Should I get married or should I date?

As soon as the ideal age of getting married approaches, people have lots of questions and confusions in their mind like, "Should I get married or should we date?" If someone asked Param Pujya Dadashri if they should get married, He would reply, “I tell them that they should either get married or take a vow of celibacy. They must make a decision one way or another and stick to that decision firmly.” If however they do decide to get married then the question might arise, whether they should date before marriage or not?

Let us gain some insight on what Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan has to say regarding in answer to the questions, ‘Should I date? Who should I date?’

Questioner: Is dating a sin? When girls and boys go out together, is it a sin? Is there anything wrong in it?

Dadashri: Yes. If you feel like going out with boys, then you should get married. You should decide on just one boy and stick to him. Until you get married you should not involve yourself with any boys.

Questioner: In the Western world, when boys and girls turn fourteen years of age they begin dating. If they like someone they will continue dating each other and their relationship will progress. Sometimes after they have been dating for a long time, they will separate because something goes wrong or they stop liking each other. Then they will start dating someone else and if that does not work out, they will date someone else. Everything just moves around in circles, and sometimes they maybe dating more than two or three people at the same time.

Dadashri: That is all wildness. That is a wild life.

Questioner: Then what should they do?

Dadashri: There should be sincerity and a commitment to just one person. Your life should be like this. A boy should be sincere to just one girl and vice versa. An insincere life is wrong.

Questioner: How can a person remain sincere if the other person changes and becomes insincere?

Dadashri: Then stop dating altogether. Get married. After all, we are humans, not uncivilized!

After marriage, you should live sincerely with each other. If you want to live sincerely, then you should not be involved with any other man from the very beginning. You should be very strict in this matter. If you want to date someone, do so with the idea in your mind that you will marry him. Tell your parents that you have decided to marry him and no one else. An insincere life is a wild life.