Why are we so fond of children?

It is difficult question! I don't have cut-and-dry answer to it. I do not think either explains my fondness for children. But I admit that I am fond of children and this fondness has increase with the years. It is because I have always felt that the children of today will make the world of tomorrow, and, the way we bring them up will determine the future of the country.

Do we totally disapprove of the rapping and scolding of children?

We should do not approve of corporal punishment of children or for that matter of grown ups either. of course, I do not say that they should not be made to realize their mistakes. There may even be sort of penalty, but we should totally abhor thrashing or hitting them.

Is there any special method to reform mischievous children?

The only way to reform mischievous children is to win them over with love. A child should get to trust you, you can't mend his ways. As long as he does not consider you his friend, or does not come to fell that what you say as a friend is for his good, mere scolding will have little effect. He can be disciplined if his attention is drawn to some other activity, as an organization, such as Bal Bhavan, Bal Sahayoga, Anath Ashram etc. These institutions are for waifs and strays who live by doing odd jobs and at times even by picking pockets. They are not confined to a place by force. Instead, they are absolutely free to visit there. whenever they want to and learn some vocation for a couple of hours. There are several vocations which they can learn. This can bring them some money. And there is no compulsion of any sort. They learn many things there, many avenues of making a living are opened to them and their minds get diverted into constructive channels. What I mean is, children should have opportunities for development, and they should have been given a proper lead. The child should not be forcibly bent this way or that, like a sapling. Forcible correction may do more harm than good.

What good and bad points that can be notice in the Eastern and Western ways of bringing up children?

We speak of an Eastern and a Western way of bringing up children, but there is also another difference - If we may say so, the rich people's ways and the poor people's ways. Besides this, in all the Western countries, all children go to school compulsorily for a period of ten years, from the age of six to fifteen or sixteen. And, that makes a lot of difference. When there is no schooling, you can't expect much discipline. Generally speaking, children in India get spoiled by too much fussing and prettying. Of course, love is necessary because it is a natural thing. The child gets some of it from the parents, some from others. Love has the greatest influence on human beings, especially on young children. But it would be wrong to carry it to such extremes that it leads the child to bad habits. For instance, our ideas of feeding and clothing the children are wrong. We clothe them so excessively that they become weak for ever, and we try to feed them so much that  their stomach is upset. These things are wrong. Love is all right, but it should not be excessive.

Do we also thrash children?

Thrashing is, of course, a bad thing. But it is there. Schooling from the age of 6 or 7 to the 14th or 15th year makes all the difference to a child's life. Now it is a moot point whether it is better for a child to stay in the boarding or at home. I feel, it would be good for a child to stay at a boarding school, away from home, for some time. Otherwise the child lives in a confined atmosphere. In the company of other children, his personality flowers. At the same time, it is not good for a child of tender age to stay away from its parents for long. There should be a balance between the two influences.

What do they do in the West?

In the West, the rich have one system and others have another - but the differences between the two diminishing. The rich are pretty strict with their children. It is the opposite of what we have here. They are strict because they want their children to be hardly and fearless. They encourage them to take risks. Of course not foolhardy ones, but dangerous enough to conditions the children to face dangers. In fact, old schools where children of the well-to-do studied, are very strict. The food is rather simple and the quantity too is somewhat inadequate. One did not even get a full meal.
 And, in addition there are great stress on outdoor sports. If a student lagged behind in them he is penalized and looked down upon. Here also different countries have different systems. I mean this is the British way. Other European countries have different ways. Unlike us, Indians, the rich people there did not spoil their children by prettying. They take some pain to toughen them up in body and mind.

Children of poorer people in the West

As I told so, now the difference is diminishing. Their children also  go to schools, but instead of staying at the boarding they live at home. Earlier they are not receiving any special care. They are love, of course. Generally, there are more children in a family than desirable. There are pressure of poverty and lack of living space. In a large family, they children have to look after each other. These difficulties arising out of poverty are present in every country. Perhaps they are less acuter there than in India because they are not so poor as we are. Secondly, in cold countries, it is a little difficult. This created problems, and as the children do not live apart from their parents, they sometimes picked up bad habits like drinking. On more capable of facing the difficulties of life. Both these pints are there.

Conclusion

From above discussion we can conclude that Western country's system of children development plays an important role to develop children of our country as well as other poorer countries. We can't avoid their rule and system for developing our children further. Since the children of today will make the  country of tomorrow, we should have to take care them.