Essay on Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan: One of the greatest Indian philosophers and statesman was born on 5th September 1888. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was the first Vice president of India and also the second President of India. He has served as the Ambassador of India to the Soviet Union. His birthday is celebrated as ‘Teacher’s Day’ in India. He has proudly served as vice chancellor of Banaras Hindu University and chancellor of Delhi University. His work, “The Philosophy of the Upanishads”, is famous even today.
Essay on Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan in English
Below we have provided Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Essay in English, suitable for class 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10.
Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a teacher, philosopher, author and a politician, was a distinguished academician. He was a brilliant student and an avid reader with a philosophical outlook. He was born on 5th September 1888 in Andhra Pradesh to a Telugu speaking Brahmin family. His father’s name was Veeraswami and mother’s Sita. He commenced his career as a teacher and was the first Vice President of India and second President of India. Therefore, from then every year Teacher’s day is celebrated on 5th September in India to commemorate his birthday.
Academic and Life Achievements
Because of his intellectual calibre, he was always awarded scholarships. He completed his high school study from Voorhees College in Vellore. After completion of his high school, he enrolled in Madras Christian College at the age of 17 and completed his graduation and masters in philosophy from the same college. Later he was appointed as a professor of Indian Philosophy in Mysore University in 1916 and remained until 1921. During his tenure in Mysore, he wrote two important books-“the Philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore” and the “Reign of Religion in Contemporary Philosophy” in 1920. The latter is generally considered one of the greatest works of his life.
The Banaras Hindu University appointed him the Vice Chancellor from 1939 to 1946. Here, too, he worked with zeal and proved his excellence and competence. Also, he served as a Chancellor of Delhi University. In his book called, ‘Indian Philosophy’ he composed ideology of Vedas, Jainism, Buddhism, Upanishads and Bhagwat Gita. In 1947 after independence, he represented India at UNESCO and became a diplomat to the Soviet Union. He was also elected to the constituent assembly of India.
Educational Ideas and Beliefs
He was a visionary and believed that a teacher should be the best minds in the country. He has been instrumental in shaping the young in terms of understanding Hinduism, in both India and west and hence earned a stature of a bridge-builder between India and west. He was a patron of Hinduism and opined that only the right kind of education could foster creativity and solve problems of life. He did not encourage seeking knowledge for namesake but to think critically and practically, to adhere to truth and create a power to resist mob passion.
He desired to have a classless society through education to reduce the distinction between rich and poor and develop a universal brotherhood. He also supported spiritual education and thought that spiritual knowledge moulds a student into a better individual. Without religious feelings, intellectual and physical development ceases to grow. With the aim of education, he wanted to bring people nearer to God. Education should instil the values of integrity, honesty, simple living and high thinking.
Learning provides eyesight through look beyond space and time and to yield productivity; education must be adequately utilised. This, in return, aids in living with harmony with others. He adopted learning by example method of teaching and imparted the same. While teaching, he provided real examples and advocated learning arithmetic through imitation. He advocated yoga and meditation for inclusive growth and reaching his goal. He defined religion as an arduous effort to comprehend the truth.
He was awarded the highest civilian award of India-Bharat Ratna in 1954 for his exceptional benefaction as a teacher, philosopher and politician. He was knighted in 1931. He received Sahitya Academic Fellowship for his writing skills and was nominated sixteen times for Nobel Prize in literature and eleven times for Nobel Peace Prize.
Conclusion
He carved a niche as a philosopher-thinker all over the world and gained worldwide recognition. He succeeded in creating a powerful impact on his readers and the world leaders and was a proficient administrator. He was an educationist, spiritualist, an excellent orator, a genius and a charmer with his words. He clearly expressed that the end-product of education should be a free creative mind who can fight against the adversities of nature. After his term as a President, Dr. Radhkrishnan’s health deteriorated, and he passed away on 17th April 1975, due to a cardiac arrest.