The Gift of Education
30 August 2018 Education
The Former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt once expressed “The Future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams”. Dreams complete life. Dreams add beauty, majesty, clarity, sanctity, and lasting ecstasy to life. Dreams provide freedom to individuals to unveil supreme joy. Dreams shape the career, relationship, and destiny of people.
American Statesman, Colin Powell says, “A dream does not become a reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work”. Dreams are often confronted with the gruesome hardships of life.
Sai Kumar hails from Radhanagar, a remote hamlet in Odisha, India. His dream is to become a musician. He dreams of performing at the international music fraternity and to establish himself as a renowned musician. Though his dream is sincere, it lacks the support and encouragement of his family. Their condition was so bad that they were struggling to even make two square meals a day. Society tabooed Sai Kumar’s father as a lunatic and he was forced to kill himself. They were in grinding poverty and had no means to meet their daily requirements. Ultimately, Sai Kumar had to join an orphanage! Will the universe give a chance to overcome his inner commotion and express his inner emotion?
Varsha Naikodi a good, humble and soft-spoken girl of Karnataka had a lofty dream of fulfilling her deceased father’s wish of seeing her become a Doctor. Varsha’s mother is a garland and roti maker. “I don’t want my child to face this saddening situation. Let my child see the world in better light and let her get her fair share of the joys of this world. Let her be transformed and let her fulfill the only wish of her father” was the prayer of Varsha’s mother. Can Varsha fight against poverty? Can she get a platform to garner her dreams?
Ashwini Kaligi was born into a family where girls were never sent to school. “My sons were not educated. But at least my granddaughter should be educated and have a wonderful future. This is my desire. I will never get my granddaughter married as a child. I tried educating both my sons, but due to poverty I could not. But atleast let my granddaughter become stronger and build her own life. I pray to God to fulfill it”, was the yearning of Ashwini’s grandmother. Would God translate this heartfelt prayer into reality?
There are many such children like Sai Kumar, Varsha and Ashwini fighting against poverty to pursue their guileless and unsullied dreams. So, who can or who will provide this opportunity? Is there a policy or scheme or an initiative to meet this gap?
The answer is Sri Madiyala Narayan Bhat Scholarship
Children of Rural India live in abject poverty. Formal Education is an unheard entity; thanks to the exorbitant fees of private schools and stultified scene of Government schools. To overcome this stifling state of affairs in rural India, the Sri Sathya Sai Loka Seva Group of Institutions have come up with two flagship initiatives – EACH ONE EDUCATE ONE and SRI MADIYALA NARAYAN BHAT SCHOLARSHIP. This is applicable to all the 30 schools coming under the Sri Sathya Sai Loka Seva Educational Trust. E1E1 is an initiative wherein the Alumni and the Alumnae of the Sri Sathya Sai institutions join hands in facilitating free education for the deserving rural children across India. Sri Madiyala Narayan Bhat Scholarship caters to the boarding and dietary requirements of the children. Through this program, genuine needy students can join the hostels at no cost. The E1E1 scheme coupled with SRI MADIYALA NARAYAN BHAT SCHOLARSHIP lends substantial support to nurture children from rural India and helps in transforming their destinies from a deprived to a distinguished citizen.
Here is the excerpt of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba on Sri Madiyala Narayan Bhat Scholarship scheme during His 92 birthday celebrations in Muddennahalli, India.
“Though we are providing free education in our institutions, we do charge some hostel fees which deprive admission to many poor and downtrodden children. The children are so poor that they don’t even know the taste of milk. My heart melted hearing this. I wanted to help them to any extent possible. Therefore, I am instituting a scholarship fund called Sri Madiyala Narayan Bhat Scholarship and admit the poorest of the poor providing everything free of cost. Their parents need not spend even a single penny. Because of the constraint of money no child should be deprived of an opportunity to education. This is my 92 Birthday gift”.
Because of the Each One Educate One and the Sri Madiyala Narayan Bhat Scholarship schemes, Sai Kumar is now able to nourish, cherish and flourish his passion for music. These initiatives not only enabled his school education but are also sponsoring his university education. These humble gestures are acting as a catalyst in making Sai Kumar a Hindustani Musician.
Varsha Naikodi is in the process of fulfilling her father’s anticipated dream. She too is being educated under the E1E1 and the Sri Madiyala Narayan Bhat Scholarship which includes her boarding and lodging facilities. She is the first-generation literate in her family. God fulfilled the prayer of Ashwini’s grandmother through these impactful schemes. Ashwini who’s currently studying in Grade 6 in the Sri Sathya Sai Vaniniketanam campus in GADAG, Karnataka says, “I would like to bring a different direction to my parent’s life when I grow up”, These powerful initiatives have turned mines into gold. It has provided an oasis of opportunities in this money driven society. It has transposed the dreams of children into reality.
“We live by each other and for each other. Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much” said Hellen Keller.
Are you with us in this mission to drive the change?
Written by,
Bhupal Chidambar
Edited by,
Prashanti Nannapuraju
Write to us at reach@sanathanavani.org or WhatsApp on +91 8217536003, to know more details about these initiatives.
