My Childhood - Abdul Kalam

 

Introduction:

This lesson is taken from Abdul Kalam’s biography, ‘Wings of Fire’. In this lesson, APJ writes about his childhood, his family background, his friends and customs of society.

A.P.J Abdul Kalam was born into a middle-class Tamil family and his place of birth was Rameswaram. It is an island town in the state of Tamil Nadu.

Meanings for some words and phrases:

erstwhile: former

innate: inborn; (a quality or feeling) in one’s nature

generosity of spirit: his soul sought to help others who were needy

undistinguished: ordinary or common

Pucca House means a house made of bricks, cement, and limestone.

austere: simple, strict, and severe

secure: safe

Materially means in terms of things like clothes food, medicine

emotionally means in terms of love and affection

princely sum: generous amount (here, ironic)

anna: an old Indian coin, worth about six paise

Dinamani: a Tamil daily newspaper.

isolated: lonely, cut-off

Allied Forces: the armies of the U.K., U.S.A., and Russia during the Second World War. They fought with Axis Forces led by Germany.

casualty: loss

suspension: to bring to an end, to stop, to discontinue

halt: stop

filled the slot: fit into a place easily

pride: sudden increase in the feeling of satisfaction derived from one’s own achievements.

Half a century later means after a period of 50 years

figures of authority: A person who had authority over another person; a person who has the power to give orders or make decisions.

Inherited means a characteristic, or a quality which you have got from your parents or ancestors.

socio-economic means in terms of social status and wealth

orthodox: following the traditional rules or beliefs of a religion, philosophy, or practice

could not stomach: could not tolerate

downcast: sad or depressed, feeling low

summoned: called

bluntly: speaking in a direct and honest way, even if this offends or upsets people.

apologise: seek pardon, to say sorry

quit: to leave

conviction: a strong opinion or belief

convey: communicate

rigid: strict

segregation: separation

conservative: traditional, unwilling to change

rebel: in opposition

Mingle: interact with each other.

on par: at the same level

ritually pure: kept protected from all outside influences for the observances of religion

perturbed: upset

hesitation: doubt, delay

confronted: faced, tackled

imminent: about to happen

Unprecedented: never done or know before.

Optimism: hope, belief that good is going to happen

Longing: desire

Summary:

This lesson is taken from Abdul Kalam’s biography, ‘Wings of Fire’. Kalam was a great scientist and also the 14th President of India. He was born in a middle-class Muslim family in 1931 in the island town of Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu. In his childhood, he was greatly influenced by his parents, his teachers, and his friends. His father, Jainulabdeen was not highly educated but he was a generous and kind person. He was not rich but provided a secure childhood to Abdul and his siblings. Abdul inherited honesty and self-discipline from his father and faith in goodness and deep kindness from his mother.

When he was 8 years old, the Second World War broke out. The demand for tamarind seeds had increased for unknown reasons. Kalam used to collect those seeds and earn an anna. Kalam earned his first wages by working as a helping hand to his cousin, Samsuddin, who distributed newspapers in Rameswaram. Kalam used to fetch the newspaper bundles thrown from a moving train.

In his childhood, he had three close friends. They were Ramanadha Sastry, Aravindan, and Sivaprakasan. Later Ramanadha Sastry became the head priest of the temple, Aravindan became a transport businessman and Sivaprakasan became a catering contractor for the Southern Railways.

Once when he was in the fifth standard, a new teacher asked him not to sit in the front row along with the Brahmin boy, Ramanadha Sastry. Kalam found Ramanadha Sastry weeping as he went to the last row. This made a lasting impression on Abdul. Lakshmana Sastry, the father of Ramanadha Sastry told the teacher not to pollute the young minds with social inequality and communal intolerance.

Kalam was also greatly influenced by his science teacher, Sivasubramania Iyer. He learned the lesson of breaking social barriers from him. Iyer invited him to his home for a meal. His wife refused to serve food to a Muslim boy in her pure kitchen. Iyer served him with his own hands and sat down beside him to eat his meal. He could convince his orthodox wife and changed her conservative attitude.

For higher education, Abdul Kalam sought permission from his father to leave Rameswaram and study at the district headquarters in Ramanathapuram. His father said that Abdul had to go a long way in life just like a seagull. He calmed down APJ’s reluctant mother by quoting Kahlil Gibran. He told her that children could not be dominated because they had their own thoughts. Children did not belong to parents. Children are a result of life’s desire for itself.

Question and Answers:

Answer these questions in one or two sentences each.

1. Where was Abdul Kalam’s house?

A. Abdul Kalam’s house was located on the Mosque Street in the town of Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu state.

2. What do you think Dinamani is the name of? Give a reason for your answer.

2. Dinamani is the name of a newspaper. It is a local Tamil daily. The reason for this is that Kalam wrote that he traced the stories of the war in the headlines of the Dinamani. We have headlines only in dailies.

3. Who were Abdul Kalam’s school friends? What did they later become?

A. During his childhood, Abdul Kalam had three friends. Their names are Ramanadha Sastry, Aravindan and Sivaprakasan. When they grew up, Ramanadha Sastry became the priest of the Rameswaram temple, Aravindan started a business of transporting pilgrims to and from the Rameswaram temple and Sivaprakasan became a catering contractor for the railways.

4. How did Abdul Kalam earn his first wages?

A. Abdul Kalam earned his first wages by fetching the bundle of newspapers thrown out of the moving train at the Rameswaram station. He helped his cousin in distributing newspapers in Rameswaram.

5. Had he earned any money before that? In what way?

A. When the second World War started, there was a great demand for tamarind seeds. Kalam would collect them and sell them to a grocery store located on Mosque Street. He would earn an anna for a day’s collection of the seeds.

Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words):

1. How does the author describe: (i) his father, (ii) his mother, (iii) himself?

A. (i) Kalam’s father’s name was Jainulabdeen. He was not educated and was not a wealthy man. Kalam says that despite this, his father possessed innate wisdom, honesty and he was a generous man. He did not believe in wasting money on luxuries but provided them with all the necessities of life like food, clothing, and medicine.

(ii) Kalam’s mother’s name was Ashiamma. She was an ideal helpmate to her husband. She was a kind – hearted woman. Kalam recollects that his mother would feed meals to numerous people. He inherited faith in goodness and deep kindness from her.

(iii) Kalam was short and had ordinary looks while his parents were tall and looked handsome. He was brought up in a secure atmosphere. He grew up to become honest and self-disciplined man. He believed in goodness and deep kindness.

2. What characteristics does he say he inherited from his parents?

A. Kalam’s inherited honesty and self-discipline from his father. His mother imbibed in him faith in goodness and deep kindness.

Discuss these questions in class with your teacher and then write down your answers in two or three paragraphs each.

1. “On the whole, the small society of Rameswaram was very rigid in terms of the segregation of different social groups,” says the author.

(i) Which social groups does he mention? Were these groups easily identifiable (for example, by the way they dressed)?

A. The social groups mentioned by Kalam were the Hindus and the Muslims. Yes, these groups were easily identifiable by the way they dressed. As Kalam was a Muslim, he wore a cap. Hiss Hindu friends who wore the sacred thread. Thus, they were easily identifiable.

(ii) Were they aware only of their differences or did they also naturally share friendships and experiences? (Think of the bedtime stories in Kalam’s house; of who his friends were; and of what used to take place in the pond near his house.)

A. No, they were not aware of any differences. Kalam and the other children listened to bedtime stories from their mother and grandmother. These were from both the Ramayana and from the life of the Prophet. The family participated in the Hindu festival of Shree Seetha Rama Kalyanam by arranging boats for transporting the idols from the temple to the pond located near their house.

(iii) The author speaks both of the people who were very aware of the differences among them and those who tried to bridge these differences. Can you identify such people in the text?

A. The people who were aware of these differences were the young new teacher who came to teach Kalam’s class in the fifth standard. He ordered Kalam to sit on the last bench as he belonged to a lower caste. His science teacher Sivasubramania Iyer’s wife was an orthodox Hindi Brahmin. She refused to serve him food as she felt that his presence would render the kitchen impure.

The people who bridged these differences were Ramanadha Sastry’s father Lakshmana Sastry and Sivasubramania Iyer. Lakshmana Sastry was the priest of the Rameswaram temple. He scolded the young teacher and asked him to apologize for sowing the seeds of social inequality and communal intolerance into the innocent minds of the children. Upon his wife’s refusal to serve food to Kalam, Sivasubramania Iyer served food to Kalam with his own hands and sat beside him to eat which reformed his wife.

2. (i) Why did Abdul Kalam want to leave Rameswaram?

A. Abdul Kalam wanted to leave Rameswaram and go to Ramanathapuram for higher studies.

(ii) What did his father say to this?

A. His father said that he knew Kalam had to leave home as he had to fulfill his dreams. He gave the example of the Seagull which flies endlessly and does not have a nest too. He calmed down APJ’s reluctant mother by quoting Kahlil Gibran. He told her that children could not be dominated because they had their own thoughts. Children did not belong to parents. Children are a result of life’s desire for itself.

(iii) What do you think his words mean? Why do you think he spoke those words?

A. Abdul Kalam’s father’s words had a deep meaning. He inspired Kalam to follow his dreams, to fly high like the seagull. He wanted him to pursue higher studies and so, allowed him to go to Ramanathapuram. He explained to Kalam’s mother to allow him to go and pursue higher education. He spoke these words to encourage Abdul Kalam and to control the emotional attachment of his mother.