Teachers are not only those who teach us academic courses but those from whom we learn about

life. My teacher who has comforted me when I had problems is my idol. Though he is far away from me, his reassuring smile, his inspiring eyes give me strength to combat all troubles swirling me.

— Rosaline

Teachers are our second parents. Besides our parents we learn a lot from teachers. Guru is a sacred word and holds the highest position in our culture. On Guru Purnima I would like to remember all my teachers who made my life worthwhile. I still remember the words of one of my favo-urite teachers, ‘Shambu sir’ scolding us saying “Don’t do what I do, but do what I say.” I was in Class V then.

— Jenish Bista

One guru who has taught me something very important is my brother. Even though he is married, he does not neglect our family. I don’t have my father, but his absence has been taken over by my brother’s support. He has taken the burden of funding the education of my brothers and sisters. I’m sure my brother deserves to be my guru. And, next is my mother without whom I would not be anything.

— Shiva Pandey, Samakhusi

When I was small, I never liked admitting my mistakes. Once when I had not submitted my assignment on time, our English teacher asked me to say “Sorry”. I hated that word, so naturally, I kept quiet. I had to stand up the whole day due to this. From that day onwards, she (the teacher) made a rule that I had to

say sorry 100 times everyday till I corrected my

habit. By and by, I began improving my manners and soon I began being appreciated for my behaviour. I would like to thank my English teacher for building this character in me.

— Shreya Jha, Lazimpat

A day that really has a lot of importance is ‘Teachers’ Day’. Teachers are those who provide you with skills that aren’t innate. It is not necessary that you admire your teachers. A person who has really stood out as a good teacher is my dad. I love cricket and I thank my dad a ton for making me aware of my passion. His patience and faith in me has not only made me learn cricket but also made me a stronger person. He has been the real fountain of motivation, truth and knowledge in my life. The verse of his “Leave the cage and let yourself fly, follow your dreams and touch the sky”, changed my entire approach towards life. I haven’t had a chance or should I say I didn’t make a chance to thank him, so on the festive occasion of Guru Purnima, I would like to extend my gratitude to my greatest teacher.

— Nishant Shandilya, Baluwatar

My English teacher is always ready to rectify his faults. He neither feels shy nor inferior to accept his mistakes. What I learnt from him is “it is never too late to mend”. When I made mistakes in my exams, I used to feel upset as there were no further chances. But his life has taught me that there are many other opportunities and we can learn from our mistakes. He’s one of my exemplary teachers whom I always admire because the lesson I got from him has been one of my principles.

— Dev Raj Adhikary, Nepaltar

Like most of my friends, I also decided to join bridge course. Although I was not feeling well that day I went to attend my classes. That day an English teacher taught me the master formulae for learning. I remember him saying, “Class is the source of inspiration but not of knowledge. If you go on depending upon your teacher to learn simple things, then you will be just like him, but if you help yourself, you will be more than the teacher.” This is

the most important lesson of my life. Since then I

have read books on my own without waiting for the class. This way I have improved my writing skills

a lot. I also realised that

self-help is the best help.

All credit goes to him. On this Guru Purnima, I express my respect to A Jha Sir.

— Bina Maharjan

I am very lucky as from the beginning I have met the best teachers who, besides education, have given me life long ideas that have been very useful in moulding me. If I have to pick one, obviously, I will say Gambhir Man Maskey. He is the one who made me realise my potential. Moreover, austerity, honesty and hardworking have always guided me to the righteousness.

— Eak Prasad Duwadi

One of my primary school English teachers is someone who I’ll always remember fondly. She inspired me to write and for that, I shall never forget her. Her cheerful nature had a sense of positive aura that helped me to realise my inner potential. Though she never enforced anything, I liked doing all her homework (especially because she made it all interesting). I wouldn’t call her strict, but she was firm and had a very kind and forgiving nature. One of her qualities that had made her more popular was her excellent sense of humour, which made her classes more interesting. We could always turn her to at times of trouble. She was, indeed, an understanding, motherly figure – my teacher Sarita Gurung

— Rhea Gurung,

Maharajgunj

I was a very weak student while in Class IV and failed in all unit and terminal exams. But suddenly, in the final exam I failed in one subject because of only three marks. I did not secure pass marks (40 out of 100). If I would have scored 40, I would have secured the second position. In this situation, our class teacher gave me grace marks of three and I stood second in class. All my friends and teachers were astonished by this result. From this time onwards, I worked hard to retain the position. The result favoured me and till Class VII I stood second in class, and from Class VIII to SLC, I stood first in class. So the class teacher, who gave me three marks and his strong motivation has remained influential role for me. I want to dedicate this Guru Purnima to my class teacher for this reason.

— Pratap

In my school days I always stood first in class. One day my friends asked me to go to play football after school. I went to play instead of doing homework. I forgot to do homework of one subject. The next day I was put in line among those who did not do homework regularly. At first I was not worried as I thought I would be excused, but I was punished. My teacher told me that as a responsible student of the class I would have to be sincere about my studies. Because responsible people get more admiration than normal people so he gets more severe punishment than normal people. So that day I got valuable lesson that a person staying in the high post should act responsibly.

— Dhrub Maharjan,

Lalitpur

I have learnt a lesson from my sports teacher on cricket. I learnt how to bowl well and now I am the most fastest and line-length bowler in the whole school. I am proud to have such ability and in future I will be the one to take the Nepali cricket team as an international team in the whole world.

— Dipesh Agrawal, Bafal

During my schooldays, my teacher advised me to be frank, so I developed a habit of telling what was on my mind to every person I met. It worked quite well till I was in school, but in high school I started facing some problems with boys. My teacher advised me also not to become close to boys as they could misconstrue my friendship with some other thing. And that was happening in my life. I am not friends with any boy and so face no problem of that sort. I thank my teacher for his true love and genuine advice.

— Daya Sapkota

Life is all about learning, whether it’s from our teachers, parents or even from our own mistakes. We go on learning lessons after lessons that help us grow and flower into the person we choose to be. Nonetheless, the best lesson I learn is from my own mistakes, as we can’t ignore their teachings, being the one

to face its outcomes. So, one lesson that I have learnt is “Never make a mistake and even if you do, be ready to face the outcomes and learn never to make it again.”

— Kirti Karki,

Biratnagar

I must say that my father Pratap Lama is my greatest guru as he was the one who taught me the real values and morals of life. He is very honest, gentle and a perfect father. He always taught me to be kind, loving and gentle, and always encouraged me to reach for the stars and never let myself down. He always believed in the saying, “Thy need is greater than mine”. So he has taught me to think of other people’s needs and happiness rather than be self-centred. Even today at the age of 73, although he is retired, he is an active member of Glaucoma Foundation Tilganga and has contributed personally to spread the awareness of this foundation. He has also given some financial assistance to conduct operation camps so that the needy people get operated free of cost. My father has taught me to be tolerant. He is a really genuine person and a good human being. I am really proud to be your daughter.

— Geetanjali Lama

The ‘teacher’ may not be a person — it could be anyone or anything that inspires or even shocks one into awakening. We shouldn’t always wait for someone to teach us but should strive to discover and learn for ourselves. A teacher just helps us to do this, instead of always standing by to teach us. We cannot learn even sitting in front of our guru, even living in their shelter, even being given all of their grace. We remain stubborn and set in our own ways. We must always remember that no matter how far away our guru is, he is still reaching us, still teaching us, still touching us. We must not depend

upon being in the presence of our guru to learn from him. If our hearts are open and pure, we can learn from him no matter how far away he may be. The key is faith.

— Nitu Kedia

I learnt life’s lessons from my Accounts teacher when I was in BBS first year. He taught me not to waste time and to understand its value in student life. He told me that only if you work hard in your student life, will you achieve your aim. He encouraged me to do other things besides study. And those lessons have proved very valuable.

— Sailaja Duwadi