सौन्दर्यलहरी-श्लोक-संख्या – ६६

सौन्दर्यलहरी-श्लोक-संख्या – ६६

विपञ्च्या गायन्ती विविधमपदानं पशुपते स्त्वयाऽऽरब्धे वक्तुं चलितशिरसा साधु वचने ।

तदीयैर्माधुर्यैरपलपिततन्त्रीकलरवां निजां वीणां वाणी निचुलयति चोलेन निभृतम् ॥६६॥

पदच्छेदः - विपञ्च्या, गायन्ती विविधम्, अपदानं, पशुपतेः, त्वया, आरब्धे, वक्तुं, चलितशिरसा, साधु, वचने, तदीयैः, माधुर्यैः, अपलपिततन्त्रीकलरवां, निजां, वीणां, वाणी, निचुलयति, चोलेन​, निभृतम् ॥

अन्वयः - पशुपतेः, विविधम्, अपदानं, विपञ्च्या, गायन्ती, चलितशिरसा, त्वया, साधु, वचने, वक्तुं, आरब्धे तदीयैः, माधुर्यैः, अपलपिततन्त्रीकलरवां, निजां, वीणां, वाणी, निचुलयति, चोलेन​, निभृतम् ॥

पदार्थः - पशुपतेः = शिवस्य​, विविधम् = नानाप्रकारम्, अपदानं = वृत्तं कर्म (तद्द्वारा कृतः लोकोपकारः इत्यर्थः), विपञ्च्या = वीणया, गयन्ती = गायनं कुर्वती, चलितशिरसा = शिरसः कम्पनपूर्वकं, त्वया = भवत्या, साधु = शोभनं, वचने = वाक्ये, वक्तुं = भाषितुम्, आरब्धे = प्रारब्धे (सति), तदीयैः = भवत्याः वचनैः (तत्-शब्देन भगवत्याः वचनं परामृश्यते), माधुर्यैः = मधुरैः, अपलपिततन्त्रीकलरवां = निरर्थकरूपेण​​(ध्वनि जैसे) अपलापकलरवं कुर्वतीं, निजां = स्वीयां, वीणां = वीणां, वाणी = सरस्वती, चोलेन = स्वीयेन अञ्चलेन​, निभृतं = संयक्प्रकारेण गोपनीयरीत्या, निचुलयति = आवृणोति ॥

विशेषः -

१) चलितं शिरः यया सा, तया = चलितशिरसा - भगवत्याः विशेषणम् इदम् ।

२) तन्त्र्याः कलरवः = तन्त्रीकलरवः, अपलपितः तन्त्रीकलरवः यस्याः सा = अपलपिततन्त्रीकलरवा (वीणा), ताम् - अपलपिततन्त्रीकलरवाम् ।

३) विपञ्ची = वीणा, तया = विपञ्च्या, विपञ्ची इति वीणायाम् ।

४) अपदानं = लोकोपकारः, तम् । वृत्तं कर्म्म । "वृत्तिः प्रवर्त्तनं सा प्रशस्ता विद्यते यत्र तत् । यत्र कर्म्मणि वृत्तिः सर्व्वैः प्रशस्यते तत् इत्यर्थः" इत्यमरटीकायां स्वामी ।

५) निचुलयति = चुल समुच्छ्राये इति धातुः, चुरादिः, उभयपदी, सेट्, सकर्मकः । चोलयति इति रूपं, वररुचिपक्षे चुलयति इत्यपि, निपूर्वः । आवृणोति इत्यर्थः ।

६) चोलेन = आप्रपदीनेन वस्त्रेण अर्थात् पादौ यावत् विस्तीर्णं वस्त्रम् अर्थात् दीर्घवस्त्रेण इति तात्पर्यम् ।

७) निभृतम् = विनीतार्थे गुप्तार्थे च । उभयमपि अत्र सङ्गच्छते ।

तात्पर्यम् - सरस्वती यदा स्वीयया विणया भगवतः शिवस्य गुणं गायति स्म​, तदा भगवती शिरसः कम्पनपूर्वकं सरस्वत्याः प्रशंसां कर्तुम् आरब्धवती ।  यदा भगवत्याः वाक् प्रसृता तदा सरस्वत्याः विणानादः अपि अपलापः इव आसीत् । एतेन लज्जिता सरस्वती स्वीयवीणां स्ववस्त्रेण आच्छादितवती । अर्थात् वीणायाः नादादपि भगवत्याः वाक् मधुरतरा (तमा) इति ॥

हिन्दी - सरस्वती जब भगवान् शिव की गुण गान करने लगी, तब भगवती अपने सर को हिलाते हुए सरस्वती के प्रशंसा करने लगी । भगवती की वाक् से वीणा नाद फीका पड गया । इसे लज्जित होकर सरस्वती अपनी अञ्चल से विणा ढकने लगी । अर्थात् सरस्वती की वीणा के नाद से भी मधुर है भगवती की वाणी ॥

English –Sarasvati was  singing the glory of Shiva. When n you (Bhagavati) began to speak the words of admiration with nodding of (your) head, having seen the lowered sweetness of her Veena (before the sweetness of the words of Bhagavati), Sarasvati covered completely her Veena out of sight (with shyness). It means that the sweetness of words of Bhagavati is greater than the sweetness of Veena of Sarasvati.

SAUNDARYA LAHARI SHLOKA-63

SAUNDARYALAHARI - SHLOKA No.63

स्मितज्योत्स्नाजालं तव वदनचन्द्रस्य पिबतां

चकोराणामासीदतिरसतया चञ्चुजडिमा ।

अतस्ते शीतांशोरमृतलहरीमाम्लरुचयः

पिबन्ति स्वच्छन्दं निशि निशि भृशं काञ्जिकतया ॥६३॥

स्मितज्योत्स्नाजालं, तव, वदनचन्द्रस्य, पिबतां, चकोराणाम्, अतिरसतया, चञ्चुजडिमा, आसीत्, , अतः, ते, शीतांशोः, अमृतलहरीं, आम्लरुचयः, पिबन्ति, स्वच्छन्दं, निशि, निशि, भृशं, काञ्जिकतया ॥

अन्वयः - तव वदनचन्द्रस्य स्मितज्योत्स्नाजालं पिबतां चकोराणाम् अतिरसतया चञ्चुजडिमा आसीत्, अतः ते आम्लरुचयः शीतांशोः अमृतलहरीं काञ्जिकतया भृशं निशि निशि स्वच्छन्दं पिबन्ति ॥

पदार्थः –

तव=भवत्याः,

वदनचन्द्रस्य = (वदनम् एव चन्द्रः) मुखचन्द्रस्य,

स्मितज्योत्स्नाजालं = (स्मितरूपिणी ज्योत्स्ना = स्मितज्योत्स्ना, तस्याः जालं=स्मितज्योत्स्नाजालं) ईषद्-हास्यरूपचन्द्रिकायाः समूहः

पिबतां = पानं कुर्वतां

चकोराणां = चकोरनामकपक्षिणाम्

अतिरसतया = अधिकमाधुर्ययुक्तत्वात्

चञ्चुजडिमा = (चञ्चोः जडिमा, चञ्चुः इति स्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रयोगः, जडिमन् इति इमनिच्-प्रत्यये पुंसि प्रयोगः) (पक्षिणाम्) ओष्ठः (त्रोटिः इति पर्यायः) तस्य जडिमा = जाड्यम्

आसीत् = अभूत् । अर्थात् भगवत्याः मुखरूपचन्द्रिकासमूहस्य पानं कुर्वतां चकोरपक्षिणां चञ्चुः अधिकमाधुर्येण जडत्वं प्राप्नोत् । ​

अतः = तस्मात् कारणात्

ते = चकोराः

आम्लरुचयः = (मध्ये मध्ये अतीव मधुरतया अम्लत्वं वाञ्छन्तः) अम्लरुचिमन्तः

शीतांशोः = चन्द्रस्य (शीतः अंशुः यस्य सः=शीतांशुः = शीतकिरणयुक्तः)

अमृतलहरीं = अमृतधाराम् (अपि) (अमृतरूपकिरणान् अपि)

काञ्जिकतया = (काञ्जिका = सर्षपनिर्मितः व्यञ्जनभेदः वैद्यशास्त्रे उक्तः) सर्षपनिर्मितव्यञ्जनरूपेण​

भृशम् = (मुहुर्मुहुः इत्यर्थे अव्ययम्) मुहुः मुहुः

निशि निशि = प्रतिनिशि (प्रतिदिनं रात्रौ)

स्वच्छन्दं = (स्वस्य छन्दः = अभिप्रायः) स्वस्य इच्छानुसारेण (यथेष्टम्)

पिबन्ति = पानं कुर्वन्ति ॥

NOTE - वैद्यकीक्ते सार्षपकन्देन कृते व्यञ्जनभेदे तल्लक्षणं यथा -

सार्षपीक्रन्दली सूक्ष्मा खण्डिता स्निग्धभाजने ।

स्थापिता मण्डसहिता त्वथ वा तण्डुलोदके ॥

सप्तरात्रात् परं चुक्रं ततः सम्यक् प्रजायते ।

तस्मादेव समाकृष्य तलयेद्वा प्रलेहयेत् ॥

काञ्जिकेति समाख्याता सूदधर्म्मोपजीवकैः ।

सार्षपस्य गुणा ये हि ते चास्या अपि कीर्त्तिताः ॥

इति चरकसंहितायां काञ्जिकानिर्माणप्रकारः दर्शितः ।

SANSKRIT - हे भगवति! भवत्याः वदनचन्द्रस्य मन्दहास्यज्योत्स्नासमूहं प्रचुरं पीत्वा चकोराणां चञ्चुः अधिकमाधुर्येण जडत्वम् आपन्ना । तस्मात् ते चकोराः माधुर्यस्य मध्ये अम्लरुचिम् इच्छन्तः चन्द्रस्य अमृतलहरीम् अपि सर्षपनिर्मितपथ्यम् इव अपनी इच्छा से प्रतिदिनं रात्रौ पिबन्ति । अर्थात् भगवत्याः स्मिताननस्य पुरतः चन्द्रिकापि कषायरूपेण भवति ॥

HINDI - तेरे चन्द्र जैसे वदन की मुस्कान् रूपी चांदनी को प्रचुर मात्रा में पीकर (इन​) चकोरों की चञ्चु अधिक माधुर्य से जड बन गयी है । इस लिए वे (चकोर​) कुछ माधुर्य के बीच अम्ला रस को चाहते हुए चन्द्र की अमृतलहरी को सरसों से बना हुआ पथ्य (कषाय​) जैसे हर दिन रात को अपनी इच्छा से पीते हैं । अर्थात् हे भगवती! आप के मुस्कान की मधुरिमा के सामने चन्द्र की अमृत लहरी भी सरसों से बना काञ्जि लगती है चकोरों को ॥

ENGLISH - Cakora birds having drunken the mass of moonlight of (Your) smile, of Your moon-like-face their beak became insentient, from excessive sweetness. Therefore, they desiring some sour taste, drink of their own free will, excessively every night, the wave of nectar of the moon, thinking it to be a gruel made up of mustard.

A SHLOKA FROM PADUKA SAHASRAM No.933

PHOBIA THEORY WITH NAMES IN SANSKRIT & ENGLISH

A SHLOKA FROM PADUKASAHASRAM OF VEDANTADESIKAR

THIS SHLOKA IS WRITTEN IN PADMABANDHAM. IT CAN BE SET IN 4, 8 AND 16 PETALS OF LOTUS. THIS IS ALSO AN EXAMPLE OF SHODASHAVRITTI YAMAKA, MEANING USING 16 TIMES THE SAME WORD "पादपा". HERE THE AUTHOR - SWAMI DESIKAN USED ONLY TWO VOWELS अ AND आ AND TWO CONSONANTS प् AND द्. THE SHLOKA IS FROM CHITRA PADDHATI OF PADUKASAHASRAM - 939.

MAGHA KAVYA SHLOKA WITH MEANING - 2

SHLOKA FROM BHATTIKAVYAM 10-114

MAGHA KAVYA SHLOKA WITH MEANING

एकलव्यशब्दविचारः

Carvaaka Shloka

नान्नं न निद्रा न च स्त्रीसुखं वा

मद्यं न मुद्रा न च क्षीरपानम् ।

तप्त्वा तपस्यां जिगीषा द्युलोकम् !

कृत्वा च सर्वं सुखं जीव लोके ॥

वल्ली-शब्दविचारः

A STORY IN TAITTIRIYA UPANISHAD

IMPORTANCE OF LEARNING & TEACHING

TAITTIRIYA UPANISHAD IS KNOWN FOR ITS PHILOSOPHICAL AND SPIRITUAL IMPORTANCE. THIS UPANISHAD HAS BEEN TRANSLATED BY GREAT SCHOLARS.

THERE IS A NARRATION FOUND IN THE UPANISHAD UNDERSCORING THE IMPORTANCE OF LEARNING AND TEACHING.

THERE WERE THREE RISHIS NAMELY RATHITARA, PAURISHISHTI AND MAUDGALYA. THEY ENTERED INTO AN ARGUMENT WHICH IS THE SUPREME THING IN THE WORLD. THE FIRST RISHI - RATHITARA SAID THAT SATYA (TRUTH) IS THE SUPREME IN THIS WORLD. THE SECOND RISHI - PAURISHISHTI EXPLAINED THAT TAPASYA (PENANCE) IS THE SUPREME IN THIS WORLD. THE THIRD RISHI - MAUDGALYA ARGUED THAT SVADHYAYA & PRAVACHANA (SELF-STUDY & TEACHING) IS THE BEST THING IN THE WORLD.

THE ARGUMENT DID NOT CONCLUDE AS THE THREE RISHIS STOOD BY THEIR ARGUMENT. THEN THEY WENT TO VEDA PURUSHA AND SUBMITTED THEIR TOPIC OF DEBATE AND THEIR VIEWS ALSO. THEY REQUESTED VEDA PURUSHA TO PRONOUNCE JUDGEMENT ON THEIR DEBATE. THEN, VEDA PURUSHA AFTER PATIENTLY HEARING THEIR ARGUMENT, PRONOUNCED HIS JUDGEMENT "THAT IS TAPAS, THAT IS TAPAS." BY THE WORD "THAT" VEDA PURUSHA MEANT SVADYAYA & PRAVACHANA (SELF-STUDY & TEACHING).

THEN THE THREE RISHIS HAD ACCEPTED HIS JUDGEMENT AND UNDERSTOOD THAT IF ONE STUDIES TRULY WELL AND TEACHES, HE WILL FOLLOW THE PATH OF TRUTH AND DO SINCERELY OBSERVE PENANCE.

THUS, IN TAITTIRIYA UPANISHAD, THE IMPORTANCE OF SVADHYAYA & TEACHING IS NARRATED. 

THE PASSAGE IS AS FOLLOWS - 

                     सत्यमिति सत्यवचा राथीतरः । तप इति तपो नित्यः पौरिशिष्टिः । 

                     स्वाध्याय​-प्रवचने एवेति नाको मौद्गल्यः । तद्धि तपःस्तद्धि तपः ।

******

EMPOWER TEACHING

EMPOWER TEACHING

Have you ever seriously thought of your style of teaching? Did you ever permit your students to express their views about your teaching? Did you observe the reactions of the students during and after your teaching? Do you hear the students often say or praise about the method or teaching of a particular teacher of your school? Have you observed that the students prefer some classes to others? Moreover, scores of such queries, you might have come across during your teaching career.

In the western countries, teachers are habituated for sharing their classroom experiences. This is so because they do not have (relatively) problems regarding their service or facilities, as they enjoy comparatively better status in several aspects. However, in no way service facilities prevent us from sharing our classroom experiences with others. Sharing our experiences is a sort of revelation for both the individual and the group where it is shared or the individual with whom we share. If we arbitrarily think that ours is the definite and foolproof method in making the students learn, then certainly we make a mistake for two reasons. One, we may be wrong, if we share our ideas and logically examine the result-orientedness of our method when we find simpler method of others. Second, by not sharing our ideas with others, we are rather unconsciously concealing our methods from being followed by others. Classroom experiences differ from one teacher to the other. Especially in Indian situation with the heterogeneous group of learners, it is quite nature that the experiences differ.

Self-assessment is the first step for improving our teaching skill. Having known our lapses, we must be ready to rework our teaching behaviour. We often talk about students and their behaviour. We share our views about a particular student and at times of misbehavior we hear that every teacher opine about the student. What does it mean? It shows that we consciously observe the behaviour of the students. The same might be the case with the students. As they are also the conscious living being, they observe our behaviour with all sincerity and zest. Therefore, if a teacher wants to know about her teaching and temperament, she should hear the students what they really say about her. Understanding students mind and opinion is the key to bring modification in our behaviour.

As a teacher, we cannot directly approach the students and ask them how we teach. Sometimes our consciousness prevents us from approaching the students. Anyhow, some sort of direct or indirect students’ assessment is essential to know our classroom behaviour. If we fail to regard their views and opinion then our whole teaching-verve would go waste and we will not be in a position to correct our wrongs and strengthen the rights in course of time. In these circumstances, it is mandatory to think of techniques to understand ourselves and our teaching through students.

We all know that students by nature imitate others including the teachers. We could observe this behaviour even in a child when they get into play. Why don’t we make use of this nature for our own benefit! The idea is very simple. Give chance to your students to imitate your teaching in a formal classroom setup. Tell him that it is only for fun and he is free to imitate as he likes and teach. While you are being imitated, watch silently in what way he imitates. And perceive the method you are using through your own student besides assessing the lapses and success of your teaching. While imitating, the student may not be able to teach and show mastery as you usually do in your class. However, he would certainly imitate the methods and mannerisms used by you. At the end give him a pat and end up the class. Later think of your teaching and the reflection through the imitation session. If there is anything, you deem it to be worth for modification, plan accordingly and change without any hesitation.

Apart from imitation, ask a student or handpicked students to teach certain portions of the prescribed text (which were already taught) in a small group. What shall we achieve through this exercise? Students with above average comprehension would get a chance to explain the theme to others and this will instill confidence in them to express. Further they will get chance to experience their own level of understanding. In addition, the other students of below average would be benefited to hear the topic from a different angle and person. As the teacher being his classmate he would not hesitate to ask any number of questions which they might not ask the class teacher due to various reasons in a classroom situation. If we the teachers observe this process, we would be benefited by the nature of queries of the below average students and the level of comprehension of the above average students. Both will help us to modify our own teaching behaviour more effectively.

Another technique you can use is the method of team teaching. In actual life situations, we come across several incidents. Some are capable of narrating the incidents more lively and others may not do so with that much skill. We often praise persons that so and so has clarity in his idea and expression. Some teachers are so skilled that they excel in explaining even complex topics in a lucid language without any zigzag. There may be such skilled teachers in your school also. Request such teachers to teach your subject in their own way. Introduce the teacher, inform the students that she would be teaching the topic on a particular day, and observe her teaching. This will enable you to adopt right method or to understand the wrong method or the avoidable styles and methods. If you are a language teacher, do not think that subject teacher may not be able to teach the language as you do. Sometimes, inherent quality and natural interest towards a language, and their own bitter experience of their language learning sessions might have brought desirable changes in them, which they try to transform into teaching. This kind of exercise would open up new vistas and help us to change or refine our own methods. Students will also enjoy such classes irrespective of their success.

Of course, the formal technique – evaluation is there to understand your success of teaching but this is more formal to assess your own methods and style. Think of innovative techniques in addition to the existing techniques you are accustomed to. These occasional exercises will certainly benefit you and the learners. Make it a habit, when you enter the school campus think only of the school situation with all usual smirks and mascaras. 

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MIND POWER AND LEARNING

MIND POWER AND LEARNING

Mind is powerful. It never grows, as it is already grown when one takes birth. Only thing is it is to be nurtured to coop with the growth of the body. The mind is like an unpolished diamond. More you polish more it shines. However, we must be cautious enough while polishing the mind. A wrong approach may end up in overwhelming.

 

By birth, the mind has the power to perceive, to hear, to touch, to taste and to smell. It is like computer (only for illustration sake, in reality it has more power than the computer since the wonder machine itself is the creation of the mind – the wonder beyond comprehension) and it can register all the perceptions you experience. Its power and speed are unimaginable. It spreads the message in no time to the organs concerned. It makes us to react within fraction of seconds after we encounter the action.

The interconnections of the mind system are beyond our comprehension and one cannot even thoroughly understand the whole system of interconnection and ‘message pass on’ mechanism. The astonishing fact is that the mind generally never gets tired of its duty and becomes inactive. It always acts swiftly and rightly (individuals’ perception). It is only our conscious and unconscious approaches make the mind system ill functioning.

If you take the air-conditioner or the computer, who’s functioning depends on several factors such as moisture, room temperature, dust, voltage fluctuations etc. In the same way, the system of mind depends on several internal and external factors that influence the mind in both ways i.e. positive and negative. The external factors, which may be very silly such as your posture while learning, the classroom environment etc., do influence your mind.

As such, it is very complex to control the mind and make it to adjust to the environment. Unless it adjusts itself with the learning environment, it would not allow you to grasp whatever is presented before you. Here the psychologists prescribe several methods of mind control to suit your learning climate. No particular method of mind control can be adopted always as the learning objectives differ from time to time according to your wish and interest.

When we have the habit of going to the temples in a particular time, unconsciously our mind gets prepared for the action when the particular time comes. We have experienced that when we take breakfast in a particular time and place, whenever we go to that particular quarter in our house or the particular time strikes, we are automatically reminded of our breakfast. How does it happen? It is nothing but conditioning. Our action is conditioned with the time and place as per our habit or practice. In the same way, we must condition ourselves for learning. Similarly, the children are also to be motivated for such conditioned learning environment. Fix a place and time for learning and reading. (Again formal! You may feel so. But this formalness is with an informal intention). Then make the child to observe the same. After some time we can observe the conditioning in the child. However, it is to be kept in mind that no single system is suitable for all the children as children are conditioned to various factors according to their wish and interest.

When we give rote-learning assignments to children, we must be careful. Before they get into by heart the portion, let them understand the central theme of the passage or the poem. This will minimize their efforts. Instead of concentrating on the complex part of the assignment, make them to pay attention towards the simple and plain portion. If we train the child to proceed from simple to complex, it will help them to balance their mind and condition in a proper way.  

Adopt the same method when you teach. First, present before the children the central or the main theme of the lesson and elaborate it. Instead, if we go on elaborating the lengthy text, the children may get bored as they could not catch up the central point of the text and they never wait until the last moment to know the idea of the text. This is a sort of conditioning and the children once get acquainted with your style and method they will follow your words and ideas with ease.

 

Whatever the child learns it is to be learned several times. If a particular concept is learned several times, it will not fade away from the memory of the child. Long memory requires two important factors. One is clarity and the other is repetition. If a child reads repeatedly without clarity or reads once with clarity, the memory will only be short-lived in both the cases. So any concept is retained for long when it is clearly understood and repeatedly read.

In any classroom, we cannot expect all the children learn at the same pace. The actual pace of learning is decided by the child and not by the teacher. So let us give the child a chance to learn at his speed and place. If you feel that the pace of learning is too slow then it is your duty to provide a chance for essential supplementary activities by which the pace of learning gets accelerated. Motivating the child and assessing the level of learning performance is the key for success in any classroom.     

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LONG CHERISHED GOAL

LONG CHERISHED GOAL

Universal augmentation for primary education is one of the protracted and cherished goals of the past millennium and carried forward to the present millennium. Despite the fact that it is yet to be achieved, this slow achieving objective has changed the process of transformation in all stages of human enterprise. The world is experiencing unprecedented and extraordinary changes in all fields of human endeavour. Changes are the order of the day and they are to be received or rejected as per one’s revelation, introspection, investigation and deduction.  Constructive changes that have impact on the global development and literacy need to be perceived with a right sense and understood in a proper way. Changes at times confined to a small or a larger group. If the change is inevitable and development oriented then accurate planning is essential for implementation. Implementation is the key word but preventable interruptions and delay cause break down of plans.

We all know the delay in formulating an independent education policy after independence cost us a lot. Visionlessly we have followed the recommendations of Sergeant Report of 1944 prepared to suit the colonial education system until the announcement of first Indian education policy in 1968. How much time we have taken to bring uniformity in 10+2+3 pattern of education in our country that has opened up many controversies and confrontation? One such delay we are experiencing now is in implementing the universal elementary education. The constitution identified this as one of the goals and set a time limit of 10 years for achieving the same. The irony is, fifty five years have lapsed still we are talking about universal elementary education. We have not yet reached half way mark in this direction. Of course whatever we have achieved is commendable when compare to our population growth rate. Still the question that we have to answer with sincerity is how much efforts we have put in for meeting the target set out by the constitution.

The changing faces of the society and the increasing concern for growth of population, alleviating poverty, environmental protection, water conservation, increasing urbanization and boosting information technology clubbed with several other factors of regression towards casteism and groupism play their negative role in the process of universal education. In these changed perspectives, social, political and economic factors have taken the role of deciders of educational policies and their implementation. 

The drastic changes made following the recommendations of the Education Commission (1964-66) through the first education policy in 1968 brought in the most wanted changes in the field of school education. It took almost 10 years to adopt the uniform system of schooling in our country that too with the initiative of the NCERT, which rigorously embarked on developing the school curriculum framework.

There were several unconventional system of education envisioned for achieving the goal of wide-ranging educational transformation. Still we have not tried out those systems of informal and non-formal schooling. Multiple entry, part time schooling and teaching by professionals are the unconventional systems yet to be tried out with vigour and rigour.  

Gone out of memoirs the first policy on education of 1968 and came the New Education Policy in 1986. After a long gap of 20 years, NEP was announced.  The long gap has given us sufficient time to bring in changes in the field of primary education. Nevertheless, we have utilized the gap to expand the facilities in the field of education and not to achieve the goal set out for achieving the universal primary education. However, the significant development was we could establish schools though with insufficient number of teachers almost in all the villages which is a commendable achievement for a country like India in respect of both area and population.

The second Education Policy (NEP) yet to be followed by a full-fledged education policy has played vital role in bringing wished-for changes in elementary sector. After 15 years of its implementation, the initial goal of universal primary education remains unachieved, as the NEP has changed its vision to coop with the rapid global revolution at the cost of universal primary education towards quality of higher education, preservation of cultural heritage, constitutional commitments, national individuality etc. The result is non-achievement of universal elementary education and extraordinary development in the field of higher education.

The reason is very simple that education is under concurrent list of the constitution, which empowers the states to decide on their own education policies without any hindrance to the national integrative goals. This being both advantage and drawback makes it difficult to achieve the goal of universal elementary education.  

Still exist the villages where we could find considerable number of non-performers and dropouts in primary education. We have achieved a lot in the field of higher education and thereby restricting the tertiary education to those who have opportunity for regular and good schooling without caring for the population, which is deprived of fundamental primary education. Policies may come and changes would take place but it will not be possible to achieve the goals of universal primary education, if it is continued in the same direction.

Now it is time to try out non-formal and informal schooling vigorously all over the country, which would only help us to achieve the goal of universal primary education at least by 2020. Attitudinal change in teachers, parents, intellectuals, professionals and voluntary organizations is the need of the hour for achieving the long cherished goal of universal elementary education. Further the projects like DPEP, National and state Open Schools have to add to their objectives in addition to the existing responsibilities and work for the achievement of universal primary education in a time-bound manner. Compulsory adoption of villages by the teacher education institutions may also be contemplated and decisions may be taken at higher levels to realize this goal. 

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