A Mystical and Magical Moment
On Friday, October 25, 2024, the University of Waterloo’s one hundred and twenty-ninth convocation for the conferment of degrees began with the celebration of the installation ceremony of Dr. Jagdeep Singh Bachher as its Chancellor. What one witnessed was both a mystical and magical moment. In my humble opinion, nothing of this sort has been seen by a graduating class ready to venture into the world beyond the security blanket of campus life.
Why Mystical? One would imagine that a devout Sikh, like Jagdeep, would have wished for a prayer (Ardas), a tradition by Sikhs, before undertaking a project or venturing into uncharted territory. Lo and behold, the elder Indigenous Myeengun Henry, a traditional Medicine Healer ceremony conductor at the University’s Faculty of Health, arose from his dais chair and offered a prayer with homage to Mother Earth and its sustainable components. One could imagine Jagdeep’s heart’s contentment, realizing that the words could have been the words of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, which had been etched on the memory walls of his tender heart from childhood.
“Pavan Guru, Pani Pitta, Mata Dharat Mahat” (Air, the Guru, Water the Father, the Earth, the Great Mother).
The prayer was followed by Indigenous tribal musical ceremony where the blowing of the conch, denoting the primordial node, elevated the spirits of the attendees to the cosmos, eradicating the elements of race, class, and religion and cementing the common bond of oneness. Thereafter, elder Henry garlanded Jagdeep with a medallion etched with a turtle carrying the earth on its back, reminding him of his noble task of taking care of Mother Earth and its inhabitants. Jagdeep gratefully acknowledged to Elder Henry that he would act as the ‘people’s chancellor’ devoted to creating a sustainable world with the preservation of the environment, ethically-centered natural and mineral resource usage, and economic benefits for all, thereby lifting the lives so that future generations reap similar benefits. Thus, the graduating class of 2024 indeed saw a mystical moment before the start of the graduating ceremony. How lucky they are to be part of and witness to such a sacred event!
2)Why Magical?
This was a magical moment for many in the following ways.
His parents, Kuldip Singh Bachher and Mrs. Harbhajan Kaur Bachher, both teachers in Nigeria, tirelessly provided knowledge to countless students who assumed essential positions in uplifting society. Thereafter, his parents migrated to Waterloo, Canada, and continued the same sacred duty of illuminating the lives of students on Canadian soil. They humbly acknowledged the Almighty for giving them the task of spreading education, watching students reach the heights of their profession, and helping serve humanity. But this day, one of their own, who happened to be the son/student who joined the University at the young age of fifteen (the year of their migration to Canada), was creating a magical moment of showcasing what a gift of education can do! Cheering from the bleachers at the same convocation arena, receiving diplomas from the UW chancellor not once but three times (BASc '93. MASc '94, PhD' 00) today, what his parents and family witnessed was far beyond their wildest dreams. To them, it was nothing but a culmination of small magical moments that they accumulated while watching their students' successes during their professional lives as teachers. To showcase the best human values the University believes in and puts into action, they asked Jagdeep's parents, wife, and sister to come to the stage and place the chancellor's robe on him. In doing so, the UW clearly emphasized the role of parents and family, superseding the role of the University in Jagdeep's glorious achievements. With misty eyes, they humbly bowed to the Almighty for gifting them with this Magical moment.
For Jagdeep, returning to his alma mater for Thanksgiving was a magical moment. Their alma mater provided him tools to think differently, to lead the world through “sustainable investing and long-term economic growth” that uplifts the society with emphasis on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, thereby positioning “him as a leading figure in the world of institutional investments.” Because of his unique vision, he was offered to manage the investment portfolio of the University of California’s system of 10 campuses, six academic health centers, and three affiliated national laboratories. An unbelievable feat to be attained at the mere age of 41. “Currently in the role of the Chief Investment Officer at the University of California, he oversees the management of more than USD 180 billion. During his ten-year tenure at UC, the university’s investment assets doubled. He created a collaborative culture known as The UC Investments Way, which is embodied by 10 pillars that guide investment decision-making for the benefit of university stakeholders and the broader UC community. He has been a champion for change in the investment industry and gained an international reputation as an innovator.” To be recognized by his peers at such an early phase of his professional career and then by the university, whose hands he held to walk through the nascent stage of learning and now being bestowed by the university’s highest honor is nothing but a Magical moment for this wiz kid who has triumphed both the financial as well as academic worlds. The next day, he, his family, and friends bowed to the Almighty at the Gurdwara (Sikh Holy Place of Worship) and offered ‘Shukrana’ (gesture of Gratefulness).
Graduates of the Class of 2024 Fall Graduation, in my opinion, were lucky to have witnessed such a Magical moment for the following reasons: a)How, with open hearts, Canada and its centers of higher learning embrace immigrants from diverse communities, nurture them, and help them conquer their dreams with the realization that Sky truly is the limit; all the while emphasizing to permanently showcase the best of human values. If Jagdeep, with the colorful dress, skewed turban, full-grown beard, an ardent follower of Sikhism, and a firm believer in care and share and prosperity for all, can come on this stage to illuminate your pathways, it's not a Miracle, then what it is? b)A university that opens the gate for you to enter professional life with a non-denominal spiritual ceremony and that too with atonement for the wrongs done by ancestors against the indigenous inhabitants of the land speaks volumes about the mindset of the visionaries who established the UW. To my limited knowledge, I have not seen other convocations where the graduating class is reminded of their place in the vastness of time and space and asked for spiritual connectivity with the universe. Watching this at commencement, is this not a magical moment other than what it is? c)Your Chancellor proclaims himself not a Chancellor but a "People's Chancellor" whose doors are always open to nurture your potential to the highest level. Were you not surprised when, with his back toward you, he took a selfie with his phone? It hints at a subtle message that a family portrait is being created that will adorn his work desk with the title ‘UW Class of 2024.’ During the next thirty years, he predicted, "One of You would be a Chancellor, One of You would be a Prime Minister, and One of You would be a Nobel Laureate." These forecasts from your visionary Chancellor would always shine on the billboards of your life's sojourn. Yes, this is a Magical moment that a graduating class can rarely witness. Savor it, Graduates!
[Note: Both photos and some sentences in quotation marks in my essay are from the University of Waterloo article by Jordan Flemming from the web link below:
https://uwaterloo.ca/news/dr-jagdeep-singh-bachher-installed-waterloos-12th]
Bio: Hardarshan Singh Valia is an earth scientist by profession, based in USA. His poems, stories, and essays have appeared in Wards Literary Journal, Northwest Indiana Literary Journal, Poetic Medicine, Who Writes Short Shorts, Dove Tales – Writing for Peace- an anthology, Pages Penned in Pandemic – A Collective, Caesura, Sage-ing, Literary Veganism, COVID tales journal, Poetry and Covid, Nightingale & Sparrow, Jerry Jazz Musician, Tribune India, Sikh Review, SikhNet, Huffington Post, Northwest Indiana Times, and in books such as Diamonds-75 Years of Indiana Poetry (ISFPC2017), and Undeniably Indiana (Indiana University Press, 2016).