There is a global shift towards understanding Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) that was added by UGC in its NEP (New Education Policy) with the aim to familiarize students with Indic knowledge.

The central government then studied the situation and decided to adopt a new education policy. Under this, the National Education Policy (NEP) was formulated. It was decided to restructure the Indian education system on the basis of Indian knowledge traditions. Ancient traditional Bharatiya knowledge systems will be studied and researched in every field of education. The Bharatiya knowledge system is not just about philosophy or spirituality. It extends to all spheres to human learning and endeavours. That is why Bharat was prosperous since ancient times, up until the arrival of colonizers who gradually siphoned away its wealth.

Under the National Education Policy, there will be unprecedented changes in the education sector in Bharat. There will be a new revolution. It will be based on the Indian Knowledge System (IKS). A feature of the Bharatiya knowledge tradition is that it still has the largest store of knowledge in the world. No other culture, civilization or tradition in the world has so much knowledge. Hundreds of universities in Bharat like Takshashila, Nalanda, and Vikramshila had huge libraries which were destroyed. Nevertheless, to date, more than 1 crore manuscripts are still extant in Bharat. Apart from Bharat, our manuscripts are also available in Germany, European countries, the USA, China and other countries.

The Bharatiya knowledge tradition is described as 14 Vidya and 64 Kala. 14 Vidya is a part of philosophy and 64 Kala is a source of practical education which is useful for daily life like arts, skills, crafts, agriculture, health, science etc. All these traditions will be studied and modified to suit today’s way of life. Thus, in the next few decades, Bharat will witness a major revolution in the field of education.

This change will not be limited to the field of education but will take place in the way of life, in the Bharatiya psyche and in every sphere of life. Fundamental Bharatiya thought, knowledge, tradition, art, skills, craftsmanship, and management will all undergo radical changes. The Indian Knowledge System (IKS) sector in Bharat is expected to create more than 5 million jobs and employment in the next few decades.

It must be mentioned that Indica has tied up with the IKS Division of Education Ministry recently and is set to conduct an IKS workshop from 1 September to 3 September for faculty members who plan to teach IKS courses.

The residential weekend workshop titled “Exploring Indian Knowledge Systems: Concepts and Applications” is aimed at scholars, academicians, educators, enthusiasts and anyone interested in exploring the profound depth and breadth of IKS. The interactive workshop will deepen the participant’s understanding of IKS and explore their potential applications in contemporary society and academia. Indica is also providing a travel grant of rupees 10000 to the participants.

“By the end of the retreat, participants are expected to have a deeper understanding of the Indian knowledge system and its relevance and applications to various fields. This will ideally also inspire future research and applications of these systems in their respective academic disciplines”, notes the website.

The workshop will be held in Montfort Spirituality Center in Bengaluru’s Indira Nagar and the course fee is rupees 5000. The workshop fees include stay and food arrangements from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon. Participants are expected to report to the venue by 2 PM IST. The organization will issue participation certificates to the attendees serving as a token of the knowledge gained during the workshop.

The IKS workshop will be conducted by B Mahadevan who is a Professor of Operations Management at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, where he has been teaching since 1992. He was the founding Vice Chancellor of Chinmaya Vishwa Vidyapeeth, a University for Sanskrit and Indic Knowledge. 

Those interested can register on their website.