Sathya Sai Baba The World-Avatar Teaching and Revelations

tem but it is sad that in the name of education, our youth are acquiring
such peculiar habits that their parents are not able to lift their heads in
public because of shame. It is only when the contents of education are
closely linked with ideals of sacrifice, forbearance, truth and love that
the youth will get the benefit of education. Students will never get any
benefit out of education if it is devoid of these noble principles. Education
does not consist of accumulating information and facts from a multitude
of books. Reading of books can only enrich you in the information
that you gather but can never give or promote good qualities. You
will have to regard good education as a process by which your character
is improved and by which you will be able to use your intelligence
and sharpen your mind so as to distinguish right from wrong. Students
must strive to attain strength connected with responsibility. They
should also recognize the necessity for becoming aware of the defects
in society and in mankind in general. Students must necessarily have
three essential qualities – discipline, devotion and duty. It is only when
they have these three qualities that they will become useful to society.
Students are neglecting these three important qualities. They are behave
in a manner which makes others feel that they are only after higher
degrees like M.A. or M.Sc. This can also be summed up by saying
that they are running after so called higher knowledge, not caring for
general knowledge. If one does not possess ordinary common sense,
however much he may think himself to be educated, he will be with
equated an illiterate person. If there is no sense of discipline, if one acquires
proficiency in English education alone and if one is not educated
in matters relating to the Atman or the self, the only result of such
education will be slavery. (35-4/6)
A great many people who are educated, who are in charge of education
and who are in responsible positions are asking what religion
means, what Indian culture is, what ethics stands for and what morality
is. By asking such questions and by displaying ignorance of the basic
tenets of religion, they are confusing the minds of young students. It is
clear from their questions that their knowledge has been derived only
from books and can be described as book knowledge. They do not
seem to have had any Divine experience at all in their lives. Such is
the state of your guardians. I hope that the students will conduct themselves
in a manner that will open the eyes of those who are in charge
of education. All my hopes and aspirations rest on the conduct of
young people. Young people of today have a great chance and a
unique opportunity to set right the future of this country. (35-9/10)
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