Parenting: Paint Your Child's World With Cheer  

By DAISAKU IKEDA  

Parenting: Paint Your Child's World With Cheer  

In my travels to different countries, it is always the children, filled with energy and hope, who leave me with the most lasting impression. When I gaze into their deep, clear eyes, I find myself profoundly encouraged. For in the deepest reaches of children's eyes shines the light of purpose, a natural sense of responsibility for the future of our planet.

I believe that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru saw the same thing in the eyes of the children he encountered. His interactions with children, however playful, were anything but 'play'. They were the earnest and intent work of protecting, strengthening and building the future. With a threatened future, the indifference and selfishness of adults robs children of their most basic right - the right to be children.

Even one child-soldier forced to kill and die for the selfish causes of adults is one too many - and yet there are hundred of thousands. Even one child deprived of access to schooling, healthcare or nutrition is one too many - yet there are hundreds of millions. This is the reality the world's adults have created for children.

The founder of the movement from which the Soka Gakkai International has grown was a Japanese educator, Tsunesaburo Maki-guchi. Makiguchi's initial experience as a teacher was in a remote, rural region of Japan, where he taught in a one-room schoolhouse. The children were poor and the manners they brought from their impoverished homes were rough. Makiguchi, however, was insistent: "They are all, equally, students. Even though they may be covered with dust or dirt, the brilliant light of life shines from their soiled clothes. Why does no one try to see this? The teacher is all that stands between them and the cruel discrimination of society."

It was the plight of his fellow countrymen, in particular the children, that set the young Nehru on the path of political activism after his return from England. In November 1930, Nehru, confined in prison, addressed A Birthday Letter to his daughter Indira, who was then turning 13. Acutely conscious of her loneliness, he offers this comfort: "On your birthday you have been in the habit of receiving presents and good wishes. Good wishes you will still have in full measure, but what present can I send you from Naini Prison? My presents cannot be very material or solid. They can only be of the air and of the mind and spirit!"

The greatest, most enduring gifts parents can offer their children are what might be called the "treasures of the heart" - the gifts of love, wisdom and courage. Nehru took care not to coddle his young daughter: "Let us remember that we can do nothing which may bring discredit to our cause or dishonour to our people! Be brave, and all the rest follows."

In this, and the subsequent letters that would become known as Glimpses of World History, he addresses Indira with a truly moving respect for her intelligence and understanding. He understood that within every child is an adult understanding, waiting to be addressed. When I greet very young children, I let them know that I look forward to the contributions they will make to the peace and well-being of humankind in the future - I know from what I see in the child's eyes that even if the exact meaning of my words has not been fully grasped, my intent and my expectations have.

Nothing encourages the growth of children more than knowing they are understood and trusted by adults. I believe that if each one of us takes the time to address with love, respect and faith the child closest to us, and if we extend that love and faith to all children, distant or near, we can begin to fulfil our sacred responsibility towards the future. (The writer is president, Soka Gakkai International)

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More from same author see: DAISAKU IKEDA  

See also: Parenting, Faith and Belief, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)