A teacher’s eternal dharma: Honesty above all

Professional standards, ethical codes and a genuine desire to help youth guide most educators in their daily work. Almost all members of the teaching fraternity are upright, honest, hard-working and go out of the way to help students, irrespective of their financial or social background. But in today’s world it often looks like—honesty is heckled, discipline is punished, loyalty is hanged, and truth is buried. Because noise sells. Drama sells. The honest person does not shout, so the world thinks he or she is weak.

Having taught for four decades at different levels of education and having dealt with thousands of teenagers and youth, I have gone through many risky experiences. But I never once compromised on my honesty, integrity, and my commitment to the safety and welfare of my students. Every member of the teaching community stands for these.

I remember one incident very clearly. At that time, there was a strong agitation by youth demanding a separate statehood. A group of agitated youth barged into the premises of the institute where I was working. The classroom was very close to where the crowd was shouting. The students, both boys and girls in the classroom, were terrified. Everybody had gone pale.

My first instinct was to ensure the safety of the girls. I quickly huddled all the girls into one corner of the classroom and instructed the boys to be watchful and stand around them. I then went out of the classroom, asking the students to bolt both doors from inside. I walked up to face the mob. They were shocked to see a lady teacher standing alone in front of them.

I told them calmly but firmly, “Don’t scare the students. They are much younger than you. If you have any issue, talk to the in-charge and settle with the concerned person. Not here”. Before they could understand what had happened, I walked back to my classroom and stood at the door. The mob, without raising any more slogans, quietly walked away from there to meet the concerned person. The class was safe.

On another occasion, I was threatened by a group of boys from a local college. They warned me of dire consequences if I detained the son of a local politician. The threat did not deter me. It did not stop me from doing what was right in the path of my duty. I could not do injustice to other honest students just because of a threat. If you fail one undeserving student ten deserving students get justice. How could I, rather, nyon else for that matter, betray them? If you are honest, nothing can scare you with consequences, Honesty itself gives you courage. That has been my principle in my entire teaching career. No compromise.

Such is the dedication of teachers towards their students. For us, their safety and welfare invariably come first. We don’t live for a reward. We live for a record. A teacher who lives with honesty may not get a garland on stage. But 20 years later, a student somewhere will say, “Because of my teacher, I did not take the wrong path.” That is the garland that never fades.

What I call “heckled” and “punished”—the world does it for a day, what we built—character, values, discipline in hundreds of students—lives for generations. The world has always been like this. Even in Shri Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says truth often looks defeated in the short run. But it is the only thing that stands in the long run. Never doubt that path.

Educators have diverse personalities, ethics and communication styles. Majority of them strive to support, encourage, and accurately assess their students. A teacher’s intent is to push a student to do better and trying to make him or her a better or an honest human being can sometimes come across to the student as being overly harsh or dismissive.

Enlightened human beings are created by disciplined teachers who don’t compromise with their principles.

Those who educate children well are more to be honoured than they who produce them; for these only gave them life, those the art of living well. (Aristotle)

We don’t live for a reward. We live for a record. A teacher who lives with honesty may not get a garland on stage. But 20 years later, a student somewhere will say, “Because of my teacher, I did not take the wrong path.” That is the garland that never fades.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Hyma Moorty

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