Dr. Kalam looked at reading not as a goal but as a means to achieve it.
Date : 18/05/2024
Today we are celebrating two things: “World Students’ Day”, and “Inspire to Read Day”- both to commemorate a very special teacher. Someone who was a scientist and served as the president of our country, but he always wanted to be remembered as a teacher first- Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.
During an interview, a little girl asked Dr. Kalam, “How did you become so great?”
He laughed and then gave a generic answer. But, what he said was truly the key to success.
If you want to be a doctor, engineer, teacher, dancer, singer, painter, absolutely anything- this applies to you.
He said if we want to succeed in life, we need four things:
1. A great aim
2. Continuous acquisition of knowledge
3. Hard work
4. And perseverance
And one of the most direct ways of acquiring knowledge is through reading. He looked at reading, not as a goal, but as a means to achieve that goal.
If you search on YouTube, “the benefits of reading” you will get a ton of videos.
The basic benefits are- it improves our vocabulary and communication. It stimulates the mind and improves mental health. It's a good exercise for the brain, it improves concentration and memory, keeps the mind sharp, reduces stress, and also helps one to come out of depression.
And how can we not address the clickbait! Nowadays, everyone talks about how reading is the key to earning money. A billionaire reads at least two books a month. Some even read one or more books per week.
Though these could be some good reasons to read, we must understand these are secondary benefits. What I mean by this is, say for instance- one does not come out of depression by reading a book. Reading helps us understand the world and ourselves better. It gives us the motivation to work on ourselves; that motivation helps us recover. This also applies to earning money.
What, then, are the direct and also some deeper benefits of reading?
How many of you got into a fight because you misread a situation or something someone said or texted?
I know I did…
Reading gives us skills of interpreting and inferring things correctly.
Interpreting things for what they are, and interfering with things that are implicit are qualities that are rare these days.
Reading broadens our minds. So, we are curious to learn and know about things, but without being judgmental. Okay, at least less judgmental. Humans judge. It does not matter how little information we have, we judge. Sometimes good things come out of it. But most of the time, not-so-positive things happen.
Reading breaks social barriers. A writer or a character could be from any class, caste, country or of any sexual orientation. As long as the book is good, it does not matter. In fact, we are so limited in our understanding that we assume the worst about the things or people or cultures with which we are unfamiliar. Reading helps us see the similarities in these differences, and the walls come down. This is how we get “One World. One people.” By breaking all these unnecessary barriers.
You could argue that we get all these even by watching movies. Movies also have stories, plots, characters, etc. I'm not denying that- Even I love watching movies.
There was a time, I believed that Movies can show us things that books cannot, especially with the booming technology. But now I understand things differently. Movies and shows need money. And there are budget cuts. So, if in the Harry Potter books, the Wesley family has seven children, on the screen we can meet only four of them properly. The budget cuts are not just for people; it is also about screen time. That's the reason in the Harry Potter movies, we just hear people telling us how great Dumbledore is. But in the books, we see him perform really great deeds. And we, as an audience, get to decide for ourselves if he truly is the greatest wizard or not. Books don't skip scenes or cut character arcs or make characters look a certain way when the story demands them to look like something else. Books tell us the whole story and in the truest way possible.
But, as a practical person, who is not interested in fiction, you may ask- “What good is that to me? Why do I care if Dumbledore is the greatest wizard of all time?”
Let me get a little technical for you.
Nowadays, we are stressing on facts, numbers, and marks. And in the process, we are working our left side of the brain. Good. But we forget the importance of the right side of the brain.
When we read a book, any kind- but especially a book that triggers our imagination, our brain lights up like a Christmas tree. This is because it involves both, the left and the right side of the brain. You can look it up - neurobiologists and psychologists have conducted numerous research to prove how important reading is for us. One particular research proved how scientists who read science fiction and superhero comics as children were more innovative compared to those who read only the syllabus.
Reading makes us creative and innovative. Now, these are skills people from all backgrounds need- sciences, commerce, business, arts, or fine arts. Everyone needs to be creative to push the boundaries. Dr. Kalam said, “Inventions and discoveries have illuminated from creative minds that have been constantly working, imagine the outcome in our mind.”
Reading helps us understand that everybody understands things differently. And that a single problem could have multiple solutions. And that all the solutions and opinions are worth knowing.
This does not mean we become passive and agree to everything everybody has to say. In fact, it's the opposite. We become active listeners. We understand conversations better and are capable enough to know where we stand.
This leads me to my next point, worldviews. Views about body image, culture, religion, social theories like feminism- there is a lot to learn. But we are consuming this knowledge from short YouTube videos or even shorter Instagram reels or something similar. Something as big as gender studies which took decades for building, and in itself has undergone a lot of development. Moreover, it is only in the last few years that the theory itself has become more accepting of different lifestyles. Such a theory is explained in 5 to 10 minutes. What happens then is that we get partial knowledge, which is way more dangerous than a simple lie.
There is nothing wrong with watching a “How-to video”? Or look for the basic ideas on YouTube-
Nothing wrong at all. It is actually a good place to start.
But if you want to truly understand something, if you want to be bold enough to talk to people about your opinion, please read. Understand the history, geography, current status of that thing. It could be about anything: a social movement or a scientific invention. But please read about it. You will learn so much, and new information is always fun.
If you don't find it fun yet, maybe you have not found the right book yet. Look for it. Make the experience of reading joyful. It is truly rewarding.
I am sure you have heard this incident where George Bernard Shaw tells an eager person who wants to change the world- “change yourself and there will be one less fool.” Reading is an antidote to foolishness, hatred, and misery in general.
You could start small or in your comfort zone. Start with books you know you will enjoy-
If you like watching fantasy fiction, try reading them.
If you like poems, start there.
If you like acting, you could start with plays.
Short stories, essays; science fiction, magical realism, realistic fiction, non-fiction; history, philosophy, spirituality, the list is endless. Start with what you know you are comfortable with, and then expand.
While talking about success, Dr. Kalam also said, we must know how to handle success, but we must also know how to handle failure. Reading inspirational stories, need not be of real people, helps us understand that what we think of as failures today, are just a few hurdles we need to cross to succeed. Reading inspirational books helps us work hard and gives us the motivation to persevere right till the end.
Only we set our limitations. We may not be responsible for the boundaries society has created for us. But we are responsible for limiting ourselves within these boundaries.
Now, I found my love for books in college. Before that, I would try to read all the books in the syllabus, but nothing more. But, in my first year of graduation, I think at the beginning of the second semester, our HoD asked us, how many extra books did you read this year? And when she saw that hardly any of us were reading beyond the syllabus, she explained why it was important to explore new books. She said, the syllabus is drafted by experts, who think certain books are necessary for us. But it is only when we go and explore and read more, do we discover what we genuinely like to read. Personally, I decided I would keep one of my library cards for extra reading, and that is when I realized there is so much out there, so much to learn. Apart from novels, I read books from psychology, sociology, history, theology, and so on. So, I read both fiction and non-fiction; theory books and articles.
If you are teachers and students, you have the benefit of having a college library. If not, then there are public libraries. We have books from different fields there. If you can’t afford to buy books yet or have a noisy home, take advantage of the library. Spend your time there. In a few weeks, when the lockdown is lifted, and we can go back to college, or visit public libraries, let us explore a library. Let’s try to read a few books outside our syllabus or even outside our study area. It is the most productive way to invest your time. Invest, not spend. Reading is an investment. You never know what you will get in return.
I would like to conclude by sharing three tips Dr. Kalam left for us readers.
1. Everyone should have a mini library of their own.
2. If you are a teacher, make sure your students are exposed to Classic Literature.
3. If you are a parent, make sure your child develops a reading habit.
Thank you.
Ms. Smita Dhantal is a Researcher (English Literature and Theory), and a Creative and Academic Writer. She is a literary enthusiast and enjoys reading, writing, and exploring ideas from different fields of knowledge. She has published articles in the field of Children’s Literature, Women and Gender Studies, and Fantasy Literature.
Image Credits: Wikimedia Commons
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