Religion was a disciplinary strategy for the young and impressionable used in the constructive moulding of a child to become a disciplined young adult. In a simple discussion are the examples of the early morning rise to offer jal, or the constant reminder to light a deeya at sunset. This conscious insistence on time management and awareness of time had the majority of those who practised it at an advantage. However, those whose parents lacked motivation to insist on such, are now complacent of their children’s haphazard activities that seem to lack discipline in every aspect.
No longer are children able to awake to attend temples on a Sunday morning. They are lazy in temple activities. They can never allot time out of their lives to contribute their talent or explore their talent in the first place. They deny themselves the fortune of tapping into their creativity and social interaction and instead engage in the time -consuming monopoly in their lives: technology.
An alternative is a choice of either studies and parents are to blame for dwindling crowds at religious institutions. They have made and continue to make education and their children’s pursuits an excuse for their lack of attendance and involvement. One such example transpired not too long ago, where a father insisted that he will bring his child to continue exploring his talent at beating the dholak. Instead, the father slacked off allowing the child to engage in alternative activities, and soon, the son started beating, but he was not beating the dholak, he was beating his father. On the other hand, there are households that can claim their temples as their second home and have become lawyers, doctors, and teachers and yet even in their own professions, they are at the beck and call of the temples they grew up in. This is a clarion call for the parents to adjust and parent a child accordingly and stop being their friends and subsequent scapegoats.
Parents have lost and lack the holistic development skills necessary to produce a well- rounded young adult. Now, employers complain of lazy workers, religious institutions lack participation, religious leaders lose the battle to myriad social network posts that bash morality and a statement for the betterment of a child is not a statement but an avenue to deconstruct and criticize. The world may not change the way we want it, but we can change our world. It must start with the family. The biological family, the extended or even the network we are immediately a part of. The Swaha family has always been a projection of open arms of sincerity. Embrace it and see the change you want to see in yourselves.
Pt. Vasistha Persad
