The famous Shiva temple, which made Rameswaram so sacred to
pilgrims, was about a ten-minute walk from our house. Our locality was
predominantly Muslim, but there were quite a few Hindu families too,
living amicably with their Muslim neighbors. There was a very old
mosque in our locality where my father would take me for evening
prayers. I had not the faintest meaning of the Arabic prayer chanted,
but I was totally convinced that they reached God. When my father came
out of the mosque after the prayers, people of different religion would
be sitting outside, waiting for him. Many of them ordered bowls of
water to my father who would dip his fingertips in them and say a
prayer. This water was then carried home for invalids. I also remember
people visiting our home to offer thanks after being cured. My father
always smiled and asked them to thank Allah, the benevolent and
merciful.
The high priest of Rameswaram temple, Pakshi Lakshmana Sastry, was a
very close friend of my father's. One of the most vivid memories of my
early childhood is of the two men, each in his traditional attire,
discussing spiritual matters. When I was old enough to ask questions, I
asked my father about the relevance of prayer. My father told me that
there was nothing mysteries about prayer. Rather, prayer made all
possible a communion of the spirit between people. "When you pray," he
said, "you transcend your body and become part of the cosmos, which
knows no division of wealth, age, caste or creed."
My father could convey complex spiritual concepts in very simple,
down-to-earth Tamil. He once told me, "In his own time, in his own
place, in what he really is, and in the stage he has reached ' good or
bad ' every human being is a specific element within the whole of the
manifest divine Being. So why be afraid of difficulties, sufferings and
problems? When troubles come, try to understand the relevance of your
sufferings. Adversity always presents opportunities for introspection.
"Why don't you say this to people who come to you for help and
advice?" I asked my father. He put his hands on my shoulders and looked
straight into my eyes. For quite some time he said nothing, as if he
was judging my capacity to comprehend his words. Then he answered in a
low, deep voice. His answer filled me with a strange energy and
enthusiasm:
Whenever human beings find themselves alone, as a natural reaction,
they start looking for company. Whenever they are in trouble, they look
for someone to help them. Whenever they reach an impasse, they look to
someone to show them the way out. Every recurrent anguish, longing, and
desire finds its own special helper. For the people who come to me in
distress, I am but a go-between in their effort to propitiate demonic
forces with prayers and offerings. This is not a correct approach at
all and should never be followed. One must understand the difference
between a fear-ridden vision of destiny and the vision that enables us
to seek the enemy of fulfillment within ourselves.
- From the book "WINGS OF FIRE An Autobiography by APJ Abdul Kalam"
SAI
