Education, ethics and spirituality

By Deepa Nag Haksar

INDIA ASPIRES to be information- rich, never mind its being poverty-stricken. That is, ``Info-Pov' in short, since with the rest of the world we scramble to become just `.com'! With this recent hype about `information technology' or IT, what does the Government really mean? Equally important, what do the `intelligentsia' and all those in power, while bragging about the achievements of India, mean?

Obviously, the term means nothing to the millions living along the poverty line and to the illiterate. Their existence in all this excitement has been simply forgotten, even as our population explodes into a billion. It is a convenient `amnesia' for the Government and the elite alike. But how long can this selective memory last? We are poverty- stricken, not only materially but also with the absence of necessary education and values. We call ourselves a fast developing, even `developed', nation with great powers of military equipment and electronic information. But our high illiteracy rate, abominable state of health care and extreme lack of social justice are glaring realities. These apart, we have the label of being one of the world's most corrupt countries.

Well-known economists have repeatedly stressed that the population crisis, poverty and shabby economic balances in India are largely due to illiteracy of the masses. At Independence, India emerged as a sovereign, democratic republic committed to the right to education for each citizen. Where is that right today? During more than five decades of rule by different Governments this democratic right has been stubbornly and increasingly neglected. How much of the IT boom will really filter down to the grassroot levels of the illiterate to ultimately take them towards awareness and education? India has enormous talent, intelligence and natural resources. But most of these remain undeveloped, deprived, and unenlightened.

Now IT, a fashionable term, is being propagated by the Government as an alternative to, or on a par with, education. As if any technology in itself could ever replace education. Education in the total sense means both primary and higher education. Together they are more essential than IT, for India, at present. This is not to devalue the importance of IT. It is inevitably needed today for a progressive `globalising' world. It is also hoped to churn out extensive job opportunities upgrading the country's economy. Nevertheless, IT is only a sophisticated `tool'. Who benefits from it? Mainly fairly advanced business, trade, industry and the privileged. But India is not made of these alone. The bulk of the population is still barely educated. IT is supposed to help and support the processes of education. But there is no evidence of this now or for the near future, on a day-to-day basis all over the country. `Technology' is neither a cultivated mind, nor knowledge or wisdom gained through rational, reflective thought. `Information' in itself is even less an enlightenment of any kind. It is mere fact or data without the abilities of understanding or evaluating, the latter being a function of the human mind.

Thus in all perennial civilisations, whether Greek, Indian, Chinese, Egyptian or any other, education or true learning means search for knowledge and values. Our country today is disturbingly indifferent to education. The dangers of this for the future are many. After all, today's children will be tomorrow's society. What legacy of `educated minds' are we leaving behind for them? The fast growing competitive, aggressive `yuppy' culture everywhere promotes money and power without education, which is self-destructive and damaging for society. Certificates, paper degrees and labels are all that is wanted. For this is a society that is blind to education with humane values.

True, the Government today is emphasising primary education, a long overdue issue. But this should not be at the cost of higher education. How many politicians, Government officials, professionals and executives do not want their own children to have higher education? And can everyone send their children abroad for it, as the rich do? The education system is in a mess and badly needs revamping. But all are responsible for this. That is, politicians, Government policy-makers as well as specialists who make up the governing body members of education institutions. It is gravely incorrect to blame the custodians of education, that is, teachers alone. Problems of education are indicative of an insensitive society as a whole. In fact, the symptoms of the disregard of a society for education itself was apparent when some years ago the Ministry of Human Resources Development was created in India. Then the Ministry of Education was wiped away and pushed into becoming a mere Department in a Ministry.

Significantly, value-oriented education does not mean preaching mere moral sciences or propagating particular religious tenets, practices or rituals in the guise of general education curriculum. Unfortunately, the present Government suffers seriously from the malaise of this mistaken idea. It does not know how to balance the conflicts of modernity and tradition. It is unable to distinguish between what is and what is not education. A classic example of this is a recent proposal for B.A. degree courses. This is for becoming a priest, presumably a `Hindu' priest. What is shocking about this proposal is that it goes against the very grain of spiritual sacredness of not only what is known as the `Hindu' religion but of any religion in the world. `Priesthood' is a committed way of life and learnt in the sanctuaries of different religious communities, which could have modern institutions. It has nothing to do with the secular, objective yardsticks of academic education, though it may interact with it. If a mere B.A. degree could turn out a priest, that would be mockery of faith.

The need of the hour now, more than anything else, is attention on everyday ethics and values that sustain a multi-cultural, multi- religious democracy which India is supposed to be. In school and college systems it is the study of ethics and its extension `applied ethics' that should be introduced and emphasised. Relevant in the larger social context are the inquiries about everyday life, its dilemmas and values as they press for `moral' yardsticks. This has led to recent attention, worldwide, upon `applied ethics', that is, for example, `environmental ethics', `medical ethics' and `gender ethics'.

These apart, studies of economic, scientific, industrial, political, legal, cultural and social attitudes are noteworthy for ethical assessments. Ironical though it may be, there is also a committee to oversee `ethics' of political proceedings in Parliament in India, though it may not always be effective! The point is, that everyone recognises the need for ethics and life- sustaining values for social development.

All this points to the fact that ethical training in children and adults are necessary for a responsible society. But ethical viewpoints are not the same as `spiritual' attitudes or spirituality, though they can go together and sometimes merge, as in some senses of the Indian idea of `Dharma'. However, strictly speaking spirituality is a matter of inner faith and often linked to belief in God expressed in the various religious practices or in different religious consciousnesses. The Government's insistence on `spiritual quotient' being introduced in schools bespeaks not only of insensitivity to the privacy and freedom involved in `spiritual' experience. It also shows the inability to distinguish between public morality which concerns ethics and matters of inner contemplation which are subjective - `Religion and ethics ought to go together. But they do not always. That is why education formally needs an objective `ethical quotient' not spiritual quotient. It is the most essential core of any kind of education, prior to IT efficiency.

So, IT itself without enlightened education cannot address issues about values, rights and quality of life. This Government is unable to, or will not, understand this as is clear from the priority given to IT over and above education itself. We are running a superficial rat-race without the fundamentals of democratic development.

(The writer is Reader, Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Arts, University of Delhi).

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