Is Knowledge Bringing Us Closer or Pulling Us Apart?

As a parent, I often find myself reflecting on the kind of world I want to leave for my daughter—and the kind of person I hope she becomes. My deepest desire is for her to grow up compassionate, open-hearted, and able to see the divine in everyone. Yet, as much as I wish for her to embrace the world without judgment, I find myself struggling with my own.

India is a beautiful, chaotic tapestry of cultures, languages, and classes. It’s a place where diversity should inspire unity, but instead, I often feel it creates invisible walls. When my daughter plays with children from different backgrounds—the watchman’s son or the cleaner’s daughter—I sometimes notice her picking up habits or phrases that make me uncomfortable. It’s not that these children are any less deserving of love or respect, but my mind can’t help but wonder: Am I judging them unfairly? Am I holding onto a bias I should have let go of long ago?

This inner struggle is humbling because I know better. I know that judgment separates us from the divine essence that resides in each of us. Yet, I feel the pull of society’s conditioning—a whisper that insists on distinctions based on class, habits, or language. It’s a part of me I’m working to heal, not just for my sake but for my daughter’s.

Education, I believe, is one of the most powerful tools we have to uplift not just individuals but entire communities. When I see children from less privileged homes gaining access to good schools, it fills me with hope. Education offers them a chance to dream bigger, to step into a future where they can speak fluent English, read books that open their minds, and carve out a path beyond their circumstances. But here’s the paradox that weighs on my heart: Even with education, they often return to homes where these aspirations aren’t nurtured. Their environment may not align with the values taught in school, and I wonder—how much of that wisdom truly takes root?

It’s a spiritual dilemma as much as it is a societal one. I believe knowledge is meant to bring us closer to our shared humanity, to help us rise above discrimination and see each other as equals. Yet, so often, it does the opposite. Education creates hierarchies—better jobs, better lifestyles, and in turn, a distancing from those who don’t have the same. Is this the price of progress? Or are we misunderstanding the purpose of knowledge itself?

On my own spiritual journey, I’ve come to see that the real value of knowledge lies in how it connects us—not just to others, but to ourselves. It should deepen our empathy, our humility, and our ability to serve. When I think about my daughter, I don’t want her education to be about climbing ladders or creating divides. I want it to help her see that we’re all reflections of the same light, no matter our class, culture, or language.

So, I ask myself—and you—this: How do we nurture a kind of knowledge that unites rather than separates? How do we create homes, schools, and communities where wisdom isn’t just taught but lived? Perhaps the answer lies not just in education but in the spiritual awakening of parents like me, who need to shed their own biases before they can teach their children to love without condition.

What do you think? Will we ever truly overcome these divides? Or will the hierarchies of education and opportunity continue to keep us apart?