VISHNU NARAYANAN NAMBOODIRI, SCORPIO *** [poetry books to read .txt] 📗

was yet to come. It was in 1997 he went to UK on invitation for a lecture on Indian spirituality. Religious orthodoxy rose against him saying he committed blasphemy by flying over the seas while he was performing the duties of the head priest in the Shree Vallabha temple and wanted him to be removed. It was Shri VGK Menon, President of the Travancore Devaswom Board who put his foot down and saved him.

 

While in the college as a professor he was the first one to raise a dissent note when others were waging battles for UGC scales and against UGC’s stringent service conditions. He showed immense courage to plead that UGC funds are not for increasing salaries of teachers but they are meant for creating more and more infrastructure facilities for educational institutions. He was Secretary of Vidyabhyasa Suraksha Samithi, organised to redeem the college campuses from party-politics. All these rightly or wrongly branded him as revolutionary within a reactionary shell.

 

His Philosophy of Life

 

 

Vishnu Narayanan Nampoodiri has often been wrongly painted as a reactionary for his outlook on life. More than his poetry what makes him a great human being is his progressive outlook, conviction, beliefs and what he practises in life, which unfortunately is forgotten even by the wiser lot. As a young boy during his bramacharya he imbibed poetic sensibility from his traditional upbringing, which often triggered his poetic senses. He believes the Gurukula Sytem of education has more pluses than minuses and is integral, never compartmentalised, as is the present Western education system. During the course of Vedic studies one has to learn thousands of slokas by heart, which included Amarakosa, Sutras and Kavyas. This process of learning helps the students to train their brains verily as a modern day computer or an encyclopaedia. He believes that this traditional learning has never been an obstacle to his intellectual growth but always helped his inner organic growth, as a fence would do for the growth of a garden.

 

He is a bit sceptic about the manner in which the temple funds are used now. It is not any concern as to who holds the fund, the Govt, trust or anybody else. But temple funds should be used exclusively for educational, cultural, and spiritual purposes. Stringent measures are needed to ensure that funds are not spent for commercial purposes. Temples, churches and mosques all should be dispossessed keeping aside a small chunk for daily poojas and rituals, he says. Vishnu Narayanan Namboodiri dreams of a Vedic society where caste sytem is not known, women are not discriminated against, land is not monopolised, and the discipline of aparigraha (non-possession) is maintained. His practical wisdom is sharp enough to accept that it is a tremendous task for the sociologists and enlightened politicians to achieve this goal.

 

He discards the theory of Aryan Invasion and proves it by quoting from the Vedas passages in praise of the land from Himalayas to Indian Ocean. Himself a Brahmin, he has crystal clear definition of a Brahmin. Brahminhood is not gifted by birth but gained by the quality of life one leads. He exemplifies this by quoting the Vedic passage ‘Manurbhava Janaya Daivyam Janam’ and Shankracharya’s words on imparting training for Brahminhood ‘Apeta brahmakshatradi Bhedam’. He urges to open sanctums of temples to dalit priests who are spiritually aspirants. If the caste barriers crumble India will have a glorious rebirth. He affirms that Hinduism can never degenerate into fascism and that Hinduism succeeds by its inherent power of wisdom and the bravery of soul. Violence cannot be accepted as recourse.

His vision of the future India is unique. He envisages an India with the steady evolution of a common civil code for all; abolition of all kinds of special privileges; introduction of Sanskrit at the fundamental level of education; ban on liquor, proselytisation and the tourism craze. A paradigm shift is needed from the consumerist Western to the eco-spiritual Eastern culture with prayers, meditation and pilgrimages in place of the orgy of festivals today. His dream may seem utopian, but the sincerity and sensitivity that drive his vision need to be accepted and applauded. Passing his mid Sixties, Vishnu has the rare solace of chatting with Emilios Bouratinos, the Greek philosopher and chewing the cud of their holy tours together in the land of Athena, in love with old stones and old books. Ireland is another source of sweet memories for him. Great cultures are all alike: they are Indian in essence, he says.

 

This brief biography of Vishnu Naryanaana Namboodiri will be incomplete if few lines of Sugathakumari, whom Vishnu acknowledges as the best among contemporary poets, from her preface to the captivating ‘Pranyageethangal’ are not reproduced here. “I invite only those, to these verses of Vishnu, who have shed a few tears in sleepless nights, who have stood in silence with their heart beating in front of unfailing love, who have had the fortune of sipping the honey dew of divine love, who have had extended their soft fingers to touch and rejuvenate the tired fireflies and who have experienced the deep bliss of solitude. May you be blessed and be richer in life by spending a few moments under this chilly shade slowly sipping away the ecstasy and the agony contained in these verses”. Mind You; this was written in 1970. Both Sugathakumari and Vishnu Narayanan Namboodiri have gone miles and miles ahead!

 

About the Author

 

 

 Scorpio is the pen name of Col GPV Nair,  a veteran of Indian Army. An Electrical Engineer from College of Engineering, Trivandrum,  joined Corps of Signals in 1968 & served the Corps till 1992 when  he took voluntary retirement from Army due to personal reasons. A graduate from the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, also holds Masters Degree in Defence Studies from the Madras University.

 

While in the Army held important appointments like Joint Director, Project Management Cell, Army Headquarters, Colonel (Adm) of an active Infantry Division & Colonel (Electronic Warfare) with Army Training Command apart from the basic job of a communicator in the Corps of Signals .

 

After retirement, served as General Manager (HRD & Admn) for about five years with a leading manufacturing firm in Trivandrum. Since 2000 working as freelance consultant on Corporate Planning & Administration, Project Management & Higher Education. Settled in Trivandrum, spends spare time in reading, writing, blogging, playing bridge and making new friends.

 

 

 

 Address 

 

Col GPV Nair (Retd)

B5, Alsa Parkdale Apartments

Vanchiyoor PO

Trivandrum- 6950 35

Tele 0471 2450988, Mob : 9847452450

Email: gpvnair@gmail.com

Blog : gpvnair.blogspot.com

 

Imprint

Publication Date: 04-14-2015

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
This brief biography of Vishnu Narayanan Namboodiri is dedicated to my friend and guide KL Sreekrishna Das IIS