Ask this aksharyogi about the art of good hand-writing

Nana came across some revealing stanzas which not only helped him overcome his problem but later also formed the basis of his own theory of calligraphy.

The enthused Nana went to meet Mahatma Gandhi at Wardha. Gandhi himself was unhappy with his own hand-writing and would often get emotional about it since he believed that one must have a good hand at writing. Gandhi told Nana to devote himself to the cause. Nana then went to Vinoba and sought his blessings.

In 1969, Nana had put up a stall of his enterprise at an all-India educational conference. It evoked an overwhelming response. Nana got invitations from all over the country for guidance. Since then, his has been a ceaseless mission. And a selfless one at that – the munificent Nana does it all for free. "Money doesn’t matter to me. After retirement, I donated Rs 1 lakh of my Provident Fund amount to the school I served in the memory of my grandmother."

Till date, lakhs have benefitted from his classes. Such has been the response that, at times, the batches contained 3,000 students each. The profile of his clientele varies from students, company executives, doctors engineers to yogis tucked deep away in the Himalayas.

"I have some very simple but effective tips. In a matter of minutes, a substantial change is discernible," he claims, showing some specimens in evidence. "Most of my students make headway right from the first lecture they attend. I get a passage written by each one of them before giving them tips. At the end of the lecture, I ask them to re-write the same passage and the difference is there for all to see," Nana says.

"After years of chintan (deep thinking), I have developed certain formulae for improving one’s hand-writing. Mathematics being my forte, I could also devise ways to lend a sense of proportion to letters," he says. "Systematic writing gives each letter its due character. Mind you, in English too, a letter is known as a character."

Moreover, according to him, it also saves a lot of space, time, energy and ink. "If one writes perpendicular letters, one can accommodate the matter in a lesser space, and has to spend less energy, time and ink." He adds, "Of the two students solving their exam papers identically, the one with a better hand-writing is better appreciated."

But merely improving handwriting isn’t what the mission is all about. Nana’s attempt has been to motivate the individuals to strive for perfection in every walk of life. "In fact, that is my main focus," he says. It is this sense of purpose which has endeared him to his innumerable followers. Taking the cue, many of his disciples have also taken up the cause.

Nana’s involvement in the subject runs so deep that he sees letters to be manifestations of divinity. "About Om, Lord Krishna says in the eighth adhyaya of the Geeta: Iti Ekaksharam Brahma (Om is Brahma in one letter).

The Lord further says, Aksharanam Akarosmi, meaning: among all letters, I reside in the first one (the Devnagari counterpart of A). "So, it is God’s wish that one must write well," he explains.

Philosophy apart, the message succinctly brings out the spirit of letters. But with computers becoming commonplace, is there a threat to the art of calligraphy?

Pat comes an emphatic `no’ from Nana. "Mankind will have to keep writing come what may," says he.

The Labhe pattern

Rules of hand-writing

1. Hand-writing is a parade of letters on a blank sheet.

2. Vertical strokes are ever straight and parallel. Parallelism is the beauty of hand-writing.

3. Inclination should be uniform throughout.

4. How to form a stave of four lines for writing in English on ruled paper: The rule is half-quarter-quarter – a) quarter space for short letter, b) half space for tall letters, c) capital letters enjoy double the height of the small letters, d) Tall letters going downward are quarter up and quarter down the baseline.