Geeta Gyan Ennobles Patanjalite Teachers
The teachers of the Patanjali Group of Schools were exposed to a 2 hour long session of Bhagwad Geeta for 5 days from 12th of October to 17th of October. The five – day session was conducted by Swami Chidrupanand Ji, the Head of the International Yuva Kendra of Chinmaya Mission, Noida, New Delhi. The session on the first day began with the Lighting of the Lamp and a recital of a few shloks from the Geeta by Sri Saumitra Guha. The speaker was given a warm wecome by Dr. Krishna Gupta, the Secretary of the MPVM Samiti. She referred to The Geeta as not a religious book but a text having universal appeal because it addressed human needs and showed the path towards the liberation of the self from pettiness in thoughts, words and deeds.
The sessions were steeped in spirituality inseparably linked to real life conditions of human beings. Daily existence requires men to combat at two levels – one is the external and the more important one is the challenges within one self. Swamiji tried to explain through selected shloks how the basic tenet of the Bhagwad Geeta could help one to surmount daily challenges of life and live a life of good actions. The teachings of The Geeta can develop resilience of the mind and rectitude in human character.
Swamiji tried to condense the deep philosophy of The Geeta into digestible amount of knowledge that could help the teachers to perform better both at the personal level and for the society. Swamiji explained the meaning of ‘Yog’ as both a search and a reflection and as a practice, it is “sadhana” without which human existence has no meaning. Human beings have been so constituted that they cannot stay away from action and The Geeta can steer men to understand and choose the good and intelligent actions. Through his discourse Swamiji tried to explain the importance of wisdom, the need to find a good guide and also the need to be a good teacher, to be focused in one’s action and the power to discriminate good action from bad. Above all, he stressed the need to constantly learn and grow, stagnation means death. He also tried to open the mind of the audience to the fundamental difference between detachment and attachment, the importance of purposive existence, the elimination of ego and the idea of working for the welfare of humanity.
The sessions became interesting due to Swamiji’s unique art of explaining the shloks with ease, citing examples, the unique skill of blending powerful teaching with stories, humour, occasionally dramatizing situations and providing a good selection of effective Power- Point Presentations. The session on the first day began with the discussion on the condition of the human mind weighted down by agony and depression and concluded on the last day with an explanation of the secret of true happiness and the art of attaining it.
On the fifth day, the session closed with Sri Dhirendra ji of Chinmaya Vidyalaya impressing upon the audience the fact that the Divine shapes our good deeds and destines people to come together for sessions like this. He thanked Dr. Krishna Gupta for arranging such an opportunity for her teachers to listen from an enlightened teacher like the Swamiji. A few Patanjalite teachers expressed their respect for what they learnt from Swami Chidrupanandji. The Principal of MPVM Smt. Sushmita Kanungo expressed her gratitude towards Swamiji. The guidance of the true teacher is essential in life and she felt that the teachers at Patanjali group of schools now had a spiritual guide in the form of Swami ji. She also said that she looked forward to more sessions on The Geeta at MPVM.
The session came to a formal end with the Secretary Dr. Krishna Gupta expressing her grateful thoughts on Swamiji’s ability to explain The Geeta in a simplified language. The knowledge comes from the Guru and the art of teaching enables it to touch the heart of the people. She said that he had unfolded on the day of Dhanteras, the divinity within us of which we were unaware, the hidden treasures of how to rise above the confusion prevailing around us. She urged her teachers to integrate wisdom in their life and progress ahead. The real Guru Dakshina to a great master like the Swamiji could only be the resolve to read The Geeta and follow the teachings in our daily life.
The Geeta session became a perfect Diwali gift for the teachers introducing the path of inner illumination and enlightenment.
