Let us take a small walk to those golden days of our childhood.
Any Vijayadasami day can not be remembered without remembering Kunjamma. There is a famous writer Lalithambika Anderjanam in our literature. Everyone knows her, but I know one more Anderjanam- Savithri Antharjanam. She was fondly called Kunjamma by all who knew her. As the name depicts, she was a lady who preferred to be inside the four walls of her 'illam' and tried to lead a contended life with her husband and four children. She was no woman of great substance like the former Antharjanam but still she knew the world better than many other Brahmin ladies of that age.
Kunjamma taught us the Malayalam letters. Her illam was just opposite our house in Olavaipe. We were sent to her house to learn the letters. My elder brother and me daily spent much of our day time there. Kunjamma sat along with us at the forecourt of her illam and by holding our index fingers, wrote 'Hari' in Malayalam in the sand. The mesmerizing beauty of a great language was being unveiled there. We were taught each letters in the sand. From "Hari sree Ga Na Pa tha ye nama:" to "ksha" we learnt the letters under her guidance. She took every pain and showed a lot of patience while teaching us. She could successfully handle my short tempered brother with her right attitude. Many many years later, when I became a father, I realized patience was the essence while dealing with children
She was not a professional teacher and she had never taught anyone else than us before or after we were with her. Kunjamma lived for many more years. We went on studying and pursuing higher studies . Many tides occurred in the backwaters of Olavaipe in the meantime, but who cared for this? Like the famous aim of Arjun in the Mahabharatham, we could only aim at the coveted degree certificates. Nothing else came anywhere near our eye sight. Otherwise, we conveniently ignored everything that was not useful in achieving the academic qualifications. After gaining the certificate, the aim was shifted to gaining a job and then to power and positions in the society. The quest for a fat purse and the trappings of a flashy life never ended since then. Kunjamma was pushed to the backburner of our memories in this run. The guru who gave us the first taste of knowledge could wait or in simple terms, she could be simply left un-noticed.
She used to organize thiruvathira kali on the thiruvathira day of the Malayalam month 'dhanu'. Perhaps the women of that locality had a chance to play thiruvathira because of her. Singing songs about gods and goddesses and dancing to their tunes, they spend the entire night. As the age started catching up with her, she stopped this too. Thiruvathira kali is now a stage show item in any expat malayali's Onam festivals. Of course it is an item in the youth festivals too. In the age of ready mix commodities, this beautiful dance form also is available is packets. We had chance to have taste of "ettangadi" and the "thiruvathira puzhukku". In the deep corner of the heart, the taste of these special dishes lingers on. Can a burger or a pizza help erase this?
On every Vijayadashami day, we assemble in our temple premises. Our books after 3 days' of pooja inside the temple are returned to us on that day. After collecting the books, we sit in the sand in the temple premises and write "hari sree ga na pa tha ye na ma:". We did this till we were in college. Now a days I never get a chance to be present in our temple during this season due to various reasons. But still I write all Malayalam letters in a plain paper on every Vijayadashami day.
Kunjamma left this world without bidding adieu to anybody. She suddenly developed some bodily disturbances and was taken to hospital. Within a day of her admitting in the hospital she passed away. A peaceful death after a graceful life….that had had no consequences in the society. What was her mission on this earth? Did she ever bother to count the bank balance? Did she ever bother about the bulls and beares of the stock markets? Perhaps she was not aware of these jargons those days!! She reared her children dutifully. She could infuse some positive energy to the people who spent their time with her. She found happiness in what she had. As our famous scriptures say, perhaps she was aware that, at death it is impossible to carry with us even the clothes we are wearing.
Lives of people like Kunjamma's teach us a lot. Wise men and woman may take leaves out of the lives of ascetic lives like hers. They make us think whatever we have on this earth is not ours and will never be others too. In the short time we spend here, we shall live a simple and honest life. When we disappear from the world one day, others must say why so early? Instead of Oh, at last! May the soul of my beloved guru rest in peace.
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