What is the obsession which rules young minds? In TV serials young girls and boys are seen spending their lives in match making. Is match-making the ultimate thing in human life?

If all our youth force is diverted towards creativity, the world can be a better place to live in

We generally look upon youth as the period of energy, dreams, and action. Youth is the time when young men build themselves up for a career and a successful life. Ideally, it is also the time for focusing on the potential that is concealed in men, and trying to work hard so that a young man/woman is able to bring out the best that is lying within him/her. For this they need a peaceful time, and concentration of mind, plus a highly motivating environment. It should not be forgotten that youth is the time when the foundation of a good life can be laid, and this is the period which cannot be fiddled with.  But the ground situation in our society is different, because as soon as a young man or a woman enters the adult age, the family thinks they must now get a job, and then, get married. Marriage often becomes the burial ground for youthful ambitions. Instead of high activism, our youth are trained by their parents, to spend it in match-making, fun and frolic and then, just rearing up children. Procreating is certainly a man’s duty prescribed by gods, but is that all?

As soon as young men get out of the parental fold, they move to educational institutions, which, in addition to education, offer them time for thrills, where they are not required to think deeply of life. After all, they come here to get degrees, which will enable them to earn their livelihood. I wonder if there is anyone who comes to a College for the sake of knowledge, or any higher pursuit like wisdom, self- realization, or an understanding of the world phenomenon. These things are not in the syllabus of the colleges. Teachers too are trained never to stray from the ‘straight path’ which means marks, position and competition, and the highest possible package.

The Larger Issue

If a student gets education, and then succeeds in getting a huge pay package, can we consider that the ends of human justice have been met? The bigger question here is: Is man made for himself alone? Or only for his family? Has he no higher calling?  Has he nothing to payback to society? To the earth from where he has sprung up? Who will connect these young men to the web of reality? Who will teach them what is existence?

I wish to underline the fact that the youth are not simply meant to get married and then bury themselves in rearing up kids. No doubt it is the preliminary job, but finally, as human beings, we have to see that our lives are dedicated to the greater good. This orientation has to come from somewhere.  A simple question that crops up is: why are young people so disoriented? So unfocused? So disinterested? And interested only in pleasurable activities.

Match-making

What is the obsession which rules young minds?  I often see Urdu serials in which young girls and boys are seen spending their lives in match making, and elderly women destroying the homes of their daughters and sons to satisfy their whims. It makes me wonder if match-making is the ultimate thing in human life. No doubt, God has created us with generative apparatus, which means we must procreate and have a new generation before we vacate. But is it the sole purpose for which we are here?  I have seen Punjabi movies also. Again the same passion rules. Canada. Marriage. Hook or Crook. What type of a society are living in?

Have we come here on this earth simply to find mates? Is there no other purpose in our lives? Young men do harbor dreams of bigness and huge pay packages, but there is another domain of life, of talent and sobriety which waits for young people.  It is the life of hard work, the life of dedication, the life of commitment, the life of pursuing dreams of creativity. Everyone has a certain potential. A bad marriage kills your initiative. You need a happy environment, a happy home, so that you could pursue your dreams, which need peace and concentration. Only then, you could create something. Discover something. Invent something.

It is not that the youth of today are not showing extraordinary brilliance. But how many are they? Hardly 5% of the youth power, which mostly goes waste in match-making and then, matrimonial disputes.

We need to refocus the lens and see life from a fresh perspective. The new perspective is that a young man needs to find out his latent powers. He must not run after match making. Girls, as soon as they become adult, parents push them into matrimony. They need time to develop their talent and society must ensure their safety. If all our youth force is diverted towards creativity, the world can be a better place to live in.

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Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"