A mother or father is born when the child is born.At that moment when you take your baby in your hands for the first time, your baby has already stolen you away from the rest of the world. Just his or her mere entrance in your life changes you totally and even before you know it, you start exhibiting the beautiful qualities of an extreme level of patience, love and care.
From the fetal period to birth, from babyhood to teenage years - their career, their married life, and even after that, a parent’s love for the child remains deep like the ocean and vast like the sky.
Parenting has its challenges and parents find unique ways of overcoming them. However, there are ways which can help every parent become more skillful, understanding and intuitive in dealing with the situations that they are faced with. Meditating daily is one of such ways. It has the capacity to add more beauty to parenthood.
# 1 Just Born - A New Bud
Its 2 am and your baby starts crying; your little one cannot communicate anything. So at this stage you have to be extra sensitive and use your intuitive skills to understand the needs of your baby. With daily practice of meditation, your intuitive ability blossoms and you find it easier to communicate to the little one. You can become a master of the language of the heart.
Babies are very sensitive to the parents’ state of the mind. It reflects in their behavior and physical and mental health and development. So it is important for parents to find ways to rest and be fresh and happy and peaceful. Meditation gives you deep rest and helps you maintain your energy level and inner state of happiness all day.
“Regular practice of meditation makes me feel relaxed and keeps active enough to play with my baby even after a long and hectic day at work,” shares Rupesh Malik, father of a 1-year-old.
#2 Toddlers - The Bud Grows
Toddlers can really test your patience. They can be increasingly demanding and stubborn. They often also want to be independent (‘Me do it’) and insist they do things on their own. Dealing with their tantrums requires a lot of skill and patience. You also need to be constantly creative in finding new ways to deal with them without getting angry or tired.
Meditation makes you calm and centered and helps you deal with them patiently. You are less likely to lose your temper and can skillfully handle them. When you are calm and fresh, creativity also wells up in you and dealing with your toddler will be such a pleasure without the fatigue factor.
Pooja Sharma, mother of a 3-year-old, shares, “With daily practice of meditation I have discovered new skills of handling my baby boy. When my baby boy refuses to eat food, I start making sounds like ‘yum yum’, ‘very tasty’ rather than getting angry. Listening to this, he also starts eating.”
#3 Pre-teens - The bud Starts Blossoming!
This is the time when the wheel turns. Once-upon-a-time-children are growing up fast. This is the time when you need to build up trust in your children, become their confidants and sounding-boards - from career guidance to advice on boyfriends and girlfriends. This is the time when you need to be a friend to them and yet be assertive whenever required.
“My 10-year-boy tells everyone that I am his good friend. I can attribute this to meditation because it helps me to strike an effective balance in being a father and a friend at the same time,” shares Jaideep.
Few minutes of meditation everyday can strengthen your relationship with your young one. It gives you the ability to trust. Meditation makes you centered and more open to understanding your child. It gives you the strength to sow the seeds of human values in them and guide them to evolve as a balanced human being.
#4 Young Adults - The Bud Becomes A Flower
At this stage youth want to spread their wings and the touch the sky with their dreams and ambitions. We need to be a pillar of support to them. We want them to be happy, they want to be happy. Yet often a communication gap could develop. This is because there are times when we have different points of view. But when we meditate, we are able to communicate peacefully and skillfully. We are able to accept their perspective and give them the space to grow at their own pace even while keeping a watchful eye to ensure they succeed.
Meditating together with your young adults will help you bond better and will make your relation more special.
“My daughters and I meditate every day. It keeps us calm and helps us understand things from each other’s point of view and develops a bonding based on acceptance and trust,” shared Deepti Sachdev.
Being One Of The “Most Smiling” & “Most Approachable Parent” In The World
With just 20 minutes for meditation, you can be one of the most smiling, peaceful and approachable parents in the world. When they find you peaceful and balanced in every situation, they find you approachable in any situation.
Inspired by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's wisdom talks
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