LAUNCH OF CURRICULUM ON UNIVERSAL ETHICS AYURGYAN NYAS. His Holiness The 14 th Dalai Lama. Date: October 16, 2017

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1 LAUNCH OF CURRICULUM ON UNIVERSAL ETHICS AYURGYAN NYAS By His Holiness The 14 th Dalai Lama Date: October 16, 2017 at DAV Centenary Public School, Meerut, U.P. Executive Summary Realising the importance of ethics in education, the role of teachers and educators needs to be emphasised in inculcating values among students through education of ethics. Education should not only provide students with literacy, but also instil humility, compassion, and discernment thereby bringing a positive change in behaviour. Thus, the responsibility of teachers should be to inculcate these values in children. The present education system provides minimum opportunities for the development of ethical values and excludes the importance of instilling inner human values. Hence, there is a need to examine the role of the present education system and extend its scope to Universal Ethics within its domain. In order to work towards this goal, AyurGyan Nyas has designed the Curriculum on Universal Ethics Education for educators and students at the primary, secondary and higher secondary level in schools. The Curriculum has been divided into 5 parts. It begins with an Introduction to the programme, followed by Ethics of Restraint, Ethics of Virtue, Ethics of Compassion and Ethics of Discernment & Universal Responsibility. The curriculum has been prepared for both teachers and students. In pursuance of this our two facilitator s guides (i) Introduction to Universal Ethics in Education; and (ii) Facilitators Guide on Ethics of Restraint, were launched by His Holiness, the 14 th Dalai Lama at the DAV

2 Centenary public School, Meerut, on October 16, The curriculum has been developed by AyurGyan Nyas. Understanding the concept of Universal Ethics in Education In an attempt towards a more holistic education of children, introducing Universal Ethics in Education (UEE) is one of the important steps. UEE is based on the premise of Secular Ethics, a concept prefaced and promulgated by His Holiness himself. If basic human values are to be brought within the purview of general education for all people, they cannot be based on a single religion, culture or ideology. Rather, they must be based on universal realities of entire humanity. With this in mind, a number of educationists and thinkers havebegun advocating for a secular or universal approach to ethics. The Dalai Lama has been one of the most vocal advocates of what he calls a new secular approach to universal ethics that can be promoted in the public sphere, including the educational settings. The Dalai Lama has often restated that two of his utmost priorities include the promotion of basic human values and the fostering of inter religious understanding. He has called for an approach to ethics that is explicitly secular and not even subtly or implicitly religious or biased, in order to ensure that it is truly universal. This can be understood by delving into the speeches and the writings of the Dalai Lama on Universal Ethics, including his books Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World, Ethics for the New Millennium and Art of Happiness, which elucidate the vision for secular or universal ethics in education in a succinct and sophisticated way. A brief description of the Books Launched (i) Introduction to Universal Ethics in Education This guide introduces the need of the programme on Universal Ethics to the facilitators. With the help of activities it clarifies the concept of Universal Ethics and expands on the definitions. The guide also explains the methodologies that can be used for conducting trainings, (ii) Facilitator s Guide on Ethics of Restraint In order to overcome suffering or unhappiness, destructive emotions need to be recognized and subsequently restrained. Thus, practising ethics of restraint is fundamental to ensure happiness. Keepings this in mind, the guide gives us an insight into ethics of restraint. With the help of activities, emotions and the need to recognise them is explained. It also delves into the destructive nature of negative or afflictive emotions. To combat these negative or afflictive emotions the guide suggests the importance of mindfulness and contemplative practices to break them. In the end, the importance of having a caring classroom and applying the ethics of restraint to create a caring classroom for both teachers and students is dealt with. The Launch Event It was truly a historical Day for Meerut and for AyurGyan Nyas that His Holiness arrived in this city again. This time to launch the Curriculum on Universal Ethics that has been developed for schools all across India. The journey started in 2014 when AyurGyan Nyas was established at Meerut and the work started at the earnest

3 His Holiness s cavalcade arrived at the Venue amidst children from various schools welcoming him. The event commenced with the lighting of the lamps by His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama and other distinguished guests present on the stage. This was followed by a song by the choir group of the students of DAV Centenary Public school, Meerut. Dr. Alpana Sharma, the principal of DAV Centenary School, Meerut welcomed His Holiness the Dalai Lama and also extended her welcome to all the distinguished guests and the people present at the event. Ms. Asheema Singh, trustee, AyurGyan Nyas as the Master of Ceremony began by extending her heartfelt gratitude to His Holiness. She then invited Ms Deepti Gulati, General Secretary, AyurGyan Nyas to speak about AyurGyan Nyas s journey so far. Ms. Gulati stated that Late Shri Kulbhushan Gulati had built the foundation of the Universal Ethics in Education curriculum based on the teachings of His Holiness, by bringing together distinguished professionals from different fields to a common platform. She further added that all the activities in the two books launched had been designed in collaboration with the ten partner schools.this was followed by the screening of a film showcasing the work of AyurGyan Nyas and describing the importance of Universal Ethics in Education in modern times. This film is made by Stenzin Tankong.

4 Dr. Avinash Chandra Pandey, Former Vice Chancellor, Bundelkhand University, addressed the gathering where he stressed on an education of both heart and mind in order to build emotionally intelligent and resilient beings. He spoke on the challenges in nurturing values in the current education system where there is an increasing trend of aggressiveness and violence and therefore humanity demands for strong moral convictions. Introductory Module and Facilitators guide on Ethics of Restraint were then launched by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The books were also distributed to the principals of the ten partner schools present at the event.

5 His Holiness the Dalai Lama s address His Holiness the 14 th Dalai Lama started his address with the fond remembrance of his close friend Late Kulbhushan Bakshi stating that his presence could still be felt around even though he was not physically present there. He congratulated AyurGyan Nyas for their commendable work in taking the dreams of Late Balshi Ji forward. Since his birth in the year 1935, the Dalai Lama had since his childhood noticed the Second World War, the Vietnam War and a number of serious civil wars where more than 200 million people were killed through violence. The damage and destruction from that violence remained till decades and a lot of people suffered. In addition people are still killing one another in the name of religion. This has to come to an end in the present times. He said that the desire for peace in the people increased from the earlier part of the Twentieth century to the later part of the century. The European nations experienced immense suffering in the Second World War. After the war, some of the nations like France and Germany, through their common sense and far-sightedness, initiated the European Union and since then have done really well for themselves. It is time for us to make efforts towards not repeating the same mistakes as in the twentieth century. His Holiness stated that engaging in war, making weapons and killing people are outdated in the current twentyfirst century. We need to strive towards making a better twenty-first century. His Holiness stated that according to modern scientific findings, the basic human nature is compassionate. The real beauty of a human being is in the service of others rather than one s outward appearance. The most influential way to convey this to the people is through the medium of education.

6 His Holiness stated that education is the most important tool to make people aware of the mental afflictions like anger, jealousy and fear which are the major obstacles towards a happy life. In modern times, the requirement of mental hygiene is as essential as that of physical hygiene. His Holiness appreciated the efforts of AyurGyan Nyas in taking his work on Universal Ethics Education forward. His Holiness stated that a curriculum as introduced by AyurGyan Nyas on Universal Ethics in Education is the need of the hour to train children, the future of the society in their mental wellbeing and to tackle destructive emotions in order to live a life of happiness. At the same time, His Holiness also said that we, as global citizens should be compassionate and caring about the seven billion people of the world. The responsibility to build a happier and peaceful world rests on the shoulders of every one of us. Extending genuine human friendship is a key factor for the healthy survival of an individual. After the address, there was a question and answer session where His Holiness, with his utmost wisdom and humility, answered the questions put forward by the children. Some of the questions answered by His Holiness were: 1) Do you miss Tibet? His Holiness stated that he certainly missed Tibet. Being born in Tibet, he is a true Tibetan. In addition, His Holiness stated that he has three commitments. Firstly, as a human being, he has a commitment towards humanity. Secondly, as a believer of Buddhism, he has the commitment to promote religious harmony. His third commitment is towards Tibet. At the same time, His Holiness added that he has always been influenced by Nalanda tradition and would often describe himself as a messenger of ancient Indian thought.

7 2) Why do the poor seem happier than the rich? His Holiness stated that the richer people are more concerned with fame, money and competition. The increase in competition also creates a sense of distrust causing unhappiness. He makes mention of the rise in the suicide rates in the urban and developed regions of the world. On the other hand, the sense of community among the poor (he makes reference of the farmlands and farmers) is very strong; through the sense of oneness, they help to keep each other happy. 3) Should countries be dedicated to preserve their tradition or should embrace the modern culture? His Holiness said that the cultural heritage, as having evolved as a certain way of life due to many different factors, is very relevant to the concerned people. Culture, including one s language is a very important source of identity for people. However, some cultural features like the Caste system and Dowry system are too outdated and people should not hold on to those. Change is such systems should happen and the sense of equality of human beings should be embraced. Vote of Thanks The event was concluded with a vote of thanks extended by Ms Anshu Sahi, Trustee, AyurGyan Nyas. AyurGyan Nyas is extremely grateful to His Holiness The Dalai Lama for his blessings, MLI, Emory University, DAV Centenary Public School, Dalai Lama Trust, Partnering schools, Principals, Teachers, guests, Media, curriculum development team, members, our core team and everyone who contributed to the development of this curriculum and in making this launch a memorable one. The event concluded with National Anthem.

8 Special Guests Mr Prashant Kumar, ADG, Meerut Mr Sameer Verma, District Magistrate, Meerut Ms Manjil Saini, SSP, Meerut Prof Abha Singh AMITY University Mayank Agarwal MD IIMT University Tanuja Sharma Management Development Institute Gurgaon Trapti Rai Founder Open Doors Arushi Baluja Sahi- Institute of Road Transport Education (IRTE) and Principals from different schools from Meerut and NCR region Partner Schools Lions Bal Vidhya Mandir, Sr. Secondary School, Pilibhit Little Angel s school, Pilibhit Shri Ram Public School, Meerut DAV Centenary Public School, Meerut RNS World School, Jhansi New Era Public School, Jhansi KDB Public School, Ghaziabad SLS DAV Mausam Vihar, Delhi Archies Higher Sec. School, Kanpur Quote from the Event The Twenty-first century can be a happier and peaceful century with the practice of compassionate humanity on the basis of the sense of oneness of human-beings. His Holiness, the 14 th Dalai Lama