Source: Based on experiences at the school and discussions
with Principal Mahableshwerwalla.
Compiled by: Abhay Bindumadhav Joshi
Question: What is the essence of Shree Warana Vidyalaya? What exactly did we learn there? What were the fundamental principles on which our school was run?
Answer: There were a number of important principles practiced at our school. It would be very difficult to enumerate all of them, so, I have presented below three of the most important ones.
Equality is a most well-known principle. Practically every democratic country claims “equality” to be its founding principle and every politician uses the word in his/her speeches. But, what does it really mean? Or, what was its meaning at Shree Warana Vidyalaya?
Rules apply to everyone, without exception.
At Warana Vidyalaya, we had rules, and they were applicable to everyone – irrespective of status, gender, caste, or anything else. Whether it was about wearing simple cotton uniform, keeping hair short, or coming to school on time, no one was excused and no pretext was accepted. Even one’s “smartness” was no basis for exception. I have myself tasted the fruit of this – once I sat in my classroom working on homework when it was time for sports (past 5pm). I was soon escorted by one of the shipaais and taken to Pracharya. I thought I would be excused (or even praised) for spending extra time on studies. My surprise knew no bounds when I received a smack across my bottom and was dispatched to the playground without delay!
This simple policy of applying rules fairly to everyone and under all circumstances created among us a feeling of true equality. Everyone felt that he/she would be treated fairly irrespective of who his/her parents were or whether he/she lived in a poor hut or a rich bungalow. It created a sense of freedom, a feeling that “as long as I follow the rules, this place will not give me any trouble.” We also saw all our fellow students as equal citizens of our school; there was no question of having any complexes – superiority or inferiority.
Equality requires respect for individual dignity.
Students and others at the school obviously came from a variety of backgrounds. Besides applying the same rules to everyone, the school also treated everyone with dignity. Punishment was meant to remind one of the importance of rules, never to humiliate anyone. When someone did break a rule and received a suitable (and sometimes interesting!) punishment, he/she never felt insulted. There were students whose parents did menial cleaning work who were often asked to come to school to explain the delinquency of their son or daughter. But when they visited the school, they were shown the same respect as would be shown to a parent who might be a director at the sugar factory.
The lesson was clear: We may not be able to help everyone around us, or even show sympathy. We may even have to penalize them for mistakes. But, we will never violate people’s basic dignity.
Differences are to be accepted, nor just tolerated.
There is an incredible variety among people. This variety is at once a source of joy and wonder (think of cultures, languages) and a source of misery (think of economic disparity and religious wars). At our school, we learnt that such differences are not just to be tolerated but to be accepted. A person who worships differently is as much a human as we are. By “tolerating” we are only offering a grudging acknowledgement. By “accepting” we affirm our belief in the fundamental unity of all human beings.
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Involvement implies team work. When we work as a team, we accomplish more, and in a shorter time. We also enjoy the work more. We develop bonds and create friendships. At our school, teamwork was encouraged. Team sports were encouraged. Individual achievements were given less important than team accomplishments. The habit of sharing credit (or blame) was developed.
Involvement implies social awareness. We all enjoy the fruits of daily comforts and amenities thanks to the community in which we live. Our lives are so much richer and comfortable because of the people around us (and who came before us) – irrespective of whether you identify this community as a state or a country or the entire humanity. It is therefore our duty to be grateful for these benefits and reciprocate by staying involved in community activity. We must be involved in the well-being and happiness of our relatives, friends, neighbors, and other community members.
Involvement does not just mean being sympathetic. It means active participation in actions that help improve the quality of life of others.
Finally, involvement means staying engaged until tasks are completed and goals are achieved. At our school, we saw that nothing was left hanging. Every task was followed up as often as necessary until it was completed.
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What is simplicity? To me, simplicity means selecting a way of living or doing things that leads to the least amount of stress and maximum degree of freedom. In almost every sphere of life, you have alternatives to choose from. Simplicity asks you to choose the one alternative that:
- Is easy to understand
- Is easy to implement
- Creates minimum burden on your time and freedom.
Complexity (the opposite of Simplicity) leads to loss of control, waste of time and energy, frustration, and in most cases disasters. Symptoms of complexity include perennial shortage of time and nagging worry about something.
Collecting personal assets leads to complexity. These assets require money, space, maintenance, and protection, and often lead to your emotional involvement. They take away a piece (and sometimes peace too) of your mind. Having fewer assets, on the other hand, leaves you freer, richer, and unencumbered. Mahatma Gandhi’s fixed assets consisted of his walking stick, a pair of clothes, his eye-glasses, writing pen, and a copy of Bhagvad Geeta! You don’t need to go that far, but, you can certainly try to think hard before acquiring things for yourself.
Simplicity is an inner quality. At our school we saw that our teachers were simple in their behavior and their communication. There was no arrogance, no show-off. We did not make big fuss about achievements and accolades. We never invited celebrities or important people to give speeches and shower praise for accomplishments. This was an important lesson. Simplicity is not just an outward attribute but a core quality.
Simplicity plays a big role in how you handle your relationships. Getting emotionally involved with anyone’s affairs so much that you start demanding things in return (favors or authority) is akin to incurring complexity. Keeping some detachment, but offering a caring and warm relationship is simplicity. Give your best to your friend or relative, but expect little in return – that is simplicity. Of course, “staying detached” and “giving your best” may sound contradictory. But, it is my experience that “detachment” is related to “taking” or “expectations”, and so, it does not really conflict with “giving”.
Simplicity is applicable at workplace – in the choice of management techniques (if you are manager), or working methodologies (if you are a worker). One can build, for example, complex management theories, and get lost in them; or one can adopt time-tested, easy-to-understand, and transparent models, and achieve much more. As an engineer (which is what I am), the simpler the models or equations you choose, the higher is the likelihood of your product becoming elegant and actually getting built on time. (Einstein used to say that any natural phenomenon that requires a complex mathematical equation is probably not well understood.) As a computer programmer, the simpler the algorithms, the fewer the bugs your code will have.
Simplicity has great implications in daily routines. Your morning exercise routine can be made greatly complex by requiring expensive Gym equipment or club memberships. If the Gym is closed, or if you are traveling, your exercise routine goes for a toss. A simpler exercise routine that requires only a mat and a small room, would work anywhere. Dependence on other people’s services creates complexity. Your driver or housemaid doesn’t turn up, or demands a pay hike; you have lost your peace of mind. Self-reliance is simplicity – you are free and unencumbered anywhere, any time.
Sometimes simplicity can mean you get less than others. For example, investing in the stock market is certainly complex – requiring a lot of time, mental stress, and so on, but it is potentially more rewarding financially than the simplistic method of investing in liquid funds and fixed deposits. One must choose such complexity based on one’s temperament. In general though, the rewards of simplicity outweigh those of complexity.
Simplicity may be attractive but it takes a tough mental discipline to adopt. The marketing-infested environment that we live in today entices us to upgrade our lifestyle every day. When we upgrade we run the risk of losing simplicity. The rules to observe in order to maintain simplicity are: 1) Don’t blindly get into experimentation with completely new things unless their purpose and utility are properly understood, and, 2) Upgrade (existing possessions to new ones) only if the existing ones are broken or given away. Follow the rule of 5 Rs: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Replenish.
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