International Journal of Research in Social Sciences

Vol. 8 Issue 3, March 2018,

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ROLE OF TEACHER IN SWAMI VIVEKANANDA’S

MAN-MAKING EDUCATION

Dr. Santosh Kumar Behera*

Abstract:
Swami Vivekananda was a man of versatile genius. The world found in him a patriot saint, a
lover of art and architecture, a classical singer, a commanding orator of great charm, a visionary,
a philosopher, an educationist, and above all a worshipper of humanity. Education, he said, must
provide “Life-building, Man-making and Character-making assimilation of ideas”. His
educational ideas based on love, peace and equity which combined the whole world. He shines
like a luminous star in the galaxy of intellectuals. He was the torch-bearer of new light, new path
and humanism. His contribution to India‟s thought and culture is second to none. His
contribution to the awakening of modern India is critique in its kind and quality. If education is
viewed as the most powerful instrument of social change, his contribution to educational thought
is of paramount importance. He defines education as „the manifestation of divine perfection that
is already in man. Swamiji‟s Man-Making education is based on the Vedantic philosophy of his
life. Man-Making education meant for Vivekananda rousing man to an awareness of his essential
divine nature, making him rely always on his innate spiritual power.

The present paper wants to highlight Swami Vivekananda‟s Concept of Man, Characteristics of
Man, Concept and Elements of Man-Making Education, and Role of teacher in Man- Making
Education.

Keywords: Man, Teacher, Education, Man-Making Education.

--------------------------
*Assistant Professor, Department of Education, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University, Purulia, West
Bengal, INDIA, Email: santoshbehera.skbu@gmail.com

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INTRODUCTION:
“The ideal of all education, all training, should be man- making. But, instead of that, we are
always trying to polish up the outside. What use in polishing up the outside when there is no
inside?” ----- Swami Vivekananda (CW 2: 15)

Swami Vivekananda views that education is not information of knowledge which will insert into
the mind of a child by force (Nithiya, 2012). Knowledge is inherent in man, no knowledge comes
from outside; it is all inside. Swami Vivekananda was a man of versatile genius. The world
found in him a patriot saint, a lover of art and architecture, a classical singer, a commanding
orator of great charm, a visionary, a philosopher, an educationist, and above all a worshipper of
humanity. According to Swami Vivekananda teach yourselves, teach everyone his real nature,
call upon the sleeping soul and see how it awakes. Power will come, glory will come, goodness
will come, purity will come, and everything that is excellent will come when this sleeping soul is
roused to self-conscious activity (Banerjee & Meeta, 2015). Swami Vivekananda is a pioneering
figure in the cultural and spiritual history of the Indian people. His far-reaching idea of education
is influencing a rising number of thoughtful people all over the world in the course of time. He
propagated the essence of truth, Vedanta, brotherhood of men, unity of humanity, harmony of
religions and supremacy of spiritualism over materialism. He could be able to bring a happy
blending between spiritualism of the East and materialism of the West. Education, he said, must
provide “Life-building, Man-making and Character-making assimilation of ideas” (CW.3.302).
Swami Vivekananda says that it is wrong to think that we promote the development of a child. In
fact, he furthers his development himself. He says, “Everyone develops according to his own
nature. When the time comes everyone will come to know this truth. Do you think you can
educate a child? The child will educate himself, your job is to provide the necessary opportunity
to him and remove the obstacles in his path. He will educate himself on his own. A plant grows
itself, does the gardener grow it? He just provides the necessary environment to it; it is the plant
itself that does its own growing.” Thus Swami Vivekananda advocates the principle of self–
education. He shines like a luminous star in the galaxy of intellectuals. He was the torch-bearer
of new light, new path and humanism. His contribution to India‟s thought and culture is second
to none. Through his all round effort he tried to find out the causes of India‟s degradation and to
overcome them. He realized that the main cause of India‟s degradation lay in the neglect of the

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 ISSN: 2249-2496Impact Factor: 7.081

masses. Vivekananda seeks to develop a sense of one-ness among all, the one-ness which is the
only reassuring principle of India for her stability and progress. His contribution to the
awakening of modern India is critique in its kind and quality. If education is viewed as the most
powerful instrument of social change, his contribution to educational thought is of paramount
importance

Today we live in twenty first century. It is an age of inventions that makes innovations. The
literacy rates of India increases. And the citizen of India becomes LITERATE not EDUCATED.
They can read write and speak, but they did not understand what is written and why it is written a
simple example may clear the concept, we can all read the statutory warning written on a
cigarette packet SMOKING CAUSES CANCER but we don‟t take that seriously, we can‟t
understand that or we don‟t want to understand that. It is a great example that our present
education system produces many EDUCATED ILLITERATES who knows everything but never
try to practice them in their life. What we will do with such education which doesn‟t have any
practical influence? Education has become a business and nobody is bothered about the real
purpose of education and one ends up paying more in donation and not getting any real
education. Today's education produces only money making machines. The moral values are
getting eroded. Social fabric is getting weakened. We are imparting theoretical knowledge based
education. That generates value erosion, corruption, unlawful activities etc. The word Education
itself comes from the word "Educere" which means to bring out what is already in and not
blindly stuff in. The purpose of education is to detect talent proactively (Madhavi, 2014). Real
education is that which enables one to stand on one‟s own feet. Education is not the amount of
information that is put into your brain and runs riot there, undigested all your life. Long before
India achieved freedom and formulated its education policy, Swami Vivekananda had
understood the need of a real education which enhances the inner super abilities within a man.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

This paper is an attempt by the author to present and overview regarding the following
objectives:
1. To point out Swami Vivekananda‟s Concept and Characteristics of Man and Elements of
Man Making Education.

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2. To know the Role of Teacher in Man- Making Education.

METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY:

This study was purely theoretical based. The information for the study has been collected mainly
from two major sources i.e., to study the biography of Swami Vivekananda as only the primary
source of the data collection and as secondary sources, the investigator was collected data from
different types books, journals, articles written by great educators about Swami Vivekananda‟s
Man Making Education. The study was delimited to only the Man-Making Education of Swami
Vivekananda.

DISCUSSIONS:
Objective No.1: Swami Vivekananda’s Concept of Man:
Swami Vivekananda has great faith in man. He thinks that man is the highest creation of God.
Vivekananda said “if you really want to judge the character of man, look not at his great
performances. Watch a man do his common actions.” These actions reveal a man how he
actually is. Vivekananda‟s guru, Sri Ramakrishna, used to say that Manush needs to have man
and hush – that is, a man needs to become a true man. „He alone is a man,‟ he said, „whose
spiritual consciousness has been awakened‟. Following his Master, Vivekananda emphasized
that „the ideal of all education, all training, should be this man-making‟.

MAN is the combination of three letters, i.e.

M = Morality
A = Ability
N =Nobility
He does not consider a man as educated if he manages to pass some examination and deliver
good lectures. The basis of all system, social or political, rests upon goodness of man.

Characteristics of Man:
 Vivekananda‟s concept of „potential divinity of the soul‟ gives a new, ennobling concept
of ideal man.

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 The present age is the age of humanism which holds that man should be the chief concern
and centre of all activities and thinking.
 Through science and technology man has attained great prosperity and power, and
modern methods of communication and travel have converted human society into a „global
village‟.
 Vivekananda‟s concept of potential divinity of the soul prevents this degradation,
divinizes human relationships, and makes life meaningful and worth living.
 Swamiji has laid the foundation for „spiritual humanism‟, which is manifesting itself
through several neo-humanistic movements and the current interest in meditation all over the
world.
 Each man's character is determined by the sum total of impressions. If good impressions
prevail, the character becomes good; if bad, it becomes bad
(http://www.swamivivekanandaquotes.org).
According to Vivekananda, worship of man is the real worship of God. Individual happiness lies
with universal happiness.
Swami Vivekananda realized that three things are necessary to make every man great, every
Nation great.
 Conviction of the powers of goodness.
 Absence of jealousy and suspicion.
 Helping all who are trying to be and do well.

Swami Vivekananda's Man-Making Education:

One of the important concepts of Swami Vivekananda is the issue of building a strong character
among the youth. He advocated for an educational system that is truly man making and character
building. Vivekananda‟s visions on education deals with physical education, moral and religious
education, medium of education, women education and education for weaker sections of society
and his concept of education may be encompasses within this eleven words “Education is the
manifestation of divine perfection that is already in man”.Three important messages popped out
from this statement – Manifestation, The Perfection, Already in Man. But Vivekananda‟s Man
making education is a very comprehensive concept. “Education is the panacea for all evils,” said
Swami Vivekananda. It was his conviction that only through the right type of education

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individuals can be transformed. Swami Vivekananda saw the „Divine‟ in the form of the poor
whom he called ‘Daridra Narayan‟. This denotes the direction of Man-making education. It
implies that education should develop a spirit of service and the poor and the needy must be
helped to raise themselves. Man-making education also brings out the significance of the famous
words said by Vivekananda at the Parliament of Religions held in 1893 at Chicago. These were:
HELP, ASSIMILATION, HARMONY and PEACE Accordingly education should develop these
qualities in man. Man-making education is inherent in character development as well as
vocational development (Gupta, S., 2009) Swami Vivekananda said: “Man-Making is my
mission of life. I am not a politician, nor am I a Social Reformer. It is my job to fashion man … I
care only for the spirit: When that is right, everything will be righted by itself”
(http://www.sakaltimes.com). „Man-Making‟ this Swamiji spoke as his „New Gospel‟, applying
it not only to Sannyasins, not only to Indians, but in it most profound sense, to men and women
everywhere. Indeed, to make men and to teach the highest truth constituted in Swamiji‟s
language one and the same mission- and this mission, to his mind, formed the central task of his
life on earth.

Man-Making: this really means rousing the purblind race to an awareness of its innate spiritual
strength and essential divine nature. Human beings are by no mean inheritor of any original
„Sin‟, but, truly, „amritasya putrah‟, children of immortality. Such is Vedanta‟s Magna Carta for
humanity. Man-Making was his main pre-occupation, for he believed in such a free, fearless man
of character, enlightenment and love lay the hope of the world. Transformation of man is the
only solution for all the ill that are found in the society (Behera, 2015). Man-Making meant for
Vivekananda rousing man to an awareness of his essential divine nature, making him rely always
on his innate spiritual strength (http://www.vivekanandagospel.org/man_making.html). In the
words of Swami Vivekananda, “The end of all education, all training should be Man-Making”. It
is man making religion that we want. It is man making theories that we want. It is man making
education all round that we want (http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in).

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Elements of Man-Making Education:

The end of all education, all training, should be man-making. Man making for him(s) means a
harmonious development of body, mind and soul. The chief elements of Swami Vivekananda‟s
Man-Making Education are based on the Vedantic philosophy of his life.
 Man making education must develop such individuals who are ethically sound,
intellectually sharp, physically strong, religiously liberal, spiritually enlightened and vocationally
sufficient.
 Every individual should understand that the ultimate goal of Human Life is to attain
„Unity with Creator‟.
 Attainment of social equality.
 Man should develop an attitude of respect for all religions. He should understand that the
essential elements of all religions are the same, and no religion is superior or inferior to other.
 Man should imbibe love for all and hatred for none, because love is the highest good of
all religions.
 Service to man is equated with devotion to God because God resides in every human
heart.
 Man making education stands for rousing mans to the awareness of his true self.
 Man should attain the knowledge of science and spirituality. Swamiji developed a
synthesis between science and spirituality.
 Swami Vivekananda was a prophet of humanity. His concept of man transcends the
cultural boundaries of the East and the West. He was a rationalist and a man must develop a
rational attitude in life.

Objective-2: Role of Teacher in Man Making Education:

Man is a social being and a product of society and the society depends upon its individual for its
development. To make the man as a social being we must need a strong hand of a teacher. Today
teacher has to perform various roles encouraging, supporting and facilitating. Great teacher help
to create great students. Teacher played a crucial role to optimum development of the society.
The teacher as an architect of our future generations. Teachers are role models for students and
can provide examples of good character every day in the classroom. In the purpose of Man
Making Education teacher played a great role. A teacher can build the character, body and mind

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of the students. Vivekananda says, “Education is a personal contact with the teacher”
(Gurugrihavasa). There would be no education without the personal life of a teacher. It is the
personality of man that really impresses us and not merely his words. The words and thoughts
contribute only one –third and the personality is two-thirds in the making of real man.
Vivekanada says that a child teaches itself. But a teacher can help it to go forward in its own
way. According to Swami Vivekananda a person with an attitude of renunciation, influence
children through his ideal example, love his students, sympathize at their difficulties, teaching
according to the needs, abilities and interests of the them, contribute to their spiritual
development can be a good teacher. There are different roles in Man Making Education are as
follows:

 For Man-Making Education, the teacher should come down to the level of the students
and transfer his soul to the student‟s soul.
 A teacher must be dedicated to teaching profession with a view to rendering selfless
service like an ancient Guru.
 He should be sympathetic to his students.
 A teacher must have a missionary zeal and angelic motive behind the act of teaching.
 The teacher should be a Friend, Philosopher, Guide and a Tyagi for creating a real man.
 Swami Vivekananda wants the teacher to provide the proper environment for the child to
grow naturally.
 Teachers determine the educational experience of each child. They play a pivotal role in
building the character of the students.
 Teacher must give positive ideas; people will grow up to be men and learn to stand on
their own legs.
 Teacher must lead the child on the right path.
 Demonstrate, persuade and inspire the pupil to discover his potentials, abilities and
talents.
 Teacher must organize various programs to develop the mind by concentration and deep
meditation.
 Teacher should motivate the students to acquire knowledge and develop in them
scientific temper, secular outlook and civic responsibility.

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To explain the responsibility of a teacher, Swamiji refers to the growth of a plant. In the case of a
plant, one cannot do anything more than supplying it with water, air and manure whereas it
grows by its own nature. Thus is the case with a baby. Vivekananda's methodology of education
resembles the heuristic methodology of the modern educationists. During this system, the teacher
invokes the spirit of inquiry in the pupil who is supposed to find out things for himself under the
bias-free guidance of the teacher.

CONCLUSION:
Swami Vivekananda‟s ideas on Man Making Education and role of teacher in Man Making
Education are very much relevant in our day to day society. Man Making Education solves so
many problems which are raised in recent time. His famous words; "Awake, arise, and stop not
till the goal is reached" - still resonated among the youth of the nation, rousing their social
consciousness and kindling their damp spirits. We sum up with words of Swami Vivekananda:
The only service to be given to our lower classes is to give them education; to develop their lost
individuality. Give them ideas-that is the only help they require and then the rest will follow as
the effect. Ours is to put the chemicals together, crystallization comes in the law of nature. Now
if the mountain cannot come to Mohammed, Mohammed must go to the mountain. If the poor
boy cannot come to education, education must go to him. This is true and has its relevance in our
country till today. The teacher plays the key role for educating common mass.

REFERENCES:
1. Aggarwal, J.C. (2010), Theory and Principles of Education, UP: Vikash Publishing
House Pvt Ltd.
2. Avinashilingam, T.S. (1957), Education Complied from the Speeches and Writings of
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3. Banerjee, K.A., Meeta, M. (2015). Educational philosophy of Swami Vivekananda.
International Journal of Educational Research and Development Vol. 4(3), pp. 030-035.
4. Behera, S.K. (2015). Man-Making Education in the light of Swami
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of-swami-vivekananda-by-santosh-kumar-behera).

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 ISSN: 2249-2496Impact Factor: 7.081

5. Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Advaita Ashram, Kolkata, 1962, (hereafter

CW) 2.15; 3.302.
6. Dash, B.N. (1994), Foundation of Educational Thought and Practice, New Delhi: Kalyani
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7. Gupta, S. (2009), Education in Emerging India, New Delhi: Shipra Publications.
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9. Nithiya, P. (2012). Swami Vivekananda‟s Views on Philosophy of Education. Asian Journal
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10. Nayak, B. K. (2006), Foundation of Education, Cuttack: Kitab Mahal.
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12. Swami Vivekananda (2009), (Kiran Walia, Comd.), My Ideal of Education, Kolkata:
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