SAVTRIBAI PHULE - First lady teacher of India

 Go, Get Education Be self-reliant, 

be industrious Work, gather wisdom and riches, 

All gets lost without knowledge We become animal without wisdom

, Sit idle no more, go, 

get education End misery of the oppressed and forsaken,

 You’ve got a golden chance to learn So learn and break the chains of caste. 

Throw away the Brahman’s scriptures fast

— Poem by Savitribai Phule

Savitribai Phule was born on January 3, 1831 in the Satara District village of Naigaon, Maharashtra. She was born approximately 15 km (9.3 miles) from Shirval and 50 km (31 miles) from Pune. Savitribai Phule was reared by Lakshmi and Khandoji Nevase Patil, who both belonged to the Mali Community. Three siblings were present. At the age of nine or ten, Savitribai wed Jyotirao Phule (he was 13). Savitribai and Jyotirao never had any biological children of their own. A Brahmin widow’s son named Yashawantrao is said to have been adopted by them. However, there is currently no original evidence to back this up. No one reportedly wanted to offer Yashwant a female when he was getting married because he was born to a widow. As a result, Savitribai arranged for his marriage to Dynoba Sasane, a member of her organization, in February 1889.

Savitribai and Jyotirao did not have any children. They are said to have taken in Yashawantrao, a Brahmin widow’s son. However, there is currently no original evidence to back this up. Because he was the son of a widow, Yashwant supposedly was denied a girl when he was ready to marry her. As a result, Savitribai organized his marriage to the daughter of a member of her organization in February 1889.

An event in Savitribai Phule’s life that impacted it:

When Savitribai was a small girl, her father caught her in the act of ripping out pages from an English-language book. He took the book out of her hands and hurled it far away, begging her never to pick up another book. In those days, men of the upper caste were thought to have the exclusive privilege to education. That day, Savitribai vowed to continue her education in reading and writing no matter what.

Savitribai Phule Education

Savitribai was illiterate when she got married. Jyotirao educated Savitribai and Sagunabai Shirsagar, his cousin’s sister, in their home in addition to working on their farm. Jyotirao was in charge of her primary education, and his friends Keshav Shivram Bhavalkar and Sakharam Yeshwant Paranjpe were in charge of her secondary education. Additionally, she participated in two teacher-training programs, the first at a Pune Normal School and the second at a center run by American missionary Cynthia Farrar in Ahmednagar. Savitribai may have been India’s first female teacher and headmistress due to her education.

Savitribai Phule Career

Jyotiba Phule registered her for a teacher-training course at a school in Pune. She really enrolled herself in two teacher-training programs, one at an Ahmednagar normal school run by American missionary Cynthia Farrar and the other in a Pune normal school. Savitri then went on to become India’s first female teacher and headmistress of any school in the nation. In Maharashtra, her birthday is also celebrated as Balika Din.

In Marathwada, Pune, she started working as a teacher with Sagunbai, one of the radical feminists of the era. Savitribai Phule and Jotiba were in charge of three different all-girls schools in Pune by 1851. More than 150 girls attended the three schools collectively.

Resistance In Her Job

When Savitribai Phule commuted to her schools to teach, the strict upper caste residents would sell her stones and filth, forcing her to carry an extra saree. Because the Phule family belonged to the oppressed Mali caste and was educated despite this, they experienced problems from the elite Brahmin class in their community.

When they were ultimately accused of committing the sin of learning against Manusmriti and its Brahmanical scriptures in 1849, they were forced to leave their father’s home. She opened a total of 18 schools with her husband, where she taught students from various castes. For rape and pregnant victims, they further opened Balhatya Pratibandhak Griha, a care facility.

Savitriba Phule Contribution

Savitribai Phule made a significant contribution for the girls, if we talk about her actions. Phule was the nation’s first female educator. In Pune’s Bhide Wada neighborhood, the Savitribai and her husband established the city’s first indigenously run girls’ school. She strives to educate the public at all times. Jyotiba Phule, her spouse, has always supported and assisted her. But he was also a social reformer and an advocate for education.

Savitribai Phule Death

The parents of Jyotiba and Savitribai were childless. Yashwant, one of their adopted children, founded a clinic to assist those affected by the bubonic plague. Savitribai Phule passed away on March 10, 1897, as a result of the same illness that had already infected her.

Savitribai Phule: Quotes

• “If you educate a man, you educate an individual; if you educate a woman, you educate a family. If we educate our women well, we can change the course of history.”
• “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
• “The woman who has a mind of her own has a husband who is not worth having.”
• “If you want to learn how to think, read books. If you want to learn how to act, watch acting.”
• “I believe that education is the key to every woman’s liberation.”
• “Education is the key to unlock your mind, and it empowers you to do something with your life.”
• “Education is the only path to self-reliance.”
• “Education is the great equalizer, and it will take us out of our caves.”