Sunday, September 22, 2013

Adyar, Sunday 22 September 2013


The Bay of Bengal



Adyar, Sunday 22 September 2013

Last Wednesday at 3 a.m., we arrived at Chennai Airport in a barely half full airplane from one of the Gulf States. Being back in India was giving a surprisingly good feeling. People are friendly and helpful. The airport- and taxi-business are well organized.

In our apartment or student’s room at Leadbeater’s Chambers everything was in order and almost in the same state as when we left it three months ago. Some repairs of the doors have been done, which gave a good impression for the newcomer we are. The people at the Green Gate consider us to be a “regular”. When entering this morning through the Main Gate, there has been no delay, because as soon as the guard had recognized our face, the taxi driver could take his old-timer car further into the compound.

At lunch and dinner, there was some company to make conversation.
In the afternoon we went to say hello to the President and had an long conversation about our whereabouts, our Section and the TS in General. The president was appearing in much better physical condition than in June. She confirmed that she is working regularly in the office during the afternoons. She wanted us to go and work in another department and manage its financial administration. This is a more tangible position than the one we had in the department, where we were employed from November till June this year. So the next day we reported to work in this other department after a hello-goodbye visit to the colleagues at the old department.

Internet has been working every day, but sometimes the signal was too weak. After dinner, we just managed to download the software for the T-Classic disk, before the first study group started at 7.15 p.m. The good news is that LBC will have Wi-Fi, which is to be operational during the Convention, this year. Workmen are also busy to refresh the whitewash of the ceilings and walls in the rooms. New floor tiles are being put in the shower rooms and the woodwork will be repainted during the same exercise, which is to be finished before the Annual Convention begins at the end of the year. By 15 December, a new elevator should be installed at LBC and be operational.

These first days, we took a lot of rest by having siestas after the meals, except after dinner, when there is the study group. In the new department we have been introduced to the colleagues. A small two page description of the procedures has been made by the colleague, who left. Within two weeks, he will come back for one week to give us some explanation about the actual work. This seems just like being back in our old job again. The person responsible for housing shall see when we can move to our new house, though he said that nothing had been prepared for that yet. He has the age of 79 years, but he said that he feels like 25. We replied that we always feel like a 14 year old boy, who knows nothing of this big, wide world. 

During dinner our colleague told us about the visit of a man, who had been a successful investor and came to the TS in Adyar with the intention to help the Olcott School, where the colleague is teaching. The man has become member and wants to come to the Annual Convention in December. We promised to send our co-worker, who is living here at the dormitory, a copy of page 35 from the August Theosophist, where the conditions for participation at the Annual Convention are stated.

Getting up in the morning is very easy here, firstly, because every day before breakfast we make a walk to the shore of the Indian Ocean’s Gulf of Bengal and secondly, because we sleep here like a baby. When we shall have moved to our own house, we shall be able to make our own breakfast, which will be a little bit more like what we are used to, with fruit juice, yofu, muesli, nuts and fruits. On our lap-top the internet is working in the office and in the apartment. We have been updating the websites and going through the e-mails of the last several weeks, when we were preparing for our deep dive into this ocean of peace and harmony, which India seems to resemble to. 

Very much aware we are of the special grace we have received in being allowed and in having been given the opportunity to accept and live a considerable part of our life here in this special spiritual place.

Sunday, day of rest, was highly applicable today. Most of the time the internet connection did not work on our P.C., because if connected it usually said either “limited” or “edge”. We thought to have learned in school that the weekdays and the one day of rest were from ancient Indian origin. At lunch nobody could confirm this. So there definitively is a need for a more advanced study center here. If and when LBC will have Wi-Fi, we could look these things up a little easier than it is the case now. We met the new International Secretary in his office, today, where he was working with two assistants. Hopefully he will manage the business and the Convention will be a success.
This evening, luckily the internet connection worked and we could answer the e-mail messages from our home countries. 

Our colleague at the dormitory left, because there is an end-of-term school holiday of a few days and he was invited to go on leave with some of the other teachers. Temperature is of 30° to 31° C. and stays about the same during the day and the night. We managed to go to the shop today to buy the necessary toothpaste.

That’s all for now,


Mr. Brooder