12 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF
advice as to the propriety of taking the mantra[1] from his family guru in accordance with the time-honoured custom of his forefathers. I remember very well taking him to my father; and the question propounded was would he be justified in conforming to that custom? This question, after some discussion, was decided in the negative. This and subsequent acts of nonconformity on the part of Keshab led to a serious rupture between him and the elders of his family. Matters came to such a pass that Keshab and his wife were compelled to leave their home and take shelter in our family house for some time (1862).
My father was much struck by the earnestness and ability of young Keshab, and at once accepted him as a friend and coadjutor. A deep and abiding attachment sprang up between them. "The mature man of fifty joined himself to the eager youth of twenty-three, and they both agreed to work with a cheerfulness and enthusiasm which none had experienced before." Thenceforth they jointly began to plan and adopt several important measures for the improvement of the Samaj; the most noteworthy being the establishing of the Brahma Vidyalaya, a Theological Institute where both of them gave lectures on religious subjects in Bengali and English. In 1862 my father installed Keshab as
- ↑ The guru is the spiritual preceptor who gives to his disciple mantra or text on which to meditate.
