RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat bats for integrating Gurukul with mainstream, cites Finland's education model

NEW DELHI: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday exhorted the integration of Gurukul education with mainstream education, saying the former is not about living in an ashram but learning about the country's traditions.

Responding to a question during the centenary celebrations of the Rashtriyta Swayamseval Sangh (RSS), Bhagwat said he is not in favour of making Sanskrit compulsory but it is important to understand the tradition and history of the country.

"The 64 aspects of the Vedic era that are relevant should be taught. Gurukul education should be integrated into the mainstream, not replaced, he said. The RSS sarsanghchalak said the mainstream should be linked with Gurukul education, whose model is similar to the education model in Finland.

"In Finland, which is a leading country in education, there is a separate university for training teachers. Many people come from abroad because the local population is small, so they accept students from all countries. “Education up to the eighth grade is conducted in the mother tongue of the students... so Gurukul education is not about going and living in an ashram, it has to be linked with mainstream," he said.

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Education system in India was 'destroyed long ago': RSS chief

Lauding the new National Education Policy (NEP) as the right step in the right direction, Bhagwat said the education system in our country was destroyed long ago.

"A new education system was introduced because we always remained in slavery to the foreign invaders who were the kings of those times. They wanted to rule this country and not develop it. So they made all the systems keeping in mind how we can rule this country... But now we are free. So we don't just have to run the state, we have to run the people,” he said.

The RSS chief said the mindset should be built, all the information needed should be given to the children about the past, so that pride can be instilled in the children that “we are also something, we can also do it”. “We have shown that. All this had to change. A little bit has happened in the last few years and its awareness has increased," he said.