The Summit Within by Major H.P.S.

AhluwaliaMade by

Deepak upadhyayContact no.8819081168

Made by Deepak upadhyay

Contact no.8819081168

About AuthorMajor H.P.S. Ahluwalia was a member of the first successful Indian expedition to Mount Everest in 1965. He climbed the Mount Everest on 29 May 1965 along with his friends Rawat and Phu Dorji. In the Indo- Pakistan war of 1965, he was injured and confined to a wheelchair.         He is the recipient of several awards like Padma Bhushan, Arjun Award, the National Award for the best work done in the field of Disability. He won the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for lifetime achievement on August 29, 2009.        He has written several books like ‘Higher than Everest, ‘Beyond the Himalayas’ and ‘Everest is within You’

Hari Pal Singh Ahluwalia was born on 6 November 1936 and brought up in Shimla along with his two sisters and two younger brothers. His father was employed as a Civil Engineer in the Central Public Works Department.

Early life

  Mountaineering career

Ahluwalia has also been the President of Indian Mountaineering Foundation and Delhi Mountaineering Association. He was also the Chairman of Special Ability Trust (created to assist young achievers with disabilities with fellowships and scholarships), Youth Exploring Society (with its chapter in Ireland, West Germany and Italy), Rehabilitation Council of India (a Statutory Body under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment), Chairman of Planning Committee of Persons with Disability of 12-year plan and Chairman of the Committee of Drafting Country Report.

Expeditions and adventures After treatment at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, he continued to pursue his

love for adventure by organising pioneering events such as the first Ski Expedition to Mt. Trisul, the first Trans-Himalaya Motor Expedition (1983), and the Central Asia Cultural Expedition (1994) following the Silk & Marco Polo's Route through Uzbekistan, Kirghistan, Kazaghistan entering China in Asian City of Kashgar, Yarkhand and returned via Tibet and Khathmandu.

National AwardsArjuna Award-1965

Awards

Padma Shri-1966Padma Bhushan-2002

Tenzing Norgay National Adventure award for lifetime Achievement-29 August 2009

National Award for the Welfare of People with Disabilities-3 December 1998

Awards

MOUNT EVEREST: HISTORY AND FACTS

 It was first identified by a British survey team lead by Sir George Everest in 1841.In 1865, it was named Mount Everest, after Sir George Everest.Everest is 29,035 feet or 8848 meters high.Everest is called Chomolungma in Tibet. It means mother Goddess of the universe. Everest is called Sagarmatha in Nepal. It means Goddess of the sky.The first woman to summit Everest was Junko Tabei of Japan in 1975.

Key points  Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia was a member of the first

successful expedition to Mount Everest in 1965. The author H.P.S. Ahluwalia has narrated his

experience of climbing the summit of Everest.  As the author stood on the summit many emotions

surged through him.  Of all the emotions, the dominant one was humility.  Climbing the summit of Everest provides a deep

sense of joy which lasts   a lifetime and changes the climber completely.

 According to the author, there is another summit- the summit of mind that is more difficult to climb.

 After getting down from the summit, the author questioned himself as to why people climb mountains.

The mountain presents great difficulties. Man takes delight in overcoming obstacles.

Summary ‘The Summit Within’ is a story of

experiences of Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia, a member of the first successful Indian

expedition to  Mount Everest. Ahluwalia was full of humility when he stood on the

summit of Everest. He thanked God for his physical success.  It was the highest of the goals for him.While getting down from the Summit he asked himself why he climbed Everest and what made him to do so. The

people climb mountains because they present great difficulties. Man takes delight

in overcoming obstacles. A climb  to a summit means the demonstration of

climber’s endurance,  Persistence and will power. Since childhood, the narrator has

been attracted by mountains. 

For him mountains are nature at its best. They have a challenging  beauty and majesty. They are a means of communion with God.Everest is the highest and the mightiest and has defied many previous attempts. On climbing its summit, one has the sense of victory  and of happiness. Its view brings a spiritual change in his mind. It poses a challenge before him which was difficult to resist. One feels connected with the supernatural element on reaching the Summit. One becomes conscious of his own smallness in this large Universe. It provides physical, emotional and spiritual fulfilment. Climbing a mountain is a highly risky job and needs others’ help also. The fellow climbers prove to be a source of inspiration. They remember their Gods to feel confident. It is far more difficult to climb the summit within oneself than to climb the summit of a mountain. One can get a fuller knowledge of oneself merely by climbing one’s personal and internal mountain peak.

MADE BY – Deepak upadhyay