Yes! I am a mother of a teenage son who has just turned 13 couple of months back.
Turning a teenager does not mean you are no longer sensitive, and you have run out of your emotions and feelings. The irony is that we have coloured teenage with so-called perceptions and observations without realising the fact that every age brings with it certain kind of emotional challenges and behavioural issues.
Every adult was once was a teenager and it is quite paradoxical that we tend to forget the same. We all project ourselves to be picture perfect in the outer world without working on our inner self. Emotional and mental hygiene is more important than the physical hygiene and strangely, we seldom work on the intrinsic world. We have been living in a society which measures success in terms of only materialistic goals and gains and sadly forgetting that real success lies in comforting and cajoling other beings. The real joy and purpose of the soul lies in helping and empowering each other rather than pulling down and criticising the other.
The reality is that we all are too engrossed in our daily lives that we seldom think about others. And it is a universal feature these days. We all face challenges whether physical, mental, emotional or financial. The most bizarre thing is we always look at one side of the coin and tend to overlook the other. Whether it is a man or a woman, they have their own sets of emotions, feelings and inhibitions. We cannot colour them in one hue and shape. We must be sensitive to each other’s psychological needs, emotional needs and physical attributes.
Women have been subjected to all kind of atrocities and subjugation's over the years but that does not mean every man is a perpetrator. History is a proof of the fact that many men whether dotting fathers, caring brothers and loving husbands or beloveds have stood thick and thin behind the women and had given them that respect and support. They have helped women come out of their cocoons and made them prove to the world of their mettle and caliber. And it is vice versa too.
I have fondest memories of my childhood where I and my school friends whether boys or girls had played together, fought together and ate together. While doing so we touched each other, hit each other and yes, many a times hugged each other. And the beautiful part of the story is that we all cherish those loving memories of our childhood and they are our most precious possessions.
But what are we doing with children is really sad. We are killing their innocence as well as sowing seeds of discontent and disparity in their young minds. Whether it is a girl or a boy, both have been subjected to physical abuse and sexual harassment. Neither of them have been spared by the age-old atrocities. So why to single out one. Being a boy does not mean that all the fault lies at one end only. It is very easy to pinpoint and raise fingers, but it takes courage, compassion and wisdom to understand the situation holistically and wholesomely.
The prophecy behind the ‘Good touch and the Bad touch’ was to educate children about the physical abuse being meted out to them by the adults and not to sow the seeds of discrimination among the young boys and girls. But the so-called pseudo intellectuals have made this a tool to sow a wedge between the young children.
Yes, boys face challenges too. They are sometimes widely misunderstood and misquoted. Being a boy does not mean that he is not vulnerable and cannot be hurt in the bargain. What we are actually doing is neither working on the apt solutions to the challenges and problems being faced by both the genders nor we are devising proper ways and means to groom and nurture them with profound education based on spiritual values and virtues. My intent is not to hurt anybody’s sentiments or create an issue for any controversy or dispute but to highlight the issue of gender sensitivity.
What we really need to learn is:
Targeting one gender always will not serve any purpose rather it would prove to be detrimental to the psyche of both the sexes.
Amicably handling the situation rather than sensationalising the issue should be the approach.
Real empowerment lies within. Children should be groomed and guided about the sex education by the parents at home.
Whether a boy or a girl, both need to be taught and made aware of the gender sensitivities and the corresponding responsibilities and sensibilities towards each other.
Both men and women are the co-travellers or the two wheels in the same chariot called life. Both need to be looked upon equally, treated equally and provided education equally.
People’s sensitivity towards both the gender need to be raised significantly. Whether #Me Too or #Men Too, both the movements need to be addressed intelligently and rationally.
Men and women have co-existed and cohabited together since ages. It is nothing new. We should be respectful towards the existence of each other and thus act, react and more significantly respond accordingly.
Hare Krishna!
About the Author
Dr. Gazal Chetan Bansal, Ph.D is a spiritual evangelist and a practical thinker. She is the founder and CEO of ‘Conscience Connect’ which aims to build up people holistically and wholesomely.
She holds Doctorate in Political Science and is an NLP Practitioner, a Pranic Psychotherapist, and an Arhatic Yogi. She is a Blogger and a prolific writer. She has co-authored and edited various books.
She writes to inspire people that deep contentment is the outcome of the passionate actions and courageous commitment towards compassion.
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