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News Topical, Digital Desk : Imagine a time when education meant living in perfect harmony with nature and the cycle of life. Waking up with the sunrise, serving the fire, treating food as medicine, serving the community and becoming proficient in all arts including self-defense.
Along with this, the purpose of education was also to sit with guides who could see your soul clearly. They would empower you on your unique life path. Dr. Yogrishi Vishwaketu, founder of Akhand Yoga Institute and All India Yoga Gold Medalist, says that today the situation has changed.
Teachers are no longer guides. They are preparing machines to pass intellectual exams. Schools are not inculcating values in students, they are also preparing machines, who go out and earn money. They are becoming rich, but are not happy, not content, not joyful and are losing harmony. They are not using or harnessing nature, they are exploiting it.
Long standing tradition of holistic education
Education in the ancient Gurukul system was not just preparation for a job. It was a complete preparation for life. Body, mind, emotions and soul, all were nurtured together.
Gurus were not just teachers but also a mirror, a compass and a guide to inner clarity. Guru Purnima is dedicated to this sacred tradition.
In pre-colonial India, that is, before the British ruled India, boys and girls used to go to Gurukul during the Brahmacharya period. So that they could become complete human beings whose life is connected with the society and the whole of nature.
Intensive practice and value-based teaching of Gurukul
The disciples were taught:
- Religion, Vedas, Ayurveda, Astronomy, Music, Self-Defense, Mathematics and Philosophy
- Also Yoga, Meditation, Seva (service spirit) and Self-discipline
They used to learn:
- Discipline with a regular routine
- Humility and Gratitude from Collective Service
- Wisdom and vision through reflection and dialogue
Only intellectual education was not available
“This education was not merely intellectual, but lived, experiential and continuous, moulding the mind as well as the entire being.” Each disciple was guided according to his nature, sanskar and spiritual state. This was the reason why he was not only efficient in work, but was able to lead a life full of self-realization and service.
The crisis of enlightenment in modern education
In today's fast-paced era, the aim of education has often become performance, not creativity. Children learn to pass exams, but do not learn to understand themselves.
Swami Vivekananda warned, ‘Education without character produces a strong mind, but a weak heart.’ Guru Purnima calls for a renaissance of this heart-realisation, self-awareness and infinite possibilities.
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