A Centenary Tribute

To the Centenarian (Amal Kiran)

G.K. Satyathy

Ripe in age and wisdom

 He is loved by all

Because he is he:

 A poet and a scholar

Of high stature,

Of experience and erudition

Banked on days of yore,

Pragmatic of present's lore

 Penetrating vision of future.

 Nay, is he something more,

For he himself loves

all As a child does its mother.

And above all,

Of no common clay

He is made, rather

Of another stuff altogether.

As gives the banian tree shelter

Guidance and care of Mother

And the Lord he is under.

Unaffected, not robbed of his grace

By any stress of age

A comely personage

He is, an ever-blessed one

And it is he who

By the breath of Her Grace

Scaled new heights

Into the ethereal region,

And stole in on the Golden Day

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A Parsi Family in Bombay -1905 From left to right:

Little Amal ne Kaikhushru Dhunjibhoy Sethna, also called Cooverji for official documents and, to suit the needs of day-to-day life, "Kekoo". Kaikhushru is the Persian equivalent to the Latin Cyrus; Dhunjibhoy

is literally the Gujarati for Brother Opulence. Amal's grandfather (Pestonji Cooverji Sethna) wears the traditional Parsi hat; Amal's uncle Perojshah Pestonji Sethna; Amal's grandmother Hamabai Sethna; Amal's elder sister "Minnie" (Manekbai Dhunjibhoy Sethna); Amal's father Dhunjibhoy Pestonji Sethna and Amal's mother Bhikaiji Dhunjibhoy Sethna.

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The celestial miracle

Of enriched gold-hued halo.

I wish, I pray

May he live still longer,

Shine a beacon of light,

And disseminate his delight

To all, to those

Who come within his sight.

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