Learning And Humility

May 1972, Summer Course 1972, Brindavan

Published English.

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India is a sacred land, and in this sacred land, tolerance has always been the cardinal virtue. Of all the , or the accepted codes of conduct, the vrata of truth plays a high role. The highest and the sweetest of all emotions is that of maternal love. People in India always considered honour greater than life. Alas, today we have let all those laudable ideals slip away, and we have begun to ape the cult of the west. We have reached a stage where we have lost the sense of our own greatness like the elephant who does not know its own strength.

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In the front row are seated the wise elders who have striven all through the month to inculcate into the minds of the young students gathered here, knowledge of the soul. They have been expounding our sacred texts, the and the reminding you about the glory of ancient India. We think of wealth as consisting of buildings, property, material goods and we have lost ourselves in the mad pursuit of temporal values. These do not constitute real wealth that is capable of giving us abounding joy. Character is our wealth and good conduct is our treasure. Knowledge of God is the foundation for both. We should not lose that abiding, precious and eternal wealth, which is knowledge of God, for fleeting and temporary things that are like the passing clouds. We should also know that in our country, many who were very rich at one time are today reduced to the level of common people. On the other hand, some of the common people have come up to the position of kings, enjoying greater material wealth; therefore, we should not equate lasting happiness with changing material wealth.

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When a pond is full of water in the rainy season, there are a million frogs in it; but when the water runs dry, the frogs jump out of it. In the same way, when one has power and wealth, people gather around him in this world but as soon as he falls upon evil days and adversity stares him in the face, all his best friends leave him. It is the paramount duty of man to know what will not leave him and to gain that wealth which will always be with him. The history of India has given us examples of great incidents and illustrious people. We remember people like , , and others who had all material wealth but forgot the values of life and started insulting others. They ultimately had a great downfall. Today, those who are proud of their material prosperity and ignore the higher values of life must know that the same ruin awaits them. felt proud of his physical strength and the strength of his . He even challenged but realised that had something he did not possess and that was the strength of God, which is superior to all other kinds of strength.

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There is an incident in the that every student should know and bear in mind. posed a question to and . He said, ", there are two things, namely, my army and myself. Which of the two do you want?" He asked the same question to , too. Because was ignorant, he foolishly thought that all the physical prowess of the army would provide him stronger support than , who was only one individual. He therefore asked for the army and not for . But realised that if he had by his side, he would have everything. So he said, "Lord," be the charioteer of my chariot and not only of my chariot but the charioteer of my life. Your proximity is my eternal treasure." cared for quality and cared for quantity.

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Real education requires the cultivation of a sense of humility. Great learning brings great humility. Without humility, there is no education. This is wanting in the youth of today. Several differences are cropping up between the teacher and the taught. Differences are developing between students and the centres of learning. When we look at this problem and try to understand what is at the back of all this, how these sad situations have developed and where the responsibility lies, the answer comes that it is generally not the teacher, nor the student, but it is the politician who has much to do with it. Students are pure; their minds are pure. The white dress that they have put on as a uniform this day is the emblem of the innate purity of the young. They have been living for the past month in . The white uniform is in tune with the spirit of . Your heart is the field, which is the . It is not enough for you to remain pure only as long as you are in , your hearts must be pure wherever you may be.

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When there are any differences between students and the centres of learning, it is up to the students to make a peaceful and gentle representation to the authorities. Then the authorities will also be in a gentle mood to consider the representation. On the other hand, if the students indulge in violent demonstrations, they are forgetting their natural role in life. If the student is a seeker of , he should not behave in a manner that tells us that he is going on the path of ignorance. Even if you win your point through violent agitation and by creating trouble for others, such gains will not be permanent gains for the student body.

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During the period of your studies, you must realise your responsibility as students. You must show proper regard to the parents and teachers and thereby fill your minds with happiness and peace. In the ancient , the relationship that existed between the teacher and student was as intimate as that which should exist between a parent and their offspring. The student would always try to give mental and physical happiness to the . That service pleased the and he would impart very vital secrets to the disciple and a very sacred holy atmosphere prevailed in the precincts. served in several ways. He was able to win the heart of through that service. loved more than his own son and used to send his son away on some pretext and then impart some vital secrets to .

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It is very important that all the girl students be trained into good housewives and good mothers. Just as they have the sweetness of the love of , so also they must taste by their actions of dedication, the love of (the Motherland) and train themselves into ideal mothers in future. I hope that you will all treasure these gems of wisdom you have extracted from the discourses in the last month, preserve them in the casket of your heart and then bring them up as ornaments on your person.

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At one time there was a severe famine in . A family consisting of father, mother and two children started from to find livelihood elsewhere. The father of the family, being responsible to feed his family, underwent many difficulties and hardships. He even starved himself on some occasions and because of frequent starvation, he died after some time. The mother, having lost her husband, suffered from loneliness and had to bear the burden of keeping the family alive in this wide world. She went begging from house to house for food and if she got some and if it was not enough, she starved herself and let her children eat. In course of time, she became so debilitated that she found it difficult to walk from house to house and beg. The boy of twelve looked at the pitiable sight of his mother and sitting on her lap said, "Oh mother, please take rest for some time. I shall beg and bring food for you." As she listened to the words of her son, her heart melted. She felt very miserable that she had to send her son to beg for food. No mother wants her child to become a beggar. But because the boy insisted, the mother consented. From that day the little boy was begging for food and giving it to his mother and the little brother and he himself would starve. After some days, he felt he could not walk and go out for begging. He went to a house and found the master of the house reading a newspaper sitting on an easy chair. In a feeble voice, he asked the master for food. The master replied that it would be useless to give him alms and said that he would give him food on a leaf. The boy, out of weakness, fainted. The master of the house lifted the boy and put him on his lap. The boy was mumbling some words. To be able to understand what he was saying, the master put his ear close to the mouth of the boy. The boy was inaudibly whispering, "The food that you wish to give, please give it first to my mother." After uttering those last words, he passed away.

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I have been talking to you these thirty days about several things. I hope that you will follow the ideals you have imbibed in the past month. When you are out of , you should show the same sense of discipline and follow the same principles in any walk of life or in any place you may go to. In course of time, you may come back in a different role, in the role of teachers who teach youngsters. All the wise elders who gave you messages during this course were also students at one time. You must try to preserve in your mind and put into practice all those good things that those wise elders, who had the benefit of wisdom of years of learning, have given you. There may be summer courses in several places, but they will not offer the same kind of training that you get here and the type of atmosphere in which you have been living. Those students who have attended this summer course are fortunate and this surely is the result of the merit that they have accumulated through a number of births. They had the benefit of many wise teachers and their teachings should not be ignored. Every teacher who has delivered lectures has delivered not only lectures but delivered drops of love that had emanated from his heart. You have seen how these teachers were touched to leave you and how they broke down. This is the true quality of a . Where else can you find it except in a summer course of this kind? These are feeling very much for the separation from you. You must also be feeling pained at the thought of getting separated from your . You should not feel pained by the mere thought of separation. When you put into action the wise things that your have taught you then they and also will be with you. Only through action, can you have the vital presence of the deep down in your heart. He will be a living presence within you.