A WAY OF LIFE

From the very beginning Rabindranath tried to foster a self-sufficient social life along with new values of creative as well as participatory culture. The most joyful expressions of the community are the festivals which at different times of the year celebrate the cycle of the seasons and the diverse manifestations of nature. Dances and songs presented on such occasions draw as much upon Rabindranath as other cultural resources of all parts of India. The community comes together in these festivals and for the young students in particular, it is an unobtrusive process of cultural enrichment.

Certain cultural events and festivals had come down as a legacy from the inception of the institution. The open-air devotional service that is held on 7 Poush (on or about 22 December) every year under the Chatim tree where Debendranath once meditated is an occasion of particular significance for the institution since it is the foundation day of the asrama. In accordance with the trust deed, a mela (festive fair) popularly known as the Poushmela is held to mark the occasion. Another three day village fair, called Maghmela is held early in February every year at Sriniketan.

There is prayer-hall, referred to as Mandir, where every Wednesday a non-denominational community prayer service is held. This prayer-hall is the place of congregation for all important occasions of commemoration for the community. It was the founder's belief that the moral influence radiating from here would afford a silent but constant guidance to the members of the community. All in all Santiniketan is the name for an attitude, a value, a way of life which suffuses an educational process, contains it, sustains it, yet transcends it.