AB: How can we create moral, responsible citizens to lead tomorrow’s India?

AS: By becoming one ourselves…by being the example. There’s no other way. To need someone or something external to motivate us means we believe that we are not enough. We already have it in us and our responsibility is to ourselves. That’s it!

AB: That’s one part, I believe… but considering children, youths, adults…I think there should be a different strategy for each group.

P: I feel we should create patriotism in our youth and kids. People think nothing good left in India. So in schools n colleges (teacher’s influence is critical) we should give positive facts and ensure 2-3  years of social or army services.

AB: How can one train children to become an example?

AG: What causes change is the presence of role models. Look at crime. You will find a lot of criminals come from families which were dysfunctional.

AB: Agreed…it is also due to the environment which the child grows. We also examples of good citizens coming from slums; however such examples could be rare.

AG: You could have dysfunctional families in bungalows and functional families in slums.

AS: Why should patriotism stop at the borders of one country? Isn’t that validating a piece of land belongs to only one set of people thereby creating rifts. NRIs are the biggest pseudo-patriots who don’t give up on their sarees and tadkas and yet fuss about pollution and traffic when they come to visit India. Religions are nothing but documented journeys of enlightened individuals towards their own enlightenment/nirvana. However, the map is not the territory and following something blindly is not going to get us anywhere. I don’t believe in training children…kind of a harsh word like a monkey in a circus. We have to just allow them to open their minds…

AG: Well said AS.. That is what we are trying to do in a small school that we run in Jammu.

AS: If your kid says, he wants to drop education/career and join a NGO and teach slum kids…will you allow it? Or will you marry off your daughter to one such person. Tough? We all want out AC bedrooms and then donate old blankets to poor. Finally it comes down to self. Only if you are steady, can you help another. Am gonna zip up, else will go into how children are born out of us and not for us and they have chosen us and also their life journeys.

S: Personally i believe religion n boundaries – national….have created more wars n evil dan anything else… But we have to give practical solutions.. in d existing realities…even while keeping justice n peace in mind.. Use religion ..as a tool for gud purposes…if hindus ..christians n muslims believe dat charity wud ensure their seat in heaven den yes..teach d children it is divine to b charitable.. Patriotism ..loyalty etc r values which must b inculcated wen kinds r small.. A child who is not loyal to his family wud hav issues being loyal to his friends.. neighbours.. nation  n mayb even to himself..

P: I think my suggestion got interpreted wrongly. Patriotism is nothing to do with religion.

K: AB, in current scenario children can be grown without religious n patriotism values. It is enough to inject values of humanity. Beyond country & religious Boundaries only humanity is the only value next generations shall adopt

AB: Children should be made knowledgeable. Only when they become knowledge based, can they become an example.

S: Patriotism n Religion …two diffrt things..i understud well. N i ws talking abt two diff things.. Ur suggestions wer great.. Osho too talks abt doing away wid religions n boundaries (n in fact marriage too….Wow!.).Great ideas Yes humanity shud b d main consideration.. I was thinking of practical n viable solutions in d current scenario.. N yes, ideally, we must work towards creating such a world. Nothing can b better.

AB: AS, what do you mean by ” allowing children to open their mind”. Is it just allowing them to be curious, creative…

AS: Yes, no conditioning like…boys do this, girls don’t do this, what career means, what they should choose, hobbies. Just let them be without any ideas put in their head.  Arts karke kya karega. US toh jana hi hai… Let them be drawn to what their life purpose is…it’s easier for them. Basic lessons of morality and values are necessary but a line needs to be drawn somewhere. Personally, even the choice of religion. We are so obsessed with US that most are not aware that all education in Germany has been declared free even for foreign nationals…they followed the footsteps of Scandinavia. Let them connect to what they want for they will excel in that.

P: Agree… Our role should be as a motivator not as a created.. As nothing can be forced on anyone especially generation today… Of  course  as a parent guiding them for right ad wrong…

SR: Pl Check out www.swadhaschool.org for some really amazing work being done in the field of education.

P: Yes had seen that.. Its too good.. Learning through creativity.. And much more in it.. 

AS: Shyam…there are barely 2-3 schools in Mumbai that follow the Steiner pattern, Trida is one of them. However post X or XII when they join the regular pattern created by the Govt. they find it very difficult to cope up. The only option is to move abroad for education as undergrads or continue in colleges affiliated to foreign Universities…the fees for which is nothing less than 5-7 lakhs a year in India. So my question is how many can afford it? Incidentally, there is a waiting list for two-three years in schools like Trida. You may want to look at expanding into a residential school.