FAMILY CULTURE:
A NARROW OUTLOOK

Many people—and this is particularly so in the East—know only one sort of culture. This is what can be called ‘family culture.’ This ‘culture’ is about earning money and meeting the insatiable demands of family members. For many people, this is their only purpose in life.

The most significant damage this ‘family culture’ causes is severely narrowing people’s vision. Their interest and concern are limited just to their families. The only thing they think about is how to satisfy the material desires of their families. They do not ever consider it necessary to think beyond this. Not many will, for instance, spend time reading or meeting people other than their relatives, learning and intellectually benefiting from them. If they leave their homes, they generally go to their workplaces, entertain themselves, or shop. They have no interest in doing much else. Intellectual development is the farthest thing from their minds.

From the materialistic point of view, people stuck in the morass of this narrow ‘family culture’ might appear to lead a comfortable life, but they are victims of intellectual backwardness. If you try talking to them on any serious topic, you will immediately discover they have no intellectual depth. They know little if anything at all, of the realities of the world and the fundamental problems of life. They may look like humans, but they are just well-dressed animals. The foundation of family life should facilitate intellectual growth rather than becoming a constant obstacle to mental development.