Taipei, Taiwan, January, 2011
An NHE Workshop was conducted by Dada Shambhushivananda in Taipei Taiwan, January, 2011, which was attended by 15 persons. The theme of the workshop was: Neohumanist Education and a Resilient Society. Below is a summary of the presentation given by Dada Shambhushivananda during the workshop.
We live in challenging times. Society is in turmoil and nature is showing its fury. It is as if the ground under our feet itself is slipping away. These tumultuous and epochal developments on the planet raise a pertinent question: How to build a resilient society in the midst of uncertain times?
Life Divine is the Goal:
Education lies at the core of social transformation. However, unless the education is neohumanist in nature, it is less likely to respond to the current challenges because the roots of present crisis lie in the lack of fuller understanding about the very purpose of human existence. It is for this reason that Shri P.R.Sarkar stated that: “Morality is the base, Intuition is the way and Life Divine is the goal of a human society.” When this goal is vividly recognized by one and all, it will become easier to solve the knotty problems facing the individual and collective bodies. A life divine will inspire a path of benevolence, universalism-centered policies and a life style beyond ego and self-interest. Neohumanist Education affirms that the purpose of life and education is liberation from all bondage: physical, mental and spiritual.
Awakened Conscience- the path:
Intuitional practice is the modus-operandi to raise our awakened conscience. It can provide us the stillness of mind to discriminate between good and bad, proper and improper, between right and wrong, between selfishness and selflessness. NHE puts “Awakened Conscience” at the very core of its philosophy, principles and methods. Reflection based on rationality and love lie at the core of principles of NHE. The success of NHE also will have to be measured through the filter of moral sense and unbounded compassion & love. Educational process will depend on who is being taught, what is being taught and where or to whom? Yet, the fundamental principles of NHE will continue to draw their inspiration from the path of awakened conscience.
Bio-Psychology and Methods of NHE:
The approach of NHE recognizes that humans are mental beings and possess unique temperament and capabilities. The strength of NHE derives from a broader recognition of the importance of applied psychology in dealing with the task of educational process. The methods of NHE must also therefore utilize the bio-psychological differences among different human beings. Unless this is done, the entire investment in educational infrastructures will end up as waste of precious time and resources. NHE shifts the focus from past to now and future; from material to material and immaterial; from mundane to supra-mundane and spiritual; from ‘I’ to “I and us”. Let the future of all beings be important and NHE can aid the life-style & behaviour modification revolution in order to achieve the goal of a resilient mind and a resilient society.