This story from the Upanishads illustrates for me a wonderful model of teaching and learning:
In times long ago, there were three kinds of offspring of the great cosmic father Prajapati - the divine beings or gods, the humans and the demons. They all lived with their father in order to learn the lessons they needed to fulfill their roles and destinies.
After finishing their term of studies, it was time for each group to leave and to get on with whatever gods, humans and demons get on with. But, before that, it was time for the final lesson.
The first group was that of the divine beings. Respectfully they asked: “Please teach us.”
Prajapati simply uttered the syllable “Da.” Then he asked them: “Have you understood?”
“Yes, lord, we have. You have told us daamyath – control yourselves.”
Prajapati was pleased, “Yes, you have understood.”
Next it was the turn of the humans. They too made the traditional request: “Please teach us.”
Again Prajapati said just “Da,” adding: “Have you understood?”
“Indeed, lord, we have. What you have told us is datha – be charitable.”
A satisfied Prajapati responded: “You have understood.”
At last, it was time for the demons to have their last lesson. They too asked: “Please teach us.”
They too heard Prajapati utter the sound: “Da.” He once again asked the group the same question he had asked the previous two groups: “Have you understood?”
“We have, for sure, lord. You have instructed us – dayadhvam – be merciful.”
Prajapati nodded, “Yes, you have understood.”
The three groups took his leave.
The thundercloud from time to time repeats his message to all: “Da, Da, Da.” Damam, Daanam, Dayaam – self-control, charity, mercy, it teaches.
… And you take what you need most to learn.
Our schools today, over-crowded as they are, have little space or time for the kind of personalized teaching that allows you to take what you need most to learn. In fact this is actively discouraged.
Torey L. Hayden’s book, “Somebody Else’s Kids”, tells of four “problem children” placed in Torey’s class because no one else knew what to do with them. What is heart-wrenching in this well-told story is how so many people – parents, school-teachers, educational officials and even other children – seem perversely determined to keep them feeling inadequate.
We are blessed to have among us other Toreys who are the ones who make the difference in these children’s lives, giving them a sense of self-esteem and respect for what they can do and achieve.
I am reminded of a beautiful piece by Michael K. Meyerhoff, where he tells of Jennifer, so different from her older sister Jessica, who consistently makes good grades, while Jennifer, though managing to bring home a more than average report card, is repeatedly marked by those daunting words on them: "could do better," "should apply herself more," and "has a tendency to get distracted.” I know these words bother me, as my own report cards in school usually had these phrases on them.
Meyerhoff shows the unusual, and to me, truly brilliant way Jennifer’s mind works when he tells us of how she rattled her teachers by responding to a question: “The plural of leaf is ‘tree’.”
He tells us that this genius, this creativity, goes unnoticed or even punished in our quest for ‘the one right answer’, perhaps because we don’t discern that that there can be a significant difference between doing well in school and learning.
May we learn to celebrate and appreciate the Jennifers as well as the Toreys among us.
They know what “Da” stands for. Do we?
Marguerite Theophil
Old myths, old gods, old heroes have never died.
They are only sleeping at the bottom of our mind, waiting for our call.
We have need for them. They represent the wisdom of our race.
~Stanley Kunitz
They are only sleeping at the bottom of our mind, waiting for our call.
We have need for them. They represent the wisdom of our race.
~Stanley Kunitz
