Taking today's (Sunday, Jan 6, 2013) post sermon remarks of Rev. Fr. Mathew Arackal, Vicar of Emmaus Parish, as an impetus, the contents of an email I sent this week is reproduced below. This was sent based on an appeal published in the media.
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To
Justice Usha Mehra Commission: usha.mehracommission@nic.in
Justice Verma Commission: justice.verma@nic.in
Your Honour,
I wish to place the following points for your valuable consideration:
1. Punishing criminals can at best give only a very marginal solution to the problem under view/review. Adult is like earthen ware but child is like CLAY. They can be formed, adult has to be REFORMED.
2. A radical change in education/formation & value system towards source reduction of sex-criminal minds appears overdue. Great effort is required since sex is one of the two strongest natural instincts.
3. FEAR in life is like SALT in curry. Since MORE salt spoils, no one goes for NO salt. More as well as less spoils. But unfortunately in the case of child rearing, since excess punishment gives adverse effect, society & government OPTED for NO PUNISHMENT. Now we are reaping hurricanes from the winds sowed earlier.
4. Women – motherhood – soft mind - over enthusiasm >>> over-pampering >>> creates wrong picture of women in boy-minds that women are demandable, command-able, conquerable, obeying, only a tool for enjoyment, may be taken for granted and … what not!
5. An adult whose each & every childhood demands had been SATISFIED unknowingly becomes
allergic & intolerant to the word NO or mood of DENIAL. He/she thinks that rest of the world is only to serve him/her!!!
6. http://bible.oremus.org/bible.cgi?ql=66421182
Discipline your children, and they will give you rest;
they will give delight to your heart.
Catch them young; “one stitch in time saves nine” says a proverb.
7. A Malayalam proverb says: Manure applied on fruit is of no use (Kathiril Valam Vechchathukont Kaaryamilla).
8. This does not imply that we may take a lenient view on punishing criminals. It is to be hardened, no doubt. But to bring up a good society MORAL INSTRUCTION MUST BE RE-INTRODUCED IN THE CURRICULUM WITH EQUAL IMPORTANCE AT PAR WITH SCIENTIFIC & TECHNICAL SUBJECTS.
A GENTLE ILLITERATE IS FAR BETTER THAN A ROG LITERATE.
9. Time is over-due to take a relook on child-rearing. A radical change appears to be imperative.
10. When Canada debated on banning child-punishment, an old lady commented in a TV discussion
“don’t you know the proverb: spare the cane and spoil the child”.
11. There is a MalayalaM proverb which can be translated approximately as: “If you have a single child, punish it with ULAKKA (ulakka is a 5foot long hard wood rod with iron coupling at either end used to de-husk paddy in olden days). This is a figure of speech but emphasizes the essentiality of child-punishment.
12. Another Malayalam proverb translates to: “Arica-nut can be kept in pocket, but not after grown to a tree”
13. Another proverb popular in Kerala is: adachchu veevichcha kuuttaanum adichchu valarththiya kuttiyumee nannaavuu. This means curry cooked in a closed vessel and child reared with (proper) punishment only will be good.
14. Another proverb popular in southern Kerala is: Odichchu valarththiya muringayum adichchu valarththiya kuttiyumee upakarikkyuu. Muringa is the drum-stick tree. It has a very fragile trunk and hence if it is not pruned periodically will grow tall and make harvesting impractical and tree uselesstree useless as well as dangerous.
15. A Malayalam poem translates approximately to: “Childhood habits will not be forgotten as long as alive; bitterness of Nuxvomica seed will not be reduced even if it is immersed in milk for ever”. (Cheruppa kaalamgalil ulla seelam, marakkumoo maanushan ulla kaalam, kaaraskkaraththin kuru paalil ittaal, kaalaamtharee kaippu samippathuntoo)
16. Bible, the book having maximum copies printed and used, says: A father who loves his son punishes him for his wrongs.
17. Bible also says: A good Grape farmer prunes his vines for better yield.
18. Bible further says: An untamed horse will always be stubborn.
19. http://bible.oremus.org/bible.cgi?ql=66475291
Do you have children? Discipline them, and make them obedient* from their youth. Do you have daughters? Be concerned for their chastity,*
and do not show yourself too indulgent with them.
20. http://bible.oremus.org/bible.cgi?ql=66475503
10 Keep strict watch over a headstrong daughter, or else, when she finds liberty, she will make use of it.
21. http://bible.oremus.org/bible.cgi?ql=66475728
18 Discipline your children while there is hope;
do not set your heart on their destruction.Y
22. http://bible.oremus.org/bible.cgi?ql=66482195
24 Those who spare the rod hate their children, but those who love them are diligent to discipline them.
23. http://bible.oremus.org/bible.cgi?ql=66482440
30 Blows that wound cleanse away evil; beatings make clean the innermost parts.
24. Children learn even while they are inside the womb, through the senses of mother.
25. Child psychology books say that child brain is like butter, for receiving information and like marble for forgetting. Loose talks and acts of adults in presence of children are learned by them VERBATIM. So is watching “Adults only” movies & porno in their presence..
26. It is well known that school going children of both-parents-employed family get more money, opportunity & time to indulge in undesirable activities.
I conclude for brevity.
E.M.George,M.Sc,
Former Scientist/Engineer ‘SF’,
VSSC-ISRO-Dept of Space.
