UHV-II: A FOUNDATION COURSE IN UNIVERSAL HUMAN VALUES AND ETHICS
Objective
This introductory course input is intended:
1. To help the students appreciate the essential complimentarily between 'VALUES' and 'SKILLS' to
ensure sustained happiness and prosperity which are the core aspirations of all human beings.
2. To facilitate the development of a Holistic perspective among students towards life and
profession as well as towards happiness and prosperity based on a correct understanding of the Human
reality and the rest of existence. Such a holistic perspective forms the basis of Universal Human
Values and movement towards value-based living in a natural way.
3. To highlight plausible implications of such a Holistic understanding in terms of ethical human
conduct, trustful and mutually fulfilling human behavior and mutually enriching interaction with
Nature.
4. Thus, this course is intended to provide a much needed orientational input in value education to
the young enquiring minds.
Salient Features of the Course
The salient features of this course are:
1. It presents a universal approach to value education by developing the right understanding of
reality (i.e. a worldview of the reality “as it is”) through the process of self-exploration.
2. The whole course is presented in the form of a dialogue whereby a set of proposals about various
aspects of the reality are presented and the students are encouraged to self-explore the proposals
by verifying them on the basis of their natural acceptance within oneself and validate
experientially in living.
3. The prime focus throughout the course is toward affecting a qualitative transformation in the
life of the student rather than just a transfer of information.
4. While introducing the holistic worldview and its implications, a critical appraisal of the
prevailing notions is also made to enable the students discern the difference on their own right.
Course Methodology
1. The methodology of this course is explorational and thus universally adaptable. It involves a
systematic and rational study of the human being vis-à-vis the rest of existence.
2.The course is in the form of 28 lectures (discussions) and 14 practice sessions.
3. It is free from any dogma or value prescriptions.
4. It is a process of self-investigation and self-exploration, and not of giving sermons. Whatever
is found as truth or reality is stated as a proposal and the students are facilitated to verify it
in their own right, based on their Natural Acceptance and subsequent Experiential Validation – the
whole existence is the lab and every activity is a source of reflection.
5. This process of self-exploration takes the form of a dialogue between the teacher and the
students to begin with, and then to continue within the student in every activity, leading to
continuous self-evolution.
6. This self-exploration also enables them to critically evaluate their pre-conditionings and
present beliefs.