When we visited a temple recently, we were about to walk around the "navagrahas" and D asked this question:
D: "Shouldn't we do 8 rounds since Pluto is no longer a planet?"
Me: "No, we will do 9 rounds. I'll explain why"
After our temple visit, while driving back home, I explained to her how the "navagrahas" are not 9 planets, how they correlate with the days of the week, why there is no Neptune/Uranus equivalent in "navagrahas", what is Rahu/Ketu, etc. K then told her the story behind Rahu and Ketu.
After a few minutes, D said, "I think you both are also my grandparents as you are the ones telling me all these stories. I never heard them from my grandparents. I read in a book that grandparents tell such mythological stories".
I was a bit taken aback since those were the thoughts running through my mind for the past many years.
I'm currently reading Daaji's "The wisdom bridge". Fabulous read so far, with beautiful perspectives on parenting, coming from a grandfather with such wisdom and simplicity.
While reading this book, I felt quite emotional about how the Universe has given us the combined responsibilities of playing both parents and grandparents.
Daaji talks about the difference between the generation gap and the generation chasm.
"In a generation gap, the young ones think about life differently from the elders. But in a generational chasm, the elders and the young ones share no common ground, even in the food they eat or the shows they watch."
This chasm is wider in some families. If the generation gap between our grandparents and our parents was wide, then it ends up in a wider chasm for our children.
Daaji elaborates on the idea of a wisdom bridge:
"Generational wisdom flows from one generation to another......In a family, the elders, mainly the grandparents, carry the mantle of transferring generational wisdom. For this reason, I refer to our elders as living wisdom bridges."
If our parents were raised in a nuclear setup, then the generation gap is more widened and the wisdom bridge is already broken.
Thanks to the Information Age, we are now able to fix the pieces of wisdom bridge, provided we (parents) take this as a priority.
Be it - rituals, traditions, customs, values, habits, or routines, we take the time to communicate with our children and answer their questions of "Why should we do this", "Why not", and "What happens if we don't?" etc. We provide them with experiences that will trigger their curiosity - visit to monuments and places of historical significance, places of worship, talk about stories and characters, and involve them in festivals and rituals.
Parents of the current generation have a greater responsibility, especially if there is a generation chasm and a lack of access to the wisdom bridge.
"With great responsibility comes great power" - We have the potential to mold the minds of a young generation that not only has access to the wisdom bridge but can also make it stronger.