H.K. Singh School raised Rupees 8.5 lakh from School Fete

The Managing Comiittee of the H.K. Singh School, Jowai one of the most successful school run by the Unitarian Church, Jowai and the Education Committee of the Unitarian Union has recently organised a fete to raise fund for the school. The school supported by the Unitarian Church, Jowai was able to raised more than 13 lakhs rupees (about $ 29,000), this is a record not only for the school managing committe but even in the entire Jowai town. No orgnisation or school has been able to raise so much money. From the money raised after deducting the expenditure the school still has rupees 8,50,000 (about $ 20,000) in its kitty.
As part of the fetet a lucky draw was also organised in which more than 77,000 tickets were sold in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills. Off the 77,000 who bought tickets, a young Unitarian boy won the prize of a Zuzuki (Maruti) car. The Headmaster of the school handover the prize to the winner. His grandmother bought a ticket for all her grandchildren but this boy won the prize.

H.K.Singh School is one the best run school of the Union and it is also the only school which can support itself. Hopefully other Uitarian School will also be able to be a self supporting school. I think this is another area that the Union and the Education Committee should work to help the schools generate some funds to support themselves. Other schools run by other churches/NGO  are doing the same.

Tagore's Window to the west

There are two poems I learned from my school and college days which continue to reverberate in my mind. The first one is ‘The Invictus’ by W.E. Henley and the second one is Tagore’s ‘Where the mind is without fear’. I don’t know whether the first poem was permanently etched in my young mind because of the charisma of Father Kenny and his brilliant rendition of the poem to his students at the St. Anthony’s college or because of the sheer beauty of the poem or both. Looking back at Tagore’s poem which I learned as a student in the Jowai Government Boys High School, I can’t remember the teacher who taught us the poem in the class, but one thing I know, I fell in love with the poem the first time I heard it.

The teachers began the lesson by telling us that the poem was taken from Tagore’s famous book the Gitanjali and that was about it. We were not told much about Tagore; it was only when I was growing up that I began to understand why the poem appealed to me so much. It is because Tagore is a liberal religionist apart from being a poet, an artist and many other things. Even before I embarked on my journey to the USA in the summer of 2009 which in some ways I consider to be a pilgrimage I had no inkling that it would connect me to Tagore. I knew Tagore had some connection with the Unitarians and for that matter since its inception the Brahmo Samaj and its founder Raja Ram Mohon Roy too was closely connected with the Unitarians in the west but it never crossed my mind that Tagore would have a very deep connection with one of the Unitarian Churches in the USA. In fact it was the Unitarian church of Urbana which literarily introduced Tagore to the USA if not to the entire western world.

The Unitarian Church in the University of Illinois in a little town of Urbana discovered the gem in Tagore much before the USA or the west did. Blair Kling the academic editor of the publication in the editor’s note of the booklet published by the Tagore centre which is housed in the Channing-Murray Foundation in the heart of the University of Illinois noted that the foundation along with the centre used to organizes an annual Tagore festival but in the year 1990 it decided to bring out a publication which will reflect on the multi-faceted talents of Rabindranath Tagore. It was the first essay in the booklet which has opened my eyes to the long lasting relation between Tagore and Urbana Unitarians. The first essay of the booklet is a piece written by Ingrid Kallick entitled ‘Tagore and the Urbana Unitarians 1906-1921’. Interestingly, Tagore came in contact with Urbana church not at his own initiative but he was introduced to the members of the church by his son Rathindranath and his fellow alumnae from Shantineketan, Santosh Majumdar. In the edge of time Tagore wrote that the duo arrived at San Francisco in the aftermath of the Great San Francisco earthquake. But Berkeley had no charm for the young Indians and they were suggested to try the University of Illinois in Urbana. Ingrid Kallick mentions in her article that Rathindranath and Santosh founded the University of Illinois branch of the Cosmopolitan club for international students and met groups of educators, students, their spouses and friends who would later become the Tagore Circle of Urbana.

The newly formed congregation of the Unitarian Church in Urbana gave birth to the Tagore Circle and the brand new congregation also had a young graduate Reverend Albert Vail fresh from the Harvard Divinity School to take charge as the new minister of the church in the year 1906. Before 1906 Urbana offered little support to students who were interested in exploring issues in a liberal setting. Even during those early years Vail’s reading in the church services included passages from the Koran, Buddhist Sutras, and Hindu text, as well as the writings of religious liberals of the day noted Spencer Lavan in his book, ‘Unitarians in India: a study in encounter and response’. Lavan also said that Vail personally invited Rathindra and Santosh to these sessions and the two were already familiar with Unitarian ideas through their association with the Brahmo Samaj in Calcutta. Mayce Fries Seymour in an article ‘That Golden Times, in the Visva-Bharati Quarterly, (Shantiniketan, summer of 1959) referred to the frequent meetings that the two had with the members of the church. The writings say ‘It was at Mrs. Forbes’ reception that we met Mrs. Kelly, another charter member of the church, where we held frequent gatherings in her home to discuss religious and philosophical matters. One day, when the conversation turned to India, the Tagore Circle was born.’ Seymour mentioned that it was Mrs. Florence Curtis, Professor of Library Science who turned to Rathindranath and Santosh with a question. "What writers of distinction do you have today in India, and what are they writing about?... Santosh gave a ready answer. ‘There are two groups of writers in India today; the one follows tradition, and employs only classical forms and idioms.

The second group makes use of a great variety of forms; they create new rhythm and one of their greatest offences in the opinion of the classicalist is that they believe in simple expression and use language of everyday speech. The leader of the second group is Rabindranath Tagore, the father of my friend here, and the greatest poet in India today.’ Seymour also added that because there were no translations of Tagore’s work in English at that time, Santosh volunteered to recite some of the poems in Bengali. He recited from Nadi: the River. This was Tagore’s introduction (in absentia) to the Unitarians of Urbana added Ingrid Kallick.

The people of Urbana had to wait another 6 years to meet Tagore when he along with Sathindranath, arrived in Urbana in November 1912. It was sometime in the first week that Tagore was in Urbana. Vail invited Tagore to speak in the church. It was on 9 November 1912 that Tagore gave the first reading of his work in the United States at the Unitarian Church at the University of Illinois, Urbana, noted Sujit Mukherjee in his writing Passage to America (Sadhana Press Calcutta 1964). The programme was introduced as "The Bible of the world: The Upanishads of India". Since then Tagore spoke on a regular basis at the Sunday evening meeting at the Church and at semi-private Tagore circle meetings. The Circle was instrumental in introducing Tagore to the wider group of admirers including the poet Harriet Moody notes Olivia Howard Dunbar. Then the list of Tagore’s admirers grew. Ezra Pound sent some of Tagore’s poems to Harriet Monroe. Although most histories list December 1912 Poetry Magazine as the first publication of Tagore’s work in the United States, it was actually the second. Mayce Fries Seymour had published two poems and a short biography of the poet in the University of Illinois magazine during the same week recorded Seymour. While he was in Chicago Tagore also associated himself with Unity magazine and the Abraham Lincoln Centre the two progressive Unitarian institutions in the area. It was Vail and his other Unitarian friends who encouraged Tagore to lecture and recite and it was none other than Sujit Mukherjee himself in his Passage to America who said that "…(the Unitarians) of Urbana had launched Tagore’s career as a public speaker in America and Tagore’s ideals were expounded at various centers of Unitarian following.

The people of Urbana still have a great respect for Tagore and during my visit to Urbana I also visited the Channing-Murray center which was named after the two Unitarian and Universalist stalwarts William Ellery Channing and John Murray. The two churches the Unitarian and the Universalist merged in the year 1961. The Unitarian church, from where Tagore gave his first public speech was converted to Channing-Murray Center which still houses the Tagore Centre while the services are now held at the then Universalist Church of Urbana. (The writer is a columnist and an Elder of the Unitarian church )

Ki Nuksa Jingduwai (Samples of Khasi Unitarian Prayers)

KA JINGDUWAI STEP

Nga ai nguh ia phi a Blei;

Na ka bynta ka jingiohthiah ka ba jarjar,

Bad na ka bynta ba phi la ri la da la ker ia nga.

Kyrkhu ia nga lyngba kine ki sngi baroh shi sngi,

Bad pyllait ruh ia ngi na ki jingma jing mynsaw ba ker sawdong ia ngi.

Ai ban ngin ieit ngin leh sbun ia ki para briew;

Bad burom ruh ia ki para jingthaw baroh,

Ai ha nga ka dohnud ka ba jemnud,

Bad long ma phi U nong ialam barabor ia nga.

                                                                                                                N.Pasah

Ka Jingduwai Ban iaid ia ka lynti ka mon U Blei

A Blei pynlong ia nga u briew u ba im hok ba im shisha hala ka rta;

Hikai ia nga ba ka long ka pop ha ka ban lum spah khlem trei shitom,

Wat ai ha nga ia ka jinglehkmen ka ba khlem ka jingiatiplem;

Bad kumjuh ka jingstad ka bym don akor pat.

Lada ha ka ka khaii pateng wat shah ba ngan kamai khlem don ka jingsngew ia kiwei pat;

Lada beh ia ka jingstad saian pat ai ba ngan buh ia u briew ha khmat eh.

Ai ba ngan pynkhraw ia ka jing ainguh ha phi da kaba len ialade bad leh ia ki kam ba bha

Pynlong ia nga uba iengskhem hala ka jong ka nongrim.

                                                                             La pynwan dur na ki kyntien u  M.K.Gandhi.

KA JING DUWAI IA KI BA PANG HA HOSPITAL

A Blei ngi pynkyntang ia ka ne ka por kaba kordor ba phin ia don lang bad ki mynsiem jongngi ha ka jingduwai.

Ngi ai nguh ia phi na ka bynta kane ka lad ba phi la ai ba ine I hymen I para jong ngi ba in ioh ka jingsumar ka ba biang, iarap ma phi A Blei ia ki nong sumar ba kin ioh ia ka jingstad bad ka jingshemphang bad pynkoid ia ka jingpang jong i.

Iarap A Blei ha ki dawai dashin ba kin rung bad pyniap ia ki khniang jingpang ki ba pynshitom ia ka met.

Kyrkhu lang ia ki ba ha ing hasem jong ine I hymen I parajong ngi I bad ai bor ai mynsiem ia i.

Kyrkhu ia ki kmie ki kpa, kikhun ki kti, ka lok, ulok,ki ba ai ka jingsumar ka ba biang Iarap bad ai mynsiem ia ki ruh kumjuh.

Ai bor ai mynsiem ia ine I hymen I para I jong ngi ba in lah ban ia leh pyrshah ia ki jingshitom ka ba wan ban ha ka met jong i.

Kyrkhu ia ki ne ki jingduwai kyrpad jong ngi ha kane ka por bad kyrkhu ia ki mynsiem ba ia duwai lang hangne mynta AMEN.

 KA JING DUWAI HA SHWA BAN THEP SYNDUK IA KIBA IAP

Ai nguh ia phi A Blei ba phi la long lem long ryngkat bad kine ki para bangeit ki ba ia kynduh ia ka ne ka jingjia kat ha duh ka ne ka khyllipmat ban pyndep noh ia ka jingleh niam ka ba khadduh na ka bynta jong I ba haing jong ki.

Ngi ai nguh naka bynta ka jing iai don ryngkat jong phi lyngba kine ki sngi kiba pynshong sngi ia ka met jongi.

Mynta A Blei la ngi thep synduk ia ka met jong ine iba la khladnohka ba long ka dak ka ba ngin sdang ia ka jingai khublei ba khadduh ia ka met ka ba pyut. Ngi duwai to long lem long ryngkat lyngba baroh  ki jingleh niam ba khadduh na ka bynta jong i.

Kyrkhu ia ki jingduwai jing phirat, ki jing ia syllokban ai bor ai mynsiem, ki jingkren bad ki jinglehniamleh rukom baroh ka wei.

Aibor ai mynsiem ia ki ba haing  hasem bad ki ba don jingiadei baroh ba kin lah ban ia shim bynta bad pyndep ia ka ne ka jingle niam ka ba khadduh.

Ai bor ai mynsiem ia ki nong pyndep ia ka niam ka rukom.

Bad kyrkhu iangi ia ki bynta ba dangsah jong kane ka sngi bad junom la junom

 AMEN.  

 

KA JINGDUWAI SHWA BAN IAID LYNTI

Ai mynta ba ngin sdang ia ka jingiaid lynti ka jong ngi,kyrkhu ia ngi ha ki lynti iaid lynti ieng jong ngi.

Pynlait ia ngi na ki jingma jingmynsaw baroh bad ri sumar ia ngi ban ngin poi suk poi sain ha ki jaka ba ngi la thmu.AMEN.

KA JINGDUWAI IA KI NONG NIAH KALI

Kumne A Trai shwa ba ngan niah ia ka ne ka kali, Nga duwai ba phin don ryngkat bad nga.Iarap ia nga ba ngan long adkar bad  don akor ha ka jingniah jongnga ia kane ka kali. Ri sumar maphi ha ka jingiaid lynti baroh kawei.

Pynlait ia ngi na ki jingpynshoi ha lynti bad  pynkynmaw ia nga ba ka jingim jongnga bad ka jingim jong ki ba shong ha ka kali ka shong ha ha ki kti jong nga. Ai ka jingmut ka ba shai bad longlem, bad ki kti ki kjat jong nga bad pyllait na ki jia ki ba sngewsih baroh.

                                                                                                            AMEN.

KA JINGDUWAI PYNKHREH 

Hashwa ba ngan sdang ia ka jingialeh,

Kyrkhu  A Blei ia kiei kiei ki ba nga pynkhreh,

Pynduh pyndam ia ka jingrit mynsiem bad jing khynnioh.

Ai ha nga ia ka jingshlur bad jingskhem mynsiem.

Ai ha nga ia ka jingmut ka bashai bad ka ba beit.

Irap A Blei ia nga ba ngan lah ban shut ia la ki jong ki jingmut bad nang pynnep ia ka jabieng jong nga ban pyndep iala ka jong ka kam.

Kyrkhu ia kijingangnud jong nga bad iarap ia ki jingthmu jong nga kin long ki ba jop,  AMEN

KA JINGDUWAI NA KA BYNTA KI NONGPANG

                Ainguh iaphi A Blei na ka bynta kane ka jingia syllok mynsiem ba ngi la ioh mynta. Pynkyntang ma phi A Blei ia kane ka por mynta.

                Kumne A Blei ngi ieng sawdong ka jingthiah jong U/Kane ka parabangeit ban thain la ki kti ha ki jingduwai ba phin aibor ai mynsiem ia u/kane ka parabangeit jongngi ba kan lah ban ialeh pyrshah ia ki jingpang ka ba wan ktah ha ka met jong u/ka.

                Kyrkhu ia ki kti jong ki nongsumar ki ba shakri ban pynkoit ia u/kane ka parabangeit jong ngi. Kyrkhu ia kiba haing hasem ki ba ai jingkyrshan kaba pura ba un ioh biang ia ka met ka bakoit bakhiah.

                Kyrkhu ia ki dawai dashin ba kin long ka ding ban thang ia ki khniang jingpang ki ba pynshitom ia ka met batlot. Ai ba kin long ruh ki um ba shngiam kiban ai bor ai mynsiem ia U/Kane ka parabangeit.

                Iarap ABlei ba ka jingialumlang jongki mynsiem jongngi mynta kan long ka borbah bor bashlei ban pynshaitbor ia U/Ka parabangeit jongngi naduh mynta sha ki bym kut shuh Amen.

58 Annual Youth Conference at Kharang

Group Song presented by the Passah group (The girls are my daughters)

The Seng Samla Unitarian Union Northeast India, an umbrella organisatio of the youths of the Unitarian Union successfully held their annual conference on the 16 and the 17 of April 2011 at the Unitarian Church Kharang which is about 50 kilometers from Shillong.  

Choir group of the Unitarian Church Nongthymmai

The Conference was started on the 16 with the ceremony of hoisting the flag of the Youth wing of the Unitarian Union then followed by the annual board meeting of the youth wing.  Each local youth organization of the church in the Unitarian Union send at least 2 member board to the board of the SSUUNI. On Saturday evening a service was held in Karbi language and the entire service was led by youth leaders from the Unitarian Sub Circle Karbi Anglong, Assam. For those who may not know Karbi is another tribe in Assam and they speak a language different from the Khasi and the Pnar of Jaintia Hills. For example when they greet people they say KARDOM not KHUBLEI. So I assume the service must have been a challenging and interesting one. In fact the Youths has followed this practice for more than two years now.

Award was given to students who did well in their exam

Group Song by the Children of AMCV

Sunday was a hectic day, there was service from 7 in the morning then followed by a service at 10:30 in the morning and then a service at 1:30 in the afternoon. The last service was 6:30 in the evening. The entire show was run by the youths and the Youth Organisation also presented awards to young people who had done very well in their studies. For many years now kong Iaineh Mohrmen past president of the Seng Kynthei UUNI (Women's Wing) donated two awards in memoray of her daughter Late Lasanki Mohrmen and Susanhika Mohrmen who died when they were still studying in the college.

UC Jowai Youth Choir Group

The highlight of the 58 Annual Conference of the Youth Wings are the choir and group song presented by different youth groups from various churches. This year we have a choir presented by the youths of the Unitarian Church Jowai, UC Nongthymmai, UC Madan Laban and a group song presented by the youths of the Unitarian Church Puriang. The highlight of the day was a group song presented by the children of the Annie Margaret Barr Children Village, Kharang which was led by their teacher from the Unitarian LP School Mawsynjri. 


The Annual Conference has proved that our young people can organise and run their own programe with very little help from their elders. I believe that the future of our church in the save hand. I wish our youth group (SSUUNI) more success in the future.

Contact Information of Unitarians in India

Assam

Miss Evalyne Smith
Principal Unitarian Tiny Hearts School
Opposite to the Residence of the DC Karimganj
P.O. Karimganj
Assam.
Cell Number 094061376419

Johnson Kothar
Longdup Anglong
District Karbi Anlong
Assam
Cell Number 919615030488


Gujarat

Mahesh Sethna Upadhyaya
Ahmadabad, India.
Email:  <mahesh.solidarity@gmail.com>;
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/Mahesh.RVS?sk=info

Meghalaya

The General Secretary
Unitarian Union Northeast India
Unitarian Church Jowai Campus
Iawmusiang
Jowai - 793150
Meghalaya.
President : Rev. Derrick Pariat
Cell No. 9863062076
Email:  <derrickpariat@gmail.com>;  <derrickpariat@yahoo.co.in>;
<leiki.suchiang@gmail.com>

Tamil Nadu

Unitarian Christian Church Madras
Chennai
Rev. Harison Kingsley Minister
Email:  <kingslyprabhu@yahoo.com>; <kingsly_prabhu@yahoo.com>;
Cell No. 09444256601

Unitarian Christian Church Erode
Rev. Dr. Francis Manuraj Minister
<dr_francis2001@yahoo.com>

Unitarian Evangelical Meeting at Bamakamar

I was lost for words to begin this report, I find it difficult to explain what we have done or rather what Hajom Kisor Singh Nongbri has exhorted us to do since Unitarianism was first established in the Khasi, and Jaintia hills District of Meghalaya and Karbi Anglong District of Assam. Initially I thought evangelical or evangelistic meeting will best describe the service we had at Bamkamar, but on a second though, I thought it is ‘too Christian.’ Perhaps evangelical or evangelistic is the term we find difficulty to accept in our liberal religion vocabulary. Our respect for other faith traditions tend to make us uncomfortable with the term as very often we would call ourselves ‘non-proselytizing’ religion.

In the Khasi Jaintia and Karbi Unitarian context, the practice to preached Unitarian faith among others has been in practice since its inception. In fact the founder has in the first hymn itself exhorted the followers of his religion to preach the new faith that he started among our friends and near and dear ones. He says “To ialap to pyrta ia ka niam U Blei/ Ba jingbha kan synshar ha ka pyrthei/” Go preach the religion of God that peace may reign/prevail in the world.

On the March 6, 2011, 23 Unitarians from Puriang, Jowai, Klew and Kyrdem congregated at the house of one Sirla Kshiar a resident of Bamkamar village to preach the gospel of Unitarianism in the village. Bamkamar is a village which is about 30 Km from Jowai and may be 20 Km from Puriang and Kyrdem is situated in the center of these two Unitarian Churches. We still have no member of church in the village and the goal is to have a Unitarian presence in the area. I personally think if we want our church to grow whether we like it or not, there is no alternative than to go evangelising. We might like the using the word evangelising but we need to go preached our religion and pay heed to the call H.K.Sinot ngh made 125 years ago.


The evangelical meeting was organized by Arki Kshiar who was originally from this village and he was supported by the two church of Kyrdem and Klew. The moderator of the two services was Mishein Myrboh Assistant Minister, Puriang and the Rev. H.H. Mohrmen preached on both the services. The first was led by Kitlan Kharlukhi and Jrin Nongrum led a prayer. The second service was led by Kyrpadlang War and Mrs. Lydia Nongrum led the congregation in a prayer. Arki Kshiar the main organizer proposed a vote of thanks and Omi Kshiar welcome the member to the services.



About 30 villagers neighbor of Sirla Kshiar along with her relatives join us in the services and Banpyrshang M Pdah from Klew was the organist during both the services.

Community Capacity Building Warkshop at Nongtalang Village

The 2 days Community Capacity Building Workshop organised by the Unitarian Union NEI Social Service Committee was held at Nongtalang on the 11 and 12 of March 2011. The Workshop was inaugurated by Mr. Lahkmen Rymbui the member of the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly who represent the Nongtalang area. The inaugural function was adressed by David Warjri coordinator of the programme, Brigitte Pieke and Peri Ceperley from the Unitarian Univeralist Congregation of Urbana and was chaired by Rev. H.H.Mohrmen.

On the first day the villagers were introduce the mapping exercise in which they divided into four groups and the two groups were asked to sketch the map of their village and the another two groups were assigned the job of analyzing the institutions available in the village.

The next day the villagers were given the exercise to identify and note the accomplishments and the needs of the village.Then they were asked analyze the needs and ranged the need pair-wise.

The next part of the workshop was designed to design an action plan followed by discussion on programme implementation.

About 80 people attend the worshop and all those attend took part enthusiastically. By the end of the day villagers who attend the workshop were given opportunity to express their feeling about the workshop. Heavenly War a teacher of a St. Joseph School, Nongtalang said that it was the first time that he ever attend a workshop of this kind. They wish to have more workshop like this one in the near future which will benefit the villagers.

The Workshop was  organised by the Unitarian Union North East India Social Service Committee and the entire programme was facilitated by Young Unitarians trained in community capacity building.