Children ought to cultivate gratitude and a sense of indebtedness toward their parents — recognizing what has been given to them and finding meaningful ways to repay it. Beyond providing physical care and attentiveness, children should also seek thoughtful and skillful means to nurture their parents’ faith in Buddhism, and to create opportunities for them to practice generosity, observe the moral precepts, and develop meditation. These are the paths that lead toward the cessation of suffering. To do this for one’s parents is considered the most noble and excellent form of repaying one’s debt of gratitude.
From the Jataka Book, Volume 2 (Padet Dattajeevo)
