How to Teach Your Children About Buddhism

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Padma_S]Padma S

Teaching children about religion and spirituality can be a difficult task for many reasons. There are plenty of Christian children's books on the market, but finding anything else is very difficult. Also, many subjects are often difficult or confusing for children to understand. I admit it, I am no teacher and I faced this issue when I wanted to share my Zen Buddhist beliefs with my children in a manner that opened their minds rather than closed them. In the end, I was able to find some fantastic resources that not only helped my children understand things like birth and death, but also taught them great lessons on compassion, empathy, and spirituality.

The beginning of my problem originated when my children started asking me tough questions about life, death, and suffering. I had answers prepared, but honestly when I went to use them they just didn't sound right. There were so many lessons and ideas that I'd been taught and wanted to share with my children, but I just couldn't seem to find the right way to do it. Then I realized that maybe I could find some Buddhist children's books that might slowly introduce these thoughts to them without getting overcomplicated.

The first route I tried was the local bookstore, which didn't pan out. I went home and started using Google to find Buddhist children's books, but really didn't find anything specifically tailored for children. Eventually, I used Amazon and after some hard searching found exactly what I needed.

There are some fantastic books, if you search hard enough, that teach kids about Buddhist topics such as meditation, compassion, love, respect, and even death/rebirth. I had no idea that there were such simple ways to share these invaluable lessons with children. I wasn't raised as a Buddhist, so everything I learned about it was as an adult. I had no idea how to approach a child. These books turned out to be a lifesaver.

I realized at that point that there are probably thousands of parents out there facing a similar problem and I wondered if there would be any way to compile a list online for parents to find and use. Sure enough, it is possible and if it weren't for me facing this problem I never would have found the solution. I hope you find what you are looking for as well.

For a free Buddhist Book for children, visit the [http://www.buddhistchildrensbooks.com/free-chidrens-ebook/]Buddhist Children's Books Website.

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The Basic Human Being

If you have ever thought that there was something more to your life than the everyday hustle? As children we have huge dreams, anything is possible, and the only thing that matters is fun. Children live in the moment, when they want to do something they just can't wait! This feeling all kids have and their way of life may get covered up and forgotten as they grow older but it never goes away. Inside all of us is an inner child, sometimes called the basic Self in order to succeed in life we must get to know this basic human being.

In his book Way of the Peaceful Warrior Dan Millman learns valuable life lessons about the seven levels consciousness and the three selves. On his journey Dan discovers that the basic self closely resembles the characteristic personality of a child of a four to seven year old. Even though your basic self has more confidence and strength than a child the qualities are the same. Just as a child, the basic self is closely in tune with the physical body but not so in touch with the conscious brain. It takes time for a child to learn to listen to their conscious and their sense of right and wrong.

Our Basic self is the source of bodily wisdom, and is where our instinct, intuition and gut feelings come from. The basic self is in charge of our body, it uses the involuntary nervous system to generate our energy for life and keep us out of danger. Just like a young child the basic self is open to subconscious energy healing.

When our subconscious is content and the basic self is relaxed we are likely to have more energy, inspiration and playfulness. We tend to be more loyal yet spontaneous with much greater determination.
Sometime we let our conscious get control of us, when we are working too much or there is too much stress. When this happens we ignore and suppress our basic self, devaluing it so that it becomes blocked. The basic self will withdraw and sometimes sabotage our bodies, this will lower our immune system giving us a higher risk for illness.

In order to stay healthy and create a higher state of awareness, we must become conscious of our subconscious. Listen to your instincts, follow your gut feelings and take time everyday to clear your thoughts. By challenging ourselves we a can actually have more energy and sense of self worth, in the long run this will lead to better overall health.

The Peaceful Warrior

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Char_Cooper]Char Cooper

The previews ended and the movie was starting, or was it? Black screen and no sound. It took me awhile to realize, but I believe the director was trying to get the audience to be present. I of course was in the future, "When's something going to happen?" Being in the moment is one of many enlightened messages in the movie, The Way of the Peaceful Warrior. It was one the first books on spiritual growth that really made a difference in my life.

The story is about a chance encounter with a wise stranger that changes the life of a college gymnast, and is based on real occurrences in Dan Millman's life. Dan Millman is the author of many self-help/spiritual growth books, Peaceful Warrior being his most popular. The movie opened nationwide last weekend. I gathered eight friends and we headed out with low expectations (the critics didn't give it rave reviews). The critics are entitled to their opinions, of course, but everyone of us liked the movie. This passage from the book which is depicted in the movie is one reason why:

"Then I look up at the shining mountain peak. If the jewel is to be found, it must be at the top. I climb and climb, beginning an arduous journey that takes many years. At last I reach my journey's end. I stand bathed in bright light. My eyesight is clear now, yet the jewel is nowhere to be found. I look upon the valley far below, where I began the climb many years ago. Only then do I realize that the jewel had always been within me, even then, and that the light had always shined. Only my eyes had been closed."

The movie condenses a book's worth of messages into a couple of hours. Important things like, be present, there are no ordinary moments, enjoy the journey, what you give you receive, trust yourself, are some examples. Everyone can get something from these messages. The more we expose ourselves, remind ourselves, reteach ourselves (we already know this on some level, we just need to be reminded), the more we live in that enlightened place. By living in that enlightened place I mean applying the principles of spiritual growth to all we do, and all we are. That is our purpose, to grow and live fully in a life of spiritual awareness.

Copyright (c) 2007 Char Cooper RN, MSN, APRN

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The Human Consciousness

Sometimes I wonder who it is I really am and where I belong. I know that I am not the only one out there who feels the same. I feel a little envious when I read about people who go on fantastic spiritual pilgrimages through Japan or India. It reminds me that I feel something else I was meant to do, like I am not yet whole. In order to make up a whole human one must break down the human self into three distinct parts, called the three selves. The three selves are stacked on top of one another to create the whole, similar to the chakra energy system. Each level governs the emotions, body and mind of the human being, and each human being in turn governs the environment that it lives in.

The Three Selves are broken down into the body or basic self, the mind or conscious self, and emotions which can be considered the higher spiritual self. Dan Millman is the author of multiple books on this subject, including The way of the peaceful warrior and Everyday Enlightenment. Mr. Millman has been a huge inspiration to me and many other people who feel lost in their bodies.

In his teachings Mr. Millman describes the basic self as your subconscious where instincts and intuition take over. This is the level where your fight or flight reflexes live and where you store your will to survive. A good way to think of your basic self is as your "inner child". If you have ever spent anytime observing a young child you will know that they live in the moment. Their priorities are very different form an adults. Kids are very in tune with the physical needs of their body. Even thought you could go through life without being in touch the basic self, you would not be able to grow and you might become stuck in a negative feedback cycle.

The conscious self or ego, is the center of logic and reason which of course we need to survive. With out the conscious self humans would still be living in caves eating raw meat! If we can get our basic self and conscious self to work together our minds would be open to change, and creativity while still being able to function in the society humans have created.

The higher self or spiritual consciousness is a radiant aspect of our consciousness. This is where our crown chakra or "guardian angel," taps into the Spirit or God. The higher self is always with us, it is fully aware, full of selfless courage, love and wisdom.

Not enough people are aware of their higher selves, and some of the people who aware, are perhaps not in tune with their basic or conscious selves. It is important in order to follow our life path and reach enlightenment for all of these three distinct forms of consciousness to work as one providing powerful leverage for attaining the greater awareness and inspiration in our lives that we are all a part of.