I got a new lease on life over 10 years ago, when I was in my 60s. With little education and no experience in writing, I suddenly became a published Tamil writer, a playwright and an author!

My mother and parents-in-law, around whom much of my life revolved, were gone. My son and his family left for the US 14 years ago. For the first time in my life, I felt lonely. Not one to give in to depression even in the darkest hours, I drew inspiration from this solitude to embark on a journey of writing.

I was inspired by books on the lives of great men, saints and our scriptures. I would snatch time in between my household chores to devour these. God has blessed me with a photographic memory and, to this day, I can recall unique episodes from books I’d read and discourses I’d heard years ago.

I ventured into this world by writing my spiritual experiences and that of my family associated with Maha Periyava, the great seer of Kanchi Mutt. My brother Balu, a teacher and published author, suggested I send in one of the pieces to Om Saravana Bhava, a spiritual publication. Not only was the story published, the publication also asked me to continue writing for them. Soon, the Kanchi Sankara Mutt approached me to write for their 16-page newsletter Jana Kalyana Seithi Malar. Since then, there has been no looking back and I started writing for several other publications.

In 2007, I adapted the life story of Adi Shankaracharya in drama form for the Sankara Mutt, titled Vaazhvum Vaakum. Right now, I am writing a play for the school children close to my home. My book Arul Tharum Aanmiga Kadhaikal (Spiritual Stories for Bliss), a compendium of 60 short stories, was published a few years ago and another one is in the works. Sankara Mutt also broadcast my hour-long interview for Thanjavur Parampara, a knowledge portal on culture and tradition, which went viral on YouTube.

I was born the younger of two siblings in 1941, in a village near the temple town of Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. I was married at the age of 13. My husband was not lettered and looked after his family’s agricultural lands. Twelve years after marriage, we were blessed with Srinivasan, my son. Four years later, we had twins: a son and daughter.

As they say, misfortunes do not come alone. We lost our lands and fell into hard days. Within eight years, I lost my daughter to illness and my twin son and husband to accidents. I guess I had become inured to tragedy but my spiritual moorings and faith in God helped me develop resilience. I willed myself to come out on top of distressing situations. I had to move on. My son had to be educated and I had five mouths to feed.

I took into our home a few students as paying guests and did odd jobs for neighbours and took up cooking orders from them, in addition to babysitting my house owner’s child. Srinivasan was a topper and medallist in school. He gained admission to Tirunelveli Engineering College without much trouble. Sethuraman, an ardent devotee of Maha Periyava, helped with the fees.

At 76, I see that my spiritual inclinations have inspired a beautiful second innings. It was indeed a magical turn of events where I found my calling so late in life.

—B Rajalakshmi, aka Rajam Maami, Chennai

Photo: J Ramaswamy
Featured in Harmony — Celebrate Age Magazine
July 2017