EDUCATIONAL PHILOSOPHY OF SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

Explained By Swami Ranganathananda

According to Swami Vivekananda "Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man." All knowledge, secular or spiritual is in the human mind. Man discovers it within himself, which is preexisting through eternity. Next it manifests externally.

Swami Ranganathananda's concept of education, on close analysis, appears to had its basis in the concept of education developed by Swami Vivekananda. Swami Vivekananda observes education in the following manner: "Education is the life-building, man-making, character-making, Assimilation of ideas".

Swami Ranganathananda quotes this in many of his writings and explains the following:

Education so conceived becomes continual growth of personality, steady development of character, and the qualitative improvement of life. A trained mind has the capacity to draw spiritual nourishment from every experience, be it a defeat or victory, sorrow or joy".

Education is the training of the mind and not stuffing the brain, Character efficiency is the fruit of the former while the latter produces mental stagnation and its attendant character differences.

According to Swami Vivekananda the purpose of education is to develop personality of child in all aspects namely physical, intellectual and spiritual. Function of education is to bring about a harmonious development of all the aspects of human personality so that it can grow to its highest stature and serve the society as its best.

Let us see how Swami Ranganathananda expands the ideas of Swami Vivekananda.

Education helps the child to achieve vyaktitva and vikasita vyaktitva (developed personality). It is a continuous process.

At the level of vyaktitva, man puts oneself in the centre and wants the world to dance round him on or her; as a vikasita vyakti, he or she becomes humanized and learns the art of service and dedication to the people around.

All true education involves this spiritual growth from vyaktitva to vikasita vyaktitva. Vikasita means expansion not a mere expansion in body - weight and size, not a mere intellectual expansion in mastery of facts and formulae, but a spiritual expansion, through the assimilation of the values of tyaga and seva.

These values are the by-products of that spiritual growth in man. That is why it is called Vikasita Vyaktitva. When our children are able to live in peace with others, work with others, love and serve others, then only they have become persons, vikasita vyaktis, till then, they are only individuals, vyaktis.

This type of spiritual growth from individuality to personality, from vyaktitva to vikasita vyaktitva, must first strive for it and achieve it, and then help their students to achieve it. This is a great and basic step what we have to take in our education.

This is the very soul of value-oriented education, of human resource development; education helps the child to become a vyakti and vikasita vyakti; that is learning to be and joins learning to do. Thus it becomes complete and meaningful Education.

TO SUM UP :

Swami Vivekananda defines education as 'the life building, Man-making, character making, assimilation of ideas'. purpose of education is to develop personality of child in all aspects namely, physical, intellectual, and spiritual.

Following Swami Vivekananda, Swami Ranganathananda further elaborates it as 'Education is training the mind and not stuffing the brain'. Purpose of education is to develop 'vikasita vyaktitva' in child.

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