Author: Anujata D Talukdar
Publication: Assam Tribune
Date: November 27, 2000
As you near the building,
your ears are filled with the sound of Vedic slokas being chanted in unison
by young boys. Had it not been for the urban setting you could have
been excused for mistaking it for a hermitage of the ancient times.
But then this is the heart of Guwahati where a brave attempt is being made
to preserve for posterity what is being gradually sidelined.
The Asom Veda Vidyalaya
at Vedapuram in the Rupnagar area of the city is the only institution of
its kind in the North East that despite all odds, is trying to preserve
and propagate the rich Vedic tradition in this part of the country.
The Vedas are the source of knowledge and religion, the bed-rock of Indian
culture and civilisation and the fountain-head of our hoary tradition.
The only Veda Pathsala of Sasvara Patha (oral tradition) in the region
was set up in 1979 on the Buddha Purnima Day under the auspices of the
Asom Vaidic Samaj which itself was formed soon after the All India Vedic
Conference held here that very year. Initially run from the premises
of the Chatraker Temple in the Uzanbazar area of the city, the Asom Veda
Vidyalaya shifted to its permanent location in 1994.
Starting off with eight
students and a single teacher, the Vidyalaya, today, has 30 students and
11 teachers besides other staff. The students, who come mostly from
poor rural families, are provided everything - food, lodging, education
and even clothes - free of charge.
"We don't have any caste
or sex barriers," says Prof Kiran Sarma, honorary secretary of the Vidyalaya
who has been associated with the institution right from inception.
There was a time when the reading of the Vedas were restricted to Brahmin
community.
Things have changed.
The Asom Veda Vidyalaya has non-Brahmin students too, says Sarma.
Girls, if suitable, may also be taken in, he says. So far, however,
none have applied.
Governed by the Maharashi
Sandipan Rashtriya Veda Vidya Prathistan, an autonomous body under the
Union HRD Ministry, the Asom Veda Vidyalaya has kept up with the modern
times by introducing English, Science and Mathematics among its students.
"These subjects are a must if one has to survive in these times," says
Prof Sarma. The Vidyalaya has a full fledged school from classes
V to X with ME and Tol sections. Three of its students will be appearing
in the Upadhi examinations as regular candidates next year under the State
Sanskrit Board. All the earlier students who secured the Upadhi from
Varanasi have secured jobs for themselves, says Prof Sarma with obvious
satisfaction. Hostel stay for all the Veda section students is compulsory.
The Rashtriya Veda Vidya Prathistan has now recommended that only children
between 9 and 11 be admitted into the Veda section. This is so because
it is only the children of that age group who are able to correctly pronounce
the words in the slokas, explains Prof Sarma, who is himself a noted Sanskrit
scholar having several books to his credit including the first Sanskrit-Assamese
dictionary.
The Rashtriya Prathistan
grants stipends for 19 students at Rs 250 each besides providing the salary
for one Sanskrit and one Veda teacher. The State Education Department
pays for three more Sanskrit teachers and the English, Science and Mathematics
teachers. The three subject teachers were appointed under the Centre's
Modernisation of Sanskrit Education Scheme, says Prof Sarma. The
average grant got from the Rashtriya Prathistan is about Rs 2 lakh per
year, but the actual expenses are several times more. Last year the
total expenditure was about Rs 11 lakh. Most of the extra funds comes
by way of donation, says he.
The permanent building
of the Vidyalaya has also been built with donations. Since 1994,
the ground and first floors of the building, each floor of 2,500 sq ft,
have been completed. In 1997, Smt Basanti Devi, MP released Rs 2
lakh from her LAD fund for the library. Another MP, Dr Manmohan Singh
recently allocated another Rs 8 lakh for building the second floor of the
building.
Work has already begun
with the PWD taking up the job. Construction is expected to be completed
by April next year. That the people of the State have been very supportive
of the Veda Vidyalaya's efforts is evident from the liberal donations that
keep coming in. It is because of this that the institution has grown
from strength to strength. Today, few important functions are complete
without the Vidyalaya's students reciting a sloka or two. However
there are still a lot to be done. "Earth filling is an absolute necessity,"
says Prof Sarma, adding that every year the Vidyalaya premises remains
under water during heavy rains forcing the closure of the institution.
A boundary wall and a yagya shala are also needed, says Prof Sarma.
The Vidyalaya has appealed to the public for donations for these constructions.
It has also come up with an unique donor scheme under which donors can
adopt a Vedapathy student by paying Rs 4,000 per year to meet his food
expenses for the period of his studies. Interested persons may contact
the Vidyalaya on phone numbers 523345 and 520410.
