The 4 qualities that determine if one has the magical seed of a school educator.
Over the centuries, there have been countless exemplary thoughts on the ideal qualities that make an Educator.
Attention, Sensitivity, Humility and Love are among the many qualities described by J. Krishnamurti, one of the most revolutionary Gurus in contemporary education.
There is no doubt that these qualities are indispensable for an educator to carry out their role.
But, the question we are trying to answer here is that of the ‘seed’ of an Educator. Not the question of the qualities of an educator. For these qualities can be cultivated if the seed is right. The question we are asking is, what kind of Human Being has the most capacity to cultivate ‘such’ qualities that are essential for an Educator. In other words, who has the ‘potential’ to become an Educator?
To really feel the answer to the question, I would love for you to first spend one period of school time to watch something deeply worthwhile - The first 40 minutes of the Mani Ratnam’s movie, Bombay. If now is not the time for that, watching this clip from the movie will work too.
Bombay (1995 film): In the Indian Sub-Continent, for a Hindu man to marry a Muslim woman, especially in a village, is one of the most unlikely occurrences. The societal barriers for the couple are so deep and deadly that few would dare tread such a path. Yet, we see exceptions. Such occurrences cannot really be engineered from the outside — through alternative matchmaking sites, policy changes or any such weak attempts. It is possible only when the drive is innate, and strong enough.
This movie, and this scene from the movie brings that out in a beautiful way. In this film, that innate drive (Shraddha) that is stronger than the societal strong wall is their unconditional desire to be with each other.
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The role of an educator necessitates one to challenge the deepest of the barriers of the mind and the society. Clearly, one can truly become an educator, only when they have the right Shraddha to be come an educator. How do we then determine this?
The answer to this question comes from first understanding the purpose of an educator.
The purpose of an educator is surely to enable two things for the child:
- Enable unhindered growth: Every child has an innate nature (Swabhava). This is like the Psychological DNA of the child. To force a child out of their nature is hindrance. To hinder, is like a gardener trying to change the shape of a mango or the colour of a Sunflower. It is anything but harmful for the plant. To work with them through their nature is to enable un-hindered growth.
- Inspire growth towards becoming a better Human Being: Along with the freedom to live by one’s own nature, and to be oneself, comes the freedom of choice. The power of choice. This power used wrongly, especially with such freedom of the mind, can lead to a deep destruction of themselves and the world around them. The right direction is to inspire the child to exercise this power in the direction of growth and benefit of oneself and the world.
What kind of a human being then has the potential to achieve such a purpose?
4 qualities that define the magical seed of an Educator
To enable unhindered growth in a child, they must first allow for such growth for themselves. That is, they must already be on a path of freeing themselves from what hinders them from living their own nature. Hindrances such as societal obligations, fear, guilt and jealousy. That is possible when a strong seeking to be free is a part of their own Shraddha.
1. A strong innate desire to be free from conditioning.
Further, if they want to inspire the child to be a better Human Being, they must first themselves be innately inspired to keep bettering themselves as a Human Being. This happens when, avoiding violence (physical and mental) is a very strong part of their nature. When empathy for all living beings is a deep part of their being.
2. Empathy for all living beings is a deep part of their nature
Not everyone who has the first two qualities is a potential Educator. It is further necessary that there is a deep and innate desire within them to awaken the same in children. ie:
