Parents Their Role as Creative Teachers - Ven. Bhikkhu Sanghasena

Value of Education Today

Today, everybody, even the villager living in the most remote and inaccessible region, has realized the importance of education for the future of their children. Even the poorest of the poor people are trying to send their children to school, by selling whatever little property they have or by borrowing money. We have realized the importance of education but we have not yet grasped the real purpose of education: What education actually is. With the result that, inspite of rapidly increasing number of schools, colleges, universities and educated people, society has become painfully complicated. Many new problems are coming up. The quality of human heart-love, compassion, respect for elders, concern about each other, spiritual, cultural, religious and human values are deteriorating fast. Greed, hatred, selfishness and competition have increased at an alarming rate. It proves that something has gone seriously wrong in the way we are educating our children.

Today’s educational system emphasizes too much on acquiring external knowledge. In modern educational institutions it seems that the goal of education is only one – to get somehow higher jobs and make lots of money.

The goal of education must be to produce good-hearted human-beings. Good-hearted means a heart with love, compassion, goodwill, respect for all life, respect for all nature, love for all and hatred for none. The goal of education must be to produce human beings who understand reality, precious-ness of human life and understand from where he has come, what his destination is and what is to be done during the short period of life. Without strong emphasis on human values, the present and future education is likely to bring more chaos in the society.

© "Dhamma" (April, 2003 issue ) published by Buddha Vachana Trust, 14, Kalidasa Road, Gandhinagar, Bangalore 560 009. Website: www.mbodhi.com. Reprinted with permission.

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