Whether we realise it or not, a teacher is the most important influence in our life. A teacher is not necessarily one who has taught us in our school or college; they are our parents, mentors and friends too.
Whosoever I have learnt from has been my teacher, I would say. Some I seek, some I unconsciously attract. Often I learn by observing others. They are all my teachers, even though some may be completely unaware that I am learning from them. Many of us in Quora, from whose replies I have learnt are also my teachers. I cant name them all, but I offer my gratitude to them too.
The best teachers are those who show us where to look but don’t tell us what to see. Because good teachers educate us and the right education is to know where to look. What we need from education is to awaken intelligence in us. Intelligence is the capacity to perceive the essential, the truth that is all around us but hidden from our view. To awaken this capacity in oneself and in others, is education. Teachers deliver us this education.
There is really no end to education. It is not about reading a book or passing an examination and say that “my education is finished”. Education never ends. It cannot end. The whole of life, from the moment we are born to the moment we die, is a movement of learning. That is what education brings to us; it brings learning.
On this Teachers day I bow down to all my teachers, who knowingly or unknowingly have given me wings to fly!
