Isvar Chandra Vidyasagar, a story of his life and work/Chapter 13

by Subal Chandra Mitra

CHAPTER XIII.

PRINCIPAL OF THE SANSKRIT COLLEGE.

When Babu Rassomoy Dutt saw, that Vidyasagar was charged with the report instead of himself, who was the Secretary to the College, and who, in ordinary course, ought to have been intrusted with the work, he thought naturally that the authorities were resolved to make Vidyasagar Secretary. He, therefore, deemed it advisable to resign his office beforehand, and, accordingly, sent in his resignation letter, before the submission of the report by Vidyasagar. On the 4th January, 1851, Dr. Mouat, the Secretary to the Education Council, wrote a letter to Rassotnoy Babu, accepting his resignation. In this letter he thanked Rassotnoy Babu^[1] for the able and faithful discharge of his duties, and, at the same time, requested him to make over the charge of his office to Vidyasagar. He also forwarded a copy of this letter to our hero. For the edification of the reader, we will quote here the letter at length:—

'No. 70.

"From

The Secretary, Council of Education,

"To

"Rassomoy Dutt Esq.

Secretary, Sanskrit College.

"Fort William, 4th January, 1851.

"Sir,

"I am directed by the Council of Education to accept your resignation of the office of Secretary of the Sanscrit College and to return you the thanks for the long period during which you have conducted its duties.

"As the Council are anxious to relieve you at once from the duties of your late office, they will feel obliged by your making over charge upon receipt of this communication to Pundit Ishwur Chunder Shurma pending the sanction of Government to the permanent changes proposed and adopted by the Council.

"I have &c.

Sd. F. J. M0UAT, M. D.

"Secretary, Council of Education.

"No. 71.

"Copy forwarded to Pundit Ishwur Chunder Shurma with directions to receive charge from Babu Rassomoy Dutt of the Office of Secretary to the Sanscrit College and to conduct its duties, pending the receipt of further Orders".

"By order

Sd. "F. J. Mouat, M. D.

"Secretary, Council of Education."

Shortly after this, the offices of the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary were abolished, and, in their stead, the post of Principal was newly created with a monthly salary of 150 rupees. Mr. W. Seton-Karr, the then Under-Secretary to the Government of Bengal, by his letter No 37, dated the 20th January, 1851, appointed Vidyasagar as Principal of the Sanskrit College.

A true copy of the letter is given below:—

"No. 37.

„From

"The Under-Secretary to the Government of Bengal,

"To

"Pundit Ishwar Chunder Shurma

"Dated Fort William, the 22nd January, 1851.

"Sir,

"I am directed by the Deputy Governor of Bengal to inform you that His Honour has been pleased this day to appoint you to be Principal of the Sanscrit College on a salary of Rs. 150 per mensem.

I have &c.

Sd. W. Seton Karr,

Vidyasagar's chief aim now was to improve the College. He applied himself, heart and soul, to remodel it and bring in proper method and regularity in all respects. First of all, he directed his attention to regulate the punctual attendance of the professors, who had again fallen into their old habits, since he had left the College on the former occasion. They observed no fixed hour of attending the College; most of them were generally late. Nay, some of them came half an hour, or even a full hour, later. Almost all of them were Vidyasagar's teachers, and he had a great respect for them. But, at the same time, he had a keen sense of duty. He saw, that unless and until the teachers could be made regular and punctual, there was no hope for the College. He felt shy to tell them anything openly. But he must anyhow enforce regularity and punctuality in them, however painful the task might be. He tried various indirect means to bring them round, but without success. He then devised a new plan. He had at that time, his quarters on the second floor of the College-building. As soon as the clock struck 10-30 A. M., which was the hour fixed for the commencement of business, he went round all the classes; and if he found that some of the teachers were not yet come (which, unfortunately was a daily occurrence.), he at once went out to the gates of the College, and there paced up and down in front of them. No sooner did the teachers approach him, one by one, than he saluted each with a greeting, asking, at the same time,—'Do you come now, Sir?' This, of course, put the teachers to great shame, and had. the desired effect of rectifying their bad habits of late attendance.

He then bestowed his thoughts on the internal improvement of the College. He firmly believed, that the success of an educational institution depended mainly on the co-operation and good-will of the students. He also believed, that their good-will and co-operation could be secured only by kind and gentle treatment, which would serve to make them regular and punctual in attendance and more attentive to their studies. It was with this conviction, that he treated the students as if they were his own children. Referring to his treatment of the scholars, one of his pupils said one day to one of his friends:—"When we were students of the Sanskrit College, we saw Vidyasagar generally living in the College building.^[2] After college-hours, a number of students used to go to him in his private quarters. He greeted them all with his usual kindness and affability, and conversed with them on various instructive and entertaining topics. He often fed them with sweets, He always gave friendly treatment to school-boys, whether they belonged to the Sanskrit College or to his own private schools. His practice was to address the students generally with the familiar expression Tui (the Bengali vulgar use of "Thou"). The sweet, kind address Tui made them feel happy and quite at home with him. In fact, that sweet utterance of Tui from his lips seemed to be full of pure, heavenly love and affection. On the one hand, as he was gentle and kind to the schoolboys, on the other hand, he was equally severe and strict to them, when duty called for such treatment. It is needless to say, that the faithful discharge of duties sometimes requires the professors, teachers and authorities of schools and colleges to adopt severe and strict measures. But the severe mood of those, that are kind in nature, lasts for a short time only. Vidyasagar was naturally a kind-hearted man. Duty sometimes compelled him to take to severity, but no sooner was the cause of his displeasure removed, than his gentle heart melted with his usual kindness. His face would then be illumined with an expression of heavenly beauty and lustre."

Vidyasagar was quite averse to infliction of corporal punishment. One day, he saw that the boys of one of the classes had been made by the professor to stand up. He called the teacher aside, and said to him humorously:—'You intend opening a dancing opera-party, eh? You are training up dancers, are you? Seems, you yourself will represent the chief actress.' The teacher, of course, was greatly abashed.

On another occasion, he saw a rod, upon the table of the same professor, and asked him what the cane was for. The teacher replied, that it was used in pointing out places in maps. Vidyasagar at once retorted very humorously:—'I see, you kill two birds with one stone. The rod serves both purposes. It is as convenient to use it in map-pointing as to lay it on the backs of the pupils.'

Vidyasagar was very witty. He never let go an opportunity, whenever one presented itself, of giving expression to merry droll remarks, without availing himself of it. Though in the performance of his duties, he was most serious and austere, yet, in social talk, he was most affable, courteous, merry and jocular. The combination of these two different attributes is, no doubt, very beautiful, but it is rare, and is found only in a few very illustrious men, who have, by chivalrous or noble deeds, immortalised their names in the annals of history. It is said of General (afterwards Pasha) Gordon, the famous hero of Soudan, that in discharge of duties he was as grave and resolutely firm as a rock, but in private talks of leisure hours, he was a most amusing, witty fellow. In this respect, there is much similarity between Vidyasagar and Gordon. Both were heroes, though in different fields. Both were grave and serious in duty, but jocular and witty in society. One of Gordon's friends used to say of him that "He was the most cheerful of all my friends." Ananda Krishna Babu, speaking of Vidyasagar, said exactly the same thing.

We crave the indulgence of the reader to allow us to relate, in passing, a few incidents of Vidyasagar's merry witticism. He had a great friendly intercourse with Pandit Siva Nath Sastri's father, Harananda Bhattacnaryya, whom he treated as if he (Harananda) were his (Vidyasagar's) own brother-in-law (Sister's husband). In his latter days, this Harananda had settled in Benares, but now and then came down to Calcutta on business. On one of these occasions, he paid Vidyasagar a visit. The host received his visitor with a most cordial greeting. When Harananda Bhattacnaryya had taken his seat, and begun smoking hooka, the host said to his visitor have been told that you were already dead.' The other replied,—'Why so? Had I been dead how could I ever have come here?’ The other rejoined:—'Of course, I corroborate you. If you had not been dead, how could you have ever come here? Please, see that you do not haunt me.' The visitor smiled, and continued smoking. Vidyasagar again opened the conversation;—'So, you have, at last, selected Benares for your last days? Could you not find a better place to die in? Never mind, when you have already made the choice and are gone there, why do you leave it now and then? You know the fate of those who settle down in Benares, but die outside its borders?'^[3] The visitor replied:—'Most certainly I am aware of it. But there's no help. Pressure of business sometimes draws me down.' The host rejoined:—'Make haste; run back soon; look sharp; otherwise, you see there is a great difference betwen within and without Benares. By the way, have you acquired the habit of smoking ganja (Indian hemp)?' The visitor said,—'Why that, what's the use of ganja?' Vidyasagar replied,—'Suppose, you die in Benares; there is no doubt, in that case, that you will turn a Siva. Now, when you have been transformed into a Siva, Naidi and Bhringi will, of course, give you a hookah of ganja, and you will have to smoke it. So that, unless you acquire the habit now, you will then die of suffocation, and you will be deprived of your much desired transformation.' A roar of laughter rose from the assembly and rent the walls of the room.

On another occasion, there was a social gathering in one of the parlours of Babu Raj Krishna Bauarji. Among the visitors, were present Babu Dwarka Nath Mittir, a late judge of the High-Court, and Ray Krishna Das Pal Bahadur, the late famous editor of the 'Hindoo Patriot.' While every one was engaged in friendly talk, one of the neighbours was peeping into the room through a window. Vidyasagar noticed this, and, at once, sent for him. The man entered the room in great trepidation. Vidyasagar asked him why he had been peeping into the room. The man replied in a tremulous voice, with his head downwards, that he had heard that Judge Dwarik Mittir had come, and that he had been trying to catch a glimpse of the Judge. Vidyasagar said—'Oh! Indeed! What's the use of peeping, then? Come nearer, and I will show you him. Do you know this gentleman? His name is Krishna Das Pal. Whoever is fairer than he in this company, is your Dwarik Mitter. Now tell ms, if you have known him, and point him out?' It may be mentioned here for the information of the reader, that neither of the two gentlemen had a very fair complexion. A loud roar of merry laughter rent the vaults of the sky. The man was quite abashed, and left the room in great haste. Here Vidyasagar killed three birds with one stone.

Once on a time, several Pandits of Bhatpara, a renowned seat of Sanskrit learning in Bengal, came to Calcutta to receive their yearly allowances from a wealthy Hindu gentleman of the city. On their way back, they paid a visit to our hero. In course of conversation, one of the visitors said,—'Now-a-days, the Brahma-Teja (superior influence) of the Brahmans has wholly vanished.' Vidyasagar contradicted him, and said merrily, by way of joke,—'What is it you say, sir? No, you are quite mistaken. On the contrary, it would be more correct to say, that it has redoubled now. Formerly your Teja was felt only when you approached any body; but, at the present day, your Teja (heat) is so intense, that no sooner you approach the gates of a rich man, than he begins to feel a burning sensation' (meaning the wealthy Hindus of modern times do not like to countenance Sanskrit education by giving pecuniary aids to Pandits, as in days gone by). A roar of loud, merry laughter rose from the whole assembly.

Now, to resume our narrative. Though Vidyasagar was generally witty and humorous, he was not the man to lose sight of his business. By repeated jokes for a few days, he brought the afore-mentioned professor to his senses, and made him forego his harsh treatment of the boys. Vidyasagar was not content with this. In a few days, he issued a circular order interdicting corporal punishment of the College-students.

In his later days, when he had retired from public service and opened his private Metropolitan College, he issued directions to the teachers of that institution not to give corporal punishment to the students, but to rectify their manners by kind and gentle treatment. The masters of the school department, however, did not act up to the instructions. They thrashed the boys as usual. When Vidyasagar's attention was drawn to it, he instituted an enquiry. One of the teachers admitted that he beat the boys. He was, therefore, made to retire.

We embrace this opportunity to narrate one or two incidents of his fond affection for school-boys, in general, of his later years.

On one occasion, he drove out all the boys of the second class of the Syambazar branch of his Metropolitan Institution for wilful disobedience. Duty compelled him to do away with the class altogether for that year. On the next morning, the boys waited upon him at his own residence, and earnestly prayed to be forgiven. The pitiful faces of the little boys and their earnest solicitations moved his naturally gentle heart. His fearful wrath now turned into benign kindness. He addressed the boys with his usual affability, and said:—'Very good, go now I excuse you this time, but mind, be careful not to do so again.' A great burden was now removed from the minds of the boys, and they were highly delighted. It was then mid-day, the clock having then struck twelve. The boys took leave of Vidyasagar, and as they were alighting down the stairs, one of them most innocently and merrily said to the others, in a not very loud voice:—'What an inhuman heart! It is so late in the day, yet he has not thought fit to ask us to a little refreshment.' The words reached Vidyasagar's ears. He at once ran down, and overtook the boys while still on the stairs. He said to them:—'Quite right, my dear boys; surely, I have an inhuman heart. My mind was abstracted, and my attention not being drawn to it, I forgot to ask you to refreshment. Come, you must partake of a little refreshment. The boys were quite confused and bewildered. Some of them implored to be excused, while others tried to run down the stairs in great haste. But Vidyasagar told the porter to shut the gates, and took the reluctant boys to a room, where they were made to partake of the refreshment provided for them. They were then dismissed. When they had left the house, and were on the road, one said to the other:—'How can such a man ever get angry?' On another occasion, it so happened that the boys of the vernacular department of the Calcutta Medical College (since converted into Campbell Medical School) were addressed by the then Principal of the College with some sweet notorious epithets of Macaulay. They were deeply grieved at the unmannerly conduct of the Principal, and banded together against him. They met in a field and formed a resolution, that until the Principal apologised for his impolite behaviour, they should not attend school. They were thus absent from the College for several months together. A great number of these boys were scholarship-holders, and depended solely on their stipends for their maintenance. They were, as a matter of consequence, put to great embarrassments. At last, they went in a band to Vidyasagar, and craved his assistance in the matter. He had already heard everything. He at first tried to induce them by persuasion to rejoin their school, but without success. Their spokesman, Bijay Krishna Gosvami, who was one of their number, said with great enthusiasm, that the boys were more eager for their self-respect than to seek for their convenience. Vidyasagar then yielded to their just request. He brought their prayer to the notice of the Lieutenant Governor, who directed the Principal to send for the boys and settle the matter amicably. Henceforth Vidyasagar had a great fond regard for the spirited Bijay Krishna Gosvami.

Now, to revert. Vidyasagar next directed his thoughts to the improper, one-sided practice then obtaining in the Sanskrit College, restricting the admission of boys of other castes than the Brahman, Kshatriya, and Vaidya. He saw the injustice of the restriction, and brought the matter to the notice of the Education Council. The authorities called on him for a report on the subject, which he submitted on the 20th. March, 1851. Among other things, he said something like this:—'When the Vaidyas, who are no better than Sudras, are allowed to read in the College, I see no reason why the Kayasthas should not. Moreover, when Amrita Lal Mitra, a son-in-law of Raja Radha Kanta Dev Bahadur of Sobhabazar, and lately a student of the Hindu School, has been permitted to read in the Sanskrit College, there can be no reason why the other Kayasthas should not. That the Kayasthas are Kshatriyas, Raja Raj Narayan of Andul once tried to demonstrate. The Kayasthas belong to one of the respectable castes of Bengal. For the present, they should be permitted to read in the College.' In another part of the report, he distinctly stated:—"The opinions of the principal professors of the College on this subject are averse to this innovation." In fact, not only the teachers of the Sanskrit College, but also private professors of Calcutta and its neighbourhood had raised a hue and cry against this just innovation. Their chief contention was, that if the sons of the lower castes were allowed to read Sanskrit, their Hindu religion would be polluted. But Vidyasagar refuted them by reasonable arguments, and by quotations of passages from the very Sastras. He asked the professors, that if they believed that the Sudras were not entitled to Sanskrit education, how was it then that Raja Radha Kanta Dev, who was as well a Sudra, could obtain instruction in Sanskrit, and the professors did not object to his discussion of the Sastras? He also asked them, that when they were disinclined to teach Sanskrit to the Sudras and other low caste boys, how was it that they did not feel compunction in teaching the godly language to Europeans, who were no Hindus, and received, in return, money from them as wages? In fact, he had to toil hard to carry his point by these and other means. He even went so far as to declare to one of his friends, that if he did not succeed in his attempts at this innovation, he would resign his office. But, fortunately, he had not to go so far. The authorities approved of his scheme, and they granted permission to take Kayastha boys into the College. It was some time after this, that the other Sudras were also permitted to read, in the Sanskrit College all other branches of the Sanskrit Literature save Theology.

The mental labour and anxiety that he has had to undergo in his endeavours to introduce these innovations and improvements into the College, combined with the excessive grief and anguish that he had suffered at the untimely death of his two dear, little brothers, whom he had fetched to Calcutta for education, related above, brought on him a severe malady. Some five or six months after he had been made Principal of the Sanskrit College, he was, one day, seized with an acute head-ache, which gradually sat deep-rooted and was converted into severe, chronic head-disease. Medical treatments of different kinds brought on some relief, but failed to cure him radically. The malady however could not, at that time, completely over-power and disable him, for he had a very robust constitution. He used to engage himself daily in gymnastic exercises and other athletic sports, both morning and evening. He had thus such an excessive quantity of blood accumulated in his blood-vessels, that his medical attendants were afraid of his having some serious indisposition at no distant future. Dr. Nil Madhav Mukharji, therefore, twice opened the veins of his neck, and bled him profusely.

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1. Since the establishment of the Sanskrit College, the following gentlemen held the office of its Secretary:—Todd, Marshall, Frere, Ramkamal Sen, and Rassomoy Dutt.
2. It is said, that during the great wide-spread agitation of the Hindu Widow Marriage, Vidyasagar generally passed his nights in the College-building, studying the various Sastras to look out for passages supporting bis contention. In front of the College, stood Syama Charan Babu's house, where he sometimes supped, now and then supping in the College, as well. In the morning, however, he breakfasted at Raj Krishna Babu's. Syama Charan Babu was one of his greatest friends.
3. It is said, that those, who die within the precincts of Benares, are taken to Sivaloka (the abode of the god Siva), and are transformed, each to a Siva; but he, who has once settled in Benares, and dies outside its boundaries, Is transformed into an ass.