Speech of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji – Vidyarthi Gnana Bodha Sabha – May 1, 2015 – Mysore
Harihi Om Tatsat
Jaya Guru Datta
I think most of you know Telugu. This is the time in your life when you tend to begin to forget your mother tongue because at school everything is taught in English in the English medium schools. You go for tuition to keep up with the studies in English. You struggle with that there and you forget your own mother tongue. You must speak Telugu at home. You may study it as a second language at school also.
In the past twenty years you will realize that the number of Telugu poets has drastically reduced. Only 20% of them are left. 80% reduction. The most unfortunate thing is that people are forgetting their mother tongue.
Even the English we know is not the original pure British English. American English is not pure British English. American English is not very particular about grammar. In England, every small university also gives great importance to the English language studies. It is their native language. Hence, their insistence. French, German, Spanish, and English you may learn. There is nothing wrong. When you wish to read books in other languages and during world travel, it will come in handy to know different languages. Some limited vocabulary you can acquire, even if you do not become proficient enough to become a literary genius. English you already know. But you must learn other languages. Without leaving the mother tongue, you should learn the other languages.
English is useful for professional benefit, to go to America, to become an engineer, to study software, and so on. One who is uneducated is considered useless for society. He is considered a burden to society and to the earth itself. That is why everyone must get educated. These days, even farmers are educated. Education not only teaches how to earn a livelihood, it also teaches how to protect yourself, your society, and your nation. It teaches how to live a good, moral life. The uneducated man is equivalent to a beast, it used to be said. Animals eat a lot, add to the population of their species, and die.
Education should help not only to get jobs, but in other ways also; to make good, useful citizens, who have a strong moral and spiritual foundation. To call your mother ‘amma’, and to call your father ‘nanna’, it expresses so much love. The feeling comes from deep within when you speak in your mother tongue. To the English speaking people, mommy and daddy conveys love. But when you use those foreign language terms in our homes, the feeling is coming only from the throat, and not from the navel, from deep within yourselves.
Regardless of how much you study and advance in science, business, research, public administration, medicine, or engineering, or you may change your fields midway and be good in more than one field of study, and some of you may get married and settle as housewives, and it is an important job to raise good children – you must preserve and maintain your mother tongue. You must never stop speaking in it. You must not forget and allow it go into disuse.
Parents should not force the children to study advanced subjects just to please them and to satisfy their own personal ambitions. Do not put a guilty conscience on the children and make them feel worthless if they fail to meet your expectations. The teachers have great faith in your ability to learn as they work hard to share their knowledge with you. But the students are not always paying full attention. Concentration is lacking. God has given great intelligence to all of us. Some students excel by putting in great effort. We compare with them and feel discouraged. The same intelligence is given to all. Oh, they are rich, his parents are in high positions, they can afford private tuition, and so on, are the excuses you use to get away from exerting to your fullest capacity. You unnecessarily give more importance and prominence to those who are successful, and by blaming your parents, and your teachers, you avoid doing your best. The blame is upon yourself. You must pay complete attention to your studies during this student stage.
You are so fortunate to have come here to attend this program. We were going to have this session in Hyderabad. The number of attendees may be great if it is held there, but the spiritual intensity of the session will be lacking. I wanted you to come to Mysore. I spend many hours with you here. For a few years we have skipped this program. But instead of regretting about what has been lost, now utilize every moment of your time here. Learn discipline here. No matter how highly educated one may be, without spirituality, human life has no value. You must learn the values of life, the purpose of your birth, the greatness of this nation, and proper ethical and moral values.
May you be energized by this Peetham. May your memory powers increase. Many successful software engineers and other professionals in America tell me that they had attended VGBS in their youth. I feel so proud to hear that. Many students of VGBS are in very high positions, professionally and academically.
We are contemporaries in time. We are living at the same. Swamiji is with you. You are all with Swamiji now. You are very fortunate. Enjoy and experience this glory of our time together. Future generations can only talk about these times and brag that their grandparents personally knew Swamiji and spent time with him. Do not let this opportunity go. You may wonder how much one can gain in just two or three days. Who knows? In an instant enlightenment can occur. Moral and spiritual support you will receive here. It is not academic teaching. If you do not live a moral and spiritual life, what is the use of being successful in other areas? What is the use of serving an elaborate feast and then announce that water alone is not available. The person after eating, will die without water, if he has to walk several kilometers to get a sip of water.
Here all facilities are provided. Every second, every minute, you must experience this special good fortune with awareness. I encourage you to improve yourselves. Satisfy the expectation of your parents and teachers who have brought you here. I bless that you understand and grasp every word and every syllable that is taught to you here.
Sri Guru Datta
Compiled by Smt Hira Duvvuri