Parenting: Tips, tricks, and tactics
Parenting a child is one of life's most natural roles. However, there are many trying moments when we feel the need for support, direction, and anchor. Here, we have provided you with some resources that can help you become a good and responsible parent in those confusing and indecisive times.
All your unasked questions about parenting answered
How to be a good parent
Here are 10 tips to get you started off on the journey of good parenting.
Q&A session with Gurudev on parenting
Here are answers to 8 burning questions that parents have.
Avoid these common mistakes of parenting
Realize some common parenting mistakes so you can sidestep them.
Parenting tips to handle aggression in children
Here are 7 points to make note of to ensure your children nurture values of nonviolence.
Adventures of an unplugged parent
Read this interesting account of a day in the life of a busy, well-meaning parent.
How To Deal With Your Teenager
Here are some invaluable tips from Gurudev on how to handle your teenager.
Parenting toddlers
Here are some common areas of concern with useful tips to communicate with your toddler.
Parents, beat it!
Here is some practical advice to parents to help them deal with exam stress.
Raising kids in the Youtube era
Here are some interesting points on raising children in an increasingly electronic world.
Tips for parents and children during lockdown
How can parents help children adjust to the new-normal world with a pandemic at bay?
Understand your child better at the
Online Know your Child & Online Know Your Teen Workshop
Online Know your Child & Online Know Your Teen Workshop
Meditation: Invaluable parenting guide
See how meditation can help you with every stage in your child's journey to adulthood.
Meditation: A bond between youth & parents
Explore how meditation has helped connect parents and children.
A letter to parents from yoga
An imaginative letter with the benefits of yoga for children.
Q & A on parenting with Gurudev
Read Gurudev's insightful answers to questions parents have put forth to him.
Choose poses over doses
These yoga poses will help channelize your child's abundant energy.
Explore Art of Living's efforts towards educating rural India. See how you can help.
Ideas on how to deal with common children & teenage issues Watch Gurudev
The best use of teenage years
A wise suggestion of what you should and should not do in teenage life.
Memory tips for teenagers
Here are some simple tips on how to remember your lessons.
Exam tips from Gurudev
Here are 5 simple tips to follow when preparing for your exams.
How to develop intuitive skills
How can children nurture this crucial skill?
Winning without defeating others
How can you become successful beyond comparison?
How can you influence your kids?
Find out how to make a positive impact on your kids' lives.
Overcoming addictions & intoxicants
Gurudev speaks about moving away from these harmful substances.
Accepting and ovecoming my negative qualities
Gurudev gives children some humorous tips on overcoming their negative qualities.
Parenting tips by Gurudev
Gurudev talks about how to introduce spirituality to children.
Children come into the world joyful and happy. We forget this when we grow up. Here are some tips to parents to be more like children!
How to be joyful like a child
How can we become uninhibited, natural, and joyful like children?
Help your child/teen explore his/her true potential.
FAQs with Gurudev
Parents should create a barrier in the minds of children not to touch any substance which they can get addicted to and which are harmful to them. We should create a prejudice against it, a psychological barrier which will stop them from even looking in that direction. This is essential. Like when a plant is being grown, you put a fence around it to protect it. In the same way, we must protect young minds - with certain mental barriers. This is essential. We have to give them certain concepts by which they do not move an inch in that direction.
For those who are already addicted, to bring them out, there are three ways - love, greed, and fear. If they love someone, then ask them to take a vow or promise on their loved one that they will never touch it again. Or tell them that they will have so much more luck if they don’t touch these addictive substances. Help them in whatever manner you can to come out of it. There are many remedies in homeopathy and in Ayurveda. Yoga and meditation are also very good. I have seen millions of people come out of their addictions just by doing some yoga and meditation. Help them in whatever manner you can to come out of it.
Just bring knowledge and awareness to people. Unless there is spiritual knowledge, this is what happens. They get entangled in the world, and with each other. They do not understand each other or themselves and get others and themselves in trouble. Therefore, bring people to the path of dharma. It is extremely important for us to impart spiritual education to children. If we deprive them of this, and just remain stuck in the mundane issues of daily existence, life becomes dry and meaningless, and people get involved in fights. So, we need to bring about a radical change by bringing people to yoga and meditation. They will definitely change but knowledge is the only way.
Just keep them busy in music, knowledge, and service. If they start doing this early on in their childhood and growing years, then anger and such tendencies will reduce.
There are a number of things:
1) Do not let them sit in the virtual world for too long. Kids usually sit in front of the television or computer for hours. Please do not let that happen. And also avoid video games. I do not think that it is very good for them.
2) Take them out in the real world with real people around. The interactions with people will strengthen their personality.
3) Ask them to make one new friend every day.
Parents should not punish but discipline children - within some limitations. It should not be in excess.There is a difference between discipline and punishment. You can’t be violent and justify it as disciplining. At the same time, you cannot brand everything as an abuse and not discipline a child at all. Tomorrow, children will hold you responsible for not teaching them when they were young. So, there is discipline, and one step away from discipline is punishment, and then abuse, or being violent with the child. Violence should be condemned. At no cost should anyone be violent with children because then, they become so immune to that, and they become violent. So many criminal acts in society can be attributed to parental violence at home. The way they treated their children. Just imagine in the classroom, if the teacher just leaves the children free to do what they want, and does not discipline them; there is not even that little fear of being punished, children will become so wild and uncontrollable! And when they grow up, they will say, 'Why did you bring me up like this? Why didn’t you tell me what is good and what is not good when I was a child?' So, I would say, discipline them first, and as a second step, punish them, if at all it is necessary; once in a way. But that’s it, stop there. Never be violent with kids.
There is a conflict going on in your mind because you are working and you are not able to give time to your children. It is okay, whatever time you are giving, ensure it is quality time. That is important.
You should tell such parents to relax. It is a natural tendency to be competitive but they should not put too much pressure on kids. Whatever percentage the child secures in school exams, they should encourage the child and tell him/her not to worry too much about it. You should quote some of the top examples for this. Some of the greatest leaders across the world were quite mediocre and average in their school days. They would not get the top rank in school, yet they have excelled. Parents need to kindle talent in their child, and they should not put blame and pressure on the child.
Know how to ride a horse! When you sit on horseback, you must move with it. You have to rock with the motion otherwise your back will hurt. Parents have to rock. You have to swing with them, know them and gently guide. Sometimes you tighten the reins, sometimes loosen. It is the same with kids. Put your foot down sometimes, but also give them freedom.
