Your intellect and perseverance can help you move from misery to hope and from misfortune to fortune.

-HH Sudhanshu Ji Maharaj

There is no denying that the ‘Power of Intellect’ (Mind or Buddhi) is the highest power. The personality of a human being is based on the mind only. This mind is composed of three layers- Satvic, Rajasik and Tamasic. Among these three layers, the Satvic Buddhi, or the righteous mind is regarded supreme. With the help of this Satvic Buddhi, combined with literacy and education, a person can bring positive changes within, in society and progress in life.

But it is also true that in this world, there are many people who are not well-educated, yet they are highly intelligent having this acumen in them to grow financially and socially. They are illiterate or semi-literate, but they are way ahead in life even than those who are highly educated.

Higher Education is NOT a prerequisite for Success

There are many examples wherein you can see someone is less educated, but still possesses unique skills.

Michael Faraday was one of the greatest scientists of all times. He was born poor and had no formal education at all. He worked for a bookbinder and while working, he developed a curiosity to read and started reading books that he bound. Over the years he acquired a lot of scientific knowledge.

Even though uneducated, he experimented a lot in the field of science and came up with important inventions including the first electric motor and generator. Also, India’s great mathematician, Srinivas Ramanujan never received any formal education in mathematics. And can you believe that Henry Ford, the great American industrialist, business tycoon, and founder of the Ford Motor Company never had any formal school education either?

Across the world there are endless examples of such great people who have given us some unique inventions or creations or created history.

Literacy vs Education

The strength of the mind is the most important factor in life apart from sound education. Further, while an educated man can be literate, every literate person cannot be called highly educated. Literacy provides a person with the ability and vision to acquire new information and develop the know-how in different fields including the field of education.

So, while education aims to make a human being rational, so that he can develop skills and use them in the right direction, literacy, provides information that can be used as a means to attain valuable knowledge. And needless to say, both are important in life.

Every human being, however, must endeavour to be literate and educated. He must develop a strong mind and use it in the right direction. Swami Rama Tirtha, the iconic teacher of the philosophy of Vedanta spoke frequently on the divine concept of ‘practical Vedanta’ and education of Indian youth. He used to narrate an inspiring story about the Japanese people and the power of intellect.

The Real Juice of Sugarcane

In olden days people would travel by ship. Swami Rama Tirtha boarded one such ship while on a foreign trip. The ship made several stops along the way. When the ship stopped at one port, many vendors and fruit sellers gathered there to sell their products. Some came for selling sugarcane also. Travellers were purchasing the sugarcane, eating it and throwing the scrap in a dustbin.

Two Japanese men were also there in the crowd. They were not looking highly educated. They bought two sugarcane and started peeling them carefully, collecting the peel in a bag. In no time they crafted two beautiful fruit baskets from these sugarcane peels. They had some artificial flowers as well. They decorated those flowers in the basket and hung it there.

After sometimes people bought the fruit baskets at a higher price than sugarcane. So they utilized their time with acumen, applied their art and also made some money while enjoying their voyage. You can see how two semi-literate people applied their skills positively. And this is the purpose of literacy. It helps you utilize a knowledge that you already have and use that purposefully to solve life’s problems.

So, everyone should strive to acquire meaningful knowledge all along in life. Always remember, with knowledge comes creativity, decency, courage and an indomitable spirit. It helps you tread unexplored paths and give a new meaning to your life.

Thus, always put efforts to be literate and educated!