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It was a bright afternoon, at Ootacamund. A young man entered the
respectable building of the Nilgiri Library and asked the Librarian if a good
edition of the Bhagavad Gita was available. The librarian smiled and said
he could give any English novel but not the Gita. On this the young man
wanted a suggestion as to where he could get it. The librarian pointed to a
building down below the valley, where Pandit Sastri lived and said
"There is a Pandit who gives lectures in Sanskrit in the evening. Many
respectable people seem to gather there. He might be able to help
you."
This Pandit, from his very early days loved cool weather. He always
avoided the summer of the plains and was a regular visitor to Ootacamund,
during the hot season. This practice he kept up almost till his death. His
wants were few and his habits were thrifty. To him enjoying the cold
weather was more important than staying in a luxurious home, and so he
always got into some small house or even an outhouse of a big bungalow. He
bathed very early, even in Ootacamund under the public tap and preferred to
sleep at night with windows open. Besides his regular work, he took
pleasure in holding classes in Gita or Upanishads in the evenings for those
who cared to hear him.
The man referred to above was an Aide-de-Camp of Late Sayaji Rao Gaikwar
of Baroda. The Gaikwar, as is well-known, was a learned person and was fond
of classics. So he had sent his A.D C. to fetch a copy of Gita for his
reference. The A.D.C -met the Pandit in due course and went back to the
Gaikwar with the news of his new friend. Prompt came the next day, a
request to the Pandit to meet the Gaikwar.
This was a turning point for a new career. The Gaikwar wanted the Pandit
to organize a Sanskrit manuscripts library for him at his capital at
Baroda. He offered very attractive terms and gave him permission to tour
freely all over India every year on that the maximum number of manuscripts
could be collected. The Pandit accepted the job with enthusiasm because he
felt that through this job he could achieve his life's ambition. He joined
this new service in 1912.
He worked with great enthusiasm. The Gaikwar gave him introductory
letters to the various rulers in India to assist the Pandit in his mission.
The Pandit, of course, was never tired of travelling. His son and four
daughters were grown up by this time and were settled in life. His second
wife was an active young lady and assisted him considerably in big work.
She kept his travelling kit to the very minimum. The whole kitchen utensils
were assembled in just two buckets. Whichever place they reached in their
tour, Mrs. Sastri would unpack her things in no time and start cooking food
for her husband because she was particular that her husband should eat only
wholesome food prepared by her. In the various guest houses though
luxurious food was offered to the state guests, Mrs. Sastri would cook her
own Tamil food and never was ashamed of doing the various chores connected
with it.
In the evenings, when her husband returned with his dusty collection of
manuscripts, she would receive them, dust them and help him in retying
them. She had also picked up gradually both English and Sanskrit and was of
very great assistance in his work. Admiring the good care with which she
1ooked after her husband, many a distinguished person whom her husband met
used to tell her jokingly that it was she who was responsible for all the
successful work of her husband.
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