THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It has been around forty years since Santha C Nair started interacting with and teaching children at Sree Rama Devi Bhakta Mandali, Sree Rama Devi Temple at Vazhuthacaud.
Now, still going strong at the age of 78, she keeps herself busy penning her own songs and teaching lessons from Upanishads and getting sweet treats for children. She is currently the oldest person among the small group of members teaching the children.The ever so cheerful grandmother whom people lovingly call Santha muttashi, still speaks with conviction, talking about her cause.
She says, “The world is becoming a crazy place to live in. People are becoming self-centered. We teach children to be more attached and loving to their family and loved ones. Isn’t our duty to correct children when they do wrong?”
The classes are open to children from the age of three and lessons are taught through songs, stories and skits. Elaborating on the reason for the age bracket, she adds, “By the age of three, children become capable of taking in what is right or wrong and they start to develop their personality.”
However she feels that compared to earlier, people don’t give much importance for imparting moral education to children. States the grandmother,
“Only if the parents show interest, will the children also have the interest. Parents these days want their students to take part in competitions and reality shows, hence not feeling the need to devote even a little amount of time for this.” True to it’s essence, the number of children coming here have dwindled from around fifty to twenty, she says.
Since its founding, the temple has been giving moral education classes to children. The kids perform skits and bhajans on special occasions at different venues. “Years back, a group of students, which included my daughter, had performed a skit at Kowdiar palace in front of the royal family,: reminisces the septuagenerian.
The septuagenerian also has an interesting tale to share, as her family has been directly involved with the activities of the bala mandali for four generations. Santha’s mother used to render songs and stories for the lessons, while her daughter was a student at the bala mandali.
Her grandson has written books for the children as part of the lessons.