We are today what we did to ourselves in the past. Many would call it
sanskaras, I would say how I made myself in the past, how I lived - how I
worked, what I did that made me today.
1. At the age of 11 - 12 , me and my mom used to visit the
Laxminarayan temple. Frequently there were lectures by kathakars - story
tellers of the epics, Puranas, Shrimad Bhagwatam : the life of Lord shri
Krishna and the Ramayana. We had a Guruji named Amardasji who used to narrate
the Ramayana interestingly, with lots of funny incidents thrown in and musical
Bhajans too. It was a great treat, fun and laughter, music and devotion. The
mixture was both engrossing and intoxicating, Such was the narration that we needed
to rush to sit next to and reserve the place nearest to the Dias. Many a times
I had paid the other brats some money to get hold of a convenient place to sit.
This katha made my faith in Hanumanji permanent and strong. I believed he was
real and indeed always was with me. Lord Shri Ram and Hanuman, entire cast were
living beings for me. This was made possible by the Kathakars.
Amardasji was my first Guru, he spurred my interest in reading the
Ramayana and then lots of other books , finally I got the reading habit due to
him and his skills. I oweit to him . For the first time I realised what was
faith. We have lost this tradition, though many such lectures are available
online – YouTube. However nothing can replace the live rendering.
2. What I am able to write today is because of my school teachers, I would like
to remember two of them: Mr Oochavbhai Parikh who was also the library boss to
issue books , not the librarian, but the authority to allow the books to
lend the books . He was quite generous. Two titles I read remember distinctly
Krishnaawatar by Kanhaiyalal M. Munshi and Sherlock Holmes series by Sir Arthur
Canon Doyle.This paved the path for my interest in crime and detection stories.
3. The writing habit and the motivation of writing came from my other teacher.
Her name was Sarlaben who taught us Gujarati. She had the longest hair,
reaching below her knees. We sniggered and joked that one could make a swing
out of it and swing playfully. I told my friends that it would be painful for
her to hear how we were talking about her. However she praised me for the essay
on : At the SeaShore, that motivated and inspired me to write. Thus I started
writing for the school newsletter. It was fascinating to create a new world
with my imagination and the command over language. She had buck teeth but knew
how to treat her students, but I would die to meet these two mentors now.
4.The best person I could mention easily was my maths teacher - Mr Tickumal
Shah, he was a math teaching genius. He plodded me to work harder in math. His
methods for motivation were unusual. Let me relate: the passing marks then for
a 50 mark unit test were 16 1/2 and they rounded it to 17 to pass us in the
test. It was in the authority of the teacher who checked the papers. I
frequently failed in the 7th standard in math .In the pre- Diwali test I got
only 16 marks. I was surprised as I had worked harder this time. But when I saw
my answer paper it was all rubbish, I went to him and begged to give me 1/2
mark to pass me ( he had the authority to give marks for neatness) . He refused:
saying if I give it to you now you will never work hard enough to reach the
full potential. Three times I requested through various friends and teachers to
do it for me, but he disappointed me. This disappointment and frustration led
me to work harder and smarter. The I became the best performer in maths in my
division. I owe you Sir.
5. The songs I heard
- especially the Hindi Cine music was the mainstay of my daily routine, nobody
could drag me away from the Radio while I heard it. To this day remember the tunes
and the lyrics of each song, it gave me great relief to me while studying for
my exams. I got a new Radio from my maternal grand mother - it was a fantastic
gift - for 42 years it entertained and lifted my spirit, even today I hear the
same songs for pleasure. Music saved me from lots of heartbreaks, it gave me
rare solace and peace of mind. Thanks to my nanima.
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