Admissions

Admissions for 2024-25

The admission process for 2024-25 has concluded for children till O-levels (10th grade).

We invite parents whose children are interested in the intent of the space in the A-level program to apply for admission with us.

To emphasize again, Shibumi’s only concern is to create a space where a group of adults, educators and parents, are educating themselves and other learners of formative ages in a spirit of self enquiry as explored in the teachings of J. Krishnamurti. However, there is no insistence that you should have a familiarity or knowledge of the teachings in order to seek admission.

It goes without saying, that in the present economic system, one must have skills in order to earn one’s livelihood. But earning a livelihood is not an end in itself. One must earn a livelihood in such a way that it is not destructive. This is quite difficult in a society which is driven by ambition and success, and where entertainment seems to play such a large part in helping people escape from rather meaningless lives. Also, since work is such an important part in our lives, one must discover what one loves to do so that work never becomes mechanical, dreary, merely a means to an end, as it unfortunately is for most of us. Unless one is free of ambition, fear and comparison, to find out what one loves to do becomes impossible. All this is part of right education. But there is much more to life than work, however creative it may be. One must also have right relationship with people, animals and with nature. Right relationship is not a matter of following a tradition or living by certain values. Without freedom from self-centredness there cannot be right relationship. So this too becomes part of education, indeed the most significant part of it. Freedom from self-centredness can only happen in self-knowing which is from moment to moment. If one wants to bring up one’s child rightly, all this becomes part of education. Only when the mind is in complete order, which implies all the above, can there be the possibility of coming upon the sacred. It really means that the adults who are responsible for the child must be concerned with all this in their own lives. One cannot want right education for one’s child and continue to live a life of confusion, inattention, greed, ambition, jealousy, fear and loneliness. Hence, the stress at Shibumi is on the coming together of adults for whom self- knowing is central to their lives, and from which everything else flows, including right education of their children.

On reading our website carefully, several responses might follow:

You may realize that you are attracted to Shibumi only as an ‘alternative’ learning centre for your children and may be completely uninterested in the intent and what it is pointing to. If so, Shibumi is certainly not the right place for you or your children.

Parents will be required to attend dialogue sessions, where the intent is explored in depth. Visits to the centre will be organized by us on days where resource people can be available for interaction. The movement of self enquiry may become meaningful and alive in you. Through these dialogues you may begin to discover a radically different way of looking at life and education. This should not be out of persuasion or influence but your own self discovery. Only then is true cooperation between the parents and us in educating the child possible.

After attending some of these sessions, you may realize that you are not relating to the questions being raised. Then you will have realized for yourselves that the educational programme of Shibumi will not be right for your children.

The above procedure is to ensure that prospective parents align with the intent, in freedom, as their participation in it is critical for the right education of the child. This process usually takes several months. This, rather elaborate procedure, is necessary, to understand each other.