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Why September 5?
India has been celebrating Teacher's Day on 5th of September since 1962. 5th of September is the birthday of Dr Sarvepalli Radhakhrishnan, a philosopher and a teacher par excellence.
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"instead of celebrating my birthday separately, it would be my proud privilege if September 5th is observed as Teacher's day". This request showed Dr.Radhakrishnan's love for the teaching profession. From then onwards, his birthday is observed as Teacher's Day in India. All this lead to Teachers Day origin in India.
On this day, we gratefully remember the great educationist Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. His dream was that "Teachers should be the best minds in the country". Hence, Teachers' Day is very important for all our people, as the teachers act as foundation for creating responsible citizens.
It is said that an average teacher teaches, a good teacher explains, a superior teacher illustrates, and a great teacher both learns and inspires students. We can never thank our teachers enough for their efforts. Teacher's Day is celebrated to show our acknowledgement and recognition of the hard work put in by our teachers towards our development.
At some schools on this day, the responsibility of teaching is taken up by the senior students as an appreciation for their teachers. The idea is to let teachers sit back just for a day and let the students have a glimpse into the life of a teacher. It is an occasion when a token or appreciation in the form of presents are given to teachers by students to show their love and respect. A central piece in Hindu scripture reads "Guru Brahma, Guru Vishnu, Guru devo Maheshwaraha - Gurussaakshaath param brahma tasmai shree gurave namaha," which translates as "The Guru (Teacher) is the Lord Brahma (the Creator), the Guru is the Lord Vishnu (the Preserver), the Guru is the Lord Shiva (the Destroyer). To that Guru we offer our salutations."
Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, was one of the most distinguished diplomat, scholar and teacher, apart from being the President of India. As a tribute to this great teacher, his birthday is observed as Teacher's Day. As a matter of fact when his students and friends asked him for the permission to celebrate his birthday, he asked them to celebrate the day as Teacher's day.
President of India Late Dr. S Radhakrishnan was born on September 5, 1888, at Tiruttani, forty miles to the Northeast of Madras, in South India. His early years were spent in Tiruttani and Tirupati, both famous as pilgrim centers. He graduated with a Master's Degree in Arts from Madras University. In April 1909, he was appointed to the Department of Philosophy at the Madras Presidency College. From then onwards, he was engaged in the serious study of Indian philosophy and religion, and was a teacher of Philosophy.
1918, Doctor Radha Krishnan was appointed Professor of Philosophy in the University of Mysore. Three years later, he was appointed to the most important philosophy chair in India, King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science in the University of Calcutta. Dr. Radhakrishnan represented University of Calcutta at the Congress of the Universities of the British Empire in June 1926 and the International Congress of Philosophy at the Harvard University in September 1926.
In 1929, Dr. Radhakrishnan was invited to take the post vacated by Principal J. Estin Carpenter in Manchester College, Oxford.
From 1936-39, Dr. Radhakrishnan was the Spalding Professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics at Oxford University. In 1939, he was elected Fellow of the British Academy. From 1939-48, he was the Vice-Chancellor of the Banaras Hindu University. He later held offices that dealt with India's national and international affairs. He was the leader of the Indian delegation to UNESCO during 1946-52. He was the Ambassador of India to U.S.S.R. during 1949-52.
He was the Vice-President of India from 1952-1962 and the President, General Conference of UNESCO from 1952-54. He held the office of the Chancellor, University of Delhi, from 1953-62. In 1962, Dr. Radhakrishnan became the President of India. And from May 1962 to May 1967, he served as the President of India.
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