Happiness, Peace, and Education - Dr. Ahsan Habib Imrose

Happiness and Peace – Two small words, but within these atomic words lies the fundamental goal of all human activities, both in this world and the hereafter. Even the millions of creatures in the universe are not beyond these. Wealth, cars, fame, and status are often thought to bring happiness and peace, according to common human belief. Thus, most people engage in a frantic marathon to acquire these by any means necessary. But that’s not all – the world's chaos, noise, disputes, and even wars, are all carried out in the name of achieving happiness and peace. Today's destruction in Iraq and Afghanistan, the massacres in Chechnya, Bosnia, Kashmir, and Palestine, are all carried out in the name of “world peace,” according to their perpetrators. Even the leaders of the two World Wars, under the pretext of peace, caused the deaths of millions of innocent people. But have the creators of wars ever been able to grasp the golden deer of happiness and peace? Likely not. There’s no need to look far; those who conspired to extinguish Bengal’s independence in the mango grove of Plassey in 1757, despite acquiring immense wealth and power for a brief time, faced devastating destruction in the end – history bears witness to this.

Money Can't Buy Happiness

(AFP) – Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) conducted a study titled "Campaigning Happiness" and found that most people do not become happier as they get wealthier. You can read about this on the National Academy of Sciences' website from the last week of August 2003. The study reveals that there is no fixed measure for happiness. Since 1975, a survey of 1,500 people has been conducted annually. Richard Easterlin, an economist at USC who analyzed the data, said many people are under the illusion that the more wealth they earn, the happier they will become. He added that people invest all their resources in earning money at the expense of their families and health, but the problem is, as income increases, so do desires. The study found that the main causes of happiness are:

1. Spending happy moments with loved ones

2. Enjoying good health

3. Having friendly relationships

4. Being optimistic

5. Possessing self-control and patience

6. Being enriched by moral knowledge

7. Showing deep self-respect

On the other hand, those who sought happiness in wealth and fame failed – the suicides of many famous film stars, Nobel Prize-winning authors like Ernest Hemingway and Kawabata, and billionaires like the founder of Hyundai, are proof of this. So, what brings happiness and peace remains one of the most complex and costly questions in the world. Thousands of philosophers and sages have spent their lifetimes trying to answer this question. For instance, Aristotle, the teacher of world-conqueror Alexander, said, "Happiness is the expression of the soul through well-regulated actions." The American iron king, Andrew Carnegie, who created more than a thousand billionaires, said, "The deepest secret of happiness lies in sacrifice." One of India’s greatest writers, Buddhadeb, said, "There is no greater happiness than reducing one's desires; that is true happiness." The world-famous Nobel laureate, Leo Tolstoy, born to a noble family but choosing the life of a sage, said, "If you can be content with little, life feels sweet."

Poet Kamini Roy expressed:

"For others’ sake, offer your soul and life,
Is there any greater happiness?
Forget about yourself entirely."

Lastly, as stated in the Hadith, liberation from the soul's deficiencies is true happiness. Long-standing human experience has proven that true happiness requires an enlightened life. And the first requirement for an enlightened life is education. True education and peace are two mutually related concepts.

Professor Michael Howe of the University of Exeter, who has researched genius and memory, caused a worldwide stir by saying, "There is no difference between ordinary people and geniuses." According to him, geniuses are made, not born. However, he emphasizes one thing above all – family peace. Families with a peaceful environment, where children grow up happy, are more likely to produce geniuses. In this regard, the support of a life partner is also crucial.

Professor Howe has also studied brilliant scientific minds. Speaking about Einstein, he noted that Einstein had a positive family environment, which gave him significant encouragement and helped him become world-famous. According to Professor Howe, the key to a person’s success is "personal effort, opportunity to work, family encouragement, and peace." He strongly emphasizes that peace in a family is more important than money. In his books, How to Be a Creative Genius in Ten Easy Stages, Give Your Child a Better Start, and Genius E.P.I.Q., Professor Howe discusses these topics in greater detail.

Education and civilization are intricately linked. Modern human civilization is the result of education. In today’s advancing world, education is the most attractive, most discussed, and most used tool.

What Is Education and Why?

The Bengali word shikkha (education) comes from the Sanskrit root shas, which means to govern, control, instruct, advise, etc. This term emphasizes the acquisition of specific skills. In its etymological sense, education refers to mastering specific knowledge or skills.

The word shikkha is the Bengali adaptation of the English word education. Education is derived from the Latin words educatum, educare, and educere, which mean to bring out, train, nurture, foster, and guide. Joseph T. Shipley, in his Dictionary of Word Origins, explains that education comes from the Latin words edex and ducer-duc, which mean “to bring out” and “to guide,” respectively. In a broader sense, education is the process of gathering information and developing hidden potential. According to the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, education is defined as "knowledge, abilities, and the development of character and mental powers resulting from such training: intellectual, moral, physical, etc."

According to Socrates: “The destruction of falsehood and the discovery of truth.”

Plato said: “Whatever is necessary for the complete development and improvement of the body and soul is included in the purpose of education.”

Aristotle stated: “The true purpose of education is to achieve happiness through sacred practices approved by religious discipline.”

John Locke emphasized that the goal of education is to instill the principles for maintaining a healthy mind in a healthy body.

Friedrich Fröbel, the founder of the Kindergarten method, believed that education’s purpose is the realization of a pure, beautiful, and sacred life.

John Dewey declared that the purpose of education is self-realization.

The writer Hali viewed education as a process of realizing divine purpose, and Rabindranath Tagore saw it as the philosopher's stone that ignites the flame of hope in human minds.

Economist Adam Smith perceived education as a force that awakens the rationality in people’s hearts and controls their animalistic tendencies.

According to Islamic thinkers like Iqbal, education is meant to awaken the inner strength necessary to fulfill the purpose of creation.

The full meaning of education is perhaps best captured by the poet John Milton, author of Paradise Lost, who said, “Education is the harmonious development of body, mind, and soul.” In other words, education is the integrated development of body, mind, and spirit.

Humans: The Best Creation of God

Neurologists have found through research that Einstein’s brain was larger than that of the average person. Except for a few brilliant exceptions, generally, all human beings are equally endowed with talents from God.

The weight of the human brain is about 1/40th of the body’s total weight, while for a bee, the brain weighs about 1/147th of its body weight. These tiny insects make full use of their brains, as evidenced by the intricate design of their hives and their governing systems. Yet, very few humans use their brains to their full potential.

The human brain, weighing only about three pounds, is the most complex structure – thousands of times more complex than any computer. Dr. Walter has said that to create a human brain with similar capabilities using scientific methods would cost over 150 billion dollars – enough to buy nearly 10,000 advanced modern computers. Additionally, such a brain would require about 10 billion kilowatts of electricity to operate, equivalent to the combined output of 3,250 power plants like the Karnafuli's Kaptai in Bangladesh.

The artificial brain would take up the space of eighteen 100-story buildings. The outermost, wavy part of the human brain is called the cortex, and if laid out flat, it would cover more than 2,000 square miles – about the size of Brunei. The cortex is made up of 1,400 billion neutral cells called neurons, each functioning as a completely separate unit. These neurons are so small that hundreds of them could fit on the head of a pin. Thousands of these neurons are added to the brain every second, acting as electronic signals that communicate with different parts of the body and quickly transmit orders to billions of cells. Sometimes, these brain reactions can occur in less than a millionth of a second.

Through the spinal cord, neurons keep the body’s machinery alive and active. The brain is divided into about 250 distinct sections – some responsible for hearing, some for speaking, others for vision, and others for transmitting sensory signals to the central control tower. A powerful automatic “memory cell” is also embedded in the brain, whose function is to store newly acquired information and retrieve it when needed. This memory system can accommodate ten new items per second.

Astonishingly, if all the information and knowledge ever gathered were stored in this memory cell, it would occupy less than a hundred-thousandth of its capacity. SubhanAllah! How powerful our brains are! Yet, sadly, we use only a tiny fraction of this vast potential.

The primary goal of education should be to fully understand and utilize this potential. Socrates famously said, "Know thyself." An Arabic proverb echoes this sentiment: "He who knows himself knows his Lord."

The Wise Are the Architects of Civilization

Former U.S. President Roosevelt remarked, in the context of the Great Depression of the 1930s, that it takes one hundred knowledgeable individuals to lead a nation from the darkness of superstition and ignorance toward progress. These individuals serve as judges, barristers, poets, writers, journalists, economists, accountants, engineers, technologists, administrators, executives, and skilled workers.

The Chinese plan based on timeframes. For short-term gains, they grow rice; for results in ten years, they plant trees; and for long-term plans spanning a hundred years, they focus on cultivating people. Developed nations have adorned themselves with numerous resources through education. They are now exploring Mars and performing heart transplants. Even if we don't compare ourselves to the most advanced countries, looking at developing East Asia can help us understand the importance of education.

Three decades ago, East and South Asia started their journey from the same level of income. However, today, East Asia's per capita income is 27 times higher than that of the South, and its human development index is twice as advanced. Mahbub ul Haq's "South Asia Human Development Report - 1997" highlights five reasons behind this, with education investment being given the highest priority. East Asia invested heavily in education, while South Asia focused more on military expenditure. Eastern nations spent 70% of their budget on primary education, whereas we invested the lion's share in higher education for a select few. In South Korea, 18.6% of secondary education is technical, whereas in Bangladesh, it's only 0.7%, meaning Korea invests 27 times more in technical education than Bangladesh.

To grow and conquer this world, we need to study more. Those who have achieved greatness in the world have done so through intense study. Napoleon, despite selling his watch due to poverty and surviving on half a meal a day, spent his days in the library measuring the world. He eventually became the legendary figure, surpassing even fairy tales. Napoleon always carried a traveling library and read books even on the battlefield. Helen Keller, though completely blind, read more books than many sighted people—at least a hundred times more—and authored around eleven books. Bernard Shaw, despite attending school for only five years due to poverty, became one of the greatest writers of his time. By age seven, he had finished immortal works like Shakespeare, Bunyan, One Thousand and One Nights, and the Bible, and by age twelve, he had devoured books by Dickens and Shelley.

Shaw used to walk miles to borrow books, reading at night by the light of a burning log after everyone else had gone to bed. Over time, he became one of the greatest presidents of the United States—Abraham Lincoln.

America’s most popular president, Roosevelt, would even read books during conversations and on village trips, reading up to three books a day. The great Napoleon, who shook Europe, once said, “Life is incomplete without at least sixty thousand books.” John Macaulay, who introduced the British education system in India, made an even more amusing statement: “I’d rather be poor with a vast collection of books and live in an attic than be a king who doesn’t love to read.” Norman Mailer expressed the ultimate sentiment: “I want to die reading a book.”

When a great scholar died helplessly at a Russian railway station, a valuable book titled The Sayings of Prophet Muhammad was found in the pocket of his overcoat. Nobel laureate Leo Tolstoy was once asked to advise the youth on national development. His response was simple:

1. Read

2. Read

3. And read

This advice reflects the first divine commandment of Almighty Allah: "Read in the name of your Lord."

In our subcontinent, most of the individuals remembered as great figures were knowledgeable and had remarkable careers. Allama Dr. Iqbal earned his barrister and doctorate degrees by the age of thirty. Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah became a barrister at just twenty-four. Mahatma Gandhi, the father of India, and the first Prime Minister, Nehru, were both barristers. Nawab Sir Salimullah, Sher-e-Bangla, and Suhrawardy were also renowned scholars and barristers of their time.

Education: The Determining Factor in the Rise and Fall of Civilizations

Nearly a thousand years before the advent of the Prophet Muhammad, the great philosopher Socrates committed suicide by drinking hemlock in Athens. In the thousand years that followed, the Roman and Persian civilizations began to decline. This period in Europe is known as the Dark Ages.

While there was some pursuit of knowledge in India, Arabia was in the age of ignorance (Jahiliyyah). According to Shah Waliullah Dehlavi, at that time, only eighteen people in Arabia were literate. The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) arrived with the message of Iqra ("Read") and immediately launched a movement for education. Though he was ummi (unlettered), he became the greatest bearer of knowledge. Even in the midst of intense battles, the great book, the Qur'an, would be revealed to him, and he would fully internalize it. He was so dedicated to knowledge that Allah himself advised him, "Do not destroy yourself through excessive striving." Inspired by him, individuals like Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali, Abdur Rahman, Talha, and Zubair became great scholars. Hazrat Ali (RA) always carried his personal hadith collection, Sahifa, in the sheath of his sword and was one of the leading scientists of his time. The Prophet emphasized the importance of knowledge, stating, "Seeking knowledge is an obligation for every Muslim, male and female." Regarding its time frame, he said, "Seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave." On its breadth, he added, "Even if you have to go to China for it, do so."

The extent of the Prophet's commitment to knowledge is reflected in the words of the renowned German scholar of Oriental languages, Emmanuel Deutsch: "With the help of the Qur'an, the Arabs conquered a world greater than that of Alexander the Great, an empire larger than the Roman Empire. They came to Europe as sovereigns, where the Venetians came as merchants, and the Jews arrived as fugitives or captives."

In his famous work The Making of Humanity, Briffault remarks, "For our science, we are indebted to the Arabs not merely for startling discoveries or revolutionary theories but for its very existence." The world-renowned historian Thomas Carlyle described the Prophet's emergence as an event that radically changed the state of the world and the flow of thought, saying, "It was as if a spark fell into a vast desert of darkness, turning the sands into an explosive force that illuminated the skies from Delhi to Granada."

In the Holy Qur'an, the command to pray is mentioned 82 times, but the command to seek knowledge is mentioned 92 times. Out of the 6,666 verses of the Qur'an, at least 750 pertain to science and technology.

In 1250, in Toledo, Spain, the Muslims, who were the teachers of today's civilized Europe, established the first educational institution, the School of Oriental Studies. In Cordoba, Muslims founded the world's first university, which consistently housed around ten thousand students from Europe, Asia, and Africa. Joseph Hell remarked, "Cordova shone like a lighthouse in the darkness of Europe." We speak of a time when the largest Christian library in Europe, under Queen Isabella, had only 201 books, while the Muslim library in Alexandria, the capital of the Fatimid Empire, held one million books.

At the same time in uncivilized Europe, Mr. Bruno was burned alive for declaring that the Earth was round, and Galileo was imprisoned for spreading scientific knowledge, eventually dying blind and deaf in confinement. Paper, clocks, gunpowder, maps, routes to India, and even the discovery of America were all made by Muslims. With this knowledge, Muslims ruled the world for nearly a thousand years.

Unfortunately, today, Muslims are among the most backward nations in the world. Once the teachers of the world, they now engage the least in learning. Islam began with Iqra, the command to "Read," and the Prophet described knowledge as a shield in the company of enemies and an ornament in the presence of friends. Yet, according to an international magazine, the literacy rate among Muslims is now 19%, while Hindus have 24%, Buddhists 49%, Christians 98%, and Jews 99%. It is clear that Muslims are suffering due to a lack of education. Yet the Prophet (PBUH) said, "The most valuable thing is knowledge, and it is the lost treasure of Muslims—wherever you find it, claim it." Allah has said to Muslims, "You are the best nation, created for the benefit of humanity," but today, wherever we look in the world, we see Muslims enduring extreme backwardness, deprivation, and widespread oppression. Can Allah's declaration ever be false? No, the truth is that those for whom this declaration was made have not become true Muslims. The first and foremost reason for this failure is their neglect of Allah's first command: to seek knowledge.

Education: The Imperialists' Weapon, the Oppressed's Armor

The birth of modern imperialism is dated October 10, 1492, the day Columbus landed in the Bahamas. Columbus did not "discover" America; he attacked it. What Columbus discovered was that the indigenous people had resources, but they were weak in human technology. There was nothing more profitable than plundering, and to sustain plundering, superiority in human technology was necessary. For that, advanced science and technology were required. Over the centuries following Columbus, imperialists have used science, technology, and education to achieve this goal.

Bosnian philosopher and former president, Alija Izetbegović, stated, "Modern education does not make people better, more free, or more humane. Instead, it makes them more skilled, more capable, and more useful to society. History shows that educated people, more than backward people, are adept at engaging in harmful activities. The history of imperialism is a history of unjust, unreasonable, and compulsory aggression by more civilized and educated people against less educated and backward ones. Higher levels of education have always smoothed the way for imperialists' aggressive endeavors."

In UNESCO's publication General History of Africa, we find an intriguing picture of the culture of so-called primitive African peoples. At that time, if foreign white or black people visited those states, they were greeted with warm hospitality and provided with all the same amenities as the local population. In contrast, during the same period, in ancient Greece or Rome, foreign visitors were treated as slaves.

History bears witness to how the highly civilized Spaniards brutally and shamelessly destroyed the Maya and Aztec civilizations and their cultures. It was the civilized white people who tried to exterminate the Native American tribes. For three hundred years, the bearers of European-American civilization conducted the slave trade, involving 13 to 15 million innocent black people (though the real number will likely never be known). Can this ever be erased from history? Will some praise for Alex Haley, the author of the globally famous novel Roots, absolve this crime?

This brutality of imperialists was not a sudden act but rather something they were taught by their philosophers. Nietzsche taught: "Conscience, sympathy, and forgiveness—free yourself from these human monsters. Destroy the weak and march forward over their corpses." For Nietzsche, Christianity, especially its teachings, was "a poison that has infected the noble vitality of humanity." Nietzsche's followers, as imperialists, spread their violent claws across the world, climbing the ladder of the weak's corpses to build their palaces of civilization, with education serving as one of their most successful weapons.

In this regard, our Indian subcontinent serves as a prime example. Several travelers, including the famous historian Ibn Battuta, have described our land, saying it was like the "seventh heaven" with the earth's wealth spread out. In the 16th century, Bernier wrote, "Bengal is the richest country on earth." But alas! Over nearly three centuries, the looting by the Mughals, the French, the British, the Brahmin landlords of West Bengal, and even some of our own people has turned that golden Bengal into a land of ashes. And education has been used as their primary weapon in this process.

Materialistic Education: The Cancer in the Body of Civilization

Materialistic education makes individuals more skilled and strategic, but how much does it contribute to the development of the individual, their family, or even the state? Today, this question has become as fundamental as education itself. While today's rulers of the world focus on material and technological education, they pay no attention to the development of the mind and soul. As a result, a severe cancer has developed in the gross body of civilization.

J. Robert Oppenheimer, the creator of the hydrogen bomb, stopped all atomic research after witnessing the destructive power of the atomic bomb and began studying Eastern philosophy. In his view, humanity has achieved more technological and material progress in the past forty years than in the previous four centuries. From 1900 to 1960, the mental distance between people increased, temperature rose, and pressure intensified.

In 1965, Americans spent $30 billion just on vacationing. Two-thirds of personal consumption was for luxury goods. Wealthy nations spent $15 billion annually on cosmetics alone. The standard of living in these countries was five times better in 1965 than in 1800, and it is expected to improve five times more in the next sixty years. But we can ask: will human life be five times happier and more humane in the next sixty years? The obvious answer is no.

At the Seventh International Congress of Criminologists in Belgrade (September 1973), it was unanimously acknowledged that the world is now gripped by a global wave of crime. American criminologists despairingly stated that "our planet is a sea of corruption," with everyone more or less prone to criminal behavior, and no path of escape is visible.

Despite material progress, human life has never been so insecure. Various types of crimes, like theft, fraud, corruption, robbery, now represent modern life and progress. Over the past fifteen years, more Americans have been killed by firearms than the total number of American soldiers killed in World War II. In the affluent country of the U.S., five million crimes were committed in 1965, and by 1993, that number had skyrocketed to 440 million. The crime rate's alarming increase was three times higher than the population growth rate. There is a fear that the number of child killers under ten years old in the U.S. could reach 100,000. Currently, 31% of students in U.S. secondary schools bring weapons to class. Many schools have installed metal detectors as a result.

In America, 82% of teenagers experience sexual activity before the age of 20. Annually, 1.6 million abortions are performed, the majority involving young, unmarried girls. In 1992 alone, unmarried mothers gave birth to 311,000 babies. 41% of all babies born in the U.S. are illegitimate.

Furthermore, 40% of married women and 65% of married men in the U.S. engage in extramarital affairs. Of every 100 marriages, 55 end in divorce.

The aggression of pornography is also evident. Half of all French cinemas run pornographic films. In Paris alone, 250 movie theaters exclusively show pornographic films. Added to this is gambling. The largest gambling cities are located in the most civilized regions: Deauville, Monte Carlo, Macau, and Las Vegas. A hall in the massive dance club of Atlantic City has a capacity for 6,000 gamblers.

From a psychological perspective, people are more affected by dissatisfaction when they experience overall comfort and prosperity, says an American psychologist. As a result, in the United States, four out of every thousand people are residents of mental hospitals, and in New York City, the number is 5.5 per thousand. Hollywood has the highest concentration of mental health professionals in the world. According to a report by the U.S. Public Health Service, one in every five Americans is at risk of mental and physical health issues.

The ultimate outcome of consumerism and reckless behavior is not happiness; it leads to despair about life. This is why the suicide rate has surpassed the natural death rate. In 1995, the number of natural deaths in America was 22,552, while 31,000 people committed suicide that year, at a rate of 85 per day. Additionally, 2,000 people per day, or 730,000 annually, attempt suicide. Now, hundreds of suicide clinics operate in the United States, and it is becoming an industry. A recent report by the World Health Organization reveals that among the countries with the highest suicide rates, the top eight are Germany, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Sweden, and Switzerland. In these countries, suicide ranks just behind heart disease and cancer as a cause of death among those aged 15 to 45. A 1970 report by the same organization linked these issues to industrialization, urbanization, and family breakdown. Development and education can also be factors in this regard. In Slovenia, an advanced region of Yugoslavia with a literacy rate of 98%, the suicide rate is 25.8 per 10,000 people. In contrast, in underdeveloped Kosovo, where the literacy rate is 56%, the rate is only 3.4% (a ratio of 7:1). According to Dr. Anthony Bailey's research, the suicide rate among students at British universities is six times higher than that of their peers. At Cambridge University, the suicide tendency among students is ten times higher than among others of the same age. These students, however, do not come from wealthy families but are recipients of government scholarships.

In 1968, Kawabata, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature, committed suicide in 1971. Two years earlier, in 1969, another Japanese novelist, Yukio Mishima, took his own life. Since 1895, at least thirteen Japanese novelists and writers have committed suicide. This ongoing tragedy in Japanese culture is an indirect consequence of the intrusion of Western civilization and materialistic thinking into traditional Japanese culture. A year before his death, Kawabata wrote, "Humans are separated from each other by a concrete wall that blocks all love. Under the guise of progress, nature has been suffocated." In his novel "Snow Country," Kawabata portrays human loneliness and isolation as central themes. André Malraux was astonished by the ultimate failure of 19th-century optimism. Europe has been ravaged and stained with blood while trying to create a better humanity, and it succeeded in doing so.

In this context, once-famous American TV analyst Jimmy Swaggart cries out in his renowned book "Homosexuality," saying, "America, God will surely judge you (meaning destroy you); and if He doesn't judge you, then God will one day have to apologize to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah for destroying them for their unnatural lusts (and other moral crimes)."

True progress: the integration of education with moral values

The former president of Bosnia, Alija Izetbegović, discussed the comparative analysis of materialistic and moral education, stating that civilization educates people, while culture (religion) enlightens them. One requires knowledge acquisition, while the other requires meditation or prayer.

Meditation is an inner effort to understand oneself and one's place in the world, which is entirely different from the effort to gain knowledge, education, or collect empirical data. Through meditation, one gains mastery over oneself, while science helps establish mastery over nature. Our schools and colleges advance civilization, but not culture (or morality). Today, people learn, while in the past, they used to meditate. Legend says that before achieving enlightenment, the great Buddha stood motionless by the river for three days and nights, lost in meditation. Xenophon recorded about Socrates: "One morning, Socrates was contemplating a complex problem, unable to find a simple solution. Noon passed, and he stood motionless, thinking. Some people moved their mats nearby to observe him. Socrates stood there throughout the night, and after the next day's sunrise, he finally broke his meditation." To attain true knowledge, we observe that Moses meditated for forty days and nights on Mount Sinai, Jesus meditated in Galilee, and the young Muhammad meditated in the cave of Hira for fifteen years. And it is true that their teachings have most profoundly influenced the world, and the moral wisdom in the books they presented remains the most read and sold in history.

Moral education and materialistic education can be compared through two world-renowned figures. Tolstoy spent his life contemplating humanity and its destiny, while the father of European civilization, Galileo, spent his life bound to the problem of the fall of an object.

Two and a half thousand years ago, Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle emphasized the need for moral education to produce truly honest and upright citizens. In primary schools, students used to practice handwriting with model texts that read, "Always speak the truth," "Stealing is a great sin," "Respect your elders," and "Pride comes before a fall." Tolstoy's story "How Much Land Does a Man Need?" carries the moral lesson: "Greed leads to sin, and sin leads to death." If we can educate in this way, it will awaken a sense of morality in children and adolescents. Our great crisis is that we want to take a big leap all of a sudden. This leap results in a cultural, identity, moral, and spiritual crisis. Why is that? It's because of our lack of morality. In the past, the primary goal of education was the development of the soul, which required meditation, thought, and self-discipline.

In fact, the word "education" itself reflects the essence of desired learning, i.e., morality. Neutrality and fairness (E for Equity), constant duty toward country, people, and family (D for Dutifulness), unity for truth and beauty (U for Unity), innovation in problem-solving (C for Creativity), accountability in using national resources (A for Accountability), transparent behavior and honesty (T for Transparency), exploration of new horizons (I for Investigation), a sense of duty and loyalty to the nation (O for Obedience), and enthusiasm for noble works (N for Enthusiasm).

When Napoleon said, "Give me good mothers, and I will give you a good nation," he was not referring to highly educated mothers but to mothers of character, patience, and righteousness. Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, was a philosopher. His "Theory of Moral Sentiments" is recognized as a significant contribution to philosophy. Even the 2001 Nobel Prize was awarded for the ethics of economics, emphasizing morality's importance in every field.

Materialistic education is ever-changing, but moral education is eternal. In response to the question of how to live an honest life, one of the seven sages of ancient Greece, Thales (born 624 BCE), said that we should avoid doing what we criticize others for. Ancient Roman philosopher Cicero stated, "Stay away from what you criticize in others." The entire Torah is associated with this principle. In India, the great Buddha, and in China, Confucius, a contemporary of Pythagoras, preached the same teaching: "Do not do to others what you do not want to be done to you." The same principle was expressed by Jesus Christ in his famous statement, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Six hundred years later, in the deserts of Arabia, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) reiterated the same message. This proves that while there may be differences in the form of universal principles, there are no fundamental changes.

Even without much advancement in formal education and technology, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) led the most successful revolution in world history. Despite his many responsibilities, he spent at least six to eight hours daily in prayer to Allah. Even during the critical moments of the Battle of Badr, when Muslim forces were outnumbered and poorly armed, he sat in prayer, leaving the battlefield in the hands of his followers. And Allah granted him ultimate victory. It was said that while engaged in prayer, a spear was pulled from his foot without him feeling it. Such devotion made him a formidable leader, like Ali, the Lion of Allah, feared by enemies.

During the time of the Caliphate, a Chinese spy reported to the emperor: "They spend their nights weeping on prayer mats and their days shaking the skies with the thunder of their horses' hooves. No one can defeat them." Just as in battle, success in self-improvement requires continuous prayer. As Allah has taught us in the prayer, "O Lord, increase us in knowledge." Even modern scientists have turned towards religion. Nobel laureate and leading scientist Elangi Komarek wrote in Reader's Digest: "Prayer can give a person the greatest strength. This strength is not imaginary but as real as gravity."

As a doctor, my experience is that when all medicines and treatments fail, prayer has brought people back to life. Like radium, prayer emits light and energy. Human strength is limited, but through prayer, one can call upon infinite strength to increase one's own power. Prayer is a force from which one inevitably benefits.

Many people can become great even without formal education, solely through the power of prayer. For example, John D. Rockefeller, who initially worked in potato fields under the scorching sun for just four cents an hour, eventually became America's richest man through perseverance and hard work. By the time of his death, nearly sixty years ago, he had amassed two billion dollars (around 10,000 crore Taka). His wealth continues to grow at the rate of $100 per minute, or around 7.2 million Taka daily. Though not a Muslim, he regularly prayed, refrained from dancing, did not attend theaters, and neither drank alcohol nor smoked.

Considering everything, the materialistic philosopher Stanley Hall aptly said, "If you teach your children the three R's (Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic) and leave the fourth 'R' (Religion), you will get the fifth 'R' (Rascality)."

Final Call:

In this context, moral education is the best alternative to confront Western materialistic education. Therefore, the challenge for the 21st century is to expand moral education alongside developing global-level skills, qualifications, and technological advancements. This will not only free us from relying on the West but will also allow us to lead the world. But is this leadership necessary just to hold power? No, it is essential for global welfare, unblemished peace, and the protection of humanity. Despite Western rhetoric, deep down they are burdened by the volcanic eruptions of despair. This is why, despite all state opposition, morality and religious life are drawing the Western people with an overwhelming force, much like a tidal wave. The London Times wrote: "The Western people are growing disillusioned with their own society, leading to rising crime, the destruction of family structures, and widespread addiction. Ultimately, they are praising the discipline, order, and security introduced by Islam."

Behind today's desperate and grim global civilization lies the sun of tomorrow’s radiant truth. Allah’s promise will surely be fulfilled: "Truth has come, and falsehood has perished. Surely falsehood is bound to perish" (Al-Quran).

Lighthouse

Bangladesh, our green homeland, has passed nearly three decades since its birth, reaching the peak of its youth. Despite being born around the same time, many countries have left us behind on the highway of development, unity, and prosperity. A lack of emphasis on education, ideals, and tradition, as well as a failure to modernize, are seen by many thinkers as major causes. Today, the nation is submerged in the turbulent dark seas of problems and despair. It is in this critical moment that Lighthouse Laboratory School and College emerged, like a beacon guiding a disoriented nation toward its path.

With a deep sense of national duty, hard work for development, a connection to the nation's ideals and traditions, and a commitment to modernization, a group of young individuals inaugurated Lighthouse on Friday, December 8, 2000. The name "Lighthouse" itself reflects the scope and significance of its mission.

Firstly, as children are pure beings, they are like light, and this institution aims to nurture them into enlightened human beings. As their home, this institution is a house of light—a Lighthouse.

Secondly, today’s children are the future leaders of the nation. They will first illuminate the institution with their talents, capabilities, and character, and later, as members of society, they will enlighten the world. In this sense, this institution is a house of light—a Lighthouse.

Thirdly, this institution has taken on the responsibility of guiding a disoriented nation like a beacon, showing the way to peace, development, and ideals. Thus, it is a beacon—a Lighthouse.

In essence, the vision of the Lighthouse is to enlighten individuals, society, the nation, and eventually the world. Hence, its slogan is, "We will be the best in the world, by making ourselves pure first."

The author is a prominent researcher and former National Education Program Secretary of Bangladesh Islami Chhatrashibir.