Mridu-di appreciates the French scholar

Once a French scholar came to the Ashram and gave a lecture in French. It was on religion, as far as I remember. As he was leaving, this particular lady — my mother — said to him in Bengali, “You spoke extremely well. I enjoyed your lecture.”

So he asked her, “Which part did you enjoy most?”

She said, “I enjoyed everything.”

“But can you not tell me which part?” he said.

“Do I know French?” she replied. “I saw you moving your hand and writing on the blackboard. Sometimes you just moved your hand. That is why I enjoyed it so much. And when people clapped, I clapped also.”

She had a dog at that time on a leash. While she and the French scholar were having their conversation, the dog ran away. The man thanked her for her remarks and said in English, “Better take care of your dog.” Poor Mridu-di misunderstood his pronunciation.

She thought he said “You dog.” Then she became so furious. She started screaming, “This professor called me a dog!”