The weeklong festivities of the keenly awaited Durga Puja have come to an end, and the autumn air is laden with melancholic calm. Having bid the divine Mother adieu, we feel forlorn, engulfed by a sombre stillness and looming void. As I sit in resigned silence, time seems to have paused to usher in indelible fragments of memory of a very dear and revered persona, the late Biraja Choudhury, our beloved Boudi, who shuffled her mortal coils last year at or about the same time somewhat unexpectedly, leaving all who knew her in an abyss of agonising pain and inconsolable grief. The relentless march of time, though, has seen a year pass by, like wind tossing the pages of a book. Her first PUNYA THITHI today has opened a chest of emotions with poignant strain and repressed anguish, seemingly defying the cliché that time is the best healer. Indeed, she continues to dwell in our hearts, minds and consciences, and her loss is still irreconcilable and incessantly tormenting.
At home, as the loving daughter of a distinguished family of Nalbari, in the State of Assam, well known for its philanthropic work and generous hospitality, she grew up in a profoundly cultured environment that decisively shaped her personality as a warm, compassionate and benign self. After completing her matriculation from the Nalbari Girls’ High School, she graduated in arts. Though girls of her time, belonging particularly to the conservative families, seldom involved themselves in extracurricular activities, she keenly participated and excelled in sports, especially in the field events, and earned commendable distinctions. This zest for sports she must have acquired from her brothers, who were eminent footballers of their time. She grew up valuing familial bonds, perfection in enterprises and creativity in approach and imbibed lessons of character, responsibility, care and sharing.
My tryst with Boudi was in the early 1990s, when, for the first time, I had the privilege of visiting the law chamber of Shri Dhiresh Narayan Choudhury, Senior Advocate (as he then was), an astute and erudite legal luminary of his age, who eventually became my mentor, friend, philosopher and guide in law and life and still continues to be so. At first sight, to me she appeared to be a symbol of motherly affection and grace, exuding a soothing serenity. As my visits since then to the chamber, on being graciously integrated into it, became regular, I, along with the other chambermates, had the rare privilege of being initiated into the amazing repertoire of her human qualities. With a modest yet confident smile, which mirrored her inner radiance and self-effacing disposition, she was an embodiment of sacrifice, kindness, humility, patience and endurance, so much so that her fond association transformed the moments shared into everlasting memories etched in our hearts. She despised the glitz and glamour of extravagance and valued foundational roots and family bonds. She could see beyond appearances and exercised calm resilience with indomitable grit in the face of unforeseen challenges. She preferred a low profile, yet displayed unwavering moral strength and sentient composure even in moments of crisis. Despite devoting herself to the exacting demands of routine and responsibilities, which she discharged with admirable precision, unstinted commitment and sincere devotion, she could retain a sustained smile and an unfailing generous gesture in minutiae. With her anodyne interventions of confident optimism and spiritual enthusiasm, she could convert scars to beauties and pain to purpose. She possessed exceptional culinary excellence, and we merrily used to be the beneficiaries of her unforgettable creative novelties, an additional attraction to attend the chamber, our otherwise venerable seat of pilgrimage.
Boudi used to be extraordinarily sensitive on social issues and always remained abreast of the contemporary events, holding firm and persuasive views. Her insatiable quest for information on current topics the world over had been exemplary. Human miseries used to intensely stir her to the core, and she strived untiringly for their redemption. Hers was a motto not to flee from life but to face it with courage and fortitude. She embraced in her fold all who came in touch with her and entertained a concept of unconventional family, not knit with blood ties but love, understanding and kindness. With these unique qualities, she could weave a beautiful symphony of life, which smiled on the family. She was, in essence, the guardian angel of our dreams and watchful sentinel of our causes. Boudi was not a mere presence but the family’s lifeline, nay, its living spirit. She had been our safe harbour for refuge in need and distress. Her loss has left us devastated and forsaken.
Boudi used to be submissively religious and God-fearing, always engaged in mind and action for the welfare of others, with malice against none. I have no doubt that the merciful Lord has by this time assimilated her in His infinite existence. As it is, death only extinguishes the physical presence in this temporal actuality, but the imperishable soul of the righteous permeates the absolute Brahman for its perpetual liberation. The mystic verse from ‘Savitri’ conveys the spiritual experience of the awakening of the inner consciousness towards such communion.
“A death-bound littleness is not all we are:
Immortal our forgotten vastness
Await discovery in our summit selves;
Unmeasured breadths and depths of being are ours.”
Too far from surface nature’s postal routes,
Too lofty for our mortal lives to breathe,
Deep in us a forgotten kinship points
And a faint voice of ecstasy and prayer
Calls to those lucent lost immensities…”
Sri Aurobindo –
Boudi, by her virtuous thoughts and deeds, has attained the much-coveted deliverance and has merged into the vastness of the Supreme, where, snuggled at the lotus feet of the Lord, she would rest in eternal peace. On this auspicious day, we all fervently pray to the Almighty to bless her soul with sublime salvation.
– A host of her kin
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