Page 24 - MML - Journal - Centenary Edition - Vol. 01 / 2023

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A Publication of Madras Masters Lodge No. 103, GLI
Some Peculiar Moments in Freemasonry
By M W Bro. Arun Chintopanth, OSM, P.G.M., P.R.G.M.
My connect with the MADRAS MASTERS LODGE has been for about fifty plus years now. Even as a Master Mason I have attended meetings of this unique Lodge with my late father. Those days, the Madras Masters Lodge was referred to as R W Bro. V. Rajaram’s baby! Indeed, it was. Short of sweeping and swabbing, this late brother nurtured the Lodge so well in all respects.
The journal brought out by the Lodge – the MADRAS MASTERS JOURNAL was perhaps the only Masonic journal those days. Not only that, it had also the most erudite of masonic writers - stalwarts in Freemasonry such as R W Bro. V. V. Chetty, R W Bro. R. Krishnaswamy, R W Bro. Kandaswamy Mudaliar, R W Bro. M. M. A. Navas, R W Bro. C. A. Ramakrishnan and others. R W Bro. R. Krishnaswamy was considered a walking encyclopedia on Freemasonry.
Just as the Lodge, the journal too has had its ups and downs – a typical chequered existence over these fifty plus years that I know of.
Indeed, I was delighted when R W Bro. Pratapkaran Paul called me the other day to inform me of the revival of the journal by R W Bro. V. G. Madhusudan and that he, Bro. Pratapkaran, would continue with its publication. My delight was however short lived because his next line that I should contribute an article doused my initial delight. He further qualified that the article should contain some “unusual” or “peculiar” incidents in Freemasonry that I may have come across during these five decades and more of my masonic life.
I wondered what I had done to incur Bro.
Pratapkaran’s wrath to be punished like this! For, at this age, with fading memory, to go back in time and remember moments, peculiar, unusual or otherwise is indeed some task.
Speaking of age and memory, George Burns says, “First you forget names, then you forget faces. Next you forget to pull your zipper up and finally, you forget to pull it down!”
Anyway, managing to remember that obedience to the Worshipful Master is one of the duties of a Freemason, I have dug deep into my memory card and now share with you readers SOME PECULIAR MOMENTS IN FREEMASONRY.
Two unusual experiences involving nature’s fury when I was the Grand Director of Ceremonies come first to mind – both of them were when M W Bro. Gautam Divan was the Grand Master.
The first is the incident of laying the foundation stone for the Masonic Temple at Kanyakumari.
A large entrouge of cars with Grand Officers and Regional Grand Officers left Tirunelvelli after a forenoon meeting there so as to reach Kanyakumari for the scheduled foundation stone laying ceremony that evening.
Midway, we found ourselves in the “eye” of a horrendous cyclone. We could see trees and electric and telephone poles falling all around us with heavy rain pouring down. Thanks to some deft driving, we did reach Kanyakumari. By this time the shamiana, the furniture, the paraphernalia et al
Madras Masonic Journal Vol. 01 / 2023 - Centenary Year Edition