Around 1 to 2 millimeters in diameter, the size of a Banyan tree seed. A puff of wind can carry it off, or a birdie may carry it in its beak and drop it somewhere. And then slowly, in the dark soil, it starts to germinate. The radicle grows towards down south, positive gravitropism.
Why?
Firstly, to strengthen its anchor. And also to get access to the minerals and water deep down in the soil. All along, gravity guides it to help establish a strong foundation.
Now, opposite to the radicle, the plumule grows upward, exhibiting negative gravitropism.
Why?
Well, it needs sunlight to perform photosynthesis.
Now that teeny-weeny will grow into a herculean tree, gaining height of around 20 to 30 meters, and at times its canopy can stretch to several acres, how about 3.5 acres, the Great Banyan Tree in Kolkata! (quite a sight to visit). It also shoots down aerial roots, helping to spread and support the giant structure.
All from that tiny seed.
Most of the activity happening under the soil is beyond our sight. It is the shoot that grows in front of us. So, we deduce, we assume, and we conclude basis what we see. What we cannot see, we many a times do not consider its immense importance.
Our child, the seed.
Values, discipline, and emotional security are the bricks that parents mobilize to build the little seed, with Love being the mortar to hold it strong. Bit by bit, the foundation is built. This guidance, unseen to the world, nurtures the child-seed to acquire self-belief, set in the resilience which will train them to bounce back from difficulties or falling, and above all, integrity.
Integrity, the pivot of building a character that has strong moral principles, and which, under any stormy weather, any blizzard, nor will it bend nor break. This is also the ask for the hour, as globally we are going through the worst time since the Second World War. All our hope lies in the seeds that germinate now for a brighter tomorrow.
As the child-seed grows, looking up to the sunlit blue sky with their dreams, ambitions, and above all, with unfathomable curiosity!
Now, the unseen encouragement, the sacrifices of parents and teachers, the prayers, and all of this and much more help them to grow, to thrive, and that outcome is only what we all see. Just in case, if we see the other side of the coin, we immediately conclude, the child is bad. A fundamental belief. Really! But the seed is helpless until cared for and nurtured to give shape to its life!
The unseen becomes the deciding factor in the outcome of what-is-seen!

So the gardeners need to be very cautious, to rise above “what I do is right & what I don’t do is also right”, stop pointing to the nature for the withering of the seed but look deep inside; “self”.

Or else such reports (on targeted sampling participants) will recur in black and white, time and time again.

• 81% of the school students surveyed under the NCERT in 2022 on mental health reported suffering from anxiety related to studies, exams, and results as a major cause of concern (a detailed study can be accessed here)
• Globally, one in seven 10-19-year-olds experiences a mental disorder, accounting for 15% of the global burden of disease in this age group. Depression, anxiety, and behavioural disorders are among the leading causes of illness and disability among adolescents. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among those aged 15-29 years old (detailed report here)

So we all gardeners have only one one-point agenda, taking care of the seed, in all respects.
"यद् विद्या मयि संस्कारः, तद् बीजे प्रसरिष्यति" |
And then the seed grows up to say.
"आचार्य देवो भव" |