Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, was a live broadcast guest on REHBER TV's Pergel program. Making evaluations on the topic of "Spiritual Void and Feeling of Worthlessness", Tarhan said; "We are raising intelligent people but not 'good people'. The West has now discovered this and is providing wisdom as education. We must provide value-based education. We should attach importance to spirituality and value-based education."
"The rate of fragmented families in the new generation is very high"
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan emphasized that social norms are taught digitally to the younger generation in the digital world, which has become a technological village, and stated that modeling is carried out in this way. Tarhan; "In Turkey's trajectory, family values and social values were very important in past years. There were social norms, there was neighborhood pressure. Urbanization was normal, especially after the 90s, in the post-Cold War period, like everywhere else in the world, there was a serious shift in global communication technology, turning into a technological village. It became an electronic and digital village. In such a situation, we have taught social norms to children digitally, much more than from parents and family. And modeling happens this way. We conducted a test with medical faculty students. There's a program in the positive psychology course, and a survey was conducted from that program. Something caught our attention. Some children view religious concepts with coolness. When they mention parents, they strongly protect them. Family ties continue culturally. These children grew up in good families. They have been successful. They grew up with social and family support. In return, they hold high respect for their family. But in this new generation, the rate of fragmented families is very high. A teacher from Istanbul's Erenköy district said there are 39 students in our class, and over 20 of them come from fragmented families. The teacher is saying this. This means that half of tomorrow's generation has experienced divorce. A well-known school. Cultural transmission does not occur in a child raised in a fragmented family." he said.
"What we call culture is stories"
Tarhan, pointing out that cultural transmission depends on social experiences and that culture is modernized by being changed; "What we call culture is stories. They are social experiences. Children raised in stormy environments. That's why we are now experiencing what the West experienced 20-30 years ago. Currently, as a culture, we have chosen modernization by changing our own culture. We haven't corrected this. They ask Confucius; if they gave you a society and you were to rebuild it, where would you start? He answers and says he would start with concepts. "How so?" they ask, "If the concept of mother is known as someone who raises and gives birth to a child, I would say 'manne' then I would teach that child as someone who looks after and protects with compassion." We don't start with education; we start with roads, with bridges. If you neglect education while building roads and bridges, it won't work. The most priority task is education. Our importance and priorities have seriously changed in our mental maps. When the Republic was founded, attaching importance to culture was much better and wiser. Policies to change culture were consciously the top priority. Teaching rose so much that they were given the most support. They were sent abroad, and an education revolution was carried out. But instead of a revolution, we made a cement revolution. As a result, young people were scattered. The current generation is a lost generation. There are solutions, it's not too late." he said.
"Spiritual education is taught through role models"
Prof. Dr. Tarhan, interpreting education policies from his own perspective and explaining them with examples, stated that action should be taken with the methods of Asr-ı Saadet (the Age of Happiness). Tarhan; "Spiritual void and worthlessness are not taught by gathering a hundred people in schools and giving a values conference. They are taught within value-based lessons. Spiritual education is taught through role models. It is taught through one's state/actions, not through words. You cannot ask someone to forgive their rights by squeezing their throat. We will act with the method of Asr-ı Saadet. During the 13 years of the Makkan period, even though they were strengthened, our Prophet (PBUH) said 'let's oppose, let's intervene' in the Age of Happiness, including Hz. Omar. They wanted to fight, but our Prophet (PBUH) did not let them fight. He migrated, still not fighting. After going to Medina, defensive wars took place. Almost all who opposed him accepted Islam. They offered him the Emirate of Mecca, telling him to take whatever he wanted. But he did not accept. If he had accepted then, he would have seized it. Everyone would have become Muslim, but it would have ended upon his death. With the methodology we currently use, we cannot explain good values to our youth generation. A chance arose in the world, but look, there is traditionalism in Turkey. Being a traditionalist is good. If a person gets stuck in childhood and is only satisfied with that, that person cannot grow. Just as there are stages in a person's life, there are also stages in society. If we want to stay in the Ottoman or earlier periods, we will miss the plane. Let's take its essence, convert its methods into current ways, and dress it in the attire of this century. We are not doing this; we insist on a traditionalist type of person. "Wardrobe Muslims" have increased. They write Basmala, but under it, they demand bribes. Unfortunately, these things do not happen in government offices. When young people see this, they become estranged from religion."
"There is an accumulation of anger in people, let's not fool ourselves"
Tarhan, touching upon young people being led astray and committing suicide as a result of their expectations and fears; "Suicide incidents have now started to occur among young people raised in religious families. We look at children from religious families, they have gender identity disorder. We investigate and find that they forcibly taught the child Quran, taught religion. The child cannot oppose parents and yearns for an opposite identity. It makes parents cry. Why? Because they forcibly explained the truth. The child is actually a pure child, but the parents' despotic efforts to force goodness, because they cannot capture the child's language, lead to the child being under more external influence than before. There are no social rules; mobile phones have become the open door of the home. Children see everything from an early age. They see everything in the safest environment of the home. It cannot be managed by fear. Young people's biggest expectation is justice. Young people in our time understood conquest and war. We were at university during the March 12th period. Back then, everyone would take a risk for society. They would even laugh at those who didn't. Regardless of their right or left worldview, they had social ideals. Today's youth do not have such an ideal. After the Cold War, after the single capitalist system, no alternatives remained, and young people are growing up without alternatives." he said.
"Let's build meaningful relationships with young people"
Tarhan, referring to the fact that the language of the new generation of young people is different and that the way to understand them is for families to accompany them, made evaluations about what path should be followed. Tarhan; "To understand young people, one must know their language. The language of young people is different. They want justice, equality, peace. If you create a doctrine of fear instead of these, young people will withdraw and run away. If parents educate by instilling fear, this child becomes more open to the outside world. If an environment of fear and pressure is dominant, it should not be based on fear. Respect based on love also avoids making mistakes, fearing that the mother's face will fall. Our love for Allah should be the same. We should fear losing Allah's love and mercy. Family is a value, and an important issue is creating a loving environment. A child should not come as if coming to court; this is not right. Home should be a safe space. They should not change rooms when they see their father. Let's create a warm, loving atmosphere. If they play computer games, they should play under parental supervision. We will be patient and listen, or our own children will become children of other cultures. Is raising children less important than building a factory? Housewifery is being devalued. These are methods of cultural psychological warfare. If families ponder how to teach their children spiritual and moral values, these children will not turn out to be bad children. Let's be diligent and have positive communication so that they say that world was wrong and turn back. Let's build meaningful relationships with children." he stated.
Reporter: Hilal Büyükyavuz