YOGA LIFESTYLE

The Yoga Lifestyle works not only very well for adults, but also for children: with a healthy and conscious life, their light will shine brighter and stronger. Adults are seeking for awareness. Adults are seeking for ways of getting back to this inner light we’ve lost somewhere in childhood. We can learn from this and keep the light of our children shining intense and powerful, so that they don’t have to seek their whole lives for bliss and happiness: it will be there present inside of them and they can reach it at any time. We can give them tools, so that they themselves can connect to their pure and bright light at all times.

Since many years I have been teaching children to maintain a light Yoga Lifestyle and they always love it! Imagine yourself, a kid that is dancing freely on Goa Trance without thinking of any boundaries, shame or structure. It is hard to get there, the first time they always want to do ‘steps’. Most children think that dancing is doing certain movements that others teach you. But dancing is just intuitively following the music with your body in a meditative state. Let yourself go, without the boundaries of steps or adults telling you what to do. Right there at that moment ‘the light is strong’: when children can be themselves, their true selves of love. And for children this lifestyle is actually their true nature: they love it. For them it is a way to connect to the light of the Source they just came from. Love is their language.

To return to the inner light with the Yoga Lifestyle means for children not only doing meditation, asanas and live healthy. They need to play. Dancing like described here is part of yoga. Shiva and Shakti, god and goddess of yoga, were even communicating through cosmic dance with their devotees. The trance is where the connection with the higher energy lies. Dance and play would do us adults good too: we can learn from our children to connect with our true inner selves by being just playful and happy, because happiness is who we truly are!

Here are 11 tips to let your child live the Yoga Lifestyle:

1. Give your children only healthy, fresh, natural Sattvic food, never sugar or manufactured food. Make cookies together and instead of candy give dried fruits for example. When they eat light, they will have light thoughts and healthy emotions which are the base of good deeds.
2. Children love the wonders of nature, like the amazing twin-kiwi on the front picture. Let them grow their own fruits and veggies, that way they learn to appreciate nature even more.
3. Make eating healthy fun. Paint a dolphin on a banana, create funny colored smoothies and make fruit-pizza or healthy ice-cream. Involve children in the cooking process: they love it.
4. Let them feel that they themselves are part of nature too, and that they are pure wondrous beings of love. Life is precious and they value so much, by only being here in this life. They don’t have to accomplish anything: let them feel loved by only being here. They are loved for who they are, not for what they do.
5. Learn your child to appreciate every moment of the day. Live in the now, in the moment and enjoy life.
6. Before going to bed, let them name 3 things they are thankful off.
7. Educate your children with certain values like peace, truth, non violence, love and helping others. Help others together where you can and make a party out of it: ‘We are going to do groceries for granny!!’ If you make it a special event, they will experience it like that as well.
8. Start the morning with a meditation. The age of the child is a good alignment for that: when they are 5 years old, they can sit for 5 minutes. When they are 10 years old they can sit for at least 10 minutes and this can extend every time they practice. During meditation, let them focus on their breathing and a huge light inside their hearts.
9. When your children come out of school let them clean the energy with sports, games or free dance. Let them be outside and play. Give them a chance to be in contact with the elements and nature at least an hour a day.
10. Switch of television, computers and tablets and give them quality time: be together and talk about the things that happened during the day. Help them process and place the things that happen in life. Give them space to self reflect and let them know that making mistakes does not exist: it is all part of a learning process called life. Let them know that you love them unconditionally, no matter what they do good or bad. Your love will never change. This way you give them space to grow internally and love themselves.
11. Help them to recognize, analyze and accept their emotions. This is a good start to the path of Jnana, Karma and Bhakti Yoga in which they learn about themselves and their actions. This is a first step of gaining control of our inner world. With control over thoughts and senses, they can reach their light easily and become strong and happy beings!

Of course children can do asanas, the postures on the mat, as well. But this list shows that even without doing asanas, it is possible to live a Yoga Lifestyle. It is an attitude of love and gratefulness towards life, nature and other beings. Eventually, living this lifestyle your children will feel better about themselves and will become more self confident. They will be healthier with a strong defense system. They will feel strong inside. They will feel inner peace. They will feel happy and experience true bliss. They will be more loving persons. Their light will keep on shining, with a perfect balance between body, mind and soul!

Namaste.