Hidden Treasure Series-Part X- On Education

Dear Folks,

I used to wonder even now how on earth school + college education alone would help someone to be successful and or joy in LIFE. I used to wonder how cruelly creativity is nipped in the bud in schools in India by ‘rote’ based learning. However things are changing becos’  ‘change is the ONLY constant’, isn’t it?

Ravi: A wintery evening to you Shri. GRK. Hot Bhajji’s and steaming Tea awaits us as we speak. Today’s topic is something closer to your heart; I wish we have taken up this much earlier. I’m referring to Education. Tell me, isn’t too much emphasis been given to Education notably schooling where we often find that there is a race for ‘marks’ for more marks, tests-and-mundane-retests, to basically test what one does not know!

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GRK: Hah Ha! It however does not occur in Western Society, my friend. We have a myopic view on Education. ‘Education’ does NOT merely mean schooling in civic virtues and social behavior. It also does not mean conditioning rather molding of students to a set pattern of thought and value. It is also not indoctrination of an ideology, politics, thought pattern or a religion.

Also, Education is NOT only learning of skills and crafts. It does NOT merely mean information gathering. Thus cramming and repetition have a very little place in a true education.

Ravi: Then you mean that the ‘degrees’ have no meaning? Shri. GRK, these days, parents in India, especially the middle-class, are ready to sacrifice anything for their wards being ‘educated’ and get Engineering or a medicine degree. What does a true education mean?

GRK: Ravi, true Education means a process of ‘self awakening’. This is possible when only there is self- awareness on the part of students. In other words, education is a kindling process, and self enabling process and also an ennobling process. True education must kindle the RIGHT brain of human beings. It must elevate man, the biological brute, to a level of human, then humane and later even divine levels. Thus acculturation of man is the sumnum-bonum of education. Here acculturation does not mean just learning of table manners and socially accepted behavior patterns. In true education competitive & acquiring ability occupies secondary place, while developing RIGHT brain is primarily emphasized.

Ravi: You mean, Real education is taming of the man into a humane individual in brain and spirit!

GRK: Haven’t you already? Didn’t you wife or kids say so? Self- awareness and Self enlightenment is the highest goal of all true education. This education alone can lead man from darkness to light, from passive inaction to restlessly dynamic action and from ignorance to discretion nay wisdom. Discretion is the soul of education. Then only man can understand his life and his true relationship with fellow beings, nature and Almighty fully.

Ravi: Having said that, isn’t dissent and non-conformity a part-and-parcel of education?

GRK: Indeed. The truest education is based on the values of creativity, dissent, non-conformity and dynamism. A real education is possible when only a student is allowed to be creative, to think for himself, even if this thinking differs from all known thought patterns and behavior. It even may differ from all established values and institutions. Thus it is based on dissent and non conformity –an opportunity to differ and non-conform to all known thought patterns of behavior, and institutionalized values. Then only a real “flowering” or blossoming of an individual into his full-fledged personality is possible. Then only dynamic and enlightened individuals could be created and thereby dynamic society too.

Ravi: If it’s so, then, what we need at present is not conditioning, but de-conditioning, not schooling but de-schooling of brains under the name of education. We cannot impart discipline, in the sense of mechanical conformity, to the children under the name of education and through coercion and fear. The fear-generated-discipline is not a true one and cannot last long any system; especially education, based on fear and coercion cannot bring enlightenment, peace and harmony to the mankind.

GRK: Well said. Hence we need a creative education which alone can bring the total revolution on this earth.  This means molding of individuals into human beings with basic human values, such as honesty, truthfulness, non-violence and above all the great concern to fellow beings. Thus only we could produce less selfish, less greedy, less possessive, less aggressive, less cunning and less brutal human beings out of our schools and colleges.

Ravi: I’m sure that’s the way forward in India, with educational reforms being done step by step. Activity based education is being promoted, "marks" making way for 'grades', more RIGHT brain activities as well. As I said earlier, the world is in safe hands, if these children are allowed to THINK by themselves. 

                                                     

Folks, Anandashram is calling me/us again and the retreat awaits us. Awesome sharing sessions and many self-realisation beckons us. I FELT these are awesome learning for the seeker.  If any of you are interested in attending the annual ‘satsang’(nay retreat) at Anandashram in English, it’s between 30^th Dec-1^st Jan. In Thamizh, it’s during 26-28^th Jan. Contact www.anandashram.org  for more details and your accommodation requirements. One of THE holiest places I have seen so far, this place is a ‘holy-land’ sans Gods and Goddesses, Godman or God-women, mundane and meaningless rituals. 

Signing off having understood that my post-graduation degree obtained is just a grain of sand. Lots to learn and get ‘educated’. Thank you Shri. GRK for this humble learning. Anandashram is one such place for this kind of education or culturing. Thank you Almighty.                                                                                                 

Love

Ravichander Venkatraman

Hidden Treasure Series - Part I - On ‘Love’

Dear Folks, young and not-so-young,

It has been around 2 ½  months since I key-stroked my last blog. End December 2010, I visited Anand Ashram at Kanhangad. Suffice is to say that it’s one of the holiest places, sans GODs, “God-men” OR “God-women”, sans ‘routine’ discourses and back-breaking rituals. I stayed for 4 days, was in absolute peace, sans mundane meetings and meaningless talks. Was fortunate to meet some sages, some ‘sage-like’, and many awesome ‘humane’ humans as well. The hospitality was stunning and seen to be believed! An hour away from Mangalore, I visited my ‘Life Guru’ Shri. GRK and stayed with him for a couple of days. He presented me with his book ‘Life Explorations’ written 2 decades back, which was never published for sale. Ten minutes into reading the book I went to him and complained in a raised voice as to How come he didn’t give that book to me so far! (For starters, I have written about Shri.GRK in my first blog).

My dear readers, the book(Allow me to name it a ‘Hidden Treasure’), 42 pages in all, all sentences written in small caps, without any comparisons or fictional stories, without any religious connotation / politics; is full of ‘LIFE JUICE(S)’ – For YOU and me, for YOUR family and my family, for believers / non-believers, educated/not-so educated, rich or not-so-rich, for the humane souls to ‘not-so-humane’ souls. Simply, to ALL human-kind. It’s upto each individual to take, drink the juice, cherish and digest it. Also, it’s upto the individual to share with others like HOW Shri. GRK asked me to share with YOU all – In the form of a conversation between Him and ‘Yours Truly’! We start the ‘Hidden Treasure Series’ with WHAT everyone WANTS and not many giving / getting IT- i.e. Love or being Loved. Allow me to add, in the purest form! Read on…  

What is Love?

Ravi: Shri. GRK, many in India, thanks to the print and media, SEE ‘Love’ as a relationship between a girl or a boy, man or woman, some kind of attachment. Are they not correct?

GRK: Hmmm. Ravi, “Love does not mean a relationship between man and woman. Neither it’s an attachment, nor a pity. Love does not mean a FEELING of possessiveness or obsession” either.

Ravi: Oh! What is Love THEN, in this fast-food world, humans needing instant success and instant gratification? Also, what’s wrong with a husband or wife being possessive of each other and a mother obsessed with her only child?

GRK: We are living in a civilization in which we want to possess NOT only houses, cars and gadgets, but also wives, husbands, children, institutions and ideas as well.  Love is nothing to do with all these, and it is not based on the instinct of self-possessiveness or over-obsession.  Love does not have anything to do with the satisfaction of desire and the pleasure as well.

Ravi: Hah ha! What an outstanding thought? Mothers may complain though! Shall we say then, that ‘Love’ is some kind of concern? Again, should it be conditional or un-conditional?

GRK: You are on-the-dot, Ravi.  Love is a concern - a feeling of identification-to co-beings, to nature, to a situation, to an event and to a reality. It is an unconditional concern and does not have expectations-particularly commercial and utilitarian, THUS love is sacred and sublime.

Ravi: In that sense, it is correct if one could say that he/she loved a beggar and that he/she loved a leper?

GRK: Yes. Not only that, Do we mean REAL love when we say that I love my book, that I love my wife, that I love my car etc.?

OR  

Could we say that we love our religion - NOT in the sense of loving one’s rituals, denominations, gods, goddesses and images-BUT religion as a feeling of concern, to the nature and beings?

OR 

Could we say that we love our country - NOT as patriotism, as sentiment, as nationality and as a racial superiority (pride) but as a GENUINE concern to the people around us? 

OR 

Could we say that we love nature and flowers - NOT to make them garlands so as to make use of them for our use, for fragrance or for prayer, but that we love them as they are and appreciate them as a ‘sight of joy’ and nature’s gift and are concerned to them and are moved to ecstasy by their beauty? 

Ravi: So, you SAY that ‘Love’ is unconditional, sacred and sublime? Am I with you Shri. GRK?

GRK: Yes, Ravi. Could we NOW understand that THIS love which is ‘unconditional, sacred and sublime’? If not this concern, what else is love? Allow me to add that, that concern should be towards co-beings, living or dead, nature, living things or non-living things. We have seen children loving their teddy’s so dearly! Have you noticed?

Ravi: Very much. Read somewhere that even non-living things do have a soul. My younger daughter speaks to her Teddy as though it’s a living dog, talks to the very old scooter I have(which still works to my surprise!), maybe thanks to her ‘unconditional love’ on them! Maybe she speaks to their souls!

GRK: If so, all I can SAY is that she has an awesome RIGHT brain which you know is very benevolent and kind. Also, she is far ahead than your thinking and doing. So do most of this generation kids. Remember that.

Ravi: Well said. In fact I’ve shared a blog “Three powerful Diamonds”, long ago, what we learnt from her. Many liked the diamonds and as I understand are NOW being SHARED around in this cosmos!

Thank you, Shri. GRK, for your time. Please could you advise what’s the ‘treasure’ which we shall share with the human-kind next week?

GRK: Sure. Let it be on ‘Service and Sacrifice’. Many of us have a not-so-right opinion on that as we FEEL that’s not for us. We FEEL that those are for the NGO’s, religious organizations and CSR programmes!


Ravi: That would be awesome Shri. GRK. Thank you once again for your time. Look forward to our teta-tete next week.

Folks, DO share what you FELT reading this first ‘piece’ in the ‘Hidden Treasure’ Series. Shri. GRK has lot more to share with all of us. Never found wanting of enthusiasm and energy, this learned ‘sage’ is an epitome of humility and ‘Caring and Sharing’, sans publicity. Is an institution by himself -> Like Anand Ashram, instituted by revered Papa Ramdas in 1933. Till date, haven’t seen an advertisement of any sort. Hence “It’s a not a “cult” for scandals to erupt!” Hah ha!

Let me end with a nice quote on Love, taken from VSET, an offshoot of Anand Ashram.

The sun shines for others,
the trees bear fruit for others,
the rivers flow for the good of others.
Human birth is, likewise, meant for doing good to others.

Love gave us willing, caring hands,
to perform some helpful deed.
Love gave us sympathetic words,
to answer someone's need.
Love gave us soft hearts,
to aid another along the way.
Love gave us smiles and laughter,
to brighten someone's day.
Love gave us all these treasured gifts,
for helping one another.
Love works through us all,
so that we care for each other!

Endrum Anbudan

Ravi

Ps: The holy souls in Anand Ashram, chant ‘Sri Ram Jai Ram Jai  Jai Ram’ non-stop from 6AM-6PM, everyday, rain or shine. Have recorded the chanting during the New Year ’s Eve. Found it soothing, helps even noisy souls like me to be in peace and the elderly in absolute bliss! If you or the elderly in your family / neighbor’s, (your pet doggy and catty  too) like to hear, write to me @ ravi@gatesandwindows.in Will email the link in the ‘cloud’, where it has been saved. For my ‘non-believer’ friends, Ram mentioned here is NOT the ‘fictional’ King of Ayodhya. You advise me then, what’s the meaning of this ‘Ram’?