Astachal | The Scindia School | Residential School India | Boarding Schools in India

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ASTACHAL

• Every evening, come the twilight hour, dressed in
  crisp white kurta pyjamas, the boys assemble in
  the amphitheatre called Astachal, the spiritual
  watering hole of our school.

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• The Astachal has interesting origins. It was
  conceived in the troubled times in India of the
  1940s, as a common spiritual space, by the then
  Principal Mr. FG Pearce and his senior colleague
  and a future Principal, Mr. KC Shukla. Mr.
  Thakar, a teacher, produced the clay model based
  upon which the construction was completed in 1943.

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• The space was christened Astachal, meaning the
  hill at sunset, at the suggestion of Mrs. Pearce
  and Mr. Shukla. The statue of the Mahatma,
  symbolising the eternal seeker, was sculpted by
  Mr. Rudrappa of Gwalior, and added in
  1948.Astachal is inarguably a defining feature of
  The Scindia School.

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• Easy to say so much harder to explain. Is it the
  incredible beauty of the sun setting behind the
  ranges with the valley below? Is it the delicate
  background cadence of the violin or the flute?

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• Is it the beautiful lines that are read from the
  Speaking Tree? Or the calming silhouette of the
  Mahatma ? Maybe it is just the five minutes of
  quiet prayer or introspection.

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• Perhaps a bit of this and a bit of that. Pines
  Manik Mahajan, class of 1992, " I so miss the
  Astachal, those few minutes would transport us to
  a surreal realm, something we miss in the
  bustling cities with our hectic schedules. "

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• The experience of Astachal remains etched in the
  consciousness of every Scindian, and this memory
  survives long after the school years are done and
  dusted.

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• Why try to explain? Some things in life are best
  left unexplained!

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