(An Imprint of Laxmi Publications Pvt. Ltd.)

VA LU E EDUCATION GANESH DAS | INDRANI MAJHI (SHIT)

VALUE EDUCATION

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VALUE EDUCATION

Edited by

GANESH DAS M.A., Diploma in Creative Writing and Translation Studies &

INDRANI MAJHI (SHIT) M.A., M.Phil

(An Imprint of Laxmi Publications Pvt. Ltd.) An ISO 9001:2008 Company

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CONTENTS

Introduction

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1. The Philosophy of Value

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1

2. Ethics and Contemporary Society: Role of Value Education

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5

3. Crisis of Values and its Impact on the Present Society

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12

4. Cardinal Values and Present Society

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17

5. Value Education and Women Empowerment

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26

6. Value Education: Its Present Needs in India

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37

7. Value Education and Inculcation of Ethics in Modern Society : A Critical Appraisal

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55

8. Value Education towards Personal Development

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64

9. Value Crisis

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78

10. Value Education for Sustainable Development

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88

11. The Ethics of the Niskama Karma of the Bhagavad Gita

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98

12. Values Imparted through Stories: A Case Study of Selected Folk Tales of Bengal

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108

13. Purusartha: Its Present Day Relevance

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118

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14. Ethical Values Relevance of in the Contemporary Period

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127

15. Value Education in Selected Texts: A Quest

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141

16. Ethics: The Root of Humanism

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154

17. Media and Value Education

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160

18. Importance of Ethical Values in our Present Society

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167

19. Analysing Values and Defining the Aims of Education: A Study of the Reports of Commissions and Committees of Post Independent India

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171

20. Value Education and Strategies for its Inculcation ...

175

21. Value Education in Teacher Education

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200

22. Role of School in Promoting Value Education

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214

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that we mean that it brings the consequences of value. So there is a good thing in this axiological sense, which may not be affected in any way by human misdeeds or actions. The term value itself came to ethics through the sense of economical demand and understanding, at its initial stage, within the idea of human empowerment such as—(i) value is used to upward the capacity of an object to satisfy human need or desire, (ii) value is used to exchange or set needed amount of any commodity that can be obtained in exchange with other, Sir David Ross has made a distinction between objects of satisfaction and objects of admiration, objects of satisfaction is, what the economists call ‘value in use’, everything that is satisfying human being but objects of admiration may not bring satisfaction in ordinary sense of the word to the person who admires them, may be morally good or not. There is a common division of values that has been in instrumental and absolute values, Instrumental value is a means of producing, which is somehow apart from the moral sense of value. Such as: the value of a machine for peeling potatoes is entirely instrumental. A thing that is good in itself and not because of its consequences is absolute value which is universal. In common, only elements of absolute value can be regarded as morally good so such things can be worthy object of admiration. Sometime it may be defined as intrinsic value. When we say all about the intrinsic value, we do not simply mean that some being is pleased with it. By intrinsic value it appears that a rational being calmly reflecting upon it. Thus this may be defined as the direct object of a rational choice. Generally truth, beauty and good are regarded as intrinsic values. These values are beyond individualism which are always independent. They are realized in some form of spiritual and aesthetic activities. The three aspects of spiritual activities are self-intellectual, emotional and volitional. Truth is the intrinsic value which satisfies the intellect. Our attitude towards it is to believe. Beauty is the intrinsic value which satisfies the emotion.. The will is the expression of personality. The voluntary activity of self or a personality may specially seek truth or beauty or

(xi)

utility as its immediate ends. It consists of intrinsic values such as knowledge of culture, beauty and virtue or moral goodness in their proper relation with the other. Intrinsic values also consist of social values of association and character which help the craving of social being. The bodily values may subordinate the social values, and the social values being subordinate to the spiritual values. Knowledge and beauty being subordinate to moral goodness or virtue. Value is an economic conception. All things that satisfy positive human desires are value. Food is good, because satisfies human hunger. Next to it, value is anything that conserves or furthers our life with our needs. It is described almost completely in terms of adjustment to the environment. This definition goes to the primitive forms of life, but this conception of value is inadequate to the present complex civilization. Thus we are led to the third definition of value. That alone is ultimately and intrinsically valuable that leads to the development of selves or to self-realization. Man is not only body, life and mind, but a person, a self, a spirit. Satisfaction of desire or pleasure also is not intrinsically valuable. Man is a person with deep spiritual cravings, and self-realization must be comprehended in his concept of intrinsic values. W. M. Urban classifies values as follows: Bodily values, Economic values, Values of Recreation, Values of Association, Character values, Aesthetic values, Intellectual values and Religious values. The bodily and economic values are basic, fundamental, and presupposed by other values. We may call them lower values. The bodily, economic and recreation values satisfy the wants of what is called the bodily self. The values of association and character satisfy the wants of what is called the social self. The aesthetic, intellectual and religious values satisfy the cravings of spiritual self for impersonal ideals. The related to the bodily and social self, and depend upon them, they really arise only in some functioning of the self that goes beyond them. Urban also divides values in two kinds values of sociality, spiritual values. Association and character values are social values. Intellectual, aesthetic and religious values are spiritual values.

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Spiritual values are higher than social values. Association values are both instrumentally and intrinsically of most worth. Association with other, including the values of commandership, friendship and love, is good in itself as well as instrumental to self-realization. The values of character are the virtues. They are good in themselves and also means to self-realization. Courage, temperance, justice, love and wisdom are good in themselves and also means to self-realization. Aesthetic, intellectual and religious values are regarded as intrinsic values. They are free from economic and selfish consideration. All learning of intrinsic value, interesting for its own sake. The religious values—prayer, divine communion are intrinsically valuable. They are the highest form of devotion and blessedness. Aesthetic, intellectual and religious values are satisfying the deeper cravings of the spiritual self for abstract and impersonal ideals. Moral value is the supreme value. It said to comprehend all the values. Especially it is supposed to include the overindividual values which are of intrinsic worth. Moral goodness includes beauty, truth, and holiness. Sometimes moral values is said to consist in moral excellence or virtue. It satisfies the will of the self. In this sense, it is different from though related to the other impersonal values. Intrinsic values are good in themselves, and not means for any other good. They are perused for their own sake and always independent of individuals, though realized by individuals. They always transcend the limits of individuals and are realized in some form of spiritual activity. The three ideals satisfy the three aspects of spiritual activity in self-intellectual, emotional and volitional. Truth satisfies the intellectual nature of self, beauty satisfies the emotional nature of self and moral excellence satisfies volitional nature of self. Truth, beauty and good are inseparably related with one another. Moral value is the intrinsic value, which satisfies the volitional nature of man. It is allied to truth and beauty, but it cannot be reduced to either. The consciousness of moral value is accompanied by moral sentiments which are lacking in the consciousness of truth and beauty. Moral value is wrongly

(xiii)

identified with aesthetic value. We appreciate the beauty of the material embodiment of an idea, though we may not approve of the idea. We attribute the moral value of a good act to its motive. Moral evaluation of conduct depends upon the motive of the agent. Moral approval is given to conduct as expressive of personality. So, moral value is unique. Love of God is regarded as a distinct intrinsic value. Prayer and divine communion are the supreme blessedness. They are good in themselves apart from their pragmatic value of. Religious value emphasizes love of God. Moral value also emphasizes love and service of humanity. Thus they are intimately related to each other. Hence, moral value, in the sense, includes religious value. G.E. Moore regards things of intrinsic value as ‘organic wholes’ the part of which are causally dependent on one another. The nature of the parts is determined by the existence of the whole. The whole is not a mere sum of its parts, and the value of the whole is not mere, sum of the values of its parts. The colors of a picture separately have a little value, but the picture as a whole has a great value. Truth, beauty and goodness are intrinsic values, are interrelated to one another. The essential unity of human being and inseparability of knowing, feeling and willing point to it. But we have not yet been able to comprehend the unity of these ideals of life. We believe that somehow they are harmonized in a unity and therefore satisfy our whole spiritual nature. Truth satisfies the intellect, beauty satisfies the emotion and goodness satisfies the ill. The will is the expression of personality. So goodness satisfies the whole personality. Thus the voluntary activity of the whole self may specifically seek truth or beauty or utility as immediate ends. Pursuit of knowledge depends upon some special endowment of the intellect. Knowledge of truth and appreciation of beauty are within the reach of common people to a very limited extent. But moral goodness is open to everybody at all times, and does not require any special gift. It lies in the right direction of the will, and consists of self-realization. The perfect life has room for many kinds of activities in the pursuit of many subordinate ends. Thus moral goodness may be said to be the highest intrinsic value. The

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highest good consists in the realization of the intrinsic values. It also consists in the realization of economic, bodily and recreation values subordinated to the pursuit of the social and spiritual values. The highest good consists in the realization of the intrinsic values, and instrumental values as fundamental to the achievement of the intrinsic values. It satisfies the self completely, that is; bodily self, the social self and the spiritual self. Self-realization consists in the rational ordering of the different values, which gradually leads to the harmonious energizing of the different capacities of the self. The nature of highest good can be envisaged only in a general way in this manner.

From Past to Present Religion is the innermost core of establishing values in the society. In this journey of establishing values in the society the teachers (Guru) takes a major role. From the time of civilization these Gurus appear in every ages throughout the world. India was swept by Bhakti movement, (a reformation movement) between the 12th and 15th century A.D. based on equality, fraternity and humanity by several Gurus. The main goal of this movement was to bring a revolution of establishing value and faith in India. To rescue our civilization from societal degradation and cultural distortion there was only one way seen and that was to evolve a simpler and liberal faith which would be acceptable to all. Because in all the time religion holds the power of establishing “Ahinsha” (non violance). This set in motion what subsequently came to be known as the Vaishnava Bhakti movement, in the beginning started by Alwars of South India and which next spread to northern India and then to the eastern regions of India. This movement brought a renaissance in the societal life of the Indian people. In the great scripture of Hinduism, the Bhagabad Gita it is rightly said that, “yada yada hi dharmasya glanirbhawati Bharata, adbhuthanamdharmasya tadatmanang srijamyaham; paritranai sadhunang winashaaya cha duskritam; dharmasangsthapanarthai sangbhawami yuge yuge.” (Gita, chap-iv, sloka-7-8) (The Dharma and its opposite Adharma imply all the duties as ordained for men in different stations by the definite scheme

(xv)

of their life and salvation. For destruction of the wicked, Dharma appears in every age). Towards the end of the 12th century, the ancient kingdom of Kâmrupa (Assam) was slowly undergoing a process of breakdown. From east to west the region was divided in to several kingdoms. From the very beginning of the 13th century the chaos took its full shape and almost damaged its societal structure. Regular friction and conflict for supremacy amongst the different powers was the order of the day, which severely affected the political condition of the region. The political instability brought about a chaotic condition in all sphere of the society. Bringing all the diverse communities and warring factions under a systematized religious code and conduct of life and to provide the masses with a mode of worship, which would be simple and at the same time accessible to all was what constituted the pressing need of the time. At this moment of societal chaos Srimanta Sankardeva appeared on the scene, the master-mind who reformed the societal structure. Srimanta Sankardeva was a multi-faceted genius, he was at once a spiritual leader, a social reformer, a prolific writer and a master playwright and composer. He undertook the difficult and arduous task of a reformer at a juncture of acute crisis in Assamese society and polity. And initiated Neo-Vaishnavite movement, in the latter period of the 15th century ushered in an era of socio-cultural renaissance in Assam, humanist in content and popular in form, in literature as well as in the vocal and visual arts. The movement was at once unique in nature and revolutionary in terms of its impact because it was a way of life. The uniqueness of the movement lay in the fact that unlike other contemporary cults in the rest of India, Srimanta Sankardeva’s Neo-Vaishnavism rested not on a discursive reasoning and abstract thinking but its emphasis was more on ethnic integration, societal reforms and spiritual uplift through an innovative mode of religious conduct based on indigenous elements of the region, at a time when the society in Assam was in a turmoil fragmented and faction-ridden as it was. Among the different Bhakti cults of India the NeoVaishnavism stands for its unique and innovative character, in the move to create an egalitarian civil society based on the

VALUE

EDUCATION GANESH DAS | INDRANI MAJHI (SHIT)

ABOUT THE BOOK “Value Education” is an attempt to render humanity, strength and honesty. This book imparts social, moral, integrity, spirituality, upliftment of character and many more values. Indian history and mythology teaches us of excellent values, but we are experiencing value crisis at the present moment. “Value Education” comes with some promise for the highest national issue of Humanity. In an era of tremendous information explosion and technology this book helps us envision the kind of stability that we need and humanity that will help us get through the future ahead.

EDITOR PHOTO

ABOUT THE EDITORS Ganesh Das is a young poet, playwright and critic. He is a Senior Lecturer in the department of English, Sai Vikash Jr. College, Guwahati. Mr. Das has contributed Papers, articles and poems in reputed journals and anthologies. His edited works are ‘Alok’, ‘Anuranan’ and several academic syllabi based reference books. His plays deal with contemporary Concern (problems related to youth). Mr. Das is also engaged as Personality Development trainer and actively participates in International and National conferences in a magnificent manner.

EDITOR PHOTO

Indrani Majhi (Shit) is one of the prominent educationists. Mrs. Majhi is an Assistant Professor in the department of philosophy, Egra SSB College, West Bengal. She is actively engaged in academic Works and her motive is establishing value amongst the new generation. Her edited works are ‘Anuranan’ and several academic syllabi based Books, they are highly appreciated by the reader. Mrs. Majhi has contributed papers and articles in several national and international journals.

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