When my older son was around 7, I started teaching him small slokas I knew. Nothing in writing, just verbal - according to the guru-shishya parampara as I later explained. I added a speel of how some children my father's age grew up writing alphabets on sand. I don't know that for a fact, but something that seemed believable.
All I remember is digging up the sand under the teacher's bench (but that story belongs elsewhere)!
Anyway, the older one was a willing student - samatthu! A couple of months later, the older one started off saying he would only learn if his brother were to also learn.
The younger one would never sit or would be sitting upside down with legs and neck in a contorted state -giggling at the first opportunity. It ended up that he was more of a distraction than anything else.. so he was sent out.
A friend visited and wanted to send her daughter to the "class".. so it turned out we had a neighborhood sloka class co-op going on once a week. The kids were allowed free rein of the house in return.
The kids came willingly in order to play after the class and they learnt a lot -the younger ones by imbibing. Kids met each other in amiable circumstances without parents having to host a party to have themselves and their children meet with peers, without any class fees so parents aren't yelling at them to practice at home..
I also started transcribing the songs/slokas into English - did an ok job keeping in mind the ease of being able to read vs the actual words in sanskrit etc. Upper cases were used when I felt like it etc..
The high point was when my older son at his poonal answered exclamations of his clarity in chanting mantrams with "my mom taught me how to speak sanskrit words!".
Then more kids came and it got a little chaotic with some kids bringing in video games into class etc.. And the after-class playing became a little more rough with the older ones fighting and pushing the younger ones. My kids were complaining that some kids were not being respectful of their property and jumped on their beds, broke a few lights.. Some parents dropped off the kids at the curb and went out since they were not within walking distance, I was baby-sitting, feeding on demand etc, unable to reach the parents.. After a couple weeks of this.. I had to put and end to this after-class playing - the sloka attendance dwindled as a result, slowly but surely.
One day, I figured that there was no more point in making myself available when no one else wanted to do this .. so with a heavy heart it ended.
And as my older son says "I know way too many slokas already.. I don't really want to become a priest anyway.."!
But once in a while, my younger (the yakker) one would say "you know I liked the sloka class -too bad we don't have it anymore." - even though he never learnt anything for the better part of the 3+ years we had it going!"
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3 comments:
I've beleived that spirituality is latent in us all. It just needs to be awakened..and age is no bar.
I've volunteered at the local temple ever since it was a tin roof shack and when it was time for the maha kumbhabhishekam I was fortunate in that they invited my mother (who was visiting) and my daughter (~9 then) for the sumangali and kanya poojas.
My little girl has always been the playful type, wont rehearse her paattu unless persuaded, needs to be nagged five times before she will go into the shower..and then wont come out for twenty minutes..you know.
However the transformation when she sat for the duration of the pooja was remarkable. THe serenity and poise that came over her. I felt Devi swaroopam was truly in her.
Then all the ladies did their namaskaarams to the devi swaroopams as embodied by my mother and daughter.
This could have been a ridiculous sight for a giggly nine year old..especially seeing her own mother and old paattis doing a panchanga namaskaaram to her.,but no, she was remarkably poised and dispensed ashirvaadams as if 'born to the manor'.
Any parent would have shed tears..I did too.
Anyway, she is back to being a giggly giddy child however is aware that divinity touched her.
And we feel fortunate she was graced so early in life.
10yearslate,
oh wow.. it is wonderful experience indeed.
on my end, my then 10 yr old son had to perform rites when my dad passed away and since.. which was the reason for the poonal. I don't know how I survived those moments, but he did all that was expected of him with dignity.
Though the benefits of chanting slokas and singing bajans aren't always apparent to kids at the time, I think kids feel good when they attend a pooja or function and they know the bajan or sloka being recited and can participate along with everyone else. And hopefuly a piece of them recognizes the divinity within them and the people around them.
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