Love You Daughter

"Love You Daughter" by Priyam, published by Ashapuran Parshwanath Jain Gyanbhandar, is a comprehensive guide for daughters aimed at their holistic development and well-being. The book, spanning 376 pages, was published in 2018 (Samvat 2074). It is presented as a life course for daughters, designed to provide them with invaluable knowledge for their lives, making their future bright and ensuring their happiness.

The book is structured with an index covering a wide range of topics crucial for a woman's life and personal growth, presented as essential "secrets" and life skills. Key areas covered include:

• "The Mountain of the Gifts": This section celebrates the immense value and multifaceted qualities of a daughter, using poetic language to describe her significance in family and society.
• Diet: A detailed discussion on nutrition, covering "Why?", "When?", "What?", and "How?" to eat, emphasizing the importance of mindful eating, fresh food, and avoiding processed or unhealthy items. It delves into the impact of food on physical and mental well-being, referencing traditional Indian and Ayurvedic principles.
• Make-Up: Beyond external beauty, this section highlights the importance of inner beauty and virtues. It cautions against the harmful effects of animal-tested products and encourages natural beauty.
• Dress: Discusses the significance of appropriate attire, emphasizing modesty and cultural appropriateness over fleeting fashion trends, and warning against the negative consequences of revealing or immodest clothing.
• Logic: Explores the development of reasoning skills, the importance of respecting elders' opinions, and the potential pitfalls of misinterpreting or dismissing advice based on a superficial understanding.
• Modesty: Focuses on virtues like humility, respect for elders, gratitude, and the power of silent contemplation. It emphasizes the importance of traditional values and the positive impact of a respectful demeanor.
• Speech: Guides on the art of speaking, advocating for sweet, smart, purposeful, ego-free, and thoughtful communication, stressing the impact of words and the power of silence.
• Society: Addresses the challenges and realities of navigating societal expectations, the importance of maintaining one's character and reputation, and the role of family and community in providing support and security. It critiques the negative influences of modern media and societal trends.
• Character: Defines true character as the foundation of a successful life, especially a happy married life, and warns against prioritizing material success over moral integrity.
• 11 Secrets: Offers practical advice and principles for protecting one's character and maintaining purity, covering aspects like avoiding solitude, engaging in wholesome reading, listening to constructive advice, virtuous conduct, pure diet and dress, modesty, prayer, righteous actions, righteous surrender, and righteous industriousness.
• Earning: Discusses the complexities of women earning, weighing the benefits of financial independence against the potential compromises to family life and personal well-being. It advocates for a balanced approach, prioritizing family harmony and personal values.
• Engagement: Provides guidance on choosing a life partner, emphasizing the importance of shared values, family background, and traditional wisdom over superficial attractions like wealth or looks. It critiques modern trends that lead to failed marriages and advises careful consideration.
• Family: Highlights the invaluable benefits of a joint family system, emphasizing unity, mutual support, and the transmission of values from one generation to the next. It contrasts this with the loneliness and insecurity often found in fragmented families.
• Home: Defines home not just as a physical structure but as a place of love, belonging, understanding, and sacrifice, where the woman, as the homemaker, plays a central role in creating a harmonious environment.
• Art: Focuses on the "Art of Living," emphasizing skills that promote happiness and well-being without causing harm to others, such as adaptability, empathy, and the ability to let go.
• Wifehood: Explores the ideal qualities of a wife, drawing from ancient Indian traditions and figures like Draupadi and Sita, highlighting devotion, sacrifice, respect for husband and family, and maintaining one's femininity.
• Freedom: Discusses the true meaning of freedom, distinguishing it from license or promiscuity, and stressing the importance of self-control, discipline, and adherence to societal norms for a woman's safety and well-being.
• Equality: Addresses the concept of equality between men and women, arguing for distinct roles based on natural attributes rather than a forced sameness, and emphasizing the importance of complementarity.
• Parenting: Offers advice on raising children, stressing the crucial role of parents in instilling good values and character from an early age, and the importance of spending quality time with children.
• Feeding: Details the significance of mindful eating, the joy of preparing and serving food with love for family, and the negative consequences of processed food and excessive indulgence.
• Mis-understanding: Addresses common misconceptions about gender roles and relationships, highlighting that misunderstandings can lead to disharmony, and encouraging a balanced perspective.
• Law: Discusses the limitations of legal systems in resolving domestic disputes and emphasizes the importance of traditional societal values and personal conduct in maintaining family harmony.
• Cruelty: Condemns abortion in strong terms, describing the procedures in graphic detail and framing it as a grave moral and societal wrong. It criticizes the promotion of abortion as a solution to population control.
• Fourth Birth: Explains the concept of multiple births or significant life transformations, likening them to the second birth of a Brahmin. For a woman, the fourth birth is envisioned as her transition into a role that positively influences her family and community.
• Good-bye: A poignant farewell from parents to their daughter, expressing their love, blessings, and hopes for her future happiness and well-being as she embarks on married life.

The book is written in Gujarati and is targeted towards women and individuals seeking guidance on leading a virtuous and happy life. It blends traditional Indian values with practical advice, aiming to equip the daughter with the wisdom and strength to navigate life's challenges successfully.