Gurukul System of Learning Meaning, Features, Advantages, Disadvantages

A gurukula or gurukulam, गुरुकुल, is a type of education system in ancient India with shishya (‘students’ or ‘disciples’) living near or with the guru, in the same house. The guru-shishya tradition is a sacred one in Hinduism and possibly appears in other dharmas in India, such as Jainism and Buddhism. (In the Sikh tradition by contrast, the word Guru has a very restricted use and not generally applied to individual teachers, while the institution of Gurdwara has a major social role instead of a monastic one.) The word gurukula is a combination of the Sanskrit words guru (‘teacher’ or ‘master’) and kula (‘family’ or ‘home’). The term is also used today to refer to residential monasteries or schools operated by modern gurus. The proper plural of the term is gurukulam, though gurukulas and gurukuls are also used in English and some other Western languages.

The students learn from the guru and help the guru in his everyday life, including carrying out of mundane daily household chores. However, some scholars suggest that the activities are not mundane and very essential part of the education to inculcate self-discipline among students. Typically, a guru does not receive or accept any fees from the shishya studying with him as the relationship between a guru and the shishya is considered very sacred.

At the end of one’s education, a shishya offers the guru dakshina before leaving the gurukula. The gurudakshina is a traditional gesture of acknowledgment, respect and thanks to the guru, which may be monetary, but may also be a special task the teacher wants the student to accomplish.[3] While living in a gurukula, the students would be away from their home from a period of months to years at a stretch.

Features

• The emphasis was on holistic learning with an incremental focus on professional, social, religious and spiritual education.
• The education given was profusely influenced by the culture and religion which were incremental elements of the ancient Indian society.
• The basis of being selected by a gurukul was an impeccable attitude and moral strength that could be displayed through impeachable conduct.
• The gurukul education system resulted in all-around development of the individual and emphasized on a psychological method of teaching.
• Alongside knowledge of the art, literature, scriptures and philosophy, students were also taught practical skills and trained for different tasks.

Advantages:

• The students of gurukul are more disciplined and organized. They are taught to follow a well- planned schedule in school.
• The students are more focused and possess more concentration power than normal students. This is because they are trained through techniques such as meditation which enhances their focusing power.
• In a gurukul, students are taught to respect everyone irrespective of their caste, creed, ethnicity, culture, religion and perspective. So, such students grow up as people with strong character and values.
• The ‘guru-shishya parampara’ is an integral part of Gurukul. Here, the students highly respect their teachers and share a good bond with them. They are molded under the guidance of their mentors.
• In a gurukul, ‘Gurus’ also take complete responsibility for their ‘shishyas’. They share their experiences, inculcate good habits and mold the character of the students in a positive direction.
• The students are developed into strong individuals. They are taught to stay firm and face any adverse situation in the outside world.
• Gurukul students are taught to value nature. So, they are very close to nature. They worship nature and also learn a lot of things from it.
• Students are spiritually elevated which gives them an optimistic, calm and composed personality.
• Every student is given proper attention as the student-teacher ratio is properly planned, unlike other schools where students aren’t given individual attention.
• Gurukul emphasizes on practical knowledge which is quite beneficial to build the concepts of the students.
• Students are taught to follow the principle of ‘simple living and high thinking’ which is a great lesson for life.

Disadvantages

In the olden days:

• They were kept away from their parents and family.
• The children had to stay away from home for long periods of time, i.e. for more than 12 years. Hence when the children returned the felt lost in the real world.
• They led a sheltered life at the gurukul.
• They did not face the harsh realities of everyday life at the gurukul.
• They had to blindly follow the guru in all aspects whether he was right or wrong.

At present:

• The children of today would have respect neither for the guru nor for the gurukul.
• It’s an outdated system of learning that is way too behind for today’s jet age.
• The skills taught in the gurukul would not arm the children of today for the present life.
• People would scoff at the ideologies and teaching that are offered the gurukuls of yester years.