The Chronicles of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche

Wholesome Learning

It seems that a feeling of basic guilt has been passed down from one generation to another and pervades many aspects of Western life. For example, teachers often think that if children do not feel guilty, then they won’t study properly and consequently won’t develop as they should. Therefore, many teachers feel that they have to do something to push the child, and guilt seems to be one of the chief techniques they use. This occurs even on the level of improving reading and writing. The teacher looks for errors: “Look, you made a mistake. What you are going to do about it?” From the child’s point of view, learning is then based on trying not to make mistakes, on trying to prove you actually are not bad. It is entirely different when you approach the child more positively: “Look how much you have improved; therefore we can go further.” In the latter case, learning becomes an expression of ones wholesomeness and innate intelligence.