A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with foreign things? Is it a legacy of our colonial years? We want foreign television sets. We want foreign shirts. We want foreign technology. Why this obsession with everything imported?"

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Tell me, why is the media here so negative? Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognise our own strengths, our achievements? We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why?"

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"My message, especially to young people is to have courage to think differently, courage to invent, to travel the unexplored path, courage to discover the impossible and to conquer the problems and succeed."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"The bird is powered by its own life and by its motivation."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Man needs his difficulties because they are necessary to enjoy success."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Creativity is the key to success in the future, and primary education is where teachers can bring creativity in children at that level."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Writing is my love. If you love something, you find a lot of time. I write for two hours a day, usually starting at midnight; at times, I start at 11."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Poetry comes from the highest happiness or the deepest sorrow."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"When we tackle obstacles, we find hidden reserves of courage and resilience we did not know we had. And it is only when we are faced with failure do we realise that these resources were always there within us. We only need to find them and move on with our lives."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Let me define a leader. He must have vision and passion and not be afraid of any problem. Instead, he should know how to defeat it. Most importantly, he must work with integrity."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Do we not realize that self respect comes with self reliance?"

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"God, our Creator, has stored within our minds and personalities, great potential strength and ability. Prayer helps us tap and develop these powers."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"God is everywhere."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"You have to dream before your dreams can come true."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"In a democracy, the well-being, individuality and happiness of every citizen is important for the overall prosperity, peace and happiness of the nation."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Unless India stands up to the world, no one will respect us. In this world, fear has no place. Only strength respects strength."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"No sanction can stand against ignited minds."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"The youth need to be enabled to become job generators from job seekers."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Developing nations want to become developed nations."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Widespread use of antibiotics promotes the spread of antibiotic resistance. Smart use of antibiotics is the key to controlling its spread."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is friendly to us and conspires only to give the best to those who dream and work."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"I firmly believe that unless one has tasted the bitter pill of failure, one cannot aspire enough for success."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"We must think and act like a nation of a billion people and not like that of a million people. Dream, dream, dream!"

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"To succeed in your mission, you must have single-minded devotion to your goal."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Real education enhances the dignity of a human being and increases his or her self-respect. If only the real sense of education could be realized by each individual and carried forward in every field of human activity, the world will be so much a better place to live in."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Great teachers emanate out of knowledge, passion and compassion."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"One of the very important characteristics of a student is to question. Let the students ask questions."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Educationists should build the capacities of the spirit of inquiry, creativity, entrepreneurial and moral leadership among students and become their role model."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Teaching is a very noble profession that shapes the character, caliber, and future of an individual. If the people remember me as a good teacher, that will be the biggest honour for me."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"A teacher should have a creative mind."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Never stop fighting until you arrive at your destined place - that is, the unique you. Have an aim in life, continuously acquire knowledge, work hard, and have perseverance to realise the great life."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Climbing to the top demands strength, whether it is to the top of Mount Everest or to the top of your career."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Failure will never overtake me if my definition to succeed is strong enough"

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"I was willing to accept what I couldn't change."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"God, our creator, has stored within our minds and personalities, great potential strength and ability. Prayer helps us tap and develop these powers."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Where there is righteousness in the heart, there is beauty in the character. When there is beauty in the character, there is harmony in the home. When there is harmony in the home, there is order in the nation. When there is order in the nation, there is peace in the world."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"War is never a lasting solution for any problem."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Where there is righteousness in the heart, there is harmony in the house; when there is harmony in the house, there is order in the nation; when there is order in the nation, there is peace in the world."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"No religion has mandated killing others as a requirement for its sustenance or promotion."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"All wars signify the failure of conflict resolution mechanisms, and they need post-war rebuilding of faith, trust and confidence."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Science is a beautiful gift to humanity; we should not distort it."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

"Where do the evils like corruption arise from? It comes from the never-ending greed. The fight for corruption-free ethical society will have to be fought against this greed and replace it with 'what can I give' spirit."

- A. P. J. Abdul Kalam