This picture story came on my social media feed today. It is an incident that apparently occurred in 2019 in Mizoram (India). The little boy of 6, Derek Lalchhanhima, had accidentally run over a chicken with his bicycle. Overwhelmed by guilt and compassion, he turned up at a hospital offering all the money he had to the doctors to save the chicken. (Story was covered by mainstream Indian media).

This story reminded me of an incident involving my younger daughter when she was five or six. She had gone to a local store to buy some candies and the salesman had mistakenly given her an extra change of Nu. 1.

She found out later during dinner and she was so disturbed that she woke up early the next morning and waited for the store to reopen and hand over the money. The shop owner was moved by her honesty that he gave her some candies for free.

Another time, she was calling out to our neighbor to inform that their pumpkin had grown in our garden. Their pumpkin plant had crossed the fence.

Parental Education:

We live in an age where we are obsessed with education – to the point we drive the education system and ourselves crazy. But is classroom education everything that is there is to teach or learn? What about values like honesty, hardwork, humility, compassion, etc.

Truth be told, my wife and I have never checked on our children’s school work. A few times maybe she did but for me my dictum was, “I just want them to grow up as good human beings”. This aloofness in me, I know, used to put off my children’s teachers too. I understand.

Instead, I insisted on the Bhutanese values of compassion, loving kindness and community, and service to King and country. My wife, who is Japanese, taught discipline, diligence, duty and honesty. As for their school education, we were just content that our children were getting by at school.

Being Human. The Real Skill:

These days, whenever I have conversations on education whether it is in Bhutan or elsewhere, another in-thing is this so-called twenty first century skills. Although I teach at university level, and mentor executives and entrepreneurs from some of the world’s biggest tech companies, I have no idea what skills or knowledge will serve us as humanity moves deep into this century.

This is not to deride those who think they do, and are doing something about it. As far as I am concerned, as the world increasingly becomes technologically driven, as AIs take over jobs like immigration counters and salespersons at shopping malls, one thing will increasingly be missed and felt – human connection.

My proposition, therefore, to survive and even thrive in this hyper-connected world is to learn to be human again – and to instill the values of humility, honesty and hardwork. Our age-old values of compassion and loving kindness that are the core practices in Mahayana Buddhism will gain more currency and win you more credibility than the credits from the world’s best universities.

Actionable Solution:

Coming back to the opening story of the Mizo boy, according to the news reports, the school honoured him draped in a shawl, which is a traditional way of honouring someone among Mizos.

Every year in Bhutan, we honour students who have excelled in tests and exams and sports. Can we start recognizing exemplary acts of kindness, compassion and community service too? In a country guided by the words of Buddha, I would say, why not?

Formal education, yes! Don’t forget values.