For 16-year-old Nadeem Khan Gita is source of inspiration
And mind you, they are not from Hindu families. They are Muslims.
At a ‘Gita Fest’ organised by the Akshaya Patra Foundation that concluded recently, two other Muslim students from Jaipur, Zaheen Naqvi of Class II and Zorabia Nagori of Class IV, also bagged top positions in a contest on the recitation of Gita verses.
Nadeem, who first saw the Bhagwad Gita in his school library got attracted to it and his teachers helped him learn the verses and explained their meaning. He found the language quite simple, interesting and easy. The verses have in-depth inspiring message and he loved to recite them, he said.
A student of Class X at a government school, Khan, the son of a labourer, has had a keen interest in Sanskrit language ever since it was introduced in his curriculum in Class VI.
“I find this language best among all known to me. I never found it alien despite the fact that I rarely get a chance to speak it, even in my class. The competition has acknowledged my devotion for the language,” said Khan.
“My teachers helped me in developing my passion for Sanskrit.” He first saw the Bhagwad Gita in his school library and as he opened it and started reading it, he found it very interesting. Then and there, Nadeem decided that he would learn the shlokas from there.
Nadeem used the opportunity of school assembly session in the morning when the students were asked to say something inspiring. He made full use of this platform to share the inspiring verses of the Gita.
Nadeem also shares a strong bonding with his friends, most of whom are Hindus. “Whenever I visit the home of my friends, I make sure I touch the feet of their mothers who treat me as their son. We really share a strong bonding,” he added.
He gives credit for his success to his parents who always prompted him to follow his heart and never stopped him from reading the Gita. Also, they never pressurised him to learn Urdu.
“I always used to recite these verses with my father who would sit and listen to them with patience despite the fact that he couldn’t understand it,” he said. Nadeem felt truly happy when he was felicitated at the Gita Fest.
“I also felt proud when our village Sarpanch came to our place and felicitated me. His words were really inspiring. I had tears in my eyes when he said, ‘This boy proved that school is a temple of knowledge as he has learnt a language without having any bias for caste, creed or any such parameter’.”
The Akshay Patra Foundation organised three competitions – essay on Gita, recitation of Gita verses and handwriting competitions – which saw participation by over 8,000 students from 200 schools across Rajasthan.
Tanveer Ahmed, a government employee in the health department, was upbeat about daughter Zaheen’s win. “My daughter worked very hard. Every day she would memorise verses from the Gita for hours to improve her diction and pronunciation. It’s a proud moment for us,” said Ahmed. (Additional Inputs from agencies)