Gandhi talked about Nai Talim decades ago; today, we buy that same idea from the educational market. The natural way of learning has always been through the participation of the learners and of the teacher as well. Here is what I had to say in a round table discussion held in Uzbekistan on 30 January 2025.
When I first came to Uzbekistan in September 2022, I was surprised to see that everyone loves India. It was a happy feeling that your country is respected, loved, and known by everyone. I learnt to say As-salamu alaykum with respect, but I was always happy when they would say Namaste to me. People will speak names of Bollywood actors like Raj Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Mithun Chakravarty, Shahrukh Khan, and Hema Malini. Most of the time, the first interactions were with Yandex taxi people. I still remember it was somewhere around Rakktoshi Street when the driver had stopped to pick up a water bottle for him, and he spoke a name different than Bollywood – He said he knew who Mahatma Gandhi was!
This was a very- very special moment for me because it taught me to learn about Uzbekistan with all my heart and soul. Today, when we talk about Mahatma Gandhi and Peace, as a Teacher in Uzbekistan from India, I feel he did not just fight the British; he also gave us his philosophy of “YANGI TALIM” – we call it “NAI TALIM” in India. At Sevagram, a school named ‘ANAND NIKETAN” still teaches with NAI TALIM way.
When you see the components and features of NAI TALIM (YANGI TALIM), it is the real way of learning. Gandhi Ji said we should teach children to learn with ‘THREE H’, HAND – HEAD – HEART.
As we are all in education, how can we contribute to world peace and prosperity? This will be by Teaching only. Education is the only way to change the world. When the world is searching for Peace (AMAN) in life, business, jobs, family and even politics, NAI TALIM can help us.
But how?
If we train ourselves and our students to live a better life, they will not have much time to create wars and worries! Here is what Mahatma Gandhi’s Nai Talim speaks about:
- Vocational Efficiency
- Cultural Development
- Spiritual Development
- Character Development
- 3 H’s: Hand, Head, and Heart
- Work Education through Economic activities and Craft based education
- Desirable values of culture
- Moral virtues like Righteousness, Integrity, Self-Restraint
- Self-realisation should be the ultimate goal of education
If even one of these qualities, or as we say in Uzbek ‘SIFAT’, can be developed strongly, we can all achieve Peace of Self and peace in Family and Society. I remember that in our schoolbooks, we read ‘Gandhi’s TALISMAN’, the Magical Idea of Gandhi – in which he said we should think about what good our actions will bring for the poorest and the person in need.
