Culture is the ‘mirror of society”. It reflects the basic traditions,
principles and the ‘sanskar’ of a society. It can be seen in the way a person
dresses up, the food he eats, the language he speaks,…etc.
Culture is based on human values that are developed by formal and informal education
imparted in society.
We Indians, belong to a country famous for being the richest
in its culture all over the world. Our country possesses a Vedic culture, which
is unique of its kind. We have inherited the traditions set by Lord Ram, Lord
Buddha, Mahavira and many other great
persons.
But, our country is entering the jet age, our cultural
heritage is facing a lot of distortion through the media— T.V., news papers,
magazines, etc.
So, why is a country so rich in its cultural heritage
witnessing such distortions? Why are we running towards the West, when our own
culture is the best?
Culture is following the trends set by our elders over the
years.Not to go far, let us start with the ‘family structure’. As
a child in a family grows, she/he automatically inherits and reflects the culture and ‘sanskar’ with which
he has been brought up.
Indian culture embodies a joint family system where children live together with their parents,
grandparents, uncles and aunts. Why has it become so rare now? Perhaps, everybody
wants an identity and independence for oneself; they forget that they are being
short-sighted.
How safe and secure does one feel in a joint family. How well
you can enjoy the festivities and things of life and at the same time how
easily can you lessen your sorrows and add to your joys.
Today’s Western culture which has entered the metros and big cities is making
an individual self centred. This is not our culture. Our culture has taught us
to be loving and caring towards elders and others.
Today’s generation is forgetting our rich culture little
realizing that they are training their children in their own way. How can you
expect your children to be loving and caring, when you have not done the same towards the elders! Today’s culture is just
not acceptable and one feel worried about the trends the present generation is setting to be followed by next
generations.
Why are the parents today insisting upon their children to
wish ‘Hello’ and ‘Hi’ instead of saying ‘Namaskar’ with folded hands? Why is touching
the feet considered backward? Why are the ‘bahus’ in a family asked to be
modern in their behaviour and attitude rather than being docile, cultured and
decent. Why is yoga being substituted with ‘aerobics’? Why is traditional
Indian food being substituted by ‘fast food’ and many more?
The answer to all the above questions is that we all are forgetting our culture and traditions and
blindly following the West.
The pity is that the West is tremendously attracted towards
our culture. We Indians are such that when they learnt ‘yoga’ and ‘meditation’
from us, we feel no shame in learning the same from foreign instructors.
We will realize our folly only when we will become westernized
and the West will find peace of mind by
following our culture.
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