Without teachers, life would have no class

William Shakespeare said: “Words pay no debts”, but the least one should do is to acknowledge them in sincere words. I, therefore, solemnly state that I have earned my livelihood following in the footsteps of my teachers. Just as the son who steps into the shoes of his father owes far more to the latter than his siblings, I also feel much more indebted to my mentors than any of my classmates, for I chose to wear their cap.

And I have learnt from them not only the theories of economics or explanation of certain poems or prose passages, I have imbibed from them as to how to tackle young minds, how to hold their interest and curiosity, how to humour and admonish, how much to open and restrain, and everything that is required and desired to perform the tremendous task of leading students to a meaningful life.

As Wordsworth states in Daffodils that while watching “golden daffodils... dancing in the breeze he gazed and gazed, but little thought/what wealth the show... had brought” hardly did I realise then how blessed I was in being infused with the art and skills of establishing a rapport with would-be young seekers of knowledge.

I cherish the fond memories of my teacher in college who taught us English poetry. He would pepper every fourth or fifth line with an Urdu couplet, explain the meaning and then relate it to the poem being read. This invariably doubled our understanding and joy. I earned the dividends of his formula and tried always to relate English poetry to that of Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.

Similarly, I owe to economics professor my style of delivering lectures without any external aid. He would dictate to us definition after definition, point after point without consulting any written material. “If we expect our students to learn by heart each and everything given in the book, why can’t we, the teachers, remember a few definitions and principles?” he would often say. His statement got etched in my mind forever and always persuaded me to prepare my lecture thoroughly so no points were skipped.

I can’t resist here the mention of other noble soul who taught me that money is not the be-all and end-all of life. It so happened that in MA previous, I failed to follow much in the class. As examination fear began to build and I feverishly prayed for help. My wishes were granted when the kind-hearted, scholarly professor agreed to coach me, something virtually unheard of those days. With his guidance, I secured good second division, an achievement then. When I went to thank him and offer him fee for the two- month coaching, he almost jumped on his seat and snubbed me: “Are you making show of money? I can’t accept it”.

After much pleading and persuasion, he took a nominal amount. This generous gesture instilled in me thoughtful consideration for others and kept me contented enough never to seek money out of tuition work in my career.

Today, I look back with a deep sense of gratitude for my revered makers and masters who did not believe in sermonising, but in imbibing human virtues and values through their actions. “The things we know best,” as they say, “are the things we have not been taught, but learnt by perception”.

I HAVE IMBIBED FROM MY TEACHERS HOW TO TACKLE YOUNG MINDS, HOW TO HOLD THEIR INTEREST AND CURIOSITY, HOW TO HUMOUR AND ADMONISH AND EVERYTHING THAT IS REQUIRED TO PERFORM THE TREMENDOUS TASK OF LEADING STUDENTS TO A MEANINGFUL LIFE