Our Sister Nivedita
Sucheta Ghosh
Our Sister Nivedita
Our Sister Nivedita was born at Dungannon in Northern Ireland. The town is very near to sea and very near to Scotland. She had a Scottish origin, the family moved to Northern Ireland later. Why so much with origin? She was born with a lion-heart, was very very courageous and powerful which is most probably due to her Celtic gene, as Swamiji used to mention. On the other hand her heart was as tender as soft even than a flower.
One of my spiritual family member requested me to write something about her. It is indeed a hard task for me. The first day I entered into RKSM Sister Nivedita school saw her standing at the front gate receiving everybody who comes to the school. Of course in material sense it is a huge photograph but that one still is very much living. So I will try to give a few glimpses from her life in the name of Ma.
After her arrival in Calcutta, she started living in the locality of Baghbazar, though many other people insisted on that she may work in Baghbazar, but still can live in the areas where the other people from abroad used to live, she did not listen to them, she told that my neighbours love me, how can I leave them! Also she could not leave the house that gave her the first shelter. Her house was very near to the house where at that time Sri Sri Ma was living. The house of Udbodhan was not built yet. In fact when Yogin Maharaj left his body Sister was present there. Actually she used to stay in a part of the same house where Mother was staying during her first days. Later she moved to another building which is just diagonally opposite to start the school for girls. She used to stay there alone with a maid-helper, and Swami Sadanandaji, a disciple of Swamiji also helped her at her work outside world, later Sister Christine started living there, who was also a great help for the School Nivedita started. Sister Nivedita also took care of Gopaler Ma (lady disciple of Thakur Sri Ramakrishna, who had the vision of little Gopala all the time she liked), who was very old at that time. So Sister made arrangement for her stay at 17th Bosepara lane, just the next door, where Gopaler Ma used to live with her solo widow disciple.
The house of Sister Nivedita is still known as 16th Bosepara lane. It is a small house that has a small courtyard inside. It is two storied building, but at the frontal part it is one storied. Sister used to love to be at the rooftop of this frontal part, one of her favorite pastime was to stand on the railing-less open rooftop to see the streets, to see the greenaries around. But primarily she faced huge difficulties to live there in Baghbazar. She disliked the toilet, it was on one corner of the courtyeard and it had no privacy. There was no door, so she made a partition with cement to cover the way from the door of the toilet, so that nobody can see a person entering the toilet or using the toilet. I just try to imagine how she managed with the facilities of toilet coming from the city of London. It was really hard, but she did all and stayed there worked for rest of her time. She did all because of her love towards her Guru. During the plague in Calcutta, she even cleaned the streets on her own, then one after another young men joined her and Swami Sadananda, and made a team to clean streets, to nurse the patients. Here is the glimpse of the house and a nice account by Asheshprana Mataji about the restoration work that has just finished:Â https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4lL0APemTY
When I read about the activities she did in her 43 years of life is so huge yet so silent and unnamed. It is really interesting that how she used to manage her time for everything. She started the school, not only the school for girls from the rich or middle class families, but also she visited the slums of Baghbazar, and offered food and cloths and requested them to come to school so that she can provide them more if they need, when they used to come she used to teach them as well. The service is still running. She also started a handloom handicraft school primarily for the adult ladies, where they used to learn to read and write as well. She used to make arrangements of reading of puranas by a "Kathak-Thakur" (a brahman who generally reads and explains the books to others). She used to listen as well sitting at a corner of her courtyard.
The contribution of Sister in the art renaissance was immense. She arranged the tour of the young art students to the caves of Ajanta and Elora. The artist Nandalal Bose was one among them. He had a very close relation with Sister. He made sketches all the decorations for the new school building, that was supervised by Gana Maharaj. For example the colour of the floor of the main hall of RKSM Nivedita school is very uniquely green. Both of them made it that way. The new school building was built after Sister's departure. Nivadita school has wonderful collection of Indian and Asian art. Sister ordered the white marble sculpture of Buddha from Burma, it is indeed very beautiful.
She was a great writer in English. She used to proof read the papers of Scientist J. C. Bose and had a marvellous relationship with the couple. The historian Dineshchandra Sen once requested her to help him to write a book, mainly for correction or proof reading, she agreed on one condition that there will be no name of Nivedita in the book anywhere. Rabindranath changed the ending of his novel Gora after Nivedita requested him to do so showing her reasons.Â
The revolutionary movement was facilitated by her to a great extent. She shared a very good bonding with Aurobindo Ghosh, who became Sri Aurobindo of Pondicherry (Puducherry) later. Actually she arranged his departure from Bengal through Chandannagore.Â
Ma once told that only her skin colour is like the people from abroad, she is actually a girl from India.Â
The first day in the school was fascinating for another reason. There was a full and big model of undivided India near the gate and it was written on the top of that "If any mantra we need to chant now in India it is Bharatbarsha Bharatbarsha Bharatbarsha Ma Ma Ma".
Although she was loved by the neighbours, co-workers and many of the intellectuals of Calcutta, the bigotry and orthodoxy tried to hurt her as well. The house maid had a condition to work in her house that Sister can never enter into the kitchen. Sister accepted that diligently. She used to call her as a daughter. In one chilly winter evening she felt for a cup of hot tea and requested the maid. After sometime she saw that the maid arrived with the tea in shivering in a wet cloth. Since she was untouchable for the maid, and if one wears wet cloth then the sin of touch does not occur so the maid took a bath and arrived with a wet cloth to serve the tea. Sister was so touched by this such incident that she never requested her anything at irregular timings.Â
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She worked so hard and without food and proper rest that her body could not survive for long years. Of course her work is still on and her love as well.It seems she herself is a door to reach the holy trinity. One who enters into it, Sri Sri Ma receives him/her for all. And it is no fantasy, this happens, happens and really happens.
Jai Ma
Shubhangi Patil | Ba'ateel
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Sucheta Ghosh
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