The adage ‘Old is Gold’ makes its presence felt almost every decade–the application area, walk of life, industry, or the contextual experience in which it is acknowledged as relevant may differ, but the essence remains the same. The wisdom, the habits, the practices and the lifestyle that the older generations had, had some deeper significance or value to them.
Indian millennials, living in metro cities, employed in various types of jobs, are finding a distasteful feeling welling within them, which sometimes even make them question the sanity of life, and especially what is the worth of the money that they earn and eventually end up spending on their needs. Whether it is general health, estranged relationships, lack of purpose of life, the dissatisfaction continues to grow over time.
The question of giving back to society, being a responsible human being, doing something for the next generations is never entertained even in the wildest of dreams or serious discussions. I personally have lived such a life, which was attractive and unique at the beginning but began to lose its charm as the time passed.
In such a situation, I am reminded of five unique habits of older generations that the Indian millennials will find suitable for them too.
Using the Indian-style toilet seat
This is a unique habit because recently a lot of people have found out that squatting is beneficial than sitting while using the toilet. I remember I have heard the benefit of this toilet seat when I was around 5 years old and my father was telling it to a village tailor. I didn’t like it at that time because my mind could not accept the idea of talking about such things publicly. Moreover, I didn’t pay attention to my father and thought that he did not know what he was talking about. Later, I found out that even the Yoga community recommends it as they call it the ‘anti-chair-asana’. It is believed that the anorectal angle is straight when you squat while when you sit on a Western-style toilet seat, it bends at a 90-degree (approx.) angle causing blockage to the passage of stool.
Taking Along a Sack While Going for Shopping
Have you visited any mall or shopping center in the big cities? They usually charge for carry-bags. Further, the polyethylene bags are a huge threat to the environment and there is a rhetoric going on that we should reduce the usage of these bags (however, with little effect). Now go back to a time 25-30 years back. Did you parents carry a sack while going to the market or asking you fetch one as they let you come with them to shop for day-to-day supplies? Inherently, it saved them the extra money and also helped in maintaining the ecological balance.
Using Ayurvedic Herbs and Yoga Poses (Asanas)
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In the modern times, the allopathic treatments are indispensable. Yet, the need can be reduced by systematically applying some daily yoga practice and also including some ayurvedic herbs in the diet, which have medicinal values, thus reducing the chances of illness and maladies. ‘Dadi ma ke nuskhe,’ ‘Nani ma ke nuskhe,’ and the recipes of earlier generations are in high demand nowadays as it eliminates the negative side-effects of modern medicines, and give them achieve a wholesome mind-body-complex.
Using Bucket & Mug for Bathing
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via GIPHY
Water is the elixir of life–this can’t be truer than the present situation. I have read newspaper reports that people in metro cities had to buy mineral water bottles to take a bath before going to the office. Taking a sumptuous shower or relaxing in a bath-tub is a luxury people like to avail while visiting exotic destinations. The wastage of water is reduced if you use a bucket and a mug. You can also employ a couple of yoga postures while bathing with a bucket and a mug. For millennials, this is quite helpful because they get a limited water supply.
Sarkari Naukri
The salaries of the government jobs are almost at par with the private sector, and there are many other benefits associated with a Sarkari Naukri. I don’t deny that there is more freedom, and more opportunities for innovation are involved in a private job, yet a big section of Indian millennials are turning to secure government jobs because they feel that it allows them to have almost everything–ability to stay close to their native places, security of job, and better health prospects. I remember the older generation running madly for a government job but was never interested in pursuing one, yet I see a lot of professionals leaving lucrative jobs in big cities and competing for government jobs.
