These are no more than stages in a man's life. They do not correspond to any kind of formal organisation, and the people described by one of these terms do not form a single group. Of course, people are at ease with their equals, and informal gossip groups, especially out of doors, tend to consist of co-evals. Relative age is always important since deference to elders is strictly enjoined at all age levels.
In the long winter evenings when almost all the men sit in guest rooms, the young are expected to keep quiet in the presence of their elders, and children are sent out if they giggle or make a noise. Youths do not speak, and the younger married men speak little, especially in the presence of their own fathers. A younger man is expected to sit in a respectful posture, that is, not to cross his legs if sitting Europeanwise with his feet on the floor, and to keep his feet tucked underneath him if squatting on the divan. Smoking in the presence of father is forbidden. Every guest room has a drinking cup and a filled wooden water bottle always ready. If a seated man wants a drink he will demand it simply and unceremoniously, and one of his juniors, usually a boy, will bring the cup, wait respectfully with his hands crossed while his elder drinks and then take it back.