Ajit Singh Nagra
TEACHER’S DAY SPECIAL
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime
And departing leave behind us
Foot prints on the sands of time. ‘Long fellow
In the hoary past, our India has remained a cradle of illustrious teachers, intellecting giants, literary savants and inspiring educationing who enlightened the world with their purity of knowledge spiritual awakening and ethical values to foster the feelings of universal love, amity and fraternity to remove the insurmountable barriers of narrow minded considerations and ignorance to knit the world together like one family. Lord Buddha Lord Mahavira, Saint Kabir and Guru Nanak Dev Ji dispelled ignorance from our minds and gave the message of love and unity to harbing spiritual sunshine for all.
In our modern times Raja Ram Mohan Ray, Swami Vivekananda and Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan have rendered yeoman’s service to the nation by glorifying her name all over world by highlighting our religion, culture and society.
Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was a priceless jewel and born educationist who rose from the humble position of a college teacher and adorned the prestigious chair of the President of the country by sheer dint of his diligence and intelligence, capability and calibre without an iota of greed and pride.
This illustrious son of mother India was born on 5 Sept 1888 at a small place Tiruttani in chittor district of Madras presidency forty miles to the north west of Madras (now Chennai) in Telegu Smarta Brahmni family.
He was the second son of Servepalli Veera Swamji and sitamma in a family of five boys and two girls. His ancestors had moved there 150 years ago from the Andhra fishing village of Servepalli about 200 miles further north.
Upon passing the entrance examination of Madras University, he entered Madras Christian college in 1904. He received BA in 1907 and MA degrees in 1909 from the university of Madras. In 1917 he was appointed professor of Philosophy in the University of Mysore.
In 1921, he was appointed to king George V Chair of mental and moral science in the university of Calcutta. In 1926, he was invited to Oxford University to work as a visiting professor and remained professor of Eastern religious and ethics at the University of Oxford (1936-52) and Vice Chancellor of Banaras Hindu University (1939-48) India from 1953 to 1962 he was chancellor of the University of Delhi. He led the Indian delegation to the United Nations’s UNESCO 1946-52 and was elected Chairman of UNESCO’s Executive Board (1948-49) from 1949 to 1952 he served as Indian ambassador to the Soviet Union.
He distinguished himself as a very clear exponent and expositor of abtruse problems of philosophy and published the monumental Indian philosophy covering all schools of Indian philosophy and thought Nayaya (Gantama) Sankhya (Kapila) Yoga (Pitanjali) Vedanta (Ved Vyas) Vaiseska (Kanada) and Mimansa (Jaimani).
The western scholars were deeply thrilled by his vast scholarship and clear exposition in fluent and flawless English. He solved many knotty problems in Indian philosophy and had the ability to arouse the heart and enlighten the mind.
In 1939 Pt Madan Mohan Maulviya approached Dr Radhakrishnan to accept Vice Chancellorship of the Banaras Hindu University, he declined to accept any pecuniary offer and consented to work only in honorary capacity. Has lecturers on Lord Buddha were adjudged as a lecture on a master mind by a master mind. In 1940, he was the First Indian to achieve the distinction of being elected as Fellow of British Royal Academy.
In 1952, Dr Radhakrishnan was destined to be the first Vice President of the country and occupied the prestigious post of the President of India during 1962-67 and supplanted Dr Rajendra Prasad.
But the riches and the Kaleidoscopic changes of life could not shorn him of simplicity, humility and magnanimity he retired from politics in 1967 after the completion of his term and devoted his time and energy to complete his work which included Indian philosophy 2 volumes (1923-27) The philosophy of upanishads (1924) An idealist view of life (1932) Eastern Religion and Western thought (1939). In his lecturers and books he tried to interpret Indian thought and philosophy for westerners who had poor opinion about our society and religion and disparaged our faith.
Dr Radhakrishanan passed away on 16 April 1975 in his house at Madras and he received the Templetion Award in Religion post humously for his outstanding contribution and profound erudition of the subject.
Our teaching community should make this greatman as our role dole and we should devote atleast two or three hours daily for self study by devouring the master pieces of renowned authors to replenish our store house of knowledge with literary ambrosia and intellectual nourishment.
It is a matter of deep concern that some black sheep in the teaching community have tarnished its image, sullied its reputation and desecrated its sanctity by stooping law to lick the dust of money and material by indulging into culpable sins, incorrigible activities asinine mistakes and egregious blunders. The educational institutions have turned into business houses. Where atmosphere is both politicized and communalized resulting into erosion of moral values, spiritual cataclysm and general turpitude.
On this occasion of the Teacher’s Day, Best teacher awards are given to the outstanding teachers for their best contribution in the field to ameliorate the educational system but sometimes the recipients of these awards are not prudently selected and it causes ill will and resentment among those teachers who deserve but are denied on political grounds and casteism. The crafty manipulators who shirk their duty and playa second fiddle to the immediate boss and serve him with object servitude as a factotum or masseuse to champoo their feet like a chipropodist.
But a good teacher needs no award and the respect that he earns in his life time by gaining popularity among the students and the society and the inner consolation that he feels after performing his duty is the real fruit that he can relish. The work of the ideal teacher remain engraved on the slate of the minds of his shidents and these memories do not fade away.
A teacher should possess ample knowledge pure thoughts and spotless character to carve his niche in the house of reputation Education should be given the priority to purge the society of its abominable evils.
The selection committee should work sincerely to filter out the deserving teachers, and weed out the nefarious elements by churning properly to remove cream from the offal so that grievances are minimised.
(The author is a former Principal)
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