Down Memory Lane

Champaklal

Everyone connected with Sri Aurobindo and Mother hears the name of Champaklal. As Hanuman's is known along with Rama's.

When I went to Mother, Champaklal would be always there, in the corridor or at the staircase or inside Mother's room. My contacts with him started and grew there only, as it must have been in the case of most of his friends and acquaintances.

In my early days, when I received from Mother a big birthday card, clad in silk, Navajata complimented Champaklal for it. "I only made the card," Champaklal protested, "It is Mother who chose it." Champaklal always tried to be exact in his words, and in acceptance of compliments, whereas ordinarily men are prone to be pleased over unmerited compliments.

When Mother replied to me in August 1967 that I could go to her in the afternoons whenever I felt like it, for Praram, I went to Champaklal to inform him and ask about the procedure. Usually he did not like the strain caused to Mother by the increase in the number of people she had to see, and I had some apprehension in approaching him. In fact, I had little contact with him till that point of time apart from the exchange of a few words when he would be speaking of the requirements of blessing packets and birthday card envelopes which I was making those days.

I went to him with Mother's letter and spoke to him about it. The procedure would be that on seeing me on the staircase (he opened the door to let visitors out and let them in and then he looked at the people there), he would inform Mother and I would go next to the person whose turn had already come. Champaklal, later, once showed me how Mother was putting my name in between two names on the list of people she would see. In fact, there were two lists, one of which remained with her and the other with him. The writing of both the lists and the changes therein were done by Mother in her own hand.

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I used to go then at about 3.30 p.m. and it went on like that smoothly. Once there was an unusually large number of people waiting to go to Mother. The person who was already in was taking a very long time and Champaklal had come out a few times for something and seen me. When he came out next time, the earlier person still continuing to be inside, I told him that due to the large number of people in waiting I would not like to burden Mother further with myself and wished to go away. Next time he advised me that in future I should continue to wait in spite of the crowd.

A time came when I would go daily to the Mother for pranam and blessings. One year I did not inform Mother in advance about my birthday, as I thought that it was no longer necessary for I had seen my name in the annual list of birthdays. When I entered Mother's room I didn't get any birthday greeting and discovered that I had formed a wrong notion about myself. Vasudha, guessing that something was amiss, came closer, understood the problem and asked me whether I had informed the previous day. I mumbled out my explanation which was not much appreciated, Mother looked annoyed, and Champaklal was called in. Some words and gestures passed between Mother, Champaklal and Vasudha, and arrangements were done for her to write on a card for me. Mother then looked happy and wrote out her message after the selection of the card. All present there became their normal selves when Mother gave the card and bouquet which also had been brought in by then.

I went to see Champaklal in the afternoon, when he would be having a free moment, to express regret over my instrumentality in Mother getting annoyed with him in the morning. He took it sportingly, contrary to reports about him, and expressed happiness over the good that had come out of the mistake, viz, that I got so much more time to be before Mother! I wonder if this was the only incident of its kind of birthday-card writing.

During the Auroville work days, once Mother got greatly annoyed when the rectangular piece of stone carrying the date 28.2.1968 and her blessings and signature inscribed by her and fixed in the Urn at Auroville had disappeared. Who had removed it? It could not be found out. Mother remarked that an evil spirit was there also, and raised her hand in the air. Well, I

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got a hard scolding which was being noticed by Champaklal, although he did not understand French. When I came out of the room, I told him that Mother would not like to see my face any more. He advised me not to feel discouraged but to continue to come as usual. Next morning when I presented myself on the staircase, Champaklal reassured me by saying that he had spoken to Mother and it would be alright. When I got in, Mother's smile was sweeter than usual.

I remember how Champaklal used to jokingly ask me when I would be enter Mother's room, "Shyam Sunder, what is the news of Vrindavan?" and then I would relate the Auroville news to Mother.

From the beginning, Champaklal had felt attracted towards the Matrimandir at Auroville and was interested to know about the progress in the Matrimandir work. Once for a special occasion there, Mother was nominating a number of persons who would sit separately as a group there. In the course of the selection, Champaklal suggested the name of Poorna Prema, her grand-daughter. Mother did not agree. When Champaklal showed his keenness for her name, Mother said, "What will a woman do there?" (I do not remember the exact words.) Champaklal reminded her that according to her man and woman are equal. She then quietened him with a chiding, "When you don't understand, why do you speak?"

I understand it was not the first time that Mother spoke to him thus. Sri Aurobindo also is reported to have said something similar. I am sure, Sri Aurobindo and Mother would have tried to convey the same thing to many of us for each one of us also in diverse ways.

Here a witty remark of his comes to my mind. "Every decision of Mother is acceptable to me as right, but not the reason she gives for it," he said, stroking his beard.

After Mother left her body, Champaklal started moving out of the Ashram premises more freely. He came to visit the room at Auroville where I had been living since 1973. He came with great affection and observed the room in detail to satisfy himself that I was comfortable there. Nirod also had accompanied him and then I discovered that he called Champaklal "Maharaj ji"

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and I saw their sweet relationship which one can glimpse from his book on his twelve years with Sri Aurobindo.

During the sad episode of the conflict between the Ashram and Society on one hand and Sri Aurobindo Memorial Fund Society on the other, Champaklal came to Society House and asked me whether I was willing to abide by what Nolini would say. I replied that I was willing, provided Nolini would speak after hearing us. He frowned a bit and he repeated his question and I my answer. Then he went to see others. No further communication came from him and next morning I went to the verandah near Mother's room for a quiet moment. When Champaklal came there, I wanted to speak to him but he rudely brushed me aside with a gesture of his hand. He was visibly upset and irritated with me and forbade me from speaking. He left in a huff. After that he seemed to have been brainwashed regarding me, as many others were at that time, due to Auroville and Sri Aurobindo Society. Our external felationship had ended abruptly. Was it the legendary Durvasa who acted that morning?

Champaklal was later seen moving outside the Ashram more and more frequently. He attended conferences of Sri Aurobindo Society with silk chaddar over his bare body. Later, he would travel to other places in India as well as abroad. With the glamour of his past around him as the attendant of Sri Aurobindo and Mother, he had a large number of admirers and friends who welcomed him with respect. Evidently he enjoyed it in spite of his failing health. His last trip was to his home State, Gujarat, in the year 1992. He passed away at Jantral on May 9 that year at the age of 90. His last rites were performed there itself as he had wished his body to be cremated where he would breathe his last.

On 21st May 1973, when we were waiting at the staircase, I remember, Champaklal came out of Mother's room with a grave face and said, "I don't think Mother will ever see people again." In fact, Mother did not receive people any more from that day. Only on the 15th August did she give her last Darshan on the Balcony in spite of her physical strain. She left the body on 17th

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November and it was laid at rest in the Samadhi on 20th November, just six months after Champaklal had warned us at the staircase.

The Mother's body having been placed in the Samadhi, people left one by one. I left towards the end and again came back after some time. A single man still sat there. It was Mother's lion,

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