How did you tell your children about reincarnation?

[amifriend]

My three-year old daughter recently took interest in life and death. I believe in reincarnation and I could tell her about the knowledge and feeling I have based on books, my own PL regression experience etc. but I'm hesitant about it. Perhaps she may not take killing as such an evil. Or what if she does not take her own life seriously, believing that she could "redo" everything? I heard some regressionists do not accept the underaged or even those under 30 as clients because of "lack in life experience". On the other hand, some children take the concept of reincarnation more naturally than adults, whether they can recall their past lives or not - maybe it is because of their soul age or traits.

So my question is, when and how did you tell about reincarnation to your children who are curious about life and death? How did they respond? Or did you tell them about religious stories or folktales (such as heaven and hell) until they became mature enough?

 

[Mere Dreamer]

Try asking her what she thinks happened before she was born. Maybe something like, "Where did you come from? Do you know?" At that age they often tell YOU that they had a past life or used to be elsewhere before they chose you as their parent. And then you can just be interested in whatever they say. Or, you can inform her guides and yours that you're willing to talk to her about reincarnation if she is ready and wait to see whether she brings it up naturally in some way.

If she doesn't come out with it herself, I don't think it should be a taboo topic, though. Let the conversation develop naturally as she matures.

All you really need to do at this age is show her the cycles in everything around her. Plant to fruit to seed to plant. Sunset, night, sunrise, day. Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer. There are many lovely time lapse videos that she might really enjoy watching with you.

When she asks about death, you can tell her that it's part of the natural cycle of life as you show her these easy to see cycles all around her. When she asks about life, talk about the way her cells are building her body every day or the way plants grow. When she's a bit older (or maybe even now) you can explain that her whole body will be completely replaced every seven years of her life because even her body is part of that cycle of life and it is constantly dying and replacing itself in every moment and that the part of her that is really alive just inhabits her body like she puts on clothes. (Try not to make this scary because I can imagine the nightmares a kid could come up with if they misunderstand.)

I don't think understanding reincarnation will make her calloused toward death or more inclined to suicide, since the whole point of living is to develop your capacity for respectful relationships and see what spiritual qualities you can develop while in a physical body. Focus on why our souls choose to live life after life and she will see that the benefit of her choices in life last beyond time, and that she gets to invest in making the future better for everyone by living well.

And be prepared for her to want to live without reincarnation as a concept. Many children (like mine) choose this, and I think you won't have much trouble seeing whether your daughter is like them if she finds the topic uninteresting or incomprehensible.

Good luck!

 

[CherryBunny]

I have raised my son to decide for himself what and how he believes, so I mostly didn't explain my belief when he was little. It wasn't until a couple of years ago, actually. He was sixteen and came to me and asked me what my belief was.

Well, we are both on the autism spectrum, so neither of us is good at explaining things verbally. I mucked it up. He doesn't come right out and say it but it is obvious he thinks I am one fry short of a happy meal. It also has a lot to do with how he processes things, though. He is extrememly factual and needs proof for everything. He is an Athiest now, which I respect, since it was his own personal choice.

Oh also. >_< I am not going to post it again here, because I already posted it another thread, but we did have a bit of an incident once. It was, again, horribly awkward and embarrassing.

 

[MD14]

I don't have any children yet, however when I do (hopefully soon!) I plan on waiting until they directly ask me what I believe. Neither of my parents believe in reincarnation, and I didn't believe until I was 13, when I first started having memories and dreams, and doing my own research. I think if my future children asked me about death I'll ask them what they think, and tell them about different opinions, like heaven/hell, ghosts, etc. And how some people don't believe that anything happens after death and let them decide for themselves what they believe. Like I said, if they ask me what I believe I'll tell them, however I wouldn't force my beliefs on them, and I wouldn't present it as fact, just my opinion.

 

[Guillaume_D]

I think it would be a good idea to raise our children with the idea of reincarnation and soul immortality. They would make a great spiritual evolution just when they're young. But... in reality we must prepare them to live in our actual world. As children they have to build their personality. I'm not sure talking about these things when they're too young would help them. I began talking about reincarnation with my older son when he was about 14 or 15. He was learning about religion and asked me questions about it. I gave him my answers, saying I didn't want him to believe me, I just wanted to make him think about it. If it is his way to learn about reincarnation, he will come to it by himself. So I think it's better to talk with children when they're old enough to understand.