Author Ms. Sandhya Jane has suggested five creative and easy ideas to adapt Sanatan or Hindu parenting culture among young parents.
Visit an ancient temple/monument: Take your children to an ancient temple or monument during your Christmas/New Year vacation and let them explore the science and beauty of Sanatan Dharm. This trip is more valuable, informative, and insightful than reading 100 books. Once you make 8-10 such trips, you can be sure that your child will be interested in learning the Sanatan Dharm in the future.
Visit to an Ashram: At a young age, preferably between 7-10 years old, introduce an Ashram visit to help children learn yog and meditation. This will set the tone for their healthy lives.
Study at a Gurukul: One must send their children to a Gurukul for at least one summer to learn the basics of Santan Dharm. I am glad to see many such campuses opened in the USA, Hong Kong, and many other countries.
In fact there are few classes conducted by various missions such as Chinmay Swami Mission for children. These classes are where rich knowledge is passed on to children via various stories, activities, singing, camping etc.
Visit your ancestral home: NRIs or urban families can introduce their ancestral home and significant places to their children. This will help them understand their family’s customs and culture along with the journey over several years.
Alternatively, you can take an adventure trip with your child to incorporate project management skills such as planning, scheduling, executing, and accomplishing in one go. Let them handle or decide or include them in every step. It’s a sure way to make them bold, but confident to act.
Acquire one family skill: In the past, Bharat was a skilled and entrepreneurial nation. Most households pass on their traditional skills to the next generation. However, in the madness of office jobs and careers, many of these skills have been lost. For example, Arun who has made many sculptures and some of them are of Netaji, Shri Ram, Adi Shankaracharya has learned sculpting skills through his family traditional learning in his family.
Traditional skills (or any other skill): Introduce any ONE skill to your child at a very young age as they adapt it well at a tender age. In either case, it will provide them with a career opportunity or keep them engaged both during their careers and after retirement. There are times when retirement lasts for almost 3 decades and can be boring, thanks to the modern healthcare system.
By Sandhya Jane