I D Soni
Aristotle was the most respected teacher in Athens. The city’s best and brightest young men gathered around him at his Lyceum to receive an all-round ‘liberal’ education, aimed at making them ideal citizens and ideal human beings.
Once, a young mother approached Aristotle. She dreamt of the day when her little son would become Aristotle’s student. In her eagerness she wanted the boy to be prepared for it right from his childhood. “When should I begin training my child, so that he may grow upto be an ideal human being?” She asked the great teacher. “How old is your child?” enquired Aristotle. “He is barely five now”, said the eager mother.
“Waste no more time, dear lady”, said Aristotle, “You are already five years late”.
It is never too early to start inculcating values in our children. The foundation of every State is the education of its children. The present educational system of India was inherited from the British and is predominantly theoretical. The British evolved a system of learning aimed at producing ‘Brown Sahebs’ and clerks in large numbers. It was Lord Mc Caulay’s System of Education. It was supposed to perpetuate loyalty to the British educational and political institutions.
The child, therefore, is not a tabula rasa, a clean slate on which parents or teachers may write whatever they please: it has its own faculties – physical, intellectual and moral – as yet unable to produce acts for want of unfolding and exercise, but with clear characteristics and tendencies, good or bad, determined by heredity, constitution and surroundings. The work of education therefore consists in providing the child with suitable opportunities for the exercise and development of its latent powers. The objects taught, the home work, the instruments for work and play, the companions, the teachers, the very furniture and surroundings and ‘atmosphere’ of the home and school (for these are, in order of importance, the two places of education) – all are to be properly kept (chosen) if and in so far as they are suitable as occasions (not causes) of the child’s own activity. The cause of education, or the educator, is the child himself, for education is an immanent action, while instruction, a transient action, is given by the teacher. The only true education is self-education, for no outsider can act for the child. The utmost that others i.e. parents and teachers can do is to stimulate the child through emulation, ambition, fear, love – to exert and exercise his own faculties of body and soul. The teacher and parents can provide the bodily substance; the child’s talent which gives life and personality, is created by God and once created is self-determining and unique.
IN BORN ATTITUDES OF A CHILD:-
Look at children and see how the world should be viewed and how life should be lived and when we ask ourselves which of the realities we prefer for ourselves, the answer is obvious! We want to live the life of an adult and take on its challenges, but we always view it with the heart and eyes of a child. Children are so easy to make happy. They jump with joy and flash the biggest smiles even at the sight of lollypop. A child will rip open his present instantly. He cannot lose his sense of curiosity and excitement. Children are outspoken and honest about their feelings. Hence children sleep fitfully and always have a positive energy charge.
There is a big difference in being childish and childlike. Statistics tell us that children smile between 400-500 times a day. Children have enormous resilience and if anything goes wrong, rather than dwell on things, they able to forget quickly and focus on something that is deserving of their attention and time.
The key word is exuberance. The synonyms of exuberance are enthusiasm, excitement, liveliness, energy, high spirits and cheerfulness. I would like to add two attributes that are available in abundance in kids and almost always lacking in adults: Trust and imagination. There is a saying, “Once bitten twice shy”, but many adults are constantly on guard and fearful of being cheated and hurt. I say trust everyone till they prove us wrong and also try to keep ourselves open to the incredible power of imagination.
Children always have these amazing Worlds of fantasy with superheroes, knights rescuing princesses, heroes with monsters. They will spin yarns and conjure up endless stories that we know are not true, but it is the same power of imagination and belief that makes for bright, creative minds and fantastic future. These above said in born and innate instincts in children have to be taken care of from their childhood by providing them the opportunities to strengthen their beliefs and satisfy their emotions to live life and see the world through their eyes which will be the easiest way to make themselves happy. When one is a stranger to oneself then one is estranged from others too. If one is out of touch with one self, then one cannot touch others. It is, therefore, the duty of parents that they should help the child to find the ways to satisfy his/her these natural reflexes.
ONLY LITTLE ONES CAN LEAD US:-
Today, we find that violence is in the air in many parts of the world, and chaos is spreading like wild fire. Within the brief space of about two decades, the face of India has changed. What is the cause? And what is the cure? The cause, as it seems to me, is this, that we have cut off ourselves from roots. We need to go back to our roots.
How many of our educated men and women derive inspiration from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the Gita and Upanishads? How many of the thousands of graduates that are being sent out of Universities, every year, know or appreciate the old songs and stories of India? How many realise the beauty of their own national culture? How many are in contact with the rich spiritual heritage of the race?
Little ones need some of the beautiful old things our leaders and teachers loved, lived for and died for in the long ago. They are to be prepared from their early childhood to claim the songs and stories, the literature and arts, the traditions and ideals of India. They are the temples where the soul of the race remembers itself. And in them slumbers a sacred fire, waiting for young India to breathe into its breath of reverent love, and wake it into a flame of sacrifice to the Saviour of the nation. In them is the hope of the future. They and such as they, in different parts of the country – can become the builders of a new India, the architects of a new humanity.
Indian ideals should be impressed on little ones in the formative years of their lives. Physical training, open-air Institutions, social service, and the training of emotions should be regarded as important elements in their educational programme in addition to heart training, mind training and hand training and Brahma-Vidya or Science of the spirit.
If little ones stand true to their ancient ideals, they will enrich once more the world’s life – the India’s life. India will become strong and vital. She will be acclaimed as a leader of the nations, a builder of civilisation. Little ones, if they are made to cling to the vision of the sages who saw that the Root of life is God, they can be easily motivated to love God and love their fellow friends. In love is the solution to all the problems which have been afflicting modern civilisation. Therefore, they may be guided by parents and teachers that with one hand cling to the Lotus Feet of the Lord and with the other go and serve the poor and lowly. In this ideal is the hope of a broken India, a bleeding humanity as they only are capable to lead us through their purest of actions, and the noblest deeds.
HOW TO START CHILD’S EDUCATION?
Many parents have started feeling that their children are drifting apart from them and the rest of the family. They also feel that their children are beginning to lose respect for the ancient Indian values and ideals they cherished. For such parents, I dare make some suggestions, to be adhered to, in the best interest of their children:-
* Everyday, all the members of the family – from the youngest to the eldest – should spend a little time in prayer together. As the saying goes, ‘that the family that prays together, stays together’. At such sessions, a thought from the scriptures or from an inspirational book should be read and each and every member must be asked to offer his or her reflections on that thought. This gives everyone a sense of involvement in the prayer and makes the prayer personal rather than mechanical.
* Parents are expected to create an atmosphere of fellowship at home. The fruitage of fellowship are many fold. This helps to cultivate the highest moral and spiritual virtues like faith in child’s divine nature i.e. truth, purity, honesty, perseverance, courage, strength, love, sympathy, for and service to all, modesty, humility and politeness. It is well said that character, manners, and virtues cannot be taught. They are caught in an atmosphere of fellowship at home.
* Parents must realise that mother has the greatest influence in the life of a child – especially during the formative years, when the child is in the impressionable, moulding stage. It is under her influence that the child’s character is shaped. By the shining example of her life, she can infuse in the children love for their cultural heritage, traditions and values, so that the children will always know where their roots are.
* The father too, has an important role to play. Whatever may be his business preoccupations, he must spend as much time as possible with his children everyday. He should go out with his family during weekends and on a brief holidays atleast twice a year.
* The TV must cease to be the focus of the family in the evenings. The dominant place given to the TV in our homes truly distressing. In all their free time, the children’s eyes are glued to the TV screens. Not only does this have a harmful effect on their eyes, but also makes them sluggish and lethargic. What is the worse, the impact of the violence and other undesirable elements shown on the TV makes an indelible negative impressions on young minds. The TV must be displaced, substituted with some other healthy, creative past time for the children.
* Children should be got enrolled in weekly classes where they could be introduced to and taught the essentials of India’s deathless culture. This is especially important for Indian children who live abroad. They should be made to realise that even though they live far away from their homeland, they belong to India, and feel proud about being inheritors of a rich, immortal, culture and tradition, which is regarded as the light and hope of a decaying world.
* Parents should try to create reverence for great figures into the hearts of their children from the very early stage. They should be told the stories of great heroes so that they may receive the inspiration from their deeds and devoted lives. They will become what they think upon. Not a system of maxims, but models, great figures, great characters, radiant with the great ideals, can really shape the lives of children.
I personally believe what the children need is time, attention and love. Without love no child can grow in the right way. The child learns more through example than preaching. Therefore, parents must set the right example before their children.
(The author is President Home for the Aged & Infirm, Ambphalla, Jammu.)
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