Some teachers you remember because they were kind. Some you remember because they were wise and some you remember because they were giants.
Faiz Sahib was that third kind.
He was not just a teacher.
He was a presence.
A force of nature.
A man who could silence a classroom with a single step and make grown boys tremble with a single glance.
Faiz Sahib. Teacher of Mathematics in Jamia Higher Secondary School during 1980's.
It is difficult to forget him, because of his personality.
More than 6 feet high, well built, white moustache and commanding voice made him distinct person of Jamia Higher Secondary School. He taught us mathematics in class IX and X in 1983-85.
But to be honest, he did not just teach us mathematics.
He taught us fear.
He taught us respect and sometimes, when we were lucky, he taught us something in between.
I don't have much of him in my memories as he was very senior teacher and I never had much interaction with him except for few incidences that I witnessed.
But those few incidences were enough to last a lifetime.
IX C was situated next to IX A below Hostel No. 2 and adjacent to Sadar Darwaza of Higher Secondary.
Those days Faiz Sahib was living back side of Hostel 2/3 and he also in-charge of dining hall, that means he was always around.
Always watching.
Always walking.
His path crossed ours more often than we would have liked.
The doors of classroom were of old style and very high.
One day, someone purposely closed them from inside.
Girls tried to open all three doors, but to no result.
They start making noise and we all were happy inside.
The noise was our music.
The frustration of the girls was our entertainment.
We sat there, grinning, watching them struggle with the heavy wooden doors that refused to budge.
After few minutes somebody knocked the third door situated near to Sadar Darwaza. Nobody opened, thinking girls are there.
Knocking becomes louder and then Fakhre Mateen, our class fellow tried to become smart and went there to open.
Fakhre Mateen was from Bihar and resides in hostel.
He was also well built boy, almost taller than everyone in IX C.
He was not the smartest boy in class, but he was the tallest and in his mind, that was enough.
He stood up, straightened his shirt and walked towards the door with a swagger that said,
"Watch this. I will handle it."
He opened the door in anticipation to get appreciation from girls.
A smile was already forming on his face. A clever comment was already forming on his lips.
He was ready to be the hero and he found Faiz Sahib standing just above his head!
Faiz Sahib was very angry since he was knocking it since long time.
His face was red.
His moustache was twitching.
His eyes were burning and without asking a single question or a word. A hand like hammer went up, attains 8.5 feet height from ground, dropped down and hit Fakhre Mateen!
The sound echoed through the corridor. Through the classroom. Through our bones. Since Faiz Sahib took him by surprise and everything happened all of a sudden, it shocked and shacked Fakhre Mateen.
His legs wobbled.
His eyes went wide.
His mouth opened but no sound came out.
He was so scared that we saw him pissed in his pants!
The boy who had walked to the door like a hero was now standing there like a statue, frozen in terror, his pants slowly darkening.
Faiz Sahib asked him why he closed the door.
Before he would have unfolded the name of culprit, Faiz Sahib told him to go immediately and change his pants.
That was the mercy of Faiz Sahib. He did not ask for explanations.
He did not ask for names.
He just saw a boy who had been punished enough and sent him away to preserve whatever dignity he had left.
This was an episode that will remain in my memory forever. Those were the days nobody dared to look at Faiz Sahib, forget about making any noise in his class.
I never saw him using book while explaining theorems in the class.
Everything to him was by heart.
He comes, start delivering lecture, same as illustrated in book, word by word and number by number.
We used to sit back, take notes and try to listen him.
There was no need to open the textbook!
Faiz Sahib was the textbook!
Every formula, every theorem,every proof! It was all there, stored in his memory, waiting to be delivered.
He would stand at the blackboard, chalk in hand and the numbers would flow.
His voice was deep and commanding and when he explained something, you listened.
Not because you were afraid.
Well, partly because you were afraid!
But also, because he made sense. Mathematics was not a mystery to him. It was a language and he spoke it fluently.
Once he punished Waheed from Delhi-6, resident of Hostel-3 by holding his ears and lifting him up from the ground.
Faiz Sahib was so big, Waheed's feet dangled in the air.
His face twisted in pain.
His hands reached for Faiz Sahib's wrist, but there was no escape.
The whole class watched in silence. Nobody moved and breathed and then, just as suddenly, Waheed was back on the ground, his ears red, his eyes watery, his lesson learned.
Waheed was a jolly person, dark in complexion and won many prizes in mono acting in many events. He could make anyone laugh.
He could imitate any teacher.
He could bring the house down with his performances.
But in front of Faiz Sahib, he was just another boy. Just another student.
Just another victim of the giant's hand.
This was my little experience of Faiz Sahib during my stay in Higher Secondary School.
He was not a man who sought friendship with his students.
He was not a man who tried to be liked.
He was a man who commanded respect, and whether we liked it or not, whether we admitted it or not, we gave him that respect.
Because he earned it.
Every single day.
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