Mahatma Gandhi, a lawyer by profession, a politician by calling, and a seeker of Truth by nature, became the Father of the Nation and remains one of the greatest teachers from whom we can learn. His views on education, though seemingly idealistic, are more relevant today than they were in 1925 when he first expressed them. While governments have changed, the fundamental problems in education persist—only now, they come with added challenges, particularly due to the invasion of gadgets and the internet. Like all human inventions, these too have both advantages and disadvantages, leaving us to decide how we use them.
Gandhi’s message remains profoundly relevant, especially in an era where education is heavily politicized. Unfortunately, many politicians prioritize power over the genuine needs of students and teachers. At the same time, we cannot ignore the role of students, teachers, and administrators in shaping the current state of education—both its strengths and its shortcomings. Compared to Gandhi’s time, when he spoke of teachers receiving meager salaries, many educators today—though not all—receive exorbitant pay that often seems disproportionate to their actual contribution to education.
Sadly, Gandhism seems to have died along with Gandhi, and his views and voice now feel almost foreign, even in India. Yet, a few, like me, continue to find inspiration in his life and teachings. To me, he remains both a teacher and a guru.
Ashram, 25-3-2025
Gandhiji and Education
Being a lawyer by profession, and politician by call and seeker of Truth by nature Mahatmaji who became the Father of the nation is one of the best teachers for us to learn. However, his views about education, though looks idealistic remain relavenet more so now than in his time when he wrote this back in 1925. Only the government changed but the problems remain the same, of course with more challenges as the entire education system now facing due to the invasion of gadgets and internet. Of course, like all other human inventions, these too have both their advantage and disadvantage, leaving us to decide to what purpose we are using them. Still the message remains more relevant when there is lots of politicizing education, thanks to the pity politicians, only keeping power in their mind and not the needs of the students and teachers in mind. Similarly we cannot deny the contribution that both the students and teachers, include all the administration for the present condition—both for good and bad. Compare to what Mahatmaji wrote about the low salary of the teachers, now, many of them, if not all, receive exarbident salary compare to their contribution to education.
Well, Gandhism died along with Gandhi and his views and voice looks completely alien even in India. But very few like me, find inspirations both from his life and teaching, as he always remains my teacher—p. 33-34 [education] and Guru.
14. TEACHERS’ CONDITION
A deputation from the All-Bengal Teachers’ Association waited upon me some time ago and asked me to advise them how they could better their condition and be of service to the country. They admitted that, at the present moment, they were not doing much good to the country. This is how they described their condition:
The teachers are now engaged in performing a thankless task under a heavy personal sacrifice. They are imparting an education which is unprofitable and uninteresting through no fault of their own. They are to mechanically follow a curriculum of studies which provides for no religious, moral and vocational training. The education given today in Bengal through nearly 900 schools and by 20,000 teachers is domineered over by an examination system which only encourages cramming. The teachers’ condition (p.33) teachers are looked down upon as they are miserably underpaid. There is a large number of cases of mutual distrust and lack of sympathy between the teachers and the school authorities as well as the guardians. Education does not provide for physical training and is imparted through the foreign medium, resulting in a huge waste of national energy.
To all this the teachers might have added that the pupils are devitalized and have lost all initiative I gave them an answer which satisfied them for the time being, but they took from me a promise that I would deal with the problem in these pages.
In my opinion, the root of the evil lies in the foreign domination, and the root of foreign domination lies in ourselves. I am aware that we shall never deal with these problems unless
and until we deal with the root evil. If we had our own government, the teachers would be able to vindicate their position.
Having our own government means a government never strong enough to override by force of arms the wishes of the majority, in other words, a government responsible to public opinion. Today the teachers have public opinion behind them in many things, but it is helpless against a power that is armed for dealing with any possible physical combination on the part of the people of India. No government in the world is so irresponsible and so
unresponsive to the opinion of the millions of men and women of India as the Government of {then British} India….
Do the teachers realize that the pupils are an exaggerated edition of what they themselves are? If they will have the initiative, the pupils will soon begin to have it. The examination system, as it is, becomes doubly oppressive by reason of the mechanical method of instruction. Only the other day, inspecting a school, I asked a boy to tell me what and where Pataliputra — about which he had read to me from his book — was. He could not tell. This was neither the fault of the Government nor the pupils, assuredly the teachers’.
Teachers can, if they will, make their tuition interesting and effective in spite of the deadening weight of the examination system. In spite of the medium of instruction being the English language in the higher classes, it is open to the teachers to take care of the mother tongue of the boys under them. There is no rule preventing them talking to the boys in their mother tongues. The fact is that most teachers do not know the vernacular names for
technical expressions and find it difficult to make themselves intelligible in the vernacular when the subject of their discourse is technical. We have got into the very slovenly habit, in order, as we fancy to give point to our conversations, of using English adjectives, adverbs and even phrases of the English language.
If the teachers wish it, many of the defects of the present system could be cured by them. ….The unfortunate position is that educated Indians take to teaching not for the love of it, but because they have nothing better and nothing else for giving them a livelihood. Many
of them even enter the teaching profession with a view to preparing for what they regard as a better thing. The wonder is that in spite of this self-imposed initial handicap so many teachers are not worse than they are. By well-ordered agitation, no doubt, they may better their pecuniary prospects, but I see no chance teachers’ condition (p. 35) even under a swaraj government of the scale of salary being raised much higher than it is today.
I believe in the ancient idea of teachers teaching for the love of it and receiving the barest maintenance. The Roman Catholics have retained that idea and they are responsible for some of the best educational institutions in the world. The rishis of old did even better. They made their pupils members of their families, but in those days that class of teaching which they imparted was not intended for the masses. They simply brought up a race of real teachers of mankind in India. The masses got their training in their homes and in their hereditary occupations. It was a good enough ideal for those times. Circumstances have now changed. There is a general insistent demand for literary training. The masses claim the same attention as the classes. How far it is possible and beneficial to mankind generally cannot be discussed here. There is nothing inherently wrong in the desire for learning. If it is directed in a healthy channel it can only do good. Without, therefore, stopping to devise means for avoiding the inevitable, we must make the best use possible of it. Thousands of teachers cannot be had for the asking, nor will they live by begging. They must have a salary guaranteed, and as we shall require quite an army of teachers their remuneration cannot be in proportion to the intrinsic worth of their calling but it will have to be in proportion to the capacity of the nation for payment. We may expect a steady rise as we realize the relative merits of the different callings. The rise must be painfully slow.
There must, therefore, arise a class of men and women in India who will from patriotic motives choose teaching as a profession, irrespective of the material gain that it may bring them. Then the nation will not underrate the calling of the teacher. On the contrary, it will give the first place in its affection to these self-sacrificing men and women….
Young India, 6-8-1925, CWMG, Vol. 28, pp. 33-36
गांधीजी और शिक्षा
महात्मा गांधी, जो पेशे से वकील, कर्तव्य से राजनेता और स्वभाव से सत्य के खोजी थे, राष्ट्रपिता बने और आज भी हमारे लिए एक महान शिक्षक हैं, जिनसे हम बहुत कुछ सीख सकते हैं। उनकी शिक्षा संबंधी विचार, जो देखने में आदर्शवादी लग सकते हैं, आज पहले से भी अधिक प्रासंगिक हैं—यहां तक कि 1925 में जब उन्होंने इन्हें लिखा था, तब से भी ज्यादा। सरकारें बदलीं, लेकिन शिक्षा की बुनियादी समस्याएं जस की तस बनी रहीं—बल्कि अब तो नई चुनौतियाँ भी जुड़ गई हैं, विशेष रूप से गैजेट्स और इंटरनेट के अतिक्रमण के कारण। अन्य मानवीय आविष्कारों की तरह, इनके भी लाभ और हानि दोनों हैं, और यह हमारे ऊपर निर्भर करता है कि हम इनका उपयोग किस उद्देश्य के लिए करते हैं।
गांधीजी का संदेश आज भी उतना ही प्रासंगिक है, खासकर तब जब शिक्षा को राजनीति का अखाड़ा बना दिया गया है। दुर्भाग्यवश, कई राजनेता छात्रों और शिक्षकों की वास्तविक आवश्यकताओं की बजाय सत्ता की चिंता में लगे रहते हैं। साथ ही, वर्तमान शिक्षा व्यवस्था को बनाने और बिगाड़ने में छात्रों, शिक्षकों और प्रशासन की भी अहम भूमिका रही है। गांधीजी के समय में शिक्षकों के कम वेतन पर चिंता व्यक्त की गई थी, लेकिन आज, कई शिक्षक—हालाँकि सभी नहीं—इतना ऊँचा वेतन पाते हैं, जो अक्सर उनके वास्तविक शैक्षिक योगदान से मेल नहीं खाता।
दुर्भाग्य से, गांधीवाद गांधीजी के साथ ही समाप्त हो गया लगता है, और उनके विचार और उनकी आवाज़ अब भारत में भी अजनबी-सी लगती है। लेकिन कुछ लोग, जैसे मैं, अब भी उनके जीवन और शिक्षाओं से प्रेरणा लेते हैं। मेरे लिए, वे हमेशा एक शिक्षक और गुरु रहेंगे।
चूंकि कोई भी इतने लंबे लेख को नहीं पढ़ेगा, मैं CWMG, खंड 28, पृष्ठ 33-36 से महात्माजी की मूल हिंदी लेखनी नहीं दे रहा हूँ। लेकिन मैं इसका मूल अंग्रेज़ी संस्करण पोस्ट करूंगा। जो कोई भी हिंदी संस्करण पढ़ना चाहता है, वह इसे किसी भी ऐप की मदद से आसानी से अनुवाद कर सकता है।
Ashram, 25-3-2025
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