September 5 marks the birth anniversary of Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a distinguished philosopher, scholar, and statesman who was the Vice President of India from 1952 to 1962, and the second President of the country, from 1962 to 1967.
However, his contribution to Indian society is more popularly remembered as a teacher, whose birthday is celebrated as Teachers’ Day across the nation. Born in the Madras Presidency, Dr Radhakrishnan completed his graduation and master’s degree from Madras Christian College and served as a professor at several noted universities, including the University of Mysore and the University of Calcutta. His work on comparative religion and philosophy played a significant role in introducing Indian philosophy to the Western world and earned him the Spalding Professorship of Eastern Religions and Ethics at the University of Oxford. Radhakrishnan firmly believed in education as a transformative tool for society. In his quote, Dr Radhakrishnan highlights the true objective of education, distinguishing it from both training and the accumulation of information. Both are part of education, and add to the experience, but that is not what education is all about. Education is what helps us convert information into knowledge, and knowledge into wisdom. It is an exercise of both the mind and the spirit that helps one to guide their actions with reason and become responsible citizens of a democracy, where their opinions hold the greatest strength. The education system frequently undergoes overhauls. Syllabuses change, the modes of teaching adapt to modern technologies, and new specialisations come up every other day. The quote also reminds us that education is likely the key to ensuring a bright future for the nation and its population. People cannot choose the right person to lead them in a democracy without the light of education guiding them in making that choice. As such, Dr Radhakrishnan’s words carry a far greater weight in the present day than any.
Commemorating the day, today’s quote is his statement: “The aim of education is not the acquisition of information, although important, or acquisition of technical skills, though essential in modern society, but the development of that bent of mind, that attitude of reason, that spirit of democracy which will make us responsible citizens. However, the underlying objective of all of them, which is highlighted in Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan’s quote, remains just as true today as it was decades ago.
