Representative image of a teacher.
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Men are prone to committing mistakes, crimes, and sins. Sometimes mercy can impart lessons that punishments fail to convey.
There was a professor at Karnatak College, Dharwad, who was known for his exemplary discipline and erudite scholarship. All his students admired his scholarship and enjoyed his classes. They heard him with rapt attention and in complete silence.
A new student joined the college and began attending this well-known professor's classes. The newcomer was smart and intelligent yet obnoxiously mischievous, consistently troubling the good professor for no reason. Whenever everyone was attentively listening to the professor's lecture, this mischievous boy would devise plans to disrupt the class. Interestingly, Mr Mischievous targeted only the well-known professor and nobody else. The professor often wondered why this student troubled him in almost every class but never attempted to correct him, hoping that student would realise his mistake and correct himself.
Mr Mischievous took his examinations and returned home for summer vacation. When the college reopened, he returned to Dharwad. The results were announced, and he didn’t even bother to go to college to check his results. He was convinced that the professor he had troubled all year must have failed him. He probably was guilty but didn't show it. To their astonishment, his friends discovered that he passed with distinction and even stood first in the college. They rushed to inform him, but he could not believe it. How could he pass the examination with a first rank when he consistently troubled the most erudite and decent professor? However, it was a fact he had to accept. He rushed to the professor's residence.
He opened the front gate and saw the professor sitting in an armchair on the veranda, reading a newspaper. Overwhelmed by emotions, the student broke down and started crying.
The professor saw him and quickly understood what the matter was. He went up to the gate, and the student looked deep into his eyes, filled with remorse. The student fell prostrate at the professor's feet and prayed for mercy. Smiling, the professor told him, "How could I fail a student who wrote brilliant answers? I never aim to pass or fail a student. For me, only the answer script matters, not the students who write it. I am only a teacher; therefore, I can only forgive erring students. I am not a policeman; therefore, I can’t punish people for every small crime they commit. I have done my duty, that’s all."
This incident dramatically changed the student's life. He corrected himself and became a gentleman. Eventually, he pursued law and went on to become a renowned advocate in the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India.