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From where you can get education to prepare yourself to cope with life’s problems ?
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THE ignorant man
is not the unlearned, but he who does not know himself, and the learned man is stupid when he relies on books, on knowledge and on authority to give him understanding. Understanding comes only through self-knowledge, which is awareness of one's total psychological process. Thus education, in the true sense, is the understanding of oneself, for it is within each one of us that the whole of existence is gathered.
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What we now call education is a matter of accumulating information and knowledge from books,
which anyone can do who can read. Such education offers a subtle form of escape from ourselves and, like all escapes, it inevitably creates increasing misery. Conflict and confusion result from our own wrong relationship with people, things and ideas, and until we understand that relationship and alter it, mere learning, the gathering of facts and the acquiring of various skills, can only lead us to engulfing chaos and destruction.
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Many, both young and old, extol the importance of an academic education. Some experts even say that they “fully believe that you will never be able to find a [decent] job without a college degree.” Yet, there are a number of human needs that go beyond material achievements. For instance, does higher learning help you to be a good parent, mate, or friend? For that matter, people admired for their intellectual achievements may develop undesirable personality traits, fail in their family life, or even end up committing suicide.
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Life is pain, joy, beauty, ugliness, love,
and when we understand it as a whole, at every level, that understanding creates its own technique. But the contrary is not true: technique can never bring about creative and understanding.
Present-day education is a complete failure because it has overemphasized technique. In overemphasizing technique we destroy man. To cultivate capacity and efficiency without understanding life, without having a comprehensive perception of the ways of thought and desire, will only make us increasingly ruthless, which is to engender wars and jeopardize our physical security. The exclusive cultivation of technique has produced scientists, mathematicians, bridge builders, space conquerors; but do they understand the total process of life? Can any specialist experience life as a whole? Only when he ceases to be a specialist.
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Some look to religion for guidance,
a source of education, but become disappointed because of not receiving practical help to face life’s difficulties. Illustrating this, Emilia* from Mexico says: “It was 15 years ago that I felt that my husband and I simply could not be together any longer. We argued all the time. I couldn’t get him to stop drinking. I frequently had to leave our small children by themselves while I went looking for my husband. I was emotionally worn out. Several times I went to church seeking something that might help me find a solution. Although the Bible was occasionally used, I never heard any counsel that directly dealt with my situation; neither did anyone approach me to tell me what to do. Sitting in church for a while and repeating some prayers did not satisfy me.” Others may become disillusioned when they see how far their own spiritual leaders are from living an exemplary life. As a result, many lose confidence in religion as a source of training or education for a successful life.
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Therefore, you might ask yourself, ‘What kind of education should I obtain in order to make my life a success?’
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