Echoes of the Ancestral Classroom: Recognizing the Mountain as the First Teacher in Humanity’s Curriculum of Life
Cirebon, October, 5th 2025 — Nature was once the very first curriculum—an open classroom where wisdom was learned directly through observation, reflection, and harmony. In the ancient community of Kuningan, particularly at Situs Sangiang, Sagarahiang, the mountain stood as a sacred teacher in what the locals called kamandalaan—the ancestral way of learning through nature’s rhythm. It was here that people learned values, discipline, and cosmic order by being students of the land itself. Continuing this intellectual pilgrimage, Lala Bumela, Ph.D., Director of the International Office and Partnership at UIN Siber Syekh Nurjati Cirebon, has persistently explored both local and global references to deepen the essence of education. By inviting 81 students from the English Language Teaching Department, alongside International Office team members Indra Maulana Arfan Ajiz and Tsamara Bahira Alzena, this field journey became more than a visit—it was an academic and spiritual rediscovery. The visionary director integrated the BIMA Framework (Bridging Intelligence, Mindfulness, and Awareness), developed by Professor Rudolf Wirawan of the University of Adelaide, Australia, to bridge the wisdom of the ancients with modern educational philosophy. “If we trace the roots of learning,” said Lala Bumela, “we will find that the mountain was humanity’s first classroom, and the silence of nature was its eternal textbook.”
In today’s era of digital acceleration and environmental neglect, the ancestral connection between education and nature has gradually eroded. Modern schooling often prioritizes efficiency and productivity over mindfulness and awareness. The harmony once maintained between human intellect and the natural environment has weakened, leading to both ecological and moral imbalance. The people of ancient Kuningan saw learning as a sacred dialogue between humans and the universe, but now, education risks losing that transcendental dimension. The journey to Situs Sangiang thus became a metaphorical return—an effort to reclaim that original consciousness, to once again listen to the whispers of the earth as a teacher of both intellect and spirit.
During the field visit, Lala Bumela, Ph.D., invited students to see the mountain not merely as scenery, but as a living text filled with wisdom. He walked among the students, explaining how every stone, every stream, and every gust of wind holds a pedagogical message if one learns to listen. “This place,” he said, “is not just a site of heritage—it is a site of consciousness.” “When we learn from nature,” added Lala Bumela, “we don’t just collect knowledge—we refine our awareness. The mountain teaches humility, patience, and balance, which are the true foundations of education.” His words resonated deeply with the participants. Many students expressed that they felt as though they were stepping into a classroom without walls, where silence, air, and soil became part of the lesson. The dialogue between teacher, students, and environment reflected the reawakening of a long-forgotten curriculum—the curriculum of life itself.
Through this intellectual and experiential immersion, the concept of education as a living ecosystem began to unfold. Students observed, reflected, and connected their academic theories with tangible experiences. The BIMA Framework served as the methodological lens, allowing participants to bridge intelligence (the act of knowing), mindfulness (the awareness of being), and awareness (the depth of understanding). It was a living example of how philosophy, ecology, and pedagogy can coexist in a single learning process. The visit also encouraged interdisciplinary thinking, merging English language education, environmental studies, and local wisdom into one integrated learning narrative.
As the field journey concluded, a sense of renewal filled the air. Students began to understand that education is not confined to institutions—it is a lifelong dialogue between human consciousness and creation. The visit to Situs Sangiang symbolized an academic homecoming: a realization that wisdom does not always come from new discoveries, but from rediscovering what has long been known. Inspired by this experience, the International Office plans to include similar reflective field programs as part of its Global Engagement and Sustainability Initiative, inviting international students in the future to experience Indonesia’s ancestral philosophy of learning.
The echoes of that ancestral classroom continue to resonate. In the silence of the mountain, the students learned that to educate is also to preserve, to feel, and to reconnect. The journey reminded everyone that progress without roots is hollow, and innovation without reflection is blind. As Lala Bumela concluded, “True education begins when we are humble enough to become students again—students of nature, of history, and of the divine order that unites them.” Through this reflection, the UIN SSC International Office reaffirms that the future of education lies not in separation from the earth, but in reuniting with it—a lifelong curriculum where the mountain remains our first, and perhaps greatest, teacher.
Author: Muhammad Azkiya Bahtsulkhoir