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THE WAY OF LIFE
mined by his or her birth in a family or lineage, marriages should be arranged between boys and girls who belong to the same level or lineage or family tradition.
Once in a city, a family of merchants had relationship with the royal family for two or three generations. The father and the grandfather of that family were ministers in the king's court. Even today, that family considers itself high and noble. When kingship ended, the position of minister also ended. A young man belonging to that family was studying in a college and at college, he became acquainted with a girl, also a student in the same college. This acquaintance in course of time led to intimacy and love; and he decided to marry the girl. The girl also belonged to the family of a merchant. But her family was a middle-class family in respect of financial status. Her family was not an affluent one; and no one in her family held any position of power in the past. But the young man thought only of the girl whom he loved and admired. He told his parents about his decision to marry the girl. At first, they did not give their consent to the marriage but finding that their son was determined to marry the girl, they gave their consent. The marriage took place. The girl came to her mother-in-law's house.
A few days passed and the mother-in-law began to give expression to her inner feelings in an effusive manner thus, "Look here, daughter-in-law ! This is not your father's house. We have relationship with the royal family for three generations. Ours is an aristocratic family. Aristocratic People visit us often. Therefore, you must learn to live in style here. You must learn the superior manners of the aristocratic life. Pay heed to what I say; will you ?" The mother-in-law kept saying similar things to her daughter-in-law, time and again. She used to say always, “Our family tradition is high and you belong to a lower level. Your father's family is a middle-class family but ours is an aristocrat family”. Off and on, the mother-in-law used to boast about the father and the grand father of the family who occupied high positions in the royal court and she used to give highly exaggerated accounts of their stature and dignity with the result that the daughter-in-law's feelings were hurt. Her self-respect was wounded. Sometimes, her husband also used to
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