Saraswati Shishu Mandir
Encyclopedia
Saraswati Sishu Mandir are a group of schools run by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
. “Saraswati
” is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music and other creative arts. In Sanskrit “sishu” means children and “mandir” means temple.
The birth place of Saraswati Shishu Mandir is in Pakkibagh, Gorakhpur
- a district of Uttar Pradesh
in India
. In 1952, late Nanaji Deshmukh and a group of RSS activists planned to educate children about Hindutva
(the nationalistic Hindu way of life) and opened the first school in Gorakhpur. Prior to this, Gita school was established at Kurukshetra in the year 1946 by Shri Guruji, M.S. Golwalker.
The education style in these schools is a blend of ancient Indian education style as prescribed in the Vedas
, nationalistic Hindu pride, and contemporary subjects taught in the local language. They address the teacher as aacharya (teacher). The day starts with plenty of prayers to goddess Saraswati in Sanskrit
and Hindi
. Other patriotic songs and didactic motivational stories are also recited.
As on 2010, about 17,000 schools have been instituted across India. All state-level committees are affiliated to the Vidya Bharati Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Sansthan educational system, headquartered in Delhi.
An interersting thing is that across all grades, the initial class starts with a subject known as "SADACHAR". In this class, the teacher tells students about historical stories and legends of freedom fighters and religions of India.
या वीणावरदण्डमन्डितकरा या श्वेतपद्मासना |
या ब्रह्माच्युत- शंकर- प्रभृतिभिर्देवैः सदा पूजिता
सा मां पातु सरस्वती भगवती निःशेषजाड्यापहा ||
शुक्लांब्रह्मविचारसारपरमा- माद्यां जगद्व्यापिनीं
वीणापुस्तकधारिणीमभयदां जाड्यान्धकारापहाम् |
हस्ते स्पाटिकमालिकां विदधतीं पद्मासने संस्थितां
वन्दे तां परमेश्वरीं भगवतीं बुद्धिप्रदां शारदाम् ||
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
जग सिरमौर बनाएँ भारत,
वह बल विक्रम दे। वह बल विक्रम दे॥
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायिनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
साहस शील हृदय में भर दे,
जीवन त्याग-तपोमय कर दे,
संयम सत्य स्नेह का वर दे,
स्वाभिमान भर दे। स्वाभिमान भर दे॥1॥
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायिनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
लव, कुश, ध्रुव, प्रहलाद बनें
हम मानवता का त्रास हरें हम,
सीता, सावित्री, दुर्गा माँ,
फिर घर-घर भर दे। फिर घर-घर भर दे॥2॥
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायिनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
After above mentioned prayer, Eco of Aumkar (ॐ) dhvani......
then Gayatri Mantra...
ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वः
तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यम्
भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि।
धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात्॥
then SHANTI PATH
ॐ द्यौ: शान्तिरन्तरिक्षँ शान्ति: पृथिवी शान्तिराप: शान्तिरोषधय: शान्ति: ।
वनस्पतये: शान्तिर्विश्वे देवा: शान्तिर्ब्रह्म शान्ति: सर्वँ शान्ति:
शान्तिरेव शान्ति: सा मा शान्तिरेधि
॥ ॐ शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति: ॥
In between above prayers students are taught a new lesson everyday through a motivational story.
Before starting lunch they recite a hymn "BHOJAN MANTRA"
ॐ यन्तु नद्यो वर्शन्तु पर्जन्या, सुपिप्पला ओषधयो भवन्तु,
अन्नावातम मोदान्न्वातम ममिक्षवातम, एषाम राजभुयाषम.
पर्मेस्ठिवा एषा यदोदनाह.
मा भ्राता भ्रातरं द्विक्षण, मास्वसारामुतास्वासा,
सम्येचासव्रता भूत्वा, वाचं वदत भद्रया.
परमामै वैयाम्श्रियम गमयति.
ब्रहमार्पणं ब्रहमहविर्ब्रहमाग्नौ ब्रहमणा हुतम् ।
ब्रहमैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रहमकर्मसमाधिना ॥
ॐ सह नाववतु । सह नौ भुनक्तु ।
सह वीर्यं करवावहै । तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु ।
मा विद्विषावहै ॥
ॐ शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति:: ॥
And at last before leaving the school people sing our Rashtriya Geet "VANDE MATARAM"
वन्दे मातरम
सुजलां सुफलां मलयजशीतलाम्
सस्य श्यामलां मातरंम्
शुभ्र ज्योत्सनाम् पुलकित यामिनीम्
फुल्ल कुसुमित द्रुमदलशोभिनीम्,
सुहासिनीं सुमधुर भाषिणीम्
सुखदां वरदां मातरम् ॥
कोटि कोटि कन्ठ कलकल निनाद कराले
द्विसप्त कोटि भुजैर्ध्रत खरकरवाले
के बोले मा तुमी अबले
बहुबल धारिणीम् नमामि तारिणीम्
रिपुदलवारिणीम् मातरम् ॥
तुमि विद्या तुमि धर्म, तुमि ह्रदि तुमि मर्म
त्वं हि प्राणाः शरीरे
बाहुते तुमि मा शक्ति,
हृदये तुमि मा भक्ति,
तोमारै प्रतिमा गडि मन्दिरे-मन्दिरे ॥
त्वं हि दुर्गा दशप्रहरणधारिणी
कमला कमलदल विहारिणी
वाणी विद्यादायिनी, नमामि त्वाम्
नमामि कमलां अमलां अतुलाम्
सुजलां सुफलां मातरम् ॥
श्यामलां सरलां सुस्मितां भूषिताम्
धरणीं भरणीं मातरम् ॥
वन्दे मातरम
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or National Patriotic Organization), also known the Sangh, is a right-wing Hindu nationalist, paramilitary, volunteer, and allegedly militant organization for Hindu males in India...
. “Saraswati
Saraswati
In Hinduism Saraswati , is the goddess of knowledge, music, arts, science and technology. She is the consort of Brahma, also revered as His Shakti....
” is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music and other creative arts. In Sanskrit “sishu” means children and “mandir” means temple.
The birth place of Saraswati Shishu Mandir is in Pakkibagh, Gorakhpur
Gorakhpur
Gorakhpur is a city in the eastern part of the state of Uttar Pradesh in India, near the border with Nepal. It is the administrative headquarters of Gorakhpur District and Gorakhpur Division. Gorakhpur is one of the proposed capitals of the Purvanchal state which is yet to be formed...
- a district of Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. In 1952, late Nanaji Deshmukh and a group of RSS activists planned to educate children about Hindutva
Hindutva
Hindutva is the term used to describe movements advocating Hindu nationalism. Members of the movement are called Hindutvavādis.In India, an umbrella organization called the Sangh Parivar champions the concept of Hindutva...
(the nationalistic Hindu way of life) and opened the first school in Gorakhpur. Prior to this, Gita school was established at Kurukshetra in the year 1946 by Shri Guruji, M.S. Golwalker.
The education style in these schools is a blend of ancient Indian education style as prescribed in the Vedas
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
, nationalistic Hindu pride, and contemporary subjects taught in the local language. They address the teacher as aacharya (teacher). The day starts with plenty of prayers to goddess Saraswati in Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
and Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
. Other patriotic songs and didactic motivational stories are also recited.
As on 2010, about 17,000 schools have been instituted across India. All state-level committees are affiliated to the Vidya Bharati Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Sansthan educational system, headquartered in Delhi.
Educational beliefs
To develop a national system of education aimed at moulding the youth into the feelings of Hindutva and patriotism by imparting all-round physical, mental, intellectual and spiritual development, and making them capable of facing modern challenges successfully and dedicating their life for the service and upliftment of the natives of backward and remote tribal areas and the dwellers of the slums so that the down-trodden may get rid of economic exploitation, social humiliation and injustice and usher in a new era of mutual equity, cultural integrity and economic prosperity.An interersting thing is that across all grades, the initial class starts with a subject known as "SADACHAR". In this class, the teacher tells students about historical stories and legends of freedom fighters and religions of India.
Morning prayer sequence
या कुन्देन्दु- तुषारहार- धवला या शुभ्र- वस्त्रावृताया वीणावरदण्डमन्डितकरा या श्वेतपद्मासना |
या ब्रह्माच्युत- शंकर- प्रभृतिभिर्देवैः सदा पूजिता
सा मां पातु सरस्वती भगवती निःशेषजाड्यापहा ||
शुक्लांब्रह्मविचारसारपरमा- माद्यां जगद्व्यापिनीं
वीणापुस्तकधारिणीमभयदां जाड्यान्धकारापहाम् |
हस्ते स्पाटिकमालिकां विदधतीं पद्मासने संस्थितां
वन्दे तां परमेश्वरीं भगवतीं बुद्धिप्रदां शारदाम् ||
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
जग सिरमौर बनाएँ भारत,
वह बल विक्रम दे। वह बल विक्रम दे॥
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायिनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
साहस शील हृदय में भर दे,
जीवन त्याग-तपोमय कर दे,
संयम सत्य स्नेह का वर दे,
स्वाभिमान भर दे। स्वाभिमान भर दे॥1॥
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायिनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
लव, कुश, ध्रुव, प्रहलाद बनें
हम मानवता का त्रास हरें हम,
सीता, सावित्री, दुर्गा माँ,
फिर घर-घर भर दे। फिर घर-घर भर दे॥2॥
हे हंसवाहिनी ज्ञानदायिनी
अम्ब विमल मति दे। अम्ब विमल मति दे॥
After above mentioned prayer, Eco of Aumkar (ॐ) dhvani......
then Gayatri Mantra...
ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वः
तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यम्
भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि।
धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात्॥
then SHANTI PATH
ॐ द्यौ: शान्तिरन्तरिक्षँ शान्ति: पृथिवी शान्तिराप: शान्तिरोषधय: शान्ति: ।
वनस्पतये: शान्तिर्विश्वे देवा: शान्तिर्ब्रह्म शान्ति: सर्वँ शान्ति:
शान्तिरेव शान्ति: सा मा शान्तिरेधि
॥ ॐ शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति: ॥
In between above prayers students are taught a new lesson everyday through a motivational story.
Before starting lunch they recite a hymn "BHOJAN MANTRA"
ॐ यन्तु नद्यो वर्शन्तु पर्जन्या, सुपिप्पला ओषधयो भवन्तु,
अन्नावातम मोदान्न्वातम ममिक्षवातम, एषाम राजभुयाषम.
पर्मेस्ठिवा एषा यदोदनाह.
मा भ्राता भ्रातरं द्विक्षण, मास्वसारामुतास्वासा,
सम्येचासव्रता भूत्वा, वाचं वदत भद्रया.
परमामै वैयाम्श्रियम गमयति.
ब्रहमार्पणं ब्रहमहविर्ब्रहमाग्नौ ब्रहमणा हुतम् ।
ब्रहमैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रहमकर्मसमाधिना ॥
ॐ सह नाववतु । सह नौ भुनक्तु ।
सह वीर्यं करवावहै । तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु ।
मा विद्विषावहै ॥
ॐ शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति:: ॥
And at last before leaving the school people sing our Rashtriya Geet "VANDE MATARAM"
वन्दे मातरम
सुजलां सुफलां मलयजशीतलाम्
सस्य श्यामलां मातरंम्
शुभ्र ज्योत्सनाम् पुलकित यामिनीम्
फुल्ल कुसुमित द्रुमदलशोभिनीम्,
सुहासिनीं सुमधुर भाषिणीम्
सुखदां वरदां मातरम् ॥
कोटि कोटि कन्ठ कलकल निनाद कराले
द्विसप्त कोटि भुजैर्ध्रत खरकरवाले
के बोले मा तुमी अबले
बहुबल धारिणीम् नमामि तारिणीम्
रिपुदलवारिणीम् मातरम् ॥
तुमि विद्या तुमि धर्म, तुमि ह्रदि तुमि मर्म
त्वं हि प्राणाः शरीरे
बाहुते तुमि मा शक्ति,
हृदये तुमि मा भक्ति,
तोमारै प्रतिमा गडि मन्दिरे-मन्दिरे ॥
त्वं हि दुर्गा दशप्रहरणधारिणी
कमला कमलदल विहारिणी
वाणी विद्यादायिनी, नमामि त्वाम्
नमामि कमलां अमलां अतुलाम्
सुजलां सुफलां मातरम् ॥
श्यामलां सरलां सुस्मितां भूषिताम्
धरणीं भरणीं मातरम् ॥
वन्दे मातरम