Rinpoche advised the purpose of education and academic knowledge at Maitreya School, a social welfare project of Root Institute, Bodhgaya, India.
Some people have a very good education. They attend kindergarten, primary and secondary school, whilst some even attend university and get the highest qualifications, but they use it for negative things like masterminding war. We should use education and academic knowledge to work on our inner mind as well as to benefit others, not destroy them.
Rinpoche gave the following dedication for Alice Project, a research project for the education of children and teachers, with schools in Sarnath and Bodhgaya, India.
May the supreme thought of the fully awakened mind be achieved in oneself and family members, and in the hearts of numberless human beings, animals, pretas, narak, asura and sura beings. In particular in this country, this city, in the children of Alice Project and in the kind staff here, without one second of delay.
May the kind staff, the precious kind principal of Alice Project, and the kind students have a meaningful and beneficial long life with inner happiness and peace. May everyone from this school cause happiness to all sentient beings—not only mundane happiness of this life, this short life, but also in all their future lives, and especially ultimate happiness, liberation from the oceans of samsaric sufferings, for narak, preta, human, asura, sura and animal beings.
Especially to achieve the fully awakened mind, peerless happiness, eliminating all suffering and achieving the complete accomplishment of all the realizations by having generated the precious bodhicitta, the supreme thought of enlightenment, in the hearts of living beings, in particular in India, in this city, in this school.
May no one experience global warming effects, economic difficulties, problems of disease, war, dangers of fire, water and tsunamis, etc. May this world be filled with peace and happiness. May everyone live their lives benefiting others, giving no harm. Whatever we do, may it only become the cause of happiness for others and bring full awakening. May all of us, by just being here in this universe, country, city and area, bring the cause of happiness to others.
Rinpoche discussed starting Buddhist schools and monasteries in India, with an Indian-born monk serving there. The monk told Rinpoche that another monk attending a course in Bodhgaya had said that there was too much politics in Bodhgaya, and that a monastery or training center for monks should he started elsewhere.
A Buddhist school is very necessary, with Buddhist education, but open to anybody. Please start with this project in Bodhgaya. One should do this work where there are the most problems, where there is lots of violence. That is where we should provide education in how to have a good heart.
A monastery in Bodhgaya would be good. Ladakhi monks from Geshe Tegchok’s khamsen at Sera could help teach the monks in Hindi. One can get monk teachers from the three monasteries in the south, no problem. After Bodhgaya, then, of course, there can be schools and monasteries in Maharashta state and in Gujarat state, where there is so much Hindu-Muslim violence.
Once the parents of children are willing and satisfied, then we can educate those children in the Buddhist way. It depends on the parents’ consent. This is very important.
A school for Universal Education is good, but in a country where Buddhism flourished, and which is the home of Buddha, there is no problem in having a Buddhist school, with Buddhist teachings, in addition to the normal curriculum.
Note: Maharashta is a state in central India that is home to many Ambedkar (or neo-) Buddhists.
Rinpoche met with a nun to discuss the best way to educate children.
To educate children is extremely important. There are two places where children should be educated: one is at school, and the other is at home, by the parents. They should be educated in a good heart and tolerance, to have compassion, and be kind to others. These are the basic good qualities of human minds, so parents have a big responsibility.
Otherwise, without this education, it is like giving birth to the children to suffer. The children will have a life full of suffering, and they will also cause so much suffering, torture to their parents, and also to other people. They can cause other sentient beings so many problems with their untamed minds, without a good heart, and a sense of universal responsibility.
If the parents want their children to be kind to them, they have to teach them how to have a good heart. If the children have tolerance and compassion toward other beings, other beings will love them and help them. This way they will have a good heart, which makes them happy, and then from being happy, they will have more space in their mind to be kind to others, and this makes others happy.
The stronger influence out of parents or school is the parents, because that’s where they spend more time, and there, the way of teaching is by example. In school, you learn by the head but not by the heart.
What is needed is education for both parents and children in having a good heart.
Rinpoche visited the school run by the FPMT in Bodhgaya for Indian children, and gave this advice to the schoolchildren.
You should think of getting an education, going to school, to be able to benefit all living beings.
Rinpoche had some discussions with a student about a school that was supposed to be run according to Buddhist principles. The student reported that not all the children’s parents were Buddhist, and that the school was trying not to be too overt about the Buddhist principles they were teaching. The school was having financial difficulties, and there was concern about losing students. She also asked whether Rinpoche was happy with the school in general, and whether she should continue helping to manage it.
The school should have very clear objectives. It is different from a general school, and what makes it special is that its main objective is to bring up children with kindness and to raise them to be kinder, more loving, and compassionate toward others. The aim is to develop a thought of universal responsibility, so that each child feels responsible for every living being’s happiness and peace. The object is for each child to become a source a peace and happiness for every living being. That is the whole aim of the school.
In this way, when the children have this great quality of a human mind, a good heart, they don’t give harm to others. All other living beings do not receive harm from them, and that absence of harm means they receive peace and happiness from those children. On top of this, the more the children develop, the more peace and happiness they bring to others. Others can receive the peace and happiness of this life from them, and the peace and happiness of future lives as well, up to the highest happiness: liberation from all suffering and its causes. That means the children can bring so much peace into this world, into other universes, in this and in future lives, by continually developing a good heart. Besides bringing peace and happiness to their own country, their own area, and own family, the children can bring great peace and happiness to other countries, areas, and families.
It is OK if there are parents who don’t have an interest in Buddhism and they want to take their children out of the school. You are trying to develop the rest of the children more deeply, and you couldn’t if those parents were blocking you. It would block the development of the children’s inner wisdom and good heart. If you explain it in this way, there should be no negative reaction due to a child leaving the school.
Alternatively, you could give less Buddhist instruction to those children whose parents are not Buddhist, and teach the rest in a fuller way. This would allow the other children to stay in the school.
If the objectives of the school are very clear, people will be happy to offer the school financial help.
