Meditation for Children and the Work of Thich Nhat Hanh
Thich Nhat Hanh handed away in January 2022, however I used to be lucky to attend an educators’ retreat with him and his monastics in 2012 which led me to share ‘Seed of Peace with Thich Nhat Hanh’.
This weblog describes a life-changing expertise after I met the Zen Grasp of meditation.
On the time of this retreat, within the West, the main target had been on adults studying meditation. However this retreat for educators, therapists and professionals centered on serving to them to share conscious abilities with younger individuals. On the time it was seen as pioneering. Fortuitously, it’s changing into extra commonplace in houses and faculties all through the world.
I share my takeaways from that retreat – each private {and professional}. And I intend to convey seeds of hope and peace to you and your kids, together with sensible steps and helpful sources which will allow you to in your journey.
Seeds of Peace
The retreat attendees had been (at first) focussed on studying particular methods that might be applied into their courses. The topic of difficult behaviour in younger individuals was a key subject.
However the expertise was a lot greater than information or studying new abilities. It grew to become clear for a lot of, that this retreat would provide the potential of a life-changing expertise. Thay, and the Buddhist nuns and monks who work with him, launched easy strategies that each one directed us to the identical ‘North Star’ – to search out peace inside.
It grew to become clear that to share this ‘North Star’ of peace may solely occur if adults related to their inside supply of private mindfulness, peace and pleasure first.
Maybe you already know the way a lot tougher it’s to convey peace right into a classroom or a house in case you are ateacher or father or mother who’s feeling overwhelmed with work or private stress? And maybe you’ve noticed how younger individuals sense the stress of these others round them after which react to it?
To show meditation and provide kids peace, we first follow and hook up with our personal internal, useful resource.
Watering Our Seeds of Peace
I used to be fascinated to study a lot extra on this retreat. I had practised meditation frequently for years and had develop into uncertain that I might study one thing new. However I felt the numerous advantages from the easy steps we had been proven to entry our internal peace. This concerned:
- Conscious consuming and noble silence
- Singing songs of mindfulness for youngsters
- Physique rest
- Conscious strolling
The primary Dharma discuss that Thay gave was “Having fun with our Time Collectively”. He drew 3 circles.
The primary circle was to symbolize the grownup. The 2nd related to household and the third represented work. By means of this he helped us perceive how we should first handle ourselves in order that we’re sturdy sufficient to assist our household after which our work.
If I select solely to assist household and work, I endure.
I’m step one.
All through the retreat, we practised a number of mindfulness actions as listed above – and the impact on me was wonderful.
Seed of Peace – Conscious Consuming
At first, I discovered it actually difficult to eat mindfully. The meals was delivered in by self-service so conscious consuming began from the second I crammed my plate.
I seen that every day I discovered my proportions changing into smaller as I recognised the alerts from my physique telling me what I actually wanted and after I was full.
We’d sit down at tables with each the nuns, monks and different retreat attendees. Initially I felt embarrassed sitting at a desk with strangers but not speaking to one another as we practised conscious consuming in silence. I used my consciousness to acknowledge this sense and settle for it as I stored returning to the meals I used to be consuming.
I discovered that I used to be greedy my knife and fork while chewing, so I selected to put them down till I completed a mouthful. Then I seen how the meals felt in my mouth – the completely different flavours of watercress and the moisture of cucumber.
Along with smaller proportions of meals, I began to get pleasure from consuming mindfully. I discovered myself taking a second to look at my meals earlier than I began consuming simply to be inquisitive about what was on my plate. The completely different colors, shapes, textures – it was lovely.
As I ate, I might take into consideration all of the power that created this meals. The power of the weather: the solar, rain, wind and earth that helped it to develop. I used to be curious in regards to the power of those that had harvested this meals and ready it from there to my plate.
On the final day, I sat at breakfast and with my palms in Namaste (prayer place), eyes closed and feeling gratitude for the meals I needed to eat. My eyes full of tears, and a gorgeous rush of power flowed by means of me. I felt blessed and a deep sense of peace to be in that second, taking good care of myself.
Conscious consuming with Youngsters
After this expertise, I recognised how adults fear about what and the way a lot kids eat. It could convey stress to a household meal or faculty supper time that might provide a unique expertise if we took the time to offer kids the selection of conscious consuming.
As an alternative of attempting to hurry kids by means of their meals (as we fear about boredom, meals going chilly, portions they eat) – maybe we may faucet into kids’s internal Zen Grasp?
We may introduce the chance for them to follow some mindfulness earlier than consuming. Listed here are a couple of sensible recommendations.
In the event you can’t do that ever day, attempt to intention for as soon as per week and construct from there.
House follow
- Contain them within the preparation of meals. Mindfully chat in regards to the power that was used to create this meals, the scent and sound because it cooks.
- As they lay the desk, invited a conscious chat about completely different textures and flavours and why they get pleasure from these and the way it makes their our bodies really feel?
- Focus in on the sense of contact, scent and sound as they lay the desk – wiping it clear, laying forks and knives down.
- In case you are having meat at dinner, invite them to really feel gratitude by saying ‘thanks’ to the animal that gave its life so they might eat and be wholesome.
- Invite them to be inquisitive about how the meals on the plate appears to be like – the colors and shapes and the way it’s organized.
- After they take a conscious, invite them to shut their eyes and hear, really feel the meals they’re consuming and spot what occurs.
- And basically, you follow alongside them and be inquisitive about watering your private internal seed of peace increasing with each conscious second as you eat collectively.
Conscious Consuming: Meals Contemplations
(An excerpt from the ebook ‘Planting the Seeds’ – Training Mindfulness with Youngsters)
- This meals is the present of the entire universe: The earth, the sky, the rain, and the solar.
- We thank the individuals who have made this meals, particularly the farmers, the individuals on the market and the cooks.
- We solely placed on our plate as a lot meals as we will eat.
- We need to chew the meals slowly in order that we will get pleasure from it.
- This meals offers us power to follow being extra loving and understanding.
- We eat this meals as a way to be wholesome and pleased, and to like one another as a household.
College lunchtime – Conscious Consuming Observe
If you want to study extra about conscious consuming practices for faculties, please join with us (beneath) and we’ll share a conscious consuming follow that may be integrated into faculty lunchtimes.
We’ll be releasing extra info in our subsequent weblog submit in regards to the completely different methods shared on this retreat. Please subscribe to our mailing record or comply with us on social media to be stored knowledgeable.
In the event you want to study extra about serving to kids study meditation please take a look at our Linked Children Program.
Study to show kids meditation
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