PONDICHERRY SLAVES TO MAURITIUS

ARINGNAR ANNA ON BHARATHIAR

PEOPLE’S POET:

[125 TH ANNIVERSARY TRIBUTE TO THE GREAT BARD]

Courtesy: N.Nandhivarman

Charming and significant as the term is, it is a warm tribute not only to the poet but also to the people for the people had had their monarchs and ministers, their warriors and saviors, their seers and saints, miracle - mongers and priests, but had no poets and from ages past there were poets in abundance, poets who supplemented the scriptures or who polished the palaces by their poetry, but poets who sang for and about the people in the people’s tongue were very rare.

The poets’ voice did the function of the temple bell or the palace drum but rarely did that voice represent the innermost thoughts of the people and when at times poets spoke about the people, it was to point out to them how greedy and worldly they have become, how impermanent and illusory this world is, how sinful is silver and how ungodly is gold, and such like sermons that supplemented the royal rod and the whip of the aristocrat. Poets became in due course one more important item in the Royal paraphernalia, one more policeman who filed the case here and asked the high heavens to deliver the judgment later on.

These poets spoke in a different tongue altogether and were far from the people. They despised the crowd from where they rose and used their poetic genius to gain admission to the royal palace, and when once there, they went on weaving wordy wreathes for monarchs of all sorts, provided his gold was pure. The poets of the Sangam period are noble exceptions to this sorry rule and they are the poets least known to the people of our days.

Poets either became vendors of virtue in verses or became pleasure merchants, and they found it hard and unprofitable to become the People’s Poets. That is the reason why we find no outstanding people’s poet after the Sangam Age in Tamil Nadu.

Virtue itself came to be considered an investment for a happy life in another world. Hence, poets who came after the advent of this false and pernicious theory began to extol the particular bank of dispensation for which they were the self appointed agents. Like the clever banker, or the active insurance agent, these poets began to pour forth rhymes in abundance, about the soundness of their Bank, about the delightful dividends and the bright prospects. If one poet gave the people a sweet song about the powers of Garuda of Maha Vishnu, up rose another to supply us with a sacred sonnet about the stately bull of Siva, or the beautiful peacock of Muruga or even the ugly buffalo of the all powerful god of death, Yama.

All these poems were of the highest order, looked at from the artist’s point of view. There was rhythm, diction, similes, metaphors, parables all in abundance except reason. These poets thought that the temple bell did not work well and thought it their duty to lend their poetic strength to supplement the sound duty or no duty, it was such a paying job that there was a rush in that direction. Poets assumed an attitude of superiority they enjoyed the common men’s confusion, they tried to compromise contradictions and beautify absurdities, they were loud in their denunciation of things worldly; the worthlessness of human life, the littleness of mankind and they presented a poetic picture of the unknown world heaven up above the clouds, and the hell underneath the earth.

The telescope was in the womb of science. Hence, heaven existed, and the poets entertained the people with imaginary descriptions about the theological worlds! The ignorant stood amazed and the intelligent adored the art and not the thought.

Role of a People’s Poet

It is not easy to take up the role of a people’s poet. Bharati rose equal to this stupendous task. It is easy to become the poet of the classes. Some sweet sonnets about the silvery moon swimming in a sea of blue, some poems about  the twinkle of the stars, fine poems about the fragrance of the flower, the rhythm in rivers, lyrics about the love and verses about valour, these are enough to secure a place of honour in the poet’s gallery. But to discharge the duties of a people’s poet, one has to cross hurdles of hatred, take many a dive into dangers and should not think about patronage and popularity. Though a select circle of friends knew and spoke about the poetic genius of Subramania Bharati, the people as a whole were almost unaware of their poet till at a later stage, and then too it was the poems of a political colour that was presented to the people, and not the poems which a people’s poet alone can conceive and deliver.

We had poets in abundance. The shepherd sleeping inside a temple forgetful of his home and vocation, the goddess returning after her midnight supervision, the smile on her lips on seeing the simpleton, her curious idea to make him a poet, the gentle pat and the touch of the divine rod, the wonderful results these were known to the people. One becomes a poet, because of the divine touch, and it is his duty to sing devotional songs to a particular deity or to all. This theory held the ground so strongly that the people were not prepared to meet the people’s poet, even when one came forward. The people will cast a look of contempt and suspicion on one who says boldly. “I am the people’s poet. I sing for them and about them because I am one of them”. There would be no recognition and the more radical his poems are, the more vehement will be the opposition. And in this dangerous ground, we find Subramania Bharati, taking steady steps victoriously.

The State of Affairs when the Poet was born

Bharati was born on the frontier of two eras; the feudal order was in full force in his homeland. Ettayapuram had a palace surrounded by huts. Age old castes were still in power. He himself was a Brahmin by birth but side by side with feudalism and Sanathanic order of Society, modernism was peeping in. Industrial revolution was dawning, the old order met the new with sorrowful eyes, and there was a challenge in the look of the new era. Bharati was born during that period and none could have imagined that he will become the warrior in the duel between the old order and the new; for in the old order of things his was a comfortable place.

He was born, moreover, in this land of paradoxes, a land where arrogance and humility, cruelty and kindness march together, where there is energy in abundance and absurd contemplation strong enough to dissipate the energy, a land of some dazzling ideas and millions of mute people, a land where there is apoplexy at the center and anemia at the extremes, the land of courage as well as fear, the land of faith as well as despair. Byron and Burke landed here just then, only to meet Bharatam and Bagavatham. The booming of the gun became familiar to the ears of the people and the age long temple drum was not silent in such a land of paradoxes and perplexities.

Bharati was born, and in such a land history moves but slowly and it needs a strong push if it should move at all. Bharati’s claim to greatness rests chiefly on this: he gave the push as the people’s poet.

Morning Star of Reformation

Bharati was not merely the bard of Nationalism. He was certainly the morning star of reformation only because he was the people’s poet. He was angry with the foreigner, and wanted his country to become free but that was not his goal that was not to be his end. It was but the beginning. He wanted to free his country men from all shackles, wanted them to rise up in the estimation of the world, wanted to see a new land peopled by men and women of a new type altogether. He found the people enveloped in fear. Fear was written on their very faces. They were afraid of anything and everything. Not only did they fear the foreigner and his gun but their own brethren chanting some slogans. They were afraid of ghosts and phantoms.

Eradication of Superstition

Such a people cannot become the standard bearers of freedom and a land peopled by such nature cannot lift its head high, and look straight at the world, even if the foreign power is driven out. Hence Bharati wanted his countrymen, to drive out fear from their mind to shed off inferiority complex.

He instilled into their minds hope and courage, he placed before them their own hidden powers and pointed out to them, how that innate power is being wasted, the slumber of the masses, their gross ignorance, and superstition, their inferiority complex and their caste prejudices. Bharathi saw clearly and he determined to root out these evils and none but a people’s poet could have been so deeply interested in these problems.

World Freedom Movements and India

But Bharati knew fully well, that it was the age of the common man, the era of democracy and he wanted the people to fight for freedom. He did not deliver mere devotional hymns to the divinities nor did he send poetic appeals to the princes of the land. He addressed the man with the plough, the woman at the cradle and even the children at the play grounds. He did not, like the poets of a bygone age, point out ancient scripts in support of freedom, but placed before the masses, the world events of importance, and the freedom movements of distant lands. He announced to the people, the dawn of freedom in Italy through the marvelous resurrection of the masses, thanks to Mazzini the patriot.

He painted in glowing colours, the picture of France after the revolution, and placed a brand new picture about Russia, free from the shackles of Czardom, free Belgium, free France, Red Russia these were the pictures that he placed not the theological land of Indra or Brahma and having placed these pictures, he also presented them with a pen picture of country men at Fiji islands, and like Shakespeare he asked, “Look at this picture and at that!” That is the people’s poet. One who is not afraid of pointing out the follies and foibles of his own people, one who is not afraid of showing to his own people, how slow they are in thought and action whereas peoples of other lands were moving fast and faster to a nobler sphere of activity and life. He was not afraid of the privileged class, and did not falter to place the full facts before the people.

Projecting a new vision altogether

As the People’s poet it was his duty to unmask cant and hypocrisy wherever it was to be found, and he did that with remarkable courage and enthusiasm.

There is an attempt by interested parties to enlarge the portrait of Bharati, the national bard, not entirely because they love that portrait but because they think that portrait’s immensity will conceal from the public eye, the other portrait, the portrait of Bharati, the people’s poet.

Bharati’s poems are no mere hornets. The people’s poet was not afraid to lay bare the absurdities of ancient systems and thoughts, and in almost infuriated tone, he asks those who champion the cause of conservatism in very strong words, “Fools! Do you argue, that things ancient ought, on that account, to be true and noble! Fallacies and Falsehoods there were from time immemorial, and dare you argue that because these are ancient these should prevail?”

“In ancient times, do you think that there was not the ignorant, and the shallow minded? And why after all should you embrace so fondly a carcass of dead thoughts. Live in the present and shape the future, do not be casting lingering looks to the distant past for the past has passed away, never again to return, “so says Bharati and therein we meet.

He gave a moral code for the masses, not unrelated to life, as some of the ancient codes, were. He boldly differed from the ancient codes and placed before the people, a new vision altogether. He refused to allow the thought of Maya philosophy to have a hold on the people. He ridiculed that theory strongly and infuriated the Ashramites, but he was not afraid of the consequences. “A people immersed in such a thought,” Bharati said, “will become inactive, unprogressive and such a people will become worthless”.

Service to Humanity

Hunger and poverty and ignorance, he will not tolerate, and he raises his powerful voice against the tyranny of the rich, and threatens the whole world with dire consequences even if a single individual is made to starve. He wants the people to lead a full life, develop their faculties, improve their commerce, industrialize their land and enjoy all the benefits of the new era. His religion is not to be priest craft and slogan shouting: his religion is service to humanity and brotherhood in the broadest sense.

The Task of the people’s Poet

The task that lies before the people’s poet is a mighty one. It is his task to make the people realize new truth, take a new path, and get a new process of valuation altogether. It is his task to release the people from the clutches of the Astrologer, and place before them the Astronomer. His is the task to drive out the Alchemist from the people’s mind so that the chemist can come in. His is the task to push aside the priest so that the teacher can get a place. The people’s poet has the mighty task of driving out the influence of the Miracle monger so that the Medical man can find a place in the order of things. Superstition is to be fought out so that science can flourish. In short, the people’s poet has the task of a revolutionary and more difficult than that of the revolutionary for the people are apt to mistake the tyrant for the saviour and the saviour for the tyrant. He fought with courage and though the battle is not over yet, and though he is no more alive he has given an armory of thought enough for the successful termination of the fight and the best and lasting tributes that one can pay to this people’s poet, is to continue the fight, the fight for freedom of the people, in its fullest and noblest sense. And there are men for the job and it will be finished.

Courtesy: N.Nandhivarman

ANNA PASSES AWAY SEA OF HUMANITY WEEPS

REMEMBER THE STRUGGLE TO ENSURE ANNA's DREAM COME TRUE

3 rd Febraury 1969: The entire population of Tamilnadu literally seems to be present in Chennai. The demise of Anna brought sea of humanity to the sands of marina beach. To have a last glimpse of the leader every Tamil came perched on the roof tops of over crowded trains, buses and all modes of transport, including by foot. The Madras bound Janet Express was full beyond its capacity and people were in its roof unfortunately when the train crossed the Coleroon Bridge in between Coleroon and Chidambaram stations. Alas! 28 persons were crushed to death and 70 injured in that train where Anna's brothers traveled to have the last minute glimpse of his body. It was a matter of single minded devotion to reach Rajaji Hall where Anna's body was kept for public view that drove every Tamilian. Loss of even lives did not deter them from their determination. The entire police summoned to control crowds could not perform and they resorted to burst tear gas shells several times. I was there in the stampede running to the underground passage of Anna Salai to escape tear gas with burning eyes full of tears already for having lost my mentor.

The Guinness book of Records says " that the funeral of Anna was attended by the largest number of people in the world " Panruti S.Ramachandran in his preface to the book "Anna Speaks- at the Rajya Sabha 1962-66" writes ' The century had witnessed only 3 funerals comparable to anywhere like that of Anna's. The first one was that of Lokmanya Bal Gangadhara Tilak at Bombay in 1920, the second was that of Mahatma Gandhi in Delhi in 1948 and the third was that of Jawaharlal Nehru in Delhi in 1964". He also writes ' another striking feature of the entire funeral procession was the predominance of ordinary people like sweepers, scavengers, slum dwellers and hut dwellers'. In that see of humanity I braved my way where the pit to bury Anna was dug and took handful of that sand which for two decades I preserved till my family members threw it away without knowing its sentimental value. I took the oath not to eat fish for a year to mourn Anna's demise. I was so fond of fish that I cannot remain without eating it. Apart from my personal feelings which by sheer luck I am recording here, millions felt their lives have lost its meaning in a land without Anna. But for Anna, our motherland would not have been named as Tamil Nadu.

The struggle for naming of Tamil Nadu is yet to be written as separate book. Let me reproduce few lines “Tamil Nadu was once named after its capital city, Madras.The situation was a complicated one. Even Congressmen spoke of Tamil Nadu within the state, reserving Madras State for letters and speeches meant for external consumption. To appease the Tamil people they even changed the name of Aranmore Palace in Ooty to Tamizhagam. But they were not willing to set right this anomaly by making a Constitutional amendment. It was Thiru.Bhupesh Gupta of the Communist party who took the initiative in 1961 by introducing a private members bill to amend the first schedule entry number 7 of the Constitution. The purpose of the Bill was to call the Madras State by its rightful name Tamil Nadu in conformity with the historical, linguistic and cultural considerations. Anna's impassionate defense of this bill will be long remembered for its sincere emotion and clear cut reasoning.

The adamant Center refused to yield and opposed the private member's motion to call "Madras State" by its rightful name Tamil Nadu. With its majority the Congress party defeated the Bill, but the change could not be resisted for long. Four years later in 1967 when the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam was elected to power in Madras State, Anna as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu achieved his objective with unanimous backing of both Houses of the State legislature. Today there is no Madras State, only Tamil Nadu" Panruti Ramachandran's note in the book mentions.

But we must also remember Sangaralinganaar who fasted to death for this cause in spite of being a Congressman."Thamizh Naadu" should not be misspelt as Tamil Nadu. Is it not our duty to set this right, while saluting all who gave up their lives for the cause of Tamil Nadu.

N.Nandhivarman President Aringnar Anna Foundation

VISION OF ANNA FOR TAMILS UPLIFT

ANNA DREAMS OF TAMILS UPLIFT

Mr. Chancellor, Mr. Pro-Chancellor Mr. Vice- Chancellor, Graduates of the Year and Friends:

Thankful as I am for the unique honor conferred on me by this institution, it is not without hesitation as a good deal of trepidation that I stand before this august assembly to-day to deliver the Convocation address, for though it is a pleasure to be present on the happy occasion of greeting the graduates of the year and wishing them all a bright and prosperous future, it is not an easy task to place before them appropriate guidelines-conscious as I am of my own limitations and aware of the eminence of those who stood at this rostrum in the past and gave weighty and worthy advice to the graduates. Stalwarts in various walks of life, scholars of erudition and experience, administrators of rare abilities, have all been here to deliver instructive discourses, and I do not for a moment imagine that I have the capacity to add any thing substantial to what has been already said by those who preceded me. I am convinced therefore that to be called upon to deliver this  address is not so much an invitation as a command to me bestow the most careful and considered thought on the role of Universities in general and of the Annamalai University in particular.

The fact that I am conscious of my own limitations gives me a sense of relief, for attempt I shall not to offer original ideas or theories with a special stamp, but only reiterate some of the cardinal principles enunciated by those who offered their a advice in past years, perhaps with annotations here and there, bringing to bear the lay-man’s point of view to the findings of experts in various fields connected with education.

This is the age of the common man-whatever the regrets some might have –and it’s his point of view that matters most and I do claim to represent him in all his ruggedness.

Systems and schools of thought, whether it is in philosophy or politics, ethics or economics, are certainly meant for him. Of course, the interpretation should come from scholars and experts and the art of translating them into every day activity is to be undertaken by the administrators. Universities, as the repositories of knowledge and the nursing ground for the emissaries of thought wisdom and service, have got a prominent  role to play-and the prominence is growing every day, as more and more individuals get themselves equipped for the task of bettering society in all its age when we have eschewed monarchy and autocracy and have inaugurated the era of democracy.

During the monarchical or feudal days, Universities had to train scholars and poets to adorn the chambers of Royalty or the gilded mansions of Lord and nobles and their wisdom was meant for the mansion, not for the market place. Those were days when numbers did not count, nor were eminent scholars asked to face the problems confronting the masses. They were content to work in secluded spheres, far from the din and noise of the common man and weave the costly fabric of philosophy of poetry which on turn was to be converted into dazzling garments for the select and the privileged.

The role of the University to-day is not cloistered and confined as in the past. Its function has been enlarged-not in its fundamentals but in its domain. It has to take into account the commonness, but to trim and train, guide and lead him, for asked to do his duty as the citizen of a democracy-a task which kindles sweet hopes but which demands, patience and perseverance, faith and confidence, faith in himself and in others and confidence in his inherent ability to shoulder the responsibilities. The common man has become the birth place of a potential ruler and the duty today, the responsibility today of the universities is to fashion out of him as an individual fitted and equipped for the task of making democracy fruitful and effective.

I said that the duties and responsibilities of Universities have grown in dimension and scope, but pointed out that the fundamentals remain unaltered and these fundamentals are of permanent value and of perennial interest. The supreme task before the University is to give those who seek a vision of knowledge in its true proportions and perspectives, to maintain the sovereignty of ideas and ideals in the world. A balanced mind, the ability to discriminate between what is merely trivial and what is important, the capacity to look at a problem from all its angles without fear or favour, to be tolerant of the other man’s point of view. These are fundamentals which are unalterable and it’s only the universities that can provide society with a continuous stream of men and women endowed with these qualities.

While addressing the University of Brussels, Dr.s.Radhakrishnan, our former president, made the following statement:

“For its proper functioning democracy requires more qualities than other forms of government. It is in the universities that we can develop the true spirit of democracy, appreciation of other points of view and adjustment of differences through discussions. It can be kept healthy and strong by the exercise of individual responsibility and judgement.in universities we have to re-call the struggles of the past and realize the perils and possibilities, the challenges and opportunities, of the present.”

Democracy is not a form of government alone –it is an invitation to a new life-an experiment in the art of sharing responsibilities and benefits-an attempt to generate the common task. Hence we cannot afford to waste a single talent, improverish a single man or woman or allow a single individual to be stunted in growth or held under tyranny and the universities should through the graduates it sends forth year after year, annihilate the forces that attempt at aggrandizement and tyranny, fight against caste and hypocrisy and enthrone human dignity.

Graduates of the year, I wish you all a prosperous future-for, after all, the immediate concern of every individual, graduate or no graduate, is to acquire the means for a decent living. That is the first motivation for all human activity and no one can ignore it, but that ought not to be the sole objective. Something higher and nobler than mere individual material advancement is expected of you – for remember that this University education is a privilege that you enjoy, for which you are deeply indebted to the community of which you are a member. Most of the money needed for maintaining institutions of higher education come from the revenues collected from the community through the State, and a good proportion of that revenue comes from the tillers and the toilers, men who did not enjoy this privilege, men who willingly submit themselves to discomfort, so that they can enable the next generation to lead a better life. Graduates of the Annamalai University, may I ask you, how you are going to repay – what is to be your contribution to the social chest on which you have drawn so largely. Unless you replenish it richly, coming generations will find only an empty coffer. Your superior education increases your responsibility to society and therefore, apart from or along with your own individual advancement, society has got a right to expect an adequate return from you – not so much in terms of money as in terms of service – in toning up society, in bringing light into the dark alleys, sunshine into dingy places, solace into the afflicted, hope unto the despondent and a new life unto every one.

That this is a welcome and worthy ideal none would dispute, but not every one will come forward to translate that ideal into action – and yet our ancient as well as modern thinkers have all stated in unmistakable terms that wisdom is manifested in action.

Unless service is the outcome, the sermons become sweet nothings. As Jefferson stated,

“We must dream of an aristocracy of achievements arising out of a democracy of opportunities”

And when I seek your help and co-operation in the supreme task of serving society, please do not wink and smile and say, it is all so easy to say. I am not unaware of the difficulties in the way, nor am I going to brush aside the influence of the environment on you. May be, the world in which you are to begin the journey is one which will dim your hope, disturb your determination. You may come face to face with the unpleasant sight of practices widely differing from the principles inculcated in you. You may find self-seekers enthroned and the patient worker decried. Tyranny of all sorts may stare at you and every step you take will be a struggle. I admit that the environment is such that even people with robust optimism will be discouraged and forced to take to the part of ease and comfort.

But, we should also realize that a continuous stream of men and women endowed with the spirit of service has been carrying on the crusade successfully and have conferred rich benefit on humanity.

We, the Tamilians have been holding aloft this ideal for more than two thousand years and hence we find in pura nanuru this passage,

"c©lhš m«k ï›îyf« . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

jk¡bfd Kayh neh‹whŸ

ãw®¡bfd KaYe® c©ik ahnd!"

As inheritors of that rich legacy, you are best fitted to overcome even the environment and serve society to the best of your abilities,

Anyone, who proposes to do good must not expect people to roll stones out of his way, but must accept his lot calmly if they even roll a few more upon it. A strength which becomes clearer and stronger through its experience of such obstacles is the only strength that can conquer them – says Albert Schweitzer.

Though the problems in various countries are of a similar nature, the peculiarity attached to the problems of our country is of a pronounced nature.

Ours is not case of starting from scratch-had that been the case the only thing needed would have been the intensity of effort to be put forth. Ours is a case of erosion of the mind – we are not in search of fields, but have to engage in the task of fertilizing it, irrigating it, we are not in search of ideals, but are engaged in the more intricate task of classifying, codifying and verifying layers of ideals. We are not wanting in culture-but have to cleanse it from the cob-web of time and de-adulterate it. In short, we have to re-discover ourselves, and re-construct our entire thought. Once task to-day is to allow fresh air and sunshine and regain the original shape and stature – that which made us well

Known is distant lands and climes.Our literature, art and architecture are fine specimens of human intelligence – but they bear the ravages of time and also the effect of currents and cross currents so that to-day we have to listen to the foreign historian or scholar in order to realize the “glory and grandeur” of our own country.

Age commands veneration –but unless it is recuperated, decay sets in. our culture and civilization are hoary, but we have allowed scars and wrinkles to disfigure them. It is our duty therefore to re-discover and re-construct what is ours and enrich it by drawing liberally upon the achievements of other countries.

Our problem is not want of a system –in any branch of knowledge. We have fine specimens in all spheres. We claim also –and that rightly –immortality for our systems, but we have not succeeded in keeping them fresh and young, effective and energetic, for we have allowed them to decay.

If a system has to endure, says, Dr.Radhakrishnan, it must be perpetually young and ready to change. In other words, it must be capable of accepting new ideas, have the resilience of mind which the young have, have the openness, flexibility and spirit of adventure by which they accept what is given to them and transform it out of recognition.

Eos, a goddess falling in love with a mortal, prayed to god to grant immortality to the lover-‘yes’, said god, and the mortal gained immortality. But he grew old, infirm, senile, decayed –and what was a feast once to the eyes of Eos became a sight to shun and grieve over –and he who gained immortality longed for death – for what is life if it becomes a prey to decay? Then Eos sighed and said, “I prayed for immortality for my lover, forgetting to pray for perpetual youth.”

We in this country are facing some such situation – and we are in charge of the task of rejuvenating our culture and civilization – our entire thought, instead of attempting that, we have been, for too long a period, doting upon the decayed forms attempting to defend them from critics and currents of new thought. And while other parts of the world, after persistent and patient search after truth, have arrived at new conclusions and are scaling new heights, we are content to sit near the shattered rampart and narrate past glory.

Our religion has degenerated into rituals, our society which was once classless and casteless has degenerated into water –tight compartments of caste and creed and all the while, we have kept either silent or have been supplying defense to superstition and orthodoxy by offering liberal allowing this state of affairs to exist, despite condemnation and protest, and, more than that, whenever a doughty warrior comes forth to fight against the evils prevalent, we decry and denounce him as an annihilator of noble values and hoary systems. Periyar Ramasami represents and symbolizes the fury and frustration in a sizable section of society at this state of affairs. To allow systems to degenerate and at the same time denounce those who champion the cause of rationalism is but to perpetuate superstition and orthodoxy and allow this society of ours to get decomposed.

Universities offer the proper forum for a free and full discussion of these intricate problems and graduates trained here are to go forth as emissaries of that social reconstruction which is long over due. The country looks to centers of learning like this

Universities to enable the people to pursue the path of progress, braving difficulties and if need be, courting danger.

Graduates of the Annamalai University, let me call upon you to carry on the crusade against caste which cannot co-exist with democracy, against superstition which cannot co-exist with science and against tyranny of various dimensions which cannot co-exist with liberty, equality and fraternity.

Pursuing vocations for your and your families’ well being, you have to perform your duty towards society. You are to become torch – bearers of rationalism – and rationalism does not mean repudiation of basic and fundamental truths and maxims, but the annihilation of dubious modes of thought and action. You have to work hard and with daring and dash, for we have to clear cob-webs which are centuries old and let reason reign supreme.

Another peculiar feature of our times is the fact that we are a nation in the making, and if in their anxiety to forge integration, some confuse unity with uniformity, it is the duty of men trained here to clearly enunciate the principle and see to it that, in the name of unity, no part of the country is made to become the vassal of another part-knowingly or unknowingly. We cannot be a party to foul play, however worthy the goal. Just on the eve of independence Rajaji stated with an acumen all his own, “our political experiment is really like melting iron and metals and pouring them in to a crucible and making an alloy, an alloy which can stand wear and tear . It is not like the chinaware that other people have turned out in their countries. Their democracies were easy to make – like plastics. But we are dealing with metals.” National integration is a goal, worthy and much – sought after, but neither in the field of language nor in the economic sphere, could we tolerate injustice and domination. That is exactly why this government was brought into existence – it represents the determination of the people to be coerced into accepting Hindi as the official language.

When we plead for the continuance of English as the link language, some people do misrepresent us and misinterpret our motive. They trot out untenable arguments and disputable statistics, bring in the bogey of disintegration and want to silence people by threats and troops. Problems were never solved by autocratic methods – and this problem of language is intimately connected with our way of life, not for the present alone but for the future as well.

The government of Tamilnadu has stated in unmistakable terms that Tamil and English can serve all our purposes, the former as the official language of this state and the latter as the link language. If it is accepted and the most emphatic of Hindi protagonists do accept that - if it is accepted that English can serve admirably as a link between our state and the outside world, why plead for Hindi to be the link language here? What serves to link us with the outside world is certainly capable of rendering the same service inside India as well. To plead for two link languages is like boring a smaller hole in a wall for the kitten while there is a bigger one for the cat. What suits the cat will suit the kitten as well

English is foreign, some argue, as if we were out to destroy or give up everything foreign. We bring foreign wear in foreign ships. We seek foreign aid not only in the shape of money bur also in the from of technical know-how and not a week passes without one or other leader undertaking a journey to the west or east to secure whatever aid is possible to secure. And on top of all these things, we have given up so many systems peculiarly our own.

We are not content with rural economy, we want Trombays and Ennores. And we are not conscious of their being foreign; only in the matter of language we pose as being ultra –nationalists and dub the English language as foreign.

Shelly and Byron, Keats and Coleridge, Emerson and Bacon-they are not foreign to us in the strict sense of the term. Is Tiruvalluvar a mere Tamilian? They are all world citizens – world teachers. And the language enshrining their thoughts is not to be discarded just because it comes from another country. That we are not going to accord a higher status to English is borne out by the fact that we have accepted and are implementing with due caution the principle of making Tamil the medium of instruction in colleges –progressively.

University education is an epitome of all that is best in thought cultivated in various countries, and from you should radiate universal thought and cosmopolitan ideas.

And if we are to get all these and more from out of the graduates of the University we have to re-examine the methods in vogue in universities, in teaching and in administration, and so perfect them that every student feels that he is a co-sharer of the pleasure and privilege of knowledge along with his professors. I shall not dabble in methods of teaching or administration-experts in that field are the natural custodians-my plea is only as regards the necessity for a re-examination.

While the functions assigned to universities are mostly of the same type, the Annamalai University, by its structure and spirit, has got a special function of its own. The great founder’s nobility and generosity has made this institution gain the esteem of eminent men here and elsewhere; but if we analyze the thought and motive force of Rajah Sir Annamalai Chettiar, we will find that he wanted this place to be not only a seat of learning and research of Tamil Culture and Tamil polity. He had the foresight to realize that Tamilians were going to cultivate their special talents and that was exactly why he started and made a success of the Tamil Isai Movement. Rajah Sir was never a man of tall talk-he believed in solid work and he knew the time was bound to come for us to delve deep into our annals and literature, culture and civilization and succeed in getting due and adequate recognition in the world forum.

Truly great has been our achievement in the field of literature. To be able to announce to the world that we the Tamilians do process.

“e‰¿id ešy FWªbjhid I§FWü

bwh¤j gâ‰W¥g¤ njh§F gÇghlš

f‰w¿ªnjh® V¤J« fÈnah lf«òwbk‹

¿¤âw¤j v£L¤ bjhif”

And to present to the world the great Tirukkural which is a Code of Conduct for the entire humanity are something about which we can have pardonable pride and pleasure.

And yet, are we devoting enough attention to these Tamil Classics? Addressing the Convocation here in 1943, the late lamented Sir R.K. Shanmukham Chetty had the following to say:-

“I graduated with a complete ignorance of Tamil Culture and History: in fact with a great deal of contempt for these. I attained a fair degree of proficiency in English literature and the history of European culture. I acquired some knowledge of even Anglo- Saxon and Gothic. I read the translation of the Bible in the Gothic language , but I had not read the Kural of Valluvar. I could understand Chaucer, but the name of Ilango was nothing but a name. Even after leaving College, I kept alive my interest in these studies and built up a Library in which there was not a single Tamil book.

In my early youth when I lived in a world of my own with no sense of responsibility, all this made no difference to me and I was proud of my learning. Soon when manhood came with its cares and problems, I found myself a stranger in my own home…….Gradually I began to realize the incongruity of my scheme of life and for some time now I have been endeavoring to rectify the balance. It was only a few years ago that I seriously attempted to study some of the Tamil Classics. I find that they are fit to rank among the immortal works of the world. I now bitterly regret my neglect of the treasures of my own land.”

It was not an apologia, but the expression of a new determination and Sir R.K.Shanmukaham lived to establish the truth that he had mastered not only the Tamil language but Tamil literature as well. Had he lived for some more years, he would traveled many a land carrying the message of the Tamil Classics, which spoke at such a hoary past about

“x‹nw FyK« xUtnd njtD«”

“ahJ« Cnu ahtU« nfË®”

“Éidna Mlt®¡F cÆnu”

“ešyJ brŒjš M‰Ö uhÆD«

mšyJ brŒjš X«òÄ‹”

“v›tÊ ešyt® Mlt®

m›tÊ mšy thÊa Ãynd”

“bršt¤J¥ gand <jš”

“ÔJ« e‹W« ãw® ju thuh”

“gF¤J©L gšYÆ® X«òjš ünyh®

bjhF¤jt‰WŸ všyh« jiy”

Thoughts now placed before the world as blossoms of the modern age.

You, graduates of the Annamalai University, have got undertake the special task of carrying the message that our classics contain to the entire world and declare that what was the most ancient here is what is being introduced to-day as the most modern.

South India is the home of the most ancient culture Though for a fairly long period there was the mist of ignorance, thick and widespread, it has now been acknowledge by all that Dravidian Civilization of a highly developed character can be traced back to the second and third millennia before Christ. Many a Foreign scholar has borne testimony to the perfection with which Tamil language has been developed into an instrument of precise and subtle thought and to the beauty and richness of the literature – which is contained in it. Dravidian literature, philosophy, art and architecture offer therefore a rich and fruitful field for exploration and critical investigation.

Not for more glorification but for a just appreciation of all that is of real value and beauty in our past heritage. We need this research and investigation.

I do not propose to talk about your responsibility in the political arena. Suffice it to say that you should make democracy safe and sound, salubrious and fruitful.

Carry the message that this Universities has given to you wherever you go, whatever the station you find yourselves in and elevate the common man- the average man-

“He seems incredible but represents two –thirds of mankind. He lives in hut. He cannot read or write. His energy is sapped by disease. He labours up to 15hours a day. He works on land he does not own. He and his family are family are usually hungry. He will die young. But he still has hopes for his children; that they will be strong and healthy; will be able to read and write, will know individual freedom in a peaceful world. This is the world’s average Man.”

And the world over, this average Man has become conscious of the injustice done to him and as a consequence we find agitations and marches, struggles and clashes. In many a country, measures to raise his level have been undertaken. Take a pledge, here and now, that we will not lag behind and leave our average man in the lurch. For if the base is weak, the dome is doomed. Inheritors as you are of a noble heritage, you are eminently fitted for this noble task, and on its success depends the future of this nation as of others.

Let us remember what Woodrow Wilson said,

“Nations are renewed from the bottom not from the top . . . real wisdom of human life is compounded out of the experiences of ordinary men. The utility, the vitality, the fruitage of life comes like the natural growth of a great tree, from the soil, up through the trunk into the branches to the foliage and the fruit. The great struggling unknown masses of the men who are not the base of everything are the dynamic force that is lifting the level of society. A nation is as great and only as great as her rank and file.”

May I submit my plea to you, youths blossoming forth from this institution, be firm but not obstinate, let here be a blending of ideas, but never cheap imitation and injurious adulteration, beware of mistaking obsessions for principles and fads for facts, strike at a synthesis and avoid subservience, view as the final on to protest against injustice but project not your own view as the final one, forget not the ancient saying

“f‰wJif« k©zsî fšyh Jyfsî”

And father not when you practice what you profess.

University education gives you the basic needs for this stupendous task, but that is not enough. Say along

I read, I study

I examine, I listen

I reflect, and out of

All this, I try to form

An idea in which I can put as

Much of commonsense

As I can.

And remember the longest journey is the journey inward, and since graduation is but the starting point of that journey, I wish you success-reach the goal yourselves-teach others to march towards the goal and let that goal be,

A world without the

beggar’s out-stretched

palm, the miser’s

heartless, stony stare,

the piteous wail of

want, the pallid face

of crime, the

livid lips of lies,

the cruel eyes

of scorn,

A race without

disease of flesh or

brain, shapely and

fair, the married

harmony of form and

use-where

life lengthens, fear

dies, joy deepens,

love intensifies, and

Man regains his

Dignity.

And to get these things realized, let us one and all strive towards the ideal enunciated by Thiruvalluvar,

“cWgáí« Xth¥ ãÂí« brWgifí«

nruh âaštJ ehL”

I am confident that you are being sent into the wide world by the Annamalai University with this objective-you are bound to win, for you are adequately equipped with the spirit supplied by this great institution. May your life be a bright one, and may its luster brighten the entire land! Accept my congratulations and march onwards, towards the land of smiles.

[Annamalai University Convocation Address of Tamilnadu Chief Minister C.N.Annadurai on 18.11.1967]

March Towards Just Equitable Society

THE AIMS OF ARINGNAR ANNA FOUNDATION

To wake up the consciousness of fellow human beings towards wiping out poverty, to usher in global peace by ensuring that the ownership, control and distribution of the gifts of nature and manufactured wealth are for the benefit of one and all To be a union of scientists, technologists, social activists, ideologues, educationalists and politicians breaking the barriers of country, caste, color, creed, gender, race, language and all kinds of divide To evolve a political philosophy, economic policy and cultural agenda for alternate society To preserve the life systems and ecosystems on Planet Earth engaging in endless pursuit to evolve a suitable model of human development, harnessing the Nature’s bounty and human skills for the betterment of all living creatures in our galaxy To involve in a crusade for nuclear disarmament and moral re-armament To enrich human culture, human consciousness with a rationalist enquiry into manifold scientific discoveries and their ultimate acceptability for societies living in our galaxy To march towards a just and equitable society upholding the principles of Annaism, enriching it in the light of evolving consciousness To adopt the noble goals set up by Green Peace and various other environmental campaigns for the cause of peace and harmony                                                                                                     To work for the betterment of indigenous peoples like tribals, physically handicapped, mentally retarded, victims of genocidal wars, apartheid and gender discrimination To run orphanages, old age homes, medical centers, educational and research institutions, training center for unemployed youth etc To set up Aringnar Anna Rationalist University for strengthening democratic forces of a just equitable alternative society To engage in a global campaign for upholding the democratic, civil or ecological rights of men or women from all nationalities of Mother Earth. Founder President: N.Nandhivarman Aringnar Anna Foundation 104 A , Annamalai Nagar, Saram Puducherry 605013 Cell: 09244445508 email :  aringnarannafoundation@gmail.com Vice President: A.Vanthiyathevan M.A Secretary: N.J.Karthikeyan B.A.B.Ed, LL.B Treasurer: Miss V.Sundaravalli