In the process of formal education, and learning in life in general, what should we do to get the best training? Bhagawan lovingly grants us precious guidance today, for both the student and the teacher.
Training (sikshana) is a process in which the teacher and the taught cooperate. It must be a pleasant experience, a useful and heartening endeavour, for both. “Kshana” means “a second”, and I want that you must learn a good lesson every second of your life. For example, when the teacher enters the classroom, children should salute the teacher; that is a lesson in humility, in respecting age and scholarship, in gratitude for the service rendered. Teachers too should perform to deserve the salutation of the children entrusted to their care by their sincere work and selfless service. The student should not respect the teacher out of fear but must be moved by their love. The teacher should avoid all methods that frighten or terrorise! Education is a slow process like the unfolding of a flower, the fragrance becoming deeper and more perceptible with the silent blossoming, petal by petal, of the entire flower!
– Divine Discourse, Sep 09, 1958.
