Down Memory Lane

Nolinida

I was introduced to Nolinida towards the end of my first visit to the Ashram. Narayan Prasad Bindu had made the appointment for the first meeting. We met in Madhav's room which was then being used by Nolinida in the afternoons for such meetings. I wanted to know from him about working for funds for the Ashram. His advice was similar to that which Sri Aurobindo has written in The Mother. A man of few words, he was quite clear to me all the same.

Our relationship developed in due course. I often wrote to him from Calcutta and his replies were prompt. In spite of his usual succinctness, his inner warmth was not missed by me.

Once a cyst had grown on my face. I did not want to have surgery and started homeopathic treatment, simultaneously informing the Mother about it. Nolinida sent me Mother's blessings and wrote, "Keep us informed." The day the cyst burst, I was happy to send the news.

I had placed an order with the Arya Publishing House at Calcutta for a set of Sri Aurobindo's books being published in USA. Some advance amount was paid and when the books arrived I was asked to pay the full amount as I had lost the advance payment receipt. The local Manager told me that that was the procedure laid down by the Ashram and I could approach Nolinida. So I had to write to him for this petty matter. He advised that the fact of the payment should be accepted and added, "There should have been no difficulty about it."

When Nolinida's article The Message of Sri Aurobindo appeared, I translated it into Hindi for a Hindi journal of high standing. The journal sent me a money order for it which I forwarded to Nolinida. He wrote back that in fairness half of it belonged to me, so the whole amount went from both of us to Mother.

In order to acquaint the Hindi readers with the work of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, there was the idea that suitable

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articles should go to Hindi journals from time to time. Mother had approved that I could do it without asking for her permission every time which was the practice then. The response of the Hindi world was good, one may say. The famous orthodox journal 'Kalyan', having the largest circulation in the country, also responded by publishing some passages from Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.

Sometimes I wrote to Nolinida asking for clarifications in order to understand what Sri Aurobindo meant at certain places. He would gladly oblige.

After settling down in Pondicherry, I had taken up the translation of Sri Aurobindo's The Life Divine into Hindi. In course of time, I incurred heavy displeasure of the Hindi establishment at the Ashram. I lost some good friends also as a result, but I carried on, getting more determined with every attack. Madanlal Himatsingka, who was engaged in publishing the Hindi set of Sri Aurobindo's writings in the 'Sri Aurobindo Sahitya Sangraha' series with the Sri Aurobindo Society imprint, was firm in his resolve to publish the translation being done by me, and Rishabhchand had come to my rescue and help in improving the translation. After the passing of Rishabhchand, Nolinida received me daily for the purpose. I went to him in the morning, about his soup time, with my note of points and the book, and get his answers. It continued for some months. In between he was unwell at times, but he would sit with me in spite of the long faces of some persons around. Only once, lying in his bed, he said, "Today it is not possible", with regret on his face.

In the course of the translation work, sometimes, in the absence of a suitable word, Nolinida would smilingly say, "Then let us coin a new word". With his genius he could do it. Although he knew only little of Hindi, his mastery of Sanskrit and Bengali helped me out. One of the new words coined was 'avagudha' for subliminal. For me his advice was enlightening, but he was never insistent, like a truly learned man.

I remember how carefully we had to go through the sentences to ascertain the noun for which the word 'it' was used by Sri Aurobindo at certain places.

After the translation was published, Madanlal asked Nolinida

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about the quality of my translation. He said that it was a difficult job.

Later, I took up the translation of Srimadbhagwadgita into English. It was finalised with the valuable assistance of Nolinida. Waiting outside Mother's room for our turn, we went over the points I had noted for the day. Being a scholar of Sanskrit and a student of Sri Aurobindo for the Vedas, he would at once delve into the root of the Sanskrit word, I being ill-equipped to assist him in this direction. For this translation I always referred to Sri Aurobindo's Essays on the Gita and Anil Baran Roy's translation of the Gita. Nolinida spoke to me of the translation of the first six chapters done by Sri Aurobindo in his early days, of which I was unaware till then. "You will enjoy his old English," he said. And I did.

Once Mother received a number of Rolex wrist watches. One she gave to Amrita, another to Nirod. "Nolini does not need a watch," she said, and gave him a dictionary.

Nolinida was so punctual in his routine that it is said that people checked the correctness of their watches with his arrival at certain places.

In the year 1966 I had joined Nolinida's class. It was called his French class. I think I was the youngest of the lot. We were about 20 students. The class was a good experience for me. On 2.1.1967 I gave a letter for Mother to Nolinida. The question was:

In 1958 the Mother said, "If things go on advancing at this speed, it seems more than possible, almost evident, that what Sri Aurobindo wrote in a letter is a prophetic announcement: The supramental consciousness will enter a phase of realising power in 1967."

Have things advanced at the required speed?

In reply Mother wrote a big Yes.

The letter was in French. Nolinida read it out in the class as a part of the usual reading of Mother's messages in French. When the class was ending, he said in Bengali, "Now I return the thing to whom it belongs", beckoned me and handed over the letter with a smile.

One day the text dictated to us in the class was the one where Mother says that for the seekers human blows come from the

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working of the Grace. It soothened me as at that very time I had received a heavy blow from a friend and helped me to take it calmly.

In the year 1969 Nolinida received a big birthday card from Mother with a very significant message:

En route towards the superman

Coming out of Mother's room he happily invited me to come to his, room and see it. Shortly after, when I came down from Mother's room, I went to Nolinida. He had forgotten why he had asked me to come! We had a hearty laugh.

Once Nolinida came to the Last School at Auroville to speak on Human Unity. The organiser of the meeting, on the spur of the moment, asked me to speak first. I just said one sentence that human unity was to be achieved not by any outer means but by inner process. Nolinida then began his talk prefacing it with the humorous remark that he wished he could be as brief as I on that occasion, but he would not take long either. He gave his short talk of some minutes which was highly appreciated.

In the year 1976 there was a weird behaviour of the majority of the Ashram's establishment hierarchy in respect of Sri Aurobindo Memorial Fund Society represented by myself and Madanlal Himatsingka. Most of the Ashram residents were under the influence of these toppers. When the situation was desperate for us, Mother appeared before me and I heard her words, "Go to Counouma". It happened at midnight in the Matrimandir office where I had gone to make some phone calls which were not coming through. Next morning, when I had disclosed that I was going to Counouma, it sounded a bit crazy for Counouma was on the other side. But I did not have the least hesitation as, for me, it was Mother's direction. I went to Counouma in full faith, told him about what happened in the night and left everything in his hands. He reacted positively and, as indicated by him, came to see me shortly after, and things started moving forward.

In two three days the matter was settled to the dismay of the hawks. Immediately Counouma took Harikantbhai and myself to Nolinida to give him the news. Nolinida felt immensely relaxed and happy. When Counouma mentioned my role in it,

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Nolinida said, "I relied on him for it", and looked so happily at us.

Once when Nolinida came to see Auroville, he came to my dwelling room also. It was a pleasure for the neighbours as well.

About that time when a controversy was going on at the Matrimandir about the details of the design, I myself not being very sure about the matter, referred it to Nolinida, regarding him as the best judge for it. He said that the 24 metre diameter of the Inner Chamber could be either way, inside or outside. This settled my wavering and his view was acceptable at Auroville also then. As for the twelve columns in the Chamber, he agreed with me that these should be there, and lastly, the change in the staircase design did not matter. The Matrimandir work proceeded accordingly.

Once on receipt of a letter from a resident of Auroville stating that the reply communicated to him by me was different from the one given by Nolini a bit earlier, Mother had said that she did not remember about it and told me to verify it from Nolini and to ask him to pass letters concerning Auroville through me. Nolinida also did not remember having given the answer as alleged in the letter and said that Mother had spoken to him when she entrusted the Auroville work to me and since then he had not been dealing with Auroville letters.

When the Auroville Society was formed, some persons wrote to him from Auroville about it. He referred them to me. But gradually he stopped referring Auroville matters to me. He was communicating directly and his views began to be different from mine and more according to the line adopted by the Ashram and Society etsablishments.

On one occasion a note was sent by him containing a formula of reconciliation between Sri Aurobindo Society and Auroville. The first steps were taken by Auroville Society and when Sri Aurobindo Society backed out, Nolinida expressed his helplessness. Since then my position in Auroville went on deteriorating.

Once Nolinida advised me to withdraw from Auroville and let things take their course. I could not follow this advice as I felt it contrary to what Mother had spoken to me. But then the hawks made this advice of his known as a point against me and in their favour.

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Later, Nolinida advised me to dissolve the Auroville Society, although it was no more in my hands. He said that this advice had come to him from the highest consciousness. I asked him whether it had come to him from Mother, to which he replied that he wouldn't say that. After some days I wavered and advised the Auroville Society for dissolution. The Auroville Society friends did not agree and I lost bdth ways.

Nolinida himself used to say that he should not be asked about worldly matters. For such things he often declined to advise and he himself depended on Counouma for such matters concerning the Ashram. In his dealings with Auroville also, from a certain point of time, it seems, he left himself to be guided by Counouma who, he knew well, was not given Auroville work by Mother. It was unfortunate for Mother's Auroville, but that is what happened.

Once when I suggested to Nolinida that the Ashram, Society and Auroville, all the three should become one, he replied, "The time has not come". That was again not his own voice. That was the time when they were fighting the way only brothers can, and the fight has not ended yet.

Nolinida, in the course of time, withdrew from outer work. His health failing, he would go in the evening for a drive in the car. One evening, during my stroll on the sea-side, when I saw him passing in the car, he looked out towards me and my old memories revived. When I returned home, Suresh Joshi came with his message that he saw me surrounded by dangers and difficulties with Mother protecting me and that I should always rely on her alone.

It was always an experience to hear Nolinida speak of Mother.

It is said that when in response to Mother's call, gods and goddesses descended upon the Ashram in the thirties, Varuna descended into him.

He passed away on 2.2.84 at the age of 95 after a long illness during which he used to be indrawn and had many fresh experiences.

I remember him as one of those to whom Mother had said, "If ever I go, my consciousness will remain with you."

I remember his peaceful face and his love for me.

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