Even this, my first day off the ship, was a foretaste of the year
ahead-twelve months of ceaseless activity. Friends had gathered
at the dock with garlands and greetings; soon, at our suite in the
Taj Mahal Hotel, there was a stream of reporters and photographers.
Bombay was a city new to me; I found it energetically modern, with
many innovations from the West. Palms line the spacious boulevards;
magnificent state structures vie for interest with ancient temples.
Very little time was given to sight-seeing, however; I was impatient,
eager to see my beloved guru and other dear ones. Consigning the
Ford to a baggage car, our party was soon speeding eastward by
train toward Calcutta. {FN40-1}
Our arrival at Howrah Station found such an immense crowd assembled
to greet us that for awhile we were unable to dismount from the
train. The young Maharaja of Kasimbazar and my brother Bishnu
headed the reception committee; I was unprepared for the warmth
and magnitude of our welcome.
Preceded by a line of automobiles and motorcycles, and amidst the
joyous sound of drums and conch shells, Miss Bletch, Mr. Wright,
and myself, flower-garlanded from head to foot, drove slowly to my
father's home.
My aged parent embraced me as one returning from the dead; long
we gazed on each other, speechless with joy. Brothers and sisters,
uncles, aunts, and cousins, students and friends of years long past
were grouped around me, not a dry eye among us.
Pages:
469
470
471
472
473
474
475
476
477
478
479
480
481
482
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
491
492
493