I raised my daughter to be compassionate.
She grew up to inspire me with her indiscriminate jivdaya.

I raised my daughter to read, research, educate herself about the world.
She grew up to show me the truth about dairy.

I raised my daughter to update herself with updated knowledge, to confront past mistakes without defensiveness.
She grew up to teach me to be vegan.

Many people from my generation dismiss veganism as a new “trend”, new “defiance”.
As if our children either don’t understand or don’t appreciate our cultural traditions.

Doodh, dahi, chhaash, chaa — they are so important to our memories of a simpler time.
Veganism can feel like a challenge to the life and culture for which our hearts long with nostalgia.

In this nostalgia, we forget that we worked hard to make sure our children progress beyond us.
More skills, more opportunities, more sukh.
All our struggles, every obstacle, every sleepless night — so that they can move further than we ever could.

Jains of this young generation adopting veganism is the greatest fruit of our hard work.
Our children took their foundational sanskaar, saw and understood the world truthfully, and found this beautiful expression of their values.

And it is not only our responsibility but a great joy and privilege of our lives to follow in their footsteps.

Jai Jinendra