St Thomas Aquinas (1224-1274) and St John Bosco (1815-1888) on forming “Good Christians and Upright Citizens”

Obvious differences: Aquinas – born into a noble family in the castle of Aquino near Naples; received a privileged education as a Benedictine oblate in the Monastery of Monte Cassino; as an adolescent, studied philosophy in the Arts Faculty of the University of Naples under Peter of Ireland; as a young Dominican, studied theology in the University of Paris under Albert the Great, and continued his theological education with him in Cologne; returned to Paris to prepare to take up the chair of theology in the University of Paris as Master in Theology. Spent all his life in teaching and writing in the University of Paris, in the papal courts of Anagni and Orvieto, and in the Dominican House of studies at Rome.

Don Bosco – born into a very poor family at Castelnuovo d’Asti in Piedmont, orphaned of father at age 2; as a young boy, received an elementary education under Father Calosso; as an adolescent, continued his schooling at Chieri, and joined the Seminary at Chieri to study for the priesthood. After his ordination, spent three years at the Convitto Ecclesiastico in Turin under the guidance of Father Joseph Cafasso and Father John Borel. Spent all his priestly life and ministry in the education of poor boys in the Oratory of St Francis de Sales in Valdocco, Turin; founded the triple Salesian Family of SDB, FMA, and the Salesian Cooperators.

Some Common Affinities: period of great turmoil in several areas

Aquinas: In the University of Paris, the mendicant friars (Franciscans and Dominicans) were resented for having acquired two chairs each in the faculty of theology. The secular masters opposed their studies and teaching in the University and raised up a bitter polemic against them. Aquinas and Bonaventure gave their inaugural lectures in the University under armed escort. The entire works of Aristotle were translated into Latin, and began to be taught in the Arts Faculty of the University of Paris, notwithstanding papal prohibitions and attempts at expurgation of the writings. A bitter polemic rose up between the Augustinian-Franciscan school of thought, and the Aristotelico-Averroist teaching in the Faculty of Arts of the University. The doctrine of Aquinas inspired by Aristotle, but against the Averroist interpretation of Siger of Brabant, came under severe attack from the Augustinian-Franciscan school and the Averroist school. Aquinas had to face a battle on two fronts with peril of condemnation.

Don Bosco: political turmoil with the unification of Italy and the dissolution of the Papal States, with strong anticlerical sentiments, and laws that curtailed the freedom of the Church and restricted its rights. Economic and social unrest because of the initial industrial revolution, caused large-scale migration of the poor, especially of young people, from rural areas to the cities, with inadequate support systems, housing and sanitation, and increasing phenomenon of juvenile delinquency.

A Common Mission of Re-Evangelisation of Culture (Forming Good Christians…) and Social Engagement with Civil Society (… and Upright Citizens) through education

Aquinas: was the first to grasp the perils of the Averroist doctrine, and its dangers for the Christian faith. But he was also the first, through a sustained and critical study of Aristotle, to seize the opportunity of a much-needed correction of the Augustinian-Franciscan doctrine, and to rethink and to work out a profoundly original synthesis of Christian theology and philosophy. He laid the groundwork for a new re-evangelisation of culture with direct implications for a renewed social engagement with civil society.

Perils of the Averroist doctrine: the Averroist doctrine of the unicity of the human intellect (one intellect for all humankind) reduced the dignity of the human person to a glorified animal, and endangered personal moral responsibility, and personal immortality, leading to the risk of licentiousness in moral behaviour, and disruption of the social order and civic society.

Inadequacies of the Augustinian-Franciscan doctrine of the human person: this doctrine took its inspiration from the Platonic dualism of body and soul as two distinct and separate substances united together in action, with the consequent weakening of the unity and substantiality of the human person, and the cohesion of his sensible and intellectual powers. The Augustinian-Franciscan school of thought, with its insistence on inwardness and interiority, diminished the value of nature and natural causes at work in an interdependent world. Augustine’s preferred process of thought was from the exterior world to the interior world of the self, to the superior world of God. Bonaventure merely glanced at the world and saw present in it the shadows, vestiges, signs, and similitudes of God. The real world in itself was of no importance to him, except in as much as it was a pointer to God.

Aquinas’s profound rethinking of nature: with his original understanding of creation out of nothing as a gratuitous conferring of existence on things endowed with their proper natures and pursuing their proper perfections, and constituting the real world made up of interdependent, interactive and dynamic substances attaining their proper perfections. Because the world has issued from a super-intelligent God, the world is not chaotic but suffused with a thoroughgoing intelligibility, not just as signs and pointers, but as revealing the intelligent design and plan of God inscribed in their natures as rational principles and laws. Because of this, a scientific study of the world both in the macro and micro levels is possible and highly desirable.

Aquinas’s profound rethinking of human nature: with his total adherence to the hylomorphic structure of the human composite, he ensured the strict unity in one substance of body and soul as well as the personal immortality of the soul after death. He insisted that all knowledge begins from the senses, while emphasising that all true knowledge and all free choices project human beings to the Absolute. Human beings can attain the truth and the good with certainty, for which they are made, even though in a partial, progressive and never-ending manner. Because they are made for the Absolute, they are truly persons, with the dignity of being an end unto themselves, enjoying inalienable rights and corresponding responsibilities. This makes for a committed and sustained engagement with fellow human beings to create a humane civic society of justice, peace, and harmony among peoples.

A profound harmony of reason and faith: with his rethinking of nature and human nature, Aquinas brought about an original and complete synthesis of reason and faith, such that reason, employing its natural resources of investigation, opens up to the teachings of the Christian faith, and the Christian faith, rooted in the Divine Revelation, engenders and sustains human reason. The ensuing harmony of reason and faith embraced by Christians, results in a profound unification and equilibrium of the human personality, ensuring a well-balanced adherence to the whole of reality, giving meaning and significance to human life. This is the Christian humanism of Aquinas from which emerges a sanctity that promotes human values and inculcates the heroic practice of Christian virtues.

Don Bosco: he was the first to grasp the significance of his times at the threshold of the Industrial Revolution, and to see the need to help poor young men and women to face a new world and a new society, and to take their place in it as active and responsible contributors. He saw education as the key to the transformation of the human person, and the training to skilled work as the means to engage with society productively. At a time when his contemporaries, Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) were writing the Communist Manifesto, denouncing the evils of unbridled capitalism, and castigating religion as the opium of the people, Don Bosco was busy opening trade schools and technical centres preparing young people to enter the workforce to gain an honest livelihood. His most original synthesis of a new Christian education of young people for our times is the Oratory, which is a happy blend of education to the Christian faith, and education to life and the world of work, in a serene and joyful atmosphere conducive to holiness of life. This is the Christian humanism of St Francis de Sales, translated to cater to the needs of the young and their development. It gives full rein to their deepest desires and aspirations for growth to maturity as citizens of their country and at the same time, as citizens of heaven.

Aquinas, the Common Doctor of Humanity, and Don Bosco, the Father and Teacher of the Young, are two towering saints, separated by 600 years, but united in the one common mission of education and evangelisation, who understood the signs of the times, seized the moment of opportunity, and bequeathed to us an enduring and still relevant legacy of Christian humanism for the transformation of people.

St. Augustine's View of God

Augustine

            St. Augustine says “things of the world poured forth from God in two ways: intellectually into the minds of the angels and physically into the world of things.” Because of this search for what God is like take many turns and twists to understand it. St. Augustine in his later life tried to search for God and he was restless and determined to meet God. In his quest he struggled with himself to find the truth. In his early life St. Augustine did his philosophical studies, he read Socrates and Cicero and they made impact on his life. He spoke about being taught by the teacher and what it means to be a teacher. A teacher is one who has an idea of what truth is, the students with the help of teacher his words and philosophical understanding discovers the truth.  Augustine realized that this truth was within himself. In The Confessions he writes on varied topics, his autobiography, philosophy, and theology. Augustine received baptism only at the age of 32, before that he followed Manicheism (At its core, Manichaeism was a type of Gnosticism—a dualistic religion that offered salvation through special knowledge (gnosis) of spiritual truth. Like all forms of Gnosticism, Manichaeism taught that life in this world is unbearably painful and radically evil.), he lived by having recourse to pure reason and philosophical thoughts. Born and raised in Thagaste, his early studies trained him to devote him to intellectual pursuits, rather than pursuit of God. In his youth he was lost in principle of pleasure and fun but in his quest for truth and wisdom he left his vices. Augustine was passionate for philosophical truth, he learned doctrine of Manicheism and Neoplatonism. He also related Neoplatonic ideas with Catholic theology. At the age of 17 he took concubine and after 15 years she bore him a son Adeodatus. When he was studying in Thagaste he lost his best friend because of which he returned back to Carthage, at this time he became Manichee. When he was in Cathage he read Cicero which led him towards the search for wisdom and further his studies were driven towards it. Augustine, though reluctantly, pursued philosophy to its very limit, he learnt   that truth is not merely something we are given, but something we must also choose; this idea of his was very distinct from all other philosophers who were in search of truth. Once his son Adeodatus was discussing about problem of learning and teaching, he had heard, “man is only prompted by words in order that he may learn, and it is apparent that only a very small measure of speaker thought is expressed”. Augustine added that we learn “whether things are true” from him who dwells within us by grace. This inner truth was something that was independent of the teacher, and in a sense of the learner. Augustine as he was searching for the truth also taught as a teacher of rhetoric at Carthage. After meeting Faustus, a Manichee wise man, Augustine was ready to explore more truth. When Augustine read about Neoplatonism he replaced his Manichee beliefs. He was impressed by Neoplatonic solution to the problem of evil and also tried to see striking philosophical similarity to the Bible. The bishop of Milan Ambrose had strong influence on him. First Augustine had tried to relate Scripture and philosophy but he could not get at inner meaning of Scripture. Further when he accepted Scripture, he was happy to get the value of scripture only after philosophy as they gave him solid ground for what was yet to come.

In pursuit of truth and wisdom he had company of two young men, Alypius and Nebridius. They formed a philosophical circle to find out what they were discovering.  Three of them the young potential philosophers tried their best. St. Augustine from his nineteenth to his thirtieth year, was searching for the truth but had not yet reached. Thinking his immoral life as hindrance to his pursuit he changed his life. In his philosophical discussion when he meet Platonists, their ideas brought him to reflect about God, evil, and transcendent being. He realized to seek after higher way than philosophy. When in agony of deciding what to do in his attempt to search the truth he heard a voice which told him to “take and read”. He read from the Apostle’s text passage from the Letter to the Romans: “not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying; but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lust thereof”. Of all the classical young men, potential philosophers, who sought the truth, Augustine perhaps was the first to stress that this same truth must also be chosen. Not only by philosophical intervention but also by grace. Augustine was a true follower of Socrates in knowing himself. He was clear that, truth we must look for is a truth we do not make. Augustine addressed many philosophers and Socrates who were in search of truth that their quest was not wasted. Socrates at last defined that he did not know and he knew that he did not know. Augustine taught differently he was clear of what he knew about himself; even what he didn’t know about himself but by the light of what he knew and by that light of God his darkness was enlightened.   

Reflection

            What is God like? This book tries to describe God and our understanding to meet him in our life. The writer tries to explain God, about God by our ordinary experiences that we experience in our lives. The book speaks about meeting the personality of God by describing different examples of mystics, intellectuals and Christian models who have encountered God at different degrees in their lives. James Schall describes how we meet God in different situations of our life, in frailty in laughter and in our friendship. Not everyone gets to know about God with the help of intellectual truths. As God wants everyone to be saved He meets us wherever we are. God meets us in our personal experience which is at the core of our being. By the mutual search between us and God, we encounter each other and then we truly understand what God is like. God would also directly tell us His true self. But, God takes the risk of our refusal and by His grace He works in our life to make us realize His importance and his need for us. By this we get the idea of what God is like. We are given intelligence to understand rightly about relation between God, world, evil and ourselves. All this is fulfilled by the “Word that was made flesh”. The Incarnation guides to know what God is like. The reflection in the book ends with Augustine whose life – with Monica, Alypius, Nebridius, Adeodatus, and Ambrose – was in fact a response to God’s search for him. His restless heart sought the truth and when he found it, he changed his life for that truth. The story of Augustine tells us that we might see that even in frailty and in our sin God is there, not just redeeming the sinner, but through this redeeming teaching him, he taught us. 

And the Mountains Echoed - Book Review

NARRATIVE OVERVIEW

Khaled Hosseini’s powerful narrative of separation, power, love and life leaves one stunned and awestruck at the beauty of the many intertwined stories. The story revolves around the powerful relationship between a brother and his sister - young Abdullah and Pari. Their mother died while giving birth to Pari and their father remarries Parwana who bears him a son. This forces Abdullah to become a mother to his sister creating an unbreakable bond between them, which will have to face the test of time and distance. Their uncle, Nabi works for a rich gentleman in Kabul. He regularly comes to see them in the village. He invites them to Kabul for a tour of the city. This seemingly innocent trip turns into a nightmare when Abdullah and Pari are separated. Pari is ‘taken in’ by Mr. Wahdati and his wife – Nila. The story then shifts to Mr. Wahdati’s new family. All seems to be going well but their perfect life is disrupted when Mr. Wahdati has a stroke, which leaves him paralyzed. Nila leaves him with Pari and settles in Paris. In France, Pari grows up in a new culture and struggles with her identity and history. The storyline then shifts to America, where Abdullah had emigrated after the war displaced them from their village. He has a daughter who he named Pari in remembrance of his lost sister. She manages to reunite the long separated brother and sister, but will they recognize and recapture their lost relationship? The author stuns us with a seat-gripping answer. We also see the story of two brothers who fled the war and return to claim some land. We realize the struggle they face when confronted with the reality of their broken country and traumatized fellow citizens. The author also shows us the heroic work humanitarian groups are doing for Afghanistan with the story of Markos who works as a Plastic Surgeon, helping people who have been disfigured after the war. At the end, he ties up all the stories superbly and teaches us many valuable lessons.

REFLECTIONS

RELATIONSHIPS

Abdullah’s and Pari’s separation is complemented with a variety of other relationships giving us an overview of the dynamics of various relationships and how they can help or hurt the person. For example, Pari’s relationship with her brother was one of total trust and confidence. She knew that he would do anything for her and he actually did that. He loved her with a pure and divine love. This shaped her life in a huge way. After the separation, when she grew up she always felt a presence missing in her life. This surely can be traced back to the strong relationship she had with her brother when she was young.

We also see the strength of the relationship between Nabi (Pari’s uncle) and his employer, Mr. Wahdati. Nabi is grateful to his boss for having given him the job and learns to accept and live with the many eccentricities of Mr. Wahdati. He does his job well and Mr. Wahdati does not give him a hard time. After Mr. Wahdati gets a stroke and becomes paralyzed, His wife Nila leaves him with Pari. It is now that Nabi shows his loyalty by sticking by his master’s side during this difficult period. The relationship of ‘Master-servant’ transforms to one of ‘Father-Son’. Nabi becomes more than a friend to his employer; he becomes his son. This transformation is certainly surprising and shows a selfless attitude on Nabi’s part. What is even more surprising is the fact that after Nabi discovers that his master is homosexual and has feelings for him; he continues to behave normally with him. This fact does not change anything in their relationship but actually strengthens it because Nabi, rather than judging Mr. Wahdati, understands him and grows closer to him. In the end when Mr. Wahdati passes away, Nabi is shocked to find that he has inherited all the property, which his employer owned.

MAKING CHOICES

The book starts with Abdullah choosing to follow his father and sister to Kabul and staying fixed in his choice. Though his father is trying to dissuade Abdullah from following them, but he will not be shaken. Nothing can separate him from his beloved sister. But when they arrive in Kabul and meet their uncle Nabi, little did they know the choice he had made. He had chosen Pari to be his mistress’ new child. Since she was not able to conceive naturally, Nabi recommended adoption. He approached his brother and told him all about it. Her father also chose to give Pari up for a payment. These series of choices and decisions made a huge impact in the life of little Pari. She was not aware of all that was going on but it affected her on a deeper level.

We also see what Nabi chooses when he has to decide between remaining as a servant or leaving his master after his master suffers a stroke. We see Nila making a choice of leaving her husband after he becomes paralyzed. In this book, we understand that one has to make hard choices in one’s life. What influences these choices are not the concern but that in life choices are to be made. Once they are made, one has to learn to live with them. Whatever the consequences of one’s choice are and however hard the effects of the choice are; one has to live with it. Since one cannot change the choices in one’s life, we must be aware while making big and small decisions. Understanding that all our choices, however small make a difference in our life and in the lives of others is essential to making good choices.

EFFECTS OF THE WAR

The war in Afghanistan displaced thousands of people and the beautiful village of Abdullah and Pari is not spared. Abdullah and his family become refugees and they flee to Pakistan. We are given an example in the book that shows us how easily the country forgets its people in the name of development. It is the story of Aziz, whose father is a rich executive who helps the needy and solves the problems of the ordinary man. But he has bought the entire village at dirt-cheap prices since the war was ongoing and now he runs an orchid farm on it. When Ghaloum comes with his father to reclaim their village land, he is shocked to find his house demolished and see fruit trees in its place. When they approach Aziz’s father to ask for their land back, they are rudely refused and ignored. They are now made paupers and have to do small jobs while they can settle down and rebuild their life again. Aziz and Ghaloum strike an unlikely friendship and they bond over football and secret cigarettes. But when Ghaloum reveals his unfortunate story to his friend, Aziz loses faith in his whole life starting from his father. Aziz goes through an identity crisis and understands that the world is unfair.

We also see through Ghaloum the horrific state of refugee camps. This reality forces children like him to grow up much more quickly than a normal child. The effects of a war are very devastating. We see the far reaching effects that it has on the psyche of people. Awareness of the problems allows us to help these people if we come across them. The feelings of compassion and empathy that the novel evokes should lead us to helping out in real life. Once that is achieved, real good is done through novels like this.

SEXUALITY

The author pushes into new areas of sexuality, at least for the novels initial place. We see this in the fact of Mr. Wahdati being homosexual. Is the author trying to send a subtle message to the audience, especially conservative Afghanistanis? He says that perhaps he was born in the wrong age, the wrong culture or both. This presents Mr. Wahdati as a trapped and misunderstood person. This explains the reasons for his eccentric character.

We also see on the opposite side his wife Nila. She is an extroverted and extremely sociable person. She has affairs and is a ‘loose cannon’. We see the contrast presented very visibly with Nabi –their servant observing them closely.

CONCLUSION

The book is a wonderful read; the language is clear and easy to follow. The author is creative with the form of writing. To break the monotony of narration, he uses letters, interviews and stories within stories to engage us. The chapters are not placed according to a logical flow giving the reader a puzzled but curious feeling. Though the chapters don’t flow into each other, there is a connection which is up to the reader to make. Ultimately an engaging read, ‘And the Mountains Echoed’ leaves the reader satisfied yet thirsting for more. Read and enjoy it for yourself.

Alfred Menezes 

Choose your Side

In the past few years we have witnessed an exodus of young people leaving their real homes and families, venturing into mysterious lands, fighting malevolent forces and displaying untold bravery. This isn’t the story of a soldier leaving home but of any young person, leaving the real world in pursuit of happiness in video games. However many scientists, educationists, philosophers, researchers etc. have been unable to explain why such a phenomenon has occurred. What is the reason that people have been so taken up by these pseudo realistic worlds that they spend hours before them, full of motivation, and keep playing them?

Gaming, as the term is commonly used, has its values and vices. Video Games have been, reportedly, accused of being the cause of infusing criminal behaviour in young minds. This claim isn’t built on a firm foundation, though there has been an observed increase in belligerence seen in those playing violent games. However scientists have shown how certain games have helped increase the ability to make good decisions. Fast paced, strategic, decision-making genre related games have shown not only better ability to grasp the situation and decide but also an improvement between the hand-eye coordination. Certain games like Minecraft or Hand Simulator have helped youngsters increase their ability to pay attention because such games need an intense amount of focus in order to get the tasks completed. Moreover, it has been observed that games give the gamer, a certain boost while playing them, a release of Endorphin. The Gamer takes on the role of a protagonist in the game and goes on adventures that he or she would never find or dare to undertake. The rewards, unlike in real world underpaid rewards, goes on becoming better; maybe an enhancement of their avatar or a new ability to be used. Games like the Assassins Creed series, Halo, Splinter Cell, etc. let us play as iconic characters, through an intense mission, maybe set in a historic event ( or not ) that is not only informative but mind enhancing.

However there have been many instances where people have died while playing a game. Far worse are occasions when people carry on being their virtual avatar in the real world. This causes a huge catastrophe for the society. For the sake of privacy issues I will cite instances with anonymity . Several Youngsters have committed suicide due to a very sadistic and manipulative game called Blue Whale.  The game is based on the design of a real Blue Whale that is found to come on the shore and die. The creator of the game talks of cleansing the world of those who are weak and don’t deserve to live; his target group being those suffering from depression and its severe forms. The game is built to manipulate the player to slowly complete a certain set of tasks, the last being killing oneself. In 2010, a married South Korean couple unfortunately gave birth to a premature child and fearing the taboo of the culture, took to the internet to play Prius Online, a simulator game where they had a virtual baby to look after. In the bargain they forgot their real child which died due to malnutrition. There have been cases of people playing games for long hours, even 40 hours for some and dying due to exhaustion. Tyrone Spellman was jailed for 47 years as he cracked his daughter’s skull for pulling out his XBOX cards of the console. A 71-year-old man named Jack and his 30-year-old son Jackson were accused of brutally attacking another man during a Pokemon Go hunt in Kirkwood.

When we see the negative side of video games we tend to see an imbalance between the positive and the negative (the negative having more strength).  However we cannot forget that games are not always evil. Our choices are; there are games intended to destroy and there are games intended to build. Each game has its own ideology, background work, its own story for its creation. We are the ones on whom the

responsibility to choose the game correctly and play with maturity falls on. We must, while playing games, understand, assimilate, and respond to every situation thrown to us. This helps us use games for the right reasons. Excessive game-play is hazardous and so playing for a limited time while doing some work which is society-building is always appreciated. Understanding ones virtual self in the virtual world helps one realise who one truly is in reality and this helps one to accept oneself as being unique and essential. At the same time we need games that can help us understand reality better. It is these games that will help us enrich our reality in ways we would have never thought of.

-RohanD’souza

Youth Caught Up In Streets

Today the number of young people roaming  the streets has grown alarmingly. They find themselves in the busy streets and market places. Streets have turned into their homes which hardly provide them with the means for survival. It has become for them the order of the day to go to the busy streets and pick up scraps to sustain themselves. Some turn out to be rag pickers and live from ‘hand to mouth’, while some engage themselves in  other ways of survival which society does not approve. Others take to petty thievery and create chaos and fears to the passers-by. Survival is all that matters for them. Robbing and looting have become the fashion of their lives. In some cases, such behaviour has proved to be fatal to the lives of the people. For this reason many end up in juvenile homes.  

Causes of their plight

There are many reasons that force youn

g people to move to the streets. For the most part it is poverty that proves to be the driving force. Among the village folks and the city slum dwellers it is natural to have a large family. However, the fact is that a large family cannot afford the needs of all the family members. Therefore, an individual usually goes to the streets to sustain himself or herself, his or her family. In city slums especially there are no means of survival unless one is hired to do the menial jobs.

Family atrocity is another cause that forces young people to move to urban cities hoping for better life. It includes forms of harassments such as beating, starvation, abusive language and even threats to one’s life. Orphans are usually treated badly by their step-parents. Young people who look for independence cannot bear up with atrocities towards them especially within the family circle. This is why they move out into the streets. However, unqualified for better job employments, they mess up their lives in the streets with bad company. Some even take to addictions and  substance abuse. For this reason often society tends to look down on them.

Young people in the streets seem to have lost their dignity in the eyes of the public which is never true. Even in the face of rejection and discrimination they long for a better life and they want to come out of their misery. Deep within them, wrapped in their faces, they cry out for help and support which individuals and society as a whole could help lightening their burden.

 Johny Lamare

Overburndened Youth

Overburndened Youth 

Ambrose Monteiro SDB

Ramanuja Jadhav, aged 24 is pursuing his studies of Commerce and comes from a humble background. To continue his studies, he is forced to work in a restaurant as a part time waiter. His salary helps him to make ends meet and ensure that he can continue dreaming to become a learned person.

              It is widely believed that the most energetic age-group award (if it ever would be!) would always, undoubtedly go to the Youth, thanks to their soaring energy levels. Youngsters often seek opportunities to prove themselves as responsible adults. They are constantly in search of identity and meaning in life.

But how much heat and pressure can they possibly bear in the process? There is always a tipping point for everything. It is very common today that people, especially the youth, are overburdened in order to yield as much profit as possible.

The Agony of Students: In a college setup, youngsters are seen running around trying to complete assignments and meet deadlines, not to forget the daily household duties which they already have. All of this slaughter is coolly termed as “Preparation for the Future.” It becomes very easy for the professors to tell and delegate assignments but at times it is just too much. Another phenomenon in today’s academics is the pressure of competitive examinations for which students prepare for months and in the bargain are stressed and lose quality family time. They lose leisure and games time ‘coz they have to fulfill the expectations of their parents and teachers. They surely have no time to lose!

The Office Rat-race: At office, young employees are often picked upon and are considered as cheap labour. A lot of work is pushed their way because they have not yet learnt the ‘tricks of the trade.’ They come to office early but often leave quite late. And in terms of payment they are paid less because of their lack of experience. All these things lead or I should say, push them into the rat race. And when they become ‘Bosses,’ the track is just replayed!

Where to Head? : With these and so many other trends, which do no good other than overburdening the youth. There is a need to ‘pull the chain’ somewhere. The agony of these youngsters needs to be understood and relieved. The need of the hour is to strike a healthy balance between healthy pressure, something that is needed for proper growth and leisure time.

Fear of Responsibilities

Fear of Responsibilities

Gaurav Sansare SDB

“Eat, drink and be merry”, this concept of the Charvakas, has been playing on the minds of many youngsters. Living the life in view of monentary gain, pleasure and fun has made the young people become ‘I-centered’.

Today’s youngsters are living by the principle of pleasure and fun and most of the basic values from our culture and families are gradually losing its place. Youngsters are seeking for freedom, as if it were there inherit right, but when it is separated from responsibility, there is danger awaiting us. Some youngsters choose to live without taking any responsibilities, eg: a child who has seen his family suffering, and has never experienced the love and care in the family, thinks that life gives pain and this leads them to abandon the truth of taking responsibilities. For them the thought of having their own family becomes a lie that they must be wary of.

Everyone seeks for true happiness, and they seek it only in freedom. They fail to take into consideration the role of responsibility because of some event in their personal and known experiences. This understanding comes from the wrong notion that they get from today’s media and modern society. For example, those youth who are in search of love, get the impression, that love is just for their personal pleasure and nothing else. The mentality of this age, has lead the youngsters towards an illusionary world.