UNIVERSAL HUMAN VALUES

Unit -1
Human Values

Basic human values refer to those values which are at the core of being human. The values which are
considered basic inherent values in humans include truth, honesty, loyalty, love, peace etc. Because they
bring out the fundamental goodness of human beings and society at large importance of human values.

Harmony
Harmony is usually a human value referring to compatibility and accord in feelings, actions,
relationship, opinions, interests etc. It denotes a state of balance among forces influencing and even
opposing one another.

Self-exploration: - It is the process to find out what is valuable to me investigating within myself.

 Holistic development in Universal Human values

Holistic development is the Social, emotional, physical, mental and intellectual growth of a person.

 Self exploration process for value education

The process of value education is self-exploration which includes two things verification at the level of
natural acceptance and experiential validation in living.

 Importance of Self exploration in human values

Through self-exploration we get the value of ourself. It is a process of focusing attention on ourself, our
present beliefs and aspiration vis-a- vis what we really want to be if these two are the same then there is no
problem.

 Self-exploration types
“Electronics, jogging, music… “etc.
 Look at interests and hobbies more closely to identify skills more closely to identify skills which may be
transferable to the work world. Information about your interests and related skills will help you determine
potential career paths.

 10 developmental self-exploration techniques

1. Spend time visualization your ideal self and lifestyle.
2. Think about your passions, interests and dreams.
3. Get out of your comfort zone and try new things.
4. Consider each of your skills, no matter how big or small they are.
5. Reflect on what you admire the most about yourself.
6. Journal your experiences, life changes and thoughts.
7. Talk with a life coach to strategic your next moves.
8. Listen to podcasts or read books about other people’s journey to inspire yourself.
9. Strengthen your mental health and well logging.
10. Let go of other people’s image and expectations of you and follow your internal compass.

Understanding Harmony in the Human being

There is a need to understand human being as it is (as co-existence of self and body). The significant
part is having the feeling of self-reflection in the self. This can happen only when the self is in harmony i.e.
these is right understanding and feeling in the self.

Understanding in Harmony
Harmony in society refers to a state of cooperation and mutual understanding between individuals
and groups, characterized by a lack of conflict and a sense of unity and stability.
Family helps in installing the moral values like truthfulness, peace, justice in children’s thoughts, feelings
and actions and they function as ideals and standards that govern their actions in their life.

Family values are something that we get from our parents in the form of love, care, trust, honesty, kindness,
empathy, compassion, perseverance and many more.

The harmony in nature refers to the interconnectedness and balance of various ecological systems,
species and natural processes.

This balance allows for the continuation of life on Earth and includes factors such as predators-prey
relationships, nutrient cycles and climate regulation.
Importance: Improves our thinking ability.
 Living in harmony with nature
 Cap your chimney
 Make some noise
 Give ‘Em e leg up and a way out
 Make your house unappealing
 Garbage dump dangers
Strengthening of Self-reflection
Use questions to structure your practice. Identify the important questions you want to ask yourself about
habits, achievements and feelings from the period of time you are reflecting on.
Self-reflection is the act of looking back over previous events with an open mind to learn and improve
on actions taken.
This could be thinking back over goals and achievements, reviewing how you got there and the
outcome. Or looking back over a situation, how it was handled by yourself and other and reflecting on your
attitude and feeling at that time.
When practicing self-reflection, be mindful to look back over both the positive aspects as well as the
challenges. Whatever memories you are reflection on, it’s beneficial for your mental wellbeing, self-esteem
and confidence to take stock of both, as this can help you to adapt, learnt from your experiences and move
forward.
Benefits of self-reflection
There are many benefits of self-reflection. The practice is commonly used to help narrow focus,
highlights area of improvement and ultimately, help individuals to reach their goals. However, there are other
benefits too:
1. Reduce stress levels
Taking time to understand what has gone well what has gone well and what has been a challenge
will help you in future situations. Whether in your work or personal life, being open to adopting a
mindful and productive approach can ease feelings of stress and uncertainty.
2. Speak Creativity

Reflecting allows you to dedicate time to not only improve your circumstance and nurture your
wellbeing, but also consider new opportunities – paths you had not realized were open to you or
opportunities that you are yet to take advantage of.

3. Improves relationships
 Self-reflection gives you time to assess relationships as well as situations. Whether it’s a colleague,
friend, family member or loved one, practicing self-reflection is beneficial for evaluating how you feel
about the relationship rather than simply being reactive.

4. Allows for better decision making

Time is invaluable when making decisions, and practicing self-reflection gives you the opportunity
to allow time to review, before making more informed decisions.

5. Create room for growth

Practicing self-reflection is an effective way to encourage growth, both personality and
professionally. While it may feel uncomfortable to look back on some experiences, particularly challenging
once, acknowledging your previous actions, what you have overcome and what you have learnt as result
enables you to move forward with empowered and fresh outlook on life.

 4 tips for Self-reflection

There is not a right or wrong way to practice self-reflection – everyone is different. Depending
on how much time you put aside and the environment you are in. You can use different methods to
complete your practice.
1) Use questions to structure your practice
Identify the important questions you want to ask youself about habits, achievements and
feelings from the periods of time you are reflecting on.
Eg: How did I reach that goal? How a l I feeing today? What could I improve on based on
based on what I have leant this year?
2) Journals your reflections
Write out each question and answer in a reflections journal. Putting pen helps you to release
your throughs out in the open. Can provide clarity, and can often be rather revealing. The journal
provides a place for you to look back on your journey as you move forward.
If you fancy trying out another form of reflecting why not try audio journaling? Simply record
yourself voicing your stream of thoughts, either via the voice recorded on your phone, or on
another recording device. Asking yourself those important questions and hearing your response
can help you to recognize different thoughts and feelings and enable you to find clarity, express
yourself and take notice of how far you have come.
3) Try breathing exercises
Steadying the mind by connecting with breath before reflecting, can help you to think more
clearly. Openly and honesty. Breathing exercises are a great way to slow down, clear the mind and
focus.
 Find out more and explore how to use conscious breathing to support your mental health.
4) Welcome meditation into your practice
Meditation comes in so many forms. So, explore which goes ones work for you.
You could try reading, getting out in the fresh air for a walk, or completing some low impact
exercise like yoga, all of these activities can help begin a self-reflection practice.

The importance of Self-reflection

Free too busy to self-reflect? This is very common.
Perhaps you can try reframing your thoughts around taking time out for yourself as a selfless act. When
you take the time for support your mental health and wellbeing, replenish your energy levels and reflect on
how far you have come and what you have learnt. Not only enables you to be at your best for yourself but
also you are in better position to be at your best for others around you. So, as well as allowing yourself the
time for reflection, this act can create a positive ripple effect.
When you are working on developing your career or improving you own personal wellness, spending
time practicing self-reflection can create space more time later down the line, by allowing you to reading
your focus and feel more productive.
If you are starting or running your own business, take a look at our reflective exercise for entrepreneurs.

 Development of commitment and courage to act

Commitment: The state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity etc.

Courage: The ability to do something that frightens one, bravery

How to build commitment is teams
1. Understand strengths and passions
2. Allow them the freedom to work their own way
3. Clearly describe their responsibilities
4. Create engaging, challenging work
5. Build a culture of trust for them
6. Reward success and quality work
7. Eliminate the fear of failure
8. Encourage their creativity
9. Offer sincere praise when you can
10. Build their group identity
11. Incorporate humor and fun
 How does Courage develop
A Study by Carnegie Mellon University found people tend to overestimate the extent to which they
will take action – themselves and others when they are faced with a dangerous situation. Thus, Courage
is built over time through repetition and experience, more than through imagination.
Courage helps us take risks, think things through, and accomplish our goals, it also helps us to
believe in ourselves and our actions. It helps us be aware of our fears, and how to work with them to
achieve what we need to do.
Courage and Commitment importance
Compassion is the compass that guides influential leaders as they pursuer their purpose. Courage is
the enabler of the purpose they are about: and commitment provides sustaining energy to weather any
challenges along the way. All other leadership traits stem from these.
Tips for practicing commitment in your leadership
 Reflect on your own habits
 Work toward perseverance:
Commitment & Interest
 Interest indicates you are likely to do something when something when you enjoy it.
Commitment often means you keep going even
When something is challenging.
 Remember transport leadership
 Practice transport leadership
 Maintain a relational approach
 Be your team’s voice
Purpose of Courage

Courage helps us to navigate social and emotional challenges. Greater courage in adolescents and
adults is related to the use of more self-directed coping. In other words, the practice of courage helps us to
adapt in different situations and to reach our personal and Professional goals.

What gives people courage

Embracing Risk: Courage requires taking international risks. Those who understand the importance
of facing fear and being vulnerable, who accept that falling and getting up again is part of the journey, tend
to have quicker access to their courage.

What is honor Courage and Commitment

Honor, Courage and Commitment leads us to victory over the physical, mental and moral battles faced
during combat, or while serving in our communities of behalf of our Nation.
How to be Courage
 i. Acknowledge your fear your
Never try to sweep your fear under the rug. It will give it more power
Instead, you need to acknowledge and accept your fears. We all have them, and there’s no shame
in that. Like we mentioned before, bravery in about eliminating fear but moving forward despite
being afraid.
ii. Confront it

Confronting your fear is about understanding the underlying reasons why you are afraid in the first
place.

For example, if you are afraid to ask for a promotion or apply for new role, ask yourself why is it
because you may not get it? Are you afraid of rejection, failure or ridicule?

You’ll soon realize that your fear your fear is often your ego trying to protect itself feeling
diminished. In reality, these experiences can only make you a stronger person, not weaker.
iii. Use positive self-talk
‘Self-talk’ is that inner voice inside your head that reveals your beliefs and thoughts. When you are
afraid, it means that for a long time, you’ve created a negative stream of self-talk may look like this.
iv. Get comfortable with being uncomfortable
Do the thing you fear to do and keep on doing it. That is the quickest and surest way ever yet
discovered to conquer fear.
So, if you’re afraid of being along. For example, go see a movie by yourself. If you want to be even
braver take a solo trip.
v. Make being brave a habit
Once you conquer your fear for the first time, don’t stop there. Strengthen your fearlessness like
a muscly by overcoming your fear on a regular basis.
vi. Practice mindfulness
Practicing mindfulness in all areas of your life means always staying grounded in the present
moment. Mindfulness practice like breathwork and meditation can help you relieve worries and
anxiety.
vii. Find a mentor
Do you know anyone in your personal or professional life whose fearlessness and confidence you
admire? Build mentorship relationship with them.
viii. Embrace failure
We are often to do something because we’re afraid of failure, we try to do it once, and as soon as
we fail, we give up.
ix. Don’t aim for perfection
To overcome fear, try to approach anything you do with a beginner’s mind.
 Next time you want to try something you fear, don’t have any expectations of how it’s going to
do go, approach it with a sense of curiosity and don’t worry about the outcome.
Instead of aiming for perfection, aim to learn and grow.

How to build commitment in teams

i. Understand strengths and passions
A good way to build commitment within a team is to understand their passions and skills. Once
you understand what work team members most enjoy and feel a connection to, you can distribute
tasks based on which individuals you think can get the most benefit from each responsibility.

ii. Allow them the freedom to work their own way

A team may also feel more engaged with a project if they are given to the freedom to complete
their work in a way that works for them.

iii. Clearly describe their responsibilities

Clearly describing team members, responsibilities and impacts within a project can help them
feel committed to their work. This can eliminate any confusion or distractions from unclear directions.

iv. Create engaging, challenging work

In many cases, team members can feel more invested in a project if they are given challenging
and interesting work. Offering complex or interesting responsibilities can give team members the
opportunity to think about their work in a new way and apply new skills.

v. Build a culture of trust for them

A culture of trust can inspire employees to complete their best work without fear of judgement.
Consider promoting a workplace where all employees can trust coworkers and mentors to respect
them and their work.

vi. Rewards success and quality work

Members of a team may also feel more committed if they know that they may receive rewards
for quality work. This can inspire them to improve work performance so that they can receive
additional rewards.

vii. Eliminate the fear of failure

The fear of failing and facing negative consequences can cause some team members to
experiences can cause some team members to experience less trust and dedication to their work.
This can be especially true if employees feel as if they may receive negative feedback regardless of
their performance.

viii. Encourage their creativity

 If an employee receives the opportunity to think creativity, they may enjoy their work more and
become more committed to their unique projects. This can increase commitment and lead to
interesting, engaging work that maximizes team members creative spirits.
ix. Offer sincere praise when you can
Consider praising team members for their work. Besides offering rewards, offering regular praise
can help team members understand that you appreciate their work and that they offer valuable
contributions to the team.
x. Build their group identity
Another way to improve commitment within a team is to build a strong, collective team identity.
This can improve team members to commit to their work not only for their own benefits but also for
the benefit of the team.
xi. Incorporate humor and fun
Adding some elements of humor and fun to a workplace can allow employees to enjoy their work
more, strengthening their commitment to their projects and the organization.
 Value Education
Value-based education places an emphasis on helping students develop their personalities so they can
shape their future and deal with challenges with ease. It shapes children to effectively carry out their social,
moral and democratic responsibilities while becoming sensitive to changing circumstances.

 Role of Value education in human values

Value education therefore promotes tolerance and understanding above and beyond our political,
cultural and religious differences, putting special emphasis on the defense of human rights, the protection
of ethnic minorities and the most vulnerable groups and the conservation of the environment.

Concept of Value education

Value education refers to the aspect of the educational practice which entails that moral or political
values as well as norms, dispositions and skills grounded in those values are mediated to or developed among
students. Values education can be referred to as explicit or implicit.
The value of human being is its natural or expected participation in the larger order – at the level of
the individual, at the level of family, at the level of society and ultimately, at the level of nature/existence. It
is interesting to note that you feel happy in the process of fulfilling your participation in the larger order. In
this example, if you understand what has been taught, you feel happy. The teacher also feels happy when
you participate in understanding what is being taught.

 The value of a human being is its participation in this entire nature/existence.

 The role of human being is no understand and fulfil its relationship with each and every unit in the
existence.
 We need to explore and understand things as they are; So that we are also able to fulfil our
participation with them.
 The part of education that deals with the understanding of one’s participation in the larger order and
thus ensuring it in living is called as value education.
 The whole education needs to be value based. If it is not value based, it will not serve to fulfil the
basic aspiration of the human being i.e. a life of fulfilment.
 It can at most provide skills to a person to fulfil the need for physical facility, or so to say, make money,
but the basic desire will remain untouched.
 The deficiency needs to be rectified by making education wholesome and conductive to a fulfilling
life.

Skill Education
 (Technology, management, medicine etc.)
 Skills are necessary in our life.
 Skills have been developed to such a fine extent in every area- in medicine, in production, in
construction of bridges and buildings, in all kinds of transportation from bicycle to aero planes, in
telecommunication and television, to name a few.

 Complementary of values and skills

 Process of Value Education – Self exploration

 Human Values can be understood by an appropriate process of self – discovery, because

they are potentially there in each and every human being.
 It is only the we have to discover them or become a way of them.
 The natural response is a value for us.
 In this discussion, this feeling was not created in you. You already had the acceptance for it.
It was only uncovered by drawing your attention within through the question for exploration.
 To study human values, the process has to be such that it develops a process of self-
exploration in you.
 Taking every statement as a proposal. You are able to investigate the reality by yourself.
 Value education is not a set of dos and don’ts or set of sermons. It rather is a process self-
exploration and self-investigation.

Self-Exploration Definition: - It is the process to find out what is valuable to me by investigating within myself.
What is right for me, true for me, has to be judged within myself. Through self-exploration we get the value
of ourselves. We live with different entirely (family, friends, air, soil, water, trees etc.…).
Concept of Self-exploration

Self-exploration is the practice of examining your own thoughts, feelings, values, beliefs, Identity,
background, views and emotions with the purpose of better understanding yourself.

 Self-exploration important in human values

Through self-exploration we get the values of ourself. It is a process of focusing attention on
ourself, our present beliefs and aspirations vis-à-vis what we really want to be (that is to say, what is
naturally acceptance to us). If these two are the same, there is no problem.
There is no better time for self-exploration than the present, some tips
 Stert by visualizing your ideal self
 May be your life has gone pretty smoothly according to guidelines parents, teachers,
friends and others have recommended. If that’s the case, you might not have given your
true self much through.

 Explore your passions

Passions help give life purpose and make it rich and meaningful.
May be a passion for helping others guided you to the field of medicine, but your current
position in medical billing doesn’t quite fulfill your urge to provide compassionate care.

 Try new things

Maybe you can’t name many passions. That’s ok! If you haven’t done much for yourself
in a long time, you might not remember what you used to enjoy.

 Inspire and be inspired with Buzzy for depression

If you’re living with depression. Join others who understand what you’re going through.
Discover a safe space to find community, guidance and support together.

Evaluate your skills

Most people have a particular knack for something or other – Crafting, home
improvement, cooking or any number of other skills, as part of the self-discovery process, you
might consider taking some time to consider your unique abilities and how you might use them.

 Identify what you value about yourself

Your personal values or the specific qualities you view as most important and meaningful,
can tell you a lot about your nature. These values can help illustrate the life you want to live as
well as the behavior you expect from other.
 Ask your questions
When you want answers, start with a few questions
- Why do I do the things I do?
- What drives me?
- What am I missing?
- What kind of impact do my choices have on the life I want?
 Learn something new
Learning works best when it’s treated as a lifelong process.

If you’ve always wanted to learn more about something in particular, take the time to study
it. Books, manuals or online tools can teach you quite a bit, especially If you’d like to develop
technical skills or study historical or scientific concepts.
  Keep a journal
If you kept a journal in adolescence, you might remember how it helped you explore your
dreams and emotions. Picking up the habit of journaling (or blogging) again can help you get back
in touch with yourself and learn more about the person you’ve become.
 Talk to a therapist
When the process of self-discovery seems overwhelming and you don’t know where
to start, therapy can provide a safe space to get some compassionate guidance.

 The bottom line

The process of self-discovery looks different from everyone, but it’s generally not
something that happens overnight. You do have somewhat of a jump start since you already
know at least a little bit about yourself. But it still takes time and patience, just like getting to
know someone else.
You are in charge of the journey, but don’t feed afraid to meander off the main path. The
more ground you cover through self-exploration, the more you will discover about yourself.

 Complementarity of Values and Skills

Few questions to understand the complementarity of values and skills.
- Will use your communication and management skills for dominating over others for
mutual fulfillment, making friends.
- Will you use your medical skills for profiting from disease or for ensuring long-term
health?
- Will you use your finance skill for ensuring equitable distribution of wealth or for
profit – maximization for a few?
- Will you use skills for nurturing other or for exploiting others and exploiting nature?
- Will you use the communication facilities that have been developed, particularly the
mobile phones with extreme options, for providing human education to the people.

Development of a holistic perspective

The outcome of value education is a holistic perspective about human being, about the nature/existence
of which are integral part as well as our participation in this nature/existence.

 This participation is our role, it is our purpose. It is our right; it is our responsibility and it is
our value.
 In day to day living, we are able to see our role with respect to ourselves, with respect to
family, with respect to the society and with respect to nature/existence.
 We feel happy when we fulfill our participation at any level.
The rich-biodiversity is fulfilling for us and is readily available to us without any effort from our side. It is like
a gift of mutual fulfilment.

Clarity of program to live with holistic perspective

We will face some questions about our living

 What thoughts are naturally acceptance to me with which I would to continue.

 What food will keep my body healthy.
 Which clothes will fulfil the need of my body better.
 What behavior with my friends will sustain our relationship.
 How I can be a help to the other in my family.
 How I can participate in the college or neighborhood or the society at large so that there is mutual
fulfilment.
 What my role can be in maintaining the harmony of environment which includes trees, air, water etc.
This will give us the clarity to work out the day-to-day programs
Value education provides us the vision which will help us to get answers to get answers to all these
questions.

Development of Ethical competence

 Ethical is the expression of definite human conduct in one’s behavior, work or participation in the
larger order.
  It is easy to appreciate that the core purpose of value education is to develop ethical competence
among human beings which will reflect in all their pursuits.
 The problem of unethical conduct in various professions which is becoming a grave menace almost
everywhere, can also be tackled effectively by focusing attention on development of ethical
competence through human value education.
 We shall discuss in detail about the salient implications of value education in context with
professional ethics in the third section of the book.

Universal Guideline for Value Education

Whatever we study as value education has to be universally applicable to all human beings and be
true at all times and all places.
Rational
It has to be amenable to reasoning and not based on dogmas or blind. It should be open to address the
related questions.
Natural and Verifiable
Being natural means, it has to be acceptable in a natural manner.

We live on value are natural to us it leads to mutual fulfilment, to our happiness and are conductive to
the happiness of other people we interact with as well enriching for other units in nature.

All Encompassing
The content of value education has to cover all dimensions of our being (thought, behavior, work and
understanding) as well as all levels of our living (individual, family, society and nature/existence)
It is not merely an intellectual exercise or information transfer.
Leading to Harmony
Value education has to enable us to be in harmony within and in harmony with others. It leads to
harmony in us and harmony in our interactions with other humans and rest of nature.