- A Bodhi tree illustration represents the structure of life, prosperity, flourishing, and growth.
- The Unalome symbol signifies an inner spirit capable of learning, development, and growth, transcending, and insight.
- The book at the base of the Bodhi tree represents the foundation of wisdom and all branches of knowledge that facilitate learning.
Meaning of BODHISASTRA UNIVERSITY
- Bodhi refers to awakening, insight, clear understanding, comprehensive knowledge, and the realization of one’s full potential.
- Sastra (or science) refers to systematically organized knowledge of facts and laws; various disciplines or fields of knowledge; and a human activity process that yields verifiable knowledge.
- Bodhisastra thus means comprehensive knowledge that leads to awakening, insight, or a true understanding of life. It encompasses the processes and methods that enable human beings to gain insight, comprehend, and ultimately realize their own potential.
- Bodhisastra University aims to be an educational institution that emphasizes the core teachings of all religions, to foster comprehensive knowledge beneficial for a happy life. It strives to cultivate awakening to develop oneself towards goodness, beauty, and prosperity, based on the inherent value of humanity on Earth.
- Bodhisastra University seeks to foster diverse collaborations with individuals, groups, organizations, and networks in all regions and countries. This collaboration is for spiritual nurturing, enabling individuals to resist evil, embrace goodness, and spread and expand this goodness to other individuals, communities, and society at large.
Fundamental Beliefs of the University
The lives of people in developing countries have been impacted by global development planning, which has created wealth and quality of life for only about 20% of the population. The vast gap between the assets of the rich and the poor has widened. The destruction of raw materials, resources, and the global environment, as well as vices, addiction, crime, accidents, public debt, new diseases, and family disintegration, have spread widely in societies that governments strive to develop.
Another very significant phenomenon resulting from development is the societal distancing from guiding religious principles. A lack of strength and instability in mental states has pushed humans towards destructive paths, and insufficient consumption has led to human behavioral problems and numerous other societal issues.
One of the most crucial tools that has failed to enhance the quality of life for humanity through social and national development is education. The modern educational system, focused on material growth, and the concepts and approaches to managing education for the public, have led people to believe that graduates at every level must serve the state and the economic system, both of which primarily serve large national corporations, to be considered honorable and dignified in society.
From these social and national development situations and problems, and their impacts, the project firmly believes that:
The true prosperity of society and the nation should be founded on individual development rooted in goodness and beauty, as core teachings of each religion.
Every human being should have the opportunity to learn, to seek alternatives and create new ones for themselves, supported systematically by organizations that believe in alternative education.
Education should be accessible to all humans through all forms of distance communication, with the lowest possible educational costs for those in need.
Genuine religious principles should be reinstated and supported to allow humans access to teachings and an awareness of their inherent value, including the coexistence of people of different faiths under mutual respect.
Education should empower social entrepreneurs who believe that human prosperity can coexist with natural resources and the environment, and who are willing to support and care for the underprivileged in society.
