It reminds again and again.

In spite of the fact we know, understand and believe that death is inevitable, the agony of death haunts us. I am stating this, ten months after the sudden demise of my father and witnessing few more deaths of people whom I knew, loved, liked and respected. News of each new death that reached me strengthened my belief of love for life.

Recently mother informed me about sad demise of my beloved school teacher Shri Venkatachal Shet; I found myself in a situation when I had heard my father’s death. Venkatachal Mastarru as he was known in our village was also my father’s school friend. His house is near to ours, 200m walk across the paddy field, except during the rainy season.  He taught me only for one year, during 4^th standard at Govt Lower Primary School Harodi, a village very next our village Valgalli. For 5^th standard I had to go to Higher Primary School Valgalli. Though he taught me for only one year his influence on me as teacher remains forever. The stories of Shivaji, Subhashchandra bose, Tenali Rama, Birbal narrated by him and the mathematical puzzles asked by him are still fresh in my mind, as it was heard yesterday. He was a true teacher, an inspirer.

I ever felt it as my misfortune of not having a Guru; a mentor who can guide me through a right path. Even though RSS, of which I’m a svayamsevak fulfills this deficiency to some extent, it can’t be a replacement for an individual mentor. I was fortunate to have a Guru in Venkatachal Mastarru during my childhood days. His smiling face always blessed my everyday morning and evening when he was riding on his way to his school and I was walking towards mine, he was very happy to see his student passing SSLC with distinction marks, he was very much pleased to hear his student studying PUC science getting high marks and securing good CET rank, he proudly talked around the shops, temples and co-operative society of village about his ‘intelligent’ disciple getting engineering seat, receiving a scholarship, getting selected by software company in campus interview etc. He used to enquire my whereabouts with my father regularly. A true Guru, whose concerns about his student crossed the school compound wall.

After my residence changed to Hubli, for engineering studies and then to Bangalore, I used to meet him occasionally, during my visit to hometown. I would be riding my bicycle or bike on the way to Kumta, our Taluka headquarter or somewhere else, he would be on his age old bicycle as usual. We use to spare few minutes talking. He with his heartily concerns used to ask about my studies, life etc. It is after I started working in Software Company, started earning and lost myself in my own world, sometimes I thought of going to his home to meet him during my next visit to hometown, and carry some books and some fruits. He would definitely be delighted to see me, his proud student.

But that day never arrived, Venkatachal Mastarru, I was whose beloved student, is no more. How ungrateful and thankless I am, never touched his feet once, and not allowed his blessing hands to be placed on my head.