“The statue is already in the wood”
is an ancient adage that similarly expresses the idea that human beings have an extraordinary inner worth that should be nurtured to fruition and fullness. Mahatma Gandhi’s definition that “education is an all-around drawing out of the best in child and adult–body, mind, and spirit” demonstrates brilliant consistency with this point of view. Drawing out the inherent human values naturally develops good character, which Sathya Sai Baba regards as the ultimate aim of education. Like the tree that is latent within the seed, the expression of human potential does not come from outside of oneself; it is and always has been an inside-out process.
In this approach to education a distinction is made between what has traditionally been conceived as ‘education’ and that which is referred to as ‘Educare’. Sathya Sai Baba emphasized, “real education is that which promotes unity, equality and peaceful co-existence with fellow human beings. (It) flows from the heart, and is termed as ‘Educare.’ Therefore, Educare should be pursued along with what has usually been meant by education.”
“Education in Human Values is not a programme that comes from India and that you take back to your country to graft onto a local tree. You must take back the seed of the programme and plant it into the soil of your country, so that an SSEHV tree may sprout and flourish in full respect of its laws and culture.” – Sathya Sai
