Food, water, fuel and vehicles, it was this crucial supply line that this old soldier had been an integral part of, in the theatre of war that was the Middle East, not so long ago. Now a nonagenarian, having celebrated his 92nd birthday on the 17th of last month (October), the places he has been to, the things he has seen, the duties that he has performed meticulously, flow fast and furious from his lucid memory.

As I write this account I sadly muse that I may be among the very few yet around who witnessed this historic event. As such, I believe my personal recollections will interest today’s participants.The inaugural conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists in 1950, I am convinced, gave both impetus and inspiration for the historic Buddha Jayanti celebrations of 1956.