Generation Gap
39
Questioner : If we scold our children for their own sake,
are we committing a sin (paap)?
Dadashri : No, you are actually binding merit karma
(punya). If you scold your child, or even beat your child for his
own good, you bind punya. That anger binds punya, because it is
for the welfare of the child. If it were a sin to do so, then none of
these religious teachers and ascetics would attain liberation. A
guru that continually reproaches his disciples binds merit karma,
because his intentions are good and he has their best interest at
heart. According to the Lord there is no injustice. It is only sinful
when one becomes angry for selfish gains. How beautiful and
precise is nature’s justice! This justice is the foundation for one’s
ideal duties and obligations.
When you scold or beat your child for his own benefit, you
bind merit karma, but when you do it with a belief that you are his
father and that he needs beating and you assume the role of a
father, then you will bind demerit karma (paap).
Questioner : The father may get annoyed but what if the
son also gets annoyed in response?
Dadashri : Then the son binds demerit karma. In the kramic
path,the traditional spiritual path, if the Gnani Purush were to
become annoyed with his disciple, he would bind the greatest of
merit karma. This merit karma is called punyanubandhi punya
(good karma which leads to greater good karma). His annoyance
is not in vain. These are not his children, he has nothing to do with
them and yet he is concerned about their welfare and so he scolds
them.
Here we do not reprimand anyone at all. When children
are reprimanded, they will not tell the truth and they will learn to
hide things. This is how deception arises in the world. There is no