Meditation is a must for a child
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009
When I was pregnant, my sister-in-law, Geetika, gave me the best advice. She told me that meditate when your child is awake and he will eventually meditate as well. I listened to her and every day I meditate with my son. It seems like a challenge to meditate with him but eventually meditation gets deeper and it is possible to not be bothered or distracted by external noises. Meditation helps me become a calmer and a balanced mother (most days!). This translates into a calmer and balanced child and a home. Also, every child loves to copy its parents. So, if a child watches us meditate, it will eventually copy us and hopefully, do even better than us.
As Shri Mataji explained to us, each child is born with a connection to the Divine power of love fully established. Each child is born innocent and pure. It is us, the parents who have problems on a subtle level and without being aware of them, we pass them on to our kids. The kids are like a clean white cloth and they absorb our stresses easily and the best way we can free them of these stresses is by creating a time for meditation every morning and evening, both for us and our kids.
My son and I sit for meditation (I follow Sahaja Yoga Meditation) in the morning and every evening we practice a technique known as foot-soaking while we meditate. For foot-soaking we put a teaspoon of kitchen salt into a little tub of lukewarm water (enough to soak the feet just above the ankle). I don’t know for certain if my son meditates or not, or whether he can feel any difference after doing it or not. I do know that he enjoys meditation time and that after meditation he is calmer and less hyper and a better listener. After meditation, there is more love and tranquility in our house. Therefore, it is very important for us to meditate. Meditation is one device that we can give to our child that will help him to become a better person and a device that will help him to overcome the stresses and obstacles in life. A natural and innate spirituality is the best gift we can give to our progeny. Without spirituality it’s like raising a kid without any nourishment for his heart and soul.
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