Spiritual Parenting: Child Development and the Art of Parenting  

By SRI AKSHAYMAT  

Spiritual Parenting: Child Development and the Art of Parenting  

We are the most complex and wonderful of God's creations. The human nervous system allows us to experience the richness of life. Our perceptions create reality. We become what we think. But the right environment is required to create the right perceptions. Hence bringing up a child is an art. It requires knowledge and forbearance, love and compassion. Merely thinking of it as a responsibility is insufficient.

Lack of knowledge about child development causes misery and conflict in us bringing pain to ourselves and others. Hence there is a need to understand and learn the art of parenting to have peace and harmony. Every human being is born with a special purpose that is to be fulfilled. Her life here on the planet is to discover, understand, learn and fulfil her destiny. So it becomes inevitable that parents need to help the child to accomplish this. To deny or curb this instinct in the child in fulfilling her life's mission would mean going against the very principle of evolution, the essence of creation.

The Golden Age Foundation believes that there are three forces that determine your child's destiny: You, your child and the Divine. A child's upbringing begins right from conception. The desire with which a child is conceived is the first key factor involved in shaping her destiny. The mental state of the mother and the father during pregnancy is the second factor. The child is born with a similar state of mind. The growing child in the womb is very perceptive and sensitive to the environment all around. The story of Abhimanyu responding from Subhadra's womb or Bhakt Prahalad's listening to Narada from the womb are interesting pointers.

Our ancestors had full knowledge of child development. This is one reason why a pregnant woman was encouraged to live in an ashram until she delivered the baby. An ashram is a place of no "shram" (free of stress). She should never be subjected to extreme emotions because every emotion is carried forward to the child. The experiences of the mother - what she sees, hears, reads and feels directly - shapes the future of the child. A mother-to-be needs to be in the right kind of environment.

The whole process of birth and the very birth process is a traumatic experience for the new-born, though there are some who would perceive it as liberation. The first experience matters a lot - the reception of the child into this world, whether it was a welcoming one or one of rejection. The first comments from people around and the first sensory experience also count. In ancient India the birth of a child was celebrated, creating a joyous mood in the house and village. This helped the child form a positive vision of life. Tradition is mostly based on science - the science of body, mind and spirit. Thanks to modern science, we are re-discovering our roots and re-establishing our dying values.

Age one to six years is a crucial stage in child development. The blueprint for your child's life is developed during these years. From every experience the child comes to quick conclusions - whether positive or negative. These childhood decisions are stored in the sub-conscious mind and are reflected in everyday experiences. Patterns are formed - patterns of success, failure, rejection and insecurity which control our life. Sri Kalki, founder of the Golden Age Foundation, says between 0-6 years the child should be treated as a king; from 7-14 as a prince and 14 onwards as a friend. If every parent understands and learns the art of parenting, it would enable us to create happy and successful individuals.

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See also: Spiritual Parenting, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)