01. I was born into a middle class Tamil in the Island town of Rameshwaram in the erstwhile Madras state. My father, Jainulabdeen , had neither much formal education not much wealth; despite disadvantage , he possessed great innate wisdom and a true generosity of spirit. She had an ideal helpmate in my mother asi Ashiamma. I do not recall the exact number of people see fed everyday, but I am quite certain that far more outsider ate with us then all the members of our own family put together
02 . I was one of many child — a short boy rather undistinguished look , born to tell and handsome parents. We lived in our ancestral house, which was built in the middle of 19th century. It was a fairly large pucca house, made of the limestone and brick , on the mosque Street in rameshwaram. My austere Father used to avoid all the inessential comfort in luxuries. However, all necessities was provided for, I would ould say mine was a very secure child, both mentally and emotionally.
03. The second world war was broke out in 1939, when I was 8 year old. For example I have never been able to understand us supplied demand for tamarind seeds erupted in the market. I used to collect this seats and sell them to provision shops and mosque streat. A day's collection would fetch me the princely sum of one anna . My brother in law Jalaluddin would tell me stories about the war I would last attempt to trace in the headlines in Dinamani our area , beind isolated , was completely unaffected by the war. But soon India war forced to join the allied forced and something like a state of emergency was declared. The first casualty come in the form of suspension of the train halt in Rameshwar station. The newspaper no had to be bundled and thrown out of the moving train on the rameshwaram road between rameshwaram and dhanushkodi. That forced by cousin Samsuddin . Who distributed newspaper in rameshwaram, to look for the helping hand to catch of the bundles and, has if naturally, I filled the slot. Samsuddin helped me earn to my first wages. Half a century later, I can still feel the surge of pride earning my own money for the first time
04. Every child is born, with some inherited characteristics, into a specific socio - economic and emotional environment an, and trained in certain ways by figure of authority. I inherited honestly and self discipline for my father; from my mother I inherited faith in goodness and deep kindness and so did my three brothers and sisters. I had three close friends in my childhood — Ramanadha Shastri, Arvind and Shivaprakashan. All they are boys are from orthodox Hindu Brahman families. Has child none of ever felt any difference amongst ourselves because of your religions difference and upbringing in fact, Ramanadha Shastri was the son of the Pakhi Lakshman Shastri, the high priest of the rameshwaram temple. letter, he look over the priesthood of the rameshwaram temple for his father; Arvind want into a business of arranging transport of the visiting pilgrims; and Shivaprakasan become a catering contractor of the south railways .
05. During the annual Sri Sita Rama Kalyanam ceremony, our family used to arrange boat with a special platform to carrying idols of the lord from the temple to the marriage sites, situated in the middle of the pond called Rama tirtha which was near our house. Events from the Ramayana and from the life of the prophet where the bedtime stories my mother and grandmothers would tell the children in our family.
06. One day I was in the fifth standard at the rameshwaram elementary School, a new teacher come to. I used to wear a cap which marked me has a Muslim, and I always sat in the front raw next to Ramanadha Shastri, who wore the scared thread. Indian teacher could not stomach a Hindu priest son sitting with a Muslim boy. In accordance with our social ranking has the new teacher saw it, I was asked to go and sit on the last bench. I feld very sad, and so did Ramanadha Shastri. He looked utterly downcast I Shifted to my seat in last row. The image of him weeping when I Shifted to the last row left a lasting impression on me.
07. After school, we want come and told our respective parents about the incident. Lakshman Shastri Summoned the teacher, and in our presence, told the teacher that is should not spread the poison of social inequality and communal intolerance in the mind of the innocent child. He bluntly asked the teacher to nether apologies are quit the school and behaviours, but they strong sense of conviction Lakshman Shastri conveyed ultimately refund this young teachers.
08. On the whole, the small society of rameshwaram was very rigid Hindi term of Shlegregation of different social group. However, my science teacher Shivasubramania Iyer, though an orthodox Brahman tha veri conservative wife , watch something of rabel. He did his best to break social barriers so that peoples from varying backgrounds could mingle easily. She used to spend hours with me and would se, ''kalam, I want you to develop so that you are on par with the highly educated peoples of the big cities"
09. One day, he invited me to his home for a meal. His wife was horrified at the idea of a Muslim being invited to dine inhead ritually pure kitchen. She refused to serve me in her kitchen. Shivasubramania Iyer was not perturbed , nor did he get angry with his wife, put instend, served me with his own hand and sat down beside me to eat his meal. His wife watched us from behind the kitchen door. I wondered whether seat had observed any difference in the way I ate rice, drank water our clean the floor after the meal. When I was living his house, Shivasubramania Iyer invited me to join him for dinner again the next weekend. Observing my hesitation, he told me not to get upset, saying, "once you decide to change a system, search problem have to be confronted." When I invited his house the next week, Shivasubramania Iyer's wife took me inside her kitchen and served me food with her own hands.
10. Then the second World war was over and India freedom was imminent. "Indians will build their own India, declared Gandhiji. The Whole century was filled with an unprecedented optimism. I asked my father for permission to leave rameshwaram and study at the district headquarters in Rameswaram.
11. He told me has if thinking aloud, " Abul !
I know you have to go away to grow. Does the seagull note fly across the sun, alone and with out a nest ?" He quoted Khalil Gibran to my hesitant mother, "your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of life longing for itself. They come through you but not for you. You may give them you love but not your thoughts. Fod De have their own thoughts."
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam...