Life and educational contributions of Aurobindo Ghosh

1. LIFE AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF
AUROBINDO GHOSH
Submitted to, Submitted by,
Dr. George Varghese Meekha Benny
Assistant Professor in Education Mathematics

2. Aurobindo Ghosh
. Born on August 5, 1872 in Calcutta
. Spiritual thinker, Patriot, Poet, Political leader ,
Journalist, Social reformer, educationalist.
. Education was in England. He passed Indian Civil Service
Examination but disqualified in horse riding test.
. He was imprisoned by British government for alipore
conspiracy case.
. It was during his imprisonment in Alipore jail that he
dreamt of setting out on a divine spiritual mission and
this became a turning point in his life.
. He left politics in 1910 and settled down at Pondicherry
and started his Ashram

3. . 1914 he started a monthly philosophical magazine called
“Arya”(publication in 1921)
. Auroville- The city of dawn
. He died on December 5, 1950
. His followers established Auroville based on his principles
. Auroville is an experimental township dedicated human unity and
evolution
. It was founded in 1968 by Mirra Alfassa (The mother)

4. Aurobindo Ghosh’s Philosophy of life
. It was a blend of Oriental and Occidental culture,
spiritual and materials values , Science and Vedanta
. According to Aurobindo Ghosh, “ Everyone has in
him something divine, something of hiw own. The
task is to find it, develop it and use it.”
. Integral Yoga – Evolution of human life into a divine
life in a divine body.

5. Major Works
. The Life Divine – The evolutionary philosophy underlying
Aurobindo’s yoga is explored in this work (1939)
. The Synthesis of Yoga (1948)
. The human Cycle (1949)
. The ideal of human unity (1949)
. Savitri: A Legend and a Symbol(1950)
. On the Veda(1956) …

6. Educational philosophy of life
. Education should be Child centred . It should be based on
the need and interests of the children
. Medium of mother tongue
. According to the mental abilities, aptitudes and
psychological needs
of the children
. Related to the life of the child
. Physical purification of the child
. Should develop consciousness
. The basic foundation of education should be

7. out that is in itself” – Aurobindo Ghosh
.3 things have be considered in true in living and
living education
1. The Man/ Individual
2. The Nation
3. Humanity
. According to Aurobindo Ghosh, true education is
not only spiritual but also rational, vital, physical,
Intellectual in nature . He named it as Integral
Education
. Integral education is not only for the evolution of
the individual but also for the nation and
humanity. It is bringing out all the facets of

8. INTEGRAL EDUCATION
1. Physical Education- Education of the body / physical
development , rectification of defects and deformities, if
any
2. Vital Education – Sense training and development of
character
3. Mental Education– Education for the mind for
increasing the power of concentration, the capacity of
attention, the development of mental silence , perfect
calm and total receptivity
4. Psychic Education - Developing innate power through
psychological, religious or mechanical methods.

9. Aims of Education
1. To help the individual to realize himself as a growing soul and to
realize his real being ( self-realization)
2. To help the growing soul to draw out the best in itself and make it
perfect for a noble cause (spiritual development).
3. To help the individual in the harmonious development of different
levels of his conscience.
4. To help the child to develop his moral senses to the maximum.
5. To build the powers of human mind and spirit to their perfection.
6. To train the senses so as to achieve their full development and
purity
7. Cultivation of values

10. Curriculum
• Should be interesting
• Should be able to motivate children
• Should be flexible
• It should be planned according to the individual
difference
Aurobindo prescribed following curriculum for
different Stages of Education :
a) Primary stage : Mother tongue ,English, French,
Literature, National history, Art,painting, General
science, Social studies and Arithmetic.

11. . Secondary stage: Mother tongue, English, French,
Art, Chemistry, Physics, Botany, Physiology, Health
education, Social studies
. University stage : Indian and western philosophy,
History of civilization, English literature, French,
Sociology, Psychology, History of science,
Chemistry, Physics, Botany, International relations
and integration
. Vocational education :Arts, Painting, Sewing,
Drawing, Sculptural, Type writing, Carpentry,
Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Nursing,
Indian and European music, Dramatization and
Dancing

12. MethodS of Teaching
. Method should be based on Age, Ability, Aptitude
. Education through mother tongue of the learner.
. Learning by doing
. Education through practical experience
. He emphasized Montessori method for infant classes
. He attached great importance to self experience in
learning.
. Skills and knowledge should be imparted through the
cooperative activities of the teacher & learner in the
educational process
. Known to unknown and far from near

13. Role of the Teacher
• Teacher should be a representative of the supreme
knowledge, supreme truth and the supreme law.
• The teacher should act as an aid, a means and a
channel.
• To be a good teacher one must be a saint, a hero and
a great yogi
• A teacher is not an instructor or task master, he is a
helper and a guide
• The role of teacher is to suggest not to impose

14. Discipline
• Discipline is ultimately spiritual
• Freedom is real discipline
• Education necessities three type of
discipline. Individual discipline, group
discipline and discipline towards the divine.
• Group discipline should start at the age of
twelve
• The example of the teacher is the most
important measure to attain discipline. So the
teacher should be punctual, methodical and
courteous.

15. Reference
1. Contemporary Indian Philosophy - Basant Kumar Lal
2. Philosophical and Sociological foundations of
education – Mujibul Hasan Siddiqui
3. Educational Thoughts and Practice – V R Taneja

16. Thank You