Tksji,
A wonderful post, and I too follow those principle in my personal life. I do not suggest how others should behave in their personal life.
But society has a moral code that evolves over period of time. You, I and others contribute and change and modify it. Some want to maintain status quo, others are looking for appropriate change. The society evolves and adapts changes, some keep moaning about the lost good old days. To some change is scary, to some it is cultural, to others it is religious, some follow it blindly.
When indoor plumbing was introduced, it did not sit well with Vastu Sastra. So vastu experts had to device ways to incorporate it. Similarly when in west Temples started to be built, the stapatis were against providing for bathrooms in the Temple complex, as their was no provision for bathroom in Agama Shastra. So change is inevitable, you can not hold back clock.
A tree that is not supple and bend with wind will break. That is the nature of things.
In the name of culture and religion human beings persecute others, that should change. Just because I had to walk 5 miles to go to school, my child should not be forced to walk 5 miles. I can have her dropped in the school. It is matter of affordability, and convenience.
Similarly relieving in public, spitting, smoking are bad practices. They are enacting and enforcing laws. These things could have been changed by morality codes, it did not work. Next even if that does not work, harsh punishments like in Singapore may have to be employed.
So I agree that we should have our own personal mores, but we have to abide by mores of the society. In the temples we do not allow Shoes, and we enforce it. We have provided and expect people to wash their hands and feet, but WE DO NOT ENFORCE IT.
In the colder climate of North America some temples expect their priests to be bare chested, but others allow some form of coverings. Some priests were socks, others are forced to walk bare feet.
Those that stick to some "traditions" will be left behind.
There is temple in NY State, that enforced strict rules of who can go inside the alter. The priests refused to get a mop to clean the floor. It was filthy, and stinking. So somebody who framed the rules was following some "tradition" without thinking through. The traditionalist were adamant on their tradition, the priests were adamant about their duties, so a stalemate. Finally the devotees started to complain, and the revisionist won the battle. The traditionalist were voted out, and now they have hired some people to clean the temple including alter out of sight of the "Traditionalist".
May be I am talking to a wrong group.
It is like talking to ISIS or Taliban about women's head dress or Hindu Philosophy.
I should accept the reality.
