Learning at the Swami’s Feet(Religion & Society, small grant)

2009-2010

Prof. Roger Jeffery (PI) & Dr Aya Ikegame (RA)Centre for South Asian Studies

The University of Edinburgh, UK

Religion & Society Study Group Conference, Edinburgh, 8 April 2010

Our Project

• The aims of the project:– How do matha (monastery)-run-schools affect the

identity of students – do they generate a specifically ‘Hindu’ identity?

– What kind of religious and moral education do matha-run-schools provide?

• Methodology– Interviews: students, parents, teachers, administrators,

gurus (20-25 interviews per school)– Archival work

Three Selected Schools• 1: Poornaprajna School, Bangalore

– Run by a Brahmin matha – Student background: Elite, high-caste, metropolitan,

upper-middle class• 2: MBR Pre-University College, Sirigere

– Run by a Lingayat matha – Students: agriculturists, middle-caste, rural, lower-middle

class• 3: Sri Kalidasa Vidya Samste, Mysore

– Run by a Kuruba (shepherd caste) matha– Students: lower caste (including former untouchables),

urban, working class

1. Poornaprajna School• Run by Udupi Sri Admar Matha Educational Council• One of the top schools in the state• English medium, private, non-aided school

‘Poornaprajna - the complete knowledge’

‘a nation’s future can be shaped only through shaping the young ones of the nation.’

Sri Vibudhesha Theertha Swamiji (1928-2009)

Students in the nursery section (3-5 yrs old) move from one class room to another every 20 minutes.

An example of ‘complete knowledge’: Students (boys & girls alike) learn some practical knowledge such as carpentry and

electronics.

The only seemingly ‘religious activity’: the Bhagavat Geeta (a Hindu sacred text) is chanted every noon (for about 10 minutes)

2. MBR Pre-University College• Run by Sri Taralabalu Jagadguru Education Society • Contribution of Sirigere matha towards ‘rural

education’ especially ‘girls’ education’ since the late 1940s

Sri. Shivakumara Shivacharya (1914-1992)

‘If you educate a boy, you will educate one person. If you educate a girl, you will educate a whole family.’‘An educated woman is like an institution, she spreads knowledge and awareness.’

Students in MBR pre-University college (16-18 yrs old). Most are from rural areas and they stay in hostels in Sirigere

village.

Sirigere Girls’ Hostel

Life at the students’ hostels is very humble. There is no desk in their rooms, so students study outdoors on Sunday.

Vacana Singing

‘Vacanas’ are Veerashaiva saints’ ‘sayings’ written in simple Kannada, often with strong anti-caste, anti-Brahmin, and pro-

women messages. Taralabalu Educational Society has integrated ‘vacanas’ into the moral education they provide.

Vacana of saint Basavanna (12th c.)kaḷabēḍa kolabēḍa, husiya nuḍiyalubēḍa

muniyabēḍa, anyarige asahya paḍabēḍa,

tanna baṇṇisabēḍa, idira haḷiyalu bēḍa,

idē bahiranga śuddhi,

idē namma kūḍala sangamadēvaranolisuva pari!

Do not steal, do not slay, do not tell lies, Do not get angry, do not think others are inferior, Do not praise yourself, do not disrespect others.This is the only way to purify yourself,This is the way to please our god!

3. Sri Kalidasa Vidya Samste

• Originally established by a local caste-association• Now run by a newly created Sri Kaginele Kanaka

Gurupeetha (Kuruba – shepherd caste – matha)

‘Other communities did not listen to our difficulties, and if we have our swami-ji, and our own matha, we can meet him, we can express our difficulties to him, and give social justice to our people. This is the main purpose of this matha.’ (From the interview with Kaginele Swamiji, 2009)

Kanakadasa (16th century) who is claimed as a Kuruba.

Karnataka State Anthem

Kalidasa Vidya Samste has no specific moral/religious education of its own (despite the rich cultural heritage of the caste). Students simply sing the national and state anthems

twice a day.

The Kalidasa Vidya Samste aims to provide quality education to poor children. Many parents do not pay

school fees (less than £2 per month) and the teachers’ salaries have not been paid for the past 3 months. The

school is now struggling to keep the students number high enough to claim government aid.

Concluding Remarks

• The three schools do not propagate any anti-Muslim or anti-Christian ideology (unlike some Hindu nationalist schools run by the RSS).

• The ‘Hindu-ness’ of the school has gained a market value: they propagate comfortable majoritarianism: ‘we teach our culture…’, ‘Christian schools do not teach our values…’.

• Each school reflects specific class and caste aspirations, rather than a pan-Hindu identity.

• Moral and religious education reflects the material and cultural resources of each school.