A young aspiring Muslim student from Azamgarh,
A.M. Khan by name, stood nervously before the
Principal of Hindu College. “Sir, I should very
much like to be admitted to the B.Sc. course in your
college.” The reaction was sharp. “The admissions
are closed. How do you expect to be admitted in the
month of October when you are already several
months late with your applications.” Unforeseen
circumstances had prevented young Khan from
applying sooner, but he simply said, “It would be
extremely kind of you if you would help me.” Then
he added hesitatingly, “One whole year will be
wasted for me if I am not granted admission.” The
Principal’s reply was stern. “There is just no
question of further admissions.”
The principal talked in such an offhand manner that
it should have been obvious that there was no point
in persisting. Even so the student was determined
to try his luck, although all he really expected was
to be asked to leave the room immediately. On
seeing the insistence of the student, the principal
finally asked him rather dryly what his marks had
been in the previous examinations, because he felt
certain that he must have failed to get admission
elsewhere due to his low marks. If this were the
case, the principal would have had good grounds
for rejecting his application. But the student’s reply
was just the opposite of what he expected. He said,
“Eighty five percent, sir.”
These words worked like a miracle. The principal’s
mood changed all of a sudden, and he asked the
student to sit down and show him his certificates.
When he had seen them and was satisfied that the
student’s claim was true, he told him to write out an
ante-dated application.
Not only was the student then given admission in
spite of such a long delay in applying, but he was
also granted a scholarship by this very same
principal who had been so reluctant even to give
him a hearing.
Had the same student approached the principal
with a third class degree, and had been refused
admission as a result, he would surely have gone
away full of hatred for the principal concerned, and
would have remarked to his friends that it was
prejudice which had come in his way. He would not
have admitted that he had been refused admission
because of his poor results. He would have publicly
understood by aspirants to high positions that the
response of the society we live in is usually an echo
of our own condition. We tend to attribute the evils
afflicting us to society so that we may shake
ourselves free of the blame.
When a man enters life fully prepared to meet its
challenges, the world cannot but give him due
recognition. Never in any environment does he fail
to receive the position of honour which is his due.
This results in his being able to maintain high moral
standards. His conduct is then marked by bravery,
confidence, broad-mindedness, gentlemanliness,
acknowledgement of others’ worth and a realistic
approach to life. He has the will and the capacity to
enter into proper human relationships. Society
having recognized his talents and he in turn having
given due acknowledgement to society, he can rise
above the negative attitudes of hatred and
prejudice.
The reverse is true when, because he cannot come
up to the required standards, he fails to prove his
worth; when he enters life with inadequate training
he surely fails to find a place of his choice in the
world. As a depressed personality, he almost
certainly develops a low moral character. He falls a
prey to negative psychology—anger, complaint,
even criminality. Failure in life gives birth to this
negative psychology, because it is seldom that the
person concerned blames himself for his failure. He
almost always lays the blame on others for his own
shortcomings. Inadequate preparation for life
brings two evils simultaneously—failure on one’s
own part and uncalled-for complaint against others.
A stone is hard to all and sundry. But it presents no
problems to anyone who has a tool which can break
it. The same is true of the more complex obstacles
that face us in life, for it is only if you enter the field
of life equipped with the proper skills, that you feel
entitled to claim what is your due. Even after the
“last date” you can be given admission to a college
without anyone else intervening to help you. But
without the necessary skills and ability, you will fail
to find the place you truly deserve.
Anyone who wants success to come his way in this
world of God will first have to make himself
deserving of it. He must know himself and his
circumstances. He must organize and channelise his
energies properly. He must enter the field fully
armed in every respect, then others cannot fail to
recognize his true value. He must be like the tree
which forces its way up through the undergrowth
to take its place in the sun.
Ref – The Moral Vision
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
