What was going on when I was born?

The police in this coastal city, using shotguns, whips, rubber bullets and tear gas, today battled thousands of protesters drawn from all of South Africa's racial groups. The immediate cause of the violence here was an official prohibition on a planned march from Cape Town suburbs to Pollsmoor Prison to demand the release of Nelson Mandela, the jailed black nationalist. The unrest was the most extensive in Cape Town since a state of emergency was declared in several other parts of the country on July 21. Five Reported Killed Police reports said at least five people had been killed in today's violence. In addition, officials from a clinic near a black township, Guguletu, reported that 50 people were wounded in other incidents.

THE pharmacy jars have labels indicating their contents: arsenic, belladonna, hemlock, curare, strychnine. Other bottles, glowing a deep cobalt blue, contain embalming fluids. Operating sets, many nestled in handsome cases, contain ivory-handled instruments, attesting to their vintage - before the age of sterilization - and conjuring lurid visions of surgery in earlier eras. A walnut case is filled with cataract knives; a rosewood box has a set of instruments that include a gold-plated corkscrew device with serrated edges. ''To bore a hole in the skull,'' the doctor says cheerfully. ''One of man's oldest operations.'' A doctor's office furnished with such an array might inspire thoughts of time warp. However, in this case the doctor, a Manhattan ophthalmologist named Stanley Burns, practices medicine according to normal modern-day standards. But his surroundings evoke powerful echoes of the 19th century, for Dr. Burns is a history buff and an avid collector of medical antiques, which he has used not only to decorate his offices but also to create a minimuseum of medical history.

Because of an editing error, an article in Business Day about Lorimar Inc. yesterday incorrectly characterized the company's plan to buy shares of Warner Communications. Lorimar said it contemplated buying up to 15 percent of Warner's outstanding common stock, not a takeover.

IN the crafts field, the traditional perception is that of an artisan working alone to create an object - a statement of his personal esthetics made a reality by the skills of his own two hands. Apprentices and trainees have always been a part of the crafts tradition, but today, some of the country's most eminent master craftsmen are using teams of highly skilled, well-paid assistants - accomplished artists themselves - to create their one-of-a-kind pieces. The group works on projects in which the master's concept and style are clearly identifiable, and although the team may sign the finished piece in some cases, generally the only signature will be that of the master. This change is the result of an increased demand for major crafts pieces by collectors. ''There is a very serious coterie of individuals who are responding to the art coming out of the crafts movement,'' said Helen Drutt, a gallery owner in Philadelphia. ''Certainly there is an increase in this collecting.'' Public commissions have also increased. Lois Moran, editor of American Craft Magazine, reports that the publication's listings of craftsmen's commissions, begun two years ago, have doubled in the past 12 months.

The Assembly today passed a bill making $18,500 the minimum salary for all public-school teachers in New Jersey. The legislation, which is backed by Governor Kean and is expected to be approved by the Senate early next month, would make New Jersey the first state to adopt a statewide minimum. The bill, approved by the Assembly by a vote of 74 to 4, also provides money to recognize outstanding teachers in 2,240 schools across the state with $1,000 grants to be used for an education program designated by the teacher. The Governor had summoned both houses of the Legislature back into session from summer vacation to deal with the teachers' salary bill and an environmental package and said the Senate adjourned without considering either measure out of ''stubbornness.'' He said that there were more than enough supporting votes in the Senate to pass the bill when it returned on Sept. 9 and that he would sign it the same day.

International Cape Town police battled thousands of protesters drawn from all of South Africa's racial groups. The officers used shotguns, whips, rubber bullets and tear gas in the most violent day in Cape Town since a state of emergency was declared in several other parts of South Africa on July 21. Five people were reported killed and at least 50 were wounded. Meanwhile, officials in Pretoria announced they would outlaw the country's largest organization of black high-school students. [Page A1, Column 6.] South Africa's black miners' union called a strike for Sunday for 62,00 of its 150,000 members at gold and coal mines and threatened a wider work stoppage if the authorities tried to break the walkout. [A14:5-6.]

The secret ways of Kirk Kerkorian occasionally exasperate and anger some shareholders, but few can argue that they have not made money by remaining loyal to businesses controlled by the low-profile, high-stakes West Coast investor. With the millions he stands to gain from the $1.5 billion sale of MGM/UA Entertainment Company to the Atlanta entrepreneur Ted Turner, Mr. Kerkorian will have myriad investment choices. Beyond a new holding company set up to consolidate all his investments, however, Wall Street analysts and money managers say they have little idea what Mr. Kerkorian plans to do next. Whatever it is, it is likely to draw a crowd. ''It's called the jockey theory of investment,'' said Lee Isgur, an analyst with Paine Webber Inc. ''Kirk has always made money for people who buy in with him.''

Because of an editing error, an article in Metropolitan Report Wednesday incorrectly reported the date of the opening of New York City public schools. Schools will open on Sept. 9.

One of the private mortgage insurers backing the obligations of the troubled Equity Programs Investment Corporation charged yesterday that Equity Programs' mortgage company had misrepresented the nature of its real estate deals, and the insurer sought to rescind its coverage on the securities sold by that company.. It was the first time since Equity Programs failed to make payment on some of its $1.4 billion in mortgage obligations that a formal charge of misrepresentation or impropriety has been made. Equity Programs executives did not return telephone calls seeking comment. Reports that the company was likely to default on mortgage payments recently caused the state of Maryland to ban deposit withdrawals from Community Savings and Loan, a Bethesda-based thrift institution that is the corporate parent of Equity Programs. In a suit filed today in Federal District Court in Greensboro, N.C., the United Guarantee Corporation, a mortgage insurance concern based in Greensboro, sought to rescind its insurance coverage on $38 million of mortgage-backed securities that EPIC Mortgage Inc. sold to investors. United Guarantee also sought to return all insurance premiums paid by EPIC Mortgage.

New York State's economy is being transformed more quickly than that of any other state by a broad, nationwide shift from manufacturing jobs to service-industry employment, the Federal Government said yesterday. The state's changing economic makeup has moved thousands of workers from factories to restaurants, banks, hospitals and other service providers in a dramatic economic turnaround in the last five years. New York, with a weaker economy than any other state during the 1970's, now has one of the strongest, the Government said in a new report on employment trends. The report concludes that the change in New York's mix of industries and job opportunities is providing an example for the rest of the country.

A smoky fire swept through 16 abandoned railroad cars in the lower level of Grand Central Terminal yesterday, shutting the entire terminal through the morning rush hour and early afternoon and disrupting travel for tens of thousands of commuters. Fire officials classified the four-hour, five-alarm blaze as arson. Fire Commissioner Joseph E. Spinnato said the fire had erupted at four different points in cars that contained bedding and kitchen utensils belonging to squatters who use the sidetracked trains as overnight shelters. ''The result is that we have had to shut down one of the major transportation hubs in the country,'' he said. More than 100 firefighters, many breathing through compressed-air equipment, battled the blaze at the western edge of the terminal. The fire was not declared under control until 9:02 A.M.

The Westinghouse Electric Corporation, which introduced a string of takeover defenses only four months ago, announced yesterday that it would buy up to 14 percent, or 25 million shares, of its stock. Analysts estimated the cost at $1 billion in cash. Westinghouse said it would also explore the sale of its highly coveted cable television business, which analysts valued as high as $2.8 billion. After taxes, debt payments and other expenses, however, Westinghouse would get about $1 billion from a sale.