How to describe in mere words, how to define, and how to pay tribute to a truly extraordinary life! When I think of my father, when I recall my long, intimate association with him outside of and above all his remarkable achievements and contributions to our cultural life, stands out his own unique personality. Kind and patient, never wasting even a moment of his time, perfectly balanced in stress and felicity, always helpful and always mindful of the welfare of his associates, his personality stands out as a complete example of the «Superior Man» for whom life had assumed the sublime aspect of greater service.All his life he gave out freely of his prodigious gifts, and it will indeed take a long time to fully appreciate and evaluate the great contributions made by him. When I think of my father, I am filled with the inexpressible riches of love and regard, for all he gave and continues to give me in infinite ways
He was a great patriot and he loved his Motherland, yet he belonged to the entire world, and the whole world was his field of activity. Every race of men was to him a brotherly race, every country — a place of special interest and of special significance. Every religion was a path to the Ultimate and to him life meant the great gates leading into the future.
His beautiful painting the «Hidden Treasure» is perhaps a profound symbol of his own great contributions and his own unusual life. Every effort of his was directed towards the realisation of the beautiful, and his thoughts found a masterful embodiment in his paintings, writings, and public life. The subject-matter of his paintings reveals a wonderful pageant of transcendental thought cast in sublime colours and compositions.
The later half of his life was closely associated with the greatest range of this, our worlds, the Himalayas. Against this wondrous background he revealed to us the legends and the spiritual aspirations of the countless seekers after truth who came to these mighty ranges in search of wisdom.
The Himalayas were a source of constant creative joy to him, and in thousands of studies he revealed to us a matchless, breathtaking panorama of the infinite moods which are such an integral part of these lofty peaks.
No one has ever portrayed mountains like my father. From his canvases the Himalayas radiate upon us all their unbelievable wealth of colour, beauty and the inexpressible majesty of the great concept for which the very word «Himalayas» stands. Truly he earned the name given to him, THE MASTER OF THE MOUNTAINS.
Through all his paintings and writings runs the continuous thread of a great message, the message of the teacher calling to the disciples to awaken and strive towards a new life, a better life, a life of beauty and fulfilment. He fully exemplified the words of Plato:
«From beautiful things we shall go to beautiful ideas, from beautiful ideas weshall go to a beautiful life, and from a beautiful life – to absolute beauty». Both in my father and mother there was the unique balance and harmony of two perfectly synchronised beings who realised the great ideal of life and lived the chosen path as a perfect example of dedication and fulfilment.
It is rare for an artist to achieve greatness, but for a great artist to be an even greater man is indeed something which can be found only with the greatest of difficulty. Fortunate indeed was I to have the living example and guidance of my father and mother, and their radiant image always remains my greatest inspiration, my great source of happiness.
Though we are now celebrating my father’s first birth-centenary, I know that in the vista of time every centenary will be marked by ever greater awareness and appreciation. Today we are only kindling the first flame of our tribute to a great life to be followed by ever brighter flames of gratitude and recognition leading into the distant beckoning future.
[1947]
