Balaramkrishnadas.jps
[These lectures’ Results are hereby submitted to His Holiness Jayapataka Swami]
ISKCON – Hare Krishna Vidyadan was kicked off during fall of 2011 in Kerala, a Southern State of India; started as a ‘prisoner counselling’ program, focusing on the value driven enhancement of convicts’ behaviour, a social necessity. In Kerala’s Central Jails, the weekly programs run in Kannur- Thiruvananthapuram, and a monthly in Thrisur, Bhagavad Gita based value education, mantra meditation, collective prayers, all have paid dividends beyond expressions; official feed backs not to be generated or circulated though. Yes, none of us would gift our own kith and kin with a mafia ridden society, earnestly! That is the common benefit, envisaged through these efforts.
It was Mr Anilkumar the then Superintendent of Prison at Thrisur, lauded in that department as a corruption- free officer who observed like this: ‘the boys before falling prey to Gunda Act* shall be intervened with such value based lectures. In fact, that comment persuaded Hare Krishna Vidyadaan to expose in the same year i.e., 2011 Oct-Dec , nearly 3720 secular public school students in the State , based on a syllabus: ‘Power of Habits’ . The excellent response from that program prompted a scrupulous, holistic value driven Bhagavad Gita based lecture, specifically for Hindu Faith Schools.
A recent national survey released on the Teachers Day in India, ‘The Pearson Voice of Teacher Survey 2014’ (Courtesy: Pearson Education, Noida, UP, India) concludes ‘Overall Skill and Holistic Personality Development and Ideal Citizenship’ as the Teachers’ Choice (94%), which too proves the point made by the Jail Superintendent.
The idea of such a holistic soft-skill input to high school students of Science and Commerce Stream, when proposed, was readily agreed upon by Mr Sethumadhavan Hon. Secretary, Chinmaya Mission Trust, with a recommendation for a 1.5 hr session each, for 10th, 11th and 12th standards of Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Pallavur, Kerala, on a syllabus titled ‘Faith and Personality’. It immediately got on with the approval and the whole hearted support of Sri Jayan Kamarath, the School Principal. On 3rd September 2014, the three sessions were run, covering 10th 11th and 12th. At the end of each session, feedback forms were distributed and the students gave an average feedback mark of 9 out of 10 . The responses, self evident, lead to three major conclusions in this vital area of Personality and Nation Building.
1. ‘Value,’ ensuing from Holistic Faith Education shall not be compromised for a gain in the secular front, a desperate way to contain polarizing religionism. This disruptive trend, really an unfortunate trend, is now seen even in a formal society like United Kingdom where Religious Education with Compulsory Collective Prayer for children below 16 in Government Schools is mandatory as per Parliamentary Act, perhaps, the secret of British domination over the world cultures and languages for the past four centuries!
2. In a hyper- competitive, uncertain world, faith on Self and consequently on Divinity becomes just a non issue, nullifying any personality of the human child who verily loses its time and its will to otherwise keep on to its own very Self. This affects self confidence, motivation and goals of the child, its home, its expressions, its society and ultimately: its nation and its life world!
Such value- less children become the root cause of many a things: collective corruption (lobbies -mafias), environmental anarchy, extremism, as they take on to real life.
It is in this context that the batches of school children from Chinmaya, rightly respond to deeper philosophic understandings on Self and its connection with God; contrary to the notion that scientifically toned teens are usually averse to it. Their sanguine comments in those feedbacks evidence their aspirations, (Average 8.93 /10, of totally 162 High School Kids) making visible to us, the so called custodians of human value, Faith and Personality- is a cherished elective if dealt sensibly, for high school brains!
‘Hare Krishna Vidyadaan’ -Kerala Chapter, would be indebted to all progressive personalities of this world who would care to expose many more students to these *preventive* ‘Value Booster Doses’, in Hindu Faith Schools, to start with, cherishing the importance of ‘Faith-content in Personality’. The lecture content and narration are aimed to suit the protocol of peaceful Scientific cum Academic learning environment, having no agenda whatsoever of any indoctrination, knowing well and valuing fully well the expanding critical psyche of these young citizens to make them world class with its due dividends disbursed to their personal wellbeing, social welfare, national integrity, environment- conservation and eventually, the attendant world -peace.
*Prevention of Crime Act
KERALA VIDYADAN’S Contact No…
0091 812 992 2849 ,