“Education is a manifestation of pure intelligence” & “Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man”, and is obviously closely related with the proper understanding of the Role of Science and Spirituality/ Religion for the well-being of the Mankind.

The main thrust of Education, in addition to providing inputs by way of knowledge and information, should be to imbibe wisdom by way of developing purity of mind, purity of thought and purity in each and every action of life, which are basic for establishing a holistic global society. The main purpose of education is to develop the “WINNING PERSONALITY” of the Students, who will be Physically Fit, Mentally Alert, Intellectually Sharp and Spiritually Elevated with
 

a strong ethical and moral foundation, so that they will be able to contribute their talents and skills for the wellbeing of the global society at large.
The process of establishment of peace should start from an individual, which is possible when there is peace within. We have seen that it is the individual's perception of all the things around, which decides the line of thinking and later the action. Obviously, this depends upon one's mindset. It is this mindset, which needs to be addressed and properly guided to think rationally in the right direction for the welfare of mankind.

In spite of the best efforts put in by the educationists all over the world to offer quality education, the modern education system is deficient when it comes to inculcating time tested human values. If we observe closely, over the years, “I don’t care” and “To hell with it” types of cultures are proliferating fast. These are indicative of the gross erosion of human values and are likely to lead our future generations towards infighting, violence and ultimately self-destruction. Such a situation can be corrected only by developing a positive mind-set through the right type of education based on time-tested human values, which are universal.

Education, devoid of any values, makes a person literate in any given field, but not educated and cultured in the real sense of the word. Unfortunately, the human values like ethics, morality and character in our day to day life are getting eroded and at times are more conspicuous by their absence. Unless they become part and way of our life, the situation will continue to deteriorate at the peril of human kind. This calls for our urgent attention and action. It is necessary to incorporate these values in our education system right from pre-primary and primary to higher education, the latter being totally devoid of any such thing as on today.

Spirituality, which in a way is manifestation of religion, provides the human beings, be it any one, with a moral base and ethical values, which are sacrosanct for the survival of Mother Earth. In the words of Swami Vivekananda, as mentioned above - "Union of Science and Religion/Spirituality will alone bring harmony and peace to the world". In this respect, India which has a strong spiritual base enriched by its culture, traditions, teachings of the great saints and sages of the past and the holy scriptures, can provide the lead and the right direction. In fact, it will not be an exaggeration, if we say that the world looks at India and some other oriental countries for spiritual guidance for establishing the "Culture of Peace".

It is essential for us to incorporate human values with their strong ethical and moral base in our education system at all levels. Among others, these will include truth, honesty, integrity, sympathy, empathy, compassion, mutual respect including respect for parents, teachers and elders, tolerance, devotion and dedication to a cause, non-violence etc. based on the fact that these are universally true and common, despite the diverse cultures, history and geographical boundaries.

I would like to assertively state here that the Indian Philosophy is based on Sacrifice, Devotion, Sharing and Caring for Each Other, while unfortunately, world over, in-spite of the highly advanced educational system, this particular aspect has been side-tracked and misunderstood and there is a greater tendency towards only Self-Enjoyment and Materialistic Comforts, which can possibly be minimized through “Value Based Universal Education System.”
 

Friends, I sincerely feel that possibly inadvertently, the emphasis of the modern education system has been more on educating and developing the brain and the intellect, while, the mind, which plays a vital role in deciding the good or bad actions, has been sadly neglected. I believe that the need of the hour is for the present education system to nurture the mind and the soul as much as the emphasis on development of the brain and the intellect.
As such, all the nations of the world can adopt the above-mentioned human values and make them an integral part of their education system, adopting the appropriate and proportionate components of Science and Spiritual Aspects, thus heralding the dawn of Harmony and Peace in the entire world.

The concept of Value based Universal Education System can well be taken up and practiced all over the world due to the simple fact that every religion, the old scriptures, historical and cultural traditions of all the countries propagate the virtuous actions which can lead to peace, progress and happiness. All the cultures of the world have originated from and/or have been moulded by the religions/spiritual aspects of the respective groups of people. No religion advocates greed, lust, hatred or violence. All the scriptures teach love, compassion, tolerance and respect for one another. In that way, as such, All the Religious Scriptures of the World are Truly LIFE-GUIDING SCRIPTURES, for the respective followers of various religions consisting of approximately:

2.2 billion Christians,    

1.6 billion Muslims,    

1 billion Hindus,

376 million Buddhists,    

23 million Sikhs    

14 million Jews
4.2 million Jains

Along with followers of other religions as well as non-believers (Atheists), totalling to about Seven (7) billion people in the world. 

World Peace Centre (Alandi) and Dr Vishwanath Karad MIT World Peace University, Pune, India have come to this conclusion that All the Religious Scriptures of the World are Truly LIFE-GUIDING SCRIPTURES after a number of Round Table national and international Conferences / Seminars / Panel Discussions / Workshops involving the great scholars, thinkers, Philosophers and Scientists, Educationists and Academicians of the world over the last 40 years.
It has been observed and found that there are some misconceptions about the very term “Religion” because of the ritualistic practices being followed in different religions and many times adopted by some individuals with vested interests, which may lead to “Blind Faith” and “Superstitious practices.”

It is worth noting that the GREAT NOBLE SON OF INDIA SWAMI VIVEKANANDA has very aptly defined the term “RELIGION” as, “Religion is nothing but to perform one’s DUTY – DUTY TOWARDS THE MOTHER, THE FATHER, THE FAMILY, THE SOCIETY, THE NATION AND THE WHOLE WORLD – VASUDHAIVA KUTUMBAKAM – THE WORLD AS ONE FAMILY
- A GLOBAL VILLAGE .