LIGHT OF EDUCATION IS LIGHT OF GOD

My dear students,

To me, every one of you irrespective of your age and all other worldly differences is a celestial being. So I feel heavenly and ecstatic to communicate with you. Your company has been always the company of the stars of the sky and the culmination of this divine scene and feeling was during our last celebrations of Teachers’ Day and Indo-Bhutan Friendship in Thimphu.

I believe it is the will of the almighty Lord that I should reveal myself to you and share my experiences as a teacher in Bhutan (1987-2013) and as a guest of honour in the kingdom ( 30.04.18’ – 05.05.18’). So I dedicate all the letters to the Supreme Father as my flowers of tribute to His feet. The letters are also tribute to my late parents who brought me to this earth and nurtured to live and grow.

Rabindranath Tagore has written: “Man is born in the world with only one advice from God – that is Express yourself.” I have chosen you, my students, to express myself to. Since you have always accepted and respected my strengths as well as weaknesses with love and adoration I can express myself best to you with full freedom without any fear or hesitation.

My excitement was sky-high to be received, greeted, gloried, honoured and illumined by thousands of you at the rainbow- adorned Changlimithang Stadium on May 2, the historic Teachers’ Day. The dazzle and the grandeur of the stadium had made my eyes pop out. I saw the entire sky down in the stadium with countless twinkling stars – you little Buddhas. My joy and excitement of the wondrous sight surpassed all the joys and bliss of sixty years of my life.

 Dozens of you senior students as doctors, engineers, teachers and entrepreneurs and smart men and women along with your family members poured into the Hotel 89 in order to shower your divine glance, love and honour upon us which lifted me above all material heights. Though almost all of you have become healthy and role model parents, I saw only a humble and innocent child in each one of you as you had been in the classrooms for your simplicity, gratitude and devotion to your teachers. “Gratitude is not only the greatest of all virtues, it is the mother of all virtues,” said Cicero. Every one of you radiated that divine virtue which marveled me. And it is this quality which has created a unique place for Bhutan and the Bhutanese in the hearts of the rest of the world. I pray that God bless you to nourish this trait further. This alone will take you to a great height in life. “If you want to be great, learn how to be grateful,” said Lord Anukul Chandra.

Many of you wanted to meet and greet me and my family on our way back from Thimphu to Phuentsholing. But I have failed to be able to honour your good will. Being ‘state guests’ as we were brought back up to Jaigaon by the Government vehicle we could not afford to manage time to receive your love and laurels. However, very soon I will come to Phuentsholing along with my family to have your sacred touch and loving glance. To me each one of you is a priceless gift of God. It is all because of you I have been awarded a seat of honour and dignity by the Royal Government of Bhutan under the Command of His Majesty the King.

 For your information, as willed and guided by the Providence, these days I am living in Siliguri along with my family which is an important place for our Bhutanese family members. If you happen to fall in any need in Siliguri, especially in medical matters, kindly contact me and grant me the privilege to render my humble hands in your services.  My services to you and your family members will continue till my last breath.

To end this letter, I bow to His Majesty the King, Her Majesty the Queen and the people of Bhutan for organizing the historical celebrations, for inviting us as guests of honour and showering us with love and laurels.

Palden Drukpa Gyalo!

Bharat Mata Ki Jai!

Yours Sincerely,

Santosh Chowdhury (Apchi sir)

Mobile No. 7679105116