From: "Gregory Hamick"
To: am-global@earthlink.net
Subject: Some AM Schools Are Breaking Basic Rules
Baba
"A'ka'shabhara' a'jake ta'ra'..." (P.S. 2523)
Purport:
The sky of this amavasya night is filled with the stars. The sweet breeze, like nectar, is blowing mildly. The mind is floating from the known to the unknown world in divine ecstasy-- towards its destination. Ensconced in His ideation, my mind is getting lost. The lily flower is constantly looking towards the sky; the aroma of flowers is emanating all around. They have forgotten their awareness about their own existence. And remain restless in the attraction of one call. In Your longing I am sitting alone and counting the stars. I understand that by Your grace I have lost myself in this beautiful atmosphere and the attraction of Your love. You are ever gracious You are always remaining by my side and guiding me. Baba, on this amavasya night my heart is yearning and longing for You...
== SOME ANANDA MARGA SCHOOLS ARE BREAKING BASIC RULES ==
Namaskar,
Baba's teachings about how our Ananda Marga schools should be run is quite straightforward but some are confused. For this reason a few of our AM schools are breaking Baba's basic and fundamental mandates on education.
BABA'S PROCEDURAL ORDER
Here following is Baba own Procedural Order which states that our AM schools must not be co-ed once children have reached the age of puberty.
A'NANDA MA'RGA PRACA'RAKA SA'MGHA (Central)
A'NANDA NAGAR
PLO no. 1A/4.2.1969
A'NANDA NAGAR
PLO no. 1A/4.2.1969
As per rules, co-education is allowed in our Schools up to Standard V. but boys who are learning in Std. V or below but have crossed twelve years of age will not be permitted to study in any of our lady managed Schools. Similarly girls who are learning in Std. V or below but have crossed 12 years of age, shall not be allowed to study in our Schools (for boys).
Feb 4, 1969
Note: Standard V is the equivalent of 5th grade or 5th class in the western system.
A MOST OBVIOUS POINT
Given Baba's above Procedural Order as well as His given manner of establishing and running AM schools, the point is crystal clear.
Just as there is no need to give proof about the existence of the sun and moon as they are evident in day to day life, similarly there is no need to prove the practice of separate education of boys and girls in our AM schools.
Once boys and girls reach the pre-pubescent age (10 - 12) then our AM schools must not be co-ed. That means our AM high schools, colleges and universities must also be
single-sex.
Here below is Baba's exact talk about how in AM there are always separate, parallel learning institutions for men and women.
Baba says, "From today itself, a Homeo-College, Electro-Homeo College and Ayurvedic College have been opened in Anandanagar. From tomorrow, a medical school is being opened for the training in different “pathies” A separate institution for girls is being opened at Uma Nivas. Certificate courses in NATAC (Naturopathy, Acupuncture and Chandsi) are also going to be offered soon. I hear that from 3rd October, 1990, a music college and fine arts college will be opened. A Textile Institute is also to be started soon in order to provide the textile-training for improving the self-reliance of the people. A branch of the same can also be opened for ladies." (Disc NH Education, Gurukul: History and Planning)
Only our primary schools were co-ed; beyond that any school for adolescents and above such as our middle schools, high schools, colleges, technical schools and universities are all 100% single sex institutions. Everyone familiar with AM is aware about this. Before '90, no school in AM that served students of puberty age and older was co-ed.
AM WAY OF LIFE: SEPARATION OF THE SEXES
And this is purely in line with Baba's divine teachings of keeping separation between men and women. In so many places Baba discusses how males and females should not create friendships nor gossip with one another.
Baba says, "It should be remembered that a woman’s friend is a woman and
a man’s friend is a man." (CC-1)
Baba says, "Men and women...should not engage in gossip as its results are not beneficial." (CC-1)
Baba says, 'Unrelated men and women should not touch one another as far as possible" (CC-1)
Given the above rules, it is but natural that boys and girls of age should not be classmates. Such an approach would "fly-in-the-face" of Baba's stated rules.
And indeed, no school in under Baba's direct watch was co-ed. Not only that, but in our Marga everything is divided along lines of gender. Separate rows for DC, separate reportings, separate LFT & WT training centres, separate organisation and hierarchy. Everything is separate.
Plus Baba would not allow Dadas to teach girls nor allows Didis to instruct boys in our AM school. There was no cross-over whatsoever.
PROPER EXAMPLES IN AM
Here are some examples of our AM schools. In Asansol (WB) there is a girl's school of higher education where boys are not allowed. And In Anandapur and Ananda Palli in Bihar, we find high schools exclusively for boys.
Here the points is that all our learning institutions in AM are single-sex. Only those schools for small kids are co-ed such as kindergarten etc. I
Indeed this manner of separation is not unique to AM, all the major orthodox religions follow this basic tenet. Their schools are all single sex.
MUST NOT EVEN WORK IN OPPOSITE SEX SCHOOL
Baba was very strict that no one of the opposite sex should even work in an AM school. So it is not just that Dadas could not teach in a girls school, no male of any age, margii or otherwise could work in that school, not as a teacher, not as an assistant, not as a custodian or driver, not as anything. Likewise, no women could work in any capacity in a school that was for boys. Even if Dadas tried to hire female nannies to help take care of the letter boys who would have "accidents" in their pants, then Baba would scold and punish the Dada running that school. Even village women were not allowed to help supervise young boys as they walked to school. In every way, shape and form our AM education system is single sex education. That includes the students, teachers, staff, assistants, and everyone.
MUST SAY "NO" ON PERFORMA
Baba was so strict on the above point that there was a performa that had to be filled out about the management of our AM schools and one of the points on the performa that "Are there any members of the opposite sex working in your school?" and every Wt understood that they had to reply "No" to that question. There was no other option.
MUST RE-EVALUATE: ONSET OF PUBERTY IS NOW EARLIER
Nowadays in our AM schools, co-education might exist up to the 8th class, but that is way too old. By that time many of the students have entered puberty. So we have to reexamine this way of doing. We have to follow Baba's strict guideline and stop co-education before children enter puberty. Tragically, now in some so-called developed countries, some girls are entering puberty as early as 7 or 8 years old. Why this is happening is another topic of discussion. Suffice to say here that such youths can no longer attend co-ed schools according to our AM system.
MUST BE STRICT LIKE THE RELIGIONS
The religions have all kinds of illogical and dogmatic rules, but on the point of single-sex education their approach is admirable. Baba says if anyone is doing something good we should appreciate them on that point. Tragically, our rules also mandate that we should not offer co-education past a certain age, but we are falling away from that gold standard. We are compromising on our ideals while those in the dogmatic religions are shining brightly on this point. This is a real tragedy that we cannot reflect our AM teachings. By such compromises, people start eating meat, skip asanas, fail to do AM dances and so many problems. Thus this manner of falling into compromise on the point of co-education is not at all good.
EVERYTHING IN AM IS SEPARATE
Baba has mandated that everything in AM should be separate: For example WWD. Our relief activities (AMURTL), reportings, social service projects, LFT trainings, and so much more are also separate along gender lines. This you know well.
Plus there are these points:
1. Jagrtis are not shared between males and females.
2. Co-education is not practiced with students above 10 years of age.
3. During dharmacakra sadhana is done in distinctly different rows.
4. The organisation itself has an entire separate wing for females, WWD or Women's Welfare Department.
5. Prout, AMURT, VSS etc also have separate sections for males and females.
6. Reporting is done separately.
7. LFT, Tattvika, and Acarya training is separate for males and females.
8. In-Charges are not mixed. Males are in-charges of males and females of females.
Note: Only in Central Office will the head of WWD be controlled by the General Secretary.
9. During DMC Kaoshikii was also performed separately. And still this practice is maintained.
10. Females doing guard duty for females and males for males; Not mixed.
And like this in all aspects of life in AM, wherever we look or examine the situation it is clear that the activities and dealings is distinctly separate with regards to males and females. In this way we are best able to develop a revolutionary society based on high ideals. Indeed this is Baba's system.
Furthermore, in this regard, in Caryacarya Baba guides us that the more separation there is between males and females, the better it is. (Reference CC part 1, Chapter 24)
EVEN THEN SOME CONFUSED
In spite of this if certain persons do not agree that our system of higher education should not be coed, this is the reason why they could not understand.
Sometimes no matter how much you try to convince a meat eater about vegetarianism even then they can't change their ways - they are stuck in that crude habit. They have their personal agenda and attachment to eat meat. That is what they want.
Similarly, even after giving all kinds of logic and reasoning about the critical issue of coeducation, certain persons are unable to understand as they have their own agenda, i.e. personal or economic interest at stake. They want to keep girls and boys together in higher education institutions. That is why they cannot understand Baba's clear-cut guideline about separate education.
MIGHT GET SEXUALLY ATTRACTED
Now here are some new points...
When Baba has mandated that Didis or other ladies must not teach in Dada's primary schools it means Baba is concerned that other staff members might get attracted to that lady. The 5 year old kids will not get attracted but other males working at the school might get attracted. Same is the case if a Dada or brother is teaching or working in a sister's school. That is why Baba is strict that no female should work in a Dada's primary school and vice versa.
Now with the point of co-education at a higher learning institution, the problem is multi-fold. Female administrators, female professors and Didis are working alongside their male counterparts, plus male students are also of age. In such a case, not only teachers and administrators but students also are going to be attracted to the opposite sex. Female students will also get attracted to male teachers etc. This happens regularly in the general society and it leads to a lot of problems. But that is the way things would be set-up if our universities became co-ed. There would be a co-ed faculty as well, in which case there is a huge mix of males and females. All of this goes directly against our AM way of living and Baba's mandates for AMPS where everything is separated and divided according to gender.
And not only institutions of higher education, Baba has also directed that places like medical centers and retiree homes should also be separate on the basis of gender.
And again with regards to coed institutions of learning, one other important point is that there will be clash between WWD and Dadas over who would control that center for higher education. This would create a lot of tension and confusion.
Baba put all the above in print within various procedural orders.
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace He has given us strict guidelines which enable us to move ahead. At present the mass of society is drowned in sensual infatuation and degradation etc. Baba's pointed mandates about co-education etc protect us from such a downfall. Even then a few in AM fail to understand.
Baba says, "As per rules, co-education is allowed in our Schools up to Standard V. but boys who are learning in Std. V or below but have crossed twelve years of age will not be permitted to study in any of our lady managed Schools. Similarly girls who are learning in Std. V or below but have crossed 12 years of age, shall not be allowed to study in our Schools (for boys)."
Namaskar,
Gurumurti
Note 1: JUST DO SO SHAMELESSLY
Some Dadas shamelessly propagate co-education after a certain age. Baba says that there should not be co-ed schools above the age of 10 or 12, but such Dadas go against His divine mandate.
The reason may be that they cannot control their baser propensities or the reason may be economic reason (i.e. more students)
However, in either case it is very bad; we must not compromise with AM ideals. Unfortunately some compromise, like Dada Kalyaneshvaranda. Dada will shamelessly espouse the virtue of co-ed schools
The first thing is that such Dadas have their own weakness then they go on trying to convince us with their silly lgoic and reasoning. They go so far as to try and confuse and wrongly convince margiis by using their own prestige. They use their status to befool margiis; such are their dishonest and hypocritical ways.
Such mentality is very dangerous. Margiis think that, "Since such avadhutas lived around Baba then they know better than me." It is just like if a doctor gives an opinion on health issues when that doctor himself is a cheat. That is very bad.
Similearly, when some are making co-ed high schools in the so-called name of dharma then that is really worst. It is our duty to unmask such people and put them on a red list, they are not to be trusted - not in any sphere.
Margiis will never be able to read all the scriptures in their entirety so someone must act as the guide. But when the guide is corrupt then what.
So we should all apply pressure to ensure such Dadas adhere to Baba's teachings.
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