Inheritance of Loss or Gain.

The virtues of a proper composite education as well as proper parenting of children in the right manner cannot be emphasized enough if we wish to leave a legacy of responsible successful adults for future society and the coming generations.

The virtue of obedience is no longer exploited because it is dead. I am not a kid, says a kid. Liberty and money is what they aspire for and back benchers make the best professionals. It is the whole chuttnification of education as it is chuttnified and is always with something new and ‘up’ .Gone are the days when only education was considered the highway towards success.

Now every parent wants his kid to leave a trail blaze in life and end his or her career in a trail of glory. Parents want their kids to experiment.

They want to admit their kids in such schools where their creative interests are best bred and developed and where the emphasis is on producing well rounded individuals and not just book learning. Parents now believe in being frank and being a friend to their kids.

Academics v/s Sports:

‘Padhoge likhoge banoge nawab,kheloge kudoge banoge kharaab’ (you would be successful only if you study and you would go down the wrong path if you play sports), is a lame and old fashioned perception. Time and again this perception has been proved to be untrue by nary a successful sportsman who has gained great heights. Today a sport has gained prominence in society and has metamorphosed the biased masses. Vaibhavi Khaire, 15, a student of the Indian Education Society, Dadar, who appeared for higher secondary exams this year, says,

"I was interested in playing for my school because my coach encouraged and motivated me enormously; I think that playing for my school will help me in future."

Says Romario D'souza, who has also appeared for higher secondary this year and is a student of Don Bosco, Matunga, "I have been named after the famous football player, Romario, by my father because he is big fan of football and even though he himself couldn’t make it as a professional footballer, he wants me to become a famous football player. My school has a big campus and is a popular school for sports like hockey, football, basketball and table tennis. A sport was taken seriously and I am sure it will help me to be a successful sportsperson. Ragini Singh, 40, who teaches Hindi at Shri Vani Vidhyashala at Kalyan says,

"Sports help to break the monotony of the classroom and rejuvenate the students, which enables them to develop a well rounded personality as well as concentrate on their academics."

Technology a boon or a curse for the schools:

 There was a time when if ones neighbour had a mobile or a computer, it was news and the devil’s face in old advertisement s of Onida,’ Neighbors’ Envy Owner’s Pride’ came to ones mind. But now if you don’t possess a mobile phone it is considered news. Technology has made man what he is today and forgetting ones mobile at home can lead to a nightmare. The people who personify this are school going kids who tire themselves out physically in school and then exhaust themselves mentally sitting in front of computer screens at home.

"Kids have become addicted to computers and video games. My son who is eight years old is glued to the computer and prefers to play video games all day rather than going out", says Sumedha Raikar, a freelance writer.

Technology has made kids smarter than ever before and digital technology will be replacing the usual notebooks and pens in schools soon. Till some time back in the name of digital learning one could only find Av (audio video) rooms where the lessons are taught on projectors. The immense exposure and easy availability of the internet and web has made the teenagers aware and well informed. But aren’t we paying a high price for this heightened awareness? Today it is rare to see children playing in the neighborhood locality after school or in the evenings. The conception of ‘play’ is lost, as now it remains something related to competition and not entertainment. Technology has also made the attitude of students reckless and casual. Nandan Kothari, 15, a student of Archana, St.Xaviers ,Gujrat, who has appeared for higher secondary this

Year says, “Schools need to be strict about the usage of mobile phones. I am not allowed inside the gate of my school if my shoes aren’t well polished, leave alone wrongly using my mobile. I thank my school because it has taught me to be disciplined and focused. However, in Mumbai, my cousins carry their mobiles and use them indiscriminately in classrooms.”

Yet another negative of today’s techonology is the rampant usage and availability of pornography through the internet and the subsequently resulting cyber crime. Cyber crime has become a real menace to be reckoned with, with the easy availability of hacking softwares and readily available literature on the topic. The web is truly a double edged sword as on the one hand, it is highly informative, yet on the other hand has the potential for immense destruction. Gone are the days when writing was encouraged and handwritten letters and greeting cards were worth waiting for. Today, through emails and mobile phones one can communicate so easily and seamlessly across the gap of whole continents. Thus, the term ‘communication’ has become a paradox.

Spare the rod and pamper the child:

I still remember Mr. Arora who used to teach us Hindi in ninth grade and used to remember his school going days fondly. He used to recall having the Hindu scripture Ramcharitmanas on the tip of his tongue or else having to prepare himself mentally for a hard wack of the thick bamboo stick his masterji carried.

Pushpanjali Pawar, 35, who works with St.Jude ,an NGO for kids suffering from cancer as an administrator , says that school teachers are not strict enough anymore and that they have lost their command, authority and respect in the rat race of becoming friendly with the kids. She has an eleven- year- old daughter who is a student of Shri Vani Vidhyashala at Kalyan and relies completely on the school to look after the kid because of her demanding work schedule. She wants schools to encourage the usage of libraries so that students come out of their cocoon and explore the world around them. Most schools refuse to admit kids who have working mothers because, in such cases, there is no body at home to supervise the kids studies, which ultimately affects the performance of the schools. Being friendly with the kids is the mantra every principal is giving to his teachers, so that they can reduce the fuss over the kids, as the era of the teachers parenting the kids has faded away. Ragini says, “Now a days, children are pampered as parents are working and whatever time they get with them they want to live it to the fullest which has made kids emotionally dependent upon them and they can’t bear the anguish of their teachers when they fail. The rod doesn’t exist anymore; the punishment is ‘extra home work’ or ‘stand on your bench’. I have two kids and my son is 21 years old, he confides about his attractions and girlfriends with his father, a thing we could not have remotely imagined of doing when we were of his age”.

Sex, but not education please:

Sex has become a veiled thing and a forbidden fruit and hence tempting and misused to the core. The four letter F word has turned into a period after every sentence and will very soon be in our dictionaries for the alphabet F. Love has no meaning anymore except physicality and breakups have become  so common that one can ask ones friends about it on the first meet. Dating is the need of the hour and hanging out is considered the jukebox of fun.

It is ironical to see sex as a taboo in India, when in ancient Hindu literature it has been considered pure and vital to run the cosmic. People shy away even from speaking about it. Kamasutra might have done well in the west but in India people will frown if they catch Kamasutra in your hands. Puberty brings in lots of ennui, conflicts, perplexity and queries along with physical changes. There should be some medium or source to make the children aware about the reasons and meanings of these changes. Sexual illiteracy can lead to rape, teenage pregnancy, juvenile delinquency and other horrendous crimes as, without sex education, teenagers would be unable to channelize their energies in a productive and healthy way.

Parents remain tight lipped when kids ask questions about child birth or sex. They are embarrassed to see an intimate scene or an advertisement on AIDS and sex education to kids from parents is still the story of ‘birds and bees’. According to Ragini, she underwent training to teach sex education and HIV related issues in schools, however later on the parents objected and the principal aborted the idea of conducting it. Ragini too feels that school going children are ‘too young’ to understand the concept of copulation or physical intimacy properly. Daya Joshi, 50, who used to be a Hindi teacher in Carmel Convent School, Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh ) says, “Sex education in the syllabus was not digested by many, so we kept a question box outside the office and answered queries related to sex through the school magazine.”

The concept of education

The old concept and definition of education might have come at a time when there was a view that everybody should learn the same thing. Today imparting somebody’s ideological values can no longer be done without raised eyebrows, dissent and a multitude of challenging questions. This is what education has come to symbolize and that’s why every meet in school is about diversifying and updating new methods of education. I am sure that in the days to come there will be a new definition altogether.

ग़ज़ल कल गुज़रते हुए दयारों से,
देखी एक तस्वीर दीवारों पे
गुज़र गया एक आदमी खबर न मिली अख़बारों से
सुना है हँसी न मिल पाई थी उसे
हसी मेहेंगी  हो चुकी थी बाजारों में
फूल बिखरे थे मजारो में उसकी याद के
पत्ता पत्ता उड़  चला था नजारों में
आँखों में तैरती थी तरल से रेखा
याद अभी भी बाकी थी उसकी यारों में
असलियत से जब वो मिला था
रुसवा कर दिया था उसके प्यारों ने
रूठ गया था वो दुनिया से
मिल गया था वक़्त के मारों में|
-विजया

जुडाव

इस शाख से गिरा जो भी पत्ता,
हरा हो या सूखा  मेरा था,
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था|
कल शाम से ही कुछ उम्स हुई, दिल उठ बैठा कर याद उसे,
उसका साया घनेरा था
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था|

मैंने सपनो में बचपन में,
खेल में अकेले में,
उसे ही आकर घेरा था,
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था|
जब मीत मिला परिहास किया, प्रेम किया उपहास किया,
उसकी झूलती लताओं में रस में डूबे और खेल लिया,
जीवन की हर उस आंधी को मैंने उसके ही संग झेला था,
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था|

मेरा आँगन खुशियों से खिला,
कलियाँ खिलीं नन्ही नन्ही,
गुलाबी कोमल पंखुड़ियों वाली,
नन्ही पायल की छन छन का स्वर,
और बरगद की छांव का फेरा था,, 
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था|

मेरी हाथों की लकीरों को पढ़,
माथे की पंक्तियों को अनुकरण कर,
जब सबने मुह फेरा था,
तब बूढ़े बरगद के नीचे जाकर ही मैंने अपना आंचल निचोड़ा था,
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था| 

अब जब भी कुम्ल्हायी सी में,
अपने आँगन की कुर्सी पर,
बैठती हूँ थोड़ी देर भर,
तब देखकर ऊँची ऊँची अट्टालिकाएं,
हृदय रुदन से भर उठता है,
क्यूंकि टूटा मेरा सपना सुनेहरा था,
वो बूढा बरगद मेरा था|
-विजया


  

चाँद
यह रात और मेरे साथ चलता चाँद,
भागती हुई ज़िन्दगी के साथ भागता चाँद,
चमकते रास्तों से दूर फिर भी दिलों में पिघलता चाँद,
जाहिल रात की कलि सलेट पे ज़हीन सा सिफ़र चाँद,
सयानों की दुनिया में दीवाना बनाता चाँद,
खूबसूरत को बदसूरत और बदसूरती को खूबसूरत करता चाँद,
उम्र के साथ बदलता चाँद,
मेरी आँखों से तेरी आँखों तक पहुँचता चाँद,
यादों को गाढ़ा और फासलों को महीन करता चाँद,
नींद में दफ़न रात को कफ़न करता चाँद|
-विजया

जीवन पथ पर

जब कभी भी में अकेली होती हूँ,
जब कभी भी में साए सी लगती हूँ,
रस्ते टेढ़े मेढ़े पगडंडियों पर लेटे,
पत्तों पर जड़ी ओंस और जमीन पर बिछी दूब,
जब चिड़ियाँ चेह्चातीं हैं कुछ दूर चलने पर|ऐसे लगता है जैसे कोई चल रहा है साथ,
जैसे कोई पकड़े है मेरा हाथ,
एक अपना सा झोंका छु जाता है मुझे,
कुछ दूर चलने पर|

सच्चाइयों  पर दिन भर लेटे लेटे, 
जब भी ओढती हूँ स्वप्नलोक की चादर,
तब उनीदी आँखों में सजे सपने कई ,
पलकों के टूटने के साथ ही बिखर पड़ते हैं जो मोती से,
काल्पनिकता से मढ़े हुए, धुली पुछी वास्तविकता वाले,
निद्रालोक में ही हो जाते है विलीन,
और वास्तविकता से परिचय होता है मेरा,
कुछ दूर चलने पर|

दीवारों पर टंगी यादें और मेजों  पर सजा प्यार,
रास्ता देखते हैं,
किसीका,
वास्तविकता से भरा यह जीवन काल्पनिकता का कृतज्ञ है,
क्योकि जो भी मर्त्य है,
उसे सजीव रखती है यह अपने पास,
जिससे प्रज्वलित  होती है एक आस,
आस पाने की ज़िन्दगी को,
आस जीने की ज़िन्दगी को,
आस दुखों को दरकिनार करने की,

रास्तों में जब दुखों से टकराकर पाँव ठहर जाते हैं मेरे,
तब मेरा परिचय होता है,
राह चलती खुशियों से,
और वे मुझसे कहती हैं ,
चलो कुछ दूर और चलते हैं| 

-विजया