On the ocassion of the World Teacher’s Day

Teaching is a truly inward human activity. It is not merely an intellectual, or emotional, or spiritual pursuit. It is a combination of all the three. A mere intellectual teacher is a cold abstraction of facts. A mere emotional teacher is a narcissist. A mere spiritual teacher doesn’t have any anchor to the real world. A combination of the three, when interwoven into the fabric of the self, makes a teacher.
There is no prescribed description of a good teacher. Every teacher is good in their own ways. A good teacher invokes in their students a capacity for connectedness. Methods don’t dictate connectedness, heart can; heart where intellect, emotion, and spirit converge. A good teacher encourages questions. Shadows and limits are as much a part of a teacher as strengths and potentials are.
Teaching is not merely an image building exercise. Teaching opens the heart.  A teacher makes the students aware of their inner reality.  A teacher helps the students to see the big picture.
If I am ever asked, what is the most flattering description of a teacher — a Hero, or a Role Model — I would go for a Hero. A role model impacts our life for a shorter period. Once his role is over, he disappears from the scene. Hero remains with us for a long time.
Drawing is different from tracing. When we draw, we encounter discontinuities. These discontinuities disappear when we trace. But many  like to live with a few discontinuities.  A teacher tells that discontinuities are normal. Discontinuities drives one  to their destinations.
A good teacher has the authority to teach. Authority is not power. It is the capacity to stand on the ground when faced with the challenges of the student. Authority comes from a teacher’s inner self. A teacher is a friend. He gives a feeling of trust. A teacher turns a mirror into a window.
I feel good that I am a teacher.  I feel good that my students are now my teachers.