Harmony Within the Family : หน้า 114/216

Part Four: Harmony Within the Family In Southeast Asia, it is routine that a family practices this before going to sleep. Parents would bring their children to pay respect to the grandparents every night. Then the grandparents would summarize all the good deeds they had done that day in a blessing for their grandchildren. In doing so, the children would be instilled with morals and would learn from their grandparents' virtues. Such acts transfer good deeds and virtues to the children as they learn about the Law of Kamma. The elderly represent the heart of the whole family. If their speech is not instilled with Dhamma, encouragement, or caution, then it would seem as if the family's heart had stopped functioning. At the same time, the family would not be united and the family's warmth would gradually fall away and come to an end. Children who understand the importance of a daily blessing by the elderly will be well acquainted with paying respect to parents and grandparents every night before bed. Nowadays, however, this routine has departed from most families; it has become a factor for family problems such as the increasing rate of divorce, the neglect of elderly parents, etc. In addition, some problems are caused by couples who separate themselves from their extended family to live apart. Family Day By Day 112 The Unconditional Love of Parents