Inception of Teachers Day
Teachers' Day is a special day for the appreciation of teachers, and may include celebrations to honor them for their special contributions in a particular field area, or the community in general.
The idea of celebrating Teachers' Day took root in many countries during the 19th century; in most cases, they celebrate a local educator or an important milestone in education. This is the primary reason why countries celebrate this day on different dates, unlike many other International Days. For example, Argentina has commemorated Domingo Faustino Sarmiento's death on 11 September) since 1915, while in India the birthday of the second president Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (5 September) is celebrated as Teacher's Day since 1962.
Almost all countries started observing teachers Day since 19th century but in our great India Guru Purnima is traditionally observed as a day to venerate teachers since ages.
Earlier it was celebrated as "Guru Purnima" Whereas Guru Purnima is celebrated as per planets calendar. The full moon day in the month of Ashadha (June-July) is known as Guru Purnima.
Before British Raj, India was having Five (5) holidays in a month, which used to be three holidays around new moon day i.e. Amavasya and two holidays on full moon day i.e. Poornima. Basic concept of holidays were to reenergize the body gifted by GOD by worshipping, praying, meeting extended families and Paying respect to Parents and GURUS (Teachers).
The five holidays in a month are increased to around ten by working 5 days a week. More the holidays more disturbed are humans, how to utilize them. Modern times have made Teachers Day in place of Guru Purnima. Teachers day seems to be mere a formality of partying with teachers on affixed day of September 5th.
Teachers in those days were treated as GOD because they were the one who used to give a right direction to human beings, without any personal hidden agenda. Those teachers may be academic or religious teachers in ancient times teaching was more from religious gurus due to lack of schooling infrastructure.
Teachers' Day is a special day for the appreciation of teachers, and may include celebrations to honor them for their special contributions in a particular field area, or the community in general.
Guru Purnima is an Indian festival dedicated to spiritual and academic teachers. This festival is traditionally celebrated by Hindus, Jains and Buddhists, to pay their respects to their teachers and express their gratitude.
The full moon day in the month of Ashadha (June-July) is known as Guru Purnima. This year the sacred festival falls on July 31 in 2015, and honors the ancient lineage of enlightened beings who have graced the world with their presence, imparting the knowledge of the “Self.” The word guru is derived from two words, gu and ru. The Sanskrit root gu means darkness or ignorance, and ru denotes the remover of that darkness.
The word “Guru” is translated as “dispeller of darkness.” The Guru dispels the darkness of ignorance and leads seekers on the path to enlightenment.
Yogic lore
Guru Purnima is the day the first guru was born. In the yogic culture, Shiva is not seen as a god, he is seen as the Adiyogi, or the first yogi. Guru Purnima is that full moon day when the first yogi transformed himself into the Adi Guru – the first guru. This is the time of the year when his attention fell upon the now celebrated Saptarishis – his first seven disciples. Over 15,000 years ago, when the solstice had shifted from the summer solstice to the winter – that is, when the Sun’s run with relation to this planet shifted from the northern run to the southern run, which in this tradition is known as Uttarayana and Dakshinayana – on that day, Adiyogi looked at the Saptarishis and saw that they had become shining receptacles of knowing. They had done some simple preparation for 84 years and he could not ignore them anymore. He observed them closely and when the next full moon rose, he decided to become a guru. That full moon day is known as Guru Purnima. He turned south and the transmission of yogic science to the seven disciples began.
Adiyogi made a dimensional change in the way people perceive and understand the existence and the source of creation. And he made himself a bridge between a simple piece of creation and the source of creation.
When Adiyogi spoke, he was not speaking religion, philosophy or dogma. He was talking about a science, a scientific method through which you could undo the boundaries that nature has set upon human life. Every boundary that we set has the purpose of protection to start with. We build a fence around our house with the intent or protection. But once you become unaware as to why you set up these boundaries, the boundaries of self-preservation also become boundaries of self-imprisonment. And these boundaries are not in any one form. They have taken on so many complex forms.
The yogic science is not about how to bend your body or hold your breath. This is the science of understanding the mechanics of the human mechanism and to be able to dismantle or put it together. He said, “If you walk this, there will be no distinction between you and that which you refer to as the creator.” The journey is from creation to the creator.
Buddhist History
The Buddha went from Bodhgaya to Sarnath about 5 weeks after his enlightenment. Before Gautama (the Buddha-to-be) attained enlightenment, he gave up his austere penances and his friends, the Pañcavaggiya monks, left him and went to Isipatana (Sarnath). After attaining Enlightenment the Buddha, leaving Uruvela, travelled to the Isipatana to join and teach them. He went to them because, using his spiritual powers, he had seen that his five former companions would be able to understand Dharma quickly. When Gautama Buddha found his five former companions, he taught them, they understood and as a result they also became enlightened.
At that time the Sangha, the community of the enlightened ones, was founded. The sermon Buddha gave to the five monks was his first sermon, called the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta. It was given on the full-moon day of Asadha. Buddha subsequently also spent his first rainy season i.e. Varsha vassa at Sarnath at the Mulagandhakuti. The Sangha had grown to 60 in number (after Yasa and his friends had become monks), and Buddha sent them out in all directions to travel alone and teach the Dharma. All 60 monks were Arahants.
Observances
Buddhists observe on this day uposatha i.e. to observe eight precepts. Vipassana meditators practice meditation on this day under the guidance of their teachers.
Rainy season i.e. varsha vassa also starts with this day. During the rainy season lasting for three lunar months from July to October. During this time Buddhist monks remain in a single place, generally in their temples. In some monasteries, monks dedicate the Vassa to intensive meditation. During Vassa, many Buddhist lay people reinvigorate their spiritual training and adopt more ascetic practices, such as giving up meat, alcohol, or smoking.
The Hindu spiritual Gurus are revered on this day by a remembering their life and teachings. Vyasa Puja is held at various temples, where floral offerings and symbolic gifts are given away in his honour and that of the cosmic satguru.
The festivities are usually followed by feast for the disciples, shishya, where the prasad andcharnamrita literally nectar of the feet, the symbolic wash of Guru's feet, which represents his grace, kripa is distributed. As a day of remembrance towards all gurus, through whom God grants the grace of knowledge (Jnana) to the disciples, special recitations of the Hindu scriptures especially, the Guru Gita, a 216 verse ode to Guru, authored by the sage, Vyasa himself, are held all day; apart from singing of bhajans, hymns and organising of special kirtan session and havan at many places, where devotees from all over gather at the ashrams, matha or place where the seat of Guru, Guru Gaddi exists.
This day also sees the ritual of padapuja, the worships of Guru's sandals, which represent his holy feet and is seen a way of rededicating to all that a Guru stands for. Disciples also recommit themselves on this day, towards following their teacher's guidance and teachings, for the coming year.
A mantra that is particularly used on this day is "Gurur Brahma, Gurur Vishnu, Gurur Devo Maheshwara, Guru Sakshat Parabrahmah Tasmai Shree Guru Veh Namah".
Irrespective of their religions, Indian academics celebrate this day by thanking their teachers. Many schools, colleges and universities have events in which students thanks their teachers and remember past scholars. Alumni visit their teachers and present gifts as a gesture of gratitude
The boundaries set by nature for one’s protection and wellbeing. But human nature is such, you cannot experience true wellbeing unless you transcend the limitations of boundaries set upon you. This is a human predicament. When you are in danger, you want fortresses around you. The moment the danger is gone, you want it all to collapse and disappear. But if the boundary that you set for your self-preservation does not go down when you wish, you feel imprisoned and suffocated because once you have come with a discerning intellect, a limitation or that which confines us to something is the worst thing. Human beings will suffer confinement more than torture. The moment a human being feels confinement, their suffering is untold.
Shiva’s work was to bring the tools of awareness that will allow you to transcend these boundaries – tools that will allow you to keep the fortresses to the extent they serve their purpose and make them vanish when you don’t want them. How to build this magical fortress that only those forces which are dangerous for your existence see, but you yourself cannot see? This was Adiyogi’s work. Using the basic illusory nature of nature itself, he came up with many incredible methods to build that magical fortress that you can walk through but no enemy can penetrate. This day is in celebration of this, that something so sophisticated and phenomenal began for the human race for the first time.
This day is the most significant day for the human race. It was held that way in this land till recently. Guru Purnima was one of the most important festivals in the nation. People celebrated it irrespective of caste or creed because in this country, the most important thing was not wealth or money. Knowledge or knowing was considered the highest value. A teacher or guru was considered the highest entity in society because knowing is the most important thing. But then for some reason, we chose to celebrate ignorance instead of knowing, and in the last few decades, Guru Purnima has lost its significance because the Government of India did not declare a holiday.
Before the British came to India, there were three days of holidays around Amavasya or new moon day, and two days of holidays around Purnima or full moon day. So there were five holidays in a month that were meant for you to go to the temple and work on your inner wellbeing. But when the British came, they made Sunday a holiday.
This celebration has slowly died across the country. It still lives in a few ashrams here and there, but most people are not even aware that this is the most significant day because before the idea of religion entered anyone’s mind, Adiyogi put the idea that a human being can evolve beyond his present dimensions of existence; and he gave the tools to make that into a reality. This is the most precious idea that has entered the human mind: that he can evolve beyond his present limitations and go into a completely different dimension of experience, existence and access into the existence.
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Note: I have also published another story of paying respectful homage to My GURUS. You may read at:
https://www.launchora.com/story/teachers-day-my-parents-my-gurus
Disclaimer:
This is a work of providing general information and does not endorse, criticize, qualify any persons, any resemblance is purely coincidental.
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