Kochi: As dusk falls at Karamana, the precincts of the ancient Siva temple at this Tamil Brahmin settlement reverberate with chants from Yajur Veda. A frail figure, in spotless white robe, sits surrounded by a group of youngsters, who repeat after him twice, as per age-old custom, Vedic hymns in a sing-song tone.

For Parameswaran, this has been a voyage of teaching for the past 40 years. Hundreds of children have passed through his quaint “school” learning Vedic passages by rote.

Away from the limelight, he has nurtured interest in the Vedic tradition in at least three generations at Karamana and nearby areas like Sankar Nagar, Vinayaka Nagar, Valiyachalai and Puthenchanthai.

Last week, his students from all over the country gathered at his house to celebrate their “Anna’s” 60th birthday.

A civil engineer, Parameswaran started his career as a lecturer at TKM Engineering College, Kollam. Later he joined the Public Works Department. Even as he worked at the PWD, he dedicated himself to the cause of popularising the Vedas.

“I am following in the footsteps of my illustrious teacher, V.K. Subramania Sarma, who started these free classes at Karamana in 1969. It is just 30 to 45 minutes of class everyday but over a seven to eight year period, you acquire a good chunk of the popular passages from the Krishna Yajur Veda,” says he.

The format of the classes has remained the same since 1969, with chanting sessions, followed by light bhajans.

“Sekhar took to the study of Vedas at age 19. Apart from teaching, he himself has been learning Yajur Veda all these years, from one of the doyens, the octogenarian Venkatachala Ghanapadigal of Thiruvananthapuram,” says Dr. V.Sahasranamam, ophthalmologist.

Ask Parameswaran about this abiding passion in the Vedas: “What I have learned over the past 40 years is like a drop in the ocean. The more you know, the more you understand how much you don’t know. The Vedas are vast in their range and deep in terms of the coverage of different subjects. The Vedas are divided into four portions – Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka and Upanishads. And each Veda has got six Angas (limbs) covering chhandas (metres), kalpam (procedure of yajnas), jyotisham (astrology), niruktam (terminology and meanings), shiksha (science of correct pronunciation) and vyakaranam (grammar).”

His PWD colleagues recall him as role-model professional.

“Parameswaran’s work has always evoked respect. He supervised the construction of the new Legislative Complex at Palayam from the initial stages itself. He had proved himself in various fields like construction, design, planning and administration, “says Mr. Mathew Francis, who retired as a chief engineer.

“And one can never forget the fact that he refused to utilise the office vehicle for personal purposes, choosing to commute to office in his own two-wheeler. Such integrity is rare,” adds Mathew. The bachelor savant lives with his 78-year-old mother and brothers at Karamana. His day starts at 2.30 am with morning prayers at his house and then onwards it is either a time of teaching or learning, till 9 pm.