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DISCOURSE 35
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arise, but when once they marry; and begin to live together, conflicts regarding styles of dress will arise.
There arose such violent quarrels between a husband and a wife that the husband got ready to commit suicide. The husband was an able advocate; he was an advocate in the Supreme Court. The wife used to insist that the husband should go to the Court dressed in a suit; but the advocate liked simplicity; and he wore only a pyjama and a shirt when he went to the court. She loved her husband greatly but the insistence also was great. Every day, she used to quarrel with her husband over that point. The advocate used to become agitated; and he too began to get angry with her. The situation became very serious; and the advocate was greatly upset mentally; and he began to contemplate suicide. Fortunately he came in contact with me; and I gave some advice to both and brought about an understanding between the two.
A certain girl belonging to a cultured and religious family, married a young man belonging to an affluent family. The girl was an embodiment of such virtues as modesty, decorum, politeness, discretion and ethical excellence. The young man who married her had, after completing his education in India, stayed abroad for two years obtaining higher education; and had returned to India. He had brought with him the distortions and artificialities of foreign manners and fashions. The girl also was a graduate but she was humble. She was very intelligent but reticent and extremely sparing in her speech. The young man thought that his wife should become completely "modern". He believed that modernity consisted in her discarding Indian dress; and in wearing foreign dress. He believed that she would become "modern" if she changed her hair-style and used such decorative devices as face-powder, lip-stick etc.
The young man said to his wife. "I do not at all like your dress and ornaments. I want you to accompany me to clubs, cinemas and parties. My friends come to those places with their wives. They ask me, “Why don't you bring your wife?” I have been giving evasive answers to them. Now, you give up your old-fashioned ways. If you want you can wear these old-fashioned
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