गुरुपौर्णिमेच्या निमित्ताने - आपल्यामधील विद्यार्थ्याबद्दल

आज गुरुपौर्णिमा- आपल्या गुरुजनांविषयी कृतज्ञता व्यक्क्त करण्याचा दिवस .

आपले आई-वडिल, आजी-आजोबा, थोरली भावंड, वडिलधारी मंडळी हया सर्वांकडून विविध लहान-मोठया गोष्टी शिकत-शिकत आपण शाळेमध्ये प्रवेश करतो. तिथे आपल्या आयुष्यात आपल्या पहिल्या वर्गशिक्षिका दाखल होतात (पहिल्याच खेपेस वर्गशिक्षक येण्याची शक्यता खूपच कमी). अ, ब, क, ड (अथवा  ए, बी, सी, डी) शिकत-शिकत आपली गाडी पाढे, शिवाजी महाराज, स्वातंत्र्यलढा, बीजगणित, सुभाषिते, रासायनीक समीकरणे अशा अनेक स्टेशनांना पार करत-करत बारावीपर्यंत येऊन ठेपते. पुढे उच्चशिक्षण घेताना अनेक तज्ञांचे मार्गदर्शन आपल्याला लाभते. त्याचा लाभ घेत आपण दुनियादारीसाठी सज्ज होतो. ह्या टप्प्यावर आपल्या (पेशाने शिक्षक असलेल्या) गुरूंच्या आणि आपल्या वाटा वेगळ्या होतात. इथवरच्या प्रवासात आपल्यावर शिक्षणाचे संस्कार करणाऱ्या शिक्षकांचा मोठा हातभार असतो. पुढील प्रवासात त्यांची शिकवण व त्यांचे संस्कार आपल्यासोबत असतात.

स्वतःचा विषय शिकवता-शिकवता प्रत्येक गुरु आपापल्या पद्धतीने अजून एक गोष्ट आपल्याला शिकवतात – ती म्हणजे स्वतः स्वतःचे शिक्षक कसे बनावे व त्याच बरोबर सतत विद्यार्थीदशेत का राहावे. कारण त्यांना माहित असते की एकदा का औपचारिक शिक्षण संपले की प्रत्येक अडी-अडचणीच्या वेळी आपल्याला स्वतःच स्वतःचे शिक्षक बनावे लागते किंवा एखाद्या जाणकार व्यक्तीचे मार्गदर्शन पुढाकार घेऊन मिळवावे लागते. चार-चारदा, प्रेमाने “समजल ना बाळांनो तुम्हाला” अस विचारत नाही कोणी. आपल्यातल्या विद्यार्थ्याला जिवंत ठेवावे लागते आणि पुस्तके, इंटरनेट, प्रसारमाध्यमे आणि स्वानुभव ह्यांच्या सहाय्याने नवीन गोष्टी शिकाव्या लागतात. तसेच काही प्रसंगी मित्र-मैत्रिणी, सहकर्मचारी, नवरा/बायको, वडिलधारी मंडळी अथवा वरिष्ठ अशा त्या-त्या वेळी योग्य व्यक्तीस गुरु मानावे लागते. ज्यांना हे सर्व जमतं त्यांचा सर्वांगीण विकास होतो.

काही दिवसांपूर्वी एका एकदिवसीय कोर्सच्या निमित्ताने हे विचार आले माझ्या मनात. नवीन काहीतरी शिकण्याच्या उद्देशाने विविध वायोगटामधील व्यक्ती सहभागी झाल्या होत्या. विषय काही पुस्तकी नव्हता आणि प्रशिक्षक त्या विषयातील जाणकार व अनुभवी होते. त्यांनी अगदी सुरुवातीलाच सांगितले की ज्या स्लाईड्स मी समोर दाखवणार आहे त्यातील प्रत्येक शब्द उतरवून घेऊ नका, नंतर नोटस्‌ देण्यात येतील. ही प्रस्तावना झाल्यानंतर, उशीर झाल्यामुळे, एका मध्यमवयीन सहभागीनीने प्रवेश केला. माझ्याच शेजारच्या रिकाम्या खुर्चीत त्या घाई-घाईत आसनस्थ झाल्या. सर्व जण काय करत आहेत, प्रशिक्षक काय बोलत आहेत ह्या कडे जराही लक्ष न देता, स्लाईड वरील शब्द न् शब्द उतरवून काढू लागल्या. प्रशिक्षकांच्या हे लक्षात येताच त्यांनी लगेचच त्यांना तसे करण्यापासून थांबवले व आपली प्रस्तावना पुन्हा एकदा दिली. ह्यानंतरही एक दोघांनी ‘तुम्ही जे सांगत आहात त्याच्या नोटस्‌ नंतर नक्की द्याल ना’ असं दोन-तीनदा विचारत खात्री करून घेतली. समोरची व्यक्ती जे सांगते आहे ते आपण ऐकून, त्यावर विचार करून नवीन विषय समजून घेउ शकतो ह्याची खात्रीच नव्हती बहुदा त्यांना. उजळणी म्हणून अथवा काही दिवसांनी जेव्हा विसर पडला असेल तेव्हा सर्व नीट आठवण्यासाठी नोट्स व आत्ता समजून घेण्यासाठी डोळे, कान व मेंदू ह्या सरळ-साध्या गोष्टी का लक्षात नाही आल्या त्यांच्या? नवीन गोष्टी शिकण्यासाठी ज्ञानेंद्रिये कायम कार्यरत असू दयावीत ही आपल्या गुरूंची शिकवण का विसरतो आपण ?

वरील घटना तशी साधीशीच आहे, पण आपल्या गुरुजनांच्या ‘स्वतःमधील विद्यार्थ्याला नेहमीच जीवंत व सतर्क ठेवावे’ ह्या शिकवणीची आठवण करून देणारी आहे.

आज गुरुपोर्णिमेच्या मुहूर्तावर आपल्या गुरुजनांबददल कृतज्ञता व्यक्त करत तुमच्या समोर हे विचार मांडावेसे वाटले म्हणून हा ब्लॉगचा खटाटोप.

गुरुपौर्णिमेच्या हार्दिक शुभेच्छा !!!!      

- Kalindi Joshi

With Amol Vishwas Joshi, Interior Designer, AAkruti Interiors, Kandivli, Mumbai 

    9967534621, For more details, click here -->>

Back To School

While chatting on What's App, a friend of mine shared her son's photograph. He was all dressed up for his first day of primary school. His neatly ironed school uniform, colourful umbrella, water bottle, all-season footwear... everything took me back to my school days. And it also made me realize that sooner or later, me and Amol and most of our friends are going to return to school- as parents this time! The efforts our parents had taken to make us sit at one place and solve some mathematical problems or to make us learn the tables by heart or to make us complete those work books were commendable. Seeing us take similar efforts is going to be amusing for them. Life is about to come a full circle!

It all begins with our first day of school, or sometimes even before that- if you have had elder siblings or neighbouring friends whom you saw going to school everyday. We do not remember now, what and how much we understood then as toddlers at age 2 or so; but looking at the kids that age now, makes us realize that even we would have been super excited with the idea of getting some new and attractive things of our own, even at such tender age. Of course, it was not the age to understand that once you own these new wonders you will be made to sit away from your parents for 4 odd hours with kids who own more attractive stuff than you do. So most of the times, we have ended up among a bunch of sobbing, screaming, crying classmates to be one of them. Those must have been the trying times for our parents. Later on, as we must have got used to the school routine;  the next big trouble our parents must have faced is making us do the homework. And more importantly, to make us sit still for completing our studies. The entry of colourful, attractive yet tiny study table in our house must have been one of their efforts for making us complete our tasks. No matter how short may be its life in terms of usage, such tiny study tables do enter our homes at such early stages of our academic lives.

As we grow a little older, the size of our study table and more importantly, that of the cupboard that encloses all our toys, increases gradually. Our parents need to make some arrangement to organize the cute little mess of our note books, text books, work books, pencils, sharpeners, erasers, colour pencils, drawing books, wax crayons, playing wax, adhesives, scissors, crape papers and what not! As we grow older and join the secondary school, we start learning newer things like cricket, football, harmonium, guitar, calligraphy... Whatever we learn, it ends up getting some new stuff to our homes. And along with managing our studies (or making us manage our studies) and encouraging us for acquiring newer skills; they also need to manage these new entrants in the house. Older toys find a way in a less privileged kid's home and they make space for a cricket kit or a harmonium or may be a guitar. Days pass by and you enter standard 10.

Tenth standard has always had its own significance in the academic life of every student. We have seen our parents take all sorts efforts for us when we were in 10th. They wanted only the best for us -the best question banks, the best coaching classes, the best stationary- whatever they could do, whatever they could afford was done by them for us. These days, as per parents' capabilities, they are seen helping their std. 10 son or daughter with amenities such as air conditioned study rooms, latest laptops or a brand new study table. The story of std. 12 is not much different. 

The real fun begins when you enter the college. Availability of your space for studies becomes parents' necessity as much as yours- thanks to the assignments for which you burn the midnight oil. Some of us need drafting tables then while some of us need space for heavy reference books. Some of us need space for keeping special apparatus like cameras or canvas or even the knife box depending upon the professional course chosen. The requirements are weird at times during this stage. My sister needed drawers to keep her A1 sized drawing sheets while doing architecture. Hence my father got a customised study table designed for her. The A1 sized drawing sheets bothered Amol as well when he was pursuing interior designing. A special folding table was  developed for him so that he could complete his assignments comfortably. I used to buy or borrow loads of heavy books during college days which obviously needed more space. We got a mini-library developed in our living room to accommodate them. My cousin- an IT scholar, needed a PC of his own while others in his family shared another PC. With the growing significance of information technology with respect to higher studies, this has become a common practise in many households. Making space for two PCs is quite a task especially in residences in Mumbai. Unique needs, unique study habits and several memories are attached with the study tables that witness our college days. 

The photograph of my friend's son took me down memory lane. Student phase is a significant phase in one's life. Parent's efforts to make it more conducive play a crucial role. Probably that's why I can fondly look back to the good old days today. 

- Kalindi Joshi

With Amol Vishwas Joshi, Interior Designer, AAkruti Interiors

Whether you need a customised PC unit developed for your son or a customised book shelf set up for your daughter or a complete renovation of the study room of your kids; you can contact:

* Amol Vishwas Joshi, Inerior Designer, AAkruti Interiors, Kandivli, Mumbai * 
@ 9967534621 @ For more details, click here -->>