By Susan Gosine

Express

October 22, 1997

Page 31

When he was five he begged his mother not to send him to school. He told her he wished he was "younger or older".

His childish explanation was: "If I was younger or older (past school age) I would not have to go to school."

Today, he is the winner of a 1997 further additional science scholarship and is studying mechanical engineering at the University of the West Indies. He attended St George's College. And he still hates school.

His goal: to excel in robotics or computer software.

Umesh Persad, 18, named after the Hindu God, Lord Shiva, is no nerd walking around with huge horn-rimmed spectacles and huge textbooks clutched in his hands.

He is a handsome young man with a ready smile and a brain bursting with knowledge and wisdom. He is active in sport. He plays table tennis, badminton and football and he swims.

He studies Indian classical music, writes short stories and has a brown belt in jujitsu.

And that's not all. He is a fully initiated pundit in training. He received Janawe (initiation) at the age of eight from his grandfather His holiness Shankaraarchaarya Pundit Hari Prasad, Spiritual head of SWAHA Incorporated. His father, Hardeo Persad, 47, a mathematics teacher at Morvant Laventille Secondary School, is also a pundit.

As a child, Persad showed keen interest in Pundatai work, and accompanied his father when he went to homes and other venues to perform pooja.

As he prepares to step into his father's shoes, he believes he is doing his duty as the son of a pundit and aims to make a difference when he eventually assumes the role in full.

His decision to become a pundit was not by choice. "It is a responsibility and not really a choice. Once you are born into a family with a pundit, you need to carry on the tradition. It is a duty and a responsibility to be filled by male children. Given a choice I would choose to continue the tradition and follow in my father's footsteps."

When Persad received Janawe, his formal training as a pundit began in earnest. He enrolled as a Dharam Prabeshak (pundit in training) in classes at SWAHA headquarters and began to study Hindi.

He believes the role of the pundit will become "more and more important" as time goes by. "It will change and become greatly increased, especially in the lives of young people for inspiration.

"Times are changing and I will have to be a different pundit to my father and grandfather's time. There will be new problems cropping up and new challenges and the key to being able to effectively deal with these issues is education."

"One must have a wide knowledge base to know about all these problems and may sometimes have to tap the resources of the older heads (pundits) to find out how they dealt with these types of problems in the past and how to adapt those old solutions to what is taking place in the future."

Speaking at his home at Chootoo Street, Aranjuez, Persad said to become a pundit he studied philosophy, learned rituals practiced in Hindu ceremonies, and learned how to chant mantras.

"A lot of this information and guidance come from the elder pundits through the oral tradition - verbally passed down from one to another.

"While there are a lot of reference books, Pundatai study does not require the use f a particular text," he said, adding, "It is not set or fixed like when you study at school. When the time comes for you to move on to the next stage, the elders will inform you. Pundatai is really an interaction with people and the only way to learn to do that perfectly is to interact with people."

Persad said he acquired religious knowledge by attending Yagya and Pooja where he observed and learned from other pundits. "Every time I accompany my father to perform pooja, every moment I spend looking at him serve God is a special moment of inspiration. Every time I listen to him, my grandfather or my mother, every single moment I spend with them is very, very special to me."

He said he had no problem coping with both portfolios. "I enjoy what I do. It is not a problem coping with both types of study. As a matter of fact, it is more relaxing to study religion in between classes at school and go to yagyas."

Instead of a bracelet, Persad wears a saffron-coloured string wrapped around his right wrist. "Every time pooja is performed, the string is replaced by another. It is really for protection," he said. His mother, Bhanmatie, also wears one.

Persad is a devoted son and holds his parents and sister, Sharvani, 15, in very high esteem. "I draw inspiration from my mother. She is my guiding light. She pushes me and encourages me. Everything I do is in honour of my parents. They have given me everything and in return everything I do is for them. Their happiness is my joy.

"I get happiness, satisfaction and fulfillment from doing this service for my parents. That is what I want. I don't really do things for myself; the scholarship is for my parents and everything else that follows is for them."

Pundit in training though he may be, he does many things teenagers his age do. He parties, limes a bit, goes to the mall, and movies. He says his friends are "not uncomfortable around me because I am a pundit."

"I have lots of friends and normal relationships like everyone else. We don't indulge in loose discussions and things like that. The limitation has to come from within me. I decide whether I should go to a pub or club. I prefer not to. I have clean fun with no shackles."

He believes the company one keeps reflects his/her true image. "You tend to be like the people you relate to. If you fall into a proper group of people, not those who drink and so on, their behaviour influences you and your behaviour influences them. If you find the right people to keep company with, that should keep you on the right path."

Persad said he was a very humble person and would not succumb to temptation easily. "I would not do things without thinking first. I will always analyze things before doing them and will always take advice from older people. If you do that, nothing could go wrong.

"Listening is the key. If you listen and analyze and think before you act, nothing can go wrong."

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