Namaskar,
Nearly every day, in an unprecedented manner, we hear shocking news
about our teenagers committing heinous crimes: bullying, theft, murder
and more. This is most rampant now in the materialistic nations. Teens
regularly engage in bloody, deadly shootings in high schools and college
campuses, where teachers and students are indiscriminately killed. And
the attacks are becoming more gruesome and more prevalent.
What has experts and officials concerned is that such types of unruly
and ghastly incidents are becoming more common. Indeed, studies reveal
teen violence is at an unprecedented high. Especially in our so-called
advanced nations where youths are engaging in terribly destructive and
savage behaviour.
The questions naturally arise: How and why are such horrific tragedies
increasing? Why are children in “First-World” countries resorting to
such dastardly acts? These are a few of the burning questions of the
day. Side by side, our Revered Sadguru Baba has already addressed and
given the solution to these types of tragic social woes.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Fatherless child
Baba clearly unveils that an imbalanced or broken family severely
adversely affects the children’s growth and thrusts them into “a sea of
troubles”. And what was happening 8000 years ago, is again happening
now.
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "The male libertines would not take
responsibility for their offspring. They used to wander freely, and as a
result, the entire responsibility for raising the children in their
infancy would devolve on the mothers. But it was not possible for the
mothers alone to bear the responsibility of maintaining the children, as
a result of which many children died in early infancy. Those who
survived felt themselves to be in a sea of troubles after they were
weaned from their mother’s breast milk. Then they would be deprived of
their mother’s love, since she had to take care of the next baby. Those
were the days of the prehistoric humans." (1)
In His above guideline, Baba is graphically showing what happens when
the mother is unable to provide a proper environment for their child.
Specifically, when the father abandons the mother and child then the
mother is left to carry the full burden of rearing the child(ren) all by
herself. As a lone parent, she is unable to secure and provide the food
and spend ample time nurturing and loving the children. It is just not
possible to work all day and then raise the child as well.
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "It is extremely inconvenient and
difficult for her [the mother] to give her child all-round grooming [and
love] and make adequate provision for food, clothes, education and
medical care all by herself." (2)
The key missing ingredient is that when children are not given the
heartfelt love and attention that they need, then those kids have little
chance of ‘making it’ in the world. They may not physically die, but
internally there is a terrible void that casts a dark shadow on their
entire existence.
Libertine life: child harmed
Here following Baba points out how one of the key aspects needed for the
wholesome development of the child is motherly love and affection. And
that love cannot be fully provided in a child-care situation. It is just
not the same. And if that love is blatantly missing or absent – for
whatever reason – then the child’s emotional growth will be severely
hampered and stunted. They will lack those “sweeter and finer
sensibilities” that are unique to human existence and so very vital for
each and every person.
Ananda Marga philosophy states, "It was not easy to know the fathers of
children even in the case of the so-called householders, far less in
that of the libertines. Children would know only their mothers. And
after they were weaned, they would forget their mothers also. Thus being
deprived of motherly love and affection at a very early age, they had
no opportunity to develop the sweeter and finer sensibilities of the
human mind. The human mind, the human intellect, was nipped in the bud;
those people had no opportunity to blossom, to gladden the heart of the
world with their sweet joy." (3)
The overall message is that strong, cooperative parental involvement is
needed in raising a child. A certain physical and psychic base or
stability must be provided by the father and the mother should have
ample scope to shower her maternal love and compassion on the child.
These are the necessary ingredients and when they are missing then the
whole situation turns sour. In that case, the child cannot grow properly
and often their entire life ends up in disaster.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Child of “developed” & “undeveloped” nations
Nowadays in our so-called third and so-called first-world nations, there
is a blatant dichotomy – though admittedly this gap is fast decreasing
as materialism continues to spread its web-like grip throughout this
earth.
In general though, especially in places like east, mothers keep their
children nestled in their arms and under their close care throughout the
day. No doubt they may not be able to supply the child with huge
material wealth, but the children grow in an intact family surrounded by
caring parents and concerned grandparents and a number of aunts and
uncles. But first and foremost, the mother’s entire focus of life is on
the child and that yields a tremendously positive result. Internally,
the child feels nurtured and secure.
Sadly this family tradition is now slipping away as capitalism and
materialism sink deeper into the fabric of eastern society. Materialism
and lack of motherly love are the cause behind the ruination of the
family.
Emotional deficiency
Keeping this in mind, in some of our nations, the general tendency is
quite different. Divorce is rampant, often times both parents have
full-time jobs, and in some cases the parents just prefer their own
privacy away from their children. With these factors having a dominant
effect, there is now an entire generation of children coming into the
world who lack that most basic and fundamental human need: Love –
motherly love.
On the outside it may sometimes look like those children have
everything: a fancy house, all the technological games and gadgets, and
so many toys and gifts etc. But on the inside their heart is not
satisfied. Due to the pressure of circumstances or outright neglect,
they did not receive that loving compassion that is so much required for
their welfare.
In result, these children could not create a loving relationship with
others - all due to their own emotional deficiency. Because of years of
neglect or partial neglect, they have a disconnect with the greater
society. They do not look upon others with love and affection. The
results thereof are absolutely disastrous. As kids, this may not be so
apparent as those young children are still young. But as they grow and
interact with the world they become extremely harmful - they are
veritable threats to themselves & the greater society. They harass
their colleagues, elders, children, and the disabled and infirm.
Violent video games, movies, television, escalates
Putting such alienated persons in jail is not the proper answer either,
nor is a juvenile detention center. But because that is what is "easy"
to do, the so-called stewards of society ship these troubled persons to
such institutions.
So the situation is indeed grave. And it is compounded by modernity
wherein children are surrounded by violence that is glorified in the
form of video games, movies, television, novels and more. This leads
children to think of human life as negligible; even they lose the
demarcations between real and virtual. Top of all, lack of motherly love
is the chief problem for kids in materialistic countries. And as Baba
says, that casts them into a “sea of troubles”.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Lack of parental love it will escalate
That is why today we see children getting involved in an unending array
of cruel and unsightly behavior. In the recent past such incidents were
unheard of. So this is a new and developing phenomenon in the top
capitalist countries and other western “first-world” nations,.
For example, just in the recent days, weeks and months, teens across
North America have blown up schools, lit innocent classmates on fire
causing severe burns, murdered teachers, robbed the elderly, etc. These
are the common events. Indeed now there is an unending stream of teenage
crimes being committed – and they are crimes of the worst nature.
The response that most states are taking is to try these youths as
adults and put them in prison for years and years. (Note: In the some
countries, a life sentence means the entire life whereas throughout much
of the world a "life sentence" means 10 - 20 years.) But that is not
the solution. Rectification and reform time may certainly be necessary,
but a prolonged jail term is not nipping the problem in the bud. If we
do not address this core issue of a distinct lack of maternal and
parental love, the current problems will only escalate.
Child grows in neglect, loneliness or alienation
Overall, the situation of our youth is quite awful in many of our so
called first-world countries. But it is not solely limited to those
places. Because as Baba points out the problem begins and ends with
motherly love.
From a very early age it is absolutely imperative for the child to
constantly receive love and affection by having close contact with the
mother. Then and only then will the child develop properly emotionally.
Yet in many western households, the infant sleeps in their own room,
separate from their parents. In that case, the alienation starts at a
very young age. Only with an upsurge of love, will the child’s heart be
content and they will not become a burden on this earth.
But when the child grows with an empty or rejected feeling inside due to
being tossed aside by the parents, then this psychological void is not
easily fixed. For instance, when the children return home from primary
and middle school to an empty household, then they feel so lonely. And
this loneliness or alienation becomes a lifelong problem in which case
those children can do untold harm to others. Plus if they become parents
themselves then they will do the same mistreatment to their children.
So that negative cycle continues on and on.
At the present moment, there is a terrible crisis going on, especially
in our so called first-world countries where the conditions are
distinctly less favourable for our young. Step by step this is turning
into an epidemic.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Conclusion
This entire topic is extremely urgent to the well-being of any society. Here are some of the key points:
1. Certainly children need food, medical care, clothing and all the
minimum requirements, but those alone are not enough. Children also need
love and affection from both parents.
2. One parent alone is not enough. A child needs both a father and a
mother. In particular, Baba points out in His Yoga Psychology book that
females possess more sentimental quality - as that quality is less
present in males. This plays a huge role in the development of the child
- so long as the mother is not shackled by all kinds of existential
pressures: providing food, clothing, housing for the entire family etc.
So really both a father and mother are needed - as males bring to the
fold a more logical and stern approach that is needed for keeping
children in line, as well as financial means for raising the child.
3. Neo-humanistic education is needed wherein children can develop
genuine love for the society. If they get all their social skills from
Hollywood movies and video games, then that will be a purely negative
teaching. All kinds of benevolent human interactions are needed,
especially with the parents.
4. Incarceration is not the answer to childhood alienation and their
resultant crimes. Rather, all the missing pieces noted above need to be
instilled in the mind of that youth or kid. Then they can start to grow
and by Baba's grace overcome the difficulties.
With our heartfelt compassion we will bring the entire humanity into one neo-humanistic flow where all feel cared for and loved.
Ananda Vanii states, "Marching ahead is jiivan dharma (the
characteristic wont of life). To march ahead, carrying all, viewing the
world humanity as an integral entity, is the principal aspect of jiivan
dharma. Resolve courageously to observe this jiivan dharma…" (4)
Namaskar,
In Him,
Balakrsna Deva
~ In-depth study ~
Ananda Marga families around the globe
On the positive side, around the globe our Ananda Marga parents are
inculcating a greater and greater sense of neo-humanistic values into
their children’s lives and this obviously is having a beneficial
outcome. Plus with the growth of cooperatives and Master Units parents
have a better opportunity to spend more and more time with their
children– when their little ones are in the tender stage of infancy. So
by Baba’s grace we are seeing that fatherly support and motherly love
and affection that is so vital for the welfare of the child.
Women not confined to the home
Here no one should be left with the idea that women should remain at
home always and they are not to interact in the general society. Baba's
clear-cut guideline is that women can and should work outside the home
as needed.
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "I cannot support the “lofty wisdom” of
those people who advise women to spend their lives at home cooking with
appliances such as ladles, tongs and pots, because this runs counter to
reality." (5)
Ananda Marga Caryacarya says, "Generally it is desirable for women to
earn an honest livelihood remaining at home. If it is not possible to
maintain the family in this way, women may find employment in more
physically strenuous work such as government service, business, etc.,
outside the home. No one should be conservative or superstitious in this
regard." (6)
Yet under such circumstances, parents will have to take care and devote ample and sufficient time for the child.
http://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
References
1. Namah Shivaya Shantaya: Shivokti - 2
2. Human Society - 1, Social Justice
3. Namah Shivaya Shantaya: Shivokti - 2
4. A’nanda Va’nii #43
5. Human Society - 1, Social Justice
6. Caryacarya -1, Livelihood of Women
Ananda Marga ideology states, "In His drama there will always be new characters every moment. Some will be rich, some poor, some intelligent, some foolish, some stout, some thin, some black, some white – but all are the dramatis personae of His drama. The one who is playing the role of a king today and the one who is playing the role of a subject are all acting according to His direction. Those who are playing the roles of unhappy characters are standing on the theatrical stage and shedding tears, and those who are playing the roles of happy people are laughing. But all these tears and laughter are within the drama. A devotee well understands this secret of His drama. He who is playing the role of a king in the drama may be a poor man in real life, and at the end of the play he goes home and chews on dry crusts of bread. But in the drama he was a king."
"In fact, all the people in this universe are playing the roles allotted to them, but that does not mean that they will truly become that role – they will be as He wishes them to become. Each and every living being is the progeny of Parama Puruśa. All exist with Him, and ultimately they will all merge in Him. So no one should even belittle oneself. A drop of water and the entire quantity of water in the ocean are all the same water. The difference is only that one is very small in quantity and the other is vast. When the drop of water identifies itself with the ocean, then no one will call it a drop any longer – for it has become one with the ocean." (1)
1. Subhasita Samgraha - 11, What Are the Noble Truths?
