Reflection On Social Issues
When some notions crack, some inertia melts, then new possibilities of creation and dissolution emerge. For this reason, after every decade some changes occur in society. Change is necessary with time, but the change should be positive and fundamental. Society is like a flower, if it is not pruned from time to time then the beauty of the flower will not remain intact. By beauty I mean development. For example, when a gardener beautifies a garden, he prunes the branches and leaves and provides fertilizer and water from time to time to nourish the roots. But today we are not able to nourish our roots due to the influence of foreign civilization. That is why new problems challenges and change are also emerging in society. Social thinking is necessary to solve these. So that we can keep our eternal traditions and fundamental values intact.
1. Family Disintegration: Earlier in our country, five to six families used to live together as a community, which was called Guwadi. Due to separation from the community, the practice of a joint family system increased. Such a family was a prosperous family full of joy and enthusiasm. In joint families, open exchange of ideas and sharing in mutual joys and sorrows helped solve even the biggest problems naturally.
There was a dignified environment with values like cooperation, harmony, service, and sacrifice. Neither frustration, nor depression, nor ego nor loneliness. Everyone was full of family energy. Empathy, sensitivity, collectively, contact, communication, and relationships, security, and strength not only make life easy and simple but also make us mentally strong. Family is the real immunity of mental and physical well-being and it is our protective shield.
Here, our family is considered as property, and its amenities as assets. It is easy to overcome every disaster with the strength of a family's courage and enthusiasm. Understanding the importance of family in developed countries like America, which were stuck in the economy, has today started moving towards family bonding. For this reason, they are demanding a 4-column working method.
He believes that this method may not increase economic productivity but will prove to increase human values because only family happiness makes a person complete. The United Nations General Assembly declared 15 May as International World Family Day in 1993. This day is celebrated to make people aware of the importance of family and the need for family in life. Even Mother Teresa has said that if you want to do something for world peace then love your family. Many problems have emerged due to the disintegration of the joint family. The complexities of life in a nuclear family are increasing. It is also having adverse effects on our health and children.
Today, all the relationships of our children with uncles and aunts are coming to an end. Due to jobs, the new generation has started desiring to have only one child instead of two. In this way, due to family disintegration, it will be difficult for the children to handle the situations in the future. Because the children will not have any other family members to support them in times of crisis. In such a situation, what will be the future of our children or future generations? This problem is emerging as a social challenge.
2. Changing Form of Marriage Ceremony: Paanigrahan Sanskar is considered an important Sanskar festival among the 16 Sanskar in Indian culture. Paanigrahan means a resolution to move forward on the path of life by becoming a partner by holding each other's hand. Our Sanatan philosophy is based on the principle of coexistence. Marriage is considered a bond of seven births. In our culture, signatures are not made by going to the court, rather the marriage ceremony is performed in the presence of Vedas, mantras, Brahmins, fire, and the witness of the society.
Marriage means living life in a very special way. Here marriage is not seen from the point of view of enjoyment but from the point of view of yoga. This is such a contract, where there is not only the sweet smell of relationships but also the fragrant aroma of love, service, dedication, and sacrifice. Marriage is judged from the point of view of unification of the soul.
In Bharat, the wife is considered a religious wife, that is, her conduct should be according to religion because she is the pillar of the family. The wife is the main pillar of the family. With her skills, she gives a beautiful structure to the family and protects the family with qualities like balance, restraint, and harmony. Children, family, relatives, and society, her participation is important in everything. But today maintaining personal identity is becoming more important, due to which the joy of relationships and the satisfaction of family ties is waning. Today, earning money is becoming so dominant that we are forgetting family and social systems.
Want to live a responsibility-free life… All the bonds are being broken in the name of development. Today's young generation seems to be drowning in the desire to live a free life like live-in-relationship. The idea of gay marriage is also emerging in some newspapers and magazines, which is a question mark for creativity. Thus, the influence of Western culture has shaken the very foundation of Indian marriage culture.
3. Increasing Prevalence of Inter-Caste Marriages: Today, a process of social disintegration has started due to inter-caste marriages. How will caste, religion, and clan religion be protected from mixed children due to these marriages? Will we be able to define our identity in the future by creating a mixed society? If attention is not given in time, then it is also a big challenge and it is necessary to think about it.
4. Marriages at Increasing Age: The age of marriage is being ignored in the pursuit of higher education and career. Today in the society, young men and women of thirty-five to forty years are not able to get married. Many families are suffering from this problem. It is necessary to solve it in time.
5. Rift in the Marriage: In present times, relationships are decided after a lot of inspection and testing. When marriages took place 40-50 years ago, there was not so much inspection and testing. Boys and girls neither had the freedom to meet before marriage nor to talk on the telephone. Parents used to decide the relationship. Still, there was no feeling of resentment or complaint against the new family, but the unbroken monotony in the marriage remained throughout life. Whereas for the last ten years, children keep meeting before marriage, enjoy picnics, parties, and also talk on mobile every day.
What it means to say is that marriages take place after fully understanding each other. But why does a marriage break down within a few weeks, months, or years? Whereas in Indian culture, many fasts and rituals are observed with full devotion for the longevity and safety of the husband. It would not be an exaggeration to even call husband and wife each other's protective shield because when needed, they also donate their organs to each other.
In the present environment, the following reasons are affecting married life –
1. Family Environment:- Due to the prevalence of nuclear families today, children are not getting a family environment. In nuclear families, both parents are busy earning money. In such a situation, such children are growing up alone or with the help of servants at home, due to which values are being eroded. Apart from this, the sense of ego is getting strengthened among educated women and the emotional base which has been their life force is being lost. Due to this, situations of conflict are arising in families, which is the cause of rift in marriages.
2. Employment-Oriented Education:- For career-oriented education, children are sent out of home to hostels at the age of 14-15 years. There they become accustomed to living an independent life. For this reason, they begin to feel uncomfortable with the constraints and responsibilities of married life. This is creating situations of conflict and tension in families. Employment-oriented education is certainly making children prosperous, but not cultured.
3. Increasing use of Mobile:- Today every person is spending more of his time on social media. Due to this, family harmony and love is coming to an end.
4. Indulgent Culture:- It is introducing children only to earning money. For this reason, life is flourishing in the circle of personal selfishness and narrow-mindedness. Negative thinking is increasing. Every person suffers from feelings of suffocation, despair, fear, and depression. Due to this, the rift is being created in relationships.
5. Lack of Positive Support from the In-Laws:- A few decades ago, parents used to advise their daughters to adjust to their in-laws' house. But in the current decade,1 the opposite ideology is emerging.
Anyway, what is the justification for divorce in a country blessed with unbroken good fortune and the practice of Kanyadaan? It is not in accordance with our culture to bring the daughter back to her home after Kanyadaan. We never take back donated items. We marry as per our culture but divorce as per foreign culture, what kind of irony is this? We are living as half partridge and half quail. Today the practice of divorce is emerging as a challenge. In Goa alone, 10-15 marriages break every 15 days. Therefore, as a social responsibility, the Registration Department has decided to conduct counselling sessions for couples 15 days before the marriage. Under this, couples will be made aware of their responsibilities towards each other, towards their in-laws, and their children so that they can get rid of this problem.
Food, Clothing and Customs: -
1. Food and Drink:- In these five years, our food, clothing, and customs are declining rapidly. Today our young generation is giving less importance to traditional and sattvic food. Their attraction towards hotel food and junk food is increasing. Keeping purity of thoughts and purity at the center, we have given importance to fresh and pure food. “Whatever food we eat, so will our mind, what water we drink, so will our speech.” But due to Western influence, we have started using stale and old food at home.
2. Dress:- Indian culture is a civilized, decent, and cultured culture. Our sages had determined our dress in a very scientific manner by keeping climate, health, and public shyness at the centre. But today western style clothing is becoming our choice.
3. Customs:- Our festivals, customs, and traditions introduce us to human values and sociality. Talking about customs and traditions, today the form of our main festivals Holi and Diwali is also shrinking. The trend of tourism is increasing during festivals. Today, in big societies, due to lack of time, the ritual of meeting is completed in half a day. Interest in other festivals is also waning. In the days of Gangaur, the festival lasted for 16 days whereas today it is completed in just half a day. Even after death, there is a provision of mourning for twelve days because the soul keeps roaming there, but nowadays mourning is lifted within three days by saying that it is a state of assimilation. For those ancestors under whose shadow our life flourished and flourished, do we not even have twelve days after their death to perform their last rites? This is an issue to consider.
4. Young Generation Moving Towards Addiction:- Today most of the young generation of the country is getting addicted to alcohol and drugs. This work is being done at speed and in a serial manner. If this is not stopped in the coming years, half of our population will not be able to live without drugs. This trend is increasing rapidly in cities but now even our villages and towns are not deprived of this climate. Not only alcohol, but the young generation is also becoming addicted to smack, heroin, cocaine, cigarettes, tobacco, gutkha, etc. The prevalence of bars and pubs is increasing. It has become like a fashion trend. Offering drinks at parties is considered a status symbol. There are many reasons behind this drug addiction. Today people are not able to live a balanced life. They are forced to live a mechanical life in competition for economic and material resources. The juice, joy, and enthusiasm of life are being taken away. To get free from this, he starts using intoxicants in search of momentary peace and tranquillity. Laborers and players start using drugs to increase their strength. Due to bad company, some people start feeling discouraged and inactive when many higher education youths do not get employment. In such a situation, people start using drugs for mental peace. Leave aside the issue of intoxication in our country, even tea and coffee were not prevalent here. In our culture, only milk, ghee, curd, buttermilk etc. were used. Alcohol was considered a demonic property. Only demonic people used it. The literal meaning of the word liquor is Sha-Sharab, Ra-Rashtra, Ba-Barbaadi i.e. the drink that destroys the body and the nation. We go to man-made temples. Then, keeping in mind all the decorum, we follow many rules, like do not consume alcohol, smoking and non-veg in the temple premises, but this body is also a temple built by God, so why don't we follow these rules. While doing this, naturally free yourself from all the vices and become a partner in building a beautiful family, society and nation. The young generation is the backbone of the society and nation. 26th June is a day to make the world aware against drug abuse and illegal trade by celebrating International Drug Abuse Day. Why don't we resolve to live a drug-free active life to strengthen the nation.
5. Increasing Trend of Old Age Homes:- Ashram systems were a must in ancient India. Under Vanaprastha Ashram, people voluntarily used to go to the ashrams of sages or go to the forest to do penance for self-improvement. Along with creation, there was a special system of immersion i.e. immersion in our culture. It would not be an exaggeration to say that foreign culture has contributed to the disintegration of our family and social systems. The old age home system is a gift of western culture. Indians have also started finding it inconsistent to be with their parents. They have also started considering their parents as a burden. In such a situation, they are neglected and despised and forced to leave their homes. In such a situation, they have to spend the last days of their lives taking shelter in old age homes, whereas the old age home system should only be a place of shelter for helpless, destitute or childless couples. Today people with good lineage and rich families are also reaching there. Indian culture and civilization proclaims Matri Devo Bhava, Pitru Devo Bhava, Acharya Devo Bhava, Atithi Devo Bhava. Ganeshji became the first revered deity by getting the results of revolving around the earth from the orbit of his parents. The divine darshan of Pandarinath in Pandarpur reminds us of service to our parents. Where parents, teachers and guests are considered gods, old age homes cannot even be imagined.
In our culture, it is said that serving elders increases life span, knowledge, fame, and strength.
Aged parents are our heritage. One gets protection and strength from elders. They expect only respect from you. This is also their right because they have sacrificed their entire youth for you. Today, when there is a loving and affectionate relationship between grandparents and children, then the children will have less chances of depression when they grow up. Parents are very helpful to you directly or indirectly. They contribute to the overall maintenance of your home and children's education. The atmosphere of your home remains positive due to the energy of their chanting, penance and meditation. The boundaries of the house are not violated. Due to his blessings there is happiness and peace in the family. Through their experiences you unknowingly become free from many troubles.
Shravan Kumar's fame became immortal due to his parents' devotion, service and blessings. In our country, there is not only a provision for serving the living parents, but there is also a provision for the funeral rites and Shraddha rites of the parents after their death. Not only this, after his death a trust is formed in his memory and he is honored with literary award and various service projects like hospital, school etc. are run for public service. Apart from this, three debts are also mentioned in our culture – Dev Debt, Pitra Debt and Rishi Debt. Just as we cannot be free without repaying the bank loan, similarly these three loans are equally important. One cannot take a loan without repaying it, but it is also considered a sin of ungratefulness. Therefore, the increasing prevalence of old age homes is a challenge for the society.
Message: - As a message, we should not let our parents go to old age homes. The name of the old age home will be changed to Vanaprastha Ashram, which will be in line with our culture
6. Gender Equality:- Efforts to make women equal to men in the name of gender equality are futile. It's like challenging God's work. Woman is considered nature. The universe is created only by the combination of nature and man. The nature, capabilities and physical structure of a woman are different from those of the three men. Both men and women have their own fundamental characteristics. In the name of gender equality, the uniqueness and originality of women is being reduced. Our country is dedicated to worshiping Gods and worshiping them. In our culture, all three forms of woman are worshipped, from child to mother. The little girl is worshiped considering her as the form of Kanya Durga. At the time of marriage, Lakshmi takes the form of Goddess Lakshmi and then the house entry ceremony is done assuming the form of Lakshmi. After becoming a mother, she is worshiped by her children. A man is worshiped only when he becomes a father. All three forms of woman are filled with truth, love and compassion. That's why in Durgasaptami it is said to do all good and good deeds. She is kind and compassionate, she is kind and helpful to everyone. It is the basis of creation of the entire universe. Therefore God has created woman by filling her with special qualities. In the words of Jaishankar Prasad-
Woman has been described as the source of nectar and the form of devotion. In Bhagavad Gita, Lord Shri Krishna selected only one best in his Vibhutiyoga, like moon among 27 constellations, spring among seasons but chose 7 specialties among women. Because He is the creator of the universe. The Shakti form of Durga Saptashati woman is worshipped. That's why we worship the Supreme Power in the name of every man. A man is addressed with the word Mr. Not only this, God is addressed by adding Shri before his name, for example, when we salute Shri Ram, Shri Krishna and God, then we do it with power - O Pranatpal Dayalprabhu Samyukt Shakti Namamahe.
Everyone should live in their privacy. The message of Srimad Bhagwat Geeta is – Swadharma nidhanam shreyaah, pardharmao bhakaasah. For example, the religion of a Kshatriya cannot be that of a Sanyasi. Women also have their own privacy. Today, due to encroachment of Sanatan tradition, the imbalance in the universe is increasing. The effort to make women equal to men has also been criticized by famous writer Mridula Sinha, columnist Gulabji Kothari and revered Sadhvi Ritambharaji. This effort will increase the situation of conflict in the society. Equality is talked about only in courts and clubs, at home it is about motherly love. Efforts should be made to enhance the natural qualities of women. There should be opportunities to develop those qualities.
Conclusion
Even before this, society has been facing problems or challenges from time to time like female illiteracy, child marriage, the purdah system, the dowry system, and female foeticide. But the problems have been solved due to the diligent efforts of our social reformers. Even today, due to the influence of Western climate, some problems are facing society like the mouth of Sursa. According to the Shrimad Bhagwat Mahapuran story, at the time of the churning of the ocean, both nectar and poison came out. What it means to say is that both good and evil come together. The same is mentioned in Ramayana - Sumati, Kumati are the lives of everyone, but we have to solve the challenges with our wisdom and try to protect and preserve the society. Will be able to protect and preserve social values and culture.
