JKBOSE 10th Class English Solutions chapter – 4 Long Walk to Freedom

South Africa remained under the British rule for more than three centuries. Since 1948, a very cruel policy of apartheid was followed by the white rulers. According to this policy, white and non-white people were kept separate from each other. They were educated under separate systems and were kept in or out of certain areas. The blacks of Africa bitterly opposed such racial discrimination. At last after a long struggle, democratic elections were held in which Nelson Mandela was elected the first black President of South Africa. On May 10, 1994, Mandela was sworn in as the President and there were wild jubilations among the blacks of the country.

In this lesson, Mandela recalls briefly how this day was celebrated and what his feelings were at the time of those celebrations. The whole history of the South African struggle and also the history of his own life came alive before his imagination. He pays a tribute to thousands of South African patriots who suffered endlessly and sacrificed their lives for the cause of freedom. He calls himself merely the sum of all those patriots who have gone before him. In spite of all those sacrifices, Mandela bears no ill-will against the whites. He says that the oppressor is as much prisoner as the oppressed. The oppressor remains chained to hatred. On the other hand, the oppressed one gains heights in character in proportion to the depths of torture he is subjected to. Mandela makes another important observation. He says that courage is not the absence of fear but the triumph over fear. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. Mandela’s sufferings had indeed made him a man of courage and character.

Long Walk to Freedom Summary in Hindi

दक्षिण अफ्रीका तीन शताब्दियों से भी अधिक समय तक अंग्रेज़ी शासन के अधीन रहा। 1948 से गोरे शासकों द्वारा रंगभेद की क्रूर नीति अपनाई जाने लगी । इस नीति के अनुसार, गोरे और अश्वेत लोगों को एक-दूसरे से अलग रखा जाता था। उन्हें अलग व्यवस्थाओं के अधीन शिक्षा प्राप्त करनी होती थी और उन्हें किन्हीं विशेष क्षेत्रों में ही रखा जाता था या उससे बाहर ही रखा जाता था। अफ्रीका के अश्वेत लोग ऐसे जाति – भेद से सख़्त घृणा करते थे। एक लम्बे संघर्ष के बाद अन्त में लोकतान्त्रिक चुनाव हुए जिनमें नैल्सन मंडेला को दक्षिण अफ्रीका का प्रथम अश्वेत राष्ट्रपति चुन लिया गया। 10 मई, 1994 को मंडेला को राष्ट्रपति के रूप में शपथ दिलाई गई। इस अवसर पर देश के अश्वेत लोगों के बीच जोश से खुशियां मनाई गईं।

इस पाठ में मंडेला संक्षेप में बताता है कि किस प्रकार उस दिन खुशियां मनाई गई थीं और उन खुशियों के समय उसकी क्या भावनाएं थीं। दक्षिण अफ्रीका के संघर्ष का पूरा इतिहास और उसके स्वयं के जीवन का इतिहास भी उसकी कल्पना में सजीव हो उठा। वह उन हज़ारों दक्षिण अफ्रीकी देशभक्तों को श्रद्धांजलि भेंट करता है जिन्होंने अपार दुःख सहे और स्वतन्त्रता के लक्ष्य के लिए अपने प्राणों की आहुति दे दी । वह स्वयं को उन सभी देशभक्तों का मात्र एक योगफल मानता है जो उसके पहले रह चुके थे । उन सारे बलिदानों के बावजूद, मंडेला के मन में गोरों के प्रति कोई दुर्भावना नहीं है। वह कहता है कि अत्याचारी व्यक्ति भी उतना ही एक प्रकार का कैदी होता है जितना कि वह व्यक्ति जिस पर अत्याचार किया गया है। अत्याचारी व्यक्ति घृणा की जंजीरों में जकड़ा रहता है। इसके विपरीत, अत्याचार सहन करने वाला उस पर ढाए गए अत्याचारों की अधिकता के अनुपात में अपने चरित्र में ऊंचा उठ जाता है। मंडेला एक अन्य महत्त्वपूर्ण टिप्पणी भी करता है। वह कहता है कि साहस का अर्थ हो का अभाव नहीं होता, बल्कि उसका अर्थ डर पर विजय पा लेना होता है। एक वीर पुरुष वह नहीं होता जो को महसूस नहीं करता, बल्कि वह होता है जो उस डर पर विजय पा लेता है। मंडेला के कष्टों और पीड़ाओ ने उसे सचमुच दृढ़ साहस का और ऊंचे चरित्र का व्यक्ति बना दिया।

1. After a long British rule of more than 300 years, South Africa became a democratic nation in 1994. Nelson Mandela became the first black President of the country. He was sworn in on 10 May, 1994.

300 वर्षों से भी अधिक के लम्बे अंग्रेज़ी शासन के बाद दक्षिण अफ्रीका 1994 में एक लोकतान्त्रिक राष्ट्र बन गया। नैल्सन मंडेला देश का प्रथम अश्वेत राष्ट्रपति बना । उसे 10 मई, 1994 को शपथ दिलाई गई।

2. The inauguration ceremony was held in Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa. A large number of dignitaries from all over the world came to South Africa on this occasion. It was the largest-ever gathering of international leaders on the South African soil.

उद्घाटन समारोह दक्षिण अफ्रीका की प्रशासनिक राजधानी, प्रीटोरिया में सम्पन्न हुआ। इस अवसर पर पूरे संसार से विशिष्टगण बहुत बड़ी संख्या में दक्षिण अफ्रीका आए । दक्षिण अफ्रीका की भूमि पर अन्तर्राष्ट्रीय नेताओं का यह उस समय तक का सबसे बड़ा जमावड़ा था।

3. In his inaugural address, Mandela thanked all the guests and called South Africa’s victory as a common victory for justice, for peace and for human dignity. On behalf of his nation, he pledges that they will liberate all their people from poverty, hunger, suffering and any kind of discrimination.

अपने उद्घाटन भाषण में, मंडेला ने सभी अतिथियों का आभार प्रकट किया और दक्षिण अफ्रीका की विजय को न्याय, शान्ति और मानव – गरिमा की एक साझी जीत का नाम दिया। अपने राष्ट्र की तरफ से वह प्रतिज्ञा करता है कि वे अपनी सारी जनता को ग़रीबी, भूख, कष्टों व किसी भी प्रकार के भेदभाव से मुक्ति दिलाएँगे ।

4. The whole view of South African history flashes across Mandela’s mind and he feels overwhelmed. He is reminded of the inhuman treatment that his people had been subjected to. He is reminded of all those South African patriots who sacrificed their lives for the cause of freedom. Mandela feels pained to think that all those people are not able to see what change their sacrifices have brought about.

दक्षिण अफ्रीका के इतिहास का सारा घटनाक्रम मंडेला के मन में कौंध जाता है और वह बहुत भावुक महसूस करता है। उसे वह अमानवीय व्यवहार याद आ जाता है जो उसके लोगों के साथ किया गया था। उसे दक्षिण अफ्रीका के वे सारे देशभक्त भी याद आते हैं जिन्होंने स्वतन्त्रता के लिए अपने प्राणों की आहुति दे दी थी। मंडेला को यह सोच कर बहुत पीड़ा महसूस होती है कि वे सभी लोग अब यह देखने में समर्थ नहीं हैं कि उनके बलिदान कौन-सा परिवर्तन ले आए हैं ।

5. Mandela hints at the deep and lasting wound that the policy of apartheid had given to his country and his people. He pays a tribute to all those heroes who underwent the brutalities of this system. He calls them the truest gems and diamonds of his country.

मंडेला उस गहरे तथा स्थायी घाव की तरफ़ संकेत करता है जो रंगभेद की नीति ने उसके देश को और उसके देशवासियों को दिया था । वह उन सभी वीरों को श्रद्धांजलि अर्पित करता है जिन्होंने इस नीति की पाशविकता को सहन किया। वह उन्हें अपने देश के सबसे सच्चे रत्न और हीरे कहता है ।

6. Mandela says that it is from these people that he has learnt the meaning of courage. He has learnt that courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over fear. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.

मंडेला कहता है कि यह वही लोग थे जिनसे उसने साहस का अर्थ सीखा। उसने सीख लिया है कि साहस भय का अभाव नहीं होता, बल्कि उस पर विजय पा लेना होता है । वह व्यक्ति वीर नहीं होता जिसे भय का अनुभव नहीं होता, बल्कि वह होता है जिसने भय पर विजय पा ली हो।

7. However, Mandela bears no ill-will against the whites. He says that no one is born hating another person. People only learn to hate. And if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love also, which is a more natural feeling.

फिर भी, मंडेला के मन में गोरों के प्रति कोई दुर्भावना नहीं है। वह कहता है कि कोई भी व्यक्ति किसी अन्य व्यक्ति के प्रति घृणा लेकर जन्म नहीं लेता। लोग घृणा करना केवल सीख जाते हैं। तथा यदि वे घृणा करना सीख सकते हैं तो उन्हें प्रेम करना भी सिखाया जा सकता है जो कि एक अधिक स्वाभाविक भावना है।

8. Mandela recalls what freedom has meant to him at the different stages of his life. As a child, freedom meant to him the freedom to run in the fields. As a student, it meant the freedom to read what he liked and to go where he liked. As a young man, it meant the freedom to develop his potential, the freedom to earn his living and the freedom to marry and have a family. But then he realised that all these were transitory freedoms. Now freedom to him meant the freedom of everyone who looked like him, in other words, the freedom of all African people.

मंडेला याद करता है कि उसके जीवन के विभिन्न चरणों में उसके लिए स्वतंत्रता का क्या अर्थ रहा है। बचपन में, उसके लिए स्वतंत्रता का अर्थ था, खेतों में दौड़ने- भागने की स्वतंत्रता । एक विद्यार्थी के रूप में, उसका अर्थ था उसे वह सब पढ़ने की स्वतंत्रता, जो भी उसे पसंद हो और वहां जाने की स्वतन्त्रता, जहां भी उसे अच्छा लगे। एक युवक के रूप में, उसका अर्थ था अपनी प्रतिभा का विकास करना, अपनी जीविका कमाने की स्वतंत्रता और विवाह करने तथा एक परिवार बनाने की स्वतंत्रता । किन्तु बाद में उसे समझ में आ गया कि ये सभी स्वतंत्रताएं अल्पकालिक थीं। अब उसके लिए स्वतंत्रता का अर्थ था, उन सभी की स्वतंत्रता जो उस जैसे दिखते थे; अन्य शब्दों में, सभी अफ्रीकी लोगों की स्वतंत्रता ।

9. Mandela says that his hunger for freedom filled him with courage. It changed him from frightened young man into a bold one. Now he realised that he couldn’t call himself free unless each one of his people was free. “The chains on anyone of my people were the chains on me,’ he says.

मंडेला कहता है कि स्वतंत्रता के प्रति उसकी तीव्र इच्छा ने उसे साहस से भर दिया। इसने उसे एक भयभीत युवक से एक साहसी युवक में परिवर्तित कर दिया। अब वह समझ गया कि वह स्वयं को तब तक स्वतंत्र नहीं कह सकता था जब तक कि उसका प्रत्येक देशवासी स्वतंत्र नहीं हो जाता । वह कहता है, ‘मेरे लोगों में से किसी एक पर भी पड़ी हुई जंजीर, मेरे ऊपर पड़ी हुई एक जंजीर थी ।’

10. Mandela does not find any difference between the oppressor and the oppressed. He says that the oppressor needs to be liberated as much as the oppressed. When an oppressor locks someone behind bars, he forgets that he himself is locked behind the bars of hatred and narrow-mindedness. In fact, the oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity. Both of them need to be liberated from their respective prisons.

मंडेला को अत्याचार करने वाले और अत्याचार सहने वाले में कोई फ़र्क नज़र नहीं आता। वह कहता है कि अत्याचारी को मुक्त करना उतना ही आवश्यक है जितना कि अत्याचार सहन करने वाले को । जब कोई अत्याचारी किसी व्यक्ति को कैद में डालता है तो वह भूल जाता है कि वह भी घृणा और संकीर्ण विचारों के जेलखाने की सलाखों के पीछे है। वास्तव में अत्याचारी और अत्याचार सहने वाला दोनों ही समान रूप से मानवता को खो बैठे होते हैं। दोनों को ही अपने-अपने कैदखानों से मुक्त करवाने की आवश्यकता होती है।

Tenth May dawned bright and clear. world leaders who were coming to pay For the past few days I had been pleasantly besieged by dignitaries and their respects before the inauguration. The inauguration would be the largest gathering ever of international leaders. on South African soil.

The ceremonies took place in the lovely sandstone amphitheatre formed by the Union Buildings in Pretoria. For decades this had been the seat of white supremacy, and now it was the site of a rainbow gathering of different colours and nations for the installation of South Africa’s first democratic, non-racial government.

दस मई की प्रातः चमकदार और साफ़ थी। पिछले दिनों से मैं सुखद रूप से प्रतिष्ठित व्यक्तियों और विश्व नेताओं से घिरा हुआ था जो उद्घाटन समारोह से पूर्व अपना सम्मान व्यक्त करने के लिए आ रहे थे। उद्घाटन समारोह अन्तर्राष्ट्रीय नेताओं का सबसे बड़ा जमावड़ा होने जा रहा था जोकि दक्षिण अफ्रीका की धरती पर कभी हुआ हो।

समारोह बलुआ पत्थर की बनी हुई सुन्दर रंगभूमि में हुआ जो प्रिटोरिया (राजधानी) में स्थित ब्रिटिश भवनों के मध्य बना हुआ एक स्थान था। कई दशकों से यह जगह अंग्रेज़ी प्रभुसत्ता का आसन रही थी, और अब यह दक्षिण अफ्रीका की पहली प्रजातान्त्रिक, जातिभेद – रहित सरकार की स्थापना के लिए विभिन्न रंगों और राष्ट्रों के एक इन्द्रधनुषी जमावड़े का स्थान बन गई थी ।

On that lovely autumn day I was accompanied by my daughter Zenani. On the podium, Mr de Klerk was first sworn in as second deputy president. Then Thobo Mbeki was sworn in as first deputy president. When it was my turn, I pledged to obey and uphold the constitution and to devote myself to the well-being of the republic and its people. To the assembled guests and the watching world, I said :

Today, all of us do, by our presence here……… confer glory and hope to newborn liberty. Out of the experience of an extraordinary human disaster that lasted too long, must be born a society  of which all humanity will be proud.

We, who were outlaws not so long ago, have today been given the rare privilege to be host to the nations of the world on our own soil. We thank all of our distinguished international guests for having come to take possession with the people of our country of what is after all, a common victory for justice, for peace, for human dignity.

We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. We pledge | ourselves to liberate all our people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination.

Never, never, and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another.

The sun shall never set on so glorious a human achievement.

Let freedom reign. God bless Africa !

A few moments later we all lifted our eyes in awe as a spectacular array of South African jets, helicopters and troop carriers_roared in perfect formation over the Union Buildings. It was not only a display of pinpoint precision and military force, but also a demonstration of the military’s loyalty to democracy, to a new government that had been freely and fairly elected. Only moments before, the highest generals of the South African defence force and police, their chests bedecked with ribbons and medals from days gone by, saluted me and pledged their loyalty. I was not unmindful of the fact that not so many years before they would not have saluted but arrested me. Finally a chevron of Impala jets left a smoke trail of the black, red, green, blue and gold of the new South African flag.

The day was symbolised for me by the playing of our two national anthems, and the vision of whites singing ‘Nkosi Sikelel Afrika’ and blacks singing Die Stem’, the old anthem of the republic. Although that day neither group knew the lyrics of the anthem they once despised, they would soon know the words by heart.

On the day of the inauguration, I was overwhelmed with a sense of history. In the first decade of the twentieth century, a few years after the bitter Anglo- Boer War and before my own birth, the white-skinned people of South Africa patched up their differences and erected a system of racial domination against the dark-skinned people of their own land. The structure they created formed the basis of one of the harshest, most inhumane societies the world has ever known. Now, in the last decade of the twentieth century, and my own eighth decade as a man, that system had been overturned forever and replaced by one that recognised the rights and freedoms of all peoples, regardless of the colour of their skin.

पतझड़ ऋतु के उस सुन्दर दिन मेरी बेटी ज़ेनानि मेरे साथ थी। मंच के ऊपर मिस्टर डी क्लर्क को सबसे पहले द्वितीय उप-प्रधान के रूप में शपथ दिलाई गई। इसके बाद थाबो मबेकि को प्रथम उप-प्रधान के रूप में शपथ दिलाई गई। जब मेरी बारी आई तो मैंने संविधान को बनाए रखने और इसका पालन करने की शपथ ली, तथा स्वयं को गणतन्त्र की तथा इसके लोगों की भलाई के प्रति स्वयं को समर्पित करने की। एकत्रित अतिथियों को तथा ध्यान से देख रहे संसार को मैंने इस प्रकार से कहा –

आज हम सब, यहां अपनी उपस्थिति के द्वारा नवजात स्वतन्त्रता को सम्मान और आशा प्रदान कर रहे हैं। एक असाधारण मानवीय विपत्ति में से, जो बहुत ही ज्यादा समय तक चलती रही, एक ऐसे समाज का जन्म अवश्य होना चाहिए जिस पर पूरी मानव जाति को गर्व  महसूस हो सके।

बहुत पहले की बात नहीं है जब हमें मुजरिम माना जाता था, किन्तु आज हमें अपनी ही धरती पर संसार के राष्ट्रों की मेजबानी करने का दुर्लभ विशेषाधिकार प्राप्त हो रहा है। हम अपने सभी सम्मानित अन्तर्राष्ट्रीय अतिथियों का धन्यवाद करते हैं कि वे हमारे देश के लोगों के साथ मिल कर उस चीज़ पर अपना अधिकार लेने आए हैं जो अन्त में न्याय, शान्ति और मानव-सम्मान के लिए एक साझी विजय है।

आखिर हमें अपनी राजनैतिक मुक्ति प्राप्त हो गई है। हम शपथ लेते हैं कि हम अपने सभी लोगों को ग़रीबी, भूख, दुःख, लिंगभेद तथा अन्य भेदभावों के निरन्तर बन्धन से मुक्ति दिलाएँगे।

ऐसा फिर कभी, कभी, कभी नहीं होगा कि यह सुन्दर धरती एक का किसी अन्य के द्वारा दमन अनुभव करेगी ।

इतनी वैभवपूर्ण मानवीय सफलता के ऊपर सूर्यास्त कभी नहीं होगा।

स्वतन्त्रता का शासन हो ! ईश्वर अफ्रीका को अपना आशीर्वाद प्रदान करें !

कुछ पल बाद हम सबने अपनी आंखें विस्मयपूर्वक ऊपर को उठा लीं जब दक्षिण अफ्रीकी जेटों, हैलीकाप्टरों और सैनिक यानों का एक भव्य समायोजन यूनियन बिल्डिंगों के ऊपर से पूरे तालमेल के साथ गरज की आवाज़ करते हुए गुज़रने लगा । यह न केवल बिल्कुल सही क्रिया और सैनिक शक्ति का प्रदर्शन था, अपितु प्रजातन्त्र के प्रति सैनिक वफ़ादारी का भी, एक नई सरकार के प्रति जिसका निर्वाचन स्वतन्त्र और निष्पक्ष रूप से हुआ था। कुछ पल पूर्व ही दक्षिण अफ्रीकी सुरक्षाबलों और पुलिस के उच्चतम् जरनैलों ने, जिनके वक्षस्थल बीते दिनों के रिबनों और तमगों से अलंकृत हो रखे थे, मुझे सलाम किया और अपनी वफ़ादारी की शपथ ली। तब मुझे यह बात नहीं भूली थी कि वर्ष पहले की बात नहीं थी जब उन्होंने मुझे सलाम न किया होता, अपितु मुझे बन्दी बना लिया होता। अन्त में इंपाला जैसे की एक ‘v’ आकारीय रचना धुएँ की एक पूंछ-सी छोड़ती हुई निकल गई, जो नए दक्षिणी अफ्रीकी झण्डे के काले लाल, हरे, नीले और सुनहरी रंग धारण किए हुए थी।

वह दिन मेरे लिए एक प्रतीक बन गया जब हमारे दोनों राष्ट्रगान एक साथ बजाए गए गोरों का अफ्रीकी स्वप्न वाला राष्ट्रगान और कालों का पुराना गणतन्त्र वाला राष्ट्रगान | यद्यपि उस दिन दोनों समूहों में से किसी को भी उस राष्ट्रगान के स्वरों का ज्ञान नहीं था जिससे वे किसी समय घृणा किया करते थे, उन्हें शीघ्र ही इसके शब्द ज़बानी याद हो जाने वाले थे।

उद्घाटन वाले दिन मैं इतिहास के विचार से अभिभूत हो गया। बीसवीं शताब्दी के पहले दशक में, भीषण एंग्लोबोअर युद्ध के कुछ वर्ष पश्चात और मेरे स्वयं के जन्म से पूर्व, दक्षिण अफ्रीका के गोरी चमड़ी वाले लोगों ने आपसी मतभेद समाप्त कर दिए तथा जातीय प्रभुत्व की एक प्रणाली |स्थापित कर ली, अपने ही देश के काली चमड़ी वाले लोगों के विरुद्ध | वह ढांचा जिसका निर्माण उन्होंने किया, अति क्रूर और सब से अमानवीय समाजों का एक आधार बन गया जो संसार ने कभी जाना हो । अब बीसवीं शताब्दी के अन्तिम दशक में, तथा एक मानव के रूप में मेरे अपने आठवें दशक में, उस प्रणाली को सदा के लिए उलट दिया गया था तथा इसका स्थान एक दूसरी प्रणाली ने ले लिया था जो सभी लोगों के अधिकारों का तथा उनकी स्वतन्त्रताओं का सम्मान करती थी, उनकी चमड़ी के रंग का कोई भेद न करते हुए।

That day had come about through the unimaginable sacrifices of thousands of my people, people whose suffering and courage can never be counted or repaid. I felt that day, as I have on so many other days, that I was simply the sum of all those African patriots who had gone before me. That long and noble line ended and now began again with me. I was pained that I was not able to thank them and that they were not able to see what their sacrifices had wrought.

The policy of apartheid created a deep and lasting wound in my country and my people. All of us will spend many years, if not generations, recovering from that profound hurt. But the decades of oppression and brutality had another, unintended effect and that was that it produced the Oliver Tambos, the Walter Sisulus, the Chief Luthulis, the Yusuf Dadoos, the Bram Fischers, the Robert Sobukwes of our time – men of such extraordinary courage, wisdom and generosity that their like may never be known again. Perhaps it requires such depths of oppression to create such heights of character. My country is rich in the minerals  and gems that lie beneath its soil, but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds.

वह दिन मेरे हज़ारों लोगों के अवर्णनीय बलिदानों की वजह से संभव हो पाया था, ऐसे लोग जिनके कष्टों और जिनके साहस की गणना कभी नहीं की जा सकती है, अथवा जिसका बदला कभी नहीं चुकाया जा सकता है। मैंने उस दिन महसूस किया, जैसे कि मैंने अनेक अन्य दिनों में महसूस किया है, कि मैं उन अफ्रीकी देश-भक्तों का योगफल था जो मुझ से पहले हो चुके थे। उ लम्बी और श्रेष्ठ पंक्ति का अन्त हो गया था और अब वह मेरे स. दोबारा शुरू हो रही थी | मुझे इस बात की पीड़ा महसूस हो रही थी कि मैं उनका धन्यवाद करने में समर्थ नहीं था तथा वे यह देखने में समर्थ नहीं थे कि उनके बलिदानों ने क्या कर दिखाया था।

रंगभेद की नीति ने मेरे देश और मेरे लोगों में एक गहरा और स्थायी घाव पैदा कर दिया था । इस गहरी चोट से उबरने के लिए हम सब को यदि अनेक पीढ़ियां नहीं तो अनेक वर्ष तो लग ही जाएंगे। किन्तु जुल्म और दमन के अनेक दशकों ने एक अन्य अनियतन प्रभाव डाल दिया, तथा वह यह था कि इसने ओलिवर टाम्बोज़, वाल्टर सिसुलस, चीफ़ लुथुलिस, यूसफ डाइज़, ब्रैम फिशर्ज, राबर्ट सोबुकवेज़ जैसे आदमी पैदा कर दिए – ऐसे असाधारण साहस, बुद्धि और उदारता वाले व्यक्ति, कि उनके जैसा शायद फिर कभी दिखाई नहीं दे पाएगा। शायद चरित्र की ऐसी ऊंचाइयां प्राप्त करने के लिए दमन की ऐसी ही गहराइयों की ज़रूरत होती है। मेरा देश खनिजों और रत्नों से भरा पड़ा है जो इसकी धरत के नीचे दबे पड़े हैं, किन्तु मैंने सदा यह जाना है कि इसकी सबसे बड़ी सम्पत्ति इसके लोग हैं, शुद्धतम् हीरों से भी ज़्यादा असली और ज्यादा सुन्दर ।

It is from these comrades in the struggle that I learned the meaning of courage. Time and again, I have seen men and women risk and give their lives for an idea. I have seen men stand up to  attacks and torture without breaking, showing a strength and resilience that defies the imagination I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. :

No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must. learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite. Even in the grimmest times in prison, when my comrades and I were pushed to our limits, I would see a glimmer of | humanity in one of the guards, perhaps just for a second, but it was enough to reassure me and keep me going. Man’s goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished .

In life, every man has twin obligations – obligations to his family, to his parents, to his wife and children, and he has an obligation to his people, his community, his country. In a civil and humane society, each man is able to fulfil those obligations according to | his own inclinations and abilities. But in a country like South Africa, it was almost impossible for a man of my birth and colour to fulfil both of those obligations. In South Africa, a man of colour who attempted to live as a human being was punished and isolated. In South Africa, a man who tried to fulfil his duty to his people was inevitably ripped from his family and his home and was forced to live a life apart, a twilight existence of secrecy and rebellion. I did not in the beginning choose to place my people above my family, but in attempting to serve my people, I found that I was prevented from fulfilling my obligations as a son, a brother, a father and a husband. a

I was not born with a hunger to be free. I was born free in every way that I could know. Free to run in the fields near my mother’s hut, free to swim in the clear stream that ran through my village, free to roast mealies under the stars and ride the broad backs of slow-moving bulls. As long as I obeyed my father and abided by the customs of my tribe, I was not troubled by the laws of man or God.

It was only when I began to learn that my boyhood freedom was an illusion, when I discovered as a young man that my freedom had already been taken from me, that I began to hunger for it. At first, as a student, I wanted freedom only for myself, the transitory freedom of being able to stay out at night, read what I pleased and go where I chose. Later as a young man in Johannesburg, I yearned for the basic and honourable freedoms of living a dignified life.

संघर्ष के दौरान इन्हीं साथियों से ही मैंने साहस का अर्थ सीखा। अनेकों बार मैंने पुरुषों तथा स्त्रियों को जोख़िम उठाने हुए और एक आदर्श के लिए अपने जीवन बलिदान करते देखा है। मैंने लोगों को आक्रमणों का सामना करते हुए देखा है तथा बिना टूटे यातनाओं को सहन करते हुए, ऐसा उत्साह और शक्ति दिखाते हुए कि जिसकी कल्पना भी नहीं की सकती है : मैंने यह सीखा कि साहस का अर्थ भय का होना नहीं होता है, अपितु इसका अर्थ होता है भय पर विजय पा लेना । वीर आदमी वह नहीं होता जो डरता नहीं है, अपितु वह होता है जो भय पर विजय पा लेता है।

कोई भी किसी दूसरे व्यक्ति से उसकी चमड़ी, या उसकी पृष्ठभूमि या उसके धर्म के कारण उसके प्रति घृणा ले कर जन्म नहीं लेता है। लोगों को घृणा करना सीखना होता है, तथा यदि वे घृणा करना सीख सकते हैं तो उन्हें प्यार करना भी सिखाया जा सकता है, क्योंकि मनुष्य के दिल में घृणा की अपेक्षा प्यार ज्यादा स्वाभाविक रूप में प्रवेश कर लेता है। जेल में रहते समय अत्यन्त उदासी-भरे अवसरों पर भी जब मुझे और मेरे साथियों को हमारी सहनशक्ति की सीमा तक धकेल दिया जाता था तो मुझे पहरेदारों में से एक पहरेदार में मानवता की एक झलक दिखाई पड़ जाती थी, शायद एक पल के लिए ही, किन्तु यह मुझे तसल्ली देने के लिए और मुझे चलाए रखने के लिए काफ़ी होती थी । मनुष्य की अच्छाई एक ज्योति के समान होती है जिसे छिपाया जा सकता है, किन्तु बुझाया कभी नहीं जा सकता।

जीवन में प्रत्येक व्यक्ति के दो उत्तरदायित्व होते हैंअपने परिवार के प्रति उत्तरदायित्व, अपने माता-पिता के प्रति अपनी पत्नी और बच्चों के प्रति, तथा उसका अपने लोगों के प्रति, अपने देश के प्रति । एक सभ्य और मानवीय समाज में प्रत्येक व्यक्ति अपने झुकावों और अपने सामर्थ्य के अनुसार अपने उत्तरदायित्वों को पूरा करने के योग्य होता है। किन्तु दक्षिण अफ्रीका जैसे देश में मेरे जैसे जन्म और रंग वाले व्यक्ति के लिए इन दोनों उत्तरदायित्वों को पूरा कर पाना असम्भव था। दक्षिण अफ्रीका में यदि कोई काले रंग वाला आदमी एक मानव की भान्ति रहने का यत्न करता था तो उसे दण्डित किया जाता था और उसे (बन्दी बना कर ) दूसरों से अलग कर दिया जाता था । दक्षिण अफ्रीका में यदि कोई व्यक्ति अपने लोगों के प्रति अपने उत्तरदायित्व को पूरा करने का यत्न करता, तो उसे अनिवार्य रूप से अपने परिवार से और अपने घर से खींच कर दूर कर दिया जाता, और उसे अलग से रह कर जीवन बिताने को मजबूर कर दिया जाता, छिप-छिप कर और विद्रोह के भाव से भर कर एक धुंधलासा जीवन । आरम्भ में मैंने अपने लोगों को अपने परिवार से ऊपर रखने का मन नहीं बनाया था, किन्तु अपने लोगों की सेवा करने के यत्न में मुझे पता चला कि मुझे एक पुत्र, एक भाई, एक पिता और एक पति के रूप में अपना उत्तरदायित्व पूरा करने से रोका जा रहा था ।

मैं स्वतन्त्र होने की भूख लेकर पैदा नहीं हुआ था। मैं स्वतन्त्र पैदा हुआ था था, हर तरह से स्वतन्त्र जो मैं जानसमझ सकता था। अपनी मां की झोंपड़ी के समीप खेतों में भागने को स्वतन्त्र, उस नदी में तैरने को स्वतन्त्र जो मेरे गांव में से बहती थी, सितारों की छाया में बैठ कर मक्के के दाने भूनने को स्वतन्त्र, और धीरे-धीरे चलने वाले बैलों की चौड़ी पीठ पर सवार होने को स्वतन्त्र | जब तक मैं अपने | पिता की आज्ञा का पालन करता रहा, तथा अपने कबीले के रीति-रिवाजों का पालन करता रहा, मुझे मनुष्य या ईश्वर द्वारा बनाए किन्हीं नियमों से कोई दिक्कत नहीं थी ।

केवल जब मुझे यह पता चलना शुरू हो गया कि मेरी लड़कपन वाली आज़ादी मात्र एक भ्रम थी, जब एक युवा आदमी के रूप में मुझे यह पता चला कि मेरी स्वतन्त्रता मुझसे पहले ही छीनी जा चुकी थी, तब मेरे अन्दर इसकी एक भूख पैदा होनी शुरू हो गई । आरम्भ में एक विद्यार्थी के रूप में मैं केवल अपने लिए आज़ादी चाहता था, इस तरह की अस्थायी आज़ादियां जैसे रात को मुझे बाहर ठहरने की आज़ादी हो, मैं जो चाहूं, उसे पढ़ने की मुझे आजादी हो और मैं जहां चाहूं, वहां जाने की मुझे आज़ादी हो । बाद में जाहनज़बर्ग में मैं एक युवा व्यक्ति के रूप में एक सम्मानजनक जीवन की मौलिक और सम्मानदायक आज़ादियों के लिए तड़पने लगा ।

But then I slowly saw that not only was I not free, but my brothers and sisters were also not free. I saw that it was not just my freedom that was curtailed, but the freedom of everyone who looked like I did. That is when I joined the African National Congress, and that is when the hunger for my own freedom became the greater hunger for the freedom of my people. It was this desire for the freedom of my people to live their lives with dignity and self respect that animated my life; that transformed a frightened young man into a bold one, that drove a lawabiding attorney to become a criminal, that turned a family-loving husband into a man without a home, that forced a lifeloving man to live like a monk. I am no more virtuous or self-sacrificing than the next man, but I found that I could not even enjoy the poor and limited freedoms I was allowed when I knew my people were not free. Freedom is indivisible; the chains on anyone of my people were the chains on all of them, the chains on all of my people were the chains on me.

I knew that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed A man who takes away another man’s freedom is a prisoner of hatred; he is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. I am not truly free if I am taking away someone else’s freedom, just as surely as I am not | free when my freedom is taken from me. The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity.

किन्तु फिर धीरे-धीरे मुझे पता चला कि केवल मैं ही स्वतन्त्र नहीं था, अपितु मेरे भाई और बहनें भी स्वतन्त्र नहीं थे। मैंने देखा कि यह केवल मेरी स्वतन्त्रता नहीं थी जिसे सीमित किया गया था, अपितु प्रत्येक उस व्यक्ति की स्वतन्त्रता को, जो देखने में मेरे जैसा लगता था। ऐसा तब हुआ जब मैं अफ्रीकन नैशनल कांग्रेस में शामिल हो गया, तथा तब जब मेरी अपनी आज़ादी की भूख अपने लोगों की आज़ादी के लिए और भी बड़ी भूख बन गई। अपने लोगों की आज़ादी के लिए यही इच्छा थी कि वे अपने जीवन सम्मान और गरिमा से बिता सकें, जो मेरे जीवन में प्रबल रूप से भर आई; जिसने एक भयभीत युवा को एक साहसी व्यक्ति बना दिया, जिसने एक कानून का पालन करने वाले वकील को एक मुजरिम बना दिया, जिसने परिवार से प्यार करने वाले एक पति को एक बेघर आदमी में बदल दिया, जिसने जीवन से प्यार करने वाले एक आदमी को एक भिक्षु का जीवन बिताने को मजबूर कर दिया। मैं अपने साथ वाले किसी भी आदमी से ज्यादा भला या ज़्यादा आत्म-त्यागी नहीं हूं, किन्तु मैंने देखा कि मैं इन थोड़ी-सी और सीमित स्वतन्त्रताओं का भी आनन्द नहीं ले सकता था जिनकी मुझे इजाज़त दी गई थी जब मुझे इस बात का पता चल गया कि मेरे लोग स्वतन्त्र नहीं थे । स्वतन्त्रता के टुकड़े नहीं किए जा सकते हैं; मेरे लोगों में से किसी एक के ऊपर पड़ी हुई जंजीरें, उन सब पर पड़ी हुई जंजीरें थी; मेरे सब लोगों पर पड़ी हुई जंजीरें मेरे ऊपर पड़ी हुई जंजीरें थीं

मैं जानता था कि उत्पीड़क को मुक्त कराने की उतनी ही ज़रूरत होती है जितनी निश्चित रूप से उत्पीड़ित को मुक्त कराने की होती है। ऐसा व्यक्ति जो किसी दूसरे व्यक्ति की स्वतन्त्रता को छीन लेता है, वह घृणा का बन्दी होता है; वह पूर्वाग्रह और संकीर्ण मानसिकता रूपी सलाखों के पीछे बन्दी हुआ पड़ा होता है। मैं वास्तविक रूप से स्वतन्त्र नहीं होता हूँ यदि मैं किसी दूसरे की स्वतन्त्रता को छीन रहा होता हूँ, बिल्कुल वैसे जैसे मैं स्वतन्त्र नहीं होता हूँ जब मेरी स्वतन्त्रता को मुझ से छीन लिया गया हो । उत्पीड़क और उत्पीड़ित एक समान रूप से अपनी मानवता से वंचित हो जाते हैं ।

Ans. South Africa falls in the southern hemisphere, and in the southern hemisphere, the autumn months are March to May while in the northern hemisphere, these months are the time of spring.

Here ‘the autumn day’ has a symbolic meaning also. Here autumn symbolises the season of fruits when the South Africans will taste the new sweet fruits of freedom after a long summer of slavery.

The twin obligations are towards one’s family and one’s people.

Ans. The oppression of the white rule for over 300 years has been called ‘an extraordinary human disaster’.

The liberation from the oppression has been termed as ‘glorious achievement’. human

Ans. Mandela sets very bright and high ideals for the future of South Africa. He says that there will be an end to poverty and deprivation. There will be no suffering of any kind. There will be no discrimination on the basis of race, colour and creed. Everyone in the nation will breathe an air of freedom. Everyone will be equal in the eyes of the law. People will no longer suffer from want and poverty. There would be enough for everyone to eat and live comfortably. Thus Mandela sees a very bright future for his country.

Ans. They had come to honour the South Africa’s first democratic and non-racial government. It was a common victory for justice, peace and human dignity.

Ans. Mandela means to say that without the sacrifices of all those who had gone before him, he could never have been what he is today. His becoming the first black President of South Africa could never have been possible without their sacrifices. That is why he called himself ‘simply the sum of all those African patriots’ who had gone before him.

Ans. Mandela is perfectly right in what he says. The deeper the oppression, the higher the character. It proved true in the case of Mandela himself. He felt not only for the oppressed, but also for the oppressor. He saw the oppressor not only as a cruel master, but also as a helpless slave of hatred.

Ans. The twin obligations are towards one’s family and one’s people.

Ans. As a child, freedom meant to Mandela the freedom to run in the fields. As a student, it meant the freedom to read what he pleased and go where he pleased. As a young man, it meant the freedom to develop one’s potential and live a lawful life. But then he realised that all these were transitory freedoms. Now freedom meant to him the freedom of everyone who looked like him.

Ans. Mandela’s hunger for freedom ended all his fears. Now he became a bold person. But it also drove him from a law-abiding attorney to become a criminal in the eyes of law. He became homeless and was forced to live the life of a monk.

Ans. South Africa had been under the white rule for more than three hundred years. After a long and bitter struggle, it became a democratic republic on 10 May, 1994. Nelson Mandela became the first black President of the republic. It was South Africa’s first democratic, non-racial government. The installation ceremonies were held at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. A large number of dignitaries from all over the world took part in it. They included men from all countries and classes. Mandela called it a day of common victory for justice, peace and human dignity.

Ans. The British rulers of South Africa followed the policy of apartheid. The blacks were not allowed to visit the places reserved for the whites. They had to live in separate colonies. Their children had to go to separate schools. Thus the blacks had to face terrible humiliation all through their life. Mandela calls it an extraordinary human disaster. The blacks had to fight a long and bitter struggle against it. At last in May, 1994, there were free and democratic elections. Mandela became the first black President of a democratic, non-racial government. Mandela calls it a glorious human achievement.

Ans. Mandela became the first black President of the South African republic. For a long time, he had fought against the British policy of apartheid and had spent many years in prison. But after his becoming the President, the military generals saluted him respectfully. Now a great change had come in their attitude. Not many years ago, they would never have done such a thing. Rather they would have arrested him and put him in prison. But now they were duty-bound to salute the President of the nation.

Ans. In the first decade of the twentieth century, the white rulers were following the policy of apartheid in South Africa. It was a humiliating policy against the blacks. They were not allowed to visit places reserved for the whites. They had to live in segregated colonies. The South Africans had to fight a long and bitter struggle. At last in the final decade of the century, the situation changed completely. On 10 May, 1994, a democratic, non-racial government was installed in the country. Nelson Mandela became its first black President. Now the rights and freedoms of everyone were respected regardless of the colour of their skin.

Ans. Mandela says that the policy of apartheid gave his country and his people a deep and lasting wound. It was a wound that would take centuries to recover from. The blacks of South Africa underwent decades of oppression and brutality. But this brutality had another effect also. It created among the blacks men of extraordinary courage and wisdom. The deeper the oppression, the stronger the character that undergoes it. Mandela says that his country is rich in minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil. But the white policy of apartheid brought to light the purest diamonds among the African blacks.

Ans. Mandela says that every man has twin obligations. He has obligations to his family and his parents. Then he has obligations to his people and his country. In a civil and humane society, one can fulfil these obligations according to one’s abilities. But in a country like South Africa, it was not possible. The white rulers followed the policy of apartheid. They had put many restrictions on the blacks. Anyone who tried to fulfil his obligations to his people, was punished and put into prison. With Mandela also, the same thing happened.

Ans. As a boy, Mandela meant by freedom the liberty to run in the fields near his mother’s hut. It was also the freedom to swim in the clear stream that flowed through their village. As a student, it was the freedom to read what he liked and to go where the liked. But then, he realised that all these were transitory freedoms. The basic and honourable freedoms were the freedoms that concerned everyone around him. They included the freedom to achieve one’s potential, the freedom to earn, the freedom to marry and have a family, and the freedom to live a lawful life without any obstruction.

Ans. Mandela does not find much difference between the oppressor and the oppressed. He calls both of them prisoners. One is imprisoned behind bars of iron; the other is imprisoned behind bars of hatred. A man who takes away another man’s freedom makes himself a prisoner. He imprisons himself behind the bars of narrow-mindedness. The oppressor robs not only the humanity of his victim, but also his own humanity. Thus Mandela feels that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed.

Ans. Mandela was not born with a hunger to be free. When he was a boy, he was free to run in the fields near his mother’s hut. He was also free to swim in the clear stream that flowed through their village. But as he grew up, he learnt that his boyhood freedom was only an illusion. In his boyhood, he wanted freedom for himself only. He wanted freedom to stay out at night and to go where he chose. But now he realised that all those were transitory freedoms. The basic and honourable freedoms were the freedoms that concerned everyone around him. They included that freedom to achieve one’s potential, the freedom to earn, the freedom to marry and have a family, and the freedom to live a lawful life without any obstruction.

Mandela’s hunger for freedom ended all his fears. Now he became a bold person. But it also drove him from a law-abiding attorney to become a criminal in the eyes of law. He became homeless and was forced to live the life of a monk.

Ans. Mandela had fought for the rights and basic freedoms of the South African people. He had to suffer a lot. At last, there were free democratic elections. The country had its first democratic, non-racial government. Nelson Mandela became the first black President of South Africa. But he did not take the credit to himself alone. He said that he was simply the sum of all those African patriots who had gone before him. He was simply the last one of that long line. But for them, this last point would never have been reached. Thus Mandela pays a tribute to all those who sacrificed their lives for the rights of their people.

Ans. There is much truth in saying that the ‘depths of oppression’ create ‘heights of character’. Adversity, privation and oppression strengthen a man’s character. One who stands up to oppression and does not give in emerges as a rare gem. Such men become the pride of their people and their nations. Mandela illustrates this fact by naming some such great men of his country. They bore untold brutality and torture for the cause of their people’s rights. And at last, they emerged as men of extraordinary courage and wisdom. We have numberless examples in our own country also – Sardar Bhagat Singh, Lala Lajpat Rai, Subhash Chandra Bose, Sardar Patel and many others.

Ans. As a boy, freedom meant to Mandela the freedom to run in the fields near his mother’s hut. It also meant the freedom to swim in the clear stream that ran through their village. As a student, it meant the freedom to read what he liked and to go where he liked. But then he realised that all these were transitory freedoms. He could not be truly free until all those who looked like him were free. Freedom is not divisible. Chains on any one of his people were the chains on him. So he decided to fight for the basic freedoms for all his people. They included the freedom to achieve one’s potential, to earn one’s living, to marry and have a family and to live a lawful life without any obstruction.

Column A

Column B

(a) A rainbow gathering of different colours and nations (b) The seat of white supremacy (c) Be overwhelmed with a sense of history (d) Resilience that defies the imagination (e) A glimmer of humanity (f) A twilight existence

(i) A great ability (almost unimaginable) to remain unchanged by suffering (not losing hope, goodness or courage). (ii) A half-secret life, like a life lived in the fading light between sunset and darkness. (iii) A sign of human feeling (goodness, kindness, pity, justice, etc.). (iv) A beautiful coming together of various people, like the colours in a rainbow. (v) The centre of racial superiority. (vi) Feel deeply emotional, remembering and understanding all the past events that have led up to the moment.

Hints: (a) → (iv); (b) → (v); (c) → (vi); (d) → (i); (e) → (iii); (f) → (ii).

Column A

Column B

1. I was not unmindful of the fact 2. When my comrades and I were pushed to our limits 3. to reassure me and keep me going

(i) had not forgotten: was aware of the fact. (ii) was not careful about the fact. (iii) forgot or was not aware of the fact. (i) pushed by the guards to the wall. (ii) took more than our share of beatings. (iii) felt that we could not endure the suffering any longer. (i) make me go on walking. (ii) help me continue to live in hope in this very difficult situation. (iii) make me remain without complaining.

Hints: 1. → (i); 2. → (iii); 3. → (ii).

Martin Luther King’s ………. (contribute) to our history as an outstanding leader began when he came to the ………. (assist) of Rosa Parks, a seamstress who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. In those days, American Blacks were confined to positions of second-class citizenship by restrictive laws and customs. To break these laws would mean ……….. (subjugate) and ………… (humiliate) by the police and the legal system. Beatings, ……… (imprison) and sometimes death awaited those who defied the system. Martin Luther King’s tactics of protest involved  non-violent ………. (resist) to racial injustice.

Hints : contribution; assistance; subjugation; humiliation; imprisonment; resistance.

(i) they can be taught to love also

(ii) I was born free

(iii) but the triumph over it

(iv) but he who conquers the fear

(v) to create such heights of character

1. It requires such depths of oppression …………..

2. Courage was not the absence of fear, …………..

3. If people can learn to hate, …………..

4. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, …………..

5. I was not born with a hunger to be free, …………..

1. ………….. to create such heights of character.

2. ………….. but the triumph over it.

3. ………….. they can be taught to love also.

4. …………..but he who conquers the fear.

5. ………….. I was born free.

1. For decades the Union Buildings had been the seat of white supremacy and now it was the site of South Africa’s first democratic, non-racial government.

2. Only moments before, the highest generals of the South African defence force and police saluted me and pledged their loyalty; not so many years before they would not have saluted ____

3. Although that day neither group knew the lyrics of the anthem, they would soon _____

4. My country is rich in the minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, ____

5. The Air Show was not only a display of pinpoint precision and military force, but _____

6. It was this desire for the freedom of my people that transformed _____ into a bold one, that drove _______ to become a criminal, that turned a family-loving husband into a man without a home.

Hints: 2. but arrested me. 3. know the words by heart. 4. but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds. 5. also a demonstration of the military’s loyalty to democracy. 6. a frightened young man, a law-abiding attorney.

We can’t say that there is any colour prejudice in India because all Indians have almost the same colour of their skin. They are neither white nor black; they are mostly wheatish. And those who have a white skin are in no way considered to be superior human beings. A man is judged by his inner worth, and not by the colour of his skin. Gandhiji had a black complexion while Pt. Nehru had a fair complexion. Both of them were the beloved of the Indian people. So we can’t say that there is any colour prejudice in India. However, we have other kinds of prejudices here which are as condemnable as colour prejudice. We have here religious and racial prejudices, People of one class and community have prejudices against those of other communities. Prejudices in any form are undesirable and must be eradicated.

(Page 30) Tenth May dawned bright and clear. For the past few days I had been pleasantly besieged by dignitaries and world leaders who were coming to pay their respects before the inauguration. The inauguration would be the largest gathering ever of international leaders on South African soil.

The ceremonies took place in the lovely sandstone amphitheatre formed by the Union Buildings in Pretoria. For decades this had been the seat of white supremacy, and now it was the site of a rainbow gathering of different colours and nations for the installation of South Africa’s first democratic, non-racial government.

1. Give the name of the chapter and writer.

2. What event has been mentioned in the passage ?

3. Why did the writer call the occasion the site of a rainbow?

4. Write down the meaning of the following:

dawned, pleasantly, besieged by, inauguration.

5. Which word in the passage means ‘persons considered to be important because of high rank or office’?

1. The name of the chapter is Long Walk to Freedom’ and the name of the writer is Nelson Mandela.

2. It is the inauguration of South Africa’s first democratic non-racial government.

3. The writer called the occasion the site of a rainbow because it was the gathering of different colours and nations from all over the world.

4. began, happily, surrounded by, an official opening of an organisation.

5. dignitaries.

(Page 31) We, who were outlaws not so long ago, have today been given the rare privilege to be host to the nations of the world on our own soil. We thank all of our distinguished international guests for having come to take possession with the people of our country of what is, after all, a common victory for justice, for peace, for human dignity.

We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. We pledge ourselves to liberate all our people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination.

rare                guest

victory           freedom

host               common

bondage        defeat

1. The name of the chapter is ‘Long Walk to Freedom’ and the name of the writer is Nelson Mandela.

2. The black people of South Africa were called outlaws

3. The establishment of a democratic rule in South Africa is a common victory for justice, peace and human dignity.

4. rare → common; victory → defeat; host → guest ; bondage → freedom. 5. dignity.

(Page 31) A few moments later we all lifted our eyes in awe as a spectacular array of South African jets, helicopters and troop carriers roared in perfect formation over the Union Buildings. It was not only a display of pinpoint precision and military force, but also a demonstration of the military’s loyalty to democracy, to a new government that had been freely and fairly elected. Only moments before, the highest generals of South African defence force and police, their chests bedecked with ribbons and medals from days gone by, saluted me and pledged their loyalty. I was not unmindful of the fact that not so many years before they would not have saluted me but arrested me.

      spectacular, pledge, precision, awe.

(i) The chests of generals were bedecked with ………… .

(ii) The new government ………… freely and fairly elected.

(iii) It was a ………… of military’s loyalty to democracy.

(iv) Some years ago, they would have ……… him.

(a) spectacular – impressive; pledge –  promise; precision – accuracy; awe –  wonder.

(b) (i) ribbons and medals; (ii) had been; (iii) demonstration; (iv) arrested.

      precision; awe.

      spectacular; bedecked.

(i) The chests of the generals were bedecked with ………..

(ii) Before this day, they would have ……….. him.

(iii) They lifted their eyes in ………… at the spectacular scene.

(iv) It was a ………… of the military’s loyalty to democracy.

(a) precision → inaccuracy; awe → respect.

(b) spectacular – impressive; bedecked –   decorated.

(c) (i) ribbons and medals; (ii) arrested; (iii) awe; (iv) demonstration.

(Pages 32-33) My country is rich in the minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, but I hav always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds.

It is from these comrades in the struggle that I learned the meaning of courage. Time and again, I have seen men and women risk and give their lives for an idea. I have seen men stand up to attacks and torture without breaking, showing a strength and resilience that defies the imagination: I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.

(i) precious stones

(ii) face boldly

(iii) causing severe pain

(iv) a great victory.

      humane, isolated, duty, inevitably, impossible, punished, fulfil, secrecy

(i) In south Africa, it was impossible for ………..

(ii) If a man tried to fulfil his duty, he …………

(iii) If the blacks tried to live as humans, they ………….

(iv) The writer talks of ……….. in South Africa.

(a) humane → inhumane; isolated → crowded ; duty → right; inevitably → doubtfully; possible ; rewarded ; lack ; openness.

(b) (i) the blacks to fulfil their obligations to their family and people ; (ii) wa unavoidably separated from his family and home; (iii) were punished and isolated; (iv) the policy of apartheid.

(Page 33-34) It was only when I began to learn that my boyhood freedom was an illusion, when I discovered as a young man that my freedom had already been taken from me, that I began to hunger for it. At first, as a student, I wanted freedom only for myself, the transitory freedom of being able to stay out at night, read what I pleased and go where I chose. Later, as a young man in Johannesburg, I yearned for the basic and honourable freedoms of living a dignified life.

      (i) freedom (ii) illusion (iii) transitory (iv) yearned.

(i) In this extract, the writer talks of his ……….

(ii) The writer learnt that ………. his was ……….

(iii) As a student, he wanted ……….. for …….. alone.

(iv) As a young man, he ………… for a ……… life.

(a) (i) freedom = liberty ; (ii) illusion =  deception; (iii) transitory = temporary; (iv) yearned = longed.

(b) (i) boyhood freedoms (ii) freedom; an illusion (iii) freedom ; himself (iv) yearned; dignified.