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parent, especially one who is very gentle, noble and affectionate,
is, in itself, a great calamity that can befall a person. It is most keenly
felt by sensitive individuals and hardly had Pandit Guru Datta a
sigh of relief from the overwhelming grief that had seized on him
when he was asked to deliver lectures on the D.A.V. College
Movement at the anniversaries of the Samajs. The gentleman,
having a great regard for the Movement, did not attach any
importance to his private affairs, in view of the matters of public
interest and he at once responded to the call. The 10th anniversary
of the Lahore Arya Samaj came off on the 26th and 27th November,
a few days after his father's demise and he delivered a very splendid
address on the D.A.V. College on the occasion. To attempt even to
give a distant idea of the earnestness, the
depth of feeling
with which
he spoke on the occasion
would be to attempt an impossibility.
A death
like silence reigned in the hall when he spoke, and a gathering of
men numbering little less than
3 thousand, sat the very embodiment of
muteness.
Everything, he said, had a ring of sincerity and
earnestness about it.
His utterings of a feeling heart, his tone, his
language, gave the most unmistakable evidence of the fact that he felt what
he said.
We have
seldom heard a more electrifijing speech.
Verily the
language of the heart, in spite of all its simplicity, excels the most
exquisite pieces of eloquence without sincerity and innermost
earnestness to back them. He exemplified his remarks by drawing
illustrations from the life of Swami Dayananda; and we are faithfully
chronicling the fact when we say that we saw the tears coursing
down the faces of many."29
The closing months of the year 1887 were, spent, for the most
part in delivering lectures upon important religious subjects. Three
of these are worthy of special mention. The subjects deal with in
them,
viz.,
'The Object of Life; 'Truth,' and the 'Arya Samaj' are of
vital interest to the religious world. But perhaps the most
interesting and instructive lecture delivered during the period just
named is that of the "Realities of Inner Life." It was printed in a
pamphlet form in 1890.
With the commencement of the new year, Pandit Guru
Datta's activity was redoubled. He grew very enthusiastic and the
major portion of his spare time was spent in the diffusion of healthy
ideas on religion and morality among the people. One lecture after
another was delivered; the educated men, especially those who were
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