When the hands (will) and the heart (feeling) are in the right place, the head (thinking) can develop with clarity and conscience. It was with these thoughts in mind that the Waldorf kindergarten Prakriti was founded in 2008 in the centre of the city of Bengaluru in Karnataka. We began with the simple understanding that young children are beings of will who learn through imitation and need the protection of childhood through warmth, rhythm, and wonder. We see education as a lifelong task – a moral responsibility for every adult.
A new philosophy, a new philosopher and a kindergarten without books, pens or a blackboard aroused the parents’ curiosity. They stepped inside and experienced the magic of the environment: the warm colours, the calm rooms, natural play materials and teachers who filled the space with inner serenity. This experience spoke louder than any explanation, and so the spirit of Waldorf education began to grow in India – a century-old stream that continues to flow fresh through the soil of India.
The children’s joy spoke for itself, and the community grew. In a world that pushes for early intellectualisation, we made a conscious choice for slowing down, for repetition, rhythm and space for wonder. For us teachers, every day was a learning experience. We continually reflected on what was unfolding before us with mentors or through Rudolf Steiner’s lectures. It became clear that our media-dominated present needs a spiritual, alternative form of education – an Indian Waldorf education.
We carefully selected circle games, worked with regional and traditional songs in local languages, and combined them with the English language. The rhythms of the seasons were guided by the climate and festival culture. One example is the Dussehra festival: the children moved around a pole, similar to a maypole, wearing colourful dupattas, accompanied by a simple folk song. Afterwards, the parents performed the traditional Pinnal-Kollatta dance, in which cloths are artfully woven together and then untangled. This combination of celebration, community and culture brought deep joy to the school.
Even everyday activities draw on our culture: rolling rotis (flatbread), shaping laddus (sweet balls made from chickpea flour) or swinging the aarti light at birthdays. Such moments foster a sense of belonging and bring Waldorf education to life within the Indian context. The families carry trust, joy, reverence and inner strength out into the world.
A central guiding verse accompanies us: “Asato Ma Sadgamaya. Tamasoma Jyotir Gamaya. Mrityorma Amritam Gamaya.” (“Lead us from the untrue to the true, from darkness to light, from the transitory to the eternal.”) For us, this means from confusion to clarity, from restlessness to rhythm, from imitation to inner strength.
In the centenary year of Waldorf kindergartens, the active work of Sadhana, the Indian Waldorf Kindergarten Association, is of particular significance. It works with dedication to train educators, to support parents’ education, and to facilitate exchange amongst all those involved, helping to adapt the Waldorf principles to the cultural rhythm of India.
With deep reverence for Rudolf Steiner, for all my mentors, and for all the parents, children and teachers who are part of this journey to transform the educational paradigm in India – and to allow children to simply be children.
We feel honoured to welcome every child with reverence, to nurture them with love, and to send them out into the world with a sense of freedom.
Latha Madhusudhan