A farewell party was held in the University Auditorium yesterday and despite vacation a respectable audience was present given the special occasion. A physics professor was given a farewell.He happened to be the first beneficiary of the retirement age being raised to 65 and whose record of 42 years of service I will outsmart, when I retire, God willing- living until the day of my retirement in 2013.This meeting was special because it also marked the occasion of bidding a farewell to Prof.Balasubramanian, who adorned the chair of Culture and Cultural Relations with dignity, cultured behavior and also a measured mild aggression, always measuring his steps with tremendous strength of character.
As there were many representatives of different Associations to articulate their emotions, I did not want to make any intrusion into the list of speakers. I remained quite. That silence must have spoken volumes. That was one of the occasions where I must have given vent to my emotive feelings, given my intimacy of emotional relationship and special bond with him. It is not just me, but there are many in the campus who have got good chemistry with him during his brief but bright stay, indeed a fruitful stay for the inmates at the university campus. What I could not do or failed to do on the stage yesterday, let me attempt now to recapture all the fire and flavor, all the love and care that I have locked about him into my heart all along.
Very rarely a University stumbles upon great personalities of a greater vision and equally a nobler vision, a kind of constellation of planets and stars to undertake the difficult task of creative destruction and thus add more tangible, more visible physical and technological capital stock, to the university environment.
In a silent and subtle way, Prof.Balasubramanian from Mysore University, of Tamilnadu origin and profound intellectual training, had remarkably played a full supportive role with unadulterated love and devotion to the Boss and acted as a buffer between the Administration and the rest of the population here in the Kalapet Campus.
Nothing can make any man great or good, unless Nature has made him to endure all the hardship on the Way. Indeed this is the express way to the leadership which makes a few leaders to endear themselves to a broader audience.
The most pleasantest thing and the greatest thing that I have ever noticed about this young Professor is his extreme humility borne out of an extraordinary scholarship and of course good, strong parental genes. He could touch a broader humanity here and also elsewhere very nearly, most intimately and more affectionately because of his innate nature, truly reflecting and respecting the very goodness of the nature and Universe :small wonder then he was bound to do good to his fellow human beings and also bear with them .
Did the sun or moon, the wind or rain , the wild animals or tender plants ever complain about their grievances? Never. He too did not complain or grumble or sink himself in any despair when happenings in life are beyond control and comprehension. He gave more than what he received from others. He received only in moderate doses what the Nature willed him to receive and he acted in full faith what the Nature dictated to him to do, as his path was clearly defined by the Supreme.
On this day, when I sit in the balcony, enjoying the cool breeze clothing me , I ruminate and reflect upon the rapidity with which the Pondicherry university profile, the mosaic of its infrastructure and in essence,the very academic ambience have been transformed. They just came into existence as if by a sheer magic, swept past us in the last three years and we are still carried away by that fragrance and flavor thanks to the twins, Prof.J.A.K.Tareen, my Vice-Chancellor and his deputy, the young energetic Blackman from south, a gift he had brought from Mysore, as I had told once on the stage. A gift cannot be taken away once it is given. Yes. Prof.Balasubramanian, the Director who added more substance and strength to the post in all possible ways cannot be taken away from the academically and spiritually rich soil of Puducherry. Wherever he is, his heart and soul will be connected with the welfare of this growing institution. All of us have come here to perform a particular task and to play a particular role in the drama of our life. As CEO of our University rightly observed yesterday, the divine will always entrust some responsibility to right individual at right time and no one can stop that nobler intention of Nature because it is more supreme.
There is always a mutual dependence on each other in life and if only all the infinite labor of many could be translated into concrete real work, without embarking on any ego centric journey, what a richer , stronger and pleasant life could be for everyone in this world .It is sheer pleasant accident or good fortune that Prof.J.A.K.Tareen’s Effect, combined with Prof.Bala’s fragrance, ably assisted by the other supportive pillars of administrative machinery, viz the Registrar and the Finance Officer, all have spurred a variety of events , especially on the threshold of Silver jubilee year celebration of university and thereafter. In a typical butterfly chaos theory fashion, all these will set in motion a chain of favorable outcome in the years to come, provided there is somebody at a future, who will play an anchor role so as to consolidate the gains. That will happen only when economics and philosophy are allowed to operate and all kinds of destructive politics and divisive tendencies are dumped to the dustbin.
Following the author of Tamil Kural, Thirukkural, I would say that all of us pass this way only once. Our days are numbered here. Therefore our steps must be always measured. There is no guarantee that tomorrow is ours. Therefore, if there is something good to be done or little kindness to be shown, let us do it now in the immediate present. We shall not abandon our true nature to be good at heart and render all possible good to others with tremendous sense of humor and strength of character. We will always keep a straight course and never renounce our right to say ‘No’ if that is to be said.
Prof.Balasubramanian will always remain his own master, and he will not hesitate to continue doing good regardless of comments or criticism and none shall hinder his path defined by nature. He will choose to live the life that he wants to live like you and me. What nature will enjoin him, nobody can take it away.
To capture his personality and sum up in a sentence let me quote Homer’s Poetic line “Never a harsh word, never an injustice to single person.” I have known from great philosophers that the purpose of our creation is not to lie here under the warm blanket and keep ourselves in comfort zone, seeking pleasure and not making any effort to help others, deluding ourselves into self importance. Marcus Aurilous asks us to “look at the plants, ants, sparrows, bees all busy at their own task each doing its part towards a coherent world order.”Prof.Balasubramanian has been a part of this activist group.
Have we already joined him in creating a new academic order, busying ourselves in our own work? Before I conclude I must thank the Vice-Chancellor, Prof.J.A.K.Tareen who incidentally happens to be his mentor, guide and philosopher in shaping him and also providing him with all the honors that he rightly deserves.
It is my good fortune that on the day of farewell which only marks his temporary retreat from Pondicherry University, I had the opportunity to read out the text in Tamil about Pondicherry University prepared by him on All India Radio with all fervor and sensitivities .My 100th post in the blog as also this posting have a special stamp of my natural way of articulation, underlying my philosophy of life.
Yesterday I intended to write in Tamil and the providence has ordained me to write in a language where I am comfortable and more important, it will have a wider reach. Let the supreme take Prof.Bala to greater academic heights by his sheer academic track record and merit card, simultaneously enjoying a reasonable good health, with all smiles on his face always.
