LIGHT OF EDUCATION IS LIGHT OF GOD

1.       Mr. N. Prasad (B.D. Memorial English High School, Jaigaon, West Bengal)

2.       Mr. Dilip Kumar B (Daranga Jr. High School , Daranga, Assam)

3.       Mr. Tshering Dendup (Tsebar Pry School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

4.       Mr. S. B. Rasaily (Tsebar Pry School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

5.       Mr. Sonam Tobgay (Tsebar Pry School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

6.       Mr Sonam Wangyal (Nangkor Jr. High School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

7.       Mr. Tshewang Dendup (Nangkor Jr. High School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

8.       Mrs Yanki Dem (Nangkor Middle and Higher Secondary School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

9.       Mr. Chuzang Norbu ( Officiating Principal,Nangkor Higher secondary School, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

10.   Mr Jigme Yangtse (Nangkor Higher Secondary School, Pemagatshel, Bhutanl)

11.   Mr. Sherub Gyeltshen (Nangkor Higher SecondarySchool, Pemagatshel, Bhutan)

12.   Mr. Tashi Chonjur (Nangkor Higher Secondary School, Pemagatshel,Bhutan)

13.   Ms Deki Choden (Wangchhu Middle Secondary School, Chukha, Bhutan)

14.   Ms. Kencho Lham( Wangchhu Middle Secondary School, Chukha, Bhutan)

15.   Mr. Dhan Singh Tamang ( Wangchhu Middle Secondary School, Chukha, Bhutan)

My revered Principal Sirs and Madams,

First of all, I offer my prostrations to our beloved His Majesty, the visionary  King, an embodiment of extraordinary humanity and divinity, for being so benevolent as to command the Royal Government to invite the retired Indian teachers as guests of honour and to bestow laurels and recognition upon us through the historic celebration of the Teachers’ Day 2018, for our services to the kingdom. To me, the entire occasion of glory and glamour, was like an auspicious occasion of winning a Nobel Prize.

Touched and felt ennobled by the grand honour and hospitality, I write this letter as a garland of my gratitude to each one of you for your endless guidance, support and good will in the discharge of my sacred services to the Bhutanese students - which paved my path to this glory. Through each one of you I heard the Almighty lord and you shed rays of light on my path of teaching and caring and mentoring the students. All through my life you will continue to remain my principals in the seat of my heart and my loyalty and allegiance to you will remain unflagging. Your contribution to my life and living is so immense that no number of words would suffice to describe that, yet I feel strongly to express them in all humility and gratitude.

1.    Revered N. Prasad sir, I must not forget the gestures of your kindness and humanity in 1983 when as a job seeker, I took shelter in your care and guidance. You had vacated your official residence in order to accommodate me and provided everything I needed for several weeks. Eventually, you built my royal path to the Royal Kingdom of Bhutan where I was blessed to live a happy life that has brought me Royal honour and blessings on May 2, 2018. Thank you sir. May you live a happy, healthy and a long life.

2.   Thank you revered Dilip sir for training me and taking care of me at your Daranga Jr. High School  so as to be equipped as a senior teacher in Bhutan. It was on the holy mountains of Bhutan that the greatness of my motherland, India and her spiritual treasure surfaced before me and I could live a worthy life there for almost three decades.

3.    Tshering Dendup sir, your loving voice “Bhai Saab” still echoes in my heart. Your hospitality, care and support enabled me to feel at home at the remote school on the hill top. It turned out to be to me as my YOGA ASHRAM because I met my Yoga teacher Yogiraj B.K.S. Iyengar in the library of Tsebar School. Yoga has refined me a lot. One day at Nangkor H.S School, you flashed a good will prayer towards me saying,” Mr. Chowdhury, you should receive ‘Druk Thuksey Award’” . Sir, today gladly I say that your prayer bore fruits. Thank you. Thank you. Your children Karma Yangden and Karma Norbu visited us in Thimphu during the august celebration.

4.     Thank you S.B. Rasaily sir for appointing me as the library-in-charge through which I discovered the sacred treasure of Yoga and the magic power of books. Today I possess a wonderful library of my own, and through the kingdom of books and by the blessings of Yoga I have been discovering amazing facts of life.

5.     Thank you Sonam Tobgay sir for entrusting me with the duty of a Yoga teacher to the students after school hours. You were really farsighted in that decision because yoga is one of the noblest subjects in schools and 21^st June is observed as the World Yoga Day globally. Thank you sir for the special gift to be a Yoga teacher though my yoga lessons were only a few because of my transfer to Nangkor.

6.     Sonam Wangyel sir, for the privileges you had blessed me with by appointing me as the matron, librarian, health in- charge, counsellor and literary in-charge at Nangkor raised me to the height to be honoured and recognized by our beloved King and the Royal Government of Bhutan through the grand celebrations of May 2, 2018. The measure of guidance, support and good will you extended in the discharge of my duties and responsibilities is beyond description. May God reward you for your noble thoughts and sublime deeds.

7.    Tshewang Dendup sir, beside Sonam Wangyal sir, you were also my Principal at Nangkor when two schools functioned together in the same campus. By virtue of your wise leadership and generous attitude, I was able to serve in two schools simultaneously with a spirit of one family. We worked together, played football in the same team and lived together in the same campus. It is so exhilarating to recall those days. May God reward you abundantly for your wonderful job. I am sorry to have failed to visit you on our return from Thimphu after attending the historic celebrations. But we will come soon to visit you.

8.   Madam Yanki, we have learned and experienced that every teacher is like a father as well as mother to every child  But you have proved more than that. The day still shines before me when you  invited all the teachers to your house at Nangkor, cooked dinner for us and served us with your own hands. I was so much thrilled that I told my friends that Madam Yanki  was not only the mother of all the children of the school, she was also the mother of the entire school family. Thank you madam for being so loving, caring and supportive. We will always remember the warm hospitality we received from you and your family members during our stay in your house for two weeks to attend the winter English Workshop in December 2009 at Gelephu. It is rightly said by many foreign nationals that Bhutanese hospitality is unique in the world.

9.       Chuzang Norbu sir, you were my Officiating Principal for a year at Nangkor and you extended all kinds of support generously. It will remain unforgettable that sometime in 2009 you travelled all the way from Chirang to Phuentsholing in order to sign one of my Performance Evaluation Forms, which happened to reach Chukha Dzongkhag from Pemagatshel without your signature, because of which my contract renewal was held pending. Thank you sir for your contribution in my  teaching career.

10.   Jigme Yangtse sir, your igniting and empowering command still echoes in my heart:

“Mr. Chowdhury, by ‘DOT EIGHT’ you should be at the gate.” You wanted me to drive you to Pemagatshel  Dzong on my scooter over the sickly road of Nangkor. Your wife shuddered at the decision because to your giant figure I was only like an ant – a little emaciated man. She yelled: “How can Chowdhury sir, a small man, carry you the giant man!” But sir, your command and confidence was my lord, so I got the courage and confidence to perform the feat and carried you to and fro Pemagatshel  Dzong on my scooter. You were happy and amazed though the road was muddy and marshy with potholes and puddles. From the incident I learned that Lord’s will and command manifests through the higher authorities and the willing devotees perform miracle by His grace regardless of his tangible strengths or weaknesses. The golden words of the Experience Certificate you had handed to me on your departure from Nangkor brought tears of my joy and emotion. I realized though outwardly you looked rough and tough, inwardly you were kind and compassionate like a mother to her child.   

11.  Sherub Gyeltshen sir, even today it is alarming and nightmarish for me to recall the day when one of our daughters was missing from the hostel and I was threatened and held responsible by the parents concerned for the incident. I had felt devastated, helpless and lost. But your support to me was like Lord Krishna’s support to Arjuna.  By your bold, wise, righteous and prompt action in handling the matter I was saved from disaster. It was an example for me to learn that God radiates his splendour through a leader who is fearless and fiery and just and fair in the face of adversity. May God continue to emanate His glories through your life and work. I was inspired to have met your son, Dr. Tandin Gyeltshen who paid a gratitude visit to me and my family during the historic occasion in Thimphu.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

12.   I can’t thank you enough Tashi Chonjur sir for your support and good will in the success of my teaching career and in winning love and laurels from our beloved King and the Royal Government of Bhutan. I can’t forget the night when you rushed to my house in the Girls’ hostel at midnight. You forsook your sleep upon receiving Ms. Nainakala’s call about my sickness and at that odd hour you did everything to evacuate me to hospital. I found a wonderful brother in you during my emergency despite we were born in different wombs. The memory of the meat you purchased from Pemagatshel market and brought for my nourishment will remain unforgettable. When I was being taken to Guwahati hospital for further treatment under the escort of Mr. Somarajan and my wife, you offered to keep my liittle son, Babu, at your house under your care. You also gave me a good performance rating though I had to remain absent from the school for several weeks, and could not perform my job well that year. And,I got my full salary from the Dzongkhag. I am so thankful to the then D.E.O., Mr. Sherub Dorji for his heartiest support during my bad times. You shared with one of our colleagues, “Though Mr. Chowdhury is not able to perform well for his sickness, his past performance record is very good and that should be given consideration in rating the present performance. Sir, this high humanistic thought speaks volumes about you. You even organised a grand party on the night of 17 December 2007 to bid me farewell on my transfer to Chukha. It will remain as a cherishing memory. Thank you for your good will visit during the historic celebrations in Thimphu. Thank you. Thank you sir for everything.

13.  Madam Deki Choden, though we are far from each other but my wonderful  memories of your miraculous emergence along with Madam Karma Pelden (CHP engineer)  and marvellous rescue operation when we had lost our house and the entire luggage in Chukha in 2008 still keeps me closer to you and Madam Karma. It was devastation but in a few hours you built our heaven. My wife’s tears you turned into joys. You rescued us like goddess Durga. It is mainly for your support in that situation we could settle down in Chukha and enjoyed a brilliant life for six years. Thank you. Thank you.

14.   Madam Kencho Lham,I have received amazing support and  good will. You lifted me in multiple ways. Among many of your good will gestures, the most striking memory that I carry in my heart is the day of my father-in-law’s demise in 2009 when my   wife was wailing uncontrollably and you and Madam Rita rushed to our house at Upper Terrace leaving your office aside to console and comfort her - a splendid gesture of humanity. I have learned that our brothers and sisters are everywhere regardless of our narrow domestic walls to be with us in our need, grief and bereavement. I find in both of you two wonderful sisters though we belong to different nations. May God reward you amply for your good will and kindness.     

15.   Dhan Singh Tamang sir, I was indeed privileged to have worked under your inspiring leadership. It is still surprising to me that whenever you were in my class to supervise the lesson, instead of feeling shaky or uneasy, my teaching spirit used to be at the peak. I burnt with zeal and enthusiasm. It is so cherishing to recall the experience of my last lesson delivery that you supervised at Wangchu MSS sometime towards the end of 2012 when I was teaching the ballad – The Highway Man, in Class IX. Due to your positive motivation strategy, I had a heroic feeling in teaching the heroic poem. Thank you sir for being an inspiring leader.

16. To conclude, I offer my prayers and best wishes for all of your health, divine happiness and divine life along with your family members.

PALDEN DRUKPA GYALO!

BHARAT MATA KI JAI!