Importance of Cleanliness in Our Life
Cleanliness is important for healthy mind, body and spirit. Our first duty is to be clean. Every morning, as soon as you get up, you must clean your teeth, and wash your face, and your hands and feet.
If possible, you may bathe and wash your whole body. If you cannot bathe as soon as you get up, you ought to do so at least later and always before you take your food.
You know how our elderly people never eat without bathing and doing their worship. If you are a good boy or girl, you will follow the same rule.
In a hot country like India, bathing is necessary for health. If you allow dirt to accumulate on your body, you very soon get itch or other diseases of the skin.
After your body, you must look into your clothes. You should always wear clean clothes. Now, do not mistake rich clothes for clean clothes. You may have a very costly coat of flannel or tweed, and it may be very dirty. Another boy may wear only a thin shirt, and it may be clean. In India, we do not want too much woolen clothing. We use mostly cotton clothes; and these can be washed easily.
What prevents you, then, from being clean? It is not because you are poor, for you do not require any money at all to keep your body clean, and you want very little to keep your clothes tidy. One boy says, he has no time; but does anybody believe his words? No; he must set apart some time for bathing and washing his clothes. The fact is some boys get into the bad habit of being dirty.
We should get into the habit of being clean. Many boys and girls when they write with ink and pen soil their fingers. With a little care and effort they can avoid it.
Hence, you should always maintain cleanliness.
