Responsibility Towards Parents

 

Photo Credit: WeHaveKids

Responsibility Towards Parents

With more and more young people entering the world of spirituality – many face the conflict of looking after aging parents vis-à-vis their desire to attend various spiritual programmes/camps. Some of these camps last for 8-10 days, and hence the conflict. Can we leave our parents to their own means and grow spiritually?

Our parents sacrifice a lot so that their children get the best of everything – education, culture, emotional and financial security and so on. We don’t realise this as time flies and we grow up to become parents in our own right. The modern generations have everything readymade and even then, they are faced with the question of finding time for their parents.

If children cared so much, then they could have ensured that their parents remain occupied and busy, they should spend quality time with them now, as they did with us when we were growing up.

Different people achieve different kinds of lifestyles in their life depending upon where they are, their capabilities, circumstances, family situations – a variety of aspects. But all those things matter only to a certain point in your life. After that, the inner dimension is the most important thing. If our parents have not realised that by themselves, it is definitely the duty of the children to remind them. Do we not think we have a responsibility in that direction? In fact, in Indian culture, it is the children’s duty to give liberation (mukti) to the parents. Maybe it is not culturally alive in many places, but it is important.

Is it not the responsibility of any adult to remind their parents, “There is another dimension to your life which you must address”? It is not that they should not eat well or do other things, but is it not important that we remind them? It is very important. Otherwise, we are failing as their child in a serious way.

We should decide what we should do or not do. It is just that, whatever it is in our life, if we think it is precious for us – not for somebody else – if we think this needs to be done, we must do it today, not tomorrow because tomorrow never comes, both within and outside. Anything that we feel is very precious and valuable for us, it must be done today, not tomorrow.