A Spiritual ‘Back to School’

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backtoschool, learning, spirituality, students, teachers

This week has been ‘back to school’ week in our home. The ‘end of summer’ was greeted with mixed feelings. On the one hand, there has been unvarnished excitement about moving up to the next grade, catching up with friends from last year, meeting new teachers and students, and much more. On the other, there has been some reluctance of giving up of going to bed late and ‘sleeping in until all hours’ of the morning, lazing around and bingeing on ‘Harry Potter’ books, summer camps full of art and theater and new memories, afternoon swimming and so on.

As I watched the transition unfold, it made me reflect back on my own ‘back to school’ transitions. Summer vacations were marked by six weeks of visting Mom and Dad and my brother and sister, wherever they happened to be ‘stationed’ across India. Such an exciting and family bond-building time! Mastering rock-skipping along river banks, sledding down mountains, learning to ride a bike, long road and train trips with Dad… I could go on and on. Some of the highest roads and outposts in the Himalayas were often my playground. Maybe that is where my love of nature was seeded…

And then there was the ‘homework’. We would already be in our new grade in school before summer break started – that’s how it works in India. The teachers would take the liberty of loading us up with enough ‘summer projects’ to keep us busy through the ‘six weeks of freedom’. So, like every good student, we would wait till the final week of break to start on all the reading, writing, science and social studies projects. It was never a pretty sight, and we never really learnt the art of ‘project management’. When it came to summer homework, procrastination was king, queen and the entire kingdom! Maybe that is where my love of ‘last minuteness’ was seeded…

The return to school was marked with many tearful farewells among the family. That is the one thing that never changed. The day of departure seemed like it would go on forever. The long goodbyes at train stations and bus stations still linger somewhere in my subconscious. I always knew that the tears were temporary, because come winter break, and the tears would be replaced by huge smiles as the family would be reunited! Is that not the nature of life’s transitions? Like sinusoidal curves, they run in peaks and valleys. But I digress…

So, what does a ‘return to school’ have to do with spirituality? Let me try and make the connection. Let us consider our spiritual practices, our values and beliefs, our spiritual influencers. Our formal learning journey in school may take a ‘summer break’ but the learning continues as ‘independent study’ when we are ‘on break’. Much of our personal spiritual growth is like ‘summer break’, but can we truly keep growing without going ‘back to school’? While the notion of an ‘endless summer’ would keep us enjoying the valley of flowers, a ‘return to school’ holds the possibility of ascending new mountains – doesn’t it?

What were your ‘summer breaks’ like? What are some of your enduring memories of ‘summer break’? How did you prepare to go ‘back to school’? Do you feel like you have been on a spiritual ‘summer break’? I imagine that this #backtoschool meme gives all of us an opportunity to do an honest self-evaluation of summer and get ready for the new ‘school year’. Join me in #SpiritChat on Sunday, August 21st at 9amET/1pmUTC as we ring the bell for our new school year of spiritual learning!

Namaste,

Kumud @AjmaniK

‘Back to School’ coincided with my return to some of my favorite trails…

Our Spiritual Teachers

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guru, spiritchat, spirituality, teachers

Our association with teachers runs wide and deep. The width represents the diversity of teachers that have influenced our (spiritual) lives during various stages of our passage through life. The depth represents the intensity of (recurring) impact our teachers may have had on us in the course of time. Width is created as a result of our willingness to be open. and remain open, to the influence of (new) teachers. Depth is created by our association with our teachers in the dimensions of time and (heart) space.

A large part of the (spiritual) student teacher relationship is an act of volition. Many of us feel that our parents, in particular our mothers, were our first spiritual teachers and influencers. Our proximity to our parents (or caregivers), our dependence on them in our formative years, created this primary studentship in our hearts and minds. This studentship planted some lifelong seeds in our heart. In our pre-primary and primary years, we were for the first time, exposed to the influence of caregivers and teachers outside the home. The width of our engagement with teachers was broadened with these interactions, and seeds of the “desire to learn” were hopefully planted within us. As we advanced in our years, through middle and high school, many teachers continued to widen our horizons in our “formal” education.

The inspiration and influence of teachers outside of our “formal” education was perhaps equally, if not more important in the development of our character and personality. The “teacher” who taught us how to play chess, the “teacher” who taught us how to drive a stick shift, the “teacher” who tried to bully us on the playground and taught us to “dig deep” and stand up for ourselves, the “teachers” and best friends who would spend hours on the phone before final exams working through thermodynamics problems with us… I am sure you get the idea. I am sure you can think of many similar “informal” teachers who imparted many life-lessons to you.

And then there were the teachers who influenced us from beyond our physical association with them. Their impact was felt in our lives through their words and stories embedded in books – some of which we were required to read as part of our “formal” education, and some of which we were fortunate enough to stumble upon in a library, or through the grace of a gift from a good friend or relative. Some “teachers” may have influenced us through short videos, or even through online interactions. Some of us may have even experienced the “distance teaching” influence which speaks directly to our heart.

Regardless of their medium of influence, the width and depth of the impact of our teachers can vary widely. So, what makes a great teacher? And why? I asked this question of my daughter, who happens to be one of my greatest teachers. Her response was ~ “…my favorite teacher is the one who lets us play, lets us be a little crazy when we want to, and participates in our play. she is herself a child at heart…”

For those of you who have read this far, I hope I have helped you reflect a bit on the role of teachers in your life. The other side of the coin is: who do you consider yourself to be a teacher to? What value do the values of trust and truth hold in the (spiritual) student-teacher relationship? What lesson can we learn when a teacher seems to “walk away” from us, their student? I invite you to join me and the #SpiritChat community on twitter in a live chat on Sunday, May 17th at 9amET/1pmGMT to discuss some of these questions. Who knows, you may find the teacher (or student) that you may have been searching for!

Namaste,

Kumud