In the previous article, we tackled the human relationship and mutual love between reposed Pope Shenouda II I and Dr. Yehya al-Gamal. Also, we spoke of Dr. Yehya’s rejection of all sorts of extremism and terrorism. Today, we shall resume dealing with some traits of the man’s character through reviewing his “An Ordinary Life Story”.
An Open Mind
Dr. Yehya al-Gamal was clever and open-minded. Ever since he moved with his brother from his village near Menoufiya to Tanta to continue his education at Sheikh Abdul Hamid Qeshta Quran Recitation School (Kuttab), he showed great adeptness memorizing and reciting the verses. At that time, he was attracted to reading and literature, which had a great impact on his life to come, thanks to his brother, cousins, and visiting the city’s national library. He read whatever he came by: translated stories and so forth, of which one made him love history and develop a relish to study law. The book was entitled, “The Great Tragedies of History”. It is a historical novel dealing with the events of the French Revolution authored by Hassan al-Sherif.
From then onward, reading became part and parcel of his life. It influenced his character, making him flexible and open-minded. He says of himself, “Though the young man was not yet ten years old, he became enamored to reading.”
Due to this great love, it came to pass that he took a book to the “Kuttab”, and was beaten! That day marked a shift in his life and ideas, whereby, “On that day, he left Sheikh Abdul Hamid Qeshta Kuttab, declaring that he would not continue his education unless his family enrolled him in a primary school.”
Yehya al-Gamal enrolled in “Waleyy al-Ahd National Primary School”, despite the fact that it was the middle of the academic year, having passed the dictation and arithmetic exams with distinction. He was dux on that year. On the following year, he was granted the “bourses d’excellence” which remained till he finished his university education. His love for reading, however, was not affected by academia. Rather, it lasted till the end of his life. He maintains, “It seems like the habit of reading was formed in his early childhood. It is still with him till the present time.”
Yehya al-Gamal decided not to restrict himself to one writer, for he was quite agile. So he read al-Manfaluty, al-Rafi’e, al-Aqqad, Taha Hussein and others. His brother wanted him to focus on al-Rafi’e, whereas his cousin wanted him to focus on al-Aqqad who he thought was profound. “The young man used to listen to his brother and cousin, not rejecting anybody’s opinion or any great writer’s work.” Then, young Yehya al-Gamal moved to Cairo. He was then in the fourth primary. The Egyptian National Library and Archives became his favorite place which he visited every Friday. He was quite lucky for he met and mingled with renowned thinkers and men of letters at the gatherings conducted at al-Aqqad’s house.
A Kind Heart
In his infancy, his grandmother overwhelmed him with love and kindness. After moving to live with his parents, his paternal grandparents showed great love and kindness to him. His father was pretty kind. We read, “His father was kindness incarnate! He was so good in the full sense of the word which Egyptians know. He was so tender that he never scolded young Yehya. He was religious without extremism. He loved life without greed. The thing that pleased him best was seeing his children successful.”
Thus, Yehya learned love, kindness, and tolerance from a family that was an epitome of these feelings. In effect, he became a source of love and kindness for everybody. He says, “The young man took that great kindness after his father. Though he encountered lots of hardship because of it, he never renounced this legacy. Most of his weakness was due to his kindness which he could neither control nor conceal.”
No wonder, then, he cared a lot for his friends and relatives. He always inquired after them, expressing how delightful it was to him. He says, “Seeing your dear ones, talking and listening to them, despite their scarcity, are exceedingly delightful. Indeed, you feel you are connected with others and that you are not a stranger in the universe. You feel there is a great heart that embraces you, and you embrace it. How great this is!”
This kind heart of his made him empathize with people. He used to feel sad whenever anybody was wronged. This started at his early youth, whereby, “The young man knew what injustice is, which saddened him exceedingly. He was always sympathetic with the wronged.”
This was reflected in his view of poetry: “Despite his youth, and memorizing lots of Shawqy’s poems, such as, most of “Majnun Leilah” and “Cleopatra”, he was mostly affected by Hafiz Ibrahim: for, from the beginning, he used to sympathize with the wronged or whoever he thought was wronged.”
Persistence
Yehya al-Gamal enjoyed persistence and perseverance. Despite the fact that his graduation mention did not qualify him to be a staff member, his dream, he never despaired and strove to make it come true. It seems he took perseverance after his mother, whereas kindness was his father’s imprint on him. Also, he was clever and persistent like his mother. He says, “His mother was shrewd, her character was strong. The mother was the source of strength and perseverance.” With these attributes, he obtained his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees, to become a staff member at the Law School, Cairo University. What a story! Stories never end in Beautiful Egypt.
General Bishop
Head of the Coptic Orthodox
