Family is not just a social unit of a nation, it’s the ideal of every kind of collective activity. Aristotle called humans a social animal, qualified later by many thinkers as political and economic animal. But the ability to institutionalise relations is a unique attribute of the Humans. A few animals too socialise and hunt in herds but it’s more out of insecurity and other existential needs. Institutions of marriage and family have helped humans to regulate their biological, social, economic, cultural and even spiritual quest. In Bharatiya Sanskriti, family is not just limited to two or three vertical generations such as parents, children, and in some cases grandparents. Family is an extended relationship including the horizontal expansion of self-encompassing siblings of all the above three levels as well as from the side of the spouses. Hindu Undivided Family is even recognised by a person by law.
Ambience is most important for creating proper impressions (Sanskar) naturally, mostly unintentionally and unknowingly
Though with changing urban and economic realities, continuance of joint family with a common kitchen has become difficult, families have invented innovative ways to enrich relationships through remote engagements. Use of communication and social technologies in Bharatiya families have continued the emotional and cultural bond. Practices like family gatherings on some specific annual occasion such as festival, mostly related to the Kuladevata (Family deity), or birth anniversary of some senior family leader are common in most of the Bharatiyas. This is our way to preserve family in the challenging times. Most of us have multiple family groups on communication apps like WhatsApp or Telegram. These have helped in keeping emotional sharing alive. During pandemic, video conferencing applications like zoom, team and meet were used for these collective rituals.
Atmiyata (Oneness), Sneh (Affinity), Sahayog (Cooperation) and Tyaga (Renunciation) are the attributes that keep the family bonds thriving, at the same time, these values are blossomed in the next generation seamlessly. No formal or designed efforts are needed. Just normal behaviour in family inculcates these very noble and intense qualities effortlessly.
Family is the noblest of all the collective activity. Hence, every team strives to work like a family. Any organisation commercial, civil, cultural, educational or otherwise refers to the institution as a family — viz school family, colony family, factory family etc. This not just increases productivity, professionalism, achievement and shared sense of victory and responsibility of the team but promotes empathy, cooperation, complementarity and oneness. Hence, even in commercial establishments in Bharat, this family atmosphere is considered most effective.
Sociologists such as David Blankenhorn have been inferring after thorough research that broken families are the root cause of most of the evils of the modern western societies
Transformative efforts must start at this level. Social transformation will be artificial and superficial without enlightened families. Any positive reform that initiates in the family spreads organically in an impactful manner.
Most of the devotees started their spiritual, dharmik and social campaign by propagating simple actions to be practiced by the family. Thus, the Five-pronged Transformation (Panch-Parivartan) envisioned by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to commemorate centenary of its inception includes Family Enlightenment (Kutumba Prabodhan) as one of the five. It is also one the six permanent activities (Gatividhis) of the Sangh. Every branch (Shakha) strives to undertake periodic campaigns to enlighten the families of its Swayamsevaks and the neighbouring community.
The process of prabodhana is also continuous and natural like any family activity. Hence, instead of large confluences or celebrations, more close interactive brainstorming sessions are effective. Ambience is most important for creating proper impressions (Sanskar) naturally, mostly unintentionally and unknowingly. Hence, prabodhana activity expects very simple, easy to implement, frugal practices to be done collectively by the family. Things like dining together at least once a day, some kind of daily collective prayer or worship which even otherwise were practiced in the past by majority of the families are arrived at in the interactions. Consensus is most important for an enlightened family. Hence, nothing is to be forced but resolved by unanimous decisions. Families are encouraged to evolve a mechanism where all the members are involved in the family activities.
Renunciation germinates cooperation and ‘You First’ approach. The spirit of contribution needs to be inculcated from the very start. Families must perpetuate traditions of sacrifice, giving donations and contributions to the needy and deserving as a general practice and not something special. Periodic occasions like full moon, Pradosha, Ekadashi and special celebrations such as birthdays can be used for visiting service organisations or projects for doing physical and financial contributions. Logic has been dominant in the contemporary age in place of unquestioned faith (Shraddha).
Intellectual clarity about the dharma, traditions, rituals, practices and family functions is very essential for an open minded enquiry and experimentation. Some sort of weekly collective reading (Swadhyaya) followed by discussion can be a great help. Listening to digital discourses together is another modern option to reading.
Transformation is exponential. Working creatively and proactively in the circle of influence expands the power and impact. Imparting values in the individuals even when they are your own children is not easy. But the same becomes effortless and natural in a group. Hence, collecting impressionable minds in locality and engaging them in entertaining activities like games, storytelling, SuryaNamaskar, songs both devotional and patriotic is more effective form of value education.
All over the world there is a growing awareness in all the sensible minds that families must be revived. Many western countries have announced tax benefits for marriage survivals and procreation. Pope and all the religious leaders have been urging for saving and reviving families. Sociologists such as David Blankenhorn have been inferring after thorough research that broken families are the root cause of most of the evils of the modern western societies. In his book titled Fatherless America he enlists the perils of single parent families. The family has been the focus of discussion all over the world in its quest of a sustainable life. In Bharat, as narrated above, family relationships, psychological bonding and social interactions have been preserved creatively. The task before us is of conservation, restoration and institutionalisation according to the present times and needs.
In the Five-pronged Transformation, this one is foundational. All the other four — Environment friendly living, self-actualising practices, achieving social harmony and performing fundamental civic duties can be properly affected by an enlightened family. All cultural harvests are organic and unfold gradually in the congenial fertile fields of extended families. It’s fruition in the individuals as well as collectives like communities, societies and nations is also rooted in the enlightened, enriched and contributing families. Families are the expressways to the nectar of development together with culture (Sanskriti aur Samriddhi sath sath). Bharat has this eternal gift of family ideal to endow to the whole humanity and truly be the Vishwaguru.
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