THIRUVANATHAPURAM: Prof G Balakrishnan Nair, the revered exponent of Sanskrit and Vedanta, who passed away on Friday night, leaves behind a promise unkept.
A month back when he was invited to receive the award instituted in the name of Prof S Guptan Nair, all he said was "I will be there to receive the honour".
He said this defying his ailments but his deeply felt wish could not enliven his aged body. On February 6, the commemorative meeting of Prof S Guptan Nair during which Balakrishan Nair was to be honoured will miss the awardee beyond words.
It was not the lucre of the honour that made this venerable soul give his word of promise.
He was to receive an honour in the name of a person with whom he had had an intimate association for a long time. More than being colleagues at University College, Balakrishnan Nair always considered Guptan Nair as an immense source of prodding for his exploits on Vedanta.
Guptan Nair had always lauded him for his interpretation of Bhagavad Gita. Sobriety remained a common trait for both. Both were known as much for their soft spoken, genteel nature as for their depths of profound knowledge.
"He would certainly have been gratified to receive the award. Such was the kind of relationship they used to have," said Puthuserry Ramachandran, president,S Guptan Nair Foundation.
The previous S Guptan Nair award winners namely Dr M Leelavathy, Prof Ambalapuzha Rama Varma, Dr Sukumar Azhikode and Prof B Hridayakumari, have all been known litterateurs-cum-pedagogues.
The decision to choose Balakrishnan Nair this time was unanimous, Puthuserry Ramachandran said.
"All these years he had remained as a highly pedantic and least acknowledged scholar. He was one of those who loathed trumpeting his own scholastic reserves. That is why we decided to honour him this year. Unfortunately he could not live long to receive the award," he said.
The award will be handed over to the relatives of Balakrishnan Nair at the commemorative meeting to be held at Chandrasekharan Nair stadium on Sunday.
