On Education
The Vaikkom Satyagraha was
going on. An English officer, Mr. Cotton was rushing to the site with his
deputy who was an Ezhava. In fact, the public roads were out of bounds for the
lower casts. However, nobody objected. Guru came to know about this and
remarked,
“If leather is present as
footwear, it is banned from the temple premises. If the same thing is a part of
“chenda” (main percussion instrument in Kerala temples), everyone welcomes it!
How does it happen?
People have no discerning
ability. One acquires it only through education.
Education is the stairway to
Freedom.
A stepping stone on which one
takes a giant leap to knowing. A tool for drilling through ignorance. Knowledge
is the ultimate. Sree Narayana Guru doesn't use the word in the conventional
sense. Knowledge is not the kind of stuff which can be imparted through
teachers and classrooms. Neither is it transferable from a container to empty
smaller vessels. Knowledge is about knowing oneself. Is it the same for all,
the fundamentals of human character that make people happy? Is there a common
denominator for deriving happiness? If you could find that through education,
you’re brilliant! You realize that the difference between people does not
really exist. You’re the same as the other. You start seeing everyone as your
own reflection. You become bold. Fear has already been vanished.
Unfortunately, nobody is
worried about the higher purpose of education and it has been reduced to a mere
certification for bread-winning. One is uploaded with chunks of outdated
knowledge to become job-worthy It gets you an address and nothing more! Peace and
happiness are still out of bounds! If this is the case, where is the difference
between educated and uneducated? Faced with a crisis, both are jittery. The
information mugged up for exams doesn’t come for one’s rescue. One becomes
desperate end up as an alcoholic or put a full-stop in suicide.
When one uses education for attaining freedom,
one starts processing knowledge on one’s own. The knowledge acquired from
various sources – science, history, music, literature, visual arts, travel etc.
– are processed to sift the chaff from the kernel. One gets a pretty good idea
of what’s real and what’s not.
Such a person will have a
smooth sail through life. Just no one can take his/her freedom away!
The ungraspable phantom of
life has been tamed.
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