A Library that I love by Juvelle Mendes

Long before I could afford to buy books, I borrowed them from libraries or traded them with friends. The Ramakrishna Math is one such place that I loved as a child. It is a branch of Ramakrishna Math & Ramakrishna Mission, Belur, Howrah, West Bengal. It was brought into existence by Sri Ramakrishna the great saint from Bengal.

I was first introduced to the RK Math by my friends Divya and Shubha who would often visit the Math’s Library. I spent most of my childhood in a place called Domalguda (in Hyderabad) which when translated in Telugu means a place of Flies. Although there weren’t any while I lived there. Rumor has it the place, once had many of them and that’s how it got its name.

I have too many fond memories of growing up here and I felt like a lot of what I grew up to be is because of this place and its people. One of them was our daily 20 min walk to the only Library in our area back then: Ramakrishna Math!

The vast green expanse of the Math with its calm and tranquil atmosphere has a special call to anyone who goes there. One could just walk around the campus in silence and leave with a feeling of fulfillment.

I specifically remember my first visit to the Library as it was quite memorable. The monks at the math were the calmest and most poised people I had ever met. Whenever a new kid came to their library for the first time, they would call them in and give them one of the most beautifully and calligraphically written notes. One of the monks handed me a note which read “Be good and do good!” That message kind of etched in my mind.

I never missed visiting the Library even for a day during my summer break. My friend and I would walk for around 20 mins in the sweltering summers, but it was totally worth it. The library housed a collection of books, audiovisual material, magazines, comic books, and journals on specialized topics.

The two-month-long summer breaks from school were the perfect time to get lost amidst stacks of books at the library. There were piles of books with vast sums of wisdom and knowledge waiting to be read. The best part about the library was it was free. You only had to pay if you wanted to borrow books. We would sit there for hours reading and pay nothing for this privilege. As kids, it was our perfect pastime.

There was also a meditation room across the campus, so after hours of reading at the Library, we would walk through the campus to the meditation room right opposite the library.

Libraries are essential repositories of local stories and regional histories. The Math was really my first introduction to any Library which is why it has a special place in my heart and memory. It opened a whole new world of amusement to me. It was this library that made me see and realize things I never knew were possible!

Picture: Telangana Today

About Juvelle:

Juvelle is a QA lead by profession and loves building software bots. A chance encounter with Nivie who encouraged her to give a shot at writing influenced her to start writing . She loves reading biographies and learning from journaled experiences.